NW Atlanta News

On May 31, 2023, Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-GA) issued the following statement after the House passed the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, H.R. 3746, which constrains out of control big-government spending, as well as raising the debt limit:

“For ninety-seven days, President Biden said he would absolutely not negotiate with Republicans on raising the debt limit, and demanded Congress increase the debt ceiling with no constraints on his ability to spend taxpayers’ money. Given that our nation’s debt currently sits at $31 trillion, and coupled with the fact that this administration has spent $10 trillion in its first two years alone, Republicans were never going to cave to these demands. We stood our ground and forced the president to the negotiating table and delivered on some of the most consequential spending cuts in decades.

“Defaulting on our nation’s debt was never an option because it would result in economic calamity, the likes of which our country has never seen. Not only would a default have severe economic consequences, but it would result in a national security crisis that China would be happy to take advantage of. It would also open the door for Democrats to push every social spending program imaginable and cause inflation to skyrocket even higher.

“The popular financial advisor and Christian conservative, Dave Ramsey’s ‘7 Baby Steps’ plan to getting out of debt is a great way to think about what the Fiscal Responsibility Act does for the federal government. While this plan is far from perfect, it is a ‘baby step’ in the right direction to curbing this administration’s out-of-control spending. Republicans cannot continue to let the perfect be the enemy of the good, especially when Democrats control the White House and the Senate; because, even though it’s not everything I would like, or everything this nation needs, it’s a start. The war over our spending and national debt problems is far from over, but Republicans have made a start to turn Congress towards more fiscal responsibility - changing the status quo in Washington, D.C.

"We won this battle, and we will win the next one – one baby step at a time.”

Background

Stop Out-of-Control Inflationary Spending
-Cut spending year-over-year, including a rollback of non-defense discretionary spending to FY22 Levels; fully fund VA medical
-Limit topline federal spending to 1% annual growth for the next 6 years
Lift More Americans Out of Poverty
-Enact consequential reforms to SNAP and TANF to get Americans back to work, and grow the economy
Claw Back Tens of Billions in Unspent COVID Funds
-Claws back $29 billion of unobligated, unspent COVID funds.
Rein in Executive Overreach
-Enact into law the first ever statutory Administrative Pay-Go to hold President Biden accountable for the full cost of executive rules and regulations, which should save taxpayers trillions
Cut Red Tape and Streamline Energy & Infrastructure Projects
-Accelerate projects and cut costs with the first significant reform to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) since 1982
Slash Funding for Biden's New IRS Agents
-Nix the total FY23 staffing funding request for new IRS agents
Restart Student Loan Repayments
-Require borrowers to be responsible for paying off their student loan debts, saving taxpayers an estimated $5B per month
Make Congress Work Again
-Compel a functioning appropriations process by imposing a temporary 99% CR-level cap until all 12 appropriations bills are enacted
Protect Our Seniors, Veterans, and America's National Security
-Ensure full funding for critical veteran’s programs and national defense priorities, and preserving Social Security and Medicare
Block Biden & Congressional Democrat Demands for New Taxes
-Reject all of Biden's $5 trillion in proposed new tax increases, new government mandates, and new federal programs 

Original source can be found here.