James Hill: “this week the House Budget Committee will mark up its fiscal year 2008 budget. After 6 years of fiscal recklessness, the…”

“this week the House Budget Committee will mark up its fiscal year 2008 budget. After 6 years of fiscal recklessness, the Democratic budget will actually aim to balance in 2012, something that Republican budgets have been unable to achieve over the last 6 years. It is important that the American people remember how we got to where we are today. In 2001, President Bush inherited a $5.6 trillion surplus, but over the next 6 years, with help from Congress, the President turned that surplus into a $2.8 trillion deficit. Congress has been so fiscally irresponsible that President Bush has borrowed more money from other nations than all 42 of his predecessors combined. This is not a fiscal record to be proud of. The President's attempt to finesse his budget has been uncovered by a nonpartisan CBO that concludes the President's budget does not reach balance in 5 years. Madam Speaker, Democrats have a different set of priorities, and ours begin with actually aiming to balance the budget for the first time in 6 years.”