Political Quotes

“Mr. President, last week, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, came to Chicago to speak to the Economic Club and to articulate his vision--the Republican vision-- on how to reduce our Nation's debt. It was an interesting speech because Congressman Ryan's budget--the Republican budget, which passed the House of Representatives--has become an object of debate and controversy. I know Congressman Ryan. We served together on the President's deficit commission. I know he is a very thoughtful and learned and sincere individual, but I certainly have to say his approach to dealing with our budget deficit is one I believe falls short of the mark. It would seem to me, if we are serious about our deficit--and we should be--we should acknowledge the fact that for every $1 we spend in Washington, we borrow 40 cents. That is unsustainable, and we have to address it. We should also look at the grim, recent reality of our budget. When President William Jefferson Clinton left office a little over 10 years ago and handed the keys to the White House over to President George W. Bush, the accumulated net debt of America was $5 trillion--$5 trillion. Eight years later, in the next transfer of power, when President George W. Bush transferred power to President Obama, America's accumulated net debt had reached a new level of $11 trillion, more than doubled in an 8-year period of time. Ask yourself: How could that occur? Well, the answers are fairly obvious.…”