"By 2050, the government will be collecting that same 20 percent, but spending 45 percent--our deficits will only get worse from there."
"For a country with the proud history and vast resources of the United States, this is unacceptable--it is unacceptable because government's mission matters."
"Step one in righting our course is agreeing on what defines fiscal sustainability."
"Step two must be fixing our broken budget process."
"Step three in this process is making hard decisions on how to move forward with a responsible deficit and debt reduction package."
"In fiscal year 2012, 44 States are projected to have a budget deficit of at least 5 percent."
"No one has to tell me there is a problem. I am from Illinois."
"Its pension system is less than 50 percent underfunded."
"I sure don't need to be convinced that this is a serious problem. I come from Illinois, which seems to compete with California..."
"What I'm trying to get both sides to do is to work with the same numbers."
"Illinois has gone through decades of bad financial decisionmaking under both Democrats and Republicans."
"Introducing a bankruptcy statute would force bondholders to all States to question the legal regime."