On the recordJuly 19, 2011
I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I sit back, and as we are watching the debate today, I have got to take my hat off to the gentleman from Maryland, who I think has the toughest job in the whole Chamber, Mr. Speaker; and that is, he is basically, today, the lawyer for the status quo. And that's a tough job. That's a tough argument to make. No matter how thoughtful the arguments have been on this side of the aisle that there is an urgency, no matter how poignant the arguments are that there is an urgency, no matter how jarring the unemployment figures are at 9.2 percent, no matter what the rating agencies are saying, the gentleman from Maryland is basically saying: No, no, no, there's a better plan. But I would submit that there is no better plan. There is no more balanced plan than cut, cap, and balance. Most Americans as they are listening to this debate, they are hearing Washington, D.C., basically say hold the line. Defend the status quo. Lash ourselves to the mast and we're going to get around the cape, by golly, if we only stick on the current course. Well, the current course is a failure. There's nobody who can defend the status quo with a straight face. What happens now is this majority has come up and said: Okay, there is a pathway forward, and the pathway forward is immediate short term and long term. And I don't see what the argument is.
