Chris Van Hollen

This is a tough love budget. It cuts non-security discretionary spending by $400 billion over the next decade.

I want to commend the President for submitting a budget that reduces our deficit, while also investing in our future.

Compromise is not a dirty word. Getting things done requires give and take. We should begin that conversation now.

Thank you, Chairman Ryan, welcome Director Lew. I want to commend the President for putting forth a budget that reduces our deficit while also investing in our future.

The reality is that we did have a 1-year budget resolution for this fiscal year.

Mr. Chairman, if I could just briefly on that.

But just to be clear on the second decade, as you indicated, you expressed your estimate in terms of GDP, and you did say that you believed that repealing the health care reform law would increase Federal deficits in the decade after 2019…

And so that is how we got the figure, 1.4, was we took CBO's estimates of what GDP being would be during that year and applied the percent savings you indicated.

The most important thing we can do as a country is to put together a credible, long-term plan for fiscal sustainability.

Immediate, deep cuts will not create a single job.

The legislation was responsible for saving and creating between 1.3 and 3.4 million jobs.

If we were to throw out the CBO numbers, whether we sometimes agree with them or not, it would be a recipe for budget and fiscal chaos.

Isn't it the case that if you reduce revenues, you increase the deficit?

That cut will result in between 36,800 and 50,600 fewer engineering and construction jobs.

The President indicated in his State of the Union address that he will impose in his budget, that will arrive Monday, a 5-year freeze on non-security domestic discretionary spending, which, by his account, comes to about $400 billion in…

Now, it is true, isn't it, that if you were to make immediate deep cuts, that would have a--that would be a drag, at least in some measure, on the economy and the jobs in the short term; is that right?

The sooner we make a decision to put in place a plan to deal with the debt in the outyears, the less painful it would be.

The levels of debt that are projected in the CBO report in the outyears are unacceptable and unsustainable.

I think we agree that you and your team have been an incredibly professional organization.

I want to join my friend and colleague Paul Ryan in congratulating you, Dr. Elmendorf, on being reappointed.

Last question is I was pleased to see in your testimony that you believe that certain investments, national investments in our economy, can in fact lead to productivity and growth.

Let me ask you a quick question on the fiscal policy, because I think we all agree that the Congress should act now to put in place a plan to get our deficit and debt under control.

It would be reckless from an economic and financial perspective to allow, to essentially default on our debts.

It would be a mistake for, in your view, for the Congress to use the debt ceiling as a, quote, Bargaining chip.

Failure to raise the debt ceiling would be, quote, Catastrophic for our economy and financial system.