On the recordJuly 7, 2011
Mr. President I would observe the current Presiding Officer has had the misfortune of being in the chair whenever I am coming down to speak, so I appreciate his patience. Today, congressional leaders are meeting with the President of the United States to discuss what can be done to reduce the Nation's out- of-control deficit, to deal with our unsustainable debt, to get America back to work and help grow our economy. I congratulate the President for convening this meeting, which will probably be one of the last chances we will have to deal with this deadline of August 2 to deal with the debt limit--a situation wherein we have maxed out our Nation's credit card. Forty-three cents out of every dollar the Federal Government spends today is borrowed money, making the deficit worse and not better and making the debt worse and not better. This is the chance to kick the habit of out-of-control spending here in Washington. I appreciate the fact the President has moved from his initial position wherein he advocated for Congress to simply raise the debt limit without putting Washington and Congress on a spending diet. I appreciate the fact he has moved in his position. I read today in the daily newspapers that he is putting a lot of things, including Social Security reform, on the table, together with other entitlements.…





