Political Quotes

“I am on the floor this afternoon to discuss a discovery--really, a stunning discovery for me--and that is important for all of us. As many people know, Congress and the President struck a deal last summer to raise the debt ceiling. That deal set in place discretionary spending caps--not nearly enough to balance our budget over 10 years but a step in the right direction. That legislation said we will raise the debt ceiling $2.1 trillion but we will cut spending $2.1 trillion over 10 years--a promise to cut spending over 10 years. That legislation also required the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee--of which I am the ranking member--by April 15 of this year to file aggregate spending levels--spending limits--based on the Congressional Budget Office's March 2012 financial baseline and to allocate the funds that could be spent under that Budget Control Act legislation to each of the Senate Appropriations Committees. In other words, these levels as submitted tell the appropriators how much they can spend, and the budget chairman has that responsibility and duty to do that. He takes the level agreement that was agreed to and sends that over. These are real dollars that each appropriating committee is therefore allowed to spend. Yet we have learned something that is disappointing-- really astounding to me.…”