White House Chiefs of Staff

the president wants a vote tomorrow. And is moving on after this vote, regardless of what happens.

How do I go to somebody who pays their taxes and say, 'Look, I want you to give this earned income tax credit to somebody who is working here illegally? That's not defensible.'

If you are on food stamps and you are able bodied, we need you to go to work.

You have to wonder about anyone who would argue that 1.9 is where we should be, their view about the American spirit.

How do we bring competitive, consumer-driven competition to restrain the growth of costs, actually improve quality and access through competition?

If you borrow money, if you take money from people and have no intention and no plan of ever giving it back to them, that is not debt. That is theft.

I wish that the title was 'A Taxpayer-First Budget.'

Well, I do not imagine the President of the United States would tell me to lie.

I think if we would be perfectly candid with each other, the best way for us to reduce the size of the deficit is to grow the economy.

I think it offers us perhaps the best opportunity to have an immediate impact on getting the economy ramped up even further.

I believe that was part of the proposal that the House made in order to give the States the incentive necessary to reform.

The number one priority of the United States Federal Government is to defend the Nation.

I have proposed moving stuff from the OCO to the top-line defense budget because I think it is more transparent.

I would like to think that the President has invited me to join his Cabinet in order to bring those perspectives to the table.

We believe the 2013 government shutdown was good policy.

We can turn this economy around. We can turn this country around. But it is going to take difficult decisions today in order to avoid taking nearly impossible decisions tomorrow.

I think it is one of those appropriate functions of government in many circumstances.

I believe in transparency, Senator McCaskill, but I do not know if I am in a position to tell the President how to conduct himself.

I do believe that money should be allocated based upon an ability to serve patients.

The reason it is here is we do not do our job. Our job is to pass the individual appropriations bill.

Part of the thing that is hard to hear is that for the first time in our history, there is a chance that the next generation may be less prosperous than that that preceded it.

I intend to make it a priority in my discussions with the President on fiscal matters.

I think history would teach us--and I think perhaps Admiral Mullen was considering this--that great nations throughout history have traditionally failed from within, they have rotted from within because of their inability to manage their…

I do not intend to be recommending to the President that we negotiate or govern by crisis.