Congressman Mac Thornberry (R-Clarendon) issued the following statement after the House voted to prevent default and cut spending:
"The bottom line is that this bill is one step in the right direction. I would rather take two, or three, or five steps, but I cannot reject a bill that cuts spending as much as it increases borrowing and that provides the opportunity for greater cuts as well as for real reforms in budgeting and spending. This includes requiring a vote on a balanced budget amendment.
This bill cuts some spending, although not nearly as much as I would like. I am concerned about the way it treats national defense. It does not deal with mandatory spending, which is well over half the budget. Yet, while there is much about this bill with which I am not satisfied, I have absolutely no doubt that if this bill is rejected, the next one will be worse. It may come after Social Security checks are not received or after the markets plummet, but there would be another bill, and it will not have the cuts or reforms that are in this one.
This vote is an opportunity to begin charting a very different course for our country. There is much more work ahead, and I will keep pushing for more steps in the direction of fiscal responsibility in the weeks and months to come."
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Congressman Thornberry also placed a statement in the Congressional Record in advance of tonight's vote to prevent default and cut spending that can be found on his website.
