August 1, 2011

"Mr. Speaker, Today the agreement that we will be voting on is yet another example of the historic pivot in Washington, because never before in history has an increase in our nation's debt limit been tied to cuts in spending. "No longer will the debate about how much more is the federal government going to spend; the debate now is how much spending is going to be cut. "This legislation will require: more than $2.1 trillion in federal spending cuts; puts in place very firm caps to hold down future spending; both houses of Congress must have an up-or-down vote on a balanced budget amendment; does not impose any job killing tax increases; avoids a default on federal obligations that would be disastrous to our economy; and begins the process to put this nation on a path to prosperity. "We have much more that still needs to be done, but this is further progress in turning the federal government toward fiscal sanity so that we can leave a better America for our children and grandchildren."