March 20, 2013

March 19, 2013 -- Rep. John Campbell (R-CA), senior Member of the House Budget Committee, speaks from the floor of the House of Representatives in support of the House Republican FY2014 Budget Proposal. Citing the recent economic collapse of nations like Spain, Greece, and Cyprus, Campbell admonishes budget proposals that attempt to tax and spend in order to achieve a short-term, temporary, "sugar-high" fix to the growing U.S. debt crisis. As a real solution, Campbell explains that not only with the House Republican budget balance in 10 years, it will grow the economy, create sustainable jobs, and establish certainty and security in the U.S. markets. The House Republican budget will not only prevent the U.S. from having to make massive, systemic cuts overnight, it will solve the nation's debt problem and free the economy to expand and grow. Full Transcript of Rep. Campbell's Remarks: "Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I don't know if you've been to Spain or not, but I have. Just once. It's a beautiful country. Nice people, great food, and, at one time, a large, vibrant, and growing economy. But, not today. Today in Spain, over half of people under 25 years old can't find work. The unemployment amongst all ages in Spain is about what we had during the Great Depression - not the "Great Recession", the Great Depression of the 1930's. People on government medical care there can't get it. They can't get it when they want it because they had to close a lot of medical clinics in order to save money. They have this situation because they waited too long to fix their fiscal problems. They waited until they had a debt crisis. And then, they had to do what my friend from Maryland said, they had to impose an austerity program. They raised taxes and cut spending very quickly, in a matter of just a year or so. Because that's what they had to do to continue being able to sell their debt." "That, Mr. Chairman, is exactly what we don't want to do. This is not speculation; this is not something we have to think about. It's there for us to see. And, not just in Spain, in Greece, in Cyprus, and in Japan, in a different form. It's there in other parts of the world. When you borrow so much money that the people won't lend to you any anymore, then you put in this austerity, which causes these problems. Unfortunately, that is what my friends on the other side of the aisle - their budgets - will lead us to: More debt, more deficits...kind of a sugar high. They'll say, 'Oh yeah, we're going to spend all this money, create all these government jobs.' Sure, for awhile, and we'll feel good until the debt crisis comes and then all that goes away. "The Republican budget balances in 10 years, and not so that CPAs like me can achieve some symmetry that makes us feel good. It's because when you balance a budget, you set this balance up and it frees up the economy. People know that we're on that track to balance in 10 years. We won't have a debt crisis and people will know we won't have a debt crisis. The economy is freed up from the burden of too much debt, of knowing that there's a problem with no solution. There will now be a problem with a solution. The economy will be freed up both on the government side and private sector side, and there will be more jobs and more jobs." "That's what the Republican budget promises: An economy that grows and sustainable job creation. Not a one or two year sugar high followed by a collapse. We've seen what not to do. We know the path not to take. This Republican budget is the path we should take, and I hope everyone will support it. I yield back." http://www.campbell.house.gov http://www.facebook.com/JohnCampbell @RepJohnCampbell