7/30/11 - Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl Delivers Weekly GOP Address On Debt Ceiling Debate

In the Weekly Republican Address, Senate Republican Whip Jon Kyl discusses the fiscal crisis and the debt ceiling debate.

Sen. Kyl says, "By now, most Americans know that lawmakers in Washington are engaged in a difficult debate about the nation's 'debt ceiling,' the legal limit to the amount of money the federal government can borrow. The debt ceiling is currently set at a little more than 14 trillion dollars, and if Congress and the President don't reach an agreement to raise it by this coming Tuesday, the Treasury Secretary tells us America will no longer be able to pay all its bills. The consequences of missing this deadline could be severe, precisely because Washington borrows so much money -- more than 40 cents out of every dollar it spends. So, spending would have to shrink by 40 percent very quickly. What's more, markets would likely respond, dropping in value and hurting the retirement savings of millions of Americans. Republicans have tried to work with Democrats to avoid this result and put our country on a better path, but we need them to work with us.

"We start from the understanding that the reason the debt ceiling is a problem is because of runaway Washington spending. So, Republicans have been united in the belief that raising the debt ceiling without making significant spending reductions would be irresponsible."

Sen. Kyl points out, "[W]e hoped that the need to increase the debt ceiling could be an opportunity to make some very hard decisions to reduce government spending. Unfortunately, after weeks of negotiations, it became clear that Democrats in Washington did not view this crisis as an opportunity to rein in spending. Instead, they saw it as an opportunity to impose huge tax increases on American families and small businesses. President Obama is simply too committed to the European-style of big government that his policies have set in motion. To Democrats in Washington, the answer isn't to cut spending, but to raise taxes and keep on spending."

He concludes, "Job-killing tax increases are the wrong medicine for our struggling economy. Back in 2009, President Obama admitted that you don't raise taxes in the middle of a recession. This advice is just as true today.

"At the moment, more than 14 million Americans are looking for work and can't find it. According to economists, a healthy economy is one in which unemployment is around 5%. The unemployment rate today is 9.2%. And we got more bad news yesterday: our economy grew at an annual rate of just 1.3% in the second quarter and the first quarter growth was downgraded to just four tenths of one percent. Raising taxes will only make this worse. And prolonging the debt crisis will only add to the ongoing economic uncertainty.

"Republicans believe we must solve our debt crisis -- and we believe we can solve it if Democrats will work with us. No one will get everything they want, and we can't solve all of our problems at once, but surely we can reach an agreement that will increase the debt ceiling, impose accountability, and begin reducing the size of our federal government."

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[tgpgrimreaper]

And this is why Arizona, and every GOP-controlled state will forever be part of the country of "Dumbf*ckistan." We all know who you serve, and it's NOT the American people. Your lies, as exposed by many (even comedians), killed whatever "credibility" you might've had - if you had any. One day, the people will rise against the elites and their cronies (you're one of them) - a day reminiscent to the day of the French Revolution. The people do not forgive. The people do not forget. Expect them.

[Einsteinbomb]

Where the fuck were you during the last decade Sen. Kyl?

[grafikfeat]

Thanks for the Downgrade Guys. So... Now instead of paying a tax like we have been for 235 years... We will now be paying higher interest rates to people we borrow money from. Way to go guys. Way to go.

If it were up to me you'd all be in jail for treason.

[freba91]

@grafikfeat This is all the Tea Party's fault. They are just terrost. !I eill never vote for any one sponsered

By the Tea Party !

[2spinn]

If the republicans did not lied and started a war in a foreign country in the first place, there would not be any economic cris now.

[grafikfeat]

Where were you guys from 2000-2008?

Yer all guilty of treason.

[LikableDesi]

Canada its time to invade US. Remember divide and conquer. These guys are already divided. All we have to do is invade with our 60,000 troops.

[rossevancoe]

All I know is that the the representatives should be the first to not get paid...

[HemiHead66]

Hey Kyl, even if ya passed Ryan's country gutting budget, it would still leave us with debt of 23+ trillion in 2021-10 years. Is that how you plan to stop Washington's spending? You all know what the problem is, but you refuse to cut the hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars being squandered in the hands of a few. Then there's the technology you keep from coming to market. We could come close to ending our use of oil, and the deficits that come with it if you weren't in the pockets of big-oil

[dustinauen]

The democrats have given given and given. republicans have made no attempt whatsoever to come to an agreement as a party. This video is horse wash. How about acting on what advice is given. The republican party has complete control over whether or not america defaults. It will be interesting to see how they really feel about their country. I doubt the republican party will allow a default because doing so would make the country unable to pay soldiers to risk their lives over hog wash.