House cuts $100 billion from deficit; passes continuing resolution

The U.S. House passed the continuing resolution (H.R. 1) very early this morning 235-189 that will fund the government through this year, but will also cut $100 billion from the 2011 fiscal year budget.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, has declared the bill “unworkable”, but the House and Senate will have to come to some form of government funding agreement to avoid a government shutdown.

Several of Virginia’s congressmen released statements, including U.S. House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, a Virginia Republican:

“Today, the House passed the single largest spending cut in modern history, and our action serves as the historic turning point from a Congress that ignored the will of the people to a Congress that responds to the will of the people. This is the first of many steps by the House to trim spending, live within its means, and get people back to work. At a time when the federal government is borrowing 40 cents of every dollar that it spends and our debt is more than $14 trillion, we have taken an important first step toward fiscal restraint in Washington.

“Too many people remain out of work, which is why we are cutting through job impediments put in place by the government and taking proactive steps to grow the economy and create jobs. As a part of our cut and grow plan, Republicans are cutting spending so that we can begin to get our fiscal house in order and foster an environment that encourages businesses to grow and create jobs. To put it simply, less government spending equals more private sector jobs.

“The Continuing Resolution now heads to the Senate, where Leader Harry Reid has already called our efforts to rein in spending ‘draconian’ and ‘unworkable,’ despite his failure to offer any plan to stop the government from borrowing 40 cents out of every dollar that is spent. Thus far, the Obama-Reid plan to get our fiscal house in order and get people back to work is the status quo, and quite frankly, people deserve better. There is an opportunity for us to work together on common-sense policies to get our fiscal house in order and create an environment that encourages businesses to grow and create jobs, but first Leader Reid and Senator Schumer have to get serious about the challenges that we face.”

Rep. Rob Wittman:

“Through this effort to cut spending, we bring a sense of responsibility back to Washington, DC,” Wittman said. “Responsible governing means tough choices. No one gets a blank check. Cuts of this magnitude can be hard to swallow as they will directly impact many Americans, but we must face the reality of what will happen if we do not make these hard decisions. In January, I joined many of my colleagues to cut Congressional operating budgets, to set the tone for more fiscal responsibility. This bill today illustrates that cutting spending is not simply something we talk about, it’s something we must do. And today we did.”

Rep. Scott Rigell:

“The House has taken another positive step in reducing runaway government spending by reducing President Obama’s FY 2011 budget by $100 billion, however there is still work to be done. Let’s be clear, we are a nation at serious and increasing risk; we are borrowing more than 40 percent of every dollar we spend. The American people sent us to Congress to make the difficult decisions that must be made in order to get our fiscal house in order. When future generations look back at the 112th Congress they should be able to remember us as the Congress that started it all, and made the tough decisions that got our economy back on track, and restored America to greatness.”

Rep. Robert Hurt:

“The President and Congress’ failure to enact a budget last year allowed spending to go unchecked, crippling our economy with a massive $14 trillion debt and $1.6 trillion deficit, all while leaving our children and grandchildren to foot the bill.

“The people of the 5th District made it abundantly clear on November 2nd that we must put a stop to Washington’s reckless spending, and today’s historic vote was another step towards putting our country on a path of fiscal discipline and restraint.

“By voting to cut over $100 billion in government spending, we are acting on the urgent message sent by Central and Southside Virginians to tackle our skyrocketing debt and deficits, and create a better economic environment for private sector growth and job creation.

“While the decisions we face are not easy, we need to act boldly if we are serious about leaving a better America for future generations.”

To learn more about H.R. 1 and some of the successful amendments to it, read the statement from House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rodgers. Some of the amendments include defunding ObamaCare and:

• An amendment from Rep. Pence (R-IN) to prohibit federal funds from being made available to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc., or any of its affiliates.
• An amendment by Rep. Forbes (R-VA) that prohibits the use of funds to take any action to effect or implement the disestablishment, closure or realignment of the US Joint Forces Command.
• An amendment by Rep. Forbes (R-VA) that prohibits the use of funds made available to the Department of Defense for official representation purposes.
• An amendment from Rep. Goodlatte (R-VA) that would prohibit EPA funding for enforcement of total maximum daily loads in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
• An amendment from Rep. Griffith (R-VA) prohibiting the EPA, Corps of Engineers and the Office of Surface Mining from implementing coordination procedures that have served to extend and delay the review of coal mining permits.

To put this into some perspective, and I am very glad that House Republicans are moving in this direction, but $100 billion is only 6.25% of this fiscal year’s deficit ($1.6 trillion). Which means it only cut $6.25 from every $100 it spends beyond its means. If Senate Democrats, particularly Senators Mark Warner and Jim Webb can’t see us cutting $6 from every $100 we don’t have, perhaps it’s time to reconsider them as Senators.

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About the author

JR Hoeft

Conservative to the core; liberal with his opinion! J.R. has been involved in politics for over a decade and has worked on several campaigns in Hampton Roads. He has served on the Executive Committee of the Republican Party of Chesapeake and the Central Committee of the Republican Party of Virginia. He is also the director of “Blogs United” in Virginia. E-mail J.R.. Follow J.R. on Twitter.