…because apparently, Kaine thinks it belongs to him, as today’s op-ed in the Daily Press reminds Virginians:
My Republican opponents in Virginia’s U.S. Senate race share their approach. Jamie Radtke and Tim Donner believe we should “just say no” to raising the debt ceiling, and that despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary there will be no negative impact to America defaulting on its obligations. George Allen takes an equally irresponsible stance. As senator, Allen voted to raise the debt ceiling four times while at the same time voting for spending bills that turned America’s largest surplus into America’s largest deficit.
Now, Allen calls for conservatives to use the debt-ceiling vote as “leverage” to further their agenda and praises the gridlock in Washington as “a great opportunity.”
I could not disagree more.
Now as partisan-in-chief, what Kaine doesn’t tell you is that (1) Democrats were just as much in on the grab during those four votes, and (2) that at some point in time, things were going to come to a head.
So what is Kaine whining about? Kaine is whining that he’s run out of your money, is all…
What’s worse, Kaine isn’t proposing any new solutions — he’s just applying the old ones to stave off a financial collapse (and if whispers from Washington mean anything — ideally until after the 2012 presidential elections).
Which begs the question — which Tim Kaine is speaking to us today? The do-nothing governor whose tenure in Richmond is derided as one of the worst in recent political memory? The partisan DNC chairman who seeks the failure of the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act the only responsible plan that will preserve America’s AAA rating (despite my personal misgivings — it’s the best we’re gonna get, folks)? Or the wannabe Virginia Senator who is just looking to take cheap shots?
Rep. Bobby Scott’s potential just grew three sizes today. The fewer hacks we have in Washington, the better. Maybe Democrats will give the GOP an honest alternative to Cut, Cap, and Balance — rather than the Whine, Cry, and Pout that Timmy Kaine offered this morning…
UPDATE: U.S. Senate candidate and Republican challenger Tim Donner responds:
In his Sunday op-ed in the Daily Press, Tim Kaine attacked my position on the current debt ceiling debate by attempting to equate my opposition to raising the debt ceiling to a willingness to default on America’s debt obligations. This is the false choice consistently voiced by liberals, despite the fact that it has been proven that more than enough revenues are available to meet our debt obligations whether the debt ceiling is raised or not.
Chairman Kaine then lays his cards squarely on the table, proposing the most reckless of all options – raising the debt ceiling with no strings attached, and postponing the debate over spending cuts until after we add another $2.5 trillion to a national debt that now tops $14 trillion.
Mr. Kaine then employs the usual liberal code language in stating his position. In favoring a “balanced approach,” he means raising taxes in the middle of an economic downturn. In saying Republican plans “ask nothing of wealthy individuals and corporations,” he is joining President Obama in a call to class warfare and demonizing the very instruments of economic growth needed to save the economy. In calling for “new revenue sources and strategic investments,” he is reverting to the same failed and discredited liberal creed of taxing and spending that has not only been an abject failure, but has in itself created the mammoth debt crisis we are now trying to solve.
Let me be clear that, because of the failures of the political establishment, none of the options now available are simple or desirable. But this is a moment of truth when we have an unprecedented opportunity to draw a line in the sand and accomplish the clearly stated desires of the American people to stop runaway federal spending, as expressed in the landslide elections of 2010. Thus, I am in favor of holding the line on raising the debt ceiling unless it is accompanied by the vital structural reform outlined in the the cut, cap and balance plan passed by the US House, but rejected by the Democrat-controlled Senate. This bill would have advanced the same constitutional amendment to balance the budget and place a hard cap on spending that has been a foundation of my campaign for permanent change in Washington from the day I announced my candidacy. Anything less is simply not acceptable when it means adding trillions more to a national debt that has already become a millstone around the necks of our children and grandchildren.
Excellent response. Will post others as they trickle in…
UPDATE x2: Chuck Hansen with the Radtke for Senate Campaign sends this in…
Of all issues, the debt ceiling most clearly defines the differences between the Democrats and the fiscally responsible Republican Tea Party legislators.
For example, in his Daily Press editorial Tim Kaine presents a clear and compelling case why neither he nor President Obama deserves the votes of Virginians in 2012. Tim Kaine flatly says that any cuts the Democrats might consider would be only “a means of freeing up revenue for new investments that will strengthen our economy in the long run.” In other words, any money saved through spending cuts would then be spent! That business-as-usual deception has bankrupted this country.
Contrast that with the new generation of courageous, conservative Republicans – like Michelle Bachmann – who do not support raising the debt ceiling. This is my position as well. Yes, I support Cut, Cap and Balance. Yes, I want a Balanced Budget Amendment. But I do not support raising the debt ceiling.
The bond rating agencies have already stated that there is significant probability that the United States will lose its AAA bond rating, regardless whether the debt ceiling is increased. Bond rating agencies want to see structural changes to spending habits addressed in a long-term manner, but President Obama and Tim Kaine Democrats are unwilling to deal with reality. Their fundamentalist attitude on the size and scope of the federal government have bankrupted this country. Voters across Virginia and America will remember that President Obama and Tim Kaine allowed their left-wing extremist views to destroy American credit and inflict significant harm on the working class and our seniors.
We are in a $14.4 trillion hole and more deficit spending isn’t the cure. It’s time to stop digging. Our problem isn’t that we can’t borrow more money; our problem is that Washington has spent too much money ALREADY.
It’s time to stop digging. Period.
Unfortunately, this statement comes at the very moment Speaker Boehner and the GOP leadership have announced precisely this — more digging.
