Speeches & Statement
Ranking Member Steve Womack (R-AR) Opening Remarks at Markup of H.R. 2021, Investing for the People Act of 2019
I first want to clarify what we are here for today. We’re here to debate legislation that will raise discretionary spending caps. We are not here to debate a budget – despite what lawmakers may try to argue.
Amid disarray and intra-party divisions, it seems an inability to govern led us to the consideration of this relatively small bill instead of a budget resolution for FY2020, which Democrats have chosen not to write.
I agree with the need to raise discretionary spending caps gradually. I made my support for that clear earlier this year. Unfortunately, I strongly oppose this bill.
First, this legislation has several missing ingredients that past discretionary spending cap increases have had.
It is missing bipartisan input. It is missing White House involvement. And it is missing offsets. That’s Washington-speak for, “they don’t have a way to pay for this plan.”
That’s incredibly concerning when you consider the fact that our national debt has exceeded $22 trillion and annual deficits are nearing $1 trillion.
Second, this legislation unwinds the progress this administration has made to restore the readiness of our military. According to the National Defense Strategy Commission, maintaining the strength of our all-volunteer force and executing the necessary military strategy to keep our country safe requires $750 billion of funding for FY2020.
This legislation falls short and neglects the needs of our service men and women – the very people who make the ultimate sacrifice to protect us all.
And finally, this legislation is not a budget. It fails to address the biggest driver of our nation’s rising deficits and ballooning debt – mandatory spending – presenting this Committee, Congress, and the American people with a very incomplete picture of our financial situation.
Mandatory spending – that is, funds for the programs millions of Americans rely on and interest on the debt – accounts for 70 percent of all federal spending and will continue to grow. They are set on autopilot.
Without action, that share will make up 78 percent of all federal spending in the next decade.
If we continue down this path, federal debt held by the public will surge from 78 percent to 93 percent of GDP — the highest debt level since just after World War II and more than twice the average level of the past 50 years.
The legislation before us today ignores that reality. It ignores that Medicare and Social Security are headed toward insolvency. It ignores that our children and grandchildren will be saddled with record-high levels of debt that only massive spending cuts or tax hikes could remedy.
The only document that can adequately address these fiscal challenges is a budget resolution.
That’s why our Committee was created. Drafting a budget resolution is our chief responsibility. It tells us what we need to know about how much we’re spending, what we’re raising in revenue, and the impact of our deficits and debt on our economy and the American people.
Without it, Congress is flying blind.
As former Chairman of this Committee, I know that producing a budget is not easy. It requires the courage to make tough choices. It requires leadership to set an agenda and policy priorities.
House Budget Republicans did that last year. We faced our hurdles, of course. That’s become the norm.
As my dear friend from Kentucky and I have discussed, that’s exactly why we need budget process reform. I’m committed to working with anyone and everyone on this issue.
But a broken process is not an excuse to circumvent a fundamental part of our jobs. A failure to budget is a failure to govern – especially on the Budget Committee.
I know many of my Republican colleagues are prepared to offer amendments that address some of the concerns I’ve laid out today. I look forward to a robust debate on their inclusion in this bill.
Thank you, again, and I yield back.