The Senate reconvened at 9:30 AM today and began consideration of the motion to proceed to H.J. Res. 98, the resolution of disapproval of President Obama’s latest debt ceiling increase. Shortly after noon, Senate Democrats voted 44-52 to block the resolution, thereby allowing the debt ceiling increase to stand.
The House is not in session today or tomorrow: Legislation Subject to a rule: HR 1173--CLASS Act repeal is still pending in the House. The below bills were passed this week.
H R 3801 was Unanimously passed yesterday.; This was noteworthy because it was sponsored by now former Rep Gabrielle Giffords. The bill cracks down on the use of lightweight planes to smuggle drugs across the border. Giffords cast the final vote before resigning for medical reasons.
Also passed:
House passed 373-1 the electronic duck stamp.
HR 290 (Voice vote) - War memorials' religious symbols
H.R.1022 (338 - 70) - Buffalo Soldiers in the National Parks Study Act
H.R. 3630 (397 - 16) - Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011
H R 2070 (386 - 26) - World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2011
H RES 516 (410 - 1, 1 Present) - Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the passage of a fiscal year 2013 Federal budget is of national importance.
Today, Senate Republicans brought to the floor the House-passed resolution to disapprove of (and block) President Obama’s latest request for a debt ceiling increase, yet Senate Democrats voted against the resolution, thus allowing the increase in the debt ceiling to proceed.
Recall in 2006, when Obama was a freshman senator, he said, “Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that ‘the buck stops here.’ Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership.” Just a month after he was inaugurated as president, Obama declared, “The only way this century will be another American century is if we confront at last … the mountain of debt [our children] stand to inherit.”
And yet today, the national debt stands at $15.24 trillion – that’s $15,240,000,000,000. Two weeks ago, USA Today reported, “The soaring national debt has reached a symbolic tipping point: It’s now as big as the entire U.S. economy. The amount of money the federal government owes to its creditors, combined with IOUs to government retirement and other programs, now tops $15.23 trillion. That’s roughly equal to the value of all goods and services the U.S. economy produces in one year: $15.17 trillion as of September, the latest estimate. . . . Long-term projections suggest the debt will continue to grow faster than the economy, which would have to expand by at least 6% a year to keep pace. President Obama’s 2012 budget shows the debt soaring past $26 trillion a decade from now.”
$4.61 trillion of the current total has been added under the Obama administration. CBS’ Mark Knoller wrote last year that “[i]t’s the most rapid increase in the debt under any U.S. president.”
Expressing his frustration with this state of affairs, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said this morning, “Washington needs to start spending less than it takes in. And our future will always be uncertain and our economy in danger as long as the President fails to lead on this crucial issue. President Obama’s record on this issue is clear. . . . More spending, more debt, fewer jobs: that’s what we’ve gotten from this administration. And now they want to make it worse. Look: we should be working together to lower the debt, not having votes to increase it. But the President must be willing to face this crisis head on. He must be willing to acknowledge how serious this issue is. Most Americans understand that we can’t keep spending money we don’t have on programs we don’t need. Unfortunately, this President doesn’t seem to be one of them. He’s got no plan to get this crisis under control. And he continues to act as if it isn’t a priority.”
He concluded, “Democrats have been in charge of the Senate and the White House for three years. They’ve had the time they need to figure this out. They’ve chosen the path of blame instead. They’ve had their chance. They’ve made it worse. We must do better.”
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