JOHN BOEHNER

More than three million jobs lost and double-digit unemployment is a far cry from what the American people were promised when President Obama signed the trillion-dollar “stimulus” into law 10 months ago today.  Instead of trying a new approach,  Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and House Democrats doubled down on their abysmal economic record in resounding fashion yesterday, raising the national debt limit to make room for more ineffective government “stimulus” programs that aren’t working.  All year long, Democrats have rejected opportunities to work with Republicans and address the challenges the American people are facing. 

It’s no wonder, then, that more than eight in 10 Americans fault this Democratic Congress for “a lack of willingness to compromise.”   Things have gotten so out of hand that Democrats are now quibbling among themselves over whether continuing to spend money we don’t have and pursue policies that will destroy even more jobs is the right course.  All Washington Democrats have to offer struggling families asking “where are the jobs?” is more spending, more debt, and more broken promises.  Republicans are offering better solutions.
 

House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said the American people want more jobs, not more debt and more of the same “stimulus” spending:

AMERICA SPEAKS OUT ABOUT “A LACK OF WILLINGNESS TO COMPROMISE,” “REDUNDANT AND COSTLY” ‘STIMULUS’ SPENDING

According to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey, “...a whopping 81% believe the past year in Congress has been marked by division and a lack of willingness to compromise.” 

“No new stimulus: Focus should be on using money already in pipeline wisely.  … At the federal level, the House of Representatives has a different aid in mind: a $150 billion-plus new stimulus package...  While the move might make for good sound bites, it is a redundant and costly package that is more about upcoming mid-term elections than creating sustaining jobs.”  (Harrisburg (PA) Patriot-News editorial, 12/17/09)

“Today's debt has financed . . . what exactly? The TARP money did undergird the financial system for a time and is now being repaid. But most of the rest has been spent on a political wish list of public programs ranging from unemployment insurance to wind turbines to tax credits for golf carts.  Borrowing for such low return purposes makes America poorer in the long run.  By the way, today’s spending and debt totals don’t account for the higher debt-servicing costs that are sure to come.  The President’s own budget office forecasts that annual interest payments by 2019 will be $774 billion, which will be more than the federal government will spend that year on national defense, education, transportation—in fact, all nondefense discretionary programs.” (Wall Street Journal editorial, 12/16/09)

“House keeps spending like there’s no tomorrow.  Congress has done nothing to earn the public's trust.  Even in a time of national crisis, lawmakers can't control themselves.  Every buck Congress borrows to sustain public spending is one that’s not available to fuel private initiatives.  The explosion of the national debt leads to a weaker dollar and a larger obligation to China, our primary lender.”  (Detroit News editorial, 12/16/09)

“Massive stimulus yields minimal jobs.  The stimulus promised ‘free money’ that would put people back to work.  But the money was never going to be ‘free.’  American taxpayers will be paying for these projects for years.  And the count of jobs created by the stimulus has been notoriously overestimated.  Rather than a return of the great jobs programs of the Depression era, the stimulus has been a boondoggle for the ages.” (North Andover (MA) Eagle-Tribune, 12/17/09)

REPUBLICANS HAVE BETTER SOLUTIONS TO:

Create jobs by jumpstarting small business growth and restoring confidence in our economy;

Make Washington do more with less with a responsible budget blueprint that sets strict caps to limit federal spending on annual basis;

Lower health care premiums by up to 10 percent and consistently reduce federal spending over the next two decades;

Clean up our environment and meet the nation’s energy needs by employing an “all of the above” strategy;

Get the federal government out of the bailout business;

Protect responsible homeowners and revitalize America’s housing market;

Help rebuild Americans’ savings, whether it’s for retirement, college, or buying a home;

And bring much-needed transparency to the legislative process so we can accomplish all these goals with the open and honest government taxpayers deserve.