McCarthy's letter to Biden this week. Seems like an eminently reasonable proposal. Time for Biden to quit being reckless and show some bipartisanship:
With each passing day, I am incredibly concerned that you are putting an already fragile economy in jeopardy by insisting upon your extreme position of refusing to negotiate any meaningful changes to out-of-control government spending alongside an increase of the debt limit. Your position—if maintained—could prevent America from meeting its obligations and hold dire ramifications for the entire nation.
I have no interest in brinksmanship—only in doing what is best for the American people. We cannot solve the nation's fiscal problems overnight, and House Republicans are not demanding we do so. But we cannot continue to kick the can down the road and ignore America's ballooning national debt, all while you continue to spend trillions more, including through unaccountable executive fiat.
House Republicans are united in our view that the best way to reduce the national debt is to Limit Spending, Save Taxpayer Money, and Grow the Economy. I am prepared to sit down to discuss a variety of means to do so that would achieve trillions of dollars in savings and economic growth—some of which you even agreed to during the Biden Debt Limit Talks of
2011. These include, but are not limited to:
• Reducing excessive non-defense government spending to pre-inflationary levels and limiting out-year growth, similar to what Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) has proposed;
• Reclaiming unspent COVID funds that have sat dormant for over two years;
• Strengthening work requirements for those without dependents who can work, as was enacted under President Bill Clinton and which you voted for as a United States Senator;
and
• Policies to grow our economy and keep Americans safe, including measures to lower energy costs, make America energy independent, and secure our border from the flow of deadly fentanyl that is killing 300 Americans per day.
Taken together, such policies would help address the number one issue facing Americans today: stubbornly high inflation brought on by reckless government spending.
Mr. President, simply put: you are on the clock. It's time to drop the partisanship, roll up our sleeves, and find common ground on this urgent challenge. Please have your team reach out to mine by the end of this week to set a date for next meeting.
