Big Sky Times

U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines today delivered the following remarks at the weekly Republican Senate Leadership press conference slamming President Biden and Senate Democrats for being unwilling to negotiate with Speaker McCarthy and Republicans on a debt ceiling deal that includes spending reform.

“One thing we’ve seen over the course of the last several months in this debt ceiling discussion is when it comes to our colleagues the Democrats and spending, the sky is their limit. It’s unfortunate the Democrats want to jam a debt ceiling hike with no spending reform through a divided Congress. The polls are very clear. Super majorities of the American people want to see restraints placed on future spending in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling.

“And I think President Biden and the White House were shocked. They were shocked by what happened last week in the house. They didn’t think Speaker McCarthy and the Republicans could pass a debt ceiling bill but they did. They passed a debt ceiling bill. They had responsible reforms tied to it dealing with the root cause of the problem, which is spending.

“It’s unfortunate it took the President now 90 days before reaching out to Speaker McCarthy to come to the table, but they still say the debt ceiling is non-negotiable.

“In fact, a White House official who refused to be named was quoted in Politico in this article here calling spending reform a ‘ransom.’ Can you imagine going on the streets of America and talking to the average person and seeing $31 trillion in debt and telling them the White House officials are saying that having a spending reform discussion in exchange for lifting the debt ceiling is taking ransom? 

“Biden and Democrats need to get with the program and acknowledge something Montanans already know. Spending is the problem. We shouldn’t raise the debt ceiling without reining in and having some reforms on spending, reducing waste, lowering costs. That’s a winning argument for the American people.

“To Senate Democrats I say this, saying that the President should not even sit down with Speaker McCarthy is not a sustainable position for the fiscal health of this country.

“Mr. President, it’s time to get serious about responsible spending reform and to bring some fiscal sanity back to Washington, D.C.”

Original source can be found here.