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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Tom Cole (OK-04) made the following remarks in the House floor in support of the Budget Control Act of 2011:
"Every now and then you need to step back and look at the record and put the rhetoric aside. When this majority showed up in January of this last year, we found a situation where our fends on the other side of the aisle had failed to write a budget for this year, failed to pass any appropriations bills, and had just sort of gone home.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Tom Cole (OK-04) made the following remarks in the House floor in support of the Budget Control Act of 2011:
Polls show the American people are justifiably fed up with the debt debate in Washington. As frustrating as the process has been, it is very encouraging that Congress -- for the first time in years -- is focused on reducing spending instead of increasing it. The federal debt limit has been raised no fewer than 51 times since 1978, but this is the first time in memory that Congress has tied spending cuts to the debt ceiling vote.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Tom Cole (OK-04) released the following statement after the voting in favor of the Cut, Cap and Balance Act.
"America is going bankrupt unless we act now to cut spending and balance the budget.
"Cut, Cap and Balance is a comprehensive plan to reverse the debt and bring permanent reform to Washington spending by making immediate cuts, mandating enforceable spending caps, and letting the states vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment for the federal government.
The ongoing debt ceiling debate highlights, once again, the fundamental differences in each party's approach to dealing with the deficit. Republicans want to cut spending; Democrats want to raise taxes.
Unemployment increased to 9.2 percent in the latest monthly jobs report, marking a modern record of 29 straight months with unemployment above 8 percent -- the longest such period recorded since the Great Depression. The dismal report happened to be released on the date that marked 800 days since Senate Democrats last passed a budget. The timing is fitting. There is a direct connection between sluggish job creation and the budget policies of President Obama and congressional Democrats.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Tom Cole (OK-04) made the following remarks before the House approved his amendment to prohibit funding for military operations in Libya by a vote of 225-201. Cole offered the amendment to the FY 2012 Department of Defense Appropriations Act (H.R. 2219).
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Tom Cole (OK-04) released the following statement after the House approved his amendment to prohibit funding for military operations in Libya by a vote of 225-201. Cole offered the amendment to the FY 2012 Department of Defense Appropriations Act (H.R. 2219).
"Congress has allowed the president to overreach in Libya. We should not be engaged in military action of this level unless it is authorized and funded by Congress.
With the economy still faltering and the debt limit deadline approaching in August, Democrats continue to tout tax increases as the great panacea to cure the nation's deficit and unemployment woes. President Obama doubled down on this flawed policy in a much-discussed press conference on June 29. Rather than directly calling for tax increases, the president cloaked his plans in empty rhetoric about "tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires" and euphemisms like "tackle spending in the tax code."
President Obama committed American forces to intervene in Libya without congressional authorization on March 19, and the operations in Libya remain unauthorized today. Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution clearly states that "The Congress shall have power to declare war" and "to raise and support armies." The legislative branch has finally moved to exercise both its war-making authority and its exclusive power of the purse to weigh in on the Libyan war -- but with limited impact.