Times-Standard - Thompson: No budget that ruins Medicare, Social Security'
As the nation and Congress face an Aug. 2 deadline to raise the debt limit or face national default, Congressman Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, said he is not willing to balance the budget “on the backs of seniors, the poor or the middle class.”
The White House threatened Tuesday to veto emergency legislation pending in the House to avert a threatened national default.
The measure Republican Speaker John Boehner is trying to push through the House would raise the debt limit by $1 trillion while making cuts to federal spending of $1.2 trillion -- reductions that conservatives say aren't enough.
The measure also would establish a committee of lawmakers to recommend additional budget savings of $1.8 trillion, which would trigger an additional $1.6 trillion increase in the debt limit.
The White House objects to the requirement for a second vote before the 2012 elections.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the measure is “dead on arrival” in the Senate.
In a statement, Thompson said, “Most Americans agree that we must address our nation's debt crisis and put our fiscal house in order -- and soon.”
Thompson cited testimony by Bruce Bartlett, deputy assistant treasury secretary under President Ronald Reagan, on Tuesday before the House Ways and Means Committee.
Bartlett testified that failing to raise the debt ceiling would cause a chain of events “much worse” than the 2008 financial crisis, Thompson said, adding, “The situation before us is serious, and we have a responsibility to solve it -- but it must be solved in a responsible way.”
"Make no mistake -- I'm not afraid to cut spending where it's deserved,” Thompson said. “In fact, I've voted to cut more than $100 billion in spending this year alone and am prepared to vote for more reductions. But I'm not willing to vote to balance the budget on the backs of seniors, the poor or the middle-class. We can't afford a plan that ruins Medicare or Social Security for hard-working Americans.”