Press Staff Blog

White House Blog: An Unbalanced Approach to Deficit Reduction

Wanted to make sure you all saw this White House blog post on Republicans’ “Cut, Cap and End Medicare” bill, an extreme proposal that increases our chances of default and makes the same drastic cuts as the Republican budget, which ends Medicare and drastically cuts Medicaid, while preserving tax breaks for the wealthy. Democrats continue to urge Republicans to work with us so that we can enact a large agreement to reduce the deficit and ensure America pays its bills.

Major Credit Rating Agencies Reiterate Threat of Downgrade

This afternoon, Fitch Ratings announced it will place the U.S. credit rating in “ratings watch negative,” which could lead to a credit rating downgrade if America fails to pay its bills.

Meet the New GOP Plan to End Medicare, Same as the Old GOP Plan to End Medicare

We here in the Democratic Whip Press shop will give Republicans credit for their transparency. They are not even trying to hide the fact that their “Cut, Cap and End Medicare” bill would end the program’s guarantee.

Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan said yesterday the plan “basically mirrors the budget proposal that the House passed this year.”

Roll Call: Default Could Blunt GOP Deficit Goals

Republicans concerned about reducing the deficit should take note of this article in Roll Call today that explains how failure to pay our nation’s bills would actually increase the deficit and “push the economy back into recession.” Though Republicans claim that deficit reduction is one of their top priorities and argue that it is critical to boosting the economy and creating jobs, they are bringing a bill to the Floor this week tha

Politico: Default Could 'Sink the Whole Boat'

Wanted to be sure you saw this article in Politico today on the consequences of failing to pay our nation’s bills. Republicans need to take these warnings from financial experts seriously and work with us on a big, balanced agreement to ensure we pay our bills, reduce the deficit and avoid these catastrophic consequences of default.

Key Excerpts:

Politico: House GOP Deficit Plan "Remarkable for its Total Absence of Compromise At This Late Date"

Wanted to make sure you all saw this article in Politico this morning on the GOP’s increasingly out-of-touch demands on the deficit negotiations, even as we risk America not paying its bills.

Democrats remain ready and willing to work with Republicans on a balanced package that includes both revenues and spending cuts, and continue to advocate for a big, comprehensive package to reduce the deficit.

Will GOP Freshmen Have to See It To Believe It?

Wednesday, Moody’s Investors put the U.S. under review for a credit rating downgrade:

Be Careful What You Wish For

Do Republicans really want to stop America from paying its bills? Conservative economics writer Megan McArdle explains just how ugly the consequences will get if the debt ceiling isn’t raised:

Geithner: "We're Running Out of Time"

The American people know we have to pay our bills, that’s why 74% of Republicans and 77% of independents believe that a deficit agreement should include a mix of revenues and spending cuts, according to a recent Gallup Poll.

Poll: Obama Tops GOP on Economy

Republicans may want to check out a poll released by Quinnipiac University today showing that Americans trust President Obama more than congressional Republicans on the economy and agree with the President that deficit reduction must be done in a balanced way – not on the backs of seniors and the middle class. The poll makes it clear that Americans support a comprehensive package to reduce the deficit that includes both spending cuts and revenues, which President Obama and Democrats are fighting for as negotiations continue.