By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Congressman Mo Brooks (R) from Huntsville issued a written statement on Thursday to announce his support and his vote for the Ryan Budget, the Fiscal Year 2013 Budget Resolution. The House budget was crafted by the House Republicans and House budget Chairman Paul Ryan (R) from Wisconsin. The Ryan Budget balances the budget in 10 years, slows government spending, reforms the tax code, encourages economic growth, and addresses the sequestration cuts that disproportionately targets America’s Defense capabilities.
Representative Brooks said, “A balanced budget is critical to America’s future because it reduces financial risk and increases economic opportunity. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the Ryan Budget balances in 10 years, without raising taxes; Ryan’s Budget moves America in a financially responsible direction. While I prefer a quicker balanced budget, and have voted that way, after an alternative four-year balanced budget plan failed to muster sufficient votes, the Ryan Budget was the only budget left that even pretended to balance in the future.”
Rep. Brooks said, “Significantly, Ryan’s plan substantially reduces the impact of sequestration on our national security. The Ryan Budget essentially eliminates sequestration national defense cuts effective October 1, 2013, thus allowing us to modernize our aging military infrastructure and equipment. Protecting our nation is the number one priority of the federal government. According to the Armed Services Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Ryan budget restores funding to levels needed to protect America’s national security. Consistent with every other vote I have cast to prevent or mitigate sequestration, the Ryan Budget provides a long-term fix for sequestration. Restoration of national defense funding is key to my vote for the Ryan Budget.”
Brooks continued, “Earlier this week, Stanford University economists announced in the Wall Street Journal their findings on the Ryan Budget. According to their research, ‘With the Budget Committee’s proposed tax reform included, the immediate impact would be even larger. The entire plan would raise gross domestic product by one percentage point in 2014, equivalent to about a $1,500 increase for each U.S. household. Ten years from now, at the end of the official budget horizon, we estimate that the entire plan would raise GDP by three percentage points, or more than $4,000 for each U.S. household.’ They also reported that ‘the lower level of future government spending avoids the necessity of sharply raising taxes. The expectation that tax rates won’t need to rise provides incentives for higher investment and employment today.’ Stanford University economists conclude that the Ryan Budget promotes a healthy American economy. That is good news for all American families who have endured a stagnant economy for far too long.”
Brooks concluded, “The Ryan Budget is a significant step in the right direction for reducing America’s deficits and debt, thereby reducing the risk of an American insolvency and bankruptcy. A balanced budget means stability for job creators, economic security for families, stronger national defense, and a brighter future for all Americans.”
The Democratic Party controlled U.S. Senate also passed a budget (their first i four years), but their does not ever balance the budget despite raising taxes over a $ trillion in the next ten years.
Congressman Jo Bonner (R) from Mobile wrote Friday about the Senate budget, “Rather than reduce the growth in federal spending, it goes in the opposite direction. It increases spending, including $100 billion in new stimulus funding. It raises taxes by $1.5 trillion, adding an additional weight on the struggling economy. Lastly, it does not achieve balance. As Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions, Ranking Member on the Senate Budget Committee, observed, the Senate majority’s budget plan “…is a bankrupt vision that will bankrupt the country.””
Congressman Brooks is a member of the House Armed Services Committee, where he serves on the Strategic Forces and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittees. Brooks is also the Vice-Chair of the Science Subcommittee, of the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
