Boehner: Budget Deal Is First Step

Rep. John Boehner writes in the Wall Street Journal:

Six months ago, shortly before the election, the Democrats who run Washington were preparing an “omnibus” spending bill loaded with earmarks and job-crushing tax hikes on small businesses.

Today, the people’s House is due to vote on a bill that cuts $315 billion from the federal budget over the next 10 years — the largest non-defense spending cut in our history, earmark-free and with zero tax hikes. These are real cuts.

It isn’t cause for celebration or back-patting. It’s what happens when the American people speak out. It’s what government should be doing.

This agreement isn’t perfect. But it is exactly what we need to pave the way for the “Path to Prosperity” budget offered by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), which moves the debate from cutting billions of dollars to cutting trillions. It also cleans up the budget mess left by the last Congress — sending a signal to job creators nationwide that we have begun to end Washington’s spending binge.

“This first step,” the Stanford economist John B. Taylor wrote, “helps establish the credibility needed for the budget strategy to increase economic growth and encourage private investment.”

Specifically, House Republicans – up against a Democratic-run Senate and Democratic-controlled White House – forced an agreement that cuts nearly $40 billion, compared to FY 2010 spending levels. This means the federal government will spend $78.5 billion less this year than President Barack Obama proposed.

The total spending cut would have been even higher – nearly $45 billion – had we not fought for and secured a $5 billion increase in defense spending. This ensures that our troops have the tools they need to accomplish their multiple missions.

The American people are concerned not just about how much we’re spending, but how we’re spending it. One Obamacare program is eliminated altogether in this agreement; a second is cut nearly in half.

Four of the Obama administration’s controversial “czars” are eliminated – and the president is prohibited from replacing them. These include the “czars” charged with overseeing his government takeover of health care and tasked with implementing the president’s job-crushing national energy tax. They’re gone. The administration is signaling it will challenge the constitutionality of these provisions. We say: Bring it on.

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