Inhofe votes NO on debt deal

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), a leading fiscal conservative in the Senate, today voted against the debt compromise brokered between President Obama and Congressional leaders. 

Inhofe, one of the first signers of the Cut, Cap, and Balance Pledge, has advocated for a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution since the early 1970s.  He is a co-sponsor of a Balanced Budget Amendment bill and the Cut, Cap, and Balance bill, and he voted for Speaker Boehner’s bill that would have required a Balanced Budget Amendment be sent to the states for ratification before the debt limit could be increased again.

“Since taking office, President Obama has increased total spending by nearly 30 percent and has submitted three budgets with deficits totaling $4.5 trillion,” said Inhofe.  “This bill only cuts $2.4 trillion over a ten year period.  So this bill will take us ten years to undo just half of what President Obama has done in three years.  We need more cuts now to address our current problem.  

“This compromise simply does not go far enough and relies too heavily on out-year cuts.  Under this compromise, in FY2012, spending is cut by only $44 billion.  In the same year, Obama will increase spending by over $300 billion.  Clearly, we are not cutting enough.”  

Inhofe continued, “Since taking office, President Obama has gutted our nation’s military year after year with drastic cuts.  The further defense cuts included in this compromise, possibly as much as $492 billion, could be enacted without full Congressional consideration, and cuts of that size would effectively disarm America.

“President Obama says he wants a balanced approach.  What we need is a balanced budget.  Without fundamental reforms that address entitlement spending while changing how Washington spends hard-earned taxpayer dollars, we will simply pass the looming mountain of debt to our children.  That is unconscionable.”