01/25/13 Senator Dan Coats (R-Ind.) Thursday spoke on the Senate floor to continue his push for Congress to focus on addressing out-of-control government spending, not increasing taxes as the president has proposed.
The following are excerpts from his speech:
“The fact is that we are not going to be able to get our economy out of the rut we have been in unless we tackle the federal government’s spending addiction. Washington’s reckless spending and failure to produce even a budget plan over the last four years undermines confidence in our economic prospects and causes investors, businesses and consumers to sit on the sidelines rather than take risks with their money.”
“Make no mistake that this is a spending problem and not a revenue problem. The president campaigned on the false narrative that taking more from the top earners would alleviate the economic burdens we face.”
“Actions speak louder than words. President Obama may talk about the need to rein in spending — although lately he has even rejected that — but his administration refuses to act. Instead, the president started off his second term doubling down on what? The need for more taxes. Aren’t the American people being taxed to death already?”
“As I travel across Indiana and talk to business owners from large, small, and medium-sized businesses, from farmers to restaurant owners and to CEOs of major companies, they all say the same thing. They all say the lack of certainty and the prospects for the future — unless we get control of our spending — are such that they have no choice but to just sit on their hands and hold back.”
“Now is the time when we need to focus on the real problem, which is runaway spending. This includes both big spending and small, everything from reforming our mandatory entitlement spending to eliminating duplicative and wasteful spending.”
“Unless we get our spending under control, we are going to continue to stagger forward with a weak economy, high unemployment, and draw ever closer to the day when our investors and creditors lose faith in our ability to pay our debts.”
Audio and video of the speech is available by clicking here or on the image below.
