Opinion: Budget status quo is unsustainable

As America prepares to max out the federal debt limit next month, our nation’s leaders are locked in a critical debate in Washington – a debate that will require tough decisions on both sides of the aisle if we’re going to move forward and avoid defaulting on our nation’s financial obligations.

A quick look at the facts reminds us that we’re facing a historic challenge. Washington has racked up a record debt of more than $14.3 trillion and counting. We’ve spent approximately $7.3 trillion and added $3.7 trillion to the debt since the Democrat-controlled Senate managed to pass a budget more than 800 days ago.

It’s time for us to come together to do what families and job creators in Missouri and across America are forced to do every day: We must stop spending more than we’re taking in. That’s why I’ve joined my colleagues to co-sponsor the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act as well as a federal Balanced Budget Amendment.

The Cut, Cap, and Balance Act – which passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week – will begin to implement many of the important structural changes needed to right our economy by cutting non-defense discretionary spending to 2006 levels; imposing much-needed federal spending caps; and ensuring that Congress passes a Balanced Budget Amendment before it can raise the federal debt ceiling.

The amendment also will guard against tax hikes for job creators; cap federal spending at 18 percent of the goods and services produced in the U.S., or GDP; and require the President to submit a balanced budget to Congress every fiscal year. A majority of states – including Missouri – already operate under a balanced budget requirement. Why shouldn’t Washington be forced to do the same thing?

These provisions are important steps in the right direction if we’re going to change business as usual and right our nation’s economy. But instead of working with Republicans, last week President Obama promised to veto these measures if they pass Congress.

There’s no doubt that both parties have contributed to our current economic crisis, and it will take both parties to find solutions moving forward. We have a unique opportunity to help decide our nation’s future for the coming decades.

—Roy Blunt, U.S. Senator, R-Mo.