Paul Ryan on Budget Reconciliation: Let's give America democracy and debate

Congressman Paul Ryan (WI-01) U.S. House of Representatives April 22, 2009 Lets give credit where credit it due: the 1997 Budget Agreement. Both parties A Democratic President and a Republican Congress came together in bipartisan fashion to reduce spending, reduce taxes, and paved the way for surpluses that followed that helped us pay down the debt. Today, we have taken a process that has been used for good in the past and turning it upside down. We very well might have, with as little as 35 hours of debate between the two chambers and no more than 105 hours of debate because of this fast-track procedure, the greatest transformation of our federal government since the New Deal. Taxes What this budget proposes to do is to impose a new national energy tax on everybody who consumes energy, a tax on manufacturing, a tax on cold, coal-burning states like Wisconsin, a tax that is bad for our economy. Higher taxes on small businesses, higher taxes on investments, higher taxes in a recession. We proposed an alternative in our budget. Lets not raise taxes in a recession and lets make our businesses more competitive in the global economy so that we can create jobs. That was rejected. Now theyre steamrolling these tax increases through with very little debate, very few amendments. Energy Hitting our economy with cap-and-trade while our competitors in China and India wont do it will not even reduce carbon in the atmosphere. For every one ton of greenhouse gas we reduce in America, China increases theirs by three or four tons. We lose our manufacturing jobs, they get our jobs, they emit carbon in the atmosphere. There is more carbon in the atmosphere, and America gets less jobs. How is that a good idea? Again, we proposed an alternative in our budget. Lets drill for oil and gas in our own country, where we have a lot of it. Lets invest the proceeds of it in a clean energy trust fund so we innovate our way toward a clean energy future: nuclear, clean coal, renewable energy, biomass, wind, solar, fuel cells, all-of-the-above. Americans are innovators. Lets not hit ourselves with a huge energy tax that costs jobs. Lets innovate our way out of this problem into a clean energy economy. Thats our alternative, that was rejected, and now cap-and-trade can get swept through with as little as 35 hours of debate. Health Care I just came from the Ways and Means Committee where theyre discussing how in the budget reconciliation theyre going to have a new health care plan that has a government-run plan option. The problem with a government-run plan option is that it quickly becomes a government-run plan monopoly. The Lewin Group is telling us that as many as 120 million Americans will lose their private health insurance under this government-run plan option. This is government-run health care maybe not in name, maybe not tomorrow but this is quickly what it becomes. The advocates in the Ways and Means Committee are already telling us, Why have private health insurance in the first place? Lets just have the government run it all. So clearly the intention is being made known and this confiscation of 17% of our economy will run through Congress with as little as 35 hours of debate. This is what were talking about. Should we have a government take over of health care in America? Lets have a real debate about that not simply 35 hours of debate. Should we impose the largest energy tax in the history of this country on manufacturers, on seniors, on the Upper Midwest where we have cold winters? Or should we just ram this thing through with as little as 35 hours of debate? Should we hit our economy in the middle of a recession with the largest tax increase in history ram it through with no amendments with as little as 35 hours of debate? We think no, and we agree with Democrats in the Senate that the answer should be no. Lets pass this Motion to Instruct, and lets give America democracy and debate. To learn more about the House Republican Budget Alternative: http://www.house.gov/budget_republica... http://www.house.gov/ryan http://www.house.gov/budget_republicans   / reppaulryan     / 7123827676   http://www.americanroadmap.org