{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://arrington.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1118", "Chairman Arrington Delivers Opening Statement at Hearing on Fiscal Commission Legislative Proposals", "2023-11-29", "2023", "2023-11", "Republican", "House", "TX", "Jodey C. Arrington", "A000375", "arrington.house.gov", "arrington", "https://arrington.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Chairman Jodey Arrington (R-TX) delivered opening remarks at the House Budget Committee\u2019s hearing to examine several legislative proposals to create a bipartisan fiscal commission.\n\nWatch the full hearing here.\n\nChairman Arrington\u2019s remarks as prepared for delivery:\n\nI want to thank the Members testifying today for their leadership on what I believe is the most significant challenge facing our nation in the 21st Century \u2013 our runaway deficit spending and unsustainable national debt that threatens not only our economy, but our national security, our way of life, and America\u2019s leadership in the world.\n\nI think it\u2019s worth repeating some of the startling statistics regarding the magnitude and explosive growth of our nation\u2019s indebtedness.\n\n120% debt to GDP \u2013 200% 30-year outlook\n\nAnnual deficits have doubled just over the last year, reaching a record $2 trillion (borrowing $6 billion per day)\n\nAnd CBO projects this number to double in this budget window \u2013 adding almost $20 trillion to our national debt \u2013 half of which is interest expenses!\n\nInterest payments are the fastest growing expenditure in the federal budget, reaching almost 3/4 of a trillion dollars last year and projected to be $1 trillion next year.\n\nNo responsible leader can look at the rapid deterioration of our balance sheet, CBO\u2019s projections of unsustainable debt and deficit spending, and our long-term unfunded liabilities and not feel compelled to intervene, change course, and prevent a sovereign debt crisis before it\u2019s too late.\n\nAs I said from the outset, this is the 21st century challenge for our nation. I believe this is our generation\u2019s World War and the cost of losing this war will be catastrophic and irreparable.\n\nIf we don\u2019t have this sense of urgency, if we don\u2019t have a plan, and if we don\u2019t exercise the political courage to execute that plan \u2013 we will be the first generation of leaders to fail to leave this country better than we found it for our children.\n\nLet\u2019s be clear: this isn\u2019t a Republican problem or Democrat problem \u2013 it\u2019s America\u2019s problem, and it\u2019s a mathematic reality that will require real leadership from both sides of the aisle before it\u2019s too late.\n\nUnfortunately, over the years, too many Americans have become desensitized to trillions of dollars of accumulating debt, and too many lawmakers have been disengaged, with a false sense of security that we can continue down this treacherous fiscal path with no real consequence.\n\nHowever, the past two years have provided a wakeup call. Record spending resulting in our current cost-of-living crisis, along with a bleak economic outlook and looming recession have provided a rare, acute sensitivity for the American people regarding Washington\u2019s reckless fiscal and monetary policy and its direct impact on their pocketbooks.\n\nAs I\u2019ve said before, while our fiscal trajectory is unsustainable, it\u2019s not unfixable. But, both parties have to acknowledge they contributed in some way, and both parties need to come to the table to work on strategies to fix it.\n\nWhile a commission is not a panacea, it can offer a productive, depoliticized forum for educating the public and identifying consensus solutions for addressing our growing deficits and long-term unfunded liabilities.\n\nThe purpose of today\u2019s hearing is to evaluate:\n\nthe various bipartisan proposals for a debt commission,\n\nvarious desired outcomes,\n\nstructural designs,\n\nother provisions meant to address our deficits and long-term unfunded liabilities,\n\nand finally \u2013 identify common themes that can be woven together in a bipartisan, bicameral consensus commission framework that could pass both chambers, be signed by the President, and have a meaningful impact on our current debt trajectory and looming debt crisis.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:01:09Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://arrington.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=1118"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.6486270576715469, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}