Speaker Boehner on Cutting Spending & Tackling the Big Challenges Facing Job Creation

WASHINGTON, DC – Delivering the Weekly Republican Address, House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) discusses the new House majority’s efforts to cut spending and tackle the big challenges facing job creation in America.

In the address, Boehner, a former small business owner, talks about how the spending binge in Washington is creating uncertainty for private-sector job creators and holding our economy back. He reiterates Republicans’ commitment to fighting for the largest spending cuts possible, and says it’s important to resolve last year’s budget mess so we can tackle the bigger challenges facing job creation. Those challenges include the job-crushing $1.5 trillion tax hike in President Obama’s budget for next year, and his request for an increase in the national debt limit without a commitment to ending runaway spending. Following the video is the full text of the address. The video maybe viewed online.

“Hello, I’m John Boehner. Before I had the honor of representing the people of Ohio’s 8th Congressional District, I ran a small business back in West Chester, Ohio.  Small businesses are the engine of job creation in America: they actually create jobs, the government doesn’t. That’s why I ran for Congress – to do my part to get government out of the way of American prosperity.  Despite some recent signs of life, our economy still isn’t creating enough jobs.  And one of the reasons for that is the spending binge that’s been going on here in Washington.

“Washington’s inability to get spending under control is creating uncertainty for our job creators.  It’s discouraging investment in small businesses, and eroding confidence in our economy.  To put it simply, the spending binge in Washington is holding our country back and keeping our economy from creating jobs.

“Last year, when the President tried to put forward another big-spending budget on top of his ‘stimulus,’ Americans rose up and demanded we stop the spending binge and start working together to create a better environment for job creation.  They put a new majority in charge of the House with clear orders: crash the spending party in Washington so our economy can get back to creating jobs.

“We’ve made some early progress.  This year, the federal government will spend at least $51 billion less than it would have if the president had gotten his way.  And because we’ve kept the pressure on, Democrats in the White House and the Senate are being forced to talk about a bill that would cut tens of billions more.  Over the next decade, the savings will be hundreds of billions of dollars.  This is nowhere near enough, but it’s a clear change in direction.

“Now, you’ve heard Democratic leaders claim an agreement has been reached on this issue, but let me be clear.  There is no agreement. Republicans continue to fight for the largest spending cuts possible to help end Washington’s job-crushing spending binge.

“To support job creation in America, we need to keep the cuts coming, and we need to do much, much more.  That’s why it’s important for Congress to get moving and pass a final bill that resolves last year’s budget mess while making real spending cuts – so we can tackle the bigger challenges facing job creation.

“One of those challenges is stopping the $1.5 trillion tax hike the president has called for in his budget for next year.  This tax hike will affect every family and small business in America, and it will destroy jobs.  The president has also asked Congress to increase the national debt limit – without any commitment to stopping the runaway spending that got us into this mess in the first place. If the president gets his wish, it would send the signal that America has no plan to deal with her spending illness – and that’s going to have the effect, again, of destroying more American jobs.

“We also need to address all the red tape and regulations that are making it harder to create jobs and driving up the cost of health care and energy.

“To put America on a path to prosperity, we need to remove regulatory obstacles to job growth, expand American energy production, end the threat of tax hikes, approve stalled trade agreements that would open new markets, and get government spending under control once and for all.  These are the pillars of the Republican plan to help get our economy back to creating jobs, and this is the focus of our new majority in the House.

“Thanks for listening, and have a great weekend.”

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