REP. BECERRA: NEW HOUSE RULES DO THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT WAS PLEDGED TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

WASHINGTON, DC—Today, the new majority in the House of Representatives voted to approve a set rules for the 112th Congress that make it easier to increase the deficit and reduce the transparency and openness of House proceedings. Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31) voted against the rules and released the following statement:

“These new rules imposed on Congress do the opposite of what Republicans pledged to the American people—they open the door to bigger deficits, close the door on transparency and threaten policies that led to the creation of more private sector jobs in one year than the eight years of the previous administration.

By replacing Pay-Go with “Cut-Go”, Republicans are cutting a big loophole in a rule that led to fiscal sanity in the 1990s. The math is simple: tax cuts without spending cuts equals bigger deficits.

And after promising open rules and regular order, their first major action will be to strip children with medical conditions of the right to purchase health insurance and add to the deficit by repealing health care reform—all without any committee debate, CBO scoring, or opportunities for amendments.

Unfortunately, we’ve seen this before—politicians pledging fiscal responsibility on the campaign trail, and delivering budget-busting policies when in office.”