WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Congressman J. Gresham Barrett (SC, 03) continued his fight against growing the national debt and wasteful spending by voting “No” on the Budget Conference Report. During his speech from the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives, Congressman Barrett made the following statements:

“People who live in the real world, people who work for a living understand that you can’t spend money you don’t have. These people don’t need to hear from us about sacrifice. They sacrifice every day. The mother and father sacrifice by cutting back at home to make sure their daughter has the school supplies she needs. The business owner sacrifices at work to make sure she can meet payroll this month. They’re making tough decisions and living off of bare bones budgets, but they look up here at Washington and they see we are spending more money than ever. It’s no wonder they’re angry. It’s no wonder they’re fed up with the wasteful spending – they should be. This budget spends too much, borrows too much and taxes too much.

“The worst thing you could do in a recession is raise taxes. John F. Kennedy knew it, and so did Ronald Reagan. But apparently, the current President doesn’t get it. Because raising taxes is exactly what President Obama’s budget does – to the tune of well over one-and-a-half trillion dollars, much of which will be placed squarely on the shoulders of my state’s number one job creator – small business.

“The truth is that despite all the claims to the contrary, this budget won’t create new jobs back home. It won’t grow our economy. It will only pass on to our children the unfortunate legacy of bad decisions and bad debt.”

The Budget Conference Report passed the House with a vote of 233 in favor and 193 against.