Issue Position: National Debt

Issue Position

Washington is suffering from a spending addiction, and it's time to tackle this addiction head-on for the sake of our economy and future generations of Americans. In 2015, our national debt exceeded $18.5 trillion--and it's still growing! We are on an unsustainable, dangerous fiscal path.

Rising debt erodes faith in our economic independence, our finances, and the credibility of our government. If left unchecked, future generations will inherit a weakened nation that can no longer provide an adequate safety net for the poor, keep its promises to retirees, and ensure our country's national security.

Pat believes it is irresponsible and unconscionable to burden our children and grandchildren with this red ink. Millions of Pennsylvania families live within their means every day; it's time to make the federal government do the same. Pat has used his platform on the Senate Budget Committee to offer several proposals that would balance the federal government's budget. Furthermore, Pat has voted in support of a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would force Congress to live within its means every year. Pat has also offered a number of other proposals to tackle Washington's spending addiction.

*Pat is a leader in establishing the ban on wasteful earmarks and has introduced the bipartisan Earmark Elimination Act to abolish the practice once and for all. In the past, lawmakers regularly raided taxpayer pockets for parochial pork projects like a cowboy poetry festival, a teapot museum in North Carolina, and the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere" in Alaska. Thanks to Pat, these outrageous pork projects have come to a halt.

*Pat believes our 60,000-plus-page tax code is unfair and broken, and it needs to be overhauled. He supports lowering rates for all Americans and closing special-interest loopholes that favor high-powered individuals and companies at the expense of hardworking Americans. Pat's tax reform ideas would increase paychecks for middle-class families and boost job creation across Pennsylvania.

*As a member of the Senate "Super Committee," Pat offered a compromise proposal to reduce the government's ballooning debt problem and reform the tax code to lower rates for hardworking taxpayers and eliminate unfair loopholes. This proposal was praised by Democrats and Republicans alike for offering a serious plan with the potential to cut through Washington's gridlock and garner bipartisan support.

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