Re: “DeGette’s reckless vote on debt deal,” Aug. 3 Vincent Carroll column.
Vincent Carroll’s column deriding my vote on the debt ceiling bill not only misconstrues my position but also neglects to recognize the economic threat posed by the bill itself.
Our nation continues to struggle to pull itself out of an economic crisis, while our government faces unprecedented challenges to get its own budget in line. In order to begin addressing both these pressing issues, we must have a responsible three-pronged approach: enact reasonable spending cuts that do not unfairly burden the middle class or jeopardize economic growth; slow entitlement growth by developing smart and equitable reforms to ensure solvency; and fix the tax code to ensure fairness and shared sacrifice — including ending the Bush-era tax cuts for the top income earners over $250,000.
Unfortunately, this bill only enacted drastic spending cuts, and did so in such a way that it overburdens those Americans who can least afford it.
In the short time since the bill was passed, economists from across the political spectrum have come forward to criticize the deal — many going so far as to say that this bill may actually push our nation fully into a double-dip recession. Why? Because it strips billions out of our economy at a time it can least withstand such a stark removal of capital, without the counterbalance of addressing our broken tax code to generate the kind of revenues we need to help get our citizens back to work.
A balanced approach could have set up our nation to invest in job-creating programs that strengthen our economy for the long run, and in innovative job-training programs to help Americans qualify for the more than 1.5 million open jobs that sit available without applicants equipped to fill them.
In short, this bill should have done more to strengthen our recovery in the short-term, while more responsibly addressing our deficit for the long-term.
At the end of the day, my most important responsibility is to vote in the interest of Coloradans. I could not in good conscience vote to burden the Denver-area community with both the short-term and long-term ramifications of this bad bill. Our citizens deserve better.
U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette represents Colorado’s 1st Congressional District.
