The House passed a two-year budget deal today that increases the debt ceiling along with domestic and military spending, offsetting it with savings from entitlement programs and other areas over a 10-year period.
The 266-167 vote saw far more Republicans vote "no" than yes, including the entire 10-member Georgia GOP delegation. Meanwhile House Democrats, including those from Georgia, were united in favor of the deal.
Assuming Senate passage -- President Barack Obama has given his thumbs-up -- the deal takes the threat of a default off the table until 2017 and makes a government shutdown less likely, as both parties have agreed on spending levels. But Congress still must pass an omnibus spending bill by Dec. 11 to fill in the details, and the issue of Planned Parenthood funding still looms large over that discussion.
The statements are rolling in. Here's what Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, R-Coweta County, had to say about the deal:
"I could not vote for a budget that doesn't address the real spending problem in Washington today. 86 percent of savings in direct spending in the Bipartisan Budget Act doesn't occur until 2025. We are over $18 trillion in debt and there are more government programs than money to fund them. To me: it's not 'savings' until its actually saved. I understand the Bipartisan Budget Act was intended to halt budget negotiations with President Obama for the next two years but it does so at the expense of my grandchildren, and that is something I just couldn't agree to."
Rep. Rob Woodall, R-Lawrenceville, has called the 2011 Budget Control Act the best vote he's ever taken. So Wednesday's vote to bust those BCA spending caps did not work for him:
"When House conservatives were successful in implementing the Budget Control Act in 2011, the goal was not simply to limit federal spending, but also to repair and restore important programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and veterans services. The emergence of H.R. 1314 is proof that the plan – mandatory reforms in exchange for sequester cap relief – is working. Unfortunately, H.R. 1314 lifts spending caps without introducing timely spending and programmatic reforms."
Said Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Pooler:
"The national debt is the greatest threat to our national security and threatens to leave our children and grandchildren with a life indebted to China. There are good and much needed reforms in this deal that I fully support and I applaud those who worked so hard to negotiate it. That said, it falls woefully short when it comes to the kind of structural reforms necessary to prevent Washington's spending addiction from bankrupting the American Dream."
The legislation now moves to the Senate, where it must pass by early next week in order to beat the debt ceiling deadline. Some of the Republican presidential candidates already are lining up against it with vows of a filibuster. Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., is joining them.
Here's what Perdue sent over immediately after the House vote, via a spokeswoman:
"Not only does this deal increase the debt from $18 trillion to $20 trillion, but it also violates the responsible budget principles I have been fighting for every day. In typical Washington fashion, the insiders get to spend today in exchange for empty promises of savings tomorrow. Why would we trust a system that has proven to be untrustworthy?
"Earlier this year, Republicans passed a budget that cut President Obama's proposed spending by $7 trillion over the next decade and finally balanced, but this deal completely abandons that effort. Our long-term plan was traded for short-term gimmicks, trust fund raids, and even more spending. This deal isn't compromise; it's surrender."
That's a big word -- "surrender" -- from Perdue, who's getting out ahead of delegation mate Johnny Isakson, who's running for re-election next year. Isakson has not formally endorsed the deal, but he did tell CNN: "It's better than no deal at all."
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