WASHINGTON — Saxby Chambliss’ Gang of Six has grown to 38 U.S. senators from both parties, who on Thursday urged the debt reduction “supercommittee” to aim high and secure $4 trillion in budget savings.
The Georgia Republican was joined by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and a group too large to fit on the news conference stage to send a message to the 12-member joint committee created in the summer’s deal to raise the debt ceiling. The committee must devise a plan by November to reduce future deficits by at least $1.2 trillion, on top of $917 billion in already agreed-upon savings. Chambliss and his gang want to nearly double that, as most budget experts say a $4 trillion course correction is necessary to lasso the nation’s rising debt.
“As you can see, our numbers have grown significantly,” Chambliss said. “We’re not only bipartisan, but we stretch on both sides of the spectrum in our respective caucuses. That’s how serious we know this debt is.”
This summer the Gang of Six — Sens. Chambliss, Warner, Mike Crapo, R-Idaho; Tom Coburn, R-Okla; Kent Conrad, D-N.D.; and Dick Durbin, D-Ill. — put forth a framework to save $3.7 trillion through cuts to domestic and military programs, changes in the tax code and reform of costly entitlements such as Medicare.
The Gang of 38 did not back one proposal, rather stressing that the foundation for a big deal already has been laid by the Gang of Six and outside panels.
“Nobody needs to really look too far for what we need to do,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga. “They just need to be willing to pull the trigger.”
The gang joined a chorus of groups urging a home run solution, heartening Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
“It’s not often you get that many senators anywhere together pushing for something,” she said. “I think we’ll look back and think this is a pretty important moment.”
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