With a bipartisan debt deal nowhere in sight, Republicans will (once again) take the lead with an ambitious solution of their own. But will it succeed?
House Republicans have united around a proposal to tie sizeable spending cuts and major budget reforms to any increase to the debt ceiling. The plan, known as “Cut, Cap, and Balance,” originated in the Republican Study Committee, and has gradually made its way to the forefront of the GOP’s intraparty discussions on the debt limit. At a closed-door conference meeting Friday morning, Republican leaders resolved to vote on — and pass — the plan next week on the House floor. Its chances for success in the Senate are close to nil, but Republicans intend to present it as the type of plan that can pass the House, and also as a serious proposal that House Republicans have put forward in the absence of Democratic leadership.
“All year long, we’ve led on the big issues that are facing the country,” said House Speaker John Boehner (R., Ohio) at a press conference Friday, citing the House-passed Paul Ryan budget as a key example. “We’re in the fourth quarter here. Time and again Republicans have offered serious proposals to cut spending and address these issues, and I think it’s time for the Democrats to get serious as well.”
Under the “Cut, Cap, and Balance” legislation, Congress would raise the debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion (the amount requested by President Obama to get him through the 2012 election). However, that increase would go into effect only if both houses of Congress pass — with two-thirds majorities — a balanced-budget amendment (BBA) to the Constitution and send it to the states for ratification. In addition, the plan calls for significant spending cuts to next year’s budget — about $111 billion — and firm caps on federal spending at 18.5 percent of GDP by the end of the decade. According to White House data, given current trends, spending will exceed 25 percent of GDP this year and will hover around 22.5 percent for the next five years. (The legislation will make no immediate changes to Medicare, Medicaid, or Social Security.)
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