Source: United States Senator for Ohio Rob Portman
October 27, 2021 | Portman Difference
In an interview this afternoon with Fox News’ Neil Cavuto, Senator Portman outlined his concerns with the Democrats’ reckless tax and spending bill, arguing that trillions in new spending and taxes will stifle economic growth, kill jobs, balloon the national debt, and increase inflation.
Portman also highlighted the negative impact surging inflation is having on workers and middle-class families. Portman noted that since President Biden took office wages have decreased 1.9 percent when adjusted for inflation.
A transcript of the interview can be found below and you can also watch the interview here.
PORTMAN ON THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF DEMOCRATS’ MASSIVE SPENDING BILL:
“Well, I suppose that’s good, but it’s a terrible time to raise taxes. And all these proposals involve raising taxes and also increasing spending dramatically and stimulus spending, Neil. And I’ve talked about this before, but this is the wrong time for a lot of reasons. One is that it will increase the inflationary pressure we’re already feeling. Republicans and Democrats alike who look at this subjectively, including Larry Summers, former Treasury Secretary in the Obama years, say this is going to add more to the inflationary pressure.
“And then with regard to the debt and deficit, we are now at a point, as you know, that our debt as a percentage of our economy, which is probably how you got to look at it, is at historic levels. So it’s a whole lot more spending. $1.5 or $1.75 trillion is being portrayed as something moderate, sort of the compromise. Gosh, a trillion dollars is $1,000 billion dollars. I mean, it’s amazing. We’re throwing around trillions as if it’s nothing.”
PORTMAN ON THE NEED FOR FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY:
“No, but, look, I’m going to continue to push on this issue of dealing with the long-term crisis that we’re going to face if we don’t own up to this debt and deficit. And you’re right, this year will probably have the biggest deficit ever, depending on how big this package is, because it’s on top of the $1.9 trillion we already did in March, which was the biggest legislative package ever. The highest cost ever. And now they’re talking about this one, which if it’s $2 trillion it will beat that, it will be the biggest. If not, it will be the second biggest.
“So these numbers, they are kind of mind numbing, but on the other hand, they are really impactful as to what’s going to happen long term to our kids and our grandkids who are going to get left holding the bag. So we do need to focus on this, particularly on the entitlement spending. That’s where most of the money is now being spent – 70 percent when you add interest on the debt – and that’s the fastest growing part of our economy. So we’ve got to deal with it. If we don’t, we will find ourselves in a financial crisis.
“My hope is that in the context of the debt limit, we will do that. It’s the only time we’ve really ever done it with any success. You remember the caps and sequestration and Gramm–Rudman, and so on. Those all came out of a debt limit discussion. So my hope is we can do that again.”
PORTMAN ON HIS SUPPORT FOR JEROME POWELL’S RENOMINATION:
“Yes, I would, because I think he’s better than the alternative. And I think he does understand the need for us to address this inflation issue. I wish that the Fed would be a little more aggressive in dealing with it, but it’s going to result in higher interest rates at some point, which is not something any of us want. But we’ve got to be sure that we are not continuing to grow the inflationary pressure.”
PORTMAN ON THE IMPACT OF INFLATION ON WORKERS AND MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES:
“I think so. It’s a terrible tax on middle class families. It’s poor people who are really bearing the brunt of it. By the way, interesting number Neil, I just learned, which is that during the last several months during the Biden administration, wages have gone down, not up when adjusted for inflation – down about 1.9 percent. So that’s the tax on people already, that they’re already feeling. Inflation is something that we need to focus on more in my view.”
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