Senator Murray Speaks on Debt Limit Agreement on Senate Floor
***WATCH: Senator Murray’s full floor remarks***
Senator Murray: “The funding decisions we make right here in this chamber are not just numbers on a page. They are investments in people, in families, in our communities, and ultimately: in our country’s future.”
Senator Murray: “While I know the President has pushed hard to hold the line on recent progress and protect vulnerable people who need support and reject House Republicans’ most extreme demands, we have to be clear-eyed and honest about how this bill fails to meet our current moment—especially how it will limit our ability to make the investments we need to strengthen our economy and invest in America’s future.”
Senator Murray: “I will vote for this legislation because default is not an option—but I do so with deep concern and with a determination to prevent us from ever being in this situation again and to lessen the damage of these cuts at every possible opportunity.”
Senator Murray: “Let’s get one thing straight—hostage-taking is not regular order! It is just not. It is not the way we should arrive at the toplines for our spending bills. And it’s time we put an end to this dangerous brinksmanship at the next possible opportunity by scrapping the debt ceiling, and taking the threat of default off the table once and for all.”
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, spoke on the Senate floor on the debt limit legislation being considered by the Senate today after House passage on Wednesday night.
“The funding decisions we make right here in this chamber are not just numbers on a page,” began Senator Murray. “They are investments in people, in families, in our communities, and ultimately: in our country’s future. And they are also crucial to keeping our country secure and on the cutting edge as competitors like the Chinese government work hard to outpace us. As we all know, our adversaries aren’t restricting their investments in their futures. They’re not. And they’re not teetering on the verge of calamitous default for the sake of partisan politics.”
Senator Murray decried House Republicans’ hostage taking and the consequences of their partisan brinksmanship, while also making clear that House Republicans were never serious about reducing the deficit.
“Instead of working through the budget and appropriations process—as we do every year—to craft our nation’s budget and determine how we spend money, House Republicans just decided they would threaten to tank our economy and force the U.S. into default to extract partisan concessions,” stated Senator Murray. “We have heard House Republicans leaders and even the leader of the Republican Party talk openly about taking our economy and the American people ‘hostage.’”
“Let’s be clear: for House Republicans, this was never truly about the debt anyway,” Senator Murray continued. “Republicans added trillions to the debt under President Trump through tax giveaways for billionaires and giant corporations. But they refuse to even talk about asking billionaires to pay at least as much in taxes as a firefighter or a nurse.”
Senator Murray affirmed her longtime and consistent position that the United States can never default, and her vote was in accordance with that commitment.
“I will vote for this legislation because default is not an option—but I do so with deep concern, and with a determination to prevent us from ever being in this situation again, and lessen the damage of these cuts at every possible opportunity,” said Senator Murray.
Referencing her own upbringing and how federal support helped keep her family afloat, Senator Murray made clear that she would fight in every way possible to protect the investments that support working families in America.
“The policy we write and sign into law has a direct consequence on people’s lives and every Member of Congress needs to recognize that,” said Senator Murray in closing. “So rest assured that I remain very focused on keeping our appropriations process moving forward here in the Senate, marking up our spending bills in a timely, bipartisan way, and I want to make it clear right here on the Senate floor that I will be doing absolutely everything I can to protect the investments that help those families get by, and ensure this great country lives up to its promise.”
Senator Murray underscored that as she works to move the appropriations process forward in the Senate, she will be doing everything she can to protect the investments that families across the country are counting on.
Senator Murray’s full remarks, as delivered, are below:
“Like so many of my colleagues, I spent last week back home hearing from folks in my state.
“And everywhere I went, I heard from people about how the investments we make here in Congress actually matter in their daily lives.
“How the funding we provide helps students at Lake Washington Institute of Technology, in Kirkland, pursue their dreams, get a higher education, and find a good-paying job; helps entrepreneurs in Tacoma start a business and grow it from the ground up; helps pregnant moms who rely on the Rainier Valley Midwives center get the care they need to have a healthy pregnancy.
“I saw how our federal investments make cutting-edge biomedical research possible at the Allen Institute in Seattle—leading to breakthroughs that save lives and give people more time with their loved ones.
“Again and again, I heard about how the resources we send back home pay off in such a meaningful way.
“And it’s true—the investments we make in our country are critical. They’re critical in helping families succeed, keeping communities safe, and keeping our nation strong, secure, and competitive.
“We aren’t simply spending, we are investing.
“We are investing in fighting deadly fentanyl, in upgrading crumbling infrastructure. We’re investing in keeping America on the cutting edge of clean energy and scientific innovation. We are investing in rebuilding American manufacturing, and bringing industries of the future back to our shores.
“I could go on and on and on.
“But the point is: the funding decisions we make right here in this chamber are not just numbers on a page.
“They are investments in people, in families, in our communities, and ultimately: in our country’s future.
“And they are also crucial to keeping our country secure and on the cutting edge as competitors like the Chinese government work hard to outpace us.
“As we all know, our adversaries aren’t restricting their investments in their futures. They’re not. And they’re not teetering on the verge of calamitous default for the sake of partisan politics.
“And yet instead of listening to people back home, instead of listening to the flashing red warning signs from our competitors, House Republicans have been insisting on draconian cuts and harmful changes to programs that are a lifeline for struggling families, and the lifeblood of our global leadership.
“House Republicans’ push to slash funding for key federal programs is alarming, and the way they have tried to make their cuts is downright reckless.
“We’ve got to be clear about what they have done here.
“Instead of working through the budget and appropriations process—as we do every year—to craft our nation’s budget and determine how we spend money, House Republicans just decided they would threaten to tank our economy and force the U.S. into default to extract partisan concessions.
“And they absolutely have not been shy about it.
“We have heard House Republicans leaders and even the leader of the Republican Party talk openly about taking our economy and the American people ‘hostage.’
“That is damning.
“House Republicans admitting to using the full faith and credit of the United States of America as a political weapon.
“Needless to say: that is not how this should work.
“Negotiating is not one side saying: ‘give me everything I want—or else…’
“Negotiating is coming to the table saying: ‘Here are my concerns…here are my principles…here is what I’m hearing from families back in my state…where can we find common ground?’
“That’s what the people who elected us. That’s what they sent us here to do.
“And, frankly, I think that’s what many of us here want to do.
“I’ve heard from so many of my colleagues about their desire to return to regular order, and I have been working with Senator Collins to do that on the Appropriations Committee.
“But let’s get one thing straight—hostage taking is not regular order! It is just not.
“It is not the way we should arrive at the toplines for our spending bills.
“And it’s time we put an end to this dangerous brinksmanship at the next possible opportunity by scrapping the debt ceiling, and taking the threat of default off the table once and for all. No other country handles its credit like this!
“Hostage taking is no way to have a conversation about our nation’s fiscal future.
“And let’s be clear: for House Republicans, this was never truly about the debt anyway.
“Republicans added trillions to the debt under President Trump through tax giveaways for billionaires and giant corporations.
“But they refuse to even talk about asking billionaires to pay at least as much in taxes as a firefighter or a nurse. They won’t talk about closing giant loopholes for big oil or big pharma. They definitely won’t talk about capping tax giveaways to the wealthy!
“Instead, House Republicans want to give handouts to the rich and massive corporations, make life harder for struggling families by cutting the programs they rely on, and make competing globally harder for our nation by capping our ability to invest in the future.
“They agreed to raise the debt ceiling three times under President Trump without batting an eye—but their tune changed when a Democrat is in the White House.
“President Biden and Congressional Democrats have been clear from the outset that default is simply not an option—and should never have been a threat.
“Because it would be catastrophic to our nation’s economy, to the financial security of families, and to the stability of the global economy.
“So I applaud President Biden for his laser-focus on taking default off the table. And while I know the President has pushed hard to hold the line on recent progress and protect vulnerable people who need support and reject House Republicans’ most extreme demands, we have to be clear-eyed and honest about how this bill fails to meet our current moment—especially how it will limit our ability now to make the investments we need to strengthen our economy and invest in America’s future.
“That can include working with the administration and my colleagues to consider a supplemental. But that conversation has to consider more than just Defense and Ukraine—because there are so many important priorities like border security, disaster relief, and other non-defense items that we should not let be shortchanged.
“This is absolutely not a bill I would have written.
“And the fact that the choice here is between a bill that cuts resources for American families or trashing the nation’s credit and causing a global economic meltdown is an indictment of House Republicans, who decided taking our nation’s credit hostage was an acceptable thing to do.
“Understand that the programs being cut make a real difference in people’s lives. I know that firsthand.
“I am someone who grew up knowing what it meant to get by on a tight, tight budget. I have a big family, 6 siblings and my dad was a WWII Veteran who ran a mom and pop store selling everyday goods on Main Street in Bothell.
“We never had a lot, but we always got by—and a lot of times that was because our government had our backs.
“When my dad got sick—was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis—my mom had to figure out how to support 7 kids and find a job that would make that possible. A federal workforce training program helped her get a job as a bookkeeper to keep our family afloat.
“Me and my siblings, all seven of us, got through college thanks to federal assistance—because our government invested in Pell Grants and other programs.
“My family and I had to rely on food stamps for a brief time—we didn’t go hungry because of federal investments in nutrition.
“So I’ll say it again: the funding decisions we make right here in this chamber are not just numbers on a page.
“The policy we write and sign into law has a direct consequence on people’s lives, and every Member of Congress needs to recognize that.
“So rest assured that I remain very focused on keeping our appropriations process moving forward here in the Senate, marking up our spending bills in a timely, bipartisan way, and I want to make it clear right here on the Senate floor that I will be doing absolutely everything I can to protect the investments that help those families get by, and ensure this great country lives up to its promise.
“From child care to housing to lifesaving research and more.
“As Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will be a voice for working families in my home state and all across this country.
“Thank you. I yield the floor.”
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