Since American families are able to live within their budgets, the federal government should be able to do the same, Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) said, discussing the nation’s $22 trillion debt.
In a June 26, 2019 House address, Rep. Banks urged his colleagues to reduce non-defense funding in a $24.5 billion spending bill and stay within budget, just as Americans successfully do “each and every day”:
“The bill before us today proposes to spend $24.5 billion, which is more than $1.4 billion over last year’s total. This puts us further down a path toward busting the budget caps. Mr. Chair, I respect my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, but I sincerely worry that they do not understand the dangers that lay ahead with these bloated spending packages. Here is a glimpse. Our children will face a less prosperous future and our national security will be needlessly threatened through the inevitable sequestration that results from busting the budget caps.
“My amendment is simple. It would reduce nondefense spending in this bill by 14 percent, which is the level needed to avoid the outcome that I just described. There is no reason that Washington can’t do what American families do each and every day, which is living within their budget.”
On June 26, the House passed the full $24.5 billion Financial Services and General Government Act (H.R. 3351), which funds the U.S. Treasury and related agencies. President Donald Trump has threatened to veto the measure.