Jun 21, 2011
Bass Ignores Own Record of Out of Control Spending, Debt Limit Increases
Representative Charlie Bass (NH-02) says whatever he thinks voters want to hear on a given day. Representative Charlie Bass is sounding tough on raising the debt ceiling, saying he “will not vote for a debt limit increase which doesn’t satisfy my mission.” But what is Representative Bass’s mission? During his first stint in Congress, Representative Bass’s mission was to nearly double the nation’s debt and vote to raise the debt limit 5 times. Now, Representative Bass is looking for the politically expedient position and has decided to play politics with America’s credit.
“Representative Charlie Bass ran up the nations’ debt and is now threatening to block the government from paying the bill, something that even Speaker John Boehner has said would mean ‘financial disaster’ for the global economy,” said Josh Schwerin, Northeast Regional Press Secretary at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “For Representative Bass to express a newly found concern for fiscal responsibility after aiding in President Bush’s spending binge is the height of hypocrisy.”
Background
In a speech to Concord business leaders, Bass said, “I will not vote for a debt limit increase which doesn’t satisfy my mission," he said. "[That] is to make sure that we’re on the road tactically as well as substantively to resolving this debt crisis.” [NHPR, 6/20/11]
Bass has voted to increase the debt limit on five separate occasions:
2004: Voted to Increase Debt Limit. In 2004, Bass voted for a bill that would increase the federal debt limit to $8.18 trillion, an $800 billion increase. The bill passed, 208-204. [S 2986, Vote #536, 11/18/04]
2002: Voted to Increase Debt Limit. In 2002, Bass voted for a bill that would raise the national debt limit by $450 billion to $6.4 trillion. The bill passed, 215-214. [S 2578, Vote #279, 6/27/02; New York Times, 6/28/02]
1997: Voted to Increase Debt Limit. In 1997, Bass voted to adopt the conference report on a bill that would increase the debt limit from $5.5 trillion to $5.95 trillion. The bill passed 346-85. [HR 2015, Vote #345, 7/30/97; CRS Report, “The Debt Limit: History and Recent Increases”]
1996: Voted to Increase Debt Limit. In 1996, Bass voted for a bill that would increase the federal debt limit from $4.9 trillion to $5.5 trillion. The bill passed 328-91. [HR 3136, Vote #102, 3/28/96]
1995: Voted to Increase Debt Limit. In 1995, Bass voted for a bill that would increase the debt limit from $4.9 trillion to $5.5 trillion. The bill passed 227-203. [HR 2491, Vote #743, 10/26/95]
Debt Nearly Doubled During Bass’s Time in Office. Charlie Bass was elected in November 1994 and was defeated in November of 2006. As of January 31, 1995, the total Public Debt Outstanding was $4.815 trillion. As of December 31, 2006, the total Public Debt Outstanding was $8.680 trillion. [Public Debt Historic Data, publicdebt.treas.gov, accessed 9/18/10]
Boehner: Failure to raise debt ceiling spells 'financial disaster'. “Boehner said it would mean "financial disaster" for the global economy if Congress were unable to come to a deal to raise the debt ceiling this spring. "That would be a financial disaster, not only for us, but for the worldwide economy," Boehner said on "Fox News Sunday" of the risk of default.” [The Hill, 1/30/11]
Economists have predicted failing to raise the debt limit would be catastrophic for the economy. “Leaving the extension of the debt limit to the 11th hour is undesirable as it increases the risk of heightened financial market instability heading into early August which may exacerbate and extend the ongoing US and global slowdown,” said Lee Hardman, chief economist at The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi. [CNBC, 6/8/11]
“The problem with games of chicken is that occasionally they result in collisions,” said David Wyss, chief economist of Standard & Poor’s Corp. […] If a deal isn’t reached “the bond market is going to react badly, the question is how badly.” [WSJ, 5/16/11]
“[Failure to raise the debt ceiling would be] catastrophic — global investors would move money at the margin to countries which have their act together, interest rates might rise by 50 basis points overnight, the stock market would plunge,” said Bill Gross, founder, managing director and co-CIO of Pimco, the world’s biggest bond fund. [Washington Post, 4/26/11]
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