U.S. Rep. Jodey Arrington: “This is a crisis of being able to fund our national priorities.”
DALLAS — The national debt has reached a sobering milestone, surpassing $40 trillion.
Congressman Jodey Arrington, R-19th District, calls it an “existential threat” for the country’s future. The Republican says it took America 200 years to accumulate the first $1 trillion. But now, he says the country adds that much debt in less than five months.
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“We’re borrowing $6 billion a day, to put it in perspective. Again, more than 50% of that goes just to the interest rate alone. Not to a soldier or sailor. Not to a safety net for seniors. Nothing productive,” the lawmaker told us on Inside Texas Politics. “And we’re getting into this vicious cycle of debt and interest. And if we don’t intervene now and soon, then we will not only undermine our economic strength, but our national security, our global leadership in the world as the U.S. of A., and worst of all, our children’s future.”
The Chairman of the House Budget Committee is now calling for an Article V Convention, so states can amend the Constitution and add a balanced budget amendment. Arrington says this was a break glass in case of emergency added by the country’s founders.
And the Republican believes states led by Democrats would also participate as many of them already have a balanced budget requirement like we do in Texas.
But Arrington also says the longer the country waits for an Article V Convention, the harder it will be to get the required number of states to come along because some of those states are becoming more and more dependent on federal dollars for major expenditures such as healthcare.
An amendment must be ratified by at least three-fourths of states and that would be 38.
“I think ultimately most people feel like unless Congress is forced to balance the budget and steward responsibly the treasury of the taxpayers, they won’t do it. That’s why this Article V path is not just interesting, I think it may be the last hope for us to actually do something,” he explained.
This past week, Chairman Arrington held a field hearing in Dallas for a discussion focused on the $40 trillion debt. Lawmakers from both parties attended, as did former government officials.
He says he brought the hearing to Dallas because Washington, D.C. isn’t the best place to have hard, honest conversations. And secondly because Texas is known for its fiscal responsibility.
“We have a strong balance sheet. We have a great and productive economy. It’s the eighth largest economy in the world. Dallas is the international center of commerce and finance. And I think if we’re going to put some common sense into this budget process, no better place to be than the great state of Texas,” the lawmaker relayed.
Arrington hopes that common ground can be found and everyone can agree that Congress has done nothing meaningful to solve the country’s indebtedness problem.
He stresses the blame lies with both Democrats and Republicans and that any solution must be bipartisan, requiring sacrifice from both parties.
“If one party pops off with a solution, they will pay the price. So, we have to bring folks together, thoughtful leaders on both sides, and address them where you have everything on the table. Probably neither side will be terribly happy with all of it together,” said the Chairman. “The crisis isn’t just looming over the horizon, it’s happening now. And we need to create the fiscal space to be able to fund those priorities and ensure the solvency of these critical safety nets for seniors.”