Congressman Keith Self’s Statement on the Fiscal Responsibility Act

The debt ceiling bill should be titled the Sleight of Hand Spending Bill.

The bill is essentially a spending freeze at the much higher, post-Covid spending levels rather than the lower, Fiscal Year 2022 figures.  In exchange, the Sleight of Hand contains a $4 trillion debt ceiling increase. That is 2 ½ times the increase in the Limit, Save, Grow bill passed by the House. The debt ceiling is functionally unlimited for two years since it is based only on a date, not an amount.

There are only two years of any supposed caps on spending in the Slight of Hand. Subsequent years are “aspirational”.

Savings are ostensibly $12 billion for two years, but there are “advanced appropriations” that more than offset that figure. In addition, some $13 to $15 billion in Covid funds are exempted from cuts, funds that can be used to plus up the non-defense discretionary spending contrary to public statements about the bill.

The Sleight of Hand cuts $1.4 billion out of the $80 billion in IRS plus up funding, or less than 2 percent. Remember, the $80 billion was on top of the regular appropriations of about $9 billion per year. IRS cuts are essentially eliminated.

The Sleight of Hand TEMPORARY work requirements are more than offset by new PERMANENT exceptions, which will increase costs over time.

The Sleight of Hand does not include any cuts to the hundreds of billions of dollars in Green New Deal subsidies for progressive left climate projects, which is both a fiscal and a policy blunder of epic proportions.

There are no enforcement mechanisms. Pay Go has historically proven impotent through routine waivers. The so-called 99% Continuing Resolution is not the automatic Massie CR that would kick in on October 1, 2024 in the event that all 12 appropriations bills do not pass. The CR in the bill requires another congressional vote and does not kick in until January 1, 2025.

And lastly, the Sleight of Hand gives complete control of the next debt ceiling debate to the Democrats. If we a Democrat wins the 2024 presidential election, pressure is off and the debate can extend into 2025. If a Republican wins, then the lame-duck session of Congress can pass an omnibus bill to handcuff the new President, much like the lame- duck session of Congress did to the incoming Congress this past December.

Bottom line: The Sleight of Hand Spending Bill continues the headlong rush of out-of-control spending toward fiscal disaster, putting our republic in dire jeopardy.

Original source can be found here.