Scalise Exposes Debt Sale

Washington, DC -- With China holding nearly $890 Billion in U.S. Debt, Congressman Steve Scalise today toured the U.S. Treasury’s Bureau of Public Debt and witnessed more than $31 billion in United States debt being auctioned off to banks and foreign governments.

“Government spending in Washington is out of control, and I witnessed first-hand the negative consequences of the reckless deficit spending by Congress,” Scalise said. “Just a few blocks from the White House, billions of dollars in new debt are being dumped onto the backs of our children and grandchildren – further denying the next generation of the same opportunities we enjoy today. I will continue fighting against wasteful Washington spending, and push to balance the federal budget so we finally start living within our means.”

The Bureau of Public Debt is a branch of the U.S. Department of Treasury, and was created to borrow the money the Federal government needs to operate and to account for the debt incurred as a result. 42 cents of every dollar spent by the federal government is borrowed money. In the last week of February alone, the Bureau of Public Debt auctioned off $236 billion of U.S. debt, the most in history.

In December, Congressman Scalise introduced H.R. 4262, the CAP the DEBT Act, which would require a two-thirds vote in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate in order to increase the national debt ceiling, making a balanced federal budget much more likely. H.R. 4262 currently has more than 80 co-sponsors and is endorsed by Citizens Against Government Waste as well as the Center for Fiscal Accountability at Americans for Tax Reform. Scalise is also a cosponsor of H. J. Res. 1, a Constitutional Amendment that requires a balanced federal budget.

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Contact: Stephen Bell

202-226-9113