Washington, D.C. – Congressman Jim Moran, Northern Virginia Democrat, released the following statement on the Supercommittee’s failure to reach a bipartisan agreement:
“The Supercommittee’s failure to act was disappointing yet predictable. I voted against its creation because the legislation through which it was enacted contained major cuts to discretionary spending with no corresponding increases in revenues – a so-called “Supercommittee” was little more than a platform for political posturing.
“The failure of the Supercommittee is a result of the polarization of today’s politics. We who were in Congress in the 1990’s balanced the budget through the regular legislative process. Our work created three straight years of surpluses and we were on track to eliminate the entire amount of public indebtedness by 2013.
“Unfortunately, the Republican Party never had any intentions of reaching a compromise for fear that a Supercommittee agreement may lead to a success for President Obama. The members are no longer able, or even encouraged, to reach compromise because they must adhere to an anti-tax pledge pushed by an extreme wing of the party.
“I am hopeful a balanced package can be agreed upon that reverses the coming sequester. But given the gridlock in Congress, I’m greatly concerned such a deal will be at best, very difficult to achieve, and at worst, out of reach.”
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