John McCain Quotes

If a tax hike makes it to my desk, I'll veto it in less time than it takes Vanna White to turn the letters V-E-T-O!

I have never been opposed to earmarks.

Politicians like to confuse congressional spending with earmarks. There is a difference.

I will veto again and again until spending is brought under control.

The veto forces Congress to take another look at legislation that has been passed…

The president is under no obligation to sign the spending bills that Congress gives to him. And once that happens, once he says no, then you're supposed to negotiate.

They called me Veto Corleone. Because I vetoed 2,500 separate line-items in the budget.

When you don't have as much debt as we do, we don't have to worry about having this debt ceiling fight every single year. And I really think people are getting sick of having this news cycle every single year from Congress, from the Washington bubble.

I will veto any effort to get rid of those automatic spending cuts to domestic and defense spending. There will be no easy off ramps on this one.

Earmarks are supposed to be bad. But they don't increase spending.

The president has the power to sign or veto a bill. If he signs it, it becomes law. If he vetoes it, it does not become law. That's pretty much an absolute power, but if he signs a bill or vetoes a bill in return for a $100,000 payment, he's guilty of bribery and he can go to jail.

A lawmaker cannot be pro-sequester while also purporting to be pro-national security or supportive of a strong economy.

You can't just magically create subsides through executive fiat.

Congress has the constitutional responsibility to control the power of the 'purse'.

When you're the president of the United States, you have no money unless the Congress says, 'Here's what you can spend it on.'

In order to truly get deficit spending and federal debt under control, the Trump administration is going to have to eventually address entitlement reform. If not, Trump will not only become part of the Washington status quo on the issue, but will leave burdensome and expensive problems for future generations.

My grandfather was a popular senator, known as an advocate for fiscal responsibility, including the line-item veto for the president.

Mr. Speaker, I once again find myself compelled to vote against the annual budget resolution for a very simple reason: it makes government bigger.

Where we are now is we have resolved the revenue issue and the question is what are we going to do about spending. I wish the president would lead us in this discussion rather than putting himself in a position of having to be dragged kicking and screaming to the table to discuss the single biggest issue confronting our future.

It will be an unusual dynamic [in Congress]. It won't be like the rallying behind President [Barack] Obama in 2009 or behind President [George W.] Bush, even at the beginning of his presidency, or even [Bill] Clinton in '93, when he got his budget through on a partisan vote.

[T]ax cuts are not just something that all taxpayers deserve, but also the best way to curb government spending. It is the best kind of tax reform. If the money never reaches the table, Congress can't gobble it up.

In a way, Calvin Coolidge is better than Reagan. His tax rates were lower, and he cut budgets.

The American people aren't overtaxed. The government in Washington is overfed. The main difference between ourselves and the other side is: we see an America where every day is the Fourth of July. They see an America where every day is April 15.

Governments don't reduce deficits by raising taxes on the people; governments reduce deficits by controlling spending and stimulating new wealth.

If you vote against the Defense Authorization Act in the Senate, you would also veto it as president.