Dick Durbin Quotes

If it took multiple debt ceiling hikes, I'd rather achieve the savings.

We are worried about the size of the deficit, which is why the president is pleased that the House and Senate have followed his lead in cutting the deficit in half over the next five years.

But the debt limit obviously is something that needs to and will be passed. That is not inconsistent with a process and a belief that we have to get significant deficit reduction.

Most of the major increases in the debt ceiling have been accompanied by structural changes in the way we raise and spend money.

In addition to reining in spending, taxes, tolls and fees, let's rein in how much the state borrows.

Of course we have to address the deficit if we win.

Memo to Congress: America's problem is not that government is too small. It's the spending, stupid!

Cutting budget deficits can never be just an exercise in economics.

I came to Congress to help reduce spending.

Sequestration was not designed to be anyone's ideal method for getting our hands around government spending, and it certainly isn't mine.

There is a very serious fiscal-policy question of, 'Are we running our overall fiscal policy such that we as a government can pay our bills?'

Look, I'm very much in favor of tax cuts, but not with borrowed money. And the problem that we've gotten into in recent years is spending programs with borrowed money, tax cuts with borrowed money, and at the end of the day that proves disastrous. And my view is I don't think we can play subtle policy here.

It's insane to try to balance the budget.

If you could bring to me a majority of people to say that we're going to have $10 of spending cuts for $1 of revenue enhancement, put me in, coach.

Monetary discipline forces fiscal discipline on the politicians as well.

If we didn't propose these reforms, we would not have proposed a budget that got the debt under control.

A long term tax cut is not a tax cut at all unless it is accompanied by a spending cut.

Honest people can disagree on policy. But where there can be no honest disagreement is the need to change our nation's debt course.

We still have a major problem in debt with America that we have to find efficiencies in government to get us back to a balanced budget.

I think it's essential that we do more than talk about austerity measures and cutting.

It is important for India to stay the course on fiscal consolidation.

If we reach the debt ceiling, we don't have to default. Getting to that point just won't allow us to reach new debt.

This country doesn't have a revenue problem - it has a spending problem.

I think to balance the budget, probably every federal department has to take cuts in my opinion.

What matters to me is that I do what I think is right and I see, I'm a numbers guy, that's my attitude. I know we have a debt tsunami coming, we are bankrupting this country and I'm in a position where I can actually advance ideas to prevent that from happening. That's exactly what I should be doing.