Rep. Daniel Webster Statement on Budget Deal 

Washington, DC – Today, Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Clermont) released the following statement on why he is voting no on the budget deal.

“I ran for office pledging to do my part to stop the spigot of spending and get our fiscal house in order. In the last seven years, we have made small steps forward to reduce spending and slow the growth of our massive national debt. We’re currently on the path to have a prosperous economy - thanks to regulatory rollbacks, a forecast of regulatory certainty, the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

“I support increased investments for the Department of Defense.  Ensuring a strong, well equipped military is a fundamental responsibility of the Federal Government.  I have voted multiple times to increase the Department of Defense’s budget and provide funding for the pay-raises our troops have long deserved.

“I also support one-time funding to assist our agriculture industry as it continues to recover from last year’s devastating Hurricanes.  But the additional levels of spending including in this deal, adds an annual trillion-dollar deficit to our already unsustainable $20 trillion debt.

“The massive growth in debt jeopardizes our national security. Voting for this bill today would be voting to do the opposite of what I pledged to my constituents and the American people.  For these reasons and more, I cannot support this bill. I pledge to continue to work hard on behalf of Florida’s hardworking taxpayers and families to advance common-sense reforms and principled policy and budgets that get our fiscal house in order.”

Additional Information:

• The spending trajectory of this Budget agreement puts our emerging healthy economy at risk and jeopardizes our grandchildren’s chance at a prosperous economy in their-life time. 
• This bill adds more than a trillion dollars, annually, to our already unsustainable $20 trillion debt.
• This deal busts domestic spending caps and turns it back on the Budget Control Act passed in 2011, which successfully reduced spending by nearly $450 billion. Senator Schumer acknowledged this on the Senate Floor.
• The bill includes a Christmas tree of items that are unrelated to government funding.
• Rolling dozens of nongermane provisions into an irresponsibly large spending bill violates rules and is the opposite of an open process.

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