WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representative David Schweikert (AZ-01) delivered a speech on the House Floor last night to point out that President Biden’s FY25 budget proposes an unprecedented $86.6 trillion in new spending over the next decade, increasing debt held by the public by 72% and adding $4.9 trillion in new taxes. Rep. Schweikert also called out President Biden for once again driving a wedge between Republicans and Democrats on Social Security reform during his State of the Union address.
Excerpts from Rep. Schweikert’s floor speech can be found below:
Click here or on the image above to view Rep. Schweikert’s remarks.
On working families feeling the most impact when the Social Security Trust Fund runs empty:
[Beginning at 7:50]
“So when we get near the end of this decade, the Social Security Trust Fund’s empty, the Transportation Trust Fund is empty. If the President had gotten his way with tax maximized just to cover the shortfall in the Medicare Trust Fund, where do you get the money? I will lay a marker down today — by the end of this decade, this country will have a VAT tax, a value-added tax, just like the rest of the industrialized world, just like Europe, just like everyone else. And at that moment, the working middle class, that hardworking middle class, will be poorer. And that’s the scam that’s going on because that’s where the money is. And so you have this dancing, and it works politically. Think about this — as the wealthier [get] better educated and move more to the Democrat Party, working people have moved to the Republican Party, depending on who’s in power at the end of this decade. Be prepared if you do not make some of these policy changes that change the cost of health care, there is no mathematical way you make it out of this decade without kicking the working class in the heads. And that’s what’s going on.”
On the reality that middle class taxes will go up once provisions from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire in 2025:
[Beginning at 13:02]
“So let’s actually walk through what is about to happen to each of you. We use 2026 because that’s the year you’re going to pay your taxes. Next year, a number of the provisions of the tax reform from December 2017 expire. Got it? Let’s say you are a middle-class American. You right now have a 24% tax rate. Congratulations, you go up to 28% [in 2026]. If you’re one of those top earners, you now have functionally a 37% tax rate. You’re going to 39.6% [in 2026]. All the marginal tax rates go up, and that happens [at the end of] next year. So the moment this election is over, the negotiations begin on this. And it will matter who’s [chairing the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee] because the math takes off. So let’s actually go a little bit further — expiring 2025 tax provisions. Standard deduction. If you are single, you get a $14,600 deduction that goes away next year, and that standard deduction goes to $8,300. Anyone see a problem? Married — you get a $29,200 deduction today. A year from now, that’s gone. You go to $16,600. Sure glad the President spent a bunch of time talking about how we were going to protect the middle class and make the economy continue to grow. So just a baseline number, and this is already the law. You’re a single individual, you make $60,000. You will pay $1,794 more at the end of next year. That is the law. It’s already baseline. You understand the crazy amount of spending it was talked about behind that microphone last week? They’re already relying on your taxes going up.”
On debt held by the public increasing to over $45 trillion by 2034 under President Biden’s FY25 budget proposal:
[Beginning at 28:30]
“We’re actually now $700 billion more in borrowing, and it keeps going up every time [CBO updates their budget outlook]. Comparing debt held by the public — projections in CBO’s baseline estimate to the [2025 House Budget Resolution] and [President Biden’s 2025 budget proposal]. We’ve got a math problem. We’re basically missing each other’s numbers. And if you do it over a decade, understand what the baseline looks like at the end of the decade, we’re going to be well over $48 trillion. Well, that makes sense if we’re clicking off $1 trillion about every 125 days. You really think the credit markets are going to keep loaning us money at favorable interest rates when we’re staring down $50 trillion at the end of this decade? Remember, we’re supposed to be working on the 2025 budget.”
On President Biden taking bipartisan Social Security reform off the table during his State of the Union address:
[Beginning at 33:47]
“[In 8 or 9 years], we double senior poverty. The President said he wants to raise taxes rather dramatically on people with $100 million, because apparently if you have $100 million, you’re a billionaire. Okay. And that may be enough money to shore up part of the Medicare Trust Fund, but once again, the vast majority of Medicare spending is general fund spending. That is the single biggest driver, that and now interest, of our debt and deficits. But did you all see the stunt [by President Biden at his State of the Union address] last year and this year? Well, you’re not allowed to talk about Social Security, so they’re willing to double senior poverty. My simple projection is this Congress has decided to put the bond market in charge of this government […] because remember, $95,000 a second is what we’re borrowing. That’s about $9 billion a day is what we’re borrowing. We’ve actually had a couple of months so far this year where we’ve had to borrow money to pay the interest [costs].”