Republicans unveil new debt ceiling bill that would force White House to propose its own plan to cut spending

“Due to decades of government waste and reckless spending, our nation’s fiscal health is in crisis. Our national debt has surpassed a record-breaking $31 trillion while wages have stagnated, leaving our families, farmers, and main street businesses to pay the bill,” Iowa GOP Rep. Randy Feenstra, a member of the Ways and Means Committee, told Fox News Digital.

He is introducing the Dollar-For-Dollar Deficit Reduction Act in coordination with Wyoming GOP Sen. John Barrasso, chair of the Senate Republican Conference. Barrasso is expected to introduce a similar bill in the Senate at a later date.

It comes more than a month after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned the country had reached its $31.4 trillion debt ceiling – the maximum amount of cash the federal government can borrow to pay Social Security, Medicare and other obligations – and that her department was now forced into “extraordinary measures” to keep those cashflows up.  a debt limit increase. (Photo by Rod Lamkey-Pool/Getty Images)

Republicans and Democrats have been in a standoff over raising the debt limit – House Republicans and some in the Senate are calling for spending cuts to offset the increase, while Democrats accuse the GOP of using a federal obligation as a political bargaining chip.

However, few voices on the right who call for spending cuts have been specific about what they actually want reduced or how to do it. Most lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are wary of cuts to defense spending, and President Biden stirred outrage among Republicans by accusing them of wanting to cut Social Security and Medicare funding.

Feenstra’s proposed bill is another roadmap into the GOP’s thinking – and in addition to Barrasso’s support in Senate Republican leadership, he has also got the backing of the National Taxpayer’s Union and the Heritage Foundation.

Under his legislation, any formal presidential request to Congress for raising the debt ceiling would have to be accompanied by a proposal to reduce spending by the same amount over a 10-year period.

Additionally, it would require the Treasury to inform the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee of a looming debt default at least 60 days prior to the assumed date and provide more transparency about what “extraordinary measures” are being used to keep dollars flowing.

“As we approach the next debt ceiling negotiation, I am proud to introduce the Dollar-For-Dollar Deficit Reduction Act with Senator John Barrasso to ensure that we cut federal spending by the same amount that we raise the debt limit. This is a commonsense solution that will protect the full faith and credit of the United States and strengthen our economy in the process,” Feenstra told Fox News Digital.

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