Cornyn tells Obama to stop campaigning and produce a deficit-reduction plan

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) called on President Obama to “stop campaigning” and release a plan to avoid taking the nation over the “fiscal cliff.”

The newly elected Republican whip, Cornyn said it would be “irresponsible” for the president not to release a major deficit-reduction plan for Congress to consider and said it should be easier for the president to release a plan now that the election is over.

“Nearly four years after President Obama was sworn in, he has not yet given us a realistic plan for dealing with the deficit and debt,” Cornyn said. “I would think that now that the president has been reelected … he would feel flexibility to address this problem in a bipartisan way.”

At the end of the year, tax rates will increase and automatic spending cuts take effect, unless lawmakers act. Democrats have said a plan has to include raising taxes on those making more than $250,000 a year, while Republicans have said tax increases would harm small businesses.

“If the president is going to claim a mandate for governing, he at least needs to have a plan to address these problems,” Cornyn said on the Senate floor Thursday. “Unless the president releases a plan, his posturing over the debt cannot be taken seriously and threatening to go over the cliff if he doesn’t get what he wants would be irresponsible and violates the oath of office.”

Cornyn said Republicans want to make sure that deep spending cuts and entitlement reform are part of a deficit-reduction package. 

“We cannot continue to put off structural changes to entitlements,” Cornyn said. “We want to preserve Social Security and Medicare for our seniors … So far we’ve heard nothing from our president on how to fix our broken systems.”

Cornyn said Congress can’t continue to “kick the can down the road” at the expense of the American people.

“I think we all have to realize the hand we’ve been dealt and not to look back and point the finger of blame, but this is the job we’ve volunteered for,” Cornyn said. “Not kick the can down the road.”

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