WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Mike Lee released the following statement on the debt proposals released by Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Harry Reid:

“Both plans represent typical Washington answers to the federal government’s out-of-control spending problem.  They add trillions to the national debt in the short-term while making hollow promises to cut spending in the long-term.  Neither of the proposals fundamentally reform the way Washington spends money, require the federal government to balance its budget, or protect our triple-A credit rating. 

“The right solution is immediate cuts, enforceable spending caps, and structural reform, including a balanced budget amendment, not empty promises,  unaccountable commissions, and business as usual.

“Republicans have already put forward a plan that grants the President’s unprecedented request on the debt ceiling.  The House passed it and every Republican in the Senate voted for it.  If we reach August 2 without a meaningful deal, it will be because the President and Senate Democrats refused to take Washington’s spending problem seriously.”