12.16.21

The ‘Lie Of The Year’: Biden’s Claims His Spending Spree Is Fully Paid For

Analyses From The Congressional Budget Office Have Shown That Democrats’ Multitrillion Spending Bill Would Add A Tidal Wave Of Red Ink To The Deficit, Making Their Claims The Bill Is Fully Paid For The ‘Lie Of The Year’

SENATE REPUBLICAN LEADER MITCH McCONNELL (R-KY): “[O]n Friday, a new report showed their socialist shopping spree could cost the country trillions more than Democrats admit. You see, as one of our Democratic colleagues explained last month, his party’s bill is packed full of ‘shell games’ and ‘budget gimmicks.’ For example, their bill pretends that major new entitlements would simply expire after a few years. Of course, that never happens. As a wise man once said, ‘nothing is so permanent as a temporary government program.’ And Democrats aren’t even pretending they think the spending would stop. They’re boasting about a permanent transformation. The fake expiration dates are just an accounting trick so the price tag looks artificially low. And last Friday, the Congressional Budget Office announced that if we acknowledge the permanent entitlements would be permanent, their bill would actually cost $4.9 trillion in the first decade alone. It would explode the deficit by $3 trillion in that time.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 12/15/2021)

  • LEADER McCONNELL: “Democrats are trying to reassure their alarmed members that they’d find new ways to offset future extensions. But think about it. They’ve just spent months shoving every possible pay-for into this existing bill. They already burned through huge, permanent tax hikes just to partially offset the bill with the gimmicks! Extending these programs further would either explode our national debt… or it would take even further trillions in even further gigantic tax hikes that Democrats will not specify. So which is it? Historic deficits or trillions more in secret tax hikes? The right answer for the country is neither.” (Sen. McConnell, Remarks, 12/15/2021)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC), Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member: “[S]o what did I do? I asked the CBO to look at the bill to see if it had budget gimmicks. It was made up of shell games, and that’s what Joe Manchin asked in November last month. And what did CBO tell us? If the 17 programs stay in place and they’ll never go away, it’s not $1.75 [trillion]. It’s $5 trillion. If you spend that much money over ten years the way the bill is constructed, the deficit goes from $360 billion to $3 trillion…. If you tell the truth about the bill, like CBO did, is $5 trillion, not $1.75. It’s $3 trillion in deficit, not $360 billion over 10 years.” (Fox News’ “Hannity,” 12/13/2021)

 

Democrats’ Talking Point Claiming That Their Multitrillion Reckless Taxing-And-Spending Spree Is Fully Paid For Or Costs Nothing ‘Is The Lie Of The Year’

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL EDITORIAL BOARD: “[President Biden’s tax and entitlement] plan’s advertised cost of $1.75 trillion over 10 years includes multiple budget gimmicks that disguise the real cost. The Penn Wharton Budget Model has scored the 10-year cost at about $4.6 trillion, but the White House keeps claiming against all evidence that the cost is ‘zero.’ Now comes the Congressional Budget Office to report that the claim of zero cost is a Big Con…. CBO has said the bill would add $200 billion to the deficit over 10 years.” (Editorial, “The Real Cost of Biden’s Spending Plan,” The Wall Street Journal, 12/12/2021)

  • “Enter Sens. Lindsey Graham and John Cornyn, who asked CBO director Phillip Swagel to add up the cost of the bill that recently passed the House if all of its programs were made permanent. This is a more honest accounting because Democrats admit both that they want to make the spending permanent and that they’ve adjusted programs to make them fit under the Senate budget rules so they can pass with a mere 51 votes … The 18 programs that Mr. Swagel itemizes in a table with his letter contribute $3.477 trillion over 10 years to the total cost of the House bill—compared with the $889 billion that Democrats claim those same programs cost under their gimmicky rules. Overall, Mr. Swagel says in his letter, CBO and the Joint Committee on Taxation project that the House bill would increase the deficit by $3 trillion over 10 years without the budget gimmicks and phony phase-outs.” (Editorial, “The Real Cost of Biden’s Spending Plan,” The Wall Street Journal, 12/12/2021)

Democrats Repeatedly Asserted Their Spending Spree ‘Does Not Increase The Debt’ And ‘Will Be Fully Paid For’

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: “This is not going to cost a single, solitary penny. We’re not going to increase the deficit by one cent in the Build Back Better plan at all.” (WHIO-TV, 12/14/2021)

PRESIDENT BIDEN: “There’s a lot that people don’t understand. And by the way, all this paid for. Every single penny. It’s not going to raise one single cent.” (CNN Presidential Town Hall With President Joe Biden, 10/21/2021)

WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY JEN PSAKI: “Well, let’s — let’s not dumb this down for the American public here. What we’re talking about is how much the topline investments are, which are all paid for, so therefore, it costs zero. No matter what the cost or size of the topline investments are, we have ways to pay for it.” (White House Press Briefing, 10/04/2021)

WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF RON KLAIN: “It is fully paid for by raising taxes on wealthy people. We have had people become billionaires during the pandemic. They should pay their fair share of taxes…. If we raise taxes on the big corporations who aren’t paying, raise taxes on people using international loopholes, raise taxes on the wealthy who are not paying their fair share, we can pay for every one of those investments in the package without a penny of taxes on people making under $400,000 a year and without a penny being added to the long-term federal debt…. So, I think Senator Manchin’s concerns about inflation, about debts, those are concerns we can address with the provisions of this package itself.” (CNN’s State of the Union, 9/05/2021)

TREASURY SECRETARY JANET YELLEN: “As the speaker noted, we have a variety of different ways to raise revenue. And, all in all, it should be relatively straightforward to raise the revenue necessary to pay for this bill.” (CNN’s State of the Union, 10/24/2021)

HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (D-CA):  “[S]o this legislation will be paid for. In fact, it may be more than paid for. Again, it’s transformative. It’s historic.” (Speaker Pelosi, Press Conference, 10/21/2021)

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): “I will say I agree with the speaker and I think this bill is going to be paid for. I will also say that we now have 49 Democrats in the senate who are ready to do those tax increases…. I would certainly hope the last senator could come along with us. But either way, we’re going to get this thing paid for and get it done.” (CNN’s “The Lead With Jake Tapper,” 10/21/2021)

SENATE MAJORITY WHIP DICK DURBIN (D-IL): . “And the second point I want to make is we are doing this in a fiscally responsible way. What we are proposing in changes and expenditures are paid for, paid for.” (Sen. Durbin, Press Conference, 10/26/2021)

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): “I’m committed to the principle that we’re not going to add to the deficit with this bill. It’s going to be paid for.” (MSNBC’s “Craig Melvin Reports,” 10/26/2021)

 

But The Congressional Budget Office Determined Last Month That Democrats’ Massive Taxing-And-Spending Bill Is NOT Paid For, And Will Add $800 Billion To The Deficit Over The Next Five Years

“CBO estimates that enacting this legislation would result in a net increase in the deficit totaling $367 billion over the 2022-2031 period, not counting any additional revenue that may be generated by additional funding for tax enforcement.” (“Summary of Cost Estimate for H.R. 5376, the Build Back Better Act,” Congressional Budget Office, 11/18/2021)

The Congressional Budget Office estimates the Democrats’ reckless taxing and spending bill would add nearly $800 billion to the deficit over the next five years. (“Summary of Cost Estimate for H.R. 5376, the Build Back Better Act,” Congressional Budget Office, 11/18/2021)

 

And Last Week, A New CBO Analysis Showed That If The Provisions Of Democrats’ Reckless Taxing-And-Spending Spree Were Made Permanent, As Democrats Intend, The Full Cost Would Be $4.9 Trillion And It Would ‘Increase The Deficit By $3.0 Trillion’

BUDGET COMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER RELEASE: “CBO confirmed the true cost of the bill is $4.9 trillion, and it adds $3 trillion in new debt.” (U.S. Senate Budget Committee Ranking Member, Press Release, 12/10/2021)

CBO: “This letter responds to your request for a projection of the budgetary effects, including the effects on interest costs, of a modified version of H.R. 5376, the Build Back Better Act. You specified modifications that would make various policies permanent rather than temporary. The Congressional Budget Office and the staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation project that a version of the bill modified as you have specified would increase the deficit by $3.0 trillion over the 2022–2031 period.” (Phillip L. Swagel, Congressional Budget Office Director, Letter to Sen. Graham and Rep. Smith, 12/10/2021)

Other Nonpartisan Analyses Have Found That Making All These Provisions Permanent Would Nearly Double The Full Cost Of The Bill

PENN WHARTON BUDGET MODEL: “In an alternative, illustrative scenario in which all temporary provisions in H.R. 5376 are made permanent, spending would instead total $4.6 trillion over the 10-year budget window. In this scenario, by 2050 federal debt increase by 24.4 percent and GDP would fall by 2.9 percent relative to current law.” (“H.R. 5376, Build Back Better Act: Budget And Macroeconomic Effects,” Penn Wharton Budget Model, 11/15/2021)

COMMITTEE FOR A RESPONSIBLE FEDERAL BUDGET: “Based on CBO’s score of the House-passed Build Back Better Act, this update of our prior analysis finds extensions would nearly double the cost of the bill from over $2.4 trillion to nearly $4.8 trillion. If all extensions were enacted without offsets, it would increase the deficit impact of the bill from $158 billion to $2.8 trillion.” (“A Permanent Build Back Better Act Could Cost $4.8 Trillion,” Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, 11/30/2021)

 

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): ‘What I See Are Shell Games And Budget Gimmicks,’ ‘Do They Not Intend For Those Programs To Last The Full 10 Years?,’ ‘That Is [A] Recipe For Economic Crisis’

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): “[A]s more of the real details outlined in the basic framework are released, what I see are shell games and budget gimmicks that make the real cost of this so-called ‘$1.75 trillion dollar’ bill estimated to be twice as high if the programs are extended or made permanent. That is [a] recipe for economic crisis. None of us should ever misrepresent to the American people what the real cost of legislation is.” (Sen. Manchin, Press Conference, 11/01/2021)

  • SEN. MANCHIN: “If we’re going to pick all of these things we want to do but one goes for three years, one goes for one year, and maybe one other one might go for the full 10 years. Do they not intend for those programs to last the full 10 years? Well if you intend for that to happen, what’s the real cost? Because we are either going to debt finance it, if we are not going to pay for it, or come back and change the tax code again to try to get the revenue.” (The Wall Street Journal CEO Council Summit, 12/07/2021)

SEN. MANCHIN: “Make no mistake, we must get our fiscal house in order, and I am committed to making sure we are not spending beyond our means.” (Sen. Manchin, Press Release, 12/14/2021)

SEN. MANCHIN: “Whatever Congress is considering [doing] we should do it within the limits of what we can afford.” (Punchbowl News Midday, 12/13/2021)

 

Democrats Have Repeatedly Explained That They Want To Make The Massive New Spending Programs They Plan To Create Permanent


“Progressives argued for preserving as many of the proposal’s policies as possible, while saving money by having them expire sooner than initially planned…. President Joe Biden backed the … strategy as well, and that appears to be the course Democrats will pursue. Biden and the progressives hope the policies will be so popular — even if they’re only implemented for a short period — that it will be difficult for future lawmakers to let them lapse, regardless of who controls Congress.” (“Democrats Are Setting Up Social Policies For Painful Cliffs,” Vox, 10/20/2021)

REPORTER: “[W]e’ve heard the President say he wants he come back and get things later … extending the life of some of these programs that have been shortened. Progressives have been saying that now is the moment to do — go big; there might not be another moment.  Why does the President think, given how difficult things have been up to this point, that he’ll have another bite at the apple to sort of make these programs more enduring, or to include even things that couldn’t make it into this package somewhere down the line? … [W]hy does he think that a future Congress, or sometime later in this administration, he’ll have more luck going beyond where he’s at right now in getting more spending for some of those programs at the levels that he initially wanted and now he’s had to pare back?”
WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY JEN PSAKI: “One is what I referenced, related to the Social Security program in history or the Affordable Care Act, where these are programs that put in place the fundamental mechanisms in society to deliver on change and relief to people for decades to come. And what we’re talking about here is instituting some programs that have never existed before: universal pre-K; we’re talking about paid family and medical leave; we’re building on, as an example, the Affordable Care Act by continuing to expand healthcare coverage, which is another example of building. So the President’s belief is these changes are long overdue…. [A]nd that this package — these packages will be the basis for building on in the future, during his administration as well.” (White House Press Briefing 10/22/2021)

FOX NEWS’ NEIL CAVUTO: “You know very well that it’s very hard to get rid of these programs that ever are initiated five years out. So you know that you’ll get your way anyway in that event, because whatever you get, it’s something that is hard to take away when they expire, right?”
HOUSE MAJORITY WHIP JIM CLYBURN (D-SC): “I have not been secretive about that as well. I’ve said, ‘Let’s do it.’ It will be difficult to take it away. You can take it away. I’d rather have the difficulty of taking it away than getting it started.” (Fox News’ “Your World with Neil Cavuto,” 10/6/2021)

CONGRESSIONAL PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS LEADERS: “If given a choice between legislating narrowly or broadly, we strongly encourage you to choose the latter, and make robust investments over a shorter window. … This will help make the case for our party’s ability to govern, and establish a track record of success that will pave the way for a longterm extension of benefits.” (Congressional Progressive Caucus Leaders, Letter to Speaker Pelosi, 10/13/2021)

REP. MARK POCAN (D-WI): “It would be very hard for people to take things away, and that’s part of our goal… Once people see how popular these things are … many of these debates are the same debates we had when you created Social Security and other programs. And once people got them, you saw how wildly popular [they were]. We think some of these are going to be in that wildly popular category.” (“Progressives Say Go Big And Make Life Hard For GOP,” The Hill, 10/16/2021)

REP. RO KHANNA (D-CA): “Obviously, some of these programs are shorter than ideal. But the president believes, and I agree with him, that once we have these programs established, it becomes hard to take them away.” (“Democrats Are Setting Up Social Policies For Painful Cliffs,” Vox, 10/20/2021)

REP. VERONICA ESCOBAR (D-TX): “Many of us believe that once families have access to child care, once employees have access to paid family leave, once we begin certain programs, that it will be very challenging for Republicans to cut them off…” (“Progressives Say Go Big And Make Life Hard For GOP,” The Hill, 10/16/2021)

Democrats Have Been Even More Explicit In Stating Their Intent To Make Expansion Of The Child Tax Credit Permanent

“The aid is the result of an expanded, retooled child tax credit, which Democrats approved this past spring as part of their sprawling coronavirus relief package. Lawmakers grew the size of the benefit, ensured lower-income Americans could claim it fully on their taxes and allowed parents for the first time to collect the money in the form of monthly checks. Democrats hope to extend each of those elements as part of their latest, roughly $2 trillion economic initiative known as the Build Back Better Act, which more broadly aims to overhaul the country’s health care, education, climate and tax laws.” (“Democrats Face Race Against The Clock To Extend Soon-Expiring Child Tax Credit Payments,” The Washington Post, 12/09/2021)

SENIOR ADVISOR TO THE PRESIDENT CEDRIC RICHMOND: “[T]he point about the child tax credit and Congressman Torres is right. It’s important. It’s a game changer for children. If we have our way, we would make it permanent.” (CNN’s “The Lead With Jake Tapper,” 10/20/2021)

REPORTER: “What is the range on the timeline for extending the CTC in the budget resolution? Is it a few weeks, is it months, is it years?”
SENATE MAJORITY LEADER CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): “Well we certainly want to extend it for as long as we can, given the fiscal constraints. One of the most important things in this bill and it will be extended for a robust amount of time.” (Sen. Schumer, Press Conference. 7/15/2021)

HOUSE SPEAKER NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): “Let me just say: I want permanent Child Tax Credit.  I’ve wanted it for years.” (Speaker Pelosi, Press Conference, 10/21/2021)

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): “[I]t’s my expectation that the Senate is going to act and get the Build Back Better Act over the finish line … And one of the reasons why it’s important is because of the pending expiration of the child tax credit … House Democrats will not allow this tax credit to expire, and I don’t believe that the Senate will either.” (Rep. Jeffries, Press Conference, 12/08/2021)

REP. JAMAAL BOWMAN (D-NY): “The child tax credit -- the temporary one -- lifted 50 percent of children out of poverty. We’re looking to extend that to make it permanent.” (CNN’s “New Day,” 10/19/2021)

 

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SENATE REPUBLICAN COMMUNICATIONS CENTER

Related Issues: Senate Democrats, Democrats' Reckless Taxing And Spending Spree