“A lot of Americans understandably do not support another increase in the debt limit unless they see a path to a balanced budget.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In remarks to The Ripon Society this past Thursday, U.S. Senator John McCain took questions from the group and delivered some characteristic straight talk about the current budget debate in Congress and the effort to cut spending on Capitol Hill.
“The one thing that’s hard for us to do is go back to our constituents and explain to them why it’s necessary to continue to raise the national debt,” McCain stated. “There are explanations, as we all know. There are non-discretionary programs that continue to increase in size for reasons beyond our control. But a lot of Americans understandably do not support another increase in the debt limit unless they see a path to a balanced budget. I think that will be the key to a compromise that would allow us to get the votes of these new Republicans.”
In his remarks, McCain – who won reelection to a fifth term in the Senate this past November — also touched on the political environment for Republicans and the prospects facing his party in the election next year.
“Depending on what happens in the next six months or so,” he stated, “I think Republicans have a real good chance of regaining control of the Senate … I think we have to understand that the same independent voters who in 2008 voted strongly for President Obama switched dramatically in 2010, indicating how quickly those numbers can change in one direction or another. Everyone looks at Arizona as a Republican state. We’re now basically one-third, one-third, one-third. The greatest increase in voter registration – everywhere – is the independent voter. So I think we have to understand why they voted the way they did in 2010, and what we need to do to try to keep their allegiance in 2012.”
In addition to discussing the budget debate and the 2012 elections, McCain also spoke extensively about the situation in Libya and the historical changes happening in the Middle East in his remarks to The Ripon Society.
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The Ripon Society is a public policy organization that was founded in 1962 and takes its name from the town where the Republican Party was born in 1854 – Ripon, Wisconsin. One of the main goals of The Ripon Society is to promote the ideas and principles that have made America great and contributed to the GOP’s success. These ideas include keeping our nation secure, keeping taxes low and having a federal government that is smaller, smarter and more accountable to the people.