Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, issued the following statement today after voting no on the Temporary Debt Limit Suspension Act.

“Congress must lift the debt ceiling in a clean vote and then turn immediately to address our fiscal challenges,” Larsen said. “Raising the debt ceiling does not allow new spending; it only allows the United States to pay the bills it already owes.

“This bill is not a serious proposal. All this bill does is set up yet another fiscal cliff in a few months’ time.

“This political brinksmanship has real consequences in Northwest Washington, across the nation and around the world. Congress needs to say with one voice that the United States will pay the bills that we have accrued. These short-term fixes do nothing to restore confidence to the economy or solve our long-term fiscal problems.

“I am committed as ever to tackling our budget deficit and paying down our national debt. I was one of only 38 members of Congress to vote for a bipartisan budget plan that would use a balanced approach to cut the deficit by $4 trillion. We must replace the automatic spending cuts with a balanced plan that preserves vital job-creating investments, ends tax breaks for the wealthy and big corporations, and protects Social Security and Medicare.”