MOBILE – Bradley Byrne, Republican Candidate for Alabama’s First Congressional District, today said he does not support the debt ceiling bill passed by the United States House & Senate yesterday. The bill, signed by President Obama overnight, hikes the country’s borrowing limit but does not cut spending.

Byrne released the following statement:

I do not support the deal passed by the House & Senate yesterday which merely kicks the can down the road. I believe we should work to prevent defaulting on our debt payments and re-open the government, but I cannot support legislation that increases our nation’s debt without serious spending cuts. I applaud the six members of the Alabama delegation who stood strong against this flawed legislation.

Conservatives fought a good fight on ObamaCare, and the fight is not over. This bill has no real spending decreases and no changes to ObamaCare, a seriously flawed law. We are already seeing individual premiums skyrocket in Alabama as ObamaCare begins to be implemented.

It’s time to hold Members of Congress and their staffs accountable for legislation passed by Congress. I’d sponsor and strongly support a Constitutional Amendment requiring Members of Congress and their staffs to be treated like everyone else, including no exemptions from ObamaCare.

Our next Congressman must be a strong voice for South Alabama and not vote to continue kicking the can down the road months at a time. It’s time to cut spending, cap future spending as a percentage of GDP, and balance the budget through a balanced budget amendment, and I would only support raising the debt ceiling through legislation that accomplishes those things. We need serious legislation that takes care of our debt needs without continued reckless spending.

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