Mark Pryor on Budget Control Act of 2011

Summary

Senator Pryor voted for and supported the Budget Control Act of 2011. He stated that while the plan was not perfect, it did cut $1 trillion in cuts without dismantling safety net programs. When the super-committee failed to reach an agreement, the Senator stated that Americans were willing to do their part if Congress could come up with a balanced plan.

Supporting the Plan

In August of 2011, Senator Pryor issued a press statement noting his support for the plan to create the super-committee to come up with a plan to address the debt.

Aug 01 2011
Statement by Senator Mark Pryor In Support of the Bipartisan Solution to Raise the Debt Ceiling

The debate over raising the debt ceiling has been difficult but essential to reduce the deficit, avoid default, and provide more certainty in our economy. We started with harmful, partisan plans and advanced to an agreement on a bipartisan, practical solution. While not perfect, I plan to vote for this bill. It makes a nearly $1 trillion in spending cuts and sets the stage for long-term savings. It does so without dismantling safety net programs such as Social Security and Medicare, which would have been unacceptable to hundreds of thousands of Arkansans. Though it is a step in the right direction, we must continue making tough decisions to reduce our debt.

Arkansans have shared with me how truly frustrated they are about the gridlock in Washington, DC. I agree. We need to work better together in order to put Americans back to work and earn back their trust.

Failure of the Super-Committee

In November of 2011, Senator Pryor issued a press statement noting his disappointment at the failure of the super committee to reach a deal to address the debt.

Nov 21 2011
Statement by Senator Mark Pryor On the Supercommittee’s Failure to Reach an Agreement on Debt Reduction

I am disappointed the twelve members of the supercommittee came up empty handed. The supercommittee had the ability to reach an agreement, but not every member came to the table with the political will to do so.

No one likes sacrifice, but we are in this together. I believe a majority of Americans are willing to do their part if the sacrifice is shared, balanced and will put our country on better footing for the future. Along with many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, I have been and will continue to work on solving our nation’s fiscal challenges. I remain hopeful that we outnumber those entrenched in ideology.
 

Voting Record

Budget Control Act of 2011

The Budget Control Act of 2011 was a compromise to raise the debt ceiling in stages in return for putting deficit reduction measures in place. The legislation created the super-committee of 12 Congressmen and Senators to find ways to lower the debt and established across the board reductions if they failed to reached a certain amount of reduction over ten years. Mark Pryor voted in favor of the Budget Control Act of 2011.

Sponsored and Cosponsored Legislation

This representative has not been identified as sponsoring or cosponsoring significant legislation related to this title.

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