Sen. Lankford: Huge Deficit Bill Won't Raise Taxes

Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., told the Sunday morning news he was a yes on a budget resolution bill that would allow for $5.8 trillion in deficit spending because it wouldn't raise taxes.

When hit with a quote by Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday" from the Committee for a Responsible Budget that stated, "This budget sets the stage for the largest deficit increase in history — an unprecedented bill that requires just $4 billion in savings to offset up to $5.8 trillion in deficits. What an absolute disgrace," the senator construed:

"So that is the wonderful Washington, D.C.-math that is coming through on this. Washington, D.C., says they want all taxes to increase on every single American because Jan. 1 of next year, every single farmer and rancher, every single small business, every single individual of all tax brackets, their rates will go up dramatically next year, and Washington, D.C., is saying, 'Yes, increase taxes.'

"Our Democrat colleagues are saying, 'Yes, increase taxes," the Oklahoma Republican added. "As simple as I can make this bill, it is about keeping tax rates the same. But in Washington, D.C., if you keep tax rates the same and don't increase them, they call that increasing deficits. What we want to do is decrease our spending, get rid of all the waste that's out there in spending, and we want to be able to maintain a good economic policy that we have currently, right now."

Meanwhile, as Lankford argued that the bill is necessary to keep tax rates the same, Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, warned in a piece published Thursday, "There are real dangers that passing a debt increase this large could trigger a debt spiral and fiscal crisis. Lawmakers," she noted, "should alleviate those fears by pivoting toward real, sustainable efforts to bring our long-term fiscal trajectory under control."

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