Democrat Calls Bush Fiscal Policy Reckless

ABC News
Democrat Calls Bush Fiscal Policy Reckless
California Democrat Urges Fiscal Responsibility, Calls Bush Fiscal Policies Reckless
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - Calling the Bush administration's fiscal policies reckless and broken, Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Calif., urged the federal government on Saturday to rein in spending.

Speaking in the Democratic Party's weekly radio address, Cardoza said, "Under President Bush, we have run up the biggest deficits in the history of the world."

The national debt was increased by Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress to $8 trillion, or $27,000 for each American, he said. And a nearly $50 billion GOP deficit-reduction bill passed in the House early Friday will actually increase the deficit, he said.

"The Republican Party has abandoned fiscal conservatism and embraced a budget system with no accountability," he said.

Cardoza also criticized the amount of debt the U.S. owes to other countries, saying the amount is "unprecedented."

"This president has borrowed more money from abroad than all 42 of his predecessors combined, including billions of dollars from the Central Bank of China," he said.

Cardoza is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of 37 House Democrats who list a balanced federal budget as a major goal. The group has offered several measures to reduce the deficit.

"Now is the time for real reform," Cardoza said. "Every American understands that they need to balance their check book each and every month. Government shouldn't be any different."