The United States' national debt has surpassed $40 trillion, and Texas Representative Jodey Arrington (R-TX) is calling on states to help balance America’s federal budget.
Article V of the Constitution allows the states to propose changes to limit the power and spending of the federal government. This would allow the states to call for an “amendment convention” to pursue a balanced-budget amendment. However, this provision has never been used to propose a constitutional amendment.
House Budget Chairman Rep. Arrington is looking to the sovereign states to change that.
“Our national debt continues to pose an existential threat to the future of our nation,” Rep. Arrington said. “We are mortgaging our kids’ entire future to pay for today’s spending – promises we’ve made, which we are unwilling to pay for ourselves.”
Rep. Arrington said Article V allows a “path” for the sovereign states “to amend the Constitution in the face of a runaway federal government,” meaning the states can work together to propose a constitutional amendment that would limit federal spending and require a balanced budget.
“Under this proceeding, we can finally pass a balanced budget amendment and rein in the unbridled spending that's driving our unsustainable debt,” Rep. Arrington said.
Rep. Arrington said the national debt is growing rapidly, making it more costly to service the debt.
“It took nearly 200 years to accumulate the first $1 trillion,” he said. “Now, we add that much debt in less than five months.”
He said the federal government is now borrowing about $6 billion per day, with more than half going toward interest on the debt it already owes—an amount greater than the entire national defense budget.
This growing debt comes as another setback to the nation’s growing cost-of-living and financial crisis, a national concern that Rep. Arrington said Congress has yet to address.
“Here’s the sad and sobering truth: despite the urgency of our fiscal crisis, Congress has failed to muster the collective courage to meet the moment,” he said. “It’s for reasons such as this our founders included Article V of the Constitution…”
Rep. Arrington said it is now up to the states to help address the nation’s growing debt.
“As James Madison said, ‘A public debt is a public curse…greater than any other,’” Rep. Arrington said. “I’m calling on the sovereign states to Reverse the Curse!”
