Bass: Efforts To Cut US Deficit Can't Come At Expense Of Jobs
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A panel of Congressional legislators tasked with cutting trillions from the U.S. deficit held their first public hearing Wednesday.
U.S. Rep. Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) is one of the participants of the Congressional "super-committee" that was created to cut as much as $2 trillion from the nation's ballooning budget deficit.
The 12-member panel -- which has so far reportedly made very little progress — faces a deadline next month to reach a deal on how to tackle the soaring U.S. unemployment rate while still looking to restore the country's overall fiscal health.
Bass told KNX 1070 it comes down to what Americans want most: a paycheck.
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"The way to get us out of this is we have to create jobs," Bass said. "The focus of the super-committee — in addition to cutting and looking at revenue — has to be in the context of getting more jobs."
But with calls coming from both sides of the political aisle to trim spending at a time when millions of Americans are out of work, Bass said the panel must move forward toward dual objectives.
"The main thing is calling for a balanced approach so that you can't resolve the deficit through cuts alone, you have to have some revenue," she said.
Despite the looming deadline in November, committee members still expect to come up with a deal and have pledged a full commitment to finding a solution.
