Klobuchar: 'I'll Vote Yes On Debt Bill'
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are expected to vote Monday on a deal to raise the debt ceiling and cut the deficit. Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar spoke with WCCO's Dave Lee about the deal and what it means.
"First of all, the debt ceiling won't lapse," she said. "There were so many concerns I heard from all over the state about people's retirements funds, 401K, the effect on home mortgages because interest rates would have gone up."
Secondly, Klobuchar said, they have to do some actual debt reduction.
"About $900 billion will be reduced on the debt from various cuts, pretty much across the board," Klobuchar said. "By the end of Thanksgiving a bi-partisan committee has to come up with some suggested cuts."
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Klobuchar said there has to be an up or down vote on their suggestions. If not -- there will be consequences.
"If they don't get a vote to reduce based on their suggestions, then automatically $1.5 trillion in additional money is going to be reduced. That will be 50 percent domestic spending and 50 percent military spending, excluding veterans," she said.
Because Minnesota residents had to endure the state government shutdown, Klobuchar said many people were focused on that and not the national debt crisis.
"It was only in the last week that people realized what a serious matter this was to let this debt ceiling lapse," Klobuchar said. "It would add another one to two trillion to our debt."
According to Klobuchar, the deal isn't something she would have written, but she will vote yes because it's something that has to be done.
