Written By : John Hawkins

(Over the next couple of years, we can expect Republicans in Congress to propose and vote for a lot of spending cuts. Unfortunately, the Democrats will probably sink most of those cuts. So, with that in mind, I thought it might be useful to have a list of quotes from Democrats talking about what a problem spending has become. Not only does that show what hypocrites they are, it’ll be nice to break out their own quotes when Republicans need to make a case for cutting spending. Enjoy!)

(Deficits are) not something that is 10 years away. It affects the markets currently. It is possible that bond markets will become worried about the sustainability [of yearly deficits over $1 trillion], and we may find ourselves facing higher interest rates even today. — Ben Bernanke

If we don’t do something about it, they [debts] could and may become a national security issue. — Joe Biden

Congress must end the rise in the debt-to-GDP ratio and keep our growth in obligations in line with our growth in resources. With government expenditures now running 185 percent of receipts, truly major changes in both taxes and outlays will be required. A revived economy can’t come close to bridging that sort of gap. — Warren Buffet

This debt that we have in America is unsustainable. Every dollar we spend in Washington we borrow 40 cents and that means whether you’re buying missles in the Pentagon or food stamps in Department of Health and Human Services, we’re borrowing that money from China. — Dick Durbin

The nation’s fiscal path is “unsustainable,” and the problem “cannot be solved through minor tinkering,” the head of the Congressional Budget Office said Thursday morning. — Doug Elmendorf

There is a much greater recognition across the U.S. political system that our fiscal position is unsustainable in the long-run. It’s going to require substantial effort to bring that under control. Political will is not fully manifest at the moment but it’s coming, there’s no alternative to it. We can’t grow our way out of it. — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner

Even with this substantial deficit reduction, the Nation will still face unsustainable medium- and long-term deficits. — Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Peter Orszag, White House Director of Management and Budget, and Christina Romer, Chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

The threat of fiscal turmoil is concrete, not abstract—and it will be felt in the life of every American. Unsustainable debt eventually means skyrocketing interest rates—and that makes it harder to get a college education, to start a business, to buy a house, to plan a future.

No other issue calls so strongly for leaders who understand the importance of hard choices and hard truths. No other issue calls so strongly for citizens who know what it takes to keep a republic—the wise sacrifice today that helps our children prosper tomorrow. — Steny Hoyer

My prediction is that politicians will eventually be tempted to resolve the [fiscal] crisis the way irresponsible governments usually do: by printing money, both to pay current bills and to inflate away debt. And as that temptation becomes obvious, interest rates will soar. — Paul Krugman

Our first task is to sustain and deepen the economic recovery to spur new job creation in the face of unsustainable budget deficits. At the same time … it’ll take tough choices and putting partisanship aside to do what’s right for the country today, what’s right for our children and what’s right for our grandchildren. — Jacob Lew, Director of the United States Office of Management and Budget

We can’t keep on just borrowing from China. We have to pay interest on that debt, and that means we are mortgaging our children’s future with more and more debt. — Barack Obama

But now that the worst of the recession is over, we have to confront the fact that our government spends more than it takes in. That is not sustainable. Every day, families sacrifice to live within their means. They deserve a government that does the same. — Barack Obama

The nation faces a nasty dual deficit problem: a painful jobs deficit in the near term and an unsustainable budget deficit over the medium and long term. — Peter Orszag, the former director of the White House Office of Management and Budget

After years of historic deficits, this 110th Congress will commit itself to a higher standard: Pay as you go, no new deficit spending. Our new America will provide unlimited opportunity for future generations, not burden them with mountains of debt. — Nancy Pelosi

Because most Americans know that increasing debt is the last thing we should be doing. After all, I repeat, the Baby Boomers are about to retire. Under the circumstances, any credible economist would tell you we should be reducing debt, not increasing it. — Harry Reid

I worry that with a trillion deficit this year and next year, 2012, and for as far as the eye can see, eventually, not this year, but the next year, the markets are going to wake up and say, this is unsustainable. There is going to be market pressure and we will be forced to do the tough adjustments.

…Well, you know, if we don’t do the adjustment early on and we need to raise taxes and/or cut spending, I would spend — cut more on the spending side than on the revenue side, then there are two options. (INAUDIBLE) cannot borrow on their own currency, you can only default a la Greece.

In a country like the U.S. where you can monetize the budget deficit, run the printing presses, monetizing the fiscal deficit eventually leads to inflation. So we’re not going to have a default in the United States, that is not the option on the table. But we could have high inflation if we don’t fix our fiscal problems. — Nouriel Roubini

Everyone agrees that over the long-term we have got to reduce the record-breaking $13.7 trillion national debt and unsustainable federal deficit. — Bernie Saunders

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