2025 budget request before the house Budget Committee. She highlights with the administration sees as physical fiscaland legislative successes. The president s priorities for the latest proposal which totaled 7. 3 trillion. This runs a three hours and 20 minutes. This hearing will come to order but welcome to the committee on the Budget Hearing regarding the president s fiscal year 2025 budget request. I welcome director Shalonda Young director of Office Management and budget. Thank you for being here. I have enjoyed working with you. You are one of the most likable people on capitol hill and in my experience in politics and kudos to you. As ive said before i like you a lot i do not like the president s budget im going to outline that with respect. But probably some sharp criticism. But i appreciate your service to our country as a former staff person here on capitol hill and now in this very important job as the director of omb. Welcome back to capitol hill and thank you for your time this morning. Im going to yield such time as i may consume for an Opening Statement that you thought that was my Opening Statement. Im not going to read my statement, i just want to talk to you i want to talk to my colleagues i want to talk to the American People. The president says i wholeheartedly agree with him budgets are more the numbers on a ledger they are a statement of value. They are a vision for this country. They are a set of policies. And so when he says show meet your budget, i will show your values i agree i stated differently. Show me your budget i will show your beliefs. Im not going to question his motives or your motives about your beliefs and your values and the policies outlined in the budget. I am simply going to say there is not a clearer or starker contrast between the president s of beliefs and the beliefs of at least the folks republicans who served with me on the Budget Committee. And so what the beliefs i am talking about are the beliefs and the role of government in the lives of its citizens. The role of government in solving the problems of our country. Beliefs and where we are, the conditions we are living in, and the causeandeffect of the policies of this president over the last few years. And beliefs, quite frankly what the president thanks the American People think about the last three years in the policies and the outcomes and the Current Conditions that people are living with. The better way to say that is if the president is going to double down on the last three years, ive got to give him credit and i mean this with all respects. He puts it on paper and he continues to stay committed to his beliefs on the policies he has advanced over the last three years. Now, i would say it is disconnected from the American People and their reality and their needs and their desire for a different direction. I think it is disconnected from the pain they are feeling. Especially when it comes to their pocketbook. And the record inflation the interest of the payments on their home, the payments on their car. We have more Consumer Debt than weve ever had it got more Credit Card Debt than we have ever had. People are taking more money out of their 401 k than they ever have it. It is a crisis. I know we all have a view of whats a crisis. And i hear a lot about the Climate Crisis for my democrat colleagues. Now folks in west texas and i grant you i do not travel as much around the country as i do my own district. But my folks which say the biggest crisis right now is the safety and security of their families because of the policies at the border and the flow of crime and criminals and drugs that threaten their neighborhoods, their families, their friends, and their fellow citizens. And they would say their pocketbook and the cost of living. The groceries, the gas, their quality of life. That is why i think the American People you look at the polls and approval and i dont put a lot of stock in polls. I think it is representative of our citizenry saying we want something wholly different. Here are some things ive taken away from the beliefs. This budget suggests the president and those who support the president believe we should expand entitlements when we have not even paid for the two most important in my opinion, Social Security and medicare. They are going to be insolvent before creating more. We have more people trapped in my opinion on dependency of the government than we have ever had because we do not have real consideration for work capable people going back to work who receive assistance. So we expand medicaid i say we, the president without consideration are the kind of work requirements he supported when he was senator. There is an expansion of obamacare subsidies to people making 400, 500 even 600,000 because you all repealed the eligibility for the studies show during the ira or during the temporary expansion of obamacare more than half of the people on that were above the four 100 poverty level. You suggest the president suggests in the budget he is going to use somehow the ira drug price control savings which was 100 billion at last i will be expanded 200 billion in savings you are going to use that somehow to shore up medicare. Listen, we ought to Work Together to shore up medicare, no question. Kudos to the president for at least outlining a way to do that. He grabs for a tax hike of about 750 billions in the savings from the drug price control. I disagree with that strategy in that policy. Nevertheless that is what is articulated. But heres the question why should we believe the president is going to do make use those savings when the last time to the ira there were savings it medicare reads to subsidize Green Energy Tax giveaways. It did not go back to medicare and shorted out. You are saying things in this budget and practice have not been. Let me be clear that things republicans and said that we have not followed up on. We got a piece of paper very different in terms of our beliefs. I guess you could go back to the biblical admonition show meet the fruit of your works. Faith is dead and belief is dead without works. Let me tell you there is as much deficiency on following through with our balancedbudget summit criticism im loving on you and the president. You understand . Im trying to be an equal opportunity criticize her. Now, our budget is different. We do not leave 16 trillion, 17 trillion or 18 trillion in debt we take that off the next 10 years to balance. You all raise taxes to 5 trillion in the economy is teetering on recession on the taxes be passed in higher expenses to people exacerbating inflation but we do not use taxes. We try to reinvest and reignite growth through tax reform and regulatory reform. There are two different worlds, two different Belief Systems. But i think of some rice to say in closing is my democrat colleagues in this president believe and more government and more spending and more taxing. As the answers to the problems our country faces. And i think very strong with our belief system into articulated in our budget suggests we believe in Less Government. Less spending, left taxes more empowerment of the American People and more freedom for better quality of life for prosperity the berets all folks create the greatest Antipoverty Program known to man which is more jobs, or opportunities, higher paychecks, better quality of life and standard of living. That is my perspective. I think those two world views those two Belief Systems are as clear to the American People as you can get. I respect the president not just staying with the horses writing on he isnt galloping at a pace we have not seen yet. Which i think will end and even greater disaster than what we have been experiencing with that i know ive got over my time i will let you have as much time as you can consume for the Ranking Members opening, or. Thank you, mr. Chairman its great to have you back here director young. It is common this time of year end the cycle to hear the question, are you better off than you were four years ago . Well, four years ago today then President Trump was busy tweeting out crazy conspiracy theories about covid19. By the end of the month a million and half americans would lose their jobs. By the end of the following month a record 20 and a half million americans would lose their jobs. Many American Families were stuck inside. Probably like my family. I was on zoom and a Little Office in my house. My wife is teaching her second grade class from our dining room on zoom and our daughter, a kindergartner at the time in her kindergarten class sitting at our kitchen table. Most American Families were worried about keeping ends meet and frankly keeping their mental health. Lets look at where instead we are today. All of the jobs lost during covid have been earned back and more. Unemployment has been below 4 for a record to record 75 consecutive months the longest and more than half a century. In 2023 contrary to what we heard about supposedly teetering on recession and despite the predictions of all the naysayers and doomsayers, 2. 5 economic growth. More than any other. Economy in the world. Inflation has cooled considerably. We are now almost at the fed target and whats confirmed yesterdays project of the fed will cut rates by 75 basis points over the course of this year. It has gotten so good, mr. Chairman, the center right economists with this latest headline americas pumped up economy. So when we consider the fact this economy has come all the weight back from the depths of where we were four years ago today, why in the world we ever go back to where we were just four short years ago . Well that is exactly what will republicans want to lead us. Just yesterday afternoon and i appreciate the timing for this hearing today, Republican Study Committee released is 2025 budget. Heres what they propose. Cutting Social Security by one and a half trillion dollars. Raising the retirement age. Cuts are promised retirement age. Medicare, 1 trillion with of cuts. It would end the medicare guarantee turn medicare into a premium support system. Seniors we have to fend for themselves on the open market with nothing but a coupon to offset as much of the cost of insurance as they could find. Medicaid chip in the Affordable Care act cut by an additional four and a half trillion dollars. This is the republican budget and what they plan to do if they were to gain full control here in washington d. C. So mr. Chairman, you are right there is a stark and clear difference between the two visions. One is a vision that would take us back to the depths of where we were just four years ago. The other is a vision that has literally led the world in economic growth. I look forward to hearing more about the details of both of those visions today. I look forward to your testimony here director young. Thank you. In the interest of time if any other members of Opening Statements, i ask that you submitted for the record. Well hold the record open until the end of the day to accompany those members who may not have prepared written statements. Now, i like to recognize director young. Again thank you for being with us. The floor is yours and i yelled five minutes per. Thank you im going to Say Something and mean it some witnesses may not mean but it is a pleasure to be here with you its a little like coming home proud to think the staff of the chairman noted i was a staffer in the house for the Appropriations Committee working for the Budget Committee i take back anything bad about the Budget Committee before as it is earlier for chairman errington and a Ranking Member boyle were heads of the sistine committee. A lot of my remarks will be about contrast. Where this president stands and i am proud to present his fourth budget. The fiscal year 2025 budget from day one of this administration present by nist tackle challenges head on while delivering longlasting results. Over the past three years he has overseen a strong economic recovery, a mass were the most successful legislative records and generations grow the economy for that middle out and the bottom up and delivered important progress for the American People. Under the president s leadership weve added about 15 million jobs. Unemployment rate has remained below 4 for over two years more than 50 year record. While inflation has fallen by two thirds. This administration has taken action to lower costs for working families hide everything from Prescription Drug costs and Health Insurance premiums to everyday goods and services. The president s top priority remains lower costs for hardworking americans. At the same time the president s also resort u. S. Leadership on the world stage while keeping americans safe and promoting democracy here and abroad. The president has deliver this progress for the American People all while fulfilling his commitment to fiscal responsibility. The deficit is more than 1 trillion lower than when the president took office. Thanks in large part to a strong economic recovery. In addition the president s also enacted another roughly 1 trillion in savings over the next decade to the fiscal responsibility act. The president s 2025 budget details the president s vision for a more equitable, prosperous and powerful america with proposals for responsible progrowth investment in the American People. The budget protects and builds on the progress made over the last three years proposes additional policies to lower costs for hardworking families. Including for Health Insurance, Prescription Drugs, childcare, utilities, housing, college, energy and more. These investors will help working families keep more of their hard earned paycheck and strengthen our economy. It also invests in america working families. President biden has shown us we can be both fiscally responsible and invest in america. The budget will bolster manufacturing and industry across the nation. Making our communitys healthier and safer provide paid leave, support research and cancer deliver for our veterans. Cut taxes for families of children, promote flexible dynamic workforce and more. The budget protects medicare and Social Security. Bedrock programs to generations of americans have counted on and seniors have paid into their entire working lives. Extend medicare solvency indefinitely. By requiring wealthy people to pay their fair share toward medicare reducing Prescription Drug costs. It reflects the president s commitment to reject any benefit cuts to Social Security, extend solvency by asking the highest income americans to pay their fair share. Improve Financial Security for seniors and people with disabilities. In short americans can access the benefits they earn. What will be a decisive decade for america and the world this budget reflects the National Security strategy. By including robust investments in military readiness, or diplomatic developments tools and art of the sacred commitment to our veterans the budget achieves all of this while building on the president s proven record of fiscal responsibility. Honoring the president s promise that no and earning less that 400,000 per year will pay a penny more and new taxes. His budget reduces the deficit by roughly 3 trillion over the next 10 years on top of paying for new investments like cracking down on fraud, wasteful spending and abuse including by reducing Prescription Drug costs. Making the wealthy corporations pay their fair share. Thank you, mr. Chairman, thinking Ranking Member boyle thank you offer the opportunity to appear here today. Thank you director young we will now move to the question and answer portion of the hearing. I yield myself five minutes. You mentioned the president s of policies have lowered the debt by about a trillion dollars. Lets be clear here. The president was in hiding for about 100 days for Chuck Schumer swore he would never negotiate a debt ceiling. Collect some this committee saying it is reckless. You should never do it they were the sky is falling. Because republicans said we cannot just have a clean and debt ceiling where we dont consider the 34 trillion record debt for this country for the 20 trillion that will be added this this is the truth i can look you in the eye and tight republicans led to bring democrats to the negotiating table and we together it reduced spending yearoveryear. Over the 10 year window not actually in a laugh or something close to that. I appreciate the president and the administration worked with us but had republicans not pushed back. Had we not led Ranking Member we would not have that record. The people need to understand that is the kind of pushback and political courage republicans and democrats have to exercise if are going to bring the debt down. I do not believe that the president is fiscally respo