Santorum Campaign Press Release - ICYMI: Santorum Pens POLITICO Op-Ed In Support of Balanced Budget Amendment

Verona, PA - Former Senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) authored an op-ed in this morning's edition of POLITICO entitled "The Courage to Balance the Budget." In this opinion piece, Senator Santorum argues that Republican leaders need to draw a line in the sand and not vote to raise the debt limit unless a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution is also passed.

During his time in both the House and Senate, Senator Santorum was a passionate advocate in support of the Balanced Budget Amendment and budget reforms - sponsor or cosponsoring over 20 pieces of legislation focused on balancing the budget, enacting significant budget reforms, and increasing spending transparency of taxpayer dollars, three of which became public law.

In fact, upon entering the Senate in 1995, the Balanced Budget Amendment was among the first bills Senator Santorum cosponsored. And as just a freshman senator, it was Senator Santorum who led the fight to remove the powerful Republican Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Mark Hatfield, for casting the deciding vote against the Amendment.

Most recently, Senator Santorum signed the "Cut, Cap, Balance" Pledge to cut government spending, place enforceable caps on government spending, and enact a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution.

Below is the text of Senator Santorum's op-ed.

"The Courage to Balance the Budget"

By Sen. Rick Santorum

"Yogi Berra once made the statement, "It's déjà vu all over again." I look at the current budget and debt limit debate and I can't help but think he was right. It's just like 1995 all over again, except this time the stakes are much higher.

When I was a freshman senator we came close to passing a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. In fact, it was the Republican Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Mark Hatfield, who can be credited with killing the amendment that could have helped us avoid the mess we face today. I led the fight to remove Hatfield as chairman because of his irresponsible vote and was castigated by my Republican colleagues, because that was not how the greatest deliberative body was supposed to behave. My response was that Hatfield's vote was not how he was suppose to behave as a responsible representative entrusted with protecting the individual liberty of his constituents...

... So to my former colleagues, I ask: Do you have the courage to fight for not just a balanced budget, but for handing off America to your children and grandchildren better than you received it? To those who do - I stand with you and as president I commit to ensuring the Balanced Budget Amendment is ratified as our 28th Amendment."

To read Senator Santorum's op-ed in its entirety: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0611/57960.html