Statement by Michele Bachmann on President Obama's Speech on the National Debt Crisis

Cedar Rapids, Iowa - Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann issued the following statement in response to President Obama's speech on the national debt crisis:

"Shame on President Obama for casting the American people aside as collateral damage, as he continues his political gamesmanship with the national debt crisis. The problem with the president's plan is that he's operating from the wrong assumption — that we need to increase the debt limit to pay for increased spending. Despite what President Obama says, the people of this country understand what raising the debt limit means. It's the President who doesn't grasp the magnitude of our national debt; he compares it to 'a little credit card debt' when, in fact, our 'national credit cards' are maxed out.

"President Obama isn't listening to the American people. Not one person in Iowa, New Hampshire or South Carolina has told me that we need a 'balanced approach,' which, of course, is code for higher taxes and spending. Let me be clear: I will not vote to raise the debt limit. The Congress and the President should not raise the debt limit. Rather than scaring seniors and veterans, it's time to make the tough choices and make the spending cuts necessary to put our nation on the path to prosperity, lower spending and a balanced budget."