Statement by Maya MacGuineas on Confirmation Hearing of Rep. Mick Mulvaney for OMB Director

Today, the Senate Budget Committee and Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee held confirmation hearings for Congressman Mick Mulvaney to become the next Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said the following:

“OMB Director is one of the most important Administration positions when it comes to economic and fiscal policy, and we are pleased Congressman Mulvaney used so much of his testimony to focus on our nation’s unsustainable long-term fiscal path.

Congressman Mulvaney’s testimony demonstrated a willingness to speak hard truths on the need to make changes to Social Security and Medicare, which represent the largest and fastest growing parts of the budget and are both on paths toward insolvency. Reforms to Social Security and Medicare must be made sooner rather than later, and it is encouraging that Congressman Mulvaney bucked the increasingly common trend of pledging not to touch these programs or the revenue sources needed to pay for them. These pledges virtually guarantee the country remains on an unstainable fiscal course and will ultimately hurt the people who rely on these programs most.

Congressman Mulvaney also, encouragingly, expressed support for paying for new initiatives and avoiding budget gimmicks, such as abuse of the war spending designation.

We also share the Congressman’s desire to increase economic growth, though caution that growth alone will not fix our fiscal problems and that projections need to be realistic, based on economic and demographic realities.

According to today’s report from the Congressional Budget Office, our debt will increase by $10 trillion over the next decade under current law above today’s post-war record-high levels. Facing this unsustainable fiscal path, the Trump Administration will need to work with Congress to slow the growth of the debt, not pile on new spending and tax cuts.

Mick Mulvaney's testimony today suggests he will be a strong voice for fiscal responsibility within the Trump administration, and we were gratified to hear him emphasize many of the tough choices that will have to be part of addressing these challenges.”

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For more information, contact Patrick Newton, Press Secretary, at newton@crfb.org.