U.S. Representative John Boehner
Changing the Spending Culture in Washington

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) released the following column:

From groceries to electricity, we’re paying more for nearly everything in this president’s economy – all while paychecks shrink and wages sit stagnant.

Throughout our local area, I hear about this more and more, making it all the more critical that the spending culture change in Washington.

It’s simple: if we cut spending in Washington, more taxpayers can keep their hard-earned money in their pockets.

That’s why on my first day as Speaker, I promised that changes would be made. Changes that include cutting spending, running a more open and accountable House, banning earmarks, and making the people’s priorities our priorities.

In the House, we’ve kept that promise.

Just recently, we passed a funding bill that cut spending nearly $400 million from last year’s bill while prioritizing programs that will help support economic growth, increase U.S. competitiveness, boost manufacturing, and keep America safe.

We took an infrastructure bill – a bill whose claim to fame was being saturated with hundreds of earmarks – and proved that we don’t need earmarks to address the people’s priorities. Now, it’s a bill focused on high-priority projects that will help strengthen our economy.

And we’ve remained focused on Americans’ top priorities – jobs and the economy. In fact, a recent House-Senate agreement was reached on a Republican proposal to streamline and strengthen our job training system to make it more effective for those who need a job. For people who are having a hard time finding the skills they need for the jobs they want, these reforms will help close that gap.

All of this is in addition to the dozens of jobs bills we’ve passed in the House – bills that remain stuck in the Democratic-controlled Senate, just collecting dust.

Step by step, bill by bill, Republicans have upheld our pledge that we’d do things differently in the People’s House. And as long as I’m here, we’ll continue working hard every day to uphold that pledge.

Boehner represents Ohio’s 8th District, which includes all of Butler, Clark, Darke, Miami, and Preble counties, and the southernmost part of Mercer County. He was first elected to Congress in 1990.