Connecticut's Politicians Mixed on Debt Ceiling Resolution

After , U.S. legislators approved increasing the nation’s debt ceiling limit, averting a credit rating downgrade for the moment and mandating cost-cutting decisions in the coming months. In Connecticut, the bi-partisan bill received mixed support.

In the House of Representatives vote, which passed 269-161, U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, (D-3) was opposed to the bill, along with two of her colleagues in Connecticut.

“I could not support this legislation as I believe it will have a harmful effect on job creation and further weaken the economic security of millions of American families,” DeLauro said in a statement. “The spending cuts specified in this deal will slash critical investments in education, infrastructure and research, among other things."

In stark contrast with the the “no new taxes” policy largely adopted by Republicans, DeLauro said the deficit could be pared down by taxing the rich and corporations.

"If this majority were at all serious about deficit reduction, they would at least allow for additional revenue by asking the wealthiest Americans and corporate special interests to share in the sacrifice rather than protecting them," she said.

U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal said he voted for the bill — which passed the Senate 74-26- to avert a credit default “because the economic consequences of default were too dire and devastating to risk.”

In a statement, Blumenthal said that the bill was “far from perfect” but the agreement, “has made record cuts in spending while protecting benefits that seniors receive through Social Security and Medicare, and preserving veterans’ services and programs.”

U.S. Rep. Chris Murphy (D-5), who said the debt limit must be increased and the deficit decreased, said he voted no after hearing from dozens of constituents.

"There is no question that we need to make hard choices to dramatically bring down our deficit. But this crisis was totally manufactured by a small group of extreme right wingers who are intent not on simply reducing government spending, but on destroying government altogether... I was willing to vote for a compromise. But this was not a compromise, it was a near complete capitulation."

U.S. Rep. John Larson (D-1) said that though he'd twice voted to raise the debt ceiling, he couldn't back the deal.

"President Obama is the first president in our history to have our nation’s fiscal health held hostage by an ideological minority... In the face of a minority who insisted on their crusade to end Medicare and balance the budget on the backs of working families and seniors, President Obama has been Horatio at the bridge."