Alaska's U.S. senators joined about three dozen of their colleagues Thursday in giving the recently-formed "super Congress" even more responsibility for reining in the nation's debt.
Sens. Mark Begich and Lisa Murkowski, along with other senators from across America, offered "their thoughts" about how the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction might save the nation from uncertain economic doom. The "Gang of 36" recommended that the bipartisan group go beyond its mandate of cutting $1.5 trillion from the federal deficit -- far beyond -- to wiping $4 trillion in debt off the U.S. ledger.
How might 12 lawmakers get to $4 trillion? By doing something the Congress itself can't seem to: reforming the U.S. tax code and social programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
Here's what Sen. Murkowski had to say about the senatorial appeal, according to a press release from her office:
"We are here to really support and encourage the 'Super Committee' of 12. We want them to succeed; this nation needs them to succeed.
"But one of the requests from us is that they go big, they go bold, and they aim just a little bit higher [sic] that even what we have laid out in the Budget Control Act. Let's get to a 4 trillion dollar reduction in savings. We can do that and in fact we must do that, not only for the future of our kids but what it means in the here and now as the markets are looking at the strength of our nation and our credibility.
"So what you saw today I think was a very genuine effort of members from across the country, across the political spectrum coming together and saying we can and we must resolve these issues and the only we will do it is by resolving them together."
Will the bipartisan group of senators remain steadfast in their support of the "super committee" once its recommendations are made public? Proposals are due back to the full Congress before Thanksgiving.
Read a press release on Thursday's fiscal challenge from Murkowski's office.
Contact Eric Christopher Adams at eric(at)alaskadispatch.com