John Archer
Two Republican congressional candidates say if elected, they would vote against raising the so-called “debt ceiling” and would favor deep cuts in the federal budget.
Ben Lange of Independence is the Republican candidate in Iowa’s first congressional district.
“In our family budget, if the credit card has gotten to the point where we need to stop putting money on the credit card, well then we stop doing that,” Lange says. “I think that’s where we are with the federal government. We stop increasing that.”
John Archer of Bettendorf is the GOP nominee for Iowa’s second congressional district. “We don’t know the ramifications, but we have given politicians enough time to fix the problems that currently exist and if those ramifications are severe, then we will have to with them at the appropriate time,” Archer says. “But we have to draw a line in the sand saying, ‘Enough’s enough. We have to get our fiscal house in order.'”
Ben Lange
Last summer’s temporary impasse in congress over raising the federal government’s borrowing limit rattled the markets and led to a downgrade in the government’s credit rating. Lange says it’s time to reform “entitlements” and he would let the “younger generation” opt out of Social Security and let them invest their own money for retirement.
“The bottom line is we have enough guts to fix the problem,” Lange says. “Because if a politician walks into this room and tells us Social Security is o.k., they’re flat out lying to us.”
Archer says he’d start with “privatizing as much as possible” in the federal government.
“I see no reason why the federal government should be involved in Amtrak, the passenger rail service,” Archer says. “We need to start talking about Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, getting the government out of those home mortgage businesses. Sell federal lands that we have out west. Sell those to private investors. Shrink the size of government as fast as we possibly can to bring down this financial crisis.”
The two Republicans made their comments during taping of “Iowa Press” which will air this evening on Iowa Public Television.
Archer is running against Democratic Congressman Dave Loebsack in November. Lange is staging a second challenge of Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley. Last August, all five Iowa congressman — Braley, Loebsack, Leonard Boswell, Tom Latham and Steve King — voted against raising the debt ceiling.