NBC
Republicans talk spending cuts with an eye on the Constitution
By Mark Gould, January 6, 2011

WASHINGTON (NBC) — The 112th Congress began on a sweet note, but it turned bitter and partisan awfully fast.

Massachusetts Representative Jim McGovern said, “Well, Mr. Speaker, that didn’t take long. Our Republican friends have been in charge of the House for about an hour and already they’re up to their old, discredited tricks.”

Before voting on new House rules designed to make spending cuts easier, Democrats sounded off like budget hawks.

Florida Representative Kathy Castor said, “It will add to burgeoning deficits and debt,” even as they get ready to fight GOP plans to slash 100 billion dollars in spending.

Florida Representative Allen West said, “We need to prove to the American people that we are willing to stand by the pledge that we said of being you know frugal with their taxpayer dollars.”

In his opening speech, House Speaker John Boehner offered a simple road map saying, “Our aim is to give the government back to the American people.”

Today on the floor, House members will read the entire Constitution aloud.

Elizabeth Wydra of the Constitutional Accountability Center said, “In some ways it’s fulfilling a promise that Republicans made on the campaign trail to their tea party supporters.”

But Democrats will join in the reading, too.