U.S. Senate Candidate Ken Cope Blasts Republican 'Capitulation' on Debt Vote
Midlothian, TX (PRWEB) February 13, 2014 -- Ken Cope, candidate for U.S. Senate, today blasted the House and Senate Republicans who collaborated with Democrats in raising the U.S. debt ceiling without any conditions. Cope called that "capitulation" and emphasized that he opposes any further debt ceiling increases.
"We are well past the point where the U.S. can afford to raise the debt limit," Cope said. "We need to reduce spending and eliminate the need to borrow more. That's what any family in serious debt would do. Any family that hoped to avoid bankruptcy, that is."
A pledge to vote no on debt limit increases is a key point in the Contract with Texas that Cope, a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel and aerospace executive challenging incumbent Sen. Cornyn in the March 4 Republican primary, signed earlier in his campaign.
"I am stunned that the House Speaker was willing to go forward on a no-conditions debt limit proposal and that so many Republicans, including Sen. Cornyn, voted to cut off debate in the Senate and let this go through.
"That is capitulation. It is surrender. It is placing politics over the financial health of our country. Neither Sen. McConnell nor Sen. Cornyn is willing to stand and fight for the sake of America's future," Cope said. "The accelerating pace of the debt threatens us with eventual economic collapse, yet they request our vote to support their failed leadership."
Cope said Cornyn's vote in the Senate, "demonstrated that he does not have the backbone to fight for what Texans and Americans see as the most important issue affecting the long-term future of our country. He surrendered to the opposition and voted against the will of Texans. If I was in his place, I would not have voted for this and would have stood strong with Senator Cruz in his attempt to block it."
Cope said the way Cornyn and other Republicans caved in is a perfect example of why leadership has been the cornerstone of his campaign for U.S. Senate – because he saw such a failure of leadership in Cornyn and so many other Republicans.
"I learned in the military and in business that you fight battles from a position of strength. With almost all Americans agreeing that the national debt is hurting this country, Republicans could have insisted on spending cuts or other concessions to offset a debt increase," Cope said. "The fact they didn't is once again evidence of weak leadership."
Cope scoffed at Republican fears of a debt ceiling fight leading to a government shutdown and negative media coverage. "Our children's future is worth fighting for," he said. "I'm not worried about shutting down the government for a few days. What worries me is the prospect of our debt bringing the whole country down."
Also as part of his Contract with Texas, Cope has pledged that if elected, he will serve no more than two terms in Congress and he will severely limit his own future campaign fund-raising, in order to concentrate on representing Texas and to do his part at minimizing the influence of money in national politics.
Information about the campaign and about Cope's positions on the issues confronting Texans and all of America can be found at the campaign website, http://www.CopeTexas.com, and the Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/copetexas. Cope is also on Twitter at @CopeTexas.
Kristine Tanzillo, Dux Public Relations, http://www.CopeTexas.com, +1 (903) 865-1078, [email protected]
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