As a New York senator, Hillary Clinton sought an average of $226 billion in annual spending and backed so few spending cuts that her spend-to-cut ratio was $892-$1, according to the National Taxpayers Union Foundation.
The foundation, which analyzes the spending practices of potential candidates, just issued their Clinton report and found that her advocacy for spending was higher than the average Democratic senator during her years, 2001-2009.
During those years, she sponsored or cosponsored 802 bills to increase outlays compared to 12 that would cut spending. NTUF said that amounted to “$892 in new spending for each dollar in cuts.”
Hillary Rodham Clinton after winning a New York Senate seat in 2000. AP Photo
The taxpayer watchdog group uses a program they call “BillTally” to account for spending and has reported on members of Congress and presidential candidates.
“Since Hillary Clinton has yet to provide much detail on her platform, NTUF’s data can step in to provide insight into how she might budget,” said Director of Research Demian Brady. “Clinton’s propensity to spend without seeking offsetting cuts is clearly demonstrated in our research.”
The highlights from Brady’s work:
• In each Congress, Clinton proposed far more new spending increases than decreases. On average, she supported $226.4 billion in new spending each year and $254 million in savings, for a net average of $226.1 billion in annual spending increase.
• In the 107th Congress, Clinton offered no savings proposals. The most she sponsored was five in the 109th Congress, for a total reduction of $381 million.
• With the exception of the 107th Congress, Clinton tended to support a larger net agenda to increase spending than the average Democratic senator.
• The most expensive bill she backed was S. 448 (108th Congress), the Leave No Child Behind Act of 2003, an omnibus bill pertaining to federal programs for children, including increases in spending on education, healthcare, paid leave, and child care. It had an annualized cost of $105.4 billion.
• The second most expensive bill she supported was cap and trade, a potential hot button issue over the environment in the coming presidential campaign. Clinton sponsored S. 280 (110th Congress), the Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act of 2007, to establish a cap and trade system. It had an annualized cost of $53.3 billion.
• By far the largest savings proposal she supported was S. 2260 (109th Congress), the Patients Before Profits Act of 2006, to repeal the Medicare Advantage Stabilization Fund. It had an annualized savings of $467 million.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
