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If Congress adds 5 percent to the debt, then their pay should be cut by 5 percent.

Yes, I introduced the congressional pay cut bill, cutting our salaries by five percent. And I think we have to lead by example.

I've actually cut my personal pay individually; we didn't vote on that, but I've done that individually. It's important that folks know that we're going to roll up our sleeves and work on things, and members of Congress are going to sacrifice our own budgets first.

I'm still a fiscal conservative, and I'm inclined to pay down debt.

It took the first 204 years of our Nation's history to accumulate $1 trillion in debt. And now we are doing that every 2 or 3 years.

We've had years and years and years of compromises, and that's led to $14 trillion in debt.

Historically, the responsibility for voting on the debt limit has gone to the party in the majority.

I don't know how anyone can keep a straight face and say they are for deficit reduction while they insist on a permanent tax cut for the wealthiest Americans, completely unpaid for.

Remember, Republican economic policies quadrupled the debt before I took office and doubled it after I left. We simply can't afford to double-down on trickle-down.

President Obama has offered a plan with 4 trillion dollars in debt reduction over a decade, with two and a half dollars of spending reductions for every one dollar of revenue increases, and tight controls on future spending. It's the kind of balanced approach proposed by the bipartisan Simpson-Bowles commission.