Ad: U.S. Reps. Sean Duffy (WI-7), Dave Camp (MI-4), Chip Cravaack (MN-8), Richard Hanna (NY-24) Are Willing to Risk American Jobs to Protect Tax Breaks for Millionaires, Big Oil Companies and Corporate Jets

Click Below to View Each Version of “RECKLESS” Airing in the Following Media Markets Starting Today:

• Duffy (R-WI-7) - Wausau, WI
• Camp (R-MI-4) - Traverse City, MI
• Cravaack (R-MN-8) - Duluth, MN
• Hanna (R-NY-24) - Syracuse, NY

Washington DC – The clock is running out. With the August 2 deadline fast approaching for Congress to avoid defaulting on the nation’s debt obligations, which the business and economic communities warn could lead to another Great Recession and cost hundreds of thousands of Americans their jobs, a new TV ad begins airing today in the districts of U.S. Reps. Sean Duffy (R-WI-7), Dave Camp (MI-4), Chip Cravaack (MN-8), and Richard Hanna (NY-24), urging them to stop risking the American economy to protect big oil subsidies and tax breaks for millionaires, corporate jets, and companies that ship jobs overseas. See script below for “Reckless,” an effort sponsored by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and Americans United for Change:

Mary Kay Henry, President of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU): "These Partisan extremists seem willing to drive our economy right off a cliff unless they can enact their job-killing cut and gut economic policies. Congress should be focused on creating jobs, not finding ways slash Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Working families will not forget those who step forward for a balanced approach and those who wish to sacrifice the American Dream to satisfy an ideological agenda."

Tom McMahon, Executive Director, Americans United for Change:
"These Republicans are all playing a dangerous game of chicken with the economy by threatening to let the nation default on its debt obligations - and they're risking it all for no other reason but to protect tax breaks for millionaires, Big Oil, hedge fund managers, and companies that outsource U.S. jobs.

"The consequences of failing to act can not be overstated. The business, economic and financial communities warn that default could crash our economy, burn hundreds of thousands of jobs and, ironically, would mean hundreds of billions of dollars in new debt because it would permanently spike interest rates. The government warns it would have to immediately cease sending out Social Security checks and other benefits that our seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities are counting on. This is not a game. If Republicans in Congress were really serious about getting the nation's fiscal house in order, they would stop threatening to derail the economy and explode the nation's debt by defaulting -- and they would start voting to end wasteful subsidies to big oil and close corporate tax loopholes."

In addition to the TV ad effort, SEIU will run video pre-roll ads on local news Web sites as well as geo-targeted video ads on Google's network in Sean Duffy's district. SEIU will also run Facebook ads targeting fans of all four representatives and Democrats in their districts.

SCRIPT: “Reckless” :30

Congressman ______ and the Republicans in Congress are driving us toward the edge of the cliff.

Recklessly risking default.

Recklessly risking jobs and the American economy.

They’re willing to risk it all to protect the tax breaks of millionaires, oil companies and CEOs who fly around in corporate jets. Even if the rest of us crash and burn.

Tell Congressman _____ -- Don’t drive America’s economy off a cliff.

Paid for by SEIU and Americans United for Change

CONSEQUENCES OF DEFAULTING ON NATION’S DEBT: “Dangerous Gamble,” “higher federal debt,” “Could Blow Up the Economy,” “possible collapse in equity prices, bank failures and a severe depression”

• Washington Post’s Ezra Klein, July 11: ‘Defaulting on the debt would return us to recession’ : $134 billion, or 10 percent of August’s GDP. That’s the size of the economic hit we’ll take if the debt ceiling isn’t raised and the federal government has to slash spending by 44 percent for the month of August.
• Center for American Progress, July 12: The last time the United States experienced a “technical default” in 1979—the kind that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) assures us doesn’t really matter—interest rates spiked by some 0.6 percentage points on a “permanent basis.” Economist Christian E. Weller, estimates that a one-half percentage point increase in the 10-year Treasury rate will raise mortgage rates by 0.66 percentage points.
• Think Progress, July 15, ‘Boehner Agrees With Obama That Social Security Checks May Not Go Out If The Debt Ceiling Isn’t Raised’ : As a report from the Bipartisan Policy Center laid out, “the government likely would not have enough revenue to pay the full $23 billion payment to Social Security recipients due on Aug. 3″ were the debt ceiling not raised, because of the high amount of Social Security payments that are due that day.
• Center for American Progress, 7/7/11: We’ve shown that a two-month failure to raise the debt limit could result in the largest quarterly economic decline since 1947…That would obviously be a bigger decline than in any quarter of the Great Recession. And the worst quarter of the Great Recession saw a loss of nearly 2 million jobs.”
• Wall Street Journal, 5/17: Business Groups to Congress: ‘Raising Debt Ceiling Is Critical’ : Sixty-two business groups, including the American Gas Association, the Telecommunications Industry Association, and the National Association of Manufacturers, urged congressional leaders on Wednesday to raise the federal debt ceiling amid fears that political brinkmanship could lead to another financial crisis.
• Talking Points Memo, 6/9: “Experts: Even Brief Default Could Blow Up The Economy” : Because interest rates on bonds determine how much it costs the US government to secure more debt, even seemingly slight changes can affect the long term deficit on a large scale. A 1% rise in interest rates, or 100 basis points, would grow the deficit by over $400 billion over the next five years and $1.2 trillion from 2012-2021, according to the CBO.
• Talking Points Memo, 6/14: ‘CBO Director Elmendorf: Debt Default ‘A Dangerous Gamble’. Ironically, Elmendorf noted that one of the potential consequences of even a brief period of default would be higher federal debt, triggered by a spike in interest rates and, thus, higher interest payments on federally issued debt.
• Wall Street Journal, May 13: US Chamber Urges Lawmakers to Raise Debt Limit ‘Expeditiously’. The business community’s chief lobby in Washington made the case in a letter to lawmakers signed by Bruce Josten, the group’s head of government affairs, arguing that failure to pass legislation authorizing an increase in borrowing by Aug. 4 “would create uncertainty and fear, and threaten the credit rating of the United States.”
• If Republicans in Congress Won’t Listen to the American People, Will They Listen to Ronald Reagan? SEE: NPR: Poll: More Americans Than Not Now Back Debt Ceiling Boost. Listen to audio of President Ronald Reagan delivering his weekly radio address in September 1987, words that the GOP should very much heed today: “Congress consistently brings the Government to the edge of default before facing its responsibility. This brinkmanship threatens the holders of government bonds and those who rely on Social Security and veterans benefits. Interest rates would skyrocket, instability would occur in financial markets, and the Federal deficit would soar. The United States has a special responsibility to itself and the world to meet its obligations. It means we have a well-earned reputation for reliability and credibility — two things that set us apart from much of the world.”

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