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McCaskill, Blunt weigh in on State of the Union, freeze in spending

President Barack Obama in 2008. Last night during his State of the Union Address, Obama proposed a freeze in spending that Missouri's senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt say doesn't go far enough. (St. Louis Public Radio)
President Barack Obama in 2008. Last night during his State of the Union Address, Obama proposed a freeze in spending that Missouri's senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt say doesn't go far enough. (St. Louis Public Radio)

Missouri's Senators Claire McCaskill and Roy Blunt agree that the president's proposal to cut the deficit does not go far enough.

President Barack Obama proposed a freeze in spending in his State of the Union speech last night.

McCaskill, a Democrat, says the president's spending cuts don't go far enough:

"I think that the President hit a lot of the right notes, but I do think that his budget freeze does not go far enough and is very limited in its scope compared to the challenges that we have in terms of our debt and deficit."

Roy Blunt, Missouri's Republican senator, says the president's speech should have focused on how to create private sector jobs and reign in government spending:

"You know the president's comments about we need to freeze spending at this year's levels for the next five years. That would seem to me that's like a family who's all agreed that there spending more money than they should be spending and the solution is to keep spending that amount of money for the next five years. That just won't work."

Blunt is the co-sponsor of the Balanced Budget Amendment which, he says, would bring down the nation's national debt by requiring balanced budgets and prohibiting deficit spending or tax increases unless approved by two-thirds of the House and Senate.