Bresnahan supports tax cuts, balanced budget plan that would imperil safety net programs
Pennsylvania Republican House nominee Rob Bresnahan supports proposals that would require draconian spending cuts.

Republican Rob Bresnahan, who is running for the seat in Pennsylvania’s 8th Congressional District, says he supports amending the U.S. Constitution to require a balanced budget each year. Experts say, however, that implementing that and other fiscal policy plans Bresnahan supports would be virtually impossible without significant cuts to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
Bresnahan, a wealthy venture capitalist, is challenging Democratic incumbent Rep. Matt Cartwright this November. The district includes all of Wayne, Pike and Lackawanna counties and portions of Luzerne and Monroe counties.
In an audio recording made at a Sept. 25 campaign event at a restaurant in Drums in Luzerne County and shared with the Pennsylvania Independent, Bresnahan said: “I’m a big believer in a balanced budget amendment. Not a lot of people understand it … but I signed a pledge that I would support a balanced budget amendment.”
The federal government currently operates at a budget deficit, meaning it spends more annually than it takes in and borrows the money to make up the difference. For decades, lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the Constitution to require a balanced budget every year except in wartime, though economists say such a rule would make recessions worse.
According to the U.S. Treasury Department, the budget deficit for fiscal year 2024 is about $1.9 trillion. To eliminate that gap and achieve a balanced budget, Congress would have to bring in a lot more revenue, make massive cuts to government spending, or carry out some combination of the two.
On his campaign website, Bresnahan says, “We need to stop the reckless spending, get inflation under control, and cut taxes so you can keep more of the money you earn for your family.”
A March 2023 assessment by the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that to balance the budget within 10 years without raising taxes, Congress would have to cut funding for Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, defense spending, military retirement, and all other programs by 27%. If Medicare, Social Security, and defense funding cuts are taken off the table, all other programs would need to be cut by 70% to reach a balanced budget.
Bresnahan’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story. He has repeatedly said he opposes cuts to Medicare and Social Security, saying: “It’s your money, you paid into the system, and the government needs to keep its promise to every American. I will not support raising the retirement age or any benefit cuts to these programs.”
The National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, a nonpartisan nonprofit group, warned in July that enacting a balanced budget amendment while cutting taxes even further would require draconian cuts to those and every other program.
“Congressman Cartwright’s opponent says he would not cut Social Security or Medicare benefits if elected, but there is no way he can keep that promise if he also supports a balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution,” Max Richtman, the group’s president and CEO, told the Pennsylvania Independent in an emailed statement. “A balanced budget amendment would force severe cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits, significantly harm the economy and result in a government default. In this election, Northeast Pennsylvanians who want to keep their earned benefits can only trust Matt Cartwright to preserve and improve them — and extend solvency.”
Cartwright has also been endorsed by the Alliance for Retired Americans, a grassroots advocacy group focused on preserving Social Security and Medicare and on lowering prescription drug prices.
Cartwright’s campaign website notes his consistent record of supporting Social Security: “Finding ways to strengthen Social Security has been a hallmark of Matt’s time in Congress. Matt supports measures to enhance the benefits of both current and new Social Security beneficiaries – long overdue, as Cost-of-Living-Adjustments have not been updated since 1972. Americans who work for decades deserve to retire with dignity and financial security. Matt will always put people over politics and fight to ensure our seniors are supported.”