Erskine Bowles

“The American people are smarter than the politicians in Washington give them credit for.”

“We have a problem. We have a massive, massive problem.”

“If I could wave a magic wand, I’d get rid of all of the special-interest loopholes in the tax code.”

“When you're $14 trillion in debt, you don't have a lot of good choices. You have a lot of tough choices.”

“You've got to be willing to give on some of your sacred cows.”

“I'm telling you, the patient is sick. We have to give them some tough medicine.”

“It really is a test of whether we are a great country or not.”

“This problem is like a cancer... It is going to destroy the country from within.”

“The path we are on is not sustainable. We can't keep borrowing a trillion dollars a year.”

“It’s not about Democrats or Republicans. It’s about America’s future.”

“Everything had to be on the table. Both parties had to be willing to give.”

“We have to be honest with the American people about the magnitude of the problem.”

“I'm a deficit hawk. I'm a pay-as-you-go guy.”