NEW: Hinckley Warns Thousands of Layoffs Within Defense Industry in RI

NEW: Hinckley Warns Thousands of Layoffs Within Defense Industry in RI

At a press conference outside the General Dynamics Electric Boat facility in Quonset, Republican Senate candidate Barry Hinckley today demanded that Congress take immediate action to address the looming sequestration crisis which could result in thousands of Rhode Island layoffs.

"The defense industry has a long and important history in our Ocean State," Hinckley said. "It's been estimated that the defense sector in Rhode Island employs more than 16,000 people and accounts for more than $43 million annually in state tax revenues. Now, companies like General Dynamics and their employees are faced with an uncertain future, all because Washington politicians have failed. Both parties have failed to agree to a credible plan to reduce our massive deficit. Both parties have failed to come together on tax reform and budget reform. And, both parties have piled on layers of debt, directly resulting in the situation we find ourselves in today."

Hinckley blamed Democratic incumbent Sheldon Whitehouse specifically because he sits on the budget committee in the senate

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"My opponent, Sheldon Whitehouse, is clearly part of the problem. He sits on the Budget Committee in a Senate that has failed to even produce a budget in over three years," Hinckley said. "Actually, if you point that stubborn fact out to Senator Whitehouse, he will tell you that the Senate did pass a budget: the Budget Control Act of 2011, the very piece of legislation that created the sequester we're talking about today. I was harshly critical of the Budget Control Act when it was being debated, because it raised the debt ceiling while completely failing to deal with our crushing deficit. Instead, the law punted the debt issue to a ‘supercommittee,’ which predictably failed to reach an agreement in this hyper-partisan environment."