WASHINGTON -- If Frosh Rep. Tom Graves (R-Ga/9) was in Hollywood, he might be asking President Obama this question during tonight's historic "Cut, Cap and Balance" debt ceiling debate in the U.S. House: 

"I've got the most powerful option in the free world. It's called a forced government spending reduction, and it can balance the U.S. budget by default, and blow your re-election campaign to Smithereens. You've got to ask yourself one question, Mr. President: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do 'ya, Mr. President?"

But Graves [pictured below] isn't in Hollywood; he's in D.C. The freshman legislator -- tabbed as one of the GOP's "Young Guns" who came to power in the 2010 Tea Party driven Republican takeover -- has quickly become a major force in the powerful and very conservative Republican Study Committee, run by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). 

Graves says his GOP House brethren are ready to stand President Obama down. "The biggest mistake the President could make would be to underestimate the fortitude and the zeal of the freshman class," Graves said placidly. "Scare tactics are below the office of the Presidency, they won't work," Graves predicted. "If a deal is not made by August 2, debt payments will be made, the country will not default, and he knows that," Graves insisted. "The U.S. Treasury collects over $200 billon per month in revenue. That is enough to fund interest payments, Social Security, MediCade/Medicare and pay our troops," Graves said. "Obama and the Treasury Secretary will have to manage the cash flow [like a business]. If they choose not to prioritize seniors, that is their decision. They'll have to live with it [politically]." 

GRAVES THROWS DOWN THE GAUNTLET 

Graves says that if a debt ceiling compromise is not reached by the deadline, the government will be forced to operate to a balanced budget. "Cut, Cap and Balance gives us a glide path to a balanced budget," Graves reiterated. "But we won't compromise away our future [for expediency]. We're going to fight," Graves pledged. "Compromise is not a fighting word. Deal is not a fighting word." 

Then Graves threw down the gauntlet. "If the President is willing to take this to the wall, to continue to advance his liberal and reckless spending policies that have failed so miserably, he's going to run into a brick wall. It's called the freshman class." 

Graves took over Nathan Deal's seat last May when the 20-year Congressman resigned to run for governor by defeating multiple candidates in a special election, and then won re-election again in November. The former state Rep. from Ranger, Ga. has wasted no time in seizing the initiative. "My constituents didn't send me here to play politics as usual," Graves said during an interview in-between casting votes. "They expect me to carry out my core campaign promises: cut spending, balance the budget, keep taxes low and erase the deficit spending that is crippling the nation's chance for economic recovery."

And now Graves is making waves on the coveted Appropriations Committee, too. He's only one of four first year Reps. to get an assignment on the influential Committee that authorizes all U.S. spending, a rare feat for any newcomer to the Capitol. "I'm trying to reduce appropriations, not increase them," Graves said, detailing his inverse approach to the norm. "I want to defend taxpayers money, not spend it, so I want to appropriate less, not more."

Graves says he campaigned on shrinking the size of government, and maintains he's simply doing what he said he'd do. 

GRAVES' CUT, CAP AND BALANCING ACT 

Notwithstanding his lack of experience, Graves has been instrumental in forcing tonight's House vote on the GOP's "Cut, Cap and Balance Act."

On June 6, Graves was one of 103 House Republicans to sign a letter calling on Republican caucus leaders to stand behind "Cut, Cap, and Balance" at the negotiating table.

"Since May, when members of the Republican Study Committee developed the 'Cut, Cap, and Balance' plan, we've worked tirelessly to gather support from hundreds of grassroots conservative groups, tea party-affiliated organizations, members of the U.S. Senate, and now House Republican leaders [to get a floor vote]. Now we stand unified behind 'Cut, Cap, and Balance,' which is the only plan on the table that ends America's debt crisis," Graves explained. 

"This plan is about sparking private sector expansion and job growth through the certainty of a restrained federal government. The immediate and long-term spending reforms, and the permanent promise of fiscal responsibility with a Balanced Budget Amendment, put America on a glide path to solid financial footing and long-term economic prosperity," Graves added. 

"The President...has no plan, the Senate...has no plan. The Democrats...have no plan...This is the only plan out there. It’s a historic vote tonight, and this is going to be an opportunity, right now...to witness whether or not Congress is serious about getting this debt crisis under control or not." 

If the initiative carries, it still faces an uphill battle in the Senate, which has its own version of the bill being crafted. And even if that passed muster, which is unlikely, Obama has threatened a veto. So Graves may indeed be on the forefront of "standing down" the administration come August 2. He leaves no doubt his freshman colleagues are not about to buckle.

If Graves was in southern California, he might just use this phrase: "Go ahead, Mr. President --  make my day." 

jfredericks@beaconcast.com 

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