Richard Blumenthal: Sequestration Has A 'Silver Lining'

On Monday, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said in an interview on CNN's "Starting Point" that there is a "silver lining" to sequestration.

"There is silver lining in the sequester," Blumenthal said. "We're cutting spending, which we need to do."

But Blumenthal went on to criticize the method by which the cuts are being made under sequestration, which went into effect on March 1. "We need to do it responsibly," Blumenthal said. "Smart cuts, not across-the-board, slashing arbitrary cuts."

President Barack Obama used similar rhetoric earlier this month when referring to the cuts, calling them "arbitrary" and "dumb."

During his appearance on CNN, Blumenthal also advocated closing loopholes in order to raise revenue -- a move that the Obama administration pushed for during the sequestration debate. The senator said money could be saved by "ending the special tax breaks and subsidies" for companies that send jobs overseas, in addition to possibly cutting health care costs.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said earlier this month that he and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) supported closing loopholes, but only as part of a plan to lower taxes overall, rather than as a way to replace spending cuts. In February, Boehner criticized a White House proposal to close loopholes in order to generate revenue. Boehner compared the effort to stealing.