Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., didn’t waste any time making good on his pledge to push for reductions in federal spending and the $16.4 trillion national debt.

A day after Coats went to the Senate floor to say he would use it as a platform to urge fiscal restraint, he was at it again Wednesday morning.

Coats encouraged the Democratic-majority chamber to follow “the spend-less, borrow-less, tax-less Hoosier model” of former Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels and the Indiana General Assembly.

“Now, whether lawmakers want to admit it or not, the crux of our problem is this: Washington has promised Americans far too much and committed well beyond our means,” Coats said. “Federal spending and borrowing cannot continue this current pace without dire consequences.”

He later said in his remarks on the Senate floor: “My suggestion for Washington is to take a look at the Hoosier model. It’s tested, it’s proven, and it’s working. We need to go big and bold.”

As he has asked Hoosiers what state government cuts should not have been made, “frankly, no one can come up with an answer that says we’ve had disastrous consequences from these decisions," Coats said. "Everyone says, ‘No, everything’s working pretty well.'"