Political Quotes

“this constitutional balanced budget amendment is a very big issue. Its impacts are enormous. Its results, if passed and enacted, will be large and long remembered. Support for a Balanced Budget Amendment There are two reasons I want to vote for a balanced budget amendment. The first is my own life experience. I shared this once before and I will do it once again. The year I was born, 61 years ago, the entire Federal debt amounted to just $25 billion. When my daughter was born, the entire Federal debt amounted to $225 billion. And 2 years ago, when my granddaughter, Eileen, was born, the entire Federal debt was 150 times greater than when I was born. It was nearly $4 trillion at that time. So my life experience shows me that with business as usual, the Congress is not going to be able to deal with the deficit unless it is forced to. The second reason is my Senate experience. In 2 years in the Senate, through my observation of the budget's authorization and appropriation processes, I have become convinced that a balanced budget amendment is in order. In short, current operating procedures will not, in my view, produce a balanced budget. The amendment, therefore, is necessary to face reality and make the difficult decisions. In a nutshell, those are the reasons I want to support a strong balanced budget amendment. But I want to support the right balanced budget amendment.”