Lateefah Simon: “We are spending an increasing percentage of our tax dollar on interest. I do not care whether you are Republican or…”

“We are spending an increasing percentage of our tax dollar on interest. I do not care whether you are Republican or Democrat, liberal or conservative. That just does not make sense. We ought to be spending our money on goods and services. And then let us differ on whether we have a national health program, which I strongly favor. Maybe my colleagues here differ with me on that. But we ought to have pay-as-you-go Government, and if we want to have a program, we have to pay for it. And if we do not have the courage to vote the revenue, we cannot have the program--just that basic. It is true for a family. It must be true for a nation. This is also welfare in reverse. The biggest welfare program we have in the United States by far is interest, and it is welfare for the rich, and increasingly the rich beyond our borders. I know there are some who argue this trickle-down economic theory: Give to the wealthiest and it will help everybody. I have never bought that theory.”