Lynn C. Woolsey: “first, I want to say that the budget reported by our committee points the Nation in the right direction in almost every…”

“first, I want to say that the budget reported by our committee points the Nation in the right direction in almost every way. I would like to thank the gentleman from Minnesota for his hard work in looking out for President Clinton's priorities--Head Start; child nutrition; job training and job creation. However, there is one number in this budget which is dead wrong. In a post-cold-war age when we have to focus on our urgent domestic needs, it is criminal that the Pentagon is asking for $263.3 billion in defense spending--a $2.4 billion increase over last year. It is therefore with great frustration that I join the gentleman from Massachusetts and my other colleagues in offering an alternative which eliminates this $2.4 billion increase in military spending. This amendment changes only one part of the budget--military spending--and it does not change it much. But, this is a very important vote.”