John Chenoweth: “the Treasury Department will announce that the Federal budget is in surplus for the first time since 1969. Only 2 short…”

“the Treasury Department will announce that the Federal budget is in surplus for the first time since 1969. Only 2 short years ago the President of the United States submitted a budget with a $200 billion deficit, as far as the eye can see, if Members will recall. What happened? There are a lot of Americans, and most Americans, including us, who really do not care where the credit falls, just as long as this Congress stays committed to a balanced budget and reducing the size of government. But it is important to understand how we got here, where we are today, so we can continue on the path of sound economic recovery. Remember when the country was faced with large, chronic deficits at the beginning of the 1990s? Congress faced a choice. To cut the deficit, lawmakers had one of two choices to make, to cut spending or to raise the taxes. President Clinton and his allies here in the Congress chose to, remember, raise taxes. Congress at that time was still under the control of the Democrats, so President Clinton was able to get through the largest tax increase in the history of this great Nation. Republicans, on the other hand, wanted to reduce the deficit by cutting spending. Republicans believe that government is too big and too bossy, and they believe that Washington wastes too much of our money.”