Christopher Shays: “The way this started, we are talking about a baseline, and we figured in inflation. Then we said last year, even though…”

“The way this started, we are talking about a baseline, and we figured in inflation. Then we said last year, even though we spend more, it is not an increase in spending. I remember when I was first elected in 1987, I would go back home and say, ``We cut spending here and here and here,'' and my constituents would say, ``If you cut spending, how come the spending keeps going up?'' That was a very logical question, and I realized I was using that concept of a baseline budget.”