Elijah Lewis: “I rise against this rule. Under today's budget constraint, $218 billion is simply too much. It is too much asphalt, too…”

“I rise against this rule. Under today's budget constraint, $218 billion is simply too much. It is too much asphalt, too much money to take away from our children, the elderly, our veterans, and the needy. This bill busts the budget by $26 billion. Money does not grow on trees. It must come from somewhere. This bill will force us to cut valuable government programs like Head Start, school lunches, low income housing, health care, veterans, and environmental protection. This bill is not the bridge to the 21st century. It is not a bridge to our future. We are moving down the wrong highway. Are we prepared as a great Nation to choose concrete over children, bridges over books, pavement over people? Do not get me wrong. We need Federal transportation programs, but $218 billion is simply too much. Beginning with the Democratic budget in 1993, we have put our fiscal house in order. Now we have a balanced budget. We have money for schools. We have money for children. We have money for veterans, the elderly, and the needy. This bill will end all of that. It puts our fiscal house in disarray. It busts the bank. Because this bill does not pay for itself, it makes no hard choices. It is easy to vote for a $20 million road project in our district. But how do we tell little children there is no money for schools, no money for books, no money for teachers? Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to reject this rule.”