Jack Kingston: “I want to say back during the spring we went through our annual budget process. The Budget Committee has testimony from…”

“I want to say back during the spring we went through our annual budget process. The Budget Committee has testimony from all sectors of society and the government who are affected by the budget. It is a good debate. In the final analysis, that budget came to the floor and after weeks and months of discussion and arm twisting, it passed by a vote of 214- 212. I may be wrong on this, I do not think any of the Democrats voted for it. Most of the Democrats, I would say, are very consistent saying we should be spending more money and, therefore, they voted against it. But there are other Democrats who are saying look at the deficit, look at this, look at that. Boy, these Republicans are spending too much. There is clearly a mixed signal here, and clearly some dissension in the Democratic ranks. But when you pass a budget in the spring and it is passed by this body and the other body, then the subcommittees of Appropriations have to follow that budget. That is what this does. Sometimes making these decisions is very, very tough. This bill actually eliminates 29 lower-priority programs. One of the programs I am a supporter of, the National Youth Sports Program, I like that program. They operated in Savannah. But when you look at the context of some of the other programs and you realize this is run by the NCAA, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, and they are the same people who put on the Rose Bowl, the Rose Bowl alone generates $30 million in revenue.…”