Chuck Grassley: “what the 104th Congress is all about is ending business as usual in Washington. We started out by passing the bill that…”

“what the 104th Congress is all about is ending business as usual in Washington. We started out by passing the bill that Senator Lieberman and I introduced to make Congress live by the same laws it passes for everyone else. Then we passed a bill to restrict unfunded mandates. These proposals represent a change from business as usual. The voters last November demanded a change in business as usual in Washington. And this Congress has delivered. And I am confident that we will continue to deliver. One of the changes the American people wanted is a balanced budget amendment. They are tired of Congress coming up with clever rhetoric that has defeated this amendment over the years. Now, those same critics want us to spell out on an account by account basis the receipts and outlays for fiscal years 1996 to 2002. The proposal is yet another rhetorical trick designed to let big spenders defeat the balanced budget amendment by people who want no fiscal discipline. The proposal represents a last gasp by the old guard to continue business as usual. For them, business as usual means a continually expanding Federal Government. The voters have spoken, and the business- as-usual crowd refuses to listen. That is not what representative government and democracy is all about. We all know that a balanced budget is achievable.”