On the recordMarch 15, 2011
last week, Senator Inouye of Hawaii, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, proposed a bill to fund the government through the end of this fiscal year. It is hard to believe we are almost halfway through this year and still haven't resolved the basic issue of our budget. Our failure to resolve it, lurching from 2 weeks to 3 weeks of funding, may serve some political purpose, but it doesn't serve the purpose of good government because many people who have to make critical decisions that involve more than a momentary glimpse or glance at our fiscal situation are held back. I met a man last night whose business is to supply the United States with vaccine for anthrax, tuberculosis, and similar things. We have an inadequate stockpile of vaccine. The government has said to him: We want you to produce more vaccine, but we are only funded for 2 more weeks. He said to me: How can I, as a businessman, make a commitment to produce vaccine with an uncertainty as to whether it will be paid for? That is a pretty reasonable question, and it reflects the fact that as we move from 2 weeks to 3 weeks of funding, postponements are made in decisions which have an impact on the future of our country.
