Jim Banks: “A very wise former Governor of Indiana once said that you will never know how much government you will never miss. And…”

“A very wise former Governor of Indiana once said that you will never know how much government you will never miss. And these days, as we roll out spending package after spending package that spends more and more than ever spent before, I look back to those wise words of that former governor, because that former Governor, knew, just as I do, as a former State Legislator, that the States can always run these programs and do better with running government, administering programs like these than the Federal Government ever can. And while there is a difference of opinion between my colleague, again, who I respect and admire so much, it is clear that there is a difference of opinion between those who believe that Washington, D.C., should tax more hard-earned tax dollars out of the pockets of hardworking Hoosier families, just so that Washington, D.C., can spend more and more on spending packages just like these. In closing, Mr. Chairman, President Ronald Reagan once said: ``We don't have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven't taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much.'' Since then, we have added roughly $21 trillion to our Nation's debt. This simply cannot go on. If we do not begin to tackle this challenge now, it will be tackled for us by our creditors. We need to learn from the commonsense words of President Reagan and start to live within our means today.…”