Angie Craig: “I agree the Congress did that. But you and I both know that the Congress of the United States every year includes in the…”

“I agree the Congress did that. But you and I both know that the Congress of the United States every year includes in the final budget of this country and the budget that you and I will decide in the coming months Social Security expenditures. We are allowed by the law and the Social Security law to make decisions on Social Security. The term ``off budget'' for Social Security is an accounting terminology that separates it from the general fund budget or, if you will, the all-inclusive Federal budget that we have been operating on since the Johnson years. The power authority is not something on whose budget we decide. That is decided by a separate board. It is only the amount of obligation of payment that power authority is tied to. So if I may politely say, you cannot compare an apple to an orange. And in this example, that is exactly what I believe you are attempting to do. They are uniquely different entities under the law and under the budget process of our Government.”