Angie Craig: “recently, the citizens of Idaho, through their elected representatives in the State legislature, called upon the Members…”

“recently, the citizens of Idaho, through their elected representatives in the State legislature, called upon the Members of the U.S. Congress to pass a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget. This is further proof that Idahoans are acutely aware of the devastating impact 28 deficits in a row and 36 unbalanced budgets in 37 years have had on our country. If asked, the overwhelming majority of Idahoans would say it is not right to saddle every child born today with nearly $200,000 in additional taxes just to pay interest on the national debt. Most Idahoans would say it is not right to rob future generations of the opportunity to participate in a vibrant, growing economy. They understand the implications of the Congressional Budget Office's words, that without changes in current tax and spend policies, the Federal "debt would exceed levels the economy could reasonably support." Most Idahoans can see the debt is the threat to Social Security and that no program, no matter how important, can survive the squeeze of increasing interest payments on the debt--$344 billion in fiscal year 1996. Idahoans have known for years that balancing the budget would have an immediate positive impact on American families. In 1982 I was encouraged by Idahoans to vote for BBA. If the BBA would have passed then, the national income would be at least 5 percent higher today, according to a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.”