James M. Talent: “Again, I thank the Senator and admire very much the sincerity with which he confronts these budgetary problems. Perhaps…”

“Again, I thank the Senator and admire very much the sincerity with which he confronts these budgetary problems. Perhaps in view of the Senator's question, it would be good for me to emphasize the point I made during the speech. There are certain functions of the Government which, if we do not perform at least at a minimal level, have the opposite effect that people want when they seek to reduce the deficit. This is one of them. These bills must be paid, and the longer we wait to pay them, the more they will cost. For me, it is deja vu all over again. I said this in the 1990s. We were successful as a Congress in the 1990s in the latter part of the decade in getting more money into the budget above what the Clinton administration requested, but we did not get enough in. So those bills which were not paid have accumulated, with compound interest, at very substantial amounts. It is true that an increase which is slightly above inflationary rates, which would have been adequate if we had done it in the 1990s, is not adequate anymore. And if we do not do something of the nature I am talking about now--not just with this budget but next year's budget as well--then the bill will grow and grow and grow, and 2 and 3 and 4 years from now, it will be even greater. My friend and the Senator from New Hampshire are going to have an even bigger problem to confront in trying to deal with the budget deficit. It is not an option to not sustain the national defense.…”