Cass Ballenger said "I have been wrestling with the phrase of ``a do-nothing Congress.'' If by ``doing nothing'' the Democrats mean that we are protecting the social security trust fund from being raided to pay for other big government programs, then they are right. Or if they mean we have stopped racking up the national debt and borrowing money from our children, yes, I guess they are right there, too. If they call us ``the do-nothing'' Congress because we have worked to lower taxes on married couples and our Nation's seniors, then I guess they are right there. But if the Democrats' best argument for saying that we do not do anything is that we have worked to restrain Federal spending, to protect the retirement security for seniors, stop increasing taxes on hard-working Americans, then I am willing to take that as a compliment from my friends on the other side." @ PoliticalQuotes.com

On the recordJuly 12, 2000

I have been wrestling with the phrase of ``a do-nothing Congress.'' If by ``doing nothing'' the Democrats mean that we are protecting the social security trust fund from being raided to pay for other big government programs, then they are right. Or if they mean we have stopped racking up the national debt and borrowing money from our children, yes, I guess they are right there, too. If they call us ``the do-nothing'' Congress because we have worked to lower taxes on married couples and our Nation's seniors, then I guess they are right there. But if the Democrats' best argument for saying that we do not do anything is that we have worked to restrain Federal spending, to protect the retirement security for seniors, stop increasing taxes on hard-working Americans, then I am willing to take that as a compliment from my friends on the other side.

Said by

Cass Ballenger

North Carolina

Source

govinfo.gov

Editor's note · Context

Discussing the label of 'do-nothing Congress' in response to Democratic criticisms.

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