Deborah Koff Ross: “I think we have got a train wreck waiting to happen. To set the stage for what I am about to say, I want to start by…”

“I think we have got a train wreck waiting to happen. To set the stage for what I am about to say, I want to start by mentioning this about the debt, because they are related. A lot of the politicians in Washington these days seem to not want to talk about the debt. The debt in this country is $5.7 trillion. If President Bush's fiscal year 2003 budget is passed, it will grow by some $100 billion. What does that mean for all of us in our daily lives? Some people in this country think we spend too much money on food stamps. That is $2 billion a month. Some people in this country think we spend too much money on foreign aid. That is $1 billion a month. Mr. Speaker, we spend $1 billion every single day in America just paying interest, not principal, just interest on the national debt. What is $1 billion? If I put that in a calculator, I get that little E at the end. What helped me bring it home, I was recently touring a brand new, state-of-the-art elementary school in Monticello, Arkansas. As I walked through that building, I learned that it cost $5 million. And it hit me.…”