Byron Dorgan: “I feel so strongly that the discussion I just heard is wrong, I feel compelled to correct it, at least from my…”

“I feel so strongly that the discussion I just heard is wrong, I feel compelled to correct it, at least from my perspective. Let me describe what we have. We have a proposal to change the Constitution of the United States. Some refer to it repeatedly as a proposal to balance the budget. It will not do that, and no one who understands the difference between a statute and a constitutional change should refer to it as balancing the budget. You can change the Constitution 2 minutes from now, and 3 minutes from now you will not have altered by one penny the Federal debt or the Federal deficit, and there is not anyone in here who would stand up and contest that, I would judge. So this is not about balancing the budget. It is about altering the Constitution.”