Political Quotes

“I am one of those Members who hopes that 1999 will be a year in which both parties and the President come together to enact legislation to preserve and strengthen Social Security for the 21st century. I was delighted with the emphasis Speaker Hastert made on Social Security in his remarks. The rule we are proposing ought to serve as the bipartisan point of departure for important debate on Social Security. We ought to agree today, the first day of this Congress, that all of the revenue generated by Social Security will be dedicated to Social Security, that all budget surpluses will be saved until the long-term solvency of Social Security is secure. Unlike the Senate, there is no House rule at present against consideration of a bill that uses the surplus generated by Social Security. Our rule proposed in this motion would provide for the first time real enforcement of Social Security's off-budget status. The rule also maintains fiscal discipline and keeps our country on the course to a budget that is balanced and does not rely on Social Security to conceal deficits in the rest of the budget. According to the Congressional Budget Office, 98 percent of the unified budget surplus over the next 10 years is Social Security money. Let us adopt this rule. If we do not, the temporary surpluses from Social Security may be dissipated, spent, devastating our ability to preserve the long-term solvency of Social Security.”