Kent Conrad: “I was going to make another point. When I got up this morning I went to get the Washington Post. Right on the front page…”

“I was going to make another point. When I got up this morning I went to get the Washington Post. Right on the front page is the reporting of what we are talking about here today. The headline on the front page of the Washington Post is, ``Household Income Climbs.'' The subheadline is, ``Census Bureau Also Reports Poverty Rate Drop.'' So if anybody is watching this and wondering if this is an accurate recitation of what the Census Bureau is reporting, you can just turn to your local newspaper and you will find these news reports all across America. ``Median household income rose 2.7 percent * * * after being adjusted for inflation.'' Inflation is running about 3 percent. So incomes actually went up about 6 percent last year--biggest increase in a decade. Over the same period, the Washington Post reports the poverty rate declined from 14.5 to 13.8 percent. The number of people in poverty fell by 1.6 million. That is the statistic the Senator from Nevada was using--the largest decrease in 27 years. The largest decrease in poverty in America in 27 years. That is the statistic both the Senator from North Dakota and the Senator from Nevada were using. If we need evidence this plan is working, here it is right here in this morning's newspaper. Let me just conclude: The benefits of economic growth were spread widely through the economy--in nearly all occupations, all education levels and all income categories.”