Frank Pallone: “I am very proud to say that in just a short period of time over at the Library of Congress, President Clinton, Vice…”

“I am very proud to say that in just a short period of time over at the Library of Congress, President Clinton, Vice President Gore and Democrats in the House and the Senate will unveil our 1999 Democratic agenda which, once again, is a families first agenda. The centerpiece of our congressional agenda is to invest the surplus, to save Social Security and Medicare and pay down the debt. What Democrats are doing with this agenda is continuing on the path of fiscal responsibility by investing the surplus to save Social Security and Medicare and pay down the debt to keep our economy growing. With regard to Social Security, we reserve 62 percent of the projected budget surplus to preserve Social Security until 2055. With regard to Medicare, we reserve 15 percent of the projected surplus for Medicare, ensuring that the Medicare trust fund is secure for 20 years. We are paying down the debt, Mr. Speaker. We are investing a total of 77 percent of the surplus in Social Security and Medicare to reduce the national debt to its lowest level since 1917. This is what the Democrats are all about.”