Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I my consume. This amendment, while superficially appealing, is one of the most damaging things we could do to the Constitution of the United States. And, yes, it is true, if you ask people do they think we should have a balanced budget, they say yes; and if you ask people do you think we should have an amendment requiring a balanced budget in the Constitution, they say yes. But if you ask them do you think we should have an amendment requiring a balanced budget in the Constitution if it meant a cut in Social Security, they say no; if it meant a cut in Medicare, they say no; if it meant a cut in other essential services, they say no. And when you probe further, you find that this is a very damaging provision. For a number of reasons, economists tell us that, in a recession, you want to increase the government spending temporarily. You have to increase it because unemployment insurance payouts go up, food stamp payouts go up; and if you decrease the spending, it reduces the amount of products that people want in society, it reduces the amount of money in circulation, and it makes the recession into a depression. In good times, you should run a surplus; in recession, you should run a deficit. Over a long period of time, the budget should be balanced. But if you attempt to balance the budget during a recession, you generate a much worse loss of jobs. And that's why you don't want this--or you shouldn't want this.…”