Political Quotes

“I rise today in strong support of the Stenholm-Smith balanced budget amendment. During my service in Congress, I have stressed the need for reform in Government. To me, there is no more significant reform Congress can take than to enact a balanced budget amendment to our Constitution. As it currently stands, our national debt currently exceeds $4.3 trillion--that works out to $17,495 for every man, woman, and child in the United States. In 1993, our gross interest payments equalled $293 billion. This is greater than the total outlays of the Federal Government in 1974. These interest payments consumed 57 percent of all personal income taxes. More ominously, 43 percent of national income is being consumed by all levels of Government. We have almost reached the point where Government is taking half of what we generate in income. This trend must stop or our economy will no longer be able to generate the growth necessary to create new jobs and maintain our standard of living. Failure to enact the Stenholm-Smith balanced budget amendment will make it impossible for the procedural changes necessary to control spending to be put in place. Congress must restore some degree of sanity in our spending and demonstrate to the American people that we can get our own house in order. Deficit spending is not acceptable and Congress must kick its deficit spending habit.”