Don Nickles: “I take issue with our colleagues. I regret the decision they made. But that is not the way this resolution reads. It may…”

“I take issue with our colleagues. I regret the decision they made. But that is not the way this resolution reads. It may have been the way we were looking at having it a couple days ago, but because of some changes that were made, this resolution reconciles both committees to $550 billion, both Houses to $550 billion. It also has additional language that says the Senate will be limited to $350 billion, both out of committee and on the floor. The chairman of the Finance Committee said he would not report, he would not sign a conference report that was greater than $350 billion. You can take the word of the chairman of the Finance Committee. If he says it is not going to be more than $350 billion, it is not going to be more than $350 billion. But to say we are starting something different, if the resolution was drafted correctly and it said $550 billion for both Houses, it did have limitations on the Senate. We have the right to put limitations. We put instructions to various bodies, either the House and/or the Senate, and various committees. That is what a Senate resolution does. I just want to make sure people understand both the commitment our colleague from Iowa made and also that the resolution--and it was not done haphazardly. It was not done with malice or trying to distort the budget process. We were trying to pass a budget in both the House and the Senate. That is what we are going to do. We are going to have a budget.”