Tom Coburn: “I will call them up and we will see what happens. I want to set the field a little bit more. I think it is important…”

“I will call them up and we will see what happens. I want to set the field a little bit more. I think it is important that the American people understand what is in this bill, and there are legitimate things in this bill that we need to have to fund the war on terrorism. I don't want to debate this issue or delay it. I want us to pass it. I don't want us to have to vote on every amendment I put up. I think it is incumbent upon us to be honest with the American people. When we call something an emergency, it ought to be an emergency. This bill has $21 billion in it that is going to eventually cost our children $100 billion in the next 30 years, and it is not an emergency. It should go through the regular appropriations process. It is important for the American people to also understand if it is regular stuff that is in the emergency, the budget rules don't count. So we are going to spend $20 billion that should be taken out of next year's budget requirement, and we are going to sneak it in now so we can spend $20 billion more next year. That is what it is about. We need to be honest. We are never going to solve our budgetary problems or spending problems, or we are never going to have the process work in this country where the pressure comes on this body to not spend our children's future, unless we are honest about what is in the budget and how the appropriations process works. Let's take, for example, the embassy in Iraq.…”