Political Quotes

“Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 9716, the Increasing Baseline Updates Act, a bipartisan measure to ensure Congress has the accurate and timely information we need to govern responsibly. This bill is fairly straightforward. It requires that the Congressional Budget Office, or CBO, to provide at least two updates to its annual budget baseline each year, with one update including the underlying economic data. It also ensures the President submits technical budget data to Congress by February 1, giving the CBO the tools it needs to fulfill its critical role. CBO's baseline projections are the foundation for evaluating proposed policies. They are the measuring stick for determining how legislation will impact our budget and economy. Regular updates ensure we aren't working with outdated information. Let me emphasize something else. The CBO is nonpartisan. Its mission is not Democratic nor Republican. It is simply to provide Congress with unbiased, fact-based analysis. For decades--indeed, 50 years, to be exact--it has done an outstanding job, consistently delivering reliable and transparent baseline updates. However, we cannot ignore the fact that some on the other side of the aisle are working to undermine this institution. Madam Speaker, the numbers don't lie. We may not like CBO reports from time to time, but the numbers are the numbers. Instead of facing these facts, some, instead, would rather attack the messenger. That is wrong, and we can't let that happen.…”