Joe Pitts: “in order to be a leader, one has to have credibility. If you do not have a record of accomplishment on an issue, people…”

“in order to be a leader, one has to have credibility. If you do not have a record of accomplishment on an issue, people simply will not listen. It is worth pointing out that for almost four consecutive decades, Congress was run by our Democratic friends, and never, not once, did they ever balance the Federal budget. Never once did they pay back a dime on the public debt. Mr. Speaker, I am not pointing this out to be partisan. I am pointing it out because now it is those same Democrats who are claiming President Bush's tax relief package will keep us from paying down the debt. Look at the Republican record: Almost immediately after taking control of Congress, Republicans started balancing the budget, paying down our public debt. Four years in a row, we balanced the budget. Four years in a row, we paid down on the public debt. We already paid near half a trillion dollars. We are paying down the public debt; and in 10 years, we will have paid off every dime available to be paid. If we stick with the President's plan, there will be enough for tax relief, Social Security, education and paying off our public debt. ____________________”