Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1. This Congress must step up to reverse our Nation's mounting deficit and debt, and this measure before us today takes an important step. This is an important effort, and we need to cut wasteful and duplicative spending. But the reality is these kinds of cuts will never get us to a balanced budget. Let's be honest. Only 16 percent of our Nation's spending is in non- security discretionary accounts. Today, we are cutting over $100 billion from just 1/6 of the Federal spending. The infamous bank robber Willie Sutton once said that he robbed banks because that's where the money is. In our government, the money is in entitlements. For those who are concerned about funding for the sciences and education and medical research and infrastructure, as I am, the way to ensure that our Nation can pay for the programs so many people care about is to deal with the mandatory spending entitlements. The President's State of the Union address was disappointing. He had a national forum to step up and embrace the recommendations of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility. The Bowles-Simpson Commission clearly recognized the looming fiscal crisis and offered a framework for a serious national conversation to begin on entitlement issues, and do it in a bipartisan way. I didn't agree with every recommendation and would have tried to change some.…”