John Spratt: “Mr. Chairman, we, too, fully fund homeland security. By the best of our reckoning, we are providing at least $24 billion…”

“Mr. Chairman, we, too, fully fund homeland security. By the best of our reckoning, we are providing at least $24 billion over and above the increase that the President is providing. It is allocated among lots of different functions: community and regional development, the Justice Department. We have identified and also specified in a sense of the Congress that we have $24 billion there. In addition, we have put into our budget resolution the stimulus proposal that we made on January 6 of this year. If it were adopted, there would be $10 billion for the States to undertake homeland security projects in places like seaports, which were woefully underprovided for. In addition, Mr. Chairman, I would point out to everyone that in doing our budget, we have left a contingency reserve of $54 billion. It could be used for lots of things; but it could be used, among other things, for homeland defense and for national defense generally, if and when a supplemental comes. I want to make it clear there is very, very little difference between us when it comes to national security, not at a time like this. We are fully providing for homeland security, and then some, in particular.”