John Spratt: “we have a chart to prove that point. I need to get it up here. We have a chart that shows how over the last 4 fiscal…”

“we have a chart to prove that point. I need to get it up here. We have a chart that shows how over the last 4 fiscal years, the increases in discretionary spending and, once again, that is the money we appropriate in 13 different bills each year. We call it discretionary because each year we decide how to spend it, it is defense, it is national parks; if we look at those accounts in discretionary spending, we will find that 90 to 95 percent of the increases in discretionary spending over and above current services, just running in place, are attributable to 3 different factors. Here we go. Here is the chart. Defense, Homeland Security, and the response to 9/11. Those three factors account for 90 to 95 percent of the growth in discretionary spending. Now, the President says we are spending out of control but, in truth, the House is controlled by Republicans, the Senate is controlled by Republicans, the White House is controlled by Republicans. It is a self indictment, if anything. But here is the actual truth: discretionary spending is going up, but it is going up in accounts and for reasons the President has requested and sought money for, and we have given it to him. Having put an Army in the field in Iraq, we are going to support them and see them through, we hope to a successful conclusion. But this is policy that he has originated and we have supported in one way or another and now support, and this accounts for the main increase in spending.…”