Political Quotes

“When I travel my district, I have tried to figure out a way to explain to people, and to myself, how to make sense out of these trillions of dollars. And I do it this way. I put it in numbers that I can understand. I tell folks to assume that you're a family who brings home $46,000 a year, and you sit down at the beginning of the year to do your budget, and when you add up all of the things that you spend money on, you're spending $78,000. And then I say to them, When you're doing that and you're making $46,000 and you're spending $78,000, I want you to realize the Visa bill in the drawer is $281,000. And that's where we are as a Nation. And I tell them, as we try to figure out a way to save money, I remind them that the first thing that we did in this Congress was we cut $35 million from our own budgets. To lead by example, we cut our own budgets in this House by $35 million. And in that world where you're making $46,000 and you're spending $78,000, and you're trying to find $32,000 of savings in your household, that $35 million represents 70 cents. That's how big the numbers are. And I think the folks back home have started to grasp it. I certainly have started to grasp it. But I do get some good questions when I give that presentation on the road. Some folks will ask me and say, If I was in that position at my household, not only would I try to cut expenditures, but I'd also try to get another job. I'd try to make a little bit more money.…”