Stephanie Herseth Sandlin: “the American public is not fooled by the charade before us today. Many in this Chamber claim that we have a $5 trillion…”

“the American public is not fooled by the charade before us today. Many in this Chamber claim that we have a $5 trillion surplus. The fact is this: We have a $5 trillion debt. Only in Washington, D.C., only here in the Nation's capital can a $5 trillion debt somehow magically transform itself into a $5 trillion surplus. That is new math at its finest. I do not know about you, but where I went to school in Texas, that just does not add up. According to my figures, in order to have a $5 trillion surplus, we would need to have $10 trillion in the bank. But as our friend Chris Farley might have said, ``We don't have Jack Squat.'' We need tax cuts in America. I support tax cuts in America. The Blue Dogs support tax cuts in America. But let us be responsible. We need a budget before we have tax cuts. We need to do what every family farmer does and every family business. Every family in America has a budget first. Mr. Speaker, let us formulate a budget first. Then we will give America the tax break that it deserves.”