Thomas Daschle: “There are some people who, given the kind of cards we have been dealt, you think would find some cause for optimism with…”

“There are some people who, given the kind of cards we have been dealt, you think would find some cause for optimism with all the good that is happening today: housing starts the highest they have been in history; the number of new jobs the highest they have ever been; the strength of the economy; the low interest rates; the fact that we are going to see a surplus; a growth in the economy that exceeds that of Europe and Japan together. That remarkable economic success ought to be cause for optimism for even the most ardent political pessimists sometimes found among our colleagues on the other side. So I acknowledge, as you do, that it is a remarkable day when, even with all of this good news, there are still some people who are trying to find the dark lining in the cloud. There isn't much dark lining there. If we stick to the text that we have been using for the last 5 years, there is a lot of silver lining upon which we ought to be building our future.”