Kay Bailey Hutchison: “Madam President, I rise today to add my voice to those who are calling for a balanced budget amendment. I want to…”

“Madam President, I rise today to add my voice to those who are calling for a balanced budget amendment. I want to compliment the senior Senators from Illinois and Utah, Mr. Simon and Mr. Hatch, for their fine work on this very important legislation. Without their courage and leadership, we would not be close to enacting mandatory fiscal responsibility. You may have seen the editorial cartoon reprinted in Saturday's Washington Post showing the famous bow tie of the senior Senator from Illinois. It shows what might be called the ``bow tie argument,'' that a balanced budget will squeeze too tight. The opponents of the amendment are saying that we cannot have a balanced budget because we cannot balance the budget. If there was ever an inside-the-beltway policy argument, that is it. Imagine the Framers of our Constitution adopting such a view. We would not have the fifth amendment which says that private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation. Of course, the Framers knew that public funds were limited. Some had struggled with financing the Revolutionary War and the Government under the Articles of Confederation. But as the first stewards of our country, they put the Government on a pay-as-you-go basis.”