May 18, 2015
What is so different about preparing a regulatory budget from preparing a fiscal budget?
Lloyd Bentsen
The Public Record
★ Featured Quote
October 2, 2016
Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.
— Lloyd Bentsen
Most widely reported
by number of sources- in the spirit of Hamilton, Madison and Mason, I rise in opposition to all four articles of impeachment2 sources1997congress.gov
- I rise in defense of fiscal responsibility and in support of the Democratic budget resolution and in opposition to the Republican budget resolution. When I was elected to Congress, my highest priority was to balance the unified budget. We have apparently accomplished that goal. Now my highest priority is to pay down the publicly held debt and extend Social Security and Medicare solvency. Mr. Chairman, a week ago the majority on the Committee on the Budget submitted two pages of numbers and called it a budget resolution. It is as much a budget resolution as a blank piece of paper is a Pulitzer Prize winning novel. The budget resolution is two pages, no explanation. Draconian spending cuts of $181 billion over 10 years are hidden in blue smoke and mirrors. This budget says we are going to increase defense spending and education and cut other programs by $27 billion. It is not going to happen. The budget builds on the hope that the CBO can re-estimate the base line just so we can put off until September either any cuts we have to make and either have a showdown or disaster like last year. What this budget will do is bust the caps and the pay-go rules. The majority's budget resolution gives more priority to enacting an $800 billion tax break than paying down the debt. It does not stop Social Security and Medicare from going insolvent.2 sources1999govinfo.gov
- Mr. Speaker, I rise to join our Nation in celebrating Black History Month. Today I want to recognize and pay tribute to community leaders in Houston whose vast accomplishments and contributions have helped to revitalize a very large segment of our city. In 1996, Pastors James Dixon, Harvey Clemons, Bill Lawson, Ed Lockett, and Kirbyjon Caldwell were awarded the Mickey Leland Humanitarian Award by the Houston chapter of the NAACP for their outstanding contributions to the community. While all are deserving of recognition, Reverend Dixon for his work in north Houston, Reverend Clemons for his work with the Fifth Ward Development Corporation, Rev. Ed Lockett, who runs the Sunnyside Up Corp., and of course, Rev. Bill Lawson, the dean of Houston's clergy, and for many, the conscience of the city as well, I want to pay special tribute and highlight as an example the contributions of Pastor Kirbyjon Caldwell of the Windsor Village United Methodist Church. Reared in Kashmere Gardens, a low-income neighborhood in Houston, Pastor Caldwell, at age 43, is today one of Houston's most prominent clergymen. Pastor Caldwell has emerged as a strong advocate for civil rights in Houston. His intellect and creativity and caring have made him a leader in the quest for civil rights through economic empowerment and cultural awareness.2 sources1997govinfo.gov
- I rise in support of H.R. 4733, the FY 2001 Energy and Water Appropriations bill. I strongly support the decision of the Subcommittee on Energy & Water to ensure the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers receives adequate funding to continue their vital work in the areas of flood control and navigational improvement. I would also like to compliment the administration for their decision to fully fund the Corps' budget. This funding level recognizes the critical economic and public safety initiatives contained within the legislation. Because many flood and navigation projects located in my district are on accelerated construction schedules, full funding by the administration and the subcommittee will ensure the expedited completion at great savings to the taxpayers. I am very pleased by the support this legislation provides for addressing the chronic flooding problems of Harris County, TX. H.R. 4733, includes vital funding for several flood control projects in the Houston area. I am most gratified that the subcommittee, for the second consecutive year, decided to fully fund the Brays Bayou project at $6 million for FY 2001.2 sources2000govinfo.gov
congress.gov
Sep 28, 2009
If we fail to fix [the system] now, the next financial crisis we face will again reveal its flaws.
Mar 18, 2009
What we are seeing is a situation that enables banks to shop for the most lenient Federal regulator.
Aug 14, 2008
Senator, I served with Jack Kennedy. I knew Jack Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.
Oct 21, 2002
I rise today, along with the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Baker), the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Kanjorski), and the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Maloney), to introduce legislation that will provide a mandatory funding stream for…
Oct 8, 2002
Mr. Speaker, last night in his address to the United States on the administration's policy towards Iraq, the President laid out his indictment of the Iraqi regime and particularly its leader, Saddam Hussein. In doing so, he answered a…
Oct 2, 2002
There is no question. Two things. Number one, if we were not paying this interest and we were paying down the debt, number one, we could fund a program like a universal prescription drug program for senior citizens who are crying out for…
Oct 2, 2002
No. The Republican economic program has solved that problem. There is no risk now of our paying down the national debt. In fact, if the gentleman will look here on the projections what we received from the Congressional Budget Office, last…
Oct 2, 2002
In fact, that is true. We now are projected to pay three times the amount of interest over the next 10 years, almost $2 trillion, as opposed to a little more than half a trillion dollars that we were looking at last May of 2001. This is $2…
Oct 2, 2002
Last year when we began putting together the budget for fiscal year 2002 and really putting together the Republican economic program for the next 10 years, we were told that the unified budget surplus would be $5.6 trillion over the next…
Sep 26, 2002
after 6 years on the Committee on the Budget, I am amazed at the debate I have heard tonight. I did not realize just how powerful that committee is. In the 6 years I have been on that committee, I have seen Members of the other party in…
Sep 11, 2002
I rise in support today of H.Con. Resolution 464, commemorating the solemn occasion of the first anniversary of September 11, 2001, and the vicious attack on the United States and its people that day. September 11 will long be remembered…
Jul 26, 2002
I think that the bill before us today is actually a pretty good bill. I voted for the fast track bill that President Clinton sent up, and I think this bill is better than the bill that President Clinton sent up. I also think that this bill…
Jun 26, 2002
I was one of 21 Democrats who voted for the TPA bill. I think it is a good bill. I want to see the President get Trade Promotion Authority; I voted for it for President Clinton and I will vote for it for President Bush, if it is done the…
May 22, 2002
let me start out by congratulating the committee for putting together this legislation and putting together the conference report. This is a very good bill. I think it says a lot about the Congress that it has been able to respond as…
May 16, 2002
I rise in opposition of H.R. 4737, the ``Personal Responsibility, Work and Family Promotion Act,'' the Republican attempt at reforming the current welfare system. Since we enacted welfare reform in 1996, a number of issues have been…
Apr 24, 2002
on the underlying bill, let me say first of first off that I think the rule is a pretty good rule. There have been a lot of rules in this House that were not particularly good. This time the Committee on Rules saw fit to make a number of…
Apr 24, 2002
Enron, Global Crossing, the restatements at Xerox, Sunbeam and others are part of the corporate excesses that have occurred as a result of the exuberant nineties. The bill before us today, I believe, is a good start but, as I said earlier…
Apr 24, 2002
the underlying bill is not perfect, and I do not think the substitute is necessarily perfect, but there are certain pieces of the substitute that I think would make the underlying bill better. Number one, the substitute is stronger on the…
Mar 20, 2002
The principle of a balanced budget is more than simply a numbers game in which spending and revenue match up. It reflects the sense that Members of Congress are controlling the budget, not being controlled by it. Now all these Members on…
Feb 14, 2002
this bill has two problems. The first problem is that the majority has written a brand-new stimulus bill costing at least $150 billion over 10 years and brought it to the floor on the day that we are recessing for the President's Day…
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