[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 143 (Wednesday, October 5, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 5, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY AND OUR CONTRACT

  (Mr. KNOLLENBERG asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. KNOLLENBERG. Mr. Speaker, we are in the midst of a social crisis.
  Illegitimacy rates are exploding. Crime rates are rising. Our cities 
are decaying, and millions of Americans are trapped in poverty.
  Last week, more than 300 Republicans signed a historic agreement to 
reverse these trends. The Personal Responsibility Act is a key element 
of our contract with America.
  Drawing upon the lessons of the last 30 years, we have pledged to 
reform a welfare system that deprives individuals from obtaining the 
American dream.
  Real welfare reform means spending less and moving dependents off the 
dole. Our plan will instill responsibility by requiring work for 
benefits. We will strengthen the family by eliminating subsidies for 
out-of-wedlock births. And we will provide the American taxpayer with 
relief by cutting runaway welfare spending.
  Mr. Speaker, the American people realize that we can no longer punish 
what is right in America to subsidize what is wrong with America.
  The Republican contract with America provides real and effective 
welfare reform, and I am confident that on November 8, the American 
people will voice their support for the principles of this pact.

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