[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 13 (Monday, January 23, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H479-H480]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1250
       SUPPORT CONTRACT WITH AMERICA'S BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Camp). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 4, 1995, the gentleman from Nebraska [Mr. 
Christensen] is recognized during morning business for 2 minutes.
  Mr. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, over the course of the last week, the 
American people have seen a great deal of discussion in the Chamber 
about book deals. They have seen partisan posturing and parliamentary 
tricks designed to slow down if not halt completely the course that we 
have set out to make the Contract With America the people's agenda.
  Mr. Speaker, this is the only book that we should be talking about, 
the ``Contract With America.'' I was noticing on page 23 of this book 
that it talks about the balanced budget amendment and the line-item 
veto.
  [[Page H480]] ``Isn't it time we hold Congress accountable?'' it 
says.
  It goes on to say, ``Just as every American sits at the dinner table, 
and as they do, they balance their own books, they balance the budget 
of a family, a business, it's time that the American people hold
 Congress accountable to balancing the books.''

  This week we will be taking up the balanced budget amendment, a piece 
of legislation that is long overdue.
  We have already started giving the voters of America what they said 
they wanted in the Contract and now it is time to focus on the job at 
hand and get on with the people's business.
  As a freshman Member of the 104th Congress, I was sent here by the 
people to make real change, to make this happen for the first time in 
40 years.
  Let us not continue backsliding toward politics as usual, but let us 
give the American people what they sent us here to do, and, that is, to 
pass a balanced budget amendment.

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