[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 23 (Monday, February 6, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H1222]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                 RAISING SPENDING IS NOT A SPENDING CUT

  (Mr. STEARNS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, in President Clinton's State of the Union 
that he gave just about 2 weeks ago in this Chamber, this is what he 
said: ``Should we cut the deficit more? Well, of course we should.'' As 
many of the Members will remember, that was a great line, and many a 
lot of us applauded. However, his 1996 fiscal year budget came in, and 
the question is, why did he not?
  I wonder, Mr. Speaker, does the Clinton administration still have as 
its highest priority reduced spending? Not only does his budget ring up 
almost $200 billion in deficit for fiscal year 1996, but it projects 
deficits of almost $200 billion every year to the year 2005. It uses 
the same old accounting gimmicks that we have seen before, and it 
claims $144 billion in cuts in Federal spending over 5 years. The 
reality is that in fiscal year 1996 alone, the administration proposed 
increasing spending by $50 billion.
  Mr. Speaker, do we have to say it again? Raising spending by less 
than we plan is not a spending cut.

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