[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 8, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S2308]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                SOCIAL SECURITY AND THE BALANCED BUDGET

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I take this opportunity to address the 
Senate about the amendment we hope to offer in the immediate future. 
That is the amendment regarding the exclusion of Social Security from 
the balanced budget amendment.
  Mr. President, I believe that we lost the amendment that has been 
debated on this floor for a week dealing with the right to know; that 
is, whether the American public should be able to understand the 
glidepath that will allow this Government to arrive at a balanced 
budget by 2002. That was denied. The American public does not have the 
right to know how we are going to arrive at that balanced budget by the 
year 2002.
  I hope, though, Mr. President, that the next matter we are going to 
discuss, namely, Social Security, would be something the American 
public should have the right to know. How are we going to handle Social 
Security in the overall mix of this balanced budget amendment?
  It would seem to me that senior citizens, but just as importantly all 
the people of this country, men and women who are working for a living 
and those people who yet will work, should be entitled to know how we 
are going to handle Social Security.
  I, frankly, am disappointed the way it was handled in the other body. 
In my opinion, the other body in handling this, in passing House Joint 
Resolution 17, recognized how weak their references were to protect 
Social Security. They did not even go to the trouble of introducing a 
statute, trying to pass a statute. They had a concurrent resolution 
that passed by a vote of 412-18 that has, Mr. President, the authority 
of this blank piece of paper.
  I suggest that we would all be well advised to get to the debate on 
Social Security, to have a determination made by this body whether we 
will exclude Social Security from the stringencies of the balanced 
budget amendment.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, my understanding is that we are in a 
period of morning business.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is correct.
  Mr. DORGAN. And I may be recognized for 5 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Yes.

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