[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 48 (Wednesday, March 15, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3961-S3962]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         WAS CONGRESS IRRESPONSIBLE? THE VOTERS HAVE SAID YES!

  Mr. HELMS. Madam President, the enormous Federal debt which has 
already soared into the stratosphere is in about the same category as 
the weather--everybody likes to talk about it but almost nobody had 
undertaken the responsibility of trying to do anything about it until 
immediately following the elections last November.
  When the 104th Congress convened in January, the U.S. House of 
Representatives approved a balanced budget amendment. In the Senate, 
however, while all but one of the 54 Republicans supported the balanced 
budget amendment, only 13 Democrats supported it. The balanced budget 
constitutional amendment, needing 67 votes, failed by just 1 vote. 
There will be another vote later this year or next year.
  This episode--the one-vote loss in the Senate--emphasizes the fact 
that a lot of politicians talks a good game when they are back home 
about bringing Federal deficits and the Federal debt under control. But 
so many of them come back to Washington and vote in support of bloated 
spending bills rolling through the Senate.
  As of the close of business yesterday, Tuesday, March 14, the Federal 
debt stood--down to the penny--at exactly 
 [[Page S3962]] $4,846,819,443,348.28. This debt, remember, was run up 
by the Congress of the United States.
  The Founding Fathers decreed that the big-spending bureaucrats in the 
executive branch of the U.S. Government must never be able to spend 
even a dime unless and until authorized and appropriated by the U.S. 
Congress.
  The U.S. Constitution is quite specific about that, as every school 
boy is supposed to know.
  So, do not be misled by politicians who falsely declare that the 
Federal debt was run up by some previous President or another, 
depending on party affiliation. These passing-the-buck declarations are 
false because as I said earlier, the Congress of the United States is 
the culprit. The Senate and the House of Representatives have been the 
big spenders for the better part of 50 years.
  Madam President, most citizens cannot conceive of a billion of 
anything, let alone a trillion. It may provide a bit of perspective to 
bear in mind that a billion seconds ago, Mr. President, the Cuban 
missile crisis was in progress. A billion minutes ago, the crucifixion 
of Jesus Christ had occured not long before.
  Which sort of puts it in perspective, does it not, that Congress has 
run up this incredible Federal debt totaling 4,846 of those billions--
of dollars. In other words, the Federal debt, as I said earlier, stood 
this morning at 4 trillion, 846 billion, 819 million, 443 thousand, 348 
dollars and 28 cents. It'll be even greater at closing time today.


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