[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 88 (Thursday, May 25, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S7490]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MR. JEFFERSON WAS RIGHT: GOP BUDGET PROVES IT

  Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, there has been a great deal of phony and 
highly partisan criticism of the Republican budget proposal--criticism 
which the liberal news media have hastened to circulate. However, polls 
show that the majority of American people are not misled, except those 
who insist that they are entitled to something for nothing.
  To their credit, Republicans in Congress have delivered on their 
commitment to come forth with a budget to--First, balance the Federal 
budget in 7 years; second, cut Federal spending by $961 billion; third, 
eliminate 140 Federal departments agencies and programs; fourth, freeze 
salaries of Member's of Congress; and fifth, cut the Senate staff 
budget by 15 percent.
  Mr. President, the American people obviously realize the dire 
financial straits into which our Nation has plunged as a result of 
decades of irresponsibility by those in charge of their Federal 
Government. But children understand the penalty for spending more money 
than they have in their piggy banks.
  I have an example to share, a poignant letter from the sixth grade 
class of Swain County West Elementary School in Bryson City, NC:
  Dear Senator Helms: Our teacher shared with us your letter which 
mentioned the Federal debt as of March 14, 1995, which was 
$4,846,819,443,348.28.
  We are amazed to see how large the Federal debt is and understand 
that anything that is ``free'', the working people pay for. We don't 
have much, but our class sends this collection to you and ask that you 
put it in the fund to reduce the Federal debt. Our generation is going 
to have to reduce this debt and we would like to begin our part now. We 
really want to help our country and as sixth graders we understand that 
you can't leave it up to somebody else to take care of what we must 
begin now.''
  Mr. President, enclosed with this letter came a check for $44.75, 
emphasizing the obvious if these sixth graders in North Carolina can 
recognize the importance of balancing the federal budget, why can't 
Congress?
  Needless to say, I greatly admire these young people and their 
teachers. Implicit in their letter is an obvious question: If 
politicians cannot live up to promises to balance the budget, the 
politicians perhaps should be called home to smell the coffee, if I may 
be permitted to mix a couple of metaphors.
  Mr. President, it is difficult to remain silent amidst false charges 
by the President and various Senators of his party that the Republican 
budget will cripple Medicare, the health care system upon which so many 
of our elderly have been encouraged to depend. Contrary to the false 
prophets, the Republican budget allows Medicare spending to increase 
each year by 7.1 percent.
  Mr. President, the American people should always have realized that 
there is no such thing as a free lunch. Thomas Jefferson said it best:

       To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers 
     load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election 
     between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude.

  Mr. Jefferson also warned:

       The question whether one generation has the right to bind 
     another by the deficit it imposes is a question of such 
     consequences as to place it among the fundamental principles 
     of government. We should consider ourselves unauthorized to 
     saddle posterity with our debts, and morally bound to pay 
     them ourselves.

  Mr. President, that just about says it all, especially when one 
considers the moral injustice we are heaping upon our children and 
their children. This year Republicans made a promise to balance the 
budget. We should keep that promise. Balancing the Federal budget is 
simply a matter of doing what we were sent to Washington to do.


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