[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 115 (Monday, July 17, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10085-S10086]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


          WAS CONGRESS IRRESPONSIBLE? THE VOTERS HAVE SAID YES

  Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, the incredibly enormous Federal debt is 
like the temperature outside--rising rapidly. As for the rising Federal 
debt, Congress had better get cracking--time is a-wasting and the debt 
is mushrooming and approaching the $5 trillion level.
  In the past, a lot of politicians talked a good game, when they were 
back home with the voters, about bringing Federal deficits and the 
Federal debt under control. But many of them regularly voted in support 
of bloated spending bills that rolled through the Senate like 
Tennyson's brook. So look at what has happened:
  As of Friday, July 14, at the close of business, the Federal debt 
stood--down to the penny--at exactly $4,933,039,330,339.52. This debt, 
remember, was run up by the Congress of the United States.
  Mr. 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, the Cuban Missile Crisis was 
in progress. A billion minutes ago, the crucifixion of Jesus Christ had 
occurred not long before.
  Which sort of puts it in perspective, does it not, that Congress has 
run up an incredible Federal debt totaling 4,808 of those billions--of 
dollars. In other words, the Federal debt, as I said earlier, stood 
this morning at opening time at four trillion, 933 billion, 39 million, 
330 thousand, 339 dollars and 52 

[[Page S 10086]]
cents. It'll be even greater at closing time today.

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