[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 137 (Wednesday, September 6, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H8544]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


  HOLD THE LINE ON FEDERAL SPENDING BEFORE IT GOES THROUGH THE CEILING

  (Mr. SMITH of Michigan asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SMITH of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, according to the Department of 
Treasury, the new debt ceiling that Congress approved in 1993 will be 
reached sometime in October. The debt ceiling was $4.9 trillion. We are 
currently borrowing, and we are currently borrowing $4.6 trillion. So, 
we are going to reach that debt limit. This means that the Government's 
ability to borrow additional money will be exhausted by November, and 
the House and Senate will be asked to increase the debt ceiling for the 
78th time since 1940.
  Since I and other fiscal conservatives of both parties firmly believe 
that we should put our fiscal house in order by making sure we are 
irrevocably committed to balancing the budget before increasing the 
debt ceiling, we are facing a potential cash-flow problem. That is 
because in next year's budget we are calling for a borrowing of about 
10 percent, and revenues coming into the Federal Government only 
account for about 90 percent of that required spending. So that is 
going to mean a cash-flow program, it is going to mean prioritizing 
spending.
  As an enthusiastic supporter of the effort to use the debt ceiling to 
achieve a balanced budget, I have joined with 160 members of the Debt-
Limit Coalition to pass legislation that will eliminate the deficit 
within 7 years.
  Later this month, Congress will present the President with a historic 
package of spending and tax cuts that will achieve that goal. If he 
vetoes this bill and does not present a credible alternative, we will 
be compelled to use the pending debt-ceiling vote to force the issue of 
the Federal Government's out-of-control spending.
  Mr. Speaker, I insert for the Record the next 3\1/2\ paragraphs, and 
I conclude by saying now is the time to hold the line on Federal 
spending before it goes through the ceiling.
  Some critics of the Republican budget-cutters, many of whom are those 
who helped get us into the Federal debt morass, say that cutting 
spending on social programs is mean-spirited and cruel, and that this 
is only designed to put pressure on the President and force him to take 
the blame for shutting down the Government.
  But there is ample precedent for Congress using the debt limit as 
leverage to resolve budget battles, including 1985 during the debate of 
the Gramm-Rudman balanced budget act and in 1990, when the Democratic 
Congress used the looming debt ceiling to force President Bush to raise 
taxes.
  So this isn't a partisan issue. It's an American issue. As a dairy 
farmer and former Michigan legislator, I have persistently advocated 
tax cuts and spending restraint. Now is not the time to back off. Now 
is the time to hold the line on Federal spending, before it goes 
through the ceiling. Thank you very much.


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