[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 172 (Thursday, November 2, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2095]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         SEVEN-YEAR BALANCED BUDGET RECONCILIATION ACT OF 1995

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                               speech of

                            HON. BILL LUTHER

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 26, 1995

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2491) to 
     provide for reconciliation pursuant to section 105 of the 
     concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 1996.

  Mr. LUTHER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the substitute 
to the budget reconciliation bill. My reasoning can be summed up in 
three simple words: Cut Spending First.
  The people of my district sent me to Washington to change the way 
this place operates and to get this country's finances in order. 
President Clinton and most of the new Members of this body were sent 
here to do the same thing.
  Today's votes are far from the final chapter in this book. But as we 
go through the conference committee process with the other body and 
negotiations with the White House, I believe we should be guided by the 
substitute reconciliation bill before us today.
  The substitute bill balances the budget by 2002, makes spending cuts 
first, accumulates $50 billion less in debt, and turns away from the 
notion of borrowing more money to pay for new tax breaks. It spreads 
the pain of balancing the budget more evenly and sets up a budget 
process that more strongly guarantees that we will in fact balance the 
budget and avoid the tragic mistakes of the past.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time to end the partisan wrangling that goes on in 
this Chamber and build a genuine consensus for balancing the budget in 
the right way.
  Thanks to the contributions of many, the question is no longer, 
``should we balance the budget?'', but rather ``how should we balance 
it?'' The President is now suggesting that the 7-year time frame for 
balancing the budget makes sense. Let's join together as Democrats and 
Republicans and build on this fundamental change in attitude.
  Mr. Speaker, I believe the eventual budget resolution for the 
American people can be based upon many of the elements of the 
substitute bill before us today. I urge my colleagues to support it

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