[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 181 (Wednesday, November 15, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S17063]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REPUBLICANS SHOULD NOT CAVE IN

  Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, I appreciate very much the statement 
just made by the majority leader. What he has been hearing is the same 
thing that I have been hearing.
  I think a lot of us, Madam President, have been distressed by reading 
some of the polls that might imply that there is a deadlock, and 
somehow the Republicans have something to do with it, when, in fact, we 
have come up with a solution, the solution that was a part of the 
mandate of the election of 1994.
  They told us in loud and clear terms as Republicans took control of 
both the House and the Senate, that we are tired of business as usual, 
that we do want less Government involved in our lives. We want to 
change that trend that has existed since the 1960's.
  I am very proud to announce here today that in our partly closed 
offices around the State of Oklahoma and here in Washington, that we 
have been watching very closely as the calls come in. The calls have 
come in, and the very first 6 hours after supposedly the Government 
shut down, 98 people called in and said that they thought the President 
was right; but 611 people called in--almost an 8-1 ratio--and those 611 
people said ``Don't give in.''
  We made ourselves clear in November of 1994: If the Republicans 
cannot do it, you know the Democrats will not do it. Do not cave in at 
this time. We want a balanced budget.
  The Republicans have offered a balanced budget. Every Democrat I know 
of has stood on this floor and said we all want balanced budgets, but 
when it gets right down to it, they really do not want balanced 
budgets. They want business as usual.
  We have offered a balanced budget. We have sent all this to the 
President. It is in the President's court now.
  It is hard for me to understand what is going to happen. I encourage 
all of my Republican colleagues to listen to the loud and clear message 
that we are getting from Oklahoma, a very wise State. That is, stay the 
course. The same as Mr. Ham said, who wrote to our majority leader, Bob 
Dole, that he quoted a few minutes ago.
  I have no intentions of caving in. This is the last opportunity we 
will have to actually achieve a balanced budget in America. We are 
going to do it.
  I yield the floor.

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