[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 194 (Thursday, December 7, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S18246]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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 THE PRESIDENT'S VETO OF THE BALANCED BUDGET RECONCILIATION ACT OF 1995

 Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, I would like to join my colleagues 
in expressing my disappointment in President Clinton's veto of the 
Balanced Budget Act of 1995. The Republican plan would have resulted in 
a balanced Federal budget in 2002, a plan that would have finally 
restrained the growth of Federal spending to a manageable level. And 
yet, President Clinton felt compelled to veto our plan. He felt 
compelled to protect his priorities.
  President Clinton's statements regarding protecting his priorities 
belie one sad truth buried in his rhetoric: The only thing that is not 
a priority to this President is balancing the budget. There is only lip 
service one day, a speech another, a third budget plan this week. If we 
are to believe that President Clinton is serious about his commitment 
to balancing the budget, why is he now submitting a third budget? Why 
did he first submit two budgets that resulted in deficits of over $200 
billion in the year 2000 and beyond?
  The only logical conclusion to be drawn from the President's actions 
is that he is trying to deal in the most politically popular way he can 
with a Congress that is unwavering in one commitment, a commitment to 
the American people to, once and for all, put the U.S. Government on 
the road to fiscal health.
  The future could be so bright if the President would only join us in 
agreeing to a balanced budget. We will compromise, but not on the 
principle that the budget must be balanced using credible, honest 
projections. There is a growing consensus among respected economists 
that interest rates will drop significantly, 1, maybe 2 percent, if a 
balanced budget is reached. This would mean cheaper home mortgages, 
less to pay for student loans, lower credit card payments. American 
families will save again. Without a balanced budget agreement, though, 
there will be profoundly negative consequences. Chairman Greenspan of 
the Federal Reserve predicts a ``quite negative'' reaction in the 
financial markets if no deal is reached, and a sharp increase in long-
term interest rates.
  And yet we are mired here in a disagreement that is disheartening to 
all of us, especially those of us who were elected just last year, 
those of us who heard from thousands of citizens across our respective 
States, those of us who heard, ``balanced the budget'' above all else.
  The disagreement between Congress and the President comes down to one 
issue: the difference between credibility and something for nothing. 
Syndicated columnist Ben Wattenberg makes a compelling case in 
yesterday's edition of USA Today that the country's social ills boil 
down to one fundamental shift in the Nation's attitude: The attitude 
that it is possible to gain something for nothing. Whether it is crime, 
poor education, or even the epidemic problem of illegitimacy, Mr. 
Wattenberg traces the cause of these ills to the lack of personal 
responsibility and the lack of effort, hard work, and even sacrifice 
that is necessary to gain anything worth having. Unfortunately, the 
White House's phony numbers are the means to appear to balance the 
budget, without making any adjustments or imposing any discipline on 
Government spending.
  The Republican plan, on the other hand, recognizes the need for 
adjustment, reform, and downsizing of the Federal Government. It 
reforms Government programs in a sensible way and provides tax relief 
for hardworking American families and to spur investment. It will 
result in long-term benefits--a stable and growing economy, lower 
interest rates, greater investment, higher incomes, millions of new 
jobs. The benefits of the Republican plan are not unlike the 
gratification of earning one's own way in the world, completing an 
education, or staying married for 40 years. Hard work, but definitely 
worth it.
  So, I close with these thoughts, Mr. President. The American people 
will rise to any occasion, and if we ask them to help us address this 
fiscal crisis, they will. What they won't do is allow this generation 
to burden the next with an impossible debt. I am disappointed that the 
President chose not to sign the historic Balanced Budget Act of 1995, 
but I remain hopeful that the administration will trust the American 
people and agree to a balanced budget. We must.

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