[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 199 (Thursday, December 14, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H14874-H14875]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   WHY WE HAVE TO BALANCE THE BUDGET

  (Mr. KINGSTON asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. KINGSTON. Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues know, balancing the 
budget is not about Republicans or Democrats. It is not about partisan 
victory. It is not about a victory of one group over another group. It 
is about setting priorities. It is saying that we care more about the 
future and worry about our children's future than just getting 
reelected. Balancing the budget is not just about economics, and it is 
not just 

[[Page H14875]]
about accounting. It is about the fact that we live in a great country, 
we live in the greatest country the world has ever seen, and yet we can 
live in an even greater one if we live within our means.
  There are a lot of economic reasons to balance the budget, but what 
would it mean to the person back home? Mr. Speaker, experts have said, 
including Alan Greenspan, that living within our means under a balanced 
budget could mean a drop in the interest rates, perhaps as much as 2 
percent, and, if the interest rates drop 2 percent, the average 
homeowner could have a lower mortgage. If a family has a 30-year 
mortgage on a $75,000 house, then over the lifetime of the loan that 
family will save and pocket $37,000.
  That is why we need to balance the budget, Mr. Speaker, and I hope 
that the Democrats and Republicans will all step forward, put 
partisanship aside, and do the right thing.

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