[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 2 (Thursday, January 4, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H146]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       IN 1 YEAR REPUBLICAN MAJORITY BRINGS CRISIS TO GOVERNMENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Metcalf). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentlewoman from Oregon [Ms. Furse] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. FURSE. Mr. Speaker, I think that the people who are not able to 
pay their rent this month or maybe the ones who are not going to make 
their mortgage payments are going to remember this time. As my 
colleagues know, a lot of speakers have talked from this side about 
this balanced budget. Well, I think we have to separate the balanced 
budget from keeping the Government open. I want to talk a little bit 
though about this balanced budget.
  When Ronald Reagan became President of this country, the deficit was 
$74 billion. When President Bush left office, the deficit was $300 
billion. When Bill Clinton became President, it was $300 billion, and 
today, thanks to the President's budget of 1993, the deficit is half, 
is $161 billion, half what it was then. But it is very interesting 
because there was not one Republican vote for that budget, that budget 
which has reduced the deficit by half.
  OK, now they say to us, especially the new Republicans--well, they 
have not been here very long so I understand they are not sure of all 
the things that are going on, but let me tell you. They say we are 
going to keep this Government closed unless we have a balanced budget. 
Well, their memories are very short because there was a balanced budget 
offered on this floor, a 7-year balanced budget, a 7-year balanced 
budget with CBO scoring. They did not vote for it. Why? Because it did 
not have that $245 billion tax break for the wealthy.
  So yesterday we asked if that budget could come back up, could we 
vote for a balanced budget, 7 years, no tax break for the wealthy. 
Well, the Republican leadership would not let us vote on it.
  So it is not the balanced budget they care about. They want to keep 
this Government closed down because, like the former speaker, they do 
not seem to understand that individual Americans are hurting, people 
have to pay their rent, people have to make a mortgage payment.
  Senator Dole, who is the head of the other body, got together with 
the Democrats and the Republicans on the 21st, and that was just 
Tuesday. They passed a continuing resolution, get the Government back. 
We begged yesterday, please bring that continuing resolution up that 
the Senate has passed, let us get the Government back to work. But, no, 
we were not allowed to vote on that, just as we were not allowed to 
vote on the real balanced budget.
  Now I have heard people here say this is an inconvenience, the 
Government shutdown. They will not remember the Government shutdown. 
Well, let me tell you just what is happening to seniors in Oregon, and 
it is happening to seniors across the country.
  Meals on Wheels. We have two Meals on Wheels places in Portland. They 
serve seniors every day. Well, they are going to be out of business by 
the end of next week. Too bad, seniors, no meals for you because the 
Republicans say they want to balance the budget but they will not vote 
on a balanced budget.
  There is very important research going on right now on a disease that 
affects seniors: Alzheimer's. Alzheimer's research has been stopped in 
the National Institute of Health because they say we do not care if the 
Government is shut down.
  Medicare contractors who pay the health care claims of our elderly; 
they are being asked to use their own funds to operate because the 
Government is shut down. What a disgrace.
  Federal investigators who investigate fraud that affects all of us, 
but particularly seniors, they are not being paid, they are not being 
paid.
  Now what I want to say to my colleagues is that for 40 years you have 
tried to be in the majority. All right; now you are in the majority. 
But you know what? You were not able to do the simple work that was 
required to get the appropriation bills to the President so the 
Government would keep working. In 1 year this Government had been 
brought to a crisis. It is time to stop that, it is time to go with the 
Senate version, have a continuing resolution, and later today someone 
will come forward and suggest we all go home for a vacation. Well, I am 
not going to go home for vacation until the Government is back on its 
feet, and none of us should.
  It is a shame, it is a shame.

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