[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 23, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S295-S297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              FRESHMAN TOUR: PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT

  Mr. GRAMS. Mr. President, too often here in Washington, politicians 
come to town with a mission but end up coming down with a severe case 
of Beltway fever.
  They get caught up in the unreal atmosphere of this place and 
eventually forget what it was that first propelled them into public 
service.
  They shut themselves away in their Senate or House offices or even in 
the Oval Office.
  They spend their time hobnobbing with their new-found Washington 
friends. And after awhile, they just lose touch with the folks who sent 
them here. They think they are doing ``the people's business,'' but in 
truth, they are no longer speaking for the people at all.
  The 11 Members of the Senate freshman class came to town with a 
mission, too, a mandate given to us by the voters.
  We met often as a group last year to track our progress. And as 1995 
came to 

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a close, we took a step back and began asking ourselves some pretty 
tough questions, such as:
  What is the mood of the country?
  What are people saying about Congress and the decisions we freshmen 
faced in our first year in the Senate?
  Did we really hear the message we thought we heard in November 1994, 
when the voters sent us here to balance the budget to get Government 
spending under control, to deliver middle-class tax relief, and protect 
and strengthen Medicare and Medicaid?
  Most importantly, is the message that brought this freshman class to 
the Senate in 1994 still alive and well in 1996?
  We thought we knew the answers, and we knew we had delivered on each 
one of our promises, but after being in Washington and of course, 
debating those very important questions over the past year, we thought 
it was time for a reality check.
  So last week, at the urging of my good friend, Senator Abraham from 
Michigan, nine Members of the freshman class took to the road to take 
our message directly to the people and bring the people's message back 
with us to Washington.
  We visited eight cities over 4 days. What we saw and heard truly 
opened our eyes and, I believe, reaffirmed our mission.
  In Philadelphia, we toured an empowerment zone and shared ideas on 
how to rebuild our troubled inner cities. The section of north 
Philadelphia we visited is a model for the concept that restoring 
neighborhoods means creating incentives for businesses to locate in 
urban areas. The Federal Government has made a difference, local 
officials told us, but the incentive is tax relief for these areas to 
attract businesses and jobs.
  In Knoxville, 300 concerned citizens packed the auditorium at West 
High School for a town meeting. They cheered our progress on a balanced 
budget and called on us--and forcefully I might add--not to give up.
  In Columbus, at a crime forum, we met with police, other law-
enforcement officials, and victims of crime who shared how Washington 
can play an important role in making local neighborhoods safer.
  Rain, sleet, snow, and even a blizzard warning could not stop a crowd 
from attending my town meeting in Minneapolis. We had a frank and, I 
believe, lively discussion covering a tremendous range of issues and 
the audience enthusiastically applauded our efforts to shrink the size 
and scope of government and return power to the States.
  Employees at the Emerson Electric Co. in St. Louis sat down with us 
to talk about a balanced budget and just what it would mean for 
themselves and their families. It was heartening to hear their words of 
support, especially since our budget is specifically targeted at 
improving their lives, and the lives of every hard-working, taxpaying, 
middle-class American family.
  In Tulsa, we met with small business owners--the men and women who 
create the jobs on Main Street--for a roundtable discussion organized 
by the Metropolitan Tulsa Chamber of Commerce.
  Again, they thanked the Members of the 104th Congress for taking such 
a strong lead in bringing job providers relief from the stranglehold of 
Federal regulations and mandates.
  Our whirlwind tour ended in Cheyenne, with a final opportunity to 
hear from the voters at a town hall meeting at the Cheyenne Civic 
Center.
  At each stop, the people thanked us for taking our message directly 
to them and bypassing the curtain of misinformation draped over the 
issues by the congressional Democratic leadership, the White House, and 
too often, the media. They repeatedly shared their frustrations at 
hearing only one side of the budget debate.
  And at each stop, they asked ``why can't you reach a compromise with 
the President on a balanced budget?''
  The President's latest budget plan--the first plan of his that 
actually balances in 7 years--is similar to the four other budget plans 
he sent to Capitol Hill in the last year which, by the way, got no 
votes in the House and Senate. Throughout these weeks and weeks of 
budget negotiations, he has given up very little while Republicans have 
moved dramatically to help spur an agreement.
  The President's budget cuts around the edges, but does not reform a 
thing. And I think we can say in one word the President's budget is a 
sham.
  It does not reverse the kind of wild overspending that will continue 
to drag this Nation deeper into debt.
  Spending remains unchecked under his latest plan, and $1 out of every 
$6 the President claims in deficit reduction comes not from cuts in 
spending, but from raising new revenue, new taxes.
  It does not save Medicare and provide the choices for seniors our 
plan offers. Under the Clinton plan, Medicare remains a relic from 
1960's that no longer works in the 1990's.
  His budget does not reform Medicaid, either. We say let the States 
run Medicaid, and they will do a better job. The President's plan says, 
again, Washington has all the answers.
  He does not offer meaningful tax relief. His tax cuts amount to only 
token tax relief, and with $66 billion in new taxes, the President's 
budget does nothing to reduce the tax liability of the country. His 
version of the $500-per-child tax credit is slowly phased in and then 
eliminated in 2002, and applies only to children 12 years old and 
younger.
  He does not make fundamental changes in welfare to control spending.
  In fact, his welfare proposals spend $20 billion more than the 
bipartisan welfare bill passed by Congress. The President does not 
``end welfare as we know it,'' he extends welfare as we know it.
  In reality, the President's budget plan is just a Band-Aid on a wound 
that is demanding emergency surgery. Yank off the Band-Aid after 7 
years and the wound will not be healed, it will have festered and 
grown.
  Mr. President, it will do no good to balance the budget in 2002 if it 
all unravels in 2003. And without a solid framework to work from, that 
is precisely where we would be heading under the President's version of 
a balanced budget.
  That is how the freshman class answered the question each time we 
were asked why we have not been able to reach a budget compromise. We 
will not compromise our principles. No budget is better than a bad 
budget.
  The President is right when he says the debate over the Federal 
budget is no longer just about dollars. It is about dollars and about 
something far more important: the future direction of this Nation, and 
which governing philosophy ought to lead us there.
  The President says maybe we should wait until the next election and 
let the people decide what direction they want their Government to 
take. But the taxpayers we met with in Knoxville, and Philadelphia, and 
Minneapolis, and Tulsa last week told us that is the change they 
thought they voted for in November 1994, when they turned this 
Government around by electing a new majority in Congress.
  You know, President Clinton is going to come here to the Capitol 
tonight to deliver what will undoubtedly be a passionate speech on the 
State of the Union.
  As we all know, he can be an impressive speaker. He will speak 
fervently and forcefully and, with any luck, he will wrap up in time 
for Sunday's Super Bowl kickoff.
  I hope that what we hear tonight is a message of leadership, an 
acknowledgement of the awesome responsibility with which a President is 
entrusted, and a willingness to put aside a narrow political agenda in 
order to do what is best for the American people.
  Only great leadership will lead this Nation toward the great days 
that await us.
  What I am afraid we will get instead is a campaign event--the great 
kick-off to Bill Clinton's 1996 re-election campaign.
  Judging by the folks we met around the country last week, he may have 
a tougher go of it than he thinks in the weeks and months ahead because 
at every stop on our freshman tour, Americans offered us their full 
support.
  ``Do not back down,'' ``Hold the line,'' they said. ``Get the budget 
balanced, but do it right.'' A lot of people told us they would be 
willing to wait a year for a responsible budget agreement, if that is 
what it takes.
  Maybe then, they said, somebody a little more serious about balancing 
the budget will be occupying the Oval Office.
  And so the revolution of 1994 continues, Mr. President. 
  
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  That is the strong message my freshman colleagues and I bring with us 
back to Washington. And for our colleagues who may not have ventured 
beyond the confines of the Beltway recently, that is the message the 
American people are demanding we do not forget.
  Mr. HELMS addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from North Carolina is recognized.
  Mr. HELMS. I thank the Chair.
  (The remarks of Mr. Helms and Mr. Faircloth pertaining to the 
introduction of S. 1520 are located in today's Record under 
``Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

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