[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 13 (Wednesday, January 31, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H977-H978]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           BALANCE THE BUDGET

  (Mr. METCALF asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. METCALF. Mr. Speaker, the interest on the debt this year is $235 
billion; that is more than the deficit. In other words, Government 
spending is really less than Government income, if we do not count the 
deficit.
  We are paying interest on a debt that Congress overspent, the result 
of Congress overspending for decades. It has resulted in this 
disgraceful deficit, and the budget we now begin this year, the 
interest on the debt will exceed the huge defense budget. Interest on 
the debt costs $1,300 for every American. That is $5,200 for a family 
of four. 

[[Page H978]]
Think what $5,200 would do for the standard of living of each American 
family.
  We have a moral responsibility to balance the budget and a moral 
responsibility to protect the American dream for our grandchildren.

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