[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 101 (Wednesday, July 10, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S7624]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                MEASURE PERFORMANCE RATHER THAN RHETORIC

  Mr. THOMAS. Madam President, we wanted to visit just a little bit 
about the program that has been set up by our friends on the other side 
of the aisle. I am delighted that there has been some kind of effort to 
put together an agenda. I think it goes to indicate a little bit about 
the differences that we have, in terms of solving problems for this 
country; differences that we have in terms of how we see the role of 
the Federal Government in our lives and, really, an issue about this 
whole matter of the end of big Government.
  It is interesting. The Prime Minister this morning quoted the 
President and so on, saying ``The era of big Government is over,'' yet 
our friends on the other side bring out an agenda that describes all 
the things that the Government is going to do. I have to tell you, I am 
a little impressed with the notion that it is a matter of some spinning 
for political purposes, rather than talking about what we really want 
to do.
  The Democrats come out with an agenda to do something at the same 
time they are keeping from happening all the things practically that we 
decided to do this year. It seems to me it is a transparent kind of an 
idea of talking about it but not doing. Walking the walk? No. Talking 
the talk? Of course. And that is where we are.
  So I really think we ought to challenge our friends over there to 
really take a look at what is happening here, and if they are talking, 
really wanting to do what they are saying, let us do it. Let us talk 
about health care. My friends on that side have not even allowed us to 
appoint conferees, to do something with the health care program that is 
there and ready to be passed.
  Our friends talk about balancing the budget. The Democrats were in 
charge of this place and the House for 25 years and never balanced the 
budget. Now the agenda is: Balance the budget.
  Madam President, when you and I were in the House, we had a budget 
called ``Putting Families First.'' That budget included a $500 per 
child tax credit, it included anticrime initiatives, it included 
welfare reform, it included market-based health care reform, indexed 
capital gains. Our friends opposed it. They said, ``We can't do that.''
  That budget would have been putting families first, giving an 
opportunity for families to do the things for themselves that we think 
they ought to do--putting families first. I guess all I can say is I am 
really getting exasperated with this process of ours where the idea is 
to see how much you can spin and how much you can talk and how much you 
can say but not do anything about causing it to happen.
  It is almost cynical that we have now the most technical, greatest 
opportunities to communicate so people can have input into their own 
Government and, at the same time, it is more and more difficult to 
really understand what people are for. And as this election comes up, 
that is what we ought to be deciding: What direction do we want this 
country to take, not what people are going to say but, in fact, what 
they have done.
  The records do not match this kind of rhetoric. President Clinton 
opposed the balanced budget amendment. Those folks all voted against a 
balanced budget amendment, practically all. The President vetoed the 
first balanced budget in a generation. That is the walk, that is not 
the talk. We have had that this year.
  Most of us came to the Senate and said voters told us very clearly, 
``We have too much Federal Government, it costs too much and we're 
overregulated,'' and we have tried to change that.
  Frankly, the Democrats have done all they can do this whole year to 
keep things from happening. We had an opportunity and we still have an 
opportunity: the first balanced budget in a generation to reduce the 
size of Government, telecommunications reform happened this year, line-
item veto happened this year. It never happened before. Congressional 
accountability, product liability. We have done those things, and we 
were able to achieve some of these goals, understanding that Washington 
is part of the problem, not, indeed, part of the solution.
  So, Madam President, I have been very impatient with this idea of 
getting up and making all these great speeches about things we are for, 
and then when we have an opportunity to do it, we have an opportunity 
to put it into place, then all we find is opposition, all we find is, 
``Well, I'm for a balanced budget, but I can't be for this one.''

  ``I'm for welfare reform, but I can't be for this one.''
  ``I'm for sending Medicaid back to the States some more, but I can't 
be for this one.''
  That is what we have heard the entire year, and continue to hear 
that.
  Now they come forth with the families first agenda, promoting most of 
the things they have opposed throughout the year.
  Madam President, I just find it frustrating, as you can probably 
tell. It is time that we begin to measure performance rather than 
measure rhetoric. We have an opportunity to do the things that we set 
out to do this year. We still have an opportunity to do it. We have an 
opportunity to have medical reform, we have an opportunity to have some 
welfare reform, we have an opportunity to balance the budget, we have 
an opportunity to reduce the size of Government, we have the 
opportunity to have some tax relief.
  Which of those things have been supported on the other side of the 
aisle? None. But then they have an agenda, an agenda because that is 
what the polls say, and that is what it sounds good to say to people. 
It does not matter that it is not going to happen. It does not matter 
that they are not walking the walk, it is just talk the talk.
  I suppose this is fairly harsh stuff, but I can tell you, I have 
watched this go on now for some time, and it continues. Of course, as 
we get toward an election year, it becomes more and more heightened in 
terms of the rhetoric that is there.
  So I hope that as we make some of the changes that need to be made in 
this Government, a government of the people and people deciding, making 
decisions--that is what elections are about, talking about what 
direction this country will take, and we have an opportunity to really 
measure performance, not rhetoric, and that is what we have an 
opportunity to do.
  Madam President, let me yield to my associate from Minnesota.
  Mr. GRAMS addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Minnesota.

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