[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 19 (Thursday, February 13, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H528]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT

  (Mr. PAUL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, a tremendous amount of energy has been put 
into the balanced budget amendment movement. The whole debate has 
perversely served to distract from the important key issue of the level 
of government expenditures. A balanced budget achieved at $1.7 trillion 
offers no benefit whatsoever and a great deal of harm compared to a $1 
trillion budget out of balance. This whole debate over the balanced 
budget amendment has coopted the important issue of the proper size of 
government.
  If Social Security funds are used to balance the budget, the support 
for this project will quickly fade. What is generally forgotten in this 
debate is that the national debt last year rose $261 billion, a far cry 
from the much talked about $107 billion deficit. The math is less clear 
than alleged.
  The deficit problem is a lot more than an accounting problem. 
Balancing the books or pretending to do so will not solve the problem 
inherent in a welfare state manipulated by a majority vote for the 
benefit of the special interests.

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