[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 62 (Tuesday, May 13, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H2497]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       A REALISTIC PROJECTION BY THE CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE

  (Mr. SMITH of Michigan asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SMITH of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, the budget agreement that has 
been pretty much accomplished is nobody's gift to the conservatives or 
the liberals. It has good news and bad news. We now have a Federal 
Government that has become very big, very large, very intrusive--taxing 
too much and borrowing too much. This budget agreement moves us in the 
right direction of reducing some of those huge tax increases of 1990 
and 1991 and reducing spending over the long run.
  I questioned the analysis of the Congressional Budget Office in 
coming up with a last-minute $225 billion. But in talking to CBO, they 
have predicted ups and downs, some recession in the economy, but the 
average estimated increase in the GDP over the next 5 years is 2.1 
percent. Probably not overoptimistic.
  I see some of the bad news as provisions in the agreement that only 
allows for a net tax reduction of $85 billion over the next five years. 
However for the good news, there will be a tax decrease, a tax cut, 
over the next 10 years of $250 billion.
  Cut wasteful Government spending and we'll be moving in the right 
direction.

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