[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 19 (Wednesday, February 3, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1115-S1116]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        THE CLINTON 2000 BUDGET

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, on Monday morning just past, President 
Clinton submitted his annual budget to the Congress, but unlike prior 
submissions, this budget is much more than a plan for a single fiscal 
year; this is a long-term blueprint for the 21st century. It prepares 
for the impending retirement of the baby boomers. It ensures that 
younger Americans will enjoy the security of Social Security and 
Medicare. And it provides a $500 billion tax cut to promote savings by 
ordinary Americans.
  Now, importantly, it achieves these goals while increasing national 
savings and dramatically reducing our public debt.
  Mr. President, the Clinton budget is a historic one. It begins a new 
era in budget policymaking and promises to shape our Nation's future 
for years, for even decades, to come.
  The Federal Government at long last has put its fiscal house in 
order. Last year was the first year since 1969 that we ran a budget 
surplus--a unified budget surplus, I point out. This year that surplus 
will be even larger. And many analysts see budget surpluses continuing 
for years to come.
  Our Government is the smallest that it has been, on a relative basis, 
in a quarter century, and we have improved our fiscal condition for 7 
years in a row--the best record in U.S. history.
  Much of the credit for this success goes to President Clinton and the 
congressional Democrats, but I hasten to point out that much of the 
impetus that brought us to the point that we are came because we did 
this in a bipartisan fashion. And I speak as the ranking member of the 
Budget Committee. The President lent the considerable force of his 
office and his persuasion and worked with both Republicans and 
Democrats to get to this fairly enviable position to produce a balanced 
budget agreement. So there is plenty of credit to go around for an 
accomplishment that is well in place. I hope we can resume our work in 
similarly bipartisan and cooperative ways because there is so much left 
to be done.
  In my view, President Clinton's budget submission provides an 
excellent roadmap for that work. The heart of the President's plan is 
its allocation of roughly 90 percent of projected budget surpluses to 
three key areas: Saving Social Security, strengthening Medicare, and 
cutting taxes to promote savings for ordinary Americans.
  Social Security now is projected to be insolvent by 2032. The 
President's plan would preserve the program until

[[Page S1116]]

2055. The plan also would extend Medicare solvency from the year 2008 
to 2020.
  In addition, the budget includes a $500 billion tax cut to promote 
savings among ordinary Americans in new ``USA accounts.'' That is way 
more than a tax cut; it is a way to help all Americans invest in the 
private sector and share in the benefits of economic growth.
  These priorities--saving Social Security, strengthening Medicare, and 
cutting taxes for retirement--are all designed to increase savings, and 
that is essential. After all, while we have a unified surplus today, 
our public debt--that debt owed outside our Government--is still $3.7 
trillion. That is the debt owed to the public. We will also face huge 
unfunded liabilities when the baby boomers begin to retire.
  We need to prepare for that future, and that is why it is important 
that we pay off our debts, reduce interest costs, and increase private 
investment. Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan testified 
that that is the best way to promote long-term economic growth. And it 
is the only way to ensure that when the baby boomers retire we will be 
able to meet our obligations.
  Beyond devoting most of the budget surpluses for savings, President 
Clinton's budget also includes some important investments in our 
future. All are fully offset as required by budget rules and therefore 
protect the budget caps.
  Perhaps most importantly, the budget makes a strong commitment to 
quality education. It would help modernize our schools, hire more 
teachers, reduce class size, and improve educational 
standards. Together these initiatives would help ensure that Americans 
are equipped to compete in the global economy. Everyone is aware that 
this century, the 20th century, has been defined as the American 
century because of the progress that we made. After winning two World 
Wars and having engaged in other conflicts that ultimately produced 
peace, American leadership was at the helm of global economic growth.

  The budget also calls for a variety of other targeted tax cuts such 
as new credits to help families support long-term care and child care. 
It increases our commitment to our men and women in the military. It 
was made clear in newspapers across the country in the last few days 
that we are having significant problems recruiting and retaining those 
people that we would like to have serve us in the military. So it 
reflects the President's commitment to strengthen that; possibly to 
encourage young people to spend some time in the military and to 
encourage those who have experience and longevity to continue to do the 
job that they are capable of and not be attracted simply by a momentary 
better opportunity in the private sector.
  The budget also reflects the President's commitment to strengthening 
our communities by hiring more police officers, cleaning up our 
environment, and fighting sprawl. We cannot go into every detail of the 
budget here today, but overall I think this is an excellent proposal. 
It is bold, it is innovative, and it has the right priorities for our 
future.
  Unfortunately, I have been disappointed that the response to the 
President's budget, like other things that happen in Congress, has so 
far been too partisan. Some Republicans have accused the President of 
returning to an era of big government. This claim is so preposterous it 
is difficult to take it seriously when we look at the amounts of moneys 
being spent on government and see that, relative to the GDP, it is at 
the lowest point that it has been since 1974. This budget, after all, 
would reserve almost 90 percent of the surpluses for debt reduction. It 
would be hard to get more fiscally responsible.
  I respect the views of my Republican colleagues who have honest 
disagreements with the President. I hope we can work together on this 
budget issue. However, I do want to express my strong opposition to one 
element of the Republican's budget plan, and that is their proposal for 
cuts across the board in tax rates.
  I want to emphasize that I strongly support tax relief for ordinary 
Americans. In particular, I support the $500-plus billion in tax cuts 
for savings that are included in the President's budget for ordinary 
Americans. Unfortunately, the Republican position is to spend much of 
the budget surplus for tax rate cuts that go disproportionately to 
Americans with the highest incomes.
  According to one analysis, the Republican proposal would provide more 
than $20,000 for those in the top 1 percent of earners who have incomes 
of more than $800,000. Just look at the chart. It looks like a fairly 
ridiculous comparison, but the top 1 percent of those earning 
$833,000--those folks are in the top 1 percent; that is not the entire 
1 percent--they would get a tax cut of $20,697, but the person who 
works hard and is included in the 60 percent of our American wage 
earners whose incomes are below $38,000 would get a $99 tax cut. Mr. 
President, $20,000 for the high-income wealthy people, $99 for the 
average American; it is not fair and I hope that it will be 
reconsidered by our friends on the Republican side.
  Even worse, these tax breaks for the highest income Americans would 
come at the direct expense of Medicare. Medicare has become such an 
important program in our society, such a commitment, that it is valued 
by Americans across the board. We see its effects on the better health 
and the longevity that our citizens enjoy and the quality of life they 
experience in those longer lives in their later years. So it would be 
wrong to sacrifice some addition to the solvency of Medicare for a tax 
break across the board that gives someone earning over $800,000 in a 
single year a $20,000-plus tax break.
  President Clinton's budget reflects the values and priorities of most 
Americans, and I hope that many of its proposals will enjoy bipartisan 
support. The American public loves it when we work in a bipartisan 
fashion, and I noted that when we got to the balanced budget agreement 
for fiscal year 1997. We had all kinds of comments--it is a pleasure 
not to see any bickering, not to see any sharp diatribes, not to see 
any acerbic discussions; it is a pleasure to see Senators working 
together on behalf of all Americans.
  So this focus for this budget is on the future: saving Social 
Security, strengthening Medicare, providing tax cuts and promoting 
savings for ordinary Americans. Together these policies will help 
ensure a vibrant economy and a secure future for all Americans. So I 
hope my colleagues will support the President's approach. I look 
forward to doing what I can to work with them to address the serious 
fiscal issues facing our Nation and to prepare us for the 21st century, 
which I think can become the second American century.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts.

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