[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 43 (Thursday, March 18, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H1454]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            AMERICA'S FUTURE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. DeMint) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DeMINT. Mr. Speaker, in the next 5 minutes, I want to ask my 
House colleagues and the people watching at home to help me write a new 
chapter in the American story. Over the next years, we will be the 
authors of this new chapter. Tomorrow our children will live this 
story.
  As a father of four, nothing could make me feel more secure than 
knowing that this story includes my children pursuing their dreams and 
living a life free from dependency on government. Surely, all of us 
want our children and grandchildren to live in a place where freedom's 
lamp shines brightly for all people.
  This is how the American story is read for nearly three centuries. 
This story began with a band of freedom-loving people who escaped 
oppression to form a new land of liberty. It is a story of exploration 
and new beginnings, a story of faith, enterprise, tragedy, and success. 
Its pages are filled with the names of heroic men and women like 
Patrick Henry, Frederick Douglas, Susan B. Anthony, and others. It is 
also filled with lesser known names but no less special: The mothers, 
fathers, grandparents, teachers, coaches, doctors.
  We, in every line, in every chapter, the American story is filled 
with a Nation defined by its people, governed by its citizens, and 
preserved by those who love freedom. But too many are still uneasy 
about our future.

                              {time}  1745

  We lie awake at night worrying about tomorrow. Will our paychecks be 
enough to cover the bills? Will Social Security be around when we 
retire? Will we be able to provide the health care our elderly parents 
need and deserve? Will our children get the education they need to 
succeed in the next century?
  We have the ability to give every American more security. But we will 
have no security, no hope, no opportunity if we trade away our liberty 
to achieve that security. I believe the gravest threat to our country 
is from those who promise security in return for our freedom. They 
promise security in exchange for more of our money and more control of 
our lives. Some of those in government even act as if they were elected 
to manage our lives. I believe we were elected to provide a framework 
of freedom so Americans can manage their own lives. We were also 
elected to provide a safety net for those in need when families, 
communities and States are unable to help. But the need for this safety 
net does not require the confiscation of our freedoms. We must remember 
that in America, we are most secure when we are most free, when we are 
in control of our lives.
  Many believe that the debates in Congress are about which party is 
for Social Security, Medicare, education and the environment. The fact 
is we are all for these things. Every Member of the House wants to 
provide a strong and bright future for our country. The real debate in 
this Congress day in and day out is about who is going to control your 
life, you or the government.
  Many of us here who call ourselves the GOP believe in a government of 
the people. This means, as it has for three centuries, that the 
government is controlled by you and your family, not the other way 
around. We believe in the GOP that we can secure the future for every 
child when we have an education system that is controlled by parents, 
teachers and local communities. And we will secure the future for every 
senior when we guarantee their Social Security benefits today and move 
towards giving their grandkids a choice to own and control their own 
Social Security accounts. We believe that we will secure the future for 
every older American when they have even greater access to quality 
health care and can choose their own doctors and make their own health 
care decisions. We will secure the future for our Nation when we 
rebuild our national defense and can control our borders and live free 
of the fear of missile attacks. And we will secure the future for every 
working American when we let them keep more of what they earn, a lot 
more.
  Now is the time for us to write our chapter about America, an America 
that is free and secure and controlled by its people. Let no one edit 
the American story in a way that makes us dependent on the government 
or politicians. Let us write about a people that can overcome every 
challenge, education, jobs, health care, retirement, whatever we face. 
May our families live freer today than they did yesterday, and may we 
sustain a Nation that is dependent only upon God and the blessings of 
freedom.
  Mr. Speaker, that is my prayer for this Congress and that is my 
prayer for this Nation.

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