[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 49 (Wednesday, March 26, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H2373]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        THE VOTE FOR A TAX CUT DURING A TIME OF DEFICIT AND WAR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Pearce) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PEARCE. Mr. Speaker, this past weekend I traveled to the district 
after our vote on the budget, and there were sincere questions that 
came from many of the people in the district why we would do what we 
had done. I felt it was necessary to address this body again about the 
comments that we heard and the responses to that.
  First of all, Mr. Speaker, I would remind this body that when we 
discuss such things as a budget, we should discuss, first of all, 
principles, that is, values. We should remember, Mr. Speaker, that this 
Nation was founded on the principle of freedom; but without economic 
freedom, no other freedoms really make a difference. It is economic 
freedoms that allow us access to the other freedoms granted by our 
Constitution.
  Mr. Speaker, I would remind the Members that property rights, private 
property rights, are one of the most significant aspects of our 
Constitution. They are one of the significant components of our 
economic freedoms.
  So as we discuss our budget, we should remember that economic 
freedoms, that our constitutionally given private property rights, are 
a very important concept. They are the basis of the hopes and dreams, 
of the opportunities that this country makes.
  A generation can dream for itself and then dream for its children and 
dream for its grandchildren. I know that is one of the greatest things 
that people knock on the door to get into America to achieve, to reach 
out for those economic freedoms, and the other freedoms of their daily 
lives. Mr. Speaker, as we reach those dreams, we should always be 
mindful that the dreams should be made ever-increasingly accessible to 
those who have not had them.
  Mr. Speaker, I think, as we discuss the budget, we should recognize 
other basic principles, that is, basic, recognizable truths.
  First of all, Mr. Speaker, I would say that America is overtaxed. It 
is not that America is undertaxed; it is that Washington overspends 
that causes the difficult situation facing us today.
  My daughter graduated from college several years ago. She received 
her first paycheck. She called in indignation. I was serving as a State 
representative. She thought we could cure such things. She said, I am 
paying more in taxes than for rent, entertainment, and food combined. 
She said, what can you do about that? I said, well, I registered 
Republican. I do not know what you will do.
  I would say one of the greatest principles we have here today is 
winning the war on terror. As we discuss the budget, we would want to 
understand that.
  Another recognizable truth, Mr. Speaker, is that when the government 
spends an accumulated 20 to 25 percent of the gross domestic product, 
that an economy begins to stall. It becomes stagnant. We are seeing 
that model lived out in the socialist economies of Europe. We are very 
near the 22 percent limit that most economists suggest is an upward 
limit for vibrant growth, I would say.
  I think another recognizable truth is that many of our corporations, 
because of our tax policies, are no longer competitive. They begin, 
before they even invest their first dollar, with a 10 percent or 12 
percent disadvantage in the world markets.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I voted for that budget because we began to cut 
spending and exercise fiscal restraint, and we did it while holding 
some of the basic programs harmless.
  Mr. Speaker, there is a great curiosity why we would, in times of 
deficit, vote for a tax cut. I would just remind the Members that tax 
cuts are like investments. If we as individuals want more income in the 
future, we would invest a portion of our current income. We would forgo 
consumption in the current time to invest it into the future.
  Mr. Speaker, tax cuts are the investments in the future for our 
government. We send the money back to a generation, that they would be 
able to spend it and use it in consumption, driving up demand, 
increasing jobs. It is not just enough to increase that demand in the 
short run, Mr. Speaker; we have to increase it in the long run. So the 
tax cuts that we offered were permanent, extending into the future.
  A tax cut also needs scope. It needs largeness. That is where the 
dividend tax cut comes in, Mr. Speaker. It also helps as far as 
business investment. One of the most significant aspects of this tax 
cut is that it has a size and scope to make a difference.
  Mr. Speaker, the tax cut will fuel the economy into the future. The 
growth of the economy will result in greater revenues for the current 
time; and by forgoing current consumption, investing in a tax cut, we 
grow the size of the economy so we will have more revenues in the 
future. With that, we will balance the budget.

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