[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 25 (Tuesday, March 2, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  THE BUSH BUDGET AND SOCIAL SECURITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House of 
January 20, 2004, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) is 
recognized during morning hour debates for 5 minutes.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, finally some of my Republican colleagues 
are waking up and seeing the fiscal mess that they have created here in 
Washington. This morning, the headline in The Washington Post read: 
``Some GOP Lawmakers Aim To Scale Back Bush Tax Cuts.''
  Mr. Speaker, somebody really ought to tell the President about this. 
He is still running around the Nation telling anyone who will listen 
that he wants Congress to make all of his tax cuts permanent. These are 
the same tax cuts that overwhelmingly benefit the wealthiest Americans 
and have turned a $5.6 trillion surplus into a $3 trillion deficit over 
the next 10 years.
  The article in The Washington Post quotes my Republican colleague, 
Christopher Shays, the vice chairman of the House Budget Committee, as 
saying, and I quote, ``We would be foolish to extend all the tax cuts 
now.'' Again, these are the words not of a Democrat but of a 
Republican, the vice chairman of the House Budget Committee, saying 
that we would be foolish to extend all the tax cuts right now.
  I ask, what is turning some Republicans against their President on 
this issue of tax cuts? Maybe they finally realized the true 
ramifications of their fiscal insanity over the last 3 years when 
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said just last week that fully 
implementing President Bush's tax cuts would require cuts in Social 
Security down the line. Chairman Greenspan's comments illustrate the 
destructive effects of reckless Republican economic policies, policies 
that have led to record budget deficits, lower economic growth, and a 
substantial risk to the Social Security benefits that millions of 
seniors depend on.
  Mr. Speaker, when President Bush took office 3 years ago, the 
projected budget surpluses were enough to cover the cost of Social 
Security during the baby boomers' retirement years. When then-Governor 
Bush was campaigning for the Presidency, he promised that any tax cuts 
he proposed would leave Social Security solvent. That was candidate 
Bush. But 3 years later, Chairman Greenspan says that, due to the 
fiscal situation this Republican Congress and President Bush have 
created, Congress may be forced to begin cutting promised Social 
Security benefits.
  My Democratic colleagues and I will not let this happen. Hardworking 
Americans have paid a portion of their wages into Social Security their 
entire careers, and Washington has always known that we have an 
obligation to pay them benefits when they retire. Instead of making 
American seniors pay for the Bush administration's fiscal recklessness, 
the President should work with Congress and get their spiraling deficit 
under control.
  Democrats, Mr. Speaker, believe that fiscal responsibility is the way 
to create prosperity for America and secure the retirement of America's 
seniors. The government needs to get back to balanced budgets and 
fiscal discipline as soon as possible to ensure that we can protect the 
Social Security trust fund for future retirees. My Democratic 
colleagues and I believe that our parents and grandparents should be 
able to enjoy their golden years and not live in fear of poverty.
  Another reason some Republicans may now be skittish toward making all 
tax cuts permanent would be the latest estimates out of the 
Congressional Budget Office. Last Friday, CBO estimated President 
Bush's budget for the upcoming year would generate $2.75 trillion of 
additional Federal debt over the next decade. CBO also says that, 
despite the President's claims, his budget fails to cut the deficit in 
half by 2009. Could it finally be that some Republicans are realizing 
what many of us on this side of the aisle have known for almost 3 
years, that President Bush lacks any credibility on our Nation's fiscal 
situation?
  In order to prevent a total fiscal collapse, it is time for President 
Bush and my Republican colleagues to face reality and repeal the 
President's tax cuts for the very wealthiest Americans. It is time 
President Bush and congressional Republicans stand with our Nation's 
children who will be forced to bear the brunt of the cost of their 
fiscal irresponsibility. It is time the President and congressional 
Republicans stand with our Nation's seniors and baby boomers that need 
Social Security and Medicare strengthened, not raided. Chairman 
Greenspan and the CBO have sent a wakeup call to Washington 
Republicans, and I hope after reading this article in today's 
Washington Post that some of those congressional Republicans are 
finally listening.

                          ____________________