[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 28 (Wednesday, February 14, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1930-S1931]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATE OF THE ECONOMY
Mr. CORNYN. Madam President, on Monday the distinguished majority
leader took to the floor and bemoaned the state of our economy, calling
our economic future bleak. As surprised as I was by those comments, I
thought it was even more important to come down to the floor and to
respond and to provide, I think, a much different picture than that
depicted by the distinguished majority leader.
It is ironic the same date those comments were made, the Associated
Press reported a story that leads with this paragraph:
The deficit for the first four months of the current budget
year is down sharply from the same period a year ago as the
government continues to benefit from record levels of tax
collections.
The Treasury Department reported Monday that the deficit
for the budget year that began October 1 was down 57.2
percent from the same period a year ago.
That same article goes on to say:
The continued strong growth in revenues reflects the record
profits corporations have been recording in recent years and
the low levels of unemployment, which means more Americans
are working and paying taxes.
If this is ``bleak'' economic news, I would love to see what good
economic news might look like.
I have a few charts that provide a more accurate picture of exactly
where we stand in terms of the American economy today. This first chart
demonstrates for 21 consecutive quarters we have seen the U.S. economy
grow, including the latest quarter where the economy grew by 3.5
percent.
We have seen since August 2003, employment has expanded over 41
consecutive months--creating 7.4 million new jobs in America. This
timeframe is not accidental. In 2003, we passed some of the tax relief
which is largely responsible for giving the American worker greater
incentive to work hard and to save their money and invest it in their
small business, thus creating jobs and opportunity for all Americans.
This has created the sort of freedom that is always demonstrated in the
strength of our burgeoning economy. It is as a result of not Government
action per se but, rather, the freedom we have given the economy and
the hard-working American taxpayer to keep more of what they earn and
creating an incentive for them to work hard and be able to earn more to
support their family and their way of life.
The third chart demonstrates the economic picture is not as the
distinguished majority leader said, ``bleak'' but demonstrates that
revenue to the Federal Treasury has exceeded all historical precedent.
Indeed, this last projection is that in 2007 we will see it increase by
18.5 percent, and you can see above the line on this chart that
represents historical averages. Each of the following years leading up
to 2012 will exceed that historical average. Again, the economy is
stronger than ever and continues to grow because of our current low tax
and progrowth policies.
Unfortunately, this is a lesson that Washington sometimes forgets
because when given the opportunity, the instinct of Washington is to
increase Federal revenue by increasing taxes. I don't think you need to
know much about human nature to know that high taxes decrease the
incentive we all have to work hard. What that does is actually have a
wet-blanket effect on the economy and on the ability of small
businesses and employers to create jobs which create the kind of
economic growth and the kind of revenue our tax system generates as a
result of strong economic activity.
I am worried that even with the current continuing resolution that is
in the Senate now that cuts $3.1 billion from defense spending at a
time when we are trying to bring our troops home from Europe and Asia
and to provide them a place to come home to, that the solution offered
by the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Appropriations is
``Don't worry, we will add that money back in when we get to the
supplemental appropriations bill.''
The problem with that is the $3.1 billion that has been spent out of
the current continuing resolution or Omnibus appropriations bill on
things other than our military, that money has now been spent on other
programs that are favored by the new majority. What they are saying is,
instead of spending $3.1 billion, we will spend $6.2 billion--the $3.1
on things other than defense, but we will come back later and make the
defense budget whole but in a way that aggravates the budget deficit.
[[Page S1931]]
Of course, the consequence of that kind of spending policy which has
a tendency to aggravate the deficit lays the groundwork for our
colleagues on the other side to say, the American people are not taxed
enough. We need to actually raise taxes in order to generate more
revenue to pay for this additional spending.
This is exactly the kind of response we do not need. As demonstrated
by the charts, as demonstrated by the booming economy, we have, as a
result of the low tax policy and the progrowth policies of the last 6
years, the American economy could not be stronger or better.
I hope we will all be edified by this factual data demonstrated on
the charts and that the misimpression that the distinguished majority
leader was under when he called the economy bleak will be now
disabused. I hope he will see from the charts and from my comments--not
because I said it but because this is what the facts demonstrate--the
low tax and progrowth policies we have had over the last 6 years have
served the American people very well and that 7.4 million new jobs have
been created in America since August 2003. That, indeed, should be what
we are all about.
I yield the floor.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Idaho is
recognized.
Mr. CRAIG. The Senator from Colorado is going to speak a little
longer, but he has agreed I can interject myself but for a moment.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator is recognized.
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