[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 183 (Thursday, December 1, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H8006]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       FIXING A BROKEN WASHINGTON

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Young) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. YOUNG of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on behalf of 
the overwhelming majority of my southern Indiana constituents.
  A year ago, they sent me to this body to give a voice to their 
frustrations with Washington--a frustration I shared then and share now 
more than ever. The American people's frustration stems from a lack of 
real progress in addressing our Nation's most fundamental challenges: 
Federal spending, our national debt, job creation, and the decline of 
the middle class. Our fellow citizens have concluded what I, too, have 
concluded--Washington is broken, and no one is in a hurry to fix it.
  Congress hasn't passed a balanced budget in over a decade. The Senate 
hasn't passed any sort of budget in 3 years. Our national debt recently 
topped $15 trillion, and our unemployment rate hovers around 9 percent. 
Instead of trying to fix our problems, Washington would rather argue 
about who's to blame for causing our problems. Sure, there's a lot of 
agreement as to what's wrong with our country, but not a lot of action 
geared towards making anything right. Our President and too many in 
this Congress would rather demagogue and demonize than lead and 
legislate. Washington is broken, and nobody's in a hurry to fix it.
  While many of our constituents are struggling to find a second, and 
in some cases a third, job, Washington is failing to perform its only 
job--governing. Is it any wonder that so many Americans are frustrated?
  These aren't Republican problems or Democrat problems. They're not 
House problems or Senate problems; these are Washington problems. 
Unfortunately, after 11 months on the job, I've seen far too few 
Washington solutions.
  Many of us came to Washington this year, some of us new to 
government, to offer solutions. We came ready with ideas. We came ready 
to defend those ideas, to respond to criticisms, to make the ideas into 
workable solutions and, ultimately, to implement those solutions to 
make a better life for those who sent us here. We came with the same 
sense of urgency that the American people expect of us.
  But Washington is broken. Too many people in this city resist 
publicly committing to hard, workable solutions because parroting 
talking points is so much easier. But until we get down to brass tacks, 
we'll continue to talk past one another.
  So I make this entreaty to all of my colleagues: whether you are a 
Republican or a Democrat, commit to proposing workable solutions. Get 
into the details. Put them on paper. Until both sides put a specific, 
written, scoreable plan on the table, we'll never find the common 
ground necessary to strike that grand bargain. In the absence of 
specifics, we're just playing politics. That's why Washington is 
broken.
  Now, earlier this year, those of us on the Budget Committee 
introduced a comprehensive plan that would reduce our deficit over the 
next decade by over $6 trillion. It would balance the budget and start 
paying down our debt. It would create an environment where jobs could 
flourish and grow, and it would save and strengthen our safety net 
programs likes Medicare and Medicaid. Most importantly, it addressed 
our challenges with the sense of urgency they require.
  If you disagree with that plan or you have a more optimal solution, 
let's hear it. Introduce it. I'm open to better plans. I didn't come to 
Congress because I thought I had all of the solutions. I came to 
Congress because my constituents wanted me to be part of the solution. 
But criticizing the other guy's plan is not the same as having a plan.
  Real leadership consists of presenting your vision for America to the 
American people and then defending it. In so doing, Republicans and 
Democrats may discover that we have some common ground, that we are not 
enemies, but friends. Let us summon up, as we have before, the ``better 
angels of our nature'' and rededicate ourselves to the hard work of 
leadership.
  Washington is indeed broken. Let's hurry up and fix it together.

                          ____________________