[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 28 (Wednesday, February 27, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H686]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             SEQUESTRATION

  (Mr. WOODALL asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. WOODALL. Mr. Speaker, as a freshman here on the House floor just 
2 years ago, it does my heart good to see my freshman colleagues coming 
down from the other side of the aisle, because I came down with that 
same vision 2 years ago to work together to address the big issues that 
are out there.
  I serve on the Budget Committee, Mr. Speaker, and for fiscal year 
2013, we're going to post a $1 trillion annual deficit. This sequester 
that every Member is rightly concerned about is $85 billion, less than 
one-tenth the magnitude of the decisions we really need to make to get 
America back on fiscal track.
  Is the sequester anybody's idea of the right way to do it? I don't 
believe that it is.
  Is everyone's idea of the right way to do it to deal with that part 
of the budget that we don't do in discretionary spending? The big two-
thirds, that mandatory spending that we have to come together on to 
deal with? And the answer is absolutely, yes.
  I stand ready to work with my freshman colleagues on both sides of 
the aisle to do those big things that need to be done. But Mr. Speaker, 
we have raised taxes already in 2013. The CBO reports that an 
additional $1 trillion will come into the Treasury over the next 10 
years.
  What we need is not more taxes. What we need are responsible spending 
cuts, Mr. Speaker.

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