[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 215 (Friday, December 18, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7710-S7711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          GOVERNMENT SPENDING

  Mr. PAUL. Mr. President, the Federal Government brought in $3.3 
trillion in revenue last year and spent $6.6 trillion for a record-
setting $3.3 trillion deficit. If you are looking for more COVID 
bailout money, we don't have any. The coffers are bare. We have no 
rainy day fund. We have no savings account. Congress has spent all of 
the money. Congress spent all of the money a long time ago.
  The economic damage from the pandemic is not the reason for this 
runaway spending. This has gone on for decades. Today's money is gone, 
so Congress is spending tomorrow's money. When you look at a graph of 
our projected spending, you see a big spike this year. The spike is a 
mountain of money doled out to pay for the economic ruin of the 
government mandates.
  When we talk about spending tomorrow's money, this is not just money 
we will need next month; this is money we will need in a decade--money 
we will need in one, two, and three generations from now. For national 
defense. For infrastructure. This is money that your children and 
grandchildren will pay back with interest, and it is going up by more 
than a trillion dollars every year.
  Instead of enjoying the same wealth and opportunity that we have 
enjoyed in this country, our children will be stuck paying our bills--
with interest. Every taxpaying American already owes $136,754 today, 
and they are staring at a red-ink projection into the future. We are 
$27 trillion in total debt today. How do we expect a child to have 
economic opportunity when crushing debt is their inheritance from 
Congress?
  The numbers are mind-boggling. It is hard to conceive of a billion 
dollars, much less a trillion dollars. How big is a billion? Well, a 
billion seconds ago was 1988 and Reagan was still President. A billion 
minutes ago, Jesus walked the shore of the Sea of Galilee. A billion 
hours ago, man still lived in caves. But a billion dollars ago--as 
spent by the Federal Government--that was just 80 minutes ago. That is 
right, the Federal Government spends a billion dollars every 80 
minutes.
  All of this should be setting off alarm bells, but the only alarm 
bells in Congress are sounding the alarm for more spending, more debt. 
No cuts. No offsets. No pay-fors. No prioritization. Just debt. Spend 
all the money and leave the future to figure itself out. Our budget 
deficit for 2020 was $3.3 trillion, and we are projected to have a 
deficit of nearly $2 trillion in 2021. And that was before any 
additional spending on another round of coronavirus bailout money.
  By refusing to acknowledge the debt crisis, we are only hastening the 
day of economic reckoning. Total debt was 55 percent of GDP 20 years 
ago; today it is 128 percent. The World Bank estimates there is a 
tipping point of debt to GDP at about 77 percent. Every percentage 
point after that costs about one-tenth of 1 percent of economic growth. 
We are at 128 percent, which means Congress's continued borrowing is 
costing the U.S. economy about 8 percent growth each year.
  We are borrowing and worsening this debt crisis, in part, because too 
many Governors and mayors have imposed heavyhanded restrictions that 
crush businesses. The pandemic itself was disruptive, but Congress is 
being asked to help perpetuate lockdowns and shutdowns through bailouts 
and debt. Every bailout dollar printed and passed out to Governors only 
allows these tin pot dictators to perpetuate the lockdowns. Their rules 
are arbitrary, and Governors and mayors across the country are picking 
winners and losers. Businesses, some that have been in families for 
generations, are being wiped out because they are not not allowed to 
offer their services. Restaurants have to close for indoor dining, but 
then they are told they can stay open at limited capacity, but then 
they are told they have to close again, but then they are told that 
they can reopen but bars have to close. Confusing doesn't explain the 
half of it.
  Bars are told they can only serve alcohol if people are sitting and 
not standing and only if they have heavy foods on their menus. 
Restaurants are told they can serve outdoors, then have that permission 
revoked after they have sunk time and money converting their restaurant 
to outdoor service. But a caterer can still serve outdoors.
  Businesses are told they have to close at an arbitrary time 
determined by government officials, as though the virus only comes out 
late at night. A business in one Zip Code can be open but one in the 
adjoining Zip Code has to close, as if the virus can't cross an 
imaginary line.
  Airlines are allowed to fly but hotels have to limit their occupancy, 
so you may not have anywhere to stay when you get there.
  Mom-and-pop stores and specialty stores are forced to close, but big 
box competitors are allowed to stay open because they have a grocery 
aisle. But then other States roped off random sections of stores. How 
is any business expected to survive that kind of regulation?
  Meanwhile, many schools remain closed despite overwhelming evidence 
showing kids can safely learn in-person with basic precautions, which 
means parents can't go to work, which has forced many parents to leave 
their jobs to take care of home-bound kids. Now they have no income 
because the government forced them to leave their jobs to take care of 
their kids, and many kids are struggling with an improvised virtual 
school.
  The need for help is real. I hear it every day from Kentuckians and 
across the country. But it is clear that government has worsened the 
economic damage and acted as the biggest obstacle to economic recovery.
  There is no free money to get us out of this situation. In fact, 
there is no more money at all. The answer is not printing up and 
distributing ``free money'' to everyone. The answer is immediately 
opening the economy. We can choose to let our economies open, with 
guidance and precautions but not obstruction. Let people rebuild their 
livelihoods. Reopen our schools so kids can learn and parents can go 
back to working and earning a living. Congress should do away with 
automatic spending increases and scrutinize where in our budget we can 
find savings to pay for the pressing needs arising from the pandemic. 
This is what I prefer and what I have proposed. Or Congress can follow 
the status quo: Congress can continue to borrow from our kids--the same 
ones whom we have locked out of schools. Congress can keep enabling the 
shutting down of business by force, spend all of today's money and all 
of tomorrow's money. Then good luck figuring out how to pay for all of 
this massive debt.
  It doesn't have to be this way. This debt crisis is a preventable 
crisis. It is not too late to change our course. Cut unnecessary 
spending, eliminate waste, stop fighting a $50 billion per year forever 
war in Afghanistan. Make the hard decisions now. We can't keep 
pretending that more debt is a sustainable policy course. Leadership is 
not passing on the problem to someone who can't protest, leadership is 
making the

[[Page S7711]]

hard choices now. That is what we have to do. I will oppose this new 
debt, and I will continue to sound the alarm until we change our course 
here in Congress.

                          ____________________