[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16744]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                      WHO OWNS THE BUDGET SURPLUS?

  (Mr. SCHAFFER asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SCHAFFER. Mr. Speaker, the President said something recently that 
captures perfectly the attitude of liberals when it comes to their 
high-tax agenda. While in Buffalo, New York, the President spoke about 
what should be done with the projected budget surpluses over the next 
15 years. He said, we could give it all back to you and hope you spend 
it right. But, hope you spend it right. Excuse me? What exactly does 
the President mean when he says hope you spend it right. It is the 
budget surplus, which is nothing more than a tax overpayment. It does 
not belong to Washington. It does not belong to politicians. It does 
belong to the people who sent that money to Washington in the first 
place.

                              {time}  1015

  It belongs to the taxpayers. They earned it. It belongs to them. Yes, 
they can be trusted to spend it any way they want.
  The idea that the Federal Government, of all things, should be 
trusted to spend money better than the people who earned it is simply 
mind boggling.

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