[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 25162]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



   THE NEW YORK TIMES RECOGNIZES REPUBLICANS' ROLE IN SAVING SOCIAL 
                          SECURITY TRUST FUND

  (Mr. BALLENGER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BALLENGER. Mr. Speaker, I would like to quote from today's New 
York Times:
  ``Surplus social security funds have functioned as money under the 
mattress for Congress for four decades. When general government 
revenues to run the Federal agencies run out, Congress taps into the 
retirement funds. Some outside experts say that social security 
surpluses has had no effect on its benefits.
  ``Republicans have been vowing almost daily never again to spend the 
money. Speaker J. Dennis Hastert again promised today `never to return 
to the days when Democrats raided social security.' '' This is from the 
New York Times, of all things.

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