[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 19]
[House]
[Pages 27706-27707]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                     SOCIAL SECURITY AND THE BUDGET

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moran) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. MORAN of Kansas. Mr. Speaker, Washington has hit the point on the 
political calendar when Congress and the President pound the tables and 
thump their chests over the final budget decisions of this year. Our 
jobs are to look past the theatrics and to make decisions based upon 
principle.
  This year we sat forth an ambitious goal that we would hold the line 
on spending instead of dipping into the Social Security Trust Fund. 
This year

[[Page 27707]]

we have an opportunity for the first time since the Eisenhower 
administration to balance the budget without touching the Social 
Security Trust Fund. Congress needs to stand on principle. We owe it to 
ourselves and to future generations.
  For too many years, these budget negotiations did not create such a 
fuss. Congress and the President settled their differences the old-
fashioned way: They simply spent more money. When spending exceeded 
revenues, they borrowed money first from the Social Security Trust 
Fund, then from the public, by issuing government bonds. Forty years 
later we have run up one heck of a tab. Our Federal debt now stands at 
over $5 trillion.
  There is hope. The Republican Congress over the past 5 years has been 
more serious than ever about fiscal discipline. That, coupled with a 
strong national economy, have put our Federal Government in the black 
for the first time in a generation and allowed us to retire $130 
billion in Federal debt. The next step is crucial. Congress and the 
President need to keep their hands out of the Social Security cookie 
jar. It is too important to our future and to our country.
  The Federal Government will raise about $1.7 trillion this year in 
non-Social Security revenue. This really ought to be enough to operate 
our government. Americans are likely to hear some hysterics coming out 
of our Nation's capital during the next couple of weeks over whether we 
should spend more money on this or that program. These decisions are 
important, but my focus will be on the bigger picture: Can we get 
through this session without robbing Social Security and future 
generations?
  We must end the year by holding the line on spending, force some 
savings, and stay out of the Social Security Trust Fund. It is a matter 
of principle worth fighting for.

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