[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 18]
[Senate]
[Page 25800]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    CONGRATULATING SENATOR MOYNIHAN

  Mr. GRAMM. Mr. President, I congratulate our dear colleague from New 
York. I thank him for his leadership in defense of trade. We had these 
running debates, most of them related to the Presidential campaign. 
Most have nothing to do with the business of the Senate in these waning 
hours of the session. Instead they are about who deserves or what 
deserves credit for the golden economic era in which we live. I think 
the plain answer is, more than anything else, the creation of a wealth-
generating machine through world trade is responsible for this economic 
golden age in which we live.
  Our colleague is what I think of as an ``old-timey'' Democrat. There 
used to be a lot more of them here than there are now. Unfortunately, 
there is going to be one fewer. Some might think the number would be 
zero after Senator Moynihan. But there was a time when there was a 
bipartisan consensus in favor of world trade. Unfortunately, now it is 
so easy to demagog against trade because you can identify a potential 
loser. If a company shuts down, whether it was inefficient or ``moved 
off to Mexico,'' the claim is, ``They moved off to Mexico.'' Everybody 
who loses a job there knows it. But the 10 or 100 jobs we create for 
every 1 we lose, people do not know why they were created. So it is 
hard, politically, to stand up for economic freedom. But what is a more 
basic economic freedom than the right to produce things and sell them 
all around the world?
  I would also like to say, in an era where a lot of people are running 
away and hiding on the issue of Social Security or pretending the 
problem is somehow going to go away, I again congratulate our colleague 
from New York for being willing to stand up on that issue. He has made 
it clear that unless we do something about Social Security, unless we 
create a wealth source to pay benefits, we are perpetuating a cruel 
hoax where we are going to end up, in 12 or 15 years, having to make 
excruciatingly painful choices. These are not just choices about 
spending cuts versus taxes, but really they are choices we will have to 
make between our parents and our children, between the security of our 
parents and the economic opportunity of our children. We will have to 
make those choices because of failed leadership right now to deal with 
this issue.
  I did not want to pass up this chance to say to my colleague from New 
York I am glad he came our way. I am proud to call him my friend and 
colleague.
  I remember the first dealing I ever had with the Senator from New 
York. It was on a TV talk show. I don't know if he remembers it. We 
sort of had a sharp exchange. I would like to say I am not as ignorant 
as I used to be. I thank our colleague from New York for being an 
instructor for me and for America. I am proud of his academic 
background. I am proud to share it with him.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, I thank my learned and ever 
accommodating--almost always accommodating friend. I have learned so 
much from him. If he knew how little economics I brought to this body, 
he would appreciate how much he has added to it. I am grateful, as a 
scholar ought to be. Across the aisle, I admire him so much and only 
wish he were on this side. But he has helped both sides on the issues 
that matter. That is what is important. I thank my friend.

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