[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11202]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




          THE IRONY IN PRESCRIPTION DRUG AND DEBT LIMIT ISSUES

  (Mr. SMITH of Michigan asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SMITH of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, Congress is faced with two 
difficult votes coming up. One is to start a prescription drug program 
for seniors. The other is to increase the debt limit. I see a certain 
degree of irony in the fact that, while we are increasing the debt, or, 
if you will, the mortgage on our kids for them to pay off in the 
future, at the same time we are voting to expand and implement the 
largest, most expensive entitlement program that we have had in many, 
many years. It is a challenge. But everybody needs to realize that it 
is going to be the young workers, that sometimes are in a more 
difficult financial situation than the seniors, that are going to have 
to pay increased taxes for a giant increase in the Medicare program and 
the cost of increased debt. In other words taxpayers pay for the 
prescription drugs for seniors.
  It is coming to grips with that irony that is the challenge; I think 
we need to move very carefully in our decisions of what new welfare 
programs we enact and how we pay back the increased debt.

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