[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15757]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                            ECONOMY AND JOBS

  (Mr. HENSARLING asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Speaker, thanks to President Bush's economic 
growth plan passed by Republicans in Congress, I am very pleased to 
relay even more good news about America's expanding economy, growing 
jobs gains, and shrinking Federal deficit.
  First, our economy grew at 3.8 percent in the first quarter. This is 
the 14th consecutive quarter of growth and one of the strongest growth 
performances in years. Secondly, a recent Congressional Budget Office 
report shows yet another decline in the Federal deficit due to this 
economic growth. The deficit is down about $100 billion. More good 
news. The unemployment rate has now declined to 5 percent, the lowest 
level since that tragic day on 9/11.
  Over the last 2 years, more than 3.7 million new jobs for the future 
have been created in America. These encouraging reports show once again 
that the tax relief for families and small businesses which President 
Bush and the Republican Congress passed is paying dividends: more jobs, 
higher incomes, and a lower deficit.

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