[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 16]
[House]
[Page 21775]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

  (Ms. FOXX asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, these past few weeks have tested our Nation's 
emergency response system, our compassion, and the Congress' ability to 
set spending priorities.
  One thing is clear, Republicans are still the party of fiscal 
responsibility which has helped grow the economy and bolster jobs. In 
fact, over the past 2 years, our Nation has created millions of jobs, 
the unemployment level has dropped dramatically, and our economy has 
grown.
  Like families, we make tough decisions. Over the past year, we 
terminated 98 programs which will save taxpayers over $4.3 billion. But 
given our new challenges, I am pleased that the House will exercise 
oversight of disaster expenditures to ensure that the funds are being 
spent properly by implementing several checks and balances: Sending 
investigators to the gulf to monitor disaster expenditures, convening 
dozens of hearings to hear from officials at all levels of government 
on how funds are utilized, and mandating weekly reports on 
expenditures, and conducting audits and investigation on disaster 
assistance.
  While I hope we will do more to cut spending and provide 
accountability, we all know that the Democratic plan is simply to 
spend, spend, and spend some more.

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