[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12070]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              2008 BUDGET

  (Ms. SCHWARTZ asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Ms. SCHWARTZ. As a Member of the Budget Committee, I am proud of the 
2008 budget that we sent to conference committee this week. Our budget 
is a responsible one, and it is attentive to America's priorities.
  First, our budget honors our commitment to our service men and women. 
It provides funding that will enable our veterans' health system to 
meet increasing needs.
  Second, our budget recognizes the priorities of hard-working 
Americans. It provides tax relief to middle-income families by fixing 
the AMT, extending lower tax rates, and continuing the earned income 
and child tax credits. And it expands SCHIP to provide health coverage 
to 7 million children of middle-income families who are currently 
uninsured.
  Third, our budget enhances our Nation's economic competitiveness. It 
makes key investments to ensure our future workforce has the education 
and skills needed to compete in the global economy. Our budget is 
fiscally disciplined. It ends the unsustainable ``borrow-and-spend'' 
policies of the last 6 years. And it balances the budget in 5 years, 
setting us on a course to pay down our debt while meeting our 
obligations.
  We should all be proud of this budget. It is a new direction; it is 
the right direction for America.

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