[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 1422]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       RESTORE FISCAL DISCIPLINE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Schauer). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Broun) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. BROUN of Georgia. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
  They say that talk is cheap, but for hardworking Americans, the 
President's talk is very expensive. President Obama has spent the past 
year making speech after speech about the need for Washington to 
restore fiscal discipline. But what he says isn't what he does.
  During the campaign, Obama promised he would go through the budget 
line by line to reduce spending. But it seems as though a few lines is 
all that he has cut. The President began his campaign last spring when 
he rushed to the microphone to announce his order to his cabinet to 
reduce spending by $100 million. Then he went to the podium to tout 
more fiscal restraint by announcing a spending freeze. But we quickly 
learned that it affects less than 20 percent of the budget.
  Recent press reports reveal he cut $1 million in funding for an 
Olympic scholarship program, and another $2 million subsidy for cotton 
and peanuts. If the President is serious about fiscal discipline, he is 
going to have to remove more than a couple of peanuts from his Federal 
budget. These meager cuts are just another example of the 
administration's arrogance, ignorance, and incompetence.
  The President has proposed a $3.8 trillion budget for 2011, boosting 
the deficit to a record high of $1.6 trillion, a record he broke last 
year when he introduced a budget with a $1.4 trillion deficit. Let me 
put that into perspective. The average deficit when Republicans were in 
power was $104 billion. The average deficit now that Democrats are in 
control is $1.1 trillion. What that means is each man, woman, and child 
owes $46,000 apiece.
  As hardworking Americans are struggling to balance their checkbooks, 
they are frustrated that Congress can't do the same. They aren't just 
frustrated, they are angry. I share the concerns of the American 
people. That is why I have introduced H.J. Resolution 75, which is a 
balanced budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution, aimed at reining in 
the chronic deficits in spending.
  We absolutely must stop the outrageous spending by Congress. Our 
children and grandchildren's future depend upon our doing so. My 
amendment would make sure that government does not spend more than it 
takes in. My amendment would also make sure that any extra revenue 
would be returned to the taxpayers at the end of the year.
  After decades of deficit spending it is time to make balancing our 
budgets the rule, not the exception. For too long Congress has acted as 
if it has a credit card with no limit and a bill that our children and 
grandchildren will be forced to pay. Individuals cannot spend more 
money than they earn, and neither should Washington. The fact is if the 
family budget cannot afford to go into debt, neither should the Federal 
budget.
  The only way we are ever going to get our economy back on track is by 
leaving dollars in the hands of individuals, and particularly leaving 
dollars in the hands of small businesses so that they can buy inventory 
and can hire permanent employees. Small business is the economic engine 
that pulls along the train of prosperity in America. We need to 
stimulate small business, not bigger government.
  Congress must now make tough decisions, slow down the rapid growth of 
government, and get back to the fiscally responsible government that 
the American people expect and demand. I am committed to doing just 
that. I urge my colleagues to join in this effort, and I urge the 
American people to demand a balanced budget from this Congress.

                          ____________________