[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Page 8360]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                BAILOUTS

  Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, I know we are in morning business. But at 
the conclusion of morning business I will be offering an amendment 
which I understand is the next one in order. Since there is nobody 
taking the morning business time, I will take that time to begin the 
discussion of that amendment.
  The amendment which I am proposing goes to this whole issue of who 
the taxpayers of America should bail out. I personally don't think they 
should bail out anybody, to be honest with you. They certainly should 
not be bailing out financial institutions that have gotten too big. 
They should not be bailing out automobile companies that have 
overextended themselves and are doing a poor job. They should not be 
bailing out other countries. They certainly should not be bailing out 
States and local governments that are about to default on their debt.
  It is very hard to explain to a citizen of New Hampshire or Illinois, 
Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, why their tax dollars should go 
to bail out a State which is about to default on the debt it has run up 
because it has been irresponsible in its spending. The obvious State 
that comes to mind is the State of California, which has very serious 
problems. But they are self-inflicted problems. These are not problems 
which were created as a result of some general problems across the 
country, and they were not problems created, for example, by an event--
an environmental event or emergency such as Katrina.
  They were totally self-inflicted problems. The question is, Should 
the American taxpayer, all the rest of us in this country, be put in a 
position where we have to bail out that State? I do not think we 
should. That is what my amendment is going to go to.
  But I see now the Senator from Florida has arrived. He has the 
morning business time we are in.
  I reserve the remainder of my time and yield the floor.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Florida.

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