[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2331]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       WE MUST RESTRAIN SPENDING

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, this year the United 
States Treasury received more revenue than any year in the history of 
our Nation, yet we will spend a third more than we take in. Clearly, we 
do not have a revenue problem. We have a spending problem.
  The Budget Control Act signed into law last year was a good first 
step towards deficit reduction, half of which has already been put in 
motion. With the Supercommittee's failure to achieve the other half, 
those cuts are now going into effect under sequestration.
  Can these cuts be made smartly, targeting waste and overspending? 
Absolutely, but only if the President stops playing scare politics and 
begins working with Congress to make these reductions in a manner that 
best protects national defense and domestic priorities.
  If the sequester takes full effect, the Nation's budget is still on a 
path to grow exponentially over the next 10 years. Unless we continue 
to restrain spending, our $17 trillion national debt will continue to 
grow, crowding out the Nation's ability to even provide for the most in 
need.
  We have a spending problem, not a revenue problem. More taxes won't 
solve it, but a little more leadership sure would help.

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