(Mr. PAUL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
1997 Ron Paul 3:1
Mr. PAUL.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker, a tremendous amount of energy has been put into the balanced budget amendment movement. The whole debate has perversely served to distract from the important key issue of the level of government expenditures. A balanced budget at $1.7 trillion offers no benefit whatsoever and a great deal of harm compared to a $1 trillion budget out of balance. This whole debate over the balanced budget amendment has coopted the important issue of the proper size of government.
1997 Ron Paul 3:2
If Social Security funds are used to balance the budget, the support for this project will quickly fade. What is generally forgotten in this debate is that the national debt last year rose $261 billion, a far cry from the much talked about $107 billion deficit. The math is less clear than alleged.
1997 Ron Paul 3:3
The deficit problem is a lot more than an accounting problem. Balancing the books or pretending to do so will not solve the problem inherent in a welfare state manipulated by a majority vote for the benefit of the special interests.
