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2005 Ron Paul Chapter 123
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HON.
RON PAUL OF TEXAS
BEFORE THE US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 18, 2005
Statement on So-Called "Deficit Reduction Act"
2005 Ron Paul 123:1
Mr. Speaker, as one who has long urged my colleagues to cut spending, and who
has consistently voted against excessive and unconstitutional
expenditures, I am
sure many in this body expect me to be an enthusiastic supporter of HR
4241, the
Deficit Reduction Act. After all, supporters of this bill are claiming
it
dramatically reforms federal programs and puts Congress back on the
road to
fiscal responsibility.
2005 Ron Paul 123:2
For all the passionate debate this bill has generated, its effect on the
federal government and taxpayers are relatively minor. HR 4241 does not
even
reduce federal expenditures! That’s right--if HR 4241 passes, the
federal
budget, including entitlement programs, will continue to grow. HR 4241
simply
slows down the rate of growth of federal spending. The federal
government may
spend less in the future if this bill passes then it otherwise would,
but it
will still spend more than it does today. To put HR 4241 in
perspective,
consider that this bill reduces spending by less than $50 billion over
10 years,
while the most recent “emergency” supplemental passed by this Congress
appropriated $82 billion dollars to be spent this year.
2005 Ron Paul 123:3
HR 4241 reduces total federal entitlement expenditures by one half of one
percent over the next five years. For all the trumpeting about how this
bill
gets “runaway entitlement spending” under control, HR 4241 fails to
deal
with the biggest entitlement problem facing our nation--the
multi-billion dollar
Medicare prescription drug plan, which actually will harm many seniors
by
causing them to lose their private coverage, forcing them into an
inferior
government-run program. In fact, the Medicare prescription drug plan
will cost
$55 billion in fiscal year 2006 alone, while HR 4241 will reduce
spending by
only $5 billion next year. Yet some House members who voted for every
expansion
of the federal government considered by this Congress will vote for
these small
reductions in spending and then brag about their fiscal conservatism to
their
constituents.
2005 Ron Paul 123:4
As is common with bills claiming to reduce spending, the majority of spending
reductions occur in the later years of the plan. Since it is impossible
to bind
future Congresses, this represents little more than a suggestion that
spending
in fiscal years 2009 and 2010 reflect the levels stated in this bill.
My
fiscally responsible colleagues should keep in mind that rarely, if
ever, does a
Congress actually follow through on spending reductions set by a
previous
Congress. Thus, relying on future Congresses to cut spending in the
“out years”
is a recipe for failure.
2005 Ron Paul 123:5
One provision of the bill that undeniably would have benefited the American
people, the language opening up the ANWR region of Alaska and expanding
offshore
drilling, was removed from the bill. As my colleagues know, increased
gas prices
are a top concern of the American people. Expanding the supply of
domestically
produced oil is an obvious way to address these concerns, yet Congress
refuses
to take this reasonable step.
2005 Ron Paul 123:6
Mr. Speaker, some of the entitlement reforms in HR 4241 are worthwhile. For
example, I am hopeful the provision allowing states to require a
co-payment for
Medicaid will help relieve physicians of the burden of providing
uncompensated
care, which is an issue of great concern to physicians in my district.
Still, I
am concerned that the changes in pharmaceutical reimbursement proposed
by the
bill may unfairly impact independent pharmacies, and I am disappointed
we will
not get to vote on an alterative that would have the same budgetary
impact
without harming independent pharmacies.
2005 Ron Paul 123:7
I also question the priorities of singling out programs, such as Medicaid and
food stamps, that benefit the neediest Americans, while continuing to
increase
spending on corporate welfare and foreign aid. Just two weeks ago,
Congress
passed a bill sending $21 billion overseas. That is $21 billion that
will be
spent this fiscal year, not spread out over five years. Then, last
week,
Congress passed, on suspension of the rules, a bill proposing to spend
$130
million dollars on water projects--not in Texas, but in foreign
nations!
Meanwhile, the Financial Services Committee, on which I sit, has begun
the
process of reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank, which uses taxpayer
money to
support business projects that cannot attract capital in the market.
Mr.
Speaker, the Export-Import Bank’s biggest beneficiaries are Boeing and
communist China. I find it hard to believe that federal funding for
Fortune 500
companies and China is a higher priority for most Americans than
Medicaid and
food stamps.
2005 Ron Paul 123:8
HR 4241 fails to address the root of the spending problem--the belief that
Congress can solve any problem simply by creating a new federal program
or
agency. However, with the federal government’s unfunded liabilities
projected
to reach as much as $50 trillion by the end of this year, Congress no
longer can
avoid serious efforts to rein in spending. Instead of the
smoke-and-mirrors
approach of HR 4241, Congress should begin the journey toward fiscal
responsibility by declaring a ten percent reduction in real spending,
followed
by a renewed commitment to reduce spending in a manner consistent with
our
obligation to uphold the Constitution and the priorities of the
American people.
This is the only way to make real progress on reducing spending without
cutting
programs for the poor while increasing funding for programs that
benefit foreign
governments and corporate interests.
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