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M. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this rule and in support of the underlying statutory PAYGO legislation.
As a member of the Budget Committee, I am proud to be an original co-sponsor of this bill, and I want to thank our incredible chairman, John Spratt, for all of his hard work.
Some of my colleagues may be asking themselves, -Why the heck is a liberal Democrat from Massachusetts speaking in support of PAYGO?-
It's true, M. Speaker, that I have never been mistaken for a Blue Dog.
I support this legislation because I despise this debt just as strongly as any member of this House.
I support this legislation because I have two young children, and I don't want to saddle them with a bankrupt nation.
And I support this legislation precisely BECAUSE it helps support the programs I care most deeply about.
Every single dollar that we spend on interest on the debt is a dollar that we can't spend on health care.
It's a dollar we can't spend on education, or environmental protection, or transportation projects, or tax breaks for middle class Americans.
It's a dollar we can't spend on supporting our service men and women, or ending hunger.
In short, every dollar we spend on this debt is a dollar that we can't invest in the American people. That's why we need this bill.
I am also pleased that the bill before us today protects the most vulnerable Americans. The bill protects Social Security, veterans programs, food stamps and child nutrition programs, and other essential services.
Now, we will hear a lot of rhetoric from the other side today about how awful the deficit is, and they're right. But here's the question: Where were you for the last eight years?
Why did you allow PAYGO to expire when you were in the majority? Where were you when the Bush Administration inherited a surplus and proceeded to squander it on tax cuts for the wealthy few?
If someone wants to argue that bigger tax breaks for millionaires is good economic policy, that's fine. But under this bill, they will be forced to acknowledge the costs of those tax cuts and show how they would pay for them. I don't think that's too much to ask.
The bill will also force us - at long last - to take a good long look at wasteful subsidies and special interest tax loopholes
M. Speaker, all of us - Democrats and Republicans - like to talk a good game about deficit reduction. But this is where the rubber meets the road. It's time to put our votes where our rhetoric is.
It's time to pass statutory PAYGO. I urge my colleagues to support this good bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
