Transcript of Congressman Hinchey's Remarks on House Floor - April 6, 2006

Mr. Chairman, I thank very much my colleague from the State of New York, our ranking Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee, for her leadership here and for yielding me this time.

This debate in which we are engaged in this afternoon is a critically important one for the future of the American economy. As my colleague Mrs. Maloney pointed out just a few moments ago, we are currently facing the largest budget deficits in the history of our country. According to the budget resolution itself, this burgeoning budget deficit will grow by $372 billion just over the course of the next fiscal year. Many people regard that number as conservative.

Many people who are analyzing the economic circumstances that we are confronting as a result of the incompetent budget policies of the Republican Party here in the Congress estimate that this budget deficit can be substantially more than $400 billion. In any case, even if it is only $372 billion, that sets another record. Now, maybe they are proud of the record that they are setting, and that seems to be the case based upon what we have just heard.

In addition to the record budget deficit this year, we are also facing record debt. The national debt has now grown to more than $8 trillion, and the majority party here in the Congress very, very quietly, under cover, raised the debt ceiling to almost $9 trillion.

This majority party is the biggest borrow-and-spend operation that we have ever seen in the United States of America, totally and completely irresponsible in their approach to dealing with the American people's money. As a result of that, the economic circumstances that we are confronting are becoming increasingly difficult.

A major portion of their failures has been their approach to the tax system. We just heard my friend and colleague on the other side of the aisle say that the Democrats are in favor of a tax increase. That is completely fraudulent. It is another part of the propagandistic approach that the majority party has taken to dealing with these most significant issues in which we are presently engaged.

We are not in favor of tax increases; we are in favor of reducing the irresponsible tax reductions that the Republicans have engaged in over the course of the last 5 years. Those tax reductions have benefited primarily the wealthiest 1 percent of the population of America.

Let me give an example of that. If you are a person making $10 million a year, if that is what you made last year, $10 million, the effect of the tax cuts on your budget is very, very significant. When you factor in the deductions and investment approach, you find that your taxes have fallen by $1 million. Your taxes have fallen by $1 million if you are making $10 million a year. That is what they have done. They have cut taxes for the very wealthiest people, and they are increasing the budget deficit that is going to have to be paid back by the vast majority of working people in this country, this generation and future generations.

This is the borrow-and-spend approach to governance that the Republican Party in this House has put forward and which they continue to advance in the context of this budget resolution .

What has been the effect of all this on the average American? What we have seen is that wages and salaries of the working people of our country have risen at their lowest rate since 1981. And I am talking about over the last 5 years. They have risen at their lowest rate since 1981. When you look at what has been happening in the last 2 years, you find that wages and salaries have actually been in decline. People are seeing their wages and salaries, when you take into effect inflation, actually going down.

So if you are a wealthy person, the Republicans are taking very good care of you. If you are an average American working for wages and salaries, you are finding your situation in desperate shape. So this budget resolution is another failure on the part of the majority party in America. They are creating deeper deficits for us. They are putting us into deeper and deeper debt. Their approach to taxation has been for the rich and against the working class; and in an economy which is based upon demand, it is forcing that economy down, and we are seeing it broadly all across the American economy, losing manufacturing jobs at record rates. All of that is as a result of the economic policies that have been put forth by the majority party here in the House of Representatives.

So the point we are making right here now is once again we have a budget resolution on the floor of this House which is incompetent and irresponsible, which is going to mean higher taxation in the future for the average working families in our country while it cuts taxes for the wealthiest and most privileged and while it increases the national debt.

They talk about the economy growing. We have had an economy that has experienced the most stimulation, both monetary policy stimulation and fiscal policy stimulation, in the history of the country. The lowest interest rates and huge amounts of spending have increased the national debt. That is the situation we are confronting here today, and that is why this budget resolution needs to be defeated.