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Appointment of Conferees on S. 1932, Deficit Reduction Act of 2005

Date: Dec. 16, 2005
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Senior Citizens Unemployed and Low-Income Entitlements and the Safety Net Government Budget and Spending


APPOINTMENT OF CONFEREES ON S. 1932, DEFICIT REDUCTION ACT OF 2005 -- (House of Representatives - December 16, 2005)

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. McHENRY. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Florida for yielding me this time.

Ladies and gentlemen, I say Merry Christmas to you. We are presenting you a budget that the American people can be proud of. To the Democrats, I say, happy holidays. But I will tell you, ladies and gentlemen of the House, my colleagues, what we are doing here is right for the American people.

My colleague from New York asks, have we touched everyone in America? Well, yes. If you live in a $2 million house, you will not qualify for aid to the poor. Under this budget, we pass that reform; that if you live in a million dollar house, if you live in a $2 million house, if, heaven forbid, you live in a $10 million house, you would not be eligible for Medicare. You would not be eligible for the government paying for your nursing home. That is the type of reform that we have in this budget. It is the right thing to do.

Beyond that, if you are a student in college today, if you are a student in college today, you will be eligible for that student loan next year under this budget. You will be eligible for that same loan you got today. The only difference would be that the Federal Government would not be paying that loan giver, that company that provides the loan, we would not be paying them 9.5 percent interest. We would go back to a market-based interest, which we all know is somewhere around 5 percent today. That alone would save $13 billion over 5 years.

So, ladies and gentlemen of the House, if you vote for this motion to instruct, you are voting against reform; you are voting against savings; you are voting against positive changes that will help more Americans. And it is the right thing to do.

Look, Mr. Speaker, this motion to instruct is something that Mr. Grinch would be proud of. So, ladies and gentlemen, I bid you merry Christmas, and ask that you vote against this motion to instruct and vote for our conservative, realistic, reform-based budget.

Merry Christmas to all.

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