OFFICE OF THE MAJORITY LEADER

TRANSCRIPT

On Bloomberg’s “Money & Politics”
March 10, 2008

... >> MEMBERS OF CONGRESS HAVE A LOT ON THEIR PLATE. THEY ARE TRYING TO PASS A BUDGET RHETORICIANS, SETTING UP A SHOWDOWN WITH THE WHITE HOUSE OVER SPENDING. THERE COULD BE A DEBATE OVER EARMARKS. THERE IS A FRIDAY ISSUED TO FINISH UP THE FARM BILL AND OTHER ISSUES. STENY HOYER JOINS ME NOW FROM CAPITOL HILL TO SORT OUT THE WEEK AHEAD, A BUSY WEEK, INDEED. THANK YOU FOR JOINING ME. I APPRECIATED. LEADER OF A LAWYER, ELIOT -- LEADER HOYER, WHAT IS YOUR TAKE? -- I APPRECIATE IT. >> VERY SHOCKING NEWS AND VERY SAD NEWS AS WELL. I REALLY DO NOT HAVE MORE TO SAY ABOUT IT THAN THAT. >> IF THE FACTS BEAR OUT THAT HE HAS, INDEED, BEEN LINKED TO A PROSTITUTION RING, DO YOU THINK IT IS GOING TO BE IN DEMOCRATS' INTERESTS, THE STATE OF NEW YORK'S INTEREST, FOR HIM TO STEP DOWN? >> I DO NOT WANT TO SPECULATE ON IT, BECAUSE I DO NOT KNOW MORE THAN THE VERY BRIEF INFORMATION THAT THE PUBLIC NOW HAS, SO CLEARLY, WE HAVE TO SEE HOW IT PLAYS OUT. >> LET'S TALK OF ISSUES IN WASHINGTON, PARTICULARLY ISSUES ON THE FLOOR THIS WEEK. THE BUDGET BLUEPRINT. WHERE DO YOU SEE THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE IS ABOUT COMING TO THE FLOOR THIS WEEK WITH WHAT THE PRESIDENT SUBMITTED LAST FEBRUARY? >> THE HOUSE BUDGET COMMITTEE CLEARLY REJECTED SOME OF THE PRESIDENT'S DEEP CUTS IN MEDICARE, VETERANS' HEALTH, IN LAW ENFORCEMENT, IN THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL. HEALTH CARE GENERALLY TOOK A VERY BIG HIT, AND INVESTING IN EDUCATION, IN GROWTH, IN JOB CREATION, IN LAW ENFORCEMENT, AND ASSISTANCE TO OUR FIREFIGHTERS AND OUR HOMELAND SECURITY PERSONNEL. I THINK THOSE ARE THE MAJOR DIFFERENCES. IN ADDITION TO THAT, OUR BUDGET CLEARLY BALANCES BY 2012. THE PRESIDENT'S BUDGET, AS YOU KNOW, AS OUR BUDGET DOES NOT CONTEMPLATE THE ENTIRE COSTS FOR IRAQ FOR THE COMING YEAR, THE PRESIDENT DOES NOT SPECULATE ON WHAT THAT WILL BE IN HIS BUDGET PROPOSAL. HIS CARRIES US ON THE 3 JANUARY OR FEBRUARY OF NEXT YEAR. WE HAVE REPLICATED THAT AGAIN, BECAUSE WE DO NOT KNOW THE FIGURES ARE, BUT WE BELIEVE OUR BUDGET REFLECTS AN HONEST EFFORT BOTH TO GROW JOBS IN AMERICA, MAKE US COMPETITIVE WORLDWIDE, TO MAKE SURE THAT THE EDUCATION AND HEALTH CARE OF OUR PEOPLE ARE ATTENDED TO WHILE AT THE SAME TIME PRESERVING OUR INVESTMENT IN OUR NATIONAL DEFENSE AND NATIONAL SECURITY. WE BELIEVE IT IS A GOOD BUDGET. WE BELIEVE IT IS GOING TO PASS. WE BELIEVE IT IS AN HONEST BUDGET. >> THEY ARE ALREADY LOOKING AT YOUR BUDGET AND SAY WHAT IS KEY IN THE BUDGET IS THAT YOU ARE AND DISOBEYED THE EXPIRATION OF MOST OF THE BUSH TAX CUTS IN THE FUTURE, AND WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT IN THIS BUDGET AND BUDGET TO COME ARE TAX INCREASES. >> WHAT THEY SAID IN 2001 IT WAS THAT BY SOME MAGIC FORMULA, THEY COULD PROVIDE THAT WE COULD DO MORE WITH LESS. THEY SPENT AT TWICE THE RATE OF THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION OF THE LAST 6.5 YEARS THAT THEY'VE BEEN IN CHARGE. THEY HAVE CONTINUED TO TAKE THE POSITION, NOTWITHSTANDING THE FACT THAT THEY HAVE HAD THE LARGEST BUDGET DEFICITS IN HISTORY, THAT SOMEHOW THEY ARE THE PARTY OF FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY. THE FIGURES SIMPLY DO NOT BEAR THEM OUT, AND THE PRESIDENT'S ASSERTION OF WANTING TO BALANCE THE BUDGET, OBVIOUSLY, WAS VERY, VERY BADLY WRONG. THIS PRESIDENT HAS INCURRED OVER $1.5 TRILLION, AS OPPOSED TO HIS PREDECESSOR WHO HAD A SURPLUS, SO WHEN I HEAR REPUBLICANS TELL US THAT OUR BUDGET IS NOT ONE THAT CONTEMPLATES A BALANCE, A, THAT IS WRONG, AND, B, YES, THEY WANT TO CONTINUE THE TAX CUTS FOR THE WEALTHIEST AMERICANS, AND WE WANT TO CONTINUE THE TAX CUTS FOR HARD-WORKING AMERICANS. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE MARRIAGE PENALTY DOES NOT OCCUR. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT AMERICANS DESERVE AN GET FROM US TAX RELIEF, AND WE WILL CONTINUE THOSE IN PLACE, AND WE CONTEMPLATE THOSE IN OUR BUDGET. >> THERE ARE SOME DIFFERENCES EVEN BETWEEN WHAT YOU ARE BRINGING TO THE FLOOR AND THE DEMOCRATS IN THE SENATE ARE BRINGING TO THE FLOOR. ON THE SENATE SIDE, THEY ARE TALKING ABOUT A SECOND STIMULUS BILL. WHAT ABOUT THIS? >> IN TALKING TO ECONOMISTS AND TALKING TO SECRETARY PAULSON, WE ...