Duncan: We can't afford so-called stimulus bill

January 28, 2009

Washington, DC --

Floor Speech delivered by Congressman John J. Duncan, Jr.
House of Representatives – January 28, 2009

I rise in opposition to the rule and the bill that it brings to the floor.  The bill has some good things in it, but we simply can’t afford them.

When a family falls deeply, head-over-heels into debt, it doesn’t go out and immediately and greatly increase its spending.  If it does, it gets in even worse trouble.

The majority voted to increase our national debt to an incomprehensible $11.315 trillion in the last big bailout bill.  Now we are told we face trillion-dollar deficits for several years to come.

We simply cannot afford this so-called stimulus package.  All it is really is a short-term fix for our addiction to spending.  And it’s false to say if we don’t pass this package, we are voting to do nothing. 

We haven’t given enough time to see what effect all the trillions of dollars of actions taken by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury over the last few months have had and will have.

Most Americans support more spending on our infrastructure, but this is less than 8 percent of this bill, and highway spending is only 3 percent.

We could do far more, Madam Speaker, for our economy at far less cost if we would give significant tax credits to anyone who would buy or build a new home and people who would buy new or used cars and trucks.