Jim Nussle

Mr. NUSSLE

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 10 seconds. I rest my case. We are seeing the plan develop before our very eyes. The gentleman said it. Get us out of office, raise taxes and then increase spending. Increase taxes, increase spending; increase taxes, increase spending. Here we go again. Do not tell me my colleagues do not have a plan. They have got a plan. It is called tax and spend. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NUSSLE

Mr. NUSSLE. That is also correct.

Mr. NUSSLE. That is also accurate. As a concurrent resolution, the budget before us today does not establish discretionary caps or continue the highway or transit firewalls beyond fiscal year 2003.

Mr. NUSSLE. I most definitely agree with that. The Committee on the Budget has exclusive jurisdiction over the Budget Enforcement Act, but the chairman and I, I think, have established a good working relationship, and I will continue to consult with the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. NUSSLE. I am pleased to enter into a colloquy with the gentleman.

Mr. NUSSLE. I yield to the gentleman from Alaska, the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Mr. NUSSLE. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I would be pleased to enter into that colloquy with the very distinguished gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is correct. The budget resolution assumes $4.3 billion to counter the threat of bioterrorism. Emphasis, I believe, should be given to hospitals and other public health facilities, research and development, and it does accommodate the Georgia CDC lab in Atlanta.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is correct, it would accommodate for a facility such as the gentleman has described in Atlanta, Georgia, $300 million for CDC.

Mr. NUSSLE. I thank the gentleman for his leadership on this issue and also for the cooperation between our committees. I agree with the gentleman from Alaska that there is nothing in this resolution that would preclude adding more than $4.4 billion to the highway program under certain circumstances. For instance, such a further increase could be possible if conference negotiations with the Senate result in a higher funding level for highways or if the Appropriations Committee, as an example, would allocate additional outlays to its transportation subcommittee by reducing outlays in some other function. I understand the gentleman will continue to work with the Budget Committee to help modify the caps, including those for highways and transit to, among other things, accommodate the additional transportation spending and to smooth out the year-to-year fluctuations in the revenue adjustments made under the RABA provision of TEA-21. I appreciate the gentleman's leadership on this.

Mr. NUSSLE. I yield to the gentleman from Florida, the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Appropriations.

Mr. NUSSLE. I am pleased to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, that is correct.

Mr. NUSSLE. It is my expectation that my committee will be reporting legislation to ensure that the highway category is increased.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentleman. There is only one more difficult job than mine, and that is to do it 13 times. I certainly respect and admire the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations for his good work.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I appreciate the attention of my colleagues for what I think is a very important, very sober debate today that needs to occur about America's future. Mr. Chairman, the world changed on September 11. Boy, we have heard those words quite a bit lately from a number of Members in a bipartisan way. We are at war. America suffered a profound national emergency. Our pre-attack recession grew deeper, and any one of those challenges would have made putting a budget together very difficult. But all three at one time, trust me, put a pretty difficult task before this Congress in trying to put a budget plan together. All three could have resulted in deficits for many years. But when the world changed on September 11, the President came forward with a plan. He provided leadership, and America saw the Congress come together in a bipartisan way. We provided, in a bipartisan way, resources to meet the national emergency, resources to prosecute the war, and about week and a half ago, bipartisan tax relief and job creation resources, as well as worker protection assistance. These were appropriate responses, but these appropriate responses eliminated the surplus. Americans out there, constituents of all of ours, are still wondering: Is America safe; will I have a good paying job; and what is my family's future going to look like? First on the question of is America safe, our budget secures our Nation, allows us the resources to win the war, secure the homeland, invest in future technology, and keep our promise to our veterans. With the budget plan that we put together and that we present to the Congress today, we secure our Nation's future, and we do it in a positive way. The second question that Americans are asking is will I have a good paying job? Our budget secures a growing economy. It funds job creation and worker protection, adopts a national energy strategy, invests in America's roads and infrastructure, provides for an agriculture safety net, promotes trade and access to our products, and, yes, provides additional tax relief and tax reform. We believe in short what this budget plan does, it creates jobs. With this budget plan, I believe we secure a growing economy. But Americans are still asking questions. They are asking, do my family and I have a secure future? We cannot forget while we are securing the economy, securing the homeland, that America's priorities must continue. We must secure the future for ourselves and our families, leave no child behind in education, fully fund and reauthorize special education, conserve and protect our environment, access quality and affordable health care. And finally, modernize Medicare and provide prescription drugs for seniors, and protect every penny of Social Security benefits, our pensions, and our savings for the future. With the plan that we put together, we believe we have better secured our future for ourselves and our families. Without our bipartisan response to the economy and to the war and to protect the homeland, this would have not only been a balanced budget, but even with this budget and even with the short-term borrowing that needs to occur to accomplish those important priorities, under our plan we begin to pay down the national debt again in 2004. So I believe our mission is undeniable. We must secure America's future. Our strategy is clear. We need security for our Nation, security for a growing economy, and security for ourselves and our families. I believe that our budget makes it happen, together with the fine work of the American people. We have a plan. There is no doubt that people can quibble with the fact that no plan is perfect in every regard. But the President proposed a plan, we made it better. We are providing positive leadership at this crucial time in American history, and it is time to get that job done. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Thornberry) to talk about securing our Nation.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from New Hampshire (Mr. Sununu), vice chairman of the Committee on the Budget.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Hoekstra), vice chairman of the Committee on the Budget.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay), the distinguished majority leader.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Thornberry) be allowed to control 10 minutes of my time.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to yield 10 minutes of my time to the gentleman from New Hampshire (Mr. Sununu) for the purposes of control.

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Collins), a very distinguished member of the Committee on the Budget. (Mr. COLLINS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. NUSSLE

Mr. NUSSLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on House Concurrent Resolution 353, Concurrent Resolution on the Budget, Fiscal Year 2003.