President Clinton Urges Congress to Pass Budget that Invest in Key Priorities


THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary


For Immediate Release March 16, 2000



PRESIDENT CLINTON URGES CONGRESS TO PASS A BUDGET THAT INVESTS IN KEY PRIORITIES, EXTENDS THE LIFE OF SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE, AND PAYS OFF THE DEBT BY 2013

Today President Clinton will urge Congress to pass a fiscally disciplined budget that invests in key priorities, extends the life of Social Security and Medicare, and pays off the debt held by the public by 2013. In contrast, the Budget Resolution passed by the House Republicans on the Budget Committee requires deep reductions in key priorities, threatens to drain the Social Security surplus, fails to add a single day to the life of Medicare or Social Security, would make it impossible to pay off the debt by 2013, and risks our continued economic prosperity.

Before Even Considering Its Budget Resolution, the House Spent More Than Half of the On-budget Surplus on Tax Cuts. Before even considering investments in Medicare, Social Security, or Education, the House has already passed tax cuts that total $374 billion over 10 years. With interest, that would use $458 billion of the surplus – more than half of the $746 billion non-Social Security surplus projected by the Administration or the $893 billion projected by the Congressional Budget Office over the next 10 years.

The House Budget Would Fail to Provide for Key Priorities that are Essential to the Nation’s Future. While the President’s budget provides significant investments in essential priorities, including education, law enforcement and science and technology, the Republican budget slashes these priorities.

The House Budget Resolution Would Cut Most of Domestic Discretionary Spending By an Average of Nearly 10 Percent in 2001 Alone. The House budget resolution has non-defense discretionary spending of $289 billion -- that is $20 billion below the funding level needed to maintain current program levels. The Republicans have said they will protect funding for certain areas including defense, veterans’ health and the National Institutes of Health. To do so within the total level of funding allocated b the Budget Resolution, they would need to slash funding for most other domestic priorities by an average of nearly 10 per cent in 2001 alone. If Republicans continued spending cuts at the same rate as 2001-05, then the cut in domestic priorities would grow to, on average, around 25 percent by 2010.

If These Unrealistic Spending Cuts Do Not Materialize, the Republican Tax Cuts Would Spend the Entire Non-Social Security Surplus and Would Dip Into the Social Security Surplus. The basic tax cut proposed by the House Budget Resolution would cost $150 billion over 5 years. With interest, the cost would be $166 billion -- nearly all of the Congressional Budget Office’s projected $170 billion 5-year non-Social Security surplus.

The Republican Budget Does Not Add a Single Day to the Solvency of Social Security or Medicare.

The Fiscally Undisciplined Republican Tax Cut Would Make It Impossible To Pay Off the Debt By 2013 and Would Risk Our Economic Expansion. After taking account of the "reserve" for tax cuts and Medicare, the Republicans have not set aside any money over the next five years for additional debt reduction beyond using the Social Security surplus for that purpose. If the drastic Republican spending cuts were not implemented, then the Republicans would have to divert a sizeable portion of the Social Security surplus away from debt reduction. As a result, it would be impossible to pay off the debt held by the public by 2013.

President Clinton and Vice President Gore Have Proposed a Balanced and Fiscally Responsible Plan to Strengthen Social Security and Medicare, Pay Off the National Debt by 2013 and Maintain Our Economic Prosperity, While Investing in Key Priorities like Health and Education.



What's New - March 2000

Women's History Month 2000

The Minimum Wage: Increasing the Reward for Work

New Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit

Meeting with Religious Leaders

Women's History Month

New Public Private Initiative to reduce Weather Related Air Travel Delays

Gun Violence

Agreement with Smith & Wesson

Restoring

Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

American Red Cross Month

Prescription Drug Plan

U.S. – China WTO Accession Deal

Common Sense Gun Laws

Irish-American Heritage Month

Civilian Research and Development

Patient's Bill of Rights

Joint Statement by President Clinton and Prime Minister Tony Blair of the UK

Vaccines to Developing Countires

Human Genome Project

Information Age

Semi-Finalists for 2000-2001 White House Fellowships

President Clinton Urges Congress to Pass Budget

Congressional Budget Resolution

Save your Vision Week

St. Patrick's Day, 2000

Clinton/Gore actions to Enhance America's Energy Security

Social Security Trustees Report - March 30, 2000

Strengthen America's Energy Security

Report Shows Unprecedented Progress

Proclamation: Cancer Control Month, 2000

National Poison Prevention Week

Education and Sharing Day, U.S.A., 2000

Greek Independence Day

Proclamation: National Child Abuse Prevention Month, 2000

Statement by the President on NPT

Common Sense Gun Legislation

Raising the Minimum Wage

U.S. --China WTO Accession Deal

U.S.- China WTO Agreement

Enforcement of The U.S. - China WTO Accession Deal


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