Comment of Senator Patrick Leahy On The President's Veto Of The Republicans' $792 Billion Tax Bill

September 23, 1999

"I applaud President Clinton for vetoing this fiscal folly -- certainly one of the most reckless and irresponsible bills to emerge from Congress in this century. The last thing Congress should be doing right now is to put our strong economy at risk by passing a tax scheme as risky as this plan.

"Now that we have projected budget surpluses, Congress has the obligation to pay down the national debt, which stands at $3.6 trillion. Like someone who had finally paid off his or her credit card balance but still has a home mortgage, the federal government has finally balanced its annual budget, but we still have a national debt to pay down. In the meantime, the Federal government has to pay almost $1 billion in interest every working day on this national debt.

"It makes a lot more sense to pay off the national debt as our first priority, because nothing would do more to keep the economy strong. Paying down the debt will keep interest rates low. Vermonters gain ground with lower mortgage costs, car payments and credit card charges with low interest rates. And small business owners in Vermont can invest, expand and create jobs with low interest rates. What a great legacy we could leave our children – for the first time in our lifetime we can have a debt-free nation. That is what we should do."