{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.enzi.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=B56E5511-6A8A-4FA6-B080-A98BDF6BEC9C", "A Better Budget and a Better Way", "2016-11-30", "2016", "2016-11", "Republican", "House", "WY", "Michael Enzi", "E000285", "www.enzi.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "As this year quickly draws to a close, we are once again approaching a federal spending deadline that will likely be postponed with yet another temporary spending bill. In the last 40 years, Congress has enacted 175 of these continuing resolutions to avoid doing its job. This will be the 176th continuing resolution since the modern budget process was established.\u00a0\r\nThe November election results showed that the American people are eager for change. With a new President taking the oath of office on January 20th, Congress has an opportunity \u2013 and responsibility \u2013 to get back to work. \u00a0One of our top priorities must be fixing America\u2019s broken budget process to provide our nation with a responsible fiscal blueprint and help guide our spending decisions now and into the future.\r\nAMERICA\u2019S COMING FISCAL CRISIS\r\n\u00a0America is on course for a fiscal disaster. Sadly, that\u2019s not going to surprise many people.\u00a0 We all know the statistics: $20 trillion in debt, on track to grow to $29 trillion in 10 years; unchecked entitlement spending that consumes 70 percent of the budget, and the imminent return of trillion-dollar deficits.\u00a0 Everyone knows we\u2019re in deep trouble.\u00a0 But what\u2019s surprising is that Congress is not considering ways to fix it.\u00a0 The country\u2019s finances are in a perilous position, and the federal government has refused to act.\r\nThat\u2019s because, when it comes to spending money, Congress is kind of like a binge eater. We don\u2019t want to start our diet until right AFTER the next dessert, and we never seem to run out of ideas for new desserts.\u00a0 That attitude has led to a mammoth, oversized debt burden that will crush future generations\u2019 prosperity.\r\nThe first step to spending within our means is to establish healthy habits.\u00a0 We should stock the fridge with fruits and vegetables, not cake and cookies.\u00a0 Unfortunately, America\u2019s broken budget process does the opposite.\u00a0 It makes it easy for Congress to spend and spend without ever checking its fiscal waistline. And Congress never has to consider the fiscally healthy options that would put our budget on a better path.\u00a0\r\nAmerica\u2019s looming fiscal crisis actually has its roots in the way America\u2019s budget and spending process is laid out.\u00a0 Thirty percent of the federal budget is provided annually by Congress.\u00a0 This money funds the activities that most people would associate with good government, such as national defense, education, and infrastructure spending.\u00a0 This is the portion of the budget that attracts the most congressional scrutiny.\u00a0 We have limits in place that make it very difficult to spend more than what\u2019s allotted, and those limits are the subject of fierce debate and negotiation every two years or so.\u00a0 We also must pass spending bills to fund these government activities every year, forcing a public debate about where taxpayer dollars should be spent.\u00a0 This portion of the budget is not growing rapidly and is not the cause of our unsustainable fiscal course.\r\nThe real culprit is the other seventy percent of the federal budget.\u00a0 This portion is spent automatically, without regular congressional action or review. In just 15 years, it will consume ALL government revenues, as debt interest payments and entitlements continue to grow rapidly.\u00a0 There are no effective limits to the amount that can be spent on this side of the budget, at least until this spending drives America into bankruptcy.\u00a0\r\nThis is how the budget process makes it easy to spend money.\u00a0 There is regular review and strict limits on the small and shrinking portion of the budget.\u00a0 But the much larger automatic spending programs are not regularly reviewed and can grow almost without limit.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\r\nSome automatic spending programs have a dedicated source of revenue.\u00a0 For example, Social Security, Medicare and Unemployment benefits are funded in part by payroll taxes and insurance premiums.\u00a0 This makes sense.\u00a0 If Congress is not going to regularly review a program, there should at least be a source of funding to ensure the program is sustainable.\u00a0\r\nHowever, the automatic programs that receive dedicated revenues are grossly under-funded, and many others do not receive any dedicated revenues.\u00a0 That means our government is making promises to pay for these programs even though we don\u2019t have any idea where the money will come from.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.enzi.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/speeches?ContentRecord_id=B56E5511-6A8A-4FA6-B080-A98BDF6BEC9C"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9069386869668961, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}