Kent Conrad Quotes

When Republicans used reconciliation in 2001 for the Bush tax cuts, they used it to increase the deficit. The whole purpose of reconciliation is for deficit reduction!

Access to computers and the Internet has become a basic need for education in our society.

I’ve had lengthy discussions with European farm leaders. It is clear they have an agricultural strategy to support their producers and gain dominance in world agricultural trade. They’re gaining markets the old-fashioned way – they’re buying them.

Highway spending, which I think most everybody says is badly needed in this country, creates American jobs, and also makes America more competitive.

Social Security has not contributed to the deficit problem.

The American people say, ‘Don’t touch Social Security, don’t touch Medicare, don’t cut defense.’ That’s 84 percent of the federal budget.

Reducing our dependence on foreign energy – that is critically important to America’s economic future. Excellence in education – if we’re not the best educated, we’re not going to be the most powerful for very long.

Governments can inflate their way out of debt, but that has consequences, doesn’t it?

Reconciliation cannot be used to pass comprehensive health care reform. It won‘t work because it was never designed for that kind of significant legislation; it was designed for deficit reduction.

The President is not squaring with the American people as to the seriousness of our nation‘s fiscal condition. It is time for people to stand up and tell the truth.

There are large cooperatives all across this country. Land O’Lakes is a $12 billion club functioning all across America. There are rural electric co-ops in 47 states. Ace Hardware is a cooperative.

We’ve got to have major health care reform because that is the 800-pound gorilla. That is the thing that can swamp the boat fiscally for the United States.

Welfare reform happened with reconciliation; half the Democrats voted for it. The Bush tax cuts happened with reconciliation; twelve Democratic Senators voted for it. You didn’t have a real partisan issue on those times that it was used.