James T. Walsh Quotes

Congress passes bills that appropriate money. Congress says, 'We're building this bridge or funding that defense project, and they cost this much.'

While the budget resolution is a nonbinding blueprint, it is, nevertheless, an important guideline for Congress. Once the President's proposed budget is received by Congress on the first Monday of February, Congress generally goes to work on appropriating the funds required.

One of the most important tasks of the United States House of Representatives is to pass a budget resolution.

So in the House and Senate, we own the budget. So what does that mean? That means that we can pass the spending bill.

Historically, the responsibility for voting on the debt limit has gone to the party in the majority.

Here's where I'm different from a senator. We pass continuing resolutions. We pass appropriations bills.

When the Budget has once been approved by the President and transmitted to Congress, it is his budget estimate and no officer or official of the War Department would have any right to come up here and attempt to get a single dollar more than is contained in that estimate .

The federal government is currently operating on a budget passed in the dead of night just before Christmas. It comprised three massive documents, ran to a staggering 3,296 pages, weighed in at a hefty 43 pounds, and had a price tag of $650 billion. Congress had about three hours to look at it before voting on it.

I've been in Congress 14 years. I've been on the Appropriations Committee in which we are in charge of trying to move legislation.

When you're the president of the United States, you have no money unless the Congress says, 'Here's what you can spend it on.'

Rather than negotiating yet another continuing resolution at the last minute, the appropriations process should work as it was originally designed, with appropriations bills passing the House and the Senate and being signed into law by the president, after robust debate, with a process for amendments.

Many of the earmark request forms are actually filled out by lobbyists and then just turned in by the member's staff to the appropriations committee.

Just like families must live within their budgets, the Federal Government must live within its means. We have passed appropriations bills that have been fiscally responsible while recognizing our national priorities.

My approach to cutting spending as president, is to do a ten percent across the board cut of all federal agencies, and then ask each of my new agency heads to find another ten percent by drilling down. That's what you do in business to come up with approximately 20 percent cuts for the first fiscal year budget.

I have never been opposed to earmarks.

Congress: Bingo with billions.

But, you know, all I can do is submit my budget and then make the case to the Legislature to act.

I would not reconsider the nuclear cuts. The appropriations committee did due process in looking at where there was the ability to cut some spending and that's what we did and now it's time to look forward to fiscal year '12.

There's a lot of politics over who gets the next allocation of Congressional funding.

Congress, of course, is not bound to accept the president's budget figures, but the House has the sole power to appropriate funds for spending, and it is a duty that should not be ignored.

The NRA was one of the items that we pointed to when we added money to the labor, health and Education appropriations bill by reducing the size of the tax cut.

We know the Constitution gives the purse strings to the House.

We're not even supposed to have a break in August if we have not passed the appropriations bills. It's in the House rules.

The best legislator is the one who votes for all appropriations and against all taxes.

With your permission, I am going to ask Carol Hartwell from the Budget Committee, who is our staff expert on this to sit with me. In the event you are overly inquisitive, I will have to ask her for answers.