Cash For Caulkers

Floor Speech

Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, first there was a government scheme that offered financial incentives to upgrade to more energy efficient cars--Cash for Clunkers--and that program came in over budget--by 300 percent. Now Congress is trying to do the same thing again with Cash for Caulkers, a program designed to encourage you to make your home more energy efficient.

I support the bill's intent to encourage energy efficiency, but I believe there are other ways to achieve our energy goals without borrowing money we can't afford. This is the people's money, not the government's money. Almost $5 billion has already been spent on weatherization programs in the spending bill, and there is plenty of evidence that the funds have not been spent as they should. Despite the evidence, Congress decided last week to pile on another $6.6 billion at a time when Washington must get serious about spending.

The American people cannot afford for Congress to pass another multibillion-dollar bill we can't afford. Tough choices are needed to curb Washington's spending habits and Cash for Caulkers is one such easy choice to forgo.

In conclusion, God bless our troops, and we will never forget September 11th in the Global War on Terrorism.

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