Tavis Smiley Quotes

A budget is a moral document of a nation’s priorities.

Priorities are reflected in the things we spend money on... A nation's budget is full of moral implications; it tells what a society cares about and what it does not care about; it tells what it's values are.

It is time for us to insist that we are accountable for the money that we are spending.

We might come closer to balancing the Budget if all of us lived closer to the Commandments and the Golden Rule.

I'm big on this 'no budget, no pay.' I think that's important. Let's get right at the heart of the issue. Even when I was in the state legislature, the most important function we had was to pass the bloody budget.

We can tell our values by looking at our checkbook stubs.

Our national leaders could learn some good habits and important lessons from city hall to take the place of the various gimmicks being used in Washington to duck federal budget responsibility.

Our system of keeping the federal government's books is a monument to the creativity of mankind ... We've cut government spending for 15 years in a row, and yet have spent more money in each of those years.

You may think my business is to make appropriations, but it is not. It is to prevent their being made.

Economy in government does not mean spending little ... It means spending what you have and spending it well.

A budget must be more than a ledger sheet. It should have a heart and serve as a blueprint for a better quality of life for all residents.

Don’t tell me what you value. Show me your budget.

I did not come into government to win an award as the great accountant in the sky and balance budgets.

What's really important to me is that we have fiscally responsible balanced budgets.

Everyone is always in favour of general economy and particular expenditure.

Remarkably, there are leaders in Washington who don't understand why it's so important for us to have a budget.

All the states are required, either by constitution or by statute, to have balanced budgets - they're not able to print money. So they have to focus on establishing priorities.

Government does not have a revenue problem; government has a spending problem. Government does not have a revenue problem; government has a priority problem. It is time that we begin to fine tune our focus and decide what the priority of government ought to be.

A budget should reflect the values and priorities of our nation and its people.

I think that we have a responsibility to make certain that we are fiscally responsible in order to assure, frankly, future generations don't have to pay our bills.

The president's budget request today demonstrates his unwillingness to come clean on the true costs of his agenda. A penny saved is not a penny earned if at the end of the day you still owe a quarter.

Budgets are moral documents. Federal funding should reflect the priorities and the values of the majority of the American people.

A budget is a moral document.

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 personally do not worship at the alter of a balanced budget.