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“PLAY NOW, PAY LATER” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H4482 on June 11, 1998.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PLAY NOW, PAY LATER
(Mr. GIBBONS asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. GIBBONS. Mr. Speaker, I hope all of the Members in this body remember that old saying, ``Play now and you can pay later.'' It seem that the antics of the Clinton Commerce Department have made it clear that their motto is, ``Let's play now and we will all pay later.''
One would think that even the most naive administrative appointee would understand the law of cause and effect and unintended consequences. Take, for example, Japan when it sold $40 million worth of high-tech machine tools to Russia to help them develop quieter submarines. That innocent sale cost the U.S. Navy billions of dollars to compensate for losing their advantage in anti-submarine warfare.
Now the Clinton administration has sold the Communist Chinese advanced tool machinery for a measly $5 million. Lo and behold, those tools immediately turned up in a Chinese factory where anti-ship cruise missiles are built.
Who knows what that little snafu will cost us in years to come? We can bet that it will not be cheap. What is next? Stealth technology?
American technology has given our military the very best. Let us stop this ``play now, pay later'' attitude.
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