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tv   U.S. House of Representatives  CSPAN  June 2, 2011 10:00am-1:00pm EDT

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appreciate everybody calling in this morning at. the house is just going into recession. they are in this week. the senate is out this week. june 2, 1986. 25 years of the senate coverage. just a reminder, the cameras are not c-span's. we do not control the cameras in either chamber, nor do we receive a cent of government funding. this was at a service it provided by the cable companies in 1979. that is how we got started. no government money in c-span, and we do not control the cameras in the chambers. thanks for being with us. the house is going to begin debating military operations after their morning hours, which
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begins at 10:00 a.m. 12:30 eastern time on c-span2, since the senate is out, mitt romney will be announcing his presidential candidacy in new hampshire, and that will be live on at c-span2 today at 12:30. house of representatives, in shortly. this weekend on booktv -- again, c-span2 -- we will be live from the chicago lit fest, the book fair put on by "the chicago tribune" newspaper. we will be live with the sessions from depaul university, and then we will be live with our all but "in depth" program law professorer, at the university of chicago. booktv.org, you can get the entire schedule of events.
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[captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the chair lays before the house a communication from the speaker. the clerk: the speaker's room, washington, d.c., june 2, 2011. i -- i hereby appoint the honorable lynn westmoreland to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. signed, john a. boehner, speaker of the house of representatives. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the order of the house of january 5, 2011, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour
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debate. the chair will alternate recognition between the parties with each party limited to one hour and each member other than the majority and minority leaders and the minority whip limited to five minutes each but in no event shall debate continue beyond 11:50 a.m. the chair recognizes the gentleman from south carolina, mr. wilson, for five minutes. mr. wilson: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, on tuesday night the people's house spoke loud and clear. no debt limit increase without real spending cuts to promote job growth. liberals wanted to increase the debt limit by $2.4 trillion with no meaningful reforms. at a time when the federal government is borrowing 42 cents of every dollar it spends the last thing americans want to do is raise the government's borrowing limit recklessly killing jobs. liberals in congress need to attach real cuts to any increases they are seeking. that means for every dollar
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proposed to incroot the debt limit there should be one dollar in cut. it makes sense. tuesday night's vote of 318-97-7 shows that the house is overwhelmingly in agreement with this debt limit increase being denied. over 80 democrats joined with the 237 republicans to vote against the president's debt ceiling request. adding more debt to our economy handicaps small business job creation and aggravates our country's debt crisis even further. this is a direct risk to senior citizens with the value of the dollar being put at risk. it's a threat to students who can be overwhelmed with overwhelming debt in the future. in cob conclusion, god bless our -- in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. miller, for five minutes. mr. miller: i ask unanimous
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consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. miller: mr. speaker, members of the house, little more than a year ago 29 coal miners lost their lives in the upper big branch mine in west virginia. our nation watched in sadness as a small community felt the lash of the worst coal mine tragedy in decades. our nation promised these families to get to the bottom of what happened and we promised to make sure that nothing like this would ever happen again. the good news is we learned what caused this tragedy. last month an independent panel released a 13-month long investigation report. they said the explosion could have been preventable. the warning signs about dangerous conditions in the mine were ignored leading up to the tragedy. they found that the massey energy company ignored basic safety precautions that the mining industry had recognized for more than a century. repeated violations had become
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business as usual, something which the investigation called the normalization of deviance where unsafe behavior and conditions become normal at upper big branch mine. the report lays out this tragedy -- how this tragedy unfolded. it may have ended with a sudden explosion but it was a slow-motion disaster. the company's inadequate ventilation system allowed explosive gases to build up. workers were in neck deep water . the mine's owners routinely changed ventilation plans and used faulty engineering. in the month before the explosion, miners asked massey management 561 times to push the explosive potential of coal dust by applying rock dust, yet, massey only took action 65 times or 11% of the time they were requested to do so. water sprays on mining machines were not properly maintained and failed to extinguish sparks which allowed the fire to ignite.
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coal dust provided the fuel that allowed a localized fire to trigger a massive explosion that ripped through miles of underground tunnels where miners were working. finally, the report found intimidation. miners were afraid to speak out about their safety concerns. they dared not stop coal production. anyone who challenged management was considered a nuisance or a threat and their jobs were on the line. these conditions are chilling. this report makes it clear that the failure to effectively deal with reckless operators occurred at many levels. our nation's health and safety protections failed these 29 miners because of the many loopholes in the law that exploited by the mine industry. regulators allowed the mine to separate in a badly engineered ventilation system and failed to force operators to use modern technology to prevent coal dust explosions. in the mining industry -- and the mining industry failed these workers because they refused to speak out against some of the worst actors in their industry and a proposed
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legislation to curtail their misconduct. the state investigation is a call to action. the panel urges congress to modernize mine safety technology, to give regulators better tools to strengthen criminal provisions and to improve the rights of miners. mr. speaker, this report and its recommendations and congress has been warned. we cannot abide by the status quo any longer. we cannot let washington play politics paralyze action once again. congress has been warned. don't pay lawyers instead of fixing chronic safety problems. and congress has been warned that we cannot let workers be in fear of being fired. their voices save lives. congress has been warned we cannot let decisions made in the board rooms to put production over safety go unchallenged any longer. these are responsible mining companies -- excuse me -- there are responsible mining companies that operate without
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an avalanche of violations. there are operators who do not make deviant behavior part of their corporate culture. we want these mine operators to join us to rework the rules that govern this industry. in the end, though getting mine reform depends upon congress, the responsibility rests squarely here. these disasters are preventable. the report is a very clear warning. we should not, we must not wait for another tragedy before congress opens up to its responsibility. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from ohio, mrs. schmidt, for five minutes. mrs. schmidt: thank you, mr. speaker. i request to extend and revise my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mrs. schmidt: mr. speaker, today is a sad day for my district because today we're going to lay an american hero to rest. private first class william seth glavens.
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he was only 21. just before christmas in 1989 on december 22 steven and trish wagner levens got the best gift of all, a beautiful, healthy little boy. they lived in rural america, brown county, ohio. they're small business owners, working hard to make a living and working harder to make sure their children achieved the american dream. and they did their job with seth. you see, seth was a wonderful young man, a young man who loved our country so much he put the clock of his country, a uniform on and decided to protect our freedom at no matter what cost or peril it was to him. in 2008 he graduated were
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eastern high school in brown county. he played soccer, basketball, participated in the band and was a member of the eastern high school chapter of the national honors society. clearly a winning individual. he attended ohio university and took courses at the university of cincinnati prior to enlisting in the army. he was a member of the peace lutheran church. his parents now feel an unbearable sorrow with the loss of their wonderful son, seth. but so does his sister, paige. his maternal grandparents and all of the aunts and uncles and cousins and friends. everyone in the community. seth was a member of the u.s. army, second battalion, 27th infantry region meant, third
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brigade combat team, 23rd infantry team, in hawaii, commonly referred to as the wolf hounds, and he loved what he did. unfortunately on may 23, 2011, while so many americans were planning their celebration for memorial day, he was the victim of an improvised explosive device in afghanistan. participating in the operation enduring freedom. mr. speaker, we must never forget the bravery of our men and women in uniform that continue to serve our country and continue to serve it in harm's way. these are true american heroes. so many who have died, so many continue in the battle field, so many that are injured. but today i ask this chamber and america to recognize seth's
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family and pray for them so that they can endure this heartache and find a way to overcome it. mr. speaker, may seth rest in peace and may his family find peace. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from maryland, mr. hoyer, for five minutes. mr. hoyer: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. hoyer: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, as you know, i am a very proud alumnist at the university of maryland. for more than a century and a half, the university of maryland has represented the best of american ideals of public education. now, i am very proud to say that the university of maryland tradition is in the capable hands of our new president, doctor wallace lowe, who was inaugurated this spring. wallace lowe came to the united states at the age of 15 alone
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without family. with $300 in his pocket, his parents' life savings, wallace lowe was born in shanghai, china. his father, a diplomat, fled the communist regime to lima, peru, when wallace was a young man. he grew up in lima until the age of 15. but it was in this country he pursued the education that would make one of the most respected academic leaders. he comes from college park from the university of iowa where he served as provost and executive vice president. he brings to the university of mudd more than three decades of hard work and accomplishment in higher education. his successful career as a scholar and administrator has taken him to seattle university. the university of washington, the university of colorado at boulder, beijing university in china and more. he also served as a top policy
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advisor to govern gary locke who will be our ambassador in china. gary locke, of course, was the governor of washington state. in that capacity he led the state's effort to expand access to higher education for low and middle-income students. as a leading scholar in the legal field, dr. lowe has also been elected president of the association of american law schools. . also holds a law degree from maryland university, a ph.d. from the university of michigan, a masters from cornell university, and a bachelors from gannell college in iowa. i believe that the university of maryland could not have chosen a more qualified leader to take our university into this century. throughout his diverse career, president lowe has been a strong track record of creating academic excellence at every
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stop. what an extraordinary background wallace lowe has for this increasingly integrated world. and particularly as it relates to our relations with china. one of the world's largest nations in terms of both people and county. president lowe reflected on barack obama's statement that america has reached a sputnik moment. a moment when our place as a world economic and innovative leader is increasingly challenged. institutions like the university of maryland are critical to our continued leadership in the world. as president lowe said, and i quote, the american research university, growing achievement of american civilization, must respond to this sputnik moment. we are a premiere research university, speaking of the university of maryland. he went on to say we must also become a premiere innovation and entrepreneurial university.
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i have no doubt, mr. speaker, that the university of maryland is well equipped to fulfill that role and do its part for our state and our nation. and i have no doubt that wallace lowe was exactly the right person to choose to lead the university at this time. i want to wish dr. lowe and the university the very best as it works with so many other extraordinary universities and colleges and educational institutions in the united states of america to make sure that we make it in america. that is to say that we outeducate, we out build, we out innovate our competitors so that we can provide the kind of quality of life, the jobs that our people need, a growing economy for the future, for our children. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina, mr. jones, for five minutes.
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mr. jones: mr. speaker, thank you very much. like most of my colleagues in the house, on memorial weekend, memorial day i had the privilege to speak to two different groups down in the third district of north carolina which i represent. one of the events comes to mind down in buford, north carolina, that well over 150 people there, most obviously were veterans, or family of veterans, and a couple of feaments whose loved ones didn't come home from previous wars. that brings me to the point that last week jim mcgovern and i offered an amendment to create a formula to bring our troops home from afghanistan. i want to thank the 26 republicans who voted for that amendment. we came within six votes of creating a formula for the president to bring our troops home before 2015. mr. speaker, these two events
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down in my district i had veterans to line up when i finished to come up to say we agree with you on your position to bring our troops home from afghanistan. even in one event i got a very strong applause when i mentioned the mcgovern-jones amendment and how close we came to create a formula to bring our troops home. mr. speaker, they said to me, well, why do we go into afghanistan? bin laden. he was responsible for 9/11. he's dead now. al qaeda, which had a large presence back in 2003-2004 in afghanistan is now diminished. these are the veterans talking to me. i'm not a veteran. my statement was, you're right. our country's financially broke. we spend over $8 billion. we can't pay our bills. and yet mr. karzai, who is corrupt to begin with, the leader of afghanistan, we always seem to find $8 billion a month to send to him.
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it makes no sense. so mr. mcgovern and i and people on my side and his side, we are going to continue to work to create a atmosphere and environment to encourage president obama not to wait until 2015. that's, actly what secretary gates said to the armed services committee which i serve on in february of this year. in 2015 we will start bringing home our troops. well, then, mr. speaker how many more will have to die, lose their legs and their arms in the next four years? it's only 2011 and we are talking about 2015? i can tell you our military has won the war many, many times. as you can see this is the paper not even in my district, greensboro, north carolina, where mr. howard coble is from, this was an editorial a few weeks ago, it says get out. there's a flag draped coffin, transfer case being carried off
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the plane by soldiers or airmen. so it is time that this congress come together in a bipartisan way and bring our troops home. i see the families down at camp lejeune which is in my district. i talk to and listen to them. they think they have done their job. they think it's time to come home. mr. speaker, as i do all the time on the floor of the house when i'm closing, i ask god to please bless our men and women in uniform. i ask god to please bless the families of our men and women in uniform. i ask god in his loving arms to hold the families who have given a child dying for freedom in afghanistan and iraq. i ask god to please bless the house and senate that we will do what is right in the eyes of god for its people and great nation. i ask god to give wisdom, strength, and courage to mr. obama he will do what is right in the eyes of god for this great nation. and i will ask three times, god please, god please, god please continue to bless america.
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i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina, mr. butterfield, for five minutes. mr. butterfield: mr. speaker, i rise this morning to pay tribute to a lifelong friend. the reverend dr. dorothy sharp johnson, an accomplished pastor, educator, and author who passed from labor to reward on 31 may 2011 after a long illness. a long illness that did not curtail her work. a native of wilson county, north carolina, dr. johnson resided in matthews, north carolina, which is near the city of charlotte, with her beloved husband of more than 50 years, retired bishop joseph johnson. mr. speaker, dr. johnson was the fifth of eight children. born to mark benjamin and clara farmer sharp. after finishing high school at
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the age of 15, she went on to earn her bachelor's degree from north carolina's central university, known at that time as north carolina college at durham. later in life she earned a master's degree in religious education and doctor ofdy vinity degree from the james -- doctor of divinity from salisbury, north carolina, from livingstone college. she received a doctor of ministry degree from gordon conwell theological seminary in charlotte. over the years dr. johnson found many ways to serve her community as a public school teacher, school administrator, social worker, and even a seamstress. she was particularly devoted to her faith and church. in 1979 dr. johnson was elected by the general conference to oversee the youth mission. during her eight year tenure, she worked to build a youth
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retreat that was eventually named in her honor and today, and today serves as many as 575 youth at a time. dr. johnson was a missionary supervisor with the a.m.e. zion church and pastor of indian hill a.m.e. zion church in fort mill, south carolina. her work with the a.m.e. zion church took her around the world working in england and puerto rico, the bahamas and across america as an outreach to her ministry. she published a great number of books that were inspired by her life experience and devotion to god. in addition to all of this, she was a devoted member of the delta sigma theta sorority and naacp. mr. speaker, one of the most profound statements i could make about this great american is that despite having a medical condition known as systemic lupus for more than 40 years, including many surgeries and
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hospitalizations, she lived a productive life that cannot be surpassed by anyone. she was a good wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, pastor, and friend. dr. johnson distinguished herself in so many ways and made a difference in this world. the johnsons are the proud parents of two adult sons, the reverend anthony johnson, pastor of st. matthew a.m.e. zion church of rock hill, south carolina, and timothy johnson, a civil engineer in our great state. they were the grandparents of two grandchildren, both are honor students. dr. johnson is also survived by four sisters, barbara jones, trumela jones, ernestine write, and betty coally. three brothers, rudolph sharp, eugene sharp, and very good friend of mine, david sharp of phoenix, arizona. mr. speaker, i ask my colleagues
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to join me in recognizing this great life. we extend condolences to her husband, bishop joseph johnson, their sons, and all of their family and friends. mr. speaker, i thank you for the time this morning. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from michigan, mr. walberg, for five minutes. mr. walberg: thank you, mr. speaker. on tuesday the house overwhelmingly defeated by a vote of 318-97 a blank check on spending. we stopped the unconditional raising of the debt ceiling. the fact remains we are in a debt crisis because washington spends too much, not because it taxes too little. america's drowning in debt and we need to significantly reduce spending and make long-term
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reforms that encourage private sector job creation and move towards a balanced budget. raising the debt limit without restoring financial accountability was unacceptable and that's why i voted against this irresponsible debt limit increase. i can't comprehend why this administration continues to push the same dangerous failed strategy that got us into this economic mess. the failure to increase in the debt limit on the floor tuesday would be enough evidence for the white house and washington democrats to conclude that americans want washington to stop signing a blank check. spending money we don't have and sending the bill to our children and our grandchildren, grandchildren that i personally have an opportunity every time i open my blackberry to see their faces and be reminded that it's for them that i.
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this house spoke on tuesday evening. yet more than 100 house democrats signed on to a letter publicly advocating for a debt limit increase without spending cuts and reforms. unfortunately after meeting with the president yesterday, i'm not sure he's heard the people on this issue, either. according to the latest evidence, only 11% of americans support a blank check raising of the debt limit and more spending. this vote demonstrates that president obama and the house democrats are falling out of step with the rest of america and should join house republicans in working to cut spending. the american people have said no to the democrats and they are not going to take it anymore, not another blank check of more spending and more debt for the obama administration. it's the time now to think of the next generation and not the
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next election and take time to rip up a blank check of defeat for our country. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. woolsey, for five minutes. ms. woolsey: mr. speaker, we have learned a lot over the last several days about the republicans' commitment to both national security and fiscal responsibility. last week after the party of limited government spending passed a $690 billion defense authorization bill loaded with pentagon pork, they jammed through a four-year extension of key provisions of the u.s.a. patriot act. with a last-minute rush vote with virtually no debate, the party of small government authorized more wiretapping and more poking through americans' personal records. and now today our ongoing debate over fiscal year 2012 homeland
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security appropriations shows us that the majority's pennywise pound-foolish approach is in all of its glory. this bill breaks faith with first responders. underfunding key firefighter assistance grants and state homeland security grants that primarily train and equip first responders. important programs will be rolled into a block grant so that localities will be competing for dwindling federal homeland security grants. . this while undermining our community for chemical, nuclear attacks. and they cut research and development program by 30%, mr. speaker. so while terrorist organizations are busy mastering technologies we'll be eliminating very important
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research projects and biological and explosive detections and advanced siper security. shame on us. homeland security already took a hit in fiscal year 2011. the majority which claims to care about nothing than the safety and security of our american people wants to cut more than $1 billion from last year's funding levels and provides $2 billion less than what the president has proposed. in the meantime, while we're nickel and diming our first responders we're throwing $10 billion every month, $10 billion every month at a war in afghanistan that is killing americans while doing very little, if anything, to advance our national security. where are the budget cutters when it comes to appropriating that money? where are all the hard questions and the tough scrutiny when it comes to funding a decade-long military
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occupation of afghanistan that has failed in every conceivable way? $10 billion a month on afghanistan. for the price of about six days of fighting the war in afghanistan we could make up the difference between the president's homeland security request and the allocation in this bill. six days. the majority clearly has one set of standards for important domestic programs and another, quite another for military ventures abroad. if you want to wage a war, no questions asked. but if you want to support first responders or educate small children or preserve medicare, you better duck because the budget act is aimed at the people's priorities. i remind my friends in the majority that terrorist will strike us here on our shores, in our homeland, in our capital, an enormous military
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footprint that's stomping down in a sovereign country thousands of miles away, a country where osama bin laden wasn't fighting and al qaeda is barely active is not where we need to be putting our efforts. let's do the smart thing. let's fully fund homeland security and let's save money and lives by bringing our troops home. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. thompson thompson -- mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. this week congress sent a message to the white house that we need to address our debt crisis and get serious with real budgetary reforms so we can meet our credit obligations at home and around the world. there is good reason why the dollar is still the world's gold standard when it comes to credit ratings and the u.s. is seen as a wise investment around the worrell. a first rate credit -- around
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the world. a first rate credit rating means there's nothing for lenders to worry about, how a borrower can pay back a loan and they can receive a good return on their investment. that's why i can't emphasize enough the importance of our nation's credit rating. a downgraded credit rating will reduce certainty for businesses and investors at home and abroad. we must work to ensure that this never happens by reforming spending and fixing our debt problem. make it so there is not one doubt when it comes to the credit worthiness of the united states. in april, standard & poor's lowered the outlook on the united states credit to negative. s&p's rational, the u.s. has a large debt and deficit compared to other highly rated nation and unlike with those other nations, quote, the path to addressing the debt and deficit is not clear to us. to be clear, this warning from the s&p was not over the debt
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limit debate but because washington has no plan to tackle its massive debt. since 1975 there has been at least nine examples when they've failed to pass in either the house or senate, the budget. in 2006, then u.s. senator obama voted against an increase of $78.1 billion. in each case, day, weeks or months later, a debt limit was only enacted. so again, it's not about the debate. we've seen this discussion many times over the last several decades. but it is about world markets and losing confidence and our ability to implement those needed reforms and to address our debt. over the past few years we've seen the largest budget deficits in the history of the united states. this, along with our structural deficits, due to insolvent entitlement programs and the rising cost of health care is the reason we face serious problems in our ability to make
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good on our commitments. in april the u.s. kept its a.a.a. rating. unfortunately, as s&p warned, if we fail to act on these reforms this could happen. raising the debt ceiling without a significant structural spending reform will send a signal to the world that america lacks the political will to restore fiscal sanity and meet our obligations. unfortunately, many of my democratic colleagues have continued to ask for a clean up or down vote on raising the debt limit. including most recently more than 100 democrats signed a letter to the house leadership requesting an up or down vote on the issue. earlier this week, that request was granted. and the legislation's failure demonstrates that any plan to raise the debt limit without dramatic steps to reduce spending and reform the budget process is unacceptable to the american people. with any hope, we send a clear message that it's time to stop with the political pandering and get serious about bringing about real budgetory reforms. it's unfortunate, mr. speaker, the problem has been
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identified. while tough decisions has to be made, the solution is within our reach. what we lack is the political will to lead and take action. mr. speaker, if we don't act boldly now the markets will act soon. the world is watching. we can no longer afford to kick this can down the road. we need the political will to act for our economy. thank you, mr. speaker. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. roibled, for five minutes. -- ms. roybal-allard, for five minutes. ms. roybal-allard: mr. speaker, for five minutes this congress has debated how best to address the looming crises of our national deficit. while the debate has often been partisan and polarized, one thing we democrats and republicans agree on is that addressing our national health care expenditures is a critical part of the solution.
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a major component of thess can lating health care cost -- of the escalating health care cost in this country is maternity care. the cost of maternity care for mother and child in the u.s. is more than double that of any country in the world. but despite the exorbitant amount of money we spend on maternity care, the u.s. ranks far behind nearly all developed countries in maternal and infant outcomes. sadly, childbirth continues to have significant risk for mothers and babies, especially in communities of color. many factors contribute to these poor outcomes and high costs. the most disturbing by far is the fact that there is a vast body of knowledge regarding best evidence-based maternity care. yet current u.s. practice does not follow that research. this results in the widespread
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overuse of maternity procedures, including is i syrian sections and scheduled inductions which credible evidence tells us are beneficial only in limited situations. unfortunately, the overuse of these practices results in longer maternity hospital stays and multiple costly procedures that contribute to making combined mother and infant childbirth charges our most costly hospital and medicaid expenditures. to address these poor outcomes and high costs, today i am introducing the maximum optimal maternity services for the 21st century act. it will create a national focus on optimal maternity care by establishing an interagency coordinating committee to ensure federal agencies are promoting the best
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evidence-based maternity practices in their programs. the bill also authorizes an extensive media campaign to educate consumers on how to achieve the healthiest maternity outcome, including the importance of maternity practices such as smoking cessation programs in pregnancy and group modeled prenatal care. these and other noninvasive practices have been shown to produce considerable improvement in outcomes with no detrimental side effects but regrettably they are significantly underused in this country. furthermore, the bill will expand research on best maternity practices and will direct collection of data on maternity shortage areas. it will also facilitate the development of more interdisciplinary maternity care work force by bringing together maternity care
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providers to develop core curricula across maternity professional disciplines. and it establishes a loan repayment program for maternity care providers who commit to work in underserved areas. finally, the act will support the education of a more culturally and linguistically diverse work force by authorizing grant programs for matesht professional organizations -- maternity professional organizations to recruit and retain minority providers. mr. speaker, we can and we must do better for mothers and newborns. as a country we must reach beyond our self-imposed boundaries to embrace and prioritize an evidence-based model of maternity care that will save lives and save money. i urge my colleagues to join me in this effort by co-sponsoring and helping to pass the mom for
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the 21st century act. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. westmoreland, for five minutes. mr. westmoreland: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i come to the floor this morning with sadness but with great pride to honor one of georgia's proud sons who gave his life, the ultimate sacrifice on march 29 in konar province, afghanistan, in support of operation enduring freedom. private jeremy faulkner was a man known with a huge heart and always sticking up for the underdog. jerry grew up in stockbridge, georgia, and joined the army after attending griffin high school. this is a time in life when many young men struggle with their future. private faulkner answered the call and chose the life of service in the united states army to make a difference in the world and to keep our
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nation safe. he gave up his red dodge ram for a new kind of vehicle with the u.s. army, 101st airborne, and learned a whole new meaning to the word mudding at basic training. private faulkner had already earned a combat ribbon, was an expert marksman and had discussed with his mother, judy, the possibility of making a career out of military service. private faulkner was in his 11th month of deployment and days away from promotion to private first class when his unit was ambushed. just a few short weeks before his anticipated return home. he'd expressed a desire to join the wings and the wind christian ministry upon his return as a way to share his testament from the seat of a motorcycle. and perhaps a prophetic private call to his stepfather, private faulkner mentioned to his stepfather, tony berry,
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requesting that if anything should happen to him that the wings and the wind, the patriot guard riders would be present at his procession. no one expected just how soon that procession would be needed. through three counties, crowds of strangers lined the streets, escorting private faulkner home as a testament to the community support of jeremy and his family. as jeremy requested, the wings of the wind and the patriot guard riders roared to accompany dozens of police and fire department vehicles in an inspiring procession fit for such a young hero. as elmer davis put it so good, the nation will remain the land of the free so long as it is home of the brave. our nation knows private jeremy faulk -- owes private jeremy faulkner a debt of gratitude. i thank him for sacrificing his life for strangers like me and my family as well as for the rest of the united states of america.
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so to jeremy's family and especially to jeremy, thank you. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. ellison, for five minutes. mr. ellison: thank you. thank you, mr. chair. mr. speaker, i rise today to stand shoulder to shoulder with the legitimate aims of syrian people for their request for freedom and democracy. ever since the syrian people demanded their rights against the assad regime, they have faced oppression. their nonviolent protest movement has been met with repressive force and this has been a disgrace on the world scene. the human rights abuses of the assad regime are unthinkable and they are historic and generational. it is torturing its own people at this time, including even children. .
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his genitals were cut off and severed. and he -- this young man only 13 years old will never really -- will never see his family again because he's gone on. what happened to here the people can't forget and his example has inspired people to stand up for democracy. over the past few months a familiar pattern has emerged. people organized public demonstrations to demand their god given rights. inevitably they killed peaceful protesters. viewers garner larger demonstrations which are more oppressed by the government the emergency situation in syria
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today has reached a new level. when tanks rolled in since that time. hundreds of peaceful demonstrators have been killed. just this morning, this very morning, syrian forces killed 15 people when they shelled a town of rostan. 58 have been killed there in the past three days alone. over 1,000 have been killed since democracy protests began. mr. speaker, it's truly unfortunate that the assad regime missed the his torque opportunity that it had right before it to set a new pattern in the arab spring. a pattern that above all respects human rights. instead, he chose to become an enemy of its own people. by murdering its own people and violating their fundamental right to security and liberty, the assad regime has lost any and all legitimacy to govern. legitimacy is gained through consent of the governed not
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brutal repressive crackdowns, jailings, and torture. while we don't yet know how many -- how events will ultimately unfold in syria, i want to commend the activism of syrian americans, syrian americans are doing everything they can to support their friends and their family. for example, just last week the syrian american council organized a day of action to support freedom and democracy in syria. some 400-plus syrian americans came all across the country to come to washington, d.c., to lobby their representatives in congress, to demonstrate at the syrian embassy, and organize committees to plan future initiatives. that's how democracy works, mr. speaker. people coming together with common concerns to peaceably petition their government. that's what makes america great and that's what sets us apart from places like syria under the assad regime.
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syria could be a great bastion of lib but -- liberty, but not with this illegitimate regime. i stand with the patriot americans who protest the human rights abuses of the assad regime. once and for all call on it to respect the right, dignity, and democratic aspirations of its people. the world will not forget, mr. speaker, we won't forget the legitimate yeernings for liberty and justice from the people of syria or anywhere in the world. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from tennessee, mr. duncan, for five minutes. mr. duncan: mr. speaker, i request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: -- to address the house and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. duncan: a headline says some house republicans showing signs of war fatigue. unfortunately this headline comes just a day after the appropriations defense
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subcommittee has approved another $119 billion for our overseas wars in iraq, afghanistan, and libya. $10 billion a month, $2,300 billion a week. we have now spent over $2 trillion in direct and indirect costs in iraq and afghanistan. most of this money has gone into nation building rather than stopping or defending against any real threat. we have turned the department of defense into the department of foreign aid and the american people are tired of it. they want us to stop rebuilding iraq and afghanistan and start taking care of our own people. we are spending billions and billions that we do not have. that we are having to borrow on people who do not appreciate it unless they are on our payroll. the publisher of the conservative american spectator magazine wrote last october, that quote, afghanistan has little strategic value and,
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quote, the war is one of choice rather than necessaryity. he added that it has been quote, a wasteful and frustrating decade. the american people do not want nor can we afford endless permanent wars. nor do they want 11 or 12-year wars that last about three times as long as world war ii. you can never satisfy government's appetite for money or land. they always want more. every gigantic bureaucracy always wants to expand its mission so it can get more funding. every government agency always exaggerates the threats or problems it is confronting so it can get more money. the pentagon is a gigantic bureaucracy that will do everything within its tremendous power to keep getting more and more money from the taxpayers. but there has to be limits somewhere. and fiscal conservatives should be the ones most horrified by all the hundreds of billions we have poured and continue to pour
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down these iraqi, afghan, and libyan rat holes. the american people and conservative republicans all over the country, all over this country are saying enough is enough. they want us to stop rebuilding iraq and afghanistan and paying for useless war in libya and start rebuilding the united states of america. we are headed to a higher debt soon. soon we will be printing so much money that our social security and other pensions will be worth very little. we have got to get our fiscal house in order. we have got to stop spending. hundreds of billions all over the world and start taking care of our own people. the conservative foreign policy columnist wrote a few months after the iraqi war started many years ago, that, quote, americans will inevitably come to a point where they have to choose between a government that provides services at home or one that seeks umpire across the
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globe. mr. speaker, the american people reached that point a long time ago. hopefully the congress will soon follow their lead. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. kaptur, for five minutes. ms. kaptur: thank you, mr. chairman. in 2008 gas prices that rose above $4 a gallon triggered the wall street meltdown and housing crisis that continue to plague our country. we are in the same boat today again with gas prices going over $4 a gallon. so be prepared. i rise today to talk about the housing crisis that is devaluing our housing stock across our country, destroying neighborhoods, and communities across the nation. last week "the new york times" ran a piece i wish to place in the record highlighting one more twist in this crisis. according to their front page expose, the big banks and mortgage companies have profited even more from the foreclosure
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crisis by amazing giant real estate empires that -- empires that span across our country, so not only do six banks control 2/3 of the banking system in this country, they have also become real estate magnates to when is too much too much? the impact on communities has been devastating. the numbers are simply shocking. in my community alone, over 6,700 more homes are in some type of foreclosure filings, while thousands of america's families are being thrown out on to the streets, the big wall street banks have nearly doubled the number of houses they have taken through foreclosure since the crisis began five years ago. that represents nearly 900,000 homes, that's 900,000 more families whose american dream ended in foreclosure. sadly this doesn't include those who are barely hanging on. approximately one in four
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mortgaged homes are still under water where families owe more than the home is worth. after taking billions of dollars from our taxpayers, we might expect that the wall street banks would want to help people stay in their homes and help more vacant properties be taken off the market. well, that's not what i'm hearing from local realtors. i spoke with a group of them over a week ago. they keep running up against a brick wall any time they even try to do a workout with one of these banks. they continue to have difficulty accessing credit for qualified willing buyers. more and more i hear how it's only our local banks and credit unions making any effort to make this troubled market function. wall street walked away with billions in bailout money, and then walked away from the housing mess they created, but they want even more. all the while they are sitting on top of huge profits and taking enormous tax breaks. the six largest banks in the country including wells fargo, bank of america, and j.p. morgan chase together paid an
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approximate tax rate of 11% of their pretax u.s. earnings in 2009 and 2010. less than half of what other businesses paid. i wish someone in this place could explain why this is allowed to go on. we need to understand that this foreclosure crisis is far from over. in the first quarter of this year alone, approximately 215,000 more properties were in foreclosure across our country, and another 700,000 properties were either in foreclosure filings,back repo session, or scheduled auction. as these banks continue to get these properties becoming vacant, neighborhoods across our country are being devalued and continue to disintegrate. every member here knows what i'm talking about. there are some signs that our economy is slowly improving, but, boy, we aren't out of the woods yet. woodies is predicting that housing prices across our nation will continue to fall by as much
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as 5% more. we cannot sit on our hands and hope the situation gets better. revival of the housing sector and the jobs it creates has always played a crucial and leading role in any economic recovery. we need to work to help struggling families stay in their homes. protect neighborhoods from being riddled with vacant structures. and get our economy moving again by arresting the continuing decline in our vital housing assets. built up over decades coast to coast. importantly revitalizing and reoccupying the troubled housing stock would put millions of americans to work. and isn't it over time to do exactly that? mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. conseco, for five minutes. mr. canseco: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, tomorrow the department of labor will release
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the monthly jobs report for may. while i am hoping to be surprised and that we get news that massive job creation got under way in may, i'm not going to get my hopes up. i'm not getting my hopes up because economic growth is being restrained. it is being restrained because there's still too much uncertainty in the economy and greater uncertainty in the economy means less job creation in the economy. uncertainty exists because of the threat posed to job creators by the taxes. the mandates, and the government takeover of private industry. uncertainty exists because of the 24-monthp spending binge of president obama -- 24-month spending binge of president obama, nancy pelosi, and harry reid.
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if we continue to spend money we don't have to the tune out of 40 cents out of every dollar. uncertainty exists because the obama administration's decision that restricts exploration for and the production of american energy both on land and from deep water sources. that's why the house of representatives has spent the fires five months of the 112th congress passing legislation to rid the economy of this uncertainty and create private sector jobs. the house has passed legislation to repeal the government takeover of health care. it has passed a budget resolution that puts our nation on a fiscally sustainable path while saving and strengthening important programs like medicare and social security for future generations. which, if they are left alone, they are left unreformed, they will go bankrupt and the house
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has passed several pieces of legislation aimed at overturning the obama administration's actions that block production of american energy. mr. speaker, we have tried it president obama's way, attempting to spend and regulate our way to economic prosperity. and what have the american people gotten in return? they have gotten a national debt of $14.2 trillion and 26 straight months of unemployment at 8% or higher. . the american people know you must create prosperity. that's what the american people sent me here to do to get our economy back on track. mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from ohio, mr.
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stivers, for five minutes. mr. stivers: we face a spending crisis, a debt crisis, a jobs crisis, and in order to solve those the best way -- best thing we can do is focus on jobs because creating jobs will empower families, it will increase our economic power and it will improve our government budget situation. for my many travels in my district around ohio, from franklin county to union county, it's become clear that individuals and businesses needs more certainty when it comes to health care costs, energy costs, taxes. i visited stanley electric in london, ohio, where they'd like to expand. they'd like some of their temporary workers become permanent workers but things in washington are preventing them to do that.
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i held a jobs roundtable in hilliard with small businesses, and from those small businesses i heard that we need congress to get out of the way of job creators. we need to bring more certainty to the banking system so that they'll start lending to small businesses. you know, capital and credit need to be available if small businesses are going to create jobs. they ask us to change the culture in washington so that people here can understand that government does not create jobs. small business owners and entrepreneurs create jobs. we need to allow those local employers to focus their resources on hiring and to growing their businesses. you know, if we allow them business can and will create jobs, we just need to give them the right incentives and innovation will be there and business owners need the flexibility to invest back in their businesses, and they need
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the ability to keep more of what they've earned if they do well. i held a jobs forum in my district at the ohio state university's fisher college of business to discuss with central ohio job creators what they need to invest and create jobs. a number of good ideas came out of that forum. dwight smith, who is with sophisticated systems in columbus, ohio, said that ohio and the nation need to do a better job of putting together job training with unemployment. he said whole categories of jobs are being eliminated in this economy, and we need to make sure that the people that are out there are looking for jobs that are here today and going to be here tomorrow. i think that's a great idea. we need to focus on training and preparing our work force for jobs that are here today and here tomorrow. we need to tie our work force development dollars to county with our unemployment programs so they work together well. kathy ivan, who is the owner of fabric farms, a small business
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owner in my district, was very concerned about the owner small business regulation of the 1099 regular provisions in the health care bill. i'm proud to say that that's been repealed. small business owners needs to have certainty with regard to health care costs and energy costs so they'll be willing to hire new employees. john nest of o.d.w. logistics said the government has stepped on the hands and needs to stay out of the way of small business owners. we need to remove obstacles of these business owners and the united states government needs to make tax rates more competitive with the rest of the world. john nest is in a global business, and america's tax rates are making him less competitive. dr. michael camp, who's with the o.s.u. center for entrepreneurship, spoke about the importance of accelerator projects and how collaboration with ohio's third frontier with yield positive results. you know, i think we got a lot
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of work to do but if we can stay focused on getting government out of the way and giving businesses more certainty, you'll see businesses creating a lot of jobs. those are just a few of the great ideas that were shared at my jobs forum, and i continue -- i'll continue to work on those ideas and other ideas and reach out so we can grow our economy, because the best way to solve our problems is through creating jobs. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. paulsen, for five minutes. mr. paulsen: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. paulsen: i want to congratulate a school for the lieu schemia and lymphoma society for contributing. that's more than any other school in the country.
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every year, mr. speaker, elementary and secondary schools bring mayor spare change to the leukemia, lymphoma pennies for patients program, and they donate it as part of that program to find a cure for leukemia, for lymphoma and other blood cancers. leukemia causes more deaths than any other cancer in children and young adults under the age of 20. thanks to this program, schools across the country have been collecting important resources to fund available research and provide patient care. programs like pennies for patients teach young students how they can impact the lives of their peers and the community they live in. i am incredibly proud of the students at oak point for all their hard work and service, and i congratulate them. i hope they had a great time at their much-deserved pizza party next week, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, dr. broun, for five minutes. mr. broun: thank you, mr.
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speaker. mr. speaker, the united states is the greatest nation ever in the hitter of man-- history of mankind, a nation that others look to as a leader, a leader in strength and security and success. but, mr. speaker, we cannot lead from behind. we are behind on repaying our debts in a major way. all the while creating even more debt. rather than focusing on raising the debt ceiling, mr. speaker, we should be putting all of our energy into reducing the debt. it's bad for job creation and our economy. as admiral mullen recently said, our debt is the most dangerous threat to our national security. i could not agree any more.
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if congress continues to spend money as it has in the past, we will only become more reliant upon foreign countries to buy up our debt making our economy secondary to theirs. it is dangerous. it is irresponsible. it is unfore give. mr. speaker, this -- it is unforgivible. mr. speaker, this congress has turned our country upside down while allowing for the largest budget deficit in the history of the united states. the great cost of the stimulus bill, multiple government bailouts and obamacare have pushed our country over the edge. i beg of my colleagues to not let this great nation hit rock bottom. we cannot hit rock bottom before we make tackling the debt our first and foremost priority.
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jobs, our economy and our future depend upon it. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house this has been referred
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to as an historic occasion. whether or not it will be an historic occasion -- >> c-span2 was carried over 6 1/2 million homes. today it's available in over 89 million homes. watch that and over 21,000 of senate coverage online at the c-span video library. it's all searchable, shareable and free. the peabody winner c-span library. it's washington your way. our "road to the white house"
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reporters' questions about that and others issues facing the house. we'll have live coverage shortly. it is supposed to be at 11:15 a.m. the democrats are meeting with president obama this afternoon to talk about budget cuts. progressive leader barbara lee will be one of those members and we spoke to her this morning on "washington journal." " continues. host: on your screen is representative barbara lee, democrat of california. congresswoman, the democrats are meeting with president obama today. what is your message to him? guest: my message, of course, to the president -- and i am certain he agrees with -- we must not allow medicare to be on the table to be cut. we must preserve medicare. and also we must create jobs. the economy, of course, we see some glimmers of hope that we see setbacks in many communities. gec setbacks. in many communities the rate is
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16%, especially communities of color. but you have to have direct investments in job creation, in infrastructure, in education, in scientific research. there are ways we can create jobs and create them right away. our roads need repair, our bridges needed repair. and we have to do that. i know the message is going to be communicated to the president that we also need to begin to end this war in afghanistan. this is costing 100 billion-plus a year. our young men and women have done a phenomenal job and it is time to bring them home. it is time to reduce our military fit front -- footprints that afghanistan and use the money to create jobs here at home. preserving medicare and creating jobs and helping to move our country forward is going to be the message. >> congresswoman, the republicans met with the president yesterday. they are pushing for deficit
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reduction, for spending cuts. would you be willing to accept spending cuts? guest: i am not willing to accept spending cuts that would cut of the most lovable and hurt those who are unemployed -- that would cut the most vulnerable. but let me tell you what i would support. we are looking at a pentagon budget that is really almost out of control. $750 billion-plus. again, we have iraq, afghanistan, and now libya. we have to look at how we ensure national security in a smart way. we talk about subsidies to the oil companies. you have revenues that can be raised there. to just talk about spending cuts without talking about going back to the drawing board as it relates to the bush era tax cuts for the very wealthy, for millionaires and billionaires,
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to me, that is unacceptable and i know many of us are not going to go for that. we have to do something about the debt ceiling and go on and move to raise it. host: do you feel as a member of the progressive caucus, sidelined? guest: absolutely not. when you look at the capri -- progressive caucus, our two co- chairs have done at some of his job. i co-chaired. we have the people's budget that was balanced, that the not cut medicare, which was a budget that created jobs and provided for a rational national security strategy. it really is a mainstream budget that reflect the priorities of the american people. what i have seen over the years, the progressive vision, a
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progressive caucus, which is of course the largest caucus in congress, is really -- reflects the values and priorities of the american people. we have now over 80 members. when you look at many of the bills that have been passed or have come close to passing -- i have some of the toughest bills and efforts on afghanistan. 81 members signed a letter that we forwarded to the present as saying we should have a significant and sizable drawdown of troops beginning in july. when you look at many of the measures coming forth, the progressive caucus has held firm, has held steady and it definitely has been against these oil subsidies and also the progressive caucus has held firm in not eliminating medicare, which republicans want to do. host: do you feel you have got to board from democratic leadership -- nancy pelosi and president obama -- do you feel
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you have gotten support? guest: in terms of afghanistan? did general, absolutely yes. if you look at the progressive caucus and you look at the votes that were cast and you look at what the president is engaged in -- of course, he has the weight of the world on his soldiers -- on his shoulders. we have our jobs to do as progressives and as members reflecting the people. this is the people's house. our leadership gets it. our leadership is a leadership that brings together the caucus. of course, we have many different caucuses in congress. we have a very diverse democratic caucus. and i think our leadership -- and i have been here 13 years -- our leadership has been very fair and has made sure that the progress of the voice is included in the deliberations. we always may not win and, of course, our mission may decide to take a different course, but
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what i can say is they have listened. we have been at the table. many of our amendments have been included and they recognize the progressive caucus is a very strong caucus and our voice is very loud and we do reflect the will of the american people, and we are willing to work in a bipartisan way and with all members of the caucus to see medicare preserved and to help create jobs that our country so desperately needs. host: what time did you meet with the present? guest: this afternoon, i believe at 2:00 or 2:30 p.m. representative barbara lee is our guest. the first call for congresswoman lee comes from glenwood,
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indiana. guest: don't cut me off. -- caller: don't cut me off. how're you doing? two things. the republicans are not going to let the president and anything. second, the democrats need to get behind this president and help him. i and a first-time voter and i want to these democrats -- i'm a first-time voter. we need these jobs. so, thank you. guest: i believe what you have seen with democrats is an agenda that wants to ensure the american people that we will preserve medicare. and i know the president wants to do that also. we have been working very closely with the president as democrats to create jobs for those who are unemployed and also to create jobs to help turn our economy around. we have not seen republicans, for with one job creation
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initiative. democrats have been burning for the job creation efforts. we have been trying to make sure the president understands and we support -- and he knows that -- his economic recovery efforts. with the recovery bill, we have created millions of zit -- of jobs but also helped stop what would have been a depression. the president turned it around. of course democrats in the congress how to do that. we did not receive any republican votes for that. there are going to be disagreements. this is a democracy. and we have three branches of government. you can't expect constantly for everyone to walk lockstep. what you can expect is unity on behalf of democrats and held for the american be but in terms of making sure senior citizens understand we will not let medicare be touched and we will move forward to create jobs. host: from "the politico" this morning. paul ryan conference obama on medicare. he directly confronted president
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obama over democratic ridicule of his controversial medicare overhaul plan. while other gop leaders accused the president of demagoguery during a chilly bipartisan meeting. ryan, wisconsin republican, stressed the president -- ask the president to stop describing his plant -- to say it is what it is. his budget cut medicare. yesterday in the homeland security -- which is a rule, a measure that came up on the floor, to establish the >> live to capitol hill for briefing with house speaker john boehner. >> not much of a recovery. the american people are still struggling. with high energy prices, high food prices, jobs continue to be
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scarce, and frankly the rebound in the economy has failed to materialize. yesterday we told the president what many americans are thinking with the economy isn't creating enough private sector jobs, and washington continues to be a big reason -- that continues to be the focus of our majority. last week we put forward a job creation plan that builds on our pledge to america and we asked the president to take a look at it. this blueprint recognizes that spending, borrowing, and regulating are a way to prosperity hasn't worked and it won't work. that's why i released a statement yesterday signed by more than 150 economists who agree that to help create jobs, any debt limit increase must be met with an even larger spending decrease.
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because increasing the debt limit without spending cuts and reforms would send a message to our job creators that we are just not serious about stopping the spending addiction going on here in washington. the american people won't stand for it which is something you heard me say since the obama administration first raised this issue back in january. we have also passed a budget that backs up this position. paying down the debt over time without raising taxes. we actually have a plan that eliminates our budget deficit and pays off our debt over time. so it's no surprise that yesterday our members continue to press the case to the president, what's your plan, mr. president? so it's pretty clear to us if we don't act soon, the markets will act for us. remember, the warning from
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standard and pours -- standard & poor's six weeks ago was about us not tackling the massive debt not the debt limit. i said for months i'm ready. our members are ready. and i think the country is ready . the time to act is now. the white house is truly committed to its own goal and timeline, it should put a real plan on the table so we can get this done as soon as possible. the talk being led by vice president biden which the majority leader, mr. cantor, i think is doing a great job representing us, have been productive. but the fact is we haven't seen enough progress from the white house. if the white house wants to get this done, it's time for them to step up the plate and get serious. we told the president and i think we democrat straighted to the american people -- demonstrated to the american people we are ready to deal with the big challenges that face our
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country. i hope the president will join us soon. >> mr. speaker, talking about libya here for just a moment, was there a concern by republicans that this resolution that congressman kucinich would have passed had he put it on the 234r50r, which was the original plan, and number two, was there concern that you are mindful what's going on in libya but you didn't want to handcuff the president and that's why there's consideration of the turner resolution which would basically say we don't approve of what's going on? >> we are going to meet with our members this afternoon to talk about libya. i think we'll see what our members have to say, but i expect that this issue will be resolved tomorrow. >> the resolution, which one will survive when it's all said and done? >> we'll have a conversation with our members today and we'll see what they have to say about it. >> mr. speaker, what do you make of this twitter and congressman
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weiner, do you have concerns of a member serving in his official duties -- >> you'll have to talk to representative weiner about that. >> should the ethics committee look into the matter since its a member of congress? >> i think you'll have to talk to representative weiner about this issue. >> mitt romney is about to announce his bid for presidential contention, and because he was the original -- one of the original architects of what's now the republican call obamacare, and he now has since changed that position, i'm wondering how you feel -- >> that isn't a question i'm comfortable answering. >> how comfortable are you with him as -- running for the head of your party, especially since there are now movements like tea party that say they are going to
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stop romney? >> i got all i can do as speaker of the house. my focus really right now is dealing with the giant debt problem that we have and get the americans back to work. that primary election for president will serve itself out. >> in the authorization bill last week there was this mission force transfer enhancement fund which was $1 billion which was killed by amendment. i think about 700 million or so was authorized before congressman flake's amendment killed that. if appropriators could kill these appropriations with the d.o.d. bill comes up, would these be earmarks? would it violate the earmark ban? >> the house has made clear in our rules that there will be no earmarks. and we have have gone to great lengths to make clear to our members what the rules are and
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the fact there will not be earmarks. i don't know the specifics of your outline, but i can tell you that we are not going to do earmarks. we are going to keep our word to the american people. >> mr. speaker, i wanted to ask you about the cyberattack on google and that google says they think originate from china. are you aware of any members' accounts that might have been compromised? do you have any cause to believe the chinese government might be behind it? >> i'm concerned about the report i just heard about. i am confident that the f.b.i. will be looking at this. we just don't have the details yet. i'm hopeful we will soon. >> two questions about your de significance, first are you confident this contract isn't a
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violation, -- second, -- >> this hiring was approved by the bipartisan legal advisory group. i'm confident that it complies with all of the rules of the house. >> just looking at the vote in the amendment on afghanistan, there was a lot of bipartisan support and looking at this week's resolution on libya, do you think those measures are an indication that maybe some members are turning in their support for the u.s. efforts abroad? >> i think there's a lot of concern given the budget deficit and given our debt, i think every penny the congress spends is getting a lot more scrutiny. in addition to that, there's, as i said several weeks ago, members are a bit weary about
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the amount of money we have spent in iraq, in afghanistan, and we are spending in libya and as a result really are wondering what are our vital national security interests there. i think i have a good feel for it, but i do believe that the president needs to speak out. in terms of our mission in afghanistan. our mission in iraq. our mission in libya. and the doubts that our members have, frankly, are reflective -- they are reflecting what they are hearing from their constituents. and i think the president has a role to play here and the president really does need to step up and help the american people understand why these missions are vital to the national security interest of our country. >> wondering if you -- the
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reports are that the president will withdraw about 5,000 troops. >> i have been supportive of the president's goals in afghanistan. i was supportive of the surge in troops in afghanistan. and i said then and i'll continue to say as long as the president is listening to our diplomats and our commanders on the ground, i will support him. i don't know what the number -- correct number should or shouldn't be, but if he continues to work with our diplomats and our generals on the ground, he'll have my support. thank you-all. >> thank you. >> speaker bane earn house colleagues return to work at noon eastern working on the homeland security department spending for fiscal year 2012. it provides $42 billion for the
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next budget year, 3% less than this year and 6% less than requested by the administration. the measure restructures the way fema distributes the money to state and local governments. it also bars funds to transfer guantanamo bay detainees. the administration supports the bill. the house is going through amendments to that measure. a bill managers say a final vote could take place later today. and spending on military construction and veterans programs is next in line to be considered. we'll have live coverage when they return at noon eastern. >> today marks the first time when our legislative branch in its entirety will appear on that medium of communication through which most americans get their information about what our government and our country does. >> several times today this has been referred to as an historic occasion. whether or not it will be an historic occasion is, i think, a
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subject for the judgment of history. >> this week marks 25 years of televised coverage of the u.s. senate. on that first day in 1986 c-span2 was carrying a little more than 6 1/2 million homes. today it's available in over 89 million homes. watch that first day or any of the 21,000 hours of senate coverage online at the c-span video lie brarery. it's all searchable, shareable, and free. the peabody award winning c-span video library, washington your way. >> former massachusetts governor mitt romney in about an hour will announce he's running for the republican nomination for president. you can see that speech live from the new hampshire this afternoon at 12:30 eastern on c-span2. if you miss it you'll see it later in our video library at c-span.org. treasury secretary tim geithner will be meeting with house freshmen to talk about raising the debt limit. we might see some reaction from members. we'll have cameras there just in case. one of those members attending
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today will be representative hayworth who joined us this morning on washington journal. continues. host: we'll are pleased to welcome for the first time representative nhan hayworth, she is from new york and serves on the financial services committee. >guest: i represent the hudson valley of new york. we start about one hour north of the york city and extend through the town of poughkeepsie and southern dutchess county and across the river and have most of our county and a little bit of rock and counted. it is a beautiful district, about 1500 square miles and it is diverse. we go through suburbs through exbrubs and farm country. we have a lot of talent in our district. we have many people work very
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hard. we have some corporate headquarters, part of pepsico and ibm which are among the biggest enterprises. we have a lot of small businesses. we have farms. we have major hospitals. we have some colleges. it is an economy relative to the rest of the country statistically is doing somewhat better which is heartening but we are not doing as well as we could be or should be. host: you serve on the financial services committee. today, treasury secretary -- secretary of the treasury tim geithner is coming to the hill to talk about the debt ceiling. what are you open to hearing? guest: that he is sincere about working constructively with the house majority. on realistically tackling the
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long term challenges that we face as we consider this debt ceiling. we have to assure that we are responsibly dealing with the debt we have accumulated. we also have to send a clear message to action that we are taking on fiscal responsibility and discipline for the future. if not, there will be no investor confidence in our country's bonds. and rightly so.ly do you host: do you believe it debt ceiling should be attached to slashing budgets? guest: absolutely. if not, we are saying that we cannot tackle the issue that that will surely come around yet again to harm our potential.
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when we devote ever increasing portions of the federal budget, it is now about 10% of the budget for debt service, when we continue to add to the principle on that debt and we do not stop accumulating debt and paid down, it clearly shows the amount of productive work week and with precious tax dollars declines. after awhile, in fact it is starting to happen now -- confidence that we will be able to grow the economy and be a great destination for investment, for growth, for job creation is going to wane. there are many opportunities around the world. we very much need to get that under control. host: how would you describe the meeting that republicans had with president obama as yesterday? guest: our leadership and
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several members who spoke in behalf of the concerns that we all share were forthright, courteous but unequivocal about what we need to work on together with the administration and with president obama. president obama listened respectfully. i think there was an exchange of views along the lines that one would expect given that we all are all endeavoring not to inflame tensions but to move along in a process involving problems. that is our emphasis. we were hired in november to solve problems that the united states clearly faces. host: our last guest, barbara lee, a democrat of congress, used that term -- said several times that the republicans want to dismantle medicare. we had a special election of the
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new york and the republicans lost a longtime republican seat. is medicare going to be an issue that hurts the republicans in 2012? guest: it will not hurt the republicans. if anything, that had lined really should be and this is what i have been sharing with the constituents in our district and a completely understood -- the affordable care act and medicare through the independent advisory board is to bar and -- is designed to fulfill reimbursements. that will reduce spending on medicare. unfortunately for our seniors, that will limit their access to care immediately. as a physician and ophthalmologist who practiced for 60 years and i cherish my patients. my medicare patients -- who
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practice for 16 years and i cherish my patients. my medicare patients tried to cover their costs. if those reimbursements decline which will be inevitable under the independent payment advisory board, a lot of doctors will find regrettably that they cannot take on more medicare patients. 12% of doctors across the country say they can afford to see medicare patients. the affordable care act that was passed by the 111 congress and signed into law by president obama and medicare as we know it. the republicans said that we understand we have an obligation to our seniors and that we must honor this and do so and we will also put mechanisms in place that will assure that we can effectively administer medicare
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in the future. host: rep nan hayworth, a representative from new york and she is also a doctor hayworth, an ophthalmologist and a physician. she graduated from cornell medical college, graduated at the top for class, undergraduate from princeton university, married to dr. scott hayworth with two kids and a freshman. who did you begin what was the percentage? guest: john hall and it was 53%- 47%. host: was a republican democratic seats? guest: my predecessor had served for six terms and john will serve for two terms. it has been a republican seat for most of the past century. i will say that the model has changed among republicans as well. we are more fiscally conservative in this freshman
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class than has been the case for previous generations of republicans, even this is because of the circumstances that we face in terms of deficit and desperate host: we will take some calls, omaha, neb., you are first. caller: i wanted to comment on the economic impact that you guys were talking about with medicare and all the other things like unemployment. the republicans and democrats are going after each other and everybody needs to stick together and the need to start helping each other. this economy will come back. host: any response? guest: i agree with you. we need to work together and i will go further -- i know that
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all of our colleagues in the house of representatives, all 435 of us have the goal of making sure that every american has the best opportunities and can live his or her best life and the most extraordinary and wonderful country in history. where we differ and where the challenges come in is where republicans, by and large, hold that we achieve that goal by having the federal government have a light hand and our economy and our lives. our colleagues on the other side of the aisle tend to feel that in fact the federal government should be doing more in the economy. the election of 2010 told us that americans across the country felt that they needed to have a federal government that weigh less heavily upon them,
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that regulated less, that tax less, that took less from them, that did not punish those who create jobs. this fall -- the small businesses create the majority of jobs in this country and they feel a disproportionate weight of regulation. we were hired to reduce those burdens in the new house majority. that is what we are working to do. we really do care very much about making sure that everybody has the opportunity and jobs, 40 million americans need jobs. we have seen the economic indicators and they are not promising because the federal government has continued to threaten its public with more burdens and more taxes and more ways in which it will take money out of your pocket, working capital out of the sisson economy. that is what we are working to
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change. there is a reason to arguments to be made. it does not have to be contentious. host: next call comes from water falls, new york. is that in your district? guest: that in our district. caller: is good to see you today. my question has to do with your meeting with secretary of the treasury tim geithner. you are quoted on political.com as saying that he has to make clear that major spending cuts are needed. have you and your republican colleagues seen any plans out of the white house. if so, do you have any faith in those plants? how do you think you can work together to achieve some debt relief? guest: we have not seen the specifics, as you know.
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the president presented a budget proposal that was resoundingly rejected by the senate. he received zero votes in the senate which was remarkable. the paul ryan plan received 47 votes. that will tell you that even among democrats, the president's budget proposal at least in the senate was not viewed positively. he simply did not take on the real issue that we have which is that the federal government's is spending money it does not take in, 42 cents of every dollar. it is borrowed. it is barred from you and your children and your grandchildren. we need to see a proposal that actually a bold cuts federal spawned in now.
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we have proposed a prosperity budget that spending return to 2008 levels and that is a fair and equitable way to deal with discretionary spending. we have proposed changes in the way medicaid is administered so that our state's become more responsible about waste, fraud, and abuse which is quite widespread in many states. we have proposed that we take on the issue of securing medicare for the future. even will all of those moves, we have made clear that the budget will only gradually come into balance in two thousand 37. that is roughly when the project the federal budget including debt service will come into balance. that is when we will not spend more than the federal government take sen. the idea is that when we accomplish the obligations of medicare and social security
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that we move forward in making sure that americans can rely on themselves and on their government in the entitlement program that they are accustomed to for the future. we also need to grow the economy. we need to create jobs in the citizen economy, the private sector. host: next call is wallington, new jersey, independent line. caller: good morning. i have a question regarding spending that involves massive spending across this country that no one seems to be addressing. it involves the issue of illegal immigration. the superintendent of los angeles county in california did a study on what illegal emigration was costing his one county in one year. it was $600 million. . the center for immigration
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studies issued a report that stated that 71% of households with illegal aliens that have children are receiving welfare as opposed to 52% of legal americans. host: what would you like to see the congress do about that issue? caller: i would like to see our immigration laws enforced in terms of pushing e-verify which the supreme court okayed in arizona. i would like to see meat -- more deportations. i think we need to look at this issue and what it is costing the taxpayer instead of going after medicare and social security which legal americans have paid into. guest: nobody is going after medicare and social security in the budget we passed in the house in april. we are endeavoring to ensure that medicare and social
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security carry out their obligations to those receiving the benefits and those who will receive them. i am right with you. it is very true that we have significant lapses in the way in which we have addressed our immigration policy. as we go through your preparations policy, in the coming months, you will see a lot done on homeland security and border security. in fact come e-verify will be a part of the bills we are considering. we want to make sure that that is a logical and pretty easy to follow first step to ensure that we are identifying illegal immigration when people come up for a job opportunity. it is not as widely used as it could be so that needs to be
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better in force. the 287-g program will be another focus of our attention. we want to help our local police departments when they can engage in identifying whether someone was in the country illegally has committed a crime. it would seem that that would be a fairly ready opportunity to address the presence of someone in this country who should not be here. you will see through the budget process and what we devote to border security we are very cognizant of the fact that that is an important issue. you will see action taken in this congress in the next few weeks. host: our guest is representative nan hayworth, the republican freshman from new york. i want to make two
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comments. ever since the republicans took over the house, this economy has slowed down dramatically. all you do is talking about cut and you can only cut so much it will slow down on hiring. who will go out and start a new business when they were about the debt ceiling now being raised? the interest rate will shoot up and we will go into default. stop playing games of the american people. -- with the american people. i hope and i know what will happen in 2012. you will not be there in 2012 and the democrats will take back the house because you are destroying the middle class with all these cuts.
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the private-sector cannot go higher because people don't have money to spend guest: all the money that the federal government spends comes from the pockets of working american and. that is just a fact. what we are doing in the majority in the house and it was a majority that was elected overwhelmingly in november of 2010, was send a clear message that the american people who elected us to do this job felt that the federal government was doing far too much and was taking too much from them. the so-called stimulus comes from the american people's pockets. then the federal government takes that money and sent it through a bureaucracy and while these are well meaning people, i have seen bureaucracies firsthand now in this job in washington. it is not efficient. they don't know how to run a business in your community.
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federal bureaucracy to a poor job. there was a recent news story about two weeks ago about housing and urban development and how their programs have wasted at least $300 million in taxpayer dollars that come out of the pockets of working americans. $300 million was wasted on local housing programs that they did not know how to administer. they did not hire responsible contractors or contractors who knew what they're actually supposed to be doing. they did not use criteria that would realistically indicate what kind of jobs they were capable of doing. this is typical when you have a federal government from washington trying to do that kind of local work. that is why we want washington to stop doing that kind of thing. we want washington not to take dollars from you. we want you to keep those dollars and keep the working capital and let the small
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businesses drowning in regulation survive. i talk to small business people across our dress -- district and they told me they are drowning and regulations. their insurance costs have risen with the affordable care act. the bureaucratic responsibilities have expanded. they cannot have access to capital the way they would like to because banks are not loaning the way they would like to because they are under the gun from regulators. a lot of this relates to what happened with the financial regulatory law. we have a big problem on our hands that we as legislators can solve by bringing washington under control. we are on your side. in 2012you will see that the republicans in congress will have its work repudiated. i mean people will find that we are doing all we can to fight a tide of rising regulation and
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spending. host: here is a tweet -- guest: raising taxes is not the way to stimulate the economy. of raising taxes suppresses activity. it is a way of penalizing hard work, if you will. it is true that the federal government can take in more revenue if the economy grows. when the economy grows, we have more americans who in fact can contribute to a reasonable tax obligation. we have certain responsibilities. we need to use tax revenues for state local government. if everyone can work and contribute and grow because they
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are able to appreciate the results of their hard work and appreciate the results of their success, that is the way to make sure we have adequate revenues. that is assuming that we have a federal government that actually spent wisely. that is where budget restraint comes in. this is about making the federal government the right size. it is not about taking good things from the american people. it is about letting them have good things and letting them enjoy what they worked so hard for, letting them take responsibility in their lives in ways that will assure that all of us do better. that is really the goal. host: next call is from north salem, n.y., on a republican line. guest: that is in our district. caller: good morning. thank you for being on today. i am a member of team watch
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n.y.. we are a group of constituents that watch polls and communicate with our representative so we have a good working relationship. i noticed that tim geithner and president barack obama said that if we don't raise the debt ceiling, the u.s. will default on its debt. there is a proposal, hr-421 proposed by congress and mcclintock that would prevent us from defaulting. in a meeting in new york, you said you were going to co- sponsor that bill. you just wanted to have your legislative people to a quick review of it. the other day >> catch that conversation online at our video lie briarry
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at c-span.org. the u.s.a. house about to gaffle in. 4d2 billion for the next budget year, that's 3% less than this year, 6% less than requested by president obama for homeland security. the house going through amendments to that bill. final vote could take place late today and also work beginning on the 2012 bill for military construction and veterans' affairs. also today in washington, about a half-hour, actually in new hampshire, mitt romney will announce he's running for president. you can follow that road to the white house coverage on c-span2. we'll also be stream lived online at c-span.org and later in our video lie brarery. we'll also keep an eye on house freshmen meeting today with treasury secretary timothy geithner about raising the debt limit. that meeth happens at 4:00 eastern. we'll have cameras here in case we hear comments from members following that meeting with secretary geithner. now we'll take you live to the house floor here on c-span.
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the speaker: the house will be in order. the prayer will be offered today by our guest chaplain, reverend john swoop. first church, harrissonberg, virginia. the chaplain: let us pray, heavenly father, we come in prayer knowing that you love us and are very much concerned about what goes on in this chamber today. as these members seek to be good stewards of the trust placed in them by we, the people.
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we confess our human frailty and pray to be delivered from taking up today's agenda out of pure self-interest or peer pressure but rather lead us, lord, to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our god. father, grant each member wisdom in their thinking on the issues, currently in their convictions and above all grace in their attitudes toward one another. and when this day is done, may each one hear the master say, well done, good and faithful servant. now, father, with deep respect for the faith, traditions of all members, i offer this prayer in the name of my lord and savior, jesus christ, amen. the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof.
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the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentleman from texas, mr. poe. mr. poe: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: without objection, the gentleman from virginia, mr. goodlatte, will be recognized for one money -- minute. mr. goodlatte: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i am pleased to introduce and welcome the reverend dr. john sloop, senior pastor of first presbyterian church, a church that has grown to over 1,100 members and over 500 attendees for sunday services. dr. sloop has served the first
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church and the community since he received his calling in 1986. dr. sloop is passionate about seeing the presbyterian church renewed and growing again and he's been actively involved in presbyterian for renewal, the coalition, the confessing church movement and has served on the board of the presbyterian outreach foundation. dr. sloop and his wife of 41 years, gwen, are the proud parents of three children and two sons-in-law and have been blessed by five grandchildren. we welcome dr. sloop's family and other guests who join us today and i am honored to call dr. sloop a constituent and a friend and i offer the thanks of this entire body today for his delivering the opening prayer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair will entertain up to 15 one-minute requests on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the
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gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: mr. speaker, while washington lives on an ignorant bliss regarding immigration, the american border remains wide open for the good, the bad and the ugly. often outlaws enter our country illegally are criminals with no respect for the law of any nation. this past sunday, hours before the crack of dawn, twice deported illegal joeanne rodriguez, drove through a police barricade, road over and killed houston police officer kevin will while he was working an accident scene. rodriguez's immigration status was far from the only crime he committed that day. rodriguez, a member of the ms-13 gang was driving three times the legal limit drunk, charged with driving while intoxicated, possession of cocaine, evading arrest and manslaughter. the crime was so violent that officer willis' body was dragged
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down the road before the killer stopped and was apprehended. deportation is no deterrent to criminals like rodriguez because as long as our border remains wide open in both directions, criminals will simply return to the united states and kill americans. meanwhile, officer will will be buried today and that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from massachusetts rise? >> ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> thank you. mr. speaker when it comes to the idea of eliminating medicare as we know it, the republicans are holding a bad hand. but instead of folding like a smart card player would, they have decided to go all in. mr. mcgovern: yesterday the republican majority voted to deem their radical medicare plan as passed into law, despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of americans oppose them. at a time when big oil is making record profits and gouging consumers at the pump, the republican majority has voted to balance the budget on the backs of the most vulnerable people in
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america. our children. our seniors, our students and our disabled. at a time when millions of americans are struggling to just get by, the republican majority has voted to provide massive tax cuts for the very rich. it's not fair and it's not right. the american people are paying attention, mr. speaker, they are making their voices heard, including at the ballot box. i urge my republican colleagues to listen and to abandon their reckless policies, leave medicare alone. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from washington rise? >> request permission to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today just days after memorial day to pay tribute to a brave man from medical lake, washington, who lost his life defending our country. 37-year-old sergeant first class cliff beaty was killed in baghdad on may 22 when he was
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attacked by an improvised explosive device. he died supporting operation new dawn in iraq, he died protecting our country, he died fighting for a better, freer, safer america. mrs. mcmorris rodgers: while we mourn the loss of this american patriot, i rise today to remind everyone that his memory will never be forgotten. we shall remember his legacy, his love and patriotism today and every day. sergeant first class beaty lived behind his parents, his wife karen, who is also in the army, his 17-year-old daughter and 13-year-old son who loved their father deeply. but he also leaves behind something that is more intangible, a legacy of honor for the bravery he displayed and the life he gave in the name of america. may god bless sergeant beaty's family and all of our brave men and women who have answered america's call to freedom. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the
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gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to commend the work of chicago house, an organization in nye district that provides housing, support services and job training to people affected by hiv-aids. mr. quigley: i commend chicago house not just for saving the lives of thousands of chicagoans and pulling them out of poverty, but also for saving money. chicago house is a perfect example of the type of program we should be investing in. yes, we have to make a small investment up front, but programs like chicago house take these funds and use them to train the jobless and provide employment rather than simply giving them a handout. training individuals and securing employment for them is a double win because not only do they no longer need subsidies, but they are also contributing to the tax base. we have to make a distinction between spending and investing. yes, we have to cut spending but we must be careful to maintain our investments in programs like
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chicago house that save lives and dollars. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. sessions: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to join fellow texans and americans across this great country in mourning the loss of a true conservative icon, former texas governor, bill clemens. as those of us who were touched by the governor joined together today to celebrate his life and ining his honor, may we all reflect on his many achievements and generosity as a dedicated entrepreneur, philanthropist and public servant for the great state of texas. governor clements was the first republican to serve as texas governor since reconstruction when he took office in 1979. his skillful leadership attracted texans to the republican party and to modern day conservatively --
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conservatism. paving the way for large republican gains across my state in the following years. governor clements also laid the groundwork for texas economic viability by recruiting business and international trade to diversify our state's economy. i am deeply satined by the -- saddened by the pas -- passing of the governor however his life is being celebrated today. my thoughts and prayers are which is his wife and his family and friends as they mourn this great loss, not only to america but to the great state of texas. god bless texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey rise? >> to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, the republican leadership has ignored the need for strong jobs agenda. mr. payne: and worse, they have
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pushed budget plans that would only further depress the economy and harm the unemployed. my constituents need real job agenda in washington now. yet my republican colleagues continue to promote earths to do the opposite -- efforts to do the opposite. on may 11 the committee on ways and means approved the republican bill that would un-- end unemployment as we know it, calling it the jobs act. this act would eliminate the guarantee of federal payment for temporary extended unemployment benefits on july 6. this plan would take $32 billion now in the federal unemployment trust fund, intended for extended unemployment benefit, and ship the money to the states in block grants and also set unreasonable qualifying requirements to receive benefits and allow the permanent diversion of regular unemployment funds with waivers. one in four million americans could lose extended benefits under this plan. this is unacceptable. and i have shown that the floor
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vote on this was postponed because my colleagues on the other side of the aisle received a message of disapproval from the american people, but more than abandoned this misguided bill, we need a stronger effort to increase jobs and improve our economy. the american taxpayers want and deserve more now. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> i rise to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> we'll soon vote on an amendment i offered last night. it simply says that none of the funds in this appropriations bill can be used in contravention of the war powers resolution which is the law of the land, public law 93-148. the law of the land states that the president can deploy troops but then must seek congressional
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authorization and must withdraw within 60 days if he doesn't get it. mr. sherman: why do we need to add to this bill a provision that says the president can't spend money in violation of existing law? because the president has asserted that resolutions of the united nations or discussions with members of congress substitute for congressional authorization. why are we voting on this now? it has been ruled by the particle americantarian to be germane, -- parliamentarian to be germane, we are voting now rather because congress should take a stand before we take our one-week break. even if you agree with everything that is happening in libya, and we all long for democracy in the rule of law in libya, this is a vote about democracy and the rule of law in the united states. this is our chance to simply say the president, even the president must follow the law. please join with me -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired.
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mr. sherman: in supporting the sherman amendment. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york rise? >> to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> the homeland security appropriations bill which will be on the floor in just a few minutes, is a bad bill for america and a especially bad bill for new york. it cuts funding from new york substantially, almost 10 years after the attack on new york, we track down and killed osama bin laden, but the threat to the city of new york has not dissipated. new york is a prime target for terrorists because of what it symbolizes, a vibrant economic atmosphere where entrepreneurs can flourish and a land of opportunity and freedom that serves as a gateway for the poor and the masses. mr. meeks: unfortunately this bill takes a hack saw to the city's counterterrorism and security efforts. according to mayor bloomberg, this bill would jeopardize the continuing -- the continuity and operations of counterterrorism programs in new york city that new york city has under way. cutting more than $100 million
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in homeland security funding for new york is not only nonsensical, it is dangerous. as my friend, peter king, has said, this bill puts new york at risk. these cuts place an unconscionable burden on new york and i will therefore vote against the bill in a few minutes and i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas rise? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to discuss yet another negative impact the dodd-frank act is having on the job growth. as agencies hear the united states are scrambling to meet the deadlines and community banks struggle under a mountain of regulations, we have done great taj to the competitiveness of the united states in the international financial marketplace. other nations have yet to consider the stringent regulations similar to the ones proposed no dodd-frank. mr. yoder: most importantly are the proposed regulation that is would require over-the-counter derivatives to be traded and
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cleared on exchanges. g-20 nations have state add goal for the end of 2012 as the implementation date of any global derivative reforms. our earlier upcoming deadline of july 16, 2011 for u.s. implementation of derivative reforms puts the u.s. financial market at a significant global disadvantage and will further disrupt our economy, economic recovery, and job growth. let's repeal these damages economic provisions and let's get america back to work again. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio -- gentlelady from ohio rise? without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. fudge: thank you. i rise today because i am deeply concerned about my community's ability to address its emergency response needs. fema safer grants are designed to assist cities with maintaining first responders on the streets. but challenges that fema has a stipulation that cities cannot have employees in layoff status. the cities most in need of these
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funds are financially challenged. it is difficult for them to avoid laying off employees when they have no funds in the budget to retain them as required by the fema grants. this is a situation that people in my community are being confronted with. the city of cleveland applied for and received two grants from fema. due to state level budget cuts, cleveland needs these fema grants now more than ever. fema should be granted the authority to waive the no layoff clause. this way the funding system would be better able to live up to the intent of the grant and our streets and communities would be safer. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. for what purpose does the gentlelady from maryland rise? ms. edwards: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. edwards: thank you, mr. speaker. today i rise in support of medicare. it's a decades old promise that my grandmother made to my mother and i make to my son. for the last five months, republicans have played political theater with our nation's most pressing issues, putting takes for millaries and
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-- tax breaks for millionaires and oil companies ahead of health care for seniors. just yesterday in a procedural silliness there was another act by the republican majority quest to end medicare and jeopardize the health of our seniors. yet again republicans told our seniors loudly and clearly that they are willing by any means necessary to end medicare. that's just wrong. they have also tried to trick our seniors into believing their budget plan wouldn't affect them today, but that's wrong, too. the fact is the end of medicare would mean that our seniors and individuals with disabilities would pay $12,500 in health care costs. the plan would force seniors to pay nearly $6,00 out of their own pockets -- $6,800 in the first year alone. i'm going to urge all of us and our colleagues on the other side to stop the political theater, to stand with the american people, to stop their quest to end medicare and support our seniors. how about creating jobs instead of killing medicare? the speaker pro tempore: the
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gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from vermont rise? mr. welch: to address the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. welch: thank you. mr. speaker, this congress and this country face two great fiscal challenges. one is long-term and one is urgent and immediate. long term we know we have to restore balance to our budget. and negotiations are under way in an effort to accomplish that. there is significant differences in approach. do you follow the outlines of the ryan budget which basically cut taxes for very wealthy americans in the hope that will create jobs and pay for that by slashing or ending medicare? or do you proceed along the outline of the obama budget which essentially would put everything on the table, including the pentagon, including revenues. but either way the urgent and immediate responsibility is that we pay our bills. in either side that engages in a game of chicken with the obligations of this country to maintain its full faith and
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credit is playing with fiscal fire and using a loaded gun for a game of russian roulette. that gun is pointed at the heart of the american economy. america pays its bills. we must do that and do whatever's required in order to maintain our reputation for doing so. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas rise? the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: i thank the speaker very much. good morning. mr. speaker, i rise to join with my colleagues of the congressional progressive caucus to ask the president to appoint a presidential appointee to the consumer financial protect bureau. which is law. it is to protect the american people. that nominee so far has been professor elizabeth warren, who has acted as an advisor. the cfpb has earned praise from the banking community for working to simplify and approve mortgage disclosure forms. this consumer protection board will protect the american people from predatory lending, from
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foreclosures, from excessive rates on your credit card. yet republicans in the senate in the other body want to make ridiculous accusations to hold the hostage position and take this individual into a hostage position and to suggest that she could not counsel with a state attorney general to help that state attorney general fight against mortgage foreclosures. when have you forbidden a federal representative, a federal representative of the united states government from talking to the states to be helpful? what is the purpose of the federal government other than to be helpful? it is time to stop the charade and stand with the american people. get someone working on that consumer board to protect the american people. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. mr. jackson lee: reckless and unfair mortgage practices. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired.
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the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from south dakota rise? mrs. noem: i wish to speak for one minute. i rise today to emphasize and stand with those in my home state of south dakota experiencing flooding along the missouri river. up an down the missouri river people continue to hope for the best and to prepare for the worst as floodwaters continue to rise and are going to rise to record levels over the coming days and weeks. i was in our state capital of pierre and the area this past weekend with residents helping sandbag with my family and surveying the looming damage. while the forecast for flooding grow grim, neighbors continue to help neighbors. in an unshakable sense of community remain strong. i also commend the hard work of
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the south dakota national guard for swiftly responding to the call of those in need. many of those affected have worked tirelessly over the past week on short notice to protect their homes, even though thousands could be displaced for months until the water recedes, not knowing if they'll have a home to go back to. i ask that our thoughts and prayers will be with all of those who have been affected by these floodings and national disasters in south dakota and across our great country. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. pursuant to house resolution 287 and rule 18, the chair declares the house in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h.r. 2017. will the gentleman from georgia, mr. westmoreland, kindly resume the chair. the chair: the house is in the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for the further consideration of h.r. 2017 which the clerk will report by title. the clerk: a bill making
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appropriations for the department of homeland security for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2012, and for other purposes. the chair: when the committee of the whole house rose on thursday, june 2, 2011, a request for recorded vote on the amendment offered by the gentleman from indiana, mr. rokita, had been postponed and the bill had been read through page 92, line 7. who seeks recognition? for what purpose does the gentlelady rise? >> i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by ms. baldwin of wisconsin. at the end of the bill before short title insert the following, section, none of the funds made available by this act may be used to design, develop, or procure any vessel of the coast guard offshore patrol cutter -- the chair: for what purpose does
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the gentleman from alabama rise? >> i reserve a point of order that the gentlelady's amendment is not in order. the chair: the point of order is reserved. the clerk will read. the clerk: none of the funds made available by this act may be used to design, develop, owe procure any vessel of the coast guard offshore patrol cutter class of ship unless the main propulsion diesel engines of the vessel are manufactured in the united states by a domestically operated entity except that the secretary of homeland security may waive the application of this section if only one domestically operated entity exists to design, develop, or procure the main propulsion diesel engine. the chair: the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. baldwin: thank you, mr. chairman. my amendment is simple. it would prohibit funds from being used to design, develop, or procure coast guard offshore patrol cutters unless the main diesel engines are manufactured in the united states and made by
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american workers. to address any concerns that this could be a single source contract, this provision may be waived to ensure competition and best value to the american taxpayer. the coast guard plans to build and procure 25 or more offshore patrol cutters in the coming years. and i fully support this acquisition. however i believe that the coast guard should be required to purchase engines manufactured in the united states made by american workers. for some reason, though, the coast guard has a history of buying ship engines from foreign manufacturers. we also know that the coast guard has a history of designing ship platforms which give preference to overseas manufacturers, resulting in major contracts going to foreign manufacturers. this practice is driving american manufacturers out of
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business. although congress required that vessels for the coast guard be manufactured in the united states starting back in 1993, in recent years the coast guard has continued to procure vessel engines from foreign manufacturers. mr. chairman, this is just plain wrong. the offshore patrol cutter is a 25-ship class, one of the coast guard's largest cutter classes. making these ships here in america would generate a lot of u.s. manufacturing jobs for many years to come, but absent some direction from this congress, i believe that the coast guard will continue to send american manufacturing jobs overseas. with unemployment at 9%, mr. chairman, we can no longer tolerate this situation. let's bring these jobs back home. let u.s. manufacturers compete
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for taxpayer dollars. i want to offer at least one specific example of the coast guard's current shortsighted procurement policy. the contract that they gavele to m.t.u., a german manufacturer, for the main propulsion diesel engine of the first national security cutter, this vessel, the uscgcberthoff suffered a catastrophic failure, including an explosion and destruction of the piston and connecting rod that had to be replaced. now, in its solicitation for this replacement, the coast guard noted, and i quote, a number of the critical parts are only currently available from the m.t.u. factory in germany where these engines are manufactured. these critical parts must be specifically manufactured and have a lead time of six to eight weeks from receipt of order. in addition, these parts must pass-through u.s. customs which
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may entail additional delays, end quote. the coast guard purchased these repairs on a sole source basis from a -- from germany at an estimated cost to the taxpayer of $265,000. u.s. manufacturers never had the chance to compete for these engines and any repair work necessary down the road. . again, mr. chairman, this is just plain wrong. getting americans back to work is my number one priority and i believe my colleagues would agree with me on this. i know full well these are challenging economic times in my home state of wisconsin and across the nation. recently i visited a manufacturing plant located in my district. workers there are confused, they don't understand why any branch of the federal government, no less a branch of homeland
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defense, would choose to give a major contract to a foreign competitor. the workers i spoke with share the worries of working families across the country. will they be able to support their families? will their children have the same opportunities that they had? or will they see their jobs shift overseas? at the end of the day this is about doing right by our fellow americans. mr. chairman, isn't keeping capable, hardworking americans working the essence of homeland security? in matters of national security in particular i believe that we should ensure that american workers build what we need to keep america safe. my amendment is a small but very needed change to the current coast guard procurement process. it will strengthen the u.s. diesel engine manufacturing base
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and create many well paying american jobs. mr. chairman, and my fellow colleagues, we have a choice, we can continue funneling good paying jobs overseas or we can allow my amendment to move forward, putting the best interests of america's working families and our national security first. thank you, mr. chairman, i yield back my remaining time. the chair: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? >> mr. chairman, i insist on a point of order. the chair: state your point of order. mr. aderholt: i make a point of order against the amendment because it proposes to change existing law and constitutes legislation in an appropriation bill and therefore violates clause 2 of rule 21. the rule states in pertinent part, an amendment to a general appropriation bill shall not be in order if changes existing law, modifies existing powers and duties. i ask for a ruling from the chair. the chair: does any member wish to be heard on the point of
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order? the chair finds that this amendment includes language requiring a new determination. the amendment therefore constitutes legislation in violation of clause 2 of rule 21, the point of order is sustained and the amendment is not in order. who seeks recognition? for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california rise? >> mr. speaker, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: would the gentlelady specify the amendment? >> it is amendment number 19. the chair: would the clerk read the amendment? the clerk: amendment number 19 printed in the congressional record offered by ms. speier of california. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? mr. aderholt: i reserve a point of order on the gentlelady's amendment. the chair: a point of order is received. the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. speier: mr. speaker, thank
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you. you know, we've all witnessed a absolute employment disaster in this country. last month we found that manufacturing sectors slowed again. in fact, the number of americans involved in producing goods is near its lowest point since world war ii. meanwhile we have some things we could do to change that and i've got a great example to share with you today. this is a t.s.a. uniform. this uniform is manufactured in mexico. imagine that. manufactured in mexico. a company in the united states, v.f. image wear, got a contract last february of 2010 for $98 million. it promptly outsourced the sewing of this uniform to mexico. so how many jobs were lost in this particular undertaking? it's estimated that 465 jobs for
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americans was lost because this contract was outsourced to mexico. this amendment is really quite simple, it basically will demand that the transportation security administration purchase clothing manufactured here in the united states. it is therefore our economic security, it's also important for our national security. this, mr. speaker, is a nonpartisan issue. it's pretty darn simple. and i urge my colleagues to support it. i yield back. the chair: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? mr. aderholt: mr. chairman, i insist on a point of order. the chair: state your point of order. mr. aderholt: i make a point of order against the amendment because it proposes to change existing law and constitutes legislation in an appropriation bill that therefore violates clause 2 of rule 21. the state -- the rule states that an amendment shall not be in order if it changes existing law requires a new determination. i would ask a ruling from the chair.
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the chair: does anyone wish to speak on the point of order? the chair will rule. the chair finds that this amendment includes language requiring a new determination, the amendment therefore constitutes legislation in violation of clause 2 of rule 21, the point of order is sustained and the amendment is not in order. ms. speier: mr. speaker, number 18. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 18 printed in the congressional record offered by ms. speier of california. the chair: the gentleman from alabama. mr. aderholt: i reserve a point of order on the gentlelady's amendment. the chair: a point of order is reserved. the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. speier: thank you, mr. speaker. you know, in 1949 over disputes on land grants the congress decided to create what are called alaska native corporations. there are some 200 of them that
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exist today and when they started out they received moneys that were small in nature but nonetheless helpful. over the course of decades what has happened here is an abuse by our federal employees by using this particular technique, contracting with the alaska native corporation, in order not to exetively bid contracts. they are sole source contracts. so as a result, by not exetively bidding these contracts, the taxpayers are the big losers and let me give you just one example. there was a contract let to the alaska native subsidiary that shared the $1.1 billion contract to manage missile and weapons research in huntsville, alabama.
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two other inexperienced subsidiaries received contracts without competition worth nearly $1 billion. to provide guards to army bases. now, this is pretty simple, colleagues. $1 billion contract, you run it through the a.m.c., the result is that you don't have to compettively bid it and what happened here is that the work was passed on to them and they overpaid by 25% on the contract, compared with deals for the same work awarded through competive bids, auditors later found. here's a $1 billion contract, you run it, you spend 25% more of taxpayer dollars, this is real money, we're talking $250 million overspent because the a.m.c. was used. now you may say, at least it's going to alaska natives. well, my friends, it's not going to alaska natives. what happens to the -- for the
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most part is the alaska native shareholders receive about $305 per year as a result. now, let's look at just one contract for the company, it's a contract for a $220 million. there was $14 million worth of profits. each of the shareholders received $305. but guess what? the people that raise -- received most of the money were the nonnatives that were hired. in fact, the consulting firm based in the bethesda home of james nunes, a non-native hired to help run the corporation, he received a tidy sum of $6.4 million last year, his c.f.o., $1 million, his executive vice president, $470,000, and his c.o.o., $430,000. so that's where the money went. my amendment would level the playing field and essentially
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treat all section 8-a businesses the same. my amendment would prohibit the use of funds in this act to be used to award noncompetitively bid contracts in an amount in excess of the competitive bidding threshold that other participants are subject to and that is a $6.5 million manufacturing contract. if it's under $6.5, you don't have to competitively bid, if it's over $6.5 million, you would have to. again, members, this is an affront to the american taxpayers, i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this amendment and i yield back. the chair: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? mr. aderholt: insist on a point of order. the chair: the gentleman will state his point of order. mr. aderholt: i make a point of order against the amendment because it proposes to change existing law and constitutes and violates clause 2 of rule 2 1, the rule states in pertinent part an amendment to a general appropriation bill shall not be in order if changes economisting law requires a new
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determination. i request a ruling from the chair. the chair: does any other member have a discussion on the point of order? the chair is prepared to rule. the chair finds that this amendment includes language requiring a new determination. the amendment therefore constitutes legislation in violation of clause 2 of rule 21 . the point of offered is sustained -- order is sustained and the amendment is not in order. who seeks recognition? for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas rise? ms. jackson lee: i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: could you identify the amendment? the clerk will read. the clerk: amendment offered by ms. jackson lee of texas at the end of the bill before the short title, insert the following,
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section, none of the funds made available by this act shall be used in contravention of section 44917 of title 49 united states code. the chair: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized for five minutes. to speak to her amendment. ms. jackson lee: i thank the chairman and i thank the chairman of the committee and the ranking member. this is a very challenging process that we're going through. it is challenging because we are addressing homeland security in the backdrop of the crisis in libya, of the arab spring, of the demise and end of osama bin laden by the brilliance of the navy seals, the intelligence community, president obama. and of course in the backdrop of domestic disasters from texas
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fires to tornados, from the new england to alabama to missouri. but there's something that we can do and we can recognize that there was no appointment made for 9/11. no notice was given to us on 9/11. there were indicators individuals learning to fly or take off and not landing. and so post-9/11 we came up with the enhanced concept of ensuring that we had federal air marshals and i'm glad for that. but i think it is important now in the neighborhood that we're living in, the climate that we're living in and the interest of terrorists, lone wolves, franchise terrorists to attack our mobility or transit systems which include aviation for us to focus on ensuring that there is
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no undermining of the utilization strategically of air marshals to protect the american public. i can just cite, mr. chairman, the incidences that occurred in the backdrop of libya. individuals domestically charging the pilot door, passengers having to bring down disturbed individuals, the air skyways, if you will, are both exciting and potentially troubling and dangerous. so my amendment ensures that the federal air marshals are effectively using their funds to deploy personnel on inbound flights that are considered high risk by the department of homeland security, that there's no limitation on that ability. they are one of our first lines of defense. and in defending the cockpits and aircraft cabin against terrorist attacks. as a ranking member on the transportation subcommittee, i've worked over the years and
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sponsored legislation to see that we have enough air marshals, that they will receive all the requisite training to effectively secure aircraft. make no mistake, the threat to our aviation system from air class inbound to the united states from foreign airports is serious and dangerous. just as it is in our rail system. and on christmas day, 2009, we saw the underwear bomber try to ignite petn and destroy a plane over detroit. we need air marshals and as i indicated the demise of osama bin laden has caused many to rise up and to begin to think, what is their next effort and attack, if you will, on the issue of aviation security? . while amendment deals with the inbound aircraft, the ultimate is air marshals are assigned to the highest risk. i also intend to move forward on my legislation that will provide
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training and increase productivity but also personnel. but this clearly goes to the heart heart of the problem, protect the american public, protect them as they travel domestically, protect them as they travel internationally. if you ever for a moment doubt the poe -- the potential of havoc, you have to look on that christmas day of an unexpected act of the so-called underwear bomber, or if you will, the shoe bomber, of some years passed. if you want to bring it closer to home you go back three or four weeks ago and see the series of incidences that required passengers and flight attendants to be engaged. so i ask my colleagues to support this amendment. it is in the form of a limitation that no funds should be used to limit the enhanced utilization which will require creative thinking and the ability to use resources effectively. my bill actually says, which
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this is not my bill, we should have two inbound, two undesignated, unnoted individuals that can provide a cover and a buffer for what has to be a very bad climate. let me thank the federal air marshals as we for their service. let me thank those under homeland security for their service, including my friends at the transportation security administration. they are in a tough, tough neighborhood. i close my just simply saying there will be an amendment on the floor dealing with collective bargaining for t.s.a.'s, again in my capacity on that committee let me say that collective bargaining has no impact on the great work of the t.s.o.'s. the chair: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? mr. aderholt: mr. chairman, we are prepared to accept the gentlelady's amendment. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina rise? >> i move to strike the last words. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. mr. price: i want to commend my
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colleague for focusing on the employment of air marshals to maximum effect. and want to offer support for her amendment. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri rise? >> i move to strike the last word. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. >> mr. chair, i rise in support of striking the language that would limit usai funds to the top 10 cities at risk. mr. cleaver: since gee, my district, missouri five, has -- >> will the gentleman yield? strike the requisite number of words. mr. cleaver: and make your statement. i yield. the chair: the gentleman withdraws his amendment. further debate on the gentlelady from texas amendment. if not, the chair will put the question. all those in favor say aye.
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all those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the amendment is adopted. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri rise now? mr. cleaver: mr. chairman, again i ask to strike the last word. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. cleaver: thank you, mr. chairman. as i had begun to say, i support striking the language that would limit usai funds to the top 10 cities at risk. since 2003, missouri five, my district, has received over $70 million in usai funding. recently i was informed by d.h.s. that due to fiscal year 2011 budget cuts that i did not support, half of the cities that received usai fund, including kansas city, missouri, would lose their funding. this means that kansas city will not be receiving funding that we have relied on for the last seven years.
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limiting f.y. 2012 usai funding to the top 10 cities would again detrimentally harm my district. usai funding in kansas city has been used for equipment and vehicles to support six rescue teams and four area fire departments vehicles, air equipment was also used to support special tactical law enforcement teams allowing response to events where chemicals or special hazards are present, as well as regional multiband emergency radio that allows for interoperability. funding has been used for regional patient tracking system that enables hospitals and e.m.s. agencies to manage multiple victims from an emergency event. the funding also allows for special mobile units that allow local public health agencys to transport equipment and send up medical dispensing sites. yesterday the kansas city star ran an op-ed i wrote decrying the devastating impact the loss
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of usai funds will have not only on kansas city but the entire state of missouri. kansas city has relied on these funds to prevent, protest, and responsible man-made and natural disasters. eliminating these funds would greatly hinder the region's ability to continue to ep hands these preparedness cape inters. just two weeks ago three usai funded search and rescue vehicles were sent from my community, kansas city, missouri, to joplin, missouri, to search for survivors after the devastating tornado. sadly to date, as of this morning, 134 missourians have lost their lives to this devastating disaster. however due to the hard work of missouri first responders, 144 missing individuals were located. we put the safety and security of our constituents in the hands of first responders, and it would be unconscionable for us
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to take away the tools they need to continue to save lives. as the representative of the missouri fifth district, it is my job to work to protect the citizens of my district and it is my goal to ensure that first responders in kansas city are given the resources they need to keep our homes skr. as i said many times, the u.s. budget is a moral document, a bold testimony to our national priorities. it is my priority to fight to protect usai funding to the kansas city area. this is why i stand in support of usai funds and the amendment to restore this funding to more than the top 10 cities that's been offered by mr. higgins of new york. thank you, mr. chair. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, proceedings will now resume on those amendments on which further proceedings were postponed in the following order. an amendment by mr. clarke of
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michigan. an amendment by mr. sessions of texas. an amendment by mrs. lummis of wyoming. an amendment by mr. carter of texas. an amendment by mr. price of north carolina. an amendment by mr. sherman of california. an amendment by mr. gosar of arizona. the chair will reduce to two minutes the time for any electronic vote after the first vote in this series. the unfinished business is the request for recorded vote on an amendment offered by the gentleman from michigan, mr. clarke, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. clarke of michigan. the chair: a recorded vote has been requested. those in support of the request for recorded vote will rise and be counted.
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a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]
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