thanks for taking my calls. there are ways to contact congress, writing, telephone calls, internet, even c-span. i am disabled. i'm 65 years old. i have to have a lot of medication and a lot of money spent on this medication. what are we to feel like when our elected officials get on national television and deliberately mislead or say falsehoods, and it is proven by their own party members? host: short answer? guest: psychological research shows that members of congress would be more credible if they just presented both sides of the issue. they would seem more transparent. they do themselves a favor if they get less political and more transparent. congressfoundation.org, citizen engagement.

host: bradford fitch, president and ceo of congressional management foundation, author of "citizen's handbook to influencing elected officials." the house is about to come in. keep your channel on c-span as our coverage of the debt talks continues this week. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] 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 oregon, mr. blumenauer, for five minutes. mr. blumenauer: thank you, mr. speaker. there is an err of unreality here on capitol hill. there is some people with no experience in government, little knowledge and less regard about the outcomes who are pontificating, lecturing, threatening. the disconnect between the rhetoric, the reality between governance and an ideological agenda is in large part why we are in the conundrum we are in today with the debt ceiling, something that has routinely been increased year after year for decades. it was on full display in the republican-controlled house yesterday as we debated the

interior appropriation bill. now, remember last woke, republicans took to the floor with a so-called cut, cap and balance proposal, which is their answer going forward with the economy. it would require, impose an 18% limit on the amount of spending that the federal government could employ in any one year. now, remember that is not what we have done for years. ronald reagan never proposed a budget that was even 21% of gross domestic product, so it's a dramatic reduction, more than 14% less than anything ronald reagan ever proposed. well, yesterday in the debate my colleague from kansas

offered an amendment, an amendment that i personally found destructive and unbalanced, that would have done terrible things, singling out for elimination the national endowment for the art, the national endowment for the humanities, cutting fish and wildlife, construction and acquisition of land it would be a 30% reduction in water infrastructure. overall it would have been an 11% reduction. but at least it was honest. this is where in fact some of my republican colleagues want to go. in fact, it is less than what they would have imposed with their proposal the week before. as i argued against it on the floor, i predicted it would fail overwhelmingly, that most republicans would vote against it because even though they are willing to make reckless

proposals, disconnected from reality, if the only consequences are polls and politics, when it really comes down to basics even they don't want to impose it. remember what happened on the floor of the house when we were debating republican and democratic alternatives to the budget. the republican study group offered up their proposal that went even further than my friend, paul ryan's, and when it was passing we watched republicans start to twist arms to get people to vote against it because, again, it was something they thought was great politics in theater, but if it became closer to reality they understood that it would hurt them if the american public understood the real agenda. well, we're now in a very serious stage dealing with the

debt ceiling. actions matter. too many are still acting like they're on the campaign trail or at a tea party rally or on a fox tv show shout fest. there have already been negative consequences from the reckless action holding the debt ceiling hostage. american businesses are paying more. there are threats that we're going to be paying for in the international bond market. it's past time that we stop this dangerous posturing. there is enough responsibility display to avoid putting the rhetoric in effect into a budget. now is the time to stop playing games on the budget deficit. we've seen this movie before. the last time the republicans took control in 1995 there was a debate on lifting the debt ceiling. excuse me, imposing a balanced

budget amendment. it failed by one vote in the senate, and it failed with the single republican no vote, mark capfield from oregon. senator hatfield stood up and he made clear he was all in favor of balancing the budget but not with a gimmick long into the future. he was chair of the appropriations committee. he invited his colleagues to make the action by reducing the budget, not playing games with gimmicks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. blumenauer: that's what we should do today. the speaker pro tempore: thank you. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, for five minutes. mr. poe: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, delay, delay, delay, delay is the administration's energy plan. the keystone excell pipeline project would bring 700,000 barrels of oil today from alberta, canada, to refineries in southeast texas.

this would provide more energy for america. the president has had over two years to approve the project, but the state department, the e.p.a. and out-of-towners have stone walled the project on alleged environmental grounds. pipelines are the most cost-effective and most environmentally sound way to transport oil and natural gas. oil must reach our refineries somehow. we can either import oil through a safe, reliable pipeline from our neighbors or on risky tankers coming from unstable middle eastern countries. even the e.p.a. should be able to figure this out after two years of delay, delay, delay. our neighbors in canada have developed a safe way to obtain crude oil from their oil sands. unlike many of the countries in the world, the canadians are concerned about environmental issues in crude oil production. they will sell us their crude oil. it will be piped through

refineries in my district in southeast texas and will be refined into energy and byproducts of crude oil and it will create jobs in america. if the white house fails to act, the canadians will take their oil someplace else. the chinese are interested in buying that oil, so it's going to be used and it will go to china. why not let it come to america? some environmental extremists are begins the project. of course they are. they are against every time of energy that comes from below the ground, but they have no answers for our energy needs. they say they want green energy. well, i do too, but there isn't sufficient green energy yet to run america. so they are against everything it seems except those curly c.f.l. light bulbs that come from china. they're all in favor of those. the radicals are against nuclear energy because, well, the japanese had an earthquake that caused reactors to

overheat. so no more nuclear energy. they're against natural gas because they don't like fracking even though safe fracking has been around for decades, and they don't even understand what fracking does. they don't want america to use coal even though our resources are abundant and new technology has made clean coal safer and more efficient. they don't even like the wind turbines because running turbines at night in west texas may bother the flight pattern of the bats. they don't want more offshore drilling. certainly can't have that. and, of course, they are against domestic crude oil anyway because they hate american oil companies. so what's the answer? well, the white house plan that has only been offered is to give american money to brazil so brazil can drill off its shores and then america will buy their crude oil. but no more offshore drilling for us, it seems. if we're going to buy crude oil from foreign countries, let's buy it from our neighbor, our

ally, canada. or the progressives prefer we keep buying oil from dictators like chavez in venezuela or kept hostage by opec and middle eastern countries or do they want us to do without energy altogether? meanwhile, gasoline is around $4 a gallon. so it seems to me the progressives if they get their way will have no energy self-reliance and we'll regress and go back to the horse and buggy days. but, whoa. wait a minute, mr. speaker. we can't go back to using horses but a they, too, cause pollution. mr. president, approve the pipeline. show some leadership. time to start making progress on taking care of america's energy needs, and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. quigley, for five minutes. mr. quigley: thank you, mr. speaker.

fellow citizens, we cannot escape history. we of this congress and this administration will be remembered in spite of ourselves. no personal significance or incision shall spare one or another of us. the fiery trial through which we pass will write us down in either honor or dishonor to the latest generation. even we here hold the power and bear the responsibility. we shall nobly save or lose the last best hope of earth. lincoln, of course, was talking about a state of the nation in peril on december 1 in his address to congress in 1862. but if this nation had not this kind of leadership of that magnitude, who knows where we would be today. they faced terrible consequences, and yet still had the extraordinary foresight and fortitude to charge ahead.

today we, too, face consequences. we face consequences of international economic impact, environment and ecological destruction. we consider this week, of course, a debt limit crisis that has brought out the best and worst amongst men and women i respect both here on this house floor and on the other side of this capitol building and on cable news stations across the country. we're also considering here in this house an interior and environmental appropriations bill that simply says to our children, you clean it up, we don't care to bear the burden. this bill does irreparable damage to our programs that keeps our air clean, our water drinkable and that protect our national and natural heritage. these are not dollars spent without thought nor are they investments of a trivial nature as some would have us believe. simply put, these are science-based pragmatic investments in public health. these cuts, i'm told, will not

save the country a penny. the policy riders included in this bill will cost tens of thousands of lives. the bill will expose our children, families and community will degrade our irreplaceable natural resources but this week we're not stopping at a debt ceiling quagmire. we will continue to continue a measure that would deem congressional approval for the keystone excel tar sands pipeline. the keystone system will flow from alberta down to the gulf coast threating the aquifer, the main drinking water source for the mid west. you can ignore that the keystone leak, spilling from the aquifer from the proposed expanded pipeline. you can ignore one pipeline into the yellow stone river in

montana earlier this month under which keystone excel would also run. and then ignore that it pollutes water sources and harms the proposed region's borial forest. and you can ignore the fact that testimony of trans-canada officials to canadian regulators include the fact that the pipeline would drive gasoline prices in the mid west higher, not lower. but let's forget all that. on procedural vote, this congressional consideration that is currently under review by the department of state is unnecessary and unprecedented, potentially negatively affecting our national security and safety. this proposed pipeline needs no congressional approval. . it need not be approved at all. its strong criticism from the environmental protection agency who suggested that the state department should consider how construction would affect

wetlands, my gratory birds, and commuelingts -- migratory birds, and the community through which it passes. we stand here today to consider an environmental appropriations bill that has been deemed the worst we have ever seen. and we stand here today while everyone around us fights against the compromise that might keep our standing in the international economy from dipping further than we have already seen it fall. indeed, we cannot escape history. we hold the power and bear the responsibility. we shall nobly save or lose the last best hope of earth. president lincoln, truer words were never spoken. thank you, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. chu, for five minutes. ms. chu: for so many, education is the key to the american dream. but for so many a good education seems like it is beyond reach.

that is why i am introducing the diploma act, or developing innovative partnerships and learning opportunities that motivate achievement. this legislation will address obstacles to learning by giving out grants to schools, social service programs, and local community to create comprehensive community-based solutions that will ensure that our struggling students will succeed. for a while now, i have advocated for changing the tone of the debate that surrounds school reform. too often critics point fingers instead of offering solutions. that is why i'm pushing for real change, dramatic change in our schools that harnesses the energy of parents, the community, and the school to turn around our failing schools that lift up all our students. now, there's no denying that this approach can be challenging and hard work. but research shows when

communities, parents, and schools collaborate and work together, there is nothing we can't achieve. i know this because i have seen it firsthand in my district. in east los angeles at a high school is a shining example of community school. it's the first new school built in the neighborhood in 85 years, and its facilities and classrooms are simply magnificent. but to me the most awe inspiring part is the community-based approach at the heart of it. with the help of the los angeles education partnership, the federal and full service community schools grant program, they tapped into the resources of the surrounding community to overcome challenges facing their students regarding health care, limited english proficiency, and financial literacy. they partnered for a full service health center on campus that will help maintain the health and well-being of their students so they are ready and

able to learn. pan american bank, partner to help the high schoolers to teach the importance of a budget and proper money management, skills which will stick with the students for the rest of their lives. luis rodriguez joined the effort to establish the first ever bookstore in east los angeles, making it easier for students to expand their education outside their classroom. and the effect of these programs is apparent on the smiles of the students' faces on their way to school and the cafeteria and the classroom. this type of engagement and support is giving students in the community new opportunities and opening their world. across america, our students face problems like homelessness, lack of health care, and limited english proficiency. research tells us that 2/3 of the achee.

for factors are outside of school and even the best teachers have an hard time overcoming these obstacles. a recrept study from chicago found when we don't address students' social and economic disadvantages outside schools, the hard work done inside the school can be futile. that's why the diploma act is so necessary. local groups can coordinate, integrate, and facilitate services aimed at strengthening student achievement such as drop outprevention, family engagement, tutoring, extending learning services, health care, and social support. and the bill contains strong accountability measures, including independent evaluations to measure results and identify best practices. these partnerships will make a difference in the lives of students in my district. when students are provided the right kind of support and opportunities to help them learn, nothing can stop them. the diploma act ensures that

america's next nobel prize laureate can come from any background or community because they have the support they needed to succeed. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx, for five minutes. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, is president obama really pushing to raise taxes while unemployment hovers around 9%? just to get an increase in the debt limit? republicans beg to disagree. increasing taxes on american job creators and families will mean fewer new jobs are created, which will result in more americans remaining unemployed. washington does not need tax hikes to raise the debt ceiling. washington needs spending cuts. the federal government is addicted to taxpayer money.

the solution is not giving it more of americans' hard-earned money. no, the solution is to halt the run away spending and permanently reform washington's reckless spending habits. we can fix this problem and pay our bills on time, mr. speaker. however, refusing to cut spending and going with the status quo tax hikes would be a recipe for disaster that will rob future generations of a chance to fully the american dream. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from oregon, mr. defazio, for five minutes. mr. defazio: it's clear to the american public that congress, especially the senate, is very good at doing one thing. and that is nothing. now, perhaps we can capitalize on this strength to resolve the

impasse over the deficit reduction. how could that work? how could congress do nothing but solve this problem? within 17 months by doing nothing we could lower the keffs -- deficit by $3.8 trillion. and in fact the president could reinforce the message just in case congress decided to do something, he could say, no, if they do that i will pocket veto it. i will do nothing. so we got a good chance here. congress does nothing or the president pocket vetoes, he does nothing. we could save $3.8 trillion. problem solved. how do we do that? we allow all the bush tax cuts to expire. you heard the gentlelady, the job creators will pay more. you have the billionaire hedge fund guys on wall street might pay a little bit more in taxes. they are creating so many jobs today. and the other millionaires, warren buffett says its ironic he pays a much lower tax rate

than his secretary. now, if we let the bush tax cuts expire, and adopted some modest reforms, those inequities would no longer be in place and we could have over $4 trillion of deficit reduction with a little bit of shared sacrifice. and yes, it would ask the millionaires and billionaires to pay as much as they did in the clinton era. an era when we had 3.8% unemployment, we actually paid down debt in this country. it was good for all americans. and we ask those who are most capable to contribute the most, but we asked a little bit of everybody. and that's what this doing nothing would do. now, after we have restored some confidence here by this big step of doing nothing, we could do another half of nothing and put people back to work. now, how could we do half of nothing and put people back to work? president obama has adopted this cockamamie republican idea of a social security tax holiday putting people to work.

i know a lot of families that could use an extra 20 bucks a week, but them spending 20 bucks a week for food on the tape table, doesn't put people back to work. if you are unemployed, you don't get the 20 bucks. we are borrowing $120 billion to do that under the guise this is creating jobs. and the president last night mentioned he wants to create jobs. guess what? it's not working. we do half a nothing. we allow the social security tax holiday to expire. doesn't create any jobs. we don't borrow the $110 billion from china to put in the social security trust fund. instead, we borrow $110 billion to put people back to work in private sector jobs. we resolve to begin to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure. $110 billion applied to the 150,000 bridges falling down. the $80 billion backlog on our transit vehicles. the pavement that's disintegrating across the country could put millions to work and not just construction

workers, engineers would go to work. people who manufacture things, steel, buses, tires, engines. all those people would go to work. we could put millions to work. gess guess what that does? when-d -- guess what that does? when people go to work, they don't collect unemployment, they pay taxes, they don't need food stamm nts, that reduces the deficit, too. by doing one big nothing and one half a nothing, and then one little action to put people back to work, nothing that anybody's talking about around here,, where are the jobs? who is talking about jobs? we need jobs. let's stop blathering around here, let's resolve to do nothing and resolve the debt crisis and resolve to do half a nothing and apply the money we save by doing that. nothing to putting people back to work. that's an agenda. little more productive for the american people. 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: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to cover two or three

things very briefly here this morning. first of all, "the washington post" reported on its front page yesterday that, quote, u.s. taxpayer money has been indirectly funneled to the taliban under a $2.16 billion, a $2 billion transportation contract. this is crazy. it should not be part of the job of the u.s. military to promote afghan businesses. this report found, quote, documented credible evidence of involvement in a criminal enterprise of support for the enemy, unquote. this is ridiculous. and it comes on the heels of a report last week that the navy has spent at least $300 million, at least $300 million, on two ships that were never completed, never sent on a mission, and are now headed for a salvage yard in brownsville, texas. are there no fiscal

conservatives at the pentagon? and sadly, most people in congress today are afraid to cut the defense department for fear they will appear to be unpatriotic. and yet it seems to me, mr. speaker, that it's unpatriotic to continue with megabillions and wasteful spending, or billions in spending that promote businesses in other countries. no part of the federal government should be immune from having to save taxpayer money. the american people would be far better off today if every department and agency had to take a care across-the-board 10% cut. let me mention a couple other things. we are going to vote later today on the keystone pipeline project. this is a project that will provide 20,000 jobs, and also will lead to 500,000 gallons of gasoline coming into -- gallons of oil coming into this country each day. this will help bring down the price of gasoline.

and yet it is opposed by very powerful group of wealthy environmental elitists. most of these environmentalists today seem to come from very upper income or very wealthy families. and perhaps they don't realize how much they hurt the poor in the lower income and working people by destroying jobs and driving up prices, but that's what they are doing. and they are certainly doing that and blocking or delaying this keystone pipeline project. we also -- we need to make sure that more jobs are created in this country in every way possible. just today in the "washington post" there is a poll that says that 49% of the american people are finding it very difficult to find jobs, and 33% say somewhat difficult. 82% of the american people say that it's difficult to find jobs in this country today. and yet we continue to cave in to environmental radicals and

destroy jobs and really just do nothing other than help foreign energy producers. so i think it's time that we start deciding -- siding with the american people and stop siding with foreign energy producers. lastly let me just say that the falsest thing that is said during the debate of the debt ceiling is some people are trying to help billionaires or multimillionaires. no one is trying to help the billionaires. they can help themselves. what the debate is about is do you want the money spent by the federal government and they will spend it without any question in the most wasteful, least effective, least efficient way possible, or do you want the money to be in the private sector where it will do more to create jobs and hold down costs? if -- and hold down prices? if that interwasn't true the soviet union or cuba would have been hetch on earth because in those countries the government took almost all the money. so it's not about protecting billionaires, not in the least.

. thank you, mr. speaker. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. woolsey, for five minutes. ms. woolsey: mr. speaker, last week general david petraeus relinquish afghan general command. he did this as he prepared to take over as c.i.a. director this fall. we're all grateful to general petraeus for 37 years of honorable and distinguished service, but the fact remains that the fundamental realities in afghanistan haven't changed. "the new york times" put it plainly, noting that the general is, and i quote them, "the general is leaving behind a country racked by deep political instability whose fledging security forces are fighting a weakened but deadly insurgency that kills coalition

troops and afghan civilians and officials nearly every day." that's a pretty damning assessment, mr. speaker, and it's accurate. in recent weeks two of president karzai's most powerful allies, including his brother, have been gunned down by the taliban. and ordinary afghan citizens are caught in the line of fire as never, never before. the u.n. recently reported that more afghan civilians were killed in the first half of 2011 than in any other six-month period since the war began. some these casualties are the accidental result of errant attacks and night raids by u.s. and nato forces. but the overwhelming majority of civilian deaths came at the hands of insurgents often using suicide bombers. there were nearly 1,500 civilian deaths between january

and june, but according to the u.n. that might be a low estimate given it doesn't include killings in northern afghanistan in the last few months because the u.n. closed their office in that region after it was attacked by a mob that killed several staffers. it's clear, mr. speaker, that after nearly a decade of war we haven't been able to vanquish the enemy and bring stability and security to afghanistan. if after 10 years we can't do more to subdue the insurgency then clearly, clearly we must be doing something wrong. clearly there must be a better approach. i have been pushing for that new approach for many years now. it's called smart security and it's based on the belief that sending 100,000 troops to occupy a sovereign country is not the best way to win trust and to promote peace.

and which has proven to fan the flames of resentment, to give increased momentum to extremists and to put lives of american troops and afghan civilians in danger. what we need, mr. speaker, is an afghanistan civilian surge as bold as the military surge that has gotten us further entangled in this failed war. that's what smart security is all about. instead of sending troops, let's send humanitarian aid. let's send our civilian experts who can help rebuild afghan schools and hospitals, who can help -- and i say help because we want the afghanistan people to be doing this, but we can help where necessary, who can help rebuild the political infrastructure and rule of law that will strengthen afghan

democracy, who can promote political reconciliation and peaceful conflict resolution. as he left afghanistan, general petraeus said, and i quote him, "we should be clear about the challenges ahead." his successor, general john allen, said, and i quote him, "i have no illusions about the challenges we will face together," but i say, mr. speaker, continuing with the current policy demonstrates that in fact we are not being clear eyed at all, that we are gripped by dangerous illusions about what a military occupation can achieve. this strategy has been given us a chance to work for 10 years. it hasn't worked. it's time for something new. it's time for smart security and the time to bring our troops home. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: thank you. the gentlewoman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. towns, for five minutes.

mr. towns: thank you very much, mr. speaker. this is a sad day in america. there are people who have to choose between paying their bills and eating a decent meal. all i hear is that we have a spending problem. we have a spending problem. we have a spending -- well, i want to be sure we don't try to solve our spending problem on the backs of the poor, the backs of children and on the backs of our senior citizens. we have been cutting services for the poor, children and seniors for years. go back and look at the record and you will see that this is a fact, and if you add up all the money we are spending on children and seniors it would not begin to make a dent in the

federal deficit. we spend less than 10% of the budget on children. that means we are not serious low investing in the future of this nation. when we cut programs like w.i.c. we are literally taking food out of the mouths of babies, and i say our priorities are certainly misguided or upside down. when we cut tens of millions of dollars from juvenile justice delinquency programs, then we better get ready to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on more prisons. and when we cut medicare we really do a disservice to the senior citizens in this country. when we look to save money by cutting medicare and social security, senior citizens have worked all of their lives putting a good portion of their paycheck into a system that paid for the well-being of

their parents and grandparents. if the truth is to be told, today's seniors have paid more than $2.5 trillion extra into social security. so that it would be safe, and here we are talking about making cuts. when president ronald reagan signed a law to increase the payroll tax, it was to take -- make sure social security would be there for future generations. but the government spent the money and now we want to make seniors pay again. that is wrong. our senior citizens have paid enormous sums of money into medicare, and now people are talking about ending it as we know it? certainly rise in health care costs is causing medicare problems, but we can fix those problems without making it a

voucher program. i call on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to take a deep breath and think clearly about what we are doing. children and seniors are the most vulnerable citizens in our country. they are depending on us to use sound judgment and not be suede by the political gamesmanship. i stand here this morning to tell you that i intend to fight for the well-being of our children and our senior citizens, and i'm going to fight for the well-being of them. of course, we need to uncut, uncap and get some real balance to this discussion. i think that we need to have a serious discussion recognizing the fact that our children and our seniors must be protected, and, of course, every time i hear one of our members talking about the fact that we need to cut medicare, we need to cut

w.i.c., we need to cut -- and i think that we need to stop and take a deep breath and recognize that when we do that we have to end up creating other things and we do not save money. on that note i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: thank you. the gentleman yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. kaptur, for five minutes. ms. kaptur: yes, mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. kaptur: mr. speaker, too often congress and washington deals with symptoms, not underlying causes, and that's what's going on with this current debate about the debt limit. it's kind of like you have an ill patient that has a fever and you say, well, you know, they're sick. throw some water on the patient and their fever will go down, but you never deal with the underlying infection, the underlying cause that is tripping the fever in the first place.

let me put a little math on the table here this morning as we look at the current economic challenge. when you have 14 million americans out of work and up to 24 million who are working part time or they've completely dropped out of the work force, they're not earning a check. money's not being taken out of that check to pay for their social insurance for social security. it's not going to pay the regular taxes so the government falls short on revenues. we have a jobs problem. that's the problem that underlies the deficit problem that we face. now, if you looked at just this year alone, 2011, so far the government's taken in over $1,202,000,000,000 in revenue. that's not bad for an economy that's limping along but we

spent $1.8 trillion so we've spent already this year over $600 billion that we didn't have, we've had to borrow that money, and that gets put on the long-term deficit. but why do we have those costs this year? we have those costs because the revenues aren't coming in at the same rate as in prior years when you have 14 million to 24 million people who want a better job and can't get one, that's the underlying problem that washington fails to see or address. now, the cost of that unemployment and the lack of revenues, you say, well, look at this huge accumulated debt which is over $14 trillion, but where did that come from? let me outline the reasons. the largest share, not only of this year's deficit but of prior debt that we've

accumulated is due to a lagging economy. families know this. they can't pay as much in taxes or any taxes when they're out of work. and if you take a look at the cost of the sluggish economy caused by wall street abuse, that's what threw us into this mess in the first place, right? back in 2008. the increased cost of unemployment are staggering. first we have to pay the unemployment checks. some people got 99 weeks of unemployment. the cost of food for those people are enormous. when the economy isn't functioning, the cost of medical care, the cost of medical care and so many across this country simply can't get good care. that's all tied into a very sluggish economy. the cost of unemployment are huge, and then the cost of the housing meltdown, all the bad mortgages, four out of five bad mortgages.

did wall street take care of its dirty laundry? no. they gave it to you, the american people, at the f.h.a., the federal housing administration, fannie mae, freddie mac, the veterans' administration, guess who's holding all the mortgages underwater? 80% of us. us. the american people of the united states. not wall street. did they write off any losses, no, no, no. they gave them to us. that is a huge and growing part of the federal deficit. then, there's $1 trillion that's been spent on two wars that's not been paid for. that's a major part of the deficit. we can't ignore that. do we say we should have a war tax? do we say we should end the war? do we say our allies should pay more? the point is we haven't said anything except put that $1 trillion on the deficit. then, let's take a look at the bush $1 trillion tax giveaway to the very wealthy who said that if we gave them the money

they would create jobs in our country. guess what, they took the money and they created jobs offshore. corporate profits are at all-time highs and our jobs increasing in this country? no. those corporate profits are due to the bookings of the foreign profits here in this country. so you say tax, give them more tax breaks, why? unless they invest in our country in job creation here. and finally, bush had this idea for pharmaceuticals. don't let the federal government bargain the cost of pharmaceuticals in medicare and medicaid. when we can't do that that adds billions, hundreds of billions of dollars to our deficit. mr. speaker, we ought to address causes, not symptoms. i yield back my remaining time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. woodall, for five minutes. . mr. woodall: i'm pleased to come to the floor today. i'm still a little winded.

i was in the ways and means committee. i'm embarrassed my fitness is you such a state running up the stairs winds me but that's what happens when you don't focus on something, when you don't put in the time it takes to stay fit, things degrade. that's exactly what's happened to our economy, mr. speaker. it's absolutely true that folks are out of work and it's absolutely true that the best form of unemployment relief is a paycheck. it's not an unemployment check, it's a paycheck. were are these jobs going overseas? this is the real debate that happens up here absolutely every day because people just believe different things about how it is that we put americans back to work. every single person who comes to this house floor wants americans to go back to work. wants america's economy to be the pride of the world once again. but i will tell you the reason we lose jobs overseas is not because we are taxing businesses

too little. it's because we are taxing businesses too much. we have the single highest corporate tax rate in the world in america. why does sony want to locate their next plant here? why does ricco want to locate their next plant here? why does whirlpool want to keep their plants here? we punish business in this country through our tax code like no other country in the world. now, is there a regulatory component to that, too, we need to solve to make america attractive for business? there absolutely is. is there a health care component of that as those dozens rise? absolutely there is. is there a payroll tax cost in that? we need to address the largest cost of that. absolutely there is. there is only one proposal in the house that does it and the ways and means committee right now. right now across the street, right here behind you, mr. speaker, in the ways and means committee room is holding a hearing on h.r. 25, the fair tax.

the fair tax eliminates these income taxes and moves america to a consumption tax model. america is the only country in the oecd nations that does not have a consumption tax. a fair tax shifts us in that direction. what it does for the first time, only bill in congress that does it, it eliminates every single bit of corporate welfare in the entire united states tax code. oil companies, gone. solar companies, gone. foreign companies, gone. .every single tax break in the code is abolished, mr. speaker, because we know the free market works best when the market is free. and we know that businesses don't pay taxes. consumers pay taxes. there is not a penny that we charge wal-mart that they don't roll right into their costs and pass it along to us. you see it. you see it absolutely every day. if we raise gas taxes, gas prices go up. if we lower gas taxes, gas

prices go down. the markets work those things out. if you ever been to a coke machine, mr. speaker, i'm from atlanta. i'll talk to you about coke machines. usually they are going to sit beside a pepsi machine. if you ever seen the coke cost a dollar an the pepsi right beside it cost $2? no. do you ever see the coke sell for $1.50 and the pepsi sell for $5? no. that's not just because coke's a wonderful product. it's because the consumer rules in america. and price matters. you can't charge whatever you want. you can only charge what the consumer will pay. when taxes go up, consumers have to pay more. the fair tax, mr. speaker, will bring those jobs back to america like no other proposal in this congress. it eliminates those corporate income taxes and it eliminates payroll taxes. have you thought about your payroll tax recently? 15.3% of every paycheck that you get. now, the wealthy don't pay-per-view roll taxes because they are making their money in interest or dividends or capital

gains. these things that payroll taxes don't come out of. those of us who work for paychecks, we pay-per-view roll taxes, and at 15.3%, the payroll tax is the largest tax that 80% of americans pay. large yeas packs that 80% of american families pay. we don't spend any time on the floor discussing that. we argue about income taxes all the time. half of america doesn't even pay income taxes anymore. payroll taxes are the tax that is american people pay. 15.3%. it comes out of your paycheck before you even get to see your paycheck. a nobel prize winning economist who helped during world war ii establish the withholding system, the government needed money in a hurry, it was wartime. that's when we began sucking money out of your paycheck before you see it. milton friedman said worst decision of his life. it was not working to do away with the withholding system once world war ii ended because you need to know how much money you are paying. you need to know what it costs you to run this united states government.

we talk about trillions. have you thought about a trillion dollars, mr. speaker. $1 trillion, cost of the president's health care plan, for example, if you start a business on the day jesus christ was born, and you were so bad at your small business, mr. speaker, you lost $1 million a day every day, seven days a week from the day jesus was born through today, you would have to continue losing money for another 700 years, mr. speaker, to lose your first trillion dollars. the we throw that number around like it's nothing. it is something. we need jobs back in this country, mr. speaker. the fair tax will do it. i encourage folks to pay attention what's happening in the ways and means committee today on h.r. 25. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from georgia, -- i'm soarry, the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, for five minutes. ms. jackson lee: thank you, very much, mr. speaker. my good friends have come to the floor of the house, good friend

just came and offered some solutions and i would say that it's important for members to have ideas and to be able to engage on behalf of the american people. every time we stand in this well, we should be rising to make the lives of the american people, those who have entrusted us to be the holders of the values of this great country, we should be moving on on their behalf. so this morning i'm asking that we get on with it. it's important to be discussing tax reform, but as many of us know, that is a long, protracted process of give and take. and many americans will understand what the payroll tax is all about when they look at the faces of their seniors and themselves, and they know that part of that is social security. and we know for a fact that social security has been a life line for millions of americans and it is solvent, and it's important to know that america

is not broke. but the good work of the ways and means committee and the good work of the judiciary committee, which is meeting right now, and i'll be heading on to that committee to talk about preventing corruption in business and making sure the american people get their fair share, it is important that we move on. how do we move on? we do something that americans have said by and large they want us to do together. and that is get past the debt ceiling, do something that has been done time after time after time. yes, we have grown as a nation of the the reason is because in world war ii we were not 300 million-plus people. we didn't have all the assets and responsibilities. in fact, the wars of iraq and afghanistan were longer than world war ii. and all of those moneys were spent under the last administration, tax cuts that went about for individuals who by and large have said no thank you because they want to invest in america. so i'm prepared to join with my

many friends to work on moving this country forward, but let's move on. let's move on beyond the impossible proposal given by speaker boehner of that -- that focuses on a hybrid, vote now for the debt ceiling then come back and fight it out again in six months. that is not the consistency and the evenness that is necessary for all of those who are seeking employment or all of those businesses or all of those in the arena of money making. they need an even pathway. and so while we get on with the ordinary business, get on with the ordinary business so that we can begin to talk about the growth of this country, education for the young people, making sure the doors of businesses stay open, talk about how do we fix a tax system where

we all can benefit. but as long as we are wallowing in the ordinary work, the work that should just go on, we'll never reach the point of sanity which is to sit down at the table of reconciliation and compromise. i know we have it in us. we like each other. but it appears to the american people that we may not like them. so i will just ask as we are nearing the resolution of the debt ceiling, again, to pay the bills that were built up between 2000 and 2008, billions of dollars spent in afghanistan. billions lost in untoward contracts, you don't even know where the moneys have gone. iraq, moneys lost. a war that was in essence a detour. and let me just say, every time i say that, i always thank our soldiers and their families because they are not a detour. they accepted the call to duty.

we owe them a great deal of appreciation, but the policymakers sent them into wars that are going on and on and on and it caused this country to pay for these wars. at the same time, drastic draconian cuts in the revenue coming into the united states bank account. so here we are. having left in 2000 with president clinton with a half a trillion dollars of surplus, we came out of 2008 in enormous debt. so what are we doing today? the debt ceiling is simply saying pay america's bills. and it's also saying to the many countries around the world, which we appreciate buying our treasury notes, that is of value to the united states, the dollar has been stronger than any other currency except for the manipulation that goes on in china, but it's stronger than the euro. so, mr. chairman, mr. speaker, it is important to pass the debt

ceiling, get past this frivolity . it is time to pass and move forward. the reid proposal can bring all of us together. that's what we should do to begin to study it. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. ms. jackson lee: on behalf of the american people. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from new york, ms. hochul, for five minutes. ms. hochul: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise for five minutes to revise and extend my remarks. less than two months on this job, i only have one question to ask. is anyone in this body listening to the people who sent us here? i could only conclude at this point that the answer is no. or we would not be teetering on the precipice, not just a government shutdown, but intentional, i say intentional economic shutdown. the likes of which we have never

seen in this country. i say intentional because the stakes of this high expense game of chicken, we all know the game of chicken, got a couple of crazy teenagers racing toward each other on a highway and nobody's going to swerve. what happens? when no one blinks, no one swerves? no one comes to their senses? a crash. lives are lost. no survivors. it's not a pretty sight. it didn't have to come to this. the american people who voted for us put their faith in us, they don't want this to happen. they wonder if anyone in washington is listening. they are absolutely right in that assessment. i'll tell you i was at a fireman's parade in a tiny, tiny village in silver springs, one of my most rural counties, wyoming county.

more republicans than cows out there, and cows and democrats, not a lot of people. but i'll tell you, we are all bound by the same feelings. this frustrated senior at the parade said to me, why can't you guys get your act together? we send you there to do a job and you guys aren't doing it. you know, he was right. he was absolutely right. i took that to heart. i came back here and i want to do something to restore his faith in us. and the seniors, he talked about the seniors. we are so scared out here. i need my social security. i need my medicare. why are you guys talking about hurting us? we pay into these systems all our lives, we don't deserve this. i said i'll go back. i'll do the best i can. i'll fight for you. they have fear, uncertainty, and disgust all directed at the ineptitude of washington. it is wrong, it is plain wrong that we are even considering defaulting on america's obligations. it's doubly wrong that we

consider defaulting on our obligations to our seniors. promises made 46 years ago this week with the advent of medicare. the integrity, the willingness to uphold and honor our promises should be the hallmarks of this great institution. and yet what i have witnessed in such a short time is a willingness to renege on our promises to our debtors, our seniors, and ultimately the american people. . right now it's not too late to avoid that highway collision where no one walks away. the american people deserve better than this. our small businesses deserve better than this. our middle-class families deserve better than this. i tell you, we need to get on with the business of the american people and do it as soon as possible. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair recognizes the

gentleman from new york, mr. engel, for five minutes. mr. engel: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i rise today because i want my colleagues to hear some of the things that i'm hearing from my constituents back home. people want to know why we cannot compromise. people want to know why we cannot work together. i don't know the answers to that because i think we should. and what i see happening here is something i haven't seen in the 23 years i've been here it's that people do not seem to want to move to the center and to compromise. i know some of my colleagues on the republican side of the aisle, particularly the tea party-backed freshmen, have signed a pledge never to raise taxes. well, i want to say what senator coburn said the other day.

he said, what am i upholding my pledge to? i uphold my pledge to abide by the constitution, not upholding my pledge to abide by what a special interest group wants. people want us to meet in the middle. people don't understand why there seems to be intransigents. you know, we have spent too much over these past decades. and you know what else? in order to get back to where we can balance our budget and pay our bills, we can't do it all with just spending cuts. it has to be three things. it has to be spending cuts, for sure. it also happens to be and should be closing tax loopholes for the very wealthy who get away with paying no taxes at

all, for large corporations who pay no taxes at all, for special subsidies, to businesses that move their jobs overseas, to special subsidies for companies like big oil who don't need the subsidies. we also need to make sure that those who can pay a little bit more pay a little bit more because that's how we get our budget back in balance. both my republican friends always say, you know, all we're going to do is cut and we're not going to meet the democrats halfway. then, i'm afraid we're moving to fall off a cliff. president obama was absolutely right yesterday when he said that one side seems to be saying, my way or the highway. tax cuts forever even if our budget is not balanced.

we as democrats are saying, let's do it a compromised way. let us cut spending. let us close tax loopholes. and let those who can pay a little more, millionaires and billionaires, pay a little more. we are here because the american people sent us here. i know my constituents are concerned about medicare and medicaid, social security and in new york graduate medical education. i didn't come here to devastate those programs, and i want my constituents to know that i'm going to fight like crazy to preserve medicare, medicaid, social security and g.m.e. we cannot balance our budget on the backs of senior citizens. i want to remind my colleagues that when president clinton, the last democratic president before president obama left office we had record surpluses.

when president bush came in we had record deficits as far as the eye could see. six of the eight bush years republicans controlled both the house and both the senate and had the presidency for six years. if they wanted a balanced budget amendment they could have had it. if they tried to balance the budget they could have done it. so i don't think lectures are important now. i think there's plenty of blame to go around on all sides. we had the bush tax cuts. we had wars. and we had reckless spending. and it was done under president bush with republican majorities in the house. so we need to put our heads together and move to a sensible center in terms of what the american people want, to get us off this precipice that we are about to fall into. i think there's one other thing the president should do. if he sees in a few days that

there's no progress being made and we are about to approach august 2 and we're about to have this train wreck, the president should invoke the 14th amendment. the 14th amendment says the public debt shall not be questioned and in my estimation gives the president the authority to raise the debt ceiling by himself. i think the president should do that if we do not come to a compromise. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back.

from president obama and speaker john boehner. republican leadership held a briefing on the status of debt talks and legislation. that is about 10 minutes. we have a bill that is common sense. there are more cuts in spending and increases in the debt limit. it has a real process for cutting spending before the end of this year, and it provides

the best effort to get a balanced budget enacted in the constitution. it is responsible, it can pass the house and senate. i hope the president will consider signing it into law. >> good morning. the president spent 15 minutes last night on tv. there were a lot of words in there, but what it did not say was what the president was for. there was no evidence that he has a plan. he does not like our plan, but he has not put a plan forward yet. there were a lot of words and focus on the politics here. the president spent a lot of time talking about millionaires and billionaires, things that have nothing to do with the debate right now. at this point, we have three options. one is to wait and do nothing,

go past august 2 and bring on possible default, which i am not for, nor any of us standing up here. another is to go with harry reid's plan, which as the speaker said, is a blank check. that is something that we, as republicans, do not believe something like that should happen. it helped to promote the economic policies of the obama administration that have wracked this economy. the third option is our plan. we want to change the system here and stop spending money we do not have and start focusing on getting people back to work in this country, doing something about the unemployment that is now still over 9%. >> last night, when you listen to the president, a great political speech. you watched leadership sit down

hour after hour try to get to a bipartisan agreement. it is difficult to ever have an agreement with someone if you are buying a house or car and you make an offer and nobody counters. nobody tells you what they want. the president lost because he could not make a plan or an agreement. as the founding fathers said, the house and senate have to come together to make a decision. that is what happened over the weekend. from those talks, we put together a bill. the provision that had republican approval. the bill had provisions that mitch mcconnell and harry reid were asking for. this is the opportunity to move this country forward. we look forward to moving this bill on to the house floor and on to the president. remember what the president did not say last night. he did not say he would veto it. >> the president's speech last

night, i believe, was historic. i do not recall the last time a president of the knighted states used a nationally televised address, not to tell the american people what he was for, but to tell the american people what he was against. seven days out from his august 2 deadline, there is still no plan to deal with the debt crisis from the president. when we heard from the president again was a call for balance, but there is a tale of two balances. the president's idea of balance is, republicans, i want you to raise taxes on small businesses and american families to pay for my spending spree. house republican's idea of balance, mr. president, we will raise the debt ceiling, but only if you agree to cut up the credit cards.

nothing has changed in the debate. i also found it interesting that the president's would quote mr. person, allude to one recon, both of whom -- thomas jefferson, allude to ronald reagan, both of whom alluded to the idea of a balanced budget. again, mr. president, we have heard it before. we know you want to get this done before the next election, but it is not about the next election, it is about the next generation. >> i am excited the house will be voting on the balanced budget amendment on thursday. it will be the first time that we have voted on that since 1997. one of the polls done last week shows 74% of americans support this amendment. what was most impressive was, two-thirds of democrats support

a balanced amendment. there is bipartisan support for moving forward on a balanced amendment. we will take action this week. when thomas jefferson, after they finished the constitution -- constitution, he said if i could make one change, it would limiting the government's ability to borrow money. i am happy that we are able to make mr. jefferson's dream a reality. >> could you talk about what you are saying to members? there were some members who preferred the original plan. [inaudible] how do you get them on board? >> we have taken from the framework and tried to stay with it. when you look at the cap that it proposed, the biggest challenge of how government grows so

quickly. in this bill, you have a vote for a balanced budget for a set time in the future. we will also have won this week. we will continue that fight. we have current cuts, going forward. it is not the bill the house republicans would write, if we had to write one thing only. this is a bipartisan bill that we crafted with harry reid. that is what the american people asked for, that is why we are moving forward. at the end of the day, the government will spend less, there will be caps on the provision, and there will be a vote to bring balanced budgets to the states. >> [inaudible] >> and there are a lot of big recipes out there that they do not like to share with you.

we do not want to share hours either. -- ours either. >> [inaudible] >> the package of discretionary cuts is real. next year's spending on the discretionary side will be lower than this year's spending. i think that is a big step in the right direction, and we put real caps in place. i do not have the numbers at my fingertips. i just know it will be less than last year. >> some members of congress were saying that the bill would allow for more spending than the ryan budget. >> i would much rather have the house republican budget. but remember, this was the product of a bipartisan negotiation. that is why it is not exactly everything what we wanted it to be. >> are you confident you can

pass given the conservative push back? [inaudible] >> listen, this was negotiated in a bipartisan manner between both houses of congress. i think we will have some work to do to get it passed, but we will do it. >> the markets are down this morning, credit rating agencies still threatening to downgrade our credit rating. is this plan enough for the markets? >> i do believe it is enough. when the joint select committee gets together, they are required to find cuts of at least $1.80 trillion. they could do more, but it is time for congress to do their work. the per step in the process is making sure we pass this in the house. i would ask all my colleagues, democrats and republicans, to

look at this common-sense plan as a way for that will put america's fiscal house back in order. >> republican leaders from a short while ago. we expect a number of other briefings. of course, the house coming back at noon eastern for legislative business. most of the afternoon will be spent expediting a bill that approved the permitting process approve oil from canada to texas. here is what we're waiting for. we will take to the capital now, hoping to hear from members of the republican study committee, including jim jordan they are announcing their opposition to the two-step plan of raising the debt ceiling, urging leadership to stand behind the cut, cap, and the balance bill that failed in the house last week. also, coming up at 11:30,

speaker pelosi. we will take that to you. jim gordon will be joined by other members of the house and senate members as well. this fall when the speeches last night from president obama and speaker john boehner. the switchboard on capitol hill is overloaded, according to media reports this morning. cq reporting on the discussion going on. one plan has drawn criticism from the president, but an alternative floated by the democrats and supported by the president, also faces an uncertain future. we will also be covering discussion in the rules committee about the speaker

paused debt proposal from john boehner. that rules committee hearing gets underway at 3:00 p.m. eastern. waiting to hear from the republican study committee members here on the debt and deficit. deficit.

>> thank you, everybody. especially my colleagues, for being here today. we have a lot of folks speaking, so it would be ok for any member of congress to commit that unusual behavior of having a thought. if we could all keep our comments brief so that we could get to the q&a session. although the president's speech did not give me a great deal of cause for confidence, nevertheless, i have hope that the president would drop his insistence on a huge tax

increase, opposition to pursuing a balanced budget, so we can agree on raising the debt limit prior to august 2. at this late stage in the process, it is obvious to everyone that it is possible, increasingly possible, that we will not have raised the debt ceiling by august 2. if that day passes without the debt ceiling having been raised, we believe it is absolutely essential that the federal government have a plan for prioritizing the payments that can and should, and must be made using the resources the government will have, especially ongoing tax resources. some of us have been making this argument for many months now. unfortunately, the administration has persisted in denying that it will prioritize payments in this scenario. instead, they persisted in predicting default, implying, in fact, they would choose to default on our bonds.

in a letter to congress, treacherous ethnic -- secretary geithner said -- treasury secretary geithner said that a default would inflict far reaching damage on our nation's economy, significantly reducing growth and raising unemployment. president obama said on may 15 of this year, "if investors around the world thought the full credit of the united states was not being backed up, it could unravel our entire financial system. a worse recession than we have already had, were spent a crisis than we have already had. the fact is, it is entirely within the power of this administration to avoid that the reason area, regardless of whether or not we raise the debt ceiling prior to august 2. these are scare tactics. they are meant to intimidate congressional republicans into voting for the package the administration wants. it is irresponsible and

dangerous. the administration should not be threatening to make the debt ceiling impasse more disruptive than it needs to be. now there are published reports that treasury officials are calling big bank executives, assuring them privately that if the debt limit is not raised, the treasury department will nevertheless in sure there is no default on our bonds. it is all well and good for the administration to provide that assurance to friends on wall street. i think it is time we provided that insurance to senior citizens across the country. that is why we are introducing a bill we are introducing today, injuring the full credit of the u.s., protecting america's soldiers and seniors act. as of this moment, we already had 31 co-sponsors in the senate. the number has been growing. the bill would instruct the secretary come in the event the debt ceiling is not raised prior to august 2, to make certain

obligations and priorities to be paid in full, on time, and without delay. the three priorities are simple. first, interest on our debt. second, social security payments. millions of senior citizens, including my parents, depend on the social security payment they ever earned by virtue of their own prior contributions to the system. finally, they will for active duty military personnel. the men and women risking their lives for us should not have to worry about whether or not their families will receive their income in a timely fashion. as this illustrates, there are far more than enough resources or the administration to make these payments and others. from the period from august 3 through august 31, total revenue will be at least $173 billion.

and the combined costs of paying the interest on our debt, social security payments, active-duty military pay, will be about $81 million, some less than half the revenue coming in during the month of august. these numbers, by the way, are not made up by somebody in my office. these are the numbers provided by the bipartisan policy center. let me close by saying this. this bill is not meant to be a substitute for raising the debt limit. i, and i suspect most of the folks on the stage, would vote in favor of raising the debt limit, provide we put the economy on a path to a balanced budget. but this is about minimizing what destruction might otherwise occur, if the debt limit is not raised. i continue to hope this legislation never needs to be implemented, but it would be very irresponsible to be

unprepared, or worse, to be unwilling to minimize the potential for disruption. at this time, i want to introduce the chairman of the rsc, congressman jim jordan. >> there is enough money in the month of august to ensure bondholders are paid, social security recipients get their checks, and the men and women who protect our country get paid. this bill spell that out. has had the senator indicated, when you have the president continue to try to scare people, instead of doing what i think is appropriate, which is reassuring people of the facts, we think it is critical to bring this bill forward at this time. so i just want to commend senator toomy and other colleagues here.

we think it is important to reassure the american people there is enough money in the month of august to take care of the things that can be paid for. at this hour, it could be a chance that we get past august 2. we believe it is critical that this bill is passed in both houses and sent to the president. >> thank you for your leadership. i have been working with pat and others for months on this concept. right now, it is particularly timely. the idea is simple. for months, we have heard about u.s. government default. there is absolutely no reason that ever has to happen, no matter what. this bill will make that clear. more recently, we have heard about social security checks not going out to seniors. there is absolutely no reason that should ever happen.

this bill will make that clear. and there has been similar talk about military pay. there is absolutely no reason those checks ever need to be disrupted. this bill will make that clear and insure that. i think we owe all of those groups -- and i would put seniors on top of that list -- that reassurance. the tactics over this battle are unfortunate, but we owe them that reassurance. >> i stand in front of you partially as one of those people who has been very frustrated with the disingenuous use of language from this administration. how often have we heard the word default? that is if we do not pay the interest on our bonds. and then the attempt from the

administration to scare our seniors. we have enough cash flow. it would have been a much more honest discussion, in many ways, much more denouement an interesting, to have a conversation about the one third of federal money that exist from borrowing. borrowing. >> it was somewhat disconcerting to hear the president last night speak primarily as to what he was opposed to, instead of what he was in favor of, with just

days to go until the deadline. we still have yet to have his into the fiscal problem. my colleagues behind me join us in saying we are looking for a solution rather than a deal. the house of representatives did that. the house listen to the public, the house listen to the public, when we passed, under leader been repulsed leadership, a bipartisan approach -- under leader boehner's leadership, a bipartisan approach to balance the budget. unfortunately, when it went over to the senate, we know that they postpone the vote. not engaging in any debate and putting it off for another day. we are still encouraged that that other day may come, but until it comes, we have legislation before us to

prioritize to make sure that these bills are paid and that we do not the fault. -- default. >> and we all know is wise to plan for the best but prepare for the worst. that is what this bill does. i commend senator to me and representative jordan, vitter, and others who have brought this forward. this allows us to avoid having american senior citizens being used as pawns to avoid this game of what some art improperly referred to as a default. the one plan that has been put forward to raise the debt limit, to address this problem, was put forward by this same group here, and was passed in the house with the support of five democrats in the house. when it came over to the senate,

it was denied an opportunity for a boat. -- vote. we think this is unfortunate. we think it is also no coincidence this happen as a result of a fact that a cnn poll released monday after it passed the house that the american people were overwhelmingly in support of the cut, cap, and the balance act, as it was described in the pool. -- poll. that is the only plan that has garnered significant support in congress and from groups in the country. we are preparing for the worst in the event that, if we reach or past the august 2 deadline, this will make sure our senior citizens and troops, those who have purchased our debt instruments, are not used as pawns to force a deal that would not be good for american

citizens. >> to one of the criticism that you will hear is that treasury cannot do this. physically, logistically, and they cannot do this. the first reaction to that would be, what has mr. geithner been doing since january? i think what we're hearing now, and a better answer to that is, with these private discussions now taking place between him and banking leaders is, he is working on this and has the ability to prioritize the interest payments, and i would imagine, social security payments as well. so i think it is a bit of a red herring for the administration to say they cannot do this. >> make no mistake, if there is a crisis on august 2, if there is a decline in the stock market, if there is a hysterical

reaction, the responsibility lies squarely on the shoulders of the president. at any point in the last six months, he could take the fall off the table. he could look at the numbers and reassure the markets he will pay the interest on the debt. he should reassure senior citizens he will pay their debt. he should reassure soldiers. if something happens august 2, the blame and responsibility lies squarely on his shoulders. i call on the president today to support this legislation to publicly come forward to say he will not default. >> i am a freshman. let me be brief and blunt. this president has created a mess. like a 10-year-old child, we are late to the game, and we have offered to help him clean up his mess. but like children often do, he

stopped his feet and is pointing his fingers and has made threats. that has not been helpful in cleaning up this mess. this legislation is one more serious attempt to reassure the american people that we will help clean up the mess. we are just calling on the president to finally lead and be a constructive voice in this, instead of trying to continue to scare the american people. [laughter] >> senator tom coburn. >> representative steve sutherland. >> over the seven months i have been here, i have claimed washington is broken. i think the american people and the world is seeing that broken this, as far as the solution that we put forward. last week, when we passed cut,

cap, and balance, bipartisan support, i believe the key component to that was the balanced budget amendment. if the fiscal responsibility were a crown, the crown jewel would be a balanced budget amendment that is sent out to the states, and allow the american people to choose, through the exercising of freedom, how they want their capital to operate. i will tell you, and the reason that is the crown jewel is because that is in line with what american families have to do. every small business and every state has do that. so i would urge all of the decision makers here at the capitol, do what americans want. the opportunity to set the stage for a balanced budget amendment to be enacted and to be adhered to, to put constraints on a city that has $175 billion coming

into the treasury every month, but continues writing checks out of over $300 billion. that does not work in the american family, that does not work in small business, and i have alluded to, that violates walking around since, which my parents taught me by the age of 10. >> send johnson -- senator johnson. >> i can certainly recognize how broken washington is. i sent a letter to the president, signed by 22 of my republican colleagues, saying it was irresponsible for the president to be scary the markets and americans the way he was doing. it was irresponsible to assume he was going to get a debt ceiling without fixing the problem. it was irresponsible not to have a plan b. i think we have found that that

he is irresponsible. so the responsible thing that is to pass this legislation. i just want to talk about the animal numbers. on an annual basis, we can cover the essential numbers. according to the president's budget, if we do not pass the debt increase, we have to live within our means. what that means is $2.60 trillion. to put that in context, that is $800 billion more that we spent 10 years ago under president clinton. it totally covers the debt, social security. it still needs $1.60 trillion for all other essential services. and that is only 200 billion less than we spent 10 years ago. so this does not have to be a crisis, unless we plan for it. unfortunately, this it ministration has not planned for it.

>> we want to let you know that this briefing continues live on- line at c-span.org. we are going to take you over to democratic leader nancy pelosi who is speaking to a group of firefighters. speaking about the national relations board. >> we are honored by the presidents of some many great american workers. please to be here with the co- chair of the steering committee, who also happens to be the chair of the education and labor committee of the house of representatives. well, he is a ranking member. hopefully, he can be the chair soon again. congresswoman tammy baldwin from wisconsin is here. she has been part of that fight in wisconsin. [applause]

all of us members of congress are proud to welcome each and everyone of you. the general president of the international association of firefighters. mr. mitchell, professional firefighters of wisconsin president. [applause] patrick bertucci, at the boeing, renton, washington plant. [applause] today, we come together to fight for jobs and the rights of american workers, to stand strong for middle-class, for our families, and america's future. we are here to send a clear message.

congress must create jobs, not destroy them. [applause] we must strengthen the middle class, not weaken it. we must not giving tax breaks to corporations that send jobs overseas. -- stop giving tax breaks to corporations that send jobs overseas. [applause] and we must protect workers' rights, not destroy them. [applause] that is exactly what republicans are doing this week. they are voting to make matters worse with legislation to gut the national labor relations board, where workers can voice their concerns and grievances. as my congressman george miller has said, this is nothing less than an outsourcers bill of

rights. i would say that it sound like an outsourcing bill of wrong. this would make it easier for companies to send jobs overseas and allow employers to punish workers for simply exercising their right to organize to demand better benefits and safer working conditions, to ensure a full day's pay for an honest day's work. that is what their bill would do. and democrats are fighting back. [applause] for months, in wisconsin, ohio, nation wide, the nation what republican governors and legislators attack workers. at every turn, middle-class american, teachers, firefighters, machinists, and even non-union members have

fought back. what an inspiration you are to us. now republicans are bringing their assault on american workers rights to washington, d.c. and we are here to join our brothers and sisters across the country to fight back. we will not stand idly by while workers' rights are violated and the middle class is under attack. just think, on saturday, the republicans had control on the house for 200 days. for 200 days, we had not seen a bill passed into law that created jobs. in fact, it has been the reverse. the very first bill that republicans introduced -- we call in the so be it bill. when the speaker was told that the bill would lead to the loss of 700 jobs, he said, so be it. we say no way.

that estimate is from the chief economist from moody's analytics. the very next the bill, the gop patient's right repeal bill. 300,000 jobs, according to the council of economic advisers. and then the republican budget. 900,000 jobs would be lost next year. 1.7 million jobs by 2014, according to mark zandy. -- zandi. all combined, it is almost 2 million jobs. 200 days in office, almost 2 million jobs lost by the legislation they have proposed. that is what they are proposing.

and in committee, they have introduced a transportation and infrastructure bill that would lose 600,000 jobs. that has not yet come to the floor yet, but as the chamber of commerce has said, investment levels are unacceptable. the bill would destroy, rather than create jobs. that is what the chamber of commerce said about their transportation bill. we will keep up the fight for fair wages and good benefits. we will stand up for working families, for a stronger middle- class, and for a growing economy. right now, republicans are proposing drastic cuts in their budget that will undermine our economic recovery, while threatening medicare, medicaid, and social security. together, we will fight for our workers and american jobs, and in doing so, make our country

greater, strengthen our economy, and strengthen the middle-class. i think all of you who are here to -- for what you do every day to that end. i am pleased to yield now to the distinguished co-chair of the steering and policy committee, ranking member of the indication labor committee, george miller of california. [applause] >> thank you very much, madam leader. thank you to all of the wonderful workers across the country who are here with us today. thank you for your effort to fight back against the republican efforts. this week, in this congress, the republicans will rush to the floor a bill to severely undermine the opportunity of middle-class workers, their opportunity to succeed in life. reason this bill is being rushed to the floor this week is to

change the rules in the middle of the trial with respect to a fortune 500 company, boeing. they want to have the legislature step in and changed the rules. but make no mistake about it, this bill is larger than that issue. it is critical and is correcting -- correcting. this affects many more american workers. it had devastating repercussions for our families, those who aspire to get a job, and those who currently worth about their job. it built a viscera the rights of workers and ship more jobs overseas. it will kill opportunities for people who are working hard and playing by the rules. this bill pits american workers against each other and takes away jobs from those who will assert their rights at the workplace. this bill says companies have a right to outsource work to china, india, or wherever, even when they break the law when

they do it. that is why this bill should be named the job out sorcerers bill of rights. republican intentions are clear. first they are coming for workers' rights, and then their jobs. today, in the american workplace, it is illegal to retaliate on workers exercising their rights under the laws of the country. these rights include the right to include and form a union, the right to strike, or even the right to sign a petition, asking for a raise or better safety equipment. but under this bill, these red become meaningless because there will be no effective remedy when jobs are outsourced and companies retaliate against those workers for exercising their right. no longer will there be a remedy for those workers. without an effective remedy, the republican's outsourcing bill of rights will make it easier to ship jobs overseas. it will also create a race to the bottom for american workers.

workers will be exercise their rights less frequently. working conditions will all get worse because workers will be afraid to speak up in the workplace because their job could be taken away for that simple act. economic activity will decrease and jobs across america will be lost in state houses across the country, republicans are attacking teachers and public servants. those same forces are working to eliminate protections and to gut the national labor relations board. this bill is just the latest effort by the republicans in congress to join this fight to limit the economic rights and opportunities of americans. all of these attacks are meant to remove the final check on corporate power in american democracy. the american people disagree with the notion that working families have too much power or get paid too much.

working family do not need smaller paychecks and workers do not need fewer protections on the job, but that is what they would get if this bill becomes law. so will republican leadership work with us to create jobs in this country and give americans the opportunity to get ahead in this economy? or will they only continue to help those who are already ahead? [applause] now i would like to introduce a man whose -- whose union members have been on the front lines of this fight from the first moves by the republican governors in the state of wisconsin, which spread across other republican states, carol schaefer, president of the firefighters. [applause] >> thank you. let me add an additional perspective to our view on

hr2587, a piece of legislation that is nothing more than another attempt to disadvantage workers, to strip away the rights for workers to have a voice in the workplace, to be able to have a place at the table and to be able to help continue build a great middle- class, working class, that this labor movement, quite frankly, what is possible for in the middle of the last century. 2587, introduced by rep. tim scott is nothing more than an extension of the right wing extremists who were swept into office last november. many of them in this congress, 20 state legislatures changing control, and too many governor'' mansions now controlled by those

who simply want to turn the clock back on workers and their representatives. this is not by accident. this is an orchestrated, organized, principal attempt to simply destroying america's labor movement, which is responsible for representing the rights of workers. workers that should have an even playing field to be able to select someone to represent their interests. let me make sure you understand. i do not believe this is rhetoric on my part. this bill is a direct extension of the work developed by the american legislative exchange council. this is a group that many do not have any knowledge about. it is an organization that flies under the radar screen but it is an organization supported by over 300 corporations and funded

by the koch brothers, who donated $200,000 last year, and the castle rock foundation, exxonmobil, and so many more that fund this organization, whose sole purpose is to develop legislation to hand off to state legislatures in order to undermine and destroy workers' rights and the union that represents their interests. i am going to cite a few members here. it is important to understand the real facts. following last november's election, 2000 state legislatures came together to discuss proposals, but instead they were handed proposals. that ended up being 850 bills introduced in the various legislatures across the country, beginning this february,

targeting labor unions. 61 bills in 20 states directly going after arbitration and mediation right. 73 bills in 28 states that went to the heart of destroying our organizations by denying dues deduction or agency fees. 33 bills in 19 states that try to silence our members political voice by preventing them from engaging in political activity or being able to contribute their own money to the political arena. 28 bills that restricted collective bargaining rights where they existed, including obviously in wisconsin and ohio, but then new hampshire, tennessee, florida, oklahoma, and the list kept on growing. and 40 bill that went to attack the rights and pension plans of workers who had earned those benefits over a lifetime of work. this is nothing less than those who want to take this country

back to a time 100 years ago, where very few had all of the bold and power, and everybody else had virtually nothing. it was america's labor movement, workers that came together who organized, who created the concept of having a retirement plan, being able to establish the safety nets that we now provide to our seniors and those less fortunate. this is now a political environment that wants to destroy all that was built. i can tell you, the three -- 300,000 members of the groups behind me that i am so proud to be part of will continue to fight with our friends in congress, with the legislative community, and we will continue that fight, and we will prevail. [applause] it is now my honor to introduce

it to you the congressional representative from wisconsin, the honorable tammy baldwin. [applause] >> thank you so much. i am proud to represent the people of the great state of wisconsin. we are truly on a crossroads moment right now, as a nation, and certainly, in my home state of wisconsin. we are at a moment when the republicans are assaulting workers' rights, collective bargaining, the middle class, and frankly, the american dream. we see it in sharp focus in the state of wisconsin, where a governor elected in the midterm elections, in a matter of six short months, wanted to repeal six decades of progress on behalf of working people in our state. when he set forth his proposals

back in february, we in wisconsin, drew a land in the snow. with last week's weather, we drew a line in the sand. but i could not be more proud to see the people of our state, the hard-working people of our state say, not here, not now, not under our watch. [applause] and through all of this, an incredible leader has emerged in our state. the firefighters were actually exempted from governor walker's cynical legislation to deny collective bargaining, but they did not take that as any reason not to be involved. in fact, they showed up in huge numbers, inspired by the leadership of the president of

wisconsin firefighters. here he is today. [applause] >> thank you, congressman baldwin, congresswoman pelosi, thank you for having me here. all of my brothers and sisters in the union fight, glad that you are with me. i am the state president of professional firefighters wisconsin. i am here to talk about what is happening in our state. i have been talking at rallies since february, so if i start talking loud or shaking my arms, i apologize. at those rallies, we do a lot of chants. the people united will never be defeated. my favorite one is, show me what democracy looks like. the crowd chants back, this is what democracy looks like we are

not going to do that one today. maybe we should. [laughter] what they doing in wisconsin is showing us what hypocrisy looks like. the attack on workers, the middle class, attacks on humans, we know it is not right. they tell us that our state is broke. they tell us we have a $3.6 billion deficit, that we need what we call shared sacrifice. let me tell you what shared sacrifice is in our state right now. in this last budget proposal -- actually, the proposal was passed. $800 million taken away from the school system. educational cuts in state aid. 12,000 women that would go to planned parenthood for basic medical care, that is no longer available. child --

>> coverage of this briefing continues on c-span.org. the house of representatives is coming back into session. they would consider a bill looking at the permitting process for a crude oil pipeline from canada to texas. also, extending small business programs and more work on the 2012 interior spending department bill.

the speaker: the choice will be -- house will be in order. the prayer will be offered by you are guest chaplain, the reverend. from the holy family church in pennsylvania. the chaplain: almighty father, we gather here this morning to asker to your wisdom, charity and humility. we continue to task of operating this great nation with honesty and integrity. grant us the wisdom to act for the greater good of all citizens . keep us humble that we not forget who we are and why we are here.

we remember the founding fathers who risked their reputations, their fortunes and their very lives to form a nation that ensures the freedoms and opportunities that we enjoy today. we also remember those brave individuals who paid the ultimate price to protect and defend those freedoms and opportunities. father, keep us dedicated to the people we represent, let us not allow partnership to cause discourse among our numbers and prevent us from completing our agenda.

we depend upon your grace and mercy to allow us to continue to serve this nation with honor and integrity. we ask this in your name, amen. the speaker: the chair has examine the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? >> to address this issue. mr. speaker, pursuant to clause 1, rule 1, i demand a vote on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. the speaker: the question is on the speaker's approval of the journal. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it and the journal is approved. >> mr. speaker, i demand the yeas and nays. the speaker: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays

will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. pitts. mr. pitts: i'll ask the guest in the gallery to join us in saying the pledge of allegiance. 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 pennsylvania, mr. altmire, is recognized for one minute. mr. altmire: mr. speaker, in the midst of one of the most contentious congressional debates in recent times, i knew just who to bring to washington to help bring people together. and it's my great honor to welcome the reverend miroslaus

ste will lmaszczyk. known simply as father miro he has led the holy family parish in pennsylvania for 26 of his 36 years in the priesthood. he has received numerous awards in recognition of his public service since he first came to the united states from poland in 1986. and as testament to his poll later among his gong gation conscious congregation, mr. speaker, i'd also like to welcome the three dozen holy family parishioners who made the trip to washington along with father miro and are now seated in the gallery to witness his opening prayer today. welcome to you all. on behalf of my colleagues in the house, welcome, father miro, and congratulations on being chosen as today's guest chaplain for the u.s. house of representatives. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman's time has expired. the chair will entertain up to 15 further requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina rise? >> mr. speaker, i ask permission to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from south carolina is recognized for one minute. mr. wilson: mr. speaker, on friday, dr. milton wolf and "the washington times" reported in the last two years over two million private sector jobs have been lost. unemployment has increased by 1.5%, u.s. dollar is 12% weaker and the long-term unemployment is the worst ever on record. and sadly the national debt has exploded by 40%. at the same time the administration pushed the failed stimulus spending here, the president urged german chancellor merkel to do the same in her country. the chancellor refused. and now as a result of her good judgment germany's economy has recovered. german unemployment levels are deduce -- reduced while over 14 million americans do not have

jobs. the president should learn a lesson from the german merkel, the solution is not for big government to keep borrowing and spending. tax increases destroy jobs. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism, our sympathy to the people of norway in the religious extremist mass murders. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from connecticut rise? >> request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, last night speaker boehner addressed the american people and said that if the president would simply sign his debt ceiling bill the crisis in his words would disappear. actually the opposite is true. an hour or two before his speech, standard & poor's rating agency issued a report saying that if the boehner plan passed, the american bonds would be downgraded from its a.a.a. status. down grade is as bad as default in terms of driving up lending costs and damaging a fragile

economy that today needs all of us to work together to strengthen job creation, to solve our problems. mr. courtney: the boehner plan called for three separate votes over the next 15 months for a debt ceiling increase, exactly the kind of political instability that rating agencies are not looking for. it is time for a comprehensive, balanced solution which the president has said he will work with the congress to pass to get this economy moving again and create jobs. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. tonight representative gabrielle giffords' office is organizing a special order to recognize border patrol agents who were killed in the line of duty of last year. mr. pitts: i want to thank her and her staff for working to acknowledge these dedicated people who died serving our nation. while i won't be able to speak tonight, i want to take a moment to honor agent michael gallagher who grew up in lancaster, pennsylvania. on september 2 last year agent

gallagher was on patrol near cassa grande, arizona. a drunken driver ran a stop sign, colliding into the patrol car and ejecting michael from the vehicle. he served in the border patrol for two years and also served our nation in iraq, risking his life to protect our freedom. he is dealer missed by his wife and his two sons. even though he moved away, i understand that he remained a dedicated pennsylvania sports fan. we cannot thank him and his family enough for his service. we can only honor him for dedicating his life to keeping americans safe here at home and abroad. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina rise? >> ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from north carolina is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, the clock is ticking and we must act now on increasing our debt limit. the american people must understand that increasing this amendment will enable us to meet obligations that have been incurred by democratic and

republican congresses in years past. mr. butterfield: defaulting on these obligations will not only wreak havoc on the american people, it will weaken our overall economy. republicans have been given opportunity after opportunity to help craft an acceptable long-term debt reduction plan that would include a debt limit increase but republicans have slow walked us to the brink of collapse. the republican plan is to imperil medicare and medicaid. republicans want to balance the budget by forcing the government away from government-sponsored medicare and provide vouchers so seniors can purchase coverage from private insurance companies. republicans want to shift the medicaid responsibility to states that are already struggling to balance their budgets. republican budget cuts will force doctors and hospitals and other health care providers to leave the medicaid program entirely. the republican stru strategy has been evolving -- the republican

strategy has been evolving for a long time and now it is revealed. shame on you, shame on the republican majority. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina rise? without objection, the gentleman from south carolina is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i ask the american people to listen closely to these words. and i quote, the fact that we are here today to debate raising america's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. it is a sign that u.s. government cannot pay its own bills. it is a sign that we now depend onion going financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our government's reckless fiscal policies. increasing america's debt weaken us domestically and internationally. leadership means that buck stops here. instead washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and our grandchildren. america has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. americans deserve better. these were remarks by senator barack obama march, 2006. mr. speaker, the president's hypocrisy could not be more

clear. may god bless america. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, two years ago, two years ago the republicans in congress campaigned on, where are the jobs, where are the jobs? not spending cuts or living within our means but where are the jobs? the blue dogs were the ones calling for responsible fiscal responsibility. then at the end of congress last year, president obama compromised with the republicans, extended the bush tax cuts in order to try to create jobs. mr. baca: this gamble did not create jobs, all it's done is extended the tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. we cannot play chicken, i state, we cannot play chicken and cause our nation to default. we must lower the deficit with cuts to wasteful spending. but we can't balance the budget on the backs of seniors, the poor by cutting social security and medicare.

while continuing to give tax breaks to the ultrarich and oil companies and those who make over $250,000 a year. no taxes, no jobs, no taxes, no jobs. we must compromise. it can't be my way or the highway. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas rise? >> request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from kansas is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. chairman. over the past year and a half we've seen this president take away a lot of our freedoms with big spending and a big health care plan much i want to talk about another risk to american freedom today and that's the united nations armed trade treaty also known as the small arms treaty. i'm profoundly disappointed but frankly not surprised that this administration is joining the united nations in crafting this dangerous treaty designed to curtail our second amendment rights. parties in this negotiation, the treaty, are talking about banning civilian possession of firearms, decreasing the ability of trade in firearms and heavily restricting the rights of americans to carry their

firearms. mr. pompeo: each one of these directtives if implemented would clearly violate individual rights in our constitution. the senate should not ratify this treaty. we must never turn our national sovereignty over to anyone, most especially the united nations. as a former solder -- sold who are dealer loves his mg and loves his fire -- his machine gun and loves his firearm, i know we have that right, we have to stand to protect it and i urge my colleagues in the senate not to ratify this treaty. 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 gentleman from rhode island rise? >> ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from rhode island is recognized for one minute. mr. cicilline: mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize three employers in rhode island that are honoring and supporting the brave men and women serving our great country in the armed services. these include a mutual insurance of rhode island, banner industries of north smithfield and a middle school. these rhode island employers have received national recognitions a -- recognition as finalists for the secretary of

defense employer support freedom award. and were selected for this honor from a pool of more than 4,000 nominations. this awards the department of defense's highest recognition of employers for the extraordinary support they provide to our national guard and reserve members and their families. the award is especially significant because nearly half of our nation's military is currently comprised of guard members and reservists. these men and women have put their lives on the line about a because our country asked them too, because of their service we're able to enjoy the freedoms we have here at home. we owe those serving our country, our veterans and their families, our utmost gratitude and respect for their great sacrifices on our behalf. i commend the businesses who recognize the sacrifices of our service men and women and their families and i yield back the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from alabama is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. yesterday, president obama gave a speech to the nation about the debt ceiling.

he said, and i quote, i won't bore you with the details of every plan or proposal, end quote. mr. speaker, i say please bore us with the details. the house passed the cut, cap, and balance plan that prevents a national bankruptcy by modestly cutting spending, capping the size of government, and advocating a balanced budget amendment to force congress to act responsibly. mr. brooks: in contrast the president gives fine speeches yet fails to submit a single written plan to balance the budget that can be evaluated by the american people. mr. speaker, i say bore us with the details. washington spending binge has put america $14 trillion in debt. america's future is at risk. congress welcomes written key tailed solutions to washington spending binge from the president. mr. speaker, i reiterate, please bore us with the details. america has a right to hear them. president obama has the duty to deliver them. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for

what purpose does the gentleman from delaware rise? without objection, the gentleman from delaware is recognized for one minute. mr. carney: mr. chair, i rise today in support of efforts to find a cure for type one diabetes. recently i visited with 11-year-old madly tollman from my home state of delaware. she was here to tell her story of what it's like to live with type 1 diabetes. madeline has to check her blood sugar levels, managing her diet, and injecting herself with insulin every single day. while search to find a cure for type 1 diabetes is progressing, people like madeline are looking for better ways to manage their diabetes right now. an artificial pancreas has the potential to transform the lives of those with type 1 diabetes. this device automatically controls blood sugar levels around the clock. allowing patients to remain healthy until a cure is found. but before this technology can be made available to patients, the f.d.a. must approve the next

step in the regulatory process for the trial. i commend the f.d.a. for committing to publish draft guidance by december 1. i urge the f.d.a. to stick with that guideline. children like madeline have waited long enough. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri rise? without objection, the gentleman from missouri is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. we voted last week on a plan put forward by my republican colleagues that i strongly opposed and was rejected by the senate. mr. carnahan: it would have ended medicare as we know t while preserving give aways to big oil and corporations shipping jobs overseas. now speaker boehner has introduced a new plan. which he says follow the spirit of the last plan. rating agency's say mr. boehner's plan won't work. it won't prevent a ratings downgrade, it will destroy hundreds of thousands of jobs, weaken the american dollar, and raise interest rates on loans

that keep families in their homes and students in school. won't work, not worth voting on. instead we are retreating to our partisan corners and refusing to cooperate. when the going gets tough we expect leaders to get to work. this default crisis is a test of leadership. those willing to drive our country over the economic cliff fail that test and need to get serious. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlelady from maine rise? ms. pingree: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. pingree: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker in the past few weeks the phones in my office have been ringing off the hook. the message from my constituents is clear. please don't touch medicare, medicaid, or social security. some are angry and some are tearful. all are sick with worry over the threat of losing ben fets they have earned and depend on. sadly these effective programs have become targets for those who would balance the federal

budget on the backs of seniors and the middle class rather than restoring tax rates for millionaires. it's unthinkable and it's unfair. i blan to do everything i can to pro-- i plan to do everything i can to protect these programs because they work. when medicare started 45 years ago, a third of our seniors lived in poverty. half had no health care coverage. today the poverty rate for seniors has been slashed. and nearly all of our seniors have access to quality care. thanks to the affordable care act, seniors won't have to worry about paying for preventive care or falling into the prescription drug doughnut hole. after working hard their entire lives, seniors should be able to feel confident that the system they faithfully paid into will be there for them when they need it most. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia rise? mr. moran: to address the house for one minute. revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from virginia is recognized for one minute. mr. moran: mr. speaker, i'll never forget the day that we voted for the clinton tax rates.

we were told by all of the republicans that this was going to cause massive job loss, an unbalanced budget, drive us into recession. well, we know exactly what happened. more than 20 million new jobs were created. we have the lowest level of poverty. the highest expansion of the middle class. three straight budget surpluses, and the people at the highest tax rates took home more after tax income than any time in american history. it worked. we handed over $5.6 trillion of surplus. and then when the republicans took power again, what happened? immediately they cut taxes. but not across the board. in a way designed primarily to benefit the wealthy. that's why the top 1% has 42% of this nation's wealth. the bottom 90% -- 26%, the

greatest income disparate ever. this is a manufactured crisis, mr. speaker. -- disparity ever. this is a manufactured crisis, mr. speaker. go back to what alan greenspan said, go back to the clinton takes. pay for medicare. pay for wars. don't manufacture crises. don't drive us to deadlines where the whole world is watching and they can't understand why we act as we do. do the right thing. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from new york is recognized for one minute. mr. tonko: thank you, mr. speaker. in just a few hours my republican colleagues will bring to the floor the jobs outsourcers bill of rights. this piece of legislation is an open attack on work force protections. a union busting tool that will open loop holes to ship jobs overseas and make historic

changes to workers' rights. all to serve a well connected special interest community. this bill will allow companies to fire workers, workers who think that they might have a better shot at supporting their families in these times by banding together to negotiate with their employers. that right, the freedom of association, finds its origins in the first amendment to the united states constitution. whether or not you like unions, there is no sense in making it even easier to ship our jobs overseas. if this bill becomes law, a company faced with a few organizing workers trying to form a union can close an entire united states plant and move the work to china. where sweatshop laborers will work for less than even the lowest paid nonunion american workers. actually that's an assault on america's middle class. i would urge my colleagues to oppose this reactionary and poorly thought out legislation. with that, mr. speaker. i thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky rise? mr. yarmuth: to address the

house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. yarmuth: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i know my constituents and most americans are trying to figure out exactly what this debt ceiling crisis is. it can't be about the desire to cut spending because both sides have already agreed to more cuts than are on the table in either the senate or house. no, this is a politically induced crisis that the republicans have created in order to force votes on the debt ceiling next year during a presidential campaign and weaken the president. but i hope they realize that if they weaken president obama, they weaken the presidency as well. and if they succeed in defeating him next year, their candidate, their president will face reduced stature in the world just as our political system will face a reduced stature in the world. we are the foundation of economic and political stability around the world, and this crisis is threatening our stature in that position. we cannot let the republican

politically induce default cry cies-default crisis to succeed. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from new york rise? without objection, the gentlelady from new york is recognized for one minute. ms. clarke: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, our colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been in the majority for a full 29 weeks. and they still have not addressed the number one priority of the american people, jobs. the republican majority has instead used the time and energy that should have been focused on jobs to manufacture a crisis that could very well destroy the full faith and credit of our nation. what makes this made-up crisis so undignified is the other side has taken the american people hostage to their radical plan of placing the burden of deficit reduction on the backs of poor, working poor, and middle class struggling families. while asking absolutely nothing

of the most fortunate amongst us. those who have done very well in america have been asked to do so little for the country that made their success possible. the republican-led congress has totally ignored the job crisis and actually managed to create another. the 112 congress owes the american people an apology for continuing to waste their time. where are the jobs? we owe the american people real job creation. i yield back. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota rise? without objection, the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for one minute. mr. walz: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to tell my colleagues what my constituents are saying. simply stop playing games. we all come to this job with certain ideas, values, and principles, but that doesn't mean we get to let our ideology dictate facts. failure to pay our bills will have a catastrophic effect on our still recovering economy. it's as simple as that. this isn't a question about

enabling future deficits. the federal government needs to cover the promises made to our seniors, soldiers in the field, veterans, states, and creditors at home and abroad. we need to pay our bills. the need to address our debt is every bit as serious as the need to avoid a default. we need a balanced approach and shared sacrifice. we cannot balance the budget on the backs of working and middle class americans while simply refusing to ask corporation and billionaires to pay one penny more. we cannot ignore the facts and allowing our nation to default is in no way the way to fix our budget problems. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from north carolina rise? ms. foxx: permission to address the house for one minute, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady from north carolina is recognized for one minute. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. our record debt of $14.3 trillion is growing and poses a direct threat to our national security, our economy, and our children's future. the american people deserve real leadership right now not politics as usual.

the president's bipartisan deficit commission called the house-passed path to prosperity a quote, serious, honest, straightforward approach to addressing our nation's enormous fiscal challenges. end quote. on the contrary the democratic co-chair of the commission recently criticized the president's fiscal plan introduced on april 13 by stating that, quote, when you compare it to the ryan plan, the commission's plan, it really doesn't stabilize the debt. the debt is a percentage of g.d.p. gets up to around 77%. it never gets to primary balance, end quote. if president obama and the democrat leaders of the senate wish to take solving our spending driven debt crisis seriously, the solution is simple. washington must stop spending it doesn't have. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? without objection, the gentleman from florida is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker.

mr. speaker, america earned the name the land of opportunity because anyone willing to work hard and play by the rules can make it here. mr. deutch: well, our families still work hard. they still play by the rules. and yet so many are barely scraping by. so they send us to washington to fight for them. they can't afford lobbyists. they only have us. today we'll consider republican legislation that is a textbook example of why too often the special interests win out over the public interest. h.r. 2587 gives corporations a green light to send jobs overseas if their employee simply asks for a decent salary or better hours. this bill is based on the premise that executives can negotiate multimillion dollar bonuses for themselves but if american workers exercise their rights, their jobs will be on the next plane to china. that's the majority's answer to outsourcing of american jobs. if rights of american workers

get in the way of corporate profits, then it's time to do away with those rights. let's stand up and fight to keep jobs here. let's fight for american families. let's defeat h.r. 2587. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan rise? >> to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman from michigan is recognized for one minute. mr. clarke: thank you, mr. speaker. as we're on the verge of facing government default, there are several proposals on the table for us as members of congress to consider. and in my opinion none of these proposals go far enough. yes, they cut money in hopes of reducing our deficit and reducing our debt. but here's what they don't do. they don't cut, they don't cap and they don't forgive student loan debt. look, people, we want to create

jobs, we want our families to have financial security, we need to help them get out of personal debt and the most powerful way to get this economy moving again and to get our people the education they need is to help forgive certain student loan debt. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? >> thank you, mr. speaker. by the direction of the committee on rules, i call up house resolution 370 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: hol house calendar number 60, house resolution 370, resolved that at any time after the adoption of this resolution the speaker may, pursuant to clause 2-b of rule 18, declare the house resolved into the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the bill, h.r. 1938. to direct the president to expedite the consideration and approval of the construction and

operations of the keystone x.l. oil pipeline and for other purposes. the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with, all points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. general debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour with 30 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on energy and commerce, 20 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on transportation and infrastructure, and 10 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on natural resources. after general debate, the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. it shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five-minute rule the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on energy and commerce now printed in the bill. the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read. all points of order against the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute are waived.

no amendment to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be in order except those printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution. each such amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject to amendment and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole. all points of order against such amendments are waived. at the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendments, the committee shall rise and report the bill to the house with such amendments as may have been adopted. any member may demand a separate vote in the house on any amendment adopted in the committee of the whole to the bill or to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute. the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion except, one,

motion to recommit with or -- except one motion to recommit with or without instruction. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. the gentleman will suspend. the gentleman from florida is recognized for one hour. >> for the purpose of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. we have a nice florida colorful tie on today. pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. during consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to support this rule and the underlying bill. house resolution 370 provides for a structured rule for consideration of house resolution 1938, the north american-made energy security act. the rule makes 11 of the 13 amendments submitted to the rules committee in order for robust debate here on the house -- floor of the house of representatives. all 11 amendments made in order

are democrat amendments and this legislation passed out of energy and commerce with a bipartisan support, gathering yes votes from six democrats on the committee including the former chairman, mr. dingell. mr. webster: this bill has moved through the committee process with bipartisan support because it's not required -- does not require anything in the extraordinary to do. distilled in simplest form, it directs the president to make a decision. it does not prescribe his decision one way or another, it just simply asks him to act, say yes or say no. after nearly three years of review, study and comment the president would have to decide whether or not to issue a presidential permit, permitting the keystone x.l. pipeline. this bill does not allow any corners to be cut, any environmental considerations to be glossed over. in fact, not only has it required environmental impact

statement to be executed but several supplemental statements have been performed as well. furthermore, upon receipt of the final environmental impact statement but not later than november 1, the president still has an additional 30 days to weigh the evidence and make up his mind. after nearly three years he's not have to approve the project nor disapprove the probably, he simply has to make a decision. and what exactly is at stake? what hinges upon the approval or disapproval of this monumental infrastructure project? american job creation, overdue economic growth and increased national energy security. transcanada believes that the approval of the construction of the keystone x.l. pipeline will create about 20,000 shovel-ready construction and manufacturing jobs adding $6.5 billion in personal income for those workers. it injects more than $20 billion in private sector investment in the u.s. economy. it generates more than $585

million in taxes. it pays more than $5.2 billion in property taxes during the life of the pipeline. undeniably strengthens america's energy security by enabling to expand the exportation of 80,000 barrels of oil a day from our -- 80,000 barrels a day from our 8 from our neighbor and ally. according to the united states department of state, if the pipeline is not approved, quote, the u.s. would not rec a reliable and cost efficient, secure source of crude oil from canada and would remain dependent upon unstable foreign oil supplies from the middle east, africa, mexico and south america, end of quote. once again, mr. speaker, i rise in support of this rule and the underlying legislati relevant committees of jurisdiction have worked to

provide us with a bipartisan bill which as its core is quite simple. it simply directs the administration to make a decision on america's energy and security and job creation. i encourage my colleagues to vote yes on the rule and yes on the underlying bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker, and i thank my friend for yielding and compliment him on his sunshine tie over there with all that wonderful florida speakout. you too, mr. speaker, you kind of look pretty good with that color. we must be taking a picture or something around here today. mr. speaker, i rise today in strong opposition to the rule for h.r. 1938 and feel that much like the majority's previous

legislation attempts to increase offshore drilling this backwards-looking, dirty energy bill will not lower the price of gasoline for the average american today, tomorrow or in the future. it manages, this bill does, to completely ignore the pressing need to develop clean, sustainable energy. in fact, only the large oil companies will benefit from this bill. in its very amplecation for the keystone -- application for the keystone x.l. pipeline extraction, it pleeves this expansion will actually raise oil and gasoline prices. the pipeline expansion connects canadian oil to the gulf of mexico, making it possible to shift tar, sand, oil out onto

the world market for the first time. the pipeline will allow transcanada to bypass the midwest, reducing what the company called, and i quote, price discounting, unquote in the midwest due to what it considers an, i quote, oversupply, unquote. the oil will run past montana right through texas, ignore nebraska completely and wave goodbye to the united states while it rides right out of the country. providing canadian oil companies access to this new market is the only reason to want to expand the pipeline. transcanada's application actually indicates that it expects the price of crude oil to increase by $6.55 per barrel in the midwest and $3 everywhere

else after the expansion is completed. ultimately the expansion would lead to a windfall for canadian oil companies of between $2 billion and $3.9 billion by the year 2013 while increasing the cost of gasoline for hardworking americans between 10 cents and 20 cents per gallon. the people of the united states will bear all the risk of an onshore oil spill and reap absolutely none of the benefits. let there be no mistake about this, the risk an oil spill from these -- risk of an oil spill from these tar sand pipelines is very real. the oil is so much more corrosive than traditional crude oil that even canada has yet to approve a dedicated pipeline

conveying it to its coast. leading to frequent spills. for example, the very pipeline for which the majority bill hastens expansion suffered 12 spills in its very first year. the first spill in june, 2010, occurred only one month after the pipeline went into operation. just this last may the keystone spewed 21,000 gallons of oil in north dakota. already, mr. speaker, americans are paying the price for a project which delivers to them absolutely no benefit. a similar pipeline recently discharged 840,000 gallons of

oil into michigan's river causing one of the largest oil spills ever in the midwest. on july 1, a pipeline broke and spewed approximately 42,000 gallons of oil into the yellowstone river. between 1990 and 2005 there were over 4,700 related oil spills. the keystone pipeline expansion would expand the risk of a b.p.-sized oil spill from the gulf of mexico to front yards across the heart of this country. after its initial impact statement received harsh and extensive criticism, the state department issued a supplemental draft statement, the period for public comment on that draft closed on june 6. the state department is currently reviewing the comments it received in response to this

second statement and a process expected to take several months. nonetheless the state department has reasonably indicated that a decision can be expected by the end of the year. yet this bill would require a decision within 30 days of the issuance of the final environmental impact statement and no later than november 1. without further justification republicans seem to think it necessary to shortcut the process. compromising the discussion and its analysis. there are still many questions that need to be answered regarding the pipeline, including information on greenhouse gas emissions, safety, alternative routes and environmental justice consideration. this year the republican majority has offered three offshore drilling bills that have utterly failed to preserve

and protect our environment. it's clear that my friends on the majority are more concerned with keeping big oil companies happy than implementing a workable energy policy for the future. instead of crafting policies to ensure that the growing, sustainable energy industry is filled with american workers, the majority wants to enrich canadian oil companies at a cost of america's economy and environment. these kinds of dirty energy bills keep us mired in the muck of fossil fuels when what we need to do is focus on making our energy use more efficient. . unfortunately republicans seem intent on enabling our country's

oil addiction. this is not good policy and will certainly be not good policy in the future. mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, is recognized. mr. webster: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. barton. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. mr. barton: i thank my friend from florida for the time. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. barton: mr. speaker, i am puzzled by congressman hastings' remarks in opposition to the rule. this is a very fair rule. the rules committee received 13 amendments from the minority. they made in order 11 of those. one amendment was not germane and the other amendment by mr. markey would have restricted the oil to the united states and not

allowed any of the product to be refined and sent overseas possibly. and that's a function that the rules committee felt should be a market function and not prohibited. so 11 amendments by the minority were made in order. this is a bill that came out of my committee, the energy and commerce committee, on a bipartisan vote. all the republicans supported it in between a fourth and third of the democrats supported it. the underlying thesis of the bill is pretty straightforward. under current law you're supposed to make a decision on pipeline permits between 180 and 190 days. the obama administration e.p.a. has had two years on their watch and one year under the bush administration. the e.p.a. has had over three years, if you count towards this september, next month, or right after august, and has not made a decision. the bill says make a decision. make a decision. there is an existing pipeline,

the keystone pipeline, would connect an existing pipeline that ends in the midwest to the gulf coast. it would go to congressman poe's district in port arthur and go over into louisiana. it would create tens of thousands of jobs in construction. it would bring approximately a million barrels of oil per day into the united states to provide competition for existing oil supplies. it would be refined in u.s. refineries, and most of the problem if not all would probably be consumed by u.s. consumers. this is a good bill. this is a good rule. i would ask that we support the rule and then listen to the debate and hopefully decide to support the underlying bill. i want to thank my friend from florida for his time and i would yield back the balance of my time. to congressman webster. mr. hastings: the gentleman

yields back. if i could engage mr. barton just a moment, i yield myself 30 seconds. mr. barton: i'm happy to yield. mr. hastings: i'm curious to know if this will cause the price of gasoline to go down in your judgment? mr. barton: if my judgment, if the gentleman would yield, in my judgment providing more full supply for our refineries would liken the possibility that prices would go down. mr. hastings: likely, possibility. i'll take that pretty much as a no. mr. barton: take it as a yes. drives the prices down. mr. hastings: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased to yield to my good friend from virginia, mr. connolly, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia is recognized for two minutes. mr. connolly: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank my colleague and friend from florida. i rise in opposition to this rule and i rise in opposition on substantive grounds. the rules committee approved for our consideration here on the floor every germane amendment but one, the markey-connolly

amendment which would have required a simple certification that the bulk of this oil to be transported by this proposed pipeline be for a designated for domestic consumption. we hear a lot of rhetoric about the need to expand american production and/or access to secure oil to lessen our dependence on foreign suppliers. that indeed is a noble goal. it's one which i share. but not at any price. and i don't want to be sold a pig in a poke. the fact that the rules committee would not put that amendment on this floor going into content rather than procedure, finding it germane but still not allowing a fair debate and consideration on this floor i think gives a lie to the

intend behind the pipeline. this oil is not for domestic consumption. this oil is for foreign export. it has very little to do with domestic oil supply or it might have very little to do with domestic oil supply. a simple requirement that the preponderance of it be for domestic supply i think would have made prudent domestic policy, and i think would have allowed a fair and interest debate here on the floor of the house. as to what the real intention of this pipeline is. so i say to the american public, i urge you not to be fooled by propositions from the other side that this is going to be good for american consumers. this is going to be good for chinese consumers. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. gentleman from florida, mr. webster is recognized. mr. webster: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. poe. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman from florida for yielding.

also admire the gentleman from florida with the exotic tie and his comments. but i stand in support of the rule and of course the underlying bill. the rule is a fair rule. i represent southeast texas. we still think we are the energy capital of the world. the pipeline from canada will go down into southeast texas, port arthur, texas, which actually has high unemployment. the pipeline will go to the refineries, the refineries will be able to expand and hire refinery workers. to refine that crude oil. i think that's a good idea. the canadian oil sands produce -- would be able to produce 175 barrels of oil reserves second only to saudi arabia. the idea we need to move away from middle eastern oil is a good idea.

maybe we ought to support our allies, our loyal allies that are in a stable country. a medium-sized pipeline, just to give you some statistics, pumps about 150,000 barrels a day. to replace that, you would have to have 75 trucks a day or 75-car train every day. pipelines are the safest way to transport crude oil. 75% of the accidents occur with a third party causing the accident to the pipeline. but if we don't make a decision, that's what we are asking the president to do, and as my friend from florida knows, being former judges, we made decisions. it didn't take us three years to make a decision. you get the evidence, you make a ruling. and it's taken, i think, the federal government way too long to make a decision on this issue. but failure to act, delay,

delay, delay, is tantamount to a no. and eventually the canadians will sell that crude oil that they have to china. or other buyers. so i think it's quite important that we go ahead and make a decision, have the federal government rule on this issue. there are 500,000 miles of pipelines in the united states. about half of those run through texas. i'm told that a third of all those pipelines run through my congressional district. we have a lot of pipelines. and i think it's important that we continue to try to take care of ourselves, use a safe product from canada, make sure that all the requirements, environmental requirements are imposed in making this pipeline. to create jobs in america. build the pipeline, create jobs in southeast texas for americans in the refinery business because

we still rely on crude oil. last i would say i agree. we need to eventually have green energy, but we don't have that now. so if we cut off all of this, what will we use? i urge support of the rule. i urge adoption of this legislation so that we can move forward with construction, american jobs, and deal fairly on the issue of energy, energy reliance upon ourselves and getting that from our allies instead of third world dictators like chavez and the middle east. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i would say to my friend, judge poe, that we are starting the green energy movement. i readily understand the economic impact on port arthur,

the state of texas, and i also am deeply concerned for the ranchers in the immediate, 13e6k -- in the immediate, -- midwest, specifically, montana, north dakota that are bypassed and the possibility of their oil and gas costing more is at the least disturbing. but i do want to share a report that was formulated regarding tar sands and their potential by the i.h.s. cambridge energy research association. and it's under the iegis growth -- aegis growth in the canadian oil sand. what it is, and i would urge my colleague from florida to know that i'm the last speaker, so when i finished i don't know how many more speakers you have, tar

sands which are also known as oil sands, are a combination of clay, sand, water, and bitumin. a heavy black asphalt like hydrocarbon that cannot extracted through a well like -- cannot be extracted through a well like conventional oil. it's estimated that canada economically recoverable tar sands deposits in alberta total 175 billion barrels, making canada as judge poe pointed out second after saudi arabia in oil reserves. producing fuel from tar sands has significant environmental impacts. extracting tar sands and upgrading it to synthetic crude oil produces roughly three times

greater greenhouse gas emissions than prouded in conventional oil on a per unit basis. tar sands development also destroy forest and wetlands and wildlife habitat, kills migratory birds, and degrades water quality and air quality. that said tar sands oil contain on average 11 times more sulfur, 11 times more nickel, six times more nitrogen, and five times more lead than conventional oil. these pollutants are harmful to human health, causing lung and respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis, and the metals found in tar sands are neurotoxins. the pollutants released by refining tar sands causes acid rain, smog, and haze, and communities living near these refineries report elevated

levels of cancer. mr. speaker, the bill before us overrides current law for the sake of padding the pockets of oil companies -- company c.e.o.'s and fails to create significant sustainable jobs for the average american in the growing sustainable energy sector. this bill will never become law and is once again a waste of our time. i oppose this opportunityistic legislation for many of the same reasons i made it very clear as have others, but i have made the vow to be the last man standing in the fight against expanding offshore drilling and i may be among those that will continue to stand against transborder tar to stand against transborder tar sands being