people in wall street and people in paris about derivatives, about subprime loans, about ways to make money at the expense of poor people and possibly bing the world to its knees economically. that we're not discussing. but we are discussing the possibility of putting people in jail for going to amsterdam and talking about buying some marijuana. something smells foul. and that's why i oppose the bill. i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from virginia is recognized. mr. scott: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. scott: we can cover the international drug conspiracies with a reasonably drawn bill. unfortunately, this bill not only covers the international drug conspiracies but also as the gentleman from tennessee has pointed out, those who are ensnared by doing things that are legal where they occur but if you agree to do it in the united states it's all of a

sudden a drug conspiracy that will subject you to all kinds of mandatory minimums. i would hope that we would defeat this bill, start from scratch and draw a bill that covers what ought to be covered and leaves out what ought not be covered. agreeing to go to canada or go to amsterdam to do something which is legal would not be a criminal conspiracy in the united states. . i hope we defeat the bill and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. smith: let me try to address the concerns of two of my colleagues on the judiciary committee, and i want to re-emphasize that extra territorial laws do not require that the conduct be illegal in foreign countries. congress has enacted numerous laws and rarely hinges on whether the conduct is criminalized in the foreign country. terrorism, drug-related, money

laundering, child soldiers, these are extra territorial offenses that do not require that the conduct be against the law in a foreign country. most statutes don't even require that the criminal engage in illegal conduct inside the united states either. if they engage in terrorism or money laundering and come into the u.s., they can be prosecuted. the issue of conduct is not addressed in extraterritorial laws, but in extradition treat yees. the treat yees do not require that the conduct be illegal in foreign countries. before the u.s. can extradite anyone, it must first establish dual criminal atlanta. it is the principle that the crime in one country has to be a crime in a country extraditing

you. and a person is later apprehended, the government will have to establish it to extradite him back to the u.s. the extradition laws and treat yees among the countries of the world provide for this. this principle is excluded from this legislation because it already exists in federal law. finally, mr. speaker, i want to emphasize that the obama administration fully supports this legislation. the department of justice supported similar legislation in the last congress and the department of justice stands by its position as expressed in the 2010 views letters and supports this legislation tonight. i urge my colleagues to support this strong bipartisan piece of legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r.

313 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: i move the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 1905 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 1905, a bill to strengthen iran sanctions law for the purpose to persuade iran to abandon nuclear activities and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen and the gentleman from california, mr. berman, each will control 20 minutes. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio rise?

mr. kucinich: i rise to claim time in opposition. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman from ohio oppose the motion? mr. berman: motion or request? the speaker pro tempore: the motion? mr. berman: i have no objection to the gentleman claiming time. i do not oppose the motion and therefore, i have no objection to the gentleman claiming time in opposition. the speaker pro tempore: on that basis, the gentleman from ohio will control 20 minutes in opposition. ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman fl florida is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: i ask unanimous consent that mr. berman be allowed to control half of the time in the affirmative. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman from california will control the time. the gentlewoman from florida is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill and i also ask

unanimous consent to enter into the record my correspondence with the chairman of other committees of referral on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. ros-lehtinen: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ros-lehtinen ros-lehtinen i rise in strong support of the iran threat reduction act which i introduced with the distinguished ranking member, the gentleman from california, mr. berman. i would like to thank the gentleman from california, mr. sherman, the ranking member on the subcommittee on terrorism, nonproliferation and trade for his key contributions on this bill. as is well known and articulated in the declaration of national emergency, the iranian regime poses an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the united states. the revelation in october of

iran's plot to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united states on our soil and in the process, murder and maim countless americans is a stark reminder of the regime's desire of a world without america. the exemplary work of u.s. officials foiled their plot, but the regime's threat remains. we would be naive to think they will not try again. tehran continues to call for the destruction of our ally israel while denying the holocaust and making every effort to is late the jewish state. ahmadinejad wants to put iran's money where his mouth is, providing weapons, money and support for several terrorist groups including hezbollah and hamas, which are waging war against israel and our allies in the middle east. and last month, the international atomic energy agency provided a report saying

that tehran has been working on nuclear weapons for years despite calling on them to abandon these efforts. their intentions are crystal clear. we clearly understand the urgency of the iranian threat. many of our closest allies understand this sense of urgency from the israelis, to the british and canadians. we tried the olive branch of negotiation and diplomacy and what did we get? calls against the united states and our allies and plot to shed blood on our soil. the resolution passed in november does not even begin to cover the ground that we need. the resolution had no deadline for compliance which by the regime and no consequence, just rhetoric. we need crippling sanctions against the iranian officials

and we need the sanctions to be fully implemented with serious violations, penalties for their violations. we must undermine the foundations of the iranian regime in order to compel it to abandon its deadly path. the iran threat reduction act closes loopholes in existing sanctions against iran's energy and financial sectors, sanctions senior iranian regime officials and expand sanctions against those who helped rowing regimes expand their dangerous weapons program. i hope that our members join us in stopping this dangerous regime in its tracks. with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: i ask unanimous consent to put into the record an article from "the "christian science monitor" entitled u.s.

car salesman doesn't add up for experts and from "mother jones," what you need to know about the iran bomb plot. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. . mr. kucinich: i ask unanimous consent to put in the record a quote from a senate committee analyst and said studies are going on but nothing to indicate that iran is building a bomb. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: mr. speaker, u.s. policy towards iran for the last three decades is primarilyly taken the form of economic sanctions, threats and isolationism, where u.s. sanctions have been effective at hurting their economy and their people, it can be argued that u.s. policy over the last 30 years has not been effective at creating any meaningful change in the conduct of the iranian government. and i ask unanimous consent to include in the record a reprint from "foreign affairs" magazine,

november, 2011 which cites the ineffectiveness of the u.s. policy. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. . mr. kucinich: the policy has failed to ensure a peaceful iran. we are considering legislation that restricts any efforts by the u.s. government, including members of congress to engage iran and further hurts ordinary iranian people by imposing sanctions. proponents of the iran threat reduction act claim it is a last ditch effort to prevent confrontation with iran but this bill takes away the effective tool, diplomacy as the united states only now begins to extricate itself from the highly questionable military campaigns in iraq and afghanistan. we cannot allow the united states to be plunged into yet another disastrous war. i oppose nuclear proliferation

for military purposes for all countries and believe that sanctions have proven to be a failed policy. we must rely on diplomacy, not outlaw it, and take steps and avoid taking steps which pushes us closer to military confrontation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. berman: thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield myself two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. berman: this bill may represent our last chance to find a peaceful means to pressure the iranian regime into stopping its nuclear weapons program. within the next year, possibly in the next six months, this program may become irreversible unless we act now. we know that sanctions are having an impact in iran. president ahmadinejad said iranian banks, quote, cannot

make international transactions anymore. just this weekend, iran central bank governor said, quote, the situation of sanctions is harder than a physical fight. with this bill before us today, we intend to make his fight much harder. no sanctions can be deemed truly effective until iran ends its nuclear weapons program. we know that iran is steadily increasing its stockpile of low enriched uranium and moving it to an underground facility. we need to do more and faster. h.r. 1905 builds on past efforts by imposing sanctions on foreign, commercial enterprises that do business with iran's revolutionary guards corps, and by other means. but one of the most important elements of this bill is my

measure to impose sanctions on iran's central bank which provides key financial support for iran's nuclear weapons and terrorism activities. this measure would cut iran entirely off from the world's banking system, dealing a blow to iran's economy. this may cause short-term difficulties for the world's oil market and may rank will some of our allies because stopping iran's nuclear program is of paramount strategic importance and we are running out of time. mr. speaker, our absolute goal must be to sfop iran's nuclear weapons program. that's the goal of this bill. we may only have a few more months to deal with it peacefully. i urge my colleagues to support this bill. . the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized. mr. due sin itch: i ask unanimous consent to put in the record this article that says that iran does not have a pom nor does it say it is building one. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: i ask madam speaker consent to put in the record an article that raises questions about the -- which raises questions about the iranian stockpile and how much enriched uranium they actually have. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: i yealed four minutes to the gentleman from oregon, the distinguished congressman, mr. blumenauer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. blumenauer: i appreciate the gentleman's courtesy in permitting to speak on the bill. we will postulate that iran has been a terrible actor that having nuclear weapons is a threat to international stability and something we should resist. i am concerned about the

legislation that is before us being potentially counterproductive in two areas. it's not something that we ought to be coming forward with here at 8:15 at night on a -- on the unanimous consent calendar. there are legitimate issues here and there is controversy. my friend from california said, well there may be disruptions in the oil markets. well, i think what has motivated people in terms of their concern about what has happened, according to an article in the "wall street journal," sanctions could raise the price of gas in the united states by $1 a gallon. an article in the "new york times" estimated it could cost americans $100 billion a year. this is not inconsequential at a time when our economy is in tough shape and when we are concerned about being able to

move forward. we want to thank carefully about doing something. if it would stop nuclear weapons for iran, it might be worth it. there's no evidence that that is the case. i mean, we look only at the failed policy with cuba, where we have had massive efforts at sanctioning cuba, a lit tileny island off the american coast, and what we have done most independent experts agree is that we've propped up castro, we've given him a reason. if we had been freely trading, interacted with the cuban people, i think castro would have been a tring of the past. being careful about what we do with iran matters. but i'm deeply concerned about language here that would prohibit any official or unofficial capacity having no

person employed by the united states contacting an official or unofficial capacity. thinking about -- on your time i'd be happy to yield. i'm going to be on my time. my reading of this, that it is inappropriate to tie the hands of the administration to require 15 days notice to exercise waiver authority. where we have been successful in the past, for example, in defusing a real nuclear problem with cuba, there was actual engagement with the administration. president kennedy and others were able to work dealing with the real problem. dealing with the soviet union. our adversaries. people who could actually destroy us. i am deeply concerned that we

not fore stall opportunities to engage diplomacy, which needs to be part of any reasonable sanction policy going forward trying to deal with iran. from my vantage point, i think we need to be careful about how we move forward dealing with sanctions policies. sanctions first, ask questions later. my hope is that we'll have an opportunity to deal with this issue, with the gravity that it requires, have interaction on the floor, be careful about what we're doing going forward with the economic impacts and the fact that it very well likely further emboldened this administration, the administration of iran. i don't think that's something that is appropriate to us and i'd be happy to yield to my friend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. blumenauer: if the

gentleman wants to yield on his time, i'd be happy to pursue it. mr. blumenauer -- >> i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from florida is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: i yield myself such time as i may consume. a nuclear irap is unacceptable. our fundamental strategic objective must be to stop iran before it obtains nuclear weapons capabilities and to compel it to permanently dismantle its pursuit of such weapons. that's the test we face. if we fail, it will come as no consolation to the families of victims of past and future iranian attacks or our allies. we don't know how much time we have left. it's a report on iran's nuclear program last november, the international atomic energy agency stated that not only has iran continued to make

significant progress regarding its nuclear program but the iaea said it had uncovered solid evidence that iran has been working on a nuclear explosive device as well. given the iranian regem's history of concealing its clandestine nuclear activity, tehran may be closer to nuclear weapons capability than we even assume. some estimates now place a mere six months to a year away from having all the ingredients in police to build a nuclear weapon. every day, they move closer and closer to realizing their nuclear ambitions and our nightmare scenario moves closer and closer to becoming a reality. the iranian regime is not interested in any outcome other than a nuclear iran, though they are happy to use negotiations to buy time to make progress in their nuclear program. yet we know that when sanctions have been applied, even limited

sanctions, they have had an impact on the iranian regime. it is time to build on this lesson and apply crippling sanctions against the regime and its enablers. that is the pup of the bill before us. the iran threat reduction act, which our foreign affairs committee adopted unanimously last month. this legislation updates and strengthens previous iran sanctions laws so that the united states can take effective action to address the multiple threats posed by the regime in tehran. the bill closes loopholes in the energy and financial sanctions that are in place now and counters the regime's efforts to evade them include big targeting the central bank of iran. the bill also focuses on the iranian revolutionary guard corps and the senior iranian regime officials. over 350 members of congress have co-sponsored this strongly bipartisan legislation. let us meet our

responsibilities to the american people and to protect the security of our nation from this growing threat. with that, i reserve the balance of our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time they have gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: i realize there are a number of people who want to speak on this in favor of the resolution and in order to make sure that everybody is provided a chance, though i may disadepree with what mr. sherman is about to say, i defend his right to speak, so i yield four minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. sherman. mr. sherman -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for four minutes. mr. sherman: i thank the gentleman for his generous grant of time, especially because he will probably disagree with almost everything i have to say. i'd like to thank chairman ileana ros-lehtinen for bringing together the best ideas of so many members and of course of her own to move

toward another important step toward dissuading iran from developing nuclear weapons. and for her ability to build a coalition that has over 300 members co-sponsoring this bill. we have to create circumstances with a -- where the regime in tehran has to choose between its nuclear weapons program and regime survival. we have a -- we owe a special debt of mullahs running iran because it is their incompetence and corruption that creates a risk to regime survival even at a time of very high oil prices. we owe a debt of deprattude to the iranian people who rose up gep the reyeem in the summer of 2009 and whose desire for freedom poses a real threat to regime survival. looking at the particulars of this bill, i want to thank the theirwoman for including in this bill in title 3, provisions -- provisions dealing with the iran revolutionary guard corps.

these are base odd then eguard corps designation act which i introduced in 2009 along with the chairwoman and ed royce and dan burton this title three makes it clear to foreign companies that if they do business with the iran revolutionary guard corps, they cannot do business in the united states. i also want to thank the chairwoman for co-sponsoring both last year and this year my bill, the stop iran -- stop iran's nuclear program act and for including many of those provisions in this legislation before us today. in particular, including provision that would sanction those companies that loan money to iran, whether in dollars or in ewe roes or any other currency. to tell the foreign incorporated subsidiaries of u.s. multinational corporations that they, too, cannot do business with iran. to build upon the provision that chuck schumer and i were

able to write and was included in the bill adopted last year to indicate that those who give iran the technologies to suppress the internet and apprehend dissidents through the internet will be sanctioned. companies should not be providing that kind of technology to iran. now this law requires or this bill would require the state department to actually implement those provisions by designating the technologies that cannot be sold to iran. and finally, this bill includes the provision of the stop iran nuclear weapons program act that allows states to do even more to help this federal policy by providing that those insurance companies that are helping iran may not be able to do business in their particular state. finally, i want to point out that this bill includes provisions aimed at the central

bank of iran but that is not a reason for us not to also pass the menendez-kirk lang wamming in the defense authorization bill. the menendez-kirk language would, like this bill, sanction those u.s. banks that violate our law by doing business with iran and would freeze those assets that the central bank of iran has foolishly left in the united states or may have done so. but the key thing about the kirk-menendez lang wamming, it tells european,ation, and other non-u.s. banks that they must stop their business with the central bank of iran and virtually all the major banks of iran as well. it imposes secondary sanctions and i believe the language -- language will make it difficult for iran to sell oil or buy anything with its oil revenue. i urge the pass am of this will, the kirk-menendez

language and other sanctions against iran and i yield back. mr. kucinich: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. berman: i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the democratic whip for the house, the gentleman from maryland, mr. hoyer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized. mr. hoyer: i thank you, mr. berman, for yielding. i also want to thank mr. berman and my dear friend ileana ros-lehtinen for their leadership on this bill. i know that mr. berman in particular is very focused on the central bank and sanctioning of them and so i thank him for his leadership. mr. speaker, last month, the iaea released a report on iran's covert nuclear program that was troubling, to say the least. not only is iran continuing to enrich uranium but they're also believed to be pursuing the

development delivery tebling no -- technologies to create a warhead to threaten our allies in europe and the persian gulf, not to mention over 200,000 americans that are in the region. on top of these dangerous risk, iran's continued nuclear development runs the risk of launching a nuclear arms race in the middle east. indeed, just last week, a former saudi arabiaian ambassador to the united states al fasal confirmed our worst fears that his country might begin to pursue nuclear capability in response to iran's nuclear developments. iran continued its sponsorship of terrorism against our ally, israel, and carries out gross human rights abuses against its own people. sanctions against iran's energy, transportation, and financial sectors are intended and i believe will make clear to iran the steep costs of its

choices. that is why i am in strong support of this resolution. the iran threat reduction act and iran-north korea-syria reform and modernization act and i urge my colleagues to vote yes on both. we know from history that ignoring the threats of leaders, ignoring their building up of capabilities to threaten the rest of the world, is done so at great peril and at great cost. . i urge my colleagues to support this important piece of legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: could i ask how much time all parties have remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio has 93/4 minutes. the gentleman from california

has six minutes. and the gentlelady from florida has 3 1/2 minutes. the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: i ask unanimous consent to include in the record an article from "arms control association" which states that the i.a.e.a. board resolution avoided direct censure of iran and did not declare iran to be in noncompliance with its activities. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. my mr. kucinich: my friend from oregon mentioned the question of oil prices and it's something we ought to be concerned about. i ask unanimous consent to put in the record an article from "slate" that says this sanction could lead to an increase in the price of gasoline that could be

as much as $1.25 a gallon. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: mr. speaker, an article in the "wall street journal" raises this question as well. it says that crude floats with $100 bill on geo political unrest and that the standard bank in london is saying that the timing of an iranian embargo could hardly be worse and small disruptions could cause spikes in oil prices. the director of a treasury department, foreign assets control, stated that there are real scenarios in which an oil spike might hit. this is from an oral, u.s. officials warn that this could be a boon to iran and there is another article that cites that

and an article from the "new york times" which states that u.s. officials have declared that they will hold iran accountable for a purported plot but now decided that a proposed move against iran's central bank would disrupt international oil markets and damage the american and world economies. i think that's something we ought to be concerned about, that if in fact we are moving forward with sanctions, sanctions that will have an effect on the price of oil, is this the timing to do that kind of thing and are we prepared to accept the responsibility for a sharp increase in the price of oil. here's a quote from a blog called san franciscogate quoting the under secretary of state wendy sherman, quote, there is a risk that the price of oil would go up which would mean that iran would have more money to fuel

its nuclear ambitions, not less. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield one minute to a senior member of the committee, a leader in these efforts for many years, the ranking member of the western hemisphere subcommittee, mr. engel. mr. engel: i rise in strong support of this legislation. under no circumstances should iran be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon. this is a dangerous regime that supports terrorism and calls for the destruction of israel and every day they are getting closer to enriched uranium. no amount of wishful thinking will get the iranian regime to back down. we heard the same argument about not putting sanctions on the apartheid regime in south africa

and now we hear oil is going to go sky high. morality is more important than the price of oil. morality says that this terrible regime should not be allowed to have nuclear weapons, should not be allowed to wipe israel off the face of the earth and not be allowed to do what it does. this bill imposes tough sanctions on the revolutionary guard corps and central bank of iran and iranians know our sanctions will be increased if they don't back off. people say congress doesn't work together, we work together on this. this is important. we need to pass this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i would respectfully respond to my friend from new york that the price of oil is, in fact, the moral question. i want to raise -- i want to yield myself a minute. i want to raise the question of

the constitutionality of this particular proposal. i believe it is unconstitutional because it is an unconstitutional abridgement of freedom of speech and freedom of free expression by federal employees and violation of whistleblower protections which have been granted a constitutional basis, that, it violates our debate and speech clause of the united states constitution because we have obligation to ask questions that it violates the constitution separation of power and challenges the president's power to engage in foreign diplomacy and it is impossible that you could have admiral mcmullen, who points out with the miscommunications that can occur from the lack of diplomacy, we could be putting our own people at risk. in fact there was an article that was published that deals with a scenario that would

happen in the gulf when american and iranian vessels, the no-contact provision if enacted could outlaw the bridge-to-bridge communication with iranian vessels. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from florida -- the gentleman from california. mr. berman: thank you, mr. speaker. and i'm pleased to yield two minutes to someone who has provided a major contribution to this legislation that is now before the house, the gentleman from florida, mr. deutch. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. deutch: thank you to the ranking member and my friend mr. berman for the legislation before us today will give the united states the tools to impose the most stringent, the most crippling sanctions aimed at cracking down on what is the

greatest threat to international security, a nuclear-armed iran. it builds on the significant steps this congress took along with our partners in the e.u. and united nations last year to dramatically ratchet up pressure on the iranian regime to thwart its quest for nuclear weapons. the bill comes on the heels of the iaea report that confirms what we know, the iranian regime is pursuing nuclear weapons and comes on the heels of the foiled iranian assassination plot and the attack on the british embassy and comes even as the iranian regime contributes to the brutal crackdown on the sirenian people that have left 5,000 dead so the regime can use syria as a conduit to give weapons to hezbollah and hamas. i'm proud to author two provisions in this bill and i

thank the bill's sponsors for working with me to include the iran transparency and accountability and human rights and promotion act. the requirements puts the extent and nature of a company's involvement in iran on that company while requiring disclosure with their business with iran. forced disclosure will accelerate the imposition of sanctions. this legislation includes mapped da tower sanctions on those who purport the most egregious human rights abuses. this regime which suppresses its opposition, must be stopped and the united states must stand with the people of iran for their quest of democracy and freedom. we cannot permit this to happen. we must make it clear that we

are serious, determined and aggressive in our approach to halt iran's illegal destabilizing and dangerous pursuit of weapons of mass destruction. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i ask unanimous consent to include in the record an article by seymour hersch which cites the iaea report that suggests that iran is working to shorten the time frame to build a bomb. it shows that it is inevitable. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: i would ask how much time is left on all sides. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio has six minutes. the gentlelady from florida has 3 1/2. and the gentleman from california has three.

mr. kucinich: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlelady from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. olson, a member on the committee of energy and commerce. mr. olson: i thank the chairman for the opportunity to speak here tonight on h.r. 1905. mr. speaker, i rise tonight in strong support of h.r. 1905, the iran threat reduction act. while iranian leadership continues to give public assurances that their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, their words don't match their actions. a recent international atomic agency report makes it clear that iran is developing systems for nuclear weapons. mr. speaker, the only reason why

iran would develop is to have a means to drop a bomb on peaceful neighbors like israel. this outcome is unacceptable. in the united states must continue to act -- enact tougher sanctions to ensure that this never happens. h.r. 1905 will add new sanctions targeting the central bank of iran and make it difficult for foreign companies to do business with iran. h.r. 1905 will increase sanctions on members of the iranian revolutionary guard corps. mr. speaker, the biggest threat to world peace is iran having a nuclear bomb. the acquisition of nuclear weapons simply cannot happen. not on our watch. i implore my colleagues to support this bipartisan legislation, which will force iran to abandon its quest for

nuclear weapons. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the the gentlewoman from florida reserves the time. the gentlewoman from -- the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i would like to include a letter from 26 organizations that urges congress to avoid contact with the iranian officials. it is interesting what we are suggesting here is taking pelosi off the table. i was here for the debate about iraq. i led the effort in this congress in challenging the then bush administration's assertions that iraq had weapons of mass destruction, which they intended to use against the united states. i was here. i don't know how many of you were here, but i saw a case being made for war, and that

case was based on exaggeration and based in some cases on distortions and lies. we have to be careful about the consequences of this debate. we have to be careful we aren't setting the stage for still another war. we must be very careful that when we assert a certain level of preparedness on the part of iran with respect to their nuclear capability that we aren't shutting the door that needs to be opened that needs to be derived. we can say we want to get them back to the table, but getting them back to the table but then don't talk to them. reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. . mr. berman: i'm pleased to yield one minute to the co-founder of the irap working group, someone who has brought the issue of iran, its policies, and particularly its

nuclear weapons program to the attention of this body and the public, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. andrews. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. andrews: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. apdruse: i'd like to thank the chair tissue mr. andrews: i'd like to thank the chairlady from florida for her advocacy. iran made a choice to ignore international standards and comity and secretly develop a nuclear weapon. iran made a choice to echew sincere diplomatic -- to eschew sincere diplomatic efforts to have nuclear fuel but the fuel made outside of iran. now they are faced with a choice as to whether they enjoy economic stability or give up its nuclear weapons ambition. i think the time is here to force that choice upon the iranians.

i think it'sen fortunate it has to be done but it has to be done. we cannot let the world's most horrific weapon to fall into the hands of one of the world's most horrendous regimes. for that reason, i strongly support the legislation by ms. ros-lehtinen and mr. berman and urge a yes vote. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california reserves. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i have great respect for all my colleagues who are concerned about nuclear proliferation. we all ought to be concerned about nuclear proliferation. we can start with our own country. right now, we've set the staming for continuing to develop nuclear weapons. it's very difficult to be able to have a strong position of standing on this issue if we have one set of rules for ourselves and another set of rules for the rest of the world. i don't want to see a nuclear proliferation in iran. but i think that if we want to

have a standing where people want to take what we say, we have to be consistent with what -- we have to make sure that what we do is consistent with what we say. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from hi reserves. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i keep my time to close. i'm just going to sit quietly. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida reserves the plans of her time. the gentleman from california. mr. behr map: yes, mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield one minute to my -- mr. berman: yes, mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield one minute to my distinguished colleague and friend who has been active on this issue, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: i want to take issue with my colleague from ohio. i don't think there's a comparison between the situation in iraq and iran

because it's become abundantly clear that iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. a nuclear iran not only threatens the united states but democratic nations around the flobe. the legislation before us builds on the comprehensive iran sanctions act passed last congress and imposes new and stronger sanctions this bill is the next logical step in u.s. policy to prevent iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. the iranian president a holocaust denier, stated that iran would use the weapons at its disposal and called for the destruction of the state of israel. i don't think we can let a nuclear iran become a reality. i urge my colleagues to vote yes on h r. 1905 and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california reserves. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: how much time is remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio has six minutes. mr. kucinich: i would -- mr. speaker, six minutes?

i would respectfully suggest to my friend from new jersey that the certainty that congress had in the debate in 2002 of october with respect to iraq is rr much parallel with the certainty that many of my friends here have about not only iran's intention to have a bomb but an intention to use it. that's why we needy employee macy. that's why the provisions of the bill in section 603-c which says u.s. government employees can't have any contact with iranians is really upside down. we have to -- of course i'll yield to my friend. >> there is nothing in this bill that prohibits americans from having contact with irap yaps. mr. berman: there is nothing in this bill that prohibits the

president of the united states or the secretary of state or such other emissaries or agencies that chooses to engage on the issue of ending iran's nuclear weapons program. i would not support a bill that prohibited that. mr. kucinich: reclaiming my time, i say to my friend, unless that section 603-c was stripped from the bill, and i was there in committee, was it stripped from the bill? mr. berman: it was not stripped from the bill an does not prohibit the administration from engaging diplomatically. the very clear and plain reading -- mr. kucinich: reclaiming my time, perhaps the president is not restricted which is good for the gentleman to say but the fact is, it says no u.s. government employee. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman reserves. at this time, the speaker needs to make a time correction. the gentleman from ohio has two minutes. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: i think i'm the last speaker on my side of our side. that intends to speak on this issue. how much time? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has one minute remaining. and the gentleman from ohio has two minutes. mr. berman: the gentlelady from florida has the right to close? am i correct in that assumption? the speaker pro tempore: yes. mr. berman: i assume the gentleman from ohio, if i ask through the chair is the last speaker on his side? in which case i yield myself the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. mr. berman: again, i would like to repeat, i personally -- this crisis only ends one of three ways. iran gets a nuclear weapons capability and don't listen to straw man arguments, no one is saying today iran has a nuclear bomb but the iaea made it perfectly clear they are pursue agnew clear weapons capability and once they have that capability, they throw out the inspectors they shut off the cameras and they get the bomb. either we stop them from getting the bomb, we have a military confrontation, or we have a diplomatic resolution where they end their nuclear weapons program through diplomat -- diplomacy. the provision the gentleman cited does mot prohibit diplomacy by the president or his emissaries.

time will not permit me to read the statute itself right now but i would be happy to show any of my members why diplomacy is still allowed. this is not a unilateral effort. this administration and this congress working with them have pursued a multilateral effort to bring the international community to stop iran from getting a nuclear weapon. we will continue to do that and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i yield myself one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. kucinich: i'm quoting from an article in "the hill" here which says that the section that i cited earlier; section 601, would prohibit u.s. government employees in any official or unofficial capacity from contacting anyone who is affiliated with the iranian government who presents a

threat to the united states or is affiliated with a terrorist offeringnyization. look, if you want to stop war, you have to have communication with people. if you look at the cuba -- cuban missile crisis, up with of the greatest crises of the 21st century, it was the fact that the united states and russia were able to engage in a communication. so we have to be very careful that we don't pass any kind of law that would restrick, not just first amendment rights, not just freedom of association, but would restrick the basic kind of diplomacy that's used, because everyone knows diplomacy is not just leaders talking to leaders, there's all kinds of back door diplomacy that goes on and i think that needs to be taken into consideration. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i'm going to close close so he must use his time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida reserves, the gentleman from ohio has one minute remaining.

mr. kucinich: thank you very much for the opportunity to discuss this to my colleagues for whom i have the greatest respect though i painfully must disagree with you here. broad sappingses genks iran can only further isolate iran if the international community and cause the regime to be increasingly secretive. the sanctions actually play directly into the hands of the iranian government. they directly undermine the efforts of iranian people who have courageously challenged their government, often at the cost of their lives. the sanctions could be seen as a gift to the regime. not just a political gift for polarization within their country, to crush opposition, but an economic gift. the price of oil will go up and iran will cash in on that. section 302 of this bill revokes the president's authority to license the export of civilian aircraft parts and repairs for iranian civil aircraft that would ensure the i have aity of flight for humanitarian purposes this provision recklessly places the

lives of iranians and iranian americans in danger. we ought to defeat this bill and stand for diplomacy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: iran remains the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism. according to our treasury department, iran is a critical transit point for funding to support al qaeda in afghanistan and pakistan. this network serves a these core pipeline through which al qaeda moves money, facilitators and operatives from across the middle east to south asia, including al qaeda's operational commander and tehran is providing key support to the regime in damascus, another state sponsor of terrorism, that is of proliferation concern and which is currently engaged in the violent repression of the people of syria. iran is also directly responsible for the deaths of

many americans. it continues to sponsor violent extremist groups in iraq and afghanistan that have killed our men and women in uniform. and just last week, a federal judge found that the iranian regime provided material aid and support for al qaeda's 1998 attack on u.s. embassies in kenya and tanzania. just imagine what an emboldened iran would do if allowed to obtain nuclear weapons an the means by which to deliver them. remember what the regime has already said it wants to do. ahmadinejad had openly proclaimed that iran seeks a world without america and zionism and iran's so-called supreme leader has stated iran is prepared to transfer the experience, knowledge and techling in of its scientists. we should take them at their word and impose crippling sanctions on this regime and it starts tonight, mr. speaker. with this bill.

h.r. 1905. the iran threat reduction act. let's pass it tonight. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 1905 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative -- ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker. mr. speaker, on that i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays -- the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking this vote by the craze and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek

recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: i move that the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 2105 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 2105, a bill to provide for the application of measures to foreign persons who transfer to iran, north korea, an syria certain goods, services or technology and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i rise to claim time in opposition. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman from california favor the motion? on that basis, the gentleman from ohio will control the 20 minutes in opposition. ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from california, mr. berman, be allowed to control 1/2 of the time in the affirmative.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida will control 20 minutes or 10 minutes . the gentleman from california will control 10. the gentleman from ohio will control 20. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill. i also ask unanimous consent to enter into the record my correspondentance and joint statements with the chairman of other committees of referral on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support of the iran, north korea and syria nonproliferation reform and modernization act which i introduced together with the ranking member of the foreign affairs committee, subcommittees on terrorism, nonproliferation and trade, my good friend from

california, mr. sherman. i would also like to thank the ranking member of the full committee, mr. berman, for his significant contributions to this legislation. mr. speaker, iran, north korea and syria are key elements in the expanding global proliferation network. north korea has long been a willing merchant of death for anyone with cash and has played a crucial role in the development of iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program. but iran is only one of many customers. in 2010 the u.n. security council released a report saying that north korea continues to market and export its nuclear and ballistic technology. the most prominent example of north korea's proliferation activities is its construction of the clandestine syrian nuclear reactor that thankfully was destroyed by an israeli air strike in the year 2007. reports indicate that the

reactor was based on a north korean model capable of producing plutonium for nuclear weapons and that the project was financed by iran. but syria's nuclear ambitions are apparently even greater than suspected. just last month the international atomic energy agency reportedly identified a previously unknown nuclear facility in northeastern syria, indicating that the regime in damascus may have been pursuing two separate paths to a nuclear weapon. one based on uranium enrichment and the other on reprocessing plutonium. one thing is clear. as with the first nuclear facility, this second one could only have been built with outside help. so it is obvious that once again one of these regimes gets its hands on weapons of mass destruction and they will have all access. and this deadly capacity is certain to spread even further.

but the proliferation efforts of north korea, iran and syria are by no means limited to nuclear weapons. theirs is an active trade between these countries and advanced conventional weapons as well. including ballistic missiles. in the year 2010, an aircraft loaded with north korean conventional weapons was intercepted in thailand, reportedly on its way to iran in violation of multiple security council resolutions of the u.n. and there have been several interdictions of iranian weapons reportedly destined for syria. clearly these represent just the tip of the iceberg. these weapons are not intended to be plade placed in storage -- placed in storage. they will be used against us and against our allies. north korea has continued to violently assault our allies -- our ally, south korea, repeatedly attacking its military forces out of the blue and murdering civilians almost

at will. and it is throwing vast resources into developing weapons capable of striking u.s. targets. the latest being a mobile intercontinental ballistic missile which could eventually be added to its list of items for sale. we are witnessing the syrian regime shooting down its own people in the streets. allowing assad and his thugs access to nuclear technology could exponentially multiply his regime's ability to spread destruction far beyond its borders. we know that iran has no problem striking down innocent people in that country who dare to stand up to the regime. and tehran continues to be a leading state sponsor of terrorism, providing weapons, money and support to terrorist groups like hamas, hezbollah and even al qaeda. that means preventing any and every part of this proliferation network from gaining access to

the weapons they need to threaten anyone is of utmost importance. iran, north korea and syria are not just helping each other. much of the pro-progress they have achieved on the -- much of the progress they have achieved is thanks to the assistance from other foreign sources, the most recent report of the iaea on iran revealed that iran has been engaged in extensive efforts to develop nuclear weapons and that these efforts include acquiring equipment, materials and information related to nuclear weapons development. it stated that iran has also actively been working on a design for a nuclear weapon, including testing components. finally the iaea report revealed that iran has received crucial help on its nuclear weapons design from foreign experts. just two weeks ago on december 2, russian officials were quoted in news reports admitting that russia had supplied syria's

assad with cruise missiles. according to news reports, israel fears the cruise missiles could fall into the hands of hezbollah militants in neighboring lebanon. just think of all of the countries that have been named in these short remarks. china is not far behind, as a recent report of the u.s.-china economic and security review commission indicates. the china commission report emphasizes the enormous damage to u.s. interests being done by china's massive sale of weapons to iran, including short range cruise missiles. h.r. 210 5 seeks to -- 2105 seeks to cut off supply networks to iran, syria and north korea. it updates and strengthens measures to prevent the proliferation of goods, services and technology relating to nuclear, biological, chemical and other advanced weapons such as ballistic missiles. it expands sanctions on individuals, on businesses, on countries engaged in assisting

proliferation, embracing financial transactions, properties and visas, among many other penaltyless. it also imposes restrictions on nuclear cooperation with countries that are assisting the nuclear programs of iran, north korea or syria. because no country that is helping an enemy of the united states should receive any help from us. but it is not enough to put these laws on the books. they must be fully implemented and consistently enforced if they are to have the intended effect. i call upon the president to use the tools that congress is giving to him to stop these countries from spreading their instruments of destruction even further. north korea has already detonated two nuclear devices. iran is getting closer to a nuclear weapon every day. syria is following in its footsteps. their stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction are growing, as are their ballistic missile

capabilities are growing and their arsenals of other advanced weapons are being made available to enemies of the u.s. and its allies. we must act decisively to end this threat before it spreads even further. i strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves her time. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: we're rapidly moving from iran sanctions to sanctioning the world here. i stand in support of nonproliferation. i think that we ought to -- that this country should be leading the world towards nuclear abolition. let us not forget that when the soviet union fell, there was one country that got rid of its nuclear weapons. ukraine. and ukraine today, while there's political problems there, they still stand strong as a community, as a nation among nations for having taken that direction.

we need to be encouraging the nations of all -- all the nations of the world to get rid of their nuclear weapons. but if we don't do that and we instead say, we will keep our nuclear weapons and half a dozen other nations and more can keep their nuclear weapons, but you, you, you and you, you cannot have nuclear weapons, actually what we're doing is we're setting the stage for more proliferation. it's the inconsistent u.s. policy on nuclear proliferation that has actually brought to us this moment. so i have a great deal of sympathy for my colleagues who don't want to see more nuclear proliferation among certain nations but i would ask them to join me in taking a stand for nuclear abolition among all nations. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: thank you, mr. speaker. and i yield myself two minutes.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. berman: mr. speaker, enacted in the year 2000 has forced the united states government to review all intelligence for credible evidence regarding sensitive transfers of goods and services related to w.m.d., missiles or conventional weapons and made such transfers sanctionble acts. while the report requires are two years behind schedule, an ongoing problem that has plagued successive administrations, we are frequently seeing new rounds of sanctions issued against companies and individuals who are more interested in making a buck than in protecting the global security interests. the specific details of sanctioned transfers are classified, press reports however indicate that the sanctions have been imposed, for example, on chinese entities for selling carbon fiber d carbon,

fiber and pressure -- carbon, fiber and pressure. multiple russian, chinese and even european exporters have been sanctioned presumably for the transfer of arms to iran and syria. and chinese chemical supply companies have been repeatedly sanctioned. i'd like to thank the chairman for agreeing to include my amendment to further strengthen this. this amendment requires the administration to develop a special mechanism to speed up the process of imposing sanctions regarding transfers of sensitive technology related to weapons of mass destruction or ballistic missiles to iran. in addition, the amendment requires the president to publicly identify those countries that are allowing such transfers of sensitive technology to occur despite repeated requests by the u.s. government to prevent such activities. i would expect china would be listed on the first report as a government that directly,

indirectly or through inaction enables its firms to engage in sensitive transfers to iran, syria or north korea. mr. speaker, i support this bill, urge my colleagues to do the same and reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: i will once again yield time to a colleague who i may disagree with but he's entitled to three minutes and i will yield three minutes to mr. sherman of california. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for three minutes. mr. sherman: i thank the gentleman from ohio for his generosity, especially because he'll probably disagree with most of what i have to say. as to the consistency of america's nonproliferation policy, i believe we are consistent. we are consistent with the nonproliferation treaty which i believe is the most important peace treaty of our lifetime. it identifies five states as

nuclear states, three major nations in this world did not sign and do not benefit from the treaty, but iran, north korea and syria all signed as nonnuclear states, agreed not to develop nuclear weapons and all of them have violated that agreement. i want to commend chairman ros-lehtinen for putting forward this outstanding bill. and one of the toughest nonproliferation bills ever to come before congress. i'm the lead democratic co-sponsor of this bill and i want to thank her for the opportunity to work with her on this important legislation. iran, syria, north korea are proliferators of nuclear weapons technology and work together to threaten u.s. interests and allies around the globe. this bill includes an important provision that i put forward in a bill i introduced in may of 2009. that is, it imposes sanctions

against those firms that provide north korea, iran or syria with equipment or technology relevant to mining or milling uranium. iran in particular is facing a uranium shortage and has been searching for foreign sources of uranium as well as trying to improve its own domestic capacity to mine uranium. under this bill anyone who assists that effort would be subject to penalties. . this bill includes other important provisions. the u.s.-china economic security review commission identified a loophole in current law that exempts from sanctions chinese companies that are providing short-range anti-naval cruise missiles to iran. it is important that we protect our cruise when iran has

recently conducted exercises to gain the possibility of shutting the strait which is critical to our oil supplies. we need to protect our naval cruise from iran weapons acquired from china. also, following on the shipping sanctions that have been put into place against iran shipping firms, this bill would go further. it bars from any u.s. port, any ship that has visited iran, north korea or syria in the last two years. it would close a loophole in existingsing sanctions and would require that sanctions be imposed on the parent entity when one of its subsidies -- mr. kucinich: i yield to the gentleman an additional minute. mr. sherman: this is the strongest nonproliferation bill to come before congress. i urge its adoption and i yield

back. mr. kucinich: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. berman: i'm pleased to yield two minutes to my friend from new york, ranking member of the western hemisphere subcommittee, mr. engel. mr. engel: i thank my friend for yielding time and i rise in strong support of h.r. 2105. madam chair, many years ago, we sponsored legislation to slap sanctions on syria. i'm sorry to say we were claire voy ant but nearly 10 years later and some things never change. we are back here again and syria

is murdering its own people saying we were right back in 2003 and 2004 and sanctions are necessary to prevent this regime from murdering its own people and threatening others with destruction. i'm happy to join you in doing this. when biological weapons get in the wrong hands, it is not only a danger to the u.s. but the allies in middle east, asian around the world and this bill strengthens sanctions against countries to iran, north korea and syria. when israel destroyed a syrian facility we found that was done, arranged by north korea. there is collution by these rogue regimes. there are sanctions on foreign entities that acquire from these countries any goods or

technology that could be used for military applications. so i strongly support this bill in the hope we can prevent iran, syria and north korea from getting their hands on more unconventional weapons. people say that republicans and dem cats can't -- democrats can't agree on anything but this is a threat to the entire world when these rogue regimes have weamentsdzfer. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: "congressional quarterly" house action report on this legislation states the following, that the measure, however, exempts such restrictions for assistance for the bashir nuclear reactor in iran which is being developed with the aid of entities unless

the president determines there is assistance contributing iran's development of nuclear weapons. that is interesting. what that means, it is not axiomatic that the mere presence of nuclear power capability necessarily means that iran is developing nuclear weapons. you wouldn't have that provision unless the president had the authority to be able to make a finding with respect to the development of iran's -- of nuclear weapons by iran. i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: mr. speaker, i only have one remaining speaker, so is this sort of the closing round? i'm pleased to yield two minutes

to the former member of the house foreign affairs committee and member of the appropriations committee, the gentleman from california, mr. schiff. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. schiff: i thank the chair and ranking member for their leadership. i rise in support of both the iran threat reduction act and iran, north korea, syria nonproliferation reform and modernization act. both of these bills have at their heart and core the same purpose and that is to prevent some of the most dangerous trim sponsoring and proliferation nations from obtaining a nuclear weapons capability. why is that so important? well, in the case of iran, iran's acquisition of the bomb would empower that regime to carry out what it has threatened to do, that is to potentially wipe israel off the face of the

map. it would also likely result in a nuclear arms race in the middle east and i believe we will be judged as a country and as a congress on whether we take every possible step, every diplomatic step, every step through sanctions to prevent iran from acquiring the bomb and all the potentially disastrous consequences that could have. and this legislation by particularly going after iran's central bank will be the most devastating of all economic sanctions on iran. we saw the concern manifested in iran when britain passed similar sanctions. plainly, they are terrified of the impact this would have. this is the strongest leverage we could bring against iran's nuclear program and i strongly urge its passage. we also have a deep national security interest in going after any potential proliferation of

nuclear materials and technology. we have already seen in syria a dictator's willingness to murder thousands of his own people and seen a regime in damascus willing to engage in a nuclear program in violation of international law and agreement. i urge passage of both bills. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california reserves. the gentleman from ohio. the gentleman from ohio has 14 1/4. the gentleman from california has 4 minutes. and the gentlelady from florida has 2 1/2. mr. kucinich: i yiled myself such time as i may consume.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. dr. robert pate from harvard's journal of international security has been quoted as saying the following. sanctions have failed to achieve their objectives in 95.7% of cases since world war i and sanctions are more than three times more likely to end in military conflict than success. so what we have here is that sanctions inevitably equal a failure of diplomacy and war becomes a failure of sanctions. so we must ask ourselves while we stand here for nonproliferation, something that i agree with, how do we stop the nonproliferation of war?

particularly, how do we forestall any possibility of a nuclear war? now lawrence korb was the assistant secretary of defense in the reagan administration and serves now as a senior fellow at the center for american progress. last month, he submitted an article to "the plain dealer" in cleveland and i want to quote from it because it's relevant not only to this debate, but real vant to the economic stress this country is feeling. he said since the second term of the reagan administration, nuclear weapons have been of declining, strategic relevance but our budget barely reflects that. our country is slated to spend $700 billion on nuclear weapons programs. this is unsustainable.

a directionless budget, driven in large part by the pressure of members of congress to preserve programs in their own states. military leaders agree that spending on these programs are disconnected from a strategic vision and we are at risk of wasting a vast amount of money. general cart write has argued we haven't exercised the intellectual capital on what is required for nuclear deterrence yet. i'm pleased that it is starting. other leaders from the pentagon have identified nuclear weapons programs as an area to make cuts. general robert keller has pointed to the unsustainability of this spending. we aren't going to be able to go forward he said with weapons systems with what weapons systems cost today. case in point is the long-range

strike bomber. the list goes on. the savings to the american taxpayer could be considerable. the long-range penetrating bomber will cost $50 billion and will not fill a need that doesn't already fill our need. nuclear armed trident subjects and building no more than eight new subjects would save $26 billion over the next decade and help close the budget deficit and maintain a large nuclear arsenal and and fiscal conservatives have targeted the nuclear weapons budget as a clear area for cuts. senator coburn voted against the treaty last september and would lower the number of nuclear

weapons below new start numbers. point is that far from saying, you know, we shouldn't have other nations pro liver rating, we should start -- pro live rating, we should start with ourselves. all nations should get rid of their nuclear weapons and see what a world would look like without nuclear weapons instead of saying well, there are some nations that shouldn't have nuclear weapons. how much time is remaining? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio has 9 3/4. mr. kucinich: i yield myself an additional five minutes. one of the most troubling aspects of this legislation is -- and it may be, you know the area of the legislation that has not received much attention but

needs to have attention right now, and that is that this legislation puts this country at odds with russia in a way that i think is against the interest of world peace. it goes on to call out the russian federation specifically, with respect to saying that they're assisting these nuclear programs. this really is a confession of how far away we have gone from the mark of star 1 and star 2 and how far we have gone away from that time when president reagan met with president gorbachev to talk about what we can do to start to build down these nuclear weapons. i remember when vladimir putin,

when he made the offer to president george bush to start to get rid of nuclear weapons, and unfortunately, his efforts were rebuffed. we should be engaging russia directly on getting rid of nuclear weapons. instead of what we have here is a restriction on payments in connection with the international space station. that's in here. you know, remember the international space station was the centerpiece of russia-u.s. cooperation. we can work together on earth as it is in heaven. we showed that that space station was the platform for cooperation and peace between russia and the united states, what we're doing here is that we're saying that, in effect, that all extraordinary payments in connection with the international space station to

russian aviation and space agency and under the jurisdiction and control of russian aviation and space agency would basically be restricted. . . mr. berman: two points on this issue. one is the language the gentleman originally read with respect to russia was amended out of the bill in committee. mr. kucinich: i thank the gentleman for pointing out that. mr. berman: secondly, this language, with respect to funding on the -- of the russian flights to the space station, is an extension of the authority, not a elimination of the authority to engage and provide funding for that purpose. so -- i understand why the gentleman said what he did. but in reality -- mr. kucinich: i'm asking you, when you say this was amended out, was it amended out with respect to the citation of the

russian federation and as well as the section which spoke directly to the restrictions on the payments? mr. berman: the restrictions on payments is an extension of time , and also has a waiver. the first reference to russia was elimb natted from the bill -- was eliminated from the bill. mr. kucinich: ok. i appreciate you pointing that out but i would ask my friend if he would yield to a question. mr. berman: your time. yes. mr. kucinich: does this legislation or does it not have a reference to the international space station and russia? is there a reference to it? -- to it? mr. berman: yes. mr. kucinich: and is there any kind of restrictions being placed on russia with respect to payments in connection with the international space station?

mr. berman: there is language in the bill with respect to restrictions. there is a waiver in the bill for those restrictions and there is an extension of nonapplicability of those provisions until 2020. so this -- i understand -- mr. kucinich: i would -- reclaiming my time and i would respectfully suggest to my friend from california that even if you're extending the applicability, listen, russia -- mr. berman: the nonapplicability. mr. kucinich: the nonapplicability. our friends in russia will read this as being an attempt to try to put russia in a position where we are forcing them to put at risk the international space station if in fact they wish to have a different kind of diplomacy than we have. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio's time has expired. the gentleman from california.

mr. berman: may i inquire of the chair how much time i have. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california has four minutes. mr. berman: i'm willing to use a moment of the time simply to address the issue that my friend from ohio talked about with respect to sanctions. the focus on unilateral sanctions without international support versus effective multilateral sanctions, that distinction was not made by my friend from ohio. the fact is that this administration and this congress , through legislation, working in coordination with the members of the security council, our friends in the european union, our you a lies in asia -- allies in asia, have put together a

multilateral level of sanctions that has never been seen before. and other old studies regarding the effectiveness of unilateral sanctions in terms of altering a country's behavior are not applicable in this situation because we are deeply committed to the understanding that we will only stop this kind of proliferation in which we have the support of all of the countries of the world who are committed to it and adhere to the nonproliferation treaty and i'd suggest with that that i should yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california yields back his time. the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: may i ask how much time i have left? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio has 4 3/4 minutes. and the gentlewoman from florida, now from florida, has 2 1/2 minutes. mr. kucinich: does the gentlelady wish to close? ms. ros-lehtinen: yes, as i have stated before and will continue

to state, i will reserve my time to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio. mr. kucinich: it's time for the united states as a nation to change its direction. to begin to see ourselves as a nation among nations, not a nation above nations. to begin to set aside war as an instrument of policy, to be sensitive to the power that we have so that we're not attempting to use our force in a way that would punish someone militarily who doesn't agree with us. the underlying premise that my friends here have of nonproliferation is something i agree with. but where we depart from agreement is where we're

focusing on nonproliferation among only a few countries. i will say it again. we need a new direction in america. it's a direction where we stand for peace. not the kind of peace which is some notion, but -- and not just looking at peace as the absence of war. but as peace as an active pressence and capacity we have to pursue the science of human relations and to be able to use diplomacy to get to a place where we all feel secure. where we don't have that today. so what we do is we try to find our security through straitjacketing other nations with sanctions that inevitably are bound to fail. and which inevitably turn the people of the countries who we're sanctioning against us and help to strengthen the hands of the regime that's being sanctioned. we need to, as a nation, take a

stand for nuclear abolition. once and for all. we need to, as a nation, get rid of this idea that war is acceptable. we need to determine that we can get strength and be a strong nation through peace. strength from peace is the approach that we ought to be taking. have a national security strategy that involves strength through peace. and let our diplomacy, let our pursuit of diplomacy guide us in taking our relations with other nations to a new level. this isn't naive. i stood here challenging the war in iraq and i was right about that and i can tell you that this congress took a direction that wasted $5 trillion, the lives of almost 5,000 of our troops, tens of thousands of troops injured, a million iraqis dead. why don't we try diplomacy rather than sanctions? it's something that we really haven't tried and it's time that we did. i yield back the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentlewoman from florida. is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much, mr. speaker. and now to close on this bill, i am so pleased to give our remaining time to the gentleman from california, mr. royce, who is the chairman of our subcommittee on foreign affairs, terrorism, nonproliferation and trade and has been a leader on this sanctions legislation for a mighty long time. mr. royce, thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for 2 1/2 minutes. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. last week we had a headline in the newspaper that i think underscores the importance of this legislation and what that headline said was that north korea is making a missile able to hit the united states. now, the reason we're concerned about iran's activities here in

proliferation is because iran announces they want to kill us. that tends to get our attention. and as a consequence we begin to think, what can we do to sanction their central bank in order to make it very, very difficult for them to proceed down this road? well, let's go back for a minute to this north korea story. remembering already that we've seen north korea proliferate and attempt to give nuclear capability to syria. we've seen north korea proliferate to iran and pakistan with their missile capabilities. and the story reported that north korea is moving ahead to build its first road mobile intercontinental ballistic missile. and of course mobile missiles are very difficult to find. you can't locate them. they're made to be hidden. and with these developments, the secretary of defense said, north korea is in the process of

becoming a direct threat to the united states. that's former secretary of defense gates. no one who has closely watched north korea is surprised by these developments. and because we haven't seriously sanctioned north korea in the way of -- i mean, we tried sanctioning for a short period of time and frankly it worked and then we lifted those saxes -- sanctions. i want you to think about this. they build a nuclear reactor in syria, no real consequences. north korea unveils an advanced uranium enrichment plant, no real consequences. kim jong il torpedoes a south korean ship, no real consequences. fully implementing this legislation could impose costs on north korea or on iran, but just as with the previous legislation, the administration isn't aggressively confronting this north korean threat. now, i'm going to share with you

my concern over all of this. if history is a guide, we'll pass these bills, we'll take them up tomorrow, they'll pass out of the house by tremendous margins. then we'll wait. we'll wait for the other body to act. then the one administration will press for -- obama administration will press for these sanctions to be scaled back as he continues to do and this is what happened last congress and my concern is that that is what happens here. now. we've got to push this now. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: all time has expired. the question is will the house suspend the lules and -- rules and pass h.r. 210 a 5 as amended -- 2105 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended -- ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: on that i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: 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 the question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i move that the house suspend the rules and pass house resolution 376 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 376, resolution calling for the repatriation of pow-mia's and inductees from the korean war. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen, and the gentleman from california, mr. berman, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i thank the speaker.

i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume and i ask that i may submit my full statement for the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you. i am so pleased to rise in strong support of house resolution 376, calling for the repatriation of pow-mia's and inductees from the korean war. it is fitting that this resolution was introduced by one of the house's own korean war vets, congressman charlie rangel. hasn't had a bad day since. mr. rangel received a purple heart for the wounds he received in fighting his way out of an ambush by chinese forces in subzero temperatures in the early months of the korean war.

mr. rangel also received a bronze star for his valor. mr. rangel shares his -- this with members sam johnson, howard coble and john conyers, korean veterans all, a personal knowledge of how crucial this resolution is in addressing unresolved issues from that long-ago conflict. another person who understands the critical importance of this resolution is the president of the korean war inductees families union who flew almost halfway across the globe from seoul, korea, to be here and witness the consideration of this resolution on the house floor, ms. lee was a mere 18-month-old baby when her father was taken away by the north koreans, not to be seen again for the past six dengeded. .

general mcarthur famously told the u.s. congress that the american people had old soldiers never die, they just fade away. how sadly ironic that some of the old soldiers of the korean conflict in which general mccarthur served faded into a north korean goulag. we demonstrate that these soldiers will not be allowed to fade away into the fog of war. this resolution reminds us that 8,000 americans missing in action from korea remain unaccounted for and that an estimated 73,000 south korean p.o.w.'s were not repay try ated and held in north korea against their will. in addition, 100,000 south

korean citizens were forcibly abducted by north korea during the korean conflict. the recent u.s.-north korea agreement to resume the search for the remains of 5,500 u.s. soldiers lost inside north korea is welcomed by american families, those who have endured 60 dwreers years of unresolved grief over the last of their loved ones. it is our hope that the cost by our department of defense are more transparent than the delivery of suitcases full of dollars to north korean generals, as was done in the past. we have also the highest respect for the joint prisoners of war, missing in action, which processes our soldiers' remains

once they make the final journey home from korea. i'm certain that those who seek to identify remains are aware of ronald reagan's famous addage, trust, but verify. and this applies to north korea. let us not forget that only a few years ago, punk yang provided our japanese allies with the remains of a 13-year-old school girl abducted to north korea many years before which turned out to be bogus. we do not want to see any of our p.o.w./m.i.a. families so cruelly tricked by north korea. punk yank must come clean and war crimes by returning any remains and abductees to the waiting loved ones. by adopting this important resolution, the house will not

only recognize the valor of those who serve during the korean war but will honor those who serve today on the cold war's last frontier along the d.m.z. i urge all of my colleagues to support this important resolution and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from florida reserves. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support of house resolution 376 calling for the repatriation from the korean war and i'm going to yield to the sponsor of this legislation, the gentleman from new york, mr. rangel, himself a korean war veteran as our chairman has mentioned, five minutes to open the debate on this issue. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is

recognized for five minutes. mr. rangel: permission to revise and extend. let me thank so much for the sensitivity and support that the gentlelady from florida and chairman of this committee for this strong support and the friendship that you have extended not only to me, but to the people that you have felt their pain even though hostilities are over and the courtesy that ranking member berman has given in allowing me to open the discussion on this important debate. as most of you know, in 1950, the communists north koreans invaded the south korea crossing a line that russia and the united states had settled in what they called the 38th parallel.

you can separate a geographic area, but you cannot separate a people that have the same background, same language and same culture. nor can you engage into a war and to insist that you're not going to abide by the international obligations that even end those type of hostilities most nations abide by. we had close to two million american soldiers, men and women, in korea, with allies and friends in the nation -- united nations to stop this unwarranted takeover of south korea. in that war, over 50,000 americans was killed, double that number was wouppeded and we had thousands of -- wounded and we had thousands of people that were taken as prisoners of war

or missing in action. there was a time that the regime in north korea was helping the state department and the united states in finding where these bodies are located and with some success. when you lose a loved one at some point in time, it has to come to closure. and when you know that the people could have these bodies and for evil intent not respond to the basic human needs of those who suffered so much, it seems to me that this congress and the executive branch should insist that a part of our priorities in dealing with north korea is that they help us find the remains of those people who fought for this great country

and because their families and their friends have suffered so much pain. as relates to the south koreans, they even sacrificed more lives. they were not hostile and not bothering anybody when this hostility came to such an extent that the whole world, almost, condemned it. and the second infantry division that i served in in 1950 were the first to lead the united states to face the enemy and join with our allies who were able to drive them the the north korean border with china. as most of you know tens of thousands of volunteers, and we found that many lives were lost. in the course of this, south koreans that were not in north korean but in the northern part of their country. south koreans that were captured, south koreans that were professors were captured

and held hostage and separated from their families and friends. as i said, you can politically separate a country and draw an imaginary line on the map, but the truth of the matter is that the south koreans have suffered long enough and they have become our friends. they have become the democracy of this part in the world and become one of our strongest trading partner and never have to ask them for help. when korea is in trouble, we will be there for them. when america is in trouble, we don't have to call on south korea. i want to thank the committee members, this congress and this nation, not to forget our friends, but especially not to forget those who still mourn those who gave up their lives for their great country, both south korea and the united states of america.

we hope through this effort, the state department will resume looking for the americans who put themselves in harm's way and the families have no knowledge where they are and would like to thank ms. lee and all the people who have come here to convince us that these families have to be reunited and america will see that it is done. i yield back and i thank you for the courtesy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california. mr. berman: i ask unanimous consent to revise and stepped my remarks. and i would add, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much for our time. for our closing time, i would like to recognize, my good friend from california, mr. royce, who is the chairman of the foreign affairs of the

subcommittee on terrorism, nonproliferation and trade and co-sponsor of this important resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: i rise in support of this resolution and several of our colleagues, sam johnson, howard coble, john conyers and author, charlie rangel, bravely fought in this war and deserve our recognition tonight, even if he hasn't had a bad day since. they deserve our recognition and mr. speaker, the korean war is often called the forgotten war, but those who fought it and our south korean allies haven't forgotten this war and by moving this legislation forward tonight, we are signaling that the house has not forgotten this war. and as much as anything, i believe this resolution demonstrates the shared commitment, the shared sacrifice

that serves as the foundation of that u.s.-south korea alliance. we have seen a lot change in those six decades since our colleagues fought in that war, but with u.s. support, south korea has transformed into a modern, leading economy in the world dade, but you go north of that 38th parallel and i have been north of that 38th parallel and still live literally in darkness. it's been more than 60 years since the start of the korean war and after all that time, our department of defense lists more than 8,000 american servicemen as p.o.w.'s who are missing in action. the number of south koreans estimated to be many times of that, as many as 100,000 south koreans were forcibly put into the army.

it is well past time for a full accounting, which is what this resolution calls for. as this resolution states, there are still south koreans prisoners of war and abductees who are still alive in north korea and want to go back to the south. for the sake of those impacted, i urge passage of this resolution, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 376 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and without objection, the motion to

reconsider is laid on the table. >> mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and pass house resolution 306 as amended.

the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 306, resolution urging the republican of -- the republic of turkey to safeguard its christian heritage and to return confiscated church properties. mr. royce: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include at that time extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. royce, and the gentleman from california, mr. berman, each will -- the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. >> i rise to oppose the resolution and claim time in opposition to the resolution. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman from california favor the motion? does the other gentleman from california favor the motion?

mr. berman: i do. the speaker pro tempore: on that basis, the gentleman from kentucky will control 20 minutes in opposition. >> may i ask, then, mr. speaker, unanimous consent to yield half my time to the gentleman from california, mr. berman. mr. royce: and that he may be able to control that time. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. royce: then i'll yield myself such time as i might consume, mr. speaker. let me begin by quoting thomas jefferson. he said, in all early struggles for liberty, religious freedom could not fail to become a primary object. jefferson was a very smart man and he understood that the core foundation of democracy relied on individual differences in opinions without fear of intimidation. and this concept is one that we as americans have benefited from since our founding.

religious freedom has played an integral part of our continued success as a country. sadly, very sadly, this is a freedom that so many countries like turkey still struggle to realize. and today we're considering this house resolution 306, which i authored with ranking member howard berman, urging the republic of turkey to safeguard its christian heritage and return confiscated church properties to their rightful owners. unfortunately the u.s. commission on international religious freedom has had to put turkey on its watch list for three straight years now. and the commission reports that the turkish government's formal longstanding efforts to control religion by imposing suffocating regulations and by denying full legal status to religious institutions results in serious

religious freedoms violations. the government has failed to take decisive action to correct the climate of impunity against religious minorities and to make the necessary institutional reforms to reverse these conditions. now, those are the words of the commission itself on this subject. religious tolerance has long been a problem for turkey. turkey has yet to remedy the desecration of religious properties of over two million a armenians and greeks and asyrians over the last 100 years. until these obligations are fulfilled, religious freedom will remain illusive and frankly relations with the united states will suffer. the prime minister recently issued a decree to return confiscated church property taken after 1936 but the majority of confiscated religious properties of course

were taken prior to 1936. we're sending a signal today that turkey should reassess the cutoff date and i would suggest that outside pressure and actions like we're taking here today and reports like the religious commission have helped with what progress we have seen to date. the united states has a vested interest to advance religious freedom, turkey's claims to be a secular country is not enough when dealing with the day to day discriminatory harassment that religious minorities face there. for actions speak louder than words. there are very few religious minorities in turkey, these are men and women struggling to practice their faith. they need added protection. so this resolution urges turkey to end all forms of religious discrimination, to allow rightful church properties to organize and train and teach and practice religious activities

without hindrance or restriction. and to return church properties and relics to its rightful owners whether that be places of worship ormond stares or schools or hospitals or holy sites or other artifacts. and, lastly, to allow religious minority groups to own religious properties so that they can preserve and reconstruct and repair religious properties as they see fit. religious freedom is a fundamental human right, so i urge the passage of this house resolution 306, urging the republic of turkey to safeguard its christian heritage and return confiscated church properties. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. >> i've read h.res. 306 and certainly there's nothing in the language of this resolution that very many people would oppose.

if basically says that it is the sense of the house of representatives that the secretary of state in all official contacts with turkish leaders and other turkish officials should emphasize that turkey should end all forms of religious discrimination and then it goes on from there. mr. whitfield: now, this resolution in a way reminds me of asking someone, do they still beat their children? because whatever they answer, they're going to be condemned. and the mere fact that the resolution is being introduced would lead an objective observer with the opinion that religious freedom is being systematically denied in turkey. so let's just look at a few of the facts. on september 13, 2011, during a briefing on the release of u.s. department of state

international religious freedom report, secretary clinton praised turkey's recent steps in enhancing religious freedom. we've also seen turkey take serious steps to improve the climate for religious tolerance. the turkish government issued a decree in august that invited nonmuslims -- non-muslims to reclaim churches and synagogues that were confiscated 75 years ago. and this was the language of secretary clinton. i applaud the prime minister's very important commitment to doing so. and in its 13th annual report on the international religious freedom, the u.s. department of state also underscored turkey's recent efforts. during the reporting period, the government took steps to improve religious freedom. notably the government permitted religious services to be held annually in historic christian sites that had been turned into

state museums after decades of disease use. these -- disuse. these positive statements have shown that turkey has good intentions in pursuing religious freedom. and i might say that last year the turkish prime minister issued a circular that emphasized the right of all turkish people, muslim and non-muslim, to enjoy their religious cultures and identifies. -- identities. the prime minister has urged all government institutions to act in accordance with this message. so i think it's quite clear that while this resolution has no binding legal effect, has no authority over turkey whatsoever, we can see that turkey is taking specific steps to ensure religious freedom in turkey and they're doing so without any prodding from the u.s. so, at this time i would reserve

the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california, mr. berman. mr. berman: yes, mr. speaker, i rise in strong support of h.res. 306 and yield initially three minutes to a leader in this effort for a very long time, my colleague and neighbor from california, mr. schiff. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for three minutes. mr. schiff: i thank the gentleman from california for yielding and for his leadership on this important issue. from the spring of 1915 and continuing for the next eight years the forces of the ot monday empire, police and -- ottoman empire, police and military engaged in a genocide of the ar mean a&mian people living -- armenian people living within their empire. when it was over, more than 1.5 million men, women and children were killed in the first genocide of the 20th century. they were beaten, shot, marched

to their deaths through scorching deserts or across frigid mountains and left where they fell. families and entire communities were destroyed as the ottomans did everything in their power to make a people disappear. but the physical near annihilation of the armenian people was not enough to satisfy the turks' desire to wreak vengeance on armenia which was the first nation in the world to adopt christianity as its official religion. their campaign against the armenians was broader and aimed at destroying nod only the armenian people but also their history, their culture and their faith. when ottoman forces began to massacre their armenian neighbors 95 years ago, there were nearly 2,000 armenian churches in what is now turkey. fewer than 100 remain standing and fully functioning today. one of the world's oldest christian communities has in significant part disappeared from its ancest ral homeland. while the ar menial genocide stands as a -- armenian genocide

stands as a singular event, the persecution of the armenians has continued and much of it centered as their christian minority in an overwhelming muslim country with -- in an overwhelmingly muslim country. other christian communities, especially the greek orthodox, have also been the victims of turkish intolerance. in northern cyprus which was innovated by the tush -- turkish army in 1975, cemeteries have been desecrated or fall noon dess repair, and freasts -- and priests are forbid be from access -- forbiden from accessing churches. it was noted this the 2011 report, that the turkish government continues to impose serious limitations on freedom of religion or belief, thereby threatening the continued vitality and survival of minority religious communities in turkey. ours is a nation that has prized freedom of religion. for more than two centuries we have stood for tolerance of

other faiths and plern diplomatics, members of congress and presidents have consistently pressed other governments to respect and protect their minorities. this resolution is in the finest tradition of advocacy for those whose voices have been silenced and i'm proud to be an original co-sponsor and to join my colleagues, especially mr. royce and mr. berman, the ranking member of the foreign affairs committee, a friend who has been a leader on these issues throughout his years of service, in the house. i urge a yes vote and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. royce: i'll yield some time to the gentleman later on but you have some time now. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california, mr. berman. mr. berman: thank you, mr. speaker.

and i yield myself 2 1/2 minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for 2 1/2 minutes. mr. berman: mr. speaker, the christian communities of turkey, once populous and prosperous, have now for many decades been victims of discrimination. the result has been a drastic decline in the christian population. whereas well over two million christians lived in an tollia a century ago, today there are only a few thousand. less than 1% of turkey's population. although christians clearly constitute no threat to the majority, the various christian communities remain the victims of unceasing discrimination. their churches have been desecrated, their properties confiscated and they are denied the right to practice their religion as they see fit or train their clergy. through this resolution, we're asking turkey rectify this terrible situation. much of the worst damage, too,

and the confiscation of christian properties was done in the early decades of the turkish republic. but it continues to some extent today. some three months after the introduction of this resolution in june, turkish -- the turkish prime minister responded with a decree that would return a small percentage of the property confiscated from religious minorities as well as provide compensation of property that was seized and later sold. this is too little and too late. it doesn't even begin to make up for the years of loss and the damaging impact on the minority communities. but it does appear to be a step in the right direction. we will watch its implementation closely. meanwhile, the turkish government must also address the many other forms of discrimination that christians in turkey endure. every church in turkey suffers petty harassment at a minimum

and is forced to apply to central authorities for authorization to do any type of repairs or construction, requests that often linger for months and years without government action. moreover, turkey recognizes certain christian groups as legitimate but not others. if you belong to one of the unauthorized groups such as evangelicals, you can't even build a church. this resolution calls on turkey to make good on all past transgressions and allow true freedom of religion. to achieve the standards of democratic behavior to which it says and to which i believe it aspires. we want towerky to allow its christian -- we want turkey to allow its christian citizens to train their clergy exactly as they want. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. . mr. whitfield: i yield myself

four minutes. i might say that turkey has been a valuable ally of the united states for many years. as we all know, it is the only muslim nation in nato. it has been a vital partner to the united states on the war on terror in both iraq and afghanistan. and just recently, turkey agreed to host a nato radar defense system directed toward iran. turkey is becoming an increasing important commercial partner. but i wanted to also point out, about three years ago, without any input from the u.s. congress, the secretary of state or anyone else in this federal government, the direct ate of religious affairs in turkey, on his own nigs had one of his

religious scholars, had him spend a semester and there was a dialogue between members of the cristian faith and members of the muslim faith. and during that time, there was not any finger pointing. there was not any accusing the other side of being mean-spirited or anything else, but it was simply an exchange of ideas. that was at the initiative of the director ate of religious affairs in turkey. i point out in october, the archbishop recon see crated, an armenian chimp in turkey. that church has recently been

renovated. i would also say that on november 11 of 2010, turkish authorities returned a former off fanage on princess island to the greek orthodox following a decision by the european court of human rights. and the attorney declared this marks a first in europe. turkey became the first country to implement a decision. this should be an example of other countries. i think it's very clear that turkey is moving in the right direction. they do not need to be condemned in my view. they are a vital ally of the u.s. and with that, i would yield the balance of my -- not yield the balance of my time, but reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california, mr. royce.

mr. royce: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from from california, mr. sherman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is represented for 2 1/2 minutes. mr. sherman: adoption of h.res. 306 would add a powerful voice to the united states of congress to the defense of religious freedom in present-day turkey and reinforce democracy and defending freedom of faith around the world. i identify myself with the comments of the the gentleman from california, mr. schiff, on putting this resolution in context, by noting the armenian genocide and how that sets the stage for everything we are talking about here. h.res. 306 is needed to address to talk about the tushish

disregard of sites and churches many of them holding great significance to cristian heritage. the commission on religious freedom raises the following alarm in its report. the turkish government continues to impossible sanctions on freedom of religion and belief continuing the violate of religious minorities. churches have been desecrated. the adoption of this would support the cristian communities in turkey who remain vulnerable and endure -- for example and this is one example, of the 2,000 armenian churches that existed in the early 1900's, less than 100 remain fully functional today.

the u.s. commission on international religious freedom has for three years straight placed turkey on its watch list. in 2009, the cristian head appeared on "60 minutes" and said that these were second class citizens and felt crucified. church properties routinely confiscated through discriminatory laws. the united states commission on religious freedom reported that over the previous five decades the tushish state has used undemocratic laws and confiscated hundreds of religious minority properties primarily those belonging to the greek orthodox community. it is time to add the voice of the american congress in an

effort to make sure that turkey meets its international responsibilities. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california, mr. royce. mr. royce: reserve. i reserve the balance of my time to close. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky. mr. whitfield: i might make one other comment about turkey. we all know that with the arab spring and the movement toward more free government in the middle east, the prime minister has been one of the real leaders and spoken up against syria and spoken up against egypt and spoken against other countries and been a real leader in trying to bring about a measure of freedom in that area. i might also say that the time period that's been discussed earlier about the early 1900's,

of course during world war i when a lot of these things took place, the country, the ottoman empire was fighting for its existence at that time and there were atrocities that took place on both sides. but as i said, this resolution, there isn't anything this this resolution for anyone to oppose, but i think we should recognize that turkey is making great strides that they are returning properties. that they are taking a step as has been pointed out by secretary of state clinton and as by the religious watch organizations and others. now at this time, i would be happy to yield -- mr. berman requested that i yield some time. i would be happy to yield some time to someone over on that side if they care to have it.

mr. berman: i would be very grateful if the gentleman would yield two minutes to my friend from new york. mr. whitfield: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: i thank the gentlemen for yielding to me. i rise in support of the resolution. mr. speaker, i have become concerned with the direction of turkey in the past few years. it has elected an islamist government and has pushed towards conflict. they are taking a strong stand against the oppression in syria, but much needs to change in turkey. in particular, turkey which has a profound connection with the birth and growth of cristianity has harassed worshippers and refused to grant legal status to cristian groups.

turkey is on the watch list and there is limitations on freedom of religion or belief and threatening the survival of religious communities. i rise in strong support of h.r. 306 which requires them to return property to the communities and end discrimination against surviving christians and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. the gentleman from kentucky reserve? mr. whitfield: iry serve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. mr. berman: i'm pleased to yield 2 1/2 minutes to the armenian caucus, mr. pallone.

mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker and i'm proud to rise in support of house resolution 306 urging the republic of turkey to safeguard its cristian heritage. as an orange co-sponsor its adoption is importance that the congress will not remain silent while countries violate basic religious freedoms. the sad reality is they face oppressive policies. u.s. commission on international religious freedom has found and i quote the turkish government to control religion by imposing suffocating regulations and denying full legal status results in serious violations and the commission has recommended that the turkey comply with freedom of religion or belief and that is what this

resolution does. many in turkey have fled religious persecution knowing the consequences that it has had owe churches. the armenian caucus commemorates the genocide. over one million were killed over 90 years ago. but their landmarks, churches and cemeteries are targets. i wanted to mention to my colleague and i respect my colleague from kentucky a great deal. turkey has never admitted that the genocide has occurred and the fact that you mentioned in world war i where there were problems on both sides, the fact of the matter is one million ar meanians were massacred. the resolution further calls on turkey to stop the oppressive policy on the education of greek

priests and to leave their home country. can you imagine they are asking him to leave turkey where they have been for 2,000 years. i believe if you believe that we should have freedom to practice your religion without oppressive governments, you should vote yes on this resolution. and turkey continues to do all these things. you know, the suggestion, i know my colleague has made from kentucky that somehow they are doing a better job, it's token and they continue the oppression compared to the few where they have tried. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california, mr. berman. mr. berman: i yield myself the balance of the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california holds

1 1/2 minutes. mr. berman: mr. speaker, we want turkey to follow through on its commitment to return confiscated property of christian communities and compensation for properties that can't be recovered. we want cristian communities to enjoy the same rights and privileges that religious minorities enjoy in this country. we want turkey to acknowledge the armenian genocide. this is president too much to ask. that is the minimum we must ask if turkey is to join the rampings of the world's fully free nations. i commend mr. royce for introducing this resolution and working with me closely on this critical issue and i urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. mr. whitfield: in order to ensure the future viability of

the orthodox church, the appointment of non-turkish metropolitans have been prohibited in turkey since 2004. furthermore in 2010, turkey offered citizenship to metropolitans of foreign nationalities who chose to apply. issues of issuing permits have been resolved. i mentioned earlier that the direct tireate of religious affairs in turkey made available of the religious scholars in turkey to conduct a seminar at a see himary. i would also mention to the body that the south korean met different church has been in turkey and they have a church in bun of the provinces which is

one of the early christian sites and they have been practicing their religion and i would say i don't want people to leave here with the impression that turkey is out there deliberately trying to den eye religious freedom because -- deny religious freedom because that is not the case. maybe they have a way to go. but there is nothing in this resolution that refers to anything about a genocide. this is simply talking about religious freedom. and i wanted to point out the steps that turkey continues to take and with that, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california, mr. royce. mr. royce: thank you. in closing, mr. speaker,

religious freedom is a foundation necessary, i believe, for any democracy. it's a freedom we here in america can enjoy and frankly it's imbedded so deeply in our culture that many of us tend to take these freedoms for granted. but unfortunately this same scenario does not exist around this comblobe and i just -- globe and i just have to tell you, turkey has been identified on the religious freedom watch list for three straight years. i wish that weren't the case but it is. and frankly i believe that what progress has come comes at least in part, in part due to this type of pressure from religious freedom reports or from resolutions. the u.s. commission on international religious freedom allows us to gather nonpartisan information on countries that violate these fundamental human rights. and it's my understanding that

in 2008 the government of turkey claimed they would return confiscated properties but out of 1,400 claims, less than 100 were approved. now, we have close relations with turkey, we have common interests, and this is a friendly urging that it do more on this important issue and, frankly, one that turkey itself has committed to improving on. but, that said, with some of the statements made here today, i have to comment on an issue of which i have some personal knowledge or memory. when i was a young boy, i remember very well an armenian in my community, a very elderly ar mean man -- armenian, who was the solar heenian in his -- solar meanian in his -- sole armenian in his village to survive the genocide. and the reason he survived was because one of his neighbors hid

him and he told me the stories of the atrocities that occurred there. for our ambassador, who detailed what was going on while he was ambassador to the ottoman empire, this was not something that happened in theory. it was a genocide that cost 1 1/2 million lives. and the fact that even today turkey does not acknowledge the existence of that armenian genocide in the ottoman empire, i think, should still give us pause. when we're dealing with the recommend nance of the population of what was once a sizable percentage of the population of that area, when we're dealing with a question of what remains, 1% greek and armenian heritage and ethnicity that remains in turkey today, i

think it is only proper that when we have this kind of report that comes back to us from the u.s. commission on international religious freedom, and it details the fact that for three years running, rather than make progress we've seen backsliding, i think it is time for this body to take the position and send the message, return that con fiss catted property to its -- confiscated property to its rightful owners, allow those, that small minority that remains, that wants to practice their faith, allow them to practice their faith. allow them to continue in their schools so that the next generation that wishes to follow in that tradition can do so. that's the request here. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california retains the right for final closing. the gentleman from kentucky.

mr. whitfield: in conclusion, i would just say and reiterate once again that in the 13th annual report on international religious freedom, the u.s. department of state also underscored turkey's recent efforts. during the reporting period the government took steps, important steps to improve religious freedom. these policies statements have replaced status of no change in the situation regarding religious freedom in turkey. and with that i would yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california is -- california's time has expired. the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 306 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

for what purpose does the gentleman rise? >> mr. speaker, i move that the house do now adjourn. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the motion to adjourn is adopted. in accordance with the house standing adjournment until 10:00 a.m. tomorrow for morning h

current funding expires this friday. >> in a few moments, house debate on a bill to extend the payroll tax cut. it includes provisions to move forward on the approval process for the key stone pipeline. later a discussion on federal budget reform. >> for the past few months, we have examined the political lives of "the contenders."

this friday we will talk with history professor jim baker, to see what they learn from the series. to retrieve the episodes, visit c-span.org/thecontenders. >> the house debate this two hours. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. camp: there are four important facts everyone should know about the middle class tax relief and job creation act. first, it will strengthen our economy and help get americans back to work by lowering the tax burden for middle-class families and job providers alike. second, it prevents massive cuts to doctors working in the

medicare program to protect america's seniors and those with disabilities, providing more stability in the doctor payment schedule than there has been in a decade. third, it adopts a number of the president's legislative initiatives which represents the bipartisan cooperation americans are demanding. and fourth, it's fully paid for with spending cuts, not job-killing tax hikes. the c.b.o. tables show the bill is fully offset and saves about $1 billion. when you add in the floorns provisions, the savings are -- flood insurance provisions, the savings are closer to $6 billion. it would help the unemployed help and get a job. it helps seniors. it is bipartisan and it is paid for. the house should and i expect it will overwhelmingly pass this measure and the senate should quick low pass it so americans can get what they truly want this holiday season, something that helps create

jobs while helping those most in need. while this bill includes a priorities of a number of committees, many of the provisions in h.r. 3630 are within the purview of the ways and means committee. this bill will extend for one year the payroll tax holiday to help middle-class families struggling in this economy. while fully protecting the social security trust fund. meerbling, i have a letter from the social security chief actuary confirming this fact, and i ask unanimous consent that it be inserted in the record. without an extension, a worker earning $50,000 would see his or her take-home pay decline by $1,500 in 2012 as compared to 2011. employers are helped, through. job creators down the supply chain will see more demand for their products. this will help boost economic activity and job creation. the president has endorsed both of these tax policies. the bill will also extend

unemployment benefits that are scheduled to expire at the end of the month. but does so while permanently adopting the program. since 2008, extensions of unemployment benefits have added $180 billion to the debt. we're putting an end to that deficit spending. this program is fully paid for and it contains significant reforms such as allowing states to screen and test unemployment insurance recipients for drug abuse, overturning a 1960's era labor department directive. requiring all employed recipients to search for work. be in a g.e.d. program if they have not finished high school with reasonable exceptions and participate in re employment services. it also implements a program integrity measure such as new data standardization to crack down on waste, fraud and abuse. and just as we did in connection with welfare reform, we're giving the states flexibility to design their own

re-employment programs similar to the sorts of programs the president has touted like georgia works and wage subsidies. why are we making these reforms instead of just passing a straight extension? because we know that a paycheck is better than an unemployment check. these bipartisan reforms will help get americans back to work while providing them with the assistance during hard times. and that should truly be the focus of unemployment programs, getting people back to work. in addition to reforming u.i., we extend federal benefits but reduce the maximum number of weeks of all benefits from 99 weeks to 59 weeks in most states by hid 2012. this -- mid 2012. this reflects a more normal level following a recession. i should point out phasing out 20 of those weeks is the president's policy. as a result of this extension, an estimated five million out-of-work americans will receive an average of about

$7,000 in assistance they need in this tough economy. a no vote today is a vote to deny those americans who are out of work those benefits. we also say if you earn $1 million you have to pay back your unemployment benefits. though not in the jurisdiction of the ways and means committee, the bill applies similar policy to food stamps. together these policies save taxpayers $20 million. additional savings are found by freezing the pay by members of congress and other civilian government workers for one year. next, the legislation prevents a 27% cut to doctors serving medicare patients and replacing it with a 1% payment update in 2012 and 2013. the two-year update is the longest congress has provided since 2004 which will give us time to develop a permanent solution. in addition to the medicare doc fix, the legislation reforms and extends temporary medicare

payment programs. since 2002, congress has blindly extended as many as a dozen of these programs. given that we're running $1 trillion deficit and borrowing 40 cents out of every dollar 1 we spend, the american taxpayer cannot afford of having congress skip out on proper oversight. that's why we're extending only four of those provisions and requiring additional studies from the centers of medicare and medicaid services and the government accountability office to get better data on how they're working. these programs are the therapy cap exceptions process, premium assistance for low-income seniors, ambulance payments add-ons and geographic payment for physician office visits, sometimes called gpci. in the health care field, the legislation also adopts a recommendation from president obama that reduces subsidies to high-income seniors by requiring them to pay a greater share of their part d and b premiums. this single change reduces spending by $31 billion in the

next decade. saves $13.4 billion in wasteful overpayments of exchange subsidies similar to previous good government changes enacted by overwhelming bipartisan jorts and signed into law by -- majorities and signed into law by the president. and repeals provisions in current law that hurt physician-owned hospitals. with regard to the nation's primary welfare program, the legislation extends through september 30, 2012, temporary assistance for needy families, tanf, which is set to expire on december 31 of this year. the tanf extension includes bipartisan, bicam rell reforms to ensure that -- bidemeanor calseral reforms to ensure that they have -- welfare funds cannot be accessed at a.t.m.'s in strip clubs, liquor stores and casinos. in california alone, nearly $4 million was withdrawn from

a.t.m.'s in casinos between january, 2007, and may, 2010. another $20,000 in benefits was withdrawn from a.t.m.'s in adult entaintment establishments. i think we can all agree that this reform makes sense for taxpayers and for those on welfare. finally, the legislation takes two additional steps to better protect taxpayer dollars. first, it makes necessary changes to the additional child tax credit program by requiring the individual or at least one spouse to include a social security number on their tax return to claim the credit just as you would have to do when filing for the earned income tax credit. this will reduce federal spending by $10 billion in the next decade alone. second, this legislation reduces social security overpayments by improving coordinations with states and local governments, incorporating another recommendation from president obama. the middle-class tax and relief and job creation act incorporates more than a dozen proposals that the president has either offered, supported

or has signed into law in one variation other another. the list of job creating provisions is almost too long to list. but let me list a few. a payroll tax cut by every working american that also protects social security. a bipartisan energy product -- project, keystone x.l., that will create more than 100,000 jobs and is supported by both employers and unions. a bipartisan tax cut for small and large businesses to invest now in new machinery and equipment to grow their businesses and create jobs. bipartisan reforms to make sense of federal regulations like boiler mact which will protect as many as 20,000 jobs. bipartisan health care reforms that will help ensure a strong health care industry. a bipartisan push for spectrum options that will unleash new growth and create new jobs in the technology sector. bipartisan reforms that help americans find work faster

instead of just giving them an unemployment check. the list goes on and on. but in short this bill is about jobs, jobs, jobs. creating jobs and helping americans find a job. it's paid for. it is bipartisan. it will help get our economy back on track. i strongly urge my colleagues to vote in favor of the middle-class tax relief and job creation act. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. levin: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. levin: there are fewer than three weeks until the new year and yet here they go again. republicans are seeking a path of confrontation instead of collaboration. if republicans were serious, truly serious about trying to come together on behalf of american families, they would have reached out to democrats

in this house. they've done nothing of the sort. they've made a sham out of bipartisanship. instead, they once again targeted millions of seniors and middle-class families for cuts without asking essentially anything of millionaires and billionaires. they've singled out medicare premium increases. they've permanently increased seniors' costs by $31 billion. the bill also, when you look at it carefully, spends $300 million on a special interest provision that helps a handful of specialty hospitals while cutting billions from community hospitals. they've targeted the unemployed , slashing 40 weeks of unemployment insurance, impacting millions of families still struggling under the

weight of the worst economic downturn since the great depression. 22 jurisdictions, 22 with the highest unemployment rates would be hit the hardest -- alabama, california, connecticut, d.c., florida, georgia, illinois, idaho, indiana, kentucky, michigan, missouri, nevada, new jersey, north carolina, ohio, oregon, rhode island, south carolina, tennessee, texas and washington, and the result would be in the state that mr. camp and i come from, michigan, the result would be a maximum of 46 weeks of unemployment insurance. and what do they ask of the wealthiest americans? basically nothing. not even after the wealthiest 1% saw their incomes nearly triple in the last three decades while salaries for

middle class families barely budged. on average, there are more than four unemployed americans for every job opening. never on official record in our nation's history have there been so many unemployed americans out of work for so long. there is nothing normal about this recession. nothing normal. one gentleman from my district, phil of clinton township, put it this way, quote, i am by no means unintelligent, i am by no means lazy, and i am by no means giving up. the unmoed are not people who can ante up $10,000 bets or spend lavishly on jewelry at tiffany's. these are family scraping by on average of less than $300 a week, trying to keep food on

the table, a roof over their head and clothes on their backs and the backs of their children as they look for work. republicans are out of touch with the families of america. i hope after today's exercise that is going nowhere in the senate and the president opposes house republicans will get serious, get serious about addressing very pressing end-of-year issues on behalf of the american people. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time, i would note that the ways and means committee has held 16 different hearings or markups on provisions contained in this legislation and i would yield two minutes to the distinguished chairman of the health subcommittee, the gentleman from california, mr. herger. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two

minutes. mr. herger: mr. speaker, it's critically important that we act to prevent physicians' medicare payments being cut by 27.4% on december 31. such a drastic cut would result in many physicians ending participation in the medicare program and many senior citizens would no longer be able to obtain the care they need. the bill lfer us would prevent cuts for the next two years with physicians receiving a 1% inflation upfwrade in each of those years. as i've said before, we need to do away with s.g.r. once and for all so that doctor do not have to constantly worry about cuts to their medicare payments. i'm disappointed we have run out of time to consider

permanent reform this year, but the ways and means committee has been carefully examining different options for replacing the s.g.r. and i'm hopeful we can move forward with these efforts next year. for now, this legislation gives physicians the longest period of payment since 2004 and it is fully paid for with reforms to medicare and other federal health programs. many of these reforms have bipartisan support and were included in the president's deficit reduction proposal. i hope we will have a strong, bipartisan vote for this bill. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i yield one minute to the gentleman from washington, mr. mctermot. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one

minute. mr. mcdermott: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. mcdermott: mr. speaker, well, it's getting close to the christmas tree and here we come, finally getting around to dealing with unemployment. with the most drastic attack on the unemployment system that we've had since 1933. without any hearings, i hear people talk about the ways and means committee has talked about this. there hasn't been a single hearing on the proposal that's put here before us on the end of the session cutting federal programs from 73 weeks to 33 weeks. you're taking 40 weeks of unemployment away from people who have thought this country

cared and it turns out the republicans don't care at all. this is bait and switch. this is like going to a used car lot and the guy shows you a chevrolet over here and says that's a thousand bucks -- mr. levin: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds. mr. mcdermott: and you get there and find another car that's worth nothing, been in a wreck and you think you've got the $1,000 car. this is a phony attack on employment. the press releases will say we extended unemployment benefits. yeah, well you pulled the rug out from under the long-term unemployment. this is not the usual unemployment. this is unemployment that really has the highest long-term unemployment in the history of this country in the last 50 years. it's a bad bill. vote no.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: mr. speaker, at this time i yield three minutes to the distinguished gentleman a member of the ways and means committee, the gentleman from texas, mr. johnson who is an author of the reform to the refundable child tax credit. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. johnson: thank you mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding. i rise in support of this bill, i'd like to begin by thanking the leadership and the chairman for including in this bill a provision of mine that will help eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse with respect to the refundable child tax credit. this simple, common sense provision will save the american taxpayer $9.4 billion by stopping illegal immigrants

from getting the hello, hello, hello. i first introduced this provision is a bill in january 2010 and this past may. my legislation is based on the good work of the treasury inspector general for tax administration, which said in its report on the credit thatall though the law prohibits aliens residing without authorization in the united states from receiving most federal public benefits and in-- an increasing numb of these vims are filing tax returns claiming this refundable credit. according to the i.g., illegal immigrants bilinged $4.2 billion from the u.s. taxpayers last year. and i think it's time we fixed it. currently, if individuals do not have a social security number, the i.r.s. will give them an individual taxpayer

identification number to get the credit this provision will root out waste, fraud, and abuse by the i.r.s., requiring individuals to provide their social security number in order to claim this refundable credit. mr. speaker, there's been a lot of debate regarding the extension of the payroll tax cut and social security. given this debate, as chairman of the social security subcommittee, i'd like to take this opportunity to briefly talk about the importance of securing this program's future. last year marked the first time since 1983 that social security paid out more in benefits than it took in in payroll taxes. 1983 was also the last major reform of social security. as a result, over the next 10 years, social security will be in the red by over half a trillion dollars. as a result, social security

must rely on general revenues to pay back with interest the social security surpluses that washington has spent. that means treasury has to borrow more, according to the c.b.o., we do so at our own economic peril. mr. speaker, the american people want, need, an deserve a fact-based conversation about how we can fairly and responsibly fix social security for good. that would send a powerful signal that we are serious about getting our fiscal house in order. let's do it now. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman is expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: it's my privilege to yield two minutes to another distinguished member of the committee, mr. neal of massachusetts. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes.

mr. neal: thank you, mr. levin. mr. speaker, i'm in opposition to this so-called middle class tax relief and job creation act largely because it's neither. mr. camp is correct, he said there have been 16 hearings at the ways and means committee. but never once has there been a conversation. that's the important matter to consider. there's been no give and take in this legislation. this was brought to the floor in a manner to ram it through the house to protect talking points as we move to the new year. if we don't act, 160 million americans will see a tax increase. with families working americans seeing a tax increase of up to $1,000 in 2012. we need to extend unemployment insurance to assist millions of unemployed americans and to fix the medicare physician payment rate to ensure that seniors have access to their doctors. i'm also opposed to this proposal that they offer today. while i support eliminating the ski swruled reduction of 27% in medicare payments to physicians, this is the wrong way to do it by offsetting it,

taking $17 billion away from hospital funding. people in america rightly ask, how come it's so difficult to get something done in congress. we're going to quibble with people today, 8.6% of the american family who are without work. we're going to quibble over extending their unemployment benefits. and yet just three years ago, the head of merrill lynch, after the company was run into the ground, left with -- left with $69 million. but a month ago, at hewlett-packard, for nonperformance, thed of the company is dismissed, not like the unemployeed are dismissed by somebody escorting them to the door but he was dismissed with $10 million worth of salary and $13 million worth of stock for nonperformance. at enron, everybody at the top held on and locked down that stock so people at the bottom couldn't get out. that's what this is about

today. picking on the unemployed. 15 million members of the american family without work as we proceed to this holiday season. we need a tax holiday for middle income americans and that's what we should be doing today. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i yield one minute to a distinguished of me ways and means committee, the gentleman from texas, mr. brady. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. brady: no bill is perfect but this has much to admire in it. moving the unemployed back to the work force after a year makes sense. so does allowing states to drug test, stopping taxpayer fraud, helping small businesses invest in equipment, paying doctors fairly for treating our seniors and telling the president he expect wait to approve the job crease ated by the keystone pipeline. all that is very good. like many in congress, i'm very troubled by -- about reducing social security revenue another year. the bill's awe fors have

responsibly included reforls that fill this hole and then some. but over the long-term, cutting social security contribution makes an already fragile program more fragile. in support, i want my constituents to know, 2012 is it. i'll not support another ex-tex of the social security tax holiday. i'll work to replace it with tax relief of an equal amount that doesn't impact social security or make it harder to preserve this program for future generations. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman is expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: it's my privilege to yield two minutes to the gentleman from south carolina a leader in our party. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. davis: thank you very much. thank you, mr. levin, for yielding me this time.

mr. clyburn: the clock is ticking, woking families are worrying, and my republican colleagues are paying political games. this cuts unemployment benefits for hardworking folks who lost their jobs through no fault of their own. my home state and district contains some of the hard etc. hit families and communities in this country. and it is unfair to blame these folks for the economic hard times they're experiencing. this bill proposes drug testing for unemployed workers to draw from insurance funds they paid into. that is unfair and insulting. i don't see anyone in the republican majority demanding drug testing for folks who receive oil and gas subsidies. the president will veto this bill if it ever reaches his desk. this political game that's being played is just another round of a brinksmanship we're seeing time and again this year.

we need to pass a clean extension of a payroll tax for working americans. we need to pass a clean extension of unemployment insurance for those who have lost their jobs. we need to pass a clean extension of the s.g.r., the doc fix, so medical -- medicare patients will no -- know that their doctors will be there for them. we need for my republican friends to stop playing political games with people's lives. i urge my colleagues to vote against this partisan bill. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: mr. speaker, i would just note that this legislation incorporates more than a dozen proposals that the president either offered, supported or signed into law, in fact, more than 90% of the bill is paid for with such policies. with that i would yield three minutes to a distinguished member of the ways and means committee, mr. davis. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. davis: thank you, mr.

chairman. i rise in support of h.r. 3630 and tire of the empty rhetoric that i hear over and over again as the chairman just pointed out. this bill includes many provisions that your party's president recommended. this is a bipartisan piece of legislation and we're politicizing something at the expense of working families which is a sad thing to see happen in this chamber. it includes important provisions in this legislation designed to promote job creation, but i'd like to focus on the bill's provisions to reform and improve unemployment insurance or u.i. these commonsense reforms expect u.i. recipients to search for work and make progress toward a g.e.d. or other training they need to get back to work. we let states make reasonable exceptions but the message is clear. u.i. needs to change, to do a better job of helping people get back to work. the bill also lets states apply for waivers of federal law so they can test better ways to engage the unemployed. our colleagues are right. there are too many long-term unemployed today and we need to hold government programs more accountable for helping more of

them find work sooner, including through wage subsidies and other innovative approaches that have received bipartisan support. also contained in this bill is a program integrity provision to improve data standards in the u.i. program to help operate more efficiently and effectively across states and to help it better coordinate with other programs. the same provision was included in the bipartisan child welfare legislation signed by president obama in september. and it is included in another section of this bill covering temporary assistance for needy families programs. h.r. 3630 also makes reasonable reductions in temporary federal u.i. benefits. while extending that program for another year and maintaining up to 59 weeks of benefits by the middle of 2012. first it extends 20 weeks of federal benefits that were added to the program when the national unemployment rate was at 9.9% or well above today's 8.6%. second which adopt the president's call to phase out a second 20 weeks of federal u.i. benefits in the early months of

2012. so instead of cutting or slashing and so on as many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle dubiously claim, the facts show that u.i. benefits extended in this bill would aid over five million people at a cost of $34 billion. all paid for through other savings. that's an average of almost $7,000 in federal help for every person aided. in fact, with this bill, total u.i. spending since the start of 2008 will stretch to an astounding $546 billion. that's not a typo. u.i. spending now totals over a half trillion dollars in the past five years, that's over five times, listen to this, five times as much as it costs to put a man on the moon in today's dollars. i urge support of this much-needed legislation and most importantly its long needed reform so the u.i. program does a better job helping americans get back to work sooner. i thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i must say to talk

about a man on the moon to essentially disregard the needs of millions of people who are on the ground unemployed in this country is, i think, unconscionable. i now yield two minutes to the gentleman from oregon, another member of our committee, mr. blumenauer, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized for two minutes. mr. blumenauer: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. levin. a year ago our republican friends talked about reforming the process so that we wouldn't have legislation that was must-pass category, that was laden with items that were unrelated or unnecessaryly -- unnecessarily complicated it. here we are, less than a year after they adopted their rules, and we have legislation that

unemployment insurance has always been, i think, in times of economic stress when benefits are threatened to be expired, that that would be must-pass legislation. if you ask the american public, being able to keep $1,000 or more in the pockets of the average family by keeping the payroll tax reduction, that would be must-pass legislation. and the s.g.r., the sustained growth rate problem, to avoid a draconian cut in physician reimbursement, which immersefully say i did not support when it was proposed by my republican friends and enacted into law some 15 years ago, that certainly must pass -- that's certainly must-pass legislation. and here we have a hodgepodge of jamming all of these together, plus, wait a minute, the keystone pipeline, a variety of things that are complicated, expensive and unfair jammed

together in a must-pass ledge -- legislative situation. mr. speaker, i am opposed to draconian cuts in benefit levels . in a state like mine it's going to be very hard on rural and smalltown, america, where those extended benefits make a big difference, that jobs ancht there. now, you may -- aren't there. now, you may force some of these people who don't have a high school education to start a training program which you're not willing to pay for, you're going to impose very significant cuts on hospitals. for example -- mr. levin: i yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds. mr. blumenauer: the evaluation in management cap is going to impact dramatically hospitals that a number of us represent. it's going to scale up much higher costs for senior citizens

who don't think they're high income. with all due respect, i think it's the wrong approach to serious problems that we face. we ought to deal with them one at a time, in a baled -- balanced and thoughtful way, reject this christmas tree and do it right. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i recognize the gentleman from georgia, mr. kingston, for two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. kingston: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to enter into a colloquy with the distinguished chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. kingston: mr. chairman, i thank you for including language in this bill would thank would remove current barriers for states to strengthen the insurance program through optional drug testing. by doing so we can help increase individuals' ability to gain future employment and help ensure benefits are not being used to finance an individual's drug dependency. it is my understanding that the intent of this language is to provide flexibility to states to establish drug screening methods

if they choose so. mr. camp: that's correct. the language in the bill provides states with the option to screen and test u.i. program applicants for illegal drug use. mr. kingston: thank you. i would like to call state's attention to the national institutes of health that identify individuals of having a high probability of drug use. i introduced individuals to be high risk would be required to complete and pass a drug test in order to receive benefits. general tax dollars help fund payments after 26 weeks. so people who are unemployed should be looking for a job and should not become voluntarily ineligible by taking illegal drugs. in this tough environment, we must maximize tax dollar spending efficiently and effectively. i appreciate your commitment to hold a hearing on this issue no later than the spring and i thank you for pointing towards further action. mr. camp: that is a helpful

reminder, especially to those states that look to take advantage of how this legislation removes current bureaucratic barriers, preventing them from doing that sort of screening and testing if they so choose. mr. kingston: i look forward to working with the committee on this proposal and i thank the chairman and the subcommittee chairman, mr. davis, for their support. and discussions of this language and thank you for your colloquy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i now yield three minutes to our distinguished minority whip, mr. hoyer of maryland, three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized for three minutes. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i rise in opposition to this bill. we are in now overtime. the scheduled date for ending this session was december 8.

that date of course was substantially later than we normally suggest ending the session. notwithstanding that fact, we did not meet that deadline. in the pledge to america, our republican colleagues, when they were running for office to seek the majority, which they got, they pledged to america that they would not put nongermane items in must-pass bills. that apparently was a campaign pledge not to be honored in practice. in the pledge to america, they also said that they -- we needed to do appropriation bill it's one -- bills one after another. that apparently was a pledge to be honored during the campaign but not in practice. and so we have ourselves confronted with a bill that must pass. we must not leave this city and

our responsibilities without extending unemployment insurance. we must not leave washington, d.c., for this holiday season to deliver a block of coal in the stockings of our constituents by failing to continue the tax cut from their payroll taxes. and we must not leave washington, d.c., without affecting a continuation of the proper reimbursement of doctors to ensure that medicare patients will be able to get their doctors' services. so we have three items to focus on to get done. and nine appropriation bills. now, one of those appropriation bills has not even been reported out of subcommittee in this

house. the labor health bill. hasn't been considered by subcommittee, hasn't been considered by full committee, hasn't been considered by this house. and so we have a lot of business to do in essentially the next 72 hours. and so what are we confronted with? we're confronted with a bill of over 350 pages filed just a few days ago. we heard a lot about reading the bills. i'd be shocked if any member has read this bill. shocked. by contrast, the bill that was so criticized, the affordable care act, was up for review for over a year, hundreds of hearings and thousands essentially of meetings around this country. this has not had a single town meeting, a single hearing and a

single perspective around -- mr. levin: i yield the whip an additional minute. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding. so my tea party friends, i'm sure you lament the fact and think this bill ought not to be passed. but i haven't seen you. i haven't heard you, i haven't gotten a letter from you. i tell my friends on the republican side of the aisle, i have demonstrated throughout this year that when we had the opportunity to work together, i worked to get the votes so we could pass legislation together necessary to run this country. so i don't take a seat -- back seat to anybody in this chamber. willing to work together in a bipartisan fashion. but this bill was not worked together in a bipartisan fashion . this bill seeks to poke the fingers in the eye of the president of the united states who has said, i will veto this bill. not because of the three things that i said were absolutely essential to pass, but because

of something that is not essential to pass. now, the majority leader lamented last week that this was five thousand -- 5,000 jobs if we passed this keystone pipeline. but a bill that would create at least a million jobs, the american jobs act, lays languishing in the bowels of the committee. do you have additional time? mr. levin: i yield the gentleman -- mr. hoyer: 30 seconds. mr. levin: 30 seconds. mr. hoyer: so i can conclude. yes, the gentleman asked for regular order. i lament the fact that we're not pursuing regular order. we could act in a responsible, bipartisan fashion to accomplish the objectives i set forth and the appropriation bills. but no, we are playing politics. we're up and down toring a base. we're having a pretense that this bill could pass.

it cannot. let us defeat this bill and then let us come together in a responsible fashion as the american public wants us to do and act on their behalf, not on the behalf of our politics. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i yield a minute and a half to the gentleman from montana, mr. rehberg. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. rehberg: i support h.r. 3630 and no it doesn't put a block of coal in the socks, it puts a barrel of oil in a pipeline. in fact it puts 150,000 barrels of oil in the pipeline daily. the american people need jobs. they want congress to work together to help the private sector create those jobs. keystone x.l. is shovel ready, it will create thousands of jobs, all we need a federal permit, something that's already taken three years. so why have the president and his allies in the senate said

no? it's not for the cost, it's privately funded. it's not for the environment, it will utilize the cleanest and safest technology available and it's not private property concerns, 97% of the landowners came to friendly settlements in earlier settlements. this is pure politics. with thousands of jobs hanging in the balance it's time to put politics aside and do the right thing. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back, the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: it's now my privilege to yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, the lead sponsor on our unemployment insurance bill, mr. doggett. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. doggett: i thank the gentleman. this proposal certainly does represent a visit from the ghost of christmas past. last christmas, to be specific, when republicans stood here and said, only a lump of coal for the unemployed unless you stop

every -- stuff every stocking to overflowing. today's republican bill would eliminate up to 40 weeks of unemployment coverage with the biggest cuts coming in states like mine, texas, with high unemployment rates that means that next year, over three million unemployed americans and their families will p shortchanged if this bill is enacted. long-term unemployment in america today is at its highest level for so long in 60 years. we have over six million fewer jobs now than when the recession began, and more than four workers for every job opening. and in 10 states this bill responds by making it possible to no longer require that unemployment insurance funds are used for unemployment insurance benefits. under the democratic alternative that i have

introduced, unemployment would be available only to those who are actively searching for a job, getting job training, or who are out there in a temporary layoff situation. nor is an unemployment check any substitute for a paycheck. as "the new york times" edtorialized this morning, when was the last time that any republican lawmaker tried to live on $289 a week, the amount of the average unemployment benefit? and this same measure also offers a lump of coal for medicare. i believe in seeking efficiencies in medicare. that's why we voted for the affordable care act to ensure that billions of dollars were safe. but the billions that are cut from other health care providers in today's bill come on top of across the board cuts that are already enacted into -- to be effective in the next year. do you have another 15 seconds?

mr. levin: yes. mr. doggett: at some point cuts mean seniors and the disabled will be unable to access the quality care they need than cut to preventable chronic disease programs like heart disease an diabetes is short sight and will cost us more in the long run than it saves. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman is expyred. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i yield one minute to the gentleman from ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. renacci: the bureau of labor statistics reported there are over three million job openings in america. according to earlier studies, 27% of businesses are looking for employees and ready to hire if they can find the right people. matching willing employers with able workers is an absolute

must. in this uncertainty -- uncertain economy, help regular cover the risk of training a new employee will help get the unemployed back to work. using unemployment dollars to subsidize that training of a new employee to re-enter the work force is just good public policy. in june, i was proud to introduce the bipartisan support employee act to give states the flexability to do precisely this. i remain proud today that my concept is included in this package and support this bill which gives states like ohio the flexibility to use unemployment dollars for squob training services and i want to thank the chairman for working with me. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i yield two minutes to the very dwisht member of our committee, mr. lewis from the state of georgia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. lewis: i want to thank my friend and colleague mr. levin for yielding.

and thank you foral your great and good work. mr. speaker, i rise in strong opposition to this bill. it is a very sad day for this body, day in and day out, unemployed americans beat the pavement applying for jobs, everywhere and anywhere. sending hundreds of resumes, applying for many jobs. these people lost their jobs through no fault of their own. they don't want a handout. they want a job. in atlanta, we have a job -- we had a job fair where more than 4 50rks0 people from as far away as new york showed up with the hope hoach -- with the hope of just getting an interview. this bill is an insult to them. it is an affront to their dignity. it says that millions of americans do not want to work

and they are not searching hard enough for a job. instead of extending unemployment benefits before the holiday break, giving equal treatment for struggling americans as we do for the wealthy and large corporations. this legislation strips programs -- these programs down to its bones. this is not right. it is not fair. it is not just. this body represents the people and we should not stomp on the soul of our fellow citizens. we can do better. we must do better. we must do better for the sake of our fellow citizens. mr. speaker, is this the spirit of the season? last night, we offered an amendment to the rules committee that the republicans refused to even consider. these amendments said in effect stop the politics. stop the games.

stand up for the people. for the people that voted for us. for people that need our help. they're depending on us. mr. levin: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds. mr. lewis: mr. speaker, we should stay here, don't go home but stay here until we meet the preponderateations. we must come together, let's do what is right and do it now. i urge my colleagues to oppose this bad bill and come -- bad bill and come together and pass a long-term, clean extension of unemployment benefits. that's the thing to do. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i yield myself such time as i may consume. we think it's important to extend unemployment benefits. that's what this bill does. but we do it with common sense reforms, reforms that will help those unemployed get not just a

paycheck from the government but to get a job and get a paycheck from the private sector. these common sense reforms are things like requiring unemployment insurance recipients to search for work. and if they don't have a g.e.d. to get a g.e.d. but we have a common sense exception provision so that if you're an older worker and you've been a pipe fitter for 30 years, obviously a g.e.d. isn't going to help you in a job search. but for those who are younger and don't have the skills they need, it's clear if you have that certificate, your chances of losing your job are much less. and third, we think they should participate in services to get them reemployed. those are important. states need more flexibility in this area to get waivers from the federal government so they can enter in reemployment programs. there are many ideas in the states out there. we aren't mandating this from washington. we want the states to be the

laraer tos of invention here. we also think it's important to allow states to screen applicants for drugs. there's been a 1960's department of labor ruling saying states can't even look at this area. but with screening you can get workers the proper health so they're not bounced from a job because they fail a drug test or don't get hired because they fail a drug test. these are all important, common sense reforms and they will help reduce our unemployment rates. they will help people get jobs. and let me say in terms of job search, it is important that people -- to that there be requirements in legislation to do that. florida, for example, now requires those claiming benefits to report online each week for the five jobs they've applied for or met with a job counselor. the result? the first three months of the

new law, 65% of the claimants did not meet that obligation. they need to be out therecy acysting in finding -- out there assisting in finding jobs they need. those are then keeping those resources for those who truly are unemployed, who truly can't find a job, and this era of limited resources, we need to make sure that they're used in the best, mostesquive, most efficient possible way and these common sense reforms that give states the flexibility to design programs that meet the needs of their state, whether it be in drug screening, whether it be in searching for work, whether it be in reemployment services or even states designing programs that allow employers to receive part of the unemployment check so the worker gets hired. those are the kinds of innovations that don't happen in washington because they're saying, extend the 99 weeks as is.

we can't afford to continue to deficit spend as the other party did $180 billion worth since 2008 of unpaid for unemployment benefits. this is an important program. it's an important program that must be extended, it should be extended, it will be extended if my colleagues vote for this legislation and i urge support. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i yield myself 30 seconds. mr. camp, we've just received information from the department of labor that the republican bill would cut unemployment benefits for 3 ppt 3 million americans next -- for 3.3 million americans next year compared to an extension of current law. in the narme of reform, don't cut the rug out from the unemployed of this country who are lacking for work. that is in one -- that is, in

one word, inexcusable. inexcusable. i now yield two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pascrell. the speaker pro tempore: the chair would remind all members to direct his or her comments to the chair and the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for two minutes. mr. pascrell: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to commend mr. camp and mr. levin for working hard on these issues. i think they do try to put the country before the party. but this bill is terrible. it is terrible. the holidays must havely for the majority. what we have here is a serious proposal, it's a stocking stuffed to the brim with ideology. and i thought we could put that aside and put the country first. more important than parties, more important than idea ol. i adeprow with you, let's weed out those people who literally are crooks and try to steal

from the public trouf and take advantage of unemployment. when i went to an unemployment office yesterday, i went in my area, my district, major city, paterson, i went to the unemployment center, i looked through all those folks that were waiting online and working and looking and seeking work and being trained for specific jobs, particularly in health care, i looked through those records. if you think you're going to reduce the amount of money that americans have to spend to help their brothers and sisters you are dead wrong. dead wrong. what we've done in the bush tax cuts, they were for the least needy. now we're talking about the most needy. the unemployment rate in new jersey is 9.1%, the average in the united states is 8.6%. i'm asking, i'm begging you, let's get beyond that, and why did we put employers in this?

what if employers had their part shaved like the employee that we are suggesting here? how many jobs would be created if the employer had not to pay 6.2% -- had to pay 6.2% instead of 4.2%. i agree with the president shah hough been reduced to 3.1%, we could have put a lot of people to work. $1,000 in my pocket or your pocket, mr. speaker, may not be the end all but $1,000 in many people's who work every day for a living who love this country is not, is an insult and we're not just making matters worse, mr. speaker, we are not making them better. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. mr. camp. mr. camp: i ask unanimous consent for mr. upton to control 15 minutes of the time. the speaker pro tempore: is there objection? without objection, the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton, will control 15 minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i would yield myself two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. upton: mr. speaker, this bill does a lot of things. it has real reforms, it's driven in large part by the unemployment reforms, extending the payroll tax and the payroll tax cut and it's all paid for. you know, most americans don't really want unemployment, they want a job. the spectrum provisions in this bill help our first responders with the allocation of the deblock and creates perhaps as many as 100,000 jobs. the keystone pipeline decision is part of this bill, too. it requires the president to review and make a decision, either way, within 60 days of enactment. just this morning there were a number of press accounts that perhaps iran will soon be conducting exercises to close the straits. the keystone pipeline will

connect canadian oil sands with refineries here in the united states, adding 20,000 private sector jobs. and perhaps as many as 118,000 indirect jobs. it reduces our reliance on nonnorth american oil which is a good -- non-northern american oil, which is a good thing, and it brings perhaps as many as a billion barrels of -- a million barrels of oil a day, a million barrels a day, into the united states that we don't have to import from someplace else. canada is going to develop this no matter what. and that oil is either going to come a million barrels a day, it's either going to come to the united states or it's going to go to a place like china. we want it here. this is a good thing. it creates jobs, it reduces our reliance on oil from overseas. and it is something that ought to be part of this bill and it is and i would urge my colleagues to support it and i reserve the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, will lev -- mr. levin. mr. levin: i now yield two minutes to another member of our committee, a distinguished active member indeed, mr. crowley of new york. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. crowley: mr. speaker, i want to thank my colleague and friend from the state of michigan, mr. levin, for yielding me this time. mr. speaker, i rise in strong opposition to h.r. 3630. today the republican party's true colors are fully exposed and on display. and it isn't pretty. the g.o.p. argues time and time again against tax increases. but now it's clear that policy only applies when we are talking about increasing taxes on those making over $1 million a year. now, i don't begrudge anyone for making a buck in this country. i do, however, begrudge those who want to help america's wealthiest at the expense of america's middle class, especially when working people

are hurting so much as they are right now. where is the shared sacrifice? where is the shared responsibility? i believe americans of all economic classes want a federal government that has the vision for our future. a vision for how to keep america strong. that is why democrats have a plan to provide an immediate cut in middle class taxes. we are pushing to cut the payroll tax in half for all working people, as well as expand it to small businesses, the engine creator of jobs in america. unfortunately this g.o.p. bill denies any payroll tax relief to small businesses. my friends on the other side of the aisle argue taxes impede growth, hurt american businesses and stunt the economy. but apparently those arguments don't apply when we're talking about lowering taxes for the middle class or small businesses. president obama and the democratic party are championing cutting the payroll tax in half for all workers. my republican colleagues refuse

to even consider that. democrats want to expand and enhance the payroll tax cut for all -- for employers. yet there's no such relief for small businesses in this bill. but aside from what is not in this bill, i also want to object to what is in this bill. a new tax on senior citizens. if this bill is signed into law, seen yors' premiums for medicare will go up and go up dramatically. the true colors of the republicans are clear. seniors making $40,000 a year, can i just have an additional 15 seconds. seniors making $4,000 -- 40,000 a year are considered wealthy and deserve to see their medicare costs go up but a small temporary income tax surcharge on people earning $1 million a year, that's not acceptable? let's reject this bill, hardworking americans deserve better, they deserve middle class tax relief that doesn't come at the expense of our

seniors. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton. mr. upton: may i -- may i inquire of the chair how much time is available on each side? the speaker pro tempore: mr. uptop has 13 minutes remaining. mr. upton: and then with mr. camp the total is 18. the speaker pro tempore: mr. levin has 19 minutes remaining. mr. camp has 4 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. upton: at this point i will yield two minutes to the chairman of the communications subcommittee, mr. walden. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from oregon is recognized for two minutes. mr. walden: i thank you, mr. chairman, and, mr. speaker, the american people have waited long enough for this congress to act to create jobs. this legislation does that, it does that through the jumpstarting opportunity in broadband spectrum act of 2011. there is no reason to delay this bill any further. this unleashes spectrum, both licensed and unlicensed, and would put into service would unleash new technologies, new

innovations and the chairman of the federal communications commission has said this part of the bill we're debating today could create as many as 700,000 new jobs. other estimates say between 300,000 and 700,000 american jobs. it generates upwards of $16 billion in companies who want to buy this broadband and pay the taxpayers for it. because it is america's spectrum. and it does something that the democrats, when they were in charge of the house for four years failed to do, it makes this spectrum available and it begins the process of building out an interoperable public safety broadband network as called for by the 9/11 commission. now, this legislation didn't just drop out of the sky. thoughtfully and creatively crafted and it finds the right balances. its provisions were improved as a result of input and counsel from five separate public hearings we held, 11 months of negotiations and discussions with members of both sides of the aisle. the f.c.c. and the ntia. but at some point the american

people say, stop talking, get it done, and that's what this legislation does as part of this bigger bill. hardworking middle class taxpayers want transparency, accountability, they don't want a blank check to anybody, so this legislation has the proper protections for the taxpayers, it builds out the public safety network, it creates 300,000 to 700,000 american jobs. our economy needs the help, americans need the jobs and we need to generate revenue for the american taxpayer in a productive way as this does. this legislation does all these things and does them well. i urge your support of this legislation. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: thank you. i now yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from ohio, mr. kucinich. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. kucinich: thank you. as i'm preparing to speak i'm thinking about a debate we had three years ago where banks received $700 billion, about the fed a month ago printing $7.7 trillion for banks in this country and abroad.

and here we're telling the american people who happen to be unemployed, you know, we're thinking of cutting benefits 40 weeks. people want work, not welfare. people want work, not unemployment compensation. but when people do not have work , unemployment insurance is essential. it is a lifeline. and this legislation significantly cuts unemployment insurance, that safety net that millions rely on. it reduces the number of weeks unemployed workers are eligible for it by as much as 40 weeks. we need more jobs and yet we have more long-term unemployed. we know the unemployment rate is actually higher because people have stopped looking for work. nearly 14 million americans are out of work. and among the long-term unemployed, more than half have been out of work for over a year. the problem is not a lack of effort for those seeking a job, the problem is a lack of jobs. let's get america back to work,

not be cutting unemployment compensation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton. mr. upton: i yield at this point two minutes to the chairman of the health subcommittee, mr. pitts, from pennsylvania. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, we are all well aware of the inadequacies of the sustainable growth rate formula as a payment policy for reimbursing physicians. unfortunately the greatest threat arguably facing the medicare program, if not the entire health care system, was left out of the new health reform law. in 2010 congress passed five temporary fixes to a pending physician payment cut. some were retroactive and some lasted mere weeks. in other words, congress kicked the can down the road five times last year. physician practices need more

certainty than week to week patches. when this legislation becomes law, it will be the first multiyear fix to medicare physician rates since 2003. instead of just addressing the next oncoming payment cliff, the middle clacks -- class tax relief provides a level of stability and predictability in payments for providers not seen in years. and will allow congress and the administration to work together to develop a long-term answer to the medicare sustainable growth rate. this two-year fix, with a 1% increase in the next two years, is the first step in a long-term solution to eliminate the s.g.r. and develop a more equitable and affordable medicare payment policy for physicians. not voting for this and supporting this two-year fix may leave physicians facing just a

one-year patch or more kicking the can down the road. with no plan on how to move forward. i urge my colleagues to support this legislation. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. mr. levin: i'm privileged to yield one minute to the very distinguished gentlelady from california, lynn woolsey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. woolsey: thank you for yielding to me, sir. i walked in the shoes of those who are needy. i know what it's like to go without. i know what it's like to struggle. 40 years ago i found myself, no fault of my own, a single mother with three young children all under the age of 5 and barely a dime to my name. i was one of the lucky ones. i had a good education and so i was able to get a job and i didn't need unemployment benefits. but my job wasn't enough to feed those three little kids. i needed afdc just to make ends

meet. nobody asked me to take a drug test, nobody asked if i had a g.e.d. i was in trouble and a generous, compassionate government helped me get back on my feet. that was over 40 years ago, my friends. and i can assure you that my children and i have more than paid back for that generous help that we received. the republican bill is not consistent with american values, as i have lived them and understood them during my 74 years on this earth. we're all in this together, i believe. there before the grace of god -- mr. levin: i yield the gentlelady an additional 30 seconds. ms. woolsey: it's time for this congress to stop coddling millionaires and start standing up for all families and all children who are suffering in today's economy. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from michigan, mr.

upton. mr. upton: can i inquire again on the time? i think we're ahead. i think we're a couple of minutes ahead. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton, has nine minutes remaining. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin, has 16 3/4 minutes remaining and the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp, retains 4 1/2 minutes. mr. levin: i now yield one minute to the gentlelady from alabama, mr. sewell. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. sewell: i'd like to thank the ranking member levin for allowing me this time. today i rise in strong opposition to h.r. 3630, which makes dramatic and harmful changes to the emergency unemployment compensation program. it makes significant cuts to head kir -- medicare that would hurt our nation's seniors. this bill contains political and controversial language that should be discussed and debated in a separate legislation. before congress breaks for this year we need to pass a bill that

solely focuses on extending relief to the unemployed workers and middle class americans who are still suffering in this recovering economy. this is not the time to play with the livelihood of millions of americans. our voters sent us here to make their lives better, not more difficult. we were sent here to create jobs and stimulate the economy and protect our most vulnerable. to accomplish these goals, it will require a willing and compromising spirit. the folks of the seventh congressional district of alabama that i'm so proud to represent want me to put people before politics and do what is in their best interests and not partisan interests. the american people expect and deserve more not less from us. therefore i urge my colleagues to vote no on h.r. 3630. thanks. mr. levin: mr. speaker, i now ask unanimous consent that the

gentleman from california, mr. waxman, will control 10 minutes of my time. the speaker pro tempore: is there objection? without, the gentleman from california will control 10 minutes of the time. the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton. mr. upton: mr. speaker, at this point i yield two minutes to the chairman of the environment subcommittee, mr. shimkus from illinois, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois is recognized for two minutes. without objection. mr. shimkus: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, mr. chairman. my friend from ohio came down and said, you know, what we need, what america needs is jobs, and so that's the important aspect of bringing the keystone x.l. pipeline in this debate. don't listen to me. listen to my friends in organized labor. brent brooker, director of construction department of labors international union of north america said in testimony, for many members of the labor,

this project is not just a pipeline, it's a lifeline. david barnett, united association of journeymen and apprentices said, the fact of the matter is keystone x.l. would be the most environmentally safe pipeline anywhere in america. and jeffrey soft, international labor union of engineering said, without the keystone x.l., crude oil, the fastest growing oilfield in the united states, will continue to move out of the region in the most dangerous, most expensive way possible, by tanker truck. folks, this is about jobs. we're fortunate to be able to place this in this bill. 20,000 immediate jobs, 110,000 additional jobs. i stood outside a refiner and i asked people, where do you think the crude oil comes in and how does the refined product goes out? and any refinery in this country is done through pipelines. so the keystone x.l. pipeline is

a job creator. organized labor is strongly behind this. it creates 20,000 immediate jobs. and you know what, it's the best form of stimulus because we're not borrowing money and it's not a government project. so i appreciate what my colleagues have done including it in this bill. i thank them. my organized labor friends thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. waxman: mr. speaker, i yield myself three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. waxman: i strongly oppose this legislation as presently structured and urge its defeat. there's no question we must extend the payroll tax breaks which puts money in the hands of most americans so they can spend it and get our economy moving. we must make sure that unemployed people have the insurance so that they have a lifeline so they can pay their bills while they're looking for

jobs. we have to keep our promises to those under medicare to allow physicians to be adequately reimbursed. but the price that the republicans are imposing through this legislation is simply unacceptable. it contains dangerous poison pills, series of riders and legislative provisions that can never pass the senate or be signed by the president. the republicans are trying to cram them through the back door by holding this bill hostage. now, doesn't that sound familiar? republicans holding things hostage. it's what they did when we had to raise the debt ceiling or default on our debts and they held that bill hostage to try to get some of their demands. the provisions to pay for the medicare reimbursement for doctors would be paid for through a 170,000 reduction of

people who are now covered causing them to be uninsured. we'd increase the already high out-of-pocket costs for medicare beneficiaries and subject a full quarter of medicare beneficiaries to significant higher premiums, reducing our commitment to public health and prevention activities is a prescription for more diabetes, heart disease, cancer and obesity. but that's what the republicans would have us do in this bill. the keystone x.l. tar sands pipeline has nothing to do with this legislation. it has to do with the environmental concerns that the president is presently reviewing in an orderly manner, and the republicans would have the whole process short-circuited by demanding that he come to the conclusion that the canadians pipeline owners and maybe the coke brothers would like, but

not a contentious review of what this would do throughout this country and how it would affect our environment. the spectrum provisions are flawed. while they provide for spectrum auction incentives, the deployment of a public safety broadband network and address spectrum uses by federal agencies, there are many shortcomings in the governance provisions of how the public safety network would work or how the spectrum auctions would take place or extraneous provisions under the internet and limit on the f.c.c.'s ability to provide competitive safeguards and funding levels that threaten to shortchange the public safety network itself. i urge -- i yield myself another 30 seconds. this bill is filled with loopholes and riders and special interest provisions, and i would

think that it's a very bad process to throw this bill on the house floor. some of the provisions that came out of our committee never had full committee consideration. so i urge members to defeat the bill. let's get down to doing what needs to be done. don't hold important measures that must pass hostage. let's work together and get a decent bill and pass it into law at this late stage of the year. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the co-chair of the doc caucus and member of the health subcommittee, dr. gingrey from georgia. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. gingrey: i thank the gentleman for yielding. physicians will see a 27.4% decrease in medicare payments if we fail to act before the new year. if congress fails to act, seniors may find that no physician in their area can afford to accept their medicare

card. es that not the holiday cheer our seen -- that is not the holiday cheer our seniors deserve. as a medical doctor i prefer to be voting today on a permanent fix to this flawed physician payment formula known as s.g.r., but i don't have that choice. my choice is simple. vote for the physician fix or vote against it. vote in support of my former patients who need access to their doctor when they're sick or vote against them. vote to open up spectrum availability and bolster job creation within a growing telecommunications marketplace or vote against it. vote for timely approval of the keystone x.l. pipeline and, yes, create 20,000 immediate jobs along with domestic energy independence or vote against that. allow the e.p.a. to enact job-killing boiler mact rules on every state and every industry

in the united states or vote to rein them in. today, i'll be voting yes for the constituents of the 11th district of georgia and for my country, and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from california. mr. waxman: mr. speaker, i yield at this time two minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. markey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. markey: thank you. last year the republicans refused to extend unemployment benefits unless the bush tax cuts were extended for millionaires and billionaires. well, here they go again, mr. speaker. this year the republicans are trying to prevent continuation of jobless benefits, and the payroll tax cut unless their wish list of goodies for america's biggest polluters is granted in full. during this christmas season, instead of goals and frankensens

and muhr, they are voting on big oil and big coal. the g.o.p. used to stand for grand old party. now it stands for gang of polluters. now it stands for the gas and oil party. this republican bill indefinitely delay standards that will reduce lead and cancer-causing substances that are released from industrial boilers and sent to the lungs of the children of america. two, rushes approval for the keystone x.l. that will bring the dirtiest oil on the planet through the united states so it can be re-exported to other countries while hurting our health and our environment here. and, three, cuts much-needed medicare payments to hospitals to care for the sickest in our country. the republicans are presenting a false choice to the american people.

we should not have to choose between toxic chemicals and tax relief for american workers. we should not have to choose between pollution and prosperity. in this republican-controlled house of representatives, billionaires, big oil, big bankers benefit while the rest of america bears the burden. enough is enough. we know we need to pass the middle-class tax cuts. we know we need to extend unemployment benefits. if we fail to act, congress will leave a giant legislative lump of coal in the stockings of struggling americans. it is unacceptable, bad for children, bad for the elderly, bad for the unemployed, bad for america. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i'd yield at this point two minutes to the gentleman from nebraska, mr. terry. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from nebraska is recognized for two minutes. mr. terry: mr. speaker, it just seems logical that as we have a

bill to extend unemployment insurance for those unemployed that we also have a measure for them to become employed and that's the keystone pipeline. it is a $7 billion infrastructure project that is ready to start today, employing as many as 20,000 laborers, mostly union labor, by the way. now, not only will it employ but the delays of the state department and the white house in permitting this project is costing jobs, and i refer to little rock fox channel 16, there's their online story. it says layoffs in a company -- shutdown is what employees face

wells fund tubular company. they say miles of pipeline are on the property and that has caused five dozen employees to lose their jobs. the pipes would be part of the keystone oil pipeline which is a project running from canada to texas. the president has said that he would veto this bill, extending unemployment and his tax holiday if this keystone jobs bill was put in it. mr. president, this is about creating jobs. please join us. also, they said that the state department may have to say no because this is the same department that back in june testified before our committee that they could have the decision made on this pipeline and permitted by -- well, the decision made on this pipeline by december 31. the environmental studies have been there for months. this application has been with

the state department for 3 1/4 years. the state department has everything they need to make a correct recommendation for the president, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. members are again reminded to direct their comments to the chair. the gentleman from california. mr. waxman: mr. speaker, i'm pleased at this time to yield to the man who's going to be the chairman of the health subcommittee when the public gets a chance next year to vote out the keystone cops overreaching republicans who are doing it again to the american people, two minutes to the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. waxman. you know, mr. waxman said before that essentially the republicans putting up this bill are not serious. they know that this bill is not going to pass the senate. they know that the president won't sign it, and when i heard my colleagues on the other side talk about, well, we have a deadline of december 31 and basically said take it or leave

it, well, they're not serious. that's not the way this house and this congress works. if you want to get something done by this december 31 teadline, you need to work with the democrats, work with the senate and come up with something, and i know that's not what's happening here today. . this idea where you say we are going to give you extended unemployment but cut back on the number of weeks and come up with a doc fix but pay for it by dismantling the affordable care act. they cut the credits making health insurance affordable. then they slash the public health and prevention fund, damaging efforts to realign the nation's approach to health care. then they cut hospitals affecting services that seniors depend on and increasing the premiums resulting in middle-class seniors having to pay more for health care. we have a democratic substitute

they wouldn't allow in order and that takes a very different approach, unlike the republicans, the democratic substitute extends tax cuts depor 160 million americans and extends unemployment insurance. and it insures doctors don't face large reductions and maintains access for seniors with a permanent s.g.r. fix and does all this by asking 300,000 people making more than $1 million to pay their fair share. so if you want to pass something, put our substitute in order. and we will meet that deadline of december 31 and actually do things that help people create jobs and reduce the deficit and make the doctors available so if a senior wants to go to a doctor, they will be able to do it. look at our substitute and don't continue with this sham. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: i yield one minute to the gentleman from virginia, mr. griffith. mr. griffith: the boiler mack provisions of this bill would pass the senate if only they were allowed to get a vote. 41 members of the democratic party voted in this house, 12 members of the senate, democrats. the provisions of this bill help hospitals deal with their increasing costs. it helps universities. it does help business, but it helps businesses large and small. the bill requires reasonable regulations. and it requires reasonable time in which to comply with those regulations. currently, they are only allowed three years, plus possibly a fourth if allowed by the e.p.a. administrator.

the bill will allow five years plus reasonable time. and when you try to change the way you have been doing things, sometimes you need more time to get things done than three years. the e.p.a. came in and talked to us about projects they were trying to get done and money they left on the table, they couldn't get their projects done in three years, how can american businesses do so. mr. waxman: i yield to the gentlelady from california, the next chair of the telecommunications subcommittee, ms. eshoo. ms. eshoo: i thank the ranking member for the committee. within this bill are provisions on spectrum, that will define our nation's ability to lead the world in wireless broadband deployment and also define how we will finally, finally provide our first responders with a nationwide interoperable

broadband network that the 9/11 commission called for. i appreciate chairman walden's work with the minority, including the agreement on authorizing voluntary investment spectrum options, reallocating the d-block and providing the initial funding for next generation 9/11. i do have four concerns. first, pertaining to the treatment of unlicensed spectrum. unlicensed spectrum has created an navy space for entrepreneurs enabling thousands of devices and services, all meaning jobs. in fact, last month, the consumer federation of america released a new study, which found the consumer benefit of unlicensed spectrum surpassing $50 billion, with a b, dollars per year, prohibiting the f.c.c.

from using our nation's best air waves for unlicensed use as the house language does is foolhardy. secondly, i'm concerned about how the bill treats the spectrum that the public needs to create and manage an interoperable broadband network. what the bill does, it gives but on the oy hand, it takes away and this isn't fair to public safety and our country. third, the bill encourages the development of 50 separate networks instead of one nationwide network. past experiences demonstrate that a state-based approach fails to achieve interoperability and i think it's going to cost money and i don't think it's going to work. lastly, the restrictions that restrict the f.c.c. -- may i have 10 more seconds? the provisions that restrict the f.c.c.'s ability to preserve

competition and promote an open internet simply do not belong in this legislation. i think our country is counting on us to make smart and bipartisan choices. i'm sorry to say i don't think this bill meets the standard. i do believe the senate accomplished these goals and i believe we can, too, but not through this bill. and i urge opposition to it for the reasons i stated. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: mr. speaker, i would yield one of my two remaining minutes to the the gentleman from colorado, mr. gardner. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. gardner: i thank the chairman for the time. we heard about the need to address jobs, to act on jobs. so here we are today to address the issue of job creation for so many in this country who are currently unemployed. perhaps to some, the creation of jobs is just a pipe dream, but

to many, republicans and democrats, job creation is a keystone pipeline, it's not a pipe dream. in colorado alone, the alberta oil sands could create jobs and the keystone pipeline is an important part of that. we hear the need to create jobs, the need to address the issue of job creation and here wer hearing opposition to job creation. for every dollar we spend on oil from scrabe, 50 cents is returned -- saudi arabia, 50 cents is returned to the domestic economy. canada's oil fields, american products are used. case loaders, tires, boots,ford trucks, the list goes on, this is not the way it is in countries thousands of miles away. i urge this congress to put -- i urge this congress not to put politics before paychecks.

pass this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the time of the the gentleman from california has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin, has 53/4 minutes remaining. the gentleman from michigan, mr. upton has 1 and-a-half -- 1 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. upton: i would yield one minute to the gentleman from texas, mr. olson. oils oles i thank the chairman -- mr. olson: i thank the chairman. it's stunning to think that my friends on the other side of the aisle would design an opportunity to reduce our reliance on middle eastern oil and create thousands of american jobs. the keystone xl pipeline does both. the project has been exhaustively studied and revised

to ensure its safety. our economy needs a safe, reliable source of energy. canada can't provide it. they want to provide it to help us reduce our reliance on middle eastern oil while strengthening our national security. 20,000 new american jobs will be created to build this pipeline. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to pass this bill, approve the keystone xl pipeline. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from michigan. mr. upton: i ask unanimous consent that all of my remaining time be given back to the the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. camp will have an additional 30 seconds. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i reserve.

the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman wish to yield time? mr. camp: i yield to the gentleman from louisiana, mr. scalise. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. scalise: i thank the gentleman from michigan for yielding and i think one of the strongest components of this bill we are bringing to the floor today is the component in the keystone pipeline bill. we have some options here. the american people want jobs. we have the ability to force president obama to get off the sidelines. the president has been good about running around the country and giving political speeches and campaigning and talking about jobs and the middle class but yet here we have the opportunity to create 20,000 middle-class jobs in america and the president said he will say no and will veto the bill over this one provision. this is a bill that deals with unemployment benefits and he said he would have people be

unemployed than have a job. they would rather have the job and there is the opportunity to create 20,000 jobs and the president is turning his back. we can increase america's energy security if that oil comes from canada. our dependence on middle eastern oil can drop dramatically. we can eliminate one million barrels a day when this comes on-line and reduce our dependence on middle eastern oil. what does president obama have against 20,000 american jobs? i urge a yes vote and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: i yield two minutes to the distinguished the gentleman from new york, charles rangel. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. rangel: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. rangel: i was walking to the cannon building to get to one of

the television stations and a gentleman stopped me and asked me whether or not they were going to provide the tax benefits and the unemployment taxes to them and trying to find out why we were gridlocked and what the problem was and i assume he was from my district but he was from some part of texas and he heard my explanation as to why we were not just passing what democrats believe in and republicans say they don't have a problem with, and i told him it was about the keystone pipeline and he said what the hell is that? that made me think. of all the people in this time of year with limited resources that are going to sleep tonight, with all of the polls that are saying that congress is out of touch with the needs of america, they aren't talking about republicans. they talk about the congress, republicans and democrats.

is anyone telling me that providing a break for people who work hard every day, getting a break on their taxes has to be connected with a pipeline? are you telling me that if you work every day and through no fault of your own, you've lost your job and that you paid into a fund where you are supposed to get some comfort, you're telling them that we need the keystone pipeline. let's get real. this is a political thing that is being done, not to deliver on the promise that we made to the american people. so let me make a plea, that for all of the people that's in need, for all the people that's rooting for a little break from big government, for all the people that we made these promises to, say that we couldn't do it because of the keystone pipeline. and if you think that makes any sense, then we are just a

disgrace to the american people. if you want a keystone pipeline, bring it to the floor, let's debate it and vote it up and down, but to hold the american people hostage, it is just plain wrong. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: i yield one minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from illinois, ms. biggert. mrs. biggert: i rise in support of h.r. 3630. i appreciate the efforts of the chairman and my colleagues on relevant committees in crafting a pack acknowledge that responds to the needs of all americans right now. it addresses the struggles of the unemployed and small business owners and recognizes we cannot dig our way out of a recession with more taxes and higher deficits. the bill extends critical assistance at a time when millions of americans need it most. .

. it's also important to note that this compromise protects the social security trust fund. mr. speaker, this bill is a smart step towards job creation and economic certainty. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and yield back. toich -- the speaker pro tempore: the time of the the gentlelady has expired. -- the time of the gentlelady has expired. the gentleman from michigan. mr. levin: how much time remains? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin, has 3 3/4 minutes remaining. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp, has three minutes remaining. mr. levin: i now yield to our minority leader one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the minority leader is recognized for one minute. ms. pelosi: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding.

i commend him for his extraordinary leadership on behalf of america's working families. he has demonstrated long-term consistent dedication to their well-being. thank you, mr. chairman, for your leadership. mr. chairman, i return to the floor -- i spoke on the rule earlier, but this is intended to the debate. i think a few points need to be made, and i will do them very briefly. it is clear that the republicans in using the pipeline are trying to change the subject. the subject at hand is we have a proposal from the president of the united states which has within it proposals that has had bipartisan support over a period of time on how to have a payroll tax cut that benefits many middle-income families in our country, that respects that some people are out of work through

no fault of their own and need unemployment insurance and that our seniors want to have the doctor of their choice and that issue has to be addressed here. the fact is is that because the way the rules were set up, the republicans said you are not even going to be able to bring the president and the democratic proposal to the floor. instead, we are going to bring ours to the floor. but so the public doesn't really understand the difference between the two, we're going to have a smokescreen go out there, smokescreen of confusion by talking about the pipeline. and this is very interesting because this isn't about the pipeline. we, as other speakers have said, could have a vote on the pipeline at any time to vote it up or vote it down, consider what it means in jobs and impact on the environment and it doesn't reduce dependence on foreign oil, but none the less, that's subject for debate at

another time. i myself have not made a public statement one way or the other. many have either supporting it or not. that's not the point of the legislation, and many who support the pipeline are opposing this bill because they know it is being used, it is being used. and some of our friends in labor want this pipeline bill, but i assure you that they want unemployment insurance for workers who, again, through no fault of their own, are out of work. so let's just take a few points here. the proponents of this bill who are using a pipeline as a smokescreen and as an excuse say it will create 20,000 jobs. let's hope that that is correct, but what it's doing is standing in the way of the president's proposal which will create 600,000 jobs which will make an impact of 600,000 jobs on our

economy. so while they're professing this 20,000 jobs, which may be a legitimate number. let's have that debate on another day. you may see a very big strong vote on the floor for the pipeline or you may not. the other -- so the point is 20,000 jobs, if that's the argument, versus 600,000 jobs. the other point is that the president's proposal affects 160 million americans. 160 million americans will have a payroll tax cut according to his proposal and in a substantial way. this is not that the republicans trying to throw a bone to the

middle class. this is about a thriving middle class. it's about a payroll tax cut which does what it sets out to do, puts $1,500 in the pockets of america's families who need it and spend it and inject in doing -- in doing so inject demand, demand, demand into our economy which further creates jobs. and the -- how that is paid for is by a surtax on those making over $1 million a year. 160 million people affected, a surcharge on 300,000 of the wealthiest people in america. we don't begrudgeon their wealth, their success. that's important. i don't think any one of those 300,000 people begrudge the 160 million americans their payroll tax cut, but i do think it is the extremist on the house

republican side who have an ideological point of view and that is what is at work here. it's not about those making over $300,000 begrudging the 160 million. let's understand the numbers here. i want to reference the chairman. who sacrifices under the republican bill? seniors sacrifice. $31 billion. instead of the surcharge on the 300,000 wealthiest people in our country making over $1 million a year, the republicans pay for the payroll tax by $31 billion from seniors. federal workers sacrifice $40 billion. unemployed americans sacrifice $11 billion. millionaires and billionaires sacrifice $0. i think they're willing to do -- i think all americans are willing to do their fair share.

we all have to do our part, take responsibility. zero. so, again, 20,000 jobs, 600,000 jobs. 160 million americans. 300,000 americans. $30 billion from medicare. the president's proposal under the democratic plan reduces the deficit by $300 billion. and according to the congressional budget office, and i read from the congressional budget office letter, according -- this is to mr. camp, a letter from the congressional budget office, the independent, nonpartisan budget office of the house writing to mr. camp, said, according to c.b.o. and joint tax committee, congressional budget office and joint tax committees' estimate, enacting 3630, the bill before us, will change revenues and direct

spending to predict increases in the deficit of $166.8 billion in fiscal year 2012 and $25.3 billion over the 2012 period. so let's take the number. $25 billion in the life of the bill. that's what the c.b.o. says about the bill before us. it's a bill that's why earlier today there was a motion to say this was not in keeping with being revenue-neutral, as republicans espoused and we agree. so again the numbers, 25 -- 20,000 for the pipeline. this is a smokescreen. this is a distraction. this is the masters of confusion so you don't know what really is at stake here. you couldn't possibly be sincere about a payroll tax cut that

makes the middle class thrive if you put an obstacle like that in front of it and call it a jobs bill to prevent saving or creating 600,000 jobs. 160 million americans benefit from this. please don't tax 300,000. instead, take $31 billion from our seniors. reduce the deficit by $300 billion. increase the deficit by $25 billion. the numbers are clear. they speak to themselves. i urge my colleagues to vote no. i hope that we can come to the table and share a view that this middle income tax cut is worth doing without obstacles to its being signed into law and that we can do it soon. i say it over and over again, christmas is coming. for some the goose is getting fat. for others it's very thin prospects. let's do the people's work.

let's get this done. with that i urge a no vote and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp. mr. camp: mr. speaker, i yield myself 30 seconds. if the distinguished minority leader had read the next paragraph of the letter to me by the congressional budget office, she would have read that the bill in its entirety reduces the deficit by $1 billion. so, mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the entirety of the letter to me from the congressional budget office in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. camp: i would also note that the first bullet on the distinguished minority leader's chart was exactly the president's proposal. the president asked to increase premiums on wealthy seniors. the president does. so it's interesting the minority leader's criticizing the president's own proposal which is put directly into this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin. mr. levin: how much time do we have each of us?

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan, mr. levin, has 2 3/4 minutes remaining. and the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp, has 2 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. camp: i just plan to close. that's all the speakers we have. mr. levin: i yield myself the balance of the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. levin: i want to start by reading one of the 400-plus communications we received. this is from jackie of amherst, new hampshire. unemployment -- and i quote -- unemployment benefits help me make ends meet. while reducing my savings and 401-k to keep up with everything, now they are gone. my savings are long gone.

my foik -- my 401-k is almost gone. i am watching everything i worked so hard for from my entire adult life slip away from me. i am 50. in the name of reform, what the house republicans are doing is to retreat. to retreat from assisting the unemployed through no fault of their own. and according to the data received from the department of labor, 3.3 million americans would lose weeks of unemployment benefits under this bill compared to an extension of current law. the president has made his position clear. the statement of administration

policy says the administration strongly opposes h.r. 3630. with only days left before taxes go up for 160 million hardworking americans, h.r. 3630 plays politics at the expense of middle-class families. instead of working together to find a balanced approached that will actually pass both houses of congress, h.r. 3630 instead represents a choice to refight all political battles over health care and introduce ideological issues into what should be a simple debate about cutting taxes for the middle class. if the president were presented with h.r. 3630, he would veto the bill. in good conscience, we should not support this bill. remembering the 3.3 million who

would have their benefit cut under this bill, there should be a resounding no, a resounding no. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from michigan, mr. camp, is recognized. mr. camp: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself the remainder of our time. this bill will strengthen our economy and help get americans back to work by lowering the tax burden for middle-class families and job providers. it prevents massive cuts for doctors working in the medicare program to protect america's seniors, providing more stability in the doctor payment schedule than there has been in a decade. it adopts 12 of the president's initiatives which represents bipartisan cooperation americans are demanding and includes an increase in medicare premiums for the wealthiest as the president requested. it will extend federal unemployment programs to five million americans, those still struggling after the president's failed stimulus program. i'm still waiting for the 3.5

million jobs that promised and the 6% unemployment rate but we ensure in this bill they get the assistance they need. and under this bill, more than one year of benefits is available. it is fully paid for by spending reductions, not job-killing tax hikes. commonsense reforms and savings in this bill includes things like actually requiring those who receive an unemployment check to look for work and get a g.e.d. if they don't have a high school diploma, require undocumented workers who are seeking refundable, that's cash, tax credits to actually have a valid social security number just like as required in the earned income tax credit. . the bill freezes pay for members of congress and other nonmilitary personnel. it reduces the federal tax subsidies that go to wealth year americans. we put an end to millionaires receiving food stamps saving over $20 million and reduce the

president's plan arequiring them to pay a greater share of medicare premiums. that reduces federal spending by $31 billion. this bill incorporates a dozen proposals that the president has either offered, supported or signed into law in one variation or another. in fact, 90% of this bill is paid for with those policies. i urge support of this legislation. this bill is about strengthening our economy, helping americans find a job. doesn't add one dime to the debt. it is bipartisan and will help get our economy back on track.

earlier, he was asked about the plenty vetoed the bill and about is spending bill that must pass by friday to avoid government shut down. this portion is 10 minutes. >> hello. good afternoon. thank you for being here. i do not have an announcement at the top. i am sorry. i am sorry to disappoint. >> the bill looks like it is on its way. they're having good luck. we now know the president's and democratic leadership are working to hold that one up until the payroll tax gets done. we could have a government shutdown. is the new president willing to take that risk? >> but the president is not willing to do is leave town or

allow congress to the town of without insuring the 160 million americans do not see their taxes go up next year. on average $1,000. there is ample time for congress to finish its business and to finish america is business. they should pass the tax cut extension, extension of unemployment insurance. they can finish the spending bill all before leaving on their vacation. there is no reason this cannot be done. i will make another point. there are still issues to be resolved despite some of what you have heard. there has been no language shared. we do note their conversations that there are issues that concern us including issues with the funding levels that show

that it can be implemented successfully. they feel strongly that congress should do nothing to impede the implementation of that very important legislation. there are issues to resolve. they can be resolved. it is essential that congress act to extend the tax cut. all of this can be done. and still allow congress to go on vacation. >> there are enormous consequences to the country. i know you say there is time. is it responsible to bring that into the conversation at? >> where not bringing that into the conversation. there has been substantial progress made. there are still issues to be resolved. if there is the need come the end of the week for congress to

pass another short-term cr as it has done this year, and they should do that before a shutdown. we do not need to get to that point. if we do, it is not an exceptional action that congres s has to take. what congress cannot do is make big promises about a payroll tax cut and then finish the business that has to get done. it leads the american middle class holding its. we will not let that happen. it is not fair to the 160 million americans to see their taxes go up next year. we are emerging from the worst recession since the great depression. >> lawmakers have taken some steps to amend the defense bill

about terrorism suspects. is that an effort that has assuaged the president's concerns? >> they have made some concerns. they were released last night. any bill that challenges the constraints of the critical authority to collect a party incapacitate dangerous terrorists and prompt a veto. where in the process of reviewing the changes that were made. -- we are in the process of reviewing the changes that were made. >> has the president spoken to senator reid about the extension? is he ready to get his hands dirty? >> he has always been committed

to working to congress and leaders of both parties to get the essential work that congress needs to get done done. that includes the payroll tax. what we have seen is the promulgation of this idea that this is somehow a favor they would be doing for the president of the united states. most of my adult life, the theology has been tax cuts for everyone are the highest priority. because the president is pushing them to extend, they are looking to load up this with extraneous issues or they want to rebuild the gate old political battles to extract some political victory in exchange for doing

the people's business, for giving working americans tax cuts. we do not find that acceptable. i think it is worth pointing out that on the keystone issue, they have one of these extraneous issues to the payroll tax cut extension. the big problem of conducting the review has made clear that it would be absolutely counterproductive to the stated goal of those who insist on having the provision because it would not allow the department the time it needs to properly review alternative routes. they would have to say no. if that is their objective, it is a strange way of going about it. the process needs to be done responsibly. the delay in the review is brought about because of concerns by folks in nebraska including a republican governor.

this is now happening. this process needs to be done in a way that has always been done which takes time. that requires careful consideration of all the criteria. the president has remained important and to insert as a political objective a provision that would speed up the process and would only result in the state department based on my reading having to say "no." jake. >> congratulations. >> we disagree with that. thank you. >> how is reluctance to bring up the spending bill? how is that any different from the ones they have decried in the past? the they are holding back

another piece of legislation in order to achieve his objective. >> as i just said, what is at stake is potentially a $1,000 on average tax hike for every american family. >> others have done similar things for tax cuts that were about to expire. >> republicans uniformly have supported tax cut. they now say are for the tax cut extension. all they have to do is pay the tax cut extension and unemployment extension and then move on to the spending bill. they could leave a day early. they could have a month and a day vacation. there's ample time to do this. what we cannot allow is republicans to take care of the spending bill and leave town because of the affected that will be tax hikes for middle-

class americans. that is not acceptable. they would test the proposition that the job approval rating cannot go below 9%. my expectation is that it would go lower if congress would walk out of town refusing to extend this tax cut. >> we're down to immediate friends and family. is it not the same kinda of point? they said this was a bipartisan achievement. there was a handshake from the senate democratic chief of staff and the republican chief of staff. this was a bipartisan accomplishment. the president wants something else. there was a lot of talk about holding things hostage. republicans are holding it

hostage. i am wondering, is that not exactly the same thing you are doing? >> i could spend a lot of time on why this is distinct from the blaze some members of one party -- distinct from the way some members of one-party do it. that is a significant difference. >> let's go back to the spending bill. it is the case that there has been good progress made. they are getting closer to a resolution. it is a fact. there's not been a bill thought. there is the language of an agreement that you reference. it has not been shared. to say work is done is not accurate. we know that there are very important issues that remain resolved. we're very confident.

they will be resolved. we are confident that congress will not leave town without extending the payroll tax cut for 160 million americans. the president will insist they stay here to they get it done. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> in few moments, a news conference with members of congress. in 45 minutes, a discussion of federal budget reform. then the iraqi prime minister encourages businesses to invest in his country. >> several live events to tell you about. john boehner will be interviewed by politico's white house correspondents mike allen. then the house oversight committee hears from the chairmen and all the members of the nuclear regulatory commission about management and

operations. >> today i am proud to welcome prime minister, the elected leader of a self-reliant and a democratic iraq. we are here to mark the end of this war, to honor the sacrifices of all those who made this a possible, and to turn the page and began a new chapter in the history between our countries, the normal relationship between sovereign nations, partnerships based on equal interests and you show respect. >> times prepared to leave iraq, look back at key people and events of the nearly nine year war on line at the c-span video library, archived and searchable. >> now a bipartisan group of kurds in former lawmakers told a news -- current and former

lawmakers told a news conference. there is talk of docking the salaries of members of congress for each day they fail to pass a budget. >> there we go. good morning. thank you for joining us. to our friends, we have been joined by members of the international media. we are going to use this time to help share the word of the work you have been doing along with this distinguished panel of leadership for our country of current and former members. we will go right down the line and began the conversation to keep it on there. he has played a real role in helping bring the ideas you carried into this organization as well as members of congress who have shared with us there

needs and other leaders from around the country. bill? >> thank you. greetings to all of you. this is really a great day as we begin the next phase of no labels effort to make our government work again for the american people. as she said, this represents the culmination of months of effort, input from citizens around the country, from elected officials, from policy experts. we are unveiling a proposal to make congress work and the american people have clearly signaled that that is a necessary and urgent task. it is the single most urgent thing to do if we want to get governments in problem solving mode. the proposals being unveiled have three major objectives.

first of all, by the grid lock, foster a more constructive conversation, and reduce the hyper polarization that has obstructed so many efforts by so many well intentioned people on both parties to get the system moving again. finally, these are actions, most of which congress can take on its own three rule changes, of leadership decisions, or three the individual moral decisions that they want to take but have not been in power to take up until now. the drive to make the american government work again enters a new face today with the proposals that these distinguished officials are about to discuss. thank you very much. [applause]

>> thank you. we will begin with senator lieberman to talk about the item regarding question time for the president and congress. >> thank you. thank you. thanks to all of you for the welcome and for being here to support "no labels." someone asked me why the american people have such a bad opinion of congress. i said it is because congress has been so bad. congress has not worsened. they're not getting business done. labels have dominated. the spirit of compromise that has been necessary for our government to produce for our

people since the country began is hard to find around here these days. congress itself began with a compromise, the connecticut compromise. we started the institution based on that. we have to make it work again based on the kinds of ideas. no labels has really come a long way in short-term. i think it speaks to the public discontent about the status quo here in in washington. i greatly admire making this program work. i hope we will generate support. it is my pleasure to speak about the presidential question time. it would say that the house and senate would rotate each month inviting the president of the united states to come before one house of congress in joint session or separately to answer

questions of the members in full public view. you would be surprised at how little members of congress of both parties get to talk with the president of the united states. case, it would be there for public view to discuss the issues of the day and give members of congress the opportunity that members of the house of commons now have. we do not say think like "here here or harumph, harumph." it sounds like a small idea but it can transform relations and bring the public into the public issue. thank you very much. [applause]

>> thank you very much, senator. if you could just take a moment and what does through the concept of negative campaigning on our colleagues in the spirit of the bipartisan gathering said? >> it is a pleasure to be here. thank you for being here. we are putting the country first. this is what we hear about. i believe strongly that it is difficult to have a working environment if all we are doing is plotting against our colleagues on the other side and getting involved in their campaign. i understood there was an unwritten rule that colleagues did not do this in the past. the year they used to work and function properly. i -- you hear that they used to work and function properly. i think it would be something great to go back to.

we take a pledge to not to go into their state. they have their own fight within their state. they do not need me or anybody else from the other side coming over. i think it would be hard for me to say on one day why don't you help me co-sponsor this bill and on the weekend i am in his state campaigning against him and on monday or tuesday we come back together, "do you still want me?"ell it does not make sense. we did i get time to talk to each other that much. -- we do not get time to talk to each other that much. pay us one weekend a month to go home. do not pay as every weekend. three weeks on, one week back home. home.