[applause] >> you can continue to watch this democratic rally online at c-span.org. the u.s. house is gaveling in momentarily. their first legislative session in the second session of the 113th congress. they'll consider three bills this afternoon including one dealer with eliminating auto dealer certification on light trucks. we expect debate on those three bills and votes -- any recorded votes requested mid afternoon today. live coverage of the house here on c-span. the speaker: the house will be in order. the prayer will be offered today by our chaplain, father

con roy. -- conroy. chaplain conroy: let us pray. ternal god, we give you thanks for giving us another day. we pause now in your presence and acknowledge our dependence on you. we ask your blessing upon the men and women of this, the people's house, who have returned to their stations here on capitol hill. as the new session begins, help them and indeed help us all to obey your law, to do your will and to walk in your way. grant that they might be good in thought, gracious in word, generous in deed and great in spirit. many of their fellow citizens continue to struggle through a difficult economic stretch and look to them for helpful leadership. grant them the resolve to fashion solutions that might benefit those who are in need.

make this a demrorious day in which all -- a glorious day in which all are glad to be alive and ready to serve you. and may all that is done this day be for your greater honor and glory, amen. the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentlelady from california, ms. hahn. ms. hahn: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: the chair will entertain up to 15 requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the entlelady from florida rise? ms. ros-lehtinen: to address

the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker: without objection. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. there are congressional and administration attempts to circumvent and undermine decades' old laws that prohibit the united states from funding any agency at the united nations that admits a nonexistent palestinian state. in october, 2011, unesco chose to welcome palestine to its membership. it did so knowing full well that this would trigger u.s. laws that would prohibit us from funding any entity at the u.n. that grants membership to the p.l.o. or any other organization that doesn't meet the internationally recognized attributes of statehood. we must not grant a waiver to unesco nor approve any other back door congressional attempt to provide u.s. funding to unesco until it reverses its decision regarding the palestinian authority. we are in an economic tail spin, mr. speaker.

so why waste $250 million in u.s. taxpayer money by giving it, wasting it to unesco? it's madness. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. speaker, i rise today on behalf of over a million americans who saw their unemployment benefits disappear on december 28. with our economy still struggling and unemployment remaining unacceptably high, now is not the time to take more money out of the pockets of those who are struggling to simply get by. this week republicans would rather continue debating the affordable care act instead of working to get our economy back on track by helping to raise the standard of living for the poorest americans and provide assistance to the unemployed. democrats in the house and the senate are working to offer

solutions here in washington and back in our districts. in the district i represent, i'm helping constituents find jobs by hosting a job fair on january 24. the constituents i serve will have the opportunity to apply for jobs on site, network with employers and attend professional development workshops. mr. speaker, we need to address the job crisis in america, and republicans need to get back to the business of fixing our economy. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from north carolina seek recognition? ms. foxx: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you very much, mr. speaker. just last week i received the following letter from a constituent. dear congresswoman foxx, on december 10 i applied for a silver lever plan and received confirmation the same day that my application was completed. since then i waited for my invoice so i could pay for the insurance. i called on december 23 and waited close to five hours on the phone for the next

available rep only to be put on hold for another 1 1/2 hours and finally be told they had no idea when my invoice would be sent. as of january 2, 2013, i have not been billed for my new insurance. i have six prescriptions that need to be filled at the end of the month. when will the program be fixed and operational? mr. speaker, it's a good question, and the american people deserve an answer. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: jabe. for what purpose does the gentleman from rhode island seek recognition? mr. cicilline: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cicilline: it's been 11 days since 1.3 million americans have been cut off from their unemployment benefits, an important safety net, and the house has yet to address this crisis. instead of offering solution to extending emergency unemployment benefits, republicans are moving the goal post and changing their position. what are we waiting for? more and more rhode islanders

lose their emergency unemployment benefits. the longer we wait to fix this problem, the more serious it becomes to the long-term unemployed. 50 years ago today, president johnson announced his war on poverty, and to commemorate that anniversary, this congress is willing to write off and -- ride off and forget about 1.3 -- write off and forget about 1.3 million americans. what kind of servants will we become when we take away the safety net three days before christmas? this is shameful. mr. speaker, i urge you to bring the bill to the floor, to extend emergency unemployment benefits. 1.3 million americans can't wait another day, another week or another month for this congress to act. let's do the right thing and end this nightmare for those we serve. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is ecognized.

mr. walberg: thank you, mr. speaker. a new year brings a new per expectively and many a fresh start. many of my hardworking constituents hope this year will bring a healthy economy with increased opportunities. my house colleagues and i didn't need a new year to make this our goal. last year we passed dozens of bills making job creation and expanding opportunity our central focus. this included bills to make energy more affordable, repeal obamacare and expand education for students and job seekers. if the senate would only act on these measures, we could offer more opportunities for our constituents today. bills like the energy consumers relief act, halting major new regulations that increase prices and hurt the economy. the northern routes approval act, to finally approve the keystone pipeline and immediately create thousands of good-paying jobs. or the skills act, to eliminate and streamline dozens of overlapping federal programs and help connect job seekers with the skills they need. i look forward, mr. speaker, to continue to work with my colleagues, supporting additional measures to

strengthen our economy, provide more opportunity for all and put americans back to work. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas seek recognition? the gentlelady from texas is recognized. ms. johnson: thank you very much, mr. speaker. on december 28, house year.icans -- happy new you look great. but we fail to address the issues of the people who are unemployed. and i call upon all of us today to remember that many people, as we sit here, are facing fiscal devastation. the social safety net is used to purchase very basic necessary its such as food and rent, and many of americans are threading now on just staying

above the water. 1.3 million americans are without unemployment insurance as of december 28. but in another few weeks, 1.9 million will join them. 174,000 of these are from texas. i know that we have not really thought about this seriously. i know that so much time was spent attempting to overturn the affordable care act that we forgot that there are people that we have failed to provide jobs for that are now unemployed that we cannot forget. this is not just their problem. this is our problem. please join me in making sure that we restore this safety net. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina

is recognized. >> mr. speaker, i stand regarding the qualified mortgage rule that will go into effect this friday. mr. speaker, this rule is going to have a devastating affect on the housing industry. once again, the longhand of the federal government goes out to dictate policy to the financial industry on who they should make loans to. mr. pittenger: once again we face another crisis in the housing industry. easy credit for borrowers. now they're telling financial institutions clearly the wrong direction to go. we need the markets to work. the federal government has proven also as well they sure can't handle health care through obamacare. why do we think the government knows best when it comes to telling community banks and others who they should make their loans to? 50% of the loans made in 2013

will not be made for 2014 with these guidelines. mr. speaker, we call for this rule to be delayed for a year to allow congress to improve it. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized. ms. hahn: mr. speaker, last month many of us stood here and pleaded with speaker boehner to act to extend unemployment insurance for 1.3 million hurting americans, including over 213,000 in california alone. every day americans like vincent, people who've lost their jobs through no fault of their own, will be devastated if we do not right this wrong. vincent's 57 and worked at bank of america in my home state of california. he says that he's interviewed with other organizations since being laid off but has not found a job.

he's not giving up, but vincent will have to worry he'll sleep n his car, going to food pantries since not getting unemployment insurance since december 28. we extended it before because it was the right thing to do as human beings and as legislators. we must do that again. earlier many of us stood with president johnson's daughter, linda johnson, as we marked the 50th anniversary of president johnson's declaration of an unconditional war on poverty. and in this ongoing war on poverty, extending unemployment benefits to americans who've lost their jobs is witnessed one of our greatest weapons. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? the gentleman from utah is recognized. >> to my fellow members and my

fellow americans, i wish you all a successful and blessed new year, but before we begin the political battles of the year, i'd like to take a moment to congratulate the newly elected officials in the utah's second congressional district, specifically john pike, the new mayor of st. george and washington county. mr. stewart: i look forward to working with me to create new jobs. but i want to take a moment to specifically thank mayor dan mckarter who served st. george for more than 20 years. under his tenure, the population nearly tripled in size. they had expansion and creation of many new businesses, great new infrastructure, a beautiful new airport, and the transformation of dixie state college into a four-year university. mayor dan is a true representative of the dixie spirit. his volunteerism was shown in 2005 when they had severe flooding along the virgin river. he and other city councilmembers helped those in

sandbagging the river to prevent severe damage. i'm pleased to call mayor dan a friend and pleased by his fine example and many years of service. i wish he and his family the very best in their future endeavors. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. . for what purpose does the gentlelady from ohio seek recognition? the gentlelady from ohio is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. 50 years ago, during president linden johnson's state of the union address, he declared a war on poverty. mrs. beatty: to create an opportunity for families in america -- and americans to have stability in economic development, health care and education. in 50 -- and 50 years later i stand on this house floor with his daughter. 46 million families living in poverty, 16.5 million of them hildren.

mrs. negrete mcleod: i say today, let's end this war on poverty. let's support the $40 billion for snap. let's make a difference in the lives of americans. we deserve to provide them the opportunity to have that opportunity that president lind johnson talked about. -- linden johnson talked about. thank you to his daughter for reminding us of his legacy. thank you to the congressional black caucus and congresswoman barbara lee for leading our charge in making a difference. thank you, mr. speaker, and i ask all democrats and republicans to join me today to pledge that we will take care of those children and families living in poverty as we move forward. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from indiana seek recognition? the gentleman from indiana is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker.

it's been a lot of talk today about the importance of unemployment benefits. and the truth is, too many americans are out of work. but my constituents don't just need jobs. they need good-paying jobs. the president tout is s job gains in our economy -- touts job gains in our economy. unfortunately many of the jobs gained in the past years aren't the kind needed to get hoosiers back on their feet. mr. messer: their the kind that require long hours of work for little pay. with few or no benefits. they're the kind whose paychecks don't go as far as they used to because necessities like gas, food, education and health care cost more and more. they're the kind that -- where people work harder but fall farther behind. that's not the america i grew up in. my america, our america, is one where those who work hard and play by the rules can afford life.sic necessities of

and then have a little left over for once -- wants, not just needs. it's time for congress to spend more time working for these hardworking americans and less worrying about those who either don't need government or already have a government that works for them. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from new york seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york is recognized. >> mr. speaker, today is the 50th anniversary of president lyndon johnson's historic war on poverty. but lately it seems more like a war on the poor. earlier today at a meeting organized by congresswoman lee, his daughter, linda johnson rob, said that she accompanied her father on his historic tour of appalachia and she said, and i quote, when daddy came to this town and was sworn in as

president, the poverty level of our country was at 20%. when daddy left this town it was at 12% of the population. he made a big difference working with this body in a bipartisan way and we can do it again. mrs. maloney: mr. speaker, let's pass a jobs plan, raise the minimum wage, restore nutrition assistance and affordable housing assistance and extend unemployment benefits to help those families get by while they're looking for work. and as president johnson decades ago, let us again declare an all-out war on human poverty and unemployment in these united states. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. this week the house will consider a bill offered by representative pittsburghs that

would require the -- pitts that would require the obama administration to notify americans who had their personal information stolen after signing up for health insurance through obamacare. as someone who has made protecting social security numbers a priority, i'm deeply concerned about an increase of identity theft through the flawed obamacare website. mr. johnson: you see, social security numbers are the key to identity theft. yet c.m.s., which is the same agency that runs health care, has failed to protect seniors' identity by refusing to remove social security numbers from medicare cards. that's why mr. pitts' bill, along with h.r. 781, the medicare identity theft prevention act, which i introduced with my democrat colleague lloyd doggett, are two simple yet effective ways we can protect americans and keep their private information just that, private. i urge my colleagues to join

our efforts. we must do what's right for americans. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from minnesota seek recognition? the gentlelady from minnesota is recognized. ms. mccollum: mr. speaker, as congress begins a new session, house republican leadership must not ignore last year's urgent, unfinished business. right after christmas 1.3 million americans had their unemployment benefits terminated. republicans refused to extend unemployment insurance which created a state of emergency for struggling families across this nation, including thousands in minnesota. earned unemployment benefits are a lifeline for americans seeking work. extending this critical safety net will help our neighbors meet basic needs. paying rent, buying food and providing warmth in this very

frigid winter. long-term unemployment is at record highs. there are three job seekers for every job available. it is wrong for this republican majority to turn their back on unemployed americans. 50 years ago president johnson launched a war on poverty. today this fight means ex tendsing emergency un-- extending emergency unemployment insurance and providing more americans and their children to fall into poverty. with that i yield back, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from south carolina is recognized. mr. wilson: mr. speaker, in 2013 we witnessed the disastrous impacts of big government. from the administration's failed rollout of obamacare destroying jobs, to the undermining of our national security by military sequestration, we know this harms our families, our economy and our safety. last week i had the opportunity to travel across south

carolina's second congressional district to unveil legislative priorities for 2014. my constituents shared my concerns that congress must focus on legislation to create jobs through economic growth. we must also reduce our spending so that our children and grandchildren will not be faced with the burden of out-of-control debt. encouraging energy independence through the completion of the keystone x.l. pipeline will also create jobs in south carolina. additionally, promoting our great men and women in uniform, military families and veterans must remain at the top of our priority list. we must protect our heroes who risk their lives to protect us. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? ms. lee: i ask for unanimous consent to address the house for one and to revise and extend my remarks -- for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks.

thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. lee: thank you. as co-chair of the congressional black caucus' task force on poverty and economy and chair of the democratic whip's task force on poverty, income inequality and opportunity, i join my colleagues today in making and marking president johnson's 1964 state of the union address. 50 years ago president johnson boldly declared an unconditional war on poverty. now, for the next 50 days members will be giving on this floor 50 speeches and continuing this war for economic justice. and i am so pleased and honored that president johnson and lady bird johnson's eldest daughter, mrs. linda johnson rob, accepted our invitation to join us here today. she's here in the gallery and i just want to say to her that she exemplifies president and ms. johnson's commitment and the leadership required to fight poverty and build a great society. she visited appalachia as she told us earlier with her daddy and reminded us today that this was a bipartisan and bicameral

effort, requiring leadership from the white house. now, president johnson's war on poverty created critical antipoverty programs such as head start, job corps, food stamps, medicare, medicaid and social security. as president johnson said 50 years ago, it will not be short or easy. thank you again. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from utah seek recognition? the gentleman from utah is recognized. mr. bishop: mr. speaker, yesterday was the 125th anniversary of one of the premier academic institutions in utah, weaver state university. originally a religious school, the academy with 200 students, is a full university with over 25,000 students today and a great addition to its home city as well as the satellite cam pulse. i am very pleased of my association with weaver state university. my father-in-law played football, my wife and daughter are graduated. even one of our colleagues, representative jenkins of

kansas, was a graduate. my son worked for the administration for a while there as well. its first president was a renaissance immigrant from germany who composed my favorite hymn. its second principal became a leader of my chump. its most recent president was the first female leader of the university in the state of utah and under its current leadership with president white, i expect another 25 years of great research, innovation and education taking place. everyone in utah wore purple yesterday to honor the event. i was wearing a weaver state hoodie and sweats all night long. obviously in honor of weaver state and trying to stay warm back here in washington. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mens -- members reminded not to address attendees in the gallery. for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas seek recognition? the gentlelady from texas is recognized for one minute.

ms. jackson lee: i'd like to thank the leadership that we've had leading this country. in the instance of president johnson, represented by his wonderful family, his wife, his late wife, lucie johnson, and our dear friend here in washington, the former first lady of virginia, linda johnson rob. they understand the words that our president gave us. unfortunately many americans live on the outskirts of hope. and some on the outskirts of health. i join my colleague, congresswoman barbara lee, to say to you that the war on poverty is not over. for as we look at the red on this, every single state has someone living in poverty. and those individuals are represented in 16 million children. 20,000 military veterans are also included in those -- and those who are not getting

unemployment benefits. 1.3 million americans. so as we look at those who need head start, a program that was a generational result of the president johnson's effort we must fight to extend unemployment insurance and we must ensure that the war on poverty remains our cause and our hope. it is important to give hope to americans. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from montana seek recognition? the gentleman from montana is recognized. mr. daines: mr. speaker, during a recent homeland security oversight committee hearing, we learned just how deeply flawed the obamacare website was upon its launch. the problems with this website went well beyond error messages and americans being unable to successfully purchase insurance. we've learned the security risks to the obamacare website were limitless, long before the website's official launch.

worse, the obama administration knew of theses risks before the october 1 plan launch and rather than fixing the problem, they consciously allowed americans to put their personal information at risk by using this deeply flawed website. someone who has worked in the technology sector, i know that if a private company launched a website with these kind of issues, the company might have gone under, at least people would have been fired. the administration's failure to secure this website in advance of its launch is wholly unacceptable and that's why i'm proud to support the health exchange security and transparency act which requires h.h.s. to notify americans if their personal information has been stolen or unlawfully accessed in obamacare exchange. the american people deserve to know if the obamacare website jeopardy didsed their privacy -- jeopardized their privacy. i strongly urge my colleagues to join me in support of this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? the gentleman from georgia is recognized.

mr. johnson: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to join my colleagues in marking the 50th anniversary of president johnson's declaration of a war on poverty. this war is -- was being won for 16 years but since president reagan's election 34 years ago, the free marketeers and their republican party proponents have pressed a war on the war on poverty. the results are heartwrenching. the rich are getting richer while millions of middle income families have been thrown into poverty. in my state of georgia alone, almost 17% of households are food-insecure, according to the have in 10 education fund. 18% of people in georgia earn less than $23,4 2 for a family -- $23,492 for a family of four. republicans blame the poor for being poor and even worse, mr. speaker, they blame the 27.2% of children, mr. speaker, who

are living below the poverty line in georgia. republicans who ignore the desperate pleas to extend snap and unemployment insurance programs are hurting the people i flept georgia and millions more -- i represent in georgia and millions more throughout this great nation. it's a shame and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from mississippi seek recognition? the gentleman from mississippi is recognized. . >> in my hometown of tupelo, mississippi, two police officers were shart while attempting to apprehend a bank robber. one is currently recovering. tragically, sergeant stoford died of those wounds. mr. nunnelee: gale spent his entire life in service to his country. he joined the u.s. military and

bravely served his tour of duty in iraq as sergeant in the louisiana national guard. after returning home, he settled with his family in tupelo where he's known for his cajun cooking, his love of the outdoors and passionate support for l.s.u. tiger football. above all, those who knew sergeant stalford, knew him as a man completely devoted to his wife and two children. i will be submitting letters of support for both of these brave men's nomination for the congressional badge of bravery. ronald reagan once said, those who say we are in a time of no heroes, they just don't know where to look. by their actions, they showed there are still heroes among us. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? the gentlelady from california is recognized. ms. brownley: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to call on speaker boehner to allow the house to

vote to extend emergency unemployment compensation, a program that is critical to thousands of my constituents in ventura county struggling to find work. we also need tokes tend unemployment insurance for the more than 20,000 veterans who were cut off while they make their transition to the civilian work force. and we need to extend unemployment insurance for the nearly two million children whose families need it for food, clothing and shelter. mr. speaker, it's also an economic imperative. extending unemployment insurance to nearly 214,000 unemployed californians who will use it to buy groceries, put gas in their cars or keep the lights on would save over 46,000 jobs in my state. mr. speaker, it is both a moral and economic imperative that we extend unemployment insurance

and that we do so without delay. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: jabe. for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas -- the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kansas is recognized. >> mr. speaker, as americans are making nair new year's resolutions, i think it's time that congress make a few new years resolutions of their own. mr. yoder: they'll ask them to pay for more bloated programs. congress will actually try to balance its budget, something the rest of the american people have to do. congress will resolve itself to stop the onslaught of rules, regulations and mandates on our constituents that slow down the economy and kill jobs. congress will focus more on programs that create jobs and less on programs that create government dependency. congress will stop allowing the federal government to spy and read the emails on innocent americans. and congress will resolve itself to live under the same

laws it passes for everyone else with no special health care or retirement benefits. and lastly, congress will resolve itself to spend more time listening to the american people and working together, republicans and democrats, to solve the problems our nation faces. mr. speaker, these are a few new years resolutions for congress that we will be well served to follow and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> to address the floor and to revise my comments. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. honda: thank you, mr. speaker. if there are hippocratic oath of legislating it would prescribe that we above all else should do no harm. but we have a habit of violating that foundation of percept. we've allowed unemployment insurance to expire and that will not help our economy and will cost 200,000 jobs. in one month we face recurring hostage taking ritual that has become raising the debt limit.

these debt limit showdowns have a real cost to our economy. the government accountability office said delayed action in 2011 resulted in $1.3 billion in higher borrowing costs. we can avoid that cost by enacting permanent reforms to the process like the ones in the recent debt limit adjustments. i introduced last year h.r. 233 which would permanently shift the role of congress to disapproving debt ceiling increases instead of approving them and allows the debt limit to be raised unless a supermajority of congress votes to block the increase. i encourage my colleagues to join me in pursuing these permanent reforms, avoid hostage taking and brinksmanship and do unnecessary harm to the american families. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i rise to address the house for one

minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized. >> mr. speaker, today marks the 50th anniversary of america's war on poverty, and while this war may have been launched with the best of intentions it is career we're engaged in a battle of attrition that's left more americans in poverty than at any point in america's history by number. the fact is staggering. considering the $15 trillion and counting that has been spent on fighting this war on poverty. mr. southerland: the status quo simply isn't working. in fact, it's hurting many, many vulnerable families. we have a moral obligation to do better for the people of florida's second congressional district and across this great nation. and to 46.5 million americans overall who are living in poverty. as chairman of the anti-poverty initiative i look forward to working on things going forward, new forward-thinking solutions that do several things. strengthens two-parent

families, improve effective educational opportunities, create long-lasting job growth, producing fulfilling careers and restoring people's god-given opportunity for earned success. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky seek recognition? mr. yarmuth: i request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. yarmuth: 50 years ago president johnson launched the war on poverty, giving rise stomach of the most successful anti-poverty programs in our history, including medicare, medicaid, food assistance and head start. five decades later, eradicating poverty remains a moral imperative. it encompasses health and well-being, education, employment and access to opportunity. we have made progress. in 1967, nearly 26% of americans lived in poverty. today that number is 16%. programs such as the earned income tax credit, which gives working americans a ladder into the middle class, have helped

us make that progress. but today in congress, our commitment to ending poverty is in question. because of republican opposition, more than 18,000 kentuckians and 1.3 million americans are without a critical safety net as they continue to search for work. as a result, our economy lost $400 million last week alone. unemployment insurance is one of the most effective ways to transition those who lost jobs back into the work force. in 2012, it helped 2.5 million americans work their way out of poverty. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues today to recommit themselves to eradicating poverty and support an immediate extension of unemployment insurance. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? mrs. capps: to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. capps: james from santa maria, california, wrote the following -- i started working at the age of 16 because our father had died.

i had up until april, 2012, gone to work every day. i am no slouch. i'm a citizen, a taxpayer, a u.s. army veteran. but now his unemployment insurance benefit is gone. for james and millions of americans like him, we must act. unfortunately, house leadership has ignored this plight and in doing so, these hardworking americans will lose the means to keep job searching. we must extend this lifeline for the long-term unemployed, their children, for our local economy which gains $3 of economic benefits for over $2 invested in the program. the senate is on the verge of doing just that with bipartisan support. we must follow their lead. james signed his letter to me in bowled capital letters, -- bold capital letters, please help. i urge my house colleagues to do just in a. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized.

>> mr. speaker, last year as many have said, ended on a somber note, over one million of our fellow americans lost a vital economic lifeline, the temporary insurance that helps them get by while searching for a new job. mrs. davis: louise, a constituent from mine from san diego explained losing such benefits means to her. she's 60 years old and she's been looking for work since she was laid off a year ago from a stable job that she held just for about 15 years. and as she mentioned, it is very scary to think that effectively on january 1 i won't have any income. so what am i to do? i will have a roof over my head for a short time, but i won't have the funds to pay for utilities. and she went on to say, by cutting extended unemployment, all that will be accomplished is more people being on welfare or living on the streets homeless.

and that, that helps us? how? her story reminds us of our duty to lend a hand to those in need of any of us could be in her shoes. extending unemployment benefits is not only the right thing but it's also good for our economy. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule 20. recorded votes on postponed questions will be taken later.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio seek recognition? mr. latta: mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 724, a bill to amend the clean air act to remove the requirement for dealer certification of new light-duty motor vehicles. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 238, h.r. 724, a bill to amend the clean air act to remove the requirement for dealer certification for new light-duty motor vehicles. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from ohio, mr. latta, and the gentleman from michigan, mr. peters, will each control 20 minutes.

the chair recognizes the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and and insert remarks extraneous matters -- materials in the record of the bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. latta: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. . mr. latta: thank you nchings mr. speaker. mr. speaker, -- thank you, mr. speaker. heek, i'm proud to be the lead sponsor of this bill, along with my colleague from michigan. this bipartisan bill, which has 106 co-sponsors repeals an obsolete regulatory requirement that no longer makes sense. this legislation is fully supported by the auto industry and i have a letter that i'd like to submit for the record from the five leading automotive trade associations including the national

association of automobile dealer association highlighting their support. since 1981, automobile dealers who deliver a new vehicle for sale have been required to provide a certificate to the purchaser indicating the vehicle conforms to the clean requirements. ns however, modern technology and standard vehicle warrants have rendered this paperwork requirement unnecessary and redundant for a number of reasons. first, every new vehicle must comply with the new -- with the clean air act requirements before it can enter the stream of commerce. second, information certifying a vehicle is clean-air act compliant can already be found in a number of other locations including under the hood of a vehicle in a vehicle's manual or on the e.p.a.'s website. and finally, many new sales warrants range from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of miles or a number of years which far exceed the protections provided for in the

regulatory requirement. during recent years, we have seen an unprecedented amount of federal regulation proposed and enacted. this bureaucratic creep not only threatens the scope of the entrepreneurial freedom but also comes at a heavy cost which by some estimation is approximately $1.7 trillion annually. in my district, when i'm out visiting with with small business in the community and hardworking american taxpayers, the number one concern i hear about is the burdensome regulations and the need to pare back federal government interference. h.r. 724 is a simple, direct and it sends a clear message that small business owners and specifically auto dealers should not be burdened with redundant regulatory requirements. this legislation will make the car-buying process a little simpler and let automobilers spend less time complying with obsolete requirements and more time developing their

businesses, investing in local communities and creating jobs. i look forward to continuing to find ways to reduce unnecessary red tape on the small business community, as h.r. 724 represents. this is not only a policy that both sides iflet can agree on, but it's a policy that can actually get done. i urge support for my colleagues and, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio reserves. the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. peters: thank you. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. peters: thank you. i rise today in support of h.r. 724 and i'd like to start off by thanking mr. latta from ohio for his leadership on this issue and for his willingness to work with me in writing this bill. this legislation is simple and straightforward. it cuts red tape for small businesses and allows auto dealers to focus on selling cars and creating jobs, not unnecessary paperwork.

this bill also benefits consumers. it is one less piece of paper when buying a car so consumers can focus on what is really important to them and that is their purchase. when i came to congress in 2009, it was a very dark period for our entire economy, but particularly for the auto industry. i will never forget the meeting i had during that time with chrysler's c.e.o. and his management team and they told me that they were not only weeks away from bankruptcy, but that without access to government loans, they would not have the resources to reorganize and would have been forced to liquidate the company. a lickry dation of any -- liquidation of any of the major auto factors would have wreaked havoc on the supply chain and dragged the entire industry down with it, eliminating millions of good paying u.s. jobs. my state of michigan has helped build our nation's middle class. our hift is proof that you cannot have a strong middle class without a strong manufacturing sector and you

cannot have a strong manufacturing sector without a thriving auto industry. that is why i was proud to fight for michigan workers and middle class families and our auto industry to secure the loans that they needed to weather this economic storm. fast forward to today. our auto industry is now driving our economic recovery and paving the way to rebuilding our middle class. vehicle sales are at the highest point they've been since may of 2007 and vehicle manufacturers and suppliers are ramping up production, hiring more workers and investing in innovation. that is why it is critical that congress continue to support our auto industry and our middle class. i'm glad to work with congressman latta on a commonsense solution to eliminate outdated and unnecessary burdens on small businesses. auto dealers should not have to provide additional paperwork confirming that a vehicle complies with the clean air act since every new vehicle entering the market already meets that standard.

compliance with the clean air act is certainly very important. but redundant paperwork just slows down our small businesses and our consumers. auto dealers are outstanding community citizens. they sponsor little league teams, scholarships and volunteer their time to help others. dealers provide significant value and expertise when consumers want to purchase a new car or truck and to work to make financing a vehicle affordable. today's new vehicle features innovations ranging from safety technology that makes our roads packages all of us to that provide convenience and an enhanced riding experience. features that a knowledgeable dealer can complay a -- can play a very important role in educating the car buying public about. so i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting h.r. 724 and end this outdated burden on a small business and small businesses that can be found in every community in our country.

i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from pennsylvania. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for two minutes. >> i thank the gentleman and, mr. peters, i thank you all also. i'm actually a new car dealer and have been a new car dealer for many, many years, since 1970 in a store my dad smarted in 1953. it used to be so easy to deliver a car to a customer and the excitement about getting that new car was just one of the biggest things a family could do. they were so excited about taking delivery of a new car, being able to drive off that lot, drive around america, do whatever they wanted to do. mr. peters referred to dealers in the community. if you want to know the significance of new car dealers go to any town, anywhere in this country and look at the fence that little leagues play. mr. kelly: see who the sponsors are. look at any of the fundraising opportunities that take place in each community and you'll

find it is the automobile dealers who are there first and foremost and always there. that's just what we do. in addition to providing good transportation, we support our community. we hire people, we allow people to work, they do great things in our community. now, when we talk about h.r. 724, the question comes then, why do we continue to layer time after time, paper after paper on somebody just trying to take delivery of a new car? in a survey, a recent survey, the number one thing that consumers don't like about buying a car is the paperwork. it is endless. when i first started in 1969 selling cars, all you had to do was sign the retail order form and sign the temporary registration. now we have volumes of papers that must be signed. they don't only have to sign that they agree to something, they have to sign that they agree not to do something. and it was offered to somebody else and to them also. so this full declaration has

gotten crazy. when it comes to the clean air act, i can take anybody out in the lot in fact, we can go out on the streets right now, open the hood of your car. there's a sticker underneath that says exactly what that vehicle performs like and how does it meet the requirements of the clean air act, it's there. on the manufacturers' statement of origin when customers take delivery of a car, they sign that certificate. that's a certificate saying that it applies to the clean air act. mr. latta: i yield the gentleman an additional minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. kelly: and i thank you. this just makes so much sense. at a time when america looks at this institution and says, why don't you just work together to get rid of some of this overregulation, this overburdensome -- this cost-adding to almost everything that we do? we can do it. i appreciate what mr. latta's dond and what mr. peters' done. there's over 105 of us here in this room that agree this needs to be done right now. let's do what's right for the american people. let's make sure that we

simplify it and make it easier for people to go ahead and take delivery of their new car. takes away cost, adds money that can go back into communities, into building businesses, into rebuilding america. i thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from ohio reserves. the gentleman from -- the gentleman is recognized. mr. peters: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to thank mr. kelly for his comments and his support for what i think is a very practical, commonsense bill that deals with an issue that we need to address and i think it's very encouraging to see us come together in a bipartisan deal with this issue in a very commonsense approach. with that i have no further speakers and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan yields back. the gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: mr. speaker, it appears that we have no further speakers on our side and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio yields back. mr. latta: mr. speaker, i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house

suspend the rules and agree to house res. lose 724. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. -- house resolution 724. 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 gentleman from ohio. mr. latta: ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested on h.r. 724. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. -- all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this otion will be postponed.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 3527, the poison center network act, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 3527, a bill to amend the public health service act to re-authorize the poison center national toll free number, national media campaign and grant program and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. pitts, and the gentleman from new york, mr. engel, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania.

mr. pitts: 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 insert extraneous materials in the record on the bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he wishes to consume. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, h.r. 3527, the poison center network act, introduced by representative lee terry, re-authorizes important activities related to poison control centers. specifically, the bill re-authorizes the national poison center toll free number, the poison center's national media campaign and the state grant program which funds 56 poison control centers around the united states. the department of health and human services estimates that in any given year there will be between three million to five million poison exposures.

60% of these exposures will involve children under the age of 6. who are exposed to toxins in their home. poisoning is the second most common form of unintentional death in the united states. and accounts for 285,000 hospitalizations a year. according to a report from the institute of medicine, every dollar spent on poison control center services saves $7 in medical spending. i would urge all my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in strong support of h.r. 3527, the poison center network act, and i yield myself as much time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognize for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. engel: thank you, mr. speaker. before i begin, i would like unanimous consent to put into

the record the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone's, floor sfamente on this bill -- floor statement on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's statement will be covered by general leave. the gentleman is recognized. mr. engel: thank you, mr. speaker. this important legislation, which passed the energy and commerce committee by unanimous consent in december, re-authorizes the national toll free phone number, media campaign and grant program, which have helped make poison centers an incredibly successful program. first passed in 2000, national poison center legislation was championed by our current energy and commerce committee chairman, mr. upton, and our former colleague, ed towns. since then the national poison center legislation has been re-authorized twice and i'm proud to say it remains a very bipartisan product. . chairman terry i thank you for your leadership on the issue over the years and hard work on this re-authorization. this is a good bipartisan bill and i am pleased to have had the opportunity to work on it with

you. poison exposure is the leading cause of unintentional injuries in the united states, and it was the second leading cause of unintentional injury, deaths in 2010. according to a recent report, poisonings accounted for over 2.1 million emergency room visits, and 438,000 hospitalizations in the year 2009 alone. i think most of us with children remember either having a magnet on our refrigerator or sticker on our phone providing the contact information for the poison center in our area. the experts that staff our nation's network of 57 poison centers are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. in 2012, poison centers handled an average of 90 to 100 cases per day for a total of almost 3.4 million cases over the course of the year. over 90% of calls into poison

centers were due to a poison exposure in someone's home, and approximately half of all cases involve children under the age of 6 who are exposed to toxins in their home. in my home state of new york, we have two poison centers, between the two of them they field over 164,000 calls per year. the new york city poison center found that 88% of all exposures to a dangerous substance occurred within someone's own residence. many of these calls were related to the accidental ingestton of various cleaning products or detergents, but in 2012 the new york city poison center also fielded over 2,000 calls regarding prescription painkillers. for the upstate new york poison center in 2012, 85% of calls were related to unintentional poisonings, 62% involved children under the age of 5, and most importantly 82% of cases

could be managed over the phone and did not require a visit to a doctor or a hospital if hospitalization is necessary. in 2011, poison centers helped avoid an estimated 1.7 million unnecessary health care visits, and have been shown to decrease the amount of time an individual spends in the hospital. while a visit to the emergency room can cost hundreds of dollars, and a hospitalization can cost thousands, a phone call to a poison center only costs around $30 which shows poison centers continue to be a smart public health investment. i think it is also important to note that poison centers are an incredibly valuable resource to health care providers. poison centers provide access to board certified, medical toxicologists which can aiscies with the triage, diagnosis, and treatment of patients with known or suspected poisoning. poison centers are a true

partnership between federal, state, and local governments, as well as the private sector. in 2011, poison centers obtained only 13% of their funding from federal grants while 62% came from state and local governments, and 25% from private funders like hospitals and insurers. adequate funding from all sources is important in order to continue to provide high quality experts and services in the name of poison prevention for our constituents. mr. speaker, by all accounts poison centers have been an incredible success and a program that we should all be proud to be part of. in addition to my gratitude towards mr. terry, i would also again like to thank chairman upton for his leadership on this issue as well as ranking member waxman, chairman pits -- pitts, and ranking member pallone for their assistance in bringing this bill first before the energy and commerce committee and to the floor today. as the lead democrat on this

bipartisan legislation, i urge my colleagues to support this legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york reserves his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: at this time i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from michigan, the distinguished chairman of the energy and commerce committee, mr. upton. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for two minutes. mr. upton: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank my friends, mr. engel, the lead democratic co-sponsor of this bipartisan legislation, as well as mr. terry who has helped champion this not only in this congress, but for the last number of years as well. this bill needs to get done. h.r. 3527 is really good legislation, and it's bipartisan. it funds more than 50 poison control centers across the country, and in 2012 more than -- almost four million calls were managed by our nation's poison control centers. these centers and the physicians, nurses, pharmacists,

and tocksology specialists who staff them save lives by providing free and confidential health services regarding potential exposure to harmful toxin 24-7. and in 1350 different languages. let me tell you about michigan. the michigan regional poison control center at d.m.c. children's hospital in detroit is one of the largest and busiest poison centers in the country. offering leadership and new data collection processes and identification of new trends in poisoning. the center provides assessment, triage, management, continued monitoring of more than 90,000 poison exposures in michigan every year at no direct cost to the patient, the practitioner, r the health care institution. poison centers like this save money as they avert visits to the emergency room, an

independent group say it saves more than $1.19 billion in avoided medical utilization and hospital lengths of stay every year. in addition every $1 funding saves about $13 in unnecessary health care costs and lost productivity in the country. our nation's poison centers exemplify public-private -- another 30 seconds? mr. pitts: an additional 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. upton: our nation's poison centers exemplify successful public-private partnerships with federal funds providing only 18% of the poison center budget. that partnership saves the federal government a lot of money. while also delivering access to clinical services for americans across the country, let alone he lives that we save. i would ask every one of my

colleagues to vote for this bipartisan legislation. again i want to commend the leadership of mr. terry and mr. engel for their continued effort on this to geter done. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan yields back. the gentleman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from new york. mr. engel: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio. -- pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, at this time i yield as much time as he may consume to the prime sponsor of the bill, the gentleman from nebraska, mr. terry. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from nebraska is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. terry: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. speaker, i thank the chairman for recognizing me. i thank the gentleman from new york, my good friend, who we have worked on several bills together, the poison control bill is certainly one of those that we have been active on for several years now. thank you for your involvement and your staff's involvement. they have done a great job. mr. speaker, this is a bipartisan and a bicameral bill. not only were we in negotiations

and working together in a bipartisan way in the house, but our team in the house, eliot engel and myself, have been working with the senate and they have an identical bill to this. this bill re-authorizes the national poison control center's toll free number, the poison center's nationwide media campaign, and the grant program which provides funds for over 50 poison centers nationwide, including the one in omaha, nebraska, that i recently visited. currently 56 poison centers its all 50 states and territories, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. yes, even christmas. these centers provide professional advice from doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and toxicology specialists, people calling in questions or concerns regarding potential exposure to harmful toxins. nebraska's poison control center has a direct relationship with our medical center and you'll find that very common in many

communities and states. in 2010 alone, the annual report of the poison control centers reported over three million calls received and served by the centers. in 2012, more than 3.9 million calls were managed by our nation poison control centers. our national poison center network also serves as an ideal example of public-private partnership that saves the federal government money, billions of dollars each year in avoided emergency room expenses, while delivering access to critical services. 80% of the poison center's operating budget comes from nonfederal sources. in 2012, an independent analysis found a large portion of the savings provided by poison centers saved schip, medicare, and medicaid funds more than

$700 million a year just for those programs. america's utilization of the nation's poison control center information and case triage services results in avoiding more than 1.7 million unnecessary visits to health care facilities. now, i encourage every member of congress to visit their state's poison control center where they'll see great professionals who work with frightened people on the other side of that call in a remarkable way. and i also encourage them to support this bill and yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from nebraska yields back. the gentleman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from new york is recognized. mr. engel: i have no further speakers, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york yields back his time. the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, we have no other speakers.

i would urge all members to support this bill, h.r. 3527, in order to save lives. it's a bipartisan, good bill that deserves every member's support. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time i -- his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 3527, as amended. so many as are 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 -- the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: 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. it pursuant to clause 8 of rule on t, further proceedings this motion will be postponed.

pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess subject to the call of the chai

>> many live in countries where the disease carries tig ma and shame. by sharing the lessons that we have learned, americans can empower more women to detect breast cancer early, which today is the closest thing we have to a cure. >> as you know all chicago is truly a city of neighborhoods separated by parks and boulevards. it's a city where walking just a few blocks can put you into an entirely different world of experiences. cut through a park and you go from english to spanish. black to white, puerto rican to polish. cross a few streets and you go from historic homes and manicured lawns to abandoned buildings and dark street corners.

so the opportunities available to a child growing up in one neighborhood in this city might be vastly different than a child growing up just five blocks way. and that difference can shape their lives and life's prospects from the mom they are mon. >> monday, first lady image with the five most recent first ladies, from nancy reagan to michelle obama. monday night at live eastern c-span and c-span3, also on c-span radio and c-span.org. >> howard dean spoke this morning at the washington center about politics and compromise and he was asked about whether he planned to run in 2016, run for president in 2016. when some of the issues he's focusing on. here's what he had to say. >> good morning, governor dean. .y name is ryan nevar

you mentioned the election in 2016. i was wondering in the event that you are to run for president again, what would be the top three issues on your agenda if you were elected? >> i supported hillary so i'm not planning for running for president in 2016. thank you. i think number one is inequality. number two is the financial situation in the country. we have too much debt. we cannot continue to accumulate this kind of debt. it is a serious problem and has to be dealt with. i think my views on how to deal with it will be different, for example, than others who are worried about these issues, but if we have to deal with t. and the third is i have always believed we ought to have universal health care system. i think we have made some progress towards that but we have a lot of work to do. >> you can watch all of that later in our program schedule and any time online at c-span.org. the u.s. house is in recess subject to the call of the

chair. we expect them to come back in this afternoon sometime mid afternoon or so. we'll have live coverage here on c-span when they do. the house returned today for the second session of the 113th congress, and a lot of talk today about both conferences. they met this morning and one of the items of news coming out of the republican conference, the associated press saying house aids say florida congressman, tray raddle, pled guilty to cocaine possession has apologized in that meeting this morning. according to the associated press. a lot of conversation on capitol hill today on the 15th anniversary of l.b.j.'s war on poverty, including on this morning's "washington journal." we'll show you that and take you live, 2:00 p.m. eastern, to majority leader eric cantor talking about school choice. host: we want to welcome back to our table, congresswoman barbara

lee, democrat from california. sit on the budget and appropriations committee. thanks for being here. we started off talking about the 50th anniversary of l.b.j.'s war on poverty. asking our viewers if we're winning it. what's your answer to that question? guest: we are absolutely winning it, but we have a long way to go, greta. when you look at what is called the supplemental poverty rate, in 1967, it was 25%. in 2012, it's 16%. and when you look at why, it has to do with a lot of the tax credits, earned income tax credit, child tax credit, snap, that's the supplemental food stamp program, medicaid, medicare all of those great society policies that provided for opportunities for people. we have a long way to go because we see all of these initiatives and policies now under assault. and also we haven't seen yet, and i have to say it's been primarily the tea party republican congress creates the job opportunities so that people

who are living and who want to be lifted from the ranks of the poor, to have those opportunities to get job training and jobs. we have to invest in that in order to really begin to eliminate poverty. host: what are the democrats' solutions? guest: we have a variety of solutions. first of all immediately we need to extend unemployment compensation, the emergency unemployment compensation. when you look at the fact that 11 million people, 11 million have been kept from the ranks of the poor just by the unemployment, emergency unemployment policies and programs. this is extremely important. not only for those people to not fall into the ranks of the poor, but also for our economy, the economic benefits for people to receive unemployment compensation until they are able to find a job. secondly, we need to raise the minimum wage, from $7.25, to $10.10. i believe we need to have, perblingly, a living wage.

some parts -- personally, a living wage, some parts of the country that would be $20 to $25 an hour just for people to survive. we need universal preschool, childcare. also, greta, we need to make sure these assaults on the poor are e working poor stopped. when you look at the fact that now the house has a $40 billion cut in food stamps. we have an agenda, i have legislation to cut poverty in half in 10 years, it's been supported by over 50 democrats. we need republicans to commit to at least reducing poverty in half in 10 years. we know how to do that. it's very active. we have a strong legislative agenda and we are seeking bipartisan support. host: on extending unemployment benefits, the senate cleared a hurdle to consider the legislation. the republicans are saying, even some the republicans that voted yes to consider the bill, are saying, it has to be paid for. guest: when has emergency

unemployment compensation, first of all, been paid for. why in the world are we using the most vulnerable, those people who are living on the edge, who are looking for a job, why now are they being used as a political pawn? three months' extension so we can work this out makes a lot of sense. there's no way we would consider, i don't believe, cutting benefits, for example, to pay for unemployment compensation. that's just morally wrong and it's economically stew host: apparently the president in phone calls yesterday to a few republican senators, including senator collins, said he was opened to offsetting the cuts if the congress agreed to a larger extension of unemployment benefits. guest: let me say, you have oil subsidies, farm subsidies, corporate tax loopholes, you have areas that so far the republicans would not touch, but i have to tell you, cutting subsidies for people who are trying to just -- who are trying

to survive, who are looking for a job, who need work force training i don't believe that that's a good strategy. i'm confident that the president would not want to cut benefits to pay for emergency unemployment compensation. i was at the white house yesterday when the president gave a magnificent speech. you could feel his passion and his understanding. he was raised by a mother, a single mother. who had some very difficult times. i have been through that myself. i was on food stamps, public assistance, medicaid. this is a bridge over troubled water. people need that lifeline. this is america. our american values, especially, we provide for that life line until we could really figure out how this economy and this economic growth can benefit everyone. host: how much are we talking about that people receive monthly for these unemployment ben knits? guest: you're talking about maybe $500 to $800 a month. right now they have a loss of $300 to $400 a week as it

relates to the emergency unemployment compensation. that's a heck of a lot of money. when you look what's happened, you have to add on top of that the cut already in food stamps where a family of four are losing $35 to $40 a month. that's a heck of a lot for people who are just trying to survive until they can find a job and until we can create work force training. people on the bottom end of the economic spectrum are really being hit drastically right now. host: the impact on the economy? guest: the impact on the economy is huge. when you look at, for instance, again, snap benefits, for every $1 in too food stamp benefit, the economy gets back about $1 .70 in economic return. when you look at the unemployment compensation, you are talking about probably 300,000, 400,000 jobs. there are serious economic impacts for not extending unemployment compensation. host: "the washington post" editorial this morning disagrees. they write this, we are more skeptical of democratic claims

that extending unemployment benefits were stimulate recipients' kend spending and thus boost economic growth. any such keynesian ideas is likely to be minuscule at best. this is a $6.5 billion increase in the budget deficit is too small to warrant g.o.p. demands that extended benefits being offset by spending cuts elsewhere. they disagree on stimulating the economy. guest: most economies -- economists disagree. extending re unemployment compensation, we don't do it, we are going to lose hundreds of thousands of jobs. that's a fact. we need to correct that and talk to the economists who are really -- whether they are conservative or liberal or progressive economists, most say and believe and understand the fact there is a huge economic benefit. people have to pay their bills. they have to buy food. people at the upper income level do not spend as middle income, low-income people, in order just to get by. day by day.

host: to our viewers waiting to talk. carol up first in congressiers, georgia, democratic caller. you are on the air with congresswoman barbara lee, democrat of california. caller: good morning. let me tell you i'm from -- i'm originally from conyers, georgia. i'm from lewisville, gament. we had a situation, we lost 40,000 jobs. we had our senator switch from democrat to republican so they could enhance whatever bill they was trying to render. let me tell you something, the g.o.p. is -- has been on blacks not getting out to vote. and that's what killed us in 2010 is that we actually did not get out and vote. that's the truth of the matter. withstanding everything that happened has happened in between 2010 and 2013, we don't want to

talk about the real issue. we need to be telling our young people they need to get out and vote. we can change this. if we get out and vote, they are not looking for a way, we are going to give them a wave because we are at t we see everything that's going on. we are not dumb. even with the media not even representing everything the way it is, you-all have a hard job being democrats. you tell me, where in the world that you got people that -- on medicaid sitting here talking about they don't want you to have medicaid. i don't understand. you have the governors come and representatives come into georgia telling people not to vote. who do that? my thing is is that if anybody come to me don't tell me get insurance, what are they trying to keep me from? you-all to me each representative need to do more better -- right now we got time to get everybody out to vote if we start now. i'm starting with all my nieces, nephews, and uncles, and cousins. host: carol, we'll have the congresswoman respond. guest: you're correct.

political empowerment and the right to vote is fundamental to our democracy. and there are efforts taking place right now to roll back the voting rights act. i hope that people throughout the country, especially in minority communities and the african-american community understand what's going on in terms of voter suppression. and help people become more educated and aware as to the power of the vote and why we cannot allow this retrenchment to occur. it's important that we conduct voter registration drives and that we stay politically engaged in between elections. thank you for your concern. i hope that you will continue to rally the forces and rally the community, because one vote can make a big difference. we saw a huge turnout in the past presidential elections, presidential elections people who voted and came out to vote for president barack obama, we must continue with that momentum and that enthusiasm and understand that this is our country also and that we have the right and the duty to vote.

host: house speaker john boehner apparently wanting some concessions from democrats if the house were to take up an extension of these unemployment benefits. dee tweets in, there the keystone pipeline be added to the extension of unemployment benefits? that's one area that speaker john boehner would like to see the democrats agree to. guest: i would ask the speaker why in the world are we seeking concessions on an emergency unemployment compensation bill that's going to help people survive for the next three months or however long we can extend it for? i would say that's just wrong. it's mean-spirited. and we should not do that. people are vulnerable and living on the edge should not be a pawn in this game. we should not talk about even concessions when we are talking about people who work, first of all, for this unemployment compensation. 99% of these people are looking for jobs. they need support for that. and they need to be able to get

a job. and this helps them through that period. i think providing for and using these individuals, 1.4 million who now have lost, already, this emergency unemployment compensation. you have been the political pawns in this is the wrong thing to do. host: senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, republican of kentucky, was on the senate floor before the vote to advance this legislation and he said it's democrats that are playing political games with this idea of income inequality. take a look. >> we have seen a number of stories about how democrats plan to spend the year gearing up for november elections by making an issue out of economic hardships faced by americans. in other words, instead of working on reforms that would actually help people overcome the challenges so many of them face in this economy, democrats

plan to exploit those folks for political gain. host: congresswoman? guest: again, that's a political speech. you can't tell me extending unemployment compensation for people who need help is a political game. you can't tell me that raising the minimum wage -- we have low-wage workers who are on food stamps. we have low-wage workers who are on medicaid because they cannot survive and take care of their families. we are talking about providing a quality of life and the american dream for each and every american who deserves it. they all deserve it because people are working hard or they want to work. so that's the political speech. i hope the public really understands the democrats are really up here fighting to increase the minimum wage and increase -- extend emergency unemployment compensation. until we can get republican support to engage in a real debate and real policy for economic growth, which create

more jobs. host: let's go to david in oklahoma. independent caller, hi, david. caller: i want to just say one thing. i was in the marine corps a long ime ago. i can tell you how they can pay for all the unemployment, all the older people and all that, they need to cut the military budget and quit messing around and trying to kill people all the time. i think that would solve a lot of the infrastructure in the united states. that's all i got to say. thank you. host: all right, david. guest: thank you, david. you know this deficit and the real economic crisis began, really, under the bush administration with the two wars off budget. we have lost not to mention our young men and women who fought so bravely and suffered and their families have. we have lost trillions of dollars in our national treasury. this is where this economic

crisis began. we cannot forget that. yes, we can cut the pentagon budget. we are over $700 billion. there are issues or at least policies and programs in place which the progressive caucus which has led, really, on this effort, have identified. we have identified areas that could be cut in the pentagon budget. cold-war era weapons systems, for example. we need to get out of afghanistan now. our troops have fought bravely and it's time to end that. so there is a way to restructure our national security policies where our country is not threatened and where we can remain global leaders. but also have a pentagon budget that is sane and rational. you're absolutely correct. there are many members of congress now who are really beginning to look at this budget and scrub it and understand there is a lot of waste, fraud, and abuse taking place. billions, trillions of dollars in suitcases given to the karzai government. that's a fact. the press has exposed that. we need to do better.

host: stay on the wars for a second. you were an early and outspoken critic of the iraq war. on the front pages of the newspapers, this morning's "washington times," iraq war veterans watch losses of hard fought gains. the area of fallujah, where many americans lost their lives, veterans are very upset that buddies, lost their their fellow -- people on the battlefield, and what do you say to them and to parents who lost people, who lost their loved ones in fallujah and other areas? guest: of course our thoughts and prayers go out to these families, and the sacrifices that were made by our troops. i'm the daughter after veteran of two wars. the tragedy and the losses could never be regained. these young men and women bravely bought because our country asked them to. personally i was against afghanistan. i did not vote for that because i knew, and i was the only one,

it was a blank check to use force in perpetuity, forever, until we repeal that. many members, 133 members voted against going to war in iraq. there were no w.m.d. in iraq. and there was no reason to insert ourself in that. we see what's taking place now, it's tragic. and the iraqis have to step up. they have been trained, our troops -- we did the job they were asked to do in iraq. and now those who have come home need to help -- we need to help them with their benefits, economic security. we need to move forward and get these delays in their benefits directed and make sure they have some semblance of economic security, health care, mental health care they so deserve. that's what we have to do in congress. host: we are talking about income disparate. and democrats' approach to it. a republican caller on the air with congresswoman barbara lee.

caller: yes, ma'am. u were talking about unemployment pay. where are the jobs? if we had more jobs in this country, we wouldn't need all this unemployment. guest: thank you for that. that's the point. economic growth and the creation of jobs has got to be the primary strategy for reducing poverty and for creating the opportunities for people to get off of unemployment compensation. plus the unemployment rate has been reduced. some parts of the country is higher than other parts. this administration has tackled this economic issue as best they could. with the tea party republican congress putting obstacles in the way each and every day. we have to do better, we have to do better especially in rural communities, minority communities, people who have been unemployed in part for 99 weeks or longer, part of the

long-term unemployed. we need to provide skills training and work force training while they are on unemployment. we don't need to do that as a condition of unemployment much we need to invest through our department of labor and work force training so that people can have the requisite skills for the new jobs that exist, but in no way should that be a condition. so, yes, we have to create economic growth and job creation . and also address income inequality. smart mcconnell really i don't think quite understands this gap between the very wealthy and low-income and poor is growing. and middle income people now, the middle class is feeling very vulnerable because they are on shaky ground in terms of job loss. host: senator john cornyn tweets out this article saying the progressives are flunking the income inequality test. education reform is critical to closing the income gap, but it's not on the president's agenda. guest: i have to just disagree. when you look at what the

president has put forward, let's start with early childhood education and universal preschool. we have to start there. but also i'm on the appropriations committee and i see each and every day the fact that the republicans do not want to invest in early childhood education, in head start. we see head start as a result of sequester having been cut. we see all kinds of public education initiatives being eroded as a result of the lack of investment in our public education and in the budgets that require us to really support our young people. so work force training, skills training, early childhood education, investment in our public schools, targeted investments in schools that are failing for a variety of reasons. that's what we must do. the president and the democrats in congress have been very forceful with our education agenda.

host: elise in warren, ohio, democratic caller. good morning. caller: good morning. how are you? host: what's your question or comment for the congresswoman? caller: i wanted to ask the representative about the sequester and the budget bill that passed. democrats did help pass those two bills, didn't they? what i'm wondering -- what i'm wondering is why is it the democrats -- i'm a black registered democrat, so let's get that out there. i just wondered why are democrats voting for these and then get on tv and say how horrible they are and how terrible they are and how bad the republicans are? believe me we all know how bad the republicans are. but what we need in the democratic congress and senate, and also president, you're a member of the congressional black caucus and the progressive caucus, why aren't you guys fighting harder for regular people? i don't hear it. i don't just listen to the

regular stations, regular media. i'm calling everything, trying to find out what you guys are for. you're not for working class people right now, because i don't hear it. you keep voting for budgets like the murray-ryan budget and the sequester. they are killing us. guest: let me first of all thank you. i'm sorry you're not hearing it because the chair of the congressional black caucus, congresswoman marcia fudge, is a phenomenal chair. she's leading the congressional black caucus on a variety of fronts in temples priorities, one of which is addressing economic growth and income equality. we are doing major, major work on that with our legislation. secondly, with regard to the progressive caucus, led by congressman keith ellison and raul gri hal virginia we have been around the country with fast food workers, raising the level of awareness with regard to minimum wage workers making $7.25 an hour. having to rely on food stamps and medicaid. and why we needed to raise the

minimum wage and make sure there's low-wage workers benefit from this economic growth that is beginning to take place. and so i'm sorry you're not hearing it. we do have a republican-run house of representatives. so you have to engage in working with the majority t hopefully next november that will change. and speaker pelosi, leader pelosi was a phenomenal speaker. we passed many, many bills and many -- the recovery act, for example, was passed which saved millions of jobs and created jobs. and so as a democrat we are fighting to really take back the house and to win the elections next time. right now i have to just defend and say the progressive caucus and the congressional black caucus, congressional asian pacific american caucus, hispanic caucus, and democratic caucus are fighting each and every day for the average

american family, every man, woman, and child to provide these letters of opportunity so they can achieve the middle class and so those who are middle class do not fall into the razorbacks of the poor. -- ranks of the poor. as a result of some of the republican policies that's what's happening. host: more specifically to the question, how did the two-year budget deal you voted for -- guest: first of all that two-year budget deal did not include extension of emergency unemployment compensation. i could not vote for that. there are several members who did not vote for that because of that. others voted for it because we did not want another government shutdown. we have a responsibility to make sure that we work with the tea party and the republicans to try to create a budget where we can minimize sequestration, where we can get back to, as we say, the regular order so that we can have appropriations bills come forward where we can debate what our fiscal priorities should be. host: clarifying for the viewer you did not vote for it.

john on twitter says does equality mean by income should equal yours? should a janitor make as much as a doctor? doip when we talk about e -- guest: when we talk about equality we are talking about disparities and gap. a janitor should make a living wage. a janitor or a low-wage worker should be able to make enough money to take care of their family. their regional statistics as it relates to how much a living wage should be. again, in california it's upward from $15 to $20 an hour. we are talking about people having enough income to be able to take care of their families, send their kids to school, and do what they want to do. of course we have to provide those opportunities for increased job training, for education, and for those who want to move up the economic ladder. those opportunities must be there. what we are talking about are these huge gaps now where the top 1%, the billionaires, the

corporate c.e.o.'s, making these uge -- this huge compensation. c.e.o. compensation when you look at low-wage workers, the gap is much, much, much too high to achieve any semblance of the american dream for the majority of low-wage workers. host: carol next in philadelphia, independent caller. caller: good morning to all. i agree with the lady. representative lee, i think the democrats need to get more backbone. you run away from issues. don't turn away from the affordable care act. fight for the people losing these union jobs. nobody supports unions anymore. that's the next scary four-letter word even though it has five. what about the union jobs? what about these corporations that take those jobs overseas? and i agree, i don't care if that budget was going to shut

the government down. the democrats should not have ever voted for that budget. that budget was a scam. host: congresswoman? guest: let me say that the democrats are fighting to make sure the affordable care act works. there have been over 40 attempts to repeal it. the majority of democrats support the affordable care act and we want to make sure it works. over 20-some republican governors refuse to accept the medicaid provisions of that. so there are going to be people in those states who are going to suffer as a result of the republican governors not implementing the affordable care act. so democrats are fighting each and every day to make sure that there's universal, accessible, affordable health care for everyone through the affordable care act. even and every day. i understand what you're saying about unions. they are under attack. you know, greta, the primary means for acquiring a middle class life here in america, the primary pathway to the middle class has been through a labor

union movement. through our brothers andcies tergs who have fought so valiantly not only for union members to achieve decent wages and benefits, but everyone benefits as a result of the union movement. but it's the republican, it's the tea party. you can look at the record of all of the legislation that they put forward to try to erode and undermine unions and the labor movement. democrats are standing firm. we are fighting hard. again you have to remember that the house of representatives is controlled by the republican tea party. that is the uphill battling we are fighting -- battle we are fighting. we are doing everything we can to make sure we don't undermine the union movement and middle class in our country. host: greg in union, missouri, republican caller. caller: yeah. i was just going to talk to ms. lee. i wanted to ask her, how can people trust the president after he lied about the obamacare situation? that's terrible.

number two, why does she think that the democrats did nothing wrong? they do everything wrong? we are $17 trillion in debt and they don't know what they are going to do about it. host: sorry greg, i thought you were done. guest: i'm not saying we don't do anything wrong. i'm saying we are fighting to try to do everything right. we are fighting to try to make sure there is economic growth and the jobs are created for people in our country so that everyone can be part of this american dream. the president has come forward and talked about some of the mistakes made with the affordable care act. believe you me it's beginning to work. a lot of the technical problems are being addressed. my home state, we are seeing many, many people signing up. and as any new initiative that's going to provide for the quality of life that people deserve here we are the only trillion sized country in the world that did not have universal health care

system for all americans and citizens. i just have to say we are doing everything we can to make sure that the affordable care act works, the president has come forward and talked about t. and we have to just see this as a way, as one blip in the overall process, but it's working. thousands of people now being covered. and will be covered. host: the house is slated to vote this week on legislation to make health care.gov more secure. will you be voting -- guest: i got to see what they are talking about. if this is the republican-led effort, we have to really look because we have to -- the details of this. i haven't seen the details of it, but we have seen in the past efforts to undo and to repeal the affordable care act. and any effort that is going to undermine the affordable care act, undo it, or be a step toward repeal i'm not going to support.

host: the 50th anniversary today of l.b.j.'s war on poverty that he declared in a joint session of congress on january 8, 1964. front page of the "washington times" this work, congresswoman, obama's rhetoric on poverty doesn't match his performance. they write this. that although the president often rails against income inequality in america, his policies have had little impact overall on poverty. a record 47 million americans receive food stamps, and it goes on to note the -- about 13 million more than when he took office. i have to say when you look at the fact that the republicans -- the house republicans wanted to cut food stamps by $40 million, the president did not support that. the president has put forward many, many, many economic growth initiatives that have been stopped dead in its tracks in the house of representatives. let me just read you, i'm glad you mentioned the 50-year anniversary because today we

have linda johnson ross come to -- actually capitol hill to greet her and to talk to her about her family's history and where do we go from here. but i want to read some of the initiatives that were begun under the civil rights act of 1964. urban mass transportation act of 1964. food stamp fact of 1964. older americans act of 1964. social security amendment of 1965. voting rights act of 1965. housing and urban development. h.u.d. was established then. public works and economic development act of 1965. also we have the amendment to the immigration and nationality act. higher skegs act of 1965. child nutrition asket 1966. child protection act of 1966. nabble school lunch act. we also had job corps, medicare, medicaid and other policies that were established 50 years ago as a result of president johnson's vision to begin to address poverty and income inequality way back then. so many of these initiatives

have been under attack and part of what has taken place is democrats have been working just to preserve this safety net and real government support systems, these policies until we can achieve full floiment, really. that's what this country should get. host: democrats will be helping to highlight these? guest: every day we are going to have 350 speeches. we are going to do 50 speeches beginning today on these initiatives. the benefits and what they have accomplished. also what could take place if in fact these continue to be eroded, where we need to go from here. that's starting with extending the unemployment compensation -- emergency unemployment compensation and raising the inimum wage. host: making those speeches during the morning hour? guest: whenever we go in session. today will be noon. linda johnson robb will be in the gallonry. she's a phenomenal woman. so we just want to say thank you

to her and honor her dad and mother, lady bird's legacy, and talk about where we are new in 2013 and how we move forward with the sudden values. that's what this is about. these are the values, the american values that president johnson 50 years ago set forth in his speech, state of the union speech, and those values remain today. host: we cover the house gavel to gavel -- on c-span shall our network. and gavel to gavel coverage of the house on c-span. can you go to c-span.org for coverage of all the events. you mentioned lady bird johnson, she was part of our first lady series that we had here on c-span. so if you're interested in her role she played in what the congresswoman just highlighted, go to our website, c-span.org to find out more. kim next in missouri, democratic caller. caller: good morning.

congresswoman lee, the purpose of yuffer work has never just been to win elections. i know that you use your position to do the right thing. since there's so much scientific evidence proving that building seven was brought down with preplanted explosives on 9/11, and over 2,000 building experts demanding a new investigation of its destruction, in the interest of transparency why shouldn't we have a new investigation into the cause of why this third tower fell when no plane hit it? guest: let me just say we have to once again remember and think of those who are lost during that tragic, horrific event. recognize many, many investigations have occurred as a result of that. some conclusive, some inconclusive. i'm not certain a new investigation will lead anywhere. but there are those who are pushing for that. so in a democracy we have to

continue to put our points of view down and continue to ask for what you believe is right. there have been many investigations and many people feel were accurate and provided the most in-depth conclusion. host: representative lee, isn't it true the house g.o.p. has passed 39 job bills which harry reid, the senate majority leader, buried in the senate without an up or down vote? guest: these are not job bills first of all. we are talking about bills that would provide for more tax benefits, corporate loopholes, trickle-down theory type of policies. we have job bills that would create jobs. these bills do not create jobs. i would hope you look at those bills very carefully and recognize, majority of them would continue to allow for an income inequality to increase. we don't see any of those bills that would address low-wage

workers that, that would address raising people out of poverty. protect the middle class and create good-paying jobs. those bills just did not do that. i hope you look at them and see exactly what they would provide for. host: we are getting an announcement from market watch this morning, some breaking news the private sector employment picked up in december. employers added 238,000 jobs. guest: clearly the gi economy is moving in the right direction under this administration though it's been very difficult. we had an increase in job creation in the private sector where we have seen a really e -- real erosion is in the public sector with the huge budget cuts. public sector employees either have been laid off, their jobs have been cut, and their salaries have been frozen. this administration when you look at the unemployment rate, when barack obama administration came in as a result of the economic crisis that the bush administration created through

their economic policies, he's done and this administration has done a phenomenal job, we have a long way to go. again, unemployment rate in the african-american community, communities of color over 12%, that's unacceptable. when you look at different regions of the country, rural communities, unemployment rate, off the scale. we have to have targeted resources into economically distressed communities where we can create more jobs and more opportunity. clearly it's moving in the right direction and economic growth is key to winning this new war on poverty. host: rick in texas, republican caller. caller: yes. we are down here where the unemployment is the lowest in the country. host: ok. caller: i pretty much i'm self-employed. 5 years.

the problem with unemployment if -- don't have a job there host: rick, what's your question. if you don't have a job you have to move on did you say? caller: yes. you have to go out and find a new job. go to areas of the country where there is -- pretty much you got people they have their hands out because somebody -- host: congresswoman? guest: clearly i'm glad you're working. i'm glad, and we do know there are parts in the country where jobs are more plentiful, where economic growth is taking place. and also there are other factors involved. but i do know that people oftentimes who are unemployed, for example, long-term unemployed, employers won't hire them for a variety of reasons. they may not have the skill set

as a result of long-term unemployment. we need to invest in work force training. people, some people risk is fortunate to be able to move around. some people arne that mobile. they don't have the resources to move to different parts of the country. we need a regional approach, i believe, to really create economic growth throughout the country, especially where the unemployment rate is the highest. host: compton, california, eddie, democratic caller. caller: yes. i want to thank you, congresswoman lee, for bringing out stern -- certain things. i want people to remember the republicans said they wanted to make obama a one-time president, and it didn't work. so they are doing everything else to try to make him look bad. at i hope people really look that. how many times, why don't

somebody -- that's not the word i wanted to say. is anyone putting it out there who you say cut government spending? that's not just washington. that's all the way down to your city government. host: ok. congresswoman lee. guest: you're correct. city and state government. when you talk about government spending, first of all you are talking about public sector jobs being cut. secondly, you are talking about services. i think we saw this with the shutdown unfortunately with services not being provided. when you talk about government spending, we -- sure we have to have a government that's functional, but we can't talk about a government that doesn't exist. many members, especially of the tea party, who have come to congress to not only create a smaller government, but to dismantle government. that is very, very dangerous because government is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

host: email from jan in wisconsin. how much poverty in our country is caused by personal choices such as substance abuse, dropping out of school, having children out of wedlock, single parenthood, etc.? single mothers are far more likely to be in poverty than married women. what can be done to change the root causes of poverty for many? guest: clearly you're talking about a lot of social issues that we need to address through providing strategies to help people, single mothers. i was a single mother. unfortunately i ended up on public assistance, food stamps, and medicaid. but during that period we had some of these initiatives in place where i could get through college, take care of my kids, get a job. i ended up starting a business and working as a legislative, administrative assistant on capitol hill, and here i am today. it would not have happened had it not been for that. this is very complicated. and we are not making excuses for people, but we hao