's governor gary her bevt. then donald nor cross. later, hour spotlight on magazines. we'll take your calls on the sentencing of former virginia governor robert mcdonald. live starting at 7:00 a.m. eastern.

>> today president obama is at a ford assembly plant in michigan to talk about jobs and the economy. live at 4:05 p.m. eastern on c-span-3. >> this sunday on q&a author dick lair talks about the film the birth of a nation. >> part two of the movie which is after the war reconstruction is really the heart of the protest in the sense that this is where the blacks are just appalled by the portrayal of freed slaves. and this is a scene showing what happens when you give former slaves the right to vote, the right to be elected the right to govern. it's a scene in the south

carolina legislature where the first and primary order of business is to pass a bill allowing for interracial marriage because again in his hands black men are soley interested in pursuing and having white women. ♪ sunday night at 8:00 eastern and pacific. >> next, a look at the sights and sounds from the opening of the 114th congress in the u.s. house. members gathered with their families in the chamber before

brg sworn in. this is 35 minutes.

>> this being the day fixed by public law 113-201 pursuant to the 20th amendment to the constitution of the united states, to the meeting of the 114th congress of the united states, the house will come to order. the prayer will be offered by father conroy. chaplain conroy: let us pray. loving god, we give you thanks for giving us another day. we gather on this most significant day when once again recelebrate the peaceful transition of democratic

government. though many return from the 113th congress this people's house is a new legislative assembly. may the service of all the members here gathered give you glory and equip well the charge entrusted to them by their fellow citizens. give each member an abundance of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding that they might know best how to proceed in the work they have been given to do as well as the courage to act once they have discerned where your spirit might lead them. may all that is done this day and all the days of the 114th congress be for your greater honor and glory, amen.

>> the representatives-elect and their guests will please remain standing and join in the pledge of allegiance. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> as directed by law the clerk of the house has prepared the official rolls of representatives-elect. certificates of election covering 435 seats in the 114th congress have been received by the clerk of the house and the names of those persons whose credentials show that they were regularly elected as representatives in accord with the laws of their respective states or of the united states will be called.

the representatives-elect will record their presence by electronic device. and their names will be reported in alphabetical order by state beginning with the state of alabama to determine whether a quorum is present. representatives elect will have a minimum of 15 minutes to record their presence by electronic device. representatives elect who have not obtained their voting i.d. card may do so now in the speaker's lobby.

[captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedi we >> there's some opposition brewing again from

conservatives in the house are unhappy with the performance of congressman john boehner and basically opposition two years ago when he ran for speaker and he overcame the opposition. i think his aides are pretty confident that he will again be elected speaker. >> what would it take for speaker boehner not to be reelected or for that first ballot to go to a second ballot? >> well, there would have to be about 30 republicans wholed have to desert him would have to withhold their votes. at this point people are saying that he may lose votes but they feel he won't lose as many as 29 30 votes. >> live coverage of the u.s.

house. so after the speaker election mid afternoon today, what's on tap for this first day of the 114th? >> well, the dean of the house john conyers from michigan will administer the oath of office to the speaker and the speaker will address the house. and after that he administers the oath of office to the members and the delegates ees mass. and then after that, the republicans and democrats report their choices for leaders, as leaders were chosen before the break. this makes it official. then we'll have the majority and minority leaders along with the whips. and we also expect any surprises there. we expect nancy pelosi to return as the minority leader and steny hoyer to return as

the minority whip. and glurebie return as majority whip even though he had some dra versey recently. then election of administrative officers. and then they get to the point where later on in the afternoon they'll adopt the rules package that will govern how things go down in the house during the 1149sdz congress. >> looking ahead to what republicans have proposed for the 114th in terms of their underlying rules what are some of the speed bumps that might be there for them in terms of getting it past without objection from democrats? one of the things that right off the bat that democrats have criticized is that it requires the full dynamic scoring of bills that are seen as having a significant economic impact. republicans say that will allow more focus to be put on the mark economic effects of

legislation but democrats we have seen this before that this is like in the early 2000s when we had the bush tax cuts and they were described or sold to congress as saying they would jump start the economy. but then maybe they had the effect of increasing the deficit because the treasury lost revenue. so democrats are less than enthusiastic about that. and another thing that's going on with the rules package is that it won't allow delegates to vote on the floor of the house. that includes the delegate from the district of columbia. so democrats have criticized that. and then there are some other things in there. for example it would authorize the continuation of the lawsuit against president obama for using his executive powers. and it also allows the select

benghazi committee to continue investigating the attack on u.s. consulate. that happened in 2012. >> live coverage of the u.s. house in the video we just saw was a look at the tall by loord. this is a live quorum bringing members to the floor to establish a quorum for the 1149sdz congress. this will be a fairly busy week for the house in terms of other legislative work. what should we look for? >> the republican leadership wants to send a message to the voters that they heard them, that they want members of congress to focus on creating jobs and doing things to spur the economy. they've chosen three bills to highlight this week. they're all bills that have been passed before but we're going to start out one of the bills that they're going to

have this week is going to authorize the construction of the keystone xl pipeline going forward. and that's also something that in the senate the new majority leader mitch mcconnell claims to bring to the floor soon maybe as early as next week. and then they're also going to have two bills that go after some provisions in the health care act which republicans continue oppose. and later today the bill hire more heroes act is going to be up that basically exempt veterans who are already getting try care from being counted towards the employee limit under the health care law. and that's seen as providing relief to small business. and the other bill coming up on wednesday or thursday is the save american workers act. that goes after provisions in the health care act that force businesses to hold hours down to 30 hours per week. basically they say this

restores the 40-hour workweek. >> it will be a full workweek for the house. they will be in through friday. thanks so much for sharing your insights. >> thank you very much. you can follow our senate coverage all day long on c-span 2. a reminder as well we will show you all of today's coverage of the sufment house and u.s. senate beginning again at 8:00 eastern. the senate on c-span 2. we're also covering the ceremonial swearing in in the

senate and the house you will see that live. so a full day of coverage as the 114th gavels in.

as you may have heard over the last couple of days a number of republicans are opposing john boehner. the roll caul is reporting a little more than an hour before the house is do to hold an in-person roll call a third candidate emerged. a group of republicans who want a more conservative lawmaker to lead their party has recruted daniel web ster of florida to throw his name into the rick. so lots of activity on the floor. the next thing we expect is swearing in members and then we'll get under way shortly thereafter with the election of

speaker. the senate is in swearing in new members on c-span 2. 43 house republican and 15 democratic freshmen will be sworn in today with one republican delegate and one democratic delegate.

>> both parties elected their leadership at the end of the 113th congress. the election today will be for speaker. this is the call of the roll. the quorum establishing the 114th congress and their ability to move forward with the rules package, the election

of the speaker and then the rules package and legislative work ahead this week.

>> revelation that he spoke to a white supremacist group in the 1990's and steve scalise of louisiana retaining his position as the majority whip in the u.s. house. they are winding down here with the quorum of the members establishing the quorum for the 114th congress. well have the nomination for speaker and that vote ahead. brown of florida antileft waiting for that to get on the way. the house welcoming 58 new members. in the senate 13 new lawmakers and a number of those former members of the u.s. house. the incoming class in the u.s. house will bring new gender and racial diversity to capitol hill with 104 women in the house and senate and close to

100 black, hispanic and asian lawmakers include the youngest woman elected to congress 30 -year-old of new york and the first black republican woman of utah and that is the congresswoman from florida on the right hand of the screen there just a moment ago.

>> nancy pelosi one of those likely nominated for speaker. unlikely won't win it because of the republican majority. possibly five speaker nominations at this point. members can vote for others not nominated too. ahead here on the house floor. they are in the middle of just toward the end of the call of the house. the establishing of a quorum

that will be full of ceremony and business taking care of business including the rules package that will govern the debate of the house. we understand, too that delegate eleanor holmes norton may call for a vote on allowing the delegates to vote in the committee of the whole. that's the unit where the house debates legislation. the committee of the whole. she did it when the 113th gaveled in two years ago in the form of a resolution that was tabled. and it is likely that we could see that again too, once the rules debate begins later this afternoon.

>> one of the members who has said he will not vote for the speaker, live coverage of the u.s. house of the first day. the senate is under way they've sworn in new members. the new majority leader mitch mcconnell about to speak on the gnat floor, that coverage on c-span 2. just a reminder all of today's coverage of the senate and the house will be reaired tonight at 8:00 eastern. the senate on c-span 2 and the house here on c-span 8:00 eastern. throughout the day we're asking your thoughts about what you are hoping for in the new congress on facebook and on twitter.

the clerk of the house: are there additional representatives elect in the chamber who wish to record their presence? if not, all time has expired.

401 representatives elect have recorded their presence. a quorum is present. credentials, regular and foreign, have been received showing the election of the honorable pedro r. pierluisi as resident commissioner from the commonwealth of puerto rico for a term of four years beginning january 3, 2013. the honorable eleanor holmes norton as delegate from the district of columbia. the honorable madeline bordallo as delegate from guam. the honorable stacey e. plaskett as delegate from the virgin islands.

the honorable amata coleman radewagen as delegate from american samoa. and the honorable gre goreo sablan as delegate from the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands. the clerk is in receipt of a letter from the honorable michael g. grim in new york indicating he will not serve in the house in the 114th congress. without objection, the letter this debate of the rules from the house floor is an hour and 15 minutes. the nays are 160. the motion is adopted. without objection, a motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the gentleman from california is recognized for one hour. >> mr. speaker, i yield the hour to the gentleman from texas, mr. sessions, and i ask unanimous consent that he be permitted to control that time. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. sessions: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i want to thank the gentleman from california, the majority leader, mr. mccarthy. mr. speaker, for the purposes of debate only i yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from rochester, new york, ms. slaughter, pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. during consideration for -- of debate it is for debate only. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. sessions: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. sessions: i yield to the distinguished majority leader from california, mr. mccarthy. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. mr. mccarthy: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i want to thank mr. sessions for putting the rules package together today. today the house will adopt these rules to govern the 114th congress and dictate how this house will function over the next two years. and as you will hear over the course of this debate they are a recommitment by the republican majority to govern transparently. the rules ensure that both members and the public have a chance to read bills before they come up for a vote. institute more accurate accounting for the economic effect of legislation and restore the tunal balance of power between the -- constitutional balance between the legislative and executive branches. with these rules in place the house can now proceed in tackling the challenges facing america today and pass legislation that creates jobs, grows the economy and promotes freedom for all americans. i urge adoption of the rules

package and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: mr. speaker, thank you very much. and i want to thank the distinguished gentleman from california, the majority leader, mr. mccarthy. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert for the record a section by section analysis of the resolution as well as a july 21, 2014, memorandum prepared by the office of parliamentaryian to the overcriminalization task force of the committee on judiciary. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. sessions: i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time is reserved. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: thank you, mr. speaker. and i thank my friend from texas for yielding me the time, and if i could just take a minute to wish everybody a great new session. it's good to be back. mr. speaker, we rise today to set a new course for this congress. though with the record of past

congresses we know we have a lot of work to do. during our tenure the majority has karined from crisis to crisis and suing the president for doing his job closed debate with the most closed rule in a single congress in our nation's history. chase nonexistent scandals in benghazi and at the i.r.s. and since 2011 had this house vote more than 50 times to take health care away from their own constituents. this legacy of dysfunction of partisanship and of prioritizing political gains over the public policy has dealt the american people a bad hand. by governing this house in such a haphazard way, the majority has closed down the process and shut out the american people. and sadly, the majority's poised to double down on the partisanship and even reinvent the mathematics of public policy. by using what is called dynamic scoring to pretend the tax cuts pay for themselves, republicans

will require the nonpartisan congressional budget office and joint taxation committee to use math that bruce bartlett, an economic advisor for both presidents ronald reagan and george h.w. bush to call, quote, smoke and mirrors, end quote. this new math cooks the books in favor of a majority to pretend that tax cut bills are revenue neutral. time and time again, the falsehoods of dynamic scoring have come to light. the first president bush even called this tactic quote, voodoo economics, end quote. but even still the house republicans want to change the rules and inject the partisan ideology into even mathematics which underlies our nation's public policy. rising above partnership, the house democrats will propose today two measures that would do a measurable good for the american people. first, giving average americans the paychecks that they

deserve. our commonsense legislation would deny c.e.o.'s the ability to claim tax exemptions on incomes over $1 million unless their own employees get a well-deserved raise first. and this will ensure that average workers share in the fruit of the nation's productivity, not just the millionaires and the billionaires. today is our tax -- as our tax code stands, c.e.o.'s get a break and their workers are left out. the c.e.o.'s get the money the deduction on taxes and we get the bill to pay for that deduction. it is destroying the middle class. second, democrats will bring forward the stop corporate expateryation and invest in america's infrastructure -- expateryation -- expatriateation and invest in america's infrastructure act. it's time to stop rewarding companies that move overseas and instead use those dollars to create good-paying jobs here at home and rebuild our nation's crumbling

infrastructure. by closing this loophole and ending the so-called tax inversions, we would raise an estimated $33.6 billion to invest in our roads, railways and bridges falling apart all over the country. last fall i stood by 100-year-old bridge that has fallen into such disrepair that firefighters stopped using it for fear the engines could -- bridge could not bear the weight of the engines. it endangered the safety of the people they were expected to serve. in my home state of new york, 40% of bridges have been rated structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, which is even worse. i wonder what the number is for the united states. this is an unconscionable state of repairs. repairing our nation's highways and bridges is now life or death. we can do it with the democrat proposals. we can and we must. now, these are the types of bills we hope to be bringing to the floor in this session of

congress. . that's what congress is about. that's what congress is about. not a legislative branch that silences half of this nation by bypassing the committee process, bringing to the rule emergency bills that silence the representatives of half the people in the united states. it is my fervent hope that the new congress will bring about an era of willingness to tackle the big problems facing our nation. a renewed call for true bipartisanship and a culture of enliveren -- enlivened debate and i promise that our side will be a willing partner. in describing how the bill of rights came to be, the former supreme court justice, the late harry blackman, said, that the founding fathers survived, quote, a crucible of disagreement. to give us a more perfect union. in forging through that chris crews billion is not only good for the legislative branch but good for the nation. truly, it is a debate that makes us stronger and time and

time again debate in the house has been stalled strangling policies and solutions that could have benefited the nation. sadly, this is the legacy of the last congress. i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of justice blackman's speech into the record. the speaker: without objection. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, the past does not dictate the future. we can write our path forward. we may be able to prioritize the american people will win over politics and today we have the opportunity to do that. with the beginning of this, the 114th congress, and, mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves the balance of her time. the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i too want to welcome the gentlewoman from rochester, new york, the ranking member of the rules committee, as we begin another session in this new year and i'm delighted to note that the rules committee will be ready and available to

handle not only the pieces of legislation that the gentlewoman spoke of in terms of helping the american people to understand what congress' role is in working with the president to help policies that will get this country back to work. mr. speaker, just a year ago we recognized as we came back to washington that we were at a g.d.p. growth of a negative g.d.p. we had to fight out of these terrible, terrible tax increases and the things that are occurring to our economy. and the american people found new footing this year because it was the republican majority who gave new meaning and life to, we're going to make this place, meaning washington, d.c., and government smaller and make things bigger and better for people back home. we've now lived through what has become a reality with republican policies on energy,

for competitive marketplace for there to be alternative fuels that are available, that have dominated the marketplaces and put other countries on their heels and given an advantage to american drivers that are here, families who are trying to make a go of it. gasoline at the pump has dropped. we still have much to do. as we know, the first year that president obama was in office, food prices began doubling. energy prices began doubling. republicans now are giving the american people a sense that we can manage our country better so that they can not only have a job and keep a job, but that they can take care of their families. we're going to aim this year on a lot of things, but today we're here for the rules package that will enable the opportunities for all of our members to know what the rules are and become engaged. four years ago, mr. speaker, we

pledged to the american people that speaker boehner through the rules of this house and our package that would we would have, would allow members from both sides of the aisle to engage in robust debate during an open process, and i'm proud to say that following through with that promise, we now have a new, larger group of republicans because the hard work that we have done and consulted the american people about, effectively managing their affairs in washington, d.c., and republicans have put forth all sorts of reforms, not just in the house of representatives, more transparency, more opportunities for debate, but the opportunity for the american people to see that what we're trying to do is to give the american people a chance to debate and vote and move forward legislative ideas not just about jobs and not just about a better economy and

not just about more freedom and not just about trying to take care of energy, but also to protect the men and women who protect this country. the 114th congress is going to present also an opportunity i think for all of us to up our game, to work together. now we have a chance to know that the house and the senate, because they're in republican control, instead of things being road blocked and set aside and stacked up, over 300 bills, mr. speaker this past term that were waiting for senatorial action, we now can work together to enact legislation, we can talk with the american people, we can fashion transparency in bills for accountability, something that the american people want and need. it also represents an opportunity for us to jump-start our economy. we're here to serve people back home. we're here to make things

better for people back home. not to give away our country, but to make it stronger, a chance to empower people in their communities to make their own decisions and hopefully the rewards that come from that. many times it's not just about the creation of a job, but really sustaining these families that are trying to work and make things happen and make more decisions about themselves. and their future. to begin that process today, as we open the house for the 114th congress, we have a rules package. as we begin, i want to say, let's not forget why we're here. we're here because those from our individual congressional districts, mine the 32nd congressional district of texas, sent me here to accomplish things on their behalf. to make life better for them, to create better opportunities

for people today and a better america in the future. so that we are able to extend our lead among other nations with i believe, american ingenuity and opportunity, american exceptionalism, as we say it in dallas, texas, mr. speaker. american exceptional power, whether it is leading in the united states military or providing leadership for freedom, that is what we're best at. and we have a privilege by serving in this body. we must also be held accountable, i believe, to the constitution. the constitution which we have all of us today, as we raised our hand to support and defend the constitution of the united states. it doesn't mean certain parts of that constitution, it means the constitution. and by us being here today, we're once again reaffirming that, in this rules package, the support to the constitution , that basis of power that is

so, so important that we understand the house, the senate, the presidency, but most of all the power that lies with people. the rules package helps us to achieve these goals. h.res. 5 is a continuation a of house republicans' efforts to streamline processes to increase transparency, and to improve accountability. specifically, it preserves the important reforms that were made in the previous two congresses. it also adds a few perfecting amendments and ordered to help further advance our twin goal of transparency and openness for all the members of this body. i'd like to take a few minutes if i can to highlight some of the key parts of this rules package, if i can, mr. speaker. first, it builds upon the fiscal restraint imposed upon the federal government by house republicans in the last two congresses. we've seen in the last four years that the american economy is able to grow when the

government shrinks, and less taxpayer money is used to support the government. more freedom and opportunity, we should have a smaller government and a larger free enterprise system. that's a goal. limited government means unlimited opportunity for people back home. in 2011 the federal government was spending 24% of our g.d.p. in the economy -- and the economy was suffering. thanks to the leadership of house republicans, the federal government spend something now down. in fact, the federal government now spends 19.9% of our g.d.p., which is nearly 5% less than just four years ago. this has come through fiscal restraint. this has come through making sure that we spoke to the american people about government that was getting too big, costing too much money and had too much power. the american people understood that because the government was

getting in the way, not playing their role of making sure that -- to make life better for people, but rather getting in the way and making onerous decisions on our economy, on the people's jobs and perhaps worst of all stifling families and the american dream. in turn, we're finally seeing now as a result of these five years where we have held government spending that has decreased from 24% of g.d.p. to 19.9%, we're seeing an economic growth rate that the american people i think want and deserve. are we where we want to be? absolutely not. what's the approximate level we need a g.d.p. growth of 4%, we need a g.d.p. growth not just in dallas, texas, but all over this country where we have people who are able to, in their homes and their cities and their regions, be able to take care of themselves, sustain their economies, and

take care of their infrastructures in a responsible way. so, this congress, republicans are going to provide for fiscal discipline that restrains spending and gets the government out of the way. getting government out of the way means you take money away from them, which either does one of two things. leaves more money back home for people or it simply gives people more opportunity to invest in the marketplace. to grow jobs. this rules package will ensure that congress has the necessary budget enforcement tools in place to continue our work that will help create jobs and grow the economy. we have a brand new budget chairman, one of the finest members of the republican conference. the gentleman from georgia, mr. price. and mr. price has been not only a professional at his job, as a physician, where he healed people. he came to washington to do the

same for us and his aessential to be the chairman of the budget committee will offer this country and i believe more specifically this body a re-evaluation of the important attributes of having a good economy through better budgeting and ways that we can restrain the federal government from unwanted and unnecessary spending to that which is done for the american people that makes sense. tom price will become a household name and he will earn the accolades that he will get from his chairmanship. second, the rule package includes a commonsense requirement for congress when we consider legislation that will have a larger impact on our economy. in short, the house is going to require the congressional budget office and the joint committee on taxation to provide nonpartisan macroeconomic analysis for legislation that costs .25% of

projected g.d.p. what does this mean? this means that now we're going to be able to recognize on a percentage basis point how close the impact of our decisions that we make and to project them out to where we're able to actually know what the impact will be of the legislation that we passed in order to create more jobs. it is meant to err on the side of people in the free enterprise system as opposed to stymieing what would end up to them and erring on the side of growing this government. this means that the house will take time to analyze how legislation that we consider will really impact the american economy, where we can reject what it will be as a result of including billions of dollars back into the economy for economic growth and development

on the side of the free enterprise system. this is going to allow us to measure the impact of legislation, it's going to help us to use some commonsense projects -- proximates on how our ideas are going -- projections on how our ideas are going to affect the bottom line. we've been through four years where we saw high taxes, high spending, big government, that caused america to fall not only in relative power to the rest of the world, but it placed on the american people disillusionenment, unemployment, high taxation of people who could not pay their bills, a loss of their own identity within their own systems, unemployment up to -- unemployment, up to 23 million people unemployed and underemployed. we've now turned that corner. we will continue to turn that corner and extrapolate out how we want to get to all sectors of our economy to have a better shot at jobs in their hometown

in their region, and ones that they can keep, not have, and then lose again. it's these current opportunities that lie right before us and the gentleman from georgia and the gentleman from -- the chairman of the ways and means committee, mr. ryan, are perfectly suited for selling to this body and the american people why we believe that we've got to look at and change the way we authorize bills. . so under one method, which is called static scoring, which is what we have, we ensure that legislation does not change economic behavior. they just plug a new number in and then we assume nothing really happens. but in fact we know when you raise taxes you lower the opportunity for people, not only to create more economic benefit, but you take that incentive away.

our friends, the democrats, would leave you to believe that taxation is a zero some game, that when rates go up revenues come that way and aren't we for making sure we balance our budget? well, let me tell you what, it didn't work that way. we were spending hundreds of billions of dollars more. instead of an economy that was working, we were paying unemployment compensation, people not to be employed, people to be at home, a terrible cost not only to humanity but also to our treasury. we need people to go to work, and encouraging them to do this through our tax code means that people can have the dignity of work, the opportunity to make their life better and perhaps more importantly a chance for america to grow its g.d.p. we have examples over and over that we've seen about how taxation legislation affects behavior, and certainly in my

home state of texas, i remember in the 1980's and the early 1990's when revenue was at a premium for the democrats who ran our house and senate in texas and, of course, they wanted to raise more revenue and they were always looking for ways to raise revenue and i remember them looking when i was just out of high school at personalized license plates. and they looked at how much money came in for personalized license plates and i want to say it was $30 for the plates and so they needed more revenue so they just doubled that amount of money that it would cost knowing they would get twice as much revenue. but it didn't work that way, mr. speaker. not surprisingly, fewer texans bought more license plates, but to the democrats it was a simple matter under static scoring of just saying they wanted more money and they were going to increase the rates. it doesn't happen that way

because the american people or citizens understand they would no longer buy something at a different rate. the same thing is true of tax rates, mr. speaker. we have the exact same problem where people who are working and working hard, when you take away their money, there's less money that they can put into the economy, to grow another job, to give somebody a chance at a new job. and these are the things we are going to be looking at, how we can maximize through the effort of dr. price, through the effort of paul rian, the ways and means committee, the -- paul ryan, the ways and means committee, the budget committee, to show the leading ideas and so no, it's a zero sum game. you can't raise taxes. you can't give money back to people because oh, my gosh, the federal government would be in trouble. well, we're not. it would change from

unemployment compensation to people working, and republicans believe in work. we believe in empowering communities and people to stand a chance to go from unemployment and welfare to a chance to have a job. we're going to get this done. let me be clear. republicans are not arguing that tax cuts always way for themselves. they don't. but instead we're acknowledging that when it's done right, when you study what you're doing, you can make an effort to have a tax cut to grow the economy. i believe republicans understand that the american economy and americans are better off when they keep more of their paychecks. lastly, this third -- this rules package defends the house's constitutional role in our system of checks and balances by providing for continuation of legal actions against the executive branch. it will allow the house to

pursue its lawsuits and to enforce subpoenas. for instance, in the fast and furious investigation, where we've seen guns that were sold by the united states government put into hands of very dangerous people all around our world, including in mexico and other places, only to find them come back and appear where they were involved in murders in the united states. it's a lawless action that was taken by our department of justice. it's wrong and we're going to continue pursuing this. so it means that we're going to look at those things that this federal government is doing that we believe are unconstitutional and should change also. we also believe in a lawsuit against the executive branch regarding the implication of the affordable care act. in short, this package makes it perfectly clear that our

constitutional order still matters, and it's congress' job to write the law and for the president to faithfully execute it. we're not going to stand by and watch this president go and write laws and to execute them down the block. we're going to make sure we do it the way the constitution spoke about. certainly, we know that ipab, which is part of the president's package where he has this group of people that have unlimited power to make decisions over health care, over people as opposed to a physician, we're going to limit that authority. we believe we're within the right of doing this because the american people want and need a health care system that works, not one we cannot afford and we cannot find a doctor and where the government and the bureaucrat makes decisions as opposed to a physician and a patient. regardless of what one thinks about obamacare, all members of

should should be united to preserve and -- should be united to preserve and protect the rule of the united states citizens and our ability to make laws on behalf of people and work with the president. finally, the package is going to allow the speaker to recognize members for the reading of the constitution on any legislative day through january 16, 2015. i believe it's vital, and we saw this several years ago mr. speaker, where we came down to the floor of the house and took turns at reading the constitution. it is a vital part of our history. it is important that we understand it serves this great nation that separates us from so many other countries. the rule of law and constitutional guidance. the rules package that i've outlined will better enable the house to perform our duties. it will help us with our obligations, our integrity and transparency and accountability and it's going to help us to make sure we work well together with each other, our friends, whether they're republicans or democrats, elected members of

this body. i'm very proud to say that this resolution represents so many great things. i think it's a balanced package, and i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time is preserved. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to four minutes to the gentleman from maryland, the democratic whip, mr. hoyer. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized for four minutes. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentlelady for yielding. unfortunately, i don't have time to respond to many of the representations that mr. sessions made with reference to our economy, but we can all agree that our most important responsibility as members of the congress is to grow this economy, create the kinds of jobs that americans need so that they can succeed and support themselves and their families. but i want to speak about a couple of things in this rules package.

traditionally, democrats will vote against and republicans will vote for because traditionally this is a partisan vote. i urge the rules committee chairman to adopt a couple of changes which i thought would make this rules package a better one. first, i asked the house to move to ban discrimination against gays lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered employees. we provide in our rules you can't discriminate people based upon race, nationality, gender and other arbitrary distinctions. we should have added this as we have in so many of our laws. currently, there are no protections for congressional staffer fired or refused promotions simply for lgbt status. i regret that the rules committee was unprepared to offer such a protection to our employees. secondly, since republicans assumed the majority in 2011, delegates from the district of columbia, the u.s. virgin

islands, guam, samoa and the northern mariana residents as well as the resident commissioner of puerto rico have been denied the opportunity to vote in the committee of the whole. they can vote in committees and the committee of the whole is, of course, a committee of the house. it is not a final arbiter. when i was majority leader i offered that amendment in the rules. it passed. my republican friends took it to court and the court said that it was sustainible. and sustained it. this effectively unfortunately denies representation to nearly five million americans. americans. one of whom is on the republican side of the aisle from american samoa. so this is a bipartisan concern that i have. unfortunately this rules package put forward by the republican majority does not include either change. in addition, this rules package does not live up to the responsible governing the american people expect and

deserve from congress. mr. sessions spent a long time talking about scoring. static scoring versus dynamic scoring. dynamic scoring, i would suggest to the american people, is a gamble. it is a gamble that your projection is correct, and if your projection is not correct, as it so often has been, then you end up putting the deficit even higher because you bet on the come. the more conservative policy, i would suggest, would be to get the money first and then decide how you're going to apply it. don't gamble on the fact that you're going to get the money, which is what dynamic scoring, and the gentleman admitted, he did not argue that cutting taxes always paid for themselves. in fact, alan greenspan said lactly that in the last decade. what -- said exactly that in the last decade. what that means is the republicans will hide the true costs of tax cuts behind the

mantra that tax cuts pay for themselves. they do not. and this provision will allow them to explode the deficit, as they did the last time they were in charge. the last time the budget was balanced was not under the brucks when you had a republican -- bush administration when you had a republican congress, republican sflat and republican senate. it was -- senate and republican president. it was when president clinton was president. it threatens to politicize the congressional budget office which has maintained its role as impartial and nonpartisan arbiter on budget scoring for four decades which makes us be honest, which is what the american public expects. rely on the figures that are not political figures but are independent, analytical figures on which we can rely. the rules package -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. hoyer: i urge my colleagues to vote against this rules package.

it can be a better package. it should be, and if it's defeated we can adopt a better more fair package. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time is reserved. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from maryland, the distinguished returning ranking member of the committee on budget, mr. van hollen. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized for three minutes. mr. van hollen: i thank you, mr. speaker. i thank my colleague. it's absolutely astounding that within minutes, minutes of us being sworn in our republican colleagues want to pass a rule that will stack the deck in favor of trying to give another big tax cut, not to the middle class, but to millionaires, the folks at the very top. that's what their budget does. and what's equally astounding is that this economic theory of trickled down economics crashed and burn in the real world between 2001 and 2008.

our republican colleagues say, if you give millionaires these tax cuts, you know, they're going to spend it and a little bit will trickle down to the middle class and people -- and boost everybody up. what happened? sure, the folks that got the tax cuts at the top did better. nobody else did. in fact, real wages went down. what went up, the deficit, and everybody has to pay for that deficit. now, i heard the speaker this morning say he wanted to deal with the issue of wage stagnation. that's what we should be focused on. we shouldn't be talking about tax cuts for the wealthy and a trickle down theory. we should try to build this economy from the middle class out and from the bottom up, and i'm glad the speaker said that because we're going to give him an opportunity to vote for something that will address wage stagnation. i'll offer a motion at the end of this debate. it's called the vow -- c.e.o. employee paycheck fairness act and it addresses this issue.

if you look back in the 1960's and 1970's when workers were working hard, they got paid more, but beginning around 1979, they kept working hard productivity kept going up but their wages got flat. . what happened during the same time? c.e.o.'s took care of themselves. their pay started to go up and up and up. it used to be about 20 times that of the average worker. in other words, the c.e.o. and folks at the top got about 20 times what they were paying their employees. but as you can see, it's now shot up so that c.e.o.'s and the top guys get paid about 300 times what their workers are getting paid, so we have a simple proposition. that corporation should not be able to deduct the bonuses and compensation for their c.e.o.'s and other executives over $1 million unless they're giving their employees a fair shake a

fair wage, right? why should the taxpayers be subsidizing that? you know, in the last three years they took about $80 billion thereabouts, in deductions for bonuses for performance pay when they were sometimes laying off employees cutting their paychecks. so we say, hey, ok, pay yourselves what you want, but if you want the taxpayers to allow you to deduct your bonuses and performance pay for goodness sakes, you bet beer --er you better be giving your employees -- you better be giving your employees a fair shake. deal with wage stagnation. let's help the workers, not just the c.e.o.'s. let's vote for the c.e.o. -employee paycheck fairness act. i thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: mr. speaker, i thank you very much. there they go again, more tax increases.

bigger government, the democrat party. i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time is reserved. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i have to yield the gentleman 30 seconds to respond to that. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. van hollen: what we're talking about, mr. speaker, is a republican plan that actually cuts the top rate for folks at the top from 39% to 25%. the nonpartisan tax policy group has said that will actually leave the middle class family, typical family, paying another $2,000 so that you can give the folks at the very top another tax break and when you increase the deficit, guess who pays the bill? everybody. all the taxpayers do. so you give a tax break to the folks at the top, increase the deficit, and everybody else left to pay the bill. that's not the right way to go. vote for this motion. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: we reserve our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from new york.

ms. slaughter: i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from connecticut who has been successful already about inversions, ms. delauro. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from connecticut is recognized for two minutes. ms. delauro: i rise in opposition to the republican rule avoid taxes by moving their mailboxing overseas. but they leave their operations here. effectively renouncing their u.s. citizenship in order to dodge taxes. these companies benefit from american education, research and development incentives, and infrastructure, all taxpayer-supported. but when their own tax bill arrives, they hide overseas and are no longer american corporations. they even have the temerity, and this is legal under the law

today, and it shuent be, they have the -- and it shouldn't be, they have the temerity then to apply for federal contracts. but they deny their u.s. citizenship when it comes to paying their taxes. what this amendment would do is make sure that they pay their fair share. the extra revenue goes to the highway trust fund. that trust fund runs out of money in may if we do not act. anyone who has drisk an car lately knows how badly our roads need investment, our highs -- highways are crumbling beneath our wheels. 65% of our major roads are in less than good condition. one quarter of our bridges require impair or -- repair or improvement. at the time when globalization is gathering a better,

stronger, more sustainable economy. this amendment puts us back on the right track. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: i continue to reserve. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from south carolina, mr. clyburn. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from south carolina is recognized for three minutes. mr. clyburn: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentlelady for yielding. mr. speaker, like most americans, i spent the holidays with family and friends. reflecting on the blessings of the past year. there were many. since 2009, the stock market

has sored nearly 10,000 points -- soared nearly 10,000 points. in 2009 our budget deficit stood at $1.4 trillion. today, according to current projections, we have sliced that deficit to $514 billion. and we have created 10 million new jobs. the longest stretch of private sector job growth in american history. when i left home yesterday, i left my wife with a full tank of gas and i did so paying less than $2 per gallon. it was the first time i've been able to do that in five years. we have achieved much progress over the past several years. now we must get about the work of making sure that progress is shared by all.

they're stacking the deck for those with the highest incomes and for voodoo trickledown economics. house democrats' first priority is to put americans in a better place by creating jobs, standing up for working families and growing the economy for all. the contrast cannot be more stark. mr. speaker, house democrats' numbers may be smaller in the 114th but we are stronger in our unity and resolve, to grow and strengthen middle income americans. today with our votes on the new rules, mr. speaker we will be demonstrating our support for hardworking american families. i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: we'll continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from massachusetts, a valued member of the committee on rules, mr. mcgovern. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts is roadwayed for two minutes. mr. mcgovern: thank you. and i thank the distinguished ranking member for the time. mr. speaker i suppose i should simply take this time to say to my colleagues, welcome back and happy new year and i missed you. technically we are considering and debate and voting on the republican majority's, quote, rules package unquote. but that's sort of a misnomer. the word rules as most of us understand it means a set of procedures that someone is required to follow. but if my republican friends -- if my republican friends have demonstrated anything over the past few years, it's that they have absolutely no intention of following the rules of the house. they are waive or ignore or break the rules of the house whenever it's convenient or politically expedient for them

to do so. the gentleman from texas says the speaker of the house promised the most open congress in hiftrifment i hate to remind him that the republicans presided over the most closed congress in history during the 113th congress. let me just mention a couple of the most egregious provisions in this package before us today. first, my republican friends believe we should adopt the voodoo economics of so-called dynamic scoring. under this fairy tale they would have us believe that the tax cuts for the very wealthy don't increase the deficit. never mind that time after time after time in our list, those tax cuts for the rich have caused an ex explosion in our deficit. second, this package would allow committee staff from the ways and means committee, financial services energy and commerce, and the science committee, to take depositions under oath. currently only the oversight committee has that authority. mr. speaker, i served as a staff member in this house for the late congressman our staff members are dedicated public servants who work increditably hard.

but this provision goes too far. we ought to be spending our time on rebuilding our aging infrastructure and increasing workers' paychecks rather than making it easier to conduct more political witch hunts which the american people are fed up with. mr. speaker i'm honored to serve on the rules committee and that word rules used to mean something. my hope is that in this congress enough of my republican colleagues will demonstrate the political courage to make it mean something again. vote no on this resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i'm pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. doggett. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. doggett: mr. speaker, to those who have wondered what would be the top priority of this republican-controlled congress, what would they do on day one well now we know. it's deception. what some could even rightly call tax fraud, since this amounts to deliberate misrepresentation of tax data.

republicans are admitting right here on day one that they don't know how to balance the budget. when the budget numbers will not add up when the arithmetic just doesn't work for them, they change the numbers with magical new math. where the books won't balance, with the numbers that you've got, republicans say use the numbers you would like to have. all their previous talk about budget discipline and balancing budgets was really about trying to dismantle democratic efforts to provide an opportunity ladder up for all americans. to ensure dignity and retirement and to protect families from the risk of illness. now to free themselves from the hard work of responsible balanced budgets republicans are compelling the house for the first time in american

history to rely upon something they call dynamic scoring. that's just a euphemism for whimsy, speculation and wishful thinking. the thin very near for a failed -- veneer for a failed political ideology. s been said that instead of this scoring gimmick that they're using today, he'd rather they just simply belly-up to the bar and admit up front that they can't lower rates without adding to the deficit. today's actions remind me of a riddle attributed to president abraham lincoln. how many legs does a dog have if you call the tail a leg? four, because calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg. and calling a budget balanced when it doesn't have adequate revenue does not make it so. passing a budget requires hard work. republicans would rather use a sleight of hand than a helping hand from all to get that job

done. vote. no the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: republicans are going to use a doctor to get the budget done this time. i'd like to yield three minutes to the young chairman of the budget committee, the gentleman from georgia, mr. price. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for three minutes. price that the -- i thank the gentleman from texas -- mr. price: i thank the gentleman from texas for his leadership on this. i'm actually -- well, i'm not surprised, i thought we might actually go a day without having the kind of hyperbole that we've grown used to from the other side of the aisle. i want to speak to the issue of macroeconomic analysis. as the incoming chair of the budget committee. for the other side has said that this is a gamble that we're gambling, that the projections are going to be correct. mr. speaker, this is craziness. that's not so. in fact, all economic projections, all static, dynamic, all of them, have a level of uncertainty. we've heard that it's quote, stacking the deck or that it's cooking the books in favor of tax cuts.

nonsense. nonsense. it doesn't game the system at all. all that we're trying to do is make certain that members of congress have more information upon which to be able to make decisions. that's the kind of commonsense things that our folks back home want. . scoring here, the congressional budget office works hard works hard to try to determine what the effect is of the kind of policies that we adopt around here. they will tell you right now that now it's inaccurate. now it's inaccurate. what we're trying to do is simply say that if a piece of legislation is going to have a large affect on the economy, that we include that effect in the official estimate. so if you think the bill will help or hurt the economy, help or hurt, they ought to let us know how many more jobs will be created, what kind of tax revenue will occur, is it going to harm jobs. the people that prepare our cost estimates, i tell you they're the best in the

business and they've been working on this for years. mr. speaker, it may come to as a surprise from our friends on the other side, but they already do this kind of analysis, they already do the macroeconomic analysis. we don't it in the cost estimate because of the rules, because of the rules and we should and that's why we're offering this change today. we don't predetermine the outcome. we simply make it so that congressional budget office is allowed the score keepers -- the score keepers are allowed to have a more realistic score. i have come -- come to no surprise, talking to economics a couple of weeks -- a couple of months. to a person, individual says economic scoring the effects of legislation that we passed it's an inaccurate science. it's hard -- it's hard to do, but what we want to do is to make certain that they had greater opportunity to get that scoring correct. to give us the kind of information so we can make wiser decisions.

so mr. speaker, this isn't about cooking the books or gaming the system. this is about trying to do the hard work of the american people, trying to get the policies that we adopt here in this congress correct so that we can get the american people back to work and get this economy thriving again. so i commend the gentleman from texas for the work that he's done and urge adoption of the rules and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york, 7 1/2 minutes remaining. ms. slaughter: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm pleased to yield two of those minutes to the gentleman from california chairman of the democrat caucus, mr. becerra. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. becerra: i thank the gentlelady for yielding. time to get to work. americans don't care who won or lost in the election. they just want to us get our work done. they want us to work together to solve the problems that they see every day. they want us to boost job growth. they want us to build an economy that works for all americans not just the

privileged few. the rules of the road that should guide this congress should be built on the foundation that has increased opportunities for american families over the last few years, nearly 11 million new jobs, 57 consecutive months of job growth, the longest streak in our country's history. 10 million more americans with health insurance, which means health security for those americans. the deficit cut by 2/3 since 2009. what's the one piece of the puzzle that we now need to work on? well, in that span of time that we've seen things go bitter, the economy has grown by 12%, corporate profits have grown by 42% and the stock market by 92%. what hasn't grown? the paycheck the average american get for working to dual those things to make it possible for the stock market and corporations to succeed. so it's time for us to focus on

the middle of america that works hard every month and gets a paycheck but doesn't see that paycheck grow. this rules package requires congress to use fuzzy math. so-called dynamic scoring to make it easier to give massive tax breaks to special interests and the wealthy. is that what the middle class wants? no. republicans also added a midnight change to this rules package that rigs the rules against 59 million americans who currently receive social security and to the 160 million americans who are working today to get social security in the future and don't know if social security will be there based on these rules. that's not what americans in the middle want. congress should be in the business of making life better not worse, for everyday americans. so let's establish rules of the road for this congress that let us build on the economic progress of nearly 11 million americans going back to work, 57 months straight of job growth. what we don't need are rules of the road for this house that give a green light to reckless

legislate, that favor special interests and the privileged few at the expense of the middle class and america's social security. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas 4 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. sessions: we reserve our time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i'm pleased to yield to a member of the ways and means committee, one minute. the speaker pro tempore: mr. levin is recognized for one minute. mr. levin: what was said by the budget chair is not correct. this is not about more information. this is about these cost estimates really depart of the enforcement of the budget resolution. so what this is, in a few words republicans today are extending their embrace of voodoo economics by wrapping their arms around voodoo score keeping. again, it's not more about more

information, but it's able to cook the books to implement their long-held discredited notion that tax cuts pay for themselves. i think the former reagan and george h.w. bush administration official said it best, bruce bartlett -- and listen to this. it's not more information. as he said, i quote it's not about honest revenue estimating. it's about using smoke and mirrors to institutionalize republican ideology in the budget process. that's what this is all about. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you mr. speaker. we'll continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: mr. speaker, may i inquire from my colleague if he has any speakers? i don't want to use up all my time if -- mr. sessions: well, thank you very much. i have one additional speaker and then i'll close. ms. slaughter: all right. let me yield one minute to the gentlewoman from california, the democrat leader, and almost speaker today, ms. pelosi.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized for one minute. ms. pelosi: thank you mr. speaker. i thank the gentlelady for yielding and i thank her for her wonderful work on behalf of the american people as the ranking member on the rules committee for such a long time and in such a very strong way. my colleagues, i congratulate you on -- and your families on your swearing in today. we had a lovely ceremony, i think, earlier. eventually it became that after we knew the outcome of the vote. but it's clear that election at the polls in november demonstrated that american people are hopeful that this new congress can work together to grow our economy and in turn grow paychecks for american workers. honoring that trust, house democrats today are putting

forward a legislative package to increase paychecks for working families and put americans back to work, building roads and bridges our country needs and paid for by keeping our tax dollars here at home. i talked about this a little bit earlier as i introduced the speaker. what we are proposing sadly is in sharp contrast to what the republicans have in this rule. the first vote that republicans are asking this congress to take in the new congress will be to advance additional tax cuts for the wealthy and special interests. when they talk about dynamic scoring, when they talk about dynamic scoring it's a very bad deal for middle-income families in our country. in sharp contrast to them, we will bring forward the top -- the stop corporate expatriateation and invest in america infrastructure act

which prevents corporations from renouncing their american citizenship in order to dodge from paying their fair share of taxes. it's type to stop rewarding companies that move overseas and instead use those dollars to create good-paying jobs here at home. every chance any of us get, we have to make that point. i don't see anything partisan about it. i would think -- and many republicans have voted in this manner in the past. so this was supposed to be something where we had common ground. house democrats will also put forward the c.e.o. employee pay fairness act, and that's legislation to ensure that workers share in the fruit of their productivity denying c.e.o.'s the ability to claim tax deductions on income over $1 million unless they give their employees a well-deserved raise. the american people are owed an open and transparent debate on these issues. today, with this rules package,

republicans are shutting out debate for democrats and republicans. and republicans with their extending the amount it takes for democratic members to put forth a motion to instruct, they are shutting down debate. they are rejecting transparency and openness. that is what the american people want, transparency and openness. and all that we do in congress we must keep the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the american people in the forefront. we must be committed to do this in a bipartisan way and open and transparent way. this bill today rejects that. now, what i want to say is we all in reading our christmas cards and all the rest, but one of the ones i want to share with you, which is irrelevant to our discussion today, is from my friend, jack trout. what he said in his seasonal greeting for the times. to borrow a biblical reference,

the money changers have taken over the temple. what's behind all of this, he says in his effort, a concerted effort by wealthy companies and people to protect the status quo and their vested interest. the result is a sad fact that middle class gets squeezed while the rich get richer. this squeeze is why the consumer-led economy has been so slow to rebound after the financial crisis. what people fail to realize is the single fact that middle class are the real job creators in america. they generate demand which in turn builds markets. they, the middle class, put mary into merry christmas. -- put merry into merry christmas. i mention this because it is true that when the consumer economy, which is what we are, is alive and well and thriving,

it does -- spend money inject demand in the economy, creates jobs and our economic recovery is accelerated. dynamic scoring suppressing debate, some of the other things that are contained in this rule are contrary to that and antagonistic antagonistic to the financial stability of the middle class. so i hope our colleagues -- and there are so many reasons to go through it -- but what it means more to working families is their financial stact. and on that subject alone were it not to even other things in this bill, which we could talk about all day that should be rejected, but just because it is again -- has a negative impact on the growth of our economy when it comes to supporting the financial stability of the middle class we should vote no on this. the democrats offer a sharp contrast. the motion to -- the motion that will be to call on the

previous question is one that calls for us to talk about building infrastructure of america. the motion to recommit that will be put forth by mr. van hollen is one that is fair in terms of pay to our workers. and so for many reasons mr. speaker, i urge our colleagues to vote no. this isn't what was talked about in terms of ideal and values this morning. this is about putting the squeeze on the middle class, doing it in a nontransparent way and doing it under the rules of the house. i urge a no vote and yield back the balance of my time to the gentlelady. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i would like to -- i believe the gentlewoman has an additional speaker so i'm going to reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time is reserved. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i'm pleased to yield three minutes to the gentleman from new york, mr.

israel. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york is recognized for three minutes. mr. israel: i thank my friend from new york, the distinguished ranking member. mr. speaker, i congratulate all of my colleagues on our swearing in. i just hope that it doesn't trigger two years of swearing at and it really does not have to be that way, mr. speaker. democrats in this house will work with the majority to find commons solutions to ease the squeeze -- commonsense solutions to ease the squeeze, to support paycheck growth for the middle class, and what better middle ground than the middle class, mr. speaker? the problem with this rules package is it is stacked against the middle class it is stacked against tax cuts for the middle class it is stacked against paycheck growth for the middle class. . here's what house democrats are proposing. number one, bigger paychecks for the middle class. under the current rules that the majority supports, mr. speaker, a c.e.o. can get $1

million bonus and deduct that $1 million from taxes. that shifts that tax burden to an underpaid worker for that c.e.o. now, how is that fair? how is that fair? it's not. it is bad enough that middle class workers' paychecks are squeezed, but sticking the middle class worker with a bill for the c.e.o.'s taxes as a result of that $1 million bonus is unconscionable. and we have a better way. a better contrast. something that will grow paychecks for the middle class. second, under the rules in the stacked deck that the majority supports, a big corporation can ship jobs overseas, with those jobs overseas, build bigger bridges, better roads, better airports faster airplanes. meanwhile in my district on long island, mr. speaker, the average middle class worker has to drive through pot holes, longer delays, slower trains,

antiquated transportation systems, delayed airplanes because all of the infrastructure's being built abroad. it is bad enough that corporations are given intendtifics to shift jobs overseas. it is unconscionable that under these rules those corporations are able to build infrastructure in those foreign places while america decays. under our contrast, mr. speaker, we will invest in america we will rebuild america, we will create new jobs in america improving our infrastructure. it is bad enough to be underpaid, mr. speaker, but to be underpaid and have to drive through pot holes, that is even worse. mr. speaker, on this first day of this new congress until the very last day of this new congress, the american people are going to want to know who's side we are on. -- whose side we are on. and with these two votes, we clearly demonstrate and clearly establish who is on whose side. i urge my colleagues in this

majority, on this first day, to establish for the american people whose backs they have. the special interests, tax deductions for million-dollar bonuses foreign corporations or rebuilding america and rebuilding american jobs. i thank the gentlewoman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. 4 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. sessions: thank you very much, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield four minutes to the gentleman, the chairman of the judiciary -- chairman committee, mr. goodlatte. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for four minutes. mr. goodlatte: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. chairman, i rise to -- in support of the rules package for the 114th congress. i'd like to begin by taking this opportunity to thank you chairman sessions, the speaker's office and the other committee chairmen for working with me to hone and clarify the judiciary committee's criminal law jurisdiction. for many years the house rules have given the judiciary committee jurisdiction over, among other things the judiciary and judicial

proceedings, civil and criminal and criminal law enforcement. the judiciary committee's jurisdiction over criminal law dates back to the creation of the committee in 1813. in recent years, however, we have become aware of an anomly in the referral pattern that occasionally prevents the judiciary committee from obtaining a referral when a bill criminalizes new conduct without actually addressing the penalty portion of the criminal law. in other words, while the judiciary committee would have had jurisdiction over the underlying statute when it was enacted, it is sometimes unable to assert jurisdiction when the statute is amended in such a way as to criminalize new conduct. the result is that new criminal offenses are being created without being considered by the lawmakers on the judiciary committee, which is the committee best situated to provide valuable expertise in drafting and resolving potential conflicts with existing criminal law. last congress the judiciary committee created a bipartisan overcriminalization task force with the goal of examining the

problems associated with a bloated, disorganized and often redundant collection of federal criminal offenses. the congressional research service recently reported to us that there are nearly 5,000 federal criminal laws on the books. and unfortunately congress continues to add to this number at a rate of roughly 50 new crimes per year. one of the recurring themes from both the witnesses who appeared before the task force as well as the members of the task force is that it is crucial that the judiciary committee have the opportunity to review all new federal criminal law. throughout its existence this bipartisan task force endeskered to closely examine the -- endeskered to closely examine the problem posed by overcriminalization and overfederalization and identify potential solutions to combat the regrettable circumstances that inevitably arised from the tangled web of federal criminal provisions. examples of similarly situated defendants convicted of the same conduct under different statutes with different penalties were individuals

convicted of offenses without proof of any level of criminal intent, sb have -- have been detailed in our hearings and are far too commonplace. the rules package today clarifies the committee's jurisdiction over criminal matters by adding one word -- criminalization -- to our existing jurisdiction over criminal law. by making this change, the judiciary committee will have a new jurisdictional interest only in those relatively rare instances that a bill criminalizes new conduct by amending a statute that is attached to a criminal penalty without amending the penalty itself. in this instance, the judiciary committee will look to work with the other committee to ensure -- on ensuring that the new conduct is worthy of criminalization and that the attached criminal penalties are appropriately drafted. the judiciary committee is not looking to insert itself into the regulatory schemes under the jurisdiction of other committees. however, to the extent that another committee chooses to use the criminal justice system

to enforce the regulation under its jurisdiction, we would like to be involved, so that we may ask the important question together as to whether a particular conduct should be criminalized. in conclusion i believe this small clarification of the judiciary committee's jurisdiction will allow us to address many of the problems associated with the tangled web of federal criminal laws, and again i would like to thank chairman sessions and his staff for working very closely with us on this issue and express my strong support and urge my colleagues to vote for this rules package. the speaker pro tempore: both sides have 30 seconds remaining. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: i'm prepared to close. i assume mr. sessions is as well. mr. sessions: that would be correct. slaught lawsuit all right. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognize -- ms. slaughter: all right. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. slaughter: we have a broken institution, broken bipartisanship and recals trance. i urge my colleagues to change course in the 114th congress, to encourage openness

transparency, true bipartisanship. if we can achieve this we will come together. if we defeat the previous question i will move to amend the resolution to bring up the stop corporate ex patriation and invest in american infrastructure acts of 2015 to stop giving up american citizenship to avoid paying taxes. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of the amendment in the record along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentlelady's time has expired. ms. slaughter: i urge my colleagues voluntary vote no. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, overall this package demonstrates republicans' commitments to an open process for members on both sides of the aisle on the issues of the day that need to be debated on legislation that will make a difference in the lives of the american people. we've heard from the chairman of the republican -- republican chairman of the budget committee, republican chairman of the judiciary committee. i believe this is a great package, mr. speaker, i yield

back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on orting the previous question on the -- ordering the previous question on the resolution. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have. it previous question is ordered. the gentlelady from new york. ms. slaughter: on that i ask 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. members will record their vo >> gary herbert will be here to discuss his meeting with the president and state priorities for the annual meeting. donald norcross talks about his priorities for the 114th congress and what can be accomplished under a republican majority. later, our spotlight on magazines. looking at the state of the american armed forces. we will take your calls on the

sentencing of former virginia governor robert mcdonald. -- robert mcdonnell. ernest moniz discusses policies at the wilson center. we will join the event live at 10:30 a.m. eastern. >> sunday, a discussion on the birth of a nation. the efforts by william monroe trotter to prevent the release of the movie. >> part two is the heart of the protest in the sense that this is where the blacks were

appalled by the portrayal of free slaves. this is a scene showing what happens when you give former slaves the right to vote, the right to be elected, the right to govern. it is a scene in the south carolina legislature where their primary order of business is to pass a bill allowing for interracial marriage. black men are solely interested in pursuing and having white women. ♪ >> dick lehr on the

controversial story behind "the birth of a nation." >> here are some of our featured programs for this weekend. saturday night at 10:00, on book tv's after words. cass sunstein. at 1:00, the college series. we talk with published professors at john hopkins university of the influence of hip-hop on politics. on american history tv, saturday at 8:00 p.m., anderson university professor brian dirck uses abraham lincoln's life to --. at 4:30, a discussion on margaret sanger, her legacy, and the impact race, social class had on the birth-control

movement. let us know what you think about the program. call us, e-mail us, or send us a tweet. join the c-span conversation like us on facebook, follow us on twitter. >> john boehner was reelected to a third term as speaker of the house on tuesday. he received 216 of the 408 votes cast. 24 members of his party voted for other candidates. next, after the vote for speaker, remotes by -- remarks by nancy pelosi. ms. pelosi: my colleagues of the united states house of representatives, it is a high honor to welcome you and your

families to the 114th congress t to our newest members it is a special pleasure to give you an exceptional welcome and congratulations. welcome to our newest members. as was indicated by the vote, many of our colleagues from the state of new york are not with us because they are attending the funeral of governor mario cuomo. i extend condolences to our colleagues from the state of new york and have extended the sympathies of many in this body to governor cuomo's widow and to his family. as an italian american, i'm especially proud of his leadership and send sympathies to his family.

thank you, new york delegation. none of us would be standing here without the support and the strength of our families. today i'm going to thank my dear husband of 51 years, paul pelosi, and my five children and nine grandchildren, all the pelosi's. but as we are standing let all of us applaud all of our families. to my constituents and my democratic colleagues, my constituents in san francisco, i thank you for the privilege of serving in the house, but to my colleagues i thank you for the honor of serving as leader, but all of us should applaud all of our constituents for

sending us here. so let us again applaud our constituents. each one of us, mr. speaker each one of us as you know represents republicans, represents democrats, independents, and others, and we should always pay tribute to the american people. the american people have called upon each of them, each of us to serve them. they have entrusted us with their hopes, their dreams, they have asked us to address their challenges. the financial stability and strong middle class and those who aspire to it is the bedrock of our economy and the backbone of our american democracy. we have a moral imperative to ensure that working men and women enjoy the bounty of their

unprecedented productivity and to expand purchasing -- the purchasing power of families. to that end today democrats will put forward a legislative package to put americans back to work building our roads and bridges and meeting the needs of the american people, paid for by bringing our tax dollars back home to increase the paycheck of america's working families. we invite our republican colleagues to join us in supporting the stop corporate expatriateation and invest in america's infrastructure. it's time to stop rewarding companies to move overseas and instead use those dollars to create good-paying jobs here at home. we ask for republican support and action on the c.e.o. employee pay fairness act, legislation to ensure that workers share in the fruit of their productivity denies

c.e.o.'s the ability to claim tax deductions on income over $1 million unless they give their employees a well deserved raise. we must have an economy that works for everyone not just the privileged few, and we hope republicans will join us to achieve a better infrastructure and bigger paychecks for the working people of our country. better infrastructure, bigger paychecks. we open this 114th congress in the year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the voting rights act. one of the most consequential pieces of legislation in our history. president lyndon johnson and congress passed it, the president signed it, reverend martin luther king jr. and others along with our own john lewis fought for it and inspired it. we must continue to inspire the engagement of every american. it is the vote that preserves

our democracy ends injustice advances dreams, and sustains our freedom. and in terms of protecting our freedoms, let us recognize and salute and thank all of those brave americans who protect our rights, indeed protect all of our liberty our men and women in uniform, our veterans, and our military families. mr. speaker today we are the start of a new year and a new congress. with fresh opportunity for the american people. today is the feast of the epiphany the visit of the magi, let us have our own

epiphany, for this moment on this day, we are not just republicans and democrats, we are americans. not just in name but in spirit. standing on the higher ground, higher ground than the last election. my hope is that in the inevitable exchanges and clashes that may happen in the months ahead, we will not lose sight of the truth that is as fresh as this ceremony is today and as historic and our republic, that the ideals that unite us are stronger than the issues that divide us. in this house. that does not mean we are dispensing with all disagreements in this debate. our democracy is robust precisely because we have beliefs, and we stand proudly, even persistently for them, and our democracy endures and prevails because in the end we

are humble enough to find a way forward together. so, my fellow colleagues of the 114th congress let us uphold our deep and different convictions, but let us honor our common obligation to our country. in this congress we will do so under the leadership of speaker john boehner. this house will continue to be led by a proud son of ohio and a happy fan of the ohio state football team.

the speaker: yes. ms. pelosi: a man of abiding faith, great heart and deep dedication, john boehner is truly a gentleman from ohio. congratulations to john, to mr. speaker, to debby, to your daughters, lindsey and trisha, and the entire boehner family. thank you for sharing john boehner with us. god bless you and your family mr. speaker. may god continue to bless the members of this house of representatives. this is the people's house. this is the people's gavel. in the people -- in the people's name, it is my privilege to hand it to the speaker of the house for the 114th congress the honorable

john boehner. mr. speaker. friends, colleagues countrymen, especially the people of ohio's eighth congressional district, thank you for sending me here. and let's today walk all -- welcome all of new members and all of their families to what we all know to be a truly historic day. we welcome all of the members back, who were re-elected we want to welcome your families as well. and i want to thank my family. i was doing pretty good on the walk over here from my ceremonial office until i ran

into devon nunes' three little girls. my three biggest fans. one of them came running over and gave me a kiss. i was a mess. this has been a day the lord has made. let us rejoice and be glad. rejoined that our new members and families are here, we want to welcome them. we're glad and humbled to begin anew as servants of the people's house. here it is our duty and our privilege to lend a willing ear to the people, to make laws and tune with their priorities and within the limits of their constitution. in recent months our economy has shown signs of improvement. and after difficult years, it maybe a temptation to except what i'll call the new normal. but america did not become exception albie ease. far too many americans remain out of work and too many are working harder only to lose

ground to stagnant wages and rising costs. we can do better. we can build an economy that furthers better paying jobs, more growth and more opportunity for the nation's middle class. this is our vital task. we'll begin this endeavor on common ground both in letter and in spirit. it was actually my predecessor who changed the order of things so that all members now take the oath of office at the same time. he called this innovation a time-saving device. sounds like my kind of guy. but this shared ritual is no passing formality. it's a frontier where words end and where deeds begin. now the pessimists don't see us crossing this channel. they say nothing's going to be accomplished here, that the vision is wider than ever and

so gridlock will be even greater. frankly, fair enough. the skepticism of our government is healthy and in our time quite understandable. but one problem with saying it can't be done is that it already has been done. or at least started. in the last congress, this house passed a number of jobs bills with broad support from the majority and the minority. and we'll begin our work on this common ground, taking up measures to develop north american energy restore the middle class workers and help small businesses hire more of our veterans. i invite the president to support and write this bipartisan initiatives into law. it would be a good start and more. it will be a sign that the large 'em is breaking and a foundation on which to address

the bigger challenges in the pursuit of freedom and security. now, this won't be done in a tidy way. the battle of ideas never ends and frankly never should. as speaker i'll ask and frankly expect that we disagree without being disagreeble. in return i pledge to help each of you carry out your duties. my door of course is always open. don't get carried away with it, all right, but it's always open. my colleagues will see this as shadow boxing and show business. but let me tell you and the american people that it's real work. it's a grind. as it should be in striving to preserve the things that we all hold dear. every day you and i come out here and try to plant good seeds. cultivate the ground and take care of the pests. and then with patience and some

sacrifice and god's grace there will be a harvest. and along the way we may falter , but we americans do not fall away from the task. we do not quit. so let's stand tall and prove the skeptics wrong. let's make this a time of harvest and may the flutes of our labors be ladders, our children can use to climb the stairs to the stars. thank you all and god bless the united states of america. thank you. thank you. thank you.

it's still just me. i'm ready to take the oath of office and i'd like to ask the dean of the house, the honorable john conyers from michigan, to administer the oath of office. mr. conyers: if the gentleman from ohio would please raise his right hand. do you solemnly swear or affirm that you will support and defend the constitution of the united states against all enemies, foreign and domestic that you will bear true faith and allegiance to the same, that you take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purposes of evasion and that you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you are about to enter, so help you god? the speaker: i do. mr. conyers: thank you very much. i pronounce you speaker of the house. the speaker: thank you.

thank you, thank you. >> opportunities and challenges to the energy policy, today at the wilson center. today, a discussion on potential sources of instability and conflicts in 2015. the council on foreign relations hears from government officials on threat posed by the conflict. the situation between russia and ukraine, and challenges in the middle east. that is live at 12:30 p.m. eastern on c-span 2. >> here are some of our featured programs for this weekend.

saturday night at 10:00, on after words, the pitfalls of group decision-making. at 1:00, the college series. we talk with published professors on the influence of hip-hop on politics and the u.s. government's efforts to cure malaria during world war ii. on c-span 3, at 8:00 p.m., ssor -- ann arbor -- anderson university professor uses abraham lincoln's life. a discussion on margaret sanger her legacy, and the impact race social class and politics had on the birth-control movement. let us know what you think about the programs you are watching. call us. e-mail us, or send us a tweet.

join the conversation, like us on facebook, follow us on twitter. >> on c-span, "washington journal is next." the 114th congress returns. noon members begin legislative business. 114th congress. and at 9:15 a.m. eastern, our spotlight on magazines feces james fallous looking at the

state of the american armed forces. >> this is the people's house. this is the people's gavel. in the people's name, it's my privilege to hand it to the speaker of the house to the honorable john boehner. mr. speaker [applause.] >> that was the demonstration of the light spirit on capitol hill yesterday in the south and the senate as the transfer of leadership takes place as far as the senate is concerned and john boehner becomes speaker of the house once again on the house side even as smiles and handshakes and well wishes were happening, political differences started showing up as the white house threatened to veto bills on keystone xl