mrs. mcmorris rodgers: good morning, everyone. we are continuing to monitor hurricane florence and urge everyone to take the necessary precautions and listen to the emergency responders to keep safe. good news in the house is the senate has done some work on the appropriations bills and that we will be passing three appropriations and get them enacted online -- or on time, and more to come. we also will be voting this week on the bipartisan infrastructure bill to strengthen nation's ports, waterways and dams. and today, the ways and means committee will mark up the tax cuts legislation to make permanent the tax cuts for families and businesses. for jobs and a booming economy, this majority is getting things one.

you know, for almost a decade, we have been asking -- where are the jobs? in 2013, o.m.b. had said to expect slower g.d.p. over the long term. slow growth was called the new normal. now, the american people didn't accept this new normal. neither did we. we promised a better way two years ago. at better.gop you can see all of the details of our work in the last two years and it's we need to keep this momentum because people and communities are better off today. people who are hit hardest during the recession are rejoining the work force. middle-class income hit an all-time high last year. wages are growing at the astest rate in nine years. small business optimism is off the charts. in my home state of washington, the average wage increase has hit a 10-year high. and a new study just showed

that washington state is leading this year's uptick in personal income growth. while democrats right now are running on raising taxes and taking this all away, our economy is breaking records with results that the republicans promised, and we aren't slowing down. this morning, very pleased to have ron estes from the fourth district of kansas with us today. the average family of four in his district will see a $2,000 in increased money in their pocket thanks to the tax cuts nd jobs act. he crisscrossed his district during the month of august, holding a whole host of forums and he's with us to share a little bit more about that. welcome, ron. mr. estes: well, thank you, and good morning. i want to echo the concerns, our thoughts and prayers are going out for the folks in the

path of hurricane florence. you know, i want to talk this morning about how folks in my district in south central kansas are better off now because of some of the great things we've done. as went through the district during the month of august and focused on how individuals' lives, how businesses, how farmers, how our veterans are better off, we focused on seeing the difference between having an economy that only grew at 1.9% during the obama administration versus now we're growing at 4.2%. and what that's translated into more communities, more jobs, more benefits for folks in my district. you know, we've had in kansas over 24 businesses that have publicly announced they're doing bonuses and/or pay raises for their employees. one of the businesses in my state, legacy bank, community-based bank, legacy bank is one of the recent ones that announced they're giving $1,000 bonuses per each employee. just this summer they announced that. in august i met with them and we kind of talked with some of the employees on the leadership team there and their message there without the tax cuts and jobs act they wouldn't have been able to do that. they wouldn't have been able to give that benefit to their

employees. what we're seeing is employees are getting can then be turned around in the community, buying an automobile, taking their family out to dinner, saving for retirement, saving for the college education for their kids. you know, wichita railway systems, which is a local railroad car supplier, announced what we think is the largest bonuses, $3,000 to 6,000 for their employees, it's a small distribution company that actually helps make sure our economy keeps moving forward. there's just so much now with the economic growth that rail lines are actually increasing the amount of traffic they have and they've seen an uptick in business from that standpoint. i don't want to talk only about the economy, only about the positive things from the tax cuts, because we've seen a lot of veterans in our military that are also better off now because of the priorities that we've put into this session. you know, by passing the v.a. mission act and by passing things like, you know, the affordable housing credit mprovement, what we've seen is

veterans, particularly veterans in my district, see benefits out of that. we have -- my district extends, ou know, 2 1/2 miles outside of wichita where the bob dole v.a. hospital is located. our veterans are having to rive in for routine checkups and they won't have to do that now with some of the options that they'll have with the mission act. instead of driving that much time, they're going to be able to actually see a local physician, which then helps their quality of life, but it also helps the rural doctor, the rural hospital in terms of

having additional patients to take care of. we also -- i had the opportunity to attend one of the housing developments, a couple of them, actually, that were being built using some tax credits that are specifically targeted towards veterans and targeted for the elderly. and at the ribbon cutting for one of the veterans there told the local media this is a miracle right here. god's done a lot of miracles in my life but this is one of the top ones. and it's phenomenal to see the things they have that are beneficial for them now because of some of the things that we've done in helping them. you know, altogether, a lot of these actions have encouraged just rapid growth in our economy, both in the state as well as throughout the country. i want to close talking a little bit of story about one of the other businesses in my district. b.g. products is located in wichita, kansas, headquartered in wichita, kansas. it's an automotive manufacturers group that was started by a bunch of world war ii veterans and auto industry folks. however, two years ago, b.g. products was at a crossroads trying to figure out where they would go. following the tax cuts and jobs act, b.g. products was able to push forward with new plans, putting those new tax savings directly towards a new building and new jobs. on august 24, b.g. products

broke ground on a 45,000 square foot new addition that will invest $24 million in the community and add 21 new jobs. that's 21 new families that will be better off because of he jobs that are improved. this kind of expansion would not be possible without the tax cuts and jobs act and some of the things we have done over he last year and a half. and so b.g. products is better off now, our economy is better off now, my district, south central kansas is better off now and the country is better off now because of the things we've done over the last year and a half. i want to say thank you for be able to talk about the things going on in my district. mr. scalise: thank you, ron. good morning, everybody. my prayers go out to those affected by hurricane florence. hen you see the size of this

hurricane, the first thing i would say is listen to your local leaders. when you hear governors talking about evacuations, please take heed because it's important, most important thing is to keep your family safe. you can shore up your house, take your pets with you, but if you're in the path of that storm and your local leaders are telling you to evacuate, please take heed and ultimately make sure you're safe and my office stands ready to help anybody that ultimately has to deal with the consequences. but hopefully everybody is safe through this tragic storm. i do want to talk about this great economy. you know, when you look at these numbers, seeing middle-class wages at an all-time high, seeing unemployment at an 18-year low, family wages going up, these are great results for the families across this country that we fought for, that

president trump fought for and it's working. in fact, the economy's doing so well that now you see barack obama trying to take credit for this great economic growth. i'm glad he recognizes that after eight years of a dismal economy, of high unemployment, of people having no opportunity we have finally been able to reverse so many of the radical regulations that barack obama put in place that killed the economy by cutting taxes and reversing all of the obama tax increases. we're seeing this great economic growth. people out there that are experiencing the positive effects of this growing economy know how it happened. they know it happened because we finally got regulations under control. they know it happened because we worked with president trump here in congress to cut taxes, to put more money back in their paychecks through both higher wages and lower taxes. that's why we're rebuilding our middle class. we want to keep that going. we don't want to reverse this success. and in fact, when you look at the contrast in this election, nancy pelosi is making to clear what she would do. she said she would reverse the tax cuts. she wants to lead a charge to abolish i.c.e. the people that keep our communities safe.

when i go around the country, especially when i go to swing districts, those families don't want nancy pelosi to take away heir tax cuts. they surely don't want to abolish ayes that would make our communities dangerous. and so, we need to make it clear throughout this what the contrast is. and while we are making this contrast, i think it's important that we maintain civility in our debate. you saw again this week an attack on a candidate for congress, based on his political views. there is no place in our society for violence or violence against people based on their political views and we need to be calling that out. not just republican leaders and democrat leaders need to be calling it out as well. this is the debatest country in the world.

we need to respect everybody's views. you resolve those differences at the ballot box. you don't resort to violence and when that happens, we need to stand against it. there is no place for it in our society. >> we want to send our prayers to the family who lost their loved wurns last night. mr. mccarthy: my hometown of bakersfield, six individuals lost their lives. bakersfield is unique in the aspect in these type of situations, we will come together as one to get through this and we continue to find more information why it took place. i want to keep in mind those who are facing the hurricane florence today. we had a busy week and a lot scheduled and we will be

departing today after the vote on the appropriation bill so members can catch their flights back to their districts. some are still in their districts, but i want to make sure everyone has the opportunity. there is a lot of important work being done as you heard from the other members. there is a real members between the results that have happened in this congress, the results overcoming the resistance from the other side. every day we learn more and more of new statistics and new facts of an economy getting stronger. yesterday about the middle income being higher, poverty levels going down. that is the difference that this congress and this administration has been able to achieve. but we have more work to do. another new fact that you are going to have is you are going to find that we are going to get our appropriation process finished, something that congress hasn't done in a few decades. the senate voted last night and ave it coming through today.

one that ron talked about is the v.a. mission act. we will improve the v.a. making sure the best employees can rise up and those who are not reaching the quality level that they should. mission act actually looks for the veterans themselves at the local location at the same time. we also look at the american water infrastructure act. very important, more than $3 billion of goods move every single day and building for the future when it comes to infrastructure as well. we know we'll have more work to do when we come back but we want to make sure it guess to the president's desk and as we sit and work with this administration and those who have been before, that we are prepared for the hurricanes when it comes to protect them in the beginning and help build after the aftermath.

>> first off, i want to say we are thinking about the people in hurricane florence's wake, people in the carolinas. the speaker: coastal folks don't need me to tell them how to handle a storm but i would be remiss, please listen to your local officials and please encourage people to follow all local emergency orders. our thoughts and prayers are with the people in the path of this hurricane. we will keep monitoring this storm and congress will assist the people in these affected areas. now we're here because we are doing some really important things on the floor today. this minibus conference report is a national security bill. it is a veterans' bill. it provides critical funding to rebuild our infrastructure and strengthens our infrastructure

grid and puts historic resources behind reforms to improve health care at the v.a. that is a critical part of our better way agenda. and i cannot stress this enough. this represents a return to our most basic responsibility around here, passing appropriation bills. since we are doing this, this is the first time since 2007 that the house and the senate will send multiple appropriation measures to the president's desk on time. so we are seeing a restoration of regular order, which is extremely important to make the house and senate work well. this is how it should always be done. so it really is a big step in the right direction and we are going to build on this. lastly, this has been a great week for economic news. yesterday, we got news that needian household income has

increased. this comes on the heels showing wages have increased. the bottom line is this, americans are earning more and finances are improving, people are better off. this is what matters. we can do a lot of work here in washington, but what counts how these policies improve people's limbs and we see another sign we are on the right track, that the policies we have put in place in this congress are improving people's lives. gop. better. [inaudible] the speaker: thank you for bringing it up. >> i wanted to touch on something you talked about and that is erosion in civil institutions. first i wanted to ask you about

-- [inaudible] >> to discuss prevention of sexual abuse and you are a prominent catholic and your reaction on that and talk to you about the president in a tweet this morning that challenged a report that said 3,000 people died in puerto rico and he said it was the democrats trying to make him look bad and only 16 people died. you have been to puerto rico. the speaker: casualties don't make a person look bad. i have no reason to dispute these numbers. i was in puerto rico after the hurricane. i toured the entire island and it's an isolated island and lost power for a long time. you couldn't get to people for a long time because roads were washed out, power was gone and the casualties mounted for a

long time. so i have no reason to dispute those numbers. those are the facts of what happens when a horrible hurricane hits an isolated place like an island. the other point you made, this is very disturbing. first, we need to think about the victims and make sure that the victims get the help they need. second, as a practicing catholic, the last thing that this needs to be is relegated between the catholic left and catholic right. this needs to be elevated to truth and justice. that means cleanse the problem with total transparency and total accountability so that the healing can begin and the church can renew itself. it is a very disturbing development and i pray and hope that the church gets this right. i think the cardinal who is the i in galveston, from what

can see is on the right track and i pray for him as he goes to the vatican today and. >> do you believe these leaders are trust worth? the speaker: i don't know the facts. but the facts need to come out, that's the point i'm trying to make. [indiscernible] >> i'm curious what you think of the increasingly nasty tone of pac.ds including the super e ad accused a candidate a ping out gaddafi and hip-hop -- the speaker: i legally cannot

contact any super p arch c about what they do or don't know. we are legally prohibited from discussing ads with super pacs. i think you know me pretty well. i abhor identity politics. i don't think it's good for the country or society. and i think campaigns are most successfully run about talking about ideas. we have a really good record to run on. look at the phenomenal ideas that we have put into place and making a big difference in peoples ease lives and look how far left the democrats are going. hey want to abolish i.c.e. and repeal the economic policies that made this economy great. we have a great contrast to run on. i don't think identity politics should be played by anybody innocent. > if that super pac is

exploiting identity -- will you stop take money? the speaker: you can't legally coordinate with a super p.a.c. >> obviously -- does it disturb you that the president made that claim and you think he owes the families -- the speaker: there is no reason to dispute these numbers. and it's a function of this devastating storm that hit an isolated island and that is no one's fault. that is just what happened. >> you are talking about the minibus in the appropriations process. the one that is on the floor today, walker said they were shut out of conversations and conservatives would like to see the policy priorities --

[indiscernible] >> would like to see their priorities reflected like the riders in the house bill. and unless this is done, many members will find it difficult to support it. are you concerned about getting conservative riders? the speaker: i think we have a great amount of victories for our members. we are funding the v.a. mission act is a perfect example. done the way the house wanted to get it done. so when you are negotiating with two parties in four corners, you are not going to get everything you want. that is how negotiation, compromise and legislation works. this passed 94-5. i think the senate vote speaks for itself. >> last question. >> you talked about the storm here. i know last year when you moved bills on harvey, it went better than what happened with

hurricane sandy. and in this pending need after the hurricane here, do you think that -- [indiscernible] >> you will probably have to do a supplemental bill and moved past what kinds of bill the sandy bill a few years ago? the speaker: there were things in the sandy bill that members didn't think it deserved to be in a disaster supplemental bill. the harvey and maria bills were much cleaner bills and also we have plused up the fema accounts. so right now, fema has money in the pipeline. i think we are better prepared. you never know what is going to be needed until you have gone through a disaster. in the realm of possibilities, of course it is. they are disasters that we don't

forget. we have the disaster relief fund. but sometimes big storms exceed those averages and we appropriately respond. over the last two supplementals, i think we had much cleaner bills getting the aid where it was needed and we are doing a better job omit gation and get -- the wrda bill is passing today which is water infrastructure. but that helps provide mitigation so that levees don't break and reservoirs are constructed and don't have the devastation we had before. thank you. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2018] captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy.

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>> the house doesn't meet until tuesday september 25. the senate is back on monged at 2:00 p.m. with two bills, one to epidemic,.opioid as always, live coverage of the house here on c-span and the senate live on c-span 2. >> here's a look at our prime time schedule. starting at 8:00 p.m. eastern, members of the senate judiciary committee hold a business meeting to discuss judge kavanaugh's nomination to the supreme court. on c-span 2, the house ways and means committee debates on several tax cut proposals. congressional members attend a leadership summit hosted by the

congressional hispanic caucus. this weekend, c-span cities tour takes you to lake charles, louisiana. we'll explore the history of lake charles. saturday at noon eastern on book tv, here about lake charles grew to one of the country's top anufacturers of chemicals. >> oil and gas has been a big part of southwest louisiana as far as the exploration and discovery but it came more to fruition with the actual refining of oil. because we had the ideal situation we were suited in terms of where rail lines crossed, where barge lines were connected, where the water -- water was able to be moved in and out. >> on sunday at 2:00 p.m.

eastern on american history tv, visit to the small and predominantly african-american community of mossville. >> this was a beautiful community. we had everything. and it was family, church, schools, grocery stores and people begin to get better jobs for their children and it could be better in the future for the next generation. > watch c-span cities' tour of lake charles, louisiana. and sunday at 2:00 p.m. eastern on c-span 3. working for our cable affiliates as we explore america. >> what does it mean to be american? that's this year's student cam competition question. asking middle and high school students to produce a short

documentary about a constitutional right, national characteristic or historic event and explain how it defines the american experience. we are awarding $100,000 in total cash prizes and grand prize of $5,000. this year's deadline is january 20, 2019. for more information go to our website at studentcam.org. >> with hurricane florence expected to make landfall in 24 hours, military officials gave an update on preparations and contingency plans for potential rescue operations. from the pentagon, this is 40 minutes.

>> we are monitoring storms. and receiving highlights. and response efforts and currently have been approved. secretary is receiving reports throughout the day on actions the military services are protecting the safety and well-being of the military community and ensure the readiness of d.o.d.'s readiness. hurricane florence is a dangerous storm and we encourage anyone and those in our military communities in the path of the storm to heed the warning of state, local and d.o.d. installation first. d.o.d. installation officials have the expertise, knowledge and authorities to provide the best guidance to ensure the safety of our military members and their families and ensure the readiness of these installations to provide immediate response support to local communities. the department has moved ships,

aircraft and helicopters to safeguard them from the effects of the storm and preserve their mission capability. these assets will return once the storm has passed and will support the response as feeded. the department is working very closely with administrator long and prepared to assist fema and our other federal partners in supporting the affected regions. our operation centers are ready to respond and assist with military capabilities as requested. the general will discuss these efforts in greater detail shortly. the department has significant military capability along the eastern seaboard with major d.o.d. installations in the carolinas and virginia. secretary mattis has preapproved requests for life sustaining actions in order to make d.o.d. capabilities immediately available to our federal partners. the department is fully engaged