mr. pitts: yes, mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. pitts, and the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, h.r.

mr. pitts: with an amendment. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the motion. the clerk: union calendar number 196, h.r. 1254, a bill to amend the controlled substances act to place synthetic drugs in schedule i. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. pitts, and the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman may proceed. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, h.r. 1254 was introduced by my friend and colleague from pennsylvania, representative charlie dent, in response to a frightening trend of synthetic drug use in our communities. these synthetic drug

mr. pitts: mr. speaker, h.r. 2405, introduced by my colleague, mike rogers from michigan, would re-authorize certain provisions of the project bioshield act of 2004 and the pandemic and all-hazards preparedness act of 2006. these two laws help protect the united states against attacks from chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons. project bioshield authorizes -- authorize funds for the purpose of medical countermeasures to the special reserve fund and enables the secretary of health and human services to authorize the emergency use of medical product. pahpa created the biodefense advanced research and development authority within h.h.s. to help with the development of medical countermeasures and ensure communications between h.h.s. and the developers of the medical countermeasures. it created a position at h.h.s. to lead the government's efforts on the chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons preparedness and response with the assistant secretary for preparedness and resp

mr. pittsct to the vote on the grounds that a quorum is not present and make a point of order a quorum is not present. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. the pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentleman from texas, mr. poe. mr. poe: please join me 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. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain up to five requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. poe: madam speaker, the justice department appears to have gone rogue. instead of enforcing the law they seem to be wreck leslie encouraging violations of law. the justice departmen

mr. brad pitt? >> these kids asked me the other day. i asked them if it was because they wanted to have a big cake. >> reporter: did they ask you that? >> they have asked because they see movies that have, you know, people get married in the movies or somebody's, you know, the happily ever after. shrek and fiona are married, and we've explained to them our commitment when we decided to start a family was the greatest commitment you could possibly have. once you have six children, you're committed. >> reporter: while she is still committed to acting, jolie says there is much more on her road ahead. >> i just feel there's so many great actresses in the world, and they have so much to do, and they are doing great things, and they don't need me. i'm not -- i don't feel needed in a position of being an actor. i feel like i'm needed at home as a mom. i'd love to be able to write or direct or work on or produce more projects about issues dealing with situations that i feel passionate about. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm christiane amanpour

mr. brad pitt? kids ask me the other day and i asked them if it was just because they wanted to have a big cake. >> reporter: do they ask you that? >> they have asked, yeah. they see movies that have, you know, people get married in the movie, or somebody is, you know, the happily ever after. shrek and fiona are married. we explained to them, once you have six children, you're committed. >> reporter: and while she's still committed to acting, jolie says that there is much more on her road ahead. >> i don't feel needed in a position of being an actor. i feel like i'm needed at home as a mom. i would like to write and work on, produce more projects about issues dealing with situations that i feel passionate about. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm christiane amanpour in new york. >> "in the land of blood and honey" is in select theaters now. >>> up next, we interview a man who is just not like other guys. did you know you can be smart about your calorie intake, and still get the nutrition your body ne

mr. brad pitt. >>> the latest on charlie sheen's ex.xt after her cocaine arrest. >>> demi moore, why she's in tears. >>> tom cruise in mumbai, india, on his way to dubai, where mark steines is kicking off mission impossible monday. >>> the hollywood sex files and the new movie opening up the lid on addicts. "e.t." investigates the truth. >> is sex addiction real or an excuse to cheat? >>> about 10% who think they are sex addicts are. >>> why holidays are extra special for katherine heigl this year. >> we can build up anticipation for christmas morning. >>> what pregnant jessica simpson is eating. >> peanut butter is one of my main cravings. french fries, grilled cheese. chicken nuggets. >>> in depth on the biggest entertainment stories from around the world. >> hi, everybody and welcome to "entertainment tonight," i'm nancy o'dell. mark steines is on assignment. >>> she has the legs everybody wants. she seems to have it all, casting a spell on all of us with her classic beauty and fairy tale life with brad pitt and their six children. i

mr. pitts: mr. speaker, today the house will vote to extend critical provisions to help those seeking jobs and we will do so without hurting job creators or adding to our national debt. today's tax relief and compensation act extends the tax holiday, preventing a tax increase for millions of americans. i'm glad to see we extend the doc fix for two years. preventing cuts that could lead many doctors to stop seeing medicare patients. the bill also shows that the government doesn't have to spend money to create jobs. much of the time it just has to get out of the way. the state department has already declared that the planned route of the keystone pipeline is the safest option. that the contractor is taking every safety precaution. we can see more than 120,000 jobs directly and indirectly created without a dime of taxpayer money. our bill proves that you don't need to raise taxes on some americans to create jobs and provide essential benefits. we don't need to hurt job creators or add to future burdens

mr. pitts: mr. speaker, we are all well aware of the inadequacies of the sustainable growth rate formula as a payment policy for reimbursing physicians. unfortunately the greatest threat arguably facing the medicare program, if not the entire health care system, was left out of the new health reform law. in 2010 congress passed five temporary fixes to a pending physician payment cut. some were retroactive and some lasted mere weeks. in other words, congress kicked the can down the road five times last year. physician practices need more certainty than week to week patches. when this legislation becomes law, it will be the first multiyear fix to medicare physician rates since 2003. instead of just addressing the next oncoming payment cliff, the middle clacks -- class tax relief provides a level of stability and predictability in payments for providers not seen in years. and will allow congress and the administration to work together to develop a long-term answer to the medicare sustainable growth rat

mr. pitts: mr. speaker, we are all well aware of the inadequacies of the sustainable growth rate formula as a payment policy for reimbursing physicians. unfortunately the greatest threat arguably facing the medicare program, if not the entire health care system, was left out of the new health reform law. in 2010 congress passed five temporary fixes to a pending physician payment cut. some were retroactive and some lasted mere weeks. in other words, congress kicked the can down the road five times last year. physician practices need more certainty than week to week patches. when this legislation becomes law, it will be the first multiyear fix to medicare physician rates since 2003. instead of just addressing the next oncoming payment cliff, the middle clacks -- class tax relief provides a level of stability and predictability in payments for providers not seen in years. and will allow congress and the administration to work together to develop a long-term answer to the medicare sustainable growth rat

mr. pitts: mr. speaker, throughout this year house republicans have been fighting for job creation. the present administration has tried to downplay the effect new regulations will have on companies struggling in the weak economy. today's "wall street journal" documents efforts of the white house office on information and regulatory affairs to muddy the waters about regulations. the official obama administration compilation of regulation ignores significant institutions such as the national labor relations board and the securities and exchange commission. yet, the number of economically significant rules at all stages has risen to 149, a historic high. vast sections of industry are waiting to hear how the federal government will change the way they have to do business. how on earth can we expect them to hire new workers when they can't plan with this regulatory uncertainty? the administration can try to manipulate the numbers but there can be no doubt that the federal regulatory jagger knott is holding back -- jugger not is holding back job growth. i yield back. the speaker pro temp