of the cobra subsidy on a timely basis. the health reform legislation would eliminate this problem on a more permanent basis. this is how it would do that. if somebody lost their jobs, they could go into a marketplace, and exchange, and in the exchange, there would be a variety of different health plans. they could select one of the health plans that are suitable to them. if they have moderate income, as somebody who has lost their job is likely to have, they would receive a tax credit subsidy to help pay the premium. it is no longer going to be necessary that you have to get the same plan that you had three or employer. you would be able to select what makes sense for you and you'll be able to get a subsidy. you will not have to deal with cobra in the future. that is the long-term solution. if and when health care reform passes, it will not be implemented right away. that is way extending this cobra subsidy is so important host: dallas, on our independent line, go ahead. caller: i have insurance but i have two friends that

cobra is what you pay when you're employed.you lose your job, you pay cobra to keep your insurance, and you have to pay your employer contribution. almost nobody can do that after they lost their job for very long. that's why the subsidy that we nut the stimulus package back in february, that's why the subsidy that we want to put in this against authorization bill is so darn important to so many americans. because carole remains unemployed, and she suffers from minor thyroid problems an high blood pressure, her insurance options are limited. she decide to pay the full cobra premium in december. while they delay -- while they say, let's slow down on the other side of the aisle, carole thinks, let's see, my premium went up several hundred dollars, if i cancel, i won't ever have insurance. if i dig deep and don't heat my house as warm, don't eat as well for the next few days, next few weeks, i'll pay more. i hope congress passes this so she can get the better rate again. that's what delay says. delay for their little -- for their

guest: some people have already lost their cobra subsidy.those people who started getting the subsidy in march when the program began, it ran out at the end of november. starting december 1, they no longer are receiving the subsidy. the house of representatives apparently will be taking up a jobs bill in the next two weeks. i have heard from both in the leadership that they are really interested in including an extension of the subsidy as part of that bill. the senate is focused on the broader health reform legislation. i can perhaps explain that. that health reform legislation would permanently fix this problem. in the interim, people are going to need some relief. in the senate, they probably will continue the debate on health reform up to sometime close to christmas they can then deal with some of the other bills, including the jobs bill. my inclination is that the senate will deal with this in january. for those people whose cobra subsidy has expired, my hope is that they will get some retroactive relief. i am afraid some people will rem

please help push through the cobra extension and continuation of the arra cobra subsidy. it is an immediate fix for so many families who will surely gain employment over the next six months, now that the economy has finally taken an upswing. those are the things that make us all cry real tears and makes wasn't to pass this rule and go tonton passing this legislation. i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizing the gentleman from california. mr. mcnerney: i think we promise our constituents to do everything we possibly could to see that they were well cared for and that the government is acting on their behalf. if we are looking at a rule and whether it's going to be applied and that becomes the most important promise of all, we have fergetting about the well-being of americans, of whom there are 35 million unployed and there are tens of thousands unemployed or underemployed my promise to those people is that i will do everything i possibly can to see that they have a job. this rule allows us to get to that. it allow

we also extend to february february 28th the benefits associated with cobra. 65% of cobra health insurance for individuals have lost their jobs in this will help american danley's deal with the pressures that they are facing. and it also provides funding for the supplemental nutrition assistance program or snap program including $400 million to other states effectively administer the program and speed up processing applications. using reports in the press where the individual families who never in their life.they would be needing nutrition assistants, who now have to depend upon not to keep their families fed. and that's something we have to respond to. this is a problem and it has reached out across the country and up into middle income families that never in their life thought they'd be needing and actually relying upon food assistance like this. ..

i have been on cobra for almost nine months, i am paying $1,400 a month and get 1700 a month in unemployment. i am going to the poorhouse. i hope that they will go back a little bit if they extend it, because how is it that been laid off longer makes you ineligible for the help? this is obscene in my mind. it makes no sense whatsoever. provided in the recovery legislation only applied to people who started being without a job since september of 2008. that is why we need health reform to fix this problem on a permanent basis. this is so a person like the caller does not experience this rightful indignation he has because by happenstance of two or three weeks, he does not get the relief that he desperately needs. . >> tomorrow, author charles stevenson talks about how the war is financed. then, a discussion on president obama's plan for sending more troops to afghanistan with scott wilson of the washington post. also, and looked at by's economy and its impact on other -- a look at dubai's economy with andrew ross sorkin. live at 7:00 a.m. eastern here on c-span. >> this week on "the communicat

right now we just ran an operation, cobras anger, up at now zad.we killed a dozen or so, but we think most of them tried to e&e the area. we got word recently there may be some foreign fighters that are coming in. that will be harder than it had been there in the first place. it is a mixed bag. it is important to them, they are going to stay and fight for it. if it is not, they are an insurgent. >> can you talk about the osprey and utilization rate in afghanistan. in iraq they were still sort of getting used to how to fully load the aircraft. >> i will start with our three deployments of osprey into iraq, one on the heels of the other. we then took a break and put it aboard ship with the meu that went into the centcom theater. it was there for availability. but from our on internal purposes, we were finding out a lot about salt sea air and systems aboard ship and all that type think that we needed to answer for the long-term use of the aircraft aboard the in the use -- in the's. when that meu left the theater, it flew its ospreys into afghanistan.

we're talking now about cobra, the extension of insurance coverage for people that are hurting, they're laid off or unemployed. that's another government initiative that was enacted by congress. and i'm sure there were some folks who thought, well, let's not extend -- let's not use government to extend health insurance. but in this case -- in this case, it was helpful to this family. but it wasn't enough. it wasn't enough. here's what stacie keeps on going with her letter. "after spending all our savings to pay the mortgage and other basic living expenses, we had to rely on credit cards" -- so we have a health care system that forces stacie ritter and lots of other families in america to rely upon credit cards so they can get the health care for their daughters who have leukemia and make ends meet so they can pay the mortgage and all the other things they have to pay for, for themselves and those two daughters and their son. that's what this health care system has forced them to do. this isn't unambiguous. this is exactly the result of the worst parts of our health care system. but this

i ask this house to quickly pass the bill to extend those cobra premiums subsidies for six months. take a woman in my district. she pays $535 for her 35% share of the premium. it will go over $1,500 very soon if we do not act. and she has a pre-existing condition and must keep on her health care plan. hundreds have contacted my office regarding this, and i ask this house to quickly help as we come out of this savaging recession. it's not just economic security, but it's health security we must address. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. lungren: madam speaker, yesterday was a historic day. it will be a day which lives in economic infamy. the e.p.a. administer yesterday announced that endangerment finding. yes, co-2 is now a pollutant. that means everyone in this chamber, anyone out there who might be hearing us, you are now pollute

new law expands cobra coverage.nds ever unemployed workers won't have to worry about starting the new year without health insurance. president obama has signed legislation that will allow laid off workers to receive subsidized cobra premiums for up to 15 months. previously the subsidy expired after nine months. the extension included in the defense spending bill approved by congress over the weekend and signed by the president on monday also extended the cutoff for eligibility for the cobra subsidy to february 28, 2010 from december 31. with unemployment at 25-year high, it -- >> we'll leave this recorded portion of today's washington journal to take you live to the capitol for news conference with senate democrats on the health care bill. earlier the senate agreeing to move forward with the bill on a party-line vote of 60-39. oklahoma republican jim inhofe, the only senator not to vote this morning. now senate democrats react to today's vote and talk about what lies ahead for the health care measure. live coverage

inc., in cooperation >> the house voted to approve the bill to expand unemployment benefits, extend cobrah insurance, prevent public sector employees from being laid off, and expanding infrastructure project. the house has been hit -- the house has finished its legislative business for the year. >> at all part of the bill -- the matter are the cuts to medicare, the $400 billion in tax increases, and the fax and insurance premiums are going to go up dramatically for most americans. >> follow every minute of the debate from the senate floor with late nights and possibly another weekend session live on our companion network, c-span2, the only network to cover the senate gavel-to-gavel with no commercials or commentator. the updates from reporters. for iphone users, hear the debate with the news c-span radio iphone app come up with archival video. go to c-span's health care hub. >> in a few moments, the hearing on the unintentional release of documents from the transportation security administration. in a little more than an hour, several speeches from delegates to the u.n. climate change con

much different from other people. .5 in the ways and means committee where we have jurisdiction over cobra, this is another step to -- worse still if there are stick people in your family and you don't have health insurance but the federal government says, can we give you a hand with your responsibility to pay for health care? and that's what we've done our committee. we've taken unemployment benefits. you know, you can get enough checks for the -- the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. rangel: thank you, mr. chairman. it's not just to make certain we have a place for our kids to learn, to become the leaders of tomorrow. but also that people can get bricks and mortar and rebuild those schools and renovate those schools and that's what we're doing. we've been able to make certain that at least the ways and means committee can join in with the other committees under the leadership of our great speaker and dave obey to be able to say, this is not all we want to do, this is all we can do. maybe over the holidays you might

new lot expands cobra coverage.housands of unemployed will not have to worry about starting the new year without health insurance. president obama signed legislation allowing laid off workers to receive subsidized over premiums for up to 15 months. previously the subsidy expired after nine months. the extension included in defense spending bill approved by congress of the weekend and signed by the present monday, also extended cut off for eligibility for cobra subsidy to february 28, 2010, from december 31, with unemployment at 25-year high, 1 and 14 million are eligible for subsidized cobra coverage. long beach, new york, and joe on the independent line. caller: i didn't want to call but i have just been so angry. i have just been angry at you using the word debate. are you watch in the debate? there is no debate. what we see out front have nothing to do what is going on. it is in the back room where the deals are being made, where votes are being bought, where payola is taking place. this is the worst of the worst

while we are talking about health care, let me show you the story in "the new york times" about cobraheir jobs, the covert program allows you to buy in and extends coverage. patrick magee and reporting the federal subsidy paid two-thirds of premiums, enabling this particular person to maintain the cover she had before she was laid off in november of 2008. it was to avert the loss of insurance -- later on, the federal at the city -- advocacy chordata said she expected conference to extend a subsidy by early dinner. but probably done by including extension or reauthorization of the subsidy in one of the big year-end spending bills that are pending. with the senate still -- still debating an overhaul of the country's health care system, there is no time to take up cobra as a separate matter. it is hard for congress to have both conversation at the same time. you are not going to take a break from health care to discuss health care. open phones. barnett, new jersey. on the shore. the public mind. caller: although at my age i am not a player in this, abortions are legal. they can't just ma

speaker, that we may be table expect certain things like cobra, u.i. extension, and others that he believes, i imagine, would be part of a stimulus effort and would wonder whether we could expect any of the items that we presented as republicans to the majority, we could expect any of the iitems we expected -- explained in that no cost jobs plan, to also be part of what may come to the floor next week? i yield. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding. let me say, with respect to cobra and unemployment insurance, i wouldn't call that a stimulus plan. i would call it a tourniquet plan to try to stop the bleeding of some people who have been badly damaged by thing extraordinary depths to which this economy fell starting in december of 2007, leading to unemployment in the last year, the last month of the last administration, 741,000 people, jobs lost. as the gentleman knows this past month, we had only 11,000 jobs lost. that's significant progress, but not success until we get into creating jobs. we clearly believe that one of the important things we

even with this cobra, many people find with the cobra provision in here which gives people a chance tobuy insurance at a discount it is still too expensive. there they are desperately looking for a job. we certainly don't want to put them in a situation where there's a question mark as to whether after december 31 the unemployment check will be there next month. and i think it's that peace of mind which we owe these folks who are caught up in the bad circumstances of our economy. ms. stabenow: if i might just conclude, mr. president. i we could get this done today. we could create a peace of mind for those going into the holidays and into christmas and the end of the year. we could do that in the nieks hours is that correct -- is that correct? mr. durbin: earlier we were embroiled in the reading of an amendment that would have consumed the entire day and forced us into another day's time an run the risk of not providing money for the troops when the continuing resolution -- the funding resolution ran out. well, the senator from vermont withdrew his amendment and now we moved to this bi

many workers talked to me that they are talking about their cobra subsidies and they are laid off. there are many critical things in this bill. this is time to get it passed. people ask all the time, when are you going to get something done in washington? as far as i'm concerned, this is something we have to get done and we need to get back to work today. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from maine reserves the balance of her time. the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i now yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished gentleman from california and ranking member of the rules committee, mr. dreier. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. dreier: thank you very much, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the gentleman is recognized. mr. dreier: madam speaker, my friend from maine is absolutely right. this is a very, very challenging time with people who are -- f

speaker, that we may be table expect certain things like cobra, u.i. extension, and others that he believes, i imagine, would be part of a stimulus effort and would wonder whether we could expect any of the items that we presented as republicans to the majority, we could expect any of the iitems we expected -- explained in that no cost jobs plan, to also be part of what may come to the floor next week? i yield. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman for yielding. let me say, with respect to cobra and unemployment insurance, i wouldn't call that a stimulus plan. i would call it a tourniquet plan to try to stop the bleeding of some people who have been badly damaged by thing extraordinary depths to which this economy fell starting in december of 2007, leading to unemployment in the last year, the last month of the last administration, 741,000 people, jobs lost. as the gentleman knows this past month, we had only 11,000 jobs lost. that's significant progress, but not success until we get into creating jobs. we clearly believe that one of the important things we

caller: we pay jobless benefits or extend cobra benefits to people for another 30 days or 60 days or 90 days and then what? in other words, we are either going to have to pay down the debt or invest that money in companies actually creating jobs and putting people back to work. i don't see how it benefits us in the long term. they keep extending unemployment benefits. believe me, i understand the pain. i have been unemployed and i know what it is like. but ultimately people want to work. people within the workforce, have been working for five, 15, 30 years, they don't want to sit at home and collect unemployment. and the sooner we get those people back to work the sooner they will be paying taxes into the system and if we are not going to do that, invest in small businesses, pay down the debt. host: i misspoke. the health subsidies under which the federal government pays 65% of insurance costs under coburg up to nine months have expired and not available to the newly unemployed. jennifer, be think the extra money should be used for jobs? why is that? caller: basic economic lot. when

one thing is concern,%a)@ @ @ @ 5 in the ways and means committee where we have jurisdiction over cobrathis is another step to -- worse still if there are stick people in your family and you don't have health insurance but the federal government says, can we give you a hand with your responsibility to pay for health care? and that's what we've done our committee. we've taken unemployment benefits. you know, you can get enough checks for the -- the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. rangel: thank you, mr. chairman. it's not just to make certain we have a place for our kids to learn, to become the leaders of tomorrow. but also that people can get bricks and mortar and rebuild those schools and renovate those schools and that's what we're doing. we've been able to make certain that at least the ways and means committee can join in with the other committees under the leadership of our great speaker and dave obey to be able to say, this is not all we want to do, this is all we can do. maybe over the holidays you might g

benefits for more than 17 million americans, made health insurance 65% cheaper for families relying on cobraassistance that has saved theç jobs of hundreds of thousands of teachers and public school workers, firefighters and police officers. çthe last third of the recovery act is for investments to put americans to work doing the?m( work that america needs done --ç doubling our capacityç in renewable energy like wind and solar, computerizing medical records to save money and lives, providing the largest boost to medical research in history, renovating classrooms and school laboratories, and oo3upgrading roads and railwayss part of the largest investment inw3xgn infrastructure since the creation of the interstate highway system half a century ago. and even as the recovery act has created jobs and spurred growth, we have not let up in our efforts to take every responsible action to get the economy growing and america working. this fall, i signed into law more than $30 billion in tax cuts for struggling businesses, extended an effective tax credit for homebuyers, and provided additional unem

you don't need cobra. i dealt with that when i left the bench to run for congress. and it was too expensive for a guy who was running for congress who cashed out all his assets except his home and cars to run for congress full-time because i knew we needed to make changes here. so even though it's been reported out of i think 32 members of congress from texas, i have the least assets of my nem from texas. i think i'm the richest guy in the world because of the friends and people i get to represent and the people with whom i deal with in east texas. but it's not going to be so good . we have hard times, but it's going to be worse, not even going to be this good if this massive drain on the economy, government takeover of this much of the economy kicks in at the worst possible time. on the other end, coming back to my bill, for seniors, we are getting it scored what it would cost if all seniors elected to and went to having the vernment put cash money in a n catastrophic policy above that. it's their policy. they control it. and if they don't spend all of the h.s.a. m

likewise provisions were included to extend the 65% cobra health insurance subsidy from 9 to 15 months for individuals who have lost their jobs and to extend the job loss eligibility date also through february 28, 2010. further, a provision was included to freeze the department of health and human services poverty guidelines at 2009 levels in order to prevent a reduction in eligibility for programs like medicaid, food stamps and school lunch programs through march 1 of next year. this provision keeps struggling families from falling through the cracks. in addition, provisions were included to provide $125 million to extend the recovery act program for small businesses. the program reduces lending fees to borrowers under the small business administration guaranteed loan programs and increases the fellow guarantee on certain small business loans. the recovery act supported a resurgence in s.b.a. small business lending but funds were exhausted in november. the additional funding in this bill will help support lending to small business during the economic recovery by continuing fee relief

we could have gone on cobra, but it would cost double what we're paying and we couldn't meet that cost. mr. president, as you know, we have worked throar the cost of -- worked to lower the cost of cobra and hope to be able to continue that lower cost in legislation that will be coming up shortly. but it's still very expensive. we're lucky because michigan has a program for children so we didn't have to worry about our daughter's coverage. when we went to look for insurance for my husband and me, the prices were steep or we were denied because of my preexisting condition. one of the things that we're going to change. right now going the doctor is next to impossible. but to see a specialist is like asking for the moon. we know that we are highly blessed. my husband has a job. but that is more -- that is more than a lot of people have. we just want affordable health insurance and we don't mind paying for it. it just doesn't seem like too much to ask, does it? no, jennifer, it's not too much to ask. and that's what we are all about. we are all about putting together a plan and that's what'

however, when her cobra option runs out, which is going to be the end of this year, she will be unable to buy an insurance plan from her current carrier. that's because breast cancer is considered a pre-existing condition until the patient is cancer free for five years under her plan. but the rub is that once she is cancer free for five years and able to qualify for insurance under her current plan, she will face a monthly premium of over over $2,000 for a plan that has a huge deductible. health care for judith will simply be out of reach. now, mr. president, you and i both know cancer doesn't discriminate. this could happen to any of us. i also recently heard from colleen connors, a woman who lives in my hometown of madbury, new hampshire. like so many others, she struggled with our ailing health care system. she was born with a hip condition and she suffered from several other medical problems including lupus and scoliosis. as a result, she has also been denied coverage because of her pre-existing conditions. and, you know, i heard my colleague from oklahoma talking about the people

keeping the heat on, putting food on the table, and possibly trying to keep health care going with a cobra payment or in some other fashion. objection four was the republican filibuster of the lilly ledbetter fair act, to make sure women get equal pay for equal work. the republicans filibustered that bill but we passed it. we passed a very important equal pay for equal work bill, in spite of it. objection 6 was to the american recovery and reinvestment act, which has been absolutely critical to creating jobs, keeping our economy out of a depression. they filibustered that bill three times as well but we overcame the objections, passed the rove act an recovery act ane critical investigations in transportation, in our schools, in our police officers and in clean energy technology and manufacturing. and, yes, we are seeing the difference, mr. president, in michigan right now. $2 billion that was part of the recovery act. i'm pleased to say that we have received a large part of that in michigan to develop new battery technology, manufacturing. and we have at least six different firms that have

the children's health insurance program and cobra, continuation of health coverage.while imperfect would achieve many of her late's husband's goals and wants to see it passed. let's go to california with grace on the independent line. caller: yes, i have never voted a çstraight ticket in my life. and i have always voted for theç betterment and the change çof the country that i felt çwas going to benefit the most people. i agree with what ted kennedy stood for. it is better to have half a loaf than nothing. we have many experiences of looking at other countries that are far less affluent than we are. and they are doing much better in their health care. if you look at sweden, if you look at canada, france, now i understand that we can find money to fight wars. then why can't we find money to] take care of our own? host: joey, republican line from i]rhode island. caller: hi, about the kennedy half loaf. that the fine, i feel that, well as far as kennedy, nixon wanted to do health care, a sv republican, and no way we won't do it on your watch. and this hasn't been goi

there is no victory in blocking the extension of cobra health insurance subsidies in this bill from people who lost their job, their health care, and may be in danger of losing everything -- everything they've worked for. especially at this time the year. as i think about this time of the year, mr. president, it's not a stretch to look at the delaying tactics of our friends on the other side of the aisle on this legislation and think of that famous christmas movie, "a christmas carole" and think of ebebbenezer scrooge when asked r a contribution replied, what? are there no poor houses? our colleagues on the other side are holding on so tightly to their tactics, they forget the democratic values they professed so clearly to protect. i urge my colleagues on the other side to seek victory not in delay and obstruction, but in doing what's right for the american people. do what's right for our military men and women who will spend this holiday season in iraq and afganistan in harm's way. and assay if -- and i say if the tables were turned, my colleagues on the other side would come to the floor

she was able to scrape enough money together to pay for cobra coverage, but catarina told me that she didn't dare go to the doctor because she knew she wouldn't be able to afford the co-pays. so although she was technically covered right now, in practice, neither she nor her child had access to true health care or preventative services. and she found that living that way had some real consequences. last month, she told me she got an eye infection and eventually had to go to the doctor for treatment. she said after all of her out-of-pocket costs and still with no job and no income, she had to make some very serious and very tough choices about her family's food and clothing budget. and who knows what would have happened if catarina or her child got seriously ill? mr. president, our broken health insurance system is failing catarina, and she is not alone. millions of people have lost jobs in this current recession. millions of families have been tossed out of their employers' plans, families who had health care, who felt secure all of a sudden understand how broken the system really is

i'm going through cobra nightmare bills from 2006 and i have no idea who is paying what and what is coveredre is also reimbursement, too. it is not free, you pay out-of- pocket. it is a limited amount and that is because of the mass of taxes. host: the prices are determined by the parties involved? guest: that i don't know. host: are there enough doctors to meet the needs of those in france? guest: so far, it seems so. there is an artificial cap on their salary. they don't make a lot of money. if you watch michael morris "sicko," a portrait france as a paradise. that is too much of a gloss over what happens there. french doctors don't generally get compensated on a super high level but they seem happy when i interact with them. part of the reason is that they don't really have malpractice there. there's not a big civil lawsuit kind of system as we have in america. i would not a advocate for that for us. host: so they don't have to pay a lot for insurance protection. guest: this is why they can keep costs down. that cost is reflected in the cost of care and the salaries of doctors. we cannot

at that time he was diagnosed he had been laid off from his job and could not afford cobra coverage and this is what his brother said, when he was in the enough pain to see a doctor, when he was in the enough pain to see a doctor was too late. he left his wife and two teenage sons in the prime of his life that 50-years-old. the attending physician said if he had only sought treatment earlier he would still be alive, and of quote from his brother. madam president, how radically, tragically, that same story is being told in every state in this country over and over again. if only he had gone to the doctor in time he could have lived but he didn't have any health insurance. that shouldn't be taking place in the united states of america in the year 2009. and the problem extends beyond even the thousands who die every single gear needlessly. many authors suffered needless disabilities, strokes that leave them paralyzed because they couldn't afford treatment for their high blood pressure or imputations, blindness or kidney failure from under treat diabetes. infants are born disabled because t

then this safety net of things -- which is it is 6 month extension of unemployment insurance, cobra benefits, possibly other extensions -- for food stamps. then there are other items that may or rain not be included, including a jobs part. the state assistance to government to help them with layoffs of firefighters and police. >> why are some of these provisions a priority for house democrats? >> they do not want to go into the brake -- they are insistent that after they passed health care that their focus is on jobs, jobs, jobs. they want to get something into this package that they can tell their constituents that they did focus on jobs before they left. whether extending unemployment insurance or food stamps alone is going to do it or whether there will be infrastructure pieces for a jobs creation peace, we will see how that plays out. >> we understand that speaker nancy pelosi will lead a delegation to copenhagen. what impact might that have on the house's ability to get its work done? >> if she goes, she will be taking at least 20 members with her. republicans really are going to vote a

. -- whether cobra benefits, extension of unemployment, etc. these are just some of the ideas.am sure there are similar great ideas from the other panels. i do not think anyone here today has any illusions about the challenges we face as a country. there is no silver bullet to reduce an unemployment rate that has surpassed 10%. that figure is completely unacceptable. to the president and everyone in this administration. this gathering is an important part of the economic recovery process that began even before president obama was sworn into office, and it will continue until every single american who wants a job as a job. we welcome any idea that to help create jobs, whether comes from the left, right, business leaders, labor, or academics and nonprofits. that is an attitude that begins at the very top with president barack obama. all of the president's domestic initiatives, reforming health care and expanding credit access to businesses and families, are designed to make existing businesses more competitive, viable, creating new businesses, and ultimately putting people back t

that larger meeting that we need to extend safety nets in terms of a common plan of insurance and cobra extensions. obviously the president discussed increases in exports as well as continued aid to the states and localities and there may be other targeted ideas the administration works through between now and even the beginning of the year. i think the dialogue will continue to read discussing with members of congress from both parties about how we can best address the situation. >> maxine waters says he doesn't pick up the phone to call members. does that bader the president? >> does it bother the president would come that she said that? i don't think it's true. >> of the epa carbon dioxide were willing, some businesses expressed concerns about more regulation in terms of jobs. is the white house believe in any way that these regulations could have a positive benefit? >> there's no question. first of all this was a process started malta under the cpa but under the previous cpa based on supreme court decision handed down in 2007 that required the epa to look into this. secondly, i thin

airs, actively practicing doctors in this country because not only will it increase payments, but cpt cobra been protected. it's ama gathers from the payment system that continues to be fostered in this bill. it's their main source of revenue. >> can i ask my colleagues indulgence for just a moment because as you know, the majority leader seems to appear more and more frantic as he perhaps his reasoning the same polls that we are that more and more americans when they figure out this legislation are becoming more and more opposed to it. so yesterday the majority leader came out and directly addressed me, saying quote, this man talks about earmarks but his amendment is one big earmark to the insurance industry and in addition to that sponsored the amendment, talking about me, during his presidential campaign talked about cutting these monies and, you know, i hate to -- i say to my colleagues take a trip down memory lane. but at the time, and this of course was then echoed by dnc spokesperson who then upload it throughout the blogosphere and the left-wing liberal blogs. and the fact is that o

discussed in that larger meeting that we need to extend safety nets in terms of unemployment insurance and cobraions. obviously the president discussed increases in both exports as well as continued aid to states and locates and there may be other targeted ideas that the administration works through between now and even the beginning of the year. i think that dialogue will continue, discussing, excuse me, with members of congress from both parties about how we can best address this situation. >> waters says he doesn't pick up the phone to call members. does this that bother the president? >> does it bother the president what? that she said that? >> yeah. >> i don't think it's true. >> another subject. e.p.a. carbon dioxide ruling, some businesses have expressed concerns about poor regulations maybe in terms of jobs. does the white house believe in any way that these regulations could have a positive benefit for jobs? >> there's no question. first of all, this was a process started not under this e.p.a. but under a previous e.p.a. based on a supreme court decision handed down in 2007 that require

today we've reached a point where our cobra plan, which is health insurance for those who've lost their job, we had provided a helping hand to many unemployed people across ameri america. it expired as of today. it picked up two-thirds of the premiums. i've run into people who said, even with the two-thirds being picked up by the federal government, i still can't afford it. and so it's understandable that health insurance is no longary fordable and -- longer affordable and it isn't getting any better. we estimate in the next eight years, the cost of health insurance will double. in eight years, it's anticipated that families will spend up to 45% of their income on health insurance. that is just not sustainable. so the starting point here is to find ways to bring down costs. the congressional budget office gave us a report yesterday and said we are on the right track. i can come up with other ideas which i think might be more helpful but this is the art of the possible. and i think we are moving toward a model which will start to bring down costs. the second thing that we do here that is

they deserve more, something better more than unemployment insurance and cobra extensions. we need to stop handing them dead fish and instead hand them a fishing pole. mr. speaker, i have introduced h.r. 4100, the jobs act, to answer their call. and i urge my colleagues to lend their support by co-sponsoring this important legislation and keeping that economic engine of small business on the right track to economic prosperity. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: ms. foxx of north carolina. under the speaker's announceed policy of january 6, 2009, the gentleman from missouri, mr. akin, is recognized as the designee of the minority leader mr. akin: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. akin: thank you, mr. speaker. this evening our topic is going to be something that is of interest, i believe, to all americans, the topic of jobs. in the past we've talked something about health care. in fact, weefpk talked about that for a number of months -- we've talked about that for a number of months but it seemed appropriate to me this evening to open our discussion on the subject

aspect for americans here at home, extension of unemployment benefits for two months, expansion of cobra subsidies for two months, and also additional resources for nutrition programs across the country. were many, many families across the nation and in rhode island, during this holiday season they are doing what they thought never in their life they would do. subsist on unemployment benefits, need assistance to pay their health care insurance, and in many, many cases actually need assistance to buy food and put it on the table. and i think in different last evening at some of our colleagues to their plate is lost insignificant. a lot of what's been said about the reason to abstract the proposal to move to the appropriations bill was about health care. again, i am committed and my colleagues are committed to move forward responsibly to pass good health care legislation. i think in this regard we have been working for months now to craft a bill that is going to provide access, affordable access for all americans. that's going to provide for budget savings over the ten year time. here it i

. $18 billion in new nonoffset funding for food stamps, unemployment assistance, cobra benefits, physician, the so-called dock fix -- doc fix and small business lending. by designating the funding as emergency, none of it's paid for. it's just another $18 billion of money that will be laid on our children, debt that will be laid on our children and grandchildren. and our national debt in 2010. i guess some americans wonder why we're going to have a debt for this year of $1.5 trillion -- trillion, "t," trillion. someone said to me, as several times has been said to me, we hope that the president never learns what comes after a trillion. so here we are a

making sure that our families whose benefits are running out for unemployment or cobra for health care insurance get a two-month extension so our christmas present to them isn't sorry, you aren't going to get your small little help as we end this year. we're going to keep that going for another three months in one of the worst economic times we have. yes, of course we put it in this bill because -- because of the obstruction on the other side, we can't get it through in a timely fashion. it has to be done by the end of this year. we're doing the right thing for our families. we're doing the right thing for our military by putting in this bill, getting it done, getting it to the president so we can finish our work. mr. president, these are all critical issues. we are all tired. we have been here day after day after day. it's time to get this done and i'll tell you why. because doreen and her husband are facing piles and piles of paperwork to care for her husband, fighting insurance companies, and all we have to do is put these bills in front of us, get them done and provide relief for a

three-quarters of that time would have elapsed operations such as the marine offensive, operations -- operation cobraare being undertaken. is this illustrative of the counterinsurgency strategy that will be carried out as part of the surge? and how does this compare to the counterterrorism strategy? secondly, general mcchrystal has the president provided you enough troops and other resources to successfully complete our mission? there have been reports that the mission's goals have changed from your original proposal focusing on the elimination of the taliban it off instead ensuring that insurgents could no longer threaten the afghanistan's government survival and are they robust to permanently eliminate the taliban as a threat? and as the chairman asked, ambassador eikenberry, do you have the necessary tools to carry out the civilian component of the strategy? thirdly, i have concerns about the july 2011 trigger for withdrawal that's been highlighted in the president's speech. talk of transition and exit ramps with an 18-month target to begin withdrawing and telegrams saying they need to persevere a

she had the option of purchasing cobra but couldn't afford t so she searched for coverage but because of high blood pressure, preexisting condition, she was denied access. so age 62, suffering from high blood pressure, no choice but to go without insurance. mr. president, that's why we need this bill. not for fear -- let's quit talking about fear. let's talk about hope for the people i've just talked about. the hope that their lives will be better, that they'll get the insurance coverage they'll need, that they'll be able to get on with their lives and not have to go so far in debt that they have to -- have to go into bankruptcy. mr. president, if you are a 62-year-old woman with a serious heart condition like eleanor has, high blood pressure, you just don't have a prayer, you're on your own and the odds of premature death are disturbingly high. we can and must do better. and that's what we ought to be talking b hope for the future, not fear. mr. president, i yield the floor. mr. baucus: mr. president? the presiding officer: the senator from montana. mr. baucus: mr. president, i yield

we have cobra extension. both those expire on december 31. we have the patriot act which -- provisions of which expire on december 31. we want to address that. we have highway re-authorization which also expires on december 31. we want to address that. and we have i'm sure other bills that we will be considering. as you know, i know you're happy about it, i'm happy about it. iran sanctions be will be on the calendar as well on the suspension calendar next week. excuse me, week after. mr. cantor: mr. speaker, i thank the gentleman. i know i'm joined by the gentlelady from florida in thanking you very much for your work on identify ran petroleum sanctions act and bringing that to the floor. mr. hoyer: i thank the gentleman. if the gentleman would yield. mr. cantor: i yield. mr. hoyer: i appreciate the bipartisan work. i see the ranking member of the foreign affairs committee, my friend, ms. ros-lehtinen, who has worked very hard on this as well with mr. berman. i'm pleased that this is coming. i think it's very important we send a very strong m

to focus on the millions of americans out of work who need a helping hand, first with unemployment, cobra benefits for health insurance, food stamps, the basic necessities of life. we have to provide opportunities for education and training, and then we have to find a way to spark this economy and move it forward. senator reid has given to me and senator dorgan of north dakota the responsibility of looking at the senate job creation package. we have been working on that and we are close with our colleagues in the house. coming up with some ideas on how to expand employment. i hope we can have bipartisan support for that. it would certainly make it a lot easier and it would be done more quickly so that we don't lose jobs in the next construction season coming up next year. that's the reality of the agenda we face when we return, but i can tell you most members of the senate now on both sides of the aisle are anxious to share the holiday season with their families. it's one of those special times of year. we now have a record vote, 60 members on this side, on health care reform. i hope we c

made health insurance 65% cheaper for families relying on cobra, and for state and local governments facing historic budget short falls as demand for services went up and revenues went down, we provided assistance that has saved the jobs of hundreds of thousands of teachers and public school workers, firefighters and police officers. the last third of the recovery act is for investments to put americans to work doing the work that america needs done. doubling our capacity in renewable energy like wind and solar, computerizing medical records to save money and lives, providing the largest boost to medical research in history. renovating classrooms and school laboratories, and upgrading roads and railways as part of the largest investment in infrastructure since the creation of the interstate highway system half a century ago. even as the recovery act has created jobs and spurred growth, we have not let up in our efforts to take every responsible action to get the economy growing and america working. this fall i signed into law more than $30 billion in tax cuts for struggling businesse

thankfully this federal government is helping pay for our cobra. which would be more than $800 a month. we are not in poverty, but it's easy to see the dilemma of many americans in our shoes. risk going into the without health insurance, you risk bankruptcy if something gets sick, pay the current price and watch your life savings go away. which we are supposed to be able to support you in your old age. don't listen to those screen to maintain the status quo. it doesn't work. for too many americans. that's what the health care debate is about, that's what this debate is about. we have people hurting, people who have worked all their lives very hard, raise to their family as americans play by the rules, find themselves in an economy out of their making and they are asking just for a little help to get them through. and that's what this bill is about. >> thank you, i want to thank senator reed and senator stabenow for their work on these issues especially the issues that relate to health care for those who are unemployed and also were extension of une

thankfully the federal government is helping us pay for our cobra. which would be more than $800 a month otherwise. we're not pleading poverty, but it's easy to see the dilemma of many americans in our shoes. risk going without health insurance, you risk bankruptcy if somebody getds sick. pay the current price, and you watch your life savings which were supposed to support new your old age dwindle down. she says, "don't listen to those screaming to maintain the status quo t doesn't work for too many americans." we have story after story after story where people are facing an early retirement, not by choice, dipping into retirement savings to try to keep their health care going. young people, old people who need us to act now, madam president, and i'm you urging colleagues -- the presiding officer: the senator's time has expired. ms. stabenow: -- act now. thank you. mr. sessions: madam president? the presiding officer: the senator from alabama. mr. sessions: its a he very distressing that senator stabenow couldn't finish her remarks and that other sen