mcgovern: mr. chairman, i yield myself the remaining time. mr. chairman, everyone acknowledges that there is no military solution in afghanistan, only a political solution. but we are putting billions of dollars into building up our military presence without a clear vision of how to bring our troops home, an exit strategy for lack of a better term. every military mission has a beginning, a middle, a time of transition and an end, but i have yet to see that vision articulated in any document, speech or briefing. we are not asking for an immediate withdrawal. we are not talking about cutting or running or restreeting, just a plan. if there is no military solution for afghanistan, then please, just tell us how we will know when our military contribution to the political solution has ended. requiring an outline for how our military operations ought to proceed in afghanistan so that congress can effectively wave the level of investment, both human and financial, is called doing our job. something this b

mcgovern. mr. mcgovern: i yield myself two minutes. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. mr. mcgovern: this amendment requires the secretary of defense to provide congress by the end of the year with an outline of our exit strategy for u.s. military operations in afghanistan. this bipartisan amendment offered by representatives walter jones, shelly pingree, barbara lee, and me does not demand a timeline for withdrawal or halt to the deployment of the 21,000 additional troops called for by the president. it simply asks the administration to present its plan for the beginning, middle, and end of u.s. military operations in afghanistan. for over eight long years, our uniformed men and women have done all that we have asked them to do in afghanistan. we are now asking them to do more. of and we are giving them more resources and more boots on the ground to accomplish their mission. what we have not told them is how to tell when their contribution to the political solution is done. and they can b

mcgovern: i yield myself 15 seconds. mr. chairman, all we are trying to do is to fill in the holes of the strategy that president obama has already articulated. i think the american people would welcome that. i think the afghan people would welcome that. the notion that we are sending our men and women into harm's way without a clearly defined mission which includes a beginning, middle, and end to me is a mistake. mr. chairman, i'd like to yield a minute and a half to the gentleman from north carolina, mr. jones. the chair: a minute and a half. mr. jones: i thank the gentleman from massachusetts. i respect everyone's position and everyone's right. but i would like to say that to die for a mystique is an article written by andrew who i quote add few minutes ago. subtitle, the lessons our leaders didn't learn from the vietnam war. . here we are extending an eight-year commitment of our troops in afghanistan. what's going to happen three or four years from now if we are in the same situation and then we're talking about a 12, 1

mcgovern. and thank all of the co-sponsors for making sure we at least have an opportunity to say no more blank checks. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. -- the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from california. mr. mckeon: i yield at this time to the gentlelady from florida, the hamm on the foreign affairs committee, ms. ros-lehtinen, two minutes. the chair: the gentlewoman is recognized for two minutes. ms. ros-lehtinen: i thank the chairman and thank you so much, the gentleman from california. i rise in strong opposition to the amendment on afghanistan offered by the gentleman from massachusetts, my friend, mr. mcgovern. in late march of this year, the president announced his comprehensive outline for afghanistan and pakistan. highlighting the threat to critical u.s. security interests that would arise should al qaeda and the taliban reclaim or establish safe havens in those countries. the president clearly outlined our goals. to disrupt, to dismantle, and to defeat al

mcgovern for bringing this to the attention of the american people and the congress. we need to have an end point to the strategy in afghanistan. the marines in my district will tell you that our military is tired and worn out. they will keep going back and forth and back and forth because they love this nation. we've got to be realistic about breaking the military, we've got north korea over here threaten, we've got the chinese, we don't know what they might do, we need to have a plan for victory in afghanistan, we cannot do what the bush administration did and keep going on and on. as i close, as i do every night on this floor, i have signed 8,000 families and extended families who have lost loved ones in iraq. i ask god to bless the men and women in uniforms and i ask god to bless the families of the men and women in uniform and i ask three time, god please, god please, god please continue to bless america. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio rise? ms. kaptur: madam speaker, by direction of m

mcgovern: thank you. and i thank the gentlelady from california for yielding to me. madam speaker, i stand here today in support of this rule and in support of the underlying legislation. i want to thank speaker pelosi, leader hoyer, ed markey for crafting and sheprding -- shepherding through this legislation. this would reduce the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere, reduce global warming and will spur the creation of millions of clean energy jobs in the united states. specifically, i'd like to thank the chairman for including funding for domestic and international adaptation in clean technology transfer. while i supported greater adaptation for funding, this represents a necessary first step in u.s. commitment. by dedicating a portion of the allowances to international adaptation financing, we can ensure that those poorest of countries who have already been and will continue to be disproportionately impacted by climate change will receive crucial funding to help them save their farm lands, sources of water and oftentimes their homes. as the co-chair of the congressi

hurting and george mcgovern said, i will let you know.: i stopped hurting about a

and said when does it start hurting, and mcgovern's response was i'll let you know. >> guest: i stopped hurting a day afterwards. you get back in the arena, be so grateful and humbled by the fact that you were the nominee of the party of abraham lincoln and ronald reagan, and every day i'm so grateful for the opportunity to serve. and it's kind of fun to be back in the arena. a lot of things are happening as we found out from our conversation this morning, steve. >> host: we appreciate your time. senator john mccain, republican of arizona. please come back again. >> guest: thank you. >> u.s. senate's coming back in just a couple of minutes at 2:15 eastern. senate majority leader harry reid working off the floor to come up with an agreement to bring the legislative branch spending bill to the senate floor. the house passed its version late last week. we'll have live coverage when the gavel comes down about 2:15 here on c-span2. also on the senate side, the health committee has a mark-up session on health care legislation, covering that live at 2:30 eastern also c-span.org. while we wait

hurting and george mcgovern said, i will let you know.st: i stopped hurting about a day after words. you get back in the arena and get to work. i am so grateful to have been -- for the soverereignty to serve d >> on thursday, washington journal talks with common security secretary, tom ridge beginning and 9:00 a.m.. the program, of course, begins at 7:00 a.m. eastern. the health-care legislation committee is going through the bill line by line during the president's health care plan is making its way through several committees on capitol hill. the various committees have oversight of different sections of the legislation. today, a house health committees are reviewing it. tomorrow, the house commerce committee reviews it. you can follow committee coverage on line as well at c- span.org. president obama is holding a news conference today. it was originally going to be in the rose garden. warm temperatures have moved in doors to the british press briefing room. you can follow it live on c- span2 and also at c-span.org at 12:30 p.m. eastern.

mcgovern. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. mcgovern: madam speaker, i'm proud to stand here in support of this rule and the underlying legislation. this interior appropriations bill is a bill that respects our environment. i'd especially like to thank chairman dicks for his leadership and i'd also like to thank him for my amendment to increase funding for the atlanta assistance stateside assistance program. the state assistance program is one of the most successful federal-state-local partnership programs in the history of the department of the interior. the lwbc program assists communities in creating new public parks, preserving open spaces and creating jobs. the states, cities, counties, and towns that apply for and accept funding from the lwcf state assistance grant program agree to match the federal investment on a dollar for dollar basis and often match significantly more than the federal share. since its inception, it has provided fund for over 41,000 state and local projects in 91% of all u.s. counties. there's not a c

on may 15 representative mcgovern said what is the exit strategy that brings men and women home? until someone gives me a credible answer i will be voting no, but last night is reported that he will suddenly be voting yes. i think our -- people are concerned that that makes it look bad on all of us who wanted to use this as a way to end the war. in excess all look like we're insincere, so i think people are concerned. -- it makes us all look like we are insecure. caller: good morning. did you hear that from the huffington opposed the white house is [unintelligible] and they are saying you will never hear from us again if you do not vote for this war money. this is inhumane what we are doing. this is the man i've done -- this is the man i voted for. we voted for the democrats to get us out of this. i just saw my congressmen on your show a little while ago and i am proud of him, when i am tired of these oil morris. we were using the middle east as a gas station. -- i am tired of these oil wars. thanks so much for your time. guest: i did read that. it was reported in several places.

. >> traditionally one party to go off to the left within mcgovern, back to the right with a cold water, you have to reset yourself to take advantage of the political marketplace. the center is not described by the pundits. the american public will let you know what the center is pretty quick. i expect the republican party to come back, but they are going to have to open up a little bit to let people into the coalition if they want to be competitive. their problem is not as much demographic as much as it is its bases. we are non-competitive in the northeast and in the west coast and upper midwest. host: tom ridge, let me pick up on tom davis' comment. will the party allow you to do what tom davis suggests? guest: when we certainly ragman's -- when we circled the wagons, we ought to fire out, not inward. be thoughtful and respectful, but also be focusing our attention on our disagreements with the democrats. i think he is a voice of reason. this is the man whose conservative credentials are impeccable. the base is shrinking, and we will always be the pro-life party, we will always be vie

first, we should support the bill offered by jim mcgovern of massachusetts which calls upon the administration to submit an exit strategy for afghanistan. second, i urge my colleagues to consider the plan that i have offered in the house -- in house resolution 363, it's called the smart security platform for the 21st century. smart security attacks the root causes of violence by fighting poverty and giving people hope for a better future. it controls the spread of nuclear ancon ventional weapons of mass destruction. -- nuclear and conventional weapons of mass destruction and reduces our dependence on foreign oil. finally, we should insist that at least 80% of future funding for afghanistan be devoted to the smart security efforts i just described. right now the supplemental, as i told you, devotes more than 90% of its dollars to purely military efforts, efforts that are getting us nowhere. . madam speaker, we must not repeat the mistakes of the past. we've got to stop writing more blank checks for open-ended occupations. this is what the american people want. and congress must listen. i yield

mcgovern -- the don't know what to say -- >> it is a fair question.it is our absolute intent that this be the last assistance provided these 2 companies. we have spent a lot of time to assure ourselves that this is the last visit. never say never in this world, but the basis of our analysis has been that this is a 1-shot affair. we are going to do this and construct an orderly exit and it will be back to your business as usual. >> what if it doesn't work out as you anticipate? will you then recommend more money just to keep it going? to keep a few people employed? >> it is hard to speculate about a hypothetical. >> that could be more than a hypothetical. >> i believe it is a hypothetical because we have a conservative plan. what we call stress test, we look at cases where the recovery is slower than most economists believe it will be, the company is not capable of executing its turnaround. we have looked hard at this question and it is our belief, are confident belief, that this will be the last trip. >> what i'd been conflict of interest, the federal

and while i support the supplemental, i am also strongly supporting representative mcgovern's bill to require an exit strategy from afghanistan. fairness requires it. our brave soldiers need to know we have a plan and we are looking out for them. and out of fairness to the 185,000 soldiers who have been subject to the stop watch policies since 9/11, the supplemental that we're about to pass today will provide $500 per month in monthly payments. and the use of stop loss has prevented mothers and fathers from returning home to their children. from families and friends for gathering for the occasions that mark their lives. they have gone above and beyond the expectations of their country. so i'm proud to have worked with my colleagues to create the stop-loss compensation program and ensure its funding in this bill. and i am pleased that we are also funding the bipartisan cars act program, which representative levin spoke of a moment ago. that bill was passed overwhelmingly by this house just last week. and while it's called the cars act, it's about far more than just cars. it's about the

and the first thing he does and i quote -- abundant that used to work for jimmy carter and george mcgovern -- pat was quoted in the book as saying what happens when that demagogue comes along? and looks out at the crowd and says, his first campaign speech, using those people over there comes a those cameras, they are the media, they are out to stop me -- you know why? because they are out to stop du. everybody is going to believe him and then at the demagogue will get away with murder. that is why liberals should care, not just the opening of a movie. that could happen in this country and liberals need to care as much as anybody else cares. we're all in this together, we all need a strong where mainstream media but they are going down the train in their bringing it on themselves. >> thank you, mr. goldberg, why don't we have our own media? we have our own universities, instructor, they seem to have the medial in the tank. >> the tilda right. >> but that is wavering at times. >> there are other countries that have systems when the media doesn't pretend to be down the middle. they represent

mcgovern. there is tremendous demand for more parkland and recreation alpha silt development. it is more and more vital to get people and especially kids out in nature and outdoors doing active recreation. this amendment increases the save america treasure's program by $1 million and provide funding for sharing cost preservation projects and i urge adoption of the amendment and reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: claim time in opposition. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. simpson: it saddens me that we are here with this manager's america amendment. traditionally, manager's amendments have been noncontroversial when they have been offered and approved by both sides. that's not the case with this amendment. what this amendment -- and my opposition to this amendment is not because of the substance of the amendment and the provisions but it's how it got here. there were a number of amendments that were proposed last night in the rules committee. almost all of t

not for george mcgovern but every meeting the vast majority of the people there supported single-payer healthcare and i didn't even ask. they brought it to my attention so we have got to fix this system and we have heard about the medicare system the government can't do anything right. ask a veteran of the would be willing to give up their va health care and the government can't do anything right. ask a senior citizen of the one to stop receiving their social security check, ask somebody on medicare since we can't do everything right if they like health care system. i am not saying they are perfect but we do have an opportunity to change the way we do business and quite frankly, if you don't have a public option to who is going to go in competition with the insurance companies? the are competing against themselves and they are not even covered under legislation so we need to get real from my perspective and all these statistics that we hear people flooding into minnesota and other states to get health care, i don't know about the floods, i'm from illinois, but i do know this, we have a

i have covered-- i was the reporter with george mcgovern in 1972, which was a landslide just because it was my first national campaign. that was the one that had a great impression on me but just from the standpoint of history, i mean you have the first african-american. do you have the first woman who was taken seriously as a presidential candidate. you had a true american he wrote in john mccain, a good man, a great american, and you saw all of those forces come to play. to me, that is what impressed me. let me tell you something. in 1962, my first big story-- i did not know it at the time when i was sent there but my first big story i was sent to the old miss, university of mississippi to see the enrollment of james meredith. their rights, 142 people were injured or wounded. two people were killed that night. it was a terrifying evening. just in an effort to prevent one black kid from going to a state tax supported university, and to go back, last year, for the first presidential debate which was held at the university of mississippi, to me, and to see how everybody was working th

i would have voted yes on the adoption of the mcgovern-jones, voted yes on the adoption of the mcgovern-sestak. no on the franks-cantor. voted no on the akin-forbes amendment. and i would have voted yes on the holt amendment. i would have voted yes on the connolly amendment. no on the republican motion to recommit and i ask unanimous consent that this be placed in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the speaker pro tempore: by direction of the committee on rules i call up house resolution 578 and ask for its immediate consideration. the clerk: house calendar number 81, house resolution 578, resolved that at any time after the adoption of this resolution, the speaker may, pursuant to clause 2b of rule 18, declare the house resolved into the committee of the whole house and the state of the union for consideration of the bill h.r. 2996, making appropriations for the department of the interior, environment and related agencies for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2010 and for other purposes. the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. all points of o