mr. courtney: thank you, mr. peters. the comment about why this should not be a partisan issue, i want to reiterate when we cut the rate in 2007, 77 republicans voted with the democratic majority to implement that law and other two dozen republican senators in the senate voted for it. george w. bush signed it into law. ironically, the stafford student loan program, which we've talked about here this evening, many are familiar with it, it was named after a republican senator, robert stafford, from vermont, who again, was a passionality -- passionate advocate for education. just like senator pell from iowa. this used to be nonpartisan. abraham lincoln is the force that started land grant colleges in the middle of the civil war. it's amazing to think about, he had such vision in the worst conflict of the -- in american history to say, we need to invest in the future of this country, and started the land grant program. stafford from vermont was another guy, he certainly represented a party that at that time would have easily

mr. courtney: great. well, that is high praise from you, congressman davis, who when i was a freshman, you know, brand new to the capitol, the education and labor committee, which you've been searching on for a number of years, it was a great honor to really observe you and to see that the college class reduction act was one of the first things that came out of the chute in january of 2007 and again your words tonight show that this has been a life-long priority and mission for you, to make sure that that happens up. mentioned abraham lincoln from your great state of illinois. you know, it's interesting to note that the college land grant system, the moral act, was actually passed in 1862, in the middle of the civil war. i mean, the most catastrophic threat to our country's existence ever and yet we had a president from your great state who had the vision to understand that every state should have a land grant college which is what that bill did, and created a national commitment to higher education, agai

mr. courtney. i guess that the democrats were in favor of raiding the slush fund before they were against it. with that i would like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from alabama, mrs. roby. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from alabama is recognized for two minutes. mrs. roby: thank you so much. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 4628, the interest rate reduction act. i have a prepared speech but in sitting here listening to the debate i really want to focus in on one specific issue. american students should not be fearful to attend college due to the crushing weight of student loans weighing them down after their graduation, but as is suggested by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle that this preventive care finds reduction would deny access to individuals for these health care screenings, and i had the privilege, mr. speaker, just yesterday, to have a conversation with the secretary see we'llous -- sebelius directly as it relates to this fund. i asked her very spec

mr. courtney and mr. tierney. right now millions of high school seniors are deciding where they are going to attend college. at kitchen tables across the country, students are making decisions that will impact the rest of their lives. so today i find it hard to believe that republicans have decided to pit public health against higher education. by introducing this misguided deeply partisan bill, it is clear that my republican colleagues are taking the responsibilities to families very seriously. it is unconscionable that this body would be playing politics with our children's future. with the same urgency that republicans ram through a $46 billion tax cut to millionaires and billionaires, i am sure we can find a responsible way to prevent piling on even more debt on our college students. i urge my colleagues to vote for defeat of the previous question and adopt a bipartisan, bicameral solution that can be quickly signed by the president. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from

mr. courtney. i guess that the democrats were in favor of raiding the slush fund before they were against it. with that i would like to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from alabama, mrs. roby. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from alabama is recognized for two minutes. mrs. roby: thank you so much. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 4628, the interest rate reduction act. i have a prepared speech but in sitting here listening to the debate i really want to focus in on one specific issue. american students should not be fearful to attend college due to the crushing weight of student loans weighing them down after their graduation, but as is suggested by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle that this preventive care finds reduction would deny access to individuals for these health care screenings, and i had the privilege, mr. speaker, just yesterday, to have a conversation with the secretary see we'llous -- sebelius directly as it relates to this fund. i asked her very spec

mr. courtney's bill of kentucky because it is a shame to double -- connecticut because it is a shame to double, triple the interest rates that college students need for their education. finally i want to say that nasa has sent the "discovery" to the smithsonian. i want a shuttle in houston and we're never gesk giving up until we get -- giving up until we get. it we are the historic home for the shuttle. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: are there further one-minute request he? -- questions? -- requests? the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leave of absence requested for mr. marino of pennsylvania for monday, april 16, today and the balance of the week. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the request is granted. under the speaker's announced policy of january 5, 2011, the gentlelady from kentucky, ms. delauro, is recognized for -- connecticut, ms. delauro, is recognized as 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. ms. delauro: thank you, mr. speaker. i claim the time for tonight's democratic special order. thank you, mr. speaker. and

mr. courtney i think is his name -- guest: yep.aller: i don't understand why these kids cannot pay for the student loans by working. i heard him say that kids are working two to three jobs. my son started college, and his first semester he took a loan, but he realized that it was going to cost him a lot of money. he started working and going to college. it took him longer to finish. i am glad he did, because i believe in education. i just don't understand how you think america can get saddled with all these student loans. we are $16 trillion in debt. i don't understand it. host: let's get a response from congressman courtney. guest: we are talking about a program or the government provides loans but gets repaid with interest. non-payment as creep up a little bit, but we are still talking about 7% or 8% delinquency. that is not a bad batting average for a program that is clearly focused on a public good, which is trying to make sure the people that agrees that they needed to succeed in life. your son's situation is fabulous, and wha

mr. courtney from connecticut. please, i beg of you, and i will be there with you from the texas southern university to the university of houston to houston baptist to the houston community college, we are going to work this. let me also move very quickly, mr. speaker, to the fact this is the fifth commemoration of the terrible killings of texas tech, and this congress have been charged of being fearful with dealing with gun legislation. over the years i have introduced the child gun safety and gun access bill. i have in fact supported bills dealing with gun checks, to close gun loopholes at gun shows. i supported bills to stop the proliferation of assault weapons. not bills against the second amendment, but bills that would have stopped mr. zimmerman walking around with a .09 millimeter and he was only supposed to be the eyes and ears of his neighborhood. mr. speaker, i join in a bipartisan manner, even to the extent of saying we must clean up the secret service. i support mr. sullivan and even clean up the g.s.a.

mr. courtney, who will late air dress these issues, as a sponsor of his bill that would address extending the lower student loan rate. yet there's been no interest from the committee chair or republicans with regard to this issue until yesterday afternoon when a new bill, without the benefit of a markup, was presented to the rules committee, going completely around the committee of jurisdiction. look, there's a legitimate issue here. middle class family are having a tougher and tougher time affording college for their kids, at the same time that a college education is more necessary than ever for young people to have the skills a they need to compete in the global economy. it's a serious issue that deserves serious treatment. there's a lot of cost drivers with regard to education. some have commented about a higher education bubble that has led to higher and higher 2003 igs rates. certainly -- tuition rates. certainly how it's targeted absolutely affect tuition rates and whether there's a bubble. but instofede a thoughtful approach, an approach that looked at drivers of cost and outcomes

mr. courtney: it is unconscionable the republican leadership will not bring up a bill i introduced with 119 co-sponsors to lock in the lower rate. the chair of the subcommittee for higher education spoke last week in north carolina and said, i have very little talrens for people who tell me they dwrad wait with $200,000 of debt or even $800,000 of debt. really? it's a sad statement when today's republican party turns its back on a program that helps millions of americans to fill their dreams and named after a republican senator, robert stafford of vermont, top the rate height. keep the american dream alive for millions of college students. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. kinzinger: thank you. last week the north korean regime sent a clear message of defiance to the world community. rather than work towards a peaceful agreement, north korea would

courtney. thank you for being here, along with so many other community- based organization representatives. you did a great job. mr. mayor, you and i have been working closely together with supervisor chu and specifically with the leadership of supervisor wiener and supervisor campos. you've done an extraordinary job of helping us with the supplemental piece of legislation for $1.5 million around these ryan white cuts we were dealing with. that great work we have done, we know there's so much more to do. i handed out a presentation for you that's about six pages long that basically lays out the challenges that we face. over the last 11, 12 years, we've watched the hiv aids infection rates to continue to go up for those who are aware of their status and for those who are not aware of their status and the city and county of san francisco is up. we've watched funding go down between a blend of federal cuts, state cuts, and even on our local level of adding general funds. we've watched funding go down from just under $40 million down to just under $20 million. obviously, the need is there. the funding is not necessari

mr. romney's comments and is really going to now get his folks focused on coming up with a solution. >> joe courtneyeing our guest and kevin haasset, thanks to you as well. the senate could vote on a measure to help the alg u.s. postal service. the bill would give the agency $11 billion and republicans may block it saying the measure violates budget agreements. the postal service says it needs to begin a billion dollar cost-cutting effort to become profitable again by 2015. you know, those farmers, those foragers, those fishermen.... for me, it's really about building this extraordinary community. american express is passionate about the same thing. they're one of those partners that i would really rely on whether it's finding new customers, or, a new location for my next restaurant. when we all come together, my restaurants, my partners, and the community amazing things happen. to me, that's the membership effect. [ male announcer ] while others are content to imitate, we'll continue to innovate. the lexus rx. why settle for a copy when you can own the original? see your lexus dealer. havi why sett

courtney. >> i know. i feel badly that i do that. i want these retailers to survive, but i want a good bargain too. >> of course you do. mr.tioned the fact they have to reinvent themselves, retail and big box stores need to think differently and try new things. is he himself doing that with his sears franchise or not? >> i think they're trying to. and i think sears has rightfully gotten some good publicity for being clever about how they've tried to attack, you know, different type of relationship with shoppers. the core issue that sears has is that if you look at some of the big box trends, whether it's demographics or what's happening in the mall-based retail and its need to drive traffic or the increased competition that courtney was referring to for sort of single purchase discretionary items where i can shop the store but price compare and buy. sears is kind of on the wrong end of all of that. >> is there anybody who's doing it right? >> as of today, i don't know that anybody's doing it particularly right. i think you can look at some of the things that best buy has tried to do are very interesting. the emphasis on ge