mr. defazio, mr.forward because it is important for jobs, it is important for our economy it is important for the infrastructure that we know is crumbling, it's important for the future of this country to have sound infrastructure. this extension, whether it's passed today or tomorrow doesn't make a difference. what my leadership has asked is that they be given that one opportunity to make a presentation. so we're not -- there's no attempt to take down the bill, there's a request to have it come through regular order. we all want jobs. and, again, it's just that that request -- now, i have deferred to the other side of the aisle, the other side of the aisle in the house has been abandoned so many times i feel like an orphan sometimes trying to help my chairman and -- both the chairman of the full committee. i stood with -- chairmen of the full committee. i stood with them when the message was delivered to us that they were going to abandoned our work for a six-year bill 72-month bill. i said -- stayed

mr. defazio: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. defazio: there's a lot of talk on the republican side yesterday about the government takeover of the student loan business. what nonsense. i mean, what we are going to do is stop subsidizing the banks. that's what the republicans are really upset about here. today, for every dollar in student loans, the taxpayers are dinged 15 cents, subsidies to the banks. if we convert to a national direct student loan program, the minority of the loans go through that today, for every dollar we lend to a student we'll get back $1.03. now, they want to run government like a business but their idea of a business is shoveling subsidies to the private sector. i want to run government like a business. i want to give more loans to students, more effectively at lower costs for the taxpayers. that's the national direct student loan program. this is a reform that's long overdue. stop crying about the subsidies to the banks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the ge

mr. defazio of oregon. mr. defazio: i thank the chair. earlier today, the house passed a bill that will give relief to about a quarter of the nation's seniors on social security by not having them experience a medicare premium increase this year. that's all well and good, herer tos you, times are tough. but it doesn't go to the other 3/4 of the nation's social security recipients and doesn't get to the bottom line that there is, for the first time, since we had a regularly adjusted social security cola, used to be into the 50's and early 1960's, before we placed in place a cost of living adjustment, they would get one in election years strangely enough. and congress would wake up, notice that seniors were out there, give them some sort of an increase. now, we fixed that problem many years ago by saying, social security benefits would be automatically adjusted. but the measure that is used is incredibly flawed. it was not only flawed to begin with, what the cost of living index is calculated on is a lot of things seniors don't buy. things

mr. defazio of oregon. and mr. schiff of california. for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, and under a previous order of the house, the following members are recognized for five minutes each. . mr. poe of texas. mr. poe: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. poe: libya is about to get $2.5 million in aid from american taxpayers and much is earmarked for foundations runned by qaddafi's two kids he gave the order for the bombing of the lockerbie, scotland, in 1998. men, women, and children boarded that airport. a libyan brought a suitcase with a bomb in it. it exploded, killing 214 passengers and 16 crewmens, mostly americans. 11 people on the ground in scotland were killed when large chunks of the plane fell out of the sky and hit their town. what are we doing giving this man and his family u.s. taxpayer dollars? as america lost its way? the united states -- the united nations is starting to look like the bar s

mr. defawsio for their support of this -- defazio for their support of this amendment. i urge my colleagues to support this amendment and also the underlying bill. i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois rise? mrs. biggert: thank you, mr. chairman. i rise to claim time in opposition to the donnelly amendment. the chair: the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. mrs. biggert: i have some real concerns with this amendment. i just wonder if this bill is really the proper place for this amendment that includes recreational vehicles in a title of the bill that is intended to provide research, development, commercial application on medium to heavy duty commercial and transit vehicles. and i'm afraid that this amendment would divert funds from an area of research that would be more beneficial to the population at large. and i would have a question to ask of the sponsor for clarification. there's a definition of the recreational vehicle. does this -- would this include -