mr. ellison: mr. speaker, mr. speaker, what a pleasure it is to claim this hour, this special order, on behalf of the congressional progressive caucus, the congressional progressive caucus is the body of members of congress who believe that we're all bet ever a -- better off together than we are separated and apart. we believe that we need a mixed economy in which, yes, people are entitled to pursue their private dreams and make their money, but also there are certain things we should do together, things like take care of the water, things like provide for transportation, things like provide for education and things like health care. the progressive caucus is the body of people here in the congress who stand by the idea that the civil rights movement was a great moment in american history. that f.d.r. and the new deal was another great moment in american history. that the steps forward to end slavery was a great moment in american history and yet the great moments in american history have not yet been written but

mr. ellison and mr. speaker, we have a process, but that process has to involve, i believe, a public health insurance option that says no matter if you get sick, if you don't have insurance now you're going to be covered and we're going to bring down the costs for everyone. that's what americans want and it doesn't matter whether you're a middle-income family, a working family, a poor family, you shouldn't have to make a life decision about whether you and your children and your family get health care because you can't afford it. and so i'm excited about the prospect for reform, but i know that you know there are some bad guys in this fight and the bad guys are out there. and i'm going to yield to you in just a moment, but i want to share with you who some of the bad guysr because the challenge is helping the american people understand that in this country there are people who share interests who don't want to reform the system. the big winners in this broken health care system. the c.e.o. of united heal

mr. ellison: i thank the gentlelady, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from georgia. mr. jackson -- mr. johnson: thank you, congressman ellison. they are having a tea party outside of my -- one of my district officers on friday. i would venture to speculate that many of those people who will come don't have health insurance, or recently lost their health insurance and they are frustrated, they feel like this is going to cost them some money, but actually, when you stop and think about it, some folks have only the choice of going into the emergency room when their illness becomes so dire that the family makes them come and that's the only health care that they have, but with this bill, with a strong public option, those folks will be able to choose whether or not to be enrolled in that program or not and if so, then they'll get coverage for their medical throughout their lives. that's exactly what we need in this country. because this plan that would enable public -- a public option will keep the insurance companies honest because it'll be competitive and so we're talking

mr. ellison, is recognized for 30 minutes. mr. ellison: mr. speaker -- the speaker pro tempore: as the designee of the majority leader. mr. ellison: we'll claim the time. i need about a half second to set up. we will claim the time on behalf of the progressive caucus. mr. speaker, this is the progressive -- special order hour of the progressive caucus, congressional progressive caucus. we come every week to talk with each other and to talk on the house floor about a progressive vision for america, a progressive vision that embraces everybody. where we all do bet with her we all do better. a progressive vision that says that the greatest moments of american history are when we pass a civil rights bill when, we invested in our infrastructure during the roosevelt era. our greatest moments in american history were when we passed the 19th amendment recognizing the right of women to vote. these are the great moments of american history and this great tradition of a progressive vision for america is what we carry on week in and week out. i want to sa

mr. ellison, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. ellison: thank you, mr. speaker. my name is keith ellison, i'm appearing on behalf of the progressive caucus, which is coming again to the house floor, mr. speaker, to discuss a progressive vision for america, a vision of america that has a central focus of american quality of life being better for all people. that has the central focus of the welfare of americans being better than it was before. in the progressive caucus, mr. speaker, we have a set of values which say that yes, we can live in harmony with the planet earth. yes, we can engage in activity that will allow all americans to have health care. yes, we can have civil rights for all people, yes, america can be a party and a member in the global village in which we promote peace and in which we stand with nations who are struggling to emerge around the world. the progressive vision for america, the progressive vision that says that the greatest points of our nation's history were when we passed the law for civil rights for all

mr. ellison: revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. ellison: martin luther king spoke of the fierce urgency of now and he talked about the fact you can't set a deadline on somebody else's freedom. there is another civil rights movement going on and that is the right for health care. health care is what we need now and we cannot delay. i urge my colleagues to come together and pass the health care reform bill before we go out for august recess, because people absolutely need it. people who are fearing being dropped or put off from pre-existing conditions, people being subject to discrimination because of their age or gender. we've got to stop this and make sure that a caring nation cares for the health of its people. the time is now. we cannot delay. we have had enough time, madam speaker. six decades america has debated about what to fix. we have 45 hours of markup, 250 pages of bill and work to make sure that we have every input and every view point is shared. the time is now. and i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: for what purpo

mr. ellison: mr. speaker, the time is now. members on the opposite says slow down. what about the decades demanding we fix health care, what about the 48 hours of bipartisan debate on this legislation, what about the 79 house hearings that we've had? what about those people who today face being turned down because they have a pre existing -- pre-existing condition? what about the folks that have a $10,000 deductible and they have to spend up to get procedures to maybe perhaps deal with a bladder infection or something like that? the time is now. the fierce urgency of now is upon us. mr. speaker, let those who want to delay the care and well-being of others do something else. but for us who care about and who have heard the calls of the people, let's pass health care now. thank you very much. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. boustany: mr. speaker, this week

mr. ellison: it's important to get the facts out as to what this foreign assistance. is this is simply american to to the saudi joint military training. this is an opportunity for americans around saudis to work in concert so that we can continue to build a bridge with our historic ally so we can be in a better position to influence saudi society and learn from them what they have to offer. the fact is, is that this particular amendment does not bring america safety, doesn't bring it security, it brings it the opposite. this new administration, this new congress is about opening a new era of foreign policy a new page of diplomacy, that is smarter, more respectful of other countries, more appreciative of our allies. saudi arabia is one of the most important allies in the middle east. king abdullah is one who proposed the arab peace initiative, endorsed bethe -- by the arab league. president obama expressed support for this initiative in the early days of his presidency. i would go on but i want to yield time to a distinguished member of -- from florida, congressman and

mr. ellison: mr. speaker, i am keith ellison and i'm a member of the progressive caucus. it's late and the hour is moving towards the time when a lot of folks are looking to retire for the evening, but we've got to talk health care. but before we do, let me introduce the progressive caucus, message that we have for people tonight. mr. speaker, the progressive caucus, the progressive message that we come every week or come to this chamber every week to talk about a progressive vision for america. what is the progressive vision for america? progressive vision for america is a vision, mr. speaker, in which people can live free of discrimination. people can live in harmony with the earth. workers can work with dignity. workers can have respect and safety on the job and earn decent pay. we'll all americans can have health care and enjoy the benefits and bounty of this great country of ours. a progressive vision, a vision similar to the one that martin luther king had for our country. a vision similar to the one rampeell carson had for our rsh rachel carson had for our country.

mr. ellison: mr. speaker, what a glorious day to be in congress. we have an opportunity to preside in this 111th congress when we pass comprehensive health care reform. with a public option. you know, the fact is is that millions of americans are looking forward to the day when they don't have to worry about being excluded for a preexisting condition, when they have true portability, when we can unlock the entrepreneurial talent of the american public because people can pursue their entrepreneurial dreams without losing health care. the fact is the other team, look, they had their day. they tried and all we've gotten is sicker, at a higher expense and we've been dying earlier. we have not seen better outcomes with status quo health care, and people who stand for the status quo, they've had their shot and their time has run. so, mr. speaker, thank you for presiding today. this is a good day to stand up for comprehensive health care reform and a strong robust public option. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for

mr. ellison, is recognized for 5 minutes. >> thank you, mr. chairman.also let me thank vice chairman kohn for his work. vice chairman, do you believe that it's important for the fed to relinquish its consumer protection responsibility particularly in light of its expanded power in the area of systemic risk? >> i don't think the fact that our power might be expanded to a degree in the area of systemic risk is by itself a reason to relinquish the consumer authority. my personal view is that the federal reserve is well based to do a good job in the public interest on consumer regulation. i think the fact that we have various disciplines within the system -- we have a view of the macroeconomy, the markets, our supervision system -- these are congruent with good, consumer regulation give us a way of balancing issues having to do with consumer regulation. i think in the last couple of years, we have stepped up to the plate on mortgage -- on high cost mortgages on consumer credit. we'll have a truth and lending coming out at the end of this month. i would hope