mr. kucinich. >> i keep hearing criticism of the president not giving enough time before making the appointment, isn't it true that president bush made two recess appointments to the board, mr. cowin and bartlett without ever nominating them to the senate at all, is that true? >> i'm not sure congressman kucinich or not. >> let me assert for the record that it is true and that mr. pinkus -- >> if i may just say. >> i have to move on, you did not give me the answer. mr. pinkus, we have a slide to put up there, somebody? hello? thank you very much. that slide shows president bush's recess appointments, he made a eight recess appointments to the nlrb during his presidency. now, did the chamber of commerce object to mr. bush's recess appointments? that you know of? >> i don't know congressman but none were made in the circumstances here. >> okay, so you don't know. the nlrb ensures protection of workers non, and union alike. now slide six, it shows the nlrb protects the right to form or join a union, the right to bargain for wages and benefits and the right to good working conditions and the right

mr. kucinich from ohio. >> thank you for being here and i appreciate the opportunity to work with you. today we again welcome david strict land, administrator of the national highway safety administration before our subcommittee. and then on the number of hours, truck drivers can work between mandatory hearings. claiming they were harmful to business and the economy. today by contrast, it's whether the department of transportation crass fr was strict enough over one product, the chevy volt electric vehicle by general motors. the title is what did nitsa know about the fire and when did they know it? a very detailed report by the national highway traffic safety administrati administration nhtsa, provide a detailed answer that this hearing claims to ask. gm has also provided extensive documentation pursuant to it is investigation into the volt battery fire that occurred after crash testing. based on what we know so far, nhtsa's new car assessment program appeared to do just what it is intended to do. catch potential safety concerns with new cars before they became a risk to consumers. and

mr. kucinich. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. kucinich: i want to thank the gentleman from maine for his ever-present leadership on the issue of unemployment insurance. and also for fighting for jobs for americans. because we're really here looking at two problems. one is the problem of making sure that those on unemployment are going to get benefits so they can survive and the other one is the massive unemployment that we have in america. i mean, obviously these matters are interrelated. let me speak first to mr. michaud's motions to instruct conferees. this provision to remove section 213 from h.r. 3610, this section severely undermines the unemployment insurance system that nearly eight million americans rely on. it allows states to apply for waivers that would change how unemployment insurance funds are allocated. it does this under the guys of -- guise of strengthening unemployment programs. in reality, these proposed waivers would allow states to use unemployment insurance funds for purposes other than paying out benefits. t

mr. kucinich: i thank my friend . we are here as stewards of our nation, and we must care for the people of our nation, to care for those who are working hard every day trying to survive, trying to pay their mortgages, trying to pay their car payments, get their kids in school. and all they're looking for, 160 million americans, is a continuation of a tax cut. we should be for that. those millions who are unemployed are also looking for help. they're looking for recognition that they've earned these unemployment benefits. this isn't welfare. it's an earned benefit, unemployment insurance. we should make sure they get that benefit. now, why do they need that? it's obvious. people need to pay their mortgages or their rent. they have to feed their families. they have to put clothes on their kids' backs. they need this unemployment insurance. i have trouble understanding, mr. speaker, this proposal that's before the congress in this bill, h.r. 3630, that would discriminate against americans who are unemployed, who don't h

mr. kucinich, a member of the committee. the chair: the gentleman from ohio is recognized for two minutes. mr. kucinich: thank you very much, mr. miller. i rise in opposition to h.r. 2117, the protecting academic freedom in higher education act. this legislation would remove critical safety guards against ensuring that american taxpayer dollars are used responsibly in our higher education system. for example, unregulated, for profit colleges are targeting our veterans. targeting low-income students, and targeting minorities. these institutions receive a high percentage of their revenue from federal student loan dollars. yet they are failing to properly educate their students. as a result, the students who need the most support are failing to get it. they are more likely to drop out, graduate without a degree, and without proper training they need to obtain gainful employment. and in turn they are unable to pay back their student loan debt. h.r. 2117 would let the for-profit colleges off the hook. we must start focusing our e