Defund Obamacare Act of 2013

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to H.J. Res. 59, which makes continuing appropriations for Fiscal Year 2014, because it continues the devastating cuts to education set in motion by the sequester and permanently defunds the Affordable Care Act (ACA), legislation that will help save the lives of millions of Americans.

H.J. Res. 59 locks in the damaging sequester cuts through December 15 and even sets funding slightly below the current, post- sequestration level.

It is long past time for Congress to reverse course from the austerity approach that included slashing education across-the-board by 5 percent this year--the equivalent of cutting nearly all education programs and Head Start by roughly $3 billion.

We need to end the sequester now by passing H.R. 900, the ``End Sequestration Now Act,'' of which I am an original co-sponsor.

Madam Speaker, the level of cuts imposed by sequestration have already taken federal funding back to pre-2004 levels while our nation's schools are serving nearly 6 million more students since that time.

Madam Speaker, to ensure equity for all students, Congress must reverse this course.

To date, a disproportionate share of sequester cuts have impacted higher-poverty communities and therefore, students most in need--57,00 children have already lost critical seats in Head Start classes, schools served by Impact Aid have already seen drastic reductions in funding, and additional harmful impacts are beginning to be felt in classrooms as the school year begins.

Many of these school districts and their students rely heavily on federal resources for education funding; some even up to 5 percent of their total revenue.

Madam Speaker, Americans have suffered long enough from the adverse impact of sequestration that House Republicans seek to continue with resolution. The damage has been great and continues to get worse with each passing day the Republicans refuse to work across the aisle to reach agreement on a budget plan that is balanced and sensible.

Consider the damage inflicted or to be inflicted on the American people by sequestration:

Education

Teachers and staff for the 23 million students in high-poverty schools would be reduced by up to 47,000.

Education services for 6 million students with disabilities would be curtailed.

National and Local Security

Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program would be eliminated, resulting in 1,400 fewer police officers on the street.

Our national security is being weakened as Army training rotations are being canceled; earlier this year nearly one-third of Air Force squadrons were grounded; and maintenance on equipment and facilities is being deferred.

More than 600,000 civilian Defense employees (85 percent) were furloughed this summer for more than one week, meaning a pay cut of more than $1 billion.

$37 billion in cuts to defense this fiscal year is harming economic growth and our military readiness.

Health

Cutting $1.5 billion from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) means less research into preventing, treating, and curing diseases that affect millions of Americans, like cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

A $285 million cut for the Centers for Disease Control is limiting their ability to detect and combat disease outbreaks like pandemic influenza; plan for public health emergencies; and facilitate immunizations that keep you and your family healthy.

Cutting NIH by $6.7 billion will hold back life-saving research.

Seniors

More than 5 million fewer meals are available for low-income seniors through Meals on Wheels and related programs.

Infrastructure and Job-Creating Investments

Community Development Block Grants to ensure decent affordable housing, provide services to the most vulnerable, and create jobs by expanding and retaining businesses cut to lowest level in its history.

Clean energy and efficiency research are cut by nearly one-half and breakthrough cutting edge advanced energy research cut 81 percent from 2013 enacted level.

Major job-creating investments in highways, transit, railways, bridges and ports through the TIGER program would be eliminated, while putting modernization of the air traffic control system at risk.

EPA cut by more than \1/3\ and grants to local communities for clean water and drinking water slashed.

It is time for Congress to reject a continuation of these draconian cuts and replace the sequester with a balanced package that demands additional revenue, including closing corporate tax loopholes.

Instead of continuing sequestration levels of funding, and trying for the 42nd time to defund, delay, or impede the implementation of the Affordable Care Act, we need to work together to develop a balanced and responsible plan that makes the necessary investments that will generate economic growth and create jobs that will enable Americans to live a middle class life.

We should reject this resolution and adopt the substitute resolution offered by my colleague, Congressman Van Hollen, the Ranking Member of the Budget Committee.

The Van Hollen alternative is vastly superior to the resolution before us because it eliminates the sequester's immediate, excessive, and irresponsible cuts to vital investments and replaces these with a roughly 50/50 combination of targeted spending cuts and limits on tax breaks to reduce the deficit in a balanced way.

Moreover, the proposal achieves over $75 billion more in deficit reduction than the sequester would have achieved by doing the following:

Targeted spending cuts--refocuses farm subsidies and makes targeted reductions to out-year defense spending consistent with both the President's budget request and the House Democratic budget.

Additional deficit reduction--reduces deficits by over $75 billion more than the sequester amount.

I urge all members of the House to join me in voting to reject this irresponsible resolution that will not create jobs, places our economic recovery at risk, threatens the health security of millions of Americans, and jeopardizes the creditworthiness of our nation.

[From the Houston Chronicle, Feb. 25, 2013]

Sequestration Budget Cuts Would Be Across-the-Board in Houston, County

(By Mike Tolson)

Like a hurricane churning across the Gulf of Mexico, the

looming federal sequestration threatens everything in its

path. If the deep and automatic federal budget cuts actually

take place starting Friday, there will be damage somewhere,

perhaps a lot of somewheres.

In Houston and elsewhere, airport lines could grow and

flights canceled. Passport lines may stretch even longer out

the door. Criminal investigations could move at a slower

pace. And federal housing vouchers might not be issued,

leaving low-income residents and their landlords in a

frightening limbo.

The broad cuts designed under the umbrella of sequestration

were intended by Congress and President Barack Obama to

create such a severe alternative to bipartisan compromise

that it would force lawmakers to come up with a better budget

solution. So far, no such luck.

``We all agree that we need to cut unnecessary waste in the

federal budget and streamline operations, but sequestration

isn't the way to manage government spending,'' said Houston

Congressman Gene Green, a Democrat. ``It's like taking a

hatchet to surgery instead of a scalpel. I'm hoping

leadership resolves their differences before the eleventh

hour.''

Ted Cruz, the freshman GOP senator from Texas, said in

Houston last week that he saw little hope that a deal would

be reached.

``There is a very substantial likelihood that the sequester

will go into effect,'' said Cruz, who blamed Obama's

unwillingness to embrace other cuts. ``I am hopeful that if

it does . . . it will result in some compromises.''

A statement from the White House Sunday said: ``The

President is willing to compromise, but on behalf of the

middle class he cannot accept a deal that undercuts their

economic security.''

Obama has a plan to reduce the deficit by more than $4

trillion.

Because the cuts are across-the-board, there is little

order or sense to what will be affected. Most agencies and

programs would see cuts in the range of 8 to 10 percent,

though some things are exempted, such as food stamps, college

loan grants and the school lunch program.

`Devastating blow'

Experts say the effect will be gradual in many cases. A

quick political resolution would see minimal disruption.

Should the impasse continue, the cuts will be seen and felt

in scores of different places, from neighborhood Head Start

programs to the world-renowned Texas Medical Center, where

$652 million of federal National Institutes of Health grant

money comes in every year for medical research.

``We don't know how it's going to play out, but it could be

a devastating blow,'' said Dr. Robert Robbins, president and

CEO of the Texas Medical Center Corporation. ``We are talking

hundreds of grants a year. We are very concerned about this,

needless to say.''

Johnson Space Center already has suffered cutbacks from the

end of the space shuttle program and a hiatus in human

spaceflight. Now it could see an estimated 5,600 jobs

affected, with other space centers across the nation facing a

similar scenario.

``These damaging cuts would slash roughly 5 percent from

the agency's current annual budget during the remaining seven

months of the 2013 fiscal year, a loss of about $726 million

from the president's budget request,'' NASA said in a

statement.

In some instances, the effect of sequestration cuts could

be noticed right away. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray

LaHood warned that air travelers will encounter longer lines,

canceled flights and shuttered airports in some cases, if

Congress fails to act before the deadline. In preparing to

reduce its expenditures by $600 million, LaHood said he will

begin to furlough 47,000 employees for approximately one day

per pay period through September.

A report prepared by the Texas House in January found:

--Texas would be one of the most severely affected by job

losses, standing to lose almost 99,000 defense jobs and

60,500 non-defense jobs, putting the state third behind

California and Virginia with the top job losses per state.

--The Texas Education Agency's estimated reduction of

$517.6 million is the most significant agency cut. The

Houston Independent School District has estimated a possible

loss of $12 million, much of it aimed at low-income students.

--The University of Texas system predicts that cuts to

research could total from $114 million to $123 million

annually across all institutions.

--Texas Department of Transportation stands to lose up to

$50 million of the $3 billion it normally receives, based on

estimates. Road building and transit projects eventually will

face money woes, but sequestration's effects won't be

immediate, and the agency is awaiting clarity from federal

officials before making any changes to upcoming projects.

Major transit projects, meanwhile, are unlikely to suffer at

all.

Defense cuts were ``especially concerning'' to the House

committee that looked at the impact. Texas is home to 15

active-duty military installations. Sequestration cuts would

affect not just active duty military but also civilian

employees and thousands of contractors and suppliers in the

state as well as the Texas National Guard.

Eviction threat

Texas cities, likewise, face daunting cutbacks in numerous

areas. More than 900 families in the Houston Housing

Authority's rental voucher program, for example, could be at

risk of eviction if the cuts come down, said CEO Tory

Gunsolley, who noted that the city covers 70 percent or more

of their rent. Also slashed would be funding for homeless

families, emergency shelters and housing for those with AIDS.

``At this point you're cutting into bone,'' Gunsolley said.

Counties, too, will face tough decisions. Nonprofit and

community groups rely on Harris County's Community Services

Department for program funding, which is awarded in October.

Each funding letter reminds the recipient that if HUD funding

is cut, their funding will drop, too, said director David

Turkel.

Some possible cuts in Texas

According to White House estimates released Sunday, the

sequestration could include these cuts this year in Texas:

$274.8 million: in military pay to 52,000 civilian

Department of Defense employees who would be furloughed

$51 million: for about 620 teachers, aides and staff who

help children with disabilities

$8.5 million: for clean water and air quality efforts, as

well as pollution prevention from pesticides and hazardous

waste

$6.8 million: to help prevent and treat substance abuse,

resulting in around 2,800 fewer admissions to substance abuse

programs

$3.6 million: for meals for senior citizens

$2.3 million: for job search assistance, referral and

placement for 83,750 unemployed residents

$2.2 million: in grants for fish and wildlife protection

$1.1 million: in grants that support law enforcement,

prosecution and courts, crime prevention, corrections, drug

treatment and enforcement, and crime victim and witness

initiatives

Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 352, I call up the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 59) making continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the consideration of H.J. Res. 59, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself 5 minutes.

Madam Speaker, the continuing resolution that we bring up today will keep the government operating into the next fiscal year. The base CR is straightforward, it's clean, it's short-term, it continues reductions in Federal discretionary spending. But most importantly, Madam Speaker, it will prevent a government shutdown.

The legislation also includes an amendment to the base bill, which adds the text of H.R. 2682, the Defund ObamaCare Act of 2013, and the text of H.R. 807, the Full Faith and Credit Act.

H.J. Res. 59 will fund the government for the first 76 days of fiscal year 2014, until December 15, 2013. It provides $986.3 billion in funding, approximately the same rate as the current post-sequestration level, with some minor adjustments.

The base bill is extremely clean. Additional provisions were only added in a very limited number of cases where adjustments were needed to prevent catastrophic shortfalls or unintended disruptions to critical programs or services. It simply keeps the lights on in our government to provide for the safety, security, and well-being of all Americans.

I'd like to remind my colleagues, Madam Speaker, both in the House and the other body, that a government shutdown is a political game in which everyone loses. It shirks one of our most basic duties as Members of Congress, and it puts our national security at stake.

To be clear, if this legislation is not enacted and we embark on a government shutdown, the consequences are severe. Our brave men and women in uniform don't get paid; our recovering economy will take a huge hit; and our most vulnerable citizens, including the elderly and the veterans who rely on critical government programs and services, could be left high and dry.

A government shutdown, even the illusion of the threat of a shutdown, says to the American people that this Congress does not have their best interests at heart.

This continuing resolution keeps this Congress moving in the right direction. It gives us time to solve the urgent fiscal issues facing our Nation, finding a balanced and attainable plan that eliminates sequestration, implements careful reforms for both discretionary and mandatory spending, and keeps our economy growing.

It is my hope that the House will pass this bill today, and that the Senate will act in short order so that this matter will be wrapped up well before the deadline on the 30th.

So I urge my colleagues to do their jobs as Members of the House, and to do what's best for this country, and vote ``yes'' on this bill today.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Frelinghuysen), the chairman of the Energy and Water Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter), chairman of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Culberson), chairman of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Crenshaw), chairman of the Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Idaho (Mr. Simpson), the chairman of the Interior Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from Texas (Ms. Granger), the chairman of the State, Foreign Ops Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf), the chairman of the Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Aderholt), the chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee on Appropriations.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Gardner).

Will the gentleman yield?

First, I want to thank the gentleman from Colorado for all of his efforts to help Colorado through all of this turmoil, a terrible disaster, and to recover from the flooding, especially.

I am aware of the dire need to help Colorado and provide access to emergency resources, including access to emergency transportation dollars. I look forward to working with the gentleman to address this important funding matter as quickly and expeditiously as possible.

I know I speak for all of the House when we say to the people of Colorado that our hearts are with you and our prayers are with you, and thank you for your great service.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished majority leader of the House, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Nunnelee), a hardworking member of our Appropriations Committee.

Madam Speaker, might I inquire as to the time remaining?

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry).

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

We are doing a CR, even though the Appropriations Committee on the House side passed 11 of the 12 bills through the committee, four of them across the floor of the House and the remaining ones waiting for floor time as we've run out of time. Consequently, this continuing resolution will continue the government past the September 30 end of the fiscal year.

We were unable to pass the appropriations bill singly on the floor because of lack of floor time, but also because the House and Senate never agreed to an overall number to which we could mark. Consequently, we were not able to bring those bills out because of that limitation.

With this CR until December 15, if we are given a number common with the Senate to which we need to mark the individual 12 bills, we will do so. This is a hardworking committee. We are pragmatists. We know that we have to pass bills to fund the government, thus this bill.

If we were intending to close down the government and shut it down, we wouldn't be here with this bill. We would just sit there. But this is an effort by the majority party in the House to continue the government and avoid a shutdown while we work out the differences on these funding bills for fiscal year 2014.

Madam Speaker, this continuing resolution is straightforward, it's clean, it's short term, it continues reductions in Federal discretionary spending. I would point out we've actually cut discretionary spending the last 2 years by $120 billion, the first time that's occurred since World War II. We're trying to be responsible. This bill is responsible, and I urge a ``yes'' vote.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I reserve a point of order.

Madam Speaker, I withdraw my reservation on the point of order, and I rise in opposition to the motion.

This continuing resolution we spent the last hour debating is absolutely necessary to keep the lights on in our government. A shutdown is not what our businesses need, not what our troops need, not what our people need, and not what our country needs.

The CR is straightforward. It's short term. It gives us the time we need to sort out our fiscal differences with the other body. By funding the government until December 15, Congress and the President will have time to construct a budgetary path forward that deals with the most pressing fiscal issues we face, raising the debt ceiling and constructing one common discretionary number while we find true savings, especially through entitlement reform.

Now this motion to recommit picks out a few programs and would fund them for the entire next year, not the next 90 days, not until December 15. This motion would pick out a few programs to continue funding for the rest of the year. Well, that's not the issue. It misses the point. The issue is whether we can get agreement on an overall discretionary number and replace sequester for all programs, not just a few. To get the additional time to negotiate, we've got to pass this CR now.

The motion also addresses the importance of Social Security and Medicare. There's nothing in this CR that does anything but preserve these programs and protect the benefit payments for each and every recipient.

For better or worse, Madam Speaker, we have spending levels in place that are enforced by sequestration. Should my Democrat colleagues wish to do away with those limits, I would respectfully invite them to vote against this motion to recommit so we can keep the government open and negotiate a full debt package between the House, the Senate, and the President.

This bill is about keeping the government open, preventing a shutdown, and providing the important services that only the Federal Government can deliver for our people. The gentleman's motion is tantamount to shutting down the government because it will never allow for passage of the one thing critical to the functioning of government, which is the continuing resolution before us. So I urge my colleagues to vote against the motion and for final passage of the CR.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I will oppose this continuing resolution. On September 10, Chairman Rogers introduced the CR, and his statement noted, ``This bill is free of controversial riders and does not seek to change existing Federal policy.'' How things have changed.

Unfortunately, this new package will attach not one, but two politically motivated, ill-conceived, doomed provisions. One directs the President to pay certain debts but not others in case House Republicans are determined to default on America's obligations. The other would defund the Affordable Care Act.

Defunding the Affordable Care Act has far-reaching consequences for all Americans. If the House CR is enacted, no funds could be used to administer payments calculated on the basis of ACA provisions.

Patients, doctors, hospitals, medical suppliers, and other health providers would all experience significant disruptions. Many of the improvements to Medicare made by the ACA would also have to be suspended, such as better coverage for preventive services, lower

costs for drug benefits, and stronger tools to combat health care fraud.

Most importantly, undermining the implementation of the ACA only gives our medical choices back to the insurance companies and keeps health insurance costs much too high for too many families.

The House Republican default plan is flawed as well. The majority proposes that if they force default on Federal debt, the U.S. should prioritize payments to Treasury bondholders, of which 47 percent are foreign owned.

So while we pay back China, the following Americans would be pushed to the back of the line: 1.4 million Active Duty troops; 780,000 troops in reserves; 3.4 million disabled veterans who served their country with honor; 1.1 million doctors and others who provide health care to seniors with Medicare; 32 million children in schools that need payments to continue serving nutritious lunches; 44,000 National Institutes of Health grantees conducting lifesaving medical research and providing an estimated 500,000 jobs.

We, my colleagues, should be focused on jobs, putting people to work. Instead, the Republicans want to play games of brinksmanship on the budget and the debt limit, even though the foreseeable consequence will be plummeting stock markets and businesses freezing their hiring.

The Republican budget plan itself shortchanges American jobs and infrastructure, results in education and defense layoffs, closes Head Start and after-school programs, and divests in health research; and the sequester, CBO tells us, will cost the United States economy up to 1.6 million jobs over the next year.

I hope, at some point, we are able to agree on a bipartisan CR that can be enacted. The one before us, unfortunately, is not it. Unfortunately, we'll be back here again next week facing the same crisis.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin), ranking member of the Ways and Means Committee.

(Mr. LEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Visclosky), the outstanding ranking member of the Defense Subcommittee on Appropriations.

I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Swalwell).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer.)

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro), a distinguished member of the Appropriations Committee.

Madam Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman.

May I ask how much time remains.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Georgia, Mr. John Lewis.

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the distinguished leader.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished whip, the gentleman from Maryland, Mr. Steny Hoyer.

I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton).

Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

The people are counting on us to do our jobs, to work together, to create jobs, to keep the government open and to keep the economy running. This is not the time or the bill for relitigating health reform or for holding up the administration's ability to protect the full faith and credit of the United States of America.

With the great suffering in the wake of another natural disaster in Colorado--my heart goes out to all those families who've lost lives, who've lost loved ones, who've lost property--this is not the time, my friend, to limit the ability of the United States of America to give relief to those losing loved ones, homes, and livelihood.

Republicans refuse to work together with the Senate and the White House to bring a constructive piece of legislation to this floor today. Instead, we consider a bill we know is destined for failure in the Senate and would be vetoed by the White House.

For months, the majority has failed to lead. They have refused to appoint Members to work with the Senate on a top-line spending number. They can't even pass their own spending bills in this Chamber. We remember how the very important Transportation and HUD bill had to be pulled off the bill because they couldn't find the votes. Today, they risk halting government services, functions vital to the American people and our economy, even when their own appropriations chairman, my friend, Mr. Rogers, had said we should end the sequester, find a balanced plan forward. Just days before the end of the fiscal year, they're still playing political games.

I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill, support the responsible replacement of the sequester with a balanced plan to create jobs and keep our economy moving. I know we can do it, and I would be pleased to be part of that partnership with the chair, Mr. Rogers.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Madam Speaker, I come to the floor in many ways: as a mother, as a mother concerned about the children of America, as a grandmother concerned about all of America's children, but as a mother who steps into this Chamber to say, ``This place is a mess.''

Let's get our House in order. We are legislators. We have come here to do a job for the American people, and that job means we have to make the government run for the good of the people. We are not here to expand government, but we're not here to eliminate government. If the idea is to limit government, let's work together to do that; but what is brought to the floor today is, without a doubt, a measure designed to shut down government. It could have no other intent. Its purpose is clear. If our colleagues on the Republican side deny that, then they have no idea of the gravity of the situation or--to quote ``The Music Man''--of the trouble that is contained in this resolution today.

It is a wolf in wolf's clothing. The underlying bill to shut down government--the CR--is reason enough to object to it because that bill will cost at least a million jobs in the course of the next year. It will cost a million jobs. It will not only do that; it will cut our investments in the future in education and in biomedical research.

The National Institutes of Health has the Biblical power to cure. Where there

is scientific opportunity, we have a moral obligation to meet that scientific opportunity with resources and to respect the talent, the intellect--the God-given intellect--of the science to cure. And what do we do in this bill? We say, ``No''--we cut that--doing serious damage to science, to health and, not only that, to our competitiveness as a Nation. It's a vote that guts those investments.

Not only that, if the underlying bill were not bad enough--if there were not reason enough to say, ``No. Are you kidding? No''--then they cloak it in wolf's clothing, and say, in their view, that they're going to defund the Affordable Care Act. Do you know what that's about? That's simply about putting their friends, the insurance companies, back in charge of medical decisions for your families--but it goes farther than that.

If that were not bad enough, it slashes the strongly bipartisan Children's Health Insurance Program by 70 percent, effectively eliminating an initiative that provides much-needed health care to millions of low-income children. I will remind my colleagues that that bill passed the United States Senate in a bipartisan way with a veto- proof majority, but that's not good enough for you. You've got to slash it by 70 percent to harm those children, once again, this week.

It wreaks havoc on the health care for our seniors by disrupting provider payments for Medicare and Medicaid. Either you don't know what you are doing or this is one of the most intentional acts of brutality that you have cooked up--with stiff competition for that honor. It cuts billions of dollars, again I say, from the National Institutes of Health, delaying important research and denying medical breakthroughs for future generations.

Democrats have a responsible proposal that balances, that reduces the deficit under the leadership of Chris Van Hollen, our ranking member on the Budget Committee. It reduces the deficit in a responsible way; it ends the devastating across-the-board cuts of the sequester; and it makes investments in the future and keeps government open, as opposed to this bill--intended to shut government down. This keeps government open and working for the American people.

I know my colleague Mr. Hoyer has been very vocal on this subject, and he will quote some Republicans in what they have said about this, so don't take it from us. Take it from you, Mr. Chairman, that this bill does not enable us to do the work of government.

I urge a ``no'' vote on this continuing resolution. It is a terrible proposition for our families and our communities and our country. It's always, always time for us to work together to help ensure, not endanger, the economic security and prosperity of the American people. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''

I appreciate the gentlewoman yielding.

Madam Speaker, at the beginning of my remarks, I want to acknowledge that I have made a mistake and that I have been wrong for the nearly three decades I have served in the United States Congress. I regret to have to admit that. But this morning, in anticipation of today's debate, I took a look at article I of the Constitution and realized in article I, section 9, paragraph 7, I have been misreading it all of these years as a member of the Appropriations Committee. The paragraph reads: No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of a continuing resolution.

The Constitution says nothing about appropriations, apparently. Because since fiscal year 2007, this Chamber and the United States Senate, the Congress collectively, should have enacted--made discrete decisions, thought about legislation--84 appropriations bills. We have individually enacted nine.

I am appalled that in late July, early August, the last couple of weeks, every Member I have talked to in this Chamber on both sides of the aisle, senior and new, have said, if we can only do a continuing resolution, we can prevent the shutdown of the United States Government.

Today, in the United States Congress, we consider it a success if all we do is pass a continuing resolution to do what we did in fiscal year 2013, if we did what we did in fiscal year 2012, if we did what we did in fiscal years 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, and 2007.

We are governing this country by looking backwards. We have a responsibility to make decisions.

I want to remind my colleagues, just on the defense portion of this bill, of some of the initiatives that will now not take place because of the continuing resolution.

Under the leadership of Chairman Young and the members of that subcommittee, one of our initiatives is to cut $153.5 million for unjustified cost growth of the Joint Strike Fighter. One of the initiatives we would like to enact into law but cannot under the continuing resolution is for the EA-18G. We want to cut $131.4 million for carryovers and cost growth.

What we would like to do, if we could legislate in this body, is to trim $104 million for the F-18. Imagine cutting the defense budget by $104 million in cost growth and for funding that is not needed in the coming fiscal year.

We would like to reduce $99.9 million for the Next Generation Jammer. Why? Because of poor program execution and contract delays.

Within the last couple of months, we had a failed ballistics missile defense test. We would like to reduce that account and take the initiative to cut it by $110 million.

But let's do a continuing resolution. Let's not make a decision about how we fund the National Park Service.

What about the U.S. Copyright Office? For God's sake, what is there to fight over in funding the U.S. Copyright Office?

What about the Bureau of Engraving and Printing? There must be some catastrophic fight we're having because they're going to be under a continuing resolution. Food safety administration, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

I am concerned and I want to make it clear that I profoundly appreciate the leadership of Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Lowey for trying to be responsible and get the job done. But if this continuing resolution is passed as is, until December 15, I have a profound fear that our colleagues will be so exhausted from lurching to another crisis next month that we will do a CR for the rest of the fiscal year and we will never go back to doing governance of this country.