Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, a few short months ago, millions of Iraqis risked their lives by simply casting a vote. This week, the bravery demonstrated on that historic January day came to fruition as the country's first freely elected government in over half a century was sworn in. The new cabinet is representative of the various ethnic and religious groups in Iraq and will be charged with the important task of writing a permanent Iraqi constitution. This milestone is yet another victory for the Iraqi people and delivers a further blow to the terrorists and advances the cause of freedom worldwide.

Mr. Speaker, I wish to reiterate our continued admiration and support of the Iraqi people, and I commend them for the courage and tenacity they continue to demonstrate as they embrace freedom and democracy.

Madam Speaker, pursuant to clause 1, rule I, I demand a vote on agreeing to the Speaker's approval of the Journal.

Madam Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Madam Speaker, Social Security was created in 1935, and over the decades has become a vital resource to millions of Americans. But demographic realities have changed over the past 70 years. Now fewer workers, more retirees, and longer life spans will cause Social Security's promised benefits to exceed the system's income by 2017.

If we do not act now to strengthen Social Security, the system that so many depend upon today will be unable to meet its promises to tomorrow's retirees, and it will burden our children and grandchildren with exhaustive taxes.

The Social Security Trustees, the Comptroller General of the United States, and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board have all agreed that the sooner we act, the smaller and less abrupt the changes will be.

So, Madam Speaker, I encourage all my colleagues to consider all the options now and work toward a bipartisan solution that renews Social Security's promises for future generations.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding to me. I also thank her for her leadership on this issue.

This is not the first time that we have come to the floor and talked about this important issue that we face as a Nation, and it is really a test we cannot afford to fail. We need to act responsibly. We need to find ways to find a bipartisan solution to the challenges, the really undeniable challenges that we face with Social Security. People like the Chairman of the Federal Reserve and the Comptroller General of the United States have said that the sooner we act, the less painful any solutions will be.

We can talk tonight about important numbers like 2017 when we go into a negative cash flow. We can talk about 2041 when the trust fund is exhausted and we can not pay the promised benefits to future retirees. We can talk about $10.4 trillion unfunded liability that we have as a Nation today that we must face up to. But I think that this problem is really even bigger than that. And to that end, I will tell just a quick story.

I was in a committee hearing not long ago where the Secretary of the Treasury, John Snowe, was testifying. And our friends on the other side of the aisle were criticizing the Secretary about any proposed solutions that had been discussed or offered to address this problem. And after that criticism I talked to one of my friends on the other side of the aisle and said, If this is so bad, if our solutions are so unwelcomed by the American people, why do you not just let us do it because that would be the quickest way to go back into the majority? If this is such a bad idea and the American people will like it so little, they will throw us out of office for trying to solve this problem in a responsible way.

I do not think that that offer is going to be taken because I think that many understand that this is much bigger than Social Security in itself. This is a bigger test and a challenge that we face as a Nation.

Just stop and think for a second that if we allowed every working American the opportunity to own a little bit of a growing economy, we would truly become an ownership society, and think about the fact that every American could own a piece of this growing Nation, the strongest economy on Earth, and got the benefit of this and could build a nest egg and build wealth over the course of their career, they would not really like things like frivolous lawsuits anymore or excessive regulation or excessive corporate taxes. We pay the highest corporate taxes in the industrialized world. People would understand, take ownership of how we grow the economy, and we all could benefit from that.

I think the ramifications of that go much beyond Social Security. They represent an ownership society, and we can use those types of principles to address even bigger problems like Medicare, Medicaid, pension reform.

So this is such an important issue that we have to move forward. It is a test we cannot afford to fail, and we need to find a bipartisan solution.

Before I turn it back over to the gentlewoman from Kentucky, I just say that I invite all Members of this body to become part of the solution. I used to be in the private sector before I was elected to Congress; and the people I worked with never came and said, boy, we have got a problem and all your ideas are rotten. What they would do is say, you know, we have got a problem and here are some ideas that I have to solve those problems and so we can act responsibly.

Is that not what we are elected to do? Because it is easy to be against things. It is easy to criticize other people's ideas, but we are really elected to find solutions to hard problems. If we are not willing to stand up and offer solutions to tough problems, rather than just criticizing others for their solutions, I do not think we are living up to the responsibility that we have as public servants. It is certainly not why anyone sent us here from home to serve in this body.

So I thank the gentlewoman for her leadership, and I invite every Member of this body to participate in a constructive discussion to find a bipartisan solution to an undeniable challenge that we face as a Nation; and if we do not live up to it, we are not doing what we need to do to serve future generations and generations that are currently retired in a responsible way.

Mr. Speaker, if the gentlewoman would yield for just a second, I think it is important to step back for just a second and kind of review the course of the debate on this issue.

There were a whole bunch of headlines in the paper yesterday and today about a hearing that occurred over in the other body and which would lead people, I think, to believe that the discussion about Social Security has stalled or the President is not being effective in leading the discussion on meaningful reform on Social Security.

But it was not all that long ago, beginning this year in January, where I would hold town hall meetings and speak with people in the 2nd District of Indiana, and there was still a question of whether there was a problem or not. We would have a discussion: Do we have to act now or can we wait? Is this a crisis, or is this something that is being overblown?

But today when I talk to people back in the 2nd District of Indiana, there is no question whether there is a challenge, an undeniable challenge that we face in the need to move forward and act.

A very encouraging thing happened to me the other day. I think seniors do understand their benefits are safe and secure, and they are concerned about their children and their grandchildren and want to make sure there is a system in place that can give them the same benefits they have been able to enjoy.

I visited an eighth grade class in Culver, Indiana, on Liberty Day, where the local Lions hand out a copy of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, which is a great thing to do for our young people. I asked a question of the eighth grade class: How many of you are concerned about Social Security? To my great delight, every single one of them raised their hands. I said the discussions we are having in Washington and around the country about Social Security really is not about your grandparents because their bennies are safe and secure, but I know they are concerned about you, and our action or inaction on this issue is really all about you because you are going to pay for or you are going to enjoy the benefit of whatever we do.

So I was very encouraged to see that the eighth graders in Culver, Indiana, are paying attention to this and they understand the consequences to them and their families. I think that the debate is moving in the right direction. We have gone from do we have a problem to, sure, we have a problem to, now what do we do about it.

Again, I think it is the only responsible thing we can do for every Member of this body to participate in the discussion, to offer their ideas. Personal accounts have been controversial. I think personally that they need to be part of the discussion, but I know the President and I am sure that my colleagues here tonight would say if somebody has a better idea that results in permanent solvency for the Social Security system and gives future generations the opportunity to have all of the benefits that their parents and their grandparents have had, let us hear it, let us talk about it, let us debate it. If it is a good idea, I am sure we could act on it, and I am sure we would all benefit from that.

Well, Mr. Speaker, that is a very good question, and there has been a lot of discussion about what is the trust fund. Does it have money in it? Does its have IOUs in it? Really, what does it have? And that question was presented to David Walker, who is Comptroller of the United States and responsible for the GAO.

In a committee hearing he was asked, how would you characterize the trust fund? And David Walker is one of the most honest, knowledgeable people I have ever heard talk about this issue. He is a Clinton appointee, but he does not talk about it in partisan ways at all. And paraphrasing his response, he said, well, the trust is less of a trust and more of an accounting device. It really is only pieces of paper in a filing cabinet. There is no marketable securities in there.

And I think his point was that we need to act now. Because in less than 3 years from now, in 2008, the baby boomers will start to retire. What we are faced with, in large part, is a demographic math problem. We have so many people retiring that we do not have enough people paying into the system to be able to provide the benefits for those collecting those benefits.

So that the trust fund itself, again characterizing the comments of David Walker, is that there are no assets there. There are only liabilities. They are IOUs that the government owes itself and that we must pay. We must find a way to live up to the promises we have made to current retirees and future retirees. But we are going to have to do it by thinking about alternative solutions. All the options need to be put on the table.

The fact is that one of the earliest lessons I learned in business was that balance sheets and income statements are fiction, cash flow is reality. The reality is that we have a cash flow problem. We do not have enough cash to pay the benefits, and we need to act now. As my colleague from Georgia said, if we fail to act, every year it costs us $600 billion more and the options on the table become fewer and more painful.

And so we need to act now. We need to find a bipartisan way and we need to invite our colleagues, especially on the other side of the aisle, to be part of the solution, not just part of the problem.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan) for his leadership on this issue. He has provided a lot of great ideas and leadership throughout this body.

Just to reinforce a couple of things, as the gentleman from Georgia said, Albert Einstein said the greatest force in the universe is compound interest. And I would argue the second greatest force in the universe is ownership. I saw that firsthand in my private life. Before I was a Member of Congress, I ran a publicly traded company. We had a 401(k) and a profit-sharing plan. People who lived paycheck to paycheck, that one might not consider to be financially sophisticated, they would come into my office and say, How much management fee would I pay on that? What was the last 5-year return? How should I think about my risk tolerance?

Mr. Speaker, when people are given ownership of their own money, they become real smart. It was commonplace for people to retire after a 30- or 40-year career, to retire as hourly workers with $300,000 or $400,000 in a retirement nest egg. So they were proof that one of the most powerful forces in the universe is compound interest.

Those that criticize the gentleman's plan who say we would put at risk guaranteed benefits, I think it is an important point that the current system has zero guaranteed benefits. None of the benefits are our property or have our names on them, and having millions of small lockboxes with our names on them is the only way we can guarantee benefits for future retirees.

Finally, the transition financing issue. Part of the gentleman's plan is to pay transition financing through savings in government, slower growth in government, which is a great idea. But even if we had to borrow the money, every public company uses what is called accrual accounting, that you have to identify and state on our financial statements liabilities as they are incurred. We use a cash basis in government, and we identify or recognize those liabilities when we write the check.

If we are going to have truth in accounting, we have to stand up and say this is an unfunded liability that is already an obligation. So paying off our mortgage early as the gentleman pointed out is the responsible thing to do and in fact results in a lower financial obligation long term. That is how we get solvency and act responsibly, and I thank you for your leadership.

Mr. Speaker, if the gentlewoman would yield, I just go back to the eighth graders I visited last week in Culver, Indiana. And I do not know if they remember that I was there a week later. But I guarantee in 20 years they will remember that I was there and they will look back and say, ``That darn Chris Chocola, he was part of a Congress that could not get above the political rhetoric, could not put partisan politics aside and solve this problem for me and my family''; or they will think back and say, ``Finally somebody did the responsible thing and I do not have to pay for the inaction of a Congress that was elected to make sure I did not have to pay the bill when I grew up and I was trying to grow my family and grow my career.''

So I think that we should always keep in mind when we have these discussions those eighth graders and what they are going to think about us in 20 years, because, after all, that is what this is about. It is about the future of our country. It is about giving future generations the opportunity to enjoy some of the same benefits and opportunities that we have all had, that our parents have had, and if we do not act responsibly, I am afraid that those

eighth graders will certainly recognize that and hold us responsible, as they should.

Mr. Speaker, this morning I rise in support of the leadership of our President as it relates to Social Security.

Just a couple of weeks ago the President was in my district, and he shared with the people of north central Indiana that we have an undeniable challenge with Social Security. The President believes that leadership solves problems and that leaders do not pass problems along to future generations. He also said that all ideas are on the table.

So, Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues, especially those on other side of the aisle, to become part of the solution, rather than just part of the problem. If we say what we are against and we only say what we are against, we only add to the problem; but if we say what we are for and we offer constructive solutions, even if we do not agree with all the solutions offered, let us say that we have a better idea.

Mr. Speaker, I think it is imperative for the American people that we all become part of the solution, we all offer good ideas to make sure that we address one of the most serious problems we face as a Nation, because that is exactly what we are elected for. So I encourage all of my colleagues to be part of the solution.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the South Bend St. Joseph's High School Indians on their Indiana High School Athletic Association Girls Basketball Class 3A state championship.

For the second time in three years, the St. Joe Indians' girls basketball team found themselves at the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana for the state championship game. As the final game horn sounded on Saturday March 5, 2005, the Indians won by a score of 70-57 defeating Corydon Central High School.

Over 9,000 fans witnessed a 24-10 run in the fourth quarter allowing the Indians to bring home St. Joseph County's first state championship in girls basketball. This victory capped off a 25-1 record for the season.

I would like to acknowledge Head Coach Mike Megyese and Assistant Coaches Lou Megyese, Dan Applegate, Clem Litka and Brad Dunlap on an extraordinary season.

As their many fans know, this team has been led by an outstanding group of seniors who have taken St. Joseph's to an incredible 83-18 record during their four years.

On behalf of the citizens of Indiana's Second Congressional District, I would like to congratulate South Bend's newest champions including seniors Aimee Litka, Corey Jo Keim, Katie St. Clair, Erin Newsom; juniors Melissa Lechlitner, Ashley Miller, Becky Newsom; sophomores Sydney Smallbone, Kristen Dockery; and freshmen DeBorah Wilson and Cary Werntz.

Student Managers Sarah Pendl, Katie Dunlap, Christie Nurkowski, Courtney Szymanski, Gary Paczesny and Erin Rempala also deserve a special congratulation for their contributions to the team.

Mr. Speaker, I know that everyone in St. Joseph County including the Diocese of Fort Wayne--South Bend Superintendent Michelle Hittie, the St. Joseph High School staff including Principal Daniel Swygart, Athletic Director Frank Pomarico, Assistant Athletic Director Kristi Beechy, and all of the St. Joseph Indians' parents and fans are extremely proud of the accomplishment these young women have achieved.

Again, I would like to congratulate the Indians of St. Joseph High School on winning the county's first ever girls state basketball championship.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1270) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund financing rate.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1270, which would extend financing for the Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund. The Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund is financed with an excise tax of 0.1 cent per gallon imposed on the sale of gasoline, diesel, and other motor fuels. This tax is set to expire on March 31, 2005.

This bill would extend the trust fund's financing through September 30, 2005, the same date that the other motor fuels excise taxes expire. The administration supports the extension of this financing.

Monies appropriated from the leaking underground storage tank trust fund are used for detention, prevention, and cleanup of leaking underground storage tanks. Leaking tanks can contaminate groundwater that is ultimately used for drinking.

Since this program began in 1984, the program closed nearly 1.6 million tanks and reduced the severity of leaks from underground storage tank systems that remain in service. Approximately 675,000 tanks remain in service and are subject to regulations. However, there remains a backlog of over 100,000 sites that require remedial action. Extending the tax for 6 months will allow us time to discuss possible reforms to the program while not allowing for the disruption of the collection of the tax.

I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding time and I thank the gentleman from Texas for his leadership on this very important issue which I think is one of the most important issues that our Nation faces in the long term.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Hensarling amendment. I do so because of a lot of reasons. I do so because the amendment in this budget is about simplification. It changes our budget functions from 19 that are really unrelated to the way we spend money around here to four simple budget functions, defense, homeland security, nondefense discretionary and mandatory spending, making the budget much simpler and easier to understand. It is about honesty. It creates a rainy day fund where we actually budget for emergencies. Every single year we spend Federal money on emergencies but we never budget for them. It seems to me if we know we are going to spend money, we ought to be honest and we ought to budget for it. It also is about accountability. It makes all of us more accountable because it has mechanisms on how we can enforce the budget which I think is the least we can do is pass a budget and stick by it and do what we say we are going to do to the American people. But most of all it is about fiscal responsibility. It starts the process of moving from the measurement of success on how much we spend to how well we spend. It does so in a way, as has been pointed out, it reduces nondefense discretionary spending by 2 percent, it reduces the size of growth in government in mandatory spending by just a little bit, and there will be those that say this is very draconian. But it reminds me of a lot long ago when I was in the private sector and I was in other budget process meetings, I would sit down with general managers of the business and I would say, your expense budget is reduced and maybe it is reduced by as much as 10 percent. You might expect the world was going to come to an end, we were going to lose all our customers, we were going to lose all our employees, but every single year the fact of the matter was that at the end of the year after we reduced our expense budget and we measured how well we spend not by how much we spend, we grew our market share, we served our customers better, our employees were more secure in their employment because our company was stronger and more successful. In other words, we learned how to do more with less and we were better off for it.

I think that government should be no exception because no family and no business is an exception to the challenges that we face. This budget gets us on the path of being able to meet those challenges in a very responsible way. I thank the gentleman for his leadership.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her leadership on this issue. She is a tremendous leader and a clear voice in the House on this issue.

The President has recently been in my district, and I thank the President for his leadership on this issue as well, and for him taking on one of the most important issues we face as a Nation today and critical to future generations of Americans.

The President understands that we solve problems through leadership and leaders do not pass along problems to future Presidents or future generations. It was an extraordinary event when the President was in South Bend, Indiana, at Notre Dame, which I know is an institution very dear to the gentlewoman's heart, and the numbers who engaged in the dialogue on this issue were astounding.

There were over 8,000 people at the Joyce Center at Notre Dame. They came to listen to the President talk about this issue. And there were 200 people outside of the Joyce Center that were protesting the President. I would say that is a pretty good ratio. That reflects the common sense of the American people. They understand we have a problem.

Madam Speaker, that is absolutely true. I think one of the reasons that the President got reelected and I think one of the reasons the gentlewoman has been reelected in a very competitive district is people appreciate leadership. It is easy to be against things, but we are elected as public servants to be for solutions; and the harder the issue, the more responsibility we have to step up to the plate and solve the problems that we face as a Nation.

What I heard the President say when he was in South Bend is we have a problem. We can call it a crisis, whatever we want; but it is clearly and undeniable challenge, and I think the American people understand that.

I heard the President say it is not the seniors' problem. If you are retired or near retirement, your benefits are safe and secure and you are going to get everything you have earned, and all options are on the table. This is a debate that should be engaged in by all. The President said it does not matter if it is a Republican idea, a Democrat idea, any good idea will be embraced and be part of the solution.

I think it is important that we focus on the facts. Recently, I sat in a hearing of the Committee on Ways and Means where David Walker who is the Comptroller General of the United States, a former trustee of Social Security, and he made a pretty profound statement that we need to focus on nonpartisan facts and a bipartisan solution. I think it is important that we all engage in this debate to find a solution that benefits every single generation.

He talked about the Social Security trust fund. In his words, the trust fund has no economic value. He called it an accounting device. One of the earliest lessons I learned in business was that balance sheets and income statements are fiction, and cash flow is reality. That is a challenge that we face is in the short term we have a cash flow problem. In the medium and long term, we have a solvency problem, and that is what we are talking about and that is what we have to solve.

I do think facts are very important in this debate. We need to focus on the facts because the facts are what is going to lead us to a solution. Unfortunately, our friends on the other side of the aisle really do not offer any solutions. They just criticize principles that the President has offered and others have offered. They call some of these principles a risky scheme. They say that we are putting Social Security at risk. But the reality is the riskiest thing we can do is nothing. The riskiest thing we can do is ignore this problem and pass it on to future generations and really suffer, I think, very negative consequences.

These are certain things we know. We know that the system cannot pay the benefits that are promised. If we do nothing, we know that there will be a benefit cut to future retirees of about 27 percent. We know that we have a $10.4 trillion unfunded liability. That is in present dollars. That is, if we had $10.4 trillion, and that is with a T, in the bank today earning interest that we could fund the unfunded liabilities. If we had to pay every year, it is something like $27 trillion that we have in unfunded liability. Just to put that in perspective, the current national debt is just over $7 trillion. So the unfunded liability that we know that we have to face in the future is four times the size of the national debt today. People say, well, if we would find a solution that would require us to make transition financing or transition costs, that might be $1 trillion or $2 trillion. The reality is that is not additional debt. If the Federal Government accounted like every business in America, and I will not get in the weeds here and talk about accrual accounting, but if the Federal Government recognized its unfunded liabilities like every business does, we would already have that on the books. It would already be part of our national debt. So finding a way to move some of these costs up is not additional debt, it simply, as the gentlewoman from Tennessee said, is prepaying our mortgage. It is finding a way to spend money now to reduce our real costs in the future and preserve the system, make it stronger and make sure it is here for every generation.

It has been one of the greatest programs in our Nation's history. It has served our seniors well. We need to make sure that the system is there to continue to serve future generations just as well as it is serving our seniors today.

I think it is certainly a crisis depending on your time frame and certainly our seniors today are fine, those about to retire are fine, but those retiring in the future will face this crisis if we do not act now. Those that say that there is no problem, that there is no need to act until the year 2042 when the trust fund is exhausted really need to answer the question, how are they going to pay the benefits? If they would come to the floor or they would offer their solution by saying, well, if we raise payroll taxes by 50 percent, maybe we could address this crisis and they may be right. But the reality is that more Americans pay payroll taxes than they do income taxes. When you want less of something, increase taxes on it. When you increase taxes on jobs, it would be devastating to our economy, it would be devastating to many low- and middle-income families.

I think it is critical that we find a package of good ideas, and personal accounts may be one of those good ideas, but the people that want to raise taxes have to, I think, face up to the devastating effects that they would have on our economy and our families and they also have to face up to the fact that we have already raised taxes since Social Security was put into place 22 times. Each one of those times it did not solve the problem. If you add in when we raised the cap on earnings, which is currently $90,000, the total goes up to 39 times. And so it is critical that we find this package of good ideas that not only solves the problem today but permanently solves the problem so future Members of this body do not have to come down and engage in this debate and say why we failed to act and did not live up to our responsibility as elected officials.

Again I would like to thank the gentlewoman for her courageous leadership on this, willing to take the risk of leadership to solve important problems for our Nation. I, too, hear when I am at home doing town hall meetings, why do we not put the money aside, why do we not spend it on general fund items like Congress has been doing for 60 years now. There is a mechanism to make sure that the money can only be used for Social Security benefits. That mechanism is called personal accounts. When you allow people to set aside part of their payroll taxes into a personal account, that they have some discretion on how that money is invested in a very safe and secure investment. That money is theirs. It cannot be used for any other

purpose and it is going back to a term that has been used in the past, a personal lockbox for every individual.

Again, I thank the gentlewoman for her leadership. This is a debate that will be ongoing and one that is critical to the future of our Nation.

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

Mr. Speaker, the recent assassination of the former Lebanese Prime Minister reminds us once again how fragile life can be in this part of the world. That is why we must remain resolute in our mission to support efforts in the Middle East that promote stability and promote peace.

In Iraq, we are witnessing an emerging democracy that is bringing new hope and sovereignty to once-vanquished peoples. The recent Israeli- Palestinian truce is the crucial step towards reestablishing the confidence that has so often eluded its leaders. This is a necessary ingredient to advance the cause of peace in a region inflicted by terror and violence.

Mr. Speaker, the historic developments of the past few months are a ray of hope in a region that is often clouded by darkness and give us reason to believe that a new era has begun, one which will eventually lead to peace.

I thank the gentleman for yielding. I want to thank my colleague from Indiana for his leadership in putting this trip together. It was an extraordinary trip full of extraordinary lessons. I only wish that all of the American people could have joined us on that trip and learned what we learned and saw what we saw, to see really the birth of democracy in a country, being the first delegation to meet with President Karzai after his inauguration in free elections, that went off very successfully. The terrorists were unable to stand in the way of people pursuing freedom. It is a wonderful thing to see.

I do recall our meeting with President Karzai and I think he is an extraordinary individual, the right man at the right time, and a great partner for the United States. I do not know if I asked him any profound questions; but one of the questions I asked him was, What would you say to the American people or what would you say if you could go to a town hall meeting in the Second District of Indiana? I invited him to come, as you may recall. He was a little busy and could not join us. But what he said, I do think, was interesting. You would expect him to say thank you. You would expect him to thank the American people for our support for democracy in Afghanistan and giving really the people of Afghanistan the opportunity to rebuild their country and their lives. But, instead, he said congratulations to the American people. He said, I could say thank you, but I would rather say congratulations, because what we have achieved together is an extraordinary thing.

It is extraordinary to think that just a couple of years ago that Afghanistan was under Taliban rule, was harboring the terrorists that attacked us on September 11, and today we could sit in his office and after having driven through the streets of Kabul and seen economic freedom flourishing, entrepreneurship in the streets, in partnership with Afghans and Americans working side by side, he said, it is an extraordinary thing that we have accomplished and an extraordinary thing that we will continue to accomplish together. So congratulations to the American people in having such a wonderful partnership with the Afghans.

I also remember what he said: I would also point out that the strength of Afghanistan is not our buildings, it is not our economy, it is not the Afghan national army, it is the people of Afghanistan. That is the greatest strength that will continue to build hope and opportunity in this country.

I think he sounded a little bit like our Founding Fathers and, in fact, he sounded a little bit like Ronald Reagan whom I consider one of the best Presidents in our Nation's history when he said, I think his exact words were, ``The government that governs the least governs the best.'' I think we have heard that before somewhere.

But he understands that it is the government that creates an environment for success, that the Afghan government is not going to create success for the Afghan people, but they are fully capable of doing that on their own; and if the Afghan government can help create an environment where people can achieve their own success, really enjoy the fruits of their own success and encourage them to share that with others and grow their economy and help their neighbor, that Afghanistan is well on its way to a free and democratic and successful country.

I would love to stay here with my colleague and discuss other great opportunities and lessons we had. Again, thank you for your leadership and thank you for your creativity in helping to share that story with some people here in the United States by having some media with us that did tell the story. I just wish we could have the whole country hear the story loud and clear, because it is a true success story.

I thank the gentleman for yielding. That is a great picture. If you will recall, just behind the group, I guess on their right, behind them is a school. We toured the school. The students there and the headmaster were so thankful to the soldiers that had helped rebuild the school and helped provide school supplies that the children previously really did not have. On the other side, you can see a little bit of it, there is an orchard.

I think the one thing that we have to recognize is that our soldiers are really soldiers of mercy, that we can kill bad guys all day long and we need to kill the enemy, but for the most part what our soldiers are doing there is helping to build a future for the children and the families of Afghanistan. Right there in Jalalabad, helping to build a school, helping to cultivate an orchard and teaching the lessons of how to grow an economy. I think one of the most important lessons that I learned on our trip was that the two most effective tools in weapons in the war on terror is education and economic growth.

One of the most stunning statistics that I learned during our trip was that 40 percent of the Afghan population is under 14 years of age, many of them in the picture you have there. If we do not help the Afghan children, the leaders of tomorrow, have a good education and have an opportunity for a good job in a growing economy, then they will choose a path that is destructive. They will choose a path of terrorism and crime. If they have an education and they have an opportunity for economic growth and a good job, they will be our partners in peace and democracy.

I thank the gentleman. Certainly a very important part of our trip was our stop in Pakistan. Again, I appreciate the gentleman's leadership in helping to arrange a visit to a madrassa.

When I heard we were going to a madrassa, I was a little concerned, a little skeptical, that here we were going to visit a facility that basically educated religious fanatics, that hated America, hated western values and basically everything we stood for. I was pleased to find out that it was a moderate facility. The thing I was probably most encouraged to learn from the Pakistan government about education in madrassas is that the Pakistan government's strategy is to build secular schools right next to the extreme madrassas in their country.

Because when parents are given the opportunity to send their child to a school that provides education, boarding, and food when the average income is a few hundred dollars a year, certainly they will do that.

But when the school only provides a religious education that provides no marketable skills in the economy, their child does not necessarily have a bright future, and their options are limited when they graduate, and they are susceptible to some of the radical teachings.

But if their child is given the opportunity to go to a school next door that provides a secular education, that teaches them reading, math, and life skills to be able to be constructive, contributing members to a country and an economy, the parents are going to make the same choice every single time. They are going to make sure their child has a bright future, has every opportunity possible to them that they can gain through that education.

So the Pakistan government is doing some very good things in support of combating terrorism, by going right to the root by addressing the hope and the opportunity of the youth of that part of the world so that they choose a positive path in life rather than terrorism and crime and a very destructive path in life.

I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.

Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.

I share his recollection and impact from those moments. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and that one is worth several million, I think.

I have always argued that the United States has been the greatest force for good in the history of the world. And we talk about the Greatest Generation, and we generally refer to those who served in World War II as that generation; and I think that is a very fitting description. But I think we are very fortunate that the reality is that every generation of Americans has been truly great, and most of those generations have been defined by those who volunteered to serve in this Nation's uniform.

And as the President said before, we sacrifice for the liberty of strangers. And we were with some strangers who have just witnessed the first democratic election in their nation's history, and it is something that they will remember the rest of their lives, and they will grow up to be our friends and our allies and our partners in a better and safer world.

We saw in this Chamber, during the President's State of the Union speech, one of the most moving moments I have ever witnessed when the mother of a fallen Marine embraced a young woman who had recently voted and been the advocate for human rights. In fact, that advocacy cost her father his life when he was assassinated by Saddam Hussein. So this is just a small representation that every American, I think, should be very proud of. The fact that children come streaming out behind a wall of a village with American soldiers in full uniform and full gear with smiles on their faces, and they run towards them, not away from them, and that we have the opportunity to sit there and talk to them and get to know them a little bit, and we only get to do that because of the greatness of this Nation and the greatness of those serving in uniform.

Mr. Speaker, the memories are obviously wonderful and rewarding. And as the gentleman recalls, we got to Camp Phoenix about midday and went to the mess hall where there were several soldiers in there enjoying lunch. It was a delicious lunch, as I recall. And having the opportunity during the holiday season to walk in there and hand a little piece of home to a Hoosier soldier unexpectedly is something that certainly I think we got more out of it than anyone else. And I have to thank our constituents for responding in such a generous way. It is an amazing response in a very short period of time for people to go to the effort to thank our men and women in uniform for their service, for being away from home at a very difficult time of year to be away from home.

And the gentleman is right. We would hand them a pile of cards, and they would kind of forget we were there. They would start looking through those cards and reading the messages. There were a lot of unique approaches in the messages, and so it was a great thrill that certainly I will always remember. And I remember one soldier in particular whose name was Oliver Jackson, and I walked up to him, and he said, Hey, I know you. He said, I am from South Bend, Indiana.

And I said, I know where that is and thank you for your service. So we sat down and talked for a while, and he said he was going to be home on leave in a couple weeks. And I said, When you come home, call me. And I gave him my contact information. And he did. He came home a few weeks later, and he did not stop by just to say hi. He stopped by. As the gentleman will recall, we gave a couple of flags to the soldiers at Camp Phoenix. We gave them an American flag and an Indiana flag. Then a constituent of mine has designed a battle flag that really commemorates and honors all the major battles that our Armed Forces have been in since the founding of our country.

I left two of those flags there. In the spirit of our soldiers giving more than we could ever give them, and I will have to give you a copy of this, all of the Hoosier members of that unit signed that flag and sent it back. Oliver Jackson brought that flag back. It will be hanging in my office very proudly as one of the most memorable things that I will ever receive; which is we tried to do a nice thing for them, our constituents did, and I think they one-upped us, not only by serving our Nation so valiantly and bravely and effectively, but thinking about us at a time when they are away from home and saying ``thank you'' in an extraordinary way.

Mr. Speaker, just once again I want to thank my colleague, the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence), for leading the trip and leading tonight's discussion.

I think it is important for the American people to understand how much success they have helped provide in Afghanistan. It never ceases to amaze me, the deafening silence that we fail to see in the national media about the successes that are being achieved in Afghanistan on a daily basis. And although the silence is deafening, the success is undeniable.

I will never forget the opportunity to meet with General Petraeus when I was in Iraq, in Mosul, in the summer of 2003. General Petraeus pointed out that we have to make sure we understand that the money that we invest in places like Afghanistan and Iraq, it is important that we buy guns and bullets, but you cannot distinguish between military aid and humanitarian aid. It gets back to the most effective weapons on the war on terror, I think, are education and economic growth.

If we can maintain our resolve, if we can prioritize those investments, I think we will look back at this period of history and say it was extraordinary in the growth of democracy around the world.

I think it is unfortunate that the elections in Afghanistan were not celebrated here in the United States like I think they should have been. It was the defeat of the Taliban. The Taliban had said that they were going to disrupt the registration process. Over 10 million Afghans registered to vote. They said they would disrupt the elections. I think it was close to an 80 percent turnout, much higher than we have here in the United States. So the Taliban has been rendered relatively ineffective because of the investment we have made with the Afghan people, both in military action and force, as well as humanitarian aid.

I was surprised that we met members from the United States Department of Agriculture, we met USAID members, we met State Department members, that are all over there in a relatively dangerous environment, that are risking their life to do the right thing because they understand that this is the right thing for a more safe and secure world, because the more jobs and the more education there is in Afghanistan, the safer we are here in the United States.

So I think that the American people should be very proud of their investment, they should be very proud of their effort, they should certainly be very proud of the men and women in uniform that have done the heavy lifting. If we can maintain that focus and that resolve and commitment, I know this will be a safer world.

Afghanistan and the 14-year-olds that are 40 percent of the country and younger will have hope and opportunity rather than oppression and a dead-end street for their future days. They will continue to be our partners, they will continue to run out of the front doors of their home and embrace us, and not run away from us and try to do to us harm.

I hope we have been able to share just a little bit tonight with the American people about the hope and opportunity that is really taking place every

single day. And I would encourage the American people, when they turn on the 6 o'clock news or any 24-hour news channel and they do not hear about what is going on in Afghanistan, that means it is one more day of success.

So I yield back, and again thank the gentleman for all of his efforts.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the fact that this Sunday, January 30, will be a truly historic day, a day when the Iraqi people, once oppressed and without a voice, will cast their vote in their nation's first democratic elections. It is an amazing fact when you think that just 2 years ago they suffered under a brutal dictatorship.

There is no question that the desperate tactics and deliberate attacks

will increase in the final days leading up to the election. But in spite of the efforts of those that hate freedom, the elections will take place; and it will begin a new period in Iraq's history, a beginning that will lead to freely elected leaders, a national assembly and a constitution founded on freedom and equal rights.

Today, Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues and the people of this great country to join me in awe and admiration for the Iraqi people as they show the world the power of liberty and their determination to forge a path towards lasting freedom.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Marquette High School Blazers on their Indiana High School Athletic Association Class 1A State Girls Volleyball Championship.

The young women of Marquette High School, located in my District in Michigan City, Indiana, competed in the IHSAA championships on Saturday, November 7 at the Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Mr. Speaker, in front of hundreds of their fans, this team captured their fourth state championship in the last six years. I might also note that the two years they didn't win, the team was state runner-up.

Last year, this team lost the championship to Morristown. But these young women didn't give up. They used the loss last year as motivation for their entire season this year.

And this year they beat Morristown 25-22, 25-12, and 25-20 in the championship game.

I am told that Juniors Michelle Fletcher and Sarah Denny did the majority of the damage for the Marquette Blazers, with the impressive assistance of Colleen Trainor and Kahlan Sebert.

I'd also like to congratulate Coach Troy Campbell and Assistant Coach Larry Sheagley on a great season. Compiling a 31 and 7 record is something to be proud of.

On behalf of the citizens of the Second Congressional District, I would like to congratulate Sarah Denny, Ashley Pinkney, Katie Krueger, Rachel Konrady, Kelly Kilgore, Kara Kmiecik, Sabra Johns, Kalan Sebert, Sunshine Johns, Tiffany Cerrillos, Danielle Barnett, Nicole Fumo, Colleen Trainor, and Michelle Fletcher on their Class 1A State Championship.

Additionally, Superintendent Kim Pryzbylski, Principal Patrick Cannon, Athletic Director Eric Simpson and Assistant Athletic Director Andy Walsh deserve a note of congratulations for supporting this team.

I would also be remiss if I didn't acknowledge the parents of these young women. I know the many hours they've given up to drive their daughters to practices and to attend matches, both at home and away. Your effort means the world to them and you all should be proud.

Mr. Speaker, I know that these young women will go far in their future endeavors as they have already demonstrated they have what it takes to be a champion. I wish the seniors the best of luck and the remaining team members continued success next season.

Again, I would like to congratulate the Marquette High School girls volleyball team for winning their fourth state title.

Mr. Speaker, I have to say I am thrilled to be here tonight. Ever since Election Day, I have been very anxious to get back here to Washington and join my colleagues, in fact, the growing Republican majority. For the first time ever, the Republicans have grown their majority in two consecutive cycles, and now we have the most Republican Members we have ever elected since 1946.

Mr. Speaker, there is a lot of talk about a divided America, but I do not see a divided America. When we look at the results of the election, and this is a very historic election, we see that the President won the popular vote margin by 3\1/2\ million votes. He is the first President to win the majority vote of over 50 percent since 1988. He received the most votes of any candidate for President in our Nation's history with almost 60 million votes, and he was reelected and gained seats in both Houses of Congress, both Chambers of Congress, for the first time since 1936.

Mr. Speaker, when we look at the map of America as a result of the elections, especially when we look at the county-by-county map, it is overwhelmingly red.

So, Mr. Speaker, America spoke in a loud and united voice on Election Day and sent people here to Washington to serve in this body to express their voice, and they sent very good people. So tonight I am very pleased and honored to be joined by many of my colleagues to introduce to America those that will be serving as new freshman Members in the Republican Party in the 109th Congress.

Mr. Speaker, we have got a lot of people to introduce and an hour to do it. So we are going to get right to it. So it is my honor to yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey).

Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentleman from Georgia for welcoming his new colleagues from Georgia and Louisiana, doing such a fine job.

Next it is my honor to yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Murphy), newly elected president of the soon-to-be sophomore class, to introduce two of his new colleagues from Pennsylvania.

Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentleman for his remarks.

Mr. Speaker, this election put new meaning to the phrase ``Don't mess with Texas.'' And to help explain that, it is my honor to yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess).

Madam Speaker, continuing with the Texas tradition, it is my honor to yield time to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter).

Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure and honor to introduce the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mario Diaz-Balart).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida.

It is now my honor and privilege to introduce the gentlewoman from Florida, Catherine Harris.

(Ms. HARRIS asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Madam Speaker, it is now my pleasure to introduce the newly-elected vice president of the soon-to-be sophomore class, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Barrett).

Madam Speaker, it is my honor and privilege to introduce the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett).

Madam Speaker, it is my honor and pleasure to introduce the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. King).

Madam Speaker, it is my honor and pleasure to introduce the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman and I thank all of my colleagues who have joined me this evening in welcoming this very impressive freshman Republican class that will be sworn in on January 4, 2005, and we all look forward to that day.

There is still one Member of the freshman class to introduce, Madam Speaker. I am a little biased. It happens to be my favorite Member of the freshman class. He is a Hoosier. That is not the only reason that he is my favorite Member. He is also a businessperson, someone that has actually created jobs, has actually learned how to seize the opportunities of economic growth and has contributed greatly to his local community before being elected to Congress.

He also ran for Congress in 2002 and was unsuccessful and ran again in 2004 and proved that persistence pays off, and that is a very admirable quality.

I am talking about Mike Sodrel. Mike Sodrel comes from his small business, his family business, called Sodrel Trucking. I see his trucks on the roads of Indiana every single day. He expanded that business in 2000 when he founded Sodrel Logistics.

He has served as a past chairman for the Southern Indiana Chamber of Commerce. He has also been recognized as the Southern Indiana Small Businessperson of the Year.

Service to his Nation is nothing new for Mike Sodrel. He served in the Army National Guard and continues service as a member of the American Legion. He is a community leader in many respects, and he leads many organizations, including the Boy Scouts of America, his Rotary Club, Junior Achievement, the Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Businesses and the Boys and Girls Club.

Mike is a native of New Albany, Indiana. He lives there today, and he has been married to his wife Marquita for 36 years. Together, they have two children, Noah and Keesha, and they are the proud grandparents of six grandchildren.

I know that Mike will serve this body well, and I certainly look forward to working with him and all of his colleagues of the freshman class to serve Hoosiers and every citizen of this country.

Madam Speaker, we have just introduced a great class, and this great class will take the oath in the next coming months, and they will become part of the 109th Congress. I fully expect that the 109th Congress will be an historic Congress because it was the result of an historic election and, indeed, is an historic time for our Nation.

We did more than just keep our majority. We received a mandate from the American people. In the last 2 years, we delivered on health care, we delivered on security, cutting taxes and much, much more.

Our constituents recognized that. As the NRCC chairman, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Reynolds), stated, ``The only people that think the GOP needs to be repudiated are two Democrat leaders from California, while the whole United States obviously disagrees.''

What the United States wants and what the people of this country want is a Congress that keeps working on their behalf, and as we have seen from the headlines, America has spoken. What America has said is they want Members of Congress that will get over the bickering and work on their behalf and do things like have budget process reform to make sure that we have more clarity and responsibility in how we spend the taxpayers' money and reduce the deficit.

America has spoken that says we want to have lawsuit abuse reform, to make sure we lift the burden of frivolous lawsuits off of our economy, which really hurts the creation of jobs and economic growth.

We have also heard from the American people that we need to have things like tax reform, to make sure we have a fair and flatter tax system that helps grow our economy as well.

We have also heard that we need to make sure that every generation of American gets the Social Security benefits they have earned and they deserve; and, most of all, we have heard from the American people that we have to make sure that we keep this Nation and our families and our communities safe and secure.

So, Madam Speaker, this has been an extraordinary hour where we have met an extraordinary class of incoming freshmen to the Republican- controlled Congress. So it has been my honor to have my colleagues join me. I thank them and I look forward to working with them in the 109th Congress, as well as all of the Members of this body.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

Mr. Chairman, I rise tonight in strong support of this amendment, but the reality is, this amendment should never have had to be offered in the first place. What we should do is budget for emergencies, in other words, create a rainy day fund as part of our budget process.

Every single year, Federal tax dollars are used to pay for emergencies, yet we almost never budget for them. If we want to be honest with the American people and exercise fiscal responsibility when we know we are going to spend money, we should budget for it.

Since 1953, FEMA has had over 1,500 disaster declarations, which averages more than 30 per year. Since 1980, we have had 58 weather disasters, 49 of those have been since 1988, which have totaled almost $220 billion.

Mr. Chairman, hurricanes are disasters, but they are not surprises. There is no question that the people of Florida deserve the relief contemplated in this spending bill. That is not the issue we are discussing tonight.

The issue is, if we care about the size of the deficit, if we care about fiscal responsibility, if we care about future generations of Americans and if we care about being responsible, then we must learn to prioritize spending and reform our budget process to reflect reality.

Hurricane relief is a high priority, and so is the future of our children and our grandchildren. Let us do the right thing tonight and let us provide relief to the victims who in some cases have lost everything, and let us also do the right thing tonight by not creating future victims of a larger deficit.

I encourage my colleagues to support the Hensarling amendment.