Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, those who give back to their communities as especial treasures for the actively seek to better their inheritance. Miccerica Thomas grew up in Mount Vernon on a quiet street where her parents owned their home. She began her studies in the city's public schools and graduated from Roosevelt High School in Yonkers. She went on to achieve a degree in Business Accounting from Westchester Community College. While she now lives in White Plains, she continues to devote most of her time to Mount Vernon.

When she began working with Henry Allen over eleven years ago, she knew she had found an organization where she would be committed to for the long haul. At that time Henry was producing the Two Fools Charity Basketball Games out of his own pocket. He had the idea of giving back to the elementary school that he went to when he came to New York after losing his parents. Miccerica volunteered to help out and has never left.

Whether seeking donations, stuffing bags or making phone calls, Miccerica is an essential component of the small team that has made an idea a reality. When it was impossible for anyone to be on site while workmen were constructing the new computer lab, Miccerica jumped in a car and came to Mount Vernon to supervise. When a child lost her telephone at a game, Miccerica scoured the bleachers looking for it.

When not working with the Henry Allen Educational & Learning Foundation, Miccerica can be found shopping for her favorite items-- shoes, or working with the White Plains Housing Authority's summer basketball games.

Her son, Quan, and daughter, Roben, are currently in college pursuing psychology and forensic science studies. While they're away at school she concentrates spending more time with her adopted daughters, Kassandra and Carolyn.

I enthusiastically join with the Henry Allen Educational & Learning Foundation in honoring Miccerica Thomas for the good work she has done with the Foundation for the people of Mount Vernon.

Mr. Speaker, Richard Sosis is a committed social activist who has contributed to his communities through his work as a teacher and an attorney. He was born in 1941 in the Bronx to Phil, a union activist father, and Muriel, a mother active in tenant's-rights causes including the unsuccessful integration of Parkchester. His parents worked for racial and economic justice, rearing Richard in a household where politics was a constant conversation, even bringing him to demonstrations for civil rights causes.

This turned near tragic when the family attended a concert in Peekskill featuring Paul Robeson which was attacked by local racists protesting an integrated gathering. On the bus ride home, rocks smashed the bus windows and Muriel had to remove pieces of glass from his hair.

Not unexpectedly, Richard joined the civil rights and anti-war struggles of his youth. At CCNY he was a leader in gathering support for Freedom Rides and marches on Washington to press for greater civil rights for all Americans.

In 1963 he graduated and taught social studies teacher in a Queens middle school. In 1964 he entered St. John's University School of Law, graduating in 1967, passing the bar and becoming a practicing attorney. For eight years he had two full-time jobs--a teacher in Queens and as a lawyer in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

In 1971 Richard married Marion McBride, and they bought a brownstone in Cobble Hill. In 1975 their daughter Karin was born and in 1978 their son Andrew was born. Andrew passed away several years ago, and Karin lives and works in central Africa.

After Karin's birth Richard focused on teaching, with one of the first programs teaching law in a NYC public school. In 1995 he pursued his legal practice full-time.

Richard and Marion divorced in 1989, and Richard moved to Hillcrest Avenue and was elected President of the PTA at Albert Leonard Middle School. He met math teacher Judith Bobrow, and in 1991 they were married. Judith and Richard had a daughter Leah, in 1994, who is a senior and on the high honor roll at New Rochelle High School.

Richard has been on the Board of the New Rochelle Bar Association, and served as its president from 2007 to 2009. He continues his work with the Lawyer-in-the-Classroom program, which partners local attorneys with teachers and schools across the city.

Richard is the current Chair of the New Rochelle Zoning Board, having served on the board as a member and chair for almost 10 years.

For his years of service to his communities, I join with the New Rochelle Democratic Club in honoring Richard Sosis and wish him every success.

Well, once again, the Republican leadership has shown that it's more interested in playing political games than it is in getting things done.

We're talking about student loans here. We should be putting our heads together and coming up with a better way to pay for lowering student loan rates, not eviscerating health care prevention. This is nothing more than a cynical ploy.

The American people want us to work together. We have an opportunity to do this. This is what we really should be doing. There are lots of loopholes that we could close. My colleagues have mentioned Big Oil and Big Gas. We could close those loopholes. We have corporations making lots of money. We could close those loopholes. But what do the Republicans decide to do? They decide to hurt health benefits. They decide to hurt prevention benefits.

This is not the way we should be going. We need to put our heads together and help these students. The Democrats have said time and time again that this is our priority. We have voted against Republican budgets that raise the amount that students have to pay in loans. Stop playing your cynical games, and let's get to work for the American people. Let's put our heads together, let's help these students, and let's not eviscerate health prevention.

Mr. Speaker, as Holocaust Remembrance Day approaches on April 19, 2012, I would like to commemorate the U.S. forces that liberated concentration camps and death camps throughout Europe during World War II. I would also like to commend the International March of the Living, which is commemorating 25 years of taking thousands of students to Poland to visit the sites of mass murder by the Nazi regime.

Each year, those participating in the March of the Living solemnly walk the three kilometers between Auschwitz and Birkenau, two sites that represent the largest concentration camp complex during the war. This year marks the first time students will march not with only friends, families, and survivors, but also the liberators who freed so many from the grips of the Nazi regime. These liberators saw first-hand the atrocities committed by the Nazis, and because these atrocities remain achingly clear, it is important that, as the number of liberators dwindles, we ensure their first-hand accounts are never forgotten. These brave soldiers exhibited compassion, and brought hope, to the survivors they liberated. It is for these reasons that I salute the liberators of the concentration camps and death camps, as well as International March of the Living on its 25th Anniversary, and I call on my colleagues to do the same.

I thank my friend for yielding to me.

I rise in opposition to this budget and in opposition to the extreme Republican budget. Budgets are about priorities. And what are the priorities of my Republican friends? Protect the wealthiest in this country, protect big corporations, kill the seniors, and hurt middle class people. This is just nothing that makes sense.

Their budget slashes services for the elderly, slashes Pell Grants, slashes education services, slashes services of those with disabilities, and increases tax cuts for the wealthiest people and the wealthiest corporations. That's the Republican priority. They go after Medicare, go after Medicaid, and give increased tax breaks to wealthy people.

I don't think those are the priorities of the American people. I think the priorities of the American people are in the Democrat programs.

Let me remind my friend on the other side of the aisle, for 6 years, under Mr. Bush, they controlled the Senate and the House and the Presidency and did none of this--none of getting back to basics with the budget and red ink as far as the eye can see. So the newfound religion we see on the other side, please spare me.

What we do see from the other side, again, is to protect the wealthiest, Big Oil, big corporations, hurt Medicare and Medicaid, hurt the middle class, and tax breaks for the rich. Those are the Republican priorities.

On the Democratic side, we care about the average person who's struggling to make ends meet. We want to help the average person go to school. These are our priorities.

Which are the priorities of the American people? I think it's the Democratic priorities.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to commemorate the 90th birthday of Rosario Perez-Pena, who was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico on February 28, 1922.

Rosario was married to the late Luis-Perez Soto, who was an accountant, writer, poet, playwright, musician, artist and actor. Together, they had four children, and she is now the proud grandmother of eight and great-grandmother of 18. She has spent most of her life in Puerto Rico, but also lived in New York for 24 years. She has designed and made most of her own clothes, and has been an active reader and voter throughout her life.

I join her family in wishing her a very happy birthday on this special day.

I thank my good friend from Florida (Mr. Hastings).

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of the legislation being considered today; however, I really just need to say this is not the agreement I would have written.

I recognize the importance of making sure our physicians don't receive a 27 percent pay cut, and I have been very, very vocal on the doc fix. I think it's something that is warranted, is much needed, and is fair and equitable, but I strongly oppose the cut in DSH funding to pay for this package.

As a member of the Health Subcommittee of Energy and Commerce, we fought hard to have DSH in the Affordable Health Care Act. And in my home city of New York City, teaching hospitals are very important and they help the people who are poor, and that's why DSH funding is so important.

We'll always need a safety net for hospitals to provide that safety net to our most vulnerable citizens, and cutting DSH payments only makes the task harder. This will certainly have a harmful effect on my district. I really just have to say that.

But, ultimately, I'll vote for this agreement because, at a time when the Great Recession is finally showing signs of ebbing and the recovery is taking root, we cannot remove $1,000 from middle class taxpayers' pockets and expect the recovery to continue.

So I am very glad that we will still have a payroll tax cut. I'm glad that Democrats have been in the forefront, along with the President, of pushing for this payroll tax cut.

We need to do more to help the working people and middle class people in this country, not only the rich. The poor, the middle class, the working class people, they're the ones that need help, and this bill is helping them today.

This conference report is also a slap in the face to our federal work force. Public workers serve their country and without them, our country would not be what it is today. Without their efforts, we would not be the leader in medical research. Seniors would not have their Social Security benefits processed as quickly. People waiting on their tax return would have to wait longer.

Yet, time and again--while asking no sacrifices of large oil companies or the wealthiest income earners--we are asking the federal work force to bear the brunt of paying for extension of unemployment insurance benefits. How can we expect to recruit and retain a qualified, effective federal work force if we continue to decimate their pay and pensions, and attack them for serving their country?

But ultimately, I will vote for this agreement because at a time when the Great Recession is finally showing signs of ebbing, and the recovery is taking root--we cannot remove $1,000 from middle class taxpayers' pockets and expect the recovery to continue.

This bill also fully extends unemployment insurance benefits. While I strongly disagree with the pay-for, at a time when our country is showing strong signs of recovery, I cannot vote against benefits for those who are still looking for work.

I urge my colleagues to support this agreement.

I'll just say again, Madam Speaker, that again this body was able to reach a compromise today. The unfortunate fact is that the Republican Party still seeks to implement policies that unfairly favor the wealthy. Let me identify some of those people.

We would have me in the position of looking in the mirror. We do better than other people in our society, and we ought to pay more in light of that, not just the top 400, but all of us that are doing better so that we don't fall into that category of not taking care of those who have the greatest needs.

It is time to stop playing politics with the livelihoods of those who have been hit the hardest and need our help the most. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, the reports have just come out a few minutes ago, and it's great news for America: 243,000 jobs were created in January, which is 150,000 more than were expected. The unemployment rate is down to 8.3 percent from 8.5 percent. So the programs are working. I congratulate President Obama, and urge my Republican colleagues to pass a jobs bill so we can continue to have a downslide on unemployment.

Now, I know Mitt Romney says he's not concerned about the very poor, but this is good news for all Americans, from the very poor to the middle class.

This Congress needs to work together with the President to pass a jobs bill and to make sure that unemployment keeps going down. This is great news for all America, great news for President Obama, and great news for all of us.

I thank my good friend, Ms. Slaughter from New York, and I rise in strong opposition to the rule and to the bill.

I will continue to oppose all FAA reauthorizations because I strongly oppose the FAA's New York-New Jersey-Philadelphia airspace redesign plan, which includes the rerouting of at least 100 additional flights over Rockland County, the district which I represent.

While this bill will likely pass, I will not stop insisting that the FAA revise their ill-advised redesign plan for the airspace around New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

I have spoken to and written letters to the FAA and to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood asking for the reconsideration of their redesign plan. I continue to be outraged at the decision to direct even more flights over my district. Talk about government arrogance. Talk about not even caring about the people they affect. Talk about not even having any kind of hearings within the affected areas, trying to sneak it through. Talk about having the person who approves it, overseeing the plan, is the original one who drew it. So he has a stake in it, and of course he's going to approve it. There are a number of alternatives to address flight delays without requiring the people of Rockland to bear the burden.

As my constituents have noted to me, the noise and air pollution in the area will increase. It is unknown how this increase in air pollution will affect the disproportionate rate of childhood asthma in my district. I believe it's clear that this airspace redesign will result in a decline in the quality of life for my constituents in suburban Rockland County. And what for? The expected result of this ill-advised plan is a paltry reduction of delays--an average of only 3 minutes per flight. That's not good enough for the inconvenience it's going to cause my constituents.

The modernization of our aviation system is necessary to bring it into the 21st century, to keep pace with the increased number of flights and to also maintain our technological advancements by implementing new equipment to keep our system the safest in the world. While NextGen is important to upgrading our aviation system, it should not be exempt from environmental studies, which this bill makes it. I object to the provisions in this bill that grant such an exemption.

And, finally, I want to echo the words of the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter). I am also strongly opposed to the changes the bill makes to the National Mediation Board. While the middle class is suffering in this country, we should not be making it harder for workers to exercise their

right to engage in collective bargaining. Unions are essential to improving the middle class and strengthening the wages and benefits of our workers.

So I will continue to oppose the FAA reauthorization until the FAA halts and revises their deeply flawed airspace redesign plan. And I urge my colleagues to vote against the rule and against the bill.

Will the gentlewoman yield?

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding to me, and I think that her taking the floor this morning is the best example of bipartisanship that people say Congress doesn't have enough of, and I think that those of us that believe in bipartisanship need to do more and more of this.

The attack on Gabby was really an attack on all of us, an attack on Congress, and something that's really unthinkable. I'm very happy that she will be here this evening for the State of the Union Address by the President.

I got to know Gabby very well because my son attended the University of Arizona in Tucson and graduated from there, and he was campaigning for her, and I actually got to know her before she even was a Member of the House. I think that all of us can say that she has been one of the most collegial, friendly, hardworking and dedicated Members of Congress.

We go out there, all of us, on both sides of the aisle every day and meet with thousands and thousands and thousands of constituents. I think that she embodied the best of what Congress has to offer. I am sorry that she is resigning, but I know that she's doing what she feels is best for her State of Arizona and also best for her. I know that we all wish her Godspeed, and I know we all wish her as speedy a recovery as we can get.

I know we haven't seen the last of her. She will come roaring back and will continue to make tremendous contributions to this country for years to come. So I want to thank the gentlewoman for doing this. I think that both of us standing here today shows the American people that Congress can work together and should work together, and in the fine tradition of Gabby Giffords, we are going to make sure that we all continue to work together.

Mr. Speaker, tonight, when we listen to the President give his State of the Union speech, one of our colleagues, unfortunately, will not be here, and that is Senator Mark Kirk, who served in this body as a Member of Congress for many years and, before that, was a staffer on the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mark, Senator Kirk, as we all know, is fighting against a terrible stroke that he had just yesterday. I want him and his family to know that all of our thoughts and prayers are with him as he battles this stroke, and hopefully he will make a full recovery.

I just was devastated when I heard about it because anyone who knows Mark knows what a terrific Senator he is, what a great colleague he is, someone who has always reached across the aisle in a bipartisan way and someone that I have just tremendous respect for. When he was sworn in as a Senator, I was very pleased that he invited me to stand with him on the Senate floor when he was sworn in.

So, again, I just want Mark and his family and friends, of which I am one, to know that our thoughts and prayers are with him as he battles this stroke. We have confidence that he is in good hands with the doctors and will make a full recovery.

Mark, again, is the kind of person who epitomizes what bipartisanship is all about, what Americanism is all about. Mark was a cochair, when he was in this body, of the Albanian Issues Caucus with me, has been a strong supporter of the State of Israel, and we've worked together on a number of these issues.

So, Mark, we're with you. We're going to be watching, and we have confidence that you will recover fully and come back to this body. America needs you, and we're thinking of you.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding to me. I rise in strong support of her motion, and I urge my colleagues to do so as well.

Today is a day of bipartisanship. The President is speaking to us. We should really show it. We should really put our money where our mouths are. It may be true, as the gentleman just said on the other side of the aisle, that the Republicans passed a year of a payroll tax break, yeah, but they put poison pills in it. They put Keystone in it. They put Medicare restrictions in it.

We want a clean bill. We want a year's bill, but let it be a clean bill. Let it be a bill that is not mixed in with anything else, no poison pills. I challenge my friends on the other side of the aisle to do that. This is what we should be doing. The American people want it.

There are still significant differences between the two parties on the specifics. Let's resolve them. Let's resolve them sooner rather than later. The American people are saying Congress is dysfunctional. Congress can't even agree on a bill, which everyone agrees. And this is more reason why we should pass this and show that we should not be playing politics on something that's so vital to people's lives. We should not wait until the very last minute to reach an agreement.

This motion simply instructs conferees to finish negotiations by February 17; and by doing so, we'd avoid the confusion and uncertainty that happened last time when the Congress waited until the last minute for the last extension. We need these tax breaks for the middle class. We need the doc fix. We need unemployment benefits for those who have been hurt most by the prolonged economic downturn.

Let's not play politics with people on these issues. I urge the conferees to quickly reach an agreement that will not hurt the unemployed and will help continue our economic recovery.

So again, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this motion so that we don't take this debate to the last minute again, make us look like fools and play games with people's lives. Let's pass this. Let's do it now. Let's not wait. Let's stop the political games.

Mr. Speaker, in a loss we are only just beginning to feel, Connie Coker stepped down as Rockland County Legislator at the end of 2011. To me she typified the Rockland spirit of enthusiasm, common sense, hard work, and intelligence. She cared for people and worked hard to help them in any way a legislator could. To top it off, she is a genuinely nice person and I'm happy to call her a good friend.

Connie came to the legislature in April, 2006, winning a special election and then winning her re-election in 2007. She was tireless in advocating for clean air and water, affordable housing, green space, clean energy, a fair tax structure, and against overdevelopment and the dangers associated with Indian Point.

In the County Legislature she served as Chair of the Environmental Committee, Vice-Chair of the Multi-Services Committee and the Special County Comprehensive Plan Committee, was a member of the Public Safety Committee and the Solid Waste Authority Board, and served as the Legislative Liaison to the Fire Advisory Board, to the Volunteer Counseling Service, and to the Environmental Management Committee.

She is a Registered Nurse and a Licensed Midwife and her legislative agenda was based on her commitment to the health, well-being and safety of the citizens of Rockland County.

Connie lives in South Nyack with her husband Erik Larsen, a doctor. They have two daughters: Keah Larsen, a graduate of Nyack High School and SUNY New Paltz with a degree in Women's Studies; and Anika Larsen, also a graduate of Nyack High School who attended SUNY Delhi-Culinary Arts and Rockland Community College.

I will miss seeing Connie at the events we both went to. I will miss far more the wise counsel she had to offer and her sound advice about the areas we both represented. By happy coincidence we both represented a 17th District. She is a good and gracious person who represented her constituents wisely and well. We are all better for knowing her.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding to me, and I rise in opposition to this rule.

I have a challenge to my Republican colleagues who claim to want to extend the payroll tax for a year. Give us a clean vote on extending the payroll tax for a year. Give it to us today, and we will pass it.

You talk about the bill that was passed in the House. That bill had poison pills in it. It mixed apples with oranges. It had a vote on the Keystone pipeline. It was designed to kill it.

If you're serious and you really want a middle class tax extension, payroll tax cut, give us a clean vote. That's all we're asking for.

The truth is that my friends on the other side of the aisle are interested in tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires, but they're not interested in tax cuts for the middle class, as the Democrats are.

So give us a clean bill, and then we'll call the Senate back to pass it. What the Senate has done is given us a 2-month breather. Let's take their 2-

month breather and then pass a clean--a clean--doc fix, a clean extension of unemployment benefits, a clean payroll tax cut, not with any poison pills or extraneous materials destined to kill it.

Give us a clean bill, and we'll pass it. I challenge my Republican colleagues who control this House.

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

I rise today in strong opposition to this act and in opposition to the rule. It's a shame that the majority is playing legislative chicken with middle class tax cuts on a bill that will never be signed into law.

I'm open-minded on the Keystone pipeline, but it has no place in this bill. It's mixing apples with oranges. It's a poison pill. It's designed to kill it. The President has already said that he won't sign a bill like this. So what do my Republican colleagues do? They give us more so they can score some political points with their base.

The American people want us to meet in the middle. The American people want us to approve things to move the country forward. We need to pass a simple extension of middle class tax relief. We need to pass a simple extension of unemployment insurance. This is what we should do. This is what the American people want us to do. Unemployment is hovering around 9 percent. People need help, and we're not helping them.

This bill also forces millions of seniors to pay more for health care while giving the 300,000 wealthiest Americans another free pass. That's not right. This is unacceptable. We cannot solve our debt problem on the backs of working families.

Mr. Speaker, I have always prided myself as a moderate and someone who wants to work across the aisle. The chairman knows that. We have spoken many, many times. I plead with my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, I think the American people want us to do some good work in the closing days of this session. We need unemployment extension. We need a middle class tax cut extension. Let's not mix apples with oranges. Let's pass a clean bill and go home and say we did something good for the country.