Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, Capitol Hill and the Nation are abuzz over health care reform. While there is much speculation to what a reform plan will look like, one thing is for sure: We must avoid any plan that would lead to a government takeover of health care.

A government takeover of health care will stifle medical breakthroughs and take away the peace of mind that families around America have, knowing that they can get the timely treatment for their children, their parents and themselves. We need real comprehensive reform that protects what works and fixes what doesn't.

We need patient-centered reform where the patient is in control of their own care, not politicians, not bureaucrats, not special interests. We need to enact commonsense measures, like allowing small businesses to band together to purchase more affordable coverage for their employees. And we need a lower cost and focus on prevention by rewarding quality over quantity.

I know we can pass real comprehensive health care reform.

Madam Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to two recent State championship teams from Minnesota's Third Congressional District.

My hometown Eden Prairie Eagles won the Minnesota High School Girls' Lacrosse Championship last week. Under coaches Judy Baxter and Beth Patterson, the Eagles claimed a come-from-behind victory over Blake to win their fifth State title in that sport.

The Minnetonka High School Boys' Lacrosse Team, led by coach Aaron Oliver, defeated Eastview to win their very first State championship-- capping off a fantastic year in which they were ranked number 1 for the entire season.

The hard work and dedication of these scholar athletes helped them achieve something that they will remember. I commend each of them, along with their coaches, trainers, educators, and parents who helped make these championships possible.

Offered By: Mr. Paulsen

Amendment No. 2. At the end of the bill (before the short

title) insert the following new section:

Mr. Speaker, the bankruptcy filings of both GM and Chrysler are threatening local auto dealers as both companies are able to bypass State franchise laws that are designed to protect small dealerships. Shutting the doors on these small businesses will mean more job losses at a time when we can ill afford them. It's incredible to many of us here in Congress that these decisions can be justified if it isn't saving a single job and is, in fact, eliminating jobs.

That's why I'm cosponsoring legislation that was introduced this week that would protect these jobs by restoring the franchise agreement between the auto dealerships and GM and Chrysler. Mr. Speaker, this would ensure that the dealers themselves, not the government or the big automakers that are controlled by the government, are able to decide the future of their operations. Let's pass this legislation and help local entrepreneurs keep the businesses they've worked so hard to build.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to a truly great American, Marine Corporal Joe Piram of Eden Prairie, Minnesota. We literally owe our way of life to people like him.

It's important for us to remember, Mr. Speaker, that every freedom we enjoy, every moment of safety and every dream we have for the future that we hold was purchased with the blood and sacrifice of our military families. We should not only be thankful for the reality of our quality of life, but for those who laid theirs down to make it possible.

We're aware of the things that make our society run--electricity, gasoline, money, jobs, for example--but our society also runs on values, honesty, integrity, service and sacrifice. Our national progress can truly be measured by the quality of our spirit. Here again, our military families epitomize these essential American values. They're role models for all of us to follow.

So with that introduction, I want to highlight the service of one of the thousands of brave men and women who do amazing things for the rest of us every day.

Joe Piram graduated from Eden Prairie High School in 2004. Joining the Marines had been something he wanted to do all of his life, and the passion was fueled by the tragedy of September 11, which played a key role in his decision.

We talk about the threat that al Qaeda represents to our world, and we deplore their savagery and their ruthlessness. Corporal Piram chose to go out and fight them over there so that we could be safe here. He's now served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. His unit was called ``The Lions of the Desert'' because of the courage and the strength and heart with which they carried out their missions.

Near the end of his most recent tour, however, just about a year ago, he was injured by an IED. He suffered burns over almost 40 percent of his body. In the months since then, he's put the same determination in his recovery that he put into his military service. With the strong support of his family and his own resilient spirit, he's making great progress and doing well. As a matter of fact, when a reporter from the Eden Prairie newspaper called and spoke with him recently, he had just completed a 5K race at an event in Florida.

Joe's recovery is going well, and he's making ambitious plans for when he leaves the military. It's no surprise that he's looking for new ways to use his talents and his values to serve our country in law enforcement, and maybe running for political office.

We have a tremendous country here in the United States. We're not perfect, but we're still the envy of a large majority of people around the world.

Through all the generations of American history, people like Joe have quietly stepped forward to take on the Nation's toughest jobs. They don't do it for fame or for fortune. They simply do it because they love their country, and they translate that love into a sense of duty and service.

Corporal Joe Piram, I honor you and I thank you. We all thank you. We also appreciate your family who raised you, who supported you in your recovery and, in a very tangible way, has also served with you.

With you in mind, we here in Washington can try a little harder today to make this country worthy of the price you have paid to make it great.

Well, I thank the gentlelady for yielding and organizing our little get-together tonight, and I have to tell you it's been a wonderful opportunity to serve as a freshman Member of Congress, not only with our good Republican Members who are here taking some time on the House floor tonight, but even with some of the Democrat counterparts who have been trying to work on a bipartisan basis. I think a lot of us, to be honest, are frustrated with the leadership around here that doesn't necessarily give us the opportunity to offer amendments, to offer change that Washington in particular I think really does need, the American people more than anything really need right now.

You mentioned small business earlier. I have to tell you, one of my observations here after being a freshman Member, not only being away from family, spending time away from family, but the frustration of trillions of dollars of new spending, driving up the Federal budget deficit at an alarming rate and the Federal debt at an alarming rate.

But it's really a lack of focus on small business. Think of it. Seven to eight of every ten new jobs comes from small business. That is really the engine of economic growth in this country.

Rightfully so, the new administration and this Congress wanted to focus on a stimulus package to help the economy. Unfortunately, I think we really missed an opportunity to help small businesses.

I held some small business roundtables in my district and, boy, some of the stories I heard from those folks were a little bit alarming. One gentleman in particular said he basically felt that high taxes were the hindrance. High taxes were the hindrance to his continued economic growth. He's been forced indefinitely now to delay a multimillion- dollar project.

Another gentleman that came to that small business roundtable, he told me specifically that small businesses should be able to save more of their money for a rainy day. And they're all going through a rainy day right now, like a lot of the American public is going through, unfortunately. But the tax code penalizes them for doing that, so we're not helping small business.

There's one other gentleman who owns a company. He basically was frustrated that the credit markets are hurting his ability to get additional capital. If he could just get a couple more hundred thousand dollars of credit from a community bank, from a bank of some sort, he could hire some more people. He's been hiring brand new employees that have never been employed in the workforce before. So he has got some good success stories to tell. We want to keep that going, however.

So, as a member of the Financial Services Committee, I have been frustrated because it seems all of our discussion here in Washington is about too big to fail; how are we going to help all these big companies. But how are we going to help small business? That's where we really, I think, have to focus our time and attention, because if we're going to pull ourselves out of this economic recession, we have to help the small business owner down the road because that's the person who has put in all the risk, all their individual capital, the entrepreneurship, that spirit of America that founded this country. That's where I think we really need to have our effort going forward.

And you think of the problems we have seen lately with the government now buying the large auto companies and having a stake--60 percent ownership that the taxpayers who are watching us tonight now own General Motors. That's very troubling. Very troubling.

In particular, I have met--and I think all of you, Congresswoman Lummis and others, have met with small business people who come and seek our help as they walk the Halls of Congress saying, Here's what you can do to help us get some business tax relief.

This week I met with small business people who are frustrated. They receive a letter of notice in the mail saying they had to close their operation because that was the will of the auto task force from the administration. And I think these auto dealers who have put in so much time and effort--many of these are family businesses and they have, unfortunately, invested their time, their capital. They own the land. They own the company. They're selling cars. They employ people, and they're forced to lay off folks.

And so I'm frustrated. I'd like to see the government not picking the winners and losers here.

So I'm just really encouraged. We have got a good class of freshmen that want to help small business. I know Congressman Schock has an initiative to go forward that will temporarily provide some payroll tax relief for the employers and the employees, which I think is so critical from a real economic stimulus plan.

And I'm working on an economic plan for small business right now to separate business income from personal

income because, as we all know, many of these small businesses unfortunately pay their taxes at that individual rate. And when they're paying at that individual rate, it's a higher rate, especially under the new tax plan that was passed by Congress.

So now they're going to be paying higher taxes, so they can't hire somebody. They can't buy more equipment. So, if we can separate those streams of income, I think we have tremendous opportunity to help small business.

So I want to keep working with you on that effort

I'd be happy to yield.

I thank the gentlelady for yielding. One of the biggest surprises and frustrations that I have noticed is that it's been a little bit more partisan than I ever thought it would be; and I can say that, having served in both the majority and the minority in the Minnesota State legislature; and I was majority leader for awhile. I think a lot of being a successful legislator and making yourself a successful State, and now a successful country, is being able to build relationships to get things done and be results-oriented. In the Minnesota Legislature we were always allowed to offer an amendment to a bill as long as it was germane, just as you were mentioning a little while ago. But here in Congress we have to get permission to offer an amendment from the Chair of the Rules Committee or from the Speaker of the House. So it's a very closed process, and it's not an open flowing process where I think it's easier to breed partisanship. I think if the rank-and-file Members, both Republican and Democrat, can get together to kind of break the grips of that leadership power, I think we could really do great things for the American people.

Mr. Speaker, health care reform is one of the most important issues Congress will tackle. Health care costs are too high, and we need real reform that ensures every American has access to affordable quality care. The single most important tenet of high- quality care is the doctor-patient relationship. It used to be that doctors visited the patient's house. Today patients visit the doctor's office, but the principle remains the same: doctors and patients are in charge of individual health care decisions. Our top priority must be preserving and protecting that relationship.

To that end, I am proud to be sponsoring and supporting the Medical Rights Act, which will guarantee the rights of patients to control their own health care by banning government interference in those decisions. As Congress moves forward on health care reform, we need to ensure that patients and their doctors, not government bureaucrats, remain in charge of health care decisions.

I have an amendment at the desk.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

First of all, I'd like to thank the chair of the subcommittee. Mr. Chairman, growing small businesses must be a top priority in order to turn this economy around. Our military veterans that own businesses face their own unique challenges--and the government must ensure that the programs in place to assist these veterans are achieving their goals.

I recently took part in a Minnesota Defense Alliance event where I was briefed by several small-to-medium-sized businesses in Minnesota that do work related to defense issues. Many of these companies were veteran-owned.

One of the concerns that was raised by a few of the participants was that the programs currently available to veteran-owned businesses are not effective and do not meet their needs. Because of these concerns, I authored this amendment, which would require the GAO to study the effectiveness of the legislation in growing and assisting veteran-owned companies and businesses.

My amendment also requires the GAO to offer suggestions to Congress as to how we can better assist veteran-owned business.

The government needs to do a better job of spending our taxpayer money wisely. So one of the best things that we can do for any business right now is to increase the availability of capital for growth.

Small businesses have created two of every three net new jobs in the United States since the 1970s, and certainly all the members of the Small Business Committee know this. Small businesses are also responsible for roughly half of the privately generated GDP in the United States.

I support the underlying legislation, and I believe it will go a long way in assisting and growing small businesses at a time when our Nation's economy needs a boost. Specifically, I'm interested in the new grant program for Small Business Development Centers to develop programs which help local small firms in securing capital and repairing damaged credit.

I want to thank Mr. Shuler and the rest of the Small Business Committee for their work as well. I'm extremely pleased that this bill provides the assistance for veteran-owned business, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' for this amendment and ``yes'' on the underlying legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

We had one additional speaker, but I'm not sure if he's going to make it. So I just want to encourage support as well. I thank the gentlewoman for her support of the amendment and all the members of the Small Business Committee to truly help veteran-owned businesses grow and create jobs as well.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, recently the President's automobile task force eliminated more than 3,000 Chrysler and GM dealerships nationwide. These dealerships are small businesses with an average of 52 good-paying jobs each.

So the actions by the Federal Government, not the private auto industry, just put over 150,000 people out of work with the wave of a government wand. Most troubling is that the government's decision on which dealers would close appears to be arbitrary, and the reasons are not being shared with the public.

In my district, a long-time local dealer, Bill Mason's Chrysler Jeep in Excelsior, was given 30 days by the President's auto task force to shut its doors. Thirty days. It didn't matter that he built the business, owns the land and provides good-paying jobs.

Mr. Speaker, it is wrong to let Washington bureaucrats pick winners and losers without public notice at the expense of thousands of jobs.

Madam Speaker, nuclear power is an environmentally friendly way to meet our energy needs. Fortunately, we have a safe and ready option for permanent storage for the waste generated by this clean power at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.

But despite the fact that energy ratepayers in my State have contributed over $375 million to the Nuclear Waste Fund, the Federal Government has refused to keep its end of the bargain and store the nuclear waste.

Nationwide, this fund has now collected over $350 billion in fees and interest since its inception. Minnesotans and all Americans should not have to pay for government inaction.

I have introduced legislation that would require the President to certify Yucca Mountain as a permanent nuclear waste depository; and if it's not certified, the bill would return billions of dollars from the Nuclear Waste Fund to ratepayers across the country.

Madam Speaker, let's quickly pass the Rebating America's Deposits Act.

Mr. Speaker, this week marks the 28th Annual National Peace Officers' Memorial Service, a

time when thousands of officers come to Washington, D.C. to honor officers who have given the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. It's a time of remembrance and an opportunity to provide comfort and appreciation to the families of fallen officers.

The motto of Police Week is: ``Never Alone, Never Forgotten.'' And it must ring in the Halls of Congress not only this week but every day. That's why I have joined Congressman Stupak in introducing the Law Enforcement Officers' Procedural Bill of Rights. This bipartisan legislation ensures that police officers will receive a fair process and proper protections in administrative proceedings.

I want to thank all the law enforcement community and officers who commit their lives to serve us. From the officers who protect us here at Capitol Hill to those police officers that defend us back in our districts, this country is a safer place because of the work you do.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 1209, the Medal of Honor Commemorative Coin Act of 2009, introduced by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Carney) as well as my colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).

This bill would authorize the minting and issuance of up to 500,000 silver $1 coins and up to 1,000 gold $5 coins at no cost to the taxpayer. These coins will help raise up to $8.5 million that can be used to help the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation finance its educational, scholarship, and outreach programs.

Madam Speaker, the Medal of Honor was created during the Civil War to honor individual acts of extreme bravery and replaced a series of other U.S. military medals that had been awarded all the way back to General George Washington during the Revolutionary War. The medal is often known as the

Congressional Medal of Honor because it is awarded often by the President in the name of Congress. It is our Nation's highest military medal.

Madam Speaker, recounting the acts that have earned the Medal of Honor is a window into the acts of courage that strike awe in all Americans: hand-to-hand combat, climbing the walls of a fort into enemy fire, leaping onto a grenade to save the lives of comrades. Each recipient is a hero to whom we owe our freedom.

Since the first medals were awarded, more than 3,400 Medals of Honor have been awarded to a total of 3,400-and-some individuals. And those are good, correct figures. Extraordinarily, 19 people have received two Medals of Honor.

Madam Speaker, the Medal of Honor Foundation, which this legislation will help fund, seeks to educate the public on the values of courage, the values of sacrifice, patriotism, citizenship, integrity and commitment. These are values that are embodied by the medals' winners and are truly American values we can all be proud of. Passage of this bill will help fund the foundation's activities and encourage others to follow in these brave recipients' footsteps. I urge my colleagues to support the legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk), who is the principal Republican sponsor of this bill.

Before doing that, however, I want to note that Mr. Kirk was also a principal sponsor of a commemorative coin honoring disabled American veterans that will help fund a memorial to them that is scheduled to be built between the Rayburn and the Ford buildings. This Chamber owes him a round of appreciation for all of his hard work on those important issues.

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

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

Madam Speaker, I also rise today in strong support of H.R. 347, introduced by the gentleman from California (Mr. Schiff), and I seek its immediate passage.

This bill, cosponsored by 295 Members, would award a Congressional Gold Medal collectively to the United States Army's 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team in recognition of their exemplary service during the Second World War.

In 1941, more than 5,000 Japanese Americans served in the various branches of the United States Armed Forces, but that changed dramatically after the terrible attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Immediately, many Japanese Americans were classified unfit for military service or as enemy aliens, even if they were second generation Japanese Americans, known as ``nisei,'' born in the United States.

In June of 1942, the 1,400 members of the Hawaii Provisional Infantry Battalion were shipped from the islands to Oakland, where they formed into the 100th Infantry Battalion and were sent to Wisconsin for training. Eight months later, based on the battalion's excellent training record, President Roosevelt and the War Department agreed to let the other nisei into the service, which led to the formation of the 442nd.

Madam Speaker, the 100th Infantry Battalion was deployed to the Italian front in late September of 1943 and, while it encountered heavy fighting, acquitted itself so well its members earned six Distinguished Service Crosses in their first 2 months of action. The 442nd arrived in the Italian theater 6 months later, and the two units joined together, fighting with distinction in Italy, France and Germany for the remainder of the war.

Together, it is important to note that they received seven Presidential Unit Citations, 21 Medals of Honor, 29 Distinguished Service Crosses, 560 Silver Stars with 28 Oak Leaf Clusters, 4,000 Bronze Stars with 1,200 Oak Leaf Clusters, 22 Legion of Merit Medals, 15 Soldier's Medals, 12 French Croix de Guerre with two Palms, two Italian Crosses for Military Valor, two Italian Medals for Military Valor, and more than 9,000 Purple Hearts. It is these Purple Hearts that gave the 100th Battalion the nickname ``the Purple Heart Battalion.''

Madam Speaker, in a war that was filled with heroes, a war that gave us the Greatest Generation, the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team clearly stand out. They truly lived up to their motto, ``go for broke,'' and set a standard for bravery and valor. This bill provides for the awarding of a Congressional Gold Medal in recognition of their service and their bravery. The medal will be given to the Smithsonian for display and research purposes.

Madam Speaker, this award is long past due. I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Schiff) for taking the lead on this important legislation. I urge its immediate passage.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, at this time I have no other speakers.

I would like to reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, it is very fitting as we have heard from the author of the bill and from others on the floor of the body today that we award the Congressional Gold Medal in recognition of courage, skill, service and bravery to the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.

I would urge my colleagues to support H.R. 347.

I yield back the balance of my time.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, this bill today has the word ``reform'' in it, the Mortgage ``Reform'' Act; but unfortunately, the reform that it is proposing would only further hurt the housing market and leave aspiring homebuyers with less choice, ultimately keeping them out of a new home. In short, this bill will do more harm than good.

Rather than helping revive the economy, this bill will tie the hands of mortgage lenders and will do nothing to jump-start a flailing housing market. How can we expect more people to purchase more homes when we make it harder for them to get the mortgages that they need?

Mr. Chairman, at a recent committee hearing on this bill I asked that very question to the director of consumer affairs at the Federal Reserve and also of the commissioner of banks for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Both of these expert testifiers said verbatim, they said unequivocally, that this legislation would in fact reduce the number of mortgages that are available to consumers.

It is time for Congress to do a much better job of considering any unintended consequences of the legislation that it passes. That is why I offered an amendment to this bill that would require the Comptroller General to study the effect that this legislation will certainly have on the financial institutions that provide mortgages.

But the reality is, this legislation here today, it still has too many problems. And the bill will now open up even safe mortgages to litigation by trial lawyers and activist groups. And now hardworking people that want to own a new home are going to have to pay the price in the form of higher mortgage interest rates. So this bill not only gives more opportunities for trial lawyers, it in fact is going to use taxpayer money to subsidize those lawsuits, about $140 million of taxpayer money subsidizing lawsuits.

Finally, this bill is called the Mortgage Reform bill, yet it contains no reform of Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae, which have left the taxpayers on the hook for billions and billions and billions of dollars because of bad mortgage underwriting practices.

We should oppose this legislation. We should get it right. We should do nothing that is going to hurt the availability of mortgages, especially to first-time homebuyers. And hopefully we will move in a direction that is going to help not increase costs, but also make credit more available. So I would urge opposition to the bill.

Mr. Speaker, last week I held a small business roundtable discussion in my district. I heard from a dozen small business owners about the various challenges they are facing when it comes to growing jobs and investing in their business. During that discussion, one clear theme emerged, small businesses need help.

Unfortunately, the recently passed budget pours salt in the wound by raising taxes by over $1 trillion, largely on the backs of small business. Rather than tax them, I believe that we should encourage them to reinvest in their business and create more jobs.

That's why I am introducing legislation that will allow small businesses to defer any income tax on any money that is reinvested in their business. This will provide additional incentives and resources for small businesses to grow and maintain their companies during these difficult economic times.

Small businesses have created two out of every three jobs in the United States since the 1970s. Let's help them do it again.