Floor Statements

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

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 377, which recognizes Armed Forces Day, May 16, and the exemplary service of the members of the armed services. I want to commend my colleagues, Congressmen Ken Calvert and Neil Abercrombie, for sponsoring it.

Today we are a Nation at war, with more than 2,750,000 men and women in uniform and more than 270,000 deployed worldwide. The men and women of today's armed services are all volunteers and have willingly, professionally, competently and unselfishly met every challenge this Nation has presented to them. In meeting those challenges, many have died and more have been wounded and injured.

These magnificent men and women come not only from the active components of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard, but also from our hometown communities as members of the National Guard and the other Reserve components. Their commitment to this Nation and to their services can be measured in many ways. But I believe there is no better evidence of their patriotism and commitment to the defense of America than their astounding willingness to re-enlist and continue serving. Today, such re-enlistment decisions are made with the knowledge that it will mean repeat tours of duty in war zones where death and injury are potential outcomes.

Nevertheless, the most re-enlistment data continues a trend that has existed since September 11, 2001. For example, as of the end of March this year, Army re-enlistments for this year ranged from 111 percent to 114 percent of goal. Marine Corps and re-enlistments range from 197 percent to 204 percent of goal.

When Armed Forces Day was created in 1949, its purpose was to establish a time when all Americans could reflect on and honor the service of the men and women of the Armed Forces. This week, Armed Forces Day will be celebrated on May 16. On that day, I would urge my colleagues to reflect on the extraordinary service rendered not only by those who have previously served, but also of those who now are committed to making this Nation safe. On that day and every day, I would also urge my colleagues to take the time to individually thank every previous and current member of the armed services they encounter for their service.

I heartily recommended that all my colleagues vote ``yes'' on this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I would like to recognize Mr. Calvert of California for such time as he may consume.

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

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

For the first time in more than 30 years, Social Security recipients will not get a cost of living adjustment in 2010 or in 2011, yet most will pay increasing premiums for part B and D of Medicare. This is the first Social Security check cut since 1975!

So let me get this straight--no raise for seniors on a fixed income, but an automatic pay raise for Congress. What's wrong with this picture?

We're telling our seniors to make it on less while we are shelling out millions to protect animals such as the Brolga crane and the Iberian lynx--species not even found in the United States.

We're forcing our seniors to choose between food and medicine, but we are approving $3 trillion in spending and budgets that will double the national deficit in 5 years and triple it in 10 years. On top of this Social Security pay cut, we are raising utility costs to seniors by an average of $250 a month through cap-and-trade.

Where are the priorities among the liberals in this country? Certainly not with the elderly and disabled on fixed incomes.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor a very special group from Northwest Louisiana.

On April 11, 2009 a group of 104 veterans and their guardians flew to Washington with a very special program. Louisiana HonorAir is providing the opportunity for these Louisiana veterans to visit Washington, DC on a chartered flight, free of charge. For many, this will be the first and only opportunity to visit the memorials created in their honor. These brave men and women, from my home state of Louisiana, deserve the thanks of a grateful nation for everything they have sacrificed for our freedom.

Today I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring these great Americans and thank them for their unselfish service.

James L. Adams, William P. Atkins, Joe B. Aulds, Fred

Winston Baily, Charles Baird, Howard G. Barnett, Ed J.

Barras, John E. Blanchard, Charles E. Brister, Joseph J.

Brocato, Chester C. Bums, Billy G. Cantrell, J. C. Carlin, C.

C. Carpenter, Edmond H. Chandler, Jr., LaVon E. Chandler,

Waylon H. Chandler, Fred L. Cheek, Steve K. Cheek, Ralph J.

Cooper, Luther R. Couch, William R. Cutler, Golan A. Davis,

Heuy G. Davis, William E. Davis; and

George W. Davison, Lee Day, Ellison DeMoss, Donald R.

Downs, Herschel M. Downs, George Forrest Dunn, Herman H.

Edwards, Ray C. Ellerd, John M. Farrar, Theodor Finkbeiner,

Noble E. Flenniken, James M. Gatner, Clyde E. Gilber, Challie

Bruce Griggs, August E. Hayden, Raymond L. Heck, Clem V.

Henderson, Sr., Marvin Higginbotham, Eugene L. Hill, Harry J.

Hilman, Fahy E. Hodge, Howard Holder, Joseph F. Hood, John L.

Horton, Gordon M. Hughes; and

James M. Hunter, William F. Hunter, W.E. Jacobs, Robert

Johnson, Emmett F. Jones, Gaston V. Jones, Dudley J. Kemper,

Raymond Kleeman, William T. Knowles, Douglas E. Lane, Vernon

Y. Leach, S.E. Lee, Elmer C. Lolley, C.W. Loyd, Hilton Lytle,

Elzie R. Mains, Horace H. Maxwell, Harold L. McBeth, William

McElroy, Dan B. McKay, James H. McQuiller, Jesse L. Means,

Floyd S. Mercer, Anthony John Miciotto, Roy A. Miciotto; and

Ollie Mitchell, Charles B. Moore, Danny R. Moore, Howard E.

Morris, Calvin E. Morrison, Miles G. Murphy, James M. Newsom,

George G. Nolan, Charles F. North, Raymond

L. Odom, John S. Palmer, John Parker, Billy B. Parks, George

M. Pearce, Felix P. Pinnix, Francis A. Plauche, Eileen Rahm,

Wallace T. Rascoe, James 0. Rawls, James L. Revells, John M.

Rust, Gerald D. Sanderson, Frank P. Sartori, Paul Sartori,

Orvis U. Sigler; and

Joe D. Simpson, Lonell L. Smith, William H. Smith, Leroy

Solice, James C. Spencer, Jackson W. Stine, James H.

Stronger, Garrard M. Stump, Terry B. Trammell, Henry G. Ward,

Billy R. Weeks, Thomas R. Wells, Arvis L. Wiley, Otis

Wilkerson, Roger C. Wilkinson, Kenneth C. Wood, Neil A.

Yarborough.

Madam Speaker, as a physician, I am the first to say we need affordable health care access for all.

A new national health plan has been created by my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. They claim this plan will compete alongside private insurance to ensure that patients are getting the best deal.

This sounds great on the surface. However, this idea makes as much sense as Microsoft setting the rules for all technology companies, then competing with them.

Make no mistake about it: the net result of a national or public plan option will be the death of the private insurance in this country. This crazy government versus private strategy is a first step toward a government-run health care for everyone, creating two levels of care, rationing of resources, and exploding government budgets.

Americans don't want Washington telling them what benefits they need and how much health care they deserve. But they do need access to affordable, high-quality health care that only private insurance competing honestly for business can provide, whether it is paid for by our government for the poor or paid for by the working citizens.

Well, I thank the gentleman from Illinois. I also thank the gentlelady from Tennessee for her remarks. I certainly agree with everything she has said this evening. And perhaps I have a couple more things to add.

Mr. Speaker, there are no two ways about it: this is a revenue- boosting or a net tax system by any way you look at it. The experts have looked at it, economists and energy people. I guess you could call it cap-and-trade with a little C for the ``cap'' and a big T for ``tax.'' What do I mean by that? Well, what is the cap-and-trade or what we call the ``cap-and-tax?'' Basically, it says that there are factories out there that can burn coal or emit CO2 into the atmosphere as long as they can find somebody else by way of allotments who are perhaps under the threshold by taking that burden from them. And in the process, there is some sort of exchange of currency.

Now what kind of currency are we talking about? Well, it is estimated, at least at this point, and we don't have details as often we don't get on these things, of $646 billion of net taxation to our economy. So again, let there be no mistake about it. This is a tax.

Now, what effect will it have on us Americans? Well, first of all, we know it is going to increase unemployment because as the tax burden is put on the factories and as it is put on power plants, there will have to be a movement of factories and other things offshore or to other countries who are not part of this program. We also know that it hits the poor. And it is also going to lower the overall standard of living.

Well, here is just a couple of facts that I would like to share with you, Mr. Speaker. A recent MIT study shows that cap-and-tax will cost the average American household $3,100 a year. Now, I know there has been some controversy about this. And it is my understanding that the MIT people went back and said, we were wrong on that; it is more than $3,100.

Another study shows that we are likely to lose three to four million American jobs if this is enacted. Companies who are looking to invest in our economy will simply move overseas, as I said. There is also a debate about whether it will create a stimulus. For the last few months, we have been talking about how important stimulus is to our economy. Well, this will definitely stimulate an economy. It will stimulate other countries' economies while hurting our economy.

Now all of this perhaps would be a theoretical and perhaps a hypothetical discussion except for the fact that cap-and-trade is not really a new concept. They have had it in Europe for years. This morning I heard Dr. Gabriel Calzada talk about this. This gentleman is from Spain and an expert in this area. So what is the Spanish experience in this, Mr. Speaker? What Spain found was that for every green job that was added, and again, I'm not exactly sure what a ``green job'' is, but for every green job, there was a loss of 2.2 jobs. In the so-called ``green jobs'' it was found that 90 percent of these jobs were in the implementation or construction. And these jobs were quickly dissipated as soon as the construction was ended. So what is the current unemployment rate of Spain? Seventeen and a half percent.

Now there was also a discussion by a very interesting expert in microeconomics. Aparna Mathur is her name. And I would like to read some very interesting facts into the Record: ``These higher costs of production by cap-and-trade will translate to higher energy and product prices. In a paper that I co-authored with my colleagues at the American Enterprise Institute, we estimate that a cap-and-trade system, with a $15 permit price, will increase the cost of everything, from food, clothing, shoes and home furnishings by 1 percent, of gasoline 7.7 percent, electricity 12.5 percent, and natural gas 12.3 percent. Of course, as previous experience with cap-and-trade programs has shown, permit prices are likely to be extremely volatile and rising over time, and our $15 price estimate is likely to be conservative. Other studies suggest that the price could be above $50 in 2015, close to $100 in 2030 and $200 in 2050. We can safely project that our estimates will be some multiple of these higher prices.''

Now, also she points out something else, and that is this: as a percent of the total home budget for poor people, electricity is 4 percent, whereas for richer, more wealthy people, upper middle class perhaps, it is only 1 percent. Therefore, the burden to a low-income person is going to be four times that of someone of higher income. So what does this do in net effect? What it does is it hits the poor first and worst. How else does it hit the poor and how else does it hit everyone else? Well, we know that all the costs have to be passed along to the consumer. So as Dr. Mathur pointed out, we are going to see inflation in the cost of everything we do because everything we have today in terms of products, and even services to some extent, are dependent upon energy cost. And certainly it is going to create unemployment, because if this system were implemented worldwide, perhaps it would be an even playing field. But that is not the case. We know that for everything we do, we have China and India that is reversing that tremendously in terms of the impact on the environment. And while their economies are growing rapidly, ours will be diminishing related to this.

So the net effect of that, Mr. Speaker, is that if we move forward with this crazy plan, we are going to see both middle class and lower- income people hurt the worst. We are going to see an overall lowering of life styles. We are going to see ourselves less productive and less competitive around the world.

And that is going to relegate to actually a net loss in jobs.

So I call upon my colleagues in our discussion this evening--and hopefully this bill won't even come to the floor. But if it does, I ask my colleagues, Mr. Speaker, to vote ``no'' on this wasteful bill that is really, in my opinion, just another Trojan horse, a way of generating revenue to pay for new social programs and perhaps even newer social programs that are yet to be determined.

And with that, I thank you, Mr. Shimkus, and I yield back to you.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate three outstanding students from my district.

Randi Layne Adams of South Beauregard Elementary in Beauregard Parish was named student of the year. She is actively involved in 4-H and community service projects, including efforts targeted at recycling and gardening.

Henri Lin, an eighth grader at Caddo Middle Magnet, was named student of the year. Henri is on the staff of his school newspaper, serves on the student council, is a member of the Builders Club, takes advanced piano and competed with the 2009 U.S. Junior Olympics fencing team.

Nicholas Allen Taylor, a senior at Byrd Math and Science Magnet High School, was named student of the year also. Nicholas is captain of Byrd's Quiz Bowl team, a member of the Mu Alpha Theta math honor society, and a member of the lacrosse team.

All three demonstrated outstanding academic leadership and communication skills and have bright futures ahead of them. Congratulations to all of them on this outstanding accomplishment.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor a very special group from Northwest Louisiana.

On April 11, 2009 a group of 104 veterans and their guardians flew to Washington with a very special program. Louisiana HonorAir is providing the opportunity for these Louisiana veterans to visit Washington, DC on a chartered flight, free of charge. For many, this will be the first and only opportunity to visit the memorials created in their honor. These brave men and women, from my home state of Louisiana, deserve the thanks of a grateful nation for everything they have sacrificed for our freedom.

Today I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring these great Americans and thank them for their unselfish service.

Dan D. Adcock, John R. Alexander, Bennie R. Alley, John T. Anderson, Dempsey D. Bankus, Charles R. Bedgood, Henry J. Bird, Edd J. Bordelon, Arnold L. Braddock, Robert I. Brown, Cecil H. Brumley, Charles L. Bryant, James Buggs, Aubra T. Bunn, Curtis E. Chaffin, James Eugene Chowns, Jack Coursey, Jack Creighton, Howard A. Curtis, Edward D. Dark, John Duco, Albert J. Dunn, Merrille D. Dunn, Robert M. Duvall, Orlando A. Easterling, Kenneth B. Eaves, Guy M. Farley, John P. Fields, Edward R. Franks, William D. Franks, Dellon K. Fulton, William M. Gaston, Frank A. Genova, Ethan Allen Gillispie, Oben D. Greer, Garland D. Gregory, Walter H. Harbour, Eugene Harvey, James M. Henderson, Roy Gene Hicks, William V. Hines, John L. Hinton, Robert E. Holladay, Loin F. Jacob, Orville H. Jensen, Alton B. Kay, William B. Kinman, Anton Koloc, Andrew J. LeBlanc, Thomas B. Ledford, Ottis Littlejohn, Marshall H. Lyles, Rudolph E. Lyon, Paul H. Madden, Norman L. Mauroner, Lucius D. McGehee, Edgar C. Morris, Raymond L. Owens, Raymond K. Pecanty, Danny L. Phillips, Joe A. Phillips, Arthur R. Pietsch, Alfred B. Potter, Aubie L. Powell, James A. Powell, Melvin A. Powell, Kindred C. Priest, Robert C. Rinehart, Robert D. Roach, Robert G. Robertson, Floyd Cecil Robinson, Carol Wilson Rogers, Rollins B. Rosenzweig, Frank A. Serio, Melvin L. Shirey, Donald C. Sidak, Orvis U. Sigler, James C. Smith, Ernest L. St. John, Edward E. Stevenson, Clyde T. Stovall, Otis L. Strong, Jack F. Taylor, Tiny A. Temple, William M. Temple, Oscar Thornton, Dewey C. Thurmon, Floyd R. Turley, Coy E. Upshaw, Ray U. Urban, Thomas H. Vincent, Emmitt W. Walker, Dillon D. Wallace, Thomas A. Watson, Jack L. Whitfield, William C. Wilkins, Kenneth C. Wood, and Neill A. Yarborough.

Mr. Speaker, it has been almost 8 years since the tragedy of 9/11, and America has not experienced another catastrophic terrorist attack on our home soil, not due to blind luck but due to hard work. Homeland Security during this period thwarted attacks through enhanced interrogation of suspected terrorists. This is a fact. For this, we should thank them, not mire them in millions of legal fees.

But in recent days, more sympathy has been shown to current and potential attackers than to the men and women hired to prevent their deadly acts from coming to fruition. Memos detailing American interrogation methods were selectively released by the administration for political reasons, when other memos showing their life-saving results have not.

Most Americans believe releasing this important information has endangered many innocent Americans in the future and subjects us to future terrorist attacks. Shouldn't we remember it was the self- paralysis of our intelligence systems that led to 9/11 in the first place? Why should we go back?

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor a very special group from Northwest Louisiana.

On April 11, 2009 a group of 104 veterans and their guardians flew to Washington with a very special program. Louisiana HonorAir is providing the opportunity for these Louisiana veterans to visit Washington, DC on a chartered flight, free of charge. For many, this will be the first and only opportunity to visit the memorials created in their honor. These brave men and women, from my home state of Louisiana, deserve the thanks of a grateful nation for everything they have sacrificed for our freedom.

Today I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring these great Americans and thank them for their unselfish service.

Maurice E. Alston, Sr., Albert S. Austin, Norman W. Bale, Kenneth R. Barns, Paul Bauer, James W. Beck, Wayne Belshe, Clyde W. Benson, Chet J. Boudreaux, Wilfred Boullion, William E. Brashear, William O. Budwah, Pleasant Nathaniel Burns, James L. Bush, James H. Butler, William T. Cagle, Richard H. Canterbury, Lamore J. Carter, William H. Carter, Lundy E. Cavender, Marcus R. Chapman, Jr., Allen G. Clements, William Y. Cobb, Rollin H. Cochran, Addison A. Daigle, Arthur J. DeLaune, Jr., Steven L. dePyssler, Homer C. Doty, Jr., James C. Epps, Clyde Lee Estes, Jesse Fenton, Carl D. Ferguson, Jr., Joe E. Floyd, Frank H. Ford, Jr., Lucian W. Furr; William Gately, Ellsworth Gauntz, Jack E. Giles, Wesley D. Glassell, Hersey Goodwin, James B. Grant, James D. Guffey, Ralph A. Hair, Adron W. Hallman, John E. Hamburn, John W. Hamilton, Jesse W. Hammett, Raymond E. Harper, Harold B. Hayden, John Allen Head, Raymond L. Heck, James A. Holdcroft, William J. Hood, Verle L. Hulse, John B. Humphrey, Robert P. Hunter, Richard L. Ingram, Taylor P. Isom, Dewey W. Jenkins, Sr., Edwin E. Jones, George V. Keith, Charles M. Kendrick, James F. King, Stanley F. Kolniak, John J. Langdon, Powell A. Layton, Harry A. Lazarus, Jr., Darion D. Leach, Rosa R. LeJeune, Sam F. Loeb, George A. Love, Charles W. Luther, Joseph F. Lytle, Joseph A. Malec, Floyd L. Marlatt, Joseph A. Marsala, Frank H. McArdle, Jefferson P. McBride, Jr., Joe H. McDaniel, William R. McDaniel, Sam W. McDonald, John Ivy Miles, Mitchell S. Miletello, Jesse W. Moore, Jr., Calvin W. Morgan, Franklin P. Moritz, Alfred J. Procell, John H. Pruett, Jr., Kearney L. Pruett, Earl L. Raley, Robert V. Rayner, Robert Bruce Rivet, Thomas O. Roberts, Billy B. Robertson, James E. Robison, Mike Romanos, Charles H. Rose, Jr., Gerald J. Roussel, E.H. Scoggins, James E. Still, Charles W. Tebow, Ralph D. Tinsley, Loyd H. Wilkins, and Lawrence R. Yeager.

Madam Speaker, I was very disturbed to read about the administration's request to cover up a monogram symbolizing the name of Jesus at a recent speech given by President Obama at Georgetown University. The White House justified this by saying they asked for all symbols to be covered up at the lecture hall; however, this was the only one clearly visible near him during the speech. The covered monogram ``IHS'' comes from the Greek for Jesus and was covered with a black triangle of plywood.

I join my fellow Christians in expressing my outrage at this request. This administration has no problem spending money imprinted with the phrase ``In God We Trust''--and parenthetically, above us here is the words ``In God We Trust''--but won't have our President speak with any symbol of Christ in public view. We begin each day in this Chamber with a prayer, and clearly visible in the House is the same phrase I mentioned before.

With our country having such problems, people turn to faith for help in this time of uncertainty, as they should. This country was founded on the solid principles of Judeo-Christian ethics. Why should our President cover this important symbol of our heritage and values?

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

Madam Speaker, first of all, I want to thank my colleague from across the aisle, Dr. Snyder from Arkansas, who also is a physician. He's interested in this very interesting topic and the passage of this very important resolution, H. Res. 329.

I rise in support of House Resolution 329, recognizing the anniversary of the tragic accident of the steamboat ship SS Sultana, which occurred 144 years ago today.

Madam Speaker, on April 27, 1865, the SS Sultana, a Mississippi River steam-powered paddle wheeler, exploded and sank just north of Memphis in the early hours of the morning. There were 2,400 souls aboard when the ship's boilers exploded, blowing the overcrowded steamboat apart and sending scores of helpless passengers into the vast currents of the Mississippi River. Tragically, over 1,800 individuals lost their lives in what is now known to be the worst maritime disaster in the United States. And by comparison the Titanic, which, of course, sank many years later, lost 1,500 lives, and, of course, that's something that we have memorialized for many years. It's even worse than Shiloh when 1,700 lives were lost in 1 day.

The Sultana had frequently been contracted by the War Department to carry troops up and down the river. On the day of the accident, its precious cargo was nearly 2,000 Union prisoners and additional troops who had recently been released from the Confederate prison camps at the infamous Andersonville and Cahawba. And, as I say, 300 or so of these were Active Duty personnel along with the prisoners. This boat was legally registered to carry only 376 personnel, and as you can see, it was about eight times overloaded.

The SS Sultana left New Orleans, and during a routine stop at Vicksburg, the former prisoners, who were anxious to start their journey home, had crowded on board the steamboat in numbers far above its normal capacity. While the boat was at Vicksburg, it was discovered that the boilers were leaking.

And, parenthetically, I have to mention that there were tremendous incentives on both sides to overcrowd this boat. First of all, the ship captains received $5 per head, which was quite a bit of money in those days. And the Army officers got a $1.15 kickback. And, of course, the soldiers were just out of Andersonville. They were tired. They wanted to go home. So everyone was obviously in favor of getting this boat underway. Quick repairs were

made. However, it was more or less patchwork rather than true repairs.

Madam Speaker, as the Sultana sailed past Memphis, a combination of disastrous circumstances, including poorly maintained boilers, the powerful current on the Mississippi, and the overcrowded conditions, led to the catastrophic explosion. Thankfully, hundreds of the passengers survived primarily through the help of other steamboats in the area that rushed to the scene. Most remarkable was the willingness of the good people of Memphis to help the injured Union soldiers, who just weeks before had been their enemy.

Sadly, Madam Speaker, although this was an enormous disaster in American history, it remains relatively unknown because, remember, this happened in April 1865, a very special month. What happened in that month? Well, on April 9 the Appomattox surrender occurred. Then President Lincoln was assassinated. Then on April 26 John Wilkes Booth was arrested. And then, finally, General Johnson surrendered and Jefferson Davis was arrested. So you can well see how such a remarkable tragedy found itself in the back pages of the local newspapers.

With that in mind, it is fitting today for all of us Americans to remember the tragic loss of over 1,800 souls on the SS Sultana that happened so many years ago, and I, therefore, strongly urge all Members to support this resolution.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for a closing statement.

Madam Speaker, this, as I said, is a remarkable event in history, and, quite frankly, until recently I was unaware of it, and I, among many others, am a Civil War buff. And it happened between my two home States, Louisiana and Mississippi. So I appreciate very much that this has been brought to light and that we can learn more about it and certainly recognize it for the future.

I do want to point out, however, that this turned out to be an example to some extent of unfettered greed; that is, that there was no control over the captain of the ship as well as Army officers. They were in it for profit, and I think they took advantage of the poor Union soldiers who were coming out of desperate situations and so desperately wanted to go home. So I think that's a lesson we can learn for the future, that we need to put our own individual interests at hand and look out for the better good of all.

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

Well, first of all, I want to thank my friend from Louisiana, Mr. Scalise, or should I say Dr. Scalise. We have made him an honorary doctor tonight. Also I want to thank Doctors Murphy and Gingrey for their comments. I do want to follow up on some of these comments. I think they all fit together nicely.

You know, first of all, I would like to say that the United States delivers the best health care in the world, or at least among the best, arguably the best, but the financing of it is a basket case.

You heard, Mr. Speaker, Dr. Gingrey talk about the 47 million uninsured, which is a very fluid number. But, you know, I have often said through my experience that these 47 million are not the people you think they are. They are not the poor, because we do have programs for the poor. They are not the elderly. We have Medicare for the elderly. And they are not those in stable employment in corporate America.

They are, for the most part, small business owners and their employees. There are really several reasons why insurance is difficult to obtain or to afford for these people, and I won't go into all of that in detail, but I do want to hit eight points that I recommend in terms of health care reform.

Before I get to that, I want to contrast with you what I understand the Democrat offering is on this subject, and that is a, more or less, expanding Medicare, which we have today for the elderly and for the disabled to everyone. I think there are a lot of satisfied recipients of Medicare out there. However, I would remind everyone that Medicare exists only because it's propped up by taxpayers and by private insurance. So, if we expand Medicare to everyone, who is going to prop that large system up, perhaps as much as 17 percent of our total economy?

I really think that we can have our cake and eat it, too. I think, Mr. Speaker, that we can have excellent insurance coverage and that we can actually cut costs in the process. So here is point 1:

Despite the need for Federal and State governments to pay many of the health care insurance bills, the government, itself, should get out of the administration programs. Why is that?

Any politician who tells you that when he is elected or that when she is elected that he is going to do away with all fraud and abuse in government is either lying to you or really has no idea what he's talking about. The reason for that, as we apply that to health care, is: If you take, for instance, two physicians who are treating the same pneumonia, physician 1 treats it with an office visit, with maybe a follow-up office visit and with, perhaps, a prescription for antibiotics. The other physician admits a patient to the hospital, costing upwards of $7,000 to $10,000. The question is: Who is right?

The answer is they're both right, but one costs many times more than the other. We really, currently, don't have a way of saying, Well, what is the best and most efficient cost in every case for every patient?

I would submit to you, Mr. Speaker, that the Federal Government does not have the ability to micromanage care to its most efficient point. However, we can--if we are allowed to provide health care through administrative means, that is--pay the money to certain organizations of providers and allow them to make those decisions as to where they can cut the waste out, and to do so through competition, I think we could actually save money and see improvement in care and certainly in customer service.

Second and as part of that is: physicians and other health care providers should be allowed to come together in both vertical and horizontal integration so that, instead of having a reimbursement rate that's dictated by the Federal Government--it's the only part of the economy, incidentally, in which the Federal Government determines the actual price that anyone is paid, the so-called ``price regulation.'' If we move from that into price competition where you have groups of providers who come together and who group together and who compete for covered lives and, in doing so, work efficiencies into the system of lowering the cost and improving the quality, I think we would see much more for our money, and certainly our patients would.

Third, we need to provide basic health care insurance for every American, at least make it affordable. In doing that, remember that today, through the EMTALA laws passed in the 1980s, someone with or without insurance can appear to the emergency room, simply request care and will be provided care despite that person's ability to pay. Well, that's all well and good, but what often happens is it's a person arriving to the emergency room who's receiving the highest cost of care and oftentimes the lowest quality of care because it's provided at the wrong time during the illness. Ultimately, someone else, such as other subscribers and taxpayers, end up paying the cost.

If we had private insurance for those individuals who were uninsured, oftentimes they wouldn't need to come to the emergency room. They could simply receive early treatment, diagnostic treatment or even prevention therapy, before ever having the need to come to the emergency room.

Fourth, we should allow the public to be informed consumers with simple and transparent systems so that they can make wise choices.

Fifth, we should reform antiquated insurance laws and give incentives to the young and healthy to opt into private insurance so that we have large risk pools and so that we do away with the term ``preexisting illness.''

Sixth, we need to move forward on incentives for providers to move into the digital age with electronic health records. That will greatly enhance communication. At least in my own experience, I've had electronic health records in my clinic now for over 10 years. It has actually lowered our cost and has improved our efficiency.

Seventh, we should make family physicians the linchpin of our health care system. Supported by midlevels, they can have a tremendous effect on lowering the cost while improving care.

Finally, we need to provide strong incentives for patients to function as consumers and to behave in every way possible to prevent disease rather than enter the system at the worst possible time when cost is the highest and outcomes are the poorest.

So, you see, Mr. Speaker, while we are not hearing about these solutions from the other side of the aisle even though there's a placeholder for over $600 billion as a down payment towards health care reform, on our side, we're being very specific about what can be done and about what should be done. Many private and connected governmental agencies agree with these major points that I've discussed today.

So, with that, I thank the gentleman, Mr. Scalise, for allowing me this time, and certainly, I yield back my time.

Mr. Speaker, last week I joined thousands of citizens in my district to protest the reckless disregard Washington has shown for the taxpayers of this Nation and their hard-earned dollars.

People are angry, they are frustrated, and they feel that Washington is not listening, so they came together to protest in the same manner as our forefathers. Their message was simple. Stop spending our money, taxing our families and borrowing against the future of our children.

How did the media and our Democrat leaders here in Washington respond? They were dismissive.

The Speaker of the House, in fact, referred to this grassroots effort as Astroturf.

At the same time, Homeland Security released a report labeling political opponents of the administration as potential terrorists. The right of citizens to speak out against their party in power is at the heart of our democracy.

For a party that carps about bipartisanship and freedom of speech, the Democrat leadership should back their words with actions.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend Louisiana State Representative Patrick Williams, who recently completed the 226-mile walk from Shreveport, Louisiana, a major city in my district, to the State capitol in Baton Rouge to raise awareness for autism and childhood obesity.

Autism is a serious developmental disability in the United States, with one in 150 children likely to have some form of this disability.

Representative Williams also brought attention to a serious factor affecting childhood obesity--nutrition in the home, especially among poor families.

And let me say parenthetically that for every obese child, we very likely have a future diabetic.

After completing his walk, Representative Williams made a promise to talk to Congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to promote healthy eating in regards to food stamp recipients, as well as encouraging them to buy more fruits and vegetables.

As a family physician, I couldn't agree more, and look forward to working with Patrick Williams to find solutions to both of these medical issues.

Madam Speaker, tomorrow, the 94th Brigade Support Battalion, part of the 10th Mountain Division's 4th Brigade Combat Team, will welcome Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Coston as its new commander at Fort Polk in Louisiana.

Lieutenant Colonel Coston most recently served as a joint logistics staff officer in Washington, D.C. He is a well-decorated and well- respected soldier, and I congratulate him on his new command at Fort Polk.

At the other military installation in my district, Barksdale Air Force Base, Colonel Steven Basham assumed command of the 2nd Bomb Wing earlier this week. And may I add that Barksdale was selected today for Global Strike Command.

Colonel Basham is a command pilot with more than 3,300 flying hours and served as director of operations for the first combat deployment of the B-2 bomber during Operation Iraqi Freedom. His leadership has been commended throughout his career, and I am confident he will be an exemplary leader for the airmen under his command at Barksdale.

I welcome both officers to my district and thank them for their dedication to the defense of this Nation.