Floor Statements

First, let me join my other colleagues in thanking my freshman class members, Mr. Horsford and Mr. Jeffries, for leading the Congressional Black Caucus' important discussion tonight on eliminating health disparities in America.

Tonight, you are hearing a lot of statistics because it is so important for us to let America know that low-income Americans, racial and ethnic minorities and other underserved populations often have a higher rate of disease and fewer treatment options and reduced access to health care. So you will hear facts tonight.

The facts are that African Americans have the highest rate of high blood pressure of all population groups and tend to develop it earlier in life; African Americans are twice as likely to have diabetes than Whites; African Americans are twice as likely to die from stroke than Whites; African Americans are more than twice as likely to die from prostate cancer than White men; and African American women younger than 40 years of age are more likely to develop breast cancer than White women; infants born to Black women are 1.5 to 3 times more likely to die than those born to women of other races or ethnicities; African Americans are estimated to be 44 percent of all new HIV infections despite representing only 13 percent of the U.S. population.

These disparities are shocking, and the Congressional Black Caucus will not let us ignore them. In 2009, health disparities cost the United States economy $82.2 billion. We have to continue to bring awareness to this issue within our communities and develop strategies to eliminate these disparities in a cost-effective way.

On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, which is a monumental step that helps us address these overwhelming statistics in health disparities within our communities. We now have in place comprehensive health care reform that improves access to affordable care and guarantees that millions of our most at-risk citizens will finally be able to receive care. By improving access to quality health care for all Americans, the Affordable Care Act actually reduces health disparities.

We share this information so citizens will know that this law invests in prevention and wellness, that it gives individuals and families more control over their own care, that it expands initiatives to increase racial and ethnic diversity in health care professionals by strengthening cultural competency training for all health providers, and that it improves communications between providers and patients.

As a lifelong health care advocate and as a stroke survivor and as an African American woman, I know the importance of protecting access to affordable health care coverage for all Americans, particularly for those who are most in need. We need to continue to move forward with this legislation and with initiatives that eliminate health disparities in America, and I look forward to continuing to work with all of my colleagues to improve our health care system. In order to have a successful Nation, we must have a healthy Nation. So this is my clarion call to all my colleagues--Democrats and Republicans--to help us make progress on this critical issue.

I would like to join my other colleagues in thanking my freshman class members Mr. Jeffries and Mr. Horsford for leading the Congressional Black Caucus' discussion on this critical issue.

I rise today to be an advocate for improving access to quality education for minority students and to discuss the government's role in breaking down economic barriers for educational opportunity.

You see, I know firsthand how important government assistance is for opportunity and quality education. I know that it makes a difference because, when my brother and I entered college--first-generation college graduates in our family--we realized early on that we needed to do something with public education: it was government funding; it was access to a quality education; but more importantly, it was folks like Congressmen Jeffries and Horsford making a difference in our lives. But now we see there is still a significant number of hurdles that prevent many Americans from obtaining a quality education. Financial literacy, access to financial aid, quality education all play a critical role and must be a part of this national discussion.

I'm from the great State of Ohio. Last year, Ohio ranked seventh in the country for student debt, with the average student carrying $28,683 in debt. I also know that the growing student loan is a burden in this country and makes it more difficult for families to achieve future financial security. If left unaddressed, it will affect us negatively over our broader economy. Currently, there are approximately 37 million student loan borrowers with outstanding student loans. These statistics threaten access to quality education and must be addressed.

One way to improve access to quality education, as I hope you will hear repeatedly tonight, is through the Pell Grant. Again, I know firsthand because, you see, when I was going to college, the Pell Grant in the early years was called the Basic Educational Opportunity Grant. There is that word again.

By receiving that, it gave me that opportunity that propelled me. And now, my sisters who follow me are all educators. My mother, like Congressman Butterfield's mother, served many years, until she retired, going into public schools as a reading specialist assistant where she helped so many children understand the quality of that education and how reading and speaking would make a difference.

So you see, Pell Grants have been the cornerstone in the lives of many minorities seeking higher education and have provided more than $4 billion to African American college students each year. Without the Pell Grant program, hundreds of thousands of minority students would not be able to afford to go to college.

I've also had the experience of working as a leader in a 4-year institution in our great State, the largest single campus university in this country, Ohio State University. I am proud to say that they are strong advocates for us making sure that we continue to put dollars into the Pell Grant so children of all races, ethnicity and color will be able to have that quality education.

That is why the escalating cost of education acutely affects students of all color and their access to a quality

education. We need to also improve quality education by promoting STEM programs, STEM programs that build a pipeline of a highly skilled workforce for today's high-tech and industrial jobs.

Last year, African Americans received just 7 percent of STEM-related bachelor's degrees, 4 percent of master's degrees and only 2 percent of doctorates. American colleges and universities are poised to produce about 3 million science, engineer, technology and math STEM majors over the next decade. However, there has only been a 2 percent to 3 percent increase of African Americans in STEM professions over the past year.

So, you see, we come tonight to ask this body, this Congress to be supportive of making sure that children, and especially minority children, African American children, be able to be our Jackie Robinsons, as we have today with our two leaders who stand here today as our Jackie Robinsons of scholarship.

With that, I thank you for allowing me the opportunity to come today.

I would like to join with my fellow Ohioans to thank President Obama and Secretary Salazar for the designation of the Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument in Wilberforce, the great State of Ohio. This monument recognizes the legacy of Charles Young and the proud traditions of African Americans in our military over the last nearly 150 years.

I join my good friend Marsha Bayless, mayor of Xenia, Ohio, who is in D.C. today, because we believe that it is a great honor for our community that the home of this outstanding American, the first African American to reach the rank of colonel, be recognized and honored. I urge the House to wholeheartedly support the President's efforts to preserve the American heritage through the Antiquities Act.

I come to join my colleagues with a heavy heart to honor the memory of Charlie Wilson. I had the opportunity of having my House of Representatives office across from him in the early years of my career. Charlie is a great mentor and someone who always took the time to help others.

I also had the opportunity to hear those stories about the funeral home. It was Charlie's family's funeral home that would actually take African American families when other funeral homes wouldn't. So I always respected that he looked at all people the same.

Like many others, I had the opportunity to spend time with him on Lake Erie in the summers because we were both boaters, and had the opportunity for him to join my husband and Angela as we took trips together.

So to his four sons and to Angela, know that you are in our hearts and our prayers. And I say to you, celebrate his life, because he had a life that was full of honor and celebration.

Mr. Speaker, elementary schools, high schools, movie theaters, universities, and shopping malls have all been scenes of horrific incidents where innocent lives were lost, along with our sense of security. After each tragedy, we hear sermons, speeches, console survivors and loved ones, but we in Congress have done little to change the way we address gun violence. I want to change that.

While massacres such as the one that occurred in Newtown draw significant attention to the issue of gun violence, it is a persistent problem throughout the Nation. According to a recent Johns Hopkins University survey, a solid majority of Americans, gun owners and nongun owners alike, support several initiatives to slow gun violence. For example, 89 percent of all respondents, and 75 percent of those identified as NRA members, support universal background checks for gun sales.

President Obama's plan also calls for a ban on military-style assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, like the kind that have been commonly used in so many of the mass shootings we have witnessed in the United States.

We can never prevent all crimes or gun violence, but we can work together to find ways to limit the loss of lives with commonsense solutions.

Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize the Association of Residential Cleaning

Services International, or ARCSI, of Ohio's 3rd Congressional District, as I rise to acknowledge National Spring Cleaning Week which took place March 18-24, 2013.

As many people around our country prepare for spring cleaning, on behalf of the organization, I want to remind those who will begin going ``out with the old and in with the new'' to recycle.

Recycling what you have stored in your basement, closet and garage and instead learning to reduce, reuse and recycle those items is efficient, sustainable and time-saving.

With advice from our cleaning industry professionals at ARCSI, they are helping everyday American families live healthy, clean and green lives.

So let us remember to re-use, re-purpose and whenever possible recycle items we already have in our households as we begin our spring cleaning.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Tuesday, April 9, as Equal Pay Day for women.

The Equal Pay Act, signed into law by President Kennedy in 1963, amended the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to prohibit sex-based wage discrimination between men and women who perform jobs that require substantially equal skill, effort, and responsibility.

In 1963, women were earning an average of 59 cents on the dollar compared to men. I rise because today on average women earn 77 cents for every dollar a man earns.

In 2013, a study by the United States Census Bureau in Columbus, Ohio, demonstrated that women are paid 81 cents for every dollar paid to men. This amounts to a yearly gap of some $9,261 between men and women who work full time.

Equal work? It's simple. It deserves equal pay.

I'm proud that the first piece of legislation that President Obama signed into law during his first term was the Lilly Ledbetter Act. I rise for all the Lilly Ledbetters in hopes that one day the wage of workers in this country will be equal regardless of gender.

Thank you to my colleague, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. It is an honor for me to join you.

As I stand here today on this floor and think that we have the opportunity to pass legislation that makes sense on gun laws, and as I stand here on this floor and realize that the gun debate is heating up and that we are considering that we would filibuster and protect those who don't want us to make a decision, it does not make sense to me. We are asking for sensible gun laws. We are asking for laws that can help save lives. Whether it's in Congresswoman Jackson Lee's district in Texas, whether it's in Newtown, Connecticut, or in my Third Congressional District in Ohio, it's for us to take this opportunity to stand together and save lives.

We stand on this floor, and we salute so many good things, so many changes. So the question now for me is: Why? Why can't we come together? The things we're asking for: to close the loopholes. The things we're asking for: to make sure that someone doesn't have an assault weapon in his home that can shoot 30 rounds of ammunition in 30 seconds.

I support the Second Amendment, but I don't think that our forefathers meant for us to do what we are doing today. I don't think that they envisioned that innocent children, babies, would be assassinated, if you will, by someone who had one of these assault weapons. I think today as Members of Congress on both sides of the aisle, that we understand that we are about saving lives, that we are here to protect the innocent, that we took an oath to serve.

So as I reflect back on where I was when that incident happened in Newtown, I was sitting with colleagues on both sides of the aisle at Harvard University in training, where we were talking about working together, where we were talking about how we can make this wonderful America better. So now as I reflect today, let's use those same things that we were being trained on to make this America better. Let's make it better by voting an up-or-down vote. Let's make it better in the spirit of saving lives.

So I proudly join you as we ask all of our colleagues to come together and do what's right: sensible gun laws, background checks, closing the loopholes. That's what we are asking for. For me it is quite simple. The answer is: let's vote.

Thank you so much, Congressman Bera. What a great opportunity for me to tell my story when I think about Medicare and what that means to me--but more importantly, what it means to this Nation, what it means to the citizens in the Third Congressional District that I represent, what it means to someone's mother, someone's grandmother, someone's spouse.

Medicare is something that was created and seniors have paid into it, oftentimes for a lifetime. And then they get to a point in their life when they want to be able to use something that they paid into. Medicare is something that you're going to hear about from people.

I agree with my colleagues that Medicare is not, nor should it be, a Democrat or a Republican issue. It should be something when you think about being able to provide health care for the same individuals who put so much money into it that they can now be able to use it. Medicare helps save lives. Medicare is part of what I think of as part of the American Dream. Medicare is something that we should be proud to be able to say that we're going to take care of our seniors.

You see, a few years ago my father was very ill; but it was because of Medicare that I was able to witness him getting quality health care. I'm fortunate, my mother is still living. And like many of my colleagues who have come here today and talked about the wonderful benefit that they had by being able to know that their parent was being taken care of, and they were going to be able to have quality health care, isn't that something that we all want? Isn't that something we want as a Democrat? Isn't that something that we want as a Republican?

Let me tell you what I know the citizens of the Third Congressional District want. Let me tell you what I really believe the citizens of this wonderful country we live in want. I think they want to see us working together. I think they want to hear solutions. I think they want to know that they can trust us, because they sent us here not to be in gridlock, not for us to be fighting, not for us to be arguing without

resolve, and that's what Democrats are saying to you today.

We have taken this issue that touches lives and reaches across America, and we are saying it is our responsibility as Members of Congress, Members of this 113th Congress, that we should make it one of our key responsibilities to stand on this floor and tell those stories, to tell those stories about Medicare, to tell those stories about the lady who lives down the street from me and how fortunate she was because Medicare saved her life. We should be able to stand on this floor and give speech after speech to say to America: you sent us here to protect those who are the most fragile citizens, those who have given so much that we stand here.

So you see, my story is quite simple about Medicare. It's about exercising our right to protect those who paved the way for us. It's about me saying proudly as a Democrat our alternatives to the budget as it relates to Medicare is the best solution. It's about saying we should not make it a voucher program. It's about me saying we should not take moneys from Medicare and give to other companies that don't need it.

You see, it's quite simple. It's a story about saving lives. It's a story about doing all the things that we say as public servants. It's about the oath that we took as an elected official that we would serve our communities, that we would come here and make a difference.

So, Congressman Bera, for me, it's about standing strong and saying to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, Join us; join us in making a difference to help our seniors and protect and save Medicare. And that's my message and my story.

Mr. Speaker, what's the message?

The message is that Congressman Ryan's budget is not a path to prosperity for our country.

Why? Because we lose with jobs. His 10-year budget destroys 2 million American jobs, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

We lose with families and children, because families and children who have income below $200,000 would have to face a tax increase averaging more than $3,000 a year.

We lose with seniors. According to the AARP, as they stated, the GOP budget will shift costs to seniors and end the Medicare guarantee. Removing the Medicare guarantee of affordable health care coverage seniors have contributed to through a lifetime of hard work definitely is not the answer.

Mr. Speaker, the American path to prosperity is not for citizens to lose, as we do under the Ryan budget, but to move forward, as set forth in the Democratic alternatives.

Thank you so much, Congressman Horsford.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss House Budget Committee Chairman Ryan's fiscal year 2014 budget and Democratic alternatives that work.

I first want to thank my colleagues, Mr. Horsford and Mr. Jeffries, both members of my class, for leading the Congressional Black Caucus' discussion on this critical matter. I would also like to thank Congressman Bobby Scott for his tireless efforts on the Congressional Black Caucus budget.

Released last week, Congressman Ryan's proposal, entitled ``A Path to Prosperity,'' includes more of the same proposals that the American public rejected at the ballot last November. Same proposal, different cover.

I cannot possibly imagine how this regressive tax structure that it contains is a way to lead to shared American prosperity. I also cannot imagine how this budget will balance in 10 years and not hurt Medicare beneficiaries over the age of 55.

As it has been in the past, Republican Ryan's budget offers a trickle-down agenda--the same agenda tried during George W. Bush's Presidency, which resulted in the withering of the middle class and the total collapse of the economy. This budget shares in the same failed policies of the past, and in a nutshell it is unrealistic, unreasonable, and unfair.

First, Mr. Speaker, while the Ryan budget is clear on its harmful proposed cuts for children's education and health care services for seniors, the budget blueprint is particularly light on details and heavy on tax breaks to wealthy Americans who do not need the help.

Second, but of no less importance, the Ryan proposal fails to repeal and replace the sequester, therefore doing nothing to prevent the loss of over 700,000 jobs the sequester will cause.

By not stopping the sequester and through other budgetary tricks, the Ryan budget will cause even deeper cuts to all of our Nation's essential services, ranging from the deep cuts for services for women to Head Start and health care research to homeland security.

This lack of foresight will also result in some $800 billion of Federal funds being removed from Pell Grants and school lunches and begin the process of changing Medicare to a voucher system.

There is a better way. Members of the Congressional Black Caucus have worked diligently to put forth an alternative blueprint, one designed to be pro-growth and put jobs in the economy first, rather than adhere blindly to ideological spending cuts.

The Congressional Black Caucus alternative would replace the sequester's cuts with intelligent, balanced, deficit-reduction measures.

Additionally, cutting educational spending in the name of future generations smacks of insincerity when we recognize that America's position as global leader in technology and innovation depends on our ability to invest in

the necessary infrastructure and training for such breakthroughs. That's why the Congressional Black Caucus budget would support billions of dollars of infrastructure and job-training investments for the future of our Nation and its citizens.

Americans are tired of watching their government lurch from one crisis to the next. The Congressional Black Caucus alternatives offer serious, credible paths away from gridlock and toward a long-term solution which creates jobs, expands the middle class, honors our commitment to seniors by preserving Medicare and protecting Medicaid, and addresses our budget deficits and debt responsibly.

These goals are achievable. But be clear, the Ryan budget will not get us there. It is not the path to the Nation's collective prosperity. It does not move us forward. The Democrats and members of the Congressional Black Caucus propose that we move America forward.

I thank you for the opportunity to address these important issues.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to salute the nationally recognized Ohio Psychological Association, founded in 1949, for their outstanding contributions to psychology and mental health development in Ohio. It is the seventh largest psychological State association in the country and it is located within my Third Congressional District.

They have taken psychology and mental health development to a new level of member service and effectiveness. They advocate for the continued advancement of the professional and

supportive legislative initiatives that include and improve Medicare for their patients.

I would like to recognize Executive Director Michael Ranney, Dr. James Mulick, and Dr. Bobbie Celeste for their hard work that has ensured that the profession of psychology has remained vital, relevant, and at the forefront in Ohio.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to salute African American faith- based leaders from Ohio's Third Congressional District. They are here as civil

rights leaders, providers of child care, after-care, educational programs for our children. They are advocates for entrepreneurs, minority businesses, and economic development opportunities in our communities. They stand strong with their first ladies and congregations for stopping domestic violence against women, for reducing crimes in our neighborhoods.

These powerful leaders are Bishop Jerome Ross, Reverend Dr. Keith Troy, Reverend Fred Lamarr, Reverend Jerry Carter, Reverend Victor Davis, Bishop Donald Washington, Reverend John Little, the Honorable Larry Price, Reverend Dale Snyder, the Honorable Hearchel Craig, and Reverend Joel King, cousin of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Lastly, they know all too well what the impact of sequestration will be to our at-risk communities. I salute them because they will carry on their great work despite the sequestration and the unnecessary challenges it will present if imposed. Sequestration is harmful to our district, to our constituents, and to the Nation. The impact of sequestration will affect the Federal Government's ability to provide States with the necessary resources to invest in the future leaders and to protect America's strong business environment.

Our hardworking taxpayers deserve better. Let's not put our economy at risk.

Mr. Speaker, today is the 100th birthday of Rosa Parks, the mother of the modern Civil Rights Movement.

In celebration of this year's Black History Month, it is with great honor that I wholeheartedly lend my voice in support of the release of a commemorative stamp, created by the United States Postal Service, to pay respects to her legacy and contributions to this country to ensure the equal treatment of all citizens.

Her civil disobedience in refusing to give up her seat on that bus in Montgomery, Alabama sparked a movement that continues today to push the possibilities of our society into new realms.

As a member of the Ohio General Assembly, where I also served as House Minority Leader, I was proud to have led the efforts that resulted in the 2005 passage of House Bill 421 of the 130th General Assembly to mark December 1st as Rosa Parks Day--the first state to do so in the Nation.

That day in 1955, she started something larger than herself.

Her action sparked the peaceful Montgomery Bus Boycott that lasted 381 days and successfully desegregated the public transportation system across the country. Her fight didn't end there: she continued to champion civil rights all across the country until her passing on October 24, 2005. And with this stamp, we further add to the recognition of her selflessness and pioneering spirit that she deserves.

The unveiling of the stamp will take place in Detroit, Rosa Parks' final place of rest. Detroit is also the location of the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self Development, an organization she help found in 1987 to inspire young people--just as her actions inspired many across our nation in Alabama years before.

Now that we are at the start of this year's Black History Month, a year that celebrates the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation and the 50th anniversary Martin Luther King Jr.'s March on Washington, I cannot think of a better 100th birthday memorial to help further etch Rosa Parks' name into the fabric of our nation's history than with this stamp.

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to take my first opportunity to address my colleagues from the House floor, to participate in a discussion on an issue that I find very troubling, at a crisis point for our Nation.

But first let me thank our chairwoman, Marcia Fudge, for her outstanding leadership and for organizing the Special Order hour to address the issue of the senseless violence facing our Nation.

Our country, more than ever, is facing a culture of violence. Unfortunately, we are now living in a society where mass killings have gone from being an extremely rare occurrence to a common occurrence.

According to Harvard Health Policy Review, each year approximately 30,000 people in the United States die as a result of gunfire, and about 80,000 people are wounded. We are faced with living in a culture where, now, more than 6.6 million violent crimes--murder, rape, assault, and robbery--are committed each year.

We are living in a culture of violence where our children see 8,000 murders and 100,000 other acts of violence in media and in their communities at a very early age. Colleagues, these statistics are too many, and it is time for action now. This problem must be fixed. We must remember, when we talk about rights, children have a right to be safe.

So I applaud President Obama and Vice President Biden for proactively taking the necessary steps to address this critical issue. It's going to take all of us united, regardless of party affiliation or our differing views on constitutional rights, to stem this tide of violence.

More importantly, we must take a hard look at funding for mental health services and other services; we must look at synching technology to ensure proper and tighter access to firearms; we must place adequate controls on ammunition.

Bottom line: We must protect our schools, our communities. Children and families must be safe.

I respectfully ask my colleagues to make this issue of violence a priority

and to support our Nation's leadership as they work through resolving this challenge, which should not be difficult if we compromise and keep focusing on saving lives.

Madam Chair, I pledge to support you and to support all my other colleagues with the Congressional Black Caucus to make a difficult task safe and to protect the lives of our children and families from gunfire and a culture of violence.

I thank you for my time.