Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, we must remember America is exceptional, and the entrepreneurial spirit and innovative drive of our small businessowners is what makes the American engine hum.

Two-thirds of all new jobs created in America are by these men and women who risk capital, give their time and effort, and take risks to grow their business. We call this the American Dream. When we place too many obstacles on small businesses, it stifles their ability to grow, hinders their ability to hire new employees, and slows our economic recovery.

As we discuss and debate the fiscal cliff deadline that is quickly approaching, we must keep in mind this American Dream. Our policies should focus on how our Nation creates jobs and the economy grows. It's the drive and determination of the American people that makes the United States the most prosperous Nation the world has ever seen. Now is our time to unite around sound pro-growth, pro-job creation policies.

Mr. Speaker, let's create long-term certainty when it comes to taxes and regulations. Let's reduce spending and rein in the national debt. Let's help our Nation restore the American Dream.

I thank the gentleman from Utah, and I want to echo the comments of my friend and colleague from Missouri, across the Kansas City border, who so eloquently described the majesty and beauty of the World War I Museum and Memorial that we have in Kansas City. It is truly a national tribute. And to spend time today on the House floor, to take a moment to pay tribute to the men and women who sacrificed in World War I and to designate this World War I museum the National World War I Memorial is a wonderful moment that I have a chance to take part in, and I want to thank my colleague from Missouri, Mr. Cleaver, and my colleague from Texas, Mr. Poe, and others who have put so much time and work into this legislation.

As has been said, 2014 will mark the 100th anniversary, the centennial anniversary of the Great War. The Frank Buckles World War I Memorial Act establishes this centennial commission to ensure that those who served and sacrificed to promote the ideals of liberty and freedom are properly honored for their bravery, and to honor the World War I hero Frank Buckles that Ted Poe and others have so appropriately described today.

It's sometimes difficult for Kansas City and Missouri, as Madam Speaker knows, and my colleague from Missouri, Mr. Cleaver, knows to agree on many things. But it's a nice opportunity for a Kansan to come down and join with my colleague from Missouri, Mr. Cleaver, and others, to take this moment to honor the World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City which does such a great job of paying tribute to the service and sacrifice of the men and women in World War II.

I actually had a chance recently to join Mr. Cleaver on Veterans Day when we addressed veterans from multiple wars to talk about the service and sacrifice and, really, the legacy that has continued on for generations in this country of serving our country and many people paying the ultimate sacrifice.

So to have a chance to take part in that on Veterans Day with Mr. Cleaver was great, and to be here today to recognize the Kansas City memorial and museum as the National World War I Memorial is a great opportunity. And I want to encourage all of my colleagues to take the time to go out to Kansas City and see this museum. It is top-notch quality; I think you all will be very impressed. I'm pleased to support this legislation today and to recognize that museum and memorial and to ultimately recognize the service and sacrifice of the men and women who served in World War I.

I thank the gentlelady from Illinois for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to salute the legacy of service and dedication of my friend, Kansas Speaker of the House Michael O'Neal. After 28 years, Mike has decided to retire from public service to the people of Kansas. He leaves behind a history of courageous leadership in making smart public policy on behalf of all Kansans.

Mike spent his career in the Kansas House notably chairing the Judiciary Committee and the Education Committee before eventually being elected by his colleagues twice as Kansas speaker of the house. While Mike's career in the people's house in Kansas will be remembered for his many notable legislative achievements, his most prominent legacy may be the wonderful friendships and relationships he built along the way. Many of us consider Mike a mentor and true friend, someone you can always count on--a rare quality in politics today.

So as the gavel falls for the last time and Kansas Speaker of the House Mike O'Neal closes this chapter of service on behalf of so many appreciative Kansans, I would like to thank him for his 28 years of tireless service to make Kansas the best State in the Nation.

Rock Chalk, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, our Nation is at a precipice. We find ourselves at this point after years of government neglect in addressing the fiscal challenges facing our Nation. With uncontrolled spending, explosive entitlement obligations, and a cumbersome Tax Code, our Nation is drowning in red ink and red tape.

Our government is ripe for serious and comprehensive reform. As the end of the year draws near, we have an opportunity to come together as a Congress to create long-term solutions to

the challenges facing our country. Band-Aid efforts will not work and will ultimately make our problems worse. We must reform our entitlement programs, we must simplify the Tax Code, and we have to reduce spending and get our budget back in balance.

We cannot tax, borrow, and spend our way to prosperity as a Nation; but working together, I believe we can and must arrive at balanced solutions that involve ideas from both parties. Our Nation is better than the partisanship that has blocked needed reform to fix these problems.

Mr. Speaker, now is our moment. Together, let's renew the spirit and promise of our great Nation.

Mr. Speaker, the American people are breathing a cautious sigh of relief now that the long election season is finally over. The House and Senate are both in session, and the American people are watching. We have much work to do and not much time to do it.

With unemployment hovering near 8 percent, our economy is still struggling. To get America back on track, we must work together, Democrats and Republicans, to find solutions to our economic challenges.

We all know it's not until small businesses begin growing and creating jobs that our economy will recover. The key to our future lies in new start-ups, innovators, and entrepreneurs.

Working together in a bipartisan way, we can avoid the fiscal cliff, provide certainty to these small businesses, remove barriers to success, and help renew the prosperity of the American people.

Last week our constituents spoke, and the mandate they gave us was a mandate to work together. We must listen to them and work with open ears and open minds to arrive at bipartisan solutions to the very serious issues facing our country.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to make note of an important week in the ongoing effort to renew our Nation's economy. This week is Global Entrepreneurship Week.

New entrepreneurs and innovators are the key to putting Americans back to work. With two out of every three jobs coming from small businesses, and 100 percent of the net new jobs coming from companies less than 5 years old, these risk-takers are the key to our economic prosperity. Simply put, if they don't grow and expand, then neither will our economy.

I was pleased to help celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week this week by addressing many of these budding startups at the Kaufman Foundation in Kansas City. A true gem of the Midwest, the Kaufman Foundation is the world's largest foundation devoted to entrepreneurship.

Mr. Speaker, we know jobs aren't created by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. They are created by the innovators across our Nation. As we continue to see our economy lagging behind, let's renew our efforts to support startups, innovators and entrepreneurs that take the risks to create jobs.

Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 7 o'clock and 34 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, November 14, 2012, at 10 a.m. for morning-hour debate.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6429, the STEM Jobs Act of 2012. This pro-growth, pro-jobs legislation will create a smarter and more focused immigration system for our country by prioritizing new immigrant visas for the best and brightest foreign students of American universities in the science, technology, engineering, and math fields.

These fields are the fastest-growing segments of our economy, and retention of these highly skilled American-trained innovators is critical to future economic growth in our country.

Rather than giving the boot to students who are American-educated at our best universities, like the University of Kansas, in these advanced fields of study, we should work together to ensure these bright minds can stay here and continue helping to boost our goal of competitiveness rather than returning to their home nation to work against us.

Mr. Speaker, by working together in bipartisan fashion to prioritize these students in our national immigration policy, we can boost job creation and improve our economy by allowing the U.S. to retain some of the best and brightest minds.

Mr. Speaker, just 1 day after the 11th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States of America, sadly the American flag flies at half staff today at the U.S. Capitol once again following the senseless and tragic attack against our U.S. consulate in Libya, which left four patriotic Embassy workers laying dead.

Among those murdered include American Ambassador Christopher Stevens, marking one of the rare moments in U.S. history where a U.S. Ambassador is killed representing our Nation abroad. This type of cowardly and brutal attack is an outrage, and those responsible should be swiftly brought to justice.

The service of Ambassador Stevens and three other embassy staff will not be forgotten as their service represents everything that our country stands for in promoting peace and democracy and liberty for all peoples across the globe.

Mr. Speaker, God bless the brave men and women who serve our country everywhere, and God bless the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, 11 years ago today, Americans found themselves under attack. We watched with shock and horror as hijacked passenger airplanes were flown both into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon. We all remember what we were doing that Tuesday morning when 2,996 innocent Americans were killed in those tragic and unthinkable acts. We also remember the heroic actions of the passengers aboard United Flight 93, who courageously fought the hijackers on their plane and, sacrificing their own lives, ultimately saved countless others. Courage and bravery have long been traits demonstrated by our fellow

Americans, from declaring our country's independence to fighting alongside our allies abroad in the name of freedom and liberty. Americans, though, are also resilient. We band together, we pick each other up when we're knocked down, and we endure.

In Kansas, we are extremely proud of the men and women in our military that serve our country and defend our freedom and liberty around the globe. Their willingness to pay the ultimate sacrifice for their country--their true heroism--is known firsthand only to a small number, but is yet, sadly, far, far too common.

The 3rd District of Kansas lost two such heroes this summer as a result of combat operations in Afghanistan. Army Sergeant Mike Knapp was deployed out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord out of Washington State. He was killed in mid-May while bravely serving his country, only 3 days before he was scheduled to return home to Overland Park, Kansas.

Also, Private First Class Cale Miller, deployed out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, lost his life in early June when an improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle. He was a 2007 graduate of Olathe Northwest, where he was a member of both the football and track teams. It breaks my heart each and every time I learn the news of a soldier who has lost his life so our country can continue to live in freedom.

As we remember this day, the 11th anniversary of September 11, Mr. Speaker, we remember it by honoring all those innocent lives lost on that tragic day. We also remember the first responders, the firefighters, and the policemen who charged the burning buildings to save lives, ultimately giving up their own in the process.

Let us also recall the steely resolve of American patriotism and unity as our country courageously responded against the terrorists responsible for this tragedy.

On this day, let us also honor and support all veterans who have served our country. We pay tribute to those fellow Americans who serve in our military, protecting us and ensuring acts, such as those of 11 years ago, never happen again. Our message of thanks is one that cannot be spoken strongly enough. To those who serve, those who lose their lives defending our country, and the families and friends who support them, we are eternally grateful.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to say thank you to all those small business owners across America who have used their ingenuity, hard work, and tireless effort at great financial risk to build a business from the ground up.

Americans know that jobs aren't created by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. We know that our country's greatest innovators succeed in our American free enterprise system because they pour their hearts and souls into their dreams, overcoming each obstacle placed in their way.

In our current economy, Congress should be doing everything it can to minimize the burdens on these entrepreneurs; yet, day by day, new regulations, mandates, and taxes pile up and make it that much harder for these innovators to succeed and harder for them to create good jobs and grow the economy.

Mr. Speaker, this morning, as thousands of small business owners rise at the crack of dawn once again to build on the American Dream, we say thank you. It's their hard work and determination, and it's the tireless effort of every working American that has built the most prosperous Nation the world has ever seen.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor all the members of our National Guard and Armed Forces Reserves who defend our nation at home and abroad, and to voice my support of the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) program operated through the Department of Defense.

The ESGR provides education, consultation, and if necessary mediation for employers of Guard and Reserve employees. As the 1.3 million members of the National Guard and Reserve continue to perform an increasing number of unique missions within America's borders and beyond, ESGR will continue to be the resource for the employers of citizen warriors.

Members of the National Guard and Reserve bring a strong work ethic, leadership and specialized skills to the civilian workplace, and hiring veterans is a great way employers can show their appreciation for the service and sacrifice of our military men and women.

Mr. Speaker, I stand in support of ESGR and their mission to assure that all American employers support and value the employment and military service of members of the National Guard and Reserve forces.

Madam Speaker, many of the smartest minds in America work tirelessly every day to discover a cure for cancer. I am happy to say we will soon take another step towards the ultimate goal of winning the battle against cancer, and it will happen right in the Kansas City community as the University of Kansas Cancer Center will soon receive a National Cancer Institute designation by the National Institutes of Health.

This NCI designation at the KU Cancer Center will affirm that the highest quality of cancer research will be conducted at the University of Kansas and that this research will directly lead to improved cancer care and lifesaving treatments across the country.

Madam Speaker, nearly 1.7 million Americans this year will be diagnosed with the horrible disease of cancer. It touches all of our lives personally, and we must remain committed as a Nation to ultimately winning this war against cancer. That's why I am proud today to stand in support of the University of Kansas' efforts in this battle and to congratulate all involved for this important milestone.

Madam Speaker, like many of my colleagues, my top priority continues to be job creation in our country. That's why I was so heartbroken with the recent health care decision by the United States Supreme Court. No matter what we think about the impact this law will have on the prevalence of health care in our country, it is not good for small businesses, and it is devastating for job creation.

This law creates massive amounts of uncertainty, raises taxes and huge administrative burdens, and places significant new mandates on entrepreneurs and small businesses. Not a recipe for economic recovery.

That's why I stand today in support of a repeal of this massive burden on our economy. We need health care reform in this country, no doubt, and I stand ready to work with Members of both parties on a fresh start, a truly bipartisan bill that will actually reduce the cost of care, not simply shift the burden.

So let's work together on commonsense reforms. Let's repeal this act, let's give relief to small businesses, and let's get our economy going again.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to take a special moment to recognize the birthday of a very special American. Today marks the 101st birthday of my grandmother, Edna Yoder.

Born in 1911, my grandmother was raised on a Kansas farm with her many brothers and sisters. Work was hard, and she did her part to raise livestock, grow wheat, and help feed America.

I take great pride in my grandmother and those in her generation. Hard work, determination, a focus on family, and deep religious conviction were the values that she and others upheld as they worked to build the most prosperous Nation the world has ever seen.

Today on her birthday, my grandmother is a vibrant and healthy 101- year-old. She has an infectious laugh, a cheery disposition, and is kind to everyone she meets. Her love of quilting, the ``Lawrence Welk Show,'' and, of course, board games and bingo keep her time occupied and keep her young at heart.

Grandma, you are an inspiration, and we are proud today to congratulate you on the celebration of your 101st birthday.