Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I was outraged when I found that our U.S. Census bought promotional materials made in China, including this Census 2010 baseball hat. This hat is the poorest quality I have ever seen, and your tax dollars paid for it.

Recently, I read in the American Chamber of Commerce in China's 2010 White Paper that Chinese markets remain closed to American goods, even when U.S. companies manufacture in China.

What remains clear is that China has access to our government contracts, and we don't have access to theirs. So it's time to stop buying Chinese goods with our U.S. tax dollars.

I have in my hand a quality hat made in America by Unite Here workers, and a lousy, Chinese-made hat in the other hand. Where do you want your tax dollars going? Which jobs should your tax dollars support?

Support my bill, H.R. 5312, to force China to let our people and our businesses compete.

Thank you, Mr. Lynch.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 1172 to commemorate the extraordinary life of Will Keith Kellogg. W.K. Kellogg represents the embodiment of the American Dream. With an education only through the sixth grade, Mr. Kellogg rose out of the stockyards of Battle Creek, my home town in Michigan, to become one of the most influential industrialists and philanthropists in American history.

Now, in the 150th year since his birth, through both the Kellogg Company and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, he continues to touch the lives of millions throughout the country and the world. Through the invention of the ready-to-eat breakfast cereal in 1906, W.K. Kellogg provided widespread access to a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals for the first time. Think about this: W.K. Kellogg stood up an entire industry that didn't exist before he invented the corn flake in Battle Creek, Michigan.

Breakfast cereal has grown to become one of the most widely eaten foods around the world. In many countries, fortified cereal breakfast foods represent one of the few readily available sources of essential micronutrients. A nutrition and health visionary, W.K. Kellogg hired the first dietician to work in the food industry, was the first to print nutrition labels on packaging, and believed strongly in educating consumers to empower them to make good nutritional choices. With the number of obese and overweight children on the rise, W.K. Kellogg's message about nutritional awareness continues to resonate throughout our country.

W.K. Kellogg formed a foundation which bears his name. During the Great Depression, he announced, I'll invest my money in people. Today, through the Kellogg Foundation, his legacy lives on. From the $64 million he set aside to ease the suffering of children during the Great Depression, the Kellogg Foundation now boasts assets of over $8 billion and grants upwards of $200 million each year to charitable organizations, especially those aimed at benefiting children.

W.K. Kellogg would be proud of the Kellogg Company's work to attack childhood obesity and the Kellogg Foundation's grant-making to promote education and health and eliminate poverty and racism.

As we commemorate the 150th anniversary of his life, we should remind ourselves of the increasing importance that a healthy lifestyle plays in our lives and also remember that, in America, anything is possible.

Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, today I salute Jackson Northeast Elementary School students. I was with them last Tuesday when they presented a flowering plum tree and a plaque at the Jackson Police Station in memory of city police officer James Bonneau who was shot and killed in the line of duty on March 6 while responding to a domestic call. Blackman Township officer Darin McIntosh was also shot and injured in this incident.

On their own, these students raised $210 for this project. The students also presented handmade quilts to Chief Matt Heins for the family of Officer Bonneau.

Jackson Northeast Elementary students demonstrated that every person can make a difference no matter their age or size. They reminded my community and our Nation that Officers Bonneau and McIntosh are heroes and so are all men and women in uniform who report to work every day to keep us safe.

Thank you Northeast Elementary students for setting an example for all of us to follow.

Mr. Chair, in Michigan, gaining access to needed capital is hard to come by, and many Michigan businesses continue to be redlined for loans. In my district, there's a need for loan programs to help manufacturers, such as production engineering in Jackson, Michigan, to help them have the opportunity to gain access to capital, to help them move forward to retool their current manufacturing process with the newest technologies, to help make the high-quality components for the military, heavy truck, construction equipment and material handling equipment, industries that they are known for, and to help put them in a better position to be able to capture their share in the global economy.

This amendment is about jobs that we need now. I ask for your support of the Boccieri-Schauer amendment.

Every day that Republican Senators block Wall Street reform, another day goes by that our Nation's middle class and our Nation's economy are at risk. Heads I win, tails you lose; I'm sure you remember that game.

Well, those are the same rules that Goldman Sachs rigged up to routinely bet against its own customers. Heads they won, tails their customers and the American people lost. And AIG, who the taxpayers bailed out, was a full partner in this fraud.

My constituents are angry. They want their money back. They want commonsense protections that will end too big to fail and make sure they never get stuck with the tab again. The House has already acted to protect hardworking middle-class families from the abuses of Wall Street. It is time for the Senate to do the same.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

The amendment before you would define ``estuary'' under the Clean Water Act to include Great Lakes near shore waters and connecting waters that are similar to traditional estuaries covered by the National Estuary Program. The amendment would allow Great Lakes estuaries eligible to apply on a competitive basis for inclusion in the National Estuary Program.

The Great Lakes and surrounding waters are a valuable natural resource of national importance, and it makes sense that they are eligible to apply for inclusion in this competitive grant program. Again, my amendment would clearly define ``estuary'' to include Great Lakes waterways and connecting waterways.

The Great Lakes hold 90 percent of the United States surface freshwater, 20 percent of the world's freshwater, and are the largest system of fresh surface water on Earth. The Midwest relies on the Great Lakes for commerce,

tourism, and drinking water. Unfortunately, the health of the Great Lakes has been threatened by pollution, invasive species, and water withdrawals. Failure to protect the Great Lakes now could result in more serious consequences. Conservationists, environmental stewards, hunters, fishermen, and outdoorsmen from all over the country share my sentiment.

Including the Great Lakes waterways in the National Estuary Program will help create long-term planning and management of both point and nonpoint sources of pollution and protect areas of commercial importance from ecological risks.

Mr. Chair, we need to do everything we can to protect Great Lakes waterways. We can make another step in the right direction by expanding the definition of ``estuary'' to include the Great Lakes waterways and allow these waterways to be eligible for funding in the National Estuary Program. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I have great respect for my colleague's comments. My amendment would merely bring this National Estuary Program into compliance and consistency with the 2000 Estuaries and Clean Waters Act. For purposes of that act, Congress's definition of estuaries included Great Lakes. So in substance, this definition would be exactly the same as the 2000 Estuaries and Clean Waters Act.

I now yield to the chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, the gentleman from Minnesota.

Mr. Chairman, just a couple of points in closing.

The Federal Government's Web site on this topic of estuaries, it refers to the Great Lakes as freshwater estuaries that are, quote, ``affected by tides and storms, just as estuaries along the oceanic coasts are.'' In fact, there is currently a federally-recognized freshwater estuary in Ohio located on Lake Erie.

My final point, there is a group called Healthy Lakes--Healthy Lives that wrote in support of this amendment. They state that, ``Traditionally, estuaries are transition zones along our coasts between fresh water from rivers and saline water from oceans. Regardless of whether it is a traditional mix of fresh and saltwater areas that are similar, all estuaries provide a unique environment that supports diverse habitats.''

I would urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Speaker, while many are quick to criticize the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the truth is that last month our economy created 162,000 jobs. But, of course, we have got a long way to go to get everyone back to work.

Since tomorrow is Tax Day, I wanted my constituents to know one of the reasons our economy is getting stronger is record tax cuts in the stimulus for middle-class families. Ninety-five percent of workers are receiving the Making Work Pay tax credit of up to $400 per worker, $800 per family. Expansion of the child tax credit has helped families of more than 16 million children. Four million more students are attending college as a result of the new $2,500 tax credit; and tax credits and deductions are helping families stimulate the economy through purchases of homes, cars, trucks, and mobile homes.

As families file their taxes and get their refunds, I want them to understand that these benefits didn't happen by accident. They were the result of a strategy that I supported and Democrats supported, cutting taxes for middle-class families.

Mr. Speaker, today I stand for the people of Michigan who lost their insurance when they lost their jobs--they've been dropped and denied coverage by insurance companies for preexisting conditions or because they got sick--and are going broke because of their medical bills.

I stand for the elderly in my district who fall into the doughnut hole and must choose between food and medicine, and I stand for small businesses who plead for help to put an end to double-digit premium increases that make them choose between jobs and health care. All of these things will end with the passage of this bill.

The question of the day is: Whose side are you on? I'm on the people's side, not on the side of the powerful special interests who've spent millions to kill this bill. Cutting through all of the deception, misrepresentation, and lies, I stand with the people.

I urge you to do what's right and vote ``yes.''

No one knows more than me the misleading information and outright lies presented by the health insurance industry to confuse the American people. They have spent over $300,000 in slick TV ads in my district to do it.

Here's why on Sunday we must pass health care reform. To do nothing, to fail, will guarantee double-digit health insurance premium increases for middle class families and small businesses. I'm on the side of the people, not the powerful insurance companies.

In my district, this new law will enhance the insurance company coverage of over 400,000 people; extend coverage to over 30,000 uninsured people; improve Medicare for 109,000 beneficiaries, including closing the doughnut hole; give tax credits and assistance to up to 167,000 families and 12,000 small businesses to afford coverage. And get this, it will reduce the Federal budget deficit by $138 billion in the first 10 years and $1.2 trillion over the next 10 years.

It's time to put the American people first.

Madam Speaker, health care is an issue of basic economics to middle class families, seniors and businesses. During the health care debate, my constituents have asked me to listen. I'm listening.

The story I heard last week is from a college in my area. It employs 300 people. As in the case with many employers, the lion's share of their costs come from employee costs, 70 percent in this college's case. Their health insurance premiums this year went up 17 percent. Seventeen percent. What does that mean? It means job cuts or tuition increases, or both, both disastrous for middle class families in our economy.

Seventeen percent premium increases. The Nation's five largest private health insurance companies' profits went up $12 billion last year while they dropped 2.7 million people from coverage. Our current health care system may work for the health insurance industry, but it is broken for middle class families and is hurting our economies. It must be fixed now.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to announce new legislation I'm introducing to help small businesses grow and make it easier for them to put people to work. New jobs mean less government spending on unemployment and health care. New employees spend much of what they earn, also boosting our local economies.

In my bill, tax credits are targeted for small business job creation. While we're suffering from high national unemployment, States like Michigan are being hit especially hard. That is why my bill gives bigger tax credits to employers that create jobs in high unemployment States like Michigan. My bill goes to the heart of our economy, helping small businesses, the engine of job creation in America.

Madam Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

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

As a member of the Aviation Subcommittee of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I believe it is critical for the Director of National Intelligence to submit to Congress a report on the attempted bombing of Northwest Flight 253.

The failed Christmas day attack over Detroit reinforces the notion that the threat of al-Qaeda is real and that our intelligence community, whether under a Democratic or Republican administration, must improve the way it protects the United States against terrorist attacks.

People in Michigan want answers.

My amendment says, not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of the act, the Director of National Intelligence shall submit to Congress a report on the attempt to detonate an explosive device aboard Northwest Airlines Flight No. 253 on December 25, 2009.

This amendment will require the Director of National Intelligence to report to Congress information about any failures to share or to analyze intelligence within or between elements of the Federal Government related to this failed terrorist attack.

More importantly, the Director of National Intelligence also must submit a description of the measures that the intelligence community has taken or will take to prevent such failures from occurring again. This would include information on how the government intends to improve the interoperability of terrorist screening databases and to improve airline watch listing procedures. These tools are critical in preventing terrorists from getting an opportunity to kill innocent civilians.

It is imperative that Congress be fully informed so that it may conduct rigorous oversight on this important national security concern.

I appreciate President Obama's candor and openness when speaking to the American people about the improvements needed to our intelligence community, and I applaud the President for taking swift action in ordering a thorough review of the incident. President Obama has stated his willingness to work with Congress to solve this problem. This amendment will help ensure that Congress will be fully briefed on the results of that review. I urge the full support of this amendment.

I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes).

Thank you, Mr. Hoekstra, and thank you for your leadership on the Intelligence Committee.

Absolutely, my amendment deals directly with having the Director of National Intelligence describe failures and to share or to analyze intelligence or other information within or between elements of the United States Government. So I think it is clearly my intent that the dots be connected.

Madam Chair, how much time remains?

I yield 1 minute 20 seconds to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Peters).

I thank Mr. Hoekstra for his support, and I urge Members to support this amendment.

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

Madam Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

I rise to tell the story of an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act project that is set to create new high-tech manufacturing jobs in my hometown of Battle Creek.

Last week, Toda America finalized a $35 million grant through the Department of Energy's Electric Drive Battery and Component Manufacturing Initiative. Without the Recovery Act,

this Japanese firm wouldn't be investing $70 million to build a new hybrid battery plant in my district. They wouldn't be hiring 50 to 60 new workers at an average weekly wage of $900, plus an additional 91 indirect jobs.

In Michigan, with an unemployment rate of over 14 percent, we need every job we can get. 150 people will have jobs in my district because of Toda's innovation, the Recovery Act's commitment to battery development, and a never-give-up attitude. This is how we turn our economy around one job at a time.