Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, we are 1 day away from Tax Day, and I believe that this is an appropriate time to be talking about the budget for our country. Many folks back in Indiana and across this country are talking about how they are going to meet the demands of their budget.

I believe that this is a jobs bill. There is a lot of talk on this House floor about what are we doing about American jobs. I believe that this is the jobs bill of this Congress.

We hear a lot from the other side of the aisle that we are going to revise and reform Medicare as we know it. Well, folks, we are facing $14.2 trillion of debt right now. We are facing a $1.6 trillion deficit in the current budget. Just as many families in Indiana and across this country do with their family budget, when the bottom line hits red, they start to make changes.

We have to start controlling spending. I would encourage every American to read this budget. This budget bravely saves $6.2 trillion over the next decade. It also calls to simplify the Tax Code and lower the rates for individuals and businesses. This budget not only stops the growth in government, it actually grows the economy and starts to create jobs.

Furthermore, we eliminate hundreds of duplicative programs, ban earmarks, and curb corporate welfare. In addition to the trillions in savings, this budget will put our Nation on a sustainable path, keep the sacred trust of our seniors, and presents to the American people real leadership in the absence of any from our executive branch. If you look at the President's budget, his budget proposes $9.1 trillion of new debt over the next decade.

Let's talk about job creation. As a small business owner from Indiana, I don't need government to take more money away from the people that live in Indiana who are working hard. Let them keep that money so they can apply it to their businesses in order to grow jobs and grow the economy. There's no reason for more of our dollars to come to Washington, D.C., and be redistributed through our government.

Mr. Chairman, I ask the people of this Congress to support this budget.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the topic of enduring consequence. Last month, the members of the Constitution Caucus came to the floor to commend limited government as the guardian of human dignity. Tonight, we would like to continue that conversation by discussing one of the indispensable pillars of limited government. America's guarantee of limited government and her bulwark of liberty can be attributed to Federalism.

Federalism is the subject which we often forget here in Washington, D.C. I believe this is a tragic irony because our great Nation is the birthplace of this truly revolutionary political concept. Federalism is not an abstract philosophy. Simply, it is the separation of power between the Federal Government and State governments. It is one of the cornerstones of our American experiment in self-government.

It was unheard of before the American founding and unfortunately is all but forgotten today.

Until our Founding Fathers devised our unique system of government, nations around the globe were dedicated to the faulty idea that power or sovereignty was indivisible. The great wisdom of the American founding was to reject this notion and build a robust government with a system that carefully divided power on two different levels.

Yes, we are most familiar with the separation of three branches of government--legislative, executive, and judicial; but too many in Washington have forgotten that there is another division in government--the division between States and Federal Government.

Mr. Speaker, we have one of the greatest documents to govern our country that has existed for over 200 years and has been one of the documents that has guided so many Americans and people across this country into personal responsibility, to the ability to take opportunities that we have been granted in this country.

The 10th Amendment sums up this structural integrity of the Constitution and the dual sovereignty of the Federal and State governments. The 10th Amendment says this: ``The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.''

As a former State legislator, I've seen this and been very frustrated at times as a State legislator in the powers that the Federal Government continues to assume and is basically overreaching the responsibilities and the powers of the State government. Federalism, as you know, was a huge debate and discussion as part of the founding of our great Nation back when our Founding Fathers were discussing what should be in the Constitution.

During the debate over States' rights and Federalism, there needs to be a balance between what the States are responsible for and what the Federal Government is responsible for. And our Constitution lays those responsibilities out and defines those responsibilities very clearly.

I believe it's very important for us, as Congress and Congressmen and Congresswomen, to refamiliarize ourselves with our Constitution and realize that the boundaries that have been laid out by our Founding Fathers are well defined. And the intent and the vision that was laid out is one that is still applicable today.

I believe that the Federal Government continues to overreach as to those boundaries--whether it's massive spending, whether it's an overreach in our health care bill that just passed last year, whether it's the stimulus package which the Federal Government is now assuming the responsibility to stimulate our economy rather than trusting in the American people.

It does not add anything to the Constitution that was not already there in its structure, but in making the principle of Federalism more explicit, the 10th Amendment underscores the importance of Federalism.

To see Federalism succeed, we must hold faith in the integrity of the Constitution. A living document is just an empty vessel. Federalism is neglected when politicians make the Constitution a blank slate for the dominant political trends.

As James Madison wrote in Federalist Number 45: ``The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the Federal Government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.''

So, Mr. Speaker, I would like to read again the 10th Amendment of our Constitution: ``The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are

reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.''

So, Mr. Speaker, I'd submit to you that many of the programs that the Federal Government currently not only operates but also is proposing under several different bills over the past several years really are overreaching into the State governments' responsibilities and also into what they are fully capable of doing.

Many times the frustration that we had of dealing with Medicaid and the mandates that were handed down to the States were tying the hands of our State governments.

Coming from the State of Indiana, I'm very proud of what has been accomplished because of those who respect not only the simple economics of balancing budgets and realizing that you can't spend more money than what you have, but as a member of the Indiana House of Representatives of 2005, I worked with our Governor and our Senate to see that Indiana passed its first balanced budget in 8 years.

As we've discussed repeatedly here in Congress already, what about balanced budgets, what about the responsibility of making sure that we do not spend more money than what we have? Our Federal Government just closed its budget with a $1.5 trillion deficit, and that's hard to imagine that we could actually spend that much more money than what we take in. Any Hoosier family knows that once that line at the bottom of the checkbook hits red, there's a problem, and we need to reevaluate what we are currently doing in our spending and our income.

Either you start cutting spending or you start increasing your income. As we all know with the difficult economic times that we're in, increasing income is not always as easy as we would like it to be. So what we need to do is control what we can control, and that is the spending.

Today, Indiana is squarely in the black because of very difficult decisions. It has a AAA credit rating, and is home to the fewest State employees per capita in the United States. The initiative was taken when times were difficult and in realizing that we were falling on tough economic times.

As we move forward in this Congress, I believe that we need to take the same principles and the same values that States have and local governments have and families have across the country, and businesses, who all realized that you cannot continue to spend more money than what you are taking in.

Progressivism has been the greatest foe of federalism. Progressivism believes in a government of, by, and for the experts, statisticians, and bureaucrats. Federalism believes in government of, by, and for the people and their unique communities. So, again, here I would argue that communities and people are much more capable, because they know their particular circumstances and how they are to manage not only their own dollars but their own lives, whether it's education or whether it's being involved in their church, in giving to their church or charity groups.

But instead, we're seeing a government that continues to intrude in taking more and more of those responsibilities, but also the rights that we all have as citizens, in taking those away from Americans and giving them to the Federal Government. We all know the Federal Government is never capable of fully meeting the needs that every individual has in our country.

Progressivism ends up elevating unelected experts to rule over the entire Nation. Rules promulgated by an alphabet soup of agencies choke out representative government, and Congress calls hearings to slow them down. We are seeing that repeatedly right now, Mr. Speaker, with hearings that we are having currently in our committees and in asking questions of the bureaucracies on the rule-making decisions that they are making every day. It continues to choke out not only our freedoms and opportunities that we enjoy as Americans, whether it's in business or whether it's as individuals, but also the bureaucracies are becoming much more powerful.

Now that the Congress is not passing overreaching legislation, we're seeing the bureaucracies taking on that role. And I believe that it is crucial for us as Americans to step forward and to remind ourselves what our Federal Government's responsibilities are. The Constitution clearly defines those responsibilities. And I believe it's important that we all become more familiar again with our Constitution and with the responsibilities that the Federal Government is responsible for.

Likewise, federalism today should not be confused with nullification, nor with the idea of secession. Federalism must be revived so that the rights of citizens might be upheld and their duties fulfilled. Federalism is the protector of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I can only imagine at the time, as our Founding Fathers were debating federalism and creating a Federal Government with the State governments that they had at the time, that they never imagined that the Federal Government would become as large and bureaucratic and bloated and irresponsible as it is today.

When the Federal Government exercises control over health care, welfare, housing, unemployment, and even the so-called stimulus of our economy, there is less incentive for citizens to act within their communities and States to fulfill the duties they once assumed. Civic virtue suffers as power flows to Washington, D.C. Ordinary Americans are neglected in this top-down solution.

Many argue that Washington knows better, that bureaucrats know better, that the experts know better. But I know, growing up as a son of a farmer in northern Indiana, that my parents, my grandparents, they all knew what was important for our family. They knew what was important to our community. Whether it was being involved in our school, whether it was being involved in our church community, whether it was being involved in our local economy or our government process. Families and individuals can make those decisions, what's important, and make those priorities, pass those priorities on to their families.

I believe that what's happening today in our country is that we're seeing less and less not only interest, but also responsibility is now being assumed by our Federal Government, because it continues to overreach and to continue to take away the responsibilities of local governments, whether it's a school board which would make much better decisions for their local community and their school, whether it's a county council that knows the challenges that they have with their counties.

I know for us we have a lot of lakes and rivers, a lot of sandy soil, sewer systems that need to be built to keep our environment clean and better for our children and grandchildren as we pass on the resources that we have. We are starting to have our hands tied more and more because of regulations coming from Washington, D.C.

I believe that that is what our Founding Fathers intended. They believed in ordinary citizens making extraordinary decisions for their communities and that the structure of our Constitution protected that.

In short closing here, as I want to turn it over to my colleagues, I would warn those who are in Congress that we think ourselves too wise if we believe that federalism espoused in our founding documents is an antiquated relic of the past. Governments are the products of fallen men. Human nature is the same today as it was in 1787. When the Federal Government grows beyond its original purpose, when it greedily claims powers belonging to the States and local communities, it arrogantly assumes that 535 Federal legislators and hordes of bureaucrats can direct with perfect clarity the lives of over 300 million Americans.

I would be amiss to claim that I know the daily concerns of Buckeyes, or those who are in New Jersey, or from Texas, or from Oklahoma, or from California. But I know Hoosiers because I am one. I know and believe these simple truths. The rich diversity of our Nation's 50 States impels us to greatness. There are legitimate concerns which must be addressed by a well-balanced Federal Government. Yet the Federal Government ought to defer to the States in those matters that the States are best prepared for.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield to my colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett).

Thank you, Mr. Garrett.

At this time I would like to yield to the gentleman from the Fourth District of Colorado (Mr. Gardner).

Thank you.

Next, I would like to yield to the co-chair of the Constitution Caucus, the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop).

Thank you, Mr. Bishop, for your comments.

Mr. Speaker, as I think about some of the comments that were made tonight from Mr. Garrett and from Mr. Gardner, as well as from Mr. Bishop, it brings back a lot of thoughts from experiences of serving not only as a legislator but also as a farmer and as a businessowner of a small trucking operation that we have, a family business, back in Indiana. I think about how the freedom that we have comes from not the Constitution; it comes from God. The rights that we have are God-given, and the Constitution protects those rights.

I know that many times over the years we look at the Constitution as a dry document. It doesn't seem to be exciting. It doesn't seem to be one of great interest. But I can tell you today, Mr. Speaker, as we watch our

Federal Government--as we've started to do the debate of budgets, of health care, and of our military actions around the world, and of the size and the scope of our Federal Government--it is crucial for us, for all of us, to remind ourselves and to reeducate ourselves on what our constitutional role is.

As Mr. Bishop said, many times we talk about the horizontal separations of our government with the executive, the legislative and the judicial; but also we need to remember the vertical branches of government, and we need to remind ourselves that the States actually established the Federal Government.

I can only imagine as our Founding Fathers were debating this and looking at the States that were in existence and thinking of the challenges they faced, the challenges of military action against them and how do they defend themselves, the discussion of taxation, and to come together and to establish a Federal Government that was designed to not only protect but to protect the rights, protect us physically, but to also protect the rights of us as individuals. Now looking back, Federalism is that balance of a Federal Government that complies with the constitutional guidelines, whether it's our national defense, whether it's our borders, or whether it's commerce and currency, the responsibilities are limited.

But as time has gone by, the Federal Government has continued to grow and to pursue and to take away those responsibilities from States and from our local communities. As Mr. Gardner mentioned, the different local community visits that he has made, it reminds me of ones that I made as well in Indiana, whether it's talking with the mayor in Kendallville about the challenges with fire and police, whether it's the Topeka Town Council and the challenges they have with economic development, or whether it's Nappanee with their sewer challenges, Fort Wayne or Angola with streets and sewers and things that they know what they want to do and what they would like to accomplish that are all affected by Federal Government one way or another.

And it drives costs up for not only them but ultimately for the citizens. As spending continues to accumulate and increase, we have to remember that the American taxpayer, the American citizen, we as citizens are the ones who ultimately are going to be responsible paying that bill.

And as we come into our budget process over the next couple of days, I think that we should be reminded and would be remiss if we did not take the opportunity to look through the scope and look through the eyes of what our Founding Fathers imagined and intended for our country through the Constitution as we face $14 trillion of debt. States, local governments, and families don't have the ability to continue to borrow dollars; specifically, States and local governments don't have the same ability that the Federal Government has. And so they are disciplined. And so they realize that the decisions they make affect local communities.

The Federal Government and we in Congress need to take on that same discipline and realize that the spending that we authorize today is going to affect our children and our grandchildren. I have two children, two sons, a 9-year-old and a 5-year-old; and I know that they are going to have to assume the responsibilities and the consequences of what happens today in Congress.

And I refuse to stand by and allow for more spending and for the Federal Government to continue to grow. I want to see a country that respects the individual's life and liberty and our local communities' decision-making at the local levels and at the State level rather than a government, a Federal Government that continues to believe that they can authorize and tell the American people what to do and what they cannot do.

So with those thoughts in mind going into the budget process, I believe we have a responsibility, Mr. Speaker, to challenge the status quo. We hear a lot of comments on this floor about what the changes are that are being proposed in the budget that just passed out of the Budget Committee last week and is going to be debated here on the floor tomorrow. I believe we cannot demonize the situation that we are in and use scare tactics with the American people. We need to be factual. We need to be honest. We need to realize the realities that we are in as Americans, because we are all in this together. This is not a Republican problem; this is not a Democrat problem. We see finger- pointing on this floor all the time. And frankly, I know as a freshman Congressman, that is not why I came here. I came here to fix the problems we have because of a bloated government and because we have overstepped the boundaries of our constitutional role.

If we do not face the fact that we have trillions of dollars of debt, that we are overspending--and we have to also realize that we cannot raise taxes on the American people at a time when the economy is struggling, when American families are struggling and paying bills. By raising taxes, we only drive the cost of doing business higher and we drive the cost of living higher. Money cannot be circulated through the economy dictated by the Federal Government to stimulate or drive our economy. The American people do that much better.

I believe as we again debate the budget, we need to realize that if we want to pass on a better future for our kids and our grandkids, for our country, for ourselves, if that's the way people need to look at it, I believe we lay out the situation, whether it is with Medicare and realizing that we cannot continue down the road with the program as it currently stands. If we want to hand that off to our children and our grandchildren, some modifications have to happen.

I believe if we as Republicans and we as Congress, specifically Republicans in the majority here in Congress, lay out the plan and we make the case that something needs to be done, the American people are with us. They realize the debt that is hanging over us, and they realize the deficits that are over us cannot be sustained and we are going to have to make changes. But we cannot make progress in a bipartisan fashion if we continue to use scare tactics, and I believe that going back and looking at the constitutional role of our Federal Government, that all of us as Americans realize, as the many generations before us did in the challenges that they faced, that we are up to the challenge. So, Mr. Speaker, as we move into tomorrow, I believe that our constitutional responsibilities will be defined by what we do and what we say and what we vote on in the upcoming years.

I yield to the gentleman from Colorado.

Thank you.

It is probably all too common, unfortunately, because this document, I believe, as I said earlier, is one that doesn't appear to be exciting. But when you read it and when you realize what it does for our freedom and that it protects our rights as individuals of this great Nation, it is so important for us to understand, and if we don't know, to find out, to listen to others who have gone before us, whether it is our Founding Fathers or whether it is those who have served in different capacities, whether it is in schools or whether it is in government, there is a reason for it. It is the 9th and 10th Amendments, and it is the 9th and 10th points of our Bill of Rights. I think that is what of our Founding Fathers meant. They meant it to be at the end to give those responsibilities back to the State governments because they knew that the Federal Government wasn't going to be responsible. They couldn't absolutely take care of everybody with the role and the size that the Federal Government was at that time.

We are in a situation today where I believe many Americans believe and they know in their heart what is right, and that our Constitution protects those rights and that we believe in freedom. We believe in that entrepreneurial spirit and that we can go out and make something of ourselves.

As I said, I am the son of a farmer and have the opportunity to serve in Congress, which is a humbling experience, but at the same time knowing that we have a responsibility for our kids and for our grandkids, for our country, for the freedom that we have, for the opportunity we have. I believe that this is a perfect time for us to know what the Constitution says, to understand it and to apply it. Whether you are on the school board, which is one of the most important positions I believe any individual can run for, to be involved in our children's education, whether it is on the city council, town council, county council, State government, those are all such important, township government, are all so important because an engaged person involved in the community, involved in the government, can make a difference. That is what I believe to be so fascinating is that this document empowers us as Americans. It doesn't take power away. It doesn't give power strictly to the Federal Government. It is one that believes in the American people.

As I mentioned before, with the budget debates coming forward, if we continue to go down the path of higher spending, higher taxes, of more regulation, that we only take away opportunity. We take away the empowerment that was given to the American people, and that we all should be grateful that we can go back to the Constitution and have this discussion and have this dialogue about the responsibilities of the Federal Government and making that case to those of us in Congress and to our colleagues on both sides of the aisle, the responsibilities and the opportunities that State governments, local governments, not only can they do, but they can do it better because they can meet the needs of their local communities because they hear from local citizens. I believe that government that is closest to the people serves the people better.

With that, I appreciate each of my colleagues this evening being part of the Constitutional Caucus discussion here on the House floor. I am looking forward to many more. I know that each of us have great responsibilities in front of us in realizing what the Federal Government's role is, according to this document, and that we take these very seriously in the upcoming days and that we don't continue to grow the size and the scope of government.

I thank the Speaker for the time.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to represent the people of Indiana's Third District, and I am also proud to serve as a cochair of the Constitution Caucus here in Congress. The hottest fires make the strongest steel. After seeing Washington assail the Constitution, Americans went to the polls last November and demanded a return to our first principles. As a result, the membership of this caucus has more than doubled. We began this Congress by reading the Constitution right here on the floor. We have come here this evening in that same spirit.

I rise today to continue a conversation that used to fill the halls of this great building. There was a time in our Nation's past when Members of Congress openly and passionately debated the interpretation of the Constitution. We are here tonight to renew that discussion.

When we were sworn in, each of us took an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution. This means that we are required to interpret and apply it to our daily work. I am sure that we all take that oath very seriously. However, I am also sure that, without vigilance, we slip out of tune with the principles enshrined in that founding document.

Today, we have an opportunity to rededicate ourselves to those principles, to limited government and individual equality. In the coming months, my colleagues and I will come again to the floor to discuss federalism, checks and balances, and enumerated powers.

Today, however, we ought to begin by asking ourselves a very simple question: ``What is so wonderful about the Constitution?'' After all, I believe, the last election was a mandate to return to its wisdom and guidance. We ought to at least begin by asking why it should hold such prominence in our hearts. Why, for example, did Abraham Lincoln declare so forcefully, ``Don't interfere with anything in the Constitution. That must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties''?

The answer is elegantly simple. The Constitution enshrines the enduring principles of limited government, and limited government is the surest guardian of human dignity. The Constitution gave form and shape to the philosophy put forth in the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration, it has been said, was the promise; the Constitution is the fulfillment.

I cannot overemphasize the truly revolutionary nature of our War for Independence. For the first time in human history, when a group of people overthrew an oppressive regime, they began by espousing a vigorous and eloquent philosophy: That all men are created equal. They are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights. Even as lives, fortunes, and sacred honor hung in the balance, these men began with a summary of human nature.

America was founded on the idea that humans have a specific character. We are wired a certain way. Our Founding Fathers understood two basic and profound truths about human nature. First, we are not perfect. We err. We will never reach perfection. To believe that man is perfectible is to engage in fanciful speculation. Second, in spite of our fallen natures, we are dignified and equal. We each possess reason and the ability to determine our own lives.

As James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, eloquently stated: ``What is government itself but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.''

How then can imperfect beings govern in a way that respects human dignity? The answer is found in limited government. Again, James Madison said this: ``You must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.''

Limited government justly defends the dignity of the individual through specific and checked powers. Do not confuse limited for weak. Government ought to be strong in those areas where strength is required and specifically enumerated. In all other areas, the government must defer to the judgments of free men and women.

In our Republic, the dignity of the individual citizen is paramount. It would be arrogant to believe that a few elite can discern and direct over 300 million souls here in America. I fear, with ballooning government and near unstoppable deficits being run every year, we are dangerously close to abandoning the principles that brought us here safely thus far. As regulations infringe on nearly every aspect of daily life, human dignity is endangered.

Those of us here this evening are ready to work against this tide, to return our government to its proper role of defending individual freedoms. I am eager to continue this conversation in the coming months, because there is much work to be done.

Mr. Speaker, I would now like to yield to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett), the original founder of this caucus.

It is my pleasure to now yield such time as he may consume to the fellow chair, the cochair of the Constitutional Caucus, the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop).

Next I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina, District Three, Jeff Duncan.

Thank you. Very eloquently said.

I would like to touch on a couple of things that the gentleman from South Carolina said, Mr. Speaker. As we did have a great opportunity to read the Constitution on the House floor, I found it not only to be one that should be a lesson for all of us, but also one that will remind each American of the great document that we have that governs our land.

I would like to read just a couple of statements that some of our Founding Fathers made that I believe are so important for each one of us to remember today. First of all, I would like to start with George Washington, who is my political hero. What a great man who not only was so willing to sacrifice and was willing to serve his great country, and he could have been king if he was wanting to, but instead knew that limited power was going to be the real answer to America's new Constitution and to its new Government.

George Washington said: ``The power under the Constitution will always be in the people. It is entrusted for certain defined purposes and for a certain limited period to representatives of their own choosing. And whenever it is executed contrary to their interest or not agreeable to their wishes, their servants can and undoubtedly will be recalled.''

Mr. Washington was referring to elections. I think what has not only solidified our government for years and years has been that it is the people, the people's government. The people have the ability to recall those who are elected to go to their representative capitals, whether it is in the State governments or here in Washington, D.C., and if their wishes are not received by the people, the people can recall them back to their State and elect someone new.

Also, I would like to read another statement by Thomas Jefferson: ``On every question of construction let us carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates, and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text, or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed.''

Thomas Jefferson was our third President and was one of the great men who took part in building our great democracy and our Republic here in the great country of the United States.

I would also like to refer a little bit to my time in having the opportunity to serve in the Indiana State legislature and knowing that Thomas Jefferson was a Federalist who believed in States' rights. And one of the things I have seen in my short time in Washington is that the States have so much flexibility, have so much more ability to serve the people, as well as our local governments. And that is one of the reasons that I believe the Constitution was formed to protect that local control.

As we've seen time and time again, there is more influence by our Federal Government in reaching further and further into our communities with more mandates, with more legislation that continues to take away our freedoms.

And having the opportunity to serve in the State legislature in Indiana, I would also share that we can see how each State has different needs, and the Constitution addresses that by limiting the powers of the Federal Government. And we're seeing more and more waste of tax dollars, something that I believe that the American people are tired of, and they want to see Washington fix its problems just like the American people do every day in tightening their own belt.

We tighten our belt in our small family farming operation back in Indiana. We do that with our family budget. And people are asking across the country, If we can do it, why can't Washington?

And we're seeing overlap of Federal and State and local governments; and I believe if we would get back to the constitutional roles, the constitutional role that the Federal Government is given, and focus on the priorities that our Founding Fathers gave to us and the Constitution as a government, then we will be more effective, we will serve the people who have elected us to serve, and instead of infringing upon the responsibilities and the rights of those in our States that we will have a more efficient government and we will also have a government that is closer to the people and one that I believe serves best when government is close to the people and will serve and respond to the needs of them.

At this time I would like to yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Conaway).

Thank you for being here and I look forward to your comments.

Thank you.

I would like to yield again to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett).

Mr. Speaker, I would inquire how much time we have remaining.

Mr. Speaker, I just would like to make a couple of comments in closing. I have appreciated the comments that were made by the other gentlemen that were here this evening.

You know, one of the things I believe is that the American people that have been given the rights and the responsibilities to elect those of us who are fortunate enough and honored to come to Washington to serve are paying attention and that they are paying attention to what we are doing in response to the actions that have been taken over the years here in Washington. Washington seems to be the problem.

When I go back home to Indiana, I hear repeatedly from folks that, you know, Republican, Democrat, we can point the finger from side to side, but it has been Washington that has been out of touch with the American people, and that Washington needs to be changed, not necessarily America needing to be changed.

And that is why I believe it is so important for us as Americans that we get back to our founding documents, to realize the truths and the principles that are in these documents that our Founding Fathers wrote over 200-some years ago.

And I would like to read just a couple of lines from the Declaration of Independence, as Mr. Garrett was referring to earlier, the freedom and the opportunity that each of us as Americans has is given to us by our Creator, but also the Declaration of Independence and our Constitution give us rights and freedoms as well.

I'd like to refer to these lines in the Declaration of Independence. Many of these are obviously very familiar to us, but: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.

Now, I would submit, Mr. Speaker, that the people are the ones who are giving us the power to govern and that the Constitution, as it was written back by our Founding Fathers, was written in the effort to protect each individual and to protect each individual freedom that we have and enjoy every day.

I would also mention, as was mentioned before, that it is important for us as Americans to not only take on that personal responsibility but also to realize that our freedoms are given from our Creator, and it's important for each one of us to not only fight to protect those freedoms but remember some of the words that our Founding Fathers used as well, going back to what Benjamin Franklin said, and I quote, Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters, end quote.

So it is up to each one of us as Americans, Mr. Speaker, that we are, first of all, as individuals and as communities involved in our communities, whether it's our churches, whether it's our schools, that we are taking on each responsibility and looking around us and who can we help, how can we make a difference in someone else's life.

I'd also read John Adams. He said this, quote, Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other, end quote.

How fortunate we as Americans are to have not only this founding document but many other founding documents written by men who were given such a great responsibility and a great opportunity to create one of the longest-lasting governments in world history; and I'm so proud to be an American tonight and believe that, even though we have many challenges in front of us, we have great debt, we have great deficits, and this is because of the irresponsible actions taken by those in Washington.

I believe that today it is important for each one of us as Americans to become more familiar with our Constitution and to read the words, as it may seem sometimes dry and not as exciting, but this document, these words give each one of us as Americans the opportunity to make life better than what we may have entered.

I know for myself as a son of a farmer in northern Indiana, I was raised in an old farmhouse; and now I have the great opportunity to serve in Congress, that each one of us can do great things if we set our minds to it, and it's because of this document that gives us that liberty and that freedom.

So I have great hope that the American people and that those who are elected to serve will make those choices that will not only continue to grant us those freedoms but also steer the ship and turn the ship and change the mindset of Washington and the way that our Federal Government has responded and acted over the years recently, that will not only give our children and our grandchildren the same opportunities that we have but to work together across the aisle, knowing that we all serve and have sworn to uphold the Constitution to make those changes.

I'm optimistic, I'm hopeful; but I know that we have a lot of work ahead. And I believe that the document we have been given and was signed by our Founding Fathers has given us that guiding light, and I am looking forward

to working together with the Members in this Chamber, both sides of the aisle, to making a difference and to getting back to our constitutional responsibilities.

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

The motion was agreed to; accordingly (at 8 o'clock and 8 minutes p.m.), under its previous order, the House adjourned until tomorrow, Wednesday, March 9, 2011, at 10 a.m.

I thank the gentleman from Iowa for bringing this amendment forward.

Mr. Chairman, I just want to share with you a little story that we experienced over the past couple of years with Davis-Bacon. I think that the people we often forget about here when we get into these debates are the taxpayers, themselves. The taxpayers are the ones who have to foot the bill for the wages that Davis-Bacon drives up.

After the stimulus bill was passed a couple of years ago, even though I opposed the idea of what the stimulus bill was going to do, we in our community had been taking the initiative to put in sewer systems around our lakes and our rivers to protect our soil and our resources. After a couple of projects that had already been bid out without Davis-Bacon wages, the company contacted our office and said, Hey, we would like to apply for stimulus dollars to help drive our costs down on these particular projects.

Well, after doing some research, because they did not bid the projects with Davis-Bacon wages, they were ineligible, and therefore were going to be paying higher rates. They were also going to be paying the contractors, themselves, at a lower wage because they were not eligible for the stimulus money, money which would have put infrastructure into our communities, allowing for the building of long- term assets in our communities. Instead, they were ineligible because they had not bid Davis-Bacon wages.

I think it's very important that we remember the taxpayers, who have to fund these projects because of the higher costs, and I think it's important that we also remember that each community individually recognizes that their labor costs are different and that they shouldn't always be required to deal with Federal standards.

I appreciate the gentleman from Iowa for bringing his amendment forward, and I ask that you support it.

Thank you and thank you to my colleagues for bringing this very, very important issue to the House floor this evening. I appreciated all the other comments that have already been made.

Having the opportunity to serve as the chairman in public policy back in Indiana, I do remember the time when my wife and I were expecting our second born. When we were dealing with pro-life legislation in Indiana, and having the opportunity to go home and to see the ultrasounds of our second-born son was quite the experience.

And I know that with the anniversary of Roe v. Wade coming up, this is an issue that is on a lot of hearts and minds of Americans across the country. So today I rise as we remember the 38th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, but more importantly the millions of innocent lives taken since 1973. In 2008 alone, there were over 1.2 million abortions; that is 3,315 innocent unborn children per day, 138 per hour and about two every minute.

While I have no doubt that future generations will place Roe v. Wade alongside the terrible Dred Scott decision, I know that there is much unfinished work before us. All of that work begins with a single inquiry. Mr. Speaker, a simple question forms the cornerstone of a national debate: When does human life begin? Without that answer, we are left with empty rhetoric and euphemisms. So I ask: When does human life begin? This question is not a lofty philosophical endeavor. Science has already given us the answer. Advances in molecular biology underscore the undeniable fact that life is present from the moment of fertilization. That life is fully human and infinitely valuable. Those who willfully ignore reality ought to remember the admonition of our second President, John Adams, that facts are stubborn things.

Because a unique human life begins at the moment of fertilization, it is our solemn duty to defend the unborn, to speak up for the weak, to continue with firmness in the right. I proudly support H.R. 212, the Sanctity of Human Life Act, which defines human life accordingly and affirms that each State has the authority to protect the lives of all human beings. We take up this charge because we are still dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. All possess the inalienable right to life.

On December 21, 2010, Lance Corporal William Henry Crouse, IV, age 22, died of wounds sustained while supporting combat operations in Helmand Province in Afghanistan. As a field artillery cannoneer assigned to 1st Battalion, 10th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, Lance Corporal Crouse was serving his first deployment to Afghanistan, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, where he had been for 6 weeks.

Born June 13, 1988 in Angola, Indiana, Lance Corporal Crouse joined the Marine Corps in November 2007 and was promoted to lance corporal August 1, 2008.

Lance Corporal Crouse's awards and decorations include the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.

Lance Corporal Crouse is survived by his mother, Nancy, and stepfather, Vinnie Siders, of Fort Wayne; his brothers, Nathan and Ryan; and his sisters, Jennifer Chaffee and Jennifer Hartman.

After quickly being promoted to lance corporal, Lance Corporal Crouse selflessly gave his life as a service to defend our country's freedom in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. My heart goes out to his family, and I want to express my deepest gratitude to them both for the sacrifice they have made for our Nation.

``The President of the Senate shall, in presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President.''

Mr. Chairman, tonight we find ourselves faced with a very important decision with regard to what sort of taxes we face in the coming years. We are not simply voting on whether to ``keep tax cuts.'' We are voting on whether or not we ``raise taxes.'' To let our current tax law expire is to raise taxes on Americans.

Some say that the tax cuts will cost the government $700 billion. Well, I say that allowing the current tax cuts to expire will cost taxpayers $700 billion. Who needs that money the most, our government or the people? If this bill fails and taxes go up in the middle of a very fragile economy, we risk any potential job growth and recovery from this great recession. Refusing to take more of taxpayers' money is not spending we wish we could afford. Taking taxpayers' money is spending the taxpayer cannot afford.

Mr. Chairman, I contend that we cannot punish taxpayers with a massive tax increase to pay for the massive spending problem in Washington. Let's let Americans keep more of their money, and let's start cutting spending and be responsible with the money that they have entrusted us with.

Should we increase taxes to bring more money into the government so that we can pay for the spending that's happened over the last several years? I say no. The message we need to be sending to the citizens of our great Nation is this, that we get it. We are not going to live beyond our means and ask you to foot the bill. We are going to cut spending, eliminate waste, and reduce our national debt responsibly. Let Americans keep their money and see what happens to the economy. Let Americans keep their money and see what happens to the unemployment rate. Let Americans keep their money because it's the responsible thing to do.

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 624, I was unavoidably detained, had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 625, I was unavoidably detained, and had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Madam Speaker, over 2 weeks ago, Staff Sergeant Kevin Matthew Pape, age 30, was killed by enemy forces during a heavy fire fight while conducting combat operations in the Konar province of Afghanistan.

Born February 5, 1980, in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Sergeant Pape enlisted in the United States Army in September of 2005 from his home town of Fort Wayne. As a squad leader assigned to 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, Staff Sergeant Pape was on a remarkable sixth deployment, with three previous deployments to Iraq and two to Afghanistan.

Sergeant Pape's awards and decorations for his service are too numerous to list here. However, he was awarded the Bronze Star, the Purple Heart, and the Meritorious Service medals.

Sergeant Pape is survived by his wife, Amelia Rose Pape; his daughter, Anneka Sue; his father, Marc Dennis Pape; and his sister, Kristen Michele Pape, both of Fort Wayne. Sergeant Pape selflessly lived his life for others, distinguishing himself as an Army Ranger while continuously deployed in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom and fighting valiantly as he served our great Nation and following the Ranger creed.

Thank you.

Madam Speaker, it is just a tremendous honor to stand here before you today. It has been very, very humbling, I can say that, your kindness to us, the Members that we have met so far. I want to introduce my wife, Christy, who's up in the gallery. She has been my most supportive person. We have done this together as a team, and I can't say enough about her and am so proud of her. My father, Albert, and my mom, Sarah, are both along. My brothers, my sisters, and a lot of other friends and family.

But I just want to say thank you. It is such a humbling experience so far. I am excited and privileged to serve the people in northeast Indiana. We have a wonderful community, and to know that I get to serve with the Indiana delegation is such a high honor. Thank you very much. I am looking forward to serving you in this upcoming Congress.