Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, yesterday Exxon reported its second-highest quarterly profit ever. Net income, $10 billion, up 36 percent. But they are not the only ones raking in the cash. Shell reported a 40-percent increase in profit. BP, a 30-percent increase. ConocoPhilips, a 65- percent increase in profit.

And whom does this oil industry have to thank? Lee Raymond and his outsized $400 million retirement package?

No. The oil companies have the Republican Congress to thank for their huge bank accounts. In 2005, the oil and gas companies spent $86 million lobbying the United States Congress, and they received $14.5 billion in taxpayer-funded handouts. You cannot get that type of return on Wall Street or in Vegas. $86 million for lobbying, $14.5 billion in corporate welfare. So Americans are paying twice, once when they fill up their tanks, and then again on April 15.

We must stop handing out welfare checks to Big Oil. It is high time big oil companies got off the taxpayer dole.

Mr. Speaker, it is time for a change. And it is time for a new direction.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the 10th anniversary of President Clinton's historic welfare reform initiative. The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 fundamentally transformed our nation's welfare system and provided a clear direction for the future of this important program.

I am proud to have played an active role in the passage of this legislation during my time in the White House. If it were not for President Clinton's vision, welfare reform would never have gained the bipartisan support that was required. President Clinton vowed to end welfare as we know it and he succeeded in forming a system that both rewarded and required work.

In Illinois alone, 217,000 families worked their way off of TANF and into the workforce. President Clinton realized that the best job training was an actual job.

We also realized that jobs came along with new challenges for welfare recipients. Therefore we assisted recipients in finding child care and instituted transitional medical assistance for families leaving the welfare rolls.

The greatest accomplishment of welfare reform was connecting a generation of children with a culture of work. Many children who would have grown up in a household with non-working parents, have internalized the value of work and learned how to build a better future for themselves and their families.

Thanks to welfare reform, more than 3 million children rose above the poverty line between 1996 and 2000. Earnings of the poorest people in our country rose significantly.

However, some of the progress we made has been reversed. Between 2001 and 2005, 5 million Americans fell below the poverty line, including 1.5 million children.

Mr. Speaker, I commend those in Congress that worked to pass this legislation in 1996, and I look forward to working with them to ensure that what we accomplished in 1996 is not undone. I urge my colleagues to build on the success of the past with a commitment to ensuring the future success of welfare reform.

Mr. Speaker, when this House passed the Medicare prescription drug benefit, many of us said it was a boon for the drug companies.

The results are in. Drug companies are making billions in extra profits, $130 billion in additional profits, all subsidized by the taxpayer. This morning's New York Times reads: ``Eventually'' the prescription drug bill ``could fuel a political reaction if the drug prices continue to rise, but analysts expect that the industry's influence in Washington will delay any changes for years.''

Therein lies the problem. This Congress is too busy doing the bidding of the drug companies and the drug companies' business to do the people's business.

On numerous occasions the House and Senate have voted strongly in favor of importation of prescription drugs. Importation is a safe and effective way to help consumers and taxpayers save money. Just 2 weeks ago, the Senate voted to block Customs from seizing shipments of prescription drugs; yet the seizures continue. The administration has turned the Customs Service over to the drug companies, confiscating prescription drugs at a time when they should be securing our borders, screening cargo, and stemming the flow of dangerous narcotics. The intent of the House and the Senate is clear.

It is time for a new direction. It is time for a new policy that makes sense to the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 4472, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. This Act will greatly improve the national program to register and monitor child predators.

I am especially pleased that the Act includes all of the major provisions of the Jessica Lunsford and Sarah Lunde Act, which I introduced in July of 2005. This act creates grants for state and local governments to implement electronic monitoring programs of child sex offenders, using GPS technology and other electronic methods to track sexual predators upon their release from prison.

Electronic tracking of sexual predators will provide law enforcement with the real time location of the offender within 10 feet of their location. These measures enhance the capability of law enforcement to provide children and their parents with the protections they need.

Today there are nearly 550,000 registered sex offenders in the United States, approximately one offender for every 200 children under 18 years old. As the numbers grow, it's becoming almost impossible for law enforcement to track these offenders. Electronic monitoring cannot replace law enforcement officers monitoring convicted sex predators, but it will provide officials with the tools they need to protect our children and grant parents much deserved peace of mind.

The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 also requires every state to maintain a sex offender-registry and directs the Attorney General and FBI to maintain a National Sex Offender registry with updated and detailed information about sex offenders. Accessible and thorough information about sexual predators is essential to guaranteeing the safety of our children and preventing previous offenders from striking again.

Mr. Speaker, far too many sex offenders are able to slip through the cracks and become lost to law enforcement officials. The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006 greatly increases law enforcement's ability to protect our children and provide peace of mind to parents. This Act is an important step to ensuring the safety of our nation's children and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, while the Republican Members of Congress have been blocking the first minimum-wage increase in 9 years, there is new evidence that income stagnation is not just hurting lower middle- class families but middle-class families across the board.

Just the other day, the Los Angeles Times reported that income stagnation is now hitting people with a 4-year college education. In fact, the White House's own economists report that earnings and income for employees with 4-year college degrees fell by 5.2 percent between 2000 and 2004, during the President's first term. That is when adjusted for inflation. So, basically, if you have a college degree education, you had a decline in income.

Now, for 30 years, 40 years we have told people that you earn what you learn. A college degree today is no longer as valuable a ticket to success as it was before. You have to literally go back 30 years, to the 1970s stagflation, when people with a college education saw their income decline.

Now, what is happening in addition to income decline in America? This isn't just for working stiffs. This is for people with a 4-year college education and also for people with a master's education.

Energy prices? Well, they are up, more than doubled. In fact, when the President took office, gas was $1.33 a gallon. Today, it has gone up to close to $3 a gallon.

Health care costs. Health care costs for a family of four has risen 78 percent, to $11,000 a year for a family of four.

College costs for their kids, up 38 percent for a 4-year college education.

Savings, for the first time since World War II, are in negative territory, which is why people say bankruptcy and debt is one of their biggest economic concerns besides filling up their car with gas.

So take that whole picture: incomes declining, energy prices up, close to doubling; health care costs $11,000 a year for a family of four, and continuing at 25 percent increases; college costs up 38 percent; savings in negative territory. We have a Swiss cheese economy, and it is hurting and killing the middle class, who have done everything right. They got told to get a college education and you earn what you learn. Today that college education ain't enough. They went out and earned a master's degree in education. That ain't enough.

And on top of that, besides incomes going down, all the costs to maintain a middle-class life, health care, energy costs, education, and retirement security, are all under attack. And what do my colleagues do when it comes to retirement security, when corporation after corporation is eliminating pensions? They want Social Security to lead the way.

The plan for retirement security isn't, when companies are eliminating pensions, to have Social Security eliminated or privatized. It is to give them that security that people know, that people like, and that is the security that comes with Social Security.

On energy. What is their answer to rising costs? As my colleague from Oregon said before, they handed over $14.5 billion in taxpayer subsidies to big oil companies so they could make additional profit. My view is if gas is 75 bucks a barrel, or 74 bucks a barrel, let the free market work. Use your profits to drill. Don't take taxpayers to subsidize it. People out there are paying twice, once at the pump at 3 bucks a gallon and once on April 15 when we hand over $15 billion a year.

And for health care costs? They handed off to the pharmaceutical companies an additional $130 billion in profits.

Middle-class families are struggling with ever-increasing taxes, ever-increasing costs and stagnant incomes. It is time to have an economic strategy that, again, lifts all boats.

Now, I don't want to take a stroll down memory lane; but in the 1990s, when we were running balanced budgets and we were running a surplus, incomes for all people, not just the top end, but for all workers were up. College costs were contained, health care inflation was running alongside regular inflation, and energy prices were actually $1.33 a gallon, not 3 bucks a gallon.

That was a time in which we actually made an improvement. We invested by giving all kids health care whose parents didn't have health care. We created 22 million jobs. We ended welfare as we know it. We put people to work rather than dependency. We had record homeownership, low inflation, a balanced budget, record surpluses, and began to pay down the debt.

Put your fiscal house in order. Invest in education, health care, and energy independence in America. It is time for a change. It is time for new priorities.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Con. Res. 435, congratulating the Magen David Adorn Society on its admission as a full member into the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.

The Magen David Adom Society has a long and distinguished history of providing humanitarian assistance. Founded in 1930, this remarkable organization has provided first aid and disaster assistance to all of those in need, and has functioned as Israel's National Red Cross Society for over half a century.

Primarily a volunteer organization, the MDA provides aid to nearly 600,000 Israeli citizens each year and supplies 98% of Israel's domestic blood services. The MDA has also been deeply involved in providing assistance to international crises including the recent flooding in Romania and the aftermath of the Southeast Asian Tsunami.

Mr. Speaker, I applaud the ICRC's decision to include the Magen David Adom Society on its membership and commend the MDA on its continuing contributions to the welfare of so many.

Madam Speaker, during these troubled times it is more important than ever for the United States to express its firm commitment to the State of Israel.

Since the very beginning of its existence, Israel has been a vital ally of the United States, enjoying a strategic partnership based on shared democratic values, friendship, and respect.

The State of Israel was established as a sovereign and independent nation 58 years ago, and it continues to be a strong friend of the United States and a beacon of democracy in the Middle East. Our democracy must stand by democratic governments such as Israel as their existence is threatened by the forces of totalitarianism and extremism.

The people of Israel have worked tirelessly to live in peace with their neighbors in the Middle East, and I commend them for their efforts. Unfortunately, that fragile peace has been shattered by the acts of terrorists bent on death and destruction, and Israel must be allowed to defend itself against these attacks.

Today a multitude of my fellow Chicagoans will join in a rally at the Federal Plaza to express their solidarity with the State of Israel. I commend these citizens and the organizers of the rally, including the Jewish Federation of Chicago. I also commend the Jewish United Fund for its financial contributions to help move children and refugees out of the northern region until this conflict is resolved.

Madam Speaker, I wish peace and prosperity to return to the region for all of its people. But a just and lasting peace can only be achieved with an end to terrorism. We stand with the State of Israel in that fight.

Mr. Speaker, just 6 weeks ago, Zarqawi was killed in Iraq. Five weeks ago, the House held a debate on Iraq in which Republicans belittled Democrats for questioning the President's strategy.

Said my colleague from North Carolina: ``There are those who want to deny that we are making progress in Iraq.''

But no matter how hard my Republican colleagues try, they cannot escape the facts on the ground. After the most violent month in Iraq and a U.N. report estimating that more than 100 Iraqis are being killed per day, the Republicans are singing a different tune.

This morning's Washington Post reads: ``GOP Lawmakers Edge Away from Optimism on Iraq.'' And that same North Carolina lawmaker is quoted as saying: ``We can't look like we won't face reality.''

Well, here's reality: when the President went to war with too few troops, not enough body armor, and not enough armed Humvees, and without a plan for occupation, the Republican Congress failed their oversight responsibilities.

Lieutenant General Greg Newbold said, ``To be sure, the Bush administration and senior military officials are not alone in their culpability.'' Members of Congress defaulted in fulfilling their constitutional responsibility of oversight.

Mr. Speaker, it is time for a change. It is time for a new direction.

I thank my colleague from California, and I strongly support this resolution. Mr. Speaker, on June 25, Palestinian militants from Hamas kidnapped and later executed an Israeli soldier. On July 12, Hezbollah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers.

In both cases, terrorist militias affiliated with democratically elected governments, violated internationally recognized borders and seized three soldiers. In both cases, they were acts of wars. These acts turned on its head 25 years of agreement that if Israel would leave territories to internationally recognized borders, there would be peace.

It is this turning on its head the reason for the reaction by both Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan because it has violated what happened in 1978 with the giving of the Sinai. It violated what happened in 1993 with the Oslo Agreement, and it violated what happened in 1994 with Jordan.

What happened here, and nobody should underestimate the consequences, is it totally violates not only the internationally recognized border but the bipartisan effort, internationalized effort, to bring peace to the Middle East, and specifically to the Arab and Israeli conflict. That is, Israel would move to internationally recognized borders. Those borders would be recognized and peace would happen.

That effort, if it doesn't end here, and this doesn't get upturned with the return of soldiers, that effort of giving up peace by giving up real estate, recognizing internationally recognized borders, will come to an end. That is why three Arab governments, allies of the United States, have acted the way they have acted and recognized the consequences and the deep meaning of what happened here.

That being said, nobody should lose sight for one moment also of what has happened here. The so-called democratically elected governments on the West Bank and in Lebanon have militias affiliated with those governments. So those are democracies. They are not truly democracies, they are totalitarian entities with militias and terrorists acting as democracies.

As we talk about bringing democracy to the Mideast, understand that that button should be paused for a second and understand the consequences here. That what has happened is Saudi Arabia, most importantly, Egypt and Jordan, have brought peace and have come to a peace agreement with Israel. Those who have violated that peace are, quote-unquote, democracies, as we spread democracy in the Mideast.

Understand what that means here, and the consequences of what has happened here, is that you cannot allow this violation of internationally recognized borders, three soldiers to be seized, and think there will be no act of war. That is what has broadened, and yes, many of its citizens will be hurt.

I want to see an end to the violence that is engulfing Israel and Lebanon,

but it will not end this violence at the ballot box. It will only end with the emergence of true partners who recognize the importance of peace and the end of terrorist regimes founded on hate.

I strongly support this resolution, its spirit, as well as its letter.

Mr. Speaker, here are some of today's headlines:

``Toll Climbs in Mideast As Fighting Rages On.''

``Scores Killed in Bomb Attack Near Shiite Shrine.''

``Three U.S. Soldiers Killed on Monday.''

``Taliban Capture Two Afghan Towns.''

``Oil Futures At $75 a Barrel.''

``Wholesale Prices Climb 0.5 Percent in June.''

``Heat Wave Strains Electric Systems Nationwide.''

The Republican Congress's response is banning gay marriage. It is an obvious connection.

On this day nearly 2,000 years ago, Emperor Nero played his fiddle while Rome burned to the ground. This Congress would make the Emperor proud.

With all the challenges facing our Nation here at home and abroad, the Republican leadership is trying to distract the American people by playing the same old tunes, writing discrimination into the United States Constitution.

To govern is to choose, and the Republican Congress has made its priorities clear.

It is time for a new direction. It is time for a change.

Mr. Chairman, I strongly support the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act. The true test of a democracy is the ability of all of its citizens to contribute to the decisions and actions of their government. When the American circle of democracy is widened, the democracy is strengthened. In addition, its moral voice at home and abroad becomes clear and unambiguous.

For nearly 200 years, this Nation failed to live up to the test, excluding voters on the basis of race, gender, and property. The 14th and 19th amendments to the Constitution removed those restrictions from the law of the land, but discrimination against African Americans persisted in many parts of the country.

In 1965, this House witnessed one of its finest moments when Members of both parties rejected party labels and acted as Americans, joining together to declare that literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and poll taxes would no longer be allowed to intimidate American citizens from exercising their right to vote.

Getting this bill passed required decades of effort by dedicated activists who risked their lives. I am proud that this bill recognizes the names of those heroes such as Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King. The voting rights of all Americans are no less important today than they were in 1965. Working together, as our predecessors did, we can confront these challenges and continue to fight for liberty and justice for all.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the President said we would continue to be wise about how we spend the people's money. Now, this is true. We actually have a Director of Lessons Learned at the White House, who is paid over $100,000.

Maybe I can save the taxpayers $100,000 by running through a few lessons this White House should have learned:

Lesson 1. When the Army Chief of Staff and the Secretary of State say you are going to war without enough troops, you are going to war without enough troops.

Lesson 2 learned. When $8 billion is missing from Iraq's reconstruction and $2 billion disappears from Katrina relief, you need a little accountability.

Lesson 3 learned. When you have turned the corner in Iraq more times than Danica Patrick at the Indy 500, it means you are going in circles.

Lesson 4 learned. When the National Weather Service tells you a category 5 hurricane is heading for New Orleans, a category 5 hurricane is heading for New Orleans.

I would also ask the President why we are paying for two Ethics Advisors and a Director of Fact Checking. They must be the only people in Washington who get more vacation time than the President. Maybe the White House can consolidate these positions into a Director of Irony.

It is time for a new direction.

Mr. Speaker, with very much fanfare yesterday, the President held a press conference to claim vindication for his economic stewardship and his fiscal policies. He announced, and I just now calmed down, that the United States Government would only have a $3 billion Federal deficit for the fiscal year 2006.

By this administration's standards, this qualifies as a monumental achievement? $300 billion deficit and the President wanted applause for what he had done because after creating the three largest deficits in history, you are making progress if you do not set any standards or any records.

This time it is only the fourth largest deficit ever in the United States. In the Nation's capital, the President's budget is becoming known as the ``World of Diminished Expectations.'' Let us go back a little.

In 2001, President Bush inherited a surplus of $284 billion, and it was predicted by the year 2006 we would have a surplus of $516 billion, and they are only off by $800 billion. By Washington's standards, that is just a rounding error. So it makes sense to put away the champagne glasses for a while.

In addition to celebrating the fourth highest deficit ever, the President touted the significance of his tax increases. What he did not know is, in his administration, we have added $3 trillion to the Nation's debt, $3 trillion in 5 years, the largest increase in the Nation's debt in the shortest period of time ever in American history, $3 trillion, and on the present course, with Iraq spending and spending by the Federal Government and the revenue structure, we are on course to add another $1 trillion in 5 years.

Now, here is what Greg Mankiw, the President's former Chief Economic Adviser, said about the President's claim that his tax cuts can be paid for and actually help on the economy: ``There is no credible evidence'' that ``tax revenues rise in the face of lower tax rates.'' That is the President's own economic adviser. He went on to compare an economist who says that tax cuts can pay for themselves to a ``snake oil salesman trying to sell a miracle cure.''

The Economist magazine recently wrote, ``Even by the standards of political boosterism, this is extraordinary. No serious economist believes President Bush's tax cuts will pay for themselves.''

Not only have they not paid for themselves, they have left a huge burden on the middle class families and their children for generations to come to pay for.

Let us look at what is also happening in the President's economic stewardship.

In July of 2001, 5 years ago, under President Bush gas was $1.33 a gallon. Today, in Chicago, my district, it is $3.40. It has more than doubled. Health care costs have gone up 73 percent in premiums to $11,000 a year for a family of four. College costs for a 4-year college education at a public school is up 38 percent. And incomes, the median income in this country has declined 2.3 percent.

So while college costs have gone up, energy costs have gone up, health care costs have gone up, the savings rates in this country are down in negative territory for the first time since World War II. Median incomes are flat, and the President wants your applause for a $300 billion deficit because it is so good.

So while the prices have spiraled out of control for middle class families and the standard of living is coming under increasing pressure from the global economy, energy costs, health care costs, college costs, savings rates, incomes have not gone up, in fact they are flat to declining. The American people need a raise. It is that simple.

Now, the well-to-do are doing well. It is time we make sure that this government is working on behalf of the American people, not the American people working on behalf of their government.

We do not have to go back so far as to remind people what happened in the past when we had an economic strategy that put our fiscal house in order and invested in the education, health care and energy independence of this country. We created 22 million jobs in the 1990s, record unemployment. We had low inflation, below 2 percent, a balanced budget and a surplus 3 years in a row, and we began to pay down the debt. Welfare rolls declined. Poverty went down. Children's health care coverage went up. All the while we also provided the middle class a tax cut so they could send their kids to college known as a HOPE scholarship and the lifetime earning credit. Anytime you want to go back to college, you got a tax cut to do so. So you had the skills and the capability to do what you needed to do to compete in a global economy.

That is when your government is putting its fiscal house in order, being responsible for your dollars and investing in education and health care independence. It is time for new economic priorities. It is time for a change. It is time to put the government back on the side of the American people.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Gay Games VII, which will take place next month in Chicago. On behalf of the people of Chicago I welcome the athletes and spectators from around the world who will participate in this year's games.

The Gay Games will bring nearly 12,000 people together for seven days of celebration and competition in 30 sports, as well as music performances, nightly medal ceremonies, and a week-long arts festival. I am proud that Chicago will serve as the host for this historic event.

In the spirit of participation and inclusion, there are no qualifying events and no minimum or maximum requirements. The games are open to all, regardless of age, ability or sexual orientation.

The Gay Games were founded in 1982 by Dr. Tom Waddell, a 1968 Olympic decathlete. Since its inception, over 50,000 people have participated in the Games. Through the years this event has emphasized global unity and universal participation under the slogan ``Where the World Meets.''

The City of Chicago is an ideal for these games, with a proud tradition of diversity and a strong gay and lesbian community. From Wrigley Field to Soldier Field, the Windy City is ready to welcome the world on July 15th.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I honor the Gay Games. I wish all of the participants the best of luck in their respective events, and I thank everyone who has worked to make Gay Games VII a reality.

Mr. Speaker, in July of 2001, a few months after President Bush took office, gas was $1.33 a gallon. Five years later, July 2006, it has more than doubled to $3.00, and in places like Chicago, it is as high as $3.40 a gallon.

But this is not the only place where the administration has failed middle-class families. Since 2000, the cost of health care has increased 73 percent to $11,000 for a family of four. The cost of tuition at a 4-year public college has increased 38 percent since 2001 and, at the same time, average weekly earnings have declined by 1 percent in America.

So while costs spiral out of control, middle-class families have less money in their pockets. That is not exactly what I would call a record of achievement. Yet today, the President said the economy is strong and getting stronger. The American people know that such statements are wrong and getting wronger. The President's statements show how out of touch he is with the struggles and challenges American families face today.

Mr. Speaker, all is not well on Main Street. It is high time that Washington and this Congress took action. It is time for a new direction. It is time for a change.