Floor Statements

When the Federal Government intervenes in the private sector, like ObamaCare, we end up with a celebrity in chief who chooses to spend valuable time marketing his product--ObamaCare--on comedy shows rather than focusing on our wavering economy, jobs, and crises in Ukraine, Syria, Venezuela, Israel, and North Korea.

This week, the administration released its number for total enrollment in the President's health care law--4.2 million. This falls miserably short of the President's goal to enroll 7 million people by the end of this month. And what is worse is that health care experts estimate that the majority of the 4.2 who have enrolled already had insurance. The White House won't admit this, even though they know exactly how many previously insured are part of the 4.2 million.

Mr. Speaker, this law was designed to insure the uninsured, but it is failing in every single way. It is not helping those it was supposed to help, and it is hurting those with coverage they wanted to keep in the first place. The President needs to put the will of Americans ahead of his own agenda and fix this mess he has created.

ObamaCare has turned into ObamaScare.

May God bless America, and in God we trust.

Madam Speaker, as a business owner of 42 years, I know a few things about job creation, and with more than 10 million Americans out of work, it is time to energize the energy business. We need to let the private sector drive our initiatives and promote the advancement of safe nuclear energy.

Nuclear power sustains 100,000 high-paying jobs, and 2,000 of those are in Texas facilities. In my district, the 25th District of Texas, there are hundreds of highly skilled workers at the Comanche Peak Nuclear Plant who are doing a great job and are doing great things to promote this clean, reliable, and inexpensive energy source, less expensive than coal or natural gas.

Texas plays a vital national and international role in the development of new technologies and is among the 10 States with the greatest nuclear power generation capacity in the whole country.

Nuclear energy should play a major role in our Nation's all-inclusive energy plan, and that is why our policies should support it. Nuclear creates good jobs, puts billions of dollars into our economy, and is a safe, clean, and reliable energy source we simply can't afford to ignore. Let's move forward. In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, for more than four decades I have owned my own business. I am a business guy, and I can say with certainty that today's economy is the hardest economy our country has seen from a small business standpoint.

Taxes and regulations are killing businesses, stifling growth, and preventing educated, qualified individuals from becoming job creators themselves.

America's Tax Code deals some of the harshest penalties for those who contribute most to the economy. We have the highest corporate tax rate in the world, and the top wage earners pay most of the Federal income taxes.

To restore fairness for all taxpayers, we need to cut the corporate rate to a real 25 percent, and collapse the current six tax brackets to just two, at 10 and 25 percent.

We need to cut the capital gains tax, the dividends tax, and eliminate the inheritance tax. We need an improved R&D tax credit to give the American manufacturers the ability to compete globally. With these cuts, we need to ensure that hard-earned taxpayer dollars taken by the IRS are no longer subject to waste, fraud, and abuse.

In the end, it is about simplifying and enabling American businesses to compete worldwide, putting more money into Americans' wallets than Uncle Sam's, and creating cash flow and opportunity for America. It is a winning formula. It has worked before. Let's try it again.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, last week, a news report revealed that a hospital in Houston, Texas, my home State, was unable to pay dozens of its employees during the holidays due to a new Medicare payment contractor. Nearly 150 employees, ranging from doctors to nurses to administrators, missed several paychecks because the hospital's Medicare payment facilitator is taking too long to process Medicare claims for reimbursement.

Unfortunately, this is a growing problem plaguing the medical facilities and hardworking employees across the country. That is why my bill, the Medicare Established Provider Act, should come to the House floor for a vote quickly.

H.R. 3168 will help alleviate the reimbursement backlog by creating a trusted provider system. Like this hospital in Texas, there are many established Medicare providers with a proven history of timely, valid claims. They should be rewarded with prompt reimbursements rather than put in limbo for months or years at a time.

Allowing this bill to pass would allow companies and small businesses to expand and would streamline the process for these trusted providers. As the backlog of claims continues to rise, the livelihood of employees and businesses should not be put at risk. I hope this bill will get serious attention and bring commonsense business principles to this industry.

In God we always trust.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2728, the Protecting States' Rights to Promote American Energy Security Act, is a commonsense bill that promotes energy independence, protects jobs, and preserves states' rights.

The 25th District of Texas contains the Barnett Shale, a major job creator, energy provider, and economic driver in the oil and gas industry. Reports this month showed that 825 out of the 1,762 active rigs in the United States are located throughout the State of Texas. That is almost half the Nation's active drilling rigs.

The shale oil boom in Texas contributes to our Nation's overall ability to cut reliance on foreign oil and get one step closer to energy independence. I will tell you one thing that can stop this progress dead in its tracks, however, and that is red tape and Federal bureaucracy.

For 60 years, States have regulated their own hydraulic fracturing operations, but the Obama administration is attempting to step in and add duplicative and costly regulations. For example, on average, it takes a State 30 days to approve permits for drilling. The Federal Government's Bureau of Land Management takes an average of 228 days.

Subjecting States to this is senseless, harmful, and unnecessary. H.R. 2728 will prevent this and many other destructive regulations from stifling energy production and job creation.

Mr. Speaker, last week, President Obama apologized for not being ``clear enough'' when he promised to the public that if you like your current health care plan, you can keep it. Now, 3.5 million Americans have already received letters from their insurance companies informing them their current plan will no longer be offered. That number is expected to reach 10 million.

Let me share with you just two stories from the 25th District of Texas.

Robert from Austin, Texas, started a new business this year and has private insurance for his family that costs $450 a month. His insurer called him this week to let him know his premiums will now be $1,200 a month--more than his mortgage. What is affordable about that?

Dianne from Driftwood, Texas, is a cancer survivor with an adopted special needs child and believed the President when he said she could keep her and her child's doctors, but her doctors will no longer accept her insurance.

Mr. Speaker, I have a growing pile of similar letters and emails on my desk, and what I see is a tragedy in America.

Let's let those who like their health care keep their health care, let's make positive reforms for those currently uninsured, and let's restore the financial stability and relief that ObamaCare has robbed from many of us. Americans are hurting.

In God we trust.

Thank you, Congresswoman. I appreciate your leadership.

Mr. Speaker, in our Nation's 237 years, over 25 million men and women have served in the Armed Forces. They wear the uniform, fight our enemies, defend their homeland, protect their fellow man in battle, honor their fallen comrades, and, perhaps most importantly, they honor their oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.

Mr. Speaker, the First Amendment of the Constitution states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of

religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

Freedom of religion is how we live our faith, not just where we attend worship services. Soldiers, airmen, sailors, and marines stationed domestically are able to attend their religious services; and for troops overseas who aren't able to walk off base in enemy territory to attend a service, there are military chaplains who facilitate services for them. But religious freedom doesn't just cover worship services; it covers the exercise of religion.

Regrettably, in the last few years, many instances of religious intolerance in the military have come to light, specifically targeting Christianity. Soldiers are being told by superiors that they cannot associate themselves with Christian groups and that evangelical Christians are a threat to the United States. These soldiers are told not to associate with, contribute to, or be a part of these Christian groups.

This is not only an outrage. It is un-American and a direct violation of the Constitution that these men and women have sworn with their lives to uphold. Troops do not take an oath to their superiors, the President, the government or to Congress. They take an oath to defend the Constitution, which protects their religious liberty.

The Department of Defense's rules and regulations protecting these rights need to be enforced. As a whole, the military overwhelmingly respects the rights and religious beliefs of individuals, but these so- called ``isolated incidents'' of intimidation and coercion must end now--immediately.

Mr. Speaker, our Armed Forces are willing and ready to answer the call of duty, and so many have made the ultimate sacrifice to preserve the freedoms and liberties we as Americans value so dearly. My district, the 25th District of Texas, is home to Fort Hood, which is the largest military installation in America. The patriots at Fort Hood deserve to have someone fighting on their behalf when their rights as Americans are violated.

Congress must ensure that every time a man or a woman makes the admirable decision to join the military, he is not signing away his First Amendment rights. Let's make sure right here, right now that our policies leave no room for interpretation when it comes to the military's right to freely practice its religion. After all, we are one Nation under God. In God, we always trust.

Mr. Speaker, it is a sad day in America when Army Secretary John McHugh says that, in today's fiscal environment, the best case scenario for our military's budget is treacherous. Army Chief of Staff Ray Odierno said budget cuts hamper the military's ability to train its own troops.

While there is waste and overlap in every Federal agency--the Pentagon's budget not excluded--there is much to be said for Congress' doing its primary job of governing: passing a budget. For the last 4 years, we have seen the constraints that continuing resolution after continuing resolution have placed on our military.

Earlier this year, we saw the rigid requirements that harmed the Department of Defense when President Obama's sequester took place. Before these cuts, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said our defense program was already underfunded by 5 percent with modernization underfunded by 10 percent. Thankfully, Congress took quick action that allowed the DOD to operate under a budget in order to meet all of their fiscal requirements and have more flexibility as they absorbed the across-the-board sequester cuts.

General Odierno revealed this week that just two Army brigades are combat-ready and that training has come to a halt. This is a terrifying reality given that only 2 months ago President Obama addressed Congress and the public, asking for support for a military attack on Syria. We absolutely cannot send our troops who are not trained, not equipped, and not prepared into harm's way. Our military readiness should never, ever be threatened like this. As the world's superpower, our Armed Forces must be ready to deploy thousands of troops should the need arise.

As the military continues finding ways to operate under current spending levels, it is also downsizing in Afghanistan and is preparing for future programs with no certainty of any financial stability. Our Nation has serious financial problems. Our deficit is growing; our spending is increasing; and it seems that, in nearly every budget battle, our military is thrown in as a bargaining chip. This is not the American way, and it must become a thing of the past. Other government agencies have bloated budgets with wasteful, overlapping programs, fraudulent spending, and blatant abuse of taxpayer dollars. All the while, our military budget is being stripped to its bare bones.

The last time I checked, Mr. Speaker, we were still a Nation at war. Now is not the time to gut essential programs for our warriors and their families. We owe it to our military to have them operate under regular order, pass and conference our appropriations bills so our fighters can continue to be the best and the most prepared in the world.

Texas' 25th District is home to Fort Hood, the Army's premier installation to train and deploy heavy forces, and it is one of the largest military installations in the world. Fort Hood ranks highest in terms of future capability and support, and it can sustain more than 50,000 soldiers and their families.

I urge my colleagues in Congress to honor our commitment to these troops and to put an end to the financial uncertainty in the military. Let's simply do just the right thing.

May God bless our troops. May God bless America.

And always in God we trust.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 3080, the Water Resources Reform and Development Act of 2013.

Among many other vital water projects in Texas, this bill authorizes funding for the deepening of the Sabine-Neches, where 100 million tons of cargo transit annually. The Sabine-Neches Waterway is a major economic contributor to both Texas and America, providing $106 billion in revenue for our Nation's economy.

America's aging infrastructure is a threat to a healthy national economy. Thirteen million jobs rely on water infrastructure, and it is up to Congress to ensure that America's ports, waterways, and water systems remain the very best in the world.

I applaud Chairman Shuster and Ranking Member Rahall for their diligence, and also my colleagues on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for their tremendous work.

I strongly urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to represent Texas' 25th District, home to Fort Hood, the Army's premier installation to train and deploy heavy forces, and one of the largest military installations in the world and the largest in America.

Fort Hood ranks highest in terms of future capability and can support and sustain more than 50,000 soldiers and their families. The communities surrounding Fort Hood provide outstanding support and resources to these men and women, especially to the school districts, which are responsible for educating the children of our troops and for the education of our kids in the future. For example, 50 percent of all students in Killeen's Independent School District are military kids. That is over 20,000 students, and they are still growing. Nearby, in Copperas Cove Independent School District, well over 8,000 students have a parent in the military.

This is why funding for Impact Aid should never be threatened, not even at a time when Washington is at a stalemate. These students should have access to the best and the brightest educational opportunities our Nation can provide. Our men and women in uniform should not have to worry about their children's education when they are facing potential deployment.

Mr. Speaker, being a part of a military family is not easy. It requires more sacrifice than most of us can fathom. I strongly urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and in both Chambers of Congress to make good on our commitment to provide for our military and their families as we move forward.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, even though the President continues to bully the House by threatening to veto every bill we pass, the House of Representatives continues to act on behalf of all Americans.

Yesterday, we passed the Honoring Our Promise to America's Veterans Act to fund critical veterans programs of the VA and to ensure proper funding for National Guard and Reservists. Defying common sense, most of my Democratic colleagues chose to turn

their back on our veterans, National Guard, and Reservists.

Today, we will act again to provide immediate funding for a critical program that takes care of low-income women and children--the WIC program. Harry Reid's Senate has already refused to step forward and provide funding for sick children, and it would be inexcusable for them to not take up this legislation.

Harry Reid's government shutdown continues to last, and there is still no sign of willingness to sit down with House Republicans to negotiate. President Obama has even canceled his trip to Asia; but, Mr. Speaker, I have my doubts he will actually use his time to continue the important conversations that must happen to end this government shutdown.

I urge my Democratic colleagues in the House and Harry Reid's Senate to do what's right for the American people and pass these important funding bills immediately. America needs to be America again.

Mr. Speaker, last night House Republicans once again showed up and took action to stop the bleeding of Harry Reid's government shutdown. President Obama has already bullied the House by threatening to veto these important bills to protect our Nation's veterans, keep D.C. schools and services open, and preserve and reopen our national parks.

By voting against these bills, House Democrats turned their backs on the Nation's veterans. It's reprehensible to sit back and watch our veterans suffer. The Honoring Our Promise to America's Veterans Act would ensure vital funding for disability compensation, pensions, the GI Bill, and other critical benefits that are threatened by Harry Reid's shutdown.

Today we will give the Democrats another chance to vote in favor of veterans. This is not a partisan issue, it's an American issue, and we must pass this legislation today. House Republicans are here. We're ready to negotiate. Mr. Speaker, I would suggest that the President should cancel his trip to Asia and come negotiate with us.

Simply put, in God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, the 25th District of Texas is home to the Texas State Capitol, the University of Texas, the Comanche Peak nuclear

plant, the Barnett shale, the dairy farms in great Texas, and the largest military installation in the country, Fort Hood, Texas.

It's a shame that the level of discourse in our Nation has come to this--that my district office in Cleburne, Texas, would be the victim of hateful anti-Republican vandalism by anonymous individuals.

House Republicans have been called extortionists, terrorists, drunks, kidnappers, anarchists, and the list goes on.

I understand that this government shutdown has caused uncertainty and tension for hundreds of thousands of Americans, but this type of behavior cannot and will not be tolerated.

We are the United States of America, and it's time for the Senate, the White House and the House to come to the negotiating table, unite and figure out this problem we have for all Americans. The sooner the better.

In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the President yet again chose to bash Congress and blame the House Republicans for the failure of America's economy. I have seen him make this argument on television many times, but he never shows up on Capitol Hill to actually engage in productive conversations. He does talk, however, to the Russians, the Chinese, and the Iranians. This is no surprise. This is the same man who spends more time with Hollywood stars than Members of Congress.

It is not Congress that will shut our government down--it's our President. I would argue that he already has shut the government down. Five years ago, unemployment was at 5 percent and the national poverty rate was at 12\1/2\ percent, and approximately 30 million Americans received food stamps. Today, unemployment sits at 7.6 percent, the poverty rate exceeds 15 percent, a staggering 47.8 million Americans are enrolled in the food stamp program, and 48 million people between the ages of 18 and 64 have not worked one day in the last 12 months.

The President's economic agenda is only pushing us further into danger, and it's a disaster. For more than four decades, I have owned my business and I can say with certainty that today's economy is the toughest economy our country has seen from a small business standpoint.

Everything from health care to taxes to regulations is killing businesses and forcing job creators to play defense. Rather than generating profits, businesses are saving profits. This isn't the sign of a rebounding economy.

Despite this, in his public address to the Nation, President Obama said the economy has gained traction and continued to place the blame on Congress. What the American people need to hear are solutions, not sound bites. As a business owner, I know what it takes to create jobs. I live it every single day.

First, we need true tax reform. Lower taxes mean more taxpayers and more income. More specifically, we need to cut taxes for all taxpayers across the board and quit picking winners and losers.

The first step in doing this is cutting the corporate tax rate, the personal tax rate, the capital gains tax, the dividends tax, and eliminate forever the inheritance tax.

The next step is to begin a dialogue on whether we should move to a fair or a flat tax. Either one of these is certainly better than what we have today.

Second, we need to change health care policy. With the addition of ObamaCare, the government now comprises one-sixth of the Nation's economy. This is a complete travesty, and the private sector must be given more control of health care, not the Federal Government.

Consumers should be able to shop across State lines, which will create more competition. As a result, premiums would go down and services go up. That's what competition does. Consumers also need to own their own health care, not their employer, and not the Federal Government. It needs to be tax deductible. It needs to be portable so you can take it with you if you retire, you lose your job, or move around.

Third, we need to energize the energy business and not penalize the energy business. Let's favor an all-American approach for all sources of energy and let the private sector drive our energy, not our government. We do this by reducing regulations, letting the industry drill, and promoting the advancement of safe nuclear and alternative energy sources. Let the private sector tell us where to go.

Developing our domestic energy sources will undoubtedly lower energy prices for families and businesses.

Finally, we need to ensure America remains the world's superpower with a strong and well-equipped military. Our men and women in uniform must have the best equipment and must have the best training to fight for our freedom and our liberty.

It shouldn't even be an option to balance our Nation's books on the backs of our military. Doing so diminishes our military's readiness and threatens our national security, and it simply shows weakness across the world.

These are real solutions. They will allow businesses big and small to invest, to take risks, and they also will be rewarded. They show that the Federal Government believes in the private sector, believes in entrepreneurship, and believes in people getting checks and lets everyone feel good about themselves.

We should never accept 7.6 percent as the normal level for unemployment. We should never accept a 15 percent poverty rate. We should never accept $2.5 billion in free cell phones. We should never accept 15 percent underemployment. We should never accept 52 percent of our college graduates who are either underemployed or can't get a job. And we should never accept an economy that creates more food stamps than jobs.

It is time to wake up, America. Big Government has taken a toll on our families, our businesses, and our budgets. Let's get back to regular order in Washington and start passing responsible budgets that give our Nation much-needed certainty and security. Businesses and families do it every single day.

There is no question that America is the greatest country in the world. In the unforgettable words of Abraham Lincoln:

America is the last best hope of Earth.

Let's keep it that way by believing in the people and not the Federal Government and not Big Government. Let's say good-bye to ObamaCare, the largest takeover of the people by the government we have ever seen in our history.

It is truly our generation's Valley Forge. Let's be shepherds and not sheep, and let's be patriots and not victims. In God we trust.

Mr. Speaker, pressure is mounting on President Obama and Harry Reid to get rid of ObamaCare. Even Senate Democrats, like Joe Manchin, are starting to listen to the people who sent them to Congress. Americans don't want the law, Texans don't want the law, and my district doesn't want the law. And it's easy to see why.

This week, a report by the Manhattan Institute revealed that the President was lying when he said Americans will see a $2,500 decrease in their premiums. The average health care premium in 2013 for a 27- year-old male was $91. Under ObamaCare, it's $139, a 53 percent increase. That's really frightening. This study shows that at least 12 States will see an approximate 100 percent increase in their premiums, many of those far exceeding 100 percent.

Mr. Speaker, this is one of the worst pieces of legislation in my lifetime. It hurts families, it cripples businesses, and it does very little to insure those who are uninsured. We can do better.

The President's so-called signature piece of legislation is crumbling, and it's time for a permanent repeal, for today, tomorrow, and for all generations to follow. In God we trust.