Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the chairlady for giving me this opportunity.

I wasn't going to support the rule this morning, but I am going to support it now. I am going to support it because I want to be able to vote to make the estate tax more reasonable, even though the reality is, what we are voting on is whether we are going to give the wealthy with the estate tax a six-course meal with wine or a seven-course meal with wine, and we should be talking about a meat and three.

The fact is, the estate tax with a $675,000 exemption was started with the Bush tax cuts, and now we are putting it up to a $5 million exemption per person and $10 million per couple. It was at a 55 percent rate and precipitously drops in this bill to 35 percent. The benefit to the heirs of the richest people in this country is unbelievable, unfathomable. And what that means, you will have a continued concentration of wealth in a few select families, lords so to speak, princes that have money beyond what anybody needs to have in this Nation and not contribute to others. The fact is, this was a very difficult vote, a very difficult decision for me. I asked my constituents to let me know what they thought. I had hundreds of people call and write and contribute to a poll, and it was about even, for and against.

The fact is, the future of our Nation is at risk. These tax cuts for the most wealthy people in our Nation, for corporations that will not produce jobs, in the hundreds of billions of dollars category, and the inheritance tax will take away the children, the aged, and the needy in years to come who will need support from this Nation. The deficit will be so great that when it comes time for deficit cutting, the cuts are going to come to the people who most are in need.

Hubert Humphrey said, ``The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.'' He and others, like Dr. King, the Dalai Lama, and others who you look to never talk about giving more to the rich. Mr. Garamendi started talking about Franklin Roosevelt. The fact is, those people who are the moral tests will suffer when the cuts are made, and I don't see that as something I should support. I cannot be sure of that.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over again and expecting a different result.

To my friends on the Republican side, we did this 10 years ago with the Bush tax cuts, and it didn't work. It has been mentioned over and over again. It built up these deficits, including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan that you supported so well, and has created this deficit that threatened our country to make us look like a future Ireland, a future Portugal, countries that are in great deficit, problems that we are putting our country and our future into. We don't need to be insane and try to do this over again. I feel like it's a return to Christmas Past.

And there's a book in the New Testament that says: From those who are given much, much is expected. But in this Congress, from those who have much, we are expecting little, we get little from it, and we are giving them the biggest tax breaks of all. And to the people who die and are the richest in our Nation, the Steinbrenners who died with $1.1 billion, we will be giving them this year a $450 million free ride and, with the differences in the taxes of 35 or 45 percent, $100 million. This is wrong, and that's why I'm opposed to the bill.

Madam Speaker, we will probably be voting on the President's

tax proposal this week--a very difficult vote. I really don't know how I'm going to vote.

On the one hand, I see the benefit of getting timely temporary and targeted relief to people, which helps the economy with unemployment compensation, unemployment compensation that is most needed for the people of the purple hearts of this Bush recession.

On the other hand, I see the money going to the upper 2 percent--the millionaires and billionaires--who will get $700 billion over 10 years, which will put a deficit on our children and grandchildren for years to come--something we can't afford. When it comes time to affording it on reckoning day, it's going to hurt people getting Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and that's something I can't see.

The estate tax will benefit 6,600 families, to the tune of $25 billion, and I see that as wrong, too; but I understand the need to stimulate the economy and to get middle class tax cuts to the people earning less than $250,000.

I ask my constituents to contact me at www.Cohen.house.gov. Let me know what you think.

Madam Speaker, I was detained from voting due to a family emergency on Thursday, December 9. If present, I would have voted ``yea'' on the following rollcall votes: Rollcall 626 and rollcall 627.

Madam Speaker, I was detained from voting due to a family emergency on Wednesday, December 8. If present, I would have voted ``yea'' on the following rollcall votes: rollcall vote No. 611, rollcall vote No. 612, rollcall vote No. 613, rollcall vote No. 614, rollcall vote No. 615, rollcall vote No. 616, rollcall vote No. 617, rollcall vote No. 618, rollcall vote No. 619, rollcall vote No. 620, rollcall vote No. 621, rollcall vote No. 622, rollcall vote No. 623, rollcall vote No. 624, rollcall vote No. 625.

Madam Speaker, I was detained from voting on Tuesday, December 7. If present, I would have voted yea on the following rollcall votes: rollcall 608, rollcall 609, and rollcall 610.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mrs. Frances Louise Laster Hayes, the owner of T.H. Hayes and Sons Funeral Home in Memphis, Tennessee. She was born to Robert Laster and Maude Blair Laster in Fort Smith, Arkansas on January 9, 1907. Due to her mother's death, Frances and her three siblings, Mary, Clifford and Walter were raised by her father and aunt, Callie.

Frances Laster attended Lemoyne Normal school, now Lemoyne College, in the 1920s. She studied commerce and earned a Bachelors degree in business administration. After graduation, Frances took a position at her family's lucrative business in Spring Lake, New Jersey. She worked there 8 years before returning to Memphis, where she married Taylor Hayes of Hayes Funeral home, the oldest continuing African-American- owned business in Tennessee.

When Frances Hayes married into the Hayes family at age 23, she had no experience in the funeral home industry. She started as a secretary working side-by-side with her husband and brother-in-law, learning the business of mortuary science. Earning her funeral director's license, Mrs. Hayes became one of the first licensed black female directors. Mrs. Hayes took over the Hayes funeral home with the help of family members when her husband died in 1968.

Mrs. Hayes received several awards and mentions over her lifetime. In 2002, Mrs. Hayes was awarded the President Award of Excellence from the National Funeral Director and Mortician Association Inc. and was also an honorary member of Who's Who of Black Funeral Directors. In recognition of the 100th anniversary of T.H. Hayes and Sons Funeral Home, she was honored by Grace Magazine, the Commercial Appeal and the Tri-State Defender. She was prominent in social and civic realms and was a member of the Memphis Dinner Club, once described as one of the most exclusive black social clubs in America. She was also a member of the 2nd Congregational Church in Memphis, Tennessee.

At 103 years old, Frances Hayes was the epitome of a family matriarch. Her life experiences were widespread, including WWI and WWII, Vietnam, The Gulf, The Great Depression, modernization of the auto, the assassinations of M.L. King, John F. Kennedy, and Robert Kennedy, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Birth of Blues with WC Handy. Just two years ago she said ``I can't believe we have a Black president, and she's such a beautiful First Lady.''

Frances Hayes passed away Sunday, November 21, 2010 at the age of 103 at Methodist University Hospital. Mrs. Hayes' legacy lives on through her nephew Powers Thornton, Jr., her brother-in-law's daughter, Tommye Kay Armstrong and her Godsons, Antonio Benson, Eddie Brooks, Elbert Webster and her dozens of nieces and nephews. We are honored for her dedication to Memphis, Tennessee and her contributions to the Memphis community. Hers was a life well lived.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Diamond Standard, a Memphis based company, for receiving an excellent rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for their after- market bumpers. The IIHS, widely considered to be a leading authority on crash testing and auto safety, describes itself as ``an independent, nonprofit, scientific, and educational organization dedicated to reducing the losses--deaths, injuries, and property damage--from crashes on the nation's highways.'' IIHS found Diamond Standard's bumpers to be equivalent to factory equipment.

Diamond Standard is truly an American company that shows the American dream is still alive and well. Owner and founder Mike O'Neal started his work in the automotive business as an employee for his father, John O'Neal, who owned a bumper re-chroming shop in West Memphis. In the 1990's, Mike saw a demand for high-end, after-market bumpers. However, Diamond Standard did not officially begin selling its product until four years ago.

Today, Diamond Standard and its sister companies have manufacturing and warehousing facilities in Ohio, Michigan, Oklahoma, Washington State, Pennsylvania, Arizona and Taiwan. Diamond Standard provides jobs for approximately 439 Americans, including 65 in Memphis.

The collision replacement industry is estimated to generate more than $16 billion a year. Diamond Standard provides parts to nearly 15 percent of companies within this industry. Because of the tremendous work they are doing, the company is worth an estimated $150 million a year. Mr. O'Neal has said that the Insurance Institute certification has the potential to double Diamond Standard's business in the next 24 months.

For the past 5-6 years Diamond Standard has invested about $2 million for research and testing to prove that its parts are comparable to those that are factory-made. Their recent invention of an after-market bumper that is comparable to a factory bumper is significant because it has never been done before. This new and safe bumper has the potential to lower bumper-replacement costs for hard working Americans.

Diamond Standard has given Memphis much of which to be proud. Its investment in research and development, revolutionary innovation and operational expansion is truly emblematic of the American entrepreneurial spirit. Madam Speaker, I ask the House to join me in congratulating Diamond Standard for the excellent rating they received for their after-market bumpers and for the bright future Diamond Standard will surely have.

Madam Speaker, today the United States received very good news concerning education in America. Nationwide, high school graduation rates rose 2 percent. But even better, in my State of Tennessee, the rates rose 15 percent, the number one increase in the United States of America. Those are statistics from the year 2002 to 2009 as determined by the Promise Institute that Colin Powell headed. And part of that I'm happy to attribute it to, and that is the Tennessee education lottery which was my hallmark legislation as a State senator. The lottery referendum passed in 2002, and the education law went into effect in 2003, giving children the incentive that they can go to college, that they can have a better life. Giving them hope with HOPE scholarships has helped kids make better grades in high school and turn out better graduates in Tennessee.

I appreciate the fact that Tennessee has been recognized today as the country's education grades and scores have gone up, and we need to continue working on this. And if every State gave their students HOPE, we would have a better Nation.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Ulysses Jones, Jr. A public servant throughout his career, Mr. Jones worked as a paramedic with the Memphis Fire Department for 37 years, where he rose to the rank of battalion chief. Ulysses continued to serve by becoming Tennessee's 98th District State Representative representing the North Memphis community for 23 years. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee on June 7, 1951 to the late Ulysses Jones, Sr. and Marjorie Nicholas Jones. Ulysses Jones, Jr. graduated from North Side High School and went on to attend the University of Memphis and Tennessee State University.

Ulysses Jones, Jr. was oftentimes faced with challenging moments during his tenure as a paramedic. On August 16, 1977, Ulysses and a colleague were called to Graceland to revive Elvis Presley, but to no avail. Ulysses later noted that he identified with the legendary entertainer who despite living in public housing projects, worked hard to make a better life for himself. Ulysses thought nothing of putting his life on the line to save others and he took that same attitude of public service to the state legislature when he was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives.

Ulysses Jones, Jr. was first elected to the Tennessee General Assembly in 1986. For nearly a quarter of a century, he was a voice for working men and women in Shelby County. He stood by his convictions on issues that mattered most to him, including improving schools, expanding college scholarships and equal pay for all. Ulysses aspired to do the right thing for all people regardless of race, creed or political affiliation.

Mr. Jones was an effective lawmaker for Tennessee. His vocal and active opposition to the ``Tiny Towns'' bill led to one of his most notable accomplishments in the Tennessee legislature. This legislation, which initially passed and was signed into state law, allowed small communities, and in one contested battle, an apartment building, to incorporate to avoid paying property taxes. Less than a year after being signed into law, the Tennessee Supreme Court struck down the law citing constitutional violations.

Ulysses worked hard on not just his legislative agenda but on other Members' bills including mine. He cosponsored the ``Tennessee Lottery for Education,'' a bill I sponsored and worked on for nearly 20 years. After being signed into law, Ulysses took the reins and served as the Co-Chair of the Joint Lottery Oversight Committee and was a member of the House Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation.

While in the Tennessee House of Representatives, Ulysses Jones served as the Chair of the House Ethics Committee, Chair of the House State and Local Government Committee and the 2nd Vice President of the National Black Caucus of State Legislators. He was a member of the House Education Committee, K-12 Subcommittee, Local Government Subcommittee, Joint Select Education Oversight Committee and the Tennessee Commemorative Women's Suffrage Commission. Ulysses also co- authored state Enterprise Zone legislation for Tennessee.

Mr. Jones was also actively involved in his community. He served as Chairman of both the Tennessee African-American Male Task Force and the Governor's Minority Business Development Advisory Committee. He sat on the Board of Directors for the Fire Fighter Investment Group and was the President of the Pioneer Black Fire Fighters. Ulysses was a member of the YMCA Black Achievers and was a catalyst for the Development of the North Memphis Inner City Community Development Corporation.

Ulysses Jones, Jr. passed away on November 9, 2010 at the age of 59. Ulysses Jones, Jr. is survived by his daughter Victoria and son Ulysses III. His commitment to helping people throughout his life will be remembered by the countless number of lives he touched. His was a life well lived.

Madam Speaker, I think as we look at this lame duck session at the end of the 111th Congress, how we got where we are with the deficit, which was such a big issue--in 1994, Congress and President Clinton passed a bill to balance the budget, all Democrats. The result of it was the Democrats suffered a great election defeat in 1994. The Republicans took over with Newt Gingrich and had the House for the next 12 years. But we balanced the budget with a budget surplus by the year 2000.

Then President Bush came in office, and he gave these tax cuts away to a trillion-dollar war in Iraq, a war in Afghanistan, and passed Medicare part D, the largest extension of Federal benefits ever, tremendous deficit, increasing much more so than any health care bill passed since or the one that we passed, and we got this tremendous deficit.

Now the Republicans talk about earmarks. Earmarks have nothing to do with the deficit at all. It has to do with tough decisions to increase revenues or cut spending; $700 billion cuts to the richest isn't the way to do it. You've got to look at the Fed and other areas and be brave.

Well, I thank you for having this hour and for letting me join you, each of you.

These are the issues that are important to the American people. And I tried to address some of them in 1 minute. You can't discuss them in 1 minute. One of the issues we heard about was the deficit. The deficit was created by the Congress that was begun in the beginning of this century. The Congress in 1994, when President Clinton was President, a Democratic Congress with all Democratic votes passed a balanced budget bill that balanced the budget by the year 2000, and that balanced budget with a surplus was squandered with Bush tax cuts that cost tremendous amounts of money and a trillion-dollar war in Iraq without weapons of mass destruction and without a well-defined purpose and without the truth behind the purpose, I believe, of that war. And then an additional war in Afghanistan that was made the secondary war. This has created the great deficit that we have now, and you've got to correct that through income or through cuts.

What has been recommended by the bipartisan panel the President set up bears looking at as a beginning. It's going to take some tough decisions, but we also need revenue; and the revenue can't be across- the-board extensions for the Bush tax cuts. And to the upper 2 percent, as Mr. Garamendi was talking, they don't spend that money. My friends all drive Chryslers, I must make amends; dear Lord get me a Mercedes- Benz. That's an old sixties song. That's what they buy, is a Mercedes- Benz or maybe something from Cartier, which doesn't really stimulate the economy. It might tickle the fancy of somebody, but it doesn't stimulate the economy.

We've got to make some difficult decisions and earmarks aren't the issue. Earmarks don't take away from the deficit. It just means that rather than your Congressperson from your district who knows your needs, it will be somebody in Washington spending that money. The earmarks need to be done in a transparent manner, and this Congress has seen that they are published. The people have to say that they are theirs, they have no financial interest, they don't have a personal stake, and they can't be for a for-profit company.

Earmarks in and of themselves are not bad. They just need to be cleaned up, and this Congress has cleaned them up. But the fact is, we need to make some difficult decisions. I'm prepared to make those difficult decisions on some long-term economic policies that will help clean up the deficit, which we need to do. I don't agree with much of what was put in the bipartisan proposal that was just recently announced by Mr. Bowles and Mr. Simpson, but it's a starting point; and it should not be summarily dismissed as it was by some from my party. On the other hand, the issue of earmarks is a subterfuge or just an issue to be thrown out there which has nothing to do with the deficit.

It's going to take some tough decisions, and the Department of Defense can't be off the table. Some say, Oh, you can't deal with the Department of Defense. There's a lot of money in the defense budgets that's there because of who manufactures the weapons and not the purpose of the weapons, and there's a lot of waste in the Department of Defense, and we need to look there as well. And we're going to have to make some large cuts, and that's where most of the money is.

So I join with you. I appreciate, Mr. Ellison, your work. I appreciate Mr. Stein's quoting you in Time Magazine when you cited me as part of your team, and I'm going to be part of your team. And, Mr. Garamendi, I appreciate what you've done from California and in your leading these discussions. And I just want to be a part of the ending of this Congress that does some economic justice and that we try to see that economic justice is not forgotten in the 112th.

I would just like to make one statement, Mr. Rohrabacher, if you would permit before.

You know, I think it was Wavy Gravy that said, if you remember the sixties you weren't part of the sixties. Well, when you get into your sixties, sometimes you forget things. It was, I believe, Janis Joplin, and it was: My friends all have Porsches. I must make amends. Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes-Benz.

Madam Speaker, on October 29, 2010--while this House was in recess--the Republic of Turkey celebrated Republic Day, and observed the 87th anniversary of its founding. As a co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Turkey and Turkish Americans, I take this opportunity to belatedly congratulate our Turkish friends and recognize the longstanding friendship between the United States and the Republic of Turkey.

For over fifty years, Turkey has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the United States, making significant contributions to the peace, security, and prosperity of both its immediate neighborhood and the wider world. An ally in the global struggle against Communism during the Cold War, Turkey has and continues to contribute a great deal to our efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan as we act to secure those countries and give them the tools to chart their own courses and become constructive members of the community of nations.

Turkey's international contributions reflect the visions of its founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, of a vibrant secular democracy. In times of great change and uncertainty, while there may be questions or differences of opinion about the threats we face, this should be seen as the actions of a mature ally. I do not believe that anyone can question Turkey's commitment to easing tensions, resolving some of the key issues of our time, and its friendship with the United States.

As new members of the Congressional Caucus on Turkey and Turkish Americans have come to discover, Turkish Americans are also playing an important role in strengthening the bonds between our two countries. Turkish Americans come from all backgrounds and and make important contributions to all sectors of our society. Additionally, they are participating in greater numbers in the social, political, and economic aspects of our national life. I welcome this engagement, and know that it enriches us as a people.

Again, my congratulations to Turkey and all of its friends in this country on the observance of another Republic Day.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Dr. Julia A. Heath, University of Memphis Fogelman College of Business and Economics professor, for being recognized as the 2010 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching Tennessee Professor of the Year. Professors bestowed this award have demonstrated dedication to undergraduate teaching based on their impact on and involvement with students, their scholarly approach to teaching and learning, their contribution to undergraduate education in the institution, community and profession, and their support from colleagues, current and former undergraduate students.

Dr. Heath has contributed greatly to the Fogelman College course selection. She developed several new courses including `The Economics of Sports' and `Men, Women and Work.' She is in the process of developing an Economics and Law course that will be added to the department's elective rotation in spring 2011. Professor Heath developed and taught a Ph.D. Teaching Seminar for the teaching assistants in the College where she would tape each student and provide individual feedback.

Professor Heath has worked diligently to advance financial literacy for school children across the state of Tennessee. Serving as the director of the Center for Economic Education at the University of Memphis, she initiated the Smart Tennessee program which has provided financial literacy instruction to elementary, middle and high schools across the state. In recognition of her dedication to financial literacy, she was named Educator of the Year by The Institute for Financial Literacy, receiving its Excellence in Financial Literacy Education Award.

This most recent award will be added to her already impressive list of honors. In addition to being named Educator of the Year, Dr. Heath was the winner of the 2010 University of Memphis' Distinguished Teaching Award. She received the 2008 Elzinga Award by the Southern Economic Association--the economic discipline's highest recognition of teaching excellence. Dr. Heath is also the recipient of The Thomas W. Briggs Teaching Excellence Award, the Teaching Excellence Fellowship and has been named Senior Fellow for Redefining Progress.

Dr. Julia Heath has represented the University of Memphis Fogelman College of Business well. Her hard work and dedication to teaching and higher education has been recognized by University of Memphis president Shirley Raines, her colleagues and by many across the nation. Madam Speaker, I ask the House to join me in congratulating Dr. Julia Heath on being selected as the 2010 Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching Tennessee Professor of the Year.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate International Paper for being named a top 100 Corporate Citizen by the Corporate Responsibility Officer Association. This prestigious award is recognized as one of America's top three most-important business rankings. The recipients of this award exhibit praiseworthy commitment to their shareholders, the environment, their communities, their workforces and compliance with the law. International Paper, headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee, demonstrates each of these qualities, is a strong financial performer and job creator in the community.

Founded in 1898, International Paper has been at the forefront of the pulp and paper market for over 100 years and is the largest such company in the world. International Paper has operations in all corners of the globe, including North America, Europe, Latin America, Russia, Asia and North Africa. Its current Chairman and CEO, John V. Faraci, along with its 60,000 employees have continued to lead International Paper into the ranks of top performing, socially responsible companies.

International Paper has upheld a commitment to service, environmental protection and, most importantly, a high standard of ethics throughout its company. Quoting their Code of Business Ethics, ``International Paper is comprised of good citizens, protecting employee health and safety, and managing natural resources responsibly.'' International Paper's philanthropic organization, the International Paper Foundation, supports non-profit organizations within with a specific focus on environmental education and literacy. Since 1995, the International Paper Foundation has awarded more than $50 million in grants to projects, namely its Coins for Kids program, a first-of-its-kind partnership with the World Food Programme to help fight childhood hunger worldwide.

Through its commitment to international excellence in the fields of ethics, financial performance, social responsibility, and environmental protection, International Paper has built a distinguished name of which they can be justly proud. Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me today in congratulating International Paper for receiving this prestigious recognition.