[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 79 (Tuesday, June 21, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 21, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
         WAKE-UP CALL FOR MR. CLINTON: ``COME IN, MR. CLINTON''

  (Mr. HEFLEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HEFLEY. Mr. Speaker, does anyone remember the game, 
``telephone,'' where one person whispers something into another 
person's ear and it is passed down the line until the last person says 
aloud what the word or phrase is? Inevitably, by the time the phrase is 
passed down, it becomes an unintelligible, jumbled mess. Well, when it 
comes to health care reform, I am convinced the White House is playing 
telephone with us.
  Employer mandate, for example, has become many things since its birth 
at the White House, such as employer contribution, employer payment 
responsibility, employer premium payment, and in a recent effort to 
make it more palatable, a trigger--which is no more than a delayed 
mandate. Whatever the name, 93 percent of the small business people in 
my district are opposed to an employer mandate for one reason: They 
cannot afford it. Neither can their employees.
  Well, the game is over. Members on either side of the aisle do not 
need a dictionary to know that the definition of an employer mandate is 
jobs killer. And we do not fall for the pitifully camouflaged employer 
mandate known as a trigger.
  The White House can no longer ignore the fact that the phone is 
ringing. It is America calling, Mr. President, and they are saying loud 
and clear: ``We can't afford your jobs killer--er--employer mandate. 
Mr. Clinton.''

                          ____________________