[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 127 (Tuesday, September 13, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: September 13, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
     WHY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ARE ANGRY WITH THE WAY CONGRESS WORKS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
February 11, 1994, the gentleman from Maine [Mr. Andrews] is recognized 
during morning business for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ANDREWS of Maine. Mr. Speaker, the U.S. Congress just doesn't get 
it.
  Last night, this institution voted to spend hundreds of millions of 
tax dollars in unauthorized spending for 259 projects that failed to be 
approved by the authorizing committee of jurisdiction.
  Many of these projects were rejected by the authorizing committee 
after careful consideration. Some were not considered at all. All of 
them were passed last night, on this floor, after being tacked on, at 
the last minute, by a conference committee.
  No authorization; no approval by the authorized committee or 
jurisdiction, but hundreds of millions of tax dollars were spent anyway 
on the floor of this house.
  This is wrong. And it is precisely why the people of this country are 
so frustrated and so angry with the way this institution works.
  The House, in its version of the bill, when it went to conference 
committee, had no dollars in these special projects--these pork barrel 
projects. The Senate came into the conference committee with 135 
million dollars' worth of these types of projects. The compromise 
between zero on the one hand and a $135 million on the other hand, was 
$290 million.
  This is wrong. And it is why the American people are so frustrated 
with this institution.
  And last night, as this was all going on, it became very clear to me 
how and why this is all happening. I heard the lobbying. And it went 
this way: You have to vote for this, because there is something in it 
for you.
  And so it goes. Vote for this pork barrel bill of unauthorized 
spending, and even though it may be wrong, and even though it violates 
the very rules of this institution, there's something in it for you. So 
keep quiet. Go along and you'll get along.
  Well, in fact, Mr. Speaker, there was spending in last night's bill 
that would have helped my district and my State. And I support the 
projects that were in the bill for my district and my State. I believe 
that they make sense. And because I believe that they are strong 
projects, I believe that they would pass a fair and open test of review 
and scrutiny by the appropriate committee of jurisdiction.
  In short, I believe that these projects could stand on their own two 
feet and walk through the front door in full public view, instead of 
being slipped through the back door of a pork barrel process that 
violates common sense and fairness.
  And so, I voted against last night's bill even though there was money 
in it for my district and my State. My vote, Mr. Speaker and Members of 
the House, will not be bought by the promise of some pork barrel 
spending in my district so that hundreds of millions of dollars of pork 
barrel spending can be wasted around this country.
  I will not keep quiet. I wont go along to get along, when it comes to 
this kind of practice.
  Passing this bill was wrong. It is why the American people are 
calling for change in Washington. And I believe that the people of this 
country are going to keep calling for change until this kind of 
politics as usual comes to a halt.
  Mr. Speaker and Members of this body, the people of this country 
deserve better. It's about time that they got it.

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