[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 16 (Thursday, January 26, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E192-E193]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
THE PROGRESSIVE PROMISE: FAIRNESS
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HON. BERNARD SANDERS
of vermont
in the house of representatives
Thursday, January 26, 1995
Mr. SANDERS. Mr. Speaker, in contrast with the GOP's Contract With
America, we shall offer a positive legislative alternative during the
first 100 days of the 104th Congress to extend a fair shake to all
Americans on the Progressive Promise. Our plan shall be rooted in the
principles of social and economic justice, nondiscrimination, and
tolerance. It shall embody national priorities which reflect the
interests and needs of all the American people, not just the wealthy
and powerful.
Today the Progressive Caucus in bringing to the floor for a vote our
1st in 11 alternative bills to the Republican Contract--The Fiscal
Fairness Act, which allows a waiver of the balanced budget requirement
in any fiscal year when the national unemployment rate exceeds 4
percent, thus sustaining our long-standing national commitment to full
employment.
The second bill in the Progressive Promise is The Equal Justice
Before the Law Act, which is an anticrime package that retains key
aspects of the anticrime legislation enacted in 1994 to prevent crime
as well as punish that which happens; to crack down on white-collar
[[Page E193]] crime--for example, S&L bailout, defrauding Federal
Government on procurement, criminal penalties for willful violation of
child labor laws by employers that result in serious bodily injury or
death of minors in the workplace, eliminate deductibility of legal
expenses when a company is accused of a crime--and on drug trafficking
and abuse.
The third bill in the Progressive Promise is The Corporate
Responsibility Act, which cuts corporate welfare in the form of special
subsidies and tax loopholes of benefit to many of America's wealthiest
corporations; to require companies to internalize pollution clean-up
and other costs of production instead of continuing to foist them on
the American taxpayer, and to reform basic labor laws to restore
collective bargaining rights and balance in employer-employee
relations.
The fourth bill in the Progressive Promise is Family Foundation Act,
which will enable parents to get decent-paying, stable jobs in order to
afford child care and health care for their families; to raise the
minimum wage and index it for inflation; to strengthen child support
collection; to abolish financial penalties for two-parent families; to
protect the sanctity of the family and safeguard the health and well-
being of all our children; and to ensure that all Americans are well
fed.
The fifth bill in the Progressive Promise is The American Homemakers
and Caregivers Act, which target IRA's and other savings incentives on
middle- and low-income Americans; special provisions to extend generous
IRA options to spouses who stay home to nurture children under 6 years
of age, thus recognizing the importance of parental child-rearing; to
allow penalty-free IRA withdrawals for home health care, education
expenses, or to start a small business; and targeted deduction for
child care expenses.
The sixth bill in the Progressive Promise is The National Economic
Security Act, which cuts the Pentagon and CIA budgets and star wars
spending in favor of shifting limited resources to meet domestic social
needs and investments to strengthen the U.S. national economy.
The seventh bill in the Progressive Promise is The Cradle-To-Grave
Health Care Act, which require a vote on sense-of-the-Congress
resolution against cuts in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid; to
establish a state-based, single-payer health care plan that provides
cost-effective, comprehensive and affordable health care for all
Americans, including long-term care and prescription drug coverage; and
to stress disease prevention and health promotion in our communities.
The eighth bill in the Progressive Promise is The Job Creation and
Invest in America Act, which would create at least 1 million jobs in
the United States in each of the next 2 years from $127.2 billion in
new investment to rebuild and upgrade America's physical infrastructure
and clean up the environment; to pay for these investments by closing
tax loopholes for offshore production while rewarding U.S. companies
that invest, produce, and create jobs in the United States; to require
the wealthiest U.S. corporations and citizens to pay their fair share
of taxes; and to establish a national commission to finds ways to
encourage social investment of billions in pension funds to meet
domestic needs in America.
The ninth bill in the Progressive Promise is The Taking Back our
Congress Act, which curbs influence-peddling and special-interest
lobbying through tougher lobbying restrictions and campaign finance
reform; to prohibit ex-members of Congress and executive branch
officials from lobbying on behalf of foreign governments and companies;
to improve ballot access so more Americans can run for office; and to
authorize some public financing of congressional elections to make it
more affordable for more candidates to run regardless of personal
wealth.
The tenth bill in the Progressive Promise is The Public Interest
Legislature Act, which strengthens financial disclosure requirements
and to prevent financial conflicts of interest in voting decisions by
Members of Congress.
The eleventh bill in The Export American Products, Not American Jobs
Act, which eliminates or limits special tax and trade incentives and
taxpayer-backed programs that reward U.S.-based multinational
corporations for producing offshore; no new fast-track and trade
agreements without enforceable worker rights, environmental,
agricultural, and safety health standards; to prohibit importing child
and forced labor products; and to reduce U.S. trade deficit by
eliminating unfair trade barriers to U.S. exports.
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