[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 14, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H1747-H1748]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  ANOTHER ST. VALENTINE'S DAY MASSACRE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Goodlatte). Under a previous order of 
the House, the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Stupak] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. STUPAK. Happy St. Valentine's Day, America, and happy St. 
Valentine's Day to my wife, Laurie, in Michigan.
  On this St. Valentine's Day we debated a crime bill, but justice was 
not done on the crime bill we debated today. In fact, what happened 
today is 
[[Page H1748]] more like the St. Valentine's Day massacre.
  We had 10 hours, 10 hours over 2 days to debate a $30 billion crime 
bill. The majority called that debate an open rule.
  An open rule in this body means Members come to the well of this 
institution, offer an amendment. It is freely debated and it is voted 
on, not at the end of 10 hours we cap it off and say that is it, we are 
going home, we are going home on the crime bill.
  Crime is the No. 1 issue across this Nation. People feel insecure in 
their homes. They are insecure when they walk the streets. They want 
Congress to provide some leadership.
  So what leadership did we provide them tonight? Ten hours worth of 
debate; 10 hours worth of debate. In that 10 hours, you had to get your 
amendment accepted. I was one of the fortunate ones. I had an amendment 
that was accepted by both sides of the aisle, because it made a lot of 
sense. But I also had amendments for the Byrne grants. I was given 1 
minute and 15 seconds to debate a Byrne grants amendment. Byrne grants, 
a program that has been around for a long time, we wanted to fight 
crime for more than 1 year. We wanted to provide steady funding for 
Byrne grants over 5 years. That funds our DARE programs, 
multijurisdictional undercover drug teams, and even Alabama used Byrne 
grants to run the prisons. One minute and 15 seconds.
  I had another one, another amendment, for rural communities to share 
in some of this $30 billion. We wanted 30 percent, and other Members 
had good amendments that were never offered. They were denied the 
opportunity to offer their amendments. They were denied the opportunity 
to debate, because we had 10 hours of debate.
  Members come from all walks of life, like myself, having been a 
police officer for 12 years. I have some ideas on how I think crime 
should be fought in
 this country. You know, when I was a police officer, I went to work 
knowing that I had to put in my 8-hour shift, but many times that shift 
would go 10 hours, 12 hours, 16 hours. I could not stop at the end of 
10 hours when I was fighting crime or doing a investigation.

  At times there were major incidents that occurred in my State of 
Michigan; I was mobilized. I was gone for days from my home. I could 
not say it is 10 hours, I want to go home. Crime knows no time limit. 
Crime does not stop for Valentine's Day. You do not fight crime for 10 
hours and then you go home because of St. Valentine's Day.
  Crime occurs on Valentine's Day. Remember back in the thirties, the 
St. Valentine's Day massacre? Well, the old saying is history repeats 
itself. That is what we had here again today, Saint Valentine's Day 
massacre.
  Let me ask the majority party who pushed through this rule on a 
party-line vote, when you have a missing child, are you going to stop 
missing that child after 10 hours? When you have a bank robbery or 
breaking and entering, do you stop that investigation at the end of 10 
hours? If you have a kidnaping, do you stop at the end of 10 hours? If 
you are getting close to the end of your shift, do you stop because you 
cannot go past 10 hours? You cannot apprehend a criminal because you 
are at that time limit?
  Well, that is what happened here today. We should have stayed on the 
job, debated each and every amendment, and there were some of my 
friends on the Republican side of the aisle that never had an 
opportunity to offer their amendments or have them debated. We stopped 
at 10 hours because the majority said, ``We have a Contract on America. 
We have to get it done.''
  You heard tonight they are going to start the national security 
debate. And guess what, we have 10 hours to debate national security. 
That is the kind of Contract on America they have, and they want for 
this country.
  I want to move forward, and I want to debate these issues in an open 
and free rule where there are not time caps.
  So remember, when crime strikes your family, when crime strikes in 
your community, you can thank the other party, because instead of doing 
something about crime tonight, we ended up going out to dinner because 
it is Valentine's Day.
  We have more important things to do. We have plenty of amendments. 
Let us not run out on America. Let us not run with a contract that 
cannot be debated, a contract that cannot be amended, and the only 
value that we place on crime and national security is 10 hours.
  Ladies and gentlemen, unfortunately the Contract on America has 
turned into another St. Valentine's Day massacre.

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