[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 55 (Friday, March 24, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H3795]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                              {time}  1430
                       THE WELFARE REFORM PROGRAM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Jones). Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Alabama [Mr. Hilliard] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. HILLIARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak today on an issue that is 
extremely important to me. It is one that I think will affect every 
American. It is one that will undoubtedly create a great deal of 
injustice. It will create a great deal of anxiety. It will create a 
great deal of problems for many American families in the years to come. 
I speak about one element of the Republican Contract on America, the 
welfare reform program.
  Mr. Speaker, some people have not had the opportunity to travel 
outside of their State or even outside of this country, but thanks to 
CNN and other national networks we are able to see how other people 
live in other countries. When we looked at the slums in India, the 
slums in Haiti, the slums in China, we said, my God, how can people 
live in these type conditions?
  But if we wonder about how they eat and how they sleep, then we all 
ought to think about home. In America, the poorest families, the 
poorest of the poor can live in subsidized housing that is healthy, 
that is safe, that is clean.
  As it stands now, through food stamps and other certain types of 
child nutrition programs, lunch programs and breakfast programs we know 
that they can eat. Yes, we have the homeless, sometimes those who 
cannot find a place to stay, those that cannot find food to eat, but 
the majority of Americans go home to a place to stay that is heated, 
and they have food to eat.
  That is because over the years we have been sensitive. We have 
understood that the American dream is not for everyone, that there are 
certain people born with certain inequalities that cannot be corrected 
by man: the blind, the disabled, and others with so many other special 
type of disabilities. We have made provisions for them.
  And there are special circumstances where people for no reason of 
their own are without jobs: layoffs and other type downsizing problems.
  There are some places in America on Indian reservations, in the 
blight belt of Alabama, Appalachia and other places in this country 
where there are no jobs, and for the next two or three decades there 
probably will not be any jobs. Many of those people migrate to our 
cities, creating additional problems because it is so expensive to live 
in the city. We have been sensitive to those needs and those 
situations.
  But then there are situations created by nature, floods, hurricanes, 
mudslides, earthquakes, and other types of natural disasters, that 
cause problems in this country. If we do not make provisions for those 
Americans, then we ought to do for the least of those what we should do 
for everyone.
  Mr. Speaker, I am submitting that the cuts in the program that have 
been proposed today are un-American, and those who proposed them are 
disloyal Americans, and they are not sensitive to the needs of other 
Americans.
  I think that in this country one of the greatest reasons why it is 
the greatest country in this world is because we have always looked out 
for those who were unfortunate, those who were unable to fend for 
themselves. And in special circumstances like floods and so forth, we 
look out for those who ordinarily would be able to look out for 
themselves.
  We did them a disservice this day. And I know that this issue will be 
debated for years to come, but if in the Senate this becomes law, then 
we may want to revisit those slums in Haiti, in China, and in India. 
Because I submit to you because of the high cost of housing in this 
country, because of the low wages we pay, $4.25 an hour, a wage that no 
one can subsist on anywhere in America, we will have those type of 
slums.
  It would be detrimental not only to the health and the welfare of 
those people who live in those places but to every American everywhere.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I ask the Senate to make sure that this bill, this 
Robin Hood bill, this ``create heaven'' bill never becomes law.




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