[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 166 (Wednesday, October 25, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H10829-H10830]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               SPEAKING FOR THE POOR CHILDREN OF AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Weldon of Florida). Under a previous 
order of the House, the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Durbin] is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. Speaker, I take the well this evening on behalf of a 
special interest group. This is not an ordinary special interest group. 
In fact, it is not a very effective one here in Washington. This 
special interest group does not have a Political Action Committee, they 
do not own a fax machine. In fact, they do not even vote. Yet, they are 
an interest group which is going to be affected by a bill which is on 
the floor of the House of Representatives tomorrow. I am speaking for 
them because, frankly, very few people this evening on the Republican 
side of the aisle want to acknowledge this group.
  The special interest group I am speaking on behalf of are the poor 
children in America, the poor children in America who rely almost 
exclusively on a program known as Medicaid. It is a health care program 
for kids from lower income families. The Medicaid Program provides for 
immunizations for these children, health screening, examinations, and 
if they get very sick, it provides for their hospital care.
  The Republican plan, which the gentleman from Colorado just 
described, is going to make a massive cut in this Medicaid Program. As 
a direct result of it, many of the poor children in America who are 
sick will not have health care, quality health care, available to them.
  Yesterday morning I visited La Rabida hospital in Chicago. It is an 
amazing hospital. Eighty-five percent of the revenue to this hospital 
comes from this Medicaid Program. It is a beautiful hospital with 
wonderful people, doctors and nurses and administrators, and they took 
us on a tour and gave us a chance to meet some of the children; great 
kids, very sick children, but kids who, with their parents, are 
fighting a struggle every day to make it. They are fighting it, and the 
resources they use are the Medicaid Program.
  I met Robert. Robert is a perfect kid, perfect except for diabetes. 
But if you meet him and you see his smile and his attitude, you think 
``I want to give this kid a chance. I want Medicaid to be there to pay 
his hospital bill, so that he has a chance in life.'' Yet, the 
Republican side is suggesting that Robert and many like him are, 
frankly, casualties of this budget debate.

  The gentleman from Colorado a few minutes ago was chiding us for 
saying the Democrats can never tell us where to cut spending. Let me 
give a couple of examples in his own Republican reconciliation bill 
where they can cut spending. First, let me go back to this chart. Do 
you not think at a time when we are cutting health care for Robert 
under Medicaid, that we ought to think twice about giving 64 percent of 
the wealthy families in America a tax break, a tax cut? These are the 
wealthiest families in this country, making over $150,000 a year, and 
the Republicans believe they need a tax cut. This is not new. The 
Republicans have traditionally believed that if you make the rich rich 
enough, it will help working families.
  Democrats see it a little differently. We are worried about the fact 
that 86 percent of middle-income families are going to see a tax 
increase. If you want to come up with some money to pay for Robert and 
for other children under Medicaid, let me suggest to my Republican 
friends, take out the benefits for the fat cats in your bill, take out 
the tax breaks for the wealthiest families. if we are going to reduce 
the deficit and not hurt poor children like Robert, do not go after 
those kids for the benefit of wealthy families.
  Let me also give you another idea, if you want to save $17 billion. 
The Republicans close a loophole which has existed in the law. They are 
going to 

[[Page H10830]]
allow alternate income, minimum income, for corporations not to be 
taxed. Let me tell you what that means. If a corporation is profitable 
in this country and has hired a sufficient number of attorneys and 
accountants to escape all tax liability, the Republicans say ``Fine, 
great, let them off the hook. They pay nothing,'' even though they made 
a profit.
  We decided under President Reagan, not a screaming liberal, under 
President Reagan, to put an alternate minimum tax and say that every 
corporation has to pay something if it is profitable. Is that 
unreasonable? I do not think it is; $17 billion will be taken out of 
Medicaid for poor children for their health care.
  Let me tell you what it means in our State of Illinois. When these 
cuts are being made, it means that in my State of Illinois, 128,000 
children in Illinois, poor children, will not get quality health care. 
That is what is part of this Republican plan. They tell us they are 
going to balance the budget. They have not told us what we are going to 
do about Robert and his diabetes. They have not told us what we are 
going to do about La Rabida hospital, Children's Memorial Hospital, 
Wyler's Children's Hospital, Presbyterian St. Luke's, Children's 
Hospital, that depend on Medicaid to serve these poor children.
  I stand tonight to speak on behalf of this special interest group. 
They are never going to come to my fundraisers. They are not going to 
send me a PAC check. They do not own a fax machine, they cannot fax a 
message, but these kids are going to be nailed this week by the 
Republican budget plan. It is totally unnecessary. For at least those 
kids and their families, I hope the people of this country will contact 
their Members of Congress and urge them to vote against the Gingrich 
Republican budget plan.

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