[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 205 (Wednesday, December 20, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H15272-H15273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     REASONS FOR THE BUDGET TURMOIL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Texas [Ms. Jackson-Lee] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I think this is an important 
time in this country. Many of our citizens are turning toward a very 
spiritual time. Many having been in the midst of celebration of 
Hanukkah, and others who are looking toward a celebration and 
commemoration of the birth of Christ.
  The value of this Nation is that this holiday will be celebrated 
differently in many homes across this country. It is the wonderfulness 
of America, diversity of thought and religion, but a Constitution that 
applauds differences and recognizes the three branches of government. I 
think it is important to tell the American people why we are here 
today, on December 20, 1995, in the midst of turmoil without a budget.
  This Congress started on January 4, 1995. I was sworn in as a new 
freshman, running on the issues of accountability and accessibility, 
and yes, responsibility, values that I hold very dear and very near to 
my heart and to my principles, and values that I represent to my 
constituents at every moment in interacting with them in my district 
visits.
  But what happened to us that time in January and February and March? 
We were faced with something called a contract. Oh, it is so well for a 
while, but let me tell you, it was a gimmick. I do not know of any 
American who can say to me that they engaged and entered into a 
contract with anyone who was elected to the U.S. Congress.
  There was some flag waving on the Capitol steps, and wannabees and 
others who were running for Congress at that time came up and made some 
sort of false representations about signing some document. But I would 
venture to say that even constituents in those districts did not sign 
any dotted line.
  Oh, yes, they might have found exciting some very popular political 
issues that were raised about tort reform and crime off the streets, 
bashing the liberals and other such talk. But that is what it was, it 
was political gimmickry. And 37 percent of the people voted, so it was 
not that exciting anyhow.
  But we spent 100 days and more in turmoil over the so-called 
contract, I call it on America. In the meantime, serious health reform 
did not occur. Many of us came here saying that we could reasonably 
reform Medicare and Medicaid, not on the backs of senior citizens and 
children who need immunization and preventive health care, but really 
sit down to the table of reason and bargaining.
  But out of this 100 days came a bashing and elmiminating of the 
environmental protection laws that most Americans, Republicans and 
Democrats and Independents have grown to respect, the Clean Water Act 
and the Clean Air Act, and then the bashing of Medicare and Medicaid.
  We should have had bills passed in April. We should have had all the 
appropriation bills passed by September or October 1. But what we have 
now is a quagmire of confusion. Republican proposed block grants which 
go to States, and when the money runs out and the needs of the people 
rise up, as we find in the natural disasters that have faced 
California, Texas, and Florida, among others, that have what we call 
natural disasters, we would not be prepared to assist those people. Do 
you think that is reasonable and the American people want that?
  We now come to December 20 with no budget. That is what it is, plain 
and simple, folks. We had a gimmick called a contract. Out of that came 
one bill that was passed, and we now have no budget. And we have people 
trying to appropriate away America's values by intimidating us, by 
saying they stand for what America believes in.
  The President, regardless of what your party may be, has an actual 
constitutional right to engage in this process. He has sat down with 
the leaders of the House and the Senate, and I might add, if you saw 
the media accounts, and they sure do reflect accurately many times 
people's expressions and views, those that came out of the meeting said 
we are on track.
  Today we find out about an extremist position by freshmen Republicans 
that say all or nothing. We want to take the $270 billion tax cut right 
now and we will stand on the backs of seniors and children, Medicaid 
and Medicare, and we do not want to reason. Yet the President spoke to 
the leadership and they said we are ready to sit down. Who is leading 
the leadership at this point? I am a Democratic freshman, and I am not 
going to let some other guy take the moral high ground on people in my 
community, Federal employees who give services, children who have 
sicknesses who need Medicaid. We must come together to recognize 
political gimmickry goes out the door, leadership stands up, get a 
budget, open the doors of this Government, right now, today. Pass a 
clean continuing resolution to open the doors of the Government and 
engage in budget talks that do not ask for $270 billion out of Medicare 
and Medicaid simply to give the rich a tax cut.
  That is the moral high ground.
  
[[Page H15273]]


                          ALL OUT OF PATIENCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Colorado [Mrs. Schroeder] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Mr. Speaker, I must say, in my religion we are in the 
season of Advent, and on one of these Advent Sundays, we light a 
patience candle. I fear that patience candle may not even do it for me 
this year. I have totally lost patience with the extremism of the New 
Republican freshmen. They appear to have the Speaker on a very short 
leash. But I am here today, joining the gentleman from Massachusetts, 
Mr. Joe Kennedy, and others, in signing a letter to both Senator Dole 
and to our Speaker asking for a Christmas trust in this budget war. Can 
we please have a Christmas trust for the 3.3 million veterans who went 
wherever they were sent, whether it was whatever holiday, whatever 
family situation, they went where they were sent. And I do not think 
they are going to appreciate figuring out tomorrow morning that if we 
have not done this Christmas trust for at least those 3.3 million, they 
are not going to get their checks on time on December 29. That is 
outrageous. That is why I have no patience.
  Everybody knows today is the busiest mail day. People are using the 
mails to get through their holiday packages. So these checks have got 
to be in the mail tomorrow if they are going to be timely. And you 
cannot write checks if you do not have anybody there to be there and 
put them in.
  Now, let me say, in hot wars we have insisted on trusts over 
Christmas. Why in the world in this budget war can we not get the 
Republican leadership down here and at least get our veterans out of 
the crossfire in this stupid little budget tantrum that some of the new 
Members are having?
  I guess I just do not understand who is leading whom. But I think we 
really look pathetic. Here it is, 5 o'clock in the afternoon, we have 
not really done anything since 2 o'clock except yap, yap, yap, yap, 
yap. Yesterday they named post offices. We have not done anything of 
substance. We discussed some budget that the President had like 9 
months ago that was like a dead dog. Nobody has talked about it since, 
he has moved way beyond. He has agreed to the 7-year balancing of the 
budget.
  I must say, here is a group of people who cannot even get this year's 
budget done. Hey, we are three Mondays into the fiscal year, and they 
cannot get this budget done. Seventy-five percent of the domestic 
spending has not been done, 25 percent of the way through this year. 
And what are they arguing about? They are arguing about projections 7 
years out. Imagine, any American refusing to pay their bills this year 
because they have not put their budget together because they do not 
like the budget projections 7 years out? It will not work, America. It 
will not work.

                              {time}  1700

  And yet somehow people here are caving and allowing it to work on the 
other side of the aisle.
  They have no credibility. If we cannot get this year's budget 
together, how do we ever anticipate getting to the next 6 years? So I 
really hope that very soon we can get through to the Republican 
leadership, that they answer the letter so many of us signed, that we 
see a Christmas truce, and we at least get our veterans out of the 
crossfire.
  Mr. VOLKMER. Mr. Speaker, will the gentlewoman yield?
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
  Mr. VOLKMER. Mr. Speaker, I would say to the gentlewoman that it is 
my information that within a short period of time, supposedly, the 
Committee on Rules is supposed to meet and bring forward a continuing 
resolution just for those people, that they can go to work in order to 
get those checks out for the veterans.
  That is great, but that bothers me.
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. I agree. The gentleman is absolutely right. We still 
have students. We have 60,000 students who have theirs to be processed. 
We can list all those others.
  Mr. VOLKMER. Homeowners, trying to get loans from HUD, and everything 
else. All that will not be done.
  What it does is, it tells me that they want to be very political. The 
majority of the Republicans are very political. They do not want the 
veterans mad at them, but they do not care about the rest of the people 
and the Federal workers and everything.
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I do not know about 
the gentleman's veterans, but the veterans in my area did not come to 
town on a turnip truck. They realized that had a lot of us not signed 
that letter to them, and pointed out that these veterans were being 
held hostage and we should at least have a Christmas truce, they would 
not be going to the Committee on Rules right now. My veterans have 
figured that out. They are not dumb.
  Mr. VOLKMER. If the gentlewoman would further yield, why do we not 
have a Christmas truce for all the Federal Government?
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. I certainly agree. And I think we should have a 
Christmas truce for students. They did not cause this. They are totally 
innocent. They could not even vote in these last elections, and we 
could go on and on. But especially veterans.
  The fact they were going to roll right over them, until a lot of us 
made some noise, is absolutely unbelievable. As I say, I think all of 
our patience has been tried. Let us hope they hurry up and get this 
down here, and I thank the gentleman for his comments.
  Mr. VOLKMER. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentlewoman for her 
leadership in this effort.

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