[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 3, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E10-E11]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        SUPPORT GEPHARDT MOTION

                                 ______


                           HON. GLENN POSHARD

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, January 3, 1996

  Mr. POSHARD. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the motion to 
reopen the departments and agencies which have been closed 

[[Page E11]]
and to stop holding Federal workers hostage while we negotiate a 
balanced budget. This will be the third resolution passed by the Senate 
to put our Federal employees back to work and all have been rejected by 
the House Republicans.
  I represent thousands of Federal workers who provide very important 
services for hundreds of thousands of taxpayers in the 19th 
Congressional District and this Nation. Just last week I met with 
several hundred Federal workers in my district who are being punished 
for doing nothing more than working for a government agency for which 
there is no funding authority. These are people who take on the very 
important responsibility of caring for our veterans at the VA medical 
center. These are men and women who have the difficult task of running 
the high security Federal prison at Marion. There are many others who 
go to work every day with the goal of providing service to the 
taxpayers of this Nation, including the Forest Service and Fish and 
Wildlife employees.
  And what are they getting for their trouble? They work in agencies 
which are apparently not important enough to fund through the regular 
appropriations bills, are too important to keep off the job, but in the 
final analysis are not important enough to pass a clean funding bill so 
they can be paid. This is truly outrageous, and I know the people in my 
district are fed up with the games being played in Washington.
  We should come to agreement on those appropriations bills which we 
can pass to put these agencies back in business. For those where 
agreement cannot be reached, we should pass a clean continuing 
resolution and at least let the basic functions of those agencies and 
departments continue. And we should come to terms on a 7-year balanced 
budget as scored by the Congressional Budget Office.
  I have cosponsored and voted for the ``Coalition'' budget which 
represents the middle-ground for both sides in this debate. I would 
urge the negotiators once again to take a look at our approach--
balanced in 7 years, better for Medicare and Medicaid than the 
leadership plan and rejecting a tax cut which we can't afford--and come 
to an agreement.
  I support the motion to put our people back to work and to pay them 
for their time and effort. And I urge the negotiating teams to work in 
a bipartisan spirit to reach agreement on the overriding goal of 
balancing the Federal budget.

                          ____________________