[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 168 (Thursday, December 6, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H8951-H8953]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF MOTIONS TO SUSPEND THE RULES
Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I
call up House Resolution 305 and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:
H. Res. 305
Resolved, That it shall be in order at any time on the
legislative day of Thursday, December 6, 2001, for the
Speaker to entertain motions that the House suspend the rules
relating to the following measures:
(1) The bill (H.R. 3008) to reauthorize the trade
adjustment assistance program under the Trade Act of 1974.
(2) The bill (H.R. 3129) to authorize appropriations for
fiscal years 2002 and 2003 for the United States Customs
Service for antiterrorism, drug interdiction, and other
operations, for the Office of the United States Trade
Representative, for the United States International Trade
Commission, and for other purposes.
The SPEAKER. The gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Myrick) is
recognized for 1 hour.N O T I C E
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[[Page H8952]]
Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the
customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings),
pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During
consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose
of debate only.
Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Committee on Rules met and passed this
resolution providing that it shall be in order at any time on the
legislative day of Thursday, December 6, 2001, for the Speaker to
entertain motions that the House suspend the rules relating to the
following measures:
One, the bill, H.R. 3008, to reauthorize the Trade Adjustment
Assistance Program under the Trade Act of 1974; and, two, the bill,
H.R. 3129, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2002 and 2003
for the United States Customs Service for antiterrorism, drug
interdiction, and other operations, for the Office of the United States
Trade Representative, for the United States International Trade
Commission, and for other purposes.
Mr. Speaker, our textile workers are hurting and they are hurting
bad. In the last year, 60,000 textile workers have lost their jobs,
20,000 of them in North Carolina alone. The industry has done its best
through technology to compete, but they have not had a level playing
field.
These folks are the best our country has to offer. They are working
hard to make ends meet. When they get laid off, they do not come
whining to the government, they say maybe we could have done something
better or different, but then they go out and get two jobs to make ends
meet.
Mr. Speaker, someone has to stick up for these folks because the
government does have something to do with these layoffs. Our textile
workers are hurting because of low-cost foreign imports, and many of
these imports are illegal. Asian countries avoid our quotas by shipping
their goods through other countries. That is unacceptable, and it is
time for it to stop. For years, our government has turned a blind eye
to it.
The Customs authorization bill that we will consider today will help
fight these illegal textile transshipments. It provides the Customs
Service with $9.5 million for transshipment enforcement operations.
These funds must be used to hire 72 new employees who will be stationed
both here at home and abroad to enforce our textile trade laws. It is
high time for the government to start taking our textile industry
seriously.
This bill will not solve all of our problems, and it will not come
anywhere close to solving our problems as we see them today, but at
least we are getting somewhere and we are making some headway.
Mr. Speaker, the other bill we are going to consider today is a
renewal of the Trade Adjustment Assistance program. This program gives
job training and education benefits to workers who lose their jobs
because of trade. To be honest about it, I have always had mixed
feelings about TAA because my friends back home would rather have a job
than a handout and being unemployed. We should be working first and
foremost to save our American jobs.
But quite frankly, that said, TAA is important to someone who has
lost their job. And today's bill improves the program in two important
ways. First, it extends job training benefits so they last the same
number of weeks as unemployment benefits. What a novel idea. 104 weeks.
Second, the bill forces the Department of Labor to decide TAA
requests within 40 days instead of 60 days so that workers can get
their benefits more quickly. Is that enough? No way. TAA is not a
substitute for a job, but it should be expanded so that secondary
workers get help. Secondary workers are the supplier, those folks down
the road who do business with the mills, and that has been a big issue
in my district, people who have not qualified for help.
Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao has promised us that she will use
emergency funds to provide TAA to secondary workers, and we should
acknowledge her commitment; but we should put secondary worker coverage
in the law so we do not have to rely on the whim of the next Secretary
of Labor or the next one or the next one.
Mr. Speaker, let us pass this rule so we can give help to our hurting
textile community. We have a long way to go, but now we have folks
listening and we are making some progress. This is all a start. Sure, a
very small start, but it is a start.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs.
Myrick) for yielding me this time, and as the gentlewoman has
explained, under rule VX of the House rules, bills may be considered on
the House floor under suspension of the rules only on Mondays and
Tuesdays. Therefore, this resolution is required in order to consider
these bills on today's schedule.
The gentlewoman has done an adequate job of explaining why, in the
leadership's opinions, these bills must come to the floor today and in
this manner.
Mr. Speaker, I respectfully disagree and I will call on our
colleagues to oppose adoption of this rule. There is no need to rush to
judgment on these bills. I heard my colleague and I agree with her with
reference to the matters in TAA dealing with the textile industry, but
there are some of us that are concerned about provisions in
agricultural measures in regards to people that have lost their jobs.
Some of us are interested in the citrus industry in Florida and what we
are likely to do here today, and would like to have more discussion
regarding same.
There is simply no good reason to handle these bills outside the
normal parameters of the way the House should conduct its business.
Moreover, when the House does operate this way, it effectively curtails
our rights and responsibilities as serious legislators. Members should
be very wary of allowing leadership to usurp our rights.
There are Members of this body who have serious concerns with at
least one of the bills we are considering today. I am certain that we
will hear quite a bit in due time from the distinguished ranking member
of the Committee on the Judiciary, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr.
Conyers), on why this is not the appropriate way to handle serious
legislation.
As my colleagues know, handling bills under suspension denies Members
the opportunity to amend the bill in any way. Moreover, in this case
many Members from both the committee of original jurisdiction, the
Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on the Judiciary, have
serious concerns about the Customs bill.
We have heard or will hear soon that this particular bill passed
committee on a voice vote; therefore, leading Members to believe that
it is noncontroversial. It is not. There are legitimate questions with
the bill as written, and we are not able to effectively deal with these
questions when we give up our rights and allow the bill to be
considered under suspension.
We are told that this is the only practical way of dealing with all
of the House's business in a timely manner. Also not true. Like my
colleagues, I was informed yesterday that the House is not scheduled to
meet tomorrow or the following Monday. If we were serious about doing
the work of our constituents, we would be here tomorrow, Monday,
possibly Saturday and Sunday, and however long it takes in order that
we might address the concerns as shared by our good friends and me for
those persons that have been displaced by September 11, and are likely
to be displaced by the actions that we undertake later today on the
Trade Promotion Authority.
Mr. Speaker, there is much work to be done and we ought simply not
advocate our responsibility to do. As I mentioned at the outset and for
the reasons just explained, I oppose adoption of this rule.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
{time} 0915
Mrs. MYRICK. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, I
yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on
the resolution.
The previous question was ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Isakson). The question is on the
resolution.
[[Page H8953]]
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. HASTINGS of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the
ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a
quorum is not present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Evidently a quorum is not present.
The Sergeant at Arms will notify absent Members.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 207,
nays 179, not voting 47, as follows:
[Roll No. 476]
YEAS--207
Ackerman
Aderholt
Akin
Armey
Bachus
Baker
Ballenger
Barr
Bartlett
Bereuter
Biggert
Bilirakis
Blumenauer
Blunt
Boehlert
Bonilla
Bono
Boozman
Brady (TX)
Bryant
Burr
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Cannon
Cantor
Capito
Castle
Chabot
Chambliss
Coble
Collins
Combest
Cooksey
Cox
Crenshaw
Culberson
Cunningham
Davis, Jo Ann
Davis, Tom
Deal
DeLay
DeMint
Diaz-Balart
Dicks
Doyle
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Ehlers
Emerson
Eshoo
Everett
Ferguson
Flake
Fletcher
Foley
Forbes
Frelinghuysen
Gallegly
Ganske
Gekas
Gibbons
Gilchrest
Gillmor
Gilman
Goode
Goodlatte
Goss
Graham
Granger
Graves
Green (WI)
Greenwood
Grucci
Gutknecht
Hansen
Harman
Hart
Hastings (WA)
Hayes
Hayworth
Hefley
Hobson
Hoekstra
Horn
Houghton
Hulshof
Hunter
Hyde
Isakson
Israel
Issa
Istook
Jefferson
Jenkins
Johnson (CT)
Johnson (IL)
Jones (NC)
Keller
Kelly
Kennedy (MN)
Kerns
King (NY)
Kingston
Kirk
Knollenberg
Kolbe
LaHood
Largent
Latham
LaTourette
Leach
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (KY)
Linder
LoBiondo
Lowey
Lucas (OK)
Manzullo
McCrery
McHugh
McInnis
McIntyre
McKeon
Mica
Miller, Gary
Miller, Jeff
Moran (KS)
Moran (VA)
Myrick
Nethercutt
Ney
Northup
Norwood
Nussle
Osborne
Ose
Otter
Oxley
Paul
Pence
Peterson (PA)
Petri
Pitts
Portman
Pryce (OH)
Putnam
Ramstad
Regula
Rehberg
Reynolds
Riley
Rogers (KY)
Rogers (MI)
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Royce
Ryan (WI)
Ryun (KS)
Saxton
Schaffer
Schrock
Sensenbrenner
Sessions
Shadegg
Shaw
Shays
Sherwood
Shimkus
Shuster
Simmons
Simpson
Skeen
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (TX)
Stearns
Stump
Sununu
Sweeney
Tancredo
Tauzin
Taylor (NC)
Terry
Thomas
Thornberry
Thune
Tiahrt
Tiberi
Toomey
Traficant
Upton
Vitter
Walden
Walsh
Wamp
Watkins (OK)
Watts (OK)
Weldon (FL)
Weller
Whitfield
Wicker
Wilson
Wolf
NAYS--179
Abercrombie
Allen
Andrews
Baca
Baird
Baldacci
Baldwin
Barcia
Barrett
Becerra
Bentsen
Berkley
Berman
Berry
Bishop
Blagojevich
Bonior
Borski
Boswell
Boyd
Brady (PA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Capps
Capuano
Cardin
Carson (IN)
Carson (OK)
Clement
Condit
Conyers
Costello
Coyne
Crowley
Davis (CA)
Davis (FL)
Davis (IL)
DeFazio
DeGette
DeLauro
Deutsch
Dingell
Doggett
Dooley
Edwards
Etheridge
Evans
Farr
Fattah
Filner
Ford
Frank
Frost
Gephardt
Green (TX)
Hall (TX)
Hastings (FL)
Hill
Hilliard
Hinojosa
Hoeffel
Holden
Holt
Honda
Hooley
Hoyer
Inslee
Jackson (IL)
Jackson-Lee (TX)
John
Johnson, E. B.
Jones (OH)
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kildee
Kilpatrick
Kind (WI)
Kleczka
Kucinich
LaFalce
Lampson
Langevin
Lantos
Larsen (WA)
Larson (CT)
Lee
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lipinski
Lofgren
Lucas (KY)
Luther
Lynch
Maloney (CT)
Maloney (NY)
Markey
Mascara
Matheson
Matsui
McCarthy (MO)
McCarthy (NY)
McCollum
McDermott
McGovern
McKinney
McNulty
Meeks (NY)
Menendez
Millender-McDonald
Miller, Dan
Miller, George
Mink
Mollohan
Moore
Murtha
Nadler
Napolitano
Neal
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Owens
Pallone
Pascrell
Pastor
Payne
Pelosi
Peterson (MN)
Phelps
Pomeroy
Price (NC)
Rahall
Rangel
Reyes
Rivers
Rodriguez
Roemer
Ross
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sanders
Sandlin
Sawyer
Schakowsky
Schiff
Scott
Serrano
Sherman
Shows
Skelton
Slaughter
Smith (WA)
Snyder
Solis
Spratt
Stark
Stenholm
Strickland
Stupak
Tanner
Tauscher
Taylor (MS)
Thompson (CA)
Thompson (MS)
Thurman
Tierney
Towns
Turner
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Velazquez
Visclosky
Waters
Watson (CA)
Watt (NC)
Weiner
Woolsey
Wynn
NOT VOTING--47
Barton
Bass
Boehner
Boucher
Brown (SC)
Clay
Clayton
Clyburn
Cramer
Crane
Cubin
Cummings
Delahunt
Doolittle
Ehrlich
Engel
English
Fossella
Gonzalez
Gordon
Gutierrez
Hall (OH)
Herger
Hilleary
Hinchey
Hostettler
Johnson, Sam
Kennedy (RI)
Meehan
Meek (FL)
Morella
Pickering
Platts
Pombo
Quinn
Radanovich
Rothman
Roukema
Sabo
Sanchez
Souder
Waxman
Weldon (PA)
Wexler
Wu
Young (AK)
Young (FL)
{time} 0945
Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. FORD, Mrs. DAVIS of California and Messrs.
DAVIS of Florida, WYNN, MARKEY and LIPINSKI changed their vote from
``yea'' to ``nay.''
Mr. HEFLEY and Mr. JEFFERSON changed their vote from ``nay'' to
``yea.''
So the resolution was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
Stated for:
Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 476 I was
unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``Yea.''
Stated against:
Mr. GONZALEZ. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 476, had I been present, I
would have voted ``nay.''
____________________