[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 56 (Tuesday, April 8, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H2913]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO AIRLINE WORKERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Mr. Speaker, today, finally, 18 months after it was 
promised, the United States House of Representatives voted 
overwhelmingly, almost 2 to 1 when finally forced, to provide some 
financial assistance to the 150,000 airline workers who have lost their 
jobs as a result of 9/11 and the horrendous recession in the United 
States. It is expected that as many as another 70,000 will lose their 
jobs because of the slowdown in travel due to the war in Iraq and even 
more probably with the threat of SARS and other problems.
  It is time that we recognize the service of these people to our 
country and the fact that they need a little bit of help in their time 
of need. The Congress rushed through a $15 billion airline bailout 
shortly after 9/11 to try to help keep the industry in the air when 
people were afraid to fly. And that bailout provided more funds in one 
day than the entire deregulated industry has made in its entire 
history. Its entire 26-year history was eclipsed, their profits, by 
that one bill.
  But the bill glaringly omitted any assistance directly to workers and 
it meaninglessly pretended to limit the salaries of CEOs. I have seen 
the results of the meaningless limits adopted by that legislation 2 
years ago, or 18 months ago, in bailing out the airlines with the huge 
compensation packages and salaries and specially protected retirement 
that is being made available to the executives. It is defended. They 
said how could we get execs to work here if we did not pay them these 
outrageous salaries and if we did not totally protect their retirement? 
Guess what? All of the line workers, all the flight attendants, all the 
pilots, all the mechanics, all the gate agents, all the ticket agents, 
none of those people have specially protected pensions, and yet there 
has not been support from the industry or from this administration or 
from the majority in this House of Representatives to help those 
distressed workers.
  And finally today, in one of those opportunities that rarely comes, a 
week ago when we were taking up the supplemental bill I tried to offer 
an amendment to help the workers; in fact, a Republican Member had gone 
earlier to a press conference with me and others to announce the 
legislation, and I asked him if he would go to the Committee on Rules 
and ask to have it made in order during the bill, and he said 
absolutely. Guess what? He did not show up. He did not show up because 
he was intimidated by the Republican leadership.
  I came to the floor and offered that amendment, but the Republicans 
struck it down on a procedural technicality. They said we cannot take 
up a bill here to help the workers. We will get to it soon. Just like 
the 18 months we had promised previously, soon. Soon when?
  Today, because we had one opportunity, which was a motion to 
instruct, usually a technical sort of thing in the House of 
Representative, we focused in on assistance to workers that has been 
long overdue; and when forced to vote, we find that nearly two-thirds 
of the United States House of Representatives supports that, but their 
leadership and the White House leadership has been preventing us from 
taking that step.
  Congratulations to the House for that vote today and shame on the 
leadership and shame on the leadership downtown that did not allow that 
vote, and shame on them if they find some way to try to kill this in 
the conference committee because the White House is objecting that 
there is too much money in the bill to help the airlines now that we 
have added a little bit of money to directly help the workers. We will 
all be watching to see what comes in that final conference report, and 
we will know who killed the assistance to workers if it is stripped out 
of the bill.
  After this overwhelming vote here and the overwhelming vote in the 
Senate, let the majority work its will and let us help these workers 
and their families.

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