[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 12 (Wednesday, February 4, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H371]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        WHERE IS THE COMPASSION?

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, today the majority of Republicans in this 
House voted against extending unemployment benefits. Every single 
Democrat voted to extend unemployment benefits. Let me say that again. 
Today the majority of Republicans in this House, which is supposed to 
be the people's House, voted against extending unemployment benefits. 
Every single Democrat voted to extend unemployment benefits.
  How hopelessly out of touch with reality these House Republicans and 
their majority leader, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) are. Have 
they not noticed the jobless recovery?
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) said he would not support 
extending unemployment benefits. Let me remind him, unemployment 
benefits are earned benefits.
  Every day our office gets phone calls from constituents asking 
whether Congress will extend their unemployment benefits, earned 
benefits. We are getting so many calls because hundreds of thousands of 
Americans have exhausted their unemployment benefits and they have not 
been able to find new jobs.
  In our community Sunoco advertised for 10 jobs, and over 2,000 people 
applied. This week in my district another company is shutting down, 
Georgia Pacific, Dixie Cups, over 207 more jobs gone.
  The good jobs just are not coming on line. The President says, bring 
it on. Well, I say, bring on the jobs. Where are they? So through no 
fault of their own, 9.1 million Americans are out of work. And with 
each passing month more and more of these unemployed Americans take a 
step closer to the brink as they find themselves not only out of work 
but also out of unemployment benefits which they have earned. No pay 
check coming in, bills to pay, no new jobs on the horizon, trying to 
hang on, and now no unemployment check. That is due to a Republican 
Congress that does not care.
  Mr. Speaker, we all heard President Bush back when he was running as 
a moderate talking about compassionate conservative. Mr. Speaker, where 
is the compassion? People are getting desperate, but the Republicans in 
Congress are turning a deaf ear to their cries. Look what the 
Republican leadership did here today, voting no, the majority of 
Republicans voting no to extend unemployment benefits.
  House Republican leaders said here tonight, there is no problem with 
no jobs. Just go out and try to find some. That is right. The 
Republican line is that the economy is back and there is no reason to 
pass unemployment benefits. They are so hopelessly out of touch.
  George W. Bush is the first President since Herbert Hoover who has 
lost more jobs than he has created. Where is the compassion for the 
395,000 workers who exhausted their regular unemployment benefits on 
December 22, just before Christmas? Or what about the 400,000 workers 
who exhausted their benefits last month, the largest number of workers 
ever to exhaust unemployment benefits this past January?
  The pain inflicted by the Bush administration's economic policies has 
spread from coast to coast. Hardest hit is North Carolina. More 
unemployed workers are expected to exhaust their jobless benefits than 
any other State, over 61,000 workers.

                              {time}  1930

  In nine States, the number of unemployed workers who will exhaust 
their regular benefits will set a new record. North Carolina, Michigan, 
Pennsylvania, Oregon, Indiana, South Carolina, Idaho, Vermont, 
Arkansas, where is the compassion for people in these States?
  In 10 other States, the number of unemployed workers who will exhaust 
their regular benefits by summer will be the second highest on record: 
California; New York; Texas, where the majority leader is from; Ohio; 
Illinois; New Jersey; Wisconsin; Connecticut; Arizona; Nevada.
  More than half the unemployed workers cut back on spending for food 
and more than half postponed medical or dental appointments. Without 
unemployment benefits, almost half the long-term unemployed workers 
would be in poverty. With unemployment benefits, only 19 percent would 
fall into poverty. Why is there not a resounding number of Republican 
Members who see extending unemployment benefits, which are earned 
benefits, as a matter of compassion?
  They are so hopelessly out of touch. I hope that the American people 
will write the Members of the other body, the Senators, and tell them 
to pass an extension of unemployment benefits. That is our hope now 
that the majority of Democrats in this House have sent that bill for 
their approval.

                          ____________________