[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 17 (Wednesday, February 11, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H494-H495]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        WHAT ARE THEY THINKING?

  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, I come to the floor this evening to give 
voice to the voiceless. Millions of Americans are filling out 
unemployment forms and are filling our unemployment rolls. Many more 
are dropping off the lists because they simply see no hope and no 
prospects for jobs in the future.
  According to recent reports, in the last 3 months, more than 40 
percent of the unemployed have been out of work for more than 15 
months, for over a year. We have not seen record numbers like this 
since 1983. Jobs are becoming scarcer.
  In my own State of Ohio, we have lost 264,700 jobs since President 
Bush took office. And last week in our district, Dixie Cups, owned by 
Georgia Pacific, announced its closure; 207 more Americans will be 
without work. Nationwide, we have seen the disappearance of over 3 
million private sector jobs. Now the Bush administration appears to be 
supporting outsourcing of even more of our jobs overseas.
  It used to be that it was only the workers on the line who had to 
worry. Now, in Silicon Valley, the high-tech areas of the country have 
to worry, too; and in our medical community, if we are to read the 
President's report, even radiologists and those in medical tech are 
feeling the pain and will feel the pain.
  We are not just talking about the manufacturers and the farmers 
anymore. Even the previously sacred service sector jobs are under 
threat. Even telephone solicitors are now being outsourced to India and 
to Ireland as the ranks of our unemployed continue to grow.
  Earlier this week, the top Bush economic advisor, the head of the 
President's Council of Economic Advisors, stated, outsourcing of jobs 
is a form of free trade, and that is probably a plus for the economy in 
the long run.
  It is hard to read those words and really think he believes them. 
What is going on in the minds of the people over there at the White 
House? Maybe the President needs to get out from behind his desk in the 
Oval Office, travel around the country and meet with real workers who 
are worried and the millions who are out of work.
  Just last month President Bush came to my district. Unfortunately, 
his motorcade did not make any stops in our community where he had an 
opportunity to meet these people, those who are really worried and 
those who have been out of work for a very long time. If he had done 
that, he might have heard from people who used to work at Dixon-
Ticonderoga, manufacturing school supplies and whose jobs have been 
moved to Mexico; nearly 2,000 workers from Phillips Electronics, who 
had the same thing happen to them; or Georgia Pacific-Dixie Cup, the 
workers who just lost their jobs last week; or those at Acuity Lighting 
in Vermillion, Ohio, whose jobs are being moved to Matamoros, Mexico; 
or the workers from Spangler Candy out in Williams County in Bryan, 
Ohio, whose jobs have been moved and more will be moved to Mexico, 
making candy canes and various sugar candies; or any number of workers 
on the line in our tool and die shops who have been moved out of those 
shops and on to the unemployment lines.
  But, instead, for him it was just another campaign stop in Ohio. In 
fact, the day after his visit, the unemployment rate in Ohio ticked up 
again.
  My constituents know what is important, a dependable job with a 
decent wage. They want to help their children complete their education, 
first high school and, if possible, college beyond that; and they want 
to be able to depend on a pension that will be there for them when they 
need it. But, instead, we are turning our students into debtors, our 
pensions are becoming more risky, and it is harder and harder for our 
kids to go on to school.
  The 2003 trade deficit will set a record of nearly half a trillion 
dollars, more products being made, more services being done in other 
countries rather than here at home. Over a half a

[[Page H495]]

trillion dollars. Imagine if we could invest that here at home. The 
Federal deficit, as a result, is also at record highs.
  And what is the President's plan to secure Social Security and 
Medicare for our generations and beyond? More budget-busting tax breaks 
for the super rich, while wages for ordinary people are stalled or 
declining or they are thrown on to unemployment lines.
  Again, I really do have to ask, what is the White House thinking? I 
have repeatedly called for a new Declaration of Independence for our 
country, a declaration of economic independence for our families, for 
our workers. We must ensure first the economic security of our Nation. 
It must be one of our Nation's number one priorities. Instead, leading 
Republicans think it is a great idea to send more of our jobs overseas.
  It makes me wonder what kind of future is in store for our future 
generations. This Congress must draw the line in the sand here. I urge 
my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to stand up for working 
families immediately for the extension of unemployment benefits and no 
more stealing from the Social Security Trust Fund to pay off the White 
House's pet projects; no more tax breaks for the super rich; no more 
unfair trade deals like NAFTA; and no Chairman of the President's 
Council of Economic Advisors that had the idea of sending more of our 
jobs overseas is the answer to these problems.

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