[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 39 (Thursday, March 25, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H1576-H1583]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INVESTING IN AMERICA'S FUTURE: CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS FISCAL YEAR
2005 BUDGET ALTERNATIVE
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of
January 7, 2003, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) is
recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to discuss the
Congressional Black Caucus's fiscal year 2005 budget alternative.
Today, the Congressional Black Caucus offered a budget substitute
that would invest in America's future while restoring fiscal
responsibility in fulfilling our shared sacrifice.
Madam Speaker, when we are in a state of war, finding ourselves, even
as we speak, with men and women in our armed forces fighting in
Afghanistan and fighting in Iraq, and finding themselves spread out
across the globe, the Congressional Black Caucus, which has
consistently over and over and over again reiterated that we certainly
support our troops and, at the same time, we are very firm on the fact
that we must address the issue of terrorism.
But we also say that we must have a budget that is balanced, not only
from the standpoint of economics, but also from the standpoint of doing
for the people in the United States, people who work hard every day;
people who give their blood, sweat, and tears to making this country
the best that it can be; people who cannot even watch this on C-SPAN
because they left a job at 5 o'clock today and went to another job
because ends simply are not meeting.
And not only those people, but 9 million people who are not watching
this because they do not have cable, and the reason why they do not
have cable is because they do not have a job. Nine million of them, at
the end of every 2-week period when they normally would have gotten a
check, they are not getting a check anymore, because they are simply
unemployed.
Madam Speaker, despite the best efforts of over 100 of my colleagues
in the House of Representatives, our budget substitute, that is the
budget substitute of the Congressional Black Caucus, did not pass.
But one thing is clear, as I have said to the caucus many, many
times, when I borrowed the words from former Representative Bill Clay,
when he said to the caucus back in September, he said, you may not win
every battle, but you will set the trend. You may not get what you want
at that moment, but hopefully, we will be able to plant a seed in the
minds of not only Members of this Congress, but in the minds of
[[Page H1577]]
the country that we can do better. That is why, day after day, Members
of the Congressional Black Caucus come forth to address issues that go
to the center of people's lives, to the center of Americans' lives and,
day after day, we come as a conscience of the Congress.
The Congressional Black Caucus budget alternative fully funded No
Child Left Behind to the authorized levels. In comparison, the budget
that President Bush sent to the Congress broke its promise to America's
children and teachers by short-changing its own education legislation
by $7 billion.
Every time we hear about dollars, it is so hard, I think, for many of
us to put faces on that short-change of dollars. But the fact is that
when we go back to our districts, as I do, and I go to visit schools
and I see some children in schools where rain is coming through the
roof, and so often classes are overcrowded, and many times children
have basically nowhere to go at 3 o'clock or 3:30; and then to look at
the provisions of No Child Left Behind where it calls for substantial
testing of our children, which a lot of us do not have a major problem
with, but the problem is that once you test, and assuming a State can
afford to test because there is not enough money in many instances for
them to be able to even give all of the tests that are required by the
Federal Government, the next thing we know, many school districts do
not even have the money to send them to other schools.
So when we put a face on the $7 billion that is left out of the No
Child Left Behind legislation and authorization, it gives us great
concern.
Not only did the CBC budget provide adequate funding to take care of
our troops fighting in the battlefields of Iraq and around the world,
but our budget provided over $8 billion for our servicemen and women
once they return home.
One of the things that we are seeing over and over again is young
people going overseas. Many of them in the National Guard, when they
joined, certainly they understood that there might come a time when
they might have to go overseas. But so many of them, like the ones in
our districts, find that their lives are interrupted. Resources are not
there to keep the mortgage paid. Resources are not there for them to
make sure that their families can carry on life the way they would
normally carry on if they were not in Iraq or Afghanistan. The fact is
that they find their lives interrupted.
One of the things that we wanted to do is, when they do come home, to
make sure that they would be okay after they had put their lives on the
line for us.
Madam Speaker, the CBC budget alternative would have doubled the
funding for Historically Black Colleges and Hispanic Serving
Institutions. I have often said that if we did not have HBCUs, we would
have to invent them, for they are the institutions that provide and
account for most of the B.S. degrees and the Master's degrees and
Doctorate degrees for the children of African Americans.
Our education increases included over $2 billion for Pell grants, so
that deserving students who may not have the financial means to attend
college could obtain a college education. There was a time not very
long ago when a Pell grant would cover 70 percent of a student's
tuition and fees. Today, the average Pell grant probably covers
somewhere between 20 and 30 percent.
{time} 1930
The fact is that we educate our children, and then we want them to do
better than we did, and we want them to go to college; but at Morgan
State University, where I sit as a member of the Board of Trustees,
sadly, out of 13,000 students we had to release somewhere between 7 or
800 of them, not because they were not qualified, not because they did
not want to go to college, not because they had poor attendance but
because they did not have the money.
So I have said it and I will say it again, one of the worst things,
if you want to talk about the threats to this society, the most
dangerous threat to our society is our failure to properly educate our
young. But most importantly, the CBC budget alternative fulfilled the
needs of American people while setting aside money to reduce our
deficit.
Now, at $521 billion it would have placed our Nation back on the path
of fiscal responsibility. Madam Speaker, we have to be honest with the
American people. Our Nation is in the midst of a fiscal crisis. Not
only is the Federal deficit spiraling out of control, but now we have
reports from the Medicare actuary that Medicare will be bankrupt by
2019 and Social Security will soon follow. I did not say that. The
Democrats did not say that.
The fact is that the official body, looking at our Medicare and our
Social Security situation, said that.
Madam Speaker, I say we must be honest because up to this point the
administration has been less than forthcoming with the American people
and with this Congress. It has been reported that Medicare's chief
actuary was told he would be fired if he reported to Congress the true
costs of the Medicare bill. Earlier this year we learned that the
administration fudged the conclusions of its health disparity report in
order to report a more favorable national condition than what truly
exists. That is a very sad commentary.
One thing that we know, and it is just a basic rule of life, that in
order to correct a problem you have to, first of all, realize you have
it. And if we have institutions that are being paid with taxpayers'
dollars that are putting out reports that are then fudged to give a
different image, a more favorable image of situations like health care
disparities of all things, then that is a very, very, very sad day; and
it is a very, very, very sad commentary on anyone who would be about
the business of causing that to happen.
Just last month, the President sent a budget to Congress that
conveniently neglected to include the costs of extending the tax cuts
while claiming that his budget would cut the deficit in half. In my
neighborhood they would say, ``Please.''
While the administration has made a practice of misleading the
American public on the true state of our Union and brushing issues
under the rug, the Congressional Black Caucus has faced these
challenges head on and offered real solutions. If we are to truly
resolve this crisis, then we must face the facts.
I have often talked about my little girl when she was 3 years old.
She would say, Daddy, let's go play hide and go seek. And she would put
her hands up to her face and stand directly in front of me and say, you
cannot find me. Well, that is okay for a 3 year old, but we are here in
the Congress of the United States of America making policy for over 247
million people and affecting their lives on a daily basis. We have to
be honest about what is going on in this body and in this city.
Week after week the members of the Congressional Black Caucus come to
this House floor to make the American people aware of the problems and
challenges facing our country. Today we offered real and achievable
solutions to those problems. Although others in the Congress do not
seem to share our budget priorities, I hope that we will share the
priorities of ensuring life, liberty and happiness of all Americans.
Madam Speaker, we have one life to live. This is no dress rehearsal,
and this so happens to be that life. The real truth, Madam Speaker, is
that this is not a spending-driven deficit, as some of my colleagues on
the other side of the aisle would have us believe. This deficit crisis
was created by fiscal mismanagement.
In the corporate world, CEOs are held accountable to the bottom line.
This November I hope all of America follows the corporate example and
holds the CEO of this great Nation accountable for this government's
bottom line that is now over $500 billion in the red.
Madam Speaker, this Congress can do better. We can do better. We can
do better for the American people, and the Congressional Black Caucus
will continue to press this Congress to address the issues that go to
the center of people's lives.
It gives me great pleasure to yield to my colleague from the great
State of California (Ms. Lee), who has been at the forefront of the
things that I just talked about: a fair budget process, a budget
process that balances our need to protect ourselves from enemies
without and enemies within, by the way, and making sure that we do all
of those things that are necessary to take care of Americans.
[[Page H1578]]
(Ms. LEE asked and was given permission to revise and extend her
remarks, and include extraneous material.)
Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr.
Cummings) for not only holding this Special Order tonight to discuss
the misplaced priorities and the misallocated resources found in the
Republican budget and to discuss our CBC alternative budget, but just
for his leadership and his attempts to organize us to wake up America.
Quite frankly, I do not think the majority of American people know the
damage that is being done in this place each and every day. And thanks
to the gentleman's leadership, we have the opportunity to come forward
to present a vision of the world, of our country that we know is an
American vision, a vision based on our values.
So I want to thank the gentleman for his leadership and just hope
that the gentleman's district understands how important you are to our
caucus and to this entire Congress for helping us move our agenda
forward. Let me also mention and thank my colleague, the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Scott), who is a member of the Committee on the Budget
and he is a leader in our caucus on the budget. I want to just thank
the gentleman for his very exceptional work in making this budget a
very real and very progressive alternative for Members.
I want to thank all of my colleagues who contributed to the process.
I think that our work speaks for itself.
As the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) indicated earlier, this
budget received over 100 votes. That is a record vote, I believe, for
the Congressional Black Caucus, and it is under the leadership of the
gentleman that we achieved this vote. But this is the budget that
really should have passed because it would have put America on the
right fiscal track, and it also ensured the economic security for all
Americans.
During this debate and for weeks prior to today, we have made a clear
case for why and how the Republican budget sacrifices our children, our
senior citizens, our security, our environment, and our economy in
order, really, to advance monied interests and to promote tax breaks
for the wealthy. We have made it clear that we hold the President and
this Republican-led House responsible, responsible for the largest
deficit in history.
The 5.6 trillion 10-year surplus projected when President Bush took
office has been replaced by deficit as far as the eye can see. For 2004
the budget proposes a record deficit of $521 billion. That is the
budget they passed tonight. That is $146 billion more than the 2003
deficit, and that was a historic record. It is a greedy budget. That is
what this is. It gives to the few while sacrificing the needs of the
many, and it gives the bill to our children and to their children. It
is irresponsible, and it is unacceptable.
Now, unlike the Republican budget, the Congressional Black Caucus
substitute has its priorities really in the right place. It is based on
fairness. It is based on fiscal responsibility. And it is based on the
values that we hold dear. And it happens to be balanced. Instead of
gutting foreign aid programs and woefully underfunding the promised
global AIDS initiative, the Congressional Black Caucus alternative
includes $800 million towards our commitment and our moral obligation
to fight the devastating HIV/AIDS pandemic. And it also includes $1
billion towards the global fund to fight aids, tuberculosis, and
malaria.
Instead of ignoring our neighbors in Haiti and the African continent,
the Congressional Black Caucus budget adds $1 billion to critical
development assistance to meet the critical needs in countries that
really need our help the most.
Instead of rolling back our environmental programs, which the Bush
budget does, and cutting badly needed enforcement programs at the
Environmental Protection Agency, the Congressional Black Caucus's
budget enhances them to ensure that our children and families have
access to clean water and clean air. The Bush budget ensures that they
have less access to clean air and clean water.
Now, California has 97 sites contaminated with toxic waste. These
sites are on the national priority Superfund list and 38 sites are
likely to be affected by failing to fully fund the Superfund program.
The Republican budget also cuts clean water funding by 37 percent
nationwide and that is mind boggling; 37 percent which is over a $35
million cut in funding just for my home State of California alone.
Instead of leaving millions of our children behind in education and
in training, they cut job training almost out for the most part and
turn a blind eye to the millions of unemployed Americans, as the Bush
budget does, the Congressional Black Caucus budget increases funding
for school construction, for Head Start, for GEAR UP, for Perkins
loans, for Pell grants, for job training which we so desperately need
in an economy where so many millions of our people are unemployed.
Also, funding for historically black universities, it fully up-funds
the fiscal year 2005 authorization level for Leave No Child Behind.
Instead of cutting funding for housing, we do have an affordable
housing crisis in this country. My home State of California is off the
scale. Our budget puts more resources into housing. Affordable housing,
or the lack thereof, is really a national disgrace; and it is a
national emergency. Housing is, or rather it should be, a basic human
right; and, unfortunately, it remains ignored and underfunded in the
Republican budget again this year. And we are seeing an increasing
number of homeless people out there on the streets of America, the most
powerful and wealthiest country in the world.
Currently there are over 2 million households assisted by rental
vouchers and turnover in this program is very low. Thirty-seven percent
of vouchers are used to house our most vulnerable citizens, namely,
senior citizens and persons with disabilities. This budget barely funds
the 1.75 million in rental vouchers. The Bush budget for HUD proposes
that public housing authorities scramble to cover the $1.7 billion
costs needed to fund the remaining 250,000 vouchers and to ensure that
housing remains available to special needs populations.
Now, this ultimately means that a quarter of a million section 8
recipients, current section 8 recipients, not those in waiting lines
and on the list but current section 8 recipients, they will lose their
vouchers or they will be forced by the public housing authorities to
increase the amount of rent that they pay. Where in the world are they
going to find the money? Where are the jobs? They do not have the jobs.
They do not have the resources to afford to pay more rent.
{time} 1945
This is just downright cruel. In my district alone, 3,000 families
who are currently using section 8 vouchers to pay their rent will lose
their homes. This is unacceptable. This is unconscionable.
The Bush administration must fully fund and take responsibility for
our most vulnerable families living in the section 8 program; but, of
course, the budget that they passed out tonight did not do that. Ours
did.
In the area of crime, the Congressional Black Caucus budget keeps our
commitments to our local law enforcement agencies by providing real
funding programs like the community policing efforts, like the
Department of Justice reentry initiatives.
Under the Republican budget, the COPS program would be slashed by 87
percent, 87 percent. Crime rates are going up in certain communities.
Of course, we know the reasons, but community policing has been a
remedy and a way to really affect in a very positive way the reduction
of crime in many of our neighborhoods; but again, the budget that they
passed out tonight cut the COPS program by 87 percent.
The Republican budget underfunds homeland security programs. The Bush
administration budget cuts first responder funding by $648 million and
cuts port security grants by 63 percent, and they talk about homeland
security. Yes, homeland security is very important. We must ensure the
homeland, but we have got to pay for it. We have got to pay for it, and
cutting port security grants by 63 percent does not tell me that this
administration is committed to homeland security.
The House Republican budget is even worse. It cuts homeland security
funding by an additional $155 million in 2005 and $857 million over 5
years. What a sham. Currently, 95 percent of all
[[Page H1579]]
North American and U.S. trade moves by sea, concentrated mostly in a
handful of ports. Only about 5 percent of the cargo containers that
enter the United States are screened, 5 percent. Any one of these
containers, the vast majority of which do not have tamper-resistant
seals, could hold a deadly threat, a disease hidden in a shipment of
foreign fruit, radioactive material hidden in frozen seafood, or an
explosive device.
Instead of skimping on homeland security, our budget, the
Congressional Black Caucus budget, provides the necessary resources for
the Department of Homeland Security to fully begin protecting America's
rails and ports, and we provide significant resources for our first
responders, the first line of defense in the event of an attack.
Homeland security, dealing with terrorism, we have got to get this
administration to understand they have got to support this. They have
got to support homeland security and our first line of defenders, our
police officers, our firefighters, our emergency workers, our health
workers.
What the CBC does not provide for is $9 billion a year for ballistic
missile defense. Missile defense merely diverts terribly scarce
resources into a program that does not meet our most urgent security
needs and probably will not work in any case. Let us be clear,
ballistic missile defense, better known as Star Wars, would not have
prevented September 11, and the approach taken in the Republican budget
will not prevent its recurrence.
One other thing the Congressional Black Caucus does not provide,
Halliburton's license to steal, by withholding payments to the company
that has overcharged taxpayers. That is what we did in our budget. This
amounts to over $300 million. I do not know if the American people
understand that the budget that the Bush administration and that
Congress reported out tonight pays Halliburton, gives them money for
violating the law. Unbelievable to me, unbelievable.
Let me just read my colleague a list of some of the programs being
eliminated, not cut. These are some of the programs being eliminated in
the Bush budget to feed this military spending. They are eliminating
alcohol abuse reduction, arts and education, close-up fellowships,
community technology centers, comprehensive school reform,
demonstration projects to ensure quality higher education for students
with disabilities. They are taking $7 million out of that. They are
eliminating that. Dropout prevention programs, they are eliminating.
Dropout prevention programs. Dropout prevention programs.
They are eliminating the Eisenhower National Clearinghouse for Math
and Science Education, Elementary and Secondary School Counseling, Even
Start, the Excellence in Economic Education program. They are
eliminating literacy programs for prisoners. My God, what are we going
to do? They will be getting out sooner or later and no skills, no job
training, no jobs. What do we expect in terms of the recidivism rate,
and here they are cutting out the literacy program for prisoners.
They are eliminating the Migrant and Seasonal Farm Workers programs,
the National Writing Project, Parental Information and Resource
Centers. Recreational programs, eliminate $3 million. They really cut
out really all the federally funded recreational programs for kids.
Regional Technology in Education.
They eliminate Smaller Learning Communities. They eliminate, here is
another one, State Grants for Incarcerated Youth Offenders. They
decimate that program. They gut it. It is gone. It is gone.
They eliminate Vocational Education National programs. They eliminate
the Women's Educational Equity program. They eliminate the Early
Learning Opportunities Fund, the National Youth Sports. They eliminate
Community Food and Nutrition Efforts. They close that down. They shut
it down. They shut down the Rural Community Facilities.
They shut down Hope VI, which revitalizes many of our communities,
our urban communities where the unemployment rates are soaring. They
finish, they cut out, they eliminate Empowerment Zones which have
provided the opportunity to create jobs and to create economic
opportunities for minority- and women-owned businesses and small
businesses. The Bush administration just cuts that. They cut it out. It
is gone.
The more I look at that, the more upset I get. It is very hard to
convey the depth of my anger at this budget.
Brownfields Redevelopment they cut that out. Rural Housing and
Economic Development programs they are cutting out.
I mentioned all the COPS programs and law enforcement programs they
are just taking away. They are cutting out juvenile accountability
block grants. They are taking away migrant and seasonal farm workers
programs. I do not know if the American people know about all these
programs that, like I said, are not being cut, they are being
eliminated. They are gone. They are gone.
The Tech Prep Education State grants, $107 million, that is done.
That is finished.
Madam Speaker, I will insert this list into the Record tonight at
this point.
Zero Funding
The Bush administration proposes to eliminate the following
programs in fiscal 2005:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004 funding Reason for
Program (in millions) termination
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Commerce:
Advanced Technology Program... $171 Duplicates private-
sector efforts.
Technology Opportunities 14 Diminished need.
Program.
Continued Dumping and Subsidy 293 To save money.
Offset Act.
Education:
Alcohol Abuse Reduction....... 30 Duplicates other
programs.
Arts in Education............. 35 To fund higher
priorities.
B.J. Stupak Olympic 1 Duplicates other
Scholarships. programs.
Close-Up Fellowships.......... 1 Duplicates private-
sector efforts.
Community Technology Centers.. 10 Duplicates other
programs.
Comprehensive School Reform... 234 Duplicates other
programs.
Demonstration Projects To 7 Goals achieved.
Ensure Quality Higher
Education for Students With
Disabilities.
Dropout Prevention Programs... 5 Duplicates other
programs.
Eisenhower National 5 Duplicates other
Clearinghouse for Math and programs.
Science Education.
Eisenhower Regional Math and 15 Duplicates other
Science Education Consortia. programs.
Elementary and Secondary 34 Duplicates other
School Counseling. programs.
Even Start.................... 247 Goals not met.
Excellence in Economic 1 Duplicates other
Education. programs.
Exchanges With Historic 9 To fund higher
Whaling and Trading Partners. priorities.
Federal Perkins Loans; Capital 99 Duplicates other
Contributions. programs.
Foreign Language Assistance... 17 Duplicates other
programs.
Javits Gifted and Talented 11 Duplicates other
Education. programs.
Leveraging Educational 66 Goals achieved.
Assistance Partnerships.
Literacy Programs for 5 Duplicates other
Prisoners. programs.
Migrant and Seasonal 2 Duplicates other
Farmworkers. programs.
National Writing Project...... 18 Duplicates other
programs.
Occupational and Employment 9 To be merged with
Information. other programs.
Parental Information and 42 Duplicates other
Resource Centers. programs.
Projects With Industry........ 22 Duplicates other
programs.
Ready To Teach................ 14 Duplicates other
programs.
Recreational Programs......... 3 Duplicates other
programs.
Regional Educational 67 Goals not met.
Laboratories.
Regional Technology in 10 Duplicates other
Education Consortia. programs.
School Leadership............. 12 Duplicates other
programs.
Smaller Learning Communities.. 174 Duplicates other
programs.
Star Schools.................. 20 Duplicates other
programs.
State Grants for Incarcerated 20 Limited impact.
Youth Offenders.
Supported Employment State 38 Goals achieved.
Grants.
Tech-Prep Demonstration....... 5 Duplicates other
programs.
[[Page H1580]]
Tech-Prep Education State 107 Duplicates other
Grants. programs.
Underground Railroad Program.. 2 Goals achieved.
Vocational Education National 12 Duplicates other
Programs. programs.
Women's Educational Equity.... 3 Duplicates other
programs.
Health and Human Services:
Early Learning Opportunities 34 Duplicates other
Fund. programs.
National Youth Sports......... 18 Duplicates other
programs.
Community Food and Nutrition.. 7 Duplicates other
programs.
Rural Community Facilities.... 7 Duplicates other
programs.
Homeland Security: Metropolitan 50 Goals achieved.
Medical Response System.
Housing and Urban Development:
Community Development Block 334 Congressional add-
Grant. on.
HOPE VI Revitalization of 149 Goals achieved.
Severely Distressed Public
Housing.
Empowerment Zones............. 15 Funding not needed.
Community Development Loan 7 Accomplishments not
Guarantees. measured.
Public Housing Drug 0 Limited results.
Elimination Program.
Brownfields Redevelopment..... 25 Accomplishments not
reported.
Rural Housing and Economic 25 Duplicates other
Development. programs.
Environmental Protection Agency: 511 Congressional add-
Unrequested Project Funding. on.
Interior: National Park Service 13 Secondary to
Statutory Aid. mission.
Justice:
Edward Byrne Memorial Grant 704 Merged with other
Program. programs.
Local Law Enforcement Block 223 Merged with other
Grants. programs.
COPS Hiring Grants............ 119 Merged with other
programs.
State Criminal Alien 297 Results not
Assistance Program. demonstrated.
COPS Law Enforcement 157 Duplicates other
Technology Grants. programs.
COPS Interoperable 84 Responsibility
Communications Technology transferred to
Grants. Homeland Security.
Juvenile Accountability Block 59 Results not
Grants. demonstrated.
Labor: Migrant Seasonal 77 Ineffective.
Farmworkers.
Small Business Administration: 17 Expensive;
Microloan Program. duplicates
assistance.
U.S. Postal Service: Foregone 29 Eliminates reduced
Revenue for Reduced Mail Rate. rates for some
nonprofit mailers.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Office of Management and Budget.
Madam Speaker, let me just finally say that this Bush budget embodies
values that are quite un-American, if you ask me. It is fiscally
irresponsible. It mortgages our children's future, and it decimates the
lives of the least of these. It is not compassionate. In fact, it is
really downright mean-spirited, and I hope that the American people
understand that this administration is bankrupting our children and
their future, and they are investing in money interests and privileges
for the few.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I want to thank the gentlewoman for her
statement.
Madam Speaker, as I listened to the gentlewoman speak, I could not
help but think about the fact that when I listened to the other side
talk, it seems as if they forget sometimes what the American spirit is
all about and what makes America great.
One of the things that makes America great is that we view ourselves
like the human body, and if there is a part of us, a part of the body
that is suffering or a part of the body that needs healing, then it is
like the entire body has a problem, and that is one of the things that
makes this country so great.
I shall never forget when I went to Bosnia several years ago with
President Clinton and we were talking with the leaders over there in
Bosnia about how it is that we had quite a few troops over there but
not one troop, not one of our personnel was harmed. I asked the
question, Why do you think that is? These leaders all agreed, they said
because America has a spirit and they know that if one American is
harmed, they will pay big time, and that has been our spirit. That was
been our strength.
I listened to all of the things that the gentlewoman from California
(Ms. Lee) was talking about, the programs being eliminated. You are
talking about things that help people be all that they can be. I
believe that our children, something as simple as arts and education,
that is something where we know that children in so many instances
already have the talent within them, and it is up to us as grown-ups to
do those things that are responsible for helping to bring it out of
them so that they can share with the world.
When I think about Empowerment Zones, many people in these
Empowerment Zone areas, because we have one in the city of Baltimore
where I represent, and people are trying to climb up, and they have
been told in many instances in the past, pull yourself up by your boot
straps; but they did have not any boots, let alone straps. So they were
pulling themselves up by their fingernails and then the Empowerment
Zone comes about and helps them get on their feet. They are able to
create businesses, to get people employed, pay back into the State tax
coffers and the Federal Government coffers, and then we are in a better
situation, but more importantly, we have built a person.
Then I think about the COPS program that you mentioned. It is very
important that people feel safe in their environment. That is just
crucial, and the COPS program has done so much. We saw all over this
country for years the crime rate going down; and now slowly but surely
in many of our jurisdictions, slowly we are seeing it rise back up, but
when you have cops on the beat, the fact is their presence, just their
mere presence is a deterrent to crime.
So we talk about the Hope VI program. This is a program in Baltimore
that we have seen, I think we have six or seven Hope VI projects, but
as I have said, on many occasions and for those who may not know what
it is, it is basically a program that allows many mainly urban areas to
tear down high-rise developments and then build more or less low-rise
and mixed-income developments. Baltimore has changed the landscape of
our city and allowed people to own homes who would not normally own
homes. It has revitalized our cities in areas that were decaying. Those
areas have not sprouted up, and I said in an opening of one of the IMF
Hope VI projects about 2 are 3 months ago that it was like having Andy
and Mayberry in the middle of Baltimore City.
So those are the things that go to making people's lives better on a
day-to-day basis. Those are the things that we talk about. We hear
people say tax-and-spend liberals. Well, that does not apply to this
side. The fact is that we are spending a lot of money, the other side
is, that is, but what about the human development, so that people will
have an opportunity to live the best lives that they can?
So the fact is that we can do better.
Ms. LEE. If the gentleman would yield for just a moment, let me just
comment on what you have said in terms of our values, looking out for
each other, making sure that all Americans have equal opportunity.
{time} 2000
Madam Speaker, the insidious and the sinister nature of this Bush
budget is that so many of these efforts and programs which have been
eliminated or cut affect the African American, the Latino and the Asian
Pacific Islander communities. They affect low-income individuals, poor
people.
Now, what kind of values do we have if we are going to do that? That
is not the American way from what I know. I think we need to make sure
that the country understands that there are communities that are
impacted by this budget, and then there are communities that are
severely impacted by this budget and will take us back 50 years if this
passes.
Mr. CUMMINGS. We just had a situation in my district where a water
taxi capsized in a storm. Unfortunately, there were some deaths, but we
also had a well-trained Navy Reserve unit which so happened to be in
the vicinity. If it had not been for them, some
[[Page H1581]]
20-odd lives would not have been saved. During our discussions about
this incident, one of the things that we talked about was homeland
security. The Naval reservists were saying when incidents like this
happen, if they have the kinds of equipment that they would have to
have for homeland security, it would make their jobs so much easier.
A lot of people say what happened on 9/11 will not happen again; I
have heard people say it only happens once. Then we had the Madrid
train situation, and the fact is, when we talk about homeland security
and talk about our port situation, we have the Port of Baltimore; and
in talking to the people at our port, they tell us that one drug load
could come in and could do so much damage to our city and citizens. And
yet we are cutting back on ports?
Ms. LEE. First responder funding, police, firefighters, health care
emergency workers, we are cutting $648 million out of that budget. We
are cutting port security grants by 63 percent. This totals, in terms
of homeland security, an additional $155 million in 2005 and $857
million for 5 years. What kind of real war on terrorism do we have?
What kind of commitment do we have to secure America, to secure people
in our country?
We will have to look at it in a way that we have not looked at it
before if in fact these numbers hold in the Bush budget.
Mr. CUMMINGS. In the Baltimore incident, what they said was, if you
have the equipment you need for emergencies, like if there was some
type of attack on our port or our city, even if that did not happen,
just being prepared for it puts us in a position to be able to address
issues that would probably have a higher likelihood of taking place. It
is not like the equipment sits in a corner waiting for some terrorist
to come along. And they also talked about the training that they have
been involved in, and said their training was helpful.
Again, we hear mayors from all over the country, large and small
cities, saying, we want to be prepared, we want to protect our people.
We are the ones that have to address our firefighters and our police
personnel and those who do emergency work. All they want is to make
sure that they have the things that are necessary to do their job.
Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, if the gentleman would yield, that is
extremely important because having the resources there to do their job
reduces the anxiety level. It reduces the fear factor which people
quite naturally have at this point in our time.
I do not believe this administration wants people to feel that level
of security. They like to keep them unstable and fearful and worried,
and that is just downright wrong.
I think this budget really reflects exactly what the gentleman said.
We do not have the equipment. Our first responders, our counties and
cities, do not have what they need. People know they do not have what
they need, and they are afraid. People need to rise up and tell the
Bush administration to fully fund homeland security.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, the gentlewoman also mentioned job
training, which is so very important. The gentlewoman said there are
cuts in job training.
Ms. LEE. Big cuts in job training.
Mr. CUMMINGS. There are so many people out of work. I was speaking to
a colleague from Ohio, and he was saying hundreds of thousands of jobs
are cut, gone. And he talked about how important it is to have job
training, so if opportunities come, people will be in a position to
take advantage of it. It is one thing to have opportunity, it is
another thing to be prepared to take advantage of it.
It just seems to me as we see so many of our relatives and our
neighbors out of a job, 9 million of them in our country, it seems to
me that, if anything, we would be trying to increase the funds for job
training so that people will be prepared for opportunity were it to
come along. But yet and still, and the President keeps telling us jobs
are coming, we have not seen them yet, but assuming he is right, if
they are not prepared, what difference does it really make?
Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, I think I have the answer to why they cut job
training, and that is, they do not know where the jobs are coming from
and what to train people for. First, we have lost the service industry.
We have lost manufacturing, and we are outsourcing high tech. What is
left?
We had a hearing several weeks ago with Alan Greenspan, and we talked
to him about the economy and job losses. I asked Chairman Greenspan,
What do we tell our young people? How do we tell them to play by the
rules, go to school and develop some skills and some know-how because
there is a job at the end of the road? And he could not answer that.
We asked where the jobs will be in the future, what industries, what
sectors do we train people for? In what regions, and what jobs are
going to be available in 2 to 3 years? And there was no answer for that
question. I suspect the reason they cut job training is because they do
not have a clue what kinds of jobs are out there in the future to train
for.
Mr. Greenspan indicated if he did not believe those jobs were going
to be out there, he would be as upset as I am, and he believes they are
out there, but he never told us where.
Mr. CUMMINGS. When we talk about Pell grants, and we see so many
students who work so hard and they finally get to college. I am a
graduate of Howard University, and since 1973, I have gone back to
every graduation because I want to see the young people emerge and go
out into the world. It is a good feeling that I get from seeing that.
But to know there are students today like the ones we saw down at
Florida A&M and Prairie View A&M, at Morgan State and Howard, so many
of them have gotten there. They have gone through so many difficulties,
and they finally get to college. And many of them, although it is
recommended that they not work in their first year, they are working
and doing whatever they can do to make ends meet to be able to pay the
tuition payments. I think it was at Prairie View when they did a survey
of income of the parents, it was less than $40,000 combined average. So
the parents simply do not have it.
So we have students who are giving it the best they can. They have
dreamed of being a doctor or nurse or lawyer or teacher, and finally
they get that acceptance letter and they are able to scrape together
some money and, maybe their cousin or Aunt Sally gives them money for
their graduation present from high school, and they get there and then
they find out that the Pell grant that they are getting, even combined
with other sources of income, even the money they get from working a
part-time job is not enough.
The sad part about it is, I believe such students at Morgan who have
to drop out, and we have not done a survey, but we believe many of them
never return. What that means is their income is affected for the rest
of their lives. They live a totally different life. If they had gotten
a college education, they would be able to do better for their children
and have more opportunities and be able to open more doors for future
generations.
So in this country, that is probably the richest country in the
world, we fail to properly make sure that they have that support system
that they need. I think that is a shame.
Ms. LEE. Going back to the Congressional Black Caucus' budget, we
increased the funding for Pell grants and for our young people so they
do not have to deal with the very situation that the gentleman
described.
Taking it just a little further, those that somehow make it through
start looking for job. There are no jobs out there; but if in fact we
created an infrastructure, development initiative, if we invested in
our economy by investing in health care, if we invested by establishing
the National Affordable Housing Trust Fund to increase the production
of affordable housing in this country, we would be able to create jobs
by creating an investment in our country and in our communities for
areas that people need.
People need health care and housing and transportation. We need
schools to be fixed and we need construction projects going on. There
are so many millions of jobs that could be created if we just invested
our Federal resources into this instead of the military machine for
weapons which feed the military industrial complex.
Mr. CUMMINGS. In the State of Maryland, almost every one of our
[[Page H1582]]
schools that prepare young people for nursing are community colleges
and our 4-year colleges have long waiting lists. They cannot
accommodate, they do not have the resources to accommodate the students
that are qualified. Yet and still, we have a phenomenal nursing
shortage. That just boggles the mind: These young people who are
prepared to work in a profession where there is a demand, and that is a
major problem. Those are the kinds of things that we should be
addressing, when we have young people standing in line to do what they
have wanted to do for the last 10 years, and do not have the chance to
be able to do it.
Ms. LEE. There has to be the political will to do that, and the
future has to be a priority in terms of the budget priority. You have
to see young people as being our future, those who are going to really
take over the world, and we have not invested in our young people. We
have not developed an educational system that will allow them to
develop, learn and grow and move forward.
Again, Leave No Child Behind is a classic example. It is $9.4 billion
underfunded.
Mr. CUMMINGS. The Bible says, Where there is no vision, the people
perish. And the question is, and the gentlewoman hit the nail on the
head, what is the vision that we have as opposed to what the other side
of the aisle and our President have?
I think our vision is for a better America, an America where each
person has an opportunity, just as all these Congresspeople have had,
to use all of the things that are within them to be the best that they
can be. We have tried in our budget to make sure that we did everything
that we could to make sure that they had fertile ground to develop and
be all they can be.
{time} 2015
Ms. LEE. I want to thank again the gentleman from Maryland for his
leadership and for insisting that the Congressional Black Caucus put
forth this vision, a vision that is based on true American values, a
vision that is based on equality and justice, a vision that is based on
fiscal responsibility, a vision that is based on not mortgaging our
children's future; and it is a vision for the country that I know
someday will be seen by those on the other side. It is just a matter of
time.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, on behalf of the Congressional Black
Caucus, as I have said before, we may not win every battle, but we
certainly will stand up over and over again. It is so amazing to me
that at the end of each one of these Special Orders, Madam Speaker,
when we go back to our offices, we have calls from Americans. They are
not just African Americans. As a matter of fact, most of them are not.
These are people calling from various States throughout the country.
What they are saying is thank you for informing us and thank you for at
least giving us the other side of the story, because we did not get it.
We did not hear that anywhere else. We may not win. We may not win
today, but at least we plant the seeds in the minds of the American
people and hopefully in the minds of this Congress that there is, in
fact, a better way.
Ms. LEE. Yes, there is a better way. I think Dr. King, reflecting
upon him right now, showed us a better way and told us that there was a
better way. He told us how the bombs bursting in Vietnam would explode
here in the ghettos of America if in fact our spending priorities were
not reordered. Those who care about Dr. King and celebrate his birthday
in January need to celebrate his life each and every day by executing
his vision. We have the opportunity to do that. What an honor. We have
been elected to Congress to be able to create a better world. In fact,
when we do not take those opportunities to do that, I worry for us. I
worry for our country.
I say, thank God for the Congressional Black Caucus. If it were not
for the Congressional Black Caucus, I do not know if, in fact, any of
these issues would be crystallized in the way that they are being
crystallized as a result of our efforts. I want to thank the gentleman,
even though I know it is very difficult sometimes dealing with 39 of us
who all have ideas. But the chairman incorporates all of our ideas and
comes up with a magnificent document each and every year. I think that
sooner or later our budget will be the budget. It will be the budget
that is passed by this House and the other body, and it will be in the
White House, and we will someday see our vision for America and for the
world as being the American Dream realized and in action.
Mr. CUMMINGS. Last but not least, Madam Speaker, it was the
songwriter Tracy Chapman who wrote the brilliant words: ``Either we
change or we live and die this way.'' And so the Congressional Black
Caucus is about the business of changing for the better, changing so
that all people may rise up and be all that God meant for them to be,
but at the same time we present a budget which is fiscally responsible.
That too is very important to us.
Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Madam Speaker, I want to thank
the Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, Mr. Cummings, for his
steadfast support of the development of this budget alternate. I also
want to thank Ms. Majette and Mr. Scott for their leadership. I
appreciate and applaud their steady stream of ideas and positions on
issues we all care about. I also would like to thank all of the members
of the CBC and their staff for their help in completing this very
worthwhile project.
The Republican budget proposal clearly ignores the needs of Texas and
of all working Americans. The Republican budget borrows from future
generations to pay for today's tax cuts and federal spending. It
reduces taxes on the wealthiest Americans and slams the door on
economic opportunity for working families. Neither of these outcomes is
in our nation's best interest.
Madam Speaker, President Bush inherited a federal surplus of $127
billion in 2001. His tax cuts give us a deficit of $521 billion, an
all-time record, in 2004. Recently, the non-partisan Congressional
Budget Office forecast that rather than cutting the deficit in half
over the next five years, as the President pledged, his budget policies
will result in increasing it by $2.75 trillion. That's an astounding
and mind-boggling amount to add to the national debt over the coming
decade.
The CBC budget fights for social justice. It advocates for the poor
that are left out and forgotten, and more specifically African
Americans and other neglected minorities. The budget of the
Congressional Black Caucus fully funds No Child Left Behind, it
provides funds for school construction, and it increases funding for
other education and job training programs. The CBC alternative also
provides funding for the minority health initiative, health insurance
for the uninsured, it supports child nutrition programs, it funds job
creation programs under the SBA, and it extends unemployment insurance
benefits. The alternative budget also eliminates the disabled veteran's
tax.
The funding for these important domestic needs comes from two
sources: (1) a reduction in the tax cuts from 2001 and 2003 for an
individual's adjusted gross income that exceeds $200,000, and (2) the
closing of tax loopholes, abusive tax shelters, and methods of tax
avoidance. These funds total an estimated $35.5 billion in FY05, and
are used for the domestic and deficit reduction portions of the
alternative budget.
I ask, Madam Speaker, that Members of this body give serious
consideration to both the debate and to the challenge.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I rise today with great fear
over the direction that the Republican Party and this Administration is
taking our great nation. My concern is based primarily on the national
budget which was just voted on. The Nussle budget clearly did not
improve upon the severely flawed Bush Administration budget. The needs
of average Americans were still ignored. The interests of a wealthy few
outweighed the needs of an entire nation in this budget. I say this not
out of partisanship, but from a statement of the facts. I want to
highlight a few areas in this budget that are particularly egregious.
education
This President and the majority party in this body have spent so much
time talking about their record on education and as hard as I try I
cannot see what they have to be proud of. It is one thing to address
areas of critical need with rhetoric, but to advocate a policy and then
not fund it sufficiently is plain irresponsible. At the top of the list
of my concerns is the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) and the fact that
it has become an unfunded mandate. The House Republican resolution
provides at least $8.8 billion less than the $34.3 billion authorized
for education programs under the ``No Child Left Behind'' Act for 2005.
The CBC alternative budget is the only one that fully funds the ``No
Child Left Behind'' Act of 2005. Without this program being fully
funded low funding millions of elementary and secondary school students
are left without the services
[[Page H1583]]
Congress and the President promised just two years ago. For example,
the Republican budget denies Title I services to 2.4 million students
who quality under the Act.
But the irresponsibility does not end with No Child Left Behind. For
the third straight year the Republican Party has frozen the funding
level for Pell Grants. Both the Republicans and the President freeze
the maximum Pell Grant award at the 2003 level of $4,050, with an
average grant of $2,399. Such small Pell Grants make college
unaffordable for millions of students: the College Board reports that
tuition and fees at 4-year public colleges today average $4,694. In any
market this gap would be hard to swallow, but with the current state of
joblessness that the Republican Party's agenda has created it is near
impossible for so many American families to send their children to
college. I fear that this agenda if allowed to continue will cause a
perpetual state where our American families aren't able to succeed. The
CBC budget would ease the difficulty on the plethora of American
families having problems funding their children's education. It
guarantees almost $2 billion more for the Pell Grant, raising the
maximum level to $4,500, an 11 percent increase over the maximum under
the Republican Budget.
In addition to this the CBC budget provides even more benefits to our
education system. It adds a combined total of $18.7 billion to
educational spending which will greatly reduce the stress placed on our
educational system today.
But education is not limited to elementary and secondary schools and
colleges and universities. Education is a lifelong endeavor. And with
that in mind the CBC budget proposes an additional $2 billion for Job
Training, Vocational Education, and Adult Education. Such funding will
provide countless Americans the ability to improve their lives, their
families, their communities, and their nation. The Republican budget
underfunds our education and our future.
veterans
Our brave American veterans are another group who were outraged by
the President's budget and will unfortunately be disappointed with the
Republican House Budget. The majority party argues continuously about
the greatness of our Armed Forces, and their right, but again it's just
empty rhetoric on their part. Those brave men and women fighting on the
front lines in our War Against Terror will come back home and find that
the Republican Party looks at them differently once they become
veterans. They are no longer treated as great heroes. Instead they are
viewed as a nuisance and a way to cut the budget.
Almost all veterans need some form of health care, some will need
drastic care for the rest of their lives because of the sacrifice they
made in war, but the Republican Party continues to turn a blind eye to
their needs. On a bipartisan basis, the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
recommended that $2.5 million more than the President's budget was
needed to maintain vital health care programs for veterans.
Nevertheless, the House Republican budget provides $1.3 billion less
than what the Committee recommended for 2005. The CBC budget provides
an extra $1.25 billion to meet the request of the Veterans' Affairs
Committee.
The entire Department of Veterans Affairs is going to suffer because
of the Republican agenda. Over the next five years the money allocated
to the Department of Veterans Affairs will not even be able to maintain
these programs at their current levels. In 2007, the budget is $227
million less than what the Department of Veterans Affairs needs to keep
pace with inflation. Over five years, the Republican budget cuts $1.6
billion from the total needed to maintain services at the 2004 level.
I've heard from veterans groups throughout my district in Houston and
I'm sure each Member of this body has heard from groups in their own
district because veterans are one group that come from all parts of
this nation. These brave veterans have told me their stories of how
they are suffering now with the current state of veterans affairs. I am
going to have trouble telling them that not only will things continue
to stay bad but things will only continue to get worse. That is not
what our returing soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan should have to
look forward to, a future where their needs are not only not provided
for, but are in fact ignored.
The CBC budget provides an extra $8.7 billion in total veterans
spending. An increase that is sure to fix many of the aforementioned
problems. Of that extra funding $3.6 billion will be dedicated to fund
the Montgomery GI Bill. This program is, and has been, one of the most
important veterans programs around, and I for one will not allow it to
be underfunded. Finally, the CBC budget will give $2.5 billion and $25
billion over ten years to help eliminate the tax on disabled veterans
known as concurrent receipts. While the Administration's tax cuts are
doled out to the wealthiest Americans this budget will aid those who
really need our help, our veterans.
irresponsible republican policies and homeland security
Education and Veterans Affairs make up only two areas where
Republican budget fails Americans. The truth is there are many other
programs and services vital to our nation that are at risk because of
the Republican agenda. At this point, an average American may be asking
why the Republican Party finds it necessary to cut so many fundamental
programs. The answer is simple, yet disturbing; the majority party is
cutting important programs in order to finance all their irresponsible
tax cuts. They will continue to make the argument that tax cuts provide
stimulus for our economy, but millions of unemployed Americans will
tell you otherwise. In fact the Congressional Budget Office itself said
``tax legislation will probably have a net negative effect on saving,
investment, and capital accumulation over the next 10 years.''
While the Republican Party continues its offensive for irresponsible
tax policies they allow our national deficit to grow increasingly
larger. The deficits are so large and their policies are so
irresponsible that they won't even make deficit projections past 2009.
It's clear that the Republican Party is hiding from the American
people. This President and this majority in Congress have yet to
advocate a fiscal policy that helps average Americans. Special
interests have become king in this budget at the price of sound fiscal
policies.
The CBC budget will go a long way to solving this problem. Our goal
is to help the common person not just the CEO. We want to protect the
Average American who is struggling every day through these tough times
just to get by. And this brings me to another key problem with the
Republican Budget. In what direction are they taking Homeland Security?
The CBC budget provides an additional $2.4 billion in Homeland Security
funding. It provides an extra $900 million for First Responders
including the COPS Program and Citizen Corps and provides an extra $566
million for Port Security grants and an additional $250 million for
Rail Security. We must keep American citizens out of harm's way and the
CBC budget provides us with the resources to do that.
cbc alternative budget
The truth about the budget is that a sound fiscal policy that funds
needed programs is possible. The CBC Alternative Budget is an example
of how we can get out of the quagmire that the Republican agenda has
put this Nation in.
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