[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 70 (Tuesday, May 18, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H3097]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     THE STATE OF THE U.S. ECONOMY

  (Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak 
about the declining state of the economy. When President Bush took 
office, we had a $236 billion budget surplus and the Nation had created 
22 million jobs in the previous 8 years. The country was experiencing 
the biggest drop in child poverty in a generation and the lowest 
poverty rate in 20 years.
  Today, 8.2 million Americans are looking for work and the 
unemployment rate is 30 percent higher. 2.2 million private sector jobs 
and 2.7 million manufacturing jobs have been lost. Household income has 
decreased by almost $1,500 per family. The number of the uninsured has 
increased by 3.8 million. College tuition is up 28 percent.
  As busy as we are and as important as the effort on foreign policy 
is, I hope this administration would dedicate some of its time to 
economic security as well. The American people have suffered much from 
terrorism. They do not need to suffer any more from President Bush's 
faltering and failed economic policies.

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