[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 165 (Friday, November 6, 2009)]
[House]
[Pages H12554-H12555]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1930
                  ``NO'' TO GOVERNMENT-RUN HEALTH CARE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, many years ago during the mid-
eighties, I had the opportunity to travel to what is now the former 
Soviet Union when it was the Soviet Union. I had that experience based 
upon the fact that I was a judge in Texas and got to go see what it was 
like to live under that type of regime.
  Of course, in those days, everything was controlled. Everything was 
controlled by the government. The lives of the people were totally 
controlled by the government because the government, as they say, knew 
better. It made all decisions for the people. It made the decision what 
town they lived in, what apartment they lived in, what job they had, 
where they worked, and gave them permission or not to even travel from 
town to town. And, of course, government made also the decision and the 
control over their health care.
  I noticed as I went from clinic to clinic that the lines would be 
down the street. Four in the afternoon, they shut the door. The people 
disappeared. The next day they would come back and stand in line again, 
hoping to get some of that government-controlled, rationed health care.
  I also noticed something more important than all of that, that the 
spirit of those Russian people was broken. They had given up. They had 
given up on themselves and on their government.
  Eventually, of course, they were defeated, as we say, when the wall 
came down. But they were not really defeated by the United States, by 
the West. They were defeated by their own government because of their 
oppression and subjugation to the government and government control of 
their lives. Yes, in those days, the evil empire, as we

[[Page H12555]]

called it, was the ultimate example of total government control.
  Now, of course, we are not the Soviet Union. I am not saying we are. 
But today we are engaged in the great debate of at least this century 
of health care. But it is a bigger issue than health care. The issue is 
about government control of our lives. Regardless of how you put the 
bill that is now over 2,000 pages, it changes the philosophy that the 
government now will control health care in this country, rather than us 
as citizens.
  You know, the idea that government is going to save us all. We are 
going down that road of government, more government, more government, 
more government, and more government. You know, government is already 
the biggest employer in this country. It is the biggest consumer in 
this country. It is the biggest landowner in this country. It is the 
biggest spender in this country. It has most of the money. And when it 
runs out of money, it takes money from the people when they are alive 
and even when they are dead because of the death tax.
  Just a few months ago, the government took control over the financial 
industry, the mortgage industry, the banking industry, and the 
automobile industry, just to name a few. But I don't believe the people 
in this country are broken, and they are not defeated. They showed it 
when they came to Washington, D.C., this week. They are concerned about 
government. It is a bigger issue than health care. They are concerned 
about government running roughshod over their lives. They exercised, 
even with all of the critics and cynics, they exercised their right to 
peacefully assemble and petition government for redress of grievances. 
It is in the First Amendment. It is first because the First Amendment 
is the most important.
  But people are fearful of government, of government control over 
their lives. This health care bill is just one example of us moving 
down that road of government is going to take care of us all; it is 
going to save us all.
  Mr. Speaker, this country has never been great and will never be 
great because we have government programs. Government programs have not 
made this country what it is today. Individuals have made it. But, 
also, the individuals that had the right and have the right of liberty, 
to make decisions on their own rather than government taking care of 
them all. We are great because of the people here and who have not been 
defeated by the government of the United States.
  So I hope we in this House would turn against the temptation of 
turning everything over to government. This is one place where we can 
put the brakes on and say no to government running the health of this 
Nation. Because government doesn't do it better. You know, this 
government-run health care plan has the confidence of FEMA, the 
efficiency of the Post Office, and the compassion of the IRS, and we 
should start over and fix the problems that we have rather than 
expecting government to take care of us all.
  And that's just the way it is.

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