[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 28 (Tuesday, March 2, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S913-S917]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          GOVERNMENT SPENDING

  Mr. DeMINT. Madam President, I know the Senate has been dealing with 
a difficult issue, and I wish to make some comments relative to the 
Senator from Kentucky, Mr. Bunning, who I think has taken a lot of 
unfair criticism for asking our Democratic colleagues to abide by their 
own rules.
  Much has been made in the Senate and in the Congress and at the White 
House over the last year about the unsustainable level of spending and 
borrowing and debt we have as a nation. Yet it seems that almost every 
week we create some new government program or expand spending in some 
area. I think it is time we expose the hypocrisy that is going on 
because we know the level of debt we have is going to eventually, 
sooner or later, bring our country down. Yet we don't seem to have the 
willpower to stop any spending.
  Last week, we created a new government program, a new travel 
promotion agency. Now we are going to extend unemployment and COBRA 
benefits, which are good things. Certainly, in a down economy, we need 
to consider those around the country who are suffering and make sure we 
do everything we can that is fair to take care of them, but when we 
borrow the money to do it, we threaten the futures of our children and 
grandchildren, diminish their quality of life, and likely cause their 
unemployment in the future. We can hardly pat ourselves on the back for 
our compassion and generosity when we are not making any sacrifices or 
even any hard decisions in the Senate to pay for those things we say 
are a priority.
  Instead of paying for this extension of unemployment benefits and 
COBRA, the Democrats want to pass it without any debate, without any 
vote. They don't want to pay for it. We are not even considering ways 
we can pay for this extension. Instead, we classify it as emergency 
spending at the last minute and try to force Congress into spending 
money we don't have. We brought it up at the very last minute at the 
end of last week and said, if we don't pass it now by unanimous 
consent, people will go without their unemployment and their COBRA.
  This is not emergency spending. It was entirely predictable that 
these funds would run out, when existing funds would run out. Instead 
of acting prudently to extend these benefits in ways we could pay for 
them, the way my Democratic colleagues have promised we would with this 
pay-go rule, they are declaring an emergency at the last minute to ram 
it through without any debate and without a vote.
  Moreover, they want to do this anonymously, through the process we 
call unanimous consent. That means they don't want a rollcall vote. Why 
don't they want a rollcall vote? Because it shows who means what they 
say. It shows who believes in this idea of pay as we go that we call 
pay-go, and it will certainly damage prospects for November elections.
  Senator Bunning from Kentucky has taken a courageous stand to hold 
the Democrats--in fact, all of us--accountable to the things we say we 
believe. I believe, as does Senator Bunning, that if we are going to 
renew these benefits, we should pay for them. We should look at areas 
of our government that we don't have to do and reduce them or eliminate 
them so we can pay for the things we feel we have to do. I think the 
names of the Senators who want to borrow the money to do this, who want 
to add to our debt to do this, should be recorded for the public to 
see.
  This bill will cost $10 billion. We could find the money to pay for 
this bill. We could repeal a very small part of the stimulus plan. We 
could repeal the TARP or the bailout money. We could cut some 
earmarks--some local parochial projects--or we could cut other 
government programs that have been deemed unnecessary or wasteful.
  The Congressional Budget Office says the government would save $12 
billion if we allowed health insurance companies to compete in an 
interstate commerce fashion. We have talked about it a lot as part of 
the health care debate. If all we did--no taxpayer funds at all--is 
allowed interstate competition for health insurance, the government 
could save $12 billion and more than pay for this bill we are talking 
about today. We could help people get insured, lower the cost of health 
insurance, help small businesses create jobs, and pay for the bill that 
extends unemployment benefits. But we are not even willing to talk 
about a responsible way to pay for a bill. Senator Bunning says: Wait a 
minute. We have been talking about paying for these bills as we go, and 
the first two bills we brought up since we passed pay-go have not been 
paid for. He said we should at least bring it to the floor and have 
some debate and a vote. I think that is pretty reasonable.

  Senator Bunning was right to address this problem, and I commend him 
for it. I hope our colleagues will stop the hypocrisy, stop trying to 
create a crisis of our debt while we make that crisis worse every day, 
adding to the debt almost every week.
  Now we have Members of this body looking at new ways to raise taxes 
or create new taxes on Americans. This is not the way to help our 
country, and it is not the way to lead. It is certainly hypocrisy. I 
thank Senator Bunning for his stand. I ask all my colleagues to join us 
in looking at what this Federal Government has to do and to do those 
things well, to fund them properly, but to take those things that don't 
have to be done at the Federal level and move them to the States or 
back to the people, as the tenth amendment says. We clearly cannot move 
forward as a Nation with the Federal Government doing more than it is 
doing today.
  If we are going to survive and thrive as a Nation, the Federal 
Government will have to do less. That needs to begin here. It needs to 
start today. We can't keep expanding government, borrowing money every 
week, and complaining about the debt. Only in politics would that 
happen. We have to stop it here, this week. Again, I thank Senator 
Bunning for his courage and clarity.
  I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. BAUCUS. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. BAUCUS. I just heard the Senator say, in defense of Senator 
Bunning, that our side will not allow Senator Bunning to have a vote. I 
want to clear up the record. That is not the case at all. As far as I 
am concerned, Senator Bunning can have his vote. He can have his vote 
on his pay-for. The point is, does Senator Bunning want an assurance 
that he has enough votes from the Democratic side so that his vote 
passes? Well, of course not. We vote here; that is what the Senate is 
for. Those in favor vote aye; those not in favor vote no. That is the 
democratic process. That is the process most Americans understand.
  So if he wants his vote, he can ask for it and he can have that vote. 
I will not prejudge whether he will win or lose. As far as this Senator 
is concerned, he can have that vote. My expectation would be after that 
vote is concluded one way or another we can vote on the underlying 30-
day amendment so we can finally get people their unemployment checks 
that are due, their COBRA benefits, and their health premium subsidies 
that are due. Finally, we can enable doctors to be paid so they can see 
Medicare patients.
  This is a very simple solution. We can just vote. If Senator Bunning 
wants to vote, I say: Fine, let's vote.
  If he complains: Oh, no, I want to make sure I win, I don't think 
that is entirely proper. I think it is proper to have the votes, and 
Senators can vote their wishes and their views. We can have that vote. 
When that is concluded, we can go on to the 30-day resolution so that 
people can get the benefits they are due. That is the only responsible 
and reasonable way to deal with this. I hope we do that. We are waiting 
for the Senator from Kentucky to indicate whether he would like to 
vote. It is pretty simple.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California is recognized.
  Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, I came here in the hope that, as we 
begin work on this very important bill that is going to help 
reinvigorate our economy, we are making progress on getting Senator 
Bunning to step down from his objection to a short-term extension of 
the number of programs that

[[Page S914]]

are essential to the well-being of our Nation.
  Senator Bunning says he is objecting to an extension of unemployment 
benefits and health subsidies for the jobless and, by the way, highway 
and transit programs and other programs because he wants to offset that 
extension with cuts in funding from the Economic Recovery Act.
  I want to make the point that at a time when jobless rates are 
soaring, certain of these actions that we take are emergency actions. 
They are actions we take because the long-term unemployed are in big 
trouble. If we pay for this by slashing economic recovery funds that 
are already obligated or are about to go out, and they are about to 
start hiring people, then it seems to me we are taking one step forward 
and two steps back. I am willing to vote on this matter, and I hope 
Senator Bunning will lift his objection if we get to vote. It is not a 
problem. Let's vote on it.
  I have written to Senator Bunning on a couple of occasions on behalf 
of the 201,000 Californians who have already seen their unemployment 
insurance benefits expire if we don't renew this. This is a very 
dangerous precedent to set. I noted to him that not only is he hurting 
people who are doing everything in their power to get work, but he is 
also shutting down transportation projects in California and in 16 
other States because he will not agree to reauthorize the highway trust 
fund for just 30 days. This is an impossible situation.
  I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a list of the 
States already impacted by Senator Bunning's objection to a 30-day 
extension for the highway trust fund.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

 FEDERAL LANDS CONSTRUCTION HALTED BY FURLOUGH OF DOT INSPECTORS DUE TO
                            BUNNING OBJECTION
------------------------------------------------------------------------
               State                       Project             Cost
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska............................  Tongass National          $1,100,000
                                     Forest road clean
                                     up.
Alaska............................  Coffman Cove Dock            885,000
                                     construction.
Arizona...........................  Coronado National          1,500,000
                                     Monument Main Park
                                     entrance.
Arkansas..........................  East Fly Gap and             923,000
                                     Gunner Pool Roads
                                     landslides
                                     restoration.
California........................  Sequoia National          15,000,000
                                     Park main entrance.
Californa.........................  South Fork Smith          13,800,000
                                     River.
California........................  Golden Gate National       8,700,000
                                     Recreation Area
                                     road construction.
District of Columbia..............  9th Street Bridge         50,000,000
                                     replacement.
Georgia...........................  Chicakamauga &               634,000
                                     Chattanooga
                                     National Military
                                     Park construction.
Idaho.............................  Salmon River Road         20,133,000
                                     Nez Perce National
                                     Forest construction.
Idaho.............................  Little Salmon River        3,800,000
                                     Bridge Nez Perce
                                     National Forest
                                     intersection.
Idaho.............................  Ferran Lakes Idaho        14,600,000
                                     Panhandle National
                                     Forest.
Illinois..........................  McRaven Road               1,100,000
                                     reconstruction.
Maryland..........................  Great Falls Park           3,100,000
                                     entrance road
                                     construction.
Maryland..........................  Piscataway National           89,000
                                     Park erosion and
                                     slope damage repair.
Mississippi.......................  Natchez Trace              8,100,000
                                     Parkway resurfacing.
Mississippi.......................  Natchez Trace              5,600,000
                                     Parkway trail
                                     construction
                                     (Ridgeland County).
Mississippi.......................  Vicksburg National         5,000,000
                                     Military Park road
                                     rehabilitation and
                                     resurfacing.
Mississippi.......................  Natchez Trace              4,700,000
                                     Parkway trail
                                     construction
                                     (Madison County).
New Mexico........................  Carlsbad Caverns           9,000,000
                                     National Monument
                                     roadway
                                     rehabilitation.
North Carolina....................  Newfound Gap road          9,900,000
                                     rehabilitation.
North Carolina....................  Blue Ridge Parkway         6,000,000
                                     reconstruction and
                                     resurfacing.
North Carolina....................  Goshen Creek Bridge        3,000,000
                                     replacement.
Ohio..............................  Fitzwater Road             4,400,000
                                     bridges replacement.
Oregon............................  Beaver Creek Road          6,200,000
                                     Ochoco National
                                     Forest.
South Carolina....................  Ft. Sumter Historic          262,000
                                     Site entrance road
                                     and parking area
                                     rehabilitation.
Tennessee.........................  Cades Cove Loop Road       6,700,000
                                     rehabilitation.
Tennessee.........................  Shiloh National Park       3,000,000
                                     tour roads and
                                     parking area
                                     rehabilitation.
Tennessee.........................  Catossa Wildlife           1,000,000
                                     Management Area
                                     bridge replacement.
Utah..............................  Bear River Access         13,800,000
                                     Road.
Virginia/DC.......................  George Washington         36,000,000
                                     Parkway Humpback
                                     Bridge replacement.
Virginia..........................  Blue Ridge Parkway        12,000,000
                                     reconstruction and
                                     resurfacing.
Virginia..........................  Petersburg Park tour       1,500,000
                                     road relocation.
Puerto Rico.......................  Vieques National           6,000,000
                                     Wildlife Refuge
                                     road and bridge
                                     reconstruction.
Puerto Rico.......................  El Yonque National         3,000,000
                                     Forest slide repair.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  Christiansted Bypass      14,000,000
                                     construction.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  Centerline Road            9,000,000
                                     reconstruction.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  St. John roundabout        7,200,000
                                     construction.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  Long Bay Road              5,500,000
                                     reconstruction.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  University of Virgin         988,000
                                     Island sidewalk
                                     construction.
U.S. Virgin Islands...............  North Shore Road             448,000
                                     reconstruction.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, http://www.dot.gov/affairs/
2010/dot3610.htm.

  Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, in California, we are already seeing 
layoffs because the department of transportation had to lay off and 
furlough--they furloughed, temporarily I trust--2,000 Federal 
inspectors who are overseeing in 17 of our States a number of important 
projects; for example, in Alaska, the Tongass National Forest road 
cleanup. Another project in Arizona is the Coronado National Monument 
main park entrance. In Arkansas, there is a shutdown. In California, 
there is the Sequoia National Park main entrance, the Southfork Smith 
River, and Golden Gate National Recreation Area road construction. In 
DC, there is the 9th Street Bridge replacement.
  One Senator is stopping these important construction projects. They 
are crucial safety projects that have been stopped in their tracks 
because one Senator has decided that it is his way or the highway.
  We have to stop bringing this Senate to paralysis. We all have our 
opinions. I have mine and I know the Senator from Montana has his and 
the Senator from New York has his and the Senator from Michigan has 
hers; and we think we are right and we make our case. Once we have 
argued our cases, the will of the Senate has to go forward.
  Senator Bunning doesn't seem to think it is an emergency that the 
highway trust fund has run out of funds. He doesn't think it is an 
emergency that there are long-term jobless Americans. He doesn't agree. 
He doesn't agree that it is an emergency, I gather, that people cannot 
pay for their health care extension.
  By the way, he also stopped--this is very important, and I know the 
Senator from Montana knows this well--the 21 percent to our doctors who 
take Medicare. I met with my doctors from California today. They cannot 
believe this is happening. In Ventura County our doctors are saying 
that because of this 21-percent cut they are facing in their 
reimbursements, they are only going to see emergencies. They are not 
going to see someone who has a nonemergency. This is gamesmanship.
  I call on Senator Bunning to remove his objection to the extension of 
the highway trust fund and the transportation programs and the 
unemployment benefits and the cuts in Medicare reimbursement to our 
doctors. Each week that Senator Bunning maintains his hold, each week 
that he insists he will stop this, 6,000 California families will lose 
their unemployment benefits. Let's end this today. Each week that 
Senator Bunning maintains his hold, many California small businesses 
will not be able to get access to needed loans from the SBA and the 
flood insurance program was held up. Californians and Americans from 
every State will lose their health insurance coverage.
  I can only marvel at this turn of events--and not marvel in a good 
way. It takes obstruction to the next level. It is a bridge too far. I 
think there are Members on the Democratic side who are willing to stand 
on their feet for as long as it takes to try to get this done today. We 
hope Senator Bunning will back down. If he continues and keeps this up, 
if the highway program is shut down for just 1 month, tens of thousands 
of jobs are at stake.
  I want to say what those jobs would be. In Arizona, it would be 1,400 
jobs; in California, it would be 6,000; in Florida, 3,000; in Illinois, 
2,000; in Kentucky--the home State of Senator Bunning, who is stopping 
the highway trust fund from being funded--it would be 1,198 jobs, if he 
keeps this behavior up for 1 month.
  Senator Bunning says he has every right to do this. Sure he does. He 
is a Senator and he can do it. But it is wrong. If each of us decided 
to throw a fit every time we didn't like something around here, who 
gets hurt? Not Senator Bunning. He has a job and he has health care. He 
is not worried. He is not a physician who is getting held up either. He 
is fine and I am fine. It is the people of Kentucky, his State, and it 
is the people of California, my State, who get hurt.
  If this keeps up for 1 month, there will be 6,000 job losses in Texas 
and 1,300 in Wisconsin. If this keeps up and we do not get our work 
done and we do not reauthorize the highway trust

[[Page S915]]

fund, as we did in the HIRE Act, we will lose 1 million jobs in 
America. That gets to be inexplicable in terms of ``a world of hurt.''

  I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a chart 
prepared by AASHTO listing the impact of reductions in funding in all 
50 States.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

[[Page S*ERR58*916]]

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS02MR10.001



[[Page S917]]

  Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, as I stand here today, it would be 
pretty easy to solve this problem. Senator Bunning needs to stand down. 
He just needs to stand down. He made his point. He argues that we 
should pay for emergency funding. I voted for pay-go, but we do have a 
clause that says if it is a real emergency, we do not have to pay for 
it.
  The reason that is important is if we do what Senator Bunning wants 
and we extend this jobless help and we extend the highway trust fund 
and, on the other hand, we cut the economic recovery moneys which are 
all obligated and on which work is about to start, we are not doing 
anything for the country.
  Let's do this right. Many of us who are standing here saw terrible 
deficit and debt problems during the Clinton years. You know what we 
did? We fixed it. We had room for emergencies. But we fixed it by going 
to pay-go. When there were emergencies, we stepped back.
  I think it is fair to note that Senator Bunning is very agitated 
about the fact that we would extend jobless benefits without cutting 
spending in job creation. Yet when it was time for him to vote for tax 
breaks for the wealthiest people who earn over $1 million, he could 
care less that it was put on Uncle Sam's credit card. When it was time 
to pay for the war in Iraq, oh, put it on the credit card of the 
country. But all of a sudden, it is help to our families who need it so 
desperately and we are going to have to cut other programs that are 
providing jobs. It does not make sense. It is not fair, and it is not 
consistent.
  I renew my request that I have made twice now to Senator Bunning. I 
ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record my letters to him.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                  U.S. Senate,

                                Washington, DC, February 26, 2010.
     Hon. Jim Bunning,
     U.S. Senator, Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Bunning: On behalf of the 201,000 Californians 
     who will see their unemployment insurance benefits expire in 
     the month of March unless we act to renew them, I ask that 
     you stand down immediately.
       As you know, if you do not relent, these benefits will 
     expire on Sunday. Unemployment insurance is a lifeline to the 
     long-term unemployed whose families have been hit very hard 
     by this recession.
       Thank you for your immediate attention.
           Sincerely,
     Barbara Boxer.
                                  ____

         U.S. Senate, Committee on Environment and Public Works,
                                    Washington, DC, March 1, 2010.
     Sen. Jim Bunning,
     Hart Senate Office Building,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Bunning: I want to make sure you are aware 
     that as a result of your objections to a short-term extension 
     of unemployment insurance, COBRA, and other help for people 
     who have lost their jobs, not only are 1 million people--
     including 201,000 Californians--losing their unemployment 
     benefits but the Department of Transportation has now 
     furloughed without pay nearly 2,000 workers.
       This is completely unacceptable. It is hurting people in 
     your state, in my state and all across the country.
       As a consequence of the furloughs, federal inspectors will 
     be removed from critical construction projects across the 
     nation, and work is already shutting down. I am attaching the 
     Department of Transportation's list of some of the affected 
     projects. which includes critical construction work in 17 
     states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. 
     Virgin Islands.
       We can't have an economic recovery if people can't make 
     ends meet and if transportation projects grind to a halt. I 
     am writing to you as Chairman of the Environment and Public 
     Works Committee to ask you to stop this gamesmanship and 
     remove your objection to the extension of the transportation 
     authorization and unemployment benefits.
           Sincerely,
                                                    Barbara Boxer.

  Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, I wrote to him on February 26 ``On 
behalf of the 201,000 Californians who will see their unemployment 
insurance benefits expire'' and telling him that the benefits will 
expire on Sunday, which was 2 days ago; that unemployment insurance is 
a lifeline to the long-term unemployed whose families have been hit 
hard by this recession. I thanked him for his immediate attention, and 
I hope he did, in fact, read this letter. And I hope he read my letter 
of March 1.
  I wrote to him as chairman of the Environment and Public Works 
Committee. I wanted to make sure he knew that he also objected to 
reauthorizing the highway trust fund expenditures, and that means the 
Department of Transportation is starting to lay off people. They laid 
off inspectors, furloughed them. They will go back to work when we fix 
this mess. But what a mess.
  Do you know what it is to shut down construction jobs midway? By the 
way, these are private sector employers, private sector workers who are 
doing this work. It is unacceptable. I told him, ``It is hurting people 
in your State, in my State and all across the country.'' These Federal 
inspectors will be removed from critical projects across the Nation. 
Work is shutting down. I attached the Department of Transportation's 
list of the affected projects. I said:

       We can't have an economic recovery if people can't make 
     ends meet and if transportation projects grind to a halt.

  We all know the housing sector is so weak. That construction is not 
going well. We need to construct the infrastructure of this Nation. 
These are not make-work projects. These are projects fixing bridges and 
highways and making sure our roads are safe. I asked him to stop his 
gamesmanship and remove his objection to the extension of the 
transportation authorization and the unemployment benefits.
  As I said today, I add to that the extension of the funding for our 
physicians who are relying on us not to allow a 21-percent cut for 
Medicare to go into place. The fact that we do not have a lot of 
leadership down here says to me they are working on this now. It says 
to me they are reaching out to Senator Bunning and my Republican 
colleagues to see if they will stand down.
  I want to say I hope he does. These are real people. These are real 
people who are suffering. There is no need for them to suffer. We are 
not going to turn our backs on the long-term jobless. We are not going 
to turn our backs at all. This is just political maneuvering which is 
making life very difficult for people whose lives have been pretty much 
shattered if they are long term unemployed and looking for work and 
trying desperately to get it.
  Hopefully, Senator Bunning will back down, and my Republican friends 
will agree that we can move forward. If they want a vote on Senator 
Bunning's plan to cut economic recovery funds that have already been 
obligated to put people to work to pay for an emergency, I am willing 
to take that vote any day of the week.
  I hope to be back later and have some comments. I hope those comments 
are: Good, we got past this crisis. But at the moment, it is 4 o'clock 
in the afternoon, and we are not through it yet. I am hopeful that 
maybe later we will get through this and extend these vital programs to 
the people who need them.
  I am going to close. I thank the people who have worked so hard with 
me on getting this highway reauthorization done. It is Republicans and 
Democrats. It is the Chamber of Commerce. It is AASHTO. It is the 
general contractors. It is the construction unions. This is an amazing 
team of people. It is the AAA. It is the car riders associations. It is 
everyone--Republicans, Democrats, Independents. They want an end to 
these games. I hope today we will see the end. If we do not, then we 
are going to have a long, long night ahead of us to make the point that 
it is wrong for one Senator to stop our people, our American people 
from getting the help they deserve, from getting the jobs they deserve 
to have in the highway fund and the help they need while they are 
looking for work.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan.

                          ____________________