[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.
____________________