[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 25 (Wednesday, February 16, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E251-E252]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            IN SUPPORT OF QUIGLEY AMENDMENT (#520) TO H.R. 1

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MIKE QUIGLEY

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 16, 2011

  Mr. QUIGLEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with an amendment that would, 
quite simply, allow the President to continue to consult an Advisor on 
Energy and Climate Change.
  Section 1535 of this bill, which forbids the President from hiring 
such an advisor, wouldn't save taxpayers a penny.
  Section 1535, which my amendment would strike, is a misguided attempt 
to tell the President who he can and cannot consult.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask you, would any member of this body allow us to 
deny them counsel on energy and climate issues?
  This is NOT a rhetorical question--every member of this body that 
employs a staffer on energy or climate issues should carefully consider 
whether they would deny the President that same counsel.
  Whether or not you agree with the President on energy and climate 
issues, I would ask you--is it appropriate to silence those with whom 
you disagree?
  I would also remind my colleagues that Section 1535 of this bill, 
which my amendment would strike, does not save taxpayers any money at 
all--not even a penny.
  All it does is deny the President the ability to consult with a 
certain type of advisor.
  Section 1535 is an unprecedented intrusion into the President's 
ability to retain and consult advisors on issues of national 
importance.
  And energy and climate change are issues of national importance.
  In light of recent catastrophes like the BP oil spill, ongoing 
efforts to prevent the EPA from doing its job, and rising rates of 
mortality and morbidity due to unhealthy air, land, and water--it is 
more important than ever that we support increased resources for the 
President and the Administration to do their job of keeping us, and our 
environment, safe and healthy.
  I've stood on this House floor many times, some of them in recent 
days, and talked about decreasing wasteful government spending.
  I've written whitepaper reports, both in Congress and while a Cook 
County Commissioner, detailing the importance of streamlining and 
reinventing government.
  But, the crux of those arguments is predicated on the fact that I 
believe that what the government does matters--that government's 
mission matters.
  What we do here today, and tomorrow, and the day after that, matters.
  But this CR, which combines ideologically driven cuts with pretend 
cuts, like Section 1535, is not the answer.
  Taking a sledgehammer to non-defense discretionary spending is not 
the answer.
  We've got to talk about what programs are working and support them at 
the same time we cut the ones that don't work.
  We're facing a climate crisis--a climate crisis that has become 
political and polarizing, pushing leaders into opposite corners of this 
debate.
  But the facts aren't a debate if they're based on science.
  And science says that for decades and centuries to come we're going 
to be dealing with rising temperatures, acidic oceans, extinct species, 
and skyrocketing healthcare costs due to dirty air.
  In these trying times, we're trying to tell the President of the 
United States he doesn't have the right to counsel on energy and 
climate change?
  With all due respect, Section 1535 is an unserious attempt to achieve 
some measure of fiscal responsibility.
  But the truth is, it hacks away at the constitutional separation of 
powers and doesn't save taxpayers any money at all.
  How we address energy and climate change issues will matter for our 
children, and our children's children.
  We must not hamstring our ability to do so.
  I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

                       SENATE COMMITTEE MEETINGS

  Title IV of Senate Resolution 4, agreed to by the Senate on February 
4, 1977, calls for establishment of a system for a computerized 
schedule of all meetings and hearings of Senate committees, 
subcommittees, joint committees, and committees of conference. This 
title requires all such committees to notify the Office of the Senate 
Daily Digest--designated by the Rules Committee--of the time, place, 
and purpose

[[Page E252]]

of the meetings, when scheduled, and any cancellations or changes in 
the meetings as they occur.
  As an additional procedure along with the computerization of this 
information, the Office of the Senate Daily Digest will prepare this 
information for printing in the Extensions of Remarks section of the 
Congressional Record on Monday and Wednesday of each week.
  Meetings scheduled for Thursday, February 17, 2011 may be found in 
the Daily Digest of today's Record.

                           MEETINGS SCHEDULED

                                MARCH 1
     9:30 a.m.
       Armed Services
         To hold hearings to examine U.S. Special Operations 
           Command and U.S. Central Command in review of the 
           Defense Authorization request for fiscal year 2012 and 
           the Future Years Defense Program; with the possibility 
           of a closed session in SVC-217 following the open 
           session.
                                                            SD-106
     10 a.m.
       Budget
         To hold hearings to examine the President's proposed 
           budget request for fiscal year 2012 for education.
                                                            SD-608
       Foreign Relations
         To hold hearings to examine breaking the cycle of North 
           Korean provocations.
                                                            SD-419
     2 p.m.
       Veterans' Affairs
         To hold joint hearings to examine a legislative 
           presentation from Disabled American Veterans.
                                              345, Cannon Building
     2:15 p.m.
       Foreign Relations
         Organizational business meeting to consider committee 
           rules, subcommittee membership and jurisdiction, and an 
           original resolution authorizing expenditures by the 
           committee during the 112th Congress, and the 
           nominations of Sue Kathrine Brown, of Texas, to be 
           Ambassador to Montenegro, Daniel L. Shields III, of 
           Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam, 
           David Lee Carden, of New York, to be Representative of 
           the United States of America to the Association of 
           Southeast Asian Nations, with the rank of Ambassador, 
           and Pamela L. Spratlen, of California, to be Ambassador 
           to the Kyrgyz Republic, all of the Department of State, 
           and Eric G. Postel, of Wisconsin, to be an Assistant 
           Administrator of the United States Agency for 
           International Development.
                                                    S-116, Capitol

                                MARCH 2
     9:30 a.m.
       Foreign Relations
         To hold hearings to examine national security and foreign 
           policy priorities in the fiscal year 2012 International 
           Affairs Budget.
                                                            SD-106
     10 a.m.
       Energy and Natural Resources
         To hold hearings to examine the President's proposed 
           budget request for fiscal year 2012 for the Department 
           of the Interior.
                                                            SD-366
     10:30 a.m.
       Veterans' Affairs
         To hold hearings to examine the President's proposed 
           budget request for fiscal year 2012.
                                                            SR-418

                                MARCH 3
     9:30 a.m.
       Armed Services
         To hold hearings to examine the Department of the Army in 
           review of the Defense Authorization request for fiscal 
           year 2012 and the Future Years Defense Program.
                                                            SD-106
       Energy and Natural Resources
         To hold hearings to examine the President's proposed 
           budget request for fiscal year 2012 for the USDA Forest 
           Service.
                                                            SD-366
     2:30 p.m.
       Foreign Relations
         To hold hearings to examine navigating a turbulent global 
           economy, focusing on implications for the United 
           States.
                                                            SD-419

                                MARCH 8
     9:30 a.m.
       Armed Services
         To hold hearings to examine the Department of the Navy in 
           review of the Defense Authorization request for fiscal 
           year 2012 and the Future Years Defense Program; with 
           the possibility of a closed session in SH-219 following 
           the open session.
                                                            SD-G50
       Veterans' Affairs
         To hold joint hearings to examine the legislative 
           presentation from Veterans of Foreign Wars.
                                              345, Cannon Building

                                MARCH 9
     10 a.m.
       Finance
         To hold hearings to examine the President's 2011 trade 
           agenda.
                                                            SD-215

                                MARCH 16
     9:30 a.m.
       Veterans' Affairs
         To hold joint hearings to examine the legislative 
           presentations from AMVETS, Jewish War Veterans, 
           Military Officers Association of America, Gold Star 
           Wives, Blinded Veterans Association, Non Commissioned 
           Officers Association, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of 
           America, Fleet Reserve Association.
                                                            SDG-50

                                MARCH 30
     10:30 a.m.
       Veterans' Affairs
         To hold joint hearings to examine the legislative 
           presentations from Paralyzed Veterans of America, Air 
           Force Sergeants Association, Military Order of the 
           Purple Heart, National Association of State Directors 
           of Veterans Affairs, Wounded Warrior Project, Vietnam 
           Veterans of America, The Retired Enlisted Association, 
           American Ex-Prisoners of War.
                                                            SD-106