[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 56 (Friday, April 15, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E765]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AND FULL-YEAR CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2011

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                               speech of

                         HON. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 14, 2011

  Mr. VAN HOLLEN. Mr. Speaker, today's legislation is the eighth--and I 
hope final--Continuing Resolution the Congress as a whole will be 
considering this fiscal year.
  Throughout this debate, I have rejected the false choice between deep 
cuts that harm our fragile economic recovery or shutting down the 
government. Rather, as Ranking Member of the Budget Committee, I have 
argued for a middle ground of graduated and predictable fiscal reform 
that both supports our recovery and reflects our values and priorities 
as a nation. In that regard, I am pleased that today's agreement 
reduces non-emergency outlays by only $352 million for the rest of FY 
2011--and then spreads the next $20 billion in cuts over the next five 
years.
  I have also made clear that our nation's fiscal imbalance cannot be 
addressed solely through reductions in the 12 percent of the budget 
representing non-security discretionary spending. Like the Bipartisan 
Fiscal Commission, I believe the final solution must include savings 
from our defense budget, adjustments to mandatory spending, and 
increased revenue. In my judgment, that revenue can and should come 
from comprehensive tax reform that eliminates tax loopholes and 
reinstates the Clinton era marginal rates for upper income earners.
  Mr. Speaker, to govern is to choose, and today's legislation contains 
choices I would not have made. For example, because I believe the 
United States should be second to none when it comes to medical and 
scientific research, I do not think it makes sense to cut $260 million 
from the National Institutes of Health. Additionally, because our 
economy needs more clean energy, reducing energy efficiency and 
renewable energy research, development and deployment by $407 million 
is a visible step in the wrong direction. Finally, because our nation 
deserves a 21st century infrastructure and the jobs that go with it, 
slashing nearly $1 billion from the Clean Water and Drinking Water 
Revolving Funds is clearly misguided. In my view, medical research, 
clean energy and infrastructure are all examples of investments we can 
and should be willing to make in order to build a healthier, cleaner 
and stronger America.
  While I am acutely aware of this bill's shortcomings, I also believe 
today's agreement contains some important victories. In a very 
challenging fiscal environment, we have been able to fund critical 
educational priorities. The Head Start program serving our youngest 
Americans will get a $340 million increase, and the maximum Pell Grant 
award will be maintained at $5500 so deserving low-income students can 
go to college. Additionally, with our unemployment rate at 8.8%, we 
have largely protected vital job training funds at a level of $2.8 
billion. Finally, while I do not believe the Republican party has any 
right to impose its ideological agenda on the District of Columbia, 
this bill eliminates the vast majority of extreme policy riders in HR 1 
ranging from women's health to public broadcasting to the Dodd-Frank 
Wall Street Reform Law to the EPA's efforts to combat climate change.
  Mr. Speaker, this has been a far from perfect process, and not 
surprisingly, today's legislation is a far from perfect measure. But it 
is apparently the best we can do in this sharply divided Congress--and 
in the final analysis, I believe it is preferable to shutting down the 
government.

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