[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 136 (Wednesday, September 14, 2011)]
[House]
[Page H6151]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           AMERICAN JOBS ACT

  (Mr. LANGEVIN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. LANGEVIN. Madam Speaker, too many people in America are out of 
work, and as the President said in his speech last week, too many 
people are living day to day, paycheck to paycheck, struggling to find 
work. That is why we need to pass the American Jobs Act now.
  A consequence of such high unemployment is poverty. Yesterday, the 
Census Bureau reported that our country's poverty rate last year was an 
astonishing 15.1 percent, the highest it has been in almost two 
decades. With 22 percent of our children living in poverty, this report 
makes clear who has borne the brunt of our country's economic woes.
  I believe that all of my colleagues share a strong love of this 
Nation and its children, but in order for them to succeed, we must 
ensure that they have access to health care, housing, modern 
classrooms, and qualified teachers. We must also put their parents on a 
path back to work.
  Madam Speaker, it is a travesty to have even one child living in 
poverty in this country, let alone one in five of our children. It is 
also unconscionable to allow our actions, or inactions, to affect their 
future prosperity. Let's work together in a bipartisan way now to pass 
the American Jobs Act today.

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