[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 197 (Tuesday, December 20, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H9987-H9995]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENSE OF HOUSE REGARDING ANY FINAL MEASURE TO EXTEND CERTAIN EXPIRING
PROVISIONS
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 502,
I call up the resolution (H. Res. 501) expressing the sense of the
House of Representatives regarding any final measure to extend the
payroll tax holiday, extend Federally funded unemployment insurance
benefits, or prevent decreases in reimbursement for physicians who
provide care to Medicare beneficiaries, and ask for its immediate
consideration.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 502, the bill
is considered read.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 501
Whereas a two-month extension of the payroll tax cut
instead of a full-year extension would cause additional
uncertainty and complexity for private-sector job creators
already struggling in the current economy;
Whereas, on December 17, 2011, President Barack Obama said,
``It would be inexcusable for Congress not to further extend
this middle-class tax cut for the rest of the year.'';
Whereas, on December 17, 2011, House Minority Leader Nancy
Pelosi said, ``House Democrats will return to Washington to
take up this legislation without delay, and we will keep up
the fight to extend these provisions for a full year.'';
Whereas, on December 17, 2011, House Minority Whip Steny
Hoyer (D-MD): ``I'm disappointed that Senate Republicans
would not agree to a longer-term extension of critical
policies.'';
Whereas in 2011 working Americans received a temporary
payroll tax rate reduction which allowed the average family
to keep $1,000 more of their annual wages;
Whereas, on December 31, 2011, without action by the
Congress, the temporary payroll tax rate reduction will
expire, leaving nearly 170 million American workers with less
disposable income as the economy continues to struggle;
Whereas the imminent expiration of the temporary payroll
tax rate reduction is creating further uncertainty for
families as well as employers who must adjust withholding
amounts from their employees' paychecks;
Whereas the Social Security Trust Fund is now running a
cash deficit, and over the next 75 years will require an
additional $6.5 trillion to pay scheduled benefits;
Whereas, on January 1, 2012, without Congressional action,
Medicare physician payments will be cut by 27.4 percent;
Whereas in order to preserve access to health care for the
nation's seniors, two years of stable Medicare payment rates
would provide the most certainty physicians have had since
2004;
Whereas a two-year period of stability would provide
Congress time to develop a long-term replacement to the
Sustainable Growth Rate formula;
Whereas 13 million Americans remain unemployed and the
unemployment rate has been above eight percent for 34
consecutive months, the Congress should enact needed reforms
to ensure a fiscally responsible unemployment insurance
program;
Whereas H.R. 3630 as passed by the House provided a fully
offset extension of unemployment insurance benefits in line
with previous periods of economic duress and integrated
common-sense reforms into the program, including a
requirement that benefit recipients search for work and
participate in reemployment services to help them get back to
work;
Whereas construction of the Keystone XL pipeline from
Hardisty, Alberta, to Steele City, Nebraska, and to the
United States Gulf Coast through Cushing, Oklahoma, is a $7
billion energy project that will enhance the energy security
and economy of the United States;
Whereas the Keystone XL pipeline will create 20,000 direct
jobs and 118,000 indirect jobs;
Whereas the Keystone XL pipeline has been subjected to
three years of intensive environmental review, and was deemed
environmentally sound by the U.S. Department of State in its
August 26, 2011, Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS);
Whereas Keystone XL pipeline legislation passed by the
House and Senate would allow the state of Nebraska to
continue its environmental review of a new pipeline route to
avoid the Sand Hills region and the Ogallala Aquifer;
Whereas H.R. 3630 as passed by the House will reduce the
cost for employers to purchase and place in service new
equipment next year, and continued expensing will serve as an
incentive to make investments and foster greater business
investment and job creation;
Whereas EPA's new proposed rules for boilers would cost
manufacturers, colleges and universities, municipalities, and
small businesses $15 billion and put up to 240,000 jobs at
risk;
Whereas significant concerns with EPA's new proposed rules
cannot be adequately addressed or remedied unless Congress
passes legislation; and
Whereas the House of Representatives passed on October 13,
2011, by a vote of 275 to 142, with the support of 41
Democrats, legislation that would overturn EPA's Boiler MACT
rules and require the agency to re-propose new rules in 15
months after date of enactment, with achievable standards,
and an extension of the compliance period from three years to
five years: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the Sense of the House of
Representatives that any final measure to extend the payroll
tax holiday, extend Federally funded unemployment insurance
benefits, or prevent decreases in reimbursement for
physicians who provide care to Medicare beneficiaries--
(1) extend the payroll tax holiday through December 31,
2012;
(2) extend and reform Federally funded unemployment
insurance benefits;
(3) eliminate for two years the dramatic cut in
reimbursement for physicians who provide care to Medicare
beneficiaries;
(4) reduce spending from areas throughout the Federal
Government, including a freeze on congressional salaries, in
order to protect the Social Security Trust Fund, whose
solvency would otherwise be diminished as result of the
payroll tax holiday; and
(5) provide immediate job creation through--
(A) final approval of the Keystone XL pipeline;
(B) expensing for capital assets placed in service in 2012;
and
(C) drafting new regulations for boilers that are
achievable and cost-effective.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price) and a
Member to be recognized later each will control 30 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Clearly, the economy and jobs is the number one issue for the
American people all across this land; and if you were to ask the folks
who create jobs what is the greatest impediment to job creation, they
would say it's uncertainty.
Businesses don't know what taxes are going to be. Job creators don't
know what the rules and regulations are going to be. Employees and
workers don't know if their jobs will be lost. Doctors don't know
whether or not they're going to be able to see Medicare patients.
Patients don't know whether or not they're going to be able to see
their doctors.
Therefore, the House believes what the American people already know:
that more certainty, greater certainty, is imperative if we're going to
get this economy rolling again. Consequently, we, the House, passed a
bill that provides that certainty.
Our bill provides for a 1-year extension of the payroll contribution
to Social Security, offset so that Social Security resources are not
depleted;
Our bill provides for a 13-month extension of Federal unemployment
benefits with real reform, including job training and helping folks get
GEDs and allowing drug screening by States for those receiving benefits
should they so desire;
Our bill provides a 2-year extension of payments to doctors caring
for seniors--for Medicare patients--so that our parents and our
grandparents can continue to see their doctors.
So the House passed a 1-year extension of the payroll tax reduction
and paid for it with reduced spending elsewhere. Yet the Senate, Mr.
Speaker, wants 60 days and more uncertainty. The House passed a 13-
month extension of Federal unemployment benefits. The Senate wants 60
days and more uncertainty. The House passed a 2-year continuation of
funding for doctors to see Medicare patients. The Senate--that's right,
Mr. Speaker--wants 60 days and more uncertainty.
Republicans and Democrats in both the House and the Senate agree that
we ought to extend these items. There
[[Page H9988]]
is no debate about that. The differences lie in whether or not we get
our job done now or whether we punt the fulfilling of our
responsibilities for another 2 months. The Senate's action is
unworkable and unacceptable. Various organizations representing job
creators have already said that a 2-month punt is unworkable and
costly--therefore harming more job creation.
Now we're ready to sit down with our colleagues on the other side of
the aisle and on the other side of the Capitol to get a 1-year
extension put in place before the end of this year. That's what you do
when there are differences in the House and the Senate. Both sides have
passed legislation, but we have disagreements. So now we ought to sit
down, like Congresses have done for over 200 years, and work out those
differences. We ought to do that today, not 2 months from now.
This resolution makes it clear that the House supports taking care of
middle class families, seniors, and job creators. It makes it clear
that the House stands ready and willing to work with the Senate to get
this done. If our colleagues on the other side of the aisle support
providing relief and certainty for middle class families and for
seniors and for job creators, then they ought to support this
resolution. There is bipartisan support for the proposals within this
resolution, and there is bipartisan support for a 1-year extension.
I call on my colleagues to support this resolution and support the
efforts under way to work out our differences with the Democrat-led
Senate and to put in place a set of solutions that will create
certainty for families, job creators, and seniors.
I reserve the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the gentleman from South
Carolina (Mr. Clyburn) will control 30 minutes.
There was no objection.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to claim time in opposition as the
designee of the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin), and I yield myself
such time as I may consume.
Unemployment rates, according to a recent report this morning, fell
in 43 States during the month of November--the most States to decline
since 2003. The media are reporting that the economy has generated
100,000 or more jobs 5 months in a row--the first time that has
happened since 2006, which was before the Great Recession.
Mr. Speaker, 89 Senators--50 Democrats and 39 Republicans--have
passed a bipartisan agreement to extend the current payroll tax,
unemployment insurance benefits, and Medicare doctors' payments for
another 60 days so that we can continue to seek common ground for a
full 12-month extension and keep these great numbers in front of us.
Let there be no mistake. The only way for the Members of this body to
prevent a tax increase on 160 million working Americans is to pass the
Senate's bipartisan agreement. The only way to prevent cutting off
unemployment insurance for 2.2 million Americans who are currently
unemployed and looking for work is to pass the Senate's bipartisan
agreement. Let me be crystal clear. The only way to prevent cutting
funds to pay doctors who care for Medicare patients is to pass the
Senate's bipartisan agreement.
The Senate Democratic leader and the Senate Republican leader
demonstrated to the American people that Democrats and Republicans can
work together. They passed a bipartisan compromise to get this done.
Mr. Speaker, my constituents continue to ask time and time again: Why
can't you guys work together to get something done for the American
people? It is a good question. It is a fair question. And the Senate
has answered that we can.
It is my fervent hope that we in this body join them today and do the
right thing for the American people.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1420
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I respectfully suggest to my
friend from South Carolina that the best way to provide certainty for
families and job creators and for seniors is to have a House-Senate
conference committee work together before the end of the year.
I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to my friend and colleague from
Tennessee (Mr. Roe).
Mr. ROE of Tennessee. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, last week the House passed the Middle Class Tax Relief
and Job Creation Act with the support of both sides of the aisle. The
economy is struggling--perhaps getting better, but struggling.
The President asked for a 1-year extension of the payroll tax
holiday. We agree with that, a 1-year extension. Extend and reform the
unemployment insurance plan benefits; we agree with that. A 2-year
extension of the so-called doc fix. I'm a physician. I have been here
now for 3 years. In the 3 years I have been here, Mr. Speaker, we've
had six temporary extensions. This will be number seven. For access to
care for patients, we must get a permanent fix for SGR or no patients
are going to have access. And I have spoken to numerous colleagues who
totally disagree with this 60-day extension. The true shovel-ready
project, which is the Keystone pipeline, will give us access to energy
in this continent with one of our best neighbors, Canada.
All of these issues that we've talked about are paid for with
spending cuts, not tax increases and not deficit spending. The Senate,
however, passed only a 60-day extension; the House, 1 year. Sixty days
versus 1 year.
The distinguished Senator from Tennessee, Senator Bob Corker, just
said, ``Senator Reid should stop this political gamesmanship, call the
Senate back into session, and follow the `regular order,' '' which
means both sides of the aisle, the House and the Senate, produce a
conference bill ``to produce better legislation that reflects the will
of the House and Senate.''
Like most Americans, we should be at work this week to finish the
business they elected us to do. Please support this amendment.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from
New York (Mrs. Maloney).
Mrs. MALONEY. I thank the gentleman for his leadership and for
yielding.
The Senate has gone home for Christmas. And just 5 minutes before I
came to this floor, the President made an announcement from the White
House that he supported the bipartisan Senate compromise bill that
passed the Senate 89-10. And we need to pass it and wrap up this
Christmas present for the middle class.
Instead of the pattern of obstruction that is constantly coming from
the other side of the aisle, we should introduce the Senate bill here
in the House and pass it for the American people. The House leadership
should allow an up-or-down vote and extend the payroll tax cut, the
unemployment benefits, and the doc fix for the middle class.
Without this 2-month extension, 160 million Americans will face a tax
hike starting January 1. The idea that it is somehow acceptable to let
this happen is to be blind to the economic struggles that American
middle class families are now facing and to be totally, totally deaf to
the cries for help from the many people--the 2.2 million Americans--who
will see their unemployment benefits expire if we do not pass the
Senate bill. This is an exercise in rigid partisan ideology that will
also result in an additional 48 million seniors being denied access to
their doctors.
No bill will make everybody happy. But to stop this Senate bill now,
one that is so important to so many Americans, just to please the rigid
ideology of the very few, it is the tail wagging the elephant, and it
is obstructionist to the American people. And it is just in time for
Christmas, and it is indefensible.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\
minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton).
(Mr. BARTON of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and
extend his remarks.)
Mr. BARTON of Texas. I thank the distinguished policy chairman, and I
thank the gentleman from Idaho for his evenhanded leadership in the
debate.
Mr. Speaker, I voted to send the Senate bill to conference, and I
hope that both parties in both Chambers appoint serious conferees and
really try to come up with a solution to the problem.
I do want to point out a few facts that have been avoided on both
sides of
[[Page H9989]]
the aisle. It's really not a payroll tax. It is a Social Security
dedicated trust fund tax.
Since Franklin Roosevelt and the Congress created Social Security in
the 1930s, payroll Social Security taxes go into the system by workers,
employers, and self-employed individuals, and then benefits come out.
Last year, for the first time, we reduced the amount of Social
Security taxes going into the system and gave an IOU from the Treasury
into the Social Security trust fund. The extension, whether it's for 2
months or 1 year, of that same policy this year is taking $120 billion
to $150 billion out of the system that's real money and putting into it
an IOU that we will pay at a date future. This would be like if I went
to the doctor and the doctor tells me that I have got lung cancer, and
I say, ``Well, what should I do, Doctor?'' and he says, ``Smoke more
cigarettes.''
I mean, we paid more out in Social Security benefits this current
year than we paid in, and this exacerbates the problem. I would ask
that we come up with a permanent solution, Mr. Speaker, and not keep
avoiding the problem.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 4 minutes to
the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman).
Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, this has been a terrible year in Congress.
The intransigence of the Republican leadership and the Tea Party
Republicans has brought us to the brink of crisis again and again. And
now we're playing another game of chicken with the lives and well-being
of millions of American families at stake.
Did the Republican leadership in the House just learn today that at
the end of this month, in 10 or 11 days, these tax breaks, the
unemployment insurance, and the physician reimbursements were going to
expire? No, they learned about it earlier. So they packaged a bill. And
the only way they could figure to pay for it was to take it out of the
Federal employees, ask the elderly to pay more for their Medicare, to
cut back on spending, never to raise taxes on people who make $1
million a year.
The Senate had the same issue before them, and the Democrats there
wanted to have a tax increase. They couldn't get that through. So the
Senators negotiated a short-term extension for 2 months because they
couldn't agree to 1 year, and that passed overwhelmingly. That is what
we should be voting on today.
Instead, starting January 1, the House Republicans are bringing a tax
increase to 160 million Americans, forcing 2 million Americans to the
edge of despair as their unemployment benefits run out, and scaring 48
million seniors who worry about their doctors opting out of providing
services under Medicare.
And to add insult to injury, this resolution seeks to impose the
Republicans' extreme antienvironment agenda onto legislation essential
to the economic security of the American people. This has been the most
antienvironment House of Representatives in the history of Congress,
and this resolution is a fitting capstone to this dismal record.
{time} 1430
House Republicans are holding payroll tax cuts, unemployment
insurance, and payment to physicians under Medicare hostage to the
rapacious demands of the oil and gas industry.
The House Republicans want to force the President to approve the
Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. They forget that the future of our
economy lies in clean energy, not increasing our reliance on the
dirtiest source of gasoline imaginable. They would like to hold the
pipeline as one of the prices for their blackmail, but they also want
to give some other special interest favors; a lump of coal for American
families, but at the same time they want EPA's public health standards,
which would prevent up to 8,100 premature deaths and 5,100 heart
attacks every year, they want to eliminate those public health benefits
that come with clean air. And instead, they want provisions in this
bill, which has nothing to do with this issue, they want these
provisions to allow more mercury, lead, and arsenic pollution in the
air we breathe.
We've seen this over and over again. They cannot agree on a
compromise to pay for anything. They cannot agree on letting something
happen without putting in the anti-environmental riders. Once again the
Republican leadership has shown the lengths to which they will go to
impose their radical, extreme agenda, sacrificing the public health and
welfare of the American people.
The Senate at least came up with a bipartisan compromise for 2
months. This House Republican leadership will put us in a situation
where all of these expiring provisions will in fact expire, and the
American people will be done a great disservice by this action.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to
a productive and excellent member of our conference, the gentleman from
South Carolina (Mr. Wilson).
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. I thank the chairman for yielding. I
want to thank him for his leadership of the Republican Policy Committee
and his work on this legislation.
Last week the House passed a 1-year payroll extension which included
a provision to override the administration's decision against the
Keystone pipeline, a real shovel-ready project. The President's
decision will delay the Keystone project until 2013, after the
election, which clearly reveals this is a political not scientific
decision. On August 26, the Department of State deemed the project to
be environmentally sound after 3 years of analysis.
In late October, I was fortunate to visit Alberta, Canada, which is
America's largest trading partner, and witnessed firsthand the Canadian
oil sands development and the extraordinary environmental safeguards to
produce oil in North America. The construction of this environmentally
advanced project will create 120,000 new jobs in America. With record
unemployment, Americans need jobs now. And I know firsthand that the
workers in the Michelin Tire Corporation of Lexington, South Carolina,
are ready to produce huge earth mover tires, and MTU will produce
engines.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I want to remind my good friend from South
Carolina that the Keystone pipeline is in the Senate bill.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the
gentlelady from California, Mrs. Susan Davis.
Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, we are here today because the
Senate did a terrible thing in the eyes of the House majority: they had
the audacity to work together and come up with a compromise.
At the request of the Speaker of the House, the Senate majority
leader and the Senate minority leader reached a compromise on a payroll
tax cut extension. There were even high fives among Senate Republicans
after that Saturday vote. Eighty-nine Senators voted for, including 82
percent of Senate Republicans. The Speaker called it a ``good deal.''
But then came the revolt from House Republicans.
People are asking, Mr. Speaker, and I think it's a fair question to
ask: Do House Republicans really want Congress to function? By denying
a vote on this bipartisan compromise, it allows them to continue to
push their theme that Washington is dysfunctional and does not work.
Had the House majority brought up a clean tax bill last week, we
would not even be here today. But instead, they offered a bill loaded
with special interest riders that was designed to fail and, in fact, it
did fail. The majority claims that it wants certainty with a long-term
extension of the middle class tax cut. Yes, and many here, including
myself, we do want a long-term extension, and those negotiations will
continue.
If the House majority was talking about tax cuts for the wealthiest
Americans, they would roll out the red carpet. But when it comes to
help and support for the middle class, they pull the rug out from under
them.
It is clear, Mr. Speaker, that they are willing to support a $120
billion tax increase on Americans fighting to restore the American
Dream rather than accepting this bipartisan compromise that is before
us today.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, how much time remains for each
side?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Georgia has 22\1/2\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from South Carolina has 19 minutes
remaining.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr.
McClintock).
[[Page H9990]]
Mr. McCLINTOCK. I thank the gentleman.
Mr. Speaker, in all of this debate, I think that both parties have
overlooked a critical problem. Both versions of this bill impose a
permanent new tax on every mortgage backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie
Mac. To pay for an additional 2 months of tax relief under the Senate
version or 12 months under the House version, more than $3,000 in new
taxes will be imposed on every $150,000 mortgage backed by Fannie or
Freddie. A family taking out a $250,000 mortgage will pay $5,000 more
in taxes directly and solely because of this bill hidden in their
future mortgage payments.
This is atrocious public policy. It shifts the burden for this bill
to future home buyers, kicks the housing market when it's already down,
makes it that much more expensive for home buyers to re-enter the
market, and adds to the pressures that have chronically depressed
everyone's home values. That's the reason that both the Senate and the
House versions need to go back for major revision.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to
the gentleman from Rhode Island (Mr. Langevin).
(Mr. LANGEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. LANGEVIN. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I find it thoroughly unconscionable that House
Republicans are preventing Congress from working its will by stifling a
vote to support a bipartisan Senate compromise to extend unemployment
benefits and the middle class tax cut for 2 months. While I strongly
believe the middle class tax cuts and other provisions within this bill
deserve a full-year extension, the utter intransigence of Tea Party
Republicans has made compromise without a self-imposed crisis
practically impossible.
We could have spent the better part of a year working on this bill,
and others like it, to buoy our economy and help Americans get back to
work. Instead, the Republican majority spent most of the entire session
considering multiple bills to repeal health reform, rescind
environmental protections, and further deregulate the financial
industry, none of which helps create jobs for my constituents back in
Rhode Island.
Now my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have made a last-
minute decision to derail a compromise on the one bill that economists
agree would actually stimulate the economy. As a result, when families
across Rhode Island come together to celebrate the holidays, they are
going to face the possibility of paying higher taxes or seeing their
unemployment benefits expire in the new year. This is unacceptable and
it is unnecessary.
Mr. Speaker, Americans are weary of the political games and the
broken promises that have brought us to this point. They want a
Congress that can come together and legislate in their best interests.
Instead, House Republicans are holding the middle class tax cuts
hostage to further their political agenda, despite calls from members
of their own party asking them to accept a bipartisan compromise which
overwhelmingly passed the Senate 89-10.
I urge my Republican colleagues to stop risking the welfare of the
American people for their political leverage. Give us the opportunity
to pass a 2-month extension so that our constituents have some
reassurance that they won't be worse off come New Year's Day. The
interests of the American families deserve to be put before the
interests of political partisanship. During this holiday season, I pray
that this Congress can honor that.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\
minutes to a dear friend and a wonderful member of the Energy and
Commerce Committee, the gentlelady from Tennessee (Mrs. Blackburn).
Mrs. BLACKBURN. I thank the gentleman from Georgia for his excellent
work on House Resolution 501, which expresses what we as Republicans
stand for as we fight to provide accountability for hardworking
American taxpayers.
{time} 1440
We are for certainty for these taxpayers. We are for unemployment
insurance reforms. We are for freezing Federal salaries. We are for
certainty for our seniors. We are for fairness for our doctors and
hospitals. We are for jobs for the American people in the form of the
Keystone XL pipeline, in the form of Boiler MACT, and the other bills
that will help put thousands of Americans back to work. We all know
that Washington takes too much and Washington wastes a lot of the money
that it takes, and the American people want to see more of that money
left in their pocket.
Indeed, Mr. Speaker, part of the debate that is taking place today is
about a transition that we are going through, and House Republicans are
grateful for the opportunity to lead this transition from a government
that is addicted to the taxpayers' money--yes, indeed, it never gets
enough--to a government that is going to be accountable to the
hardworking American taxpayer.
Now, for some of my colleagues, they may want to call that
``radical.'' They may want to call it ``extreme.'' They may want to say
that it is holding ideas hostage. It is about freedom. We stand with
hardworking taxpayers.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I remind the gentlelady from Tennessee that
that is exactly what this bill is designed to do, put into the pockets
of 160 million Americans an extended tax cut.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Ellison).
Mr. ELLISON. I thank the gentleman.
Mr. Speaker, we're here because for the last year the majority could
have come down here and we could have had this debate all this time.
But at the 11th hour after they signaled to the Senate, work it out,
get a deal together because we have not done it, the Senate did work
that deal out. And now that it has come back, our friends in the House
majority have said ``not good enough,'' conveniently after the Senate
has gone home.
It feels like a setup. I don't question motives, but it feels that
way. And it goes to the heart of the matter: Is the government here of
the people, by the people, for the people and for the benefit of the
people? Or do people basically have hostility to government and want to
make government look dysfunctional at every turn?
The fact is, Mr. Speaker, there was an agreement in the Senate. It
was coming over here, and it looked like government was going to
prevail and that we had gotten our act together and worked it out. But
before that ever happened, the people who stand in opposition to good
government broke that deal apart. The people who believe that
government should be shrunk to the size where it can be drowned in a
bathtub could not possibly let a deal for the American people go
through, and they've smashed that deal.
And right now, this year, the clock is running out. The Senate has
gone home, and our friends on the other side of the aisle are playing a
dangerous game with the lives of 160 million Americans.
It's a shame and a disgrace. We ought to pass this bill the Senate
sent over here and stop messing around with the livelihood of
Americans.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to yield 3 minutes to
our Republican chair of our conference, the gentleman from Texas (Mr.
Hensarling).
Mr. HENSARLING. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, if my friends on the other side of the aisle are
confused about why we're here, let me enlighten them. It's because the
President's policies have failed. In the Obama economy, employment has
been at, near or above 9 percent ever since the gentleman was elected.
One in seven are on food stamps, and small business start-ups are at a
17-year low. So, Mr. Speaker, that's why we're here today. I think
almost everyone in this Chamber agrees, yes, we want to extend the
Social Security payroll tax holiday.
But what is so curious to me, Mr. Speaker, is I hear my friends on
the other side of the aisle say, we need to do it for a year, but we're
only willing to vote for 60 days. I don't understand that, Mr. Speaker.
And I hear my friends on the other side of the aisle saying, middle-
income families deserve this $1,000 tax cut; yet they're only willing
to vote for $160. And then they say, we have to pass it today, we can't
let New Year's Day come without passing this; and yet they won't
appoint
[[Page H9991]]
anybody to a conference committee, and everyone is getting ready to run
to the airport. I don't understand it, Mr. Speaker.
So the question is, are my friends on the other side of the aisle
interested in making a law that will help American families and
hardworking taxpayers, or are they interested in making a campaign
issue that they can recycle every 60 days? Only they can answer the
question.
Now, Mr. Speaker, it is inconvenient in tough economic times that our
constituents have to work over the holidays. Maybe it should be
inconvenient to us as well. We stand ready. We just can't do our job if
the Senate Democratic leader refuses to appoint anybody and if the
House Democratic leader refuses to appoint anybody to sit down and
negotiate in good faith. I'm sorry it's inconvenient for my friends on
the other side of the aisle to work during the holidays.
Then last but not least, I hear my friends on the other side of the
aisle saying we need something that works for the American people.
Well, guess what? Once again, they didn't consult with the American
people. All of the employers that we hear about are saying this is
unworkable. The Associated Builders and Contractors, I quote, talking
about their 60-day plan: ``This sort of temporary fix underscores
Congress' uneven ad hoc approach toward the economy and causes more
harm than good for America's job creators.'' I hear from job creators
from my own district in Kaufman County, Texas: ``The 2-month extension
is more hassle than a help. It's impossible to budget and plan for an
unknown.''
Mr. Speaker, if you want a year of tax relief, vote for a year of tax
relief. If you want $1,000 in tax relief, vote for it and be willing to
work over the holidays.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I remind my friend from Texas that
according to all reports, last month 43 States registered a decrease in
unemployment, the first time that's happened since the year 2003.
With that, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Towns).
Mr. TOWNS. I thank my colleague and friend for yielding.
I rise because I believe we have lost sight of why we are here. I
want to remind my colleagues that we are here to represent the American
people. We are here to ensure that as many as possible have the
resources they need to pay their bills, feed their families, and
maintain a suitable place to live. Today, there are millions of
Americans who are struggling and do not have a suitable place to live.
Many people are suffering because of an economy that is beyond their
control. The bottom line is they need us to do something about it. They
need us to extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance for at
least the next 2 months until we can agree on how to do it for the
entire year.
The last thing working Americans need to see is a reduction in their
paychecks because we failed to extend the payroll tax cuts. We can
today make sure they at least get some assistance for the next 2
months. Then we can reach an agreement on how to do this for the entire
year. That doesn't seem to be unreasonable. It's just 2 months.
We need to vote on the Senate bill today. And as my colleague was
talking about not leaving town, you're right. We should not leave town
until we pass this bill, and we need to let millions of struggling
families and children know that they will have some relief at least for
the next 2 months so they can enjoy the holidays, so they can really
believe in merry Christmas and a happy new year. And that's all we need
to do before leaving here is to pass it for 2 months, just 2 months.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield 1 minute to my physician
colleague from Indiana (Mr. Bucshon).
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution
501. As a cardiothoracic surgeon, I often worked through the holidays
since, guess what? No one chooses when they have a heart attack. I did
my job. I'm here today to do my job, and I'll work through the holidays
if that's what it takes. We have 11 days to pass a tax relief bill
along with the extension of unemployment insurance, Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families and, finally, 11 days to prevent a 27
percent cut to Medicare that will put American seniors at risk of
losing their access to quality health care.
{time} 1450
Seniors rely on being able to see their doctors. This 60-day patch
does nothing to create certainty for providers of seniors; in fact, it
jeopardizes their care.
I support the bill we passed last week. I support this resolution. I
urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on House Resolution 501.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time is
remaining.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from South Carolina has 12\3/
4\ minutes remaining. The gentleman from Georgia has 16 minutes
remaining.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield 1 minute to a freshman
Member from Mississippi (Mr. Nunnelee).
Mr. NUNNELEE. I thank the chairman for yielding.
I rise in support of the House-passed provisions, specifically the
provisions relating to unemployment insurance reform.
We passed a full year, we extended the benefits, but we added
commonsense reform, things like strengthening enforcement of waste,
fraud, and abuse in unemployment benefits, strengthening work search
and education requirements, and allowing States to test for drugs for
those that are receiving benefits. It's very simple: If men and women
that are working have to pass a drug test in order to draw their
paycheck, those receiving unemployment benefits ought to have to pass
the same drug test.
So I call on Harry Reid to bring the Senate back to work so that we
can reach a full year's agreement that includes these reforms to our
unemployment insurance.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to my
friend, another physician colleague and a colleague from the State of
Georgia (Mr. Gingrey).
Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for
yielding, and I rise in strong support of H. Res. 501 and commend the
gentleman for the work he has done.
Colleagues, House Resolution 501 restates the provisions in House
bill H.R. 3630 that we passed last Friday in a very bipartisan way and
sent it over to the Senate--things like, yes, extending the payroll tax
cut to 160 million middle-income Americans for a full year; allowing 99
weeks of unemployment insurance coverage for those individuals who have
been out of work for more than 6 months, we do that for an additional
year; and last but not least, to mitigate the payment cut, the 27
percent payment cut to health care providers who need to be there for
our senior citizens. We do this all, and we pay for it in a responsible
way.
Now, let's be serious about the controversy here in regard to this
Senate amendment versus our bill, H.R. 3630. And it's time, Mr.
Speaker, to end the mendacity. There is not one scintilla of logic in
the Senate amendment to House bill H.R. 3630. The only thing that makes
sense is the Democratic majority in the Senate wants to pay for these
things by raising taxes on job creators. We in the House want to pay
for it in a much more responsible way, raising taxes on nobody, but
freezing salaries for Federal employees--yes, including our ourselves--
for the next 3 years.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an
additional 15 seconds.
Mr. GINGREY of Georgia. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
And the sale of electromagnetic spectrum, which will raise some $8
billion and create thousands of jobs.
So let's not make any pretenses about this. The House and the Senate
have choices: They can name the conferees, they can come to conference,
and they can get this done, or they can let these bills fail and fail
the American people.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to
the gentlelady from Alabama (Ms. Sewell).
[[Page H9992]]
Ms. SEWELL. Mr. Speaker, instead of doing what's best for the
American people, we are once again dealing with the same old partisan
politics that has plagued this Congress this entire year.
The Senate amended and passed a bipartisan bill that would extend the
payroll cuts for millions of workers and families and protect
unemployment benefits for Americans while ensuring our seniors have
access to critical health care. This Senate version reflects a
compromise that was negotiated in good faith, Mr. Speaker, by both
Senate Democrats as well as Senate Republicans. It was overwhelmingly
approved by 89 Senators, including 39 Republican Senators.
As Members of Congress, it is absurd, I believe, that we are being
deprived the opportunity--denied the opportunity--to vote for a bill
that would add certainty to the economy and to the people that we
represent.
It is unacceptable that some of my Republican colleagues in the House
have once again refused to compromise.
Our constituents elected us here to make their lives better, not
worse. This latest Republican grandstand will cost the American public
dearly. As a result, 160 million middle class Americans will see a
payroll tax increase, and over 2 million Americans, including almost
25,000 Alabamians, will begin losing their unemployment benefits.
While I had hoped for a 1-year extension, like many here, this 2-
month compromise is better than the alternative, which is to let
millions of Americans suffer economic hardship.
It was Martin Luther King who said that the time is always right to
do what is right. It is right this holiday season to make sure that the
American public enjoys the blessings of this holiday season by being
assured of the protections that they've already so greatly earned.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to
the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Duffy).
Mr. DUFFY. I appreciate the gentleman for yielding.
I am sick of the demagoguery. I think it is important that we truly
talk about the facts. This is not a debate about whether we're going to
extend the payroll tax holiday or not. This is a debate about what kind
of extension we're going to get. Is it going to be 1 year or is it
going to be 60 days?
To be clear, we are advocating for a 1-year extension, which is a
$1,000 tax break for every American in this country. My friends across
the aisle are advocating for a $170 payroll tax cut. $1,000 versus
$170.
We're talking about Christmas gifts. A $170 payroll tax gift is not a
Christmas gift to the American people, but $1,000 would be. The only
gift I hear being offered here is the gift to the Senate colleagues who
want to go home for Christmas.
Let's stay here and do the work of the American people, make sure we
extend the payroll tax holiday, and make sure we give certainty to
every American throughout the country.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to
the gentleman from California (Mr. Garamendi).
Mr. GARAMENDI. I think somehow I made a mistake. I came over here to
listen to the debate, and it's almost like ``Alice in Wonderland,''
like we all fell down the hole here--up is down, down is up, black is
white, white is black. I mean, this is confusing to the folks out
there, so let's just try to understand where we are at this moment.
We sent a bill--that is, the Republicans in this House sent a bill to
the Senate that was rejected, rejected for several reasons. One of them
was the pay-for, how is it going to be paid for--ways that dealt, I
think, unfairly with workers who are unemployed. It shortened the
period of unemployment not to 99 weeks, but even shorter, to just over
50. And it also went after Medicare recipients, causing them to pay
more. It was rejected by the Senate.
The Senate put together a compromise. Ninety percent of the
Senators--well, just short of 90 percent--89 Senators, Democrat and
Republican, voted for a 2-month compromise that was paid for, with the
understanding that they would spend the next 2 months trying to figure
out how to make this thing last a whole year.
We're really far apart on many of the underlying things, and so here
we are running up against the deadline. And, by the way, if we had a
conference committee, if we actually had a conference committee and
they came to a conclusion before the end of the year, did anybody
consider the Senate rules? There is a potential of 90 hours of debate
in the Senate before it could be taken up and passed.
So what are we doing here?
We ought to think about the people out there and about the
foolishness of all that's going on around here. Let's just agree to
where the Senate is. We've got 2 months to figure out how to make the
rest of the year work. And the rhetoric goes back and forth.
We're not in ``Alice in Wonderland'' here. This is about the people
of the United States. We have an opportunity to get this thing done
only for 2 months. Nobody is happy about that, but at least we can get
it done and we can come back and deal with some very difficult
underlying issues for which there is no agreement at this moment. We
need time to do that. The conference committee could surely not do
that.
{time} 1500
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to
the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Griffith).
Mr. GRIFFITH of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I think that if Thomas
Jefferson had just dropped back into this body, he would think he was
Alice in Wonderland because when he wrote the wonderful ``Jefferson
Manual of Parliamentary Procedure,'' he made it very clear that we had
two bodies in this government, the Senate and the House; and each was
to act independently one from the other in order to come up with what
was right for the American people.
We are now told today that we are supposed to except a compromise
that the Senators compromised on and then left town to go home to
celebrate their holiday.
Ladies and gentlemen, I don't think that's appropriate. I think we
should do what the system called for when our Founding Fathers put it
together, that is, they do their business, we do our business, and we
do what we think is right. We are trying to do what we think is right
here today.
This resolution includes many parts. One of those parts that I think
is extremely important is the Boiler MACT part. It had 41 Democrat
votes in this House. It has 13 Democrat cosponsors in the Senate. It is
a very bipartisan and popular measure, and I hope we adopt the
resolution.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, how much time is now remaining?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from South Carolina has 8\3/4\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Georgia has 11\1/4\ minutes
remaining.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield 1 minute to a physician
colleague from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy).
Mr. CASSIDY. I actually again agree with my colleague, Mr. Garamendi.
There has been a lot of sturm und drang, but there's actually something
that we can agree upon here.
First, I'll say that President Obama, many congressional Democrats
and House Republicans all agree that 12 months would be better than 2
months in terms of the extension of these things. The Senate disagreed.
They did it for 2 months.
The Constitution says that if the House and the Senate disagree, the
two come together, have a conference, a compromise, common ground is
found, and then both Houses vote upon it. For some reason, we don't
want to go through that process. For some reason, Senator Reid does not
want to bring his people back from vacation to vote.
Now, I will say that all this other conversation about issues kind of
obscures--I think, almost is there to obscure the fact that this is
about whether regular order will be followed, whether the
constitutional method of resolving differences will be employed.
Now, I would say that I ask the Senators to pay attention to what the
Constitution says, to do the work of the American people. I know it's
inconvenient. I know it's a holiday, but this is too important. Let's
not give up on the process.
[[Page H9993]]
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman
from Pennsylvania (Mr. Murphy).
Mr. MURPHY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, families are doing holiday
shopping, planning budgets. So are employers.
Now we're being asked to accept a 2-month plan here, $166 per family,
and a message of: Trust us and we'll come back.
Congress needs to be doing more than rehashing this again. We need to
be dealing with unemployment, the deficit, and not just spending more
time over 2 months.
We're telling families to accept $166 instead of $1,000. For that
$166, that's about a week and half of groceries for a family of four.
For that same family of four, we're talking about 12 months of gas
bills, 11 months of diapers, 10 electric utility bills, 9 months of
baby formula, 8 months of cable, 7 months of auto insurance, 6 weeks of
groceries, 5 months of gasoline, four student loan payments, three car
payments, two credit card bills, and one mortgage payment for your
house.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to
the gentleman from Missouri, the chair of the Congressional Black
Caucus, Mr. Cleaver.
Mr. CLEAVER. I sat in my office and listened to this debate; and the
one thing I know is that neither side is listening to each other.
Everybody's just trying to say something. The people at home are
probably trying to figure out if there is any sanity anywhere in
Washington. We're having fact-free debates, and the truth of the matter
is that we're putting ideology over logic.
I'm not going to be here on Christmas. You can get whatever people
you want. You can send all kinds of things into my district. We're on
the verge of the second holiest holiday in my religious tradition. I'm
going to be home. I'm going to be in church.
This is sick. This is sick. And the people all over the country, the
people in the gallery, they know that they are watching
dysfunctionality at its best. I'm ashamed, ashamed that this kind of
thing is going on and the world is watching.
All we need to do is wait until a better season so that we don't look
as bad. Every minute we debate, our poll numbers drop. It's probably at
a point now where they can't drop any further.
But can't we stop this and start trying to rationally deal with the
business of the public?
We're not listening to each other. The media just wants to listen to
see if anybody's going to say anything that's caustic. The red meat
crowd is waiting for somebody to say something insulting to the other
side.
We ought to be listening to our better selves. We ought to call the
best in us out right now, solve this problem, and go home and be with
our families.
I'm going to be with my family. You guys can stay here and scream at
each other all you want. I'm going home.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I would remind my friend that it
was President Obama who said:
This Congress cannot and should not leave for vacation
until that--until they have made sure that that tax increase
doesn't happen. Let me repeat that: Congress should not and
cannot go on vacation before they have made sure that working
families aren't seeing their taxes go up by a thousand
dollars.
Mr. Speaker, in order for their taxes not to go up by $1,000, the
length of time of the payroll tax reduction has to be 1 year, not 60
days.
I am pleased to yield a minute and a half to my friend from Texas
(Mr. Culberson).
Mr. CULBERSON. We're sending this bill back to conference because we
share Speaker John Boehner's core governing principle to do the right
thing for the right reasons for the country. And the right thing to do
here is to make sure nobody's payroll taxes go up for at least a year.
The House bill does that.
If you want your payroll taxes to go up in 2 months, then you would
support the Senate bill.
We are sending this bill back to conference because the Senate bill,
unlike the House bill, the Senate bill does not require people applying
for unemployment to either get a GED or show that they're working their
way towards a degree. The Senate bill doesn't do those things. So we're
obviously sending this bill back to conference.
The House bill also gives States the flexibility to require
unemployment beneficiaries to submit to drug testing, which is
something common sense that everybody in the country can understand.
The Speaker also included in the House bill the ability for
businesses to expense 100 percent of the money they invest in new
investments and that, obviously, is going to create jobs immediately.
The Senate took that language out.
This is just not complicated. If you want your payroll taxes to stay
the same for 12 months, then you would support the House bill. If you
want your payroll tax to go up in 2 months, then you'd support the
Senate bill. This is not a complicated debate. This is very
straightforward.
We in the House want to make sure that nobody's tax goes up for at
least 12 months so people can plan, so businesses can predict, so they
can expense money that they can invest so that they can create jobs. We
also want to make sure that businesses in America can continue to
create jobs.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, it is now my pleasure to yield 1 minute to
the gentlelady from Maryland (Ms. Edwards).
Ms. EDWARDS. 160 million Americans are wondering why Republicans want
to raise their taxes on January 1. There are 2.2 million Americans
wondering why the Republicans think that what unemployment people need
is a drug test instead of a job or, in the absence of that,
unemployment benefits.
Doctors all across this country who treat Medicare patients, Mr.
Speaker, are wondering why it is that Republicans want to ensure that
their doctors receive 25 percent less than they should for treating
Medicare patients.
I have to tell you, I am with the American public. I'm completely
confused about why Republicans in this Congress want to send Americans
into January 2012 without an unemployment check, with a raise in their
taxes, and cutting their Medicare benefits. That's what the American
people want to know and don't understand. And they want to know why
these House Republicans can't go along with what House Democrats want
to do, what Senate Democrats already voted to do, what Republicans in
the Senate already voted to. And it's time for us to do the business of
the American people.
{time} 1510
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire of my colleague as
to how many speakers he has remaining?
Mr. CLYBURN. I have two speakers left.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from South Carolina has 5\3/4\
minutes remaining. The gentleman from Georgia has 7\1/4\ minutes
remaining.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield a minute and
a half to my physician colleague from the great State of Maryland (Mr.
Harris).
Mr. HARRIS. Thank you very much, Mr. Floor Leader, for yielding the
time.
The last time the Senators passed a major bill over just before
Christmas, it was 2009. It was the ObamaCare bill. That last Congress,
the 111th Congress, decided not to go to conference and accept what the
Senate sent over.
Mr. Speaker, I ask those Americans watching to ask themselves: How
did that work for you? That's what they want us to do with this piece
of legislation, just accept what the Senate says. They want to go home
for Christmas, and we'll just see how it all works out. Didn't work out
so good that time; won't work out so good this time.
The gentleman from California said you almost need a playbook to
figure out what's going on. Mr. Speaker, thank goodness we have one.
It's called House.gov. You can go and you can see exactly how your
Representative voted on a 1-year tax cut extension.
We took a vote last week. You can go see that one. We're going to
take three today, whether you want a 1-year or a 2-month. Go to
House.gov. You don't have to believe what anyone says on the floor. Go
to House.gov.
Now, Mr. Speaker, let's talk about the other part of the bill, which
is a 2-year Medicare fixed SGR. I ask those seniors who are watching,
pick up the
[[Page H9994]]
phone once this debate is over and call your doctor's office. Ask him
one question: Do you want a 2-month fix or do you want a 2-year fix?
That's all. Simple question. Let's see what the doctors want.
I know we in Washington like to think we know best for everything
that goes on, including what our Medicare seniors want and their
doctors want. I ask our seniors to do that.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott).
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, some have suggested that we're choosing between 1 year
and 2 months. The fact is that by rejecting the Senate bill, which
would have created certainty for 2 months, we are instead replacing
that with uncertainty that begins in 2 weeks. Going the direction we're
going in, in 2 weeks we won't know what the situation will be for
payrolls that start on the 1st of January.
A full-year consideration is not going to be achieved in the next 2
weeks. The doc fix we've been working on for years; unemployment
compensation and tax policy we've been working on for a long time. The
idea that we're going to appoint a conference committee and they're
going to meet and agree and figure all of this stuff out in a couple of
days, we tried that with the supercommittee. It didn't work. This
little conference committee is not going to solve all of these problems
in the next 10 days.
So we have a choice: 2 months of certainty or a few days of total
uncertainty. Who knows what's going to happen.
Economists have said if we don't extend the payroll tax and
unemployment compensation that it will have significant adverse effects
on the economy.
So we should do this. We should do it for 2 months and work on it for
2 months, and hopefully we'll have a solution at the end of 2 months.
We certainly won't have a solution at the end of 2 weeks.
So that's the choice.
When people talk about certainty, this is a group that talked about
certainty and then changed the regulations on light bulbs that have
been in effect for 4 years on a 2-week notice. Here we are with
certainty for 2 months, and they say, well, uncertainty is a problem,
so let's do it in 2 weeks.
Let's have some certainty, 2 months of certainty. Let's work on it,
and we can get a full-year solution. We're not going to do that the way
we're headed.
I would hope, Mr. Speaker, that we would adopt the Senate amendments,
leave town, send the bill to the President and be finished with it
rather than invite all of this uncertainty which is certainly going to
befall us if we don't do that.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. I am pleased to yield a minute and a half to my
colleague from the great State of Texas (Mr. Conaway).
Mr. CONAWAY. I thank the gentleman.
This is really hard to listen to in the sense that we are being asked
to simply accede to the wisdom of the Senate. The wisdom of the Senate
would say that long-range planning is 2 months. The wisdom of the
Senate would say let's pay for 2 months' worth of these fixes by a
permanent increase in mortgage insurance. That's unwise.
Mr. Speaker, I'm not going to abdicate my responsibility to vote what
I believe is in the best interest of the county and the best policy
simply because it's Christmas.
Now, we've got 2 weeks to work this out. The House has already passed
an extensive bill that fixes and addresses these issues across a broad
spectrum of the fixes. And to have the other side over and over say
it's really the wisdom of the Senate that you should accede to, it's
really the wisdom of the Senate, look what the Senate did, Mr. Speaker.
It's irresponsible on every level to simply say 2 months is somehow
going to fix these problems, that we can avoid dealing with the issue
for another 2 months and then that's wise?
I would argue that my colleagues on the other side are wrongheaded in
this regard. We have a bill that fixes this for 2 years, 1 year on the
unemployment and taxes. We've got the pay-fors in place. The conferees
can come together and get this worked out over the next week and a half
that we've got before these things go into effect and bad things
happen.
To ask us to yield to the Senate, to accede to the Senate's wisdom is
wrongheaded on every level, and I refuse to do that, Mr. Speaker, and
would argue that the House-passed bill that we passed last week should
be the base bill on which we go to conference on and to work out these
differences.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 1 minute.
I would like to say to my colleagues on the other side that there is
much more to legislation than a time line--2 months of certainty or we
could go with the bill that this House passed.
It was a year. It was their year. What did they do in that year's
time? They cut 40 weeks off of unemployment. Now, that might be good
for them, but it's not good for the people in my State where, in spite
of all of the great numbers that I spoke about here earlier this
afternoon, 100,000 more private-sector jobs created over the last 5
months, the biggest number since 2006.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. CLYBURN. I yield myself an additional 30 seconds.
Now, the only way for us to really instill certainty in the
unemployed and in those 160,000 million Americans who would like to
continue to have their tax cut is for us to pass the Senate compromise
and for us to really say to those people that we want you to have a
pleasant holiday season and we'll all come back here the first of the
year and give you an additional 10 months.
How much time do I now have remaining, Mr. Speaker?
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman has 2\1/4\ minutes remaining.
Mr. CLYBURN. I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Scott).
Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, as the gentleman from South
Carolina has indicated, we can have 2 months of certainty if we follow
our lead. The Republicans have said that we'll get 1 year of extension
if we follow their lead. By tomorrow afternoon, we'll see who's telling
the truth.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I say to my colleague that I
am prepared to close if the gentleman is prepared to close.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from South Carolina has 2
minutes remaining.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to close as I opened.
I said at the outset that we've been getting some tremendous, what I
would call tremendously positive numbers for our economy in the past
several months, and I believe the American people are beginning to
create more certainty in their lives.
{time} 1520
I would hate to see us disrupt that by continuing to debate this
issue when we know full well that our failure to pass this bill will
almost guarantee that 160 million working Americans will see their
taxes go up and their paychecks go down.
There are 2.2 million people who are currently unemployed through no
fault of their own, who are looking for work and who would like to
contribute to the deficit reduction that we are trying to gain, but we
will see them continuing in the unemployment status, without their
benefit, if we fail to pass this bill.
Also, the 48 million seniors who have developed relationships with
their doctors, who during this time of year depend upon the medical
profession for their quality of life, could very well see their doctors
experience a 27 percent decrease in their reimbursements if we fail to
pass this bill. We know what will happen. These doctors will walk off
the field and will refuse to treat Medicare patients.
I would hope that my friends would come to their senses and pass the
Senate-passed compromise.
With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
General Leave
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their
remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 501.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Georgia?
[[Page H9995]]
There was no objection.
Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, somebody once said that whether
you say you can or you can't, you're right. The other side says they
can't. The other side says we can't. We believe we can.
Mr. Speaker, we have two different versions of H.R. 3630. There is a
House version and a Senate version. Everybody who knows about the
United States Government knows that when you have two different
versions you come together in a conference committee. You come to
common ground, work out the differences, and move the bill back to both
Chambers.
What are the differences?
In the House bill, we protect seniors' access to their doctors for 24
months. How about in the Senate bill? It's 2 months;
In the House bill, the Federal unemployment benefits extension goes
for 13 months. In the Senate bill, it's 2 months;
As for the payroll tax cut extension, in the House bill, it's 12
months. In the Senate bill, it's 2 months;
As for the payroll tax cut for workers earning $50,000 a year, in the
House bill, it's $1,000. In the Senate bill, it's $167.
There is a pay freeze for Members of Congress and Federal workers
included in the House bill, not in the Senate bill. There is the ending
of unemployment and food stamp benefits for millionaires in the House
bill, not in the Senate bill.
So, Mr. Speaker, this is about two different bills. It's about
certainty. It's about certainty for families and for job creators and
for seniors. It's also about real jobs for real people. Our bill
provides certainty and 20,000 jobs with the Keystone pipeline
construction and another 120,000 new jobs in the supply chain for the
pipeline: positive policy.
Why wait? Why wait, Mr. Speaker? Why not make a decision in the next
few days on these tax and health care and unemployment extensions?
What's the economic or the policy argument for putting this off for
another 2 months? The truth is that there is none, and there are strong
arguments against delay. We ought to be working on alleviating the
uncertainty that that would bring about, not adding to it.
Mr. Speaker, I call on my colleagues to support this resolution and
to move forward positively for families, for job creators, and for
seniors.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. All time for debate has expired.
Pursuant to House Resolution 502, the previous question is ordered on
the resolution and on the preamble.
The question is on the resolution.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. CLYBURN. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this question will be postponed.
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