[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 24 (Thursday, February 14, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H515]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             SEQUESTRATION

  (Mr. SIRES asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. SIRES. Madam Speaker, if we face yet another fiscal cliff in 2 
weeks, it is imperative that this Chamber produces a real solution to 
ward off a financial disaster that could deeply impact the American 
people.
  The idea behind sequestration was to create a worst-case scenario 
that was so severe that it would force both sides to work together and 
find a balanced approach to passing a realistic budget reducing our 
deficits.
  Instead of setting the stage for yet another battle to be resolved in 
the 11th hour, we should be focused on creating jobs and growing our 
economy. If sequestration goes forward, programs and services that 
millions of Americans rely on, like Head Start, supplemental nutrition 
programs like the WIC program, and even FEMA, would be decimated by 
drastic cuts in our funding.
  Additionally, sequestration would slash critical support to police 
who keep our streets safe, our air traffic controllers who manage our 
skies, and food inspectors who ensure the food that we eat is safe.
  Instead of jeopardizing critical services to our citizens, we need to 
begin to work on an approach that will avoid sequestration while 
sensibly reducing our deficit.

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