[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 24 (Thursday, February 14, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H516]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        LET'S DO THE JOB THE AMERICAN PEOPLE SENT US HERE TO DO

  (Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Madam Speaker, more and more, the voices 
are being raised about the devastating impact of a sequester, a self-
inflicted wound of this Congress because we could not come together as 
the American people have directed us to do. The security of the United 
States will be in jeopardy if we have the sequester. Men and women who 
stand on the front lines in protecting this Nation will be in jeopardy. 
All of those who depend upon Head Start funding, early education 
funding, title I funds and housing funds, and opportunities for young 
people to go to college will be in jeopardy.
  And so I think it is unfortunate that we are discussing and debating 
on the floor today H.R. 273, to eliminate the 2013 statutory pay 
adjustment for federal employees. All of those people who put 
themselves on the line for us and have already had a pay freeze; all 
we're talking about is 0.5 percent. None of that will bring down the 
debt or help the deficit. We're just making noise. What we should be 
doing is focusing on coming together around a growth and innovation 
budget and bringing the deficit down. What we should be doing is 
honoring the Sandy Hook and other victims and passing real gun violence 
prevention like universal background checks and storing guns.
  Madam Speaker, let us do the job the American people sent us to do.

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