[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 72 (Tuesday, May 21, 2013)]
[House]
[Page H2812]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       LET'S PUT AMERICA TO WORK

  (Mr. TONKO asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. TONKO. I rise today to once again urge House leadership and the 
majority party in the House to refocus on what should be our top 
priority--jobs and the long-term economic stability of our Nation.
  Each day, we report to our constituents that economic growth and 
putting Americans back to work is job one in Congress; yet very rarely 
does our agenda reflect that priority in this House. In fact, the 
request to name conferees to complete the budget process to grow jobs 
and grow the economy doesn't get heeded over and over again.
  We are putting more and more people to work each month, but I have no 
doubt that we can do better. As I talk to neighbors and friends back 
home, unemployment remains their top concern. Instead, many in this 
Chamber are plotting to take the debt ceiling hostage. We already know 
the dire consequences from that act.
  The bottom line is this: jobs and economic growth are our 
constituents' top concerns, and they should be ours as well. We can and 
must do better. Let's put America to work.

                          ____________________