[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H33-H34]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     HIPPOCRATIC OATH FOR CONGRESS

  (Mr. HONDA asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HONDA. Mr. Speaker, if there were a Hippocratic oath of 
legislating, it would prescribe that we, above all else, should do no 
harm, but we have a habit of violating that foundational precept.
  We have allowed unemployment insurance to 1.3 million Americans to 
expire, and that will not help our economy and will cost 200,000 jobs.
  In 1 month we face the recurring hostage-taking ritual that has 
become raising the debt limit. These debt limit showdowns have a real 
cost to our economy.
  The Government Accountability Office found that delayed action in 
2011 resulted in $1.3 billion in higher borrowing costs. We can avoid 
that cost by enacting permanent reforms to the process like the ones 
employed in the recent debt limit adjustments.
  I introduced last year H.R. 233, which would permanently shift the 
role of Congress to disapproving debt ceiling increases instead of 
approving them and allows the debt limit to be raised

[[Page H34]]

unless a supermajority of Congress votes to block the increase.
  I encourage my colleagues to join me in pursuing these permanent and 
necessary reforms. Avoid the replay of the hostage-taking and 
brinksmanship of last year, and take the steps to avoid doing any more 
unnecessary harm to American families.

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