[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 9 (Wednesday, January 15, 2014)]
[House]
[Page H236]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
WAR ON POVERTY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Payne) for 5 minutes.
Mr. PAYNE. Mr. Speaker, last week, we marked the 50th anniversary of
President Lyndon Johnson's war on poverty, which began to pave the way
for many of the programs that provided basic human dignities that every
American deserves.
Fifty years ago, this Congress began to work together on a war
against poverty. Unfortunately, today, some of my Republican colleagues
have led a different kind of war. Instead of a war to eliminate
poverty, it has grown into a shameful war against those living in
poverty. These attacks are numerous, from slashing nutrition assistance
to cutting unemployment insurance to attacking Social Security,
Medicare, and attempting to dismantle health care.
Fighting the war on poverty should not be a Democratic or a
Republican idea. Not only are we all in this together, but poverty does
not discriminate between political parties. According to the Brookings
Institution, there are more than 21 million people living in poverty
who live in Republican congressional districts. Equally, there are over
21 million people living in poverty in Democratic congressional
districts. So the burden is on both parties, equally, to recommit
ourselves to creating solutions.
The gap between the rich and poor is wide, and it is growing at an
alarming rate. Nowhere is this more true than in my home State of New
Jersey. In my district alone, the number of households at the top 1
percent have doubled, while the poverty rate has grown to 28 percent.
This is no way for the world's greatest country to lead. We can do
better. And we must do better. We must return to the values that have,
and always will, make this country great.
We must make investments in education and job training, because how
can a man find work if he does not have the skills to enter the
workforce?
We must make investments in nutrition assistance, because how can a
child learn if he or she is too hungry to focus?
We must make investments in health care, because how can a mother
provide for her children if she can't afford to pay her medical bills?
And most importantly, we must make investments in our fellow
Americans, to provide them with the opportunities to fulfill their own
potential.
My colleagues focus a discouraging amount of energy on cutting the
very safety net programs that have lifted millions out of poverty, both
in our urban centers and our rural areas. But these programs work.
Without our safety net programs, poverty numbers would be double.
So although there is still much more to do, we have come a long way.
Turning our backs on the millions of Americans living in poverty is
simply not an option. Nothing is more important to the people I
represent in New Jersey than having a decent job that pays a decent
wage.
My Republican colleagues are kidding themselves if they think these
people are lazy or content. Believe me, no one is content living in
poverty. No one. These people want to work. They want economic
security. And more than anything, they want to create a better life,
not only for themselves, but for their children, so that they can
forever be free from the clutches of generational poverty.
So, Mr. Speaker, we must remember that the war on poverty declared 50
years ago is an unconditional one. As President Lyndon Baines Johnson
said:
Our aim is not only to relieve the symptom of poverty, but
to cure it and, above all, to prevent it.
Congress must renew this commitment by extending unemployment
insurance, strengthening Social Security and Medicare, raising the
minimum wage, investing in education, and, above all, creating jobs.
Let's work together so that one day we can say that we have won the
ultimate war of our time--the war on poverty.
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