[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 48 (Wednesday, March 26, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1761-S1770]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
LEGISLATIVE SESSION
______
PROTECTING VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY RESPONDERS ACT OF
2014--MOTION TO PROCEED--Continued
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate will resume legislative session.
The Senator from Georgia is recognized.
Remembering Kate Puzey
Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the fifth
anniversary of the tragic murder of a Georgia citizen who volunteered
for the Peace Corps, who traveled to West Africa to the nation of Benin
and lost her life. She lost her life because she did the right thing--
she reported the abuse of children in a village school where she
taught.
The reason I have recently returned from Benin is that I have taken
this case on as a personal passion, to see to it that justice and some
closure comes to the family of this wonderful young lady. Her name was
Kate Puzey. Kate Puzey was top of her class, valedictorian, outstanding
student, and she wanted to go out and save the world, to help the world
and fulfill the dream John Kennedy professed in 1961 when he created
the Peace Corps.
So Kate Puzey went to Benin and she found that one of the village
natives in the village where she was teaching was abusing children in
the school where she was teaching. In this very remote area, she took
the only communication mechanism she had to report the violation of
these children to the appropriate authorities in Cotonou, Benin.
Unfortunately, because those communications were not secure, a relative
of the person she reported notified the person she had reported that he
had been reported. That night, in her hut in the Nation of Benin, her
throat was cut and she died. She died because she did the right thing.
This Senate, 2 years ago, joined me and Senator Boxer in passing the
Peace Corps Protection Act, which is now named the Kate Puzey Peace
Corps Volunteer Protection Act. This provides a mechanism and a way
where Peace Corps volunteers can report violations or trauma of a
sexual nature, gender-based violence, or any other type of violence
against themselves or in any other place where they might be as a
servant of the Peace Corps. Because of that, there are now ombudsmen
and ways and mechanisms where
[[Page S1762]]
our Peace Corps volunteers can safely report violations and damage and
have the protection not only of the United States but of the nation
where they serve.
But back to the point of my trip to Benin, which took place this last
week. This was my second visit to Benin, because what I want to see is
a continuation of the investigation of the death of this young lady
until there is a trial and closure available for her and her family,
just as any of us would want were we the parent of a young lady who had
lost her life on behalf of the United States of America.
I rise to pay particular tribute first to Secretary Kerry; to the
United Nations' Samantha Power; to the State Department of the United
States of America; to Michael Raynor, the Ambassador in Benin; to Todd
Whatley, the Deputy Chief of Mission; to Kevin Armstrong, the USAID
Director; to Billy Alfano, to Marilyn Gayton, and to Robert Freedom--
Bob Friedman--the Peace Corps representative in Benin, all of whom have
made the investigation and the fulfillment of bringing this case to a
reality their top priority.
Three years ago, when I went to Benin for the first time, it was to
encourage President Yayi of Benin to allow the United States to come in
and assist in the investigation and the prosecution of the case--a rare
thing to happen in a French colony which is governed by French law. To
our credit and to President Yayi's credit he allowed the United States
and Jennifer Dent, the FBI agent in charge in Lagos, to come in to
Benin and begin assisting the investigation.
I went back last week during our break because it looked as though
the case was dying. It looked as though the intensity of the interest
was dying. And it was so important to me and for the family in my home
State of Georgia to see to it we in some way finally bring closure,
either right or wrong, for the terrible things that happened. I am
happy to report the visit was successful.
President Yayi spent over 4 hours with the family members and myself.
He committed the judiciary and the investigatory body in the Nation of
Benin to accept the assistance of the U.S. FBI and our technology.
During the course of our visit, he removed and separated the prisoners,
as had been requested by the FBI, to see to it those who are being held
and thought to be guilty in this case could no longer communicate in
the prisons where they were held.
I don't know what the ultimate result will be, and I want justice to
be done. I want the right person to be persecuted and prosecuted, and
the right person to pay the price, but I want closure for this family.
I want to thank the American Embassy, the State Department, and
Samantha Power at the U.N. for the intensity they have put into this
investigation, as well as the U.S. FBI, and in particular Victor Lloyd,
special agent in Lagos, Nigeria, for all the time he has dedicated. We
seem to be at a point where everything is coming together toward a
prosecution and, ultimately, a trial. When that happens, it will happen
primarily because the U.S. Government, the people of the United States
of America, both President Bush and President Obama, and all in this
Congress have dedicated themselves to the interest of one child's
life--Kate Puzey.
It is important the people of this country know that we as a body
will come together behind any injured American, any loss of life,
anybody who has deployed themselves on behalf of this country in the
service of peace and prosperity. They deserve to know the U.S. Congress
and this U.S. Senate are standing ready to help.
But I am here in particular to pay tribute to the Embassy of Benin,
to FBI Special Agent Victor Lloyd, and to all those who have helped and
assisted in seeing to it the prosecution of the case in the murder of
Kate Puzey comes to a final conclusion. I am grateful for their service
to America, grateful for what they have done for the Puzey family in
Georgia, and grateful that I live in a country that protects and loves
those who have represented our interests wherever it may be, on
whatever shore it may be, and in whatever country it may be.
May God bless America, may God bless the Peace Corps, and may God
bless the family of Kate Puzey.
I yield back, and I suggest the absence of a quorum.
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
For-Profit Colleges and Universities
Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, as I speak, all over the country
telephones are ringing. When the recipient of the call picks up, they
are greeted by the friendly voice of a college recruiter from a for-
profit college or university. It is easy to go back to school, this
recruiter will tell those who answer the phone. In fact, we can sign
you up for Federal loans right now.
That is the key. These for-profit colleges and universities target
individuals who qualify for easy Federal money. Pell grants and GI bill
benefits are preferred. And all the promises sound so good to those who
are receiving these phone calls. After all, going back to school is
supposed to be the path to success and more money in your life. But
before they know what has hit them, these people who answered the phone
call from for-profit schools and universities find out they are taking
on more debt than they can even understand and may end up with a so-
called education that is worthless.
That is what happened to Jaqueta Cherry from North Carolina. After
trying a community college, Jaqueta was lured by the kind voice on the
other end of the phone and the fancy commercials on TV. She saw them in
North Carolina. You see them across the United States. Get on a bus in
Chicago and look around at all the signs trying to lure young people on
those buses into for-profit colleges and universities.
Jaqueta said: The schools blew up my phone.
She enrolled at Everest College, which is part of the Corinthian
College chain. The California attorney general is currently suing this
chain of schools, and the Department of Education is investigating
allegations that they lied to the Federal Government about their job
placements.
In the meantime, Jaqueta's living situation changed, and she had to
drop out and couldn't continue her studies at Everest. It wasn't long
before she was tracked down by another for-profit school through a pop-
up ad she clicked on, on the Internet. If someone is college age and
gets on the Internet, they will see these ads bombarding them from for-
profit colleges and universities. She got a call the next day from the
Education Management Corporation's The Art Institutes and signed up for
an online program.
After taking out more loans, Jaqueta found herself unable to continue
her courses. Her roommate had moved out, left her with unpaid bills,
and her only access to the Internet was a phone that was turned off 2
days prior to her final exams. At that point she was thousands of
dollars in debt with nothing to show for it. Guess what. The calls kept
coming. DeVry--the second or third largest for-profit school in the
United States, based in Chicago, currently being investigated by the
Federal Trade Commission for their advertising and marketing policies--
called her, and then ITT Tech called her as well. They are being sued
by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau for pressuring students
into high-cost private loans.
The calls she gets from Everest and The Art Institutes these days are
not the kind voices they used to be. ``They're very mean and
threatening,'' she says. Not surprising. You see, Jaqueta is no longer
an ATM machine from which they can draw Federal dollars.
For many years for-profit schools were allowed to operate relatively
freely and often one step ahead of the regulators. I am hopeful that
with the investigations I mentioned and the many others that are
occurring State by State, we may be turning a corner. We need to hold
these schools--all schools but especially for-profit schools--
accountable to taxpayers, who often subsidize up to 90 percent of their
operations, and to students, who ultimately are their victims.
If we take all the Federal money that goes to for-profit colleges and
universities and total it up, it is around $20 billion. This private
sector group would be the equivalent of the ninth largest Federal
agency in Washington. They
[[Page S1763]]
survive on Federal money. The only thing different is, of course, their
employees aren't Federal employees and their CEOs make more money than
any employee of the Federal Government could ever dream of.
There are a lot of agencies involved in looking at these for-profit
colleges and universities--Department of Education, Securities and
Exchange Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal
Trade Commission, Department of Defense, and others. It is important
that they work together.
This morning I held a hearing in my Defense Appropriations
Subcommittee. In front of me was the Secretary of the Navy, the
Commandant of the Marine Corps, and the Chief of Naval Operations, and
we talked about these schools. I can tell you in private what they told
me. They are saddened at how many military families are lured into
these schools and waste their GI benefits, going online to places
called the American Military University--boy, doesn't that sound
official. That sounds like the real thing. It is another for-profit
school that just happened to pick a name which appeals to a lot of
soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines.
A nephew of mine was a doorman right up here. Then he served in the
Army and was sent overseas to Afghanistan. I was so proud of him. He
got home safely. Then he was sent to Korea. He came home safely. Now he
is out of the Army. He contacted me once and said: I have good news for
you. I avoided all those for-profit schools you warned me about, and I
signed up with the American Military University.
He didn't know any better. He thought for sure that this was real. It
is really not. I advised him that there is one university from his home
State, the University of Maryland, which has been offering courses to
the military for decades--and their hours are transferable when he
comes home.
Oh, he said. I should have thought of that.
What the Navy told us this morning is they are now sitting down with
the sailors and their families and saying: Think twice before you sign
up for these for-profit schools. You are wasting your GI benefits on
schools that could be worthless. Think twice about whether those hours
are transferable when you get out of the service.
Sadly, there are too many American citizens--young people primarily
and even members of the military--who were lured into these awful
schools before anybody warned them.
Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa and I are working on a bill we will
introduce next week to ensure that the agencies currently investigating
all of these for-profit schools are coordinating their efforts. He and
I teamed up on this issue a long time ago. It is going to be a shame
when Senator Harkin retires from the Senate this year, but the for-
profit schools should know that the spotlight Tom Harkin turned on with
his committee hearings is going to continue even after he leaves.
An industry that receives more than $25 billion in Federal dollars
and has such a terrible record needs aggressive oversight. We don't owe
it to just the taxpayers who are coming up with $25 billion for these
schools; we owe it to the students who are lured into these schools,
lured into debt, and end up many times with nothing to show for it.
We need to keep three numbers in mind when we think about the for-
profit colleges and universities, and I always warn people that these
three numbers will be on the final, so listen closely.
Ten percent of the students who graduate from high school go to for-
profit colleges and universities; yet they receive 20 percent of all
the Federal aid to education because they cost twice as much. For-
profit colleges and universities account for 46 percent of all student
loan defaults. So 10 percent of the students, 46 percent of the
defaults. Why? They charge too much, they lure these students deep into
debt, and the students can't finish school or end up with worthless
diplomas when they graduate.
The sad reality is that the Federal Government is complicit. We are
complicit because we don't blow the whistle on these schools, which
should never, ever--never--qualify for Pell grants and Federal student
loans.
There is a kicker. Unlike virtually every other debt you can incur in
life, student loans are not dischargeable in bankruptcy. I have had
students $150,000 in debt after 4 years in school and their lives are
virtually ruined. They had no idea what they were getting into. When
they were private loans, those loans grew geometrically whenever they
failed to pay. Where are those students today? They are living in their
parents' basement. They cannot afford to get married, they cannot buy a
car, and if they get married, they cannot afford to have children. They
certainly cannot afford to borrow money to go to a real college or
university. They are stuck, and we ought to do something about it.
Student loans in this country are exploding. They are trapping
generations of students such as Jaqueta in poverty, and they are
hurting their opportunities for being full members in our society and
economy. We have to address head-on these for-profit colleges which are
a scourge on education. There are a few exceptions, but by and large
this industry with 46 percent of the student loan defaults is shameful.
Chairman Harkin is going to hold a hearing in the Senate HELP
Committee this week on the student loan programs. I am going to work
with him and submit some testimony. Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island
and Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and I are putting
together a package of bills. We are going to address this issue from a
lot of different perspectives. There is no reason a college student
should sign up for a private loan with higher interest rates and worse
conditions for payback when they are still eligible for government
loans which are more flexible and have lower interest rates. Yet some
of these irresponsible schools steer their kids into private loans. The
kids don't know any better, neither do their parents. Secondly, they
end up loaning money to these students and to their families that they
will never, ever be able to pay back. Senator Reed says they ought to
have some skin in the game. At some point if they have been
overextended in loans, they ought to have to eat some of those losses
when the students cannot pay it back.
Senator Warren is tackling an even bigger issue about refinancing
college loans. What is it all about? It is about giving a fair shot to
these families and these students. We are going to talk a lot about
this.
When I think of where I am today, it is because of my mother who
checked my report card every 6 weeks and told me I could always do
better and because of that I ended up in college and law school and
here I stand. I borrowed money from the government to do it and
couldn't have done it otherwise. So I believe in education, and I
certainly believe kids from lower and middle-income families, when they
need to borrow money, should have that opportunity. What is happening
today is out of hand. The debt we are piling on students and their
families is unconscionable, not just the for-profit schools but across
the board.
On this side of the aisle we believe these students deserve an
opportunity, and they shouldn't be saddled with a debt that can
literally ruin their lives. We are going to be working on this issue as
part of our effort this year to define what Congress can do to make
this a better nation for working families across the board to make sure
everyone--everyone--has a fair shot.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Michigan is recognized.
Health Care
Ms. STABENOW. Thank you very much, Mr. President.
We are 5 days away from the deadline to begin enrolling for health
insurance under the Affordable Care Act--5 days for folks who don't
have insurance now or want to see if they can find a better deal under
their local marketplace or Federal marketplace under the Affordable
Care Act.
We have heard the stories about the trouble with the Web site last
October, but there are so many stories we haven't heard of people
successfully signing up now for health care coverage. Those are the
stories we want to talk about, in terms of the millions of people who
are finding, in fact, for the first time they can have peace of mind,
knowing they can find affordable health insurance and not only from a
cost standpoint.
[[Page S1764]]
Every woman who is able to get insurance now knows she is not going
to be rated differently and have higher costs from the insurance
company just because she is a woman--being a woman previously was
somehow a preexisting condition--or if she is wanting to have a baby,
she knows she can have her maternity care covered, which was not true
for millions of women. In fact, going to the private marketplace prior
to health care reform, about 60 percent of the insurance policies
didn't cover something as important and basic as maternity care,
unbelievably. So we are talking about people who are getting covered
and people who have peace of mind, knowing they have affordable
coverage and they can't get dropped if they get sick.
In fact, now going forward, if anyone has a policy, they cannot get
dropped just because they get sick. Anyone who has cancer or diabetes--
children with juvenile diabetes or heart disease--all of the various
concerns and chronic diseases people have, knows they can find
insurance; that they will not be blocked from getting medical care and
health insurance because of a preexisting condition.
So far over 5 million people have already enrolled in private health
insurance plans through the new marketplaces, including over 144,000 in
my home State of Michigan, people who are finally in a position where
they have peace of mind at night, knowing they have health insurance
for themselves and their families if somebody gets sick. If they need
preventive care, they are not going to have out-of-pocket costs to get
the cancer screening, the mammogram, and other preventive care.
In Michigan 144,000 individuals have signed up for health care, which
is nearly 16,000 more people than was actually predicted at this point
in time, because people want and need affordable health care. This is
not a frill. We cannot control whether somebody in the family gets
sick. Now there are things we can do to do our best to stay healthy,
but we never know when something is going to happen, no matter our age
or our circumstance. We all understand. We all want to make sure our
children are covered, whether they are 3 years old or 30 years old. We
want to make sure our moms and dads are covered, and we want to make
sure we have coverage as a small business owner, that there is access
to affordable coverage. People are signing up because this is personal
for them and for their families.
I wish to share success stories of three of my constituents today.
The first story is about LaNika, a 34-year-old volleyball coach from
Flint, MI, who lived without health insurance for years while she
focused on developing her career path. She didn't think she needed
health insurance because she was healthy. One day she had an accident.
She was playing volleyball, and she and another woman collided, leaving
her with a concussion. We all know head injuries are serious. So she
had no choice but to go to the emergency room without having health
insurance.
By the way, we all know that people who go to the emergency room
without health insurance get treated, as they should, and then
everybody with insurance--this is the way we have done it for decades--
everybody with insurance sees their rates go up to pay for folks going
into the emergency room, getting care in the most expensive way
possible, which is going to the emergency room for care, rather than
seeing a doctor.
In this particular case LaNika said this was her aha moment. After
going to the ER, LaNika logged on to healthcare.gov to see if she could
get covered. She entered her information, she compared plans, and she
selected the best plan for her. She ended up selecting a silver plan
from Michigan's largest health insurance company for less than $100 a
month because of her income level.
The whole process, she said, took an hour. She said that getting her
insurance card was like a breath of fresh air because she knew that if
disaster struck again she would be covered. Peace of mind, as they say
in the commercials, is priceless. Now she can go see a doctor without
worrying about a bill she cannot afford to pay.
Another constituent, Jim, from Shelby, MI, shared his story too. He
had seen all the bad press, he said, on the Affordable Care Act on TV
and social media and thought it wasn't worth it to sign up. He planned
to sign his family up for COBRA coverage because he had worked and was
going to sign up for COBRA to keep his former employer's coverage going
but found out that wasn't an option. He decided to give healthcare.gov
a try. After filling out his basic information, he saw how low his
costs for good coverage would be and he signed up his family. Because
he had such a positive experience, he began sharing it on Facebook so
other people could see how easy it was to get covered. A recent post of
his read: ``There are only a few days left to sign up. Don't let this
opportunity pass without taking a look,'' which is our message today.
Don't let this opportunity pass without taking a look.
Another constituent, Bryan, from Okemos called my East Lansing office
because he was upset that his health plan had been canceled. The
replacement plan he was offered by his insurer wasn't affordable. He
let us know how upset he was. He then asked what he was supposed to do.
We suggested he go to healthcare.gov to see if he could find a more
affordable option that would meet his needs. He said he didn't have a
computer. So we gave him the 1-800 number to call. He was skeptical, of
course, that he would find a good plan. He expected to have to wait on
the phone for hours to talk to somebody, but we encouraged him to give
it a try.
He called the office back shortly with some good news. He had called
the 1-800 number and someone answered right away. They were very
friendly and helpful, he said. They helped Bryan find a plan that had
better coverage than his old plan. On top of that, it was $60 per month
cheaper than his old plan, and he was able to add dental coverage too.
He apologized for his first call.
We certainly understand that when people get those kinds of notices
that the insurance they have has been canceled, of course everyone
responds with panic and being upset with what is going on, what is
going to happen to me. But the good news is that he was able to call
the 1-800 number and, in fact, find better coverage that was lower
priced and he is now also covered for important dental care. He said he
is extremely happy with the Affordable Care Act.
LaNika's, Jim's, and Ryan's stories aren't unique. They are very
typical. Despite all of the hype and all of the efforts that have gone
on, they are very typical. It is important that people get beyond all
the politics of health care, which for the life of me I don't know why
we are not all working together to make sure people have the health
care they need and the information they need--for all the politics that
have come before, for people to get beyond that and just find out for
themselves if it will work. Hopefully, it will and they will have the
same kind of results that LaNika and Jim and Ryan had.
To everyone in America who doesn't have health insurance right now
and needs to sign up but hasn't yet, there is less than 1 week to begin
the process. Once you have begun, I want to make sure you complete it.
I appreciate the President's willingness to allow more people time to
complete that process because health care is an essential in life that
literally can be about life or death for a person or their family. I
would suggest that folks not get left behind but get covered as LaNika,
Jim, and Bryan did. It is quick, it will give you peace of mind, and we
are hopeful you will find it to be something that is very good for you
and your family.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California is recognized.
Mrs. BOXER. I thank Senator Stabenow not only for her statement, but
she has talked a lot about people she meets in her State and they say
to her: Senator, all we want is a fair shot. Before Senator Stabenow
leaves the floor I wanted to say I hear the same thing at home as well.
When it comes to insurance all people want is a fair shot at affordable
insurance. That is why we are here today. We are here to celebrate the
fourth anniversary of the Affordable Care Act.
I say for the record, we have millions of reasons in California to
say thank you for the Affordable Care Act, and I will go through some
of the numbers. We have exceeded our goals. We have
[[Page S1765]]
now signed up 1 million, and that is 300,000 over our goal. We now know
President Obama has extended the signup period for those who are
signing up on the national exchange. We are not sure yet whether
California is going to extend its time. Anyone within the sound of my
voice--those in California--need to know that we have not yet extended
the time, so join the millions of Californians who have signed up
through the exchanges.
Let's be clear: This is a real partisan battle. The House Republicans
have been bragging about the 54 times they voted to repeal the
Affordable Care Act, but I have to tell them before they vote again to
tear this law down and vilify this law for the 55th time: Pay attention
to the people in my State and all over the country.
I will go through the math of what is happening here. In addition to
the 1 million people in California who have signed up on the exchange,
we have 400,000 young adults who are staying on their parents'
insurance policies and 1.8 million people on Medicaid. When I say we
have more than a million reasons to say thank you for this law, we
really do.
I have some other numbers to add to this. Eight million Californians
now have access to free preventive care, including mammograms, birth
control, and immunizations; 16 million Californians with preexisting
conditions, such as asthma, cancer, and diabetes are guaranteed
coverage--including 2.2 million children. California seniors and people
with disabilities are saving money on prescription drugs--350,000,
thanks to the work we did to close that doughnut hole, and 12 million
Californians have new insurance protections and no longer have to worry
about hitting annual limits on their health care.
I say to the Republicans: Wake up and see what is happening in your
communities. Don't take my word for it. Listen to some of my
Californians:
Just got my Obamacare Covered CA insurance plan. I'm
ecstatic. Saving $400 a month.
Another Californian said: ``Loving my new health coverage, way to go
California.''
Another person wrote:
Just paid my first premium for Covered CA healthcare. A 42%
reduction for a nearly identical plan.
Bobby Dutta from Sacramento writes:
I was being crushed by the heavy burden of health insurance
premium costs. I had a PPO plan with Anthem Blue Cross and
was paying $1,324 per month for a family of two. Now, for a
comparable plan through ACA, my premiums are $61 per month.
Earth to Republicans: People are saving so much money because of the
Affordable Care Act. They are getting peace of mind. Why would
Republicans want to repeal a law that is helping so many people in
California and across the country? I have never seen a law so vilified.
Today I went back to the Congressional Record--and I want to share
this with Senator Murphy, who has organized this today. I thought this
was the only law Republicans vilified, but I went back to take a look
at when Social Security was debated and passed.
In 1935, on the floor of the House during the debate on Social
Security, a Republican Congressman from Ohio said:
This is compulsion of the rankest kind.
That was how he talked about Social Security. He called it rank.
Do not be misled by the title. The title says ``Old Age
Benefits.'' Shame on you for putting such a misleading and
unfair title on such a nefarious bill. Old-age benefits?
Think of it! What a travesty! . . .
Another Republican Congressman from Pennsylvania said:
. . . security for the individual, whether worker or aged,
will be a mockery and a sham if . . . [we] allot to our
people the role of puppets of a socialistic state . . .
Doesn't this sound familiar? If you do anything for people,
Republicans will call you a socialist. They call Social Security
socialist.
He says:
We cannot provide a sense of security by programs for the
destruction of wealth . . .
That is how he described Social Security. Listen, people pay into
Social Security. It is an insurance plan. People pay premiums for their
health care.
I have to say it: The Republicans are vilifying the Affordable Care
Act just as they vilified Social Security and they vilified Medicare.
Let's look at what Republicans said about Medicare. In 1965 a
Representative from Missouri said:
. . . we cannot stand idly by now, as the Nation is urged
to embark on an ill-conceived adventure in government
medicine, the end of which no one can see, and from which the
patient is certain to be the ultimate sufferer.
I say to my colleagues: This is unbelievable. In 1965, the
Republicans said that government medicine, which they called Medicare,
even though you have a private doctor, would lead to patients
suffering. If you ask patients who have Medicare now if they like it,
they love it. Even the rightwing tea partiers who came to Washington
had signs that said: ``Hands off my Medicare.'' The Republicans
vilified Medicare.
How about another one? A Republican from Wyoming had this to say
about Medicare:
I am disturbed about the effect this legislation would have
upon our economy and upon our private insurance system . . .
In 1995, Dick Armey, the Republican House majority leader, said that
Medicare is ``a program I would have no part of in a free world.''
I want people to understand that when the Republicans vilify the
Affordable Care Act, they are doing exactly what they did on Social
Security and Medicare. They were on the wrong side of history then and
they are on the wrong side of history now. And, of course, Newt
Gingrich said Medicare was ``going to wither on the vine.'' Well, it
would, if Republicans controlled this place.
Senate Majority Leader Dole said in 1996, ``I was there, fighting the
fight, voting against Medicare . . . because we knew it wouldn't work
in 1965.''
Folks, there is a big difference between the parties. When you see
the Republicans start to vote again to repeal the Affordable Care Act,
that is what they wanted to do to Social Security and that is what they
wanted to do to Medicare. We stopped them then, and we will stop them
now. All they want to do is repeal all of these great benefits that are
helping millions of people, and I say to them: Enough already. Enough.
Work with us. Let's make sure everyone in America has that sense of
security that they can handle whatever health impacts hit their
families.
I thank my colleague from Connecticut.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Rhode Island.
Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, we are here to point out that there
are an awful lot of Americans who are winning because of the Affordable
Care Act--whether it is a mom with kids who have gotten out of college
but couldn't get health care on their own who can now stay on mom and
dad's policy. That is one less thing for her to worry about--her 22- or
23-year-old children; that is a pretty big win.
Olive, who has been in touch with me, is a Rhode Islander from
Woonsocket. She used to go into the doughnut hole every year because
her husband has Alzheimer's and needs expensive medication. She saved
$2,400 in the first year alone. That is a significant benefit for
Olive.
We have people who are trapped in their jobs because they couldn't
get away. They were chained to their jobs because of the need of
insurance. Alana, from Warwick, was one such person. She was working at
one of our universities. She liked her job, but she really wanted to be
a Web entrepreneur. She was tied to her job by employer-supplied health
care. She went to HealthSource Rhode Island back in December and found
a plan that worked for her. The plan's premium was so low she told me
it sent her ``over the moon.'' She has become the proud owner of her
own Rhode Island small business because she had the confidence she
could go forward. Stories such as Alana's abound not just in Rhode
Island but across the country.
When I first came into our Rhode Island health exchange, the first
person I saw who was ahead of me in line had boxes of Dunkin' Donuts
and two big boxes of coffee. They had been there earlier in the
afternoon, and the people who worked there were able to help them sign
up for health insurance for the first time for their family. They were
so thrilled they brought in doughnuts and coffee as a thank-you. That
is the story we see.
I have to say that we have to look at what the problem was with
health care. This is where we should be working together. Look at where
the costs are
[[Page S1766]]
going; that is health care costs. In 1960, $27 billion, and $2.7
trillion in 2011. This was out of control. This was not going to be
sustainable. Something absolutely, positively has to be done to get
health care under control.
The unsung part of the Affordable Care Act is the part that begins
the change in our delivery system reform so we can make our system
affordable. Do we do it by taking things away from people? No. We do it
by making the system better. How do we know that will work?
Here is a graph of all the major countries that are various kinds of
competitors with us: Switzerland, Norway, Netherlands, Great Britain,
Japan, and basically the rest of the major industrial nations. If you
plot their life expectancy in years and their population against how
much they spend per capita on health care, you get a pretty solid
grouping through here, and you get a pretty clear curve that can be
drawn through that.
Well, here is the U.S.A. We are way more per capita than the most
expensive country--better than $2,000 per person more per capita than
the other most expensive countries in the world. Look at us for life
expectancy. We come in around Chile and the Czech Republic, and we are
below all of our competitors.
There is huge room for improvement--better health care at lower costs
that will extend our lives and reduce the costs. If we just move back
into this pack, we would save $1 trillion a year in health care in this
country--not just the government, but across the country. It would help
businesses, it would help taxpayers, and it would help everybody.
There are different ways to do it. Here is one little example. This
is people who are readmitted after they have gone into the hospital.
What was happening was that after people got out of the hospital and
went back to their nursing home or back to their house, their discharge
plan was not very good. Their doctor may not have even known they were
getting out, and they didn't know what to do with their medications. So
what happens? Two weeks or a month later, they are back in the hospital
again. We decided to do something about it in the Affordable Care Act.
This is the readmission rate. It was rocking along around 19 percent,
and then along comes our bill in 2011, and it starts to drop. It starts
to drop pretty dramatically. If we can keep that up, we save the money
of all of those readmissions. You don't pay for a readmission that
never happens. It is an absolute economic savings. Plus, the family
doesn't have to worry about grandma going back into the hospital again
and picking up a hospital-acquired infection or some other cost like
that.
I thank the Senator from Connecticut, Senator Murphy, for organizing
us on the floor today.
I want to summarize that there is a great human interest story to
tell about the Affordable Care Act that is helping families not only in
Rhode Island but across the country; and moreover, it is a great tool
for us as I hope we can work together to improve our delivery system of
health care so we are delivering better health care to Americans for a
lower cost. We know we can do it. For crying out loud, if Greece and
these other countries can do it, then by God so can the United States
of America.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Connecticut.
Mr. MURPHY. Mr. President, I thank Senator Whitehouse, who is an
extraordinary leader on the issue of trying to control costs and
improving quality. Senator Stabenow and Senator Boxer have been down
here talking about the importance of the Affordable Care Act long
before I got to this body, and I thank them for being with us as well.
Our message is pretty simple. Our message is that the Affordable Care
Act is working. We know that because just yesterday we had record
numbers of people who went onto the Web site to try to sign up for
coverage. They placed calls into the call centers. We had 1.2 million
people who went on the Web site yesterday looking for coverage. About
390,000 people placed a call.
We are seeing extraordinary levels of signups day after day. It looks
as though we are on pace to achieve the goal to help those 6 million
individuals sign up. That is not surprising because folks have been
crying out in desperation for a better way for years and years. People
such as one constituent of mine, Sean Hannon, from Weston, CT--I talked
about him earlier on the floor today. He had a plan for him and his
family that cost about $1,400 a month. Under the Affordable Care Act
and the Connecticut Exchange, he is now paying $309. He wrote a really
wonderful letter talking about what that means to him and his family,
and he ended with this. He said:
We are sharing all of this personal information--
His family is sharing this personal information--
because there is an aggressive campaign underway to dismantle
this valuable program. The misinformation being put out there
is skewing public opinion and this must not happen.
Part of the reason why we have decided to come to the floor week
after week is because Republicans who are spreading mythology about
this law not working for people are chilling interest all across the
country in signing up. Part of the reason why we are here on the floor
is because there are Governors and State legislatures all around the
country that are working to undermine the law rather than to implement
the law. But in States such as California and Connecticut, that are
actually working to make the law work, we are seeing record numbers of
people sign up, and we are seeing story after story such as the
Hannons.
In Connecticut, we had a goal of signing up about 100,000 to 120,000
people between Medicaid and the health care exchanges. Right now we
have 170,000 people signed up. I don't know what our final number will
be, but I imagine it will likely be double, if not more, of what our
original estimate was. Why? Because we are actually going out and
making it easy, simple for people to sign up. When we go out and make
it easy for people to get affordable insurance, guess what. They want
it.
Now that we are celebrating the 4-year mark of this law's being
signed by President Obama, it is worthwhile to talk for a second about
what the reality was before the law was passed and what the reality of
the law is today because that explains why we are seeing this overflow
of interest in this final week of signup.
Before the passage of this law, there were 3.4 million seniors who
were Medicare Part D enrollees--that is the prescription drug benefit--
who were falling into the doughnut hole. There was about 15 percent of
those using drugs in that doughnut hole who were skipping or stopping
medications when they reached that gap in coverage. The average senior
could be paying out as much as $160 in cost-sharing for certain
procedures such as colorectal cancer screenings, paying lots and lots
of money in preventive health care copays that had effectively stopped
a lot of seniors from getting that wellness coverage they so badly
needed.
So what has happened after the passage of the law? There are 7.9
million seniors who are now in the doughnut hole and saving, on
average, about $1,200 in drug costs. That is $9.9 billion being saved
by seniors because of the Affordable Care Act. Thirty-seven million
seniors all across the country have taken advantage of the free
preventive care, getting at least one free preventive service now that
the law is in effect.
Let's look at the other end of the age spectrum. Before this law was
passed, 31.4 percent of young adults between ages 19 and 25 lacked
coverage. That was nearly double the national rate. We are seeing young
people flock to sign up for these health care exchanges, but even
before that, about 3 million young adults all across the country had
gained coverage because the health care law allows them to stay on
their parents' coverage until age 26.
Before the law, women often paid 50 percent more in premiums because
of gender rating--the idea that one could be charged more as a woman
simply because she is a woman. Put another way, being female was listed
by many insurance companies as a preexisting condition. After the law,
gender rating was banned, and women are on equity with men in terms of
the rates they pay.
[[Page S1767]]
For middle-class families that have been struggling with health care
costs because of a crippling illness, they now never have to worry
about losing coverage simply because someone gets sick or not being
able to afford coverage in the first place because of a preexisting
condition. A world in which 60 percent of all personal bankruptcies
were reported to be related to medical costs will be history in this
country.
Four years after the passage of the law, that is the reality of what
life was like before: Seniors paying thousands of dollars more in
prescription drug costs, young adults unable to get coverage, women
paying more for health care simply because they are women. The new
reality is much different.
I imagine that is also why a new poll out this week tells us that 60
percent of Americans want to keep the Affordable Care Act in place.
They may entertain some minor changes to the law, but less than 20
percent of Americans want to see this law repealed.
There is a total incongruity between what people out there believe,
what they are experiencing, and what we are hearing as the reality from
our Republican colleagues. That is why we are going to come down to the
floor week after week and talk about how the Affordable Care Act is
working for millions of Americans.
Finally, I wish to share one story because Republicans are very good
at coming down and telling stories about people who have disagreements
with the law. We are beginning to see an overflow of stories and
anecdotes from people whose lives are being transformed.
Anne Masterson, from Norwich, CT, writes this:
Because of a minor preexisting condition, I was unable to
get health insurance as an individual. I could get it through
my business, my own law practice. I've always opted for good
coverage, but I paid dearly for it. My premiums this year
increased $965 a month--equivalent to a second mortgage
payment.
Let's just break that down. What she is saying is she could get
coverage through her business, but she couldn't get coverage as an
individual, and that was the real story for decades when it came to
individuals who had a preexisting condition. For many of them, it
wasn't a matter of just having to pay more for health care; they
couldn't get insurance at all because of a preexisting condition, and
that was the real world for Anne Masterson.
She further goes on to say this:
Part of my practice is representing children and the
elderly in local probate courts. While not very lucrative,
it's one of the most professionally satisfying things I
do. I feel like I make a difference. However, with the
increased premiums, I don't know how I could continue to
pay for my health insurance.
Let's break that down for a second. Think of all the people all
across this country who are stuck in a job simply because they have to
get health care for them and their family. Think of all of the
innovation that is being stymied because people can't go out and start
a business because it would involve taking the risk of going for a
period of time without health care.
Anne was contemplating giving up work she loved, work she was good
at, representing children and the elderly--maybe one of the most
important jobs we have in our legal system--because she couldn't afford
to pay the premiums on that salary.
She finishes by saying:
Under the Affordable Care Act silver plan, I'll have the
exact same Anthem policy I have now--and pay nearly $600 less
per month. Not only will I have the peace of mind of having
good health insurance, but I'll also be able to continue
representing our most vulnerable citizens.
We should step back and try to think about what our job really is
here. We get consumed with studies and numbers and data, but really our
job is to protect the security of this country and to try to increase
the quality of life for the people we represent. It is hard to
sometimes measure whether we are doing a good job at increasing the
quality of life, but it is really about trying to make sure the people
we represent are happy.
Happiness comes in all sorts of different ways, but happiness had
been stolen from millions of families across the country because every
morning they would wake up thinking about how sick they were or how
sick their child was or how sick their husband or wife was and their
inability to pay for it.
We hear those words ``peace of mind'' come up over and over when
people talk about the Affordable Care Act. Yes, they are getting better
coverage. Yes, they are healthier, but they just feel better about
their existence in this world because they no longer have to worry
about being part of the 60 percent of bankruptcies caused by medical
debt. They no longer have to worry whether their child is going to have
to have their life dictated by the terms of their illness.
We can talk about the 5 million people who have signed up in
exchanges all across the country or the fact that, as Senator
Whitehouse says, the Federal Government is slated to save $1.2 trillion
as compared to previous estimates on health care costs. We can talk
about the $9 billion that seniors are saving because of the Affordable
Care Act when it comes to prescription drug costs. But if we really
want to talk about the transformation in the Affordable Care Act, if we
really want to read into all of these letters we are getting in
increasing volumes, it is about the fact that people don't have to wake
up every day worrying about health care, worrying about getting sick,
worrying about how they are going to pay for an illness.
Maybe, in the end, when this law is fully implemented and ultimately
Republicans come to this floor and defend it, just as they do Medicare,
that will be the true measure of how the Affordable Care Act works.
I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Blumenthal). The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak as in
morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Ukraine
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, tomorrow we are going to have an
opportunity to vote on S. 2124, and I am pleased to learn that it looks
as if there is going to be overwhelming support in the Senate for the
passage of S. 2124. This is the legislation that helps Ukraine in
dealing with the invasion by Russia.
Russia's illegal actions of using its military to overtake Crimea, a
part of Ukraine, violate numerous international obligations that Russia
has committed to.
I have the honor of chairing the U.S. Helsinki Commission. The
Helsinki Accords were entered into in 1975. Russia was one of the
leading forces for forming the OSCE.
Russia's taking over of Crimea violates its commitments it made under
the Helsinki Final Act. It violates the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, which
was signed by the United States, the United Kingdom, Ukraine, and
Russia, that guaranteed basically Ukraine's integrity of its land. It
violates the 1997 Ukraine-Russia bilateral treaty. It violates the U.N.
Charter. The list goes on and on and on.
So I believe it is absolutely essential that we have a strong voice
in standing with the people of Ukraine. There was absolutely no
justification whatsoever for Russia's action. There was no threat to
any of the ethnic communities in Ukraine. All the rights of the people
were being protected. The country was in transition from a corrupt
government to a government that respected the rights of its citizens.
If there was any provocation whatsoever of any unrest, it was caused by
Russia's presence in Ukraine.
We got reports from the chief rabbi in Kiev that Russia was staging
anti-Semitic provocations in Crimea, and the list goes on and on as to
what Russia was doing in order to try to give some justification for
its actions.
Russia's thinly veiled landgrab, cloaked in the cloth of self-
determination, must not go unchallenged. Here is what I think is
critically important: This is a dangerous precedent. We saw Russia use
a similar action in Georgia, and now in Crimea in Ukraine. There are
other territorial issues involved
[[Page S1768]]
around the world. If this goes unchecked, if we do not speak with a
unified voice, it just encourages more irresponsible action by Russia
in other countries.
We know that we have concerns about the South China Sea. We know we
have concerns about Moldova. There are many other areas where Russia
could be involved in its border areas.
So all of these issues are matters for us to speak with a strong
unified voice. S. 2124 does that. It does it in two principal ways.
First, it imposes the sanctions against those responsible for
Russia's invasion into Crimea, Ukraine. It provides sanctions so that
these individuals are not permitted to come to the United States. There
are economic sanctions in regard to the use of our banking system.
These are similar sanctions to what are now being imposed by our
European allies.
We need to isolate Russia. As we all know, the G8, which included
Russia, is now a G7 without Russia. Russia needs to know that there
will be sanctions imposed, and they will be stronger sanctions unless
they stop this aggressive action.
In addition, the legislation provides economic assistance to the new
Government of Ukraine. Just 2 weeks ago the Prime Minister of Ukraine
was here and met with Members of the Senate. I tell you, it was
inspirational to listen to his vision for Ukraine as a democratic,
independent state, with full integration into Europe. That is
important. He is preparing for a May 25 election for the Presidency of
Ukraine.
These are all very, very positive steps. But if Ukraine does not have
the economic foothold to be able to develop the type of economy and
strength in their country, it will be difficult for Ukraine to be
maintained as a viable independent state.
Here is where the United States and our European allies, and I hope
the global community, come together, as we have in this legislation, to
provide economic help on a restructured economic plan for Ukraine that
will help them move forward in a very constructive way.
Mr. President, I must tell you I am disappointed, though, that the
reforms of the IMF will be eliminated from this legislation. I think
that is regrettable. We are entering into a plan for Ukraine that very
much depends upon the IMF's--the International Monetary Fund's--plan to
make sure that the moneys we are spending, Europe is spending, and
other countries are loaning and providing to Ukraine are based upon a
sound economic plan that will work. That is why the IMF is there. And
they will be there. But the United States needs to be a full
participant in the IMF. We are out of compliance, and here is another
opportunity lost for us to be in full compliance with the IMF. I am
disappointed about that.
But as I said as I took the floor, we must speak with one voice--the
Obama administration; the House, the Senate; the Congress--as we stand
with the people of Ukraine for their integrity, for their independence,
and for the adherence to international principles, which Russia has
clearly violated.
With that, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to
10 minutes as in morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Minimum Wage
Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, on October 16, 1936, President Roosevelt
visited the then-largest city in Ohio, the town my wife and I live in,
Cleveland, OH. He spoke about why the ``trickle down'' theory does not
work--this whole view that has been tried a number of times in our
country: trickle down economics--that trickle down economics does not
work. That is when you give major tax breaks to the wealthiest people
in the country.
President Roosevelt called them ``economic royalists''--a term that
sounds a little out of date but maybe fairly descriptive. But President
Roosevelt said when you help the wealthy get wealthier and wealthier--
my Republican colleagues call them the ``job creators,'' but it just
does not work that way; the hope then is that some of that wealth they
accumulate--and we do not resent their wealth, we do not envy their
wealth; we just do not think it is good economic policy for Toledo or
Gallipolis or Chillicothe or Cleveland--that when the wealthiest people
get richer and richer, it does not really trickle down and create jobs.
Forget Franklin Roosevelt for a minute. Look at two decades in very
recent memory--the 1990s during the Clinton years and the 8 years
during the Bush years. From 1993 to 2000, the Clinton years, we
actually reduced the budget deficit to the point where there was a
surplus. There was an increase in taxes on upper income people and some
budget cuts. But what happened during that 8 years is that 21 million
private sector jobs were added to our economy between 1993 and 2000--21
million private sector jobs.
Then President Bush took office. Twice--once in 2001 and once in
2003--with the assistance of kind of a bought-and-sold special interest
Congress in those days, President Bush gave major tax cuts to the
wealthiest people in this country. You know the theory, ``trickle
down.'' You give tax breaks to the rich and it trickles down to
moderate-income, middle-class people and creates jobs. Well, the middle
class shrank during those 8 years. President Bush gave major tax cuts
to the rich twice. Do you know how many jobs were created during those
8 years? Under 1 million private sector jobs.
So from 1993 to 2000 when we did not follow trickle-down economics,
there were 21 million private sector jobs. During the 8 years of the
Bush administration, there were big tax cuts for the rich--twice. There
was essentially no real job creation in the private sector.
A number of my colleagues want to continue that policy. But let's
look at it the other way. The real job creation is not tax breaks for
the richest people, it trickles down, and maybe some jobs will be
created for the middle class and for low-income people. Let's look at
it the other way. Let's look at it as the real job creation is from the
bottom up. One of the ways to do that is a minimum wage increase. It
will not mean everything, but look at this. The minimum wage today is
worth $7.25 an hour nationally, in some States a little bit higher. My
State is 90 cents higher than that, I believe. But the minimum wage
today has one-third less buying power than it did in 1968. In 1968 a
couple with minimum wage jobs--a husband and wife--actually had an OK
standard of living. They were not doing great, but they were making it.
They could afford to pay their rent. They could afford a car. They
could afford some things. They were doing sort of OK.
The minimum wage today--again, a minimum wage job--has one-third less
buying power than it had in 1968. But think about this: The minimum
wage for tipped employees--I imagine a number of the pages who are
sitting here today are not indicative; it is really older people
generally who have had minimum wage jobs and have had jobs where they
rely on tips. It is a myth that minimum wage jobs are held by mostly
teenagers. They are not. Minimum wage jobs are often held by people
supporting themselves, and they are supporting kids sometimes on
minimum wage jobs. They are not teenagers or mostly in their twenties
and thirties.
But get this. Do you know how much the tipped minimum wage is? It is
$2.13 an hour. That means when you see a valet at an airport--if you go
to Cleveland Hopkins Airport and you see someone pushing a wheelchair
with an often older disabled person in it, those are tipped jobs. Those
people do not even make $7.25 an hour. But they can make as little as
$2.13 an hour. Do you know the last time they got a raise, the last
time the tipped minimum wage was raised? It was 1992. For 20-plus years
the tipped minimum wage has been $2.13 an hour. It has been that for 20
years. That means that the waitress in the diner, the server in the
diner, the valet in front of the restaurant, the person pushing the
wheelchair or driving the cart at the airport, the person working in
the hotel, their minimum wage is $2.13 an hour.
[[Page S1769]]
The people opposed to this minimum wage increase--to me, some of the
most self-absorbed interest groups in this country and some of the best
off--say: Well, nobody really makes that because people get these tips.
Well, if they work at a really high-end restaurant where the average
patron will spend $75 or $100, buy a few drinks, where there is an
expensive menu and all of that, the waiters do a little better. They
make $50,000 or $60,000 or $70,000 a year if they are busy enough and
if they are working enough hours, some even more than that. But in the
diner where three retirees will come in on a Tuesday morning and drink
coffee and sit there for 2 hours and take up a table, that waitress is
usually a woman who is a sub-minimum wage tipped employee. The people
may leave $1 on the table, and she has worked for 2 hours. All they buy
is coffee, and she keeps filling it up and filling it up. Think about
the wear and tear on her body. She is standing on her feet all the
time. She is working hard. You know, we like to think we work hard in
the Senate. We do, but we do not do that and it is not so hard on our
bodies.
When I think about this minimum wage--I am never angry about
politics. One of my heroes was Hubert Humphrey. They called him the
``Happy Warrior'' because he always fought for justice but he was not
angry. But there are some things that make me angry about this job,
such as when I see some of my colleagues--and there are a number of
them--vote for pay increases for themselves and then vote against the
minimum wage. They may tell you they work hard. They are not working
harder than that person pushing the cart at the airport. They are not
working harder than the woman in the diner who is filling the coffee
cup.
I urge my colleagues to do something that Pope Francis mentioned.
Pope Francis exhorted his parish priests to go out and smell like the
flock. You think about the Biblical allegory of that, the sheep and the
Old Testament and the shepherd. When he said ``go out and smell like
the flock'' to his parish priests, what he was saying is pretty
obvious: Go out and find out how they live. Go out and try to live
among them. Go out and do what they do. Go out and understand their way
of life.
I ask my colleagues to think about it. I am not asking them to live
on a minimum wage job. I am not asking them to wait tables. But I do
ask them to spend some time talking to people about the hopes and
dreams for their children and in their lives, people who are minimum
wage workers, people making $7.25 an hour and working hard, people who
are making less than that and rely on tips that may or may not be
there.
It is justice. Are we going to reward work? If so, we ought to
increase the minimum wage. At the same time, we ought to expand the
earned-income tax credit. It actually rewards work. If you are a
trickle-down economics guy--and most of them are guys--and you believe
that you reward people by cutting their taxes so they will work harder,
maybe we ought to think about rewarding hand-working lower income
people with tax breaks. For someone making $28,000 a year, that extra
thousand dollars really means they can maybe put a little aside for
their kid's community college or maybe they can actually go out to eat
once in a while or maybe they can occasionally buy a really nice dinner
for their kids or maybe they can buy school supplies or whatever with
that extra thousand or two thousand dollars from the earned-income tax
credit.
We need to increase the minimum wage and the earned-income tax
credit. It will not only be better for those families, it will help the
economy because you put money into the economy. The unemployed worker
or a minimum wage worker is going to spend that money. They are not
going to invest it in a Swiss bank account the way some wealthy people
might; they are going to spend that money, and that is going to create
jobs in the local community. So increasing the minimum wage and
expanding the earned-income tax credit is good for those families, it
is good for those communities, and it is good for our economy. It is
something we ought to do.
I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Pennsylvania.
Mr. CASEY. I would ask unanimous consent that the quorum call be
rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Unemployment Extension
Mr. CASEY. Thank you very much.
I rise tonight to speak about emergency unemployment compensation. We
know by the acronyms around here people refer to unemployment insurance
as UI. What we are talking about in the real world are literally
millions of Americans affected in one way or another because they have
been out of work, unemployed for long periods of time.
By one estimate the number of Americans who have been out of work for
6 months or longer--and many of these individuals have been out of work
for a lot more than 6 months, but when the line is drawn of 6 months or
longer, it is more than 4 million Americans. It is a big number. I will
talk a little bit more about the Pennsylvania impact and walk through
some of those numbers.
This legislation that is finally coming together after many weeks is
going to be, and I think must be, a bipartisan compromise. That is the
only way to move forward. It is an effort to provide an essential
lifeline--that is not an overstatement and may be an understatement--an
essential lifeline to middle-class families who rely upon the program
to stay afloat as they are actively seeking work. I think what is
sometimes lost in the discussion is these are folks who are trying to
work, trying to find a job again.
I would have preferred a much longer extension than the one that is
being discussed and worked on. I also would have hoped that people
relying upon this type of compensation--emergency unemployment
compensation--would not have to see their benefits lapse. Extending
this program has always been bipartisan, and we need to make sure we
keep it in that vein. While our economy has made substantial
improvements, we have a long way to go. Families are still hurting and
they need help.
Unfortunately, when families read the business page of their local
newspaper, some of the numbers look pretty good. But if you are out of
work for any period of time, especially 6 months or longer, it doesn't
really matter what is on the business page or what the overall
assessment is; it is very difficult for that individual or family
because they are not working, and because they are not working they are
not able to help their family.
We know that in addition to being the lifeline for families--an
essential connection to any kind of economic security--the other reason
it is important to have the emergency unemployment compensation passed
is because of the economic boost it provides. Emergency unemployment
compensation provides an economic jump start.
Just by way of example, in 2012, Mark Zandi, one of our more
respected economists on both sides of the aisle, found that for every
dollar of emergency unemployment compensation there was a $1.52
economic impact--or new economic activity resulted. That is the old
spend a buck, and what do you get for spending the buck? You spend a
buck on this, you get a buck fifty-two in return. That is a substantial
return on that investment.
Recent analysis specifically focusing on the extension of benefits in
2014 has also found a large economic boost. The Economic Policy
Institute has estimated that extending unemployment benefits in 2014
would generate $37.8 billion in economic activity. We know that this is
an issue--unemployment, emergency unemployment or long-term
unemployment--that varies depending on the State, but we know every
State has been affected and almost every community has been affected in
a very substantial way.
Pennsylvania is a big and diverse State with more than 12 million
people. In some ways it tends to broadly reflect what is happening in
various parts of the country. In Pennsylvania 73,300 people immediately
stopped receiving unemployment benefits when the emergency unemployment
compensation expired on December 28, 2014.
[[Page S1770]]
That was kind of the beginning of the current crisis for these
families. They have been living through a very difficult economy for
years now. They have been out of work for many months, and in some
cases more than a year or two, but the current crisis started for them
on December 28.
I can't even imagine what it is like for them. You are at the end of
the holiday season, you are out of work, you have been robbed of your
dignity and your ability to contribute to your family's well-being, and
on top of all of that--in the middle of the holiday season when it is
supposed to be a time of hope and optimism and gift giving and all
kinds of family time--you, and perhaps another member of the family,
lose your emergency unemployment compensation. That is where it
started.
Because Congress didn't have a bipartisan consensus until recently,
the days and weeks started to add up. So when you go from December 28
to March 1--and we can take another look at the numbers--unfortunately,
and not surprisingly, those numbers went up. As of March 1, 105,000
Pennsylvanians lost their benefits. It gets worse than that. If it
continues, and there is not some relief provided through May--and this
is the period that would be covered by the bill--it is estimated that
158,400 Pennsylvanians and some 2,795,300 Americans who could benefit
from this bill will lose their unemployment compensation.
It is very simple in terms of the choice we have to make. We need to
decide in the very near future--we hope starting this week so we can
begin the process of finally getting this done--whether we will help
almost 2.8 million Americans and almost 160,000 Pennsylvanians. It is a
very simple choice. We are going to take either one path or the other.
I hope and pray we take the path that helps those almost 3 million
Americans and almost 160,000 Pennsylvanians.
Earlier I mentioned the economic impact of passing this kind of
legislation. We know that in Pennsylvania, for example, one estimate
shows that extending benefits would provide a boost to consumption and
economic activity which would save an estimated 15,000 jobs. That is
another way to measure the impact of this program.
It is my hope that the Senate can swiftly pass this bipartisan
legislation to extend emergency unemployment compensation and that the
House will take it up and pass it without delay. We can't allow
politics to stand in the way of helping families in need.
This is a basic and fundamental issue. These families and individuals
have waited far too long. I will conclude with just one example. A
couple of Sundays ago--maybe 3 weeks ago--I was walking out of church
in our neighborhood and a woman came up to me. I didn't know her, but I
recognized her from the neighborhood. She asked me about this issue.
She said: I'm out of work; when do you think it will pass? She asked me
the same question a couple of weeks before that. I said: I think we are
getting to the point where there is a consensus. On that particular
Sunday--just a couple of weeks ago--she asked me again. When she
started to ask the question, she asked it with a seriousness and an
earnestness and a kind of worry in her voice that caught my attention.
I said something like: I think we are starting to get there, but I
can't say for sure when. When I gave that answer, she looked at me and
she started to become very emotional and said: I hope you are reaching
the point where you can pass something because it is going to be very
difficult for me to hang on any longer.
This is very tough. I felt at that moment--as an elected official who
was given power by the voters to vote and represent them--if not
powerless, I was not doing nearly enough for her. I am part of an
institution that has not come together yet--in the Senate and in the
other body as well. We have not come together to answer her question
with full confidence and to say: Yes, we understand. We understand what
you are up against to the extent we can--not having lived through this
ourselves--and we are going to act this week or tomorrow or the next
day.
Not having a specific answer for her gave me a sense of not just
frustration but a sense of failure. There was a sense of urgency that
she brought to my attention, and I believe almost every Member here
could probably tell a similar story.
We have to act. We have to get this done, and we have to make sure we
undertake every effort in the next few days--and I hope we are talking
days now--to get this done so we can finally provide a measure of
relief which is short term but will have the effect of providing a
measure of relief to families who have suffered in ways I can't even
imagine.
With that, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Heinrich). Without objection, it is so
ordered.
____________________