[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 25 (Thursday, February 11, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H713-H714]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            FREE PUERTO RICO

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Gutierrez) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GUTIERREZ. Mr. Speaker, I come with a humble message from the 
Puerto Rican people to the House of Representatives: Free Puerto Rico.
  Free Puerto Rico so that she can solve the problem of her crushing 
debt without being handcuffed by Congress. Free Puerto Rico so that her 
hospitals can stay open for sick moms and dads and her schools stay 
open for children. Nobody should fear that their house will burn down 
because the firemen have not been paid.
  So far the response to Puerto Rico's debt crisis from Washington--the 
only place that Puerto Rico is forced to rely on--has been very little, 
and greedy bondholders and hedge fund managers only care about Puerto 
Rico as a wager, a way to make money whether Puerto Rico sinks or 
swims.
  Right now, Puerto Rico needs serious, sustained attention from 
Washington to find a path forward such that Puerto Rico is neither 
absolved of her obligations nor mortally wounded by them. Mr. Speaker, 
here is what it comes down to: when the U.S. Supreme Court said that 
Puerto Rico belongs to but is not a part of the United States, the 
responsibility to care for her and her people came along with that 
judgment.

[[Page H714]]

  Congress must act responsibly for the fact that we expect Puerto Rico 
to pay its obligation, but we force her to play by a particular set of 
rules. Puerto Rico cannot declare bankruptcy because Congress passed a 
law saying that she could not. Puerto Rico is under the choke hold of 
the Jones Act, a law passed right here in this room, without any 
consultation with the Puerto Rican people, that says, by law, Puerto 
Rico cannot shop around for the best deal on shipping. No. They must 
buy the most expensive, which means double the import costs and an 
estimated $500 million extra on Puerto Rico's food bill alone.
  When it comes to producing for themselves, a large chunk of the best 
agricultural land--the land that sustains and feeds a nation--is taken 
away from them for U.S. military bases. Thirteen percent of the land is 
gone.
  Puerto Rico is a tropical island, but a lot of its fruit and 
vegetables and almost all of its food is imported. We must allow Puerto 
Rico to create an agricultural economy, allowing Puerto Ricans to feed 
themselves. The economy produces goods the people do not consume, and 
the people consume goods that they do not produce.
  Even when the U.S. is caught redhanded stealing water from Puerto 
Rico's freshwater supply--not paying a dime for it--what happens? The 
U.S. Government is not held responsible or made to pay. When the 
military bombs and pollutes Vieques and Culebra, does the U.S. 
Government feel any obligation to restore it? Not really.
  So, Mr. Speaker, when Congress talks about Puerto Rico's debt, I say 
we look at the totality of the debt--the part owed to Puerto Rico, not 
just the part Puerto Rico owes to Wall Street. Every soldier she has 
sent to war, every time the U.S. has stepped in to override her courts 
and her government, these debts add up but are not accounted for.
  Now, what is the solution that everyone in Washington is lining up 
behind? A Federal control board. Imagine that. An island that cannot 
determine its own destiny. It has to play an economic game with a 
stacked deck and all the rules rigged against her. What is the solution 
in Washington? Take away what little autonomy they have left.
  If Congress were smart, we would find a way to get out of the way. 
Free Puerto Rico's people to unleash their inherent, hardworking 
character, spirit, and dedication. Free Puerto Ricans to work and toil 
and build and create. Free Puerto Rico so that she can build a 
sustainable economy that keeps her people at home in the land of their 
birth and their heritage.
  We cannot get sidetracked by seeing Puerto Rico's economic health 
exclusively through the lens of food stamps, Medicaid, government 
programs, and further dependency on Washington. We must make the 
conversation about jobs for Puerto Ricans, jobs that build the economy, 
the tax base, and the self-sufficiency of the island.
  Mr. Speaker, Puerto Rico's problems were a long time in the making, 
but I have utter confidence in Puerto Ricans' ability to solve them if 
we in the Congress begin to listen to them, work with them, and 
recognize them as equal partners.
  We must free Puerto Rico so that the Puerto Rican people can free 
themselves.

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