[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 19 (Wednesday, January 29, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H637-H640]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           THE OBAMA ECONOMY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, in 2016, I wrote this op-ed, ``Seven 
Years of Change You Can See and Feel.'' I wrote it in the backdrop of 
the election of President Barack Obama and his opening remarks and his 
inauguration that said: ``Today I say to you that the challenges we 
face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met 
easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: They will be 
met.''
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the op-ed I authored.

             [From the Washington Examiner, Feb. 17, 2016]

               Seven Years of Change You Can See and Feel

                        (By Sheila Jackson Lee)

       The morning of January 20, 2009 was one of the coldest days 
     on record in Washington, DC. But this was nothing compared to 
     the chill wind blowing through the American economy and body 
     politic. The nation was facing economic challenges unseen 
     since the Great Depression: Americans were losing their jobs 
     at a frightening rate of 800,000 per month; the national 
     unemployment rate had risen to 7.8 percent and would continue 
     to climb until reaching its peak of 10.0 percent in October 
     2009.
       For African Americans, the numbers were much grimmer: A 
     jobless rate of 13.5 percent in January 2009 which would grow 
     to 16.5 percent by the end of the year. And on top of this, 
     tens of thousands of American families each month were losing 
     their health insurance and their homes to foreclosure. The 
     United States was still bogged down in the quagmire that was 
     the Iraq War and young people by the thousands were being 
     forced to defer or drop out of college because of lack of 
     financial aid. And the average price of gas exceeded $4 per 
     gallon.
       It was against this backdrop that I watched from the 
     inaugural platform as Barack Obama, surrounded by his radiant 
     and beautiful wife, Michelle, and their two adorable 
     daughters, rose to take the oath of office. After being sworn 
     in as the nation's

[[Page H638]]

     44th president of the United States, Obama reassured an 
     anxious but hopeful nation, saying:
       ``Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. 
     They are serious and they are many. They will not be met 
     easily or in a short span of time. But know this America: 
     They will be met.''
       Watching Barack Obama address the nation that day, 
     spectators in attendance and viewers across the country and 
     around the world understood they were witnessing a historic 
     president, the first African American ever to hold the 
     nation's highest office.
       But more than being a historic president, Barack Obama's 
     actions and leadership over the ensuing seven years would 
     demonstrate that his would be a consequential presidency that 
     changed America for the better.
       His first and most pressing task was to rescue an economy 
     on the brink of collapse. Working with the Democratic-
     controlled Congress, the American Recovery and Reinvestment 
     Act was passed, which created 3.7 million jobs and saved the 
     jobs of millions of teachers, firefighters, police officers 
     and social service providers. The Recovery Act also cut taxes 
     for working families, extended unemployment insurance, and 
     expanded the Earned Income and Child Tax Credits, which 
     disproportionately benefit African American families.
       Seven years later the verdict is in on the economic plan 
     put in place by President Obama and the Democratic Congress. 
     The Recovery Act ended the Great Recession, transformed the 
     economy from one hemorrhaging jobs to one that has created 
     more than 16 million new jobs over a record 71 consecutive 
     months. The national unemployment rate has dipped under 5 
     percent for the first time since President Clinton left 
     office, the deficit has been cut by 71 percent and the Dow 
     Jones stock market index topped 18,000 in 2015, an increase 
     of 177 percent over where it stood the day President Obama 
     took office.
       As an added benefit, the average price of gasoline has been 
     reduced from more than $4.11 per gallon to $1.80, the lowest 
     price since before the tragedy of September 11. The seven 
     years of Obama also effected policy change in the areas of 
     criminal justice reform, health and education, national 
     security and foreign affairs.
       President Obama also made history by appointing two women 
     to the U.S. Supreme Court, including the first Hispanic 
     American to serve on the Court. He appointed the first 
     African American man and woman to serve as attorney general 
     and the first woman to chair the Federal Reserve Board.
       In the area of foreign affairs and national security, 
     President Obama ended the Iraq War, assembled and led an 
     international coalition to impose sanctions on Iran that were 
     so crippling that it was forced to the negotiating table. 
     That yielded the Iran Nuclear Agreement that prevents Iran 
     from ever attaining a nuclear weapon. And of course, as the 
     world knows, because of President Obama's leadership, General 
     Motors is alive and Osama Bin Laden is dead.
       For seven years, President Barack Obama has represented our 
     country with grace, integrity, honor, and distinction. He has 
     provided consolation, hope, and healing in the face of 
     unspeakable tragedies such as the massacre of innocent 
     children at Sandy Hook, worshippers at Mother Emanuel AME 
     Church in Charleston, spectators at the Boston Marathon, and 
     mass shootings in Aurora, Colorado and Tucson, Arizona. He 
     expressed and symbolized our joy and pride in the progress 
     made over the last half century--and the distance we still 
     have to travel--when he marched across the Edmund Pettus 
     Bridge and addressed the multitude from the spot on the steps 
     where the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. shared his dream for 
     America's future.
       So as President Obama serves the final year of his 
     presidency, it is clear beyond doubt that he kept the promise 
     he made to the nation seven years ago on that cold day in 
     January when he said:
       ``Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. 
     But know this America: They will be met.''
       They were more than just met; they were overcome under his 
     leadership. And because of President Obama, today the United 
     States is stronger, more prosperous and better positioned 
     than ever to win the future.
       And that is what makes his one of the most consequential 
     presidencies in American history.

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. In the years of Obama's service, we did, together, 
meet those challenges.
  His first and most pressing task was to rescue an economy on the 
brink of collapse. Working with the Democratic-controlled Congress, the 
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the stimulus, was passed and 
created 3.7 million jobs and saved the jobs of millions of teachers, 
firefighters, police officers, and social service providers.
  The Recovery Act also cut taxes for working families, extended 
unemployment insurance, and expanded the earned income and child tax 
credit, which disproportionately benefits African Americans. The 
challenge was met.
  So any discussion of any excitement about the work of this 
administration creating an economy, it is an economy that was literally 
given to them because of the work of President Obama and the Democratic 
Caucus.
  We have, now, $2 trillion extra in debt. We have the pending 
possibility of wars. We have the continuing downward spiral of issues 
that will impact this economy.
  So, with this terrible tax cut, we were not given a strong economy. 
We paid an extremely high price: $1.9 trillion for tax cuts has done 
little for the economy. There is no such thing as a bump by this 
administration. Key indicators are saying that things, in actuality, 
are worse.
  The Joint Economic Committee says unemployment was cut by more than 
half during the Obama administration, from a peak of 10 percent to 4 
percent. The economy had experienced 76 consecutive months of job 
growth. The GDP growth was strong, an average of 2.6 percent in 11 
quarters of the Obama administration. Growth in annual median household 
income was strong and trending upward, increasing $4,800 during those 
last 2 years. And the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors 
under George W. Bush states that the economy was in fine shape at the 
end of the Obama administration, despite what President Trump now 
asserts.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the Joint Economic Committee 
article.

   President Trump did not create the strong economy; he inherited it

       President Trump regularly claims the economy he inherited 
     was a ``mess,'' but fact checkers have found this to false. 
     Before Trump took office in January 2017, the economy had 
     largely recovered from the Great Recession. Overall economic 
     indicators were already strong and were trending stronger.
       Unemployment had been cut by more than half during the 
     Obama administration, from a peak of 10 percent to 4.7 
     percent.
       The economy had experienced 76 consecutive months of job 
     growth.
       GDP growth was strong--an average of 2.6 percent growth in 
     the last 11 quarters of the Obama administration.
       Growth in annual median household income was strong and 
     trending upward, increasing $4,800 during the last two years 
     of the Obama administration.
       Greg Mankiw, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers 
     under President George W. Bush, states that ``the economy was 
     in fine shape at the end of the Obama administration, despite 
     what President Trump sometimes asserts.''


There is no such thing as a ``Trump bump''--key economic indicators are 
                           the same or worse

       Last week, the president said ``we have the greatest 
     economy we've ever had in the history of our country.'' This 
     claim did not make it by the fact checkers at The Associated 
     Press. A few facts to keep in mind:
       Monthly non-farm job growth has slowed in the first 35 
     months of the Trump administration compared to the last 35 
     months of the Obama administration--36,000 fewer jobs per 
     month under Trump.
       Average real GDP growth has been roughly the same for the 
     first 11 quarters under Trump and the last 11 quarters of the 
     Obama administration.
       Growth in median annual household income was three times as 
     great during the last two years of the Obama administration 
     as during the first two years of the Trump administration.


  President Trump's signature economic policy--the $1.9 trillion tax 
         cut--has failed to deliver the promised economic boost

       Trump promised the tax cuts would be like ``rocket fuel'' 
     to the economy, but the effects have been underwhelming. The 
     economic boost has been very small and short-lived.
       GDP growth: Trump promised GDP growth as high as 6 percent. 
     However, in the seven quarters before and after passage of 
     the Republican tax law, GDP growth is exactly the same, 
     averaging 2.5 percent.
       Business investment: The Trump administration predicted a 
     flood of business investment, which is critical to long-term 
     economic growth. However, it actually has slowed since the 
     tax cut, falling from an average annual growth rate of 4.6 
     percent in the seven quarters before enactment to a 3.5 
     percent annual rate in the seven quarters following the tax 
     cut.
       Household income: The administration predicted that the tax 
     cuts would bring an increase of $4,000 to $9,000 or more per 
     household. However, household income increased only $550 in 
     the first year after the tax cuts went into effect.
       Unemployment: It was at 4.1 percent before the tax cuts 
     took effect, falling just over one-half of 1 percent since 
     then.


We paid an extremely high price--$1.9 trillion--for tax cuts that have 
                     done so little for the economy

       When it is fully implemented, the Republican tax law will 
     add $1.9 trillion to the national debt, according to CBO.
       In just the past two fiscal years, the annual deficit has 
     increased from $666 billion in FY 2017 to $984 billion in FY 
     2019 (a 48 percent increase).
       Despite a deficit forecast to exceed $1 trillion for the 
     rest of the decade and beyond,

[[Page H639]]

     Trump administration officials continue to claim the tax cuts 
     will pay for themselves.
       In the long term, the vastly increased deficit likely will 
     weigh down the economy and Republicans will argue that those 
     deficits will require cuts to vital services and programs 
     like Medicare and Social Security. In fact, the President 
     admitted just last week he will look at cuts to those 
     programs.


    Trump's second major economic policy--the trade war--is a self-
     inflicted wound, hurting consumers, businesses and the economy

       Trump's claim that China bears the entire cost of the 
     tariffs is absolutely false--there are casualties on both 
     sides of the trade war.
       One analysis finds that the trade war with China had 
     already cost 300,000 American jobs as of September 2019 and 
     the number could rise to 450,000 by the end of 2019.
       CBO estimated that the trade war reduced GDP by 0.3 percent 
     by 2020.
       The trade war hits consumers in their wallets and 
     pocketbooks. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York estimated 
     that tariffs on imports from China cost each U.S. household 
     nearly $300 per year in 2018, and over $800 per year since 
     with the additional 15 percent tariff on $200 billion worth 
     of goods.


 While Trump cuts taxes for the wealthy and applauds the stock market, 
         millions of Americans are struggling to make ends meet

       In a recent analysis, the Brookings Institution found that 
     53 million workers--44 percent of all workers--earn just 
     $10.22 per hour or about $18,000 per year. $18,000 is not 
     enough to raise a family on.
       The president has begun talking about a blue-collar boom, 
     but manufacturing has contracted in three of the last four 
     quarters. The sector has added just 9,000 jobs in the past 
     six months.


Most of President Trump's claims about the economy are false or highly 
                               misleading

       According to The Washington Post Fact Checker, Trump has 
     made more than 1,500 false claims about the economy.
       This is part of a broader pattern. Fact Checker has found 
     that altogether Trump has made more than 16,000 false or 
     misleading claims on all topics in his first three years in 
     office.
       Trump made half of those false or misleading claims in 
     2019--the pace of these claims is increasing.
       Any statement the president makes about the economy has a 
     good chance of being false or misleading.

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. And so we have a challenge to try and recoup and 
recover, for hardworking Americans, a real economy, because it is 
frightening when we begin to start losing jobs.
  Let me show how the trend went.
  We were adding 270,000 jobs per month under President Obama. We are 
now adding an average of 191,000 jobs under this present 
administration. And it can be seen very clearly that the job growth is 
challenging.
  We can also see that, when we were down in a slump on median 
household income, it was surging up because of the values and 
principles of the Obama administration working with the Democratic 
Congress.
  Employment was down when Mr. Obama took office. We can see that it 
surged up; and then it began to go down, with respect to this 
administration, and turning red again. The economy, as I said, had been 
growing very well under President Obama.
  The GOP tax scam led to a record-setting $1 trillion in stock 
buybacks, unlike what was represented to us, that that was going to 
create investment in this country.
  We are now beginning to put forward some major legislation that deals 
with investment in our infrastructure, investment in public housing and 
affordable housing, because we realize what creates jobs. We create 
jobs when we invest back into the Nation. We do not create jobs when we 
take tax cuts and give them to the rich while everybody else suffers.
  The GOP tax law encourages companies to send factories and jobs 
overseas. Under the GOP tax cut, income generated by American companies 
abroad face tax rates that are half the new top corporate rate of 21 
percent.
  By the way, corporations didn't ask for that low corporate tax rate. 
Some companies may be able to avoid taxes altogether on tangible 
investments made offshore.
  The GOP tax law increases deficits, as I said earlier, by $1.9 
trillion when we are facing major budgetary challenges driven by our 
aging population.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would say that there was nothing but a gift 
given to this administration by the hard work of the Obama 
administration.
  Let us get back to investing in the American people. That is how we 
build the economy, not by snatching it away from them.
  Mr. Speaker, the verdict is now in, and it leads to the inescapable 
conclusion that the Trump TaxScam has not accelerated the economy, 
rather it is a significant drag on the booming economy President Barack 
Obama bequeathed to his successor, the current occupant of the office.
  Specifically, two points cannot be stressed enough.
  First, President Trump did not create the strong economy; he 
inherited it.
  Second, we paid an extremely high price--$1.9 trillion--for tax cuts 
that have done so little for the economy.
  Mr. Speaker, most of President Trump's claims about the economy are 
false or highly misleading.
  There is no such thing as a ``Trump bump''--key economic indicators 
are the same or worse.
  The President's signature economic policy--the $1.9 trillion tax 
cut--has failed to deliver the promised economic boost and his second 
major economic policy--the trade war--is a self-inflicted wound, 
hurting farmers, consumers, businesses and the economy.
  Mr. Speaker, those of us who were there remember well that the 
morning of January 20, 2009, which was one of the coldest days on 
record in Washington, DC.
  But it was nothing compared to the chill wind blowing through the 
American economy and body politic because at that time the nation was 
facing economic challenges unseen since the Great Depression: Americans 
were losing their jobs at a frightening rate of 800,000 per month; the 
national unemployment rate had risen to 7.8 percent and would continue 
to climb until reaching its peak of 10.0 percent in October 2009.
  For African Americans, the numbers were much grimmer, a jobless rate 
of 13.5 percent in January 2009 which would grow to 16.5 percent by the 
end of the year.
  And on top of this, tens of thousands of American families each month 
were losing their health insurance and their homes to foreclosure.
  And the average price of gas exceeded $4 per gallon.
  It was against this backdrop that the new President of the United 
States, Barack Obama, rose to take the oath of office.
  After being sworn in as the nation's 44th President, President Obama 
reassured an anxious but hopeful nation, saying:
  ``Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are 
serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short 
span of time. But know this America: They will be met.''
  Because of the actions President Obama took, not to further the 
interests of himself but of the American people, these challenges were 
more than met and overcome and for that Barack Obama's presidency is 
regarded by historians as a consequential presidency that changed 
America for the better.
  Mr. Speaker, before Trump took office in January 2017, the economy 
had recovered from the Great Recession and overall economic indicators 
were already strong and were trending stronger.
  Unemployment had been cut by more than half during the Obama 
administration, from a peak of 10 percent to 4.7 percent.
  The economy had experienced 76 consecutive months of job growth, the 
longest sustained period of growth in American history.
  GDP growth was strong, average of 2.6 percent annually in the last 11 
quarters of the Obama Administration and median household income growth 
was strong and trending upward, increasing $4,800 during in last two 
years of the Obama administration.
  Even Greg Mankiw, chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers under 
President George W. Bush, had to admit that ``the economy was in fine 
shape at the end of the Obama administration, despite what the current 
President falsely asserts.
  Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record an op-ed published on February 
17, 2016 in the Washington Examiner, entitled ``Seven Years of Change 
You Can See and Feel.''
  President Obama actually had a plan to tackle the economic woes that 
were affecting the American people.
  Working with the Democratic-controlled Congress, the President signed 
into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which created 3.7 
million jobs and saved the jobs of millions of teachers, firefighters, 
police officers, and social service providers.
  The Recovery Act also cut taxes for working families, extended 
unemployment insurance, and expanded the Earned Income and Child tax 
credits, which disproportionately benefit African American families.
  The Recovery Act ended the Great Recession, transformed the economy 
from one hemorrhaging jobs to one that has created over 16 million new 
jobs over a record 71 consecutive months.
  The national unemployment rate has dipped under 5 percent, for the 
first time since President Clinton left office, the deficit has been 
cut

[[Page H640]]

by 71 percent and the Dow Jones stock market index topped 18,000 in 
2015, an increase of 177 percent over where it stood the day President 
Obama took office.
  And, as an added benefit, the average price of gasoline has been 
reduced from more than $4.11 per gallon to $1.80, the lowest price 
since before the tragedy of September 11.
  In short, Mr. Speaker, President Obama bequeathed a booming and 
vibrant economy to his successor, who promptly took actions to 
undermine it and explode the national debt.
  Mr. Speaker, the GOP TaxScam was the wrong policy at the wrong time 
because it showered benefits on the top 1 percent large multinational 
corporations while doing little for everyday working Americans and Main 
Street small business owners.
  GOP TaxScam also raises the nation's debt by $1.9 trillion at a time 
when the economy was already strong, and when we are facing major long-
term budgetary challenges driven by our aging population.
  And rather than devoting resources to wise investments in our workers 
and small businesses, the GOP TaxScam further burdens working families, 
endangers Americans' retirement security, and worsens our budgetary 
outlook.
  Our long-term economic growth trajectory is unchanged and there is no 
sign of an investment boom.
  Real wage growth for workers remains modest and factories and jobs 
are more likely to go overseas.
  The federal deficit is soaring as corporate tax receipts plummet and 
the tax code is riddled with even more special-interest tax breaks and 
loopholes.


 THE GOP TAXSCAM LED To A RECORD-SETTING $1 TRILLION IN STOCK BUYBACKS

  The GOP TaxScam delivered huge benefits to rich investors and CEOs 
through record-setting stock buybacks in 2018 while average workers 
struggle to pay for rising health care and living costs.
  Stock buybacks do nothing to improve business operations or help 
workers.


THE GOP TAXSCAM SHOWERS BENEFITS ON THE WEALTHY AND LARGE CORPORATIONS 
    WHILE DOING LITTLE FOR WORKERS AND MAIN STREET SMALL BUSINESSES

  The GOP tax cut is heavily tilted toward the wealthy and corporations 
and exacerbates the stagnation of wages for the vast majority of 
workers and worsens income and wealth inequality.
  The GOP tax law does nothing to help small businesses gain access to 
capital and grow their receipts.
  Only 5 percent of small businesses pay taxes at the corporate level 
and most of the pass-through tax cuts go to the largest 2.6 percent of 
businesses.


    THE GOP TAX LAW ENCOURAGES COMPANIES TO SEND FACTORIES AND JOBS 
                                OVERSEAS

  Under the GOP tax law, income generated by American companies abroad 
face tax rates that are half the new top corporate rate of 21 percent.
  Some companies may be able to avoid tax altogether on tangible 
investments made offshore.
  This further incentivizes companies to move tangible assets, such as 
factories and machinery, overseas.
  Rather than protecting workers and their families, the GOP tax law 
tilts the playing field against American workers.


THE GOP TAX LAW INCREASES DEFICITS BY $1.9 TRILLION WHEN WE ARE FACING 
       MAJOR BUDGETARY CHALLENGES DRIVEN BY OUR AGING POPULATION

  Even after accounting for any economic growth effects, the 
Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates the GOP tax scam increases 
deficits by $1.9 trillion over the ten years 2018 to 2028--hardly the 
``pay for itself' message we heard from the Administration and 
Republicans in Congress.
  Our friends across the aisle promised the GOP TaxScam would 
significantly boost economic growth, spurred an investment boom, drove 
unemployment down to the lowest level since the 1960s, created jobs for 
millions of workers, and helped middle-class families keep more of 
their paychecks.
  All of these claims have collapsed in the crucible of actual 
experience.


        THE GOP TAXSCAM DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY BOOST THE ECONOMY

  In the seven quarters before and after passage of the Trump TaxScam, 
GDP growth is unchanged from the Obama economy, averaging 2.5 percent.
  By 2023, the tax law's positive effect on economic growth will fade 
away entirely.


           THE GOP TAXSCAM DOES NOT SPUR BUSINESS INVESTMENT

  There is no evidence of an investment boom, which Republicans 
promised would be the key to unleashing unprecedented economic growth 
and wage gains.
  Nonresidential business investment grew by less than 1 percent in the 
third quarter of last year, while business' orders for durable goods 
(another measure of investment) fell in December for the fourth time in 
five months.
  Instead of encouraging investment, the tax cut triggered a record 
level of stock buybacks.


   THE GOP TAXSCAM IS NOT THE CAUSE OF LOWEST UNEMPLOYMENT SINCE 1968

  President Trump is coasting on an economic expansion--now the second-
longest on record--that began under President Obama.
  The law has not changed the unemployment trend.
  The unemployment rate has fallen steadily since the end of the Great 
Recession.


      THE GOP TAXSCAM HAS NOT CREATED JOBS FOR MILLIONS OF WORKERS

  More jobs were created in President Obama's last two years in office 
than President Trump's first two years, a monthly average of 227,00 for 
Obama contrasted to an average of 191,000 for Trump.
  Monthly non-farm job growth has slowed in the first 35 months of the 
Trump administration compared to the last 35 months of the Obama 
administration--36,000 fewer jobs per month under Trump.
  The tax law also encourages companies to send factories and jobs 
overseas rather than protecting jobs at home.


THE GOP TAXSCAM IS NOT HELPING MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES KEEP MORE OF THEIR 
                               PAYCHECKS

  There has been very little increase in private sector compensation or 
wages since the tax law passed.
  Real wage growth continues to be disappointingly modest, and real 
bonuses increased by just 2 cents per hour between December 2017 and 
September 2018.
  The law ignores the stagnation of working-class wages and worsens 
income and wealth inequality.
  In fact, only 35 percent of the tax law's benefits in 2018 will go to 
the bottom 80 percent of households making less than approximately 
$150,000 per year.


EVEN THOUGH FEDERAL REVENUES HAVE RISEN, THE GOP TAXSCAM HAS CREATED A 
                    MAJOR REVENUE DEFICIENCY PROBLEM

  Corporate tax receipts dropped an astounding 31 percent drop in 2018, 
with total receipts as a share of GDP falling to the lowest levels 
since the end of the Great Recession despite healthy economic growth 
and a tight labor market.
  Revenue last year was 16.4 percent of the economy, almost two 
percentage points below the so-year average of 18.3 percent in years in 
which unemployment fell below 5 percent.
  By contrast, spending as a share of GDP last year fell right at the 
historical average.
  Predictably, the President and our Republican friends seeks to evade 
blame and responsibility for the fiscal mess and exploding debt they 
have created.
  Instead of redressing the harm caused by the Trump TaxScam, 
Republicans resort again to their past practice of blaming the deficit 
on the entitlement programs such as Social Security, Medicare, SNAP, 
and veterans benefits and seek to slash these programs to the 
barebones.
  For example the President sought to cut non-defense discretionary 
(NDD) programs by $1.4 trillion, including cuts to Medicare and 
Medicaid, reduce funding for SNAP by $220 billion or 22 percent, and 
deny infrastructure funding for cash-strapped state and local 
governments; and pile more hardships on struggling Americans with $327 
billion in cuts to direct spending programs that safeguard basic living 
standards they need to get by.
  The President is obsessed with dismantling and destabilizing health 
care for millions of Americans by making yet another attempt to 
``repeal and replace'' the Affordable Care Act passed under the 
extraordinary leadership of President Barack Obama which provided 
health security to more than 20 million Americans.
  Mr. Speaker, we are now entering Act III of the immorality play we 
predicted the President would write.
  Act I was the cutting of taxes for the rich; Act II was the 
inevitable exploding of the deficit we predicted would result and our 
Republican friends denied would ever happen.
  And now we have Act III, in which Republicans claim to have newly 
rediscovered their horror over the deficits created by their fiscal 
irresponsibility and insist that the mess they created but be cleaned 
up by slashing investments in the programs relied upon by the 90-95 
percent of Americans who were made worse off by the GOP TaxScam.
  The President should be embarrassed and ashamed of his economic 
stewardship and thankful every day to President Obama for tackling and 
solving the major economic challenges facing Americans.

                          ____________________