[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 204 (Thursday, December 3, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H6137-H6138]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            CONGRESS NEEDS TO GET THEIR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT

  (Mr. BURCHETT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BURCHETT. Mr. Speaker, with this body back to work this week, I 
was hoping we would be here to work and to address the ongoing health 
and economic crisis. Unfortunately, that is not

[[Page H6138]]

the case. While small businesses and hardworking Americans struggle to 
get by, we are spending what little time we have left during this 
Congress voting on marijuana legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, we need to get our priorities straight and start 
governing responsibly. And we can do that right now by reopening the 
applications for the Paycheck Protection Program, which still has $133 
billion available to small businesses and workers trying to get through 
this crisis.
  Luckily, there is a way around the obstruction that currently exists 
in this body. I am one of the 186 members on the discharge petition 
that would bring H.R. 8265 to the floor for a vote. This commonsense 
legislation would reopen the applications for the Paycheck Protection 
Program and give small businesses access to unspent money. Members of 
this body know how important this bill is in this current situation. It 
is a shame that those who set the floor schedule are focused on 
advancing partisan priorities rather than rising to meet the challenges 
facing our workers and small businesses.

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