[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 148 (2002), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11354]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        ECONOMIC REFORMS NEEDED

  (Mr. DeFAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Headline: ``WorldCom Says Its Books Are Off By $3.8 
Billion.'' Hey, we all make mistakes. $3.8 billion. The stock market is 
going to tank again today. The dollar is in a headlong decline. It 
seems like it would be a no-brainer for the House of Representatives to 
plug a few tax loopholes; mandate, mandate, by God, tough accounting 
reform; put a few of these crooked CEOs in jail, prosecute them, pursue 
them endlessly. Let us have real protection for stockholders, 
employees' pension funds. But no. It is needed, it seems like a no-
brainer, but it ain't going to happen here because the House Republican 
leadership is too busy collecting campaign funds from some of the same 
firms and CEOs that are defrauding Americans and the stock market.
  The American people need to focus and demand meaningful reforms 
before this disaster spirals totally out of control and drives the U.S. 
economy into a full blown financial crisis. No more sham reforms of 
pensions, no more sham prescription drug benefits, no more shams on the 
Tax Code. Let us do some meaningful work here and try and fix the 
problems with America's economy.

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