[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15238]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               GRIDLOCK EXISTS IN UNITED STATES CONGRESS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Rangel) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RANGEL. Mr. Speaker and my colleagues, I stand once again to make 
a plea to our spiritual leaders throughout the United States to be 
heard and to speak out against the gridlock that exists here in the 
United States Congress.
  I do this feeling very comfortable since we open up our session with 
a prayer and as everyone can see and many have taken for granted, it 
says: ``In God We Trust.''
  Clearly, the protesters have caused quite a bit of inconvenience for 
my colleagues and the constituents in New York, but the fact remains 
that they speak out for a frustration that most all Americans have. 
Uncertain as to what the future holds for them, many have lost their 
jobs, their savings, pulled their kids out of school; and they are 
frustrated that we in the Congress hardly talk to each other because of 
the depth of polarization.
  And yet beyond the politics of it all, whether it's Democrats or 
Republicans, when you think about it, this recession can only be 
stopped and unemployment lowered by a combination of two things, the 
reduction of our spending and the raising of revenue in order to 
increase not only the confidence that people have but the necessity of 
having economic growth so America can regain its status among civilized 
nations.
  Yet we find very little movement here because there's some that have 
already embarked on the 2012 campaign. They do that even though 
millions of Americans are suffering painfully, seeking relief now and 
not waiting until the end of next year.
  It seems to me, whether we are dealing with the Koran or whether we 
are dealing with the Bible or the Torah, one thing is abundantly clear, 
that those who believe in a superior force would know that one of the 
things that we have a moral obligation to do is to take care of the 
vulnerable among us.
  This great Nation now has broken all records in terms of our middle 
class actually being shrunk as people are forced into poverty. One out 
of every five kids in the United States of America is born into 
poverty, and we find that a smaller number of people in our country are 
controlling nearly half of the wealth.
  There's something wrong with that equation, and certainly this is the 
time to fill that vacuum. For those who believe there's no direction to 
the protesters, there may not be direction, but they certainly expect 
that their government should be there for them. Their government is 
gridlocked. Our spiritual leaders could encourage them not just to 
pray, but to become active, find out who the Members are that represent 
them in the Congress, ask them to be voting on these bills that can 
create economic growth or can create jobs.
  And so whether you're Protestant or Catholic or Jews or gentiles or 
Mormons or Muslims, this is the time that America needs you. This is 
why our Forefathers have never written out religion. While it cannot 
dictate which religion, if any, you should have, certainly we do have 
freedom of religion.
  And as the protesters have a constitutional right in order to speak 
out to release their frustrations, I think we have a spiritual 
responsibility to take those parts of the proclamations that they're 
making, the protestations that they're making, and those parts that 
take care of trying to get the vulnerable to get a fair shake out of 
this economic disaster we find ourselves in, let us take care of our 
aged, our sick, those that are in poverty.
  Let Social Security and Medicaid and Medicare be something that's not 
a gamble, but something that the American people can depend on.
  Let the churches and the synagogues and the mosques and the temples 
be open so people can express themselves, and let this Congress attempt 
to be more civil in recognizing that we have a responsibility that goes 
beyond the election. We have a responsibility to the American people. 
So I conclude my remarks and make my plea.

                          ____________________