[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 12531]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     LISTEN TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE

  (Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, as the debate on avoiding a 
devastating default has progressed over the last several months, we've 
heard from many House Republicans that ``compromise'' is a dirty word. 
But the voices we should be listening to are those of the American 
people. What they've said has been loud and clear. According to the 
NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, 53 percent of Independents and 
Republicans want Republican leaders to compromise. According to the 
ABC/Washington Post poll, 77 percent of all Americans think the 
Republican leadership has not been willing to compromise. According to 
the Quinnipiac University poll, 67 percent of Americans believe the 
debt ceiling compromise should be a balance between spending cuts and 
revenue--yes, revenue. According to the Gallup Poll, 57 percent of 
Republicans want a compromise plan--that's Republicans. And according 
to the CBS News poll, 78 percent of Republicans would rather have an 
agreement that they don't fully support than allow the country to 
default.
  Mr. Speaker, it's long past time we started listening to the American 
people and reach a compromise to avoid a national default.

                          ____________________