[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 14953]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      REPUBLICAN SHUTDOWN AND ACA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Lee) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. LEE of California. Mr. Speaker, here we are, day two of the 
Republican shutdown. The Tea Party extremists are really achieving 
their goal of dismantling government. Their shutdown is step one.
  It's no secret that the Tea Party Republicans came here not as public 
servants, but to destroy and decimate our government. Now, millions of 
families, children, seniors, Federal employees, and our economy are 
paying the price. The Republican refusal to back off their extreme, 
ideological demands has taken our country down a very dangerous path 
that will surely push millions more into hunger and poverty.
  In my congressional district and throughout the State of California 
families are already feeling the impact of the Republican government 
shutdown. The California Women, Infants, and Children program is on the 
brink of turning away low-income pregnant women and new mothers if this 
shutdown continues. How ruthless can you get?
  The California National Guard, the largest in the Nation, is forced 
to furlough technicians and aviation mechanics, even as the fire season 
is still upon us. And throughout the State of California, eighth 
graders, like my constituents from Oakland who wrote to me yesterday, 
are cancelling field trips to national parks and monuments which are 
closed to visitors. What are they going to do now?
  To add insult to injury, Republicans have shut down the government 
because they are obsessed with destroying the Affordable Care Act, 
which is the law of the land and which the Supreme Court upheld. Most 
Americans continue to see how senseless and wrong it is to shut down 
the government because you want to deny health care to millions. Two 
wrongs don't make a right.
  Despite the Republican government shutdown, health care exchanges 
established under the Affordable Care Act have successfully opened for 
enrollment, and now millions of uninsured Americans are just 3 months 
away from having the health care coverage they so desperately need.
  California, the first State to commit to establishing its own 
exchange, launched the Covered California exchange. Covered 
California's exchange includes health care options for individuals and 
small businesses. In my congressional district alone, there are nearly 
100,000 uninsured constituents, and the opening of the exchanges means 
that they are one step closer to health care coverage that can 
literally--mind you, literally--make the difference between life and 
death.
  Hostage taking really is a deplorable tactic. Members of Congress are 
elected to make sure our government functions. Time and time again, 
Democrats have reached across the aisle to try to negotiate a budget 
plan that is fair and that ensures that the government pays our bills 
on time. Yet, instead of working together to do our jobs, Republicans 
continue to double down on the Tea Party plan to destroy and decimate 
our government.
  Instead of working on a serious option to reopen the government, 
Republicans' latest strategy now--and this is really cynical--is to 
exploit our veterans and to exploit the people of the District of 
Columbia by voting on piecemeal bills that will not end impacts of a 
shutdown that extend across the country.
  Mr. Speaker, of course we support our veterans and of course we 
support our national parks and of course we support the District of 
Columbia to use its locally raised funds, but let's not use them to 
score political points to advance an ideological agenda.
  How do Republicans vote this week to allow the District to use its 
discretion on local funds during a shutdown--that they created--yet 
next week block the same funds being used for saving reproductive 
health care services or badly needed needle exchange programs to fight 
HIV and AIDS?
  Again, this is so cynical and it is so wrong. The American people 
deserve a functioning government. This hostage taking must end.

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