[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15415]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1215
                              NEGOTIATION

  (Mr. KLINE asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. KLINE. Mr. Speaker, we find ourselves 1 week into a government 
shutdown. That's something I hoped I would never have to say on the 
floor of this House. I did not want this; House Republicans did not 
want this; and the American people surely did not want this.
  So why are we here? We're here because Democrats in the United States 
Senate and the President of the United States refuse to negotiate with 
the people's elected Representatives here in the House.
  How long can their refusal to negotiate go on? All we are asking for 
is a conversation, Mr. Speaker. That's it. House Republicans want to 
sit down in good faith and work to get this government open again and 
to make sure that all Americans are treated fairly under the 
President's health care law.
  My colleague from Indiana, just moments ago, pointed out that we pass 
bills in this House with overwhelming majorities--margins of over 100 
votes, bipartisan votes--to keep important, essential services up and 
running. There are grounds for agreement. We just have to negotiate.
  Leader Reid, Mr. President, let's talk.

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