[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6371]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                             SEQUESTRATION

  (Mr. BUTTERFIELD asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BUTTERFIELD. Madam Speaker, sequestration--we must repeal the 
sequester now.
  Americans have lived under these budget cuts for over 2 months, and 
one thing is clear: sequestration is hurting Americans; it is hurting 
constituents in your district and in mine, damaging the American 
economy and killing American jobs. We must totally repeal sequestration 
now. Democrats are prepared to vote for full repeal.
  Madam Speaker, a piecemeal approach to reversing these cuts is simply 
the wrong way forward. We should not be in the business of picking 
winners and losers when it comes to restoring funding, like when we 
reversed the cuts to TSA because the delays created made front-page 
news. Our actions should not be driven by who makes the most noise, but 
rather what is best for the country and the American people.
  Lifesaving medical research funded by NIH has taken a $1.6 billion 
hit. Are we to think that research for cures to cancer, HIV/AIDS, and 
diabetes are less important than how quickly we move through airport 
lines?
  Madam Speaker, we need to send a clear message to the American people 
that we will not stand for arbitrary cuts. We must fully repeal 
sequestration now.

                          ____________________