[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 12]
[House]
[Pages 16738-16739]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   ISSUES OF CONCERN TO ALL AMERICANS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Breast 
Cancer Awareness Month. As a breast cancer survivor, I want to add to 
my sisters and brothers my appreciation for their strength and 
determination and my respect to those families whose loved ones did not 
survive the battle.
  I am very grateful that, out of this awareness, we have begun to 
focus on more research for breast cancer remedies and solutions. I 
introduced a bill dealing with triple-negative breast cancer, which is 
the most deadly breast cancer and impacts women and minority women to 
the extent that their lifespan is shortened.
  I rise today to indicate and to ask for renewed commitment by this 
Congress to focus on more research to bring an

[[Page 16739]]

end to the forms of breast cancer that have been so deadly, in 
particular, to women.
  I want to thank the U.S. Department of Defense for working with me on 
providing and supporting legislation that I offered and introduced to 
provide the research, but also the care for military women who have had 
breast cancer during their service in the United States military.
  It is also Domestic Violence Month, and I acknowledge again the 
privilege I had to serve on the Committee on the Judiciary and to work 
with Chairman Hyde in the early stages of introducing and reauthorizing 
the Violence Against Women Act. So many strides have been made.
  In particular, I want to acknowledge the many agencies in Houston 
that have helped women--and, in some instances, men--who have been 
victims of domestic violence and abuse, in particular, the Houston Area 
Women's Center that has provided service. I served on the board 
previously, and I appreciate their service. We want to say to those 
women--and maybe men--do not suffer alone. Seek help and seek help now.

                              {time}  1045

  Mr. Speaker, today we will be looking at the culmination of 
discussions that have presented themselves as a budget that would end 
some form of sequester and would raise the debt limit until March 15, 
2017.
  As a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, I am committed 
to certain principles that I believe help all of America, and those 
are: the end to sequestration; the saving of Social Security, Medicaid, 
and Medicare; not eliminating any executive orders or toxic riders 
undermining, for example, the issues of dealing with our broken 
immigration system; and the evenness of defense and non-defense 
sequester relief. We have begun that journey.
  I also made a commitment to my seniors that we would fight against 
the horrific increases that were about to take place under Medicare 
part D. Those numbers were going to be onerous and burdensome on our 
seniors, and I will offer them in just a moment.
  In addition, let me say that the compromise generates $80 billion of 
sequester increases over 2 years, with the increase split evenly 
between defense and non-defense programs, and an additional $16 billion 
in discretionary funding over a 2-year period. I am hoping that this 
will help many.
  As I indicated, I am supporting breast cancer research. It will help 
the National Institutes of Health. It will help fill the seats for so 
many parents who need Head Start resources for their children.
  Having traveled with my congressional colleagues, I know that 
diplomatic security is a vital component to protecting our Foreign 
Service officers. And then it will improve, if you will, the day-to-day 
functions of this government.
  I am glad, as I indicated, with respect to the Medicare part B 
premiums, that we will not see the 54 percent increase that I think was 
the number, and that the increase will be somewhere around 18 to 20 
percent. We want it to be zero.
  I want my seniors to know that we are continuing to fight as your 
increases in prescription drugs and service under Medicare part D 
continue to go down. And, might I just add, that I believe it is 
important, in addition, that we negotiate the decreasing price of 
prescription drugs. If you talk to any individual, what they will say 
is their highest cost, part of their highest cost, whether it is 
seniors or families, is the cost of prescription drugs. So I think it 
is very important.
  I think I want to look more into, Mr. Speaker, the Social Security 
disability fix that is in this budget to ensure that no one sees any 
loss and cuts in their benefits. We just can't stand for that. Social 
Security recipients, as much as people want to clarify them as some 
having perpetrated fraud, they do not, Mr. Speaker.
  As I close, let me say I want to protect those who are disabled. We 
are going to continue to look at this, even down to the moment of 
voting, to make sure that the budget brings about success and help and 
not harm.
  I ask my colleagues to be deliberative in this debate.

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