Spencer Bachus

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis) for the purpose of making a unanimous consent request. (Mr. LEWIS of California asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Putnam).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry). (Mr. FORTENBERRY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Flake).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from Florida (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Campbell).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to Mr. Inglis, the gentleman from South Carolina.

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. McCotter).

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Garrett).

Mr. BACHUS. I yield such time to the gentleman from California as he may consume.

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Akin). (Mr. AKIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, on September 26, 2008, I missed rollcall votes 651, 652, and 653 while attending a meeting to discuss the Nation's financial crisis. had I been present I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall 651, ``nay'' on rollcall 652, and ``aye'' on rollcall 653.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, on September 25, 2008, I missed rollcall vote 641 while attending a meeting at the White House to discuss the Nation's financial crisis. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall 641.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Madam Speaker, pursuant to the Republican Leadership standards on earmarks, I am submitting the following information for publication in the Congressional Record regarding funding that I requested as part of H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009: Bill Number: H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 Account: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Pre-Disaster Mitigation Account: Legal Name of Requesting Entity: City of Brent Address of Requesting Entity: P.O. Box 220, Brent, AL 35034 Description of Request: Provide $750,000 to construct a community storm shelter that will provide the public safe haven during tornados. Funding will be used for the planning and construction of the shelter and any necessary lot improvements for access to the shelter. Specifically, $102,000 is for sitework, $577,000 is for construction, $54,000 for professional fees, and the remaining $17,000 is for testing, surveying, and printing charges. This request is consistent with the intended and authorized purpose of the FEMA, Pre-Disaster Mitigation account. The City of Brent will meet or exceed all statutory requirements for matching funds where applicable. Bill Number: H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 Account: Department of the Army, Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Missile Technology Account Legal Name of Requesting Entity: The University of Alabama at Birmingham Address of Requesting Entity: 1530 3rd Avenue South, AB 720E 0111, Birmingham, AL 35294-0111 Description of Request: Provide $800,000 for the continued development of the Materials Application Research Center (MARC) at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The U.S. military constantly faces the competing challenges of ever-changing threats, needs to control costs, needs for lighter weight, more durable, improved performance equipment, and needs to increase the protection of our troops. Technology solutions to these challenges are often slow in development and implementation. The Materials Applications Research Center (MARC) will provide the large scale laboratory facilities and operational environment to help assure timely development and transition of new materials and manufacturing technologies to our military. The results will provide military systems solutions for significantly improved performance, increased durability, and lower cost for both acquisition and life cycle. This funding will go towards the project's total budget of $1.5 million. Specifically within the budget, $755,938 is for personnel salaries and benefits, $85,000 is for permanent equipment, $17,820 is for travel, $222,277 is for other direct material and service costs, and $418,965 is for other indirect costs. This request is consistent with the intended and authorized purpose of the Department of the Army, Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Missile Technology Account. The University of Alabama at Birmingham will meet or exceed all statutory requirements for matching funds where applicable. Bill Number: H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 Account: Department of the Army, Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Combat Vehicle and Automotive Advanced Technology Account Legal Name of Requesting Entity: Auburn University Address of Requesting Entity: 202 Samford Hall, Auburn, AL 36849 Description of Request: Provide $2.8 million to the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center/National Automotive Center (TARDEC/NAC) to complete research and development of a hydrocarbon catalytic reforming and cleaning system/methodology capable of taking high sulfur containing logistic fuels such as JP-8 and converting them on demand into high purity hydrogen for use in fuel cell powered APU's (auxiliary power units) and ground-based military vehicles. The technical focus of this program is the development and demonstration of logistical fuel processor-fuel cell combinations that operate at significantly higher efficiencies than current internal combustion engines used by the Army. System attributes to be optimized include: overall efficiency, fuel flexibility, activity maintenance and poison tolerance of the various catalysts, startup/shutdown time- scales, process robustness, reliability/ruggedness, safety, thermal/ acoustic signature and integration, and reductions in overall weight and volume. Additional efforts will be conducted to design and adapt fuel processor/fuel cell systems to appropriate electrical loads with respect to voltage, current, AC/DC operation, peak power requirements versus average power and overall autonomy time. This funding will go towards the total project budget of $6.7 million, which includes approximately $1.206 million that will be retained by OSD and TARDEC/ NAC for administrative and technical support functions and the remaining $5.494 million will be used by Auburn University to complete R & D activities. All subcontracts from Auburn University will be approved by the DOD technical program manager and the respective contracting officers at the DOD and Auburn University. This request is in direct support of the U.S. Army Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center's program on Fuel Cell Development for Military Vehicles as conducted by their National Automotive Center. This request is consistent with the intended and authorized purpose of the Department of the Army, Research, Development, Test and Evaluation, Combat Vehicle and Automotive Advanced Technology Account. Auburn University will meet or exceed all statutory requirements for matching funds where applicable.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, the number one cost in manufacturing is energy. The number one cost of job loss in America is the high cost of energy. Now, the Chinese get that. The Chinese are building 32 nuclear power plants. The country of India, they get it. Seventeen new nuclear power plants. Even Abu Dhabi and Dubai, oil rich Arab countries, United Emirates, they sell us their oil and they're building nuclear power plants so they don't have to use their oil, they can sell it to us. Listen, all these countries get it. The Republican bill gets it. It has nuclear energy. But Joe Biden, Senator Obama, they don't get it. The Democrats don't get it. There's no nuclear energy in their bill. We'll continue to lose jobs. We'll continue to have high cost of energy, and most importantly, we will not be able to compete with the world because they are building nuclear power and cheap energy while we're not. We need to vote for a real bill, not this sham.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, this is a gas receipt. All of us have seen our constituents give us these gas receipts. This is for $89. It's what Boone Pickens says is the largest transfer of wealth in the history of the world. Now I'm going to show you where that money is going. A lot of it is going to Dubai. Dubai, they're our allies. If you had gone to Dubai before the cost of gasoline went up, you would have seen this picture. This is the main street in Dubai, a dirt road; and the only thing higher than two stories was a mosque. Now let me show you Dubai today. That's where the infrastructure is being built. It's not in the United States. There are more construction cranes in Dubai than there are in the United States, 25 percent of them in the world. Now here's my point: Do you know what Dubai is doing? Do you know what Abu Dhabi--do you know what the United Emirates are doing at this very moment? They are building or plan to build 14 nuclear power plants. They're building nuclear power plants. They're going to generate their electricity exclusively from nuclear power. Why? Because we don't get it; they get it. They're going to sell oil to us because we're not going to develop nuclear power. China is building 30. India is building 17. This bill doesn't get it. Senator Obama, Senator Biden, they're opposed to nuclear power. They're not doing what the oil-rich Arabs are doing. Thank goodness Senator McCain and Governor Palin, they get it. The Republicans get it. This bill has no nuclear power in it. This bill is not going to stop the largest transfer of wealth in the history of the world. You can't do it without nuclear power. Let's come back with a real energy solution. And I say to my friends on the other side of the aisle, your bill doesn't get it. Dubai and Abu Dhabi will continue to build their nuclear power plants; we will build none. And energy is the number one factor in manufacturing. We're going to lose our manufacturing. They're going to get it because they get it and you don't.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, when I visited my district in August, people had one thing on their mind and one thing only, and that was the high gas prices, exactly, what a hardship they were on the people of Alabama, and I think people throughout the Nation. One of my constituents in Bibb County, Alabama, handed me at a townhall meeting his gas receipt. As you can see, he paid $90, $89 to fill up his truck. Now, Bibb County, Alabama, the average resident of that county makes $312 gross a week. Now, imagine a county where the average income is $312. Now, further imagine that 59 percent of people in that county commute out of town to work; 59 percent of them have to drive 40 and 50 miles to work every day. And they're like this gentleman, $90 a day out of a paycheck of less than $300. They told me of stories of how they pay their gas bill, they struggle to pay their rent or their mortgage, they struggle to put food on the table, they struggle with all sorts of financial hardships. Is it any wonder that 9 percent of the people in this country are behind on their mortgage when they're putting hundreds of dollars on their gas bills? They're also angry about something else. They're angry because we're not doing anything about it. Not only is this money coming out of the United States and out of our citizens' pockets, but let me tell you where it's going. I recently went to a country--many countries in the world that we're getting oil from, they don't like us. They hate us. But one country that is actually our friend is Dubai. And I went to Dubai recently. First, I want to show you a picture of Dubai in 1976. This was before oil prices went up. That's the main street in Dubai in 1976. It's a dirt road. The highest structure in Dubai is that mosque that many are in, about three stories high. When I went to Dubai, it didn't look anything like a small coastal village. It looked quite different. The next picture that I am going to show you is a picture of when I went there. Now, you saw that $89 gas bill. You're wondering where that money is going? This is where it's going. And this is what it's accomplishing for Dubai. That's where our money is. The Highway Trust Fund will run out of money next week. The people of Dubai are not running out of money. That's why the Highway Trust Fund has no money in it. You see all of the construction there? I was in Minneapolis this week. I saw very little construction. You go to cities around America, you see very little construction. You see very few of these high-rise cranes. But let me show you what you're seeing in Dubai. Let me show you another picture of Dubai. This is a picture I took from a five-star hotel that we toured. Look at the construction frames. Those are construction frames that if we would solve our energy dependency, they would be in Minneapolis, they would be in Denver, they would be in Atlanta. But 15 to 25 percent of them are in Dubai. That's where our money is going. Not only should our people be angry about what they're paying--they should be angry--and these are our friends. This is a country that is our friend. Most of our money goes to countries that are not our friends. Let me tell you what Dubai is doing. They've got plenty of oil, and they've got a lot of money. Do you know what they're spending their money on? Let me show you. China, India, Dubai, and Abu Dhabi, they get it. They're doing something about their energy problem. China is building 32 nuclear power plants. India is building 17. The slide I just showed you of Dubai, an oil rich country, and Abu Dhabi, they're building nuclear power plants. They're going to build 14 nuclear power plants. We're building none. And let me tell you the people in Alabama and this Nation are upset that they are building, China is building, India is building, and we are standing still. That's another thing they're angry about. We need nuclear power, and we need it now. Mr. Speaker, during my energy presentation on the House floor this evening, I received assistance from our congressional page, John Brinkerhoff. John is a junior at Spain Park High School in Hoover. He is an accomplished young man who will reflect well on the page program and on his family, school, and community during his time in Congress. My sincere thanks go to John for his help on the floor.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, on August 1, 2008, I missed rollcall votes No. 564, 565, and 566 due to the death of my mother-in-law. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on Nos. 564 and 565 and ``nay'' on No. 566. Accordingly (at 11 o'clock and 23 minutes a.m.), the House adjourned until Monday, September 8, 2008, at 2 p.m.

Mr. BACHUS

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling).

Mr. BACHUS. Yes, that is correct.

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I would like to introduce my letter of July 14 and let the Members themselves determine whether the correct characterization would be made on my statement. House of Representatives, Committee on Financial Services, Washington, DC, July 14, 2008. Hon. Barney Frank, Committee on Financial Services, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Mr. Chairman: It is unquestionably true that the financial stability of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is critically important to the housing market and in turn to the overall economy. It is also quite apparent that as a result of a weak economy, short seller activities and a declining housing market, Fannie and Freddie are facing substantial financial challenges. Having said that, the sweeping changes contemplated in the proposal made by the Treasury Department over the weekend represent a far-reaching overhaul of the financial regulatory structure of our housing market. Making such broad changes in a precipitous manner without adequate study and analysis is unprecedented and, perhaps, unnecessary. The problem immediately at hand seems to have been addressed yesterday by the decision of the Federal Reserve to open the discount window to Fannie and Freddie. It also appears this intervention by the Federal Reserve will be sufficient to provide adequate liquidity for these enterprises to meet any obligations for the near future. With this Federal Reserve liquidity facility in place, a more long-term structure can be given the careful analysis that is necessary to avoid the all too common problem of unintended consequences when the regular legislative order is bypassed. Please consider a process which will allow all sides of this issue to be given the careful consideration they so clearly deserve. I do believe there is need for expedited legislation and that action is a basic GSE reform bill. This legislation could be drafted and taken to the floor with minimal preparation since its provisions were carefully vetted in hearings and markup. Sincerely, Spencer Bachus, Ranking Member. At this time, I will recognize the gentlelady from Illinois, the subcommittee Chair, Mrs. Biggert, for 5 minutes.

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, I recognize the minority leader, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner), for 1 minute.

Mr. BACHUS. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Paul). (Mr. PAUL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)