Corrine Brown

Ms. BROWN of Florida

Ms. BROWN of Florida. So we have here today coming up this afternoon and tomorrow reverse Robin Hood, robbing from the poor to give to the rich.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman will yield, I just want to ask the gentleman one quick question. In my opinion, this is old politics, because the committee did not discuss at all with the authorizers, did not talk with the Secretary, did not talk to the administration. It was just a group of good old boys from the bad old days getting together against the veterans. Would the gentleman agree?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. I thank the gentleman from Missouri. I yield to the gentleman from South Carolina [Mr. Clyburn].

Ms. BROWN of Florida. If the gentleman will yield, before we close, can the gentleman repeat his exact words?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Missouri [Mr. Volkmer].

Ms. BROWN of Florida. That costs more money, Mr. Speaker. I would ask the gentleman from Puerto Rico, what does he think about this reverse Robin Hood, robbing from the poor to give to the rich?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. I remember in the testimony before our committee, you discussed the fact that there were no facilities for women, no waiting rooms. People were in the hall. It is just one mess.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Could the gentleman tell me how long this project has been on the list, how long it has been authorized and been going through the process? I know for 2 years we have discussed it.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Puerto Rico [Mr. Romero-Barcelo]. As he is coming up, I would like to share with the House this picture. It says ``Uncle Sam wants you.'' It is a commitment that we made to our veterans: If you will support us, if you will go and fight for us, we will be there for you. I yield to the gentleman from Puerto Rico.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. The last question I must ask you, can you tell me who was left out of these cuts?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. I have been in this House for 2 years, which is not a lot of time, but I spent 10 years in the Florida House of Representatives. We passed a lot of bills out of this House, but I have never seen the process so broken down. As a Member that has served in the House, I have always been proud of the work, the deliberation of the House. Now I thank God for the Senate. Can you tell us or share your experience with us about the process and how it has been working over these past how many days? It is not 100. We passed one bill to my knowledge.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Can you explain to us the difference between a block grant and a program--you know, we have had block grants before. In fact, I think when we had it, President Ronald Reagan stopped it because the money was not going where it was intended. Can you tell us a little bit about it? Because I am very supportive of the present school lunch program that started in 1946 under President Truman, and the reason why this program was started was because it was in the national interest of this country to take care of our young people and they couldn't pass the physical. So that is why we invested in our young people.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Does this include the school lunch program?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Can you explain for us--some of us, who are not familiar with the process, tell us a little about the rescission? Because it is my understanding we are talking about projects that have gone through the House of Representatives hearings, gone through the Senate, passed, the President has signed it into law, so we are talking about breaking out of a contract that we have already signed in many cases?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. What about jobs, the summer jobs program?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. What about weatherization? That program, who benefits from that program and was that program also targeted for cuts?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Can you briefly just tell us about some of the other cuts? One in particular, in the area of housing, I have a series of town meetings, probably more than anyone else in Congress, and the two areas that always come up, one is crime and two, housing, affordable housing. There is a lot of concern as far as senior citizens. Can you discuss housing and some of the other cuts briefly?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Not based on any need factor or----

Ms. BROWN of Florida. You served on the Committee on Appropriations. Can you give us a little insight as to the process, whether or not--how this decision to attack the veterans came about? I know I serve on the authorizing committee and we were not notified. I spoke with the administration. They were not contacted, nor was the Secretary. Is this politics the old-time way, back room, pizza, discovery and decisions made in closed doors?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I now yield to my friend, the distinguished leader of the Black Caucus and gentleman from Ohio, Mr. Louis Stokes.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman.

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, does the gentleman think there is a lot of waste as far as the dollars we spend on veterans?

Ms. BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman serves on the authorizing committee, and can he tell me whether or not anyone on the authorizing committee was contacted by anyone from the administration or anyone from the Secretary's office pertaining to these cuts or whether it is politics the old-fashioned way, a group of good old boys getting together and making these decisions?