Sherrod Brown

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I ask to address the House for 5 minutes.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I do not question the outcome of this election. However, I do know that I stood in line for hours with voters trying to cast ballots, and since election day I have heard from dozens of voters, Democrats and Republicans, who lost their right to vote on November 2 in my State of Ohio. For 8 years in the 1980s I served as Ohio's elected Secretary of State. During my term in office, we held and my office conducted two Presidential elections, two gubernatorial elections, and dozens of primary and special elections. The role of the Ohio Secretary of State serves two main functions: to ensure everyone is confident that his or her vote will be counted and to encourage everyone to exercise that right to vote. Our Secretary of State this year failed on both counts. I speak from experience when I say the 2004 Presidential election in Ohio was riddled with unnecessary problems. I visited four precincts in Oberlin, Ohio, outside of my district where I stood in line with voters, some of whom waited up to 6 hours to vote. I visited Hispanic and white working-class precincts, and I saw long lines everywhere I went. I received panicked calls throughout the day from voters whose polling places had broken machines and were being denied the right to vote. In the days leading up to the election, I witnessed reports throughout my district in northeastern Ohio of voters who had been told their voter registration could be invalid and that despite their efforts to register, they were not on the voting rolls. In far too many cases, their votes were not allowed. Ohio voters should never again be forced to wait 3, 5, sometimes even 10 hours to cast a vote. Ohioans should never again, as too many people did this November, lose their right to vote. But it is not just about Ohio; it is not just about who won and who did not. It is about our system of democracy. Mr. Speaker, I am saddened that no Republicans in this body are joining us today in acknowledging problems in Ohio and in working with us to fix those problems because, Mr. Speaker, defending the right to vote should be a concern for Republicans and Democrats alike. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, last month Ohio Democrats took our moral values to the polls. For many of us, our faith guided us, and our final vote for President was far too close to declare, my State, a State full of evangelical fundamentalists. For many of us, moral values are grounded in our religious faith. My Lutheran upbringing instructs me and my fellow Christians in the teachings of Jesus, to read and to follow as best we can the words of the Beatitudes, to try to live our lives and practice our politics as Jesus would have wanted us to. For others of us, those moral values take the form of a faith in our country's greatness to solve our most pressing problems of racial inequality, inaccessible health care, poverty of millions of American children and the war in Iraq. For several years, I have worn a lapel pin depicting a canary in a cage. A century ago, miners took a canary into the mines to warn them of toxic gases. Miners were forced, in those days, to provide for their own protection. No mine safety laws. No trade unions able to help. No real support from their government. A baby born a hundred years ago in those days had a life expectancy of about 47 years. Today, because of public health initiatives, worker safety laws, Medicare, Social Security, and other new laws, protections for children and minorities and the disabled, we live decades longer. Every bit of progress in the struggle for economic and social justice, often rooted in our Judeo-Christian beliefs, prevailed over the opposition of society's most privileged and most powerful. Today, those struggles continue. Our fight, in this chamber, for seniors who are forced to choose between medicine and food and our fight against the large pharmaceutical companies' greed is our understanding of the Holy Word. Our opposition to tax cuts for America's most privileged adults and Head Start cuts afflicting our least privileged children follow from the teachings of Christ. George Bush approved more than 150 executions, one every 2 weeks of his governorship in Texas. Our opposition to the death penalty is grounded in the Scriptures. Our belief that government programs like Medicare and Social Security and Medicaid, not privatized imitations of them, our belief in those programs should serve all Americans bespeaks a faith in the greatness of our country and its ability and willingness to lift up all its children. As we have seen over the last 4 years, Republicans campaign to their religious friends on their moral values, mostly opposition to abortion and gay rights, and then govern for and with their corporate allies and contributors. On the floor of the House of Representatives, in the light of day, we hear much talk about moral values, but in the committee rooms and the cloakrooms, in the halls and in the hideaways, choices are made by Republican leaders that run counter to the teachings of Christ and Mohammed and the Jewish prophets and fly in the face of the values upon which our Nation was founded. This Congress hurts families by underfunding Leave No Child Behind and college student loans, while giving tax cuts to the wealthiest among us. This Congress hurts the elderly by defeating legislation to bring down the price of prescription drugs and then passing a Medicare bill that further enriches their drug and insurance company contributors. This Congress hurts God's earth when it caves to the energy companies and the oil companies. This Congress hurts our communities when it gives tax breaks to encourage the largest corporations to outsource their jobs. And this Congress hurts our grandchildren when it loads huge burdens of debt on future generations. Tens of thousands of Ohioans worked feverishly for months to help change our Nation's course because of their moral values, because of their faith in God, because of their belief in our Nation's history of taking care of the least among us. In no way do I question the faith of my political opponents, but I am weary of the far right's claim that they are the only ones guided by the hand of God. My understanding of the teachings of Christ, my religious upbringing, call me to walk a different path and to express and act upon my faith in the cause of social and economic justice.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, on November 2, Ohio Democrats took our moral values to the polls. For many of us, our faith guided us, too, and our final vote for President was far too close to declare Ohio as a State full of evangelical fundamentalists. For many of us, moral values are guided in our religious faith. My Lutheran upbringing instructs me and my fellow Christians in the teachings of Jesus to read and to follow as best we can the words of the Beatitudes, to try to live our lives and practice our politics as Jesus would have wanted us to. For others of us, those moral values take the form of a faith in our country's greatness to solve our most pressing problems of racial inequality, of inaccessible health care, of the poverty of millions of American children, and of the war in Iraq. For 3 years I have worn a lapel pin depicting a canary in a cage. A century ago, miners took a canary into the mines to warn them of toxic gasses. Miners were forced to provide for their own protection. No mine safety laws, no trade unions able to help, no real support from their government. A baby born in those days had a life expectancy of about 47 years. Today, because of public health initiatives, worker safety laws, Medicare, Social Security, protections for children and minorities and the disabled, as a result we live decades longer. Every bit of progress in the struggle for economic and social justice often rooted in our Judeo-Christian beliefs, every bit of progress prevailed over the opposition of society's most privileged and most powerful. Today, those struggles continue. Our fight for seniors who are forced to choose between medicine and food in our fight against the large pharmaceutical companies' greed comes from our understanding of the holy word. Our opposition to tax cuts for America's most privileged adults and Head Start cuts afflicting our least privileged children follow from the teachings of Christ. Our opposition to the death penalty, keep in mind George Bush approved an execution every 2 weeks during his 6 years as governor of Texas, our opposition to the death penalty is grounded in the scriptures. Our belief that government programs like Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security, not privatized imitations of those programs, those programs should serve all Americans. Our belief that they should serve all Americans bespeaks a faith in the greatness of our country and its ability and willingness to lift up all of God's children. As we have seen over the last 4 years, Republicans campaign to their religious friends on their moral values, mostly opposition to abortion and gay rights, and then govern for and with their corporate allies and contributors. On the floor of the House of Representatives in the light of day we hear much talk from our Republican friends about moral values. But in the committee rooms and in the cloakrooms and in the back of the Chamber, choices are so often made and deals are cut that run counter to the teachings of Christ and Mohammed and the Jewish prophets and fly in the face of the values upon which our Nation was founded. This Congress hurts families by underfunding Leave No Child Behind and college student loans, while giving tax cuts to the wealthiest among us. This Congress hurts the elderly by defeating legislation to bring down the price of prescription drugs and then passing a Medicare bill that further enriches the drug and insurance industry. This Congress hurts our God's earth when it caves to the energy and chemical companies. This Congress hurts our communities when it gives tax breaks to encourage the largest corporations to outsource our jobs. This Congress hurts our grandchildren when it loads huge burdens of debt on future generations. Those are not the right moral values. Tens of thousands of Ohioans worked feverishly for months to help change our Nation's course because of our moral values, because of our faith in God and because of our belief in the Nation's history of taking care of the least among us. In no way do I question the faith of my political opponents, but I am weary of the far right's claim that they are the only ones guided by the hand of God. My understanding of the teaching of Christ, my religious upbringing calls me to walk a different path and to express and act upon my faith in the cause of social and economic justice.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to thank the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Young) for sponsoring this important resolution and thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) for yielding me this time this evening. Tourette Syndrome is a neurological disorder characterized by involuntary actions such as physical and vocal tics, as the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) said. It is a spectrum disorder, meaning that it manifests in a range of behaviors that occur with varying frequency and severity. It is estimated that up to 3 percent of children in regular education classrooms and up to 7 percent of children in special ed classrooms have Tourette Syndrome. Most of these cases go undiagnosed. The media's portrayal of Tourette Syndrome has fueled significant misperceptions and misconceptions about this disorder. For example, most patients do not display the frequent involuntary use of violent language and other vocal tics that actors typically draw upon when they play adults with Tourette's. Physical tics are a far more common symptom. While physical tics may be less dramatic than violent outbursts, they can have the same disruptive effect on the lives of Tourette patients. The gentleman from Florida's (Chairman Young's) concurrent resolution acknowledges the significant impact that Tourette Syndrome has on patients and on their families. Given Tourette's prevalence, given the importance of early detection and treatment in mitigating its symptoms and given the tragic consequences for patients when Tourette's is exploited or trivialized, it is clearly in the public interest to destigmatize Tourette Syndrome and build the necessary support to find its cure. I think this concurrent resolution takes a small step in doing that. I thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis) and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young) for bringing this concurrent resolution to the floor, and I urge my colleagues to support the concurrent resolution. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, on November 2, Ohio Democrats took our moral values to the polls. For many of us, our faith guided us, too, and our final vote for President was far too close to declare us or assail us, as some now do, as a State full of evangelical fundamentalists. For many of us, moral values are grounded in our religious faith. My Lutheran upbringing instructs me, and my fellow Christians, in the teachings of Jesus, to read and to follow as best we can the words of the Beatitudes, to try to live our lives and practice our faiths as Jesus would have wanted us to. For others of us, those moral values take the form of a faith in our country's greatness to solve our most pressing problems of racial inequality and inaccessible health care, the poverty of millions of American children, and the war in Iraq. For 3 years I have worn a lapel pin depicting a canary in a cage. A century ago, miners took a canary into the mines to warn them of toxic gases. Miners were forced to provide for their own protection. No mine safety laws. No trade unions able to help. No real support from their government. A baby born 100 years ago had a life expectancy of about 47 years. Today, because of public health initiatives, worker safety laws, Medicare and Social Security, we live decades longer. Every bit of progress in the struggle for economic and social justice, often rooted in our Judeo-Christian beliefs, every bit of progress prevailed over the opposition of society's most privileged and most powerful. Today, those struggles continue. Our fight for seniors who are forced to choose between medicine and food and our fight against the large pharmaceutical companies' greed is our understanding of the Holy Word. Our opposition to tax cuts for America's most privileged adults and Head Start cuts afflicting our least privileged children follow from the teachings of Christ. Our opposition to the death penalty, George Bush approved an execution of a Texan every 2 weeks as Governor, is grounded in the Scriptures. And our belief that government programs like Medicare and Social Security, not privatized imitations of them, should serve all Americans bespeaks a faith in the greatness of our country and its ability and willingness to lift up all of God's children. As we have seen over the last 4 years, Republicans campaign on their religious beliefs and on their moral values, mostly opposition to abortion and gay marriage; and then they govern for and with their corporate allies and contributors. On this floor of the House of Representatives, in the light of day, we hear much talk about moral values. But in the committee rooms and the cloakrooms, choices are made that run counter to the teachings of Christ and Mohammed and the Jewish prophets, and fly in the face of the values upon which this Nation was founded. This Congress hurts families by underfunding Leave No Child Behind and college student loans, while giving tax cuts to the wealthiest among us. This Congress hurts the elderly by defeating legislation to bring down the price of prescription drugs and then passing a Medicare bill that further enriches the drug industry and insurance companies. This Congress hurts God's Earth when it caves to the energy and chemical companies. This Congress hurts our communities when it gives tax breaks to encourage the largest corporations, most of them big contributors to the Bush administration, to outsource our jobs. And this Congress hurts our grandchildren when it loads huge burdens of debt on future generations. Tens of thousands of Ohioans worked feverishly for months to help change our Nation's course because of their moral values, because of their faith in God, because of their belief in our Nation's history of using the Biblical term ``taking care of the least among us.'' In no way do I question the faith of my political opponents. But I am weary of the far right's claim that they are the only ones guided by the hand of God. My understanding of the teachings of Christ and my religious upbringing call me to walk a different path and to express and act upon my faith in the cause of social and economic justice.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to speak out of turn on the gentleman from New York (Mr. Hinchey's) time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, the ethical cloud hanging over the House of Representatives is growing darker. The arrogance of power has brought dishonor on the House of Representatives. Look at the Medicare bill. It was written by the drug and insurance companies in the White House and in the Oval office. The legislation passed here in the middle of the night. The leadership attempted to bribe one Republican Member from Michigan. There was the threat of firing a bureaucrat in the President's office who tried to be honest with Congress and tried to be honest with the American people. The result of that corruption is a 17.4 percent premium increase, the largest premium increase in Medicare history. Republican leaders should be ashamed of themselves.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time. The FSC conference report is the wrong solution for America's manufacturing sector. This stack of fliers and literally hundreds of others was given to me by a group of people, the Akron machine shop operators in Akron, Ohio. They represent literally thousands of manufacturing companies in this country going out of business. ``Complete Liquidation,'' Dover, Ohio; ``Something for Everyone,'' Piqua, Ohio; another going out of business, Pettisville, Ohio; Independence, Ohio; Tallmadge, Ohio. All of these represent companies that are cannibalizing themselves, that are selling their equipment, that are going out of business, that simply are closing their doors and laying off American workers. Ohio, my State, has lost 170,000 manufacturing jobs under President Bush. The Nation has lost 2.7 million jobs. It is not ancient history. It is currently reality. In my State in August, Ohio lost 4,000 more manufacturing jobs. During the Bush administration, one out of six manufacturing jobs in Ohio has disappeared, one out of six; 150 jobs every day in my State alone have disappeared during the Bush administration. President Bush will be the first President since Herbert Hoover to have a net loss of jobs during his administration. And all of these tax bills that the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Reynolds) bring in front of this body, they have promised, President Bush promised, 6 million new jobs in this country. So far, we are 7 million short of that 6 million job goal. President Bush, during the Republican convention, during his speech that all the pundits said was tough because the President stood there strong, mentioned the word ``jobs'' once, one time; he also did not mention Osama bin Laden at all. But he mentioned the word ``jobs'' once during that speech. My mom taught me, if I am going to stand up and criticize, I ought to have something to say in its place; I ought to suggest something else. There is a bill that offers hope to small manufacturers, that will help States like Ohio and Michigan and New York rebuild their manufacturing base. The bipartisan Crane-Rangel bill that the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) worked on would reward companies that produce in America and employ U.S. workers. If they do 100 percent of their production in the U.S., they get 100 percent of the tax benefits. It was endorsed by the Manufacturers Association, by the AFL/CIO. It helps also proprietorships and partnerships. It is budget-neutral, adding nothing to the national debt. If has 170 cosponsors, roughly even number of Republicans and Democrats. Let me be clear to my Republican friends, if they cosponsored Crane- Rangel and they turn around and vote for this conference report, they are selling out America's small manufacturers and they are selling out our communities. If they turn around and vote for this special interest bill instead of the bipartisan Crane-Rangel bill, they are selling out American manufacturing and selling out American jobs because the conference report takes us in the exact opposite direction. Instead of rewarding investment in America, this conference bill continues to encourage giant multinationals to ship more jobs overseas. Instead of supporting the small business community, the conference bill rewards special interests, friends of particular Members of Congress, as the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) and the gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) pointed out. Instead of using honest policy to reach budget neutrality, it fudges the numbers to hide its multibillion dollar cost to American taxpayers. So not only is this a special interest bill that is going to undercut jobs today, it is also going to load even more debt on our children and grandchildren. It is the wrong direction to take the country. It is more of the failed economic policies we have seen out of this Congress and out of this President. It is time we change direction and help rebuild U.S. manufacturing.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo), the sponsor of the bill.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support this legislation and I want to commend its author the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo). She has played a leading role in establishing the successful graduate medical education program that is the focus of today's bill and a whole host of other issues. The Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education program, known as Children's GME program, corrected an anomaly in medical education funding that prevented children's hospitals from establishing medical training programs for pediatricians and other children's health specialists, in large part because of the peculiarity of the way we fund graduate medical education through Medicare. The legislation of the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo) improves that program by ensuring that hospitals with special programs for certain newborns are not discriminated against in the calculation of medical education funding. This correction is included in both the House and Senate versions of GME reauthorization legislation. I am proud to be the lead Democratic sponsor of this legislation, along with my colleague, the gentlewoman from Connecticut (Mrs. Johnson), through H.R. 4578. This legislation before us today provides an interim solution until the reauthorization bill is written into the law, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill offered by the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo).

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes. Mr. Speaker, over the past 20 or so years, overall inpatient, that is hospital and rehabilitation, overall inpatient days for those living with paralysis have been cut in half. However, those individuals living with paralysis still face astronomical medical costs, and only one- third remain employed after becoming paralyzed. Fortunately, we stand on the brink of amazing breakthroughs in science for those living with paralysis, with spinal cord injury and other physical disabilities. Through the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, Christopher Reeve and his wife, Dana, have courageously pushed forward by helping thousands of patients and their families adjust to the dramatic changes engendered by paralysis and by investing in the awareness and advancement of medical research. I have been honored to cosponsor the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act in the past two Congresses, alongside my friend, the chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis). This legislation is an important step toward understanding the developments and advancements in paralysis and spinal cord injury research and will help our Nation's leaders in medical research set their priorities for the future. I am also pleased that this legislation includes several provisions relating to the inflammatory bowel disease known as IBD. I have heard from many Ohioans who suffer through this disease, including a remarkable young woman named Sarah Levin. Sarah Levin takes 11 medications a day. She has endured major surgery and taken steroids that have compromised her physical health. She has been forced to miss work again and again, because Chron's disease can flare up at any time. Despite the difficult conditions, Sarah has joined her father and thousands of advocates across this country working on legislation focusing on IBD. Like so many others, she has been tireless. She has been positive. And her efforts have made a real difference for many of those who are suffering. This legislation will examine the epidemiology of IBD and therapies currently approved by FDA for the treatment of this debilitating condition. These studies will also examine appropriate settings for the treatment of IBD and barriers that currently exist for those IBD patients applying for Social Security disability benefits. This bill contains important measures that promote the public health, and I urge my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes. Mr. Speaker, nurse practitioners play a critical role in meeting our Nation's medical needs. Working hand-in-hand with other professionals, nurse practitioners improve the flexibility and responsiveness and efficiency of our health care system. Because of their focus on primary care, disease prevention, and counseling, nurse practitioners serve as health care first responders for many American families. From weight management, blood pressure, dangerous infections, injuries, nurse practitioners have the frontline view of health care in our country. Nurse practitioners also improve the health care system's ability to reach underserved populations. As we all know, primary health care is desperately needed in many urban and central city communities. As this resolution notes, nurse practitioners have been there to help meet this need. Twenty percent of nurse practitioners serve in rural areas. Forty percent who serve in metropolitan areas work in central city settings. In this age of double-digit health care cost inflation, nurse practitioners help to improve the cost effectiveness of American health care. By improving patient choice of provider and by promoting competition, nurse practitioners help to moderate spiraling health care costs. Nurse practitioner training programs were first developed some 40 years ago. A shortage of doctors forced State governments to innovate, and a few nurse practitioners were certified, mostly, in those days, initially in pediatrics. From that modest beginning, the nurse practitioner profession has grown to fill an important and vital role in America's health care system. There are now more than 100,000 nurse practitioners serving the American public. I join my colleagues in urging the House to agree to this concurrent resolution celebrating those 100,000 nurse practitioners and marking the goals and ideals of National Nurse Practitioners Week. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Mrs. Christensen).

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), the sponsor of the resolution.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2\1/2\ minutes. Prescription drug pain relievers, stimulants, and other controlled substances play a crucial role in health care. But when misused, those same medicines can be enormously destructive, as we know. Some are addictive, life threatening; many are both. As these medicines proliferate, so, unfortunately, does the risk of misuse. Over the last decade, use of prescription pain relievers has increased by nearly 200 percent, while the use of stimulants has increased by more than 150 percent. Some 6.2 million Americans misuse prescription medicines for nonmedical purposes. In 1999 a quarter of those who took prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes were new users. In other words, this problem is not just growing; simply, it is exploding. To combat this problem, physicians and pharmacists need information. This legislation, which is the culmination of hard work and compromise by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Whitfield), and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Strickland) will provide the information and coordination necessary to stem the misuse of prescription medicines. The legislation creates grants to establish State-run programs for prescription monitoring that will be administered and will be coordinated at the Federal level. Fighting prescription drug abuse, preventing nonmedical use together are a difficult problem that requires doctors and law enforcement authorities to acquire and to share information. I think this bill is an important step forward in this fight. I am pleased to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone), who has been a leader on health care in this Congress.