John Barrow

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman. We have no further speakers on our side and, with that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARROW

Mr. BARROW. Mr. Speaker, I acknowledge with sadness the passing of Representative William Quincy Murphy. Mr. Murphy served Augusta, Georgia, for 11 years in the Georgia State House of Representative. He was a lifelong public servant, a true statesman, and a good friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Dianne, his son Quincy III, and his daughter Jennifer Murphy Morgan.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I rise today as a cosponsor and strong supporter of this amendment. Because Congress can't get its act together, more than 3,200 Department of Defense employees in my district are being furloughed. This amendment offers a simple fix to that serious problem. It's also a positive indicator of what we can accomplish if Congress is willing to come together on the issues that matter most to the folks back home. We have a fiscal crisis, but the solution to that problem shouldn't be built on the backs of the people who didn't get us in this mess in the first place, especially since our national security depends so much on civilian DOD employees. This amendment allows for the necessary cuts in Federal spending, but it also protects the folks whose livelihoods are on the line. Issues like this demand that we put aside our differences and find common ground. I urge my colleagues to get behind this bipartisan effort and to support this amendment to end these furloughs.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank a longtime staff member in my office, Brandon Webb. After more than 6 years of service to the people of Georgia's 12th District, Brandon left my office to serve as legislative director for Congresswoman Robin Kelly of Illinois. Brandon joined my staff in 2007 as a staff assistant, and climbed through the ranks to serve as senior legislative assistant. Brandon played an important role in crafting legislation, including a bill to cut the Federal vehicle fleet, saving the Federal Government over $500 million; and he helped our communities by organizing free health fairs for families in the 12th District so they could get the care they need. I would like to congratulate Brandon on his promotion with Congresswoman Kelly. I also congratulate him and his new bride, Sabrina, on their recent marriage. I am honored to have had the privilege to work with Brandon, and on behalf of the people in Georgia he served for over 6 years, I would like to thank him for his hard work and dedication.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for the time. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the legislation before us to delay the employer and individual mandates in the Affordable Care Act. These burdensome provisions are a drag on our economy and hurt the job creators in my district in Georgia and across the country. Studies have shown that the employer mandate could cost our economy an estimated 3.2 million jobs. On top of that, businesses of all sizes have indicated this mandate will cause them to reduce the size of their businesses or, worse, close their doors. In an economy as fragile as ours, that's the exact opposite of what we want. Today's vote is a step in the right direction, but we can go further. I'm leading the effort in the House with two of my Republican colleagues to fully repeal the employer mandate. If repeal and replace really is the will of the majority, then I urge my colleagues to support today's legislation and quickly bring up a full repeal of the employer mandate.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentlelady for yielding me the time. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1848, the Small Airplane Revitalization Act of 2013. This bill improves safety, lowers costs, and stimulates private sector innovation, all while cutting red tape. We need to do everything we can to keep our economy growing. For the last year and a half, representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration and the aviation industry have worked together to make recommendations for regulations that will keep us safe in the sky and grow our economy back on the ground. This bill adopts those recommendations. I'm proud to stand with the bipartisan group of Congressmen who have helped bring this bill to the floor today, including Mr. Pompeo, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Rokita, Mr. Nolan, and my cochair of the General Aviation Task Force, Mr. Graves. This bill follows in the tradition of the General Aviation Caucus in the House to work together in a bipartisan fashion. That's the way things should be done around here, and this bill is proof that good things can happen when Republicans and Democrats work together. I encourage all my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, just over a week ago, the administration announced a 1-year delay of the employer mandate in the Affordable Care Act. While a temporary delay is a good thing for businesses, a full repeal would be even better. Businesses in my district in Georgia have made very clear that the employer mandate would prevent them from expanding their businesses or hiring workers. One of the main reasons I voted against the law in the first place was because too many job creators in my district simply can't afford the costs of the employer mandate under the Affordable Care Act. We can fix this, however. I'm proud to be leading the effort to fully repeal the employer mandate, along with two of my colleagues from across the aisle. We know this can be fixed, and we've got the bipartisan legislation to do it. I urge my colleagues to swiftly bring up the full repeal of the employer mandate and make this delay permanent so businesses across the country can get back to creating the jobs we need.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, this week marks the beginning of sequestration-related furloughs in my district. As a result, 3,200 employees at Fort Gordon near Augusta, Georgia, will be doing without 20 percent of their pay for the next few months. Also, like many in this House, my district is home to projects caught in the Corps of Engineers' construction backlog. In particular, the New Savannah Bluff Lock and Dam near Augusta has been waiting for repairs by the Corps of Engineers for 13 years, when Congress first authorized them. This bill includes language to allow the Federal Government to purchase more cars on top of the 700,000 vehicles it already owns. My amendment would simply prohibit the expenditure of funds to purchase more vehicles. I believe there are better ways to spend that money. I am serious about cutting unnecessary and wasteful spending. I also believe that cutting spending shouldn't be an end unto itself. It's an opportunity to reduce our deficit, but it's also an opportunity to make our government work better. This amendment represents a relatively small change to the bill, but I believe it speaks to a larger principle. It would be an inappropriate use of taxpayer money to purchase more cars when so many folks across the country are being forced out of work and so many critical projects sit untouched. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it turns out that the targeting of conservative groups by the IRS was just the beginning of a much bigger problem. Every week since, we learn something new about how the IRS has abused its power, and this week is no different. Wine, diet pills, romance novels, and even X-rated movies were purchased with government credit cards. Lavish spending isn't the only problem. New reports tell us that the IRS sent nearly $50 million of taxpayer money to ``unauthorized aliens.'' Mr. Speaker, folks in my district have had enough, and so have I. They work hard for their money, only to have a Federal agency like the IRS run wild with it and offer no apologies. Every person at the IRS should be held accountable for their actions, and we need to put reforms in place to make sure that taxpayer money isn't misused in the future.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor my friend, Representative John Dingell, who, this month became the longest-serving Member of Congress in our Nation's history. Representative Dingell has taught literally thousands of Members of Congress how to do good things for the people we represent, a legacy he continues to build in his 30th term in the people's House. I've had the honor to serve with Mr. Dingell on the House Energy and Commerce Committee. As we all know, oftentimes our schedules don't allow us to stick around for an entire committee meeting, but I always make it a point to stay until Mr. Dingell is finished. He is such a skilled cross-examiner that, by the time he's finished, we've heard the only questions that are worth asking, and we've got the only answers we're ever likely to get. John Dingell's ability to reach across the aisle and find compromise is the cure for what ails this place, and I only hope that thousands more will get the opportunity to learn from the master. I congratulate Mr. Dingell on this historic milestone and for his over 57 years of service to our country. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, at this time I am pleased to yield to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gene Green).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Markey).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I want to thank the gentleman from Massachusetts and congratulate him on the beatification he's received by the voters of his State as he's about to join the other body. I wish him every success in the Senate, to which I can add that the next most feared seven words uttered to any witness is, ``Please answer the question 'yes' or `no.' '' At this time, I am pleased to yield to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Tonko).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman for participating in this evening's Special Order. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I'm very pleased to yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman for his participation. I would note that he, like our honoree, exemplifies the truth that is written in Proverbs: A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver or gold. At this time, I am pleased to recognize the gentlelady from Maryland (Ms. Edwards).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentlelady. At this time, I am pleased to recognize the gentlelady from New Hampshire (Ms. Shea-Porter).

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentlelady. Mr. Speaker, I recall the words of Thomas Carlyle. He was an advocate of the Great Man theory of history. Carlyle wrote: ``History is but the biography of great men.'' If that's true, then the legislative history of this country for over half a century has been but the biography of John Dingell. With gratitude for the service, for the example, and for the friendship of our honoree and with the greatest of affection for our honoree, I yield to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), who would like an opportunity at rebuttal.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my disappointment in the Supreme Court's decision striking down the preclearance provisions of the Voting Rights Act. Mr. Speaker, making sure that our election laws are fair is the most important job in a democracy because the right to vote is the right on which everything else depends. Countless Americans have marched for it, suffered for it, and shed their blood for it. In Georgia, one of the greatest proponents of the Voting Rights Act, our colleague, Congressman John Lewis, knows all too well the price that's been paid to make sure that election laws are not only open but fair to all concerned. We can't go back to the days when majorities can pass laws that limit or diminish the voting strength of minorities. I'm calling on my colleagues in Congress, Republicans and Democrats, not to let this issue die. We need to do what is right and ensure, once and for all, that folks aren't discriminated against at the ballot box.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Madam Speaker, very soon thousands of folks in my district in Georgia, and even more across the State, will be furloughed as a result of the budget sequester. Studies have shown that the sequester will cost the Georgia economy approximately $107 million. Meanwhile, reports circulated this week that President Obama's upcoming trip to Africa will cost the taxpayers nearly $100 million. Madam Speaker, no one here questions the need for security for our Commander in Chief, but we do question the need for such expensive trips when so many folks across the country are being forced to cut back because Congress can't get its act together. A trip of this magnitude isn't unusual, but these are hard times. $100 million could be better used to keep folks on the job. I urge the President and everyone at the Federal level to lead by example and not take the fact that Congress can't get its act together and rub that in the faces of hardworking Americans.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I thank the gentleman for the time. I rise in opposition to the amendment. Farming in 2013 can be a very complicated, high-tech and high-risk business. For example, there are many farmers in my district who farm thousands of acres that they don't own. They might grow cotton, peanuts, grains and specialty crops. They need a whole fleet of different equipment for each one of these crops. They're probably irrigating a whole lot of their crops. They likely employ dozens of people. These might be multimillion-dollar enterprises, and yet they still fit in the definition of a family farm. For these kinds of crops, it simply takes that kind of scale to be sustainable. Many farmers simply cannot afford to farm on that scale unless they have a safety net that can cover their risk. This bill includes sustainable reforms of our farm safety net to make sure it's available to the people who need it most. It's not fair, nor in our best interest, to limit the participation of these larger family farms by undercutting their safety net, as this amendment would do. We need these farmers and they need us. I, therefore, urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I represent one of the most diverse agricultural areas of the country. Farmers in the 12th District of Georgia grow almost everything you can imagine, fruits and vegetables, including one of the largest blueberry crops in the Nation and the world-famous Vidalia onion, commodities like cotton and corn, pecans and peanuts, chickens and cows. Georgia is also home to one of the largest container ports in the country. One of the real bright spots of the American economy is that, thanks in large part to the Market Access Program, farmers have been able to expand their exports to foreign markets and ship their crops through the Port of Savannah to thriving markets overseas. These are opportunities that these small businesses probably would not have if it were not for the MAP connections they had. The people I represent, farmers and nonfarmers alike, understand that growing markets add tremendous value to what farmers grow. The Market Access Program expands our access into larger world markets, and access to these markets is what helps our farmers compete in the global economy. I think that's worth preserving, so I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. I rise in opposition to the amendment. The people I represent value American agriculture and understand that food doesn't grow on grocery store shelves. It takes the hard work and high risk of farmers to get that food to market. I believe all of those farmers are worth supporting. This amendment will undermine the safety net for many of those farmers, large and small. Many people don't realize it, but farm operations are made up of as many different kinds of farms as people. Different farms have different sizes, different ownership structures, different crop mixes and different equipment, and that diversity makes our domestic farming portfolio strong. It's often the big guys who act as the hub of a farm community and offer the smaller farmers in the area access to expensive equipment that they could never afford on their own. These are all family farms in the best sense of the word, and they depend on each other for their livelihood. This amendment effectively ends the safety net for the large family farmer, without whom many of our small family farms couldn't produce. I, therefore, urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment.

Mr. BARROW of Georgia

Mr. BARROW of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Silas Edenfield, a 4-year-old boy from my district in Georgia who passed away on May 25 of cancer, just shy of his fifth birthday on June 4. During his illness, more than 50,000 people from as far away as Australia paid tribute to Silas on social media, joining in his efforts to raise awareness of his deadly disease. Silas loved Jesus and sea turtles and never let his illness get him down. At his young age, he inspired everyone he met with his bright smile and positive attitude. As one person said, ``He brought our community together.'' I extend my heartfelt condolences to Silas' family and the community that supported him. His memory will live on with the people whose lives he touched, including this proud Congressman.