Ami Bera

Mr. BERA of California

Mr. BERA of California. Today, I rise as a doctor to talk about the patients that I've taken care of who have suffered as victims of domestic violence. As doctors, we don't choose to treat one patient or another patient. We choose to take care of every patient who presents, and as Members of Congress--as Americans--we don't choose to protect one woman and not protect another. We choose to protect all women in America. That is who we are as a Nation. I urge this body to reject the House version of this bill and to pass the bipartisan Senate version, which is a reflection of who we are in America and our values. As the father of a daughter, this is personal. I want my daughter to grow up in a country in which we value and respect every woman regardless of her background, ethnicity, creed. This is personal. Let's do the right thing. I urge this body to do the right thing today--pass the Senate's version of the Violence Against Women Act.

Mr. BERA of California

Mr. BERA of California. Mr. Speaker, the American public is tired of the blame game. They want to see real solutions. Irresponsible, across- the-board spending cuts are not a real solution. If we don't act to avoid these spending cuts, we threaten the very safety of our community and our country. There will be $50 million cut from firefighting funding. In my own district, that's $1.5 million in SAFER grants. Let me translate that. My fire chief, Kurt Henke, says that's the equivalent of one engine company and slower response times. People are going to be unsafe, homes are going to burn. We have to act. Mr. Speaker, I urge you to lock us in a room and cut a deal. Let's figure out how to avoid sequestration. This is devastating to our economy and our country.

Mr. BERA

Mr. BERA. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak against the closed rule. Yesterday I introduced an amendment that would have separated the pay raise for Members of Congress from the remainder of Federal employees. If that amendment had passed, only Members of Congress would be affected by this bill. Unfortunately, the Rules Committee reported a closed rule and will not allow an up-or-down vote on any amendments. They would not allow us to vote up or down on this. Failure to allow an up-or-down vote does not allow Congress to take a clean vote on a cost-of-living adjustment for Federal employees. Congress needs to start working together in a bipartisan manner and start addressing issues like sequestration and the budget. We need to start making strategic budget decisions, not across-the-board cuts. That is not how you make decisions. We need to eliminate and reduce those programs that are no longer effective and begin to bring our budget under control. And if we cannot act responsibly and find a way to achieve this balance, then we don't deserve a pay raise as Members of Congress. This amendment, the amendment I proposed, would have reiterated that. Not allowing a clean vote is just wrong. We should not balance the Federal budget on the backs of our Federal employees. My amendment would have allowed us to take that vote. Sacramento County, my home county, has over 26,000 Federal employees. These are hardworking citizens in the Defense Department. Many of them are veterans who have served our country admirably, and there are other dedicated public servants keeping our country safe. We should not ask them to make the sacrifice without asking ourselves to make that sacrifice first. Now is the time we've got to set aside this partisanship and start working together to serve our country. However, achieving fiscal balance on the backs of our hardworking Federal employees is not a solution. I urge my colleagues to vote against this rule. Protect our hardworking and responsible Federal employees, and work in a bipartisan manner to pass a responsible budget.

Mr. BERA of California

Mr. BERA of California. Mr. Speaker, in a few short weeks, we face automatic across-the-board spending cuts. If allowed, they could not only stall our economic recovery; these cuts will immediately threaten the future of our children and grandchildren. If we allow sequestration to take place, we threaten to kick 70,000 of our children off of the Head Start program. If we allow sequestration to take place, 10,000 American teachers will lose their jobs. We threaten the very future of our children and grandchildren. This is irresponsible. In the spirit of their future, the children from Mrs. Gibson's third- grade class at Foulks Ranch Elementary School in Elk Grove, California, wanted me to deliver a message to Congress. They are five simple tips: They want Congress to be responsible. They want Congress to be respectful. They want Congress to be kind. They want Congress to be accountable. Mr. Speaker, the third-graders from Mrs. Gibson's class want Congress to make good choices. Allowing sequestration to take place is a bad choice. If the third- graders can figure it out, I certainly hope we in Congress can as well. Let's do what they advise. Let's be responsible and let's make good choices.

Mr. BERA of California

Mr. BERA of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to caution again about the dangers of sequestration. In a few short weeks, automatic across-the-board spending cuts will take place. If allowed, they could forestall our economic recovery. Not only will these cuts cripple many effective programs, but across-the- board cuts on top of already large budget reductions will impact the Department of Defense. Yes, we need to make strategic budget reductions, eliminate or reduce ineffective programs, and begin to bring our budget under control. But we need to do this in a responsible way, and automatic sequestration cuts are irresponsible. In my community, we will feel an immediate impact. If sequestration hits, programs that are essential to keeping our community safe and secure would face an automatic 8.2 percent cut. The COPS program in Sacramento would lose over $1.5 million in funding, which would hurt local law enforcement and impact our community safety. Yes, we need to get our budget under control. We need to reduce our deficit and begin paying down our debt. But irresponsible across-the- board sequestration cuts are not the way to do it.

Mr. BERA of California

Mr. BERA of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise to address Congress' failure to pass a responsible budget. As an original cosponsor of H.R. 310, the standalone and original No Budget, No Pay Act, I'm pleased to see the 113th Congress begin to address our core obligations to pass a responsible budget that not only honors the promises that we have made to our parents and grandparents, but also secures a prosperous future for our children and grandchildren. We can do this, but we must do so in a bipartisan way. The great Speaker of the House, the Honorable Tip O'Neill, was able to work with President Ronald Reagan to revamp our Tax Code and strengthen Social Security. The Honorable Speaker Newt Gingrich was able to work with President Bill Clinton to not only balance our budget, but to create a budget surplus. We can do this, but we must do so in a bipartisan fashion, taking the best ideas from both sides of the aisle, finding common ground, and moving forward.

Mr. BERA

Mr. BERA. `` . . . to constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court; to define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offenses against the law of nations; to declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water; to raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years; . . .''