Jim Cooper

Mr. COOPER

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman is exactly correct. And it is terrible to deliver such tough news to the American people, but the GAO is telling us the truth, in a nonpartisan fashion, as the gentleman indicates. And this bad news is not 35 years off. As I indicated earlier, the GAO has already said that the year 2004, last year, was ``arguably the worst year in American fiscal history.'' They are saying that is only going to get worse still on the path that we are on, on the high deficit, high debt path we are on. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, what the gentleman from Tennessee is talking about is the debt. We are not even talking about the deficit yet, but debt. Again, our Nation is spending $13 billion a month, over $13 billion a month simply paying interest on the national debt. That is $444 million a day, that is $18 million an hour, that is $308,000 a minute, or $5,100 a second. On top of that, we have the deficit, and the gentleman from Tennessee talked about this a little bit. It is hard now to think back that we had a balanced budget in this Nation from 1998 through 2001.

Mr. COOPER. Just 5 years ago.

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is focusing on the problem, and I think the American people are hungry for more facts, more real information about the situation we are in. I would like to encourage them to look on the Web site of an institution called the Cato Institute. It is here in Washington, D.C. It is not a Democratic group. If anything, they are mainly Republican, but they issued a report on May 3, 2005. It is by Stephen Slavinski, and it talks about how under this Republican-only government, because Republicans run the White House and the Senate and the House of Representatives, we have seen the biggest spending binge since Lyndon Baines Johnson in the 1960s. It is not just defense-related. If we look at nondefense spending programs, it is the biggest spending binge since Richard Nixon. Most Americans do not know this, and they do not know that we just went through arguably the worst year in American fiscal history. So I appreciate the gentleman sharing the message. Several of our colleagues have arrived, and it is probably appropriate at this time to recognize them.

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman is correct. Our balanced budget amendment would completely protect Social Security so it would not in any way be endangered by this. It would also require a three-fifths majority of this House in order to raise the debt limit. So it would really do a lot to control the spending binge we are on. Another key element of the plan is, pay as you go. In other words, this Congress could no longer buy on credit. We would take up the national credit card, cut it up, put it away. Alan Greenspan, the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, says this is probably the single most important policy reform we could undertake. Why does he say that? Because we had it for 12 years and it worked brilliantly. We had it in place from 1990 to 2002. And under Republican leadership they let it expire, so the pay-as-you-go principle no longer operates. We need to reinstate PAYGO.

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman is exactly correct. And if you cut taxes, you have to make up the lost revenue, either through spending cuts or other taxes. And it is an important way to live within your means, by cutting up the credit cards so you are no longer borrowing more than you can afford. It is a key principle. Another element of the Blue Dog spending plan is to put spending caps on spending, so that we live within our means; so that we live within our own budget; so that the budget does not become a joke, as it so often does within this House. Another element of the Blue Dog reform plan is to require our Federal agencies to live within their means and get their fiscal houses in order, because so many Federal agencies are not auditable. They do not know how to account for the money that they are charged with, and it is very important that they live within their means just as any family or business has to do in this country.

Mr. COOPER. Exactly.

Mr. COOPER. They would be pretty much out of business if they were a public company in this country, and they are all large enough to be giant public companies. And the Federal Government simply cannot find $24 billion. They do not know where it went. This is an outrage. And guess what the worst offending Federal agency happens to be? The U.S. Pentagon. And it is not because we are at war. Even during peacetime, the Pentagon has not been able to account for the money it is spending.

Mr. COOPER. That has been true in the past. We hope that is not true today.

Mr. COOPER. We have heard their excuses for too long. So this would freeze them until they learned how to behave and learned how to count the money they are entrusted with. Another key element of the plan is that Congress has to tell taxpayers back home how much we are spending, because right now many bills go through this body with a voice vote, with no cost estimate. So we are proposing, just as a place to start, not that this is a perfect number, but any bill that spends more than $50 million we will have to have a recorded vote on so that the taxpayers back home will know who voted for what; so there is finally some accountability in this body.

Mr. COOPER. A recorded vote so that people back home can tell how we behave up here.

Mr. COOPER. I would be delighted to yield to the gentleman from New York.

Mr. COOPER. That was some 3 weeks ago we had the budget resolution. They rammed it through here in 2 hours.

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman is exactly correct. The other elements of the Blue Dog reform plan, point number seven, would be let us have real votes, recorded votes, on raising the debt ceiling for this country. A lot of Americans think we vote on that here. Well, we used to, in the good old days. But now, under Republican leadership, if you voted for Speaker Hastert, you also voted to make debt ceiling votes disappear. They no longer happen anymore. And to put it in perspective, it took the first 204 years of our Nation's history to run up the first $1 trillion in debt, and now we are doing it about every year or two. That is an outrage. And no one is recorded in their votes when we do that. Every year or two it is another trillion; we raise the debt ceiling. And that vote has simply disappeared.

Mr. COOPER. Sadly, Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is exactly correct. In the little time we have remaining, let me make sure we finish the remaining Blue Dog points here. We have to admit that Congress likes to spend money on its own pet projects. It is called earmark spending. We do not ban that, but we require a written justification for every project, so that things like Senator Charles Grassley's $50 million indoor rain forest in Iowa would no longer happen without written justification. The Wall Street Journal reported ``it would be cheaper to fly everyone in Iowa to a real rain forest rather than build a fake one somewhere in Iowa.'' Another key element of the Blue Dog reform plan is to give us the 3 days that we have under House rules to read these bills so that we have a chance to know what is going on; so we have a chance to share with our constituents back home what is in these bills so we can get their ideas. That is the best way to represent them, instead of ramming things through here, like our budget 3 weeks ago in 2 hours, or other legislation they rammed through in 1 day under what they call the martial law rule. That is not a pejorative; that is what they call it, a martial law rule for running our democracy. Another key element of the Blue Dog reform plan is let us get an honest cost estimate for every bill. I mentioned earlier let us have a recorded vote for the larger bills, but we need to know what each bill costs so we have some idea what we are spending. Most Americans back home are probably shocked that after 200-plus years of this great democracy, we still do not know what bills cost. Finally, we need to make sure that each piece of legislation fits within the budget, so we do not routinely bust the budget. Last year, I think four or five of the appropriations bills busted the budget. Finally, Congress needs to make sure that we do a better job of keeping tabs on government programs. This Congress has failed miserably, and even the most partisan Republican would admit that. Most of the oversight subcommittees have been abolished. They do not exist anymore. There is no one to hold hearings to make sure that the taxpayers' money is being well spent. Those are the key points in the 12-point Blue Dog reform plan. We have bipartisan support for this. Many of the elements are shared with the Republican Study Committee Plan. Many of us have also supported their reform efforts. We need to work together to form a bipartisan majority, much as our Senate colleagues did to avert the nuclear showdown on judicial nominations, get the sensible center of this Congress to come together and do the right thing for the American taxpayer. We are so close because if just 10 or 20 of the Republicans would break from their leadership, they could do as the CATO Institute report suggests, start reforming the budget process in this House. All it takes is 10 or 20 renegades on their side to stand up for the American taxpayer. We can get budget reform. It may be the Republican Study Committee that does it. It may be the Mainstream Republicans, or the Tuesday Group that does it, but I believe the Blue Dog Democrats will be there to make sure that sensible fiscal policy is restored to this Nation. I appreciate the gentleman holding this special order.

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding. There are several ways out of this terrible dilemma that we are in an as a Nation. First, we have to acknowledge that we have Republican cosponsors for our proposal. Particularly the Republican Study Committees deserves great thanks for their lending a hand to our proposal. A number of us have cosponsored their proposals. The solution out of this has to be bipartisan. Our 12-point plan includes the following elements: It includes a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Remember, that was part of the Republican Contract with America, but somehow they have forgotten about it these last 10 years. We need to have a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman asks an interesting question. I am on the Committee on the Budget, and we were only allowed 2 hours from first glance of the document, and this is a complex document, any document would be that spends $2.6 trillion, and 2 hours later, final passage and you never see it again. That is an outrage to ram through a budget like that. No responsible board of directors in America, no responsible businessman or woman would tolerate that situation, yet it has become commonplace in the U.S. House of Representatives under Republican leadership. And lest this be viewed as partisan, check again the Cato Institute report. They say that government accountability has suffered terribly under our all-Republican government because there are no checks and balances any more. There is nobody calling them to task, and so we have got to restore fiscal sanity to this Nation. Another key element of the Blue Dog spending plan is to set aside a real rainy day fund. We know that emergencies and tragedies are going to occur. Let us set aside a little money in advance so that not everything becomes an emergency here. We spend tens, sometimes hundreds, of billions of dollars a year here because it is a so-called emergency. And some of them are. But in the most recently past emergency supplemental bill of $82 billion, a lot of that was for our troops in Iraq, and we are all for that; but a lot of it was for other stuff that powerful Congressmen and Senators snuck in the bill because they knew they could get away with it.

Mr. COOPER

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, if Members are interested in finding a cure for Parkinson's disease, diabetes, cancer, and many other of the dread diseases that we face, please vote for this stem cell bill today and please vote for the cord blood bill today. They need to vote for both. The narrow issue may seem whether we expand federally funded research into embryonic stem cell work, but I think a better way to view the issue is whether we allow the continual discarding of embryos from IVF clinics or whether we allow those to be used for productive and life- giving research. This is a very important moment for this House. I would urge all of my colleagues to do the right thing for the future of our kids and grandkids because this research needs to be conducted. It needs to be conducted with Federal support. It needs to be conducted here in America. There was a break-through just last week in South Korea. Are we going to send our loved ones overseas in order to get this lifesaving research? We should do it here.

Mr. COOPER

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. Tom Green. The humorist Will Rogers once said that the secret of his success was that he never met a man he didn't like. The same can be said of Tom Green. He makes friends with everyone, everyday, everywhere. He is the ultimate people person, always asking--and, much more important, caring--about you, your family, your friends, and remembering the details perfectly for decades. I wish I had a fraction of his talent. Tom is well known back home for his wonderful family, for his continuing and tireless efforts benefiting the Natchez Trace Parkway, as well as for his dedication and service to Nashvillians during his long business career and, more recently, as a key member of my district staff. The Natchez Trace is the pioneer roadway that connected Nashville with the lower Mississippi River at Natchez. In modern times the Trace fell into disuse and was nearly lost to history. In 1934, Congress ordered a survey of the old wagon road, and, in 1937, provided initial funding for construction of what would eventually become the 444-mile-long Natchez Trace Parkway running through rural Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. Today, the Parkway is one of the most visited national parks and serves as a unique thoroughfare, allowing us to ride in comfort along an ancient trail through some of the most beautiful scenery in our country. Tom has helped the Natchez Trace Parkway for decades, from the days of legendary Congressmen Jamie Whitten of Mississippi and Tom Bevill of Alabama. He worked hard to secure federal funding to complete and beautify the Parkway. Everyone associated with the Parkway knows that Tom is a great organizer, motivator, and promoter of the Trace. Just stop and eat a ham biscuit at the famous Loveless Cafe at the head of the Trace and you'll hear Tom's name mentioned frequently and with deep respect. Without Tom's efforts, the Natchez Trace Parkway would not be the link between the past and future of our region that it is today. Everyone in the Southeast United States is indebted to Tom for his vision. He helped save the Trace before it was too late. His tireless work on the Natchez Trace Parkway is just one of his important contributions. Tom is a true servant of his community. Born to remarkable parents in Lewisburg, Tennessee, he served in WWII and came home to graduate from the University of Tennessee, manage the local co-op and open a small business. He was so popular he was elected Mayor of Lewisburg. Later moving to Nashville, he helped many Middle Tennessee businesses expand, thanks to his keen credit decisions while heading up industrial development projects for Third National Bank. Those years were the golden age of Third National under the leadership of the legendary Sam Fleming, but it was men like Tom Green that brought the loans to the bank. Money is a commodity; customer relationships are more precious than gold. Tom went on to help all Nashvillians when he spent more than a decade as the associate general manager of the Nashville Electric Service, the local electric utility. Just one of the many people Tom helped was an African-American barber in a poor part of town. The barber would call Tom to tell him about an upstanding citizen who just couldn't pay their electric bill that month, but would pay when they found work. He asked Tom to keep their lights on and Tom did just that. As a former banker, Tom knew how to make character loans, whom to trust and whom not to. Despite being a monopoly, NES kept the goodwill of its hardworking customers and Tom made even more lifelong friends at a time when most white Nashvillians did not care much about goodwill in the black community. The barber is still in business in the same location and I have visited his barbershop with Tom. The barber's name is Vernon Winfrey, and he is the father of Oprah Winfrey. Tom bent over backwards to help him before he had any realistic hope of fame or fortune. That's the kind of guy Tom is. Married for 53 years to Pat Green, the Greens are the parents of four outstanding grown men and grandparents of eleven children. Tom is an active member of the Nashville Downtown Rotary Club and Christ the King Catholic Church and finds time to volunteer at the Nashville's ``Room in the Inn'' program for the homeless and at St. Thomas Hospital. Pat is a renowned local teacher who is directly descended from Abraham Lincoln's first-grade school teacher. Needless to say, the Green family is well educated. Tom's generous spirit and joyful approach to life immediately come to mind when anyone thinks of him. No matter how busy his day may be, Tom always has a smile, an encouraging word and a couple of minutes just to talk . . . sometimes more than a couple of minutes. He'll pick up the conversation just where you left it . . . the day before, a week or a month ago. He always knows the news and has lots of tips about everyone's background, interconnections, and exactly how to approach everyone. His mind is better than a computer database. There's never been anyone like him. Of course, I am the lucky one. Tom Green has been a key part of my office staff for the past several years. No one could ask for a more positive, uplifting presence in the office, or a better person to represent you out in the community. Not only does he know everyone, he also has great ideas. For example, last year Tom Green persuaded Vernon Winfrey to make available Oprah Winfrey Scholarships to Nashville Tech Community College. Now all future generations will benefit from an old interracial friendship, formed on the basis of taking a business risk to keep the lights on for decent, hardworking people who were temporarily down on their luck. I am truly fortunate and want to take this moment to thank Tom for bringing his integrity, his energy and his ever-present sense of humor to my Congressional team. He can outwork a dozen people half his age. I want to take this moment to publicly offer my thanks, and the thanks of everyone in the 5th Congressional District of Tennessee, for Tom Green's extraordinary service to our community, our state and our country.

Mr. COOPER

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I join my fellow Blue Dog, the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Case), in speaking about the deficit and debt crisis that our Nation faces. He gave a lot of stunning numbers. Let me put it on a time line. What are the milestones that we are facing as a Nation? First, the year 2004, the year past, the Comptroller General of the United States, David A. Walker, said that arguably it was the worst year in American fiscal history, clearly setting our Nation on an unsustainable path. Those are tough words, and they are from our Nation's leading auditor. Arguably the worst year in American fiscal history. Our history goes back many, many decades, and it stretches through periods of trial and turmoil, like World War II, the Civil War, and other conflicts. Yet the year 2004 was the worst year in American fiscal history according to the Comptroller General. Now, in 2005, what has happened in our budget and deficit this year? The House Republican majority ran through last week on Thursday night, under a so-called martial law rule, the entire budget of the United States of America, $2.6 trillion. And from start to finish, from first time to look at the budget to final passage in this body was no more than 2 to 3 hours of time. Literally, no one in this body had any clue what was in the budget because no one can read a document of that complexity in that short amount of time, especially under a martial law rule. Let us look forward. By the last year of the Bush administration, by the year 2008-2009, we will be spending, according to the House Republican budget, more money on interest payments to the creditors of our Nation than we will be spending on all regular government in America. Let me repeat that: more money will go to creditors of our Nation, bond holders, than to the citizens of our Nation in regular government, at least in the form of domestic, nondefense discretionary spending. That is a tipping point. That is an outrage. And that is the result of profligate Republican spending policies, the latest evidence of which is in this Cato Institute report that came out on May 3, 2005, that says the Bush administration is the worst spending administration since Lyndon Baines Johnson. Let us look forward. The Wall Street Journal reported about a month ago that if current trends continue, the last living U.S. bond holder will sell his or her holding to the People's Bank of China on February 9, 2012. Then the Chinese will own virtually all of our foreign-held debt. That is not a good situation for the security of our Nation, either defense security or fiscal security. Let us look forward again. The year 2017. That is the year in which the Social Security surpluses will run to zero, and that will be the first year in modern times that the American people will get an honest picture of the size of the Federal budget deficit. Because no longer will the Social Security surplus be able to be used to hide the true size of the Federal deficit. For example, in 2004, most folks, most experts think the deficit was $412 billion. Wrong. The real deficit was $567 billion, or $155 billion larger than is represented, because our government has used the Social Security surplus to hide the true size of it. Let us look forward again. By the year 2040, only 35 years from now, if current trends continue, the Comptroller General of the United States says that it will take all revenues collected by the Federal Government, every dime collected in taxes from our people, just to pay interest on our debt. This is a truly stunning finding of the GAO, because it indicates that there will be no money left by the year 2040 for any national defense, any Social Security, any Medicare, any money to meet the needs of our people. Clearly, Mr. Speaker, that is an unsustainable path. Clearly, I think we need Presidential leadership. Because being practical, even though we have a strong package of Blue Dog budget deficit reforms, even though both parties should come together, it is hard for a group of 435 in this body or 100 people in the other body to exert the leadership that the President should be demonstrating. But the President has vetoed no legislation during his entire Presidency. He has not disciplined Congress in any way. He is the first President since James Garfield in 1881 to fail to veto a single measure of this body. President Garfield was only in office for 6 months before he died. President Bush has been in office for 5 years now. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to focus on the deficit and debt crisis that this Nation faces.

Mr. COOPER

Mr. COOPER. The gentleman mentioned earlier that in early 2006 they will be asking for another increase in the debt ceiling, perhaps even 2005.

Mr. COOPER. On car loans.

Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding. I would like to ask a question on this, because I think it is a very significant chart the gentleman is pointing out. It is my understanding it took the first 204 years of American history to run up $1 trillion in debt, and that chart seems to demonstrate, what, that in just 2 or 3 years--

Mr. COOPER. So to put the cookies on a low shelf, it took the first 204 years to do $1 trillion worth of damage to our Nation, and now the Republican majority is doing that every 18 months?

Mr. COOPER. If the gentleman will yield further, this is probably hard for the folks back home to understand, and I know it is hard for many Members here to understand, but this news simply has not gotten out to the American people. It is my understanding that, what, votes on raising the debt ceiling anymore do not happen?

Mr. COOPER. Numbers do not lie. I appreciate the gentleman yielding. So the total national debt now is about $7.7 trillion.