Eric Cantor

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, I am proud to recognize Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) for its victory in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) Championship on March 31, 2010. VCU is located in Richmond, Virginia and is one of the premier institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The University fosters an enrollment 32,436 total students, including 21,149 undergraduates. VCU maintains a Division I athletic program offering 14 varsity sports which includes a men's basketball team that rosters 12 talented young men from around the world. In March of 2010, VCU junior Larry Sanders was named Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Defensive Player of the year and earned first team ALL-CAA honors while teammate Joey Rodriguez earned second team ALL-CAA honors. On March 31, 2010, the VCU basketball team rallied from a 9 point deficit at halftime to defeat Saint Louis University for the second straight game by a score of 71 to 65 in the best of three championship series, capturing the CBI championship. The VCU basketball team won the CBI championship under the guidance of their first year coach, Shaka Smart. During the final game, Junior Brandon Rozell scored a game high 27 points and his teammate Joey Rodriguez scored 13 points on his way to capturing Tournament MVP honors. The VCU basketball team finished their season with 27 wins, the second most wins in school history. VCU President Michael Rao and Athletic Director Norwood Teague have done an exemplary job of supporting this successful athletic program and the gifted student-athletes of the Rams basketball team. The VCU athletes and coaching staff have earned the pride and respect of the VCU students, faculty, alumni, all Rams fans and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Madam Speaker, please join me in congratulating the Rams for their successful 2010 basketball season and their achievement as CBI champions.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an outstanding educator and coach who graced the hallways--and the gridiron--of some of the finest academic institutions in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Harry W. ``Red'' Caughron, an All-Conference tackle for the College of William & Mary in the 1940s and longtime head coach and athletic director at Woodberry Forest School in Madison County, VA, died May 28, 2010. Coach Caughron was described by admirers as ``the very best of the principles that should imbue sport.'' A native of Sevierville, Tennessee, he played freshman football at William & Mary before serving with the 78th Infantry Division, 2nd Battalion, and the 84th Infantry Division during World War II. After the war, he returned to William & Mary, where he co-captained the squad that defeated Oklahoma State in the 1948 Delta Bowl, and completed both undergraduate and graduate degrees. Caughron coached at James Wood High School in Winchester, Virginia, and at Hammond High School in Alexandria, Virginia, before joining Woodberry Forest in 1960. He became athletic director at Woodberry in 1961. Over 31 seasons as Woodberry's head coach, Caughron compiled a record of 217 wins, 56 losses, and seven ties--one of the best among Virginia high school coaches. His teams, eight of which were undefeated, earned 15 conference championships. He was an eight-time Virginia Prep League Coach of the Year, and was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. Caughron was a modest man who, while committed to winning, was even more invested in developing young men of sterling character who played by the rules and exhibited good sportsmanship. It is my privilege to honor the memory of Red Caughron.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. I yield to the gentleman.

Mr. CANTOR. I am reminded by my counsel, Mr. Speaker, that, as the gentleman would probably agree, the Senate is nothing but predictable. Mr. Speaker, as we are discussing the schedule for next week, I would like to announce the ninth YouCut vote which will take place on the House floor next week. Over 1.4 million votes have been cast to date at the Republican youcut.house.gov site. I would say to the gentleman, four of your Members announced a series of proposed cuts this week. While the gentleman did not mention them in his schedule for next week, I would note that we have included one of their proposals in our five YouCut options for next week. The proposal offered by the gentleman from New Jersey, Mr. Adler, would terminate the Advanced Earned Income Tax Credit, saving $1.1 billion. The additional options for the public to vote on this week under the YouCut program include the elimination of duplicative Federal PE programs, saving $790 million; the refocusing of the National Park Service on administering Federal parks, saving $238 million of taxpayer money; the termination of funding for the DOD Innovative Readiness Training program at a $200 million savings; and the prohibition of the use of taxpayer funds for political campaigns in foreign countries, savings of $23 million. And so with that, Mr. Speaker, I would urge the gentleman's consideration, perhaps if not at our suggestion, the suggestion of his colleagues on his side of the aisle, that perhaps maybe we should endeavor to have a vote on the floor about actually cutting spending.

Mr. CANTOR. Mr. Speaker, that was going to be my question: When faced with the reality that the Senate will send us back the version that it did so 2 months ago, if faced with that, will the House be taking that bill up and then funding our troops before we adjourn for the recess in August? I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Maryland, the majority leader, for the purpose of announcing next week's schedule.

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, I would note that we are making some progress here if we are going to avoid pointing fingers and casting blame as to why we are where we are, in the spirit of trying to move forward together and addressing the real challenges that our constituents and the people of this country are facing. I welcome the gentleman's desire to look for ways to cut spending. I would just reiterate that there are four individuals on his side of the aisle, Mr. Adler of New Jersey being one, having proposed a savings of $1.1 billion that will be part of the YouCut activities over the Web this week. Mr. Speaker, if that is the winning proposal, then the gentleman will have an opportunity to join us in putting that measure to a vote. So I look forward to that next week, Mr. Speaker. Again, I thank the gentleman for his time.

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman. Turning to the issue of the troop funding bill, Mr. Speaker, the Senate sent the House the troop funding bill supplemental about 2 months ago, and it appears that that body will be sending us back the exact same version of the bill next week. I would ask the gentleman, Mr. Speaker, is that his understanding of the bill, and is it his understanding that that is the bill that we can expect the House to be voting on? I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. Mr. Speaker, I would ask the gentleman whether he could commit to the House that he would continue to advocate for an open rule. I know the gentleman has always been and joins me in wanting full and open debate in the House, whether it will be his position that these appropriations bills would come to the floor on an open rule. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, the majority leader announced two appropriations bills for floor consideration next week. I'd note, Mr. Speaker, that the fiscal year ends just over 2 months from now, and yet we're only now just beginning consideration of the first of 12 appropriations bills that fund the entire Federal discretionary budget. But I would ask the gentleman, Mr. Speaker, if he could tell us whether to expect those bills coming up for consideration on the floor under an open rule. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman, and, Mr. Speaker, I would ask the gentleman if the Members should be prepared for a possible Saturday session next week. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman for that and would ask him if he could respond to some reports about several measures, perhaps, and the possibility of these measures coming to the floor next week, if he could give the House an update. One would be the oil spill response legislation that's coming out of the Resources Committee, Energy and Commerce Committee, and the Ways and Means Committee; the small business taxpayer fund bill in the Senate; the FAA authorization bill from the Senate; the 9/11 compensation bill; and the Education and Labor OSHA bill relating to mining, if the gentleman could give us an update on those measures. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to the rule. I rise in opposition to the previous question. With over 1.3 million votes cast and counting, the YouCut movement continues to give people across America a voice to help put a stop to Washington's never-ending shopping spree. House Republicans have already offered $120 billion in commonsense spending reductions. Yet week in and week out, the majority has astoundingly voted against the will of the people. Proposed by Congressman Mac Thornberry of Texas, this week's YouCut winner highlights the latest example of egregious government waste. Despite the fact that only 16 percent of Amtrak passengers choose sleeper class fare, which includes a turndown service and private entertainment, taxpayers are on the hook for more than twice as much for these passengers compared to those who ride in coach. During these increasingly tough economic times, is it really fair to ask taxpayers to subsidize turndown service and pre-paid movies? The American people have emphatically said ``no.'' Just days ago, Madam Speaker, four House Democrats bucked their party's leadership to form a working group they say is devoted to cutting wasteful spending. As my House Republican colleagues and I have said since YouCut's launch, tackling our staggering national debt is not a partisan calling. It's an American calling because our country is at a crossroads. It is only logical then, Madam Speaker, that the new Democratic group would support the elimination of first class Amtrak subsidies and save taxpayers up to $1.2 billion over the next decade. I urge them, as well as all of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, to join us in voting to bring this week's YouCut to the floor for a vote.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. Mr. Speaker, last week a bitter feud erupted in Washington, and it wasn't your typical partisan spat between liberals and conservatives, or even Democrats and Republicans. The fight was between the White House and American businesses. Since when, Mr. Speaker, has it been acceptable for American employers and the White House to be on opposing teams? How can we expect American businesses of all sizes to get the economy back on track when they have become so frustrated by the ideological and anti- competitive agenda coming out of Washington? To fend off criticism from business groups, including the NFIB, the White House has embarked on a summer PR campaign in an attempt to show that they are not, in fact, anti-business. But even the best PR operations aren't outfitted with time machines. Over the past 18 months, stimulus, cap-and-trade, health care and FinReg have contributed to a perfect storm of uncertainty and debt, forcing American businesses to hunker down and hoard capital, rather than hire more workers. Mr. Speaker, American businessmen and women aren't just a part of our economy or some constituency to be dealt with. They are our economy.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. Well, I am told and hopeful as well there will be many more nuptials on your staff, I would say to the gentleman.

Mr. CANTOR. I know the gentleman is in receipt of the same information that I am about the urgency now being communicated to us for the need for that money to be delivered. I would say, Madam Speaker, I probably have a little different view as to the intentions of the Senate to try and deliver on stripping out the House amendments that were attached to the supplemental bill, and would say, again, to the gentleman, House Republicans stand ready to vote in an expeditious way on the Senate-passed bill in its original form, and I look forward to being able to deliver that. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, as we're discussing the schedule for next week, I believe it's important to announce the eighth YouCut vote that will take place on the House floor next week. Over 1.3 million votes have been cast on YouCut to date at the RepublicanWhip.House.Gov/YouCut Web Site. We will vote sometime mid-week on one of five proposals selected by the people of America. The first would be to eliminate mandatory GPO bill printing, which is a $35 million savings. Another would be to eliminate Senator Dodd's health care clinic earmark in the Obama Care health care bill, estimated to save another $100 million. Next would be, Madam Speaker, an effort to prohibit subsidies for long- distance ``first class'' sleeper train tickets, estimated at a cost savings of $1.2 billion. Another, Madam Speaker, could be to reform the Energy Star program effort, which requires companies to pay for the cost of the program, saving the taxpayers $655 million. Another could be, depending on the vote and the will of the American people, an effort to prevent LIHEAP payments to fraudulent claims, an estimated savings of hundreds of millions of dollars to the taxpayer. Madam Speaker, I would say the gentleman's party has been extolling the virtues of cutting $7 billion from the President's $1.12 trillion FY11 budget, $7 billion. And I would say to the gentleman--I know we've had a lot of discussion about YouCut and the amount of money that we are attempting to cut from the Federal deficit through our program, and, in fact, at this point that total is now reaching $130 billion. I know that many in his party have been dismissive of this program, saying that that's not real money in Washington. And I will just point out to the gentleman, if individuals on his side of the aisle think that $7 billion reaches a significant milestone, I would say as well, $130 billion of proposed cuts would do just as well, if not better. So, Madam Speaker, I would like to, at this point, take a quick moment to congratulate someone who works together with our staff tirelessly behind the scenes, someone on the staff of the majority leader, Austin Burnes, who got a moment to get away from the floor prior to the recess to attend his own wedding. We wish the gentleman great success and best wishes in his nuptials.

Mr. CANTOR. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, the gentleman mentioned the troop funding in his schedule for next week. I know originally the goal was to fund our troops by Memorial Day. That didn't happen. Then it became the goal of July 4th, and that didn't happen. I know that the gentleman and I are both committed to getting this critical funding for our men and women in uniform, and I would just suggest to the gentleman it is probably the most direct route to getting our mutual goal accomplished of getting this bill across the floor, that perhaps he and the majority ought to consider taking up the Senate-passed legislation and send it right to the President. I can say, Madam Speaker, to the gentleman that the Senate bill does have 218 votes on this House floor, and would ask if the supplemental is coming to the House floor next week, whether that is his intention, to go ahead, take this route, expedite it, so our troops can get the money they need. I yield.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, I would ask if those appropriations bills coming to the floor will be brought up under an open rule.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, the gentleman just explained that we do only have 2 more weeks left in the month of July for legislative business. I would ask the gentleman if he could expand upon the schedule for those 2 weeks and what we might expect for those following weeks.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, given the schedule the gentleman just announced, I would ask the majority leader whether he expects the House to be in session next Friday.

Mr. CANTOR. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Maryland, the majority leader, for the purpose of announcing next week's schedule.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentlelady for yielding. Madam Speaker, I rise today to ask Members to join me in voting ``no'' on the previous question. For the past couple of years, the American people have been forced to make some extremely difficult budgeting decisions. Because when times are tough and your back is up against the wall, you have no choice but to rein in your expenditures and pare down your debts. This vote today on the previous question, the reason why we're standing in opposition, is because Republicans would like to see us include in this rule the opportunity to vote on this week's winning YouCut proposal. This proposal would prohibit funding for the droves of puzzling and flamboyant signs attributing various projects to last year's stimulus bill. Often visible along highways, these signs do not provide any meaningful information and do not create any jobs. They are the public face of an administration PR campaign that taxpayers are unwittingly financing. While the precise cost of these signs is unknown, press reports peg it in the tens of millions of dollars. The painful sacrifice borne by families and small businesses are hugely disconnected from the status quo here in Washington. Inside this Chamber of Congress, the excessive, untargeted, and ineffective spending binge that gives us the failed stimulus is alive and kicking. But now, Madam Speaker, the American people are fed up. Across the country, from big cities to quiet suburbs to rural towns, Americans of all backgrounds are demanding that Washington stop the wasteful spending. Today, here in this body we will hold the seventh YouCut vote--and the American people will once again be able to see which Member of Congress hears their plea and gets the message. This week's proposal, by Representative Schock of Illinois, would require agencies to report on the amount already spent on the signs. And it would recapture those funds by reducing the agencies' administrative expenses by that same amount. Madam Speaker, America is at a crossroads. The Federal Government needs to stop spending our country out of prosperity and into a quicksand of unsustainable debt. We need to change the culture in Washington and tip the balance in the direction of savings. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' and to bring this week's YouCut proposal to a vote before the full House.

Mr. CANTOR

Mr. CANTOR. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in opposition to this question of the previous question because today we should be voting and will be voting on the sixth YouCut proposal. And well over 1 million Americans have sent a clear message to Washington: Stop the wasteful spending. I say, Mr. Speaker, to the American people, Republicans hear you. And today I hope that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle will listen as well and join us. This week's YouCut proposal addresses one of the most egregious yet underreported sources of government waste. Taxpayers are on the hook for the salaries and benefits of Federal workers who simultaneously work for their public employee unions to the tune of $120 million per year. By the way, these are the same unions that spend millions on political activities and lobbying, often for causes that hamper economic growth and private-sector job creation. Specifically, Mr. Speaker, the National Labor Relations Board union billed the taxpayers for an average of 12.18 hours for each of its 1,104 employees. Since each hour costs $42, taxpayers are paying each worker $700 per year on official union duties. America is at a crossroads. We are not under any illusions. This cut alone may not erase the deficit overnight. But this cut is a reflection of the symptom of the virus that has put our country's economy on life support. Only by finally drawing a firm line on wasteful spending can we begin to kill the virus and preserve American prosperity for generations to come.