John Culberson

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, I oppose this amendment because I share the gentleman's concern about the debt and the deficit. As I mentioned a moment ago, the way we're going to save the country from bankruptcy and protect our kids from this crushing debt burden that they're about to inherit to is rescue Social Security and Medicare from their certain bankruptcy, which is just around the corner. The Republican constitutional conservative majority of this House is working hard to develop legislation to save those two programs from bankruptcy. But this amendment would zero out the funding that the Congress has invested in the acquisition and construction of military facilities and installations for NATO. NATO has been a vital part of our Nation's security since the end of World War II. We have over 600,000 men and women in uniform in Europe who depend on the resources that this Congress provides to them, in part, through the work of NATO. We have 127 military installations in Europe that depend, in part, on the work that is done through our contribution to NATO. If the gentleman offers an amendment later on, for example, on the foreign operations part of the bill to cut funding for the United Nations, I look forward to supporting that because I have no particular love for the United Nations. They vote against us at every chance they get. We contribute the majority of money that the United Nations receives and they happily vote against us at every opportunity. But when it comes to NATO, that's of strategic importance to the security of the United States. And while I share the gentleman's passion to cut the deficit and the debt, let's save it for cutting the United Nations and foreign aid, other than for Israel. I'm wearing proudly my pin of the two lone star States, the State of Texas and the State of Israel. Except for our funding for the great State of Israel, which we need to preserve and protect, I look forward to helping the gentleman cut foreign aid and cut funding for the United Nations, but not for NATO. I urge the House to reject this amendment.

Mr. CULBERSON. I share my colleague from Georgia's passion and commitment to reduce the deficit to avoid passing on this debt to our children. This bill has bipartisan support. It has been put together very carefully to ensure that we're supporting our men and women in uniform, and I'm looking forward to finding ways to save money in other parts of the appropriations bill and in the parts of the budget that are actually, truly crushing our kids with debt and deficit. It's the social safety net that has grown so tremendously that is causing the greatest burden on our kids, the Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid. The growth of these programs has been so astronomical it's swallowing up almost all of our national income on an annual basis. And that's where we need to focus our attention is saving those programs from bankruptcy. In fact, that's where we will really save the big money for our children in the future. Medicare is in such dire straits that if you're 54 years of age or younger, the Medicare hospital fund can only pay about 50 cents on the dollar of the benefits that have been promised. So the Medicare program, for all intents and purposes, for people that are 54 years of age or younger, is bankrupt. And the Social Security program, if you're 47 years of age or younger, that program is bankrupt because it can only pay about 60 cents on the dollar. So we've got to, as a Congress, in order to save our Nation from bankruptcy, to save our kids from crushing levels of taxation, to prevent this mountain of debt from being passed on to our children, save Medicare and Social Security from bankruptcy. And that's what Congressman Ryan, chairman of the Budget Committee is working on. Congressman Sam Johnson from the Ways and Means Committee is working on legislation to save Social Security, and that's where we're going to save the big money. On things like NATO, we have over 600,000 troops in Europe. We have 127 military installations. I am no fan of the United Nations, but NATO has served a vital role since the end of World War II in preserving the peace in Europe. We've expanded NATO membership now to the former countries of Eastern Europe that were behind the Iron Curtain. It was NATO and the leadership of President Ronald Reagan and the resolute courage of our men and women in uniform that led to the fall of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Iron Curtain. But for NATO, but for that strategic alliance, we may still be facing Communist Russia. Today the Soviet Union is gone, the Iron Curtain is gone, and many of those nations that were once in the Soviet Bloc are members of NATO. So with great respect for my colleague from Georgia and his conservative commitment to balance the budget, let us focus on saving Social Security and Medicare from bankruptcy, first and foremost, as the most effective, long-term way to save the Nation from bankruptcy and to get us back on track to a balanced budget. Look for other opportunities to save money in our multiple appropriations bills that are coming up, but not at the expense of a great strategic alliance that has served this Nation well since the end of World War II. I'd urge my colleagues to vote against this amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, it's a pleasure to bring this bill to the House and to recommend it to every Member of the House to support this bipartisan bill to make sure that our men and women in uniform--as my good friend, Sam Farr, said, this is such a privilege to be on this committee, the only one in Congress that can ensure the quality of life and peace of mind of our men and women in uniform and our men and women who, once they've served our country, move into the VA system. And I would urge the adoption of the bill by the Members of the House. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Of course we will do all we can to work together.

Mr. CULBERSON. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, I would say to the gentleman from Georgia that both Mr. Bishop and I and the subcommittee are keenly aware of these terrible tragedies in Atlanta and the very critical and important inspector general's report, and we intend to aggressively pursue the recommendations in the inspector general's report and work with you and the delegation from Georgia to ensure that this does not happen again.

Mr. CULBERSON. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on the bill under consideration and include extraneous material on the consideration of H.R. 2216, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume. It is my privilege, along with my good friend from Georgia (Mr. Bishop), to present to the House for its consideration the 2014 appropriations bill for Military Construction and Veterans Affairs. One of the most important obligations this Congress has is to ensure that our men and women in uniform have everything they need to do their job without worry. We think of ourselves on this subcommittee as the peace-of-mind committee for our military so that they can focus on their missions, standing on the walls of Rome, protecting our freedom, at the far corners of the world. I think of all the appropriations bills we consider, we're honored to bring this one to the House first because of its importance to our men and women in uniform, to their families, and to our veterans who have served our Nation. We want to be sure, as I say, that they have no worries and that they don't ever have to look over their shoulder and be concerned that the United States Congress and the American people don't support them 110 percent, as we have done in this legislation, which my colleague from Georgia and I have drafted arm-in-arm. This is a bipartisan bill that we present to the House today to ensure that the military construction needs of the armed services are fully met. We have also done our best to ensure that when our men and women in uniform retire and move into the Veterans Affairs system, they will have the best medical care possible and that this backlog of disability claims that's been plaguing us for a number of years will be cleared as rapidly as possible. We've done this in a way that's also fiscally responsible. We have found every dollar we could that was left unspent from previous years and returned that to the taxpayers. At the same time, we make sure that our veterans and our men and women in uniform have everything that they need to do their job. Our committee has also been very committed to ensuring that their families are taken care of and that the Defense Department schools on bases are the best that they can be and in the best condition that they can be in. I know all of us as parents are concerned about the quality of our kids' education. The last thing that a man or woman who's deployed at a United States base overseas--we don't want them to worry about the caliber of the school that their children are attending. So we've also placed emphasis on the ability of our military base commanders to contract with the State in which they're located to set up charter schools at their military bases if the base happens to be located in an area where the local schools can't provide the quality that they need. We have in this appropriations bill, as I say, fully funded the Department of Veterans Affairs. Some of this money is advance appropriated. So while we've got a total funding level in this bill for 2014 of $73.3 billion, that's $1.4 billion more than last year. We provide an additional $2.1 billion more than last year for the Department of Veterans Affairs. But of that increase, $1.9 billion was provided as an advance appropriation from previous years. The Congress began several years ago to appropriate funding in advance for our Veterans Affairs Department to ensure that because of the uncertainty and the unpredictability of the appropriations cycle, again, we want our men and women in uniform and our veterans to have absolute peace of mind and no worries as they serve our country or as they move into retirement in the veterans hospital system, so we advance appropriate some of this money. Any reductions that we made in this bill, again, were done to make sure that we're doing our part to control spending at a time of record debt and deficit, which is at the top of our minds. As fiscal conservatives, we want to ensure that we have done everything in our power to reduce the debt and to reduce the burden that is passed on to our children and grandchildren. So we have not provided funding in the bill for 10 military construction projects that the committee believed it lacked sufficient justification for. And we funded only what the Department of Defense expects to spend in fiscal year 2014 for six military construction projects. We've also reduced the funding available for the Contingency Construction account, which has not even been used since fiscal year 2008. Our marvelous staff did a good job in identifying $659 million in unobligated balances from previous years for construction projects that have been left unspent, and we're able to return that to taxpayers. We have also reduced the Department of Veterans Affairs request for funding in a program where they substantially overestimated their projections. The scope of this committee's jurisdiction also includes military memorials and cemeteries. We've made sure those are fully funded and that our memorials and cemeteries here in the United States and around the world are going to be well tended and that veterans, no matter where they may be in the United States, will be able to get the health care and benefits that they have earned by their service to this country. We did everything we could in this bill to ensure that our men and women in uniform are taken care of and that our veterans are taken care of, but we are very concerned about the backlog in the disability claims that the VA has accumulated. The VA has promised us that they would have the backlog cleared up by the year 2015, so the bill contains very strong language that holds the VA to account ensuring that they will give the committee and the Congress detailed accounts and reports to ensure that they stay on target. Mr. Kingston of Georgia is going to offer an amendment later, which I intend to accept, to help ensure that the VA holds themselves to the standard that they have set for themselves to reduce the backlog. And then, finally, Madam Chairman, I want to mention something that we are particularly exercised about. Our committee chairman, Hal Rogers from Kentucky, has told us a story that I have never forgotten of a young man who I believe was wounded in Afghanistan--Iraq, who lost one eye, lost eyesight in one eye. When he left the service to go into the VA system, in order to save his remaining eye, he had to have medical records that could be read by the VA doctors. And because of bureaucratic inefficiency and pure idiocy, we've got a completely separate set of medical records in the DOD and the Veterans Administration. And for years, taxpayers have spent upwards of a billion dollars or more over the last 10 years to get the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs operating in a single, using a single unified medical record so that when a young man like this moves out of active service and into the VA, when it's a time- critical surgery such as this young man needed to have to save his eyesight, that the doctors in the VA could read those medical records and get him the help that he needs. But, sadly, because of bureaucratic inefficiency and refusal to cooperate--and, of course, we're all human and we're all flawed, but there's this instinctive human, I think, reaction to make sure you protect your own turf. Whatever it is, the VA and the DOD have not adopted a unified medical record. As a result, this young man lost his eyesight. He could not get the surgery he needed in the VA, and he is now permanently blinded as a result of the failure of these two departments to do their job. Now, the week before last when we were considering this bill in committee, the Secretary of Defense, Mr. Hagel, said that the DOD was just going to go ahead and adopt their own medical record system separate from the VA. This is just unacceptable. I ask all my colleagues in Congress to work with Mr. Bishop and me and to work with Chairman Rogers, Ranking Member Lowey, with the members of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, the members of the Armed Services Authorizing Committee and the members of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee so that we develop identical, parallel language that compels the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs to come up with a single, integrated, unified medical record so that no one will ever suffer the fate that this young man did who is now permanently blinded because of bureaucratic inefficiency. It's unacceptable. The Congress won't stand for it any longer, and we've got strong language in this bill and will continue to work to strengthen it to ensure that these men and women, as they move from their days of uniformed service to the country into the VA, that it is seamless, that it is easy, that they can get their disability claims handled in a timely and efficient manner and that they can get their medical records read quickly and efficiently by the doctors in the VA system who do such a good job. We deeply appreciate our extraordinary staff working together with my good friend from Georgia (Mr. Bishop) in a truly bipartisan way. I'm proud to present to the House, Madam Chairman, the 2014 Military Construction and VA appropriations bill for approval by the House, a bill that is fiscally conservative and responsible yet fully funds and takes care of our men and women in uniform and our veterans in a way that they deserve, because our men and women who have fought so valiantly for this country deserve nothing less than the very best of the United States Congress, and we've done that for them in this bill today. I reserve the balance of my time. [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH04JN7.001 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH04JN7.002 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH04JN7.003 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH04JN7.004 [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TH04JN7.005

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, the House budget that we adopted set a total spending limit of $967 billion in the 3 years that the Republicans have had the majority in the House and the leadership of Chairman Hal Rogers of Kentucky. For the first time since World War II, we have reduced annual spending from year to year, each year, under Chairman Rogers' leadership. It's also, I think, important for the country to know that one of the first and most important responsibilities of the chairman of the full committee is to take that total spending number that's given to us by Chairman Ryan's Budget Committee, that $967 billion--Chairman Rogers, one of his first responsibilities is to take that $967 billion and use his best judgment to allocate or divide that money among the subcommittees of the Appropriations Committee. And it's a real tribute to this good man's commitment, a demonstration of his commitment to our men and women in uniform, a vivid illustration of the bipartisan nature of this bill, that with the help of Ranking Member Lowey, that Chairman Rogers gave this subcommittee for military construction and VA allocation that enabled us to fully fund the request to the military and the Veterans Affairs. It is my privilege now, Madam Chairman, to recognize the distinguished chairman of the full committee, Hal Rogers of Kentucky, who has done so much to save our taxpayers' hard-earned dollars, and do everything that can be done to help support our men and women in uniform, and yield him as much time as he may consume.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, at this time, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry).

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, at this time I yield 2 minutes to a distinguished and valued member of our subcommittee, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Diaz-Balart).

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Chairman, I yield myself just a moment to particularly point out and thank my friend from Laredo. Mr. Cuellar and I have worked together since 1986 in the Texas Legislature. The people of the United States often read in the national press that Democrats and Republicans don't get along. That's just simply not true. Henry Cuellar and I have been the best of friends since 1986. Mr. Bishop and I worked together beautifully on this subcommittee. This bill is a great example of bipartisan cooperation, and it's a privilege to work on this committee where we really don't pay attention to party labels as we try to do what is best for the country. At this time, Madam Chairman, it's my privilege to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) for the purpose of a colloquy.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. The committee staff is exempt. The President of the United States is exempt.

Mr. CULBERSON. Members of Congress are covered, but the committee staff that wrote the bill are exempt.

Mr. CULBERSON. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I think there is one thing America needs to know that simplifies this debate very clearly. The only people exempt from ObamaCare is the President, the Vice President--the committee staff that wrote the bill exempted themselves from the bill, and the Federal agencies that are implementing ObamaCare are exempt from the very law that they're shoving down the throats of the American people. The Democrat majority that passed this bill over the objections of the overwhelming majority of the Nation didn't even bother to read it. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said we have to pass the bill to see what's in it. They have no concept of what was in it. I had the chance to ask the financial genius Charles Schwab recently what are two things we could do to really create jobs and grow the economy. He said: repeal Dodd-Frank and repeal ObamaCare--two of the most destructive pieces of legislation ever passed by the United States Congress, done by a Democrat majority that didn't even bother to read it and exempted themselves from it. The committee staff that wrote the bill exempted themselves from it. The Federal agencies that are implementing it are exempt from ObamaCare, but they stuck it on all the American people, including the Members of Congress. We're all under it, but President Obama and Vice President Biden are not. And that's all you need to know.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, why are House conservatives so determined to cut the budget and move towards a balanced budget? Every 5 years, the Joint Chiefs of Staff get together and they do a strategic review of the threats facing this Nation. In the last review, they determined that the greatest threat facing our Nation was the national debt, that it would ultimately consume us and cause its collapse. Just a few days ago, we celebrated Texas Independence Day. But for the debt the Republic of Texas accumulated, we would have continued as an independent nation. That debt caused a collapse of the Republic of Texas, and House conservatives are deeply concerned that these debts and deficits will ultimately crush the United States of America just as it did the Republic of Texas. How do we even begin to get our mind around it and understand it? Think in these terms: in your personal lives, you always pay your mortgage and taxes first. I deduct my mortgage and taxes out of my paycheck. We all do. You have to pay your mortgage and taxes first. America's mortgage and taxes are Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, interest on the national debt and veterans' benefits. Those are things we must pay first. That's our mortgage and taxes. When we pay our mortgage and taxes first as a Nation, it consumes all of our income. All that's left is about $185 billion. When we pay Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, interest on the national debt, veterans' benefits, that's it. All you're left with is $185 billion, America, to run the government for the entire year. That will only run the Federal Government for about 10 days. We, as a Nation, are living on a credit card that will be paid for by our children and grandchildren, which is a devastating heritage to leave to our kids. This is why House conservatives are so determined to balance the budget. But we recognize how essential national security is. We recognize how vital it is that our men and women in uniform focus on their mission, focus on defending America around the world. We don't want them to worry about whether or not they've got enough equipment, enough gas, enough ammo, that they've got the best facilities in the world, the best health care in the world. That's why Chairman Rogers and Chairman Young put together this bill. I'm proud to be a part of it for my piece, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs portion, to make sure our men and women in uniform can focus on their mission and not look over their shoulder and worry for one moment that they have the full support of the Congress, the full support of the American people to do what they have to do to put their lives on the line to defend this great Nation. This bill is essential because it funds the military at a level for fiscal year '13, which is a sufficient increase that will allow them to absorb these automatic budget cuts--the sequester. That terminology is confusing to folks, but it is essentially an automatic spending cut across the board. All of us conservatives want to see those cuts go into place, and we'd like to shift them away from the military and move them into other areas; but we've got a situation in which conservatives only control, basically, one half of one-third of the Federal Government. We are outnumbered. We feel a little bit like the Spartans at Thermopylae. We're doing our best to get moving towards a balanced budget in a way that is prudent, that won't raise taxes, that protects our military and the veterans and the essential needs of this Nation. Chairman Bill Young has done a superb job in putting together a Defense bill at this level of funding for the Defense Department. In fact, we determined yesterday from the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Odierno, that, by passing this bill today, we will solve at least a third of the problems that the Army would face as a result of the automatic spending cuts. By funding at fiscal year '13, when the cuts kick in, it's a far softer blow to the military than it would be if we were stuck at '12 levels. As well, the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Greene, said that the difference was night and day. By passing this bill today, it will cushion the blow on the Navy dramatically. I look forward to working with my colleagues from all over the country to continue to work to soften the blow on the military; but this bill is essential in order to make sure our men and women in uniform have everything they need to do their jobs to protect this country.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I send to the desk a privileged concurrent resolution and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to have with us today as our guest chaplain, Dr. Glen Dale Bohannon, who now pastors a church in North Carolina, but who understands clearly the importance of this great institution that it's our privilege to represent. I think Dr. Bohannon's prayer was appropriate to strengthen these great institutions that were created for the sole purpose of protecting our liberty. Dr. Bohannon was married to Jo Ann Summers on October 26, 1957, was saved on February 2, 1959, and became an ordained pastor on November 20, 1960. Dr. Bo is a graduate of Southeast Missouri University and received his master's of divinity from Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in 1972 and his doctorate of ministry in 1985. Glen and his wife, Jo Ann, have three children: Lisa, John, and Glen, Jr. John and his wife, Jody, have three children, Glen and Jo's grandchildren: Summer, Levi, and Joelle. Dr. Bohannon has served churches in Missouri, Virginia, and North Carolina. He retired from full-time pastorate in 1996 after serving at Central Baptist Church of Richmond, Virginia, for 10\1/2\ years. He received his intentional interim training from 1996-1997, and has since served as an intentional interim pastor and as an interim pastor in several churches in Virginia and North Carolina. Dr. Bohannon currently serves as the interim senior pastor at College Acres Baptist Church in Wilmington, North Carolina. He recently completed an intentional interim at Memorial Baptist Church in Arlington, Virginia, where my family attends when we're in the D.C. area. We're honored to have our good friend, Dr. Glen Bohannon, here as the pastor of the House for the day.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, the Proverbs tell us that our good name is our most valuable possession on Earth, and by that measure Ralph Hall is truly one of the wealthiest men in America. He's earned the trust of his constituents over and over again, as he has earned the trust of his colleagues, because we know, his constituents know, that Ralph Hall always keeps his word, that Ralph Hall always does what's right for America. He does the right thing for the right reason on every occasion. And he understands that his service in Congress is for his fellow man. Just as he served us in uniform in our Armed Forces, Ralph serves here as he served as county judge, as he served as State senator for the benefit of Texas, for the benefit of America. It's an extraordinary privilege for me to serve with him, to look to Ralph Hall as a mentor, as a friend, as a colleague, as a fellow Texan, to honor him tonight, one of the great Americans, one of the great Texans ever to serve in the United States Congress, Ralph Hall. We honor and thank him for his service to the Nation and to the great State of Texas.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, I have the singular privilege of representing Rice University, and I join my colleagues from Houston in recognizing and congratulating them on their 100th anniversary this year. Rice has consistently been ranked as one of the Nation's greatest universities and recognized by U.S. News & World Report as among the Nation's top 20 universities. And they've consistently ranked in the top 50 universities in the world. Rice University researchers are pioneers in a broad spectrum of fields, including space, energy, and my personal passion, nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is an absolute game-changer, revolutionizing everything that we will touch and see in the 21st century. Rice University is the birthplace of nanotechnology research. Nanotechnology holds incredible potential for everything from curing cancer to improving the storage and transmission of electricity and moving electricity in ways that we cannot even imagine today, allowing us to miniaturize devices. Multistage nanoparticles will allow the delivery of cancer-curing drugs to individual structures within cells, allowing scientists to identify diseases at the cellular level, things that could not have been possible without the groundbreaking work at Rice University. I congratulate them on their 100th anniversary today.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. I am happy to yield to my good friend from New Jersey.