John Culberson

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 637 a vote on ordering the previous question, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Thank you, Chairman Carter. Mr. Speaker, the question we are about to vote on is very simple: Do you support--yes or no--fully funding our law enforcement officers on the border and our Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers? This is not complicated. It is not anything more complicated than we are, as the majority in the House, seeking to find areas of agreement. Common sense and common courtesy and any negotiations require that you find areas of agreement that are absolutely essential, set those aside, and move on to the issues where you may have some disagreement. This is not complicated. Yes or no, do you support fully funding our Border Patrol agents and our Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agents? That is the only issue before us. We have, as a Congress, already fully funded our military. We made sure that our men and women in uniform were paid. We have already, in this House, set aside funds to make sure that our veterans are paid. We passed legislation to ensure that they receive all the benefits that they have earned by their service to the country. Any negotiation--anyone, anywhere in the country--if you have a disagreement, you find areas where you can agree that are very important and you get those behind you, and then you get to those areas where there are disagreements. There are fundamental important differences that are a core principle to us as constitutional conservatives. We do not want to participate in bankrupting the United States of America. We do not want to participate in socializing the greatest health care system the Nation has ever and the world has ever created. We will not idly stand by and allow our children and grandchildren to inherit such a crushing level of debt and taxation that they cannot afford and their quality of life will be diminished. These are matters of core principle to us. Our right to be left alone as Americans is, I think, one of our most important. Certainly, Texans feel that way. But, first and foremost, we believe in law enforcement. We believe in supporting our military, and we urge our colleagues to vote with us today to enforce the law.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, at this time I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn).

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

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would simply point out very quickly there are no cuts in this bill. We're simply funding essential veterans services through December 15 at a level equal to the amount that we have already passed out of the House the first week of June. There are no cuts. We want to make sure these essential services continue for our veterans and they don't see any interruption in services. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, I ask for a moment of silent prayer for those officers who have been injured today.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, we are here today to work arm-in-arm in support of our men and women in uniform. I'm pleased at this time to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe).

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, could I inquire how much time is remaining.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to point out very quickly, we are funding the most essential parts of the Veterans Administration, where we have been told they will run out of money within the next 30 days. We want to ensure that our veterans don't have a thing to worry about. We don't want their families, their children, their survivors to worry for one moment whether or not their benefits are going to be there. We bring this bill to the floor today to ensure that they are taken care of, their peace of mind is secured. And also, this is clearly one of those areas--in support of our veterans--where we can agree. Again, I stress, common courtesy and common sense tell us when you have a disagreement, you find those areas where you can come together and agree and put that behind you. That's all this is. It's not complicated. Let's vote together today to make sure that our veterans programs are fully funded. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to first say that today we've had a reminder again of how much we owe our men and women in uniform. And I want to express the gratitude of the Members of the House, the people of America to our men and women in uniform who keep our streets safe every day, and say that our hearts and our prayers are with those injured officers today, and to express our immense gratitude to each and every one of them all over the country and to our men and women in uniform around the world who make it possible for us to be here today in the greatest deliberative democracy ever created in the history of humanity. We owe it all to our men and women in uniform. Moment of Silence for Officers Injured Today

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I want to point out that, today, the only question before the House today is a ``yes'' or ``no'' vote whether or not you support funding our veterans. This is not complicated. The Veterans Administration has said they will run out of money unless we pass this legislation today to make certain that our veterans who have earned these important benefits receive them. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Southerland).

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I will remind all Members that the Veterans Administration has said that funds for these benefits will expire at the end of this month. Anytime you have a disagreement, you try to find those areas where you can agree and that are especially important, and set those aside. That's what we're doing today. The House majority has brought this bill to the floor to ensure that our veterans and their survivors will receive their disability compensation. A ``yes'' vote will ensure that low-income veterans and their families get their pensions. A ``yes'' vote will ensure three- quarters of a million students will receive their post-9/11 GI education benefits, that unemployed veterans will receive their benefits, and that 67,000 veterans with service-connected disabilities will get their vocational rehabilitation and employment subsistence benefits that they have earned by their service to the country. Again, I stress the VA has said these benefits will run out at the end of this month. So we've chosen what is our highest priority, looking at our men and women in uniform--an area we are in complete agreement on--and brought it to the floor in good faith. We hope our colleagues will join us in voting ``yes'' or ``no'' in support of our veterans. At this time I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa). Mr. LaMALFA I want to thank my colleague from Texas. Mr. Speaker, we are here to honor our veterans--all Americans--for their job by the work we do here. It's been shameful the last few days to have our veterans come all the way to Washington, D.C.--our World War II veterans and some of the Korean veterans we've met as well--and find themselves blockaded unnecessarily out of what is theirs over the politics of a shutdown. Now the politics of this shutdown come into this room here. We don't always get to do the perfect bill around this place. I see my Democrat colleagues basically yelling at us over, We want the perfect bill, we want it all in one. When we can find the things we agree on, including this bill, including other measures put up in the last couple of days, we can all agree on this portion of any CR bill together. We can put this out and stop the hijinx, stop the politics, stop the games, and get this agreement done. We all agree on this piece of legislation, that it should be done and it's the right thing. It will get veterans served and get them out of this mess, out of this pool of muck that we are in, fighting over this CR, fighting over this shutdown. So let's agree today to get our veterans served and take the political football out, take the name-calling out--Republicans, Democrats, all that stuff--and get the job done. We're here to get the job done. On my farm, I don't want to get everything done in one day. You make progress a little bit at a time, one field at a time. This is one field at a time here. We can do this bill. Instead of holding each other hostage because the Democrats want the perfect all- in-one-bill, we can do the pieces we agree on together.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I make a point of order that the instructions contained in the motion violate clause 7 of rule XVI, which requires that an amendment be germane to the bill under consideration. As the Chair recently ruled on October 2, 2013, the instructions contain a special order of business within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Rules. Therefore, the amendment is not germane to the underlying bill. Mr. Speaker, I insist on my point of order.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to lay the appeal on the table.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve a point of order on the gentlewoman's motion.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. It's important to remember that as we have done in the House and the Senate has done by unanimous consent, we have paid our Active Duty military. Their salaries are paid. So they don't have to worry about it as they stand on the walls of Rome in defense of our freedom. Today, we bring this legislation to the floor to be sure that past generations of our military men and women who have served this country and defended our freedom and made it possible for us to be here today, that their benefits are fully funded. We've been told straight up by the VA that the items that are before the House today will run out of money before the end of this month. This is not complicated. It truly is common sense and common courtesy to find those areas of agreement, set those aside, do those in priority order. We've made sure the current generation of military men and women are paid. We're now, today, making sure that our veterans of previous generations are fully compensated for survivor benefits, for low-income veterans, for student 9/11 GI benefits, for unemployed veterans. We're going to make sure that veterans with service-connected disabilities are taken care of. What we attempted to do--and as my colleague from Georgia knows, we've always worked arm-in-arm in support of those veterans--is to find those areas where the help is needed most urgently and to set that aside and get 'er done now before these benefits run out. And the vote today is very simple: yes or no, will you vote to support America's veterans and honor them for their sacrifice and make sure they don't miss a minute, that there's no bubble in the pipeline of the benefits that they have earned by their sacrifices for this great Nation. This is a simple yes-or-no vote in support of our veterans. I urge passage of the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, the only question before the House tonight is: Will we unite to support our veterans? I am pleased, at this time, to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), the chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Roe).

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, it is my privilege at this time to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Rogers), the distinguished chairman of the Appropriations Committee.

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield an additional 30 seconds to the gentleman.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 370, I call up the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 72) making continuing appropriations for veterans benefits for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on House Joint Resolution 72, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

Mr. CULBERSON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. We bring before the House today, Madam Speaker, legislation that will ensure that our veterans are given the benefits that they have earned and that there's no delay in the processing of disability claims. Madam Speaker, the other day, President Obama gave us a list of things that are important and vital that the Nation do to make sure that there is no interruption in services. In particular, we as a Congress, as a House want to make sure that our veterans are taken care of. Everything they have earned through their service to their country, we want to make certain it is taken care of. This legislation before us today is essential because the VA has told us that funds for these benefits will run out by the end of this month. So it's essential we pass this legislation right now. Although the Veterans Health Administration is funded a year in advance, we have to pass this legislation today, Madam Speaker, to ensure that veterans and their survivors receive disability compensation benefits. We have to pass this legislation today to make sure that 517,000 low- income veterans and their family members receive their pensions. We have to pass this legislation today unanimously so that three-quarters of a million students will receive their post- 9/11 GI education benefits. We need to pass this legislation today, Madam Speaker, so that 54,000 unemployed veterans will be able to be eligible for training assistance through the veterans retraining assistance program. Finally, Madam Speaker, we also have to make sure we get this legislation passed so that 67,000 veterans with service-connected disabilities receive their vocational rehabilitation and employment subsistence allowances. It's also important to note that this legislation will provide $223 million for cemetery headstones and burial plot allowances that our veterans by their service to our Nation have earned. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.