John Culberson

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, at this time, it's my privilege to yield our remaining 1 minute to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Cotton), a distinguished Army Ranger who served this Nation both in Iraq and Afghanistan, to close.

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

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire how much time we have remaining on each side.

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

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

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, if I could inquire how much time remains.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton).

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, the only question before the House tonight is whether we will unite and fund the veterans who have served this Nation. That is the only question before us. And at this time, it's my privilege to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Bentivolio), a veteran of Vietnam and Iraq.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, there's only one question before the House tonight: Will we unify in support of our veterans and ensure their peace of mind for themselves, their families, and their survivors, that they don't miss a moment of the benefits that they've so rightly earned? At this time, it's my privilege to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Benishek).

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Salmon).

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, can you tell me how much time I have remaining?

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would point out that the only people who would be holding our veterans hostage would be those who would vote ``no'' against this legislation which we have brought to the floor today in an earnest, honest, commonsense, courteous way to ensure that our veterans are given everything they need for the service they have given this country. It is my privilege at this time to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Miller), who is the chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee.

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I think it's important to point out that, as I said earlier, with any disagreement, you find those areas in which you are in agreement. You come to an agreement and make sure you get the most important things done first and set them aside. The House and the Senate have actually done that. We note that our military has been paid. Legislation to fully pay for our military was passed by unanimous consent in the Senate, and it was passed out of this House. I would also reiterate that the House has done its job in funding our veterans in passing this legislation in the first week of June and in funding our Department of Defense in the first week of June. We have done our part. This shutdown that we face today is a deliberate result of the Senate's refusal to take action on the legislation that we sent them over 90 days ago, and that's why we are bringing this bill to the floor today, because this is one area in which we can all agree. Our veterans have earned our help, and they deserve our help. It is our duty to pass this bill as quickly as possible to ensure no interruption in the services that they have earned by their service to this Nation. At this time, Mr. Speaker, it is my privilege to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Nunnelee).

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

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Throughout human history, whenever there has been disagreement in ages, ages past, that has been settled with armed conflict. But in a civilized world, we settle those disputes in an amicable way under the law. In this remarkable House Chamber, we are surrounded by images of great lawmakers from throughout human history. It is, I think, incumbent upon us as lawmakers, as civilized human beings, to use a little common courtesy and common sense to find areas of agreement and set those aside, get those behind us, and then move on to those areas where it is more difficult to find agreement. In the House of Representatives, the constitutional conservative majority in the House has attempted to do so many times here over the last several weeks. When it comes to funding the government, the House of Representatives has sought to do so and, in fact, has done our job. In the first week of June, the House of Representatives passed legislation to fully fund the Department of Defense. In the first week of June, the House of Representatives passed legislation to fully fund our Department of Veterans Affairs and Military Construction requirements of our men and women in uniform around the world. We also made sure in the first month of the summer that the House of Representatives passed legislation to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security and sent that to the Senate as well. We have even passed an appropriations bill to fund the departments of the government that are responsible for the Department of Energy and the Department of Water. That legislation was also passed out of the House this summer and sent to the Senate. It is common courtesy and just common sense that where you have a disagreement, you sit down and you work it out. If you've got serious disagreements, you, again, find those areas where both sides can agree there is common ground and put those behind us. What better place to start, Mr. Speaker, than with the veterans who have served our Nation in defense of our freedom who make it possible for us to enjoy the prosperity, the liberty passed on to us by our ancestors. It is a real privilege for me to serve with my good friend from Georgia (Mr. Bishop) and my colleagues on this subcommittee for appropriating funds for the operation of the Veterans Affairs and Military Construction to be sure that our veterans receive everything that they have earned for the sacrifices they have made on behalf of this Nation. So we have brought the bill to the floor today as an obvious area of agreement in support of our veterans to ensure that not only are their health benefits taken care of, which under current law they are a year in advance, but we are here today to ensure, to absolutely guarantee, that there is no interruption to the veterans who are applying for disability compensation. We have had a terrible backlog in disability claims that the committee has worked together arm in arm in a bipartisan way to ensure that it is fully funded. We included in our bill, which was sent to the Senate in the first week of June, language that would ensure that the Veterans Administration lives up to their own deadlines on handling those disability claims. But the legislation before us today would also ensure that veterans receive on-time compensation for their pensions, for their post-9/11 education training, and employment assistance. Again, common courtesy and common sense compels us to do what is right by our veterans to find those areas of agreement. We bring this bill to the floor today, Mr. Speaker, in order to ensure that these veterans are fully protected, that they have a transition into civilian life that is as easy as humanly possible, and that they don't encounter any delays as they move into civilian life. This bill, as the other does, provides funding through December 15 for VA disability claims, education, and employment benefits and provides $2.5 billion for claims processing to make sure that we are getting at the claims backlog. I look forward to hearing from my colleague from Georgia (Mr. Bishop), and reserve the balance of my time.

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 materials on House Joint Resolution 72, and that I may include tabular material on the same.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 72) making continuing appropriations for veterans benefits for fiscal year 2014, and for other purposes.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Speaker, as we say in Texas, it's time to get a few things straight around here. We in the House of Representatives passed a Defense Department appropriations bill back in June. We passed a Military Construction-VA appropriations bill back in June to make sure our veterans were taken care of. We passed legislation to protect our homeland. The Department of Homeland Security is fully funded. Everything the President asked for and everything the agencies asked for passed out of the House earlier this summer. We even passed an Energy and Water appropriations bill. They are sitting in the Senate, and they could have been passed back over here very, very easily because the Senate has been known to move like lightning when they need to. They've even deemed the bills before they've passed. Yet, in the democratic process, all of us have learned ever since elementary school that the democratic process requires compromise: two sides that disagree find a way to come closer together. For the first time today since 1979, the President of the United States reached out to the dictator in Tehran, who has sworn to erase Israel from the map. The President of the United States will talk to the dictator of Tehran, but he won't even negotiate with the House of Representatives--with the majority that was elected by our constituents to do everything in our power to delay, defund, or stop ObamaCare. The last time we sent this bill to the Senate, it was a complete and total defunding of ObamaCare. It stopped it cold. We have compromised as the democratic process requires. Tonight, we offer the Democrat minority a compromise. Let's just delay it for a year. Let's give the Nation a chance to see what's in that 2,500-page bill that Nancy Pelosi had no idea what it was. At the time, she said that we have to pass the law before we find out what's in it. We are discovering every day new horror stories. The American people deserve to have time to see what this monstrosity will do before it is implemented. We are simply offering a compromise of a year's delay. We are even fully funding the troops--another compromise. That's the way it works in the democratic process, but it's hard to do it with people who won't even talk to you.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, the Democrat side of the aisle can say it until they're blue in the face that the sky is green. That doesn't make it green. It is not true. This legislation is designed to keep the government open by fully funding it at levels that the Senate has already agreed to. I think it's also good to get a few other things straight around here and point out that Social Security checks, even in the unlikeliest event the government were to close down, will continue to flow because employees of all mandatory programs administered by the government are considered to be essential. Social Security checks are obviously essential. Those employees are essential. Social Security will continue to flow. My colleague from Texas said that children would be thrown off of their parents' insurance policies. That law took effect last year. It's not affected by what's before the House today. My colleague also said children or people with preexisting conditions could be denied coverage. That is also incorrect, because that law took effect last year. The bill before the House today fully funds the government. We are even separately funding the military, and we are going to give a stark choice to the President of the United States and the Senate: Do you want to shut down the government or do you want to force on the American people a 2,500-page bill that was forced through here so fast that Speaker Pelosi said that we have to pass the bill to find out what's in it? One of my colleagues from North Carolina just pointed out that many Americans are waking up today to discover there is a 3.8 percent tax on the sales of their homes. How many other surprises do we have in this 2,500-page bill? All Republicans are asking tonight is to give the Nation a year to study a 2,500-page bill that even Speaker Pelosi didn't have a clue as to what was in it. We as a Nation deserve to read and understand one of the most important pieces of legislation passed in the history of Congress--which will socialize the greatest health care system ever created. We are in the House tonight, fulfilling our responsibility as adults to fund the government, to fund the military--and by the way, the Senate has had the Defense Department appropriations bill for over 90 days and the Military Construction and VA for 90 days each.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, our job description is ``Representative,'' and we are reelected every year to come to change the law, no matter what might have happened in previous Congresses. Today, in a few hours, the Nation is going to see the constitutional conservative majority in the House stay true to our word to our districts and to our Nation to stand on principle. We will have the courage of our convictions to do what we need to do to slow down this destructive law that was rammed through this House in less than 24 hours--so rapidly that even Speaker Pelosi said we had to pass the law to find out what was in it. We are elected every Congress to come back and try to change the law. But today, the Nation will see the courage of the conviction of the constitutional conservatives that are in the majority in this House doing our job for our districts and our Nation. We will be 100 percent unified in this effort because we're standing on principle.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I think it's important for the country to know that the House of Representatives has done its job in passing the most important appropriations bills to make sure that our military is fully funded, that our veterans are taken care of, that the essential functions of Homeland Security are taken care of. In fact, we passed those bills. The Defense bill out of the House on July 24, the Homeland Security bill was passed on June 6, and the Military Construction and Veterans appropriations bill was passed on June 4. We've also passed out of the House the Energy and Water appropriations bill. And the Senate has been sitting on these bills for over 90 days. Mr. Speaker, the President has very few responsibilities set out in the Constitution. One of those specific responsibilities is Commander- in-Chief. And it's been reported that the President recently said that the troops in the field might not be paid unless the CR was passed. Well, the Senate has had these bills for over 90 days. And I think it does not--how does that reflect on the Office of the President, for the Commander-in-Chief to say that the troops are not going to be paid, when, in fact, we've already passed the legislation out of the House-- and the Senate's been sitting on it for over 90 days--to make sure the troops are paid? We, in the House of Representatives, the constitutional conservative majority in the House, are keeping our word to the Nation and to our constituents to do everything in our power to defund, repeal, delay, whatever it takes to stop the most destructive piece of legislation ever passed by this Congress. And I don't think it should be called ObamaCare. It should be called ``DemocratCare'' because it was done with 100 percent Democrat support. Not a single Republican voted for it because we recognized the damage it would do to the economy and to our magnificent health care system. The Democrats passed this bill on their own and, all of a sudden, they're discovering, as the asteroid enters the atmosphere, they've got a big problem because it is causing doctors to leave the profession. It's driving up the cost of health insurance premiums. It's raising deductibles. People are losing their health insurance and being dropped into these nonexistent exchanges. One other problem that I just discovered and that no one is, I think, aware of yet, are nonprofit organizations who have been lifting people out of homelessness or addiction and giving them job skills and training them, and they find local employers that are willing to take these folks and give them a clean slate, a fresh start, and a new job, and it would wipe out any convictions they've had. They wipe out any history they've got of drug addiction. These nonprofit organizations have suddenly discovered that the employers are pulling up the drawbridge because, all of a sudden, the employer could be faced with--he's got to decide, as an employer, do I have to provide health care coverage for this, essentially, volunteer, this worker who was previously homeless and had no job skills, and I could be fined for every employee in the company. So the disasters continue to unfold. It's urgent the House of Representatives--we will all, I know--stand together working and doing everything we can to repeal, delay, defund ``DemocratCare,'' using every legislative tool at our disposal. I thank the gentlewoman from Minnesota for the time.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Oregon is correct. It is important that the Congress get our work done on making sure that our military is fully funded and paid, that our veterans, the military construction, the bases around the world are taken care of, that Homeland Security is taken care of. But we have done that. It has already been done in the House. The Senate has had our Homeland Security appropriations bills for over 3 months. The Senate has had possession of a military construction and veterans appropriations bill for over 3 months. The Senate has also had the Department of Defense appropriations bill for over 3 months. Yet they have irresponsibly chosen to just sit on them to set them up for this moment, because they know that House Republicans are devoted to delaying and defunding ObamaCare, one of the most destructive pieces of legislation ever passed by Congress that will destroy jobs and cripple this economy and socialize the greatest health care system the world has ever created. We are committed as constitutional conservatives to doing everything in our power to make sure that we delay and defund ObamaCare. But at the same time, we have already done our job in making sure that our military--our men and women in uniform--have everything they need if the Senate will only do their job.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, the Founding Fathers created this magnificent institution to protect our liberty. The purpose of the House, the Senate, the entire Federal Government was created to protect our liberty. House Republicans are united in our opposition to ObamaCare because it is one of the most massive intrusions into the individual privacy of Americans that the Federal Government has ever attempted. It is an attempt to socialize the greatest health care system the world has ever seen, and we will see intrusions into the private lives of Americans on a scale never seen before. So I just want to reassure the American people that we are united as conservatives, as constitutional conservatives, to do everything in our power to repeal, defund, delay, do whatever it takes to stop the socialization of American medicine and the destruction of the most important right we have as Americans--to be left alone.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. I thank the chairman. Madam Speaker, today, the constitutional conservatives in the House are keeping their word to our constituents and our Nation to stand true to our principles to protect them from the most unpopular law ever passed in the history of the country, ObamaCare, that intrudes on their privacy. Our most sacred right as Americans is to be left alone. We have also kept our word today in this continuing resolution to ensure that our government continues to operate while we negotiate in good faith with the President and with the Senate to find a way forward. Our short-term continuing resolution fully funds every aspect of the government. In fact, it's important for people to remember that the Senate has had the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs bill for over 3 months, so they could have passed it a long time ago. The Senate has had the Defense appropriations bill since late July. So they could have passed that bill a long time ago, put it on the President's desk, and we could have been sure that our military would have been paid. The Senate has had the Department of Homeland Security bill since early June, and they've done nothing. The Senate has had the Energy and Water bill since July 10 and have done nothing. So we have done our job. We in the House, the constitutional conservative majority, have kept our word to our constituents and to our Nation to do our job to fund the essential aspects of the government and to ensure that we've done everything in our power to protect our constituents from the most unpopular piece of legislation ever passed in the history of the Congress, ObamaCare, by permanently and totally defunding it while protecting the core functions of the government. It's essential that we pass this continuing resolution today from the perspective of our veterans so we ensure we have the funding available to handle the disability claims backlog, to ensure that we have the resources necessary for the military to continue to build the facilities they need around the world, and to ensure that our men and women have everything they need to protect this great Nation and our freedom in every corner of the planet. I urge Members to join me in supporting this continuing resolution and to keep our word to defund ObamaCare.