Bob Dold

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, it is no coincidence that Illinois' corporate tax rate is the fourth-highest in the Nation and yet ranks 48th in economic performance. Businesses, big and small, can no longer afford to keep their doors open and hire more workers when they face a 45 percent tax increase. If we are serious about creating jobs, then we must stop allowing the government to pick winners and losers in today's economy. In order to create economic certainty, we must have a level playing field and clearly defined rules that don't change halfway through the game. We need to encourage businesses to invest and to expand here at home. One way that we can do that is through corporate tax reform, eliminating tax loopholes that currently exist in the system. One thing is clear: Increases in taxes without spending reform cannot work. It is time that we start to empower businesses to get our economy moving again. Illinois has lost 750,000 manufacturing jobs over the last decade. Now is the time we have to focus on job creation.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Korean Cultural Center of Chicago on the grand opening of a new cultural center in Wheeling. Because of the hard work and determination of the Korean Cultural Center, its president, Younghee Kang, and her staff, and its board of directors and supporters, we now have a focal point for the Korean-American community in the Chicago area. The story of the Korean immigrant is an important part of Illinois' history, and we are fortunate to now have a facility that is a repository and exhibition of that story. The new cultural center will add a rich cultural tradition to the village of Wheeling, and will also benefit the neighboring communities. I hope it will also serve to strengthen the important relationship between the United States and the Republic of Korea. The opening of this new center is the culmination of many years of effort and is a cause for great celebration. Congratulations and best wishes on many years of success.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. I appreciate that. I appreciate the gentleman yielding. It is indeed an honor to be down on the floor with you talking about something that is certainly near and dear to my heart, and that's jobs. That's going to be reining in the out of control debt that we've got going on in our country today. The thing that I think is important that my colleague pointed out, and something that I want to make sure we emphasize is this is a Washington problem. Mr. Speaker, this has been going on on both sides of the aisle for a long time. Republicans had deficit spending. The Democrats' answer was to spend more. It's about time that we stand up and say, ``Enough is enough.'' Back in 2006, the President actually said, ``Leadership means that the buck stops here. Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. America and Americans deserve better.'' Well, I couldn't agree more. We cannot continue to shift this burden onto our children and grandchildren. A $14 trillion debt. I went down, actually, today and saw the debt auction. In just a matter of minutes, we saw them in essence auction off another $50 billion of U.S. Treasuries. Most of that was auctioned off in under 2 minutes. We cannot continue to spend the amount of money that we are spending and still expect that we are going to provide the American dream for our children and grandchildren. To me, I think that's the American compact that those I think on both sides of the aisle can agree upon; that we here in the Congress have to step up and provide leadership so that our children and grandchildren will have opportunities greater than the ones that you and I know today. Unfortunately, I fear that if we continue down the path that we go down, that we are heading down right now, we may be the first generation of Americans that leave our country actually worse. We are looking for leadership. I am here on the floor reaching out and telling the President that we want to see a plan. Not that we want to reject a plan; we want to see a plan. Tell us why we need to raise the debt ceiling. Tell us what spending constraints are going to be put in place in Washington. Both sides of the aisle need to just basically change the way that we're doing things so that we can provide some fiscal discipline for future generations. When I look at it, and I know we have got some other small business men that are up here with me today, I look at it like we've just purchased a small business. Well, actually it's a big business in the United States of America. It's also the greatest business on the face of the Earth. It has some debt. We know we are obligated to pay that debt. But we also know that we have to restructure how the company, in essence the United States of America, is taking on that debt. And until we are prepared to do that, we can't expect that we're just going to continue to run the organization, the company, the United States of America, the same way it's been run. There is plenty of blame to go around. The time for leadership is now. And I welcome the opportunity to sit down with those colleagues on the other side of the aisle to come up with a solution so we can all march forward together and solve the big problems of our time. With that, I will yield at least temporarily to my friend from New York.

Mr. DOLD. I appreciate the gentlelady for yielding. I was just struck by something that the gentleman from Arkansas said. It is about jobs and that I think is something that we focused on here this evening, but there are 29 million small businesses in our Nation. And the thing that I hear from small businesses and businesses all around my district is the uncertainty. Uncertainty out there is causing, in essence, paralyzing businesses and preventing them from moving forward. If we can create an environment here in Washington that allows half of those companies to create a single job, think about the job growth we will have then. I am just wondering if the gentlemen from Arkansas or from Colorado or the gentlelady from Alabama has heard some of the same things back in their districts about uncertainty.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about a very serious problem, a problem that all Americans face and one that is not new here in Washington. I would like to read a quote that some of my colleagues have also used during this morning's debate, and if I may, let me just quote it once again: ``Leadership means that the buck stops here. Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership.'' That was said by Senator Barack Obama back in 2006, and I frankly agree. Just to put it in perspective, back in 2006, we were running a deficit. We had an administration that was running a deficit of about $400 billion, just highlighting the point that this spending problem that we have here in Washington is on both sides of the aisle. This doesn't rest with one political party or another. It just outlines the problem that Washington has a spending problem. The debt that we have today, we're up against our debt ceiling. It's about $14 trillion. The real debt, however, is much greater than that. It's closer to $100 trillion. The deficit that we deal with--it was at about $400 billion back in 2006. Today, it's about $1.5 trillion. Now, what does that mean? My daughter, who is 9, she knows what 1.5 is. She says it's a little bit more than one and not quite two. But $1.5 trillion works out to be about $3.4 million a minute. To put that in better perspective, it's $58,000 a second. We can't even say it fast enough. This is a problem. How do we get out of this problem? We have to map out a course. It's a budget. The Republicans passed a budget. The House passed a budget outlining a way for us to be able to cut back over $6 trillion over the next decade. I would argue that American families and households all across the land operate on a budget. Businesses do the same. Yet we happen to not be able to do that here in Washington. The United States Senate has not picked up or passed a budget in over 750 days. The American family wouldn't operate like that. I know as a small business owner I couldn't keep my doors open if I didn't have a budget to outline where our priorities were going to be. It is a blueprint. It's not a final standing bill or thing that's going to say exactly how we're going to spend it, but it is a blueprint going forward so that we can get those in the Senate and elsewhere to be able to come together so that we can map out how we are going to get out of this mess. Because I do agree with the President when he says that the choices that we're making today, the bad choices of today are going to be placed on the backs of our children and grandchildren. For me, that's unacceptable. I decided to run for Congress largely because the amount of money that we were spending in Washington was going to be unconscionable for me to pass along to my children. I have a 9-year-old, a 7-year-old, and a 4-year-old. By the time they're my age, we are going to have to pay exactly double in taxes just to service the government. We pay 42 cents of every single dollar we have just to service our debt. The administration now is asking us to raise the debt ceiling. This is an important issue. But I'm here to tell you that we need to have some leadership. Leadership is critical at this point in time. What is the plan? I don't want to talk about bickering. I want to make sure that colleagues on both sides of the aisle come to the table. We know that there are negotiations going on right now, but I still would like to have a plan articulated to the American public. What is the plan? Because simply raising the debt ceiling without a plan on how we're going to pay down this debt is like--well, it's like sitting around the kitchen table and not worrying about the credit card debt of an irresponsible teenager. You wouldn't do that at home. We wouldn't do that in business. You should expect that your government does the same. Now, when we look at this debt crisis that we have, as a small business owner, I look at it somewhat like a business. I look at it that we have just purchased a business, and we think it's the greatest business in the world with the United States of America. That business has some debt, and we're obligated to pay that debt. We just have to figure out how it is that we are going to restructure that business so that we can pay down that debt and make it a strong, viable business going forward. That's what we have to do. To simply raise the debt ceiling and not have to restructure would be a violation of everything that we hold dear. With that, I call on leadership, leadership here in Washington from those on both sides of the aisle, to come together to solve the problems of our time and put our country first.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 328, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. I thank the gentleman from Arkansas, and I thank my colleagues for coming down this evening to have this important discussion about the direction of our Nation. I can tell you I've had an opportunity to talk to a number of Congressmen, several of them in the freshman class and who come from different backgrounds. By ``different backgrounds,'' I mean that they don't come from the traditional political realm. They come from business: those who have met a budget, who have met a payroll and who have created jobs. There's no question that some of the big issues that we face today are about jobs and the economy. How do we jump-start the economy? How do we create more jobs? I think that certainly the Federal Government is going to play a role, and the role the Federal Government can play is to create an environment that allows the private sector to grow and to thrive. We have heard tonight about our debt and our deficit. The deficit that we face right now is significant. We're doing about $1.5 trillion in deficit spending. The gentleman from Indiana talked about our debt and how fast we're mounting this debt. When I talk in my town hall meetings and I ask people does anybody have any idea what $1.5 trillion really means, I tell them that my daughter, who is 9, she knows what 1.5 is. She says it's a little bit more than one and not quite two. And I say, You know what, Harper? That's exactly right. But when we say $1.5 trillion, it works out to be about $3.4 million a minute. Another way to look at it is $58,000 a second. We can't even say it fast enough. $58,000 a second is what we're spending in deficit spending right now. Now, the chart that was up just a little bit before talked about the pie and what we were spending. The big thing that we're looking at in terms of the discretionary spending, our discretionary spending went up 84 percent over the last 2 years, 84 percent. Now, I know household incomes across my district and across America did not go up 84 percent, but let's be fair. A significant portion of that was the stimulus package. So if we strip out the stimulus and say that we're not even going to include that, discretionary spending over the last 2 years went up 24 percent. That's still a heck of a lot more than families that have tightened their belts all across America have dealt with over the last several years. There is no question; we have a spending problem in Washington. We've had a spending problem in Washington for a long time on both sides of the aisle. And I'm here to say that we are prepared to say things have to change. I'm not here pointing my finger in any direction, but saying I know that my colleagues and I on both sides of the aisle are prepared to roll up our sleeves and get something done.

Mr. DOLD. There is no question in my mind. But the big issues that we face at this point in time have to be dealing with the mandatory spending, of which entitlement reform--and I had a town hall meeting just this weekend where somebody said that he doesn't like the idea of calling it an ``entitlement,'' seeing that he's paid into a system all of his life. He likes to, prefers to call it ``earned benefits.'' The long and the short of it is that the mandatory spending that's going on needs to be addressed. What we've done in this budget is try to address what's going on in terms of the mandatory spending. There is no question that it's going to spiral out of control. It's growing at a rate of 7.2 percent each year. It's growing by leaps and bounds and will eventually take over the entire Federal budget. So we have to talk about Medicare. We talk about saving Medicare, which is critically important. In Lake County, part of my district, trying to find a physician that's willing to take additional Medicare patients is very difficult to find. The Mayo Clinic in Arizona is recently saying that they're not taking any more Medicare patients. This, to me, is alarming. What we need to be doing today is trying to come together to have a fact-based conversation with the American public so that we can solve the big issues of our time. I'm fearful that I may be the first generation of Americans that leaves our country worse than the one I received from my parents and grandparents; and that, to me, is absolutely unacceptable. We have to talk about how do we grow revenues. We're going to grow revenues on the backs of the private sector. We have to address the mandatory spending that's going on here in Washington. And everything must be on the table. That means that defense has to be on the table. It means that agriculture has to be on the table, every single department. But what we do need is we do need to have a willing partner on the other side of the aisle that is willing to come to the table and have this discussion about what it is that we need to do to put ourselves on the right course. We know that the attack ads have come in. They're saying that Medicare as we know it is going to end. Well, that's true. It's going to end because it's going to go bankrupt if we do nothing in 9 years. I believe that we have to strengthen Medicare for future generations. The plan that's been put in place says to those seniors, those that have paid into the system for years and years, that we must keep our promises. So for those 55 and older, there are no changes. For those 54 and younger, many of them don't even believe that there is going to be a social safety net for them. I believe that we have to strengthen it. We have to strengthen it so that it is there for future generations. So what we want to do today is make sure that we are coming to the table to have a fact-based conversation about the problems that we face. And I know that we have to have that serious conversation now. I came to Congress to be part of a solution. The other night, I was tucking my 9-year-old into bed and she asked me quite simply, Why are you not here during the week, Daddy? And I had to tell her, It's because I am trying to make the country a better place for you and your brothers and sisters. She said, Is it working? I said, I certainly hope so. We're going to do everything we can to make sure that the next generation has a better and stronger America than the one that you and I know today. So it is time for us to have this conversation. It is time for us to step up. And I certainly want to thank the gentleman from Arkansas for putting this time together. I look forward to coming back up again and having some more conversations about it. But the time is now. We cannot wait any longer. Certainly taking time away from my business, from the employees and other family members, and one of the reasons that I decided to run--and I see my other colleague over here, a small business owner, one of the reasons he decided to run as well--is that the Federal Government was making it harder and harder for me to put the key in the door and open up my business each and every day. That's not what we want to do. They should be making it easier for us to put the key in the door. They should be making it easier to be able to provide benefits to those people with whom we work. So with that, I appreciate the gentleman for the time.

Mr. DOLD. I absolutely will yield.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, when the President sought to take out America's most wanted and dangerous enemy, he called on an elite team of the United States Navy to execute the mission. The 10th District of Illinois is home to an important Navy base. The Naval Station Great Lakes is the first stop of every single Navy recruit. It is likely that those who executed the mission in Pakistan on Sunday started their training at this base. Today, I want to recognize those who got the job done and the outstanding training provided at Naval Station Great Lakes. I applaud the continued heroic efforts of our Armed Forces and intelligence personnel, and particularly those who under the cover of a dark Pakistan night dropped into a fortified compound to give justice to millions of people around the world. Mr. Speaker, our fight against those who want to destroy democracies around the world continues, but today we can press ahead as confident as ever in our Nation's ability to confront and triumph over evil.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, recent studies have shown that there is an epidemic of historical and political ignorance in our country and that an alarming 83 percent of Americans fail a basic test on knowledge of the American Revolution and the principles that have united all Americans. It is for this reason that I rise today to acknowledge the exciting work of the American Film Company, founded in 2008 by entrepreneur Joe Ricketts. Mr. Ricketts founded the company on the belief that real life is often more compelling than fiction, and so he set out to produce films about the incredible true stories from America's past. Central to the company's filmmaking are prominent historians, assuring that each production remains true and historically accurate. As a resident of the great State of Illinois, I was pleased that the first film produced by the American Film Company was ``The Conspirator,'' which tells the true story of Mary Surratt, the lone woman accused of participating in the conspiracy to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. Fittingly, the film premiered last Sunday at Ford's Theater. I commend the American Film Company for finding an entertaining way to encourage and educate Americans about our country's important history, and I congratulate Mr. Ricketts as well.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. I thank my colleague for yielding. Madam Speaker, I think it's time that we roll up our sleeves and get to work. I am delighted that we are having this debate. We hear a lot about job creators and business owners. Well, I am a small business owner, and I know what this crushing Federal debt does to small businesses all across our Nation and to job creators as well. It reduces certainty and stability, it scares away private sector investment that leads to growth for our economy, and it crushes the hopes of job creation. Small businesses need to be able to forecast what their expenses will be in the long term. Small businesses are reluctant to take risks when they don't know what their costs will be in the future. And if you listen to what the President said from his speech just yesterday, he made it clear that his vision of the future includes taking money out of the pockets of small businesses and job creators by increasing taxes on these very small businesses. This is the President's plan for addressing the deficit. Increasing taxes on small businesses will have a devastating effect on job creation in this country. Two-thirds of all net new jobs in our Nation are created by small business, and 75 percent of those small businesses file their returns as an independent return on their individual tax forms. Rather than introduce the specter of uncertainty and increased taxes on our business community, we must instead make the choice to be relentless in our effort to support small businesses and actually encourage economic growth. Last week Paul Ryan, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, put forward a budget that cuts $6.2 trillion over the decade, preventing the President's proposed tax increases from going into effect and putting the Nation on a fiscally sustainable path to give job creators and entrepreneurs all across the country the confidence to grow their business, to invest, and to create jobs. Federal deficits, Madam Speaker, have ballooned over the last 3 years, and this budget blueprint for fiscal year 2012 starts to repair the damage and takes the serious steps to put ourselves on a path to paying off the debt and reducing our deficits.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, today I rise because I had the opportunity to attend the KGC this last weekend, an event raising resources to battle depression. Depression affects over 20 million adults in our Nation. This is something that we all need to be paying more attention to. I want to thank Chairman Bennett for his leadership. I also want to thank Kevin Haggard, Andrew Boyle, Phil Furse and Tom Joyce for their generous contributions to the event. I also want to extend my heartfelt thanks to Andrew Boyle for his leadership for next year's event.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, the U.N. commissioned its infamous Goldstone Report following the 2008-2009 war between Hamas in Gaza and the State of Israel, a war which grew out of Hamas's ongoing rocket attacks, well over 4,000, intended to terrorize communities in southern Israel. This report alleged the sickening conclusion that Israel deliberately targeted civilians as a matter of policy, an accusation grossly offensive to me as an American, and to the only nation in the Middle East whose freedoms and commitment to humanitarian values we all recognize and admire as mirroring our own. The Goldstone Report has been held high by those in the international community seeking to delegitimize the State of Israel's very own existence. Now Richard Goldstone has publicly distanced himself from the deeply flawed conclusions of his own report. So, Mr. Speaker, I ask: Where does a nation go to get its reputation back? I hope and urge that we can begin to talk to the administration to inform the U.N. and the members of the Goldstone Commission to reconsider its own report, to block U.N. actions based on its falsehoods, and to expeditiously introduce a measure properly exonerating Israel from this damaging libel.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Madam Chair, I believe in science. I also know that the Earth has been warming for some time. In fact, the underlying bill, H.R. 910, concludes by acknowledging there is scientific concern over the warming of the climate system and that addressing the climate change is an international issue. I believe that human activity is also playing a role. The question is how big a role. This amendment would have Congress adopt intentionally vague language on human involvement and the risks associated with climate change without defining the size and scope of human behavior and the risk to the environment. Madam Chair, I believe that we must reduce our dependence on foreign oil and expand research and development of clean energy sources and ensure that future generations of Americans have a clean and healthy environment. But I do not believe in the notion that the Waxman amendment puts forward that states that Congress shall only accept the scientific findings of the EPA. We should encourage open, transparent scientific studies, not limit our scientific findings to one government agency. We must work together in a bipartisan manner to promote clean energy and encourage greater energy efficiencies to guarantee that our children and grandchildren have a cleaner environment than we have today. I urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to congratulate Wheeling High School students Preston Riley and Rajarshi Roy, who were selected as finalists in Samsung's national Solve for Tomorrow contest. I'm particularly proud of these students for their energy and creativity in using STEM education to tackle real-world challenges. Strong STEM education is critical to ensuring that all of our young people have the skills and knowledge that they need for success in college and careers. I would also like to recognize Wheeling High School science teacher Lisa del Muro and principal Lazaro Lopez for their commitment to STEM education, which focuses on the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. I recently visited Wheeling High School to get a firsthand look at their STEM for All program, where students of all backgrounds and academic achievement are challenged in the STEM subjects. This initiative incorporates all disciplines, including the arts, languages and humanities alongside a focus on career certifications, college partnerships and technology to prepare students for post-secondary opportunities. Congratulations again to the students at Wheeling High School. They demonstrate what can be accomplished when we make STEM education a priority.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Madam Speaker, this past Friday I had the privilege to attend a ceremony before 4,000 Midshipmen at Annapolis honoring four distinguished graduates of the Naval Academy for their lifelong achievements and dedication to the United States Navy, Marine Corps and, indeed, to our Nation. Dr. Bradford Parkinson, class of 1957, dedicated his life and effort to develop the Global Positioning System. Lieutenant General Matthew Cooper, class of 1958, served two tours in Vietnam as a Commander in the Marine Corps Ground Reserve in Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and turned around the Toys for Tots Foundation. Mr. Corbin McNeill, class of 1962, served for over 20 years in the submarine service, and later became the chairman and co-CEO of Exelon Corporation, headquartered in Illinois. The fourth honoree holds a special place in my heart and in the heart of my family, Rear Admiral Robert Harper Shumaker, class of 1956, my Uncle Bob. Madam Speaker, upon graduation from the Naval Academy, my uncle attended flight school and began his service in the United States Navy. On February 11, 1965, flying his F-8 Crusader, he was shot down over North Vietnam and was taken prisoner by the North Vietnamese. For over 8 years he was held prisoner, many of those years in the Hanoi Hilton, a name which he actually dubbed that prison camp. Madam Speaker, my Uncle Bob has always served as an inspiration to me and to countless others. I was honored to see this special award bestowed upon him this past week, and I want to take this time to thank him and his fellow award recipients for their service not only to the Naval Academy and the Marine Corps but to our Nation.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 193, Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Chairman, running a business, I have to tell you, obligated funds are one thing, disbursed funds are quite another. If I can, from the monthly 105(a) report delivered to the Congress from TARP and from the Department of the Treasury, and I will submit it for the Record, under ``Obligated'' all of the way down here when it is talking about the FHA refinance, it is $8.12 billion. And in an entirely different column under ``Disbursed,'' it is $50 million. From the paper here from the Department of the Treasury, obligated and disbursed are different things. We have $50 million that has been disbursed.

Mr. DOLD. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for yielding. Mr. Chairman, H.R. 830 is commonsense legislation that stops inefficient and ineffective government spending. At the outset of this $8 billion program, its failure was inevitable. That inevitable failure is now undeniable. It doesn't work for the homeowner, it doesn't work for the taxpaying American families, and it certainly doesn't work for future generations who are trying to claw their way out of the debt that we are burdening them with each and every day. So let's go back and let's talk about the homeowners. We've got 12 million mortgages in America that are currently underwater. And yet this program, this program which was actually rolled out in March, it started about 6 months ago, has 245 applications--245. How many have actually made it over the hurdles and have gotten actually some help and refinanced? Forty-four. Forty-four refinances. We've got $8.12 billion that has been obligated. We have $50 million that has been disbursed. Now, a quick back-of-the-envelope calculation, that's $1.1 million per mortgage refinanced thus far. If we look at it even further, were these million-dollar mortgages? Actually, the average mortgage was about $300,000. So we spent, the American taxpayers, in terms of their dollars, we spent $1.1 million in order to refinance a $300,000 loan. The administration said that we're going to have 1.5 million homeowners get into this program, and yet we've taken almost a year and we have 44 that have actually gone through. If you were to get through this program, if you were one of the lucky ones, one of the 44, clearly, it's not going to help you insofar as you're going to destroy your credit for the next several years. The average credit score of the 44 that are in the program was 711. That credit score is going to go down. Is their monthly payment going to go down? In many instances, no, because they're going to have to come up with closing costs. They're going to have to pay private mortgage insurance if they haven't been paying it already. And so there are other requirements that are simply a burden on the actual homeowners. It's time that we tell the American public the truth. It's time that we in this body recognize when a government program is not working. We need to get rid of this program--$8.12 billion obligated, $50 million disbursed for 245 applicants and 44 mortgages actually redone. The program certainly doesn't work for the American taxpayer. We're looking at debts and deficits in Washington. And many of us were sent here to Washington to try to get the out-of-control government spending back in line. And I would say that certainly $1.1 million per mortgage is not a good use of the taxpayer dollars. When we look at future generations and we look at the amount of money that we're spending right now, $1.48 trillion in deficit spending works out to be over $3 million a minute. The President's budget comes out to talking about 1.6 for the next year. We cannot continue to spend money that we don't have. Our debt is at $14 trillion. When we actually took a look at the Treasury report that came out just a couple of days ago talking about TARP, because this program is basically on TARP funds, they recognize that the mortgage modification programs were never intended to be recovered. This, to me, I think is an enormous problem. This is a program that doesn't work for the homeowner, it doesn't work for the American public, and it certainly is not going to work for future generations.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. I thank the gentleman from Utah for yielding, and I certainly want to take this opportunity to outline what this program has been. It is undeniable that this program has been what anybody that looks at it can say is a failure. It doesn't work for the homeowners; it doesn't work for hardworking American families that are paying taxes; and it doesn't work for future generations, children and grandchildren that will certainly be burdened with an enormous debt that the government continues to heap on them. If I can, I will just go back. As a small business owner, I employ just under 100 people--for me, that's 100 families. And I do stay awake at night trying to make sure that these families have the opportunity to put food on the table and provide an education for their children. But one of the things I have learned in business is the fact that you have to recognize when something is not working. This is an instance of something not working in our government. Let's go back down to just the raw basics. Let's look at the facts of this program. While well-intentioned, the program facts are simply these: We have obligated $8.12 billion out of TARP funds. We have disbursed $50 million. Fifty million dollars has been disbursed, and yet in the downturn we have seen that what should have been--what, $1.5 million is what the administration is saying, the number of homeowners that are coming into this program? We've seen 245 applicants in the last 6 months, 245 applicants. Out of the $50 million disbursed, we have received 44 loan modifications. Just doing the quick, back-of-the- envelope math, $1.1 million per refinanced loan. The average loan is $300,000. Now, I have to tell you, for the American public, for future generations, that is not a good use of the American taxpayer dollar. We can and must do better. There is no question that there are good and laudable programs out there that we need to be financing. This is not one of them. Let me just say again that this doesn't work for the homeowners themselves. Why are there so few in a downturn? I would argue because many of the homeowners recognize that this is not a program that they want to be involved with. You can't be engaged in this program if you, first of all, have any equity in your home. You can't be engaged in this program if you're delinquent on any one of your mortgage payments. There are a whole litany of things that prevent you from getting into this program. But if you do get into this program, your credit will be decimated for years to come. The average credit score, according to the experts, is 711. Well, it won't be 711 for long as soon as they take this and get access to this program. The question is: Will it reduce your monthly payments? Well, after going through this, the homeowners actually have to pay the closing costs, then they have to actually purchase private homeowners' insurance, the mortgage insurance. The chance of them actually reducing their payments is actually not that great. So they're going to go through the hoops and the pains to not reduce their monthly payment. Again, this is not a win for the homeowners. It's also not a win for the taxpaying American families; $8.12 billion obligated. We have to go in and look at this. When you tuck your children in bed this evening, ask yourself: Is this in the best interests of the future generations? Is this the best use of our taxpayer funds? We have to be truthful with the American taxpayer. We have to be truthful with the American people. That's what you sent us here to Washington to do is to look you in the eye and be truthful with you. This is a program that doesn't work. That doesn't mean that we don't want to help out homeowners. We do not want to be wasteful with your tax dollars. We have to go back to the drawing board because right now this absolutely is a program that, by all accounts, has failed. So when you look at your children and grandchildren, know that we can and must do better. I think that we have an obligation to ask ourselves, when we look at the American family: Is this the best use of our resources? Is this the best that we can do? I don't believe that it is. As a small business owner, we make mistakes. We're going to make mistakes here in this Congress. How will we be judged? I hope we're judged on the fact that we can admit when we've made mistakes and try to then go back to the drawing board. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to take a strong look at this, to know when something is not working. We have refinanced literally millions of mortgages in other vehicles. Out of the 6 months that this has been alive, 44 mortgages at the tune of about $1.1 million for the disbursed funds into this FHA Refinance Program. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 830 and support this rule.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. I want to thank Mr. LaTourette for his work. I also want to thank the chairman in the appropriations process and also the leadership for being able to come out and really have an open discussion about what's going on. The spirit of the amendment wasn't to necessarily pick winners and losers or to zero out programs; and as much as I do not like the idea of across-the-board cuts, I do think that the American public right now is thinking, ``How can we tighten our belts?'' The American people have tightened their belts. American businesses have tightened their belts. The Federal Government should be no different. Everything has to be on the table. The Department of Defense has to be on the table. We have to rein that in. We have to rein in every single department, and we know we have to do it without putting people in harm's way. This technical problem that has just surfaced in the amendment is certainly going to be problematic, but the spirit, the intent, of this amendment was to make sure that we are preserving some of what, I think, many on the other side would consider to be very important programs and what many of the independents in our Nation would consider to be appropriate programs--and important to them. We want to let the 2012 appropriations process go through the appropriate channels, and we want to make sure we make our cuts at that point in time, so I would just urge my colleagues to keep that in mind as we move forward.

Mr. DOLD

Mr. DOLD. Madam Chair, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. DOLD. Madam Chair, on rollcall No. 81, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.'' Amendment No. 514 Offered by Mr. Price of North Carolina

Mr. DOLD. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in opposition to this amendment. As a resident of the Chicagoland area and a lifelong resident of the State of Illinois, this amendment would have devastating implications for the economy. Right now we need jobs. Everybody on both sides of the aisle has been talking about how we need to jump-start the economy and put people back to work. I have a great amount of respect for the chairman and his work, but I think this is an amendment that is going to have devastating implications for people all across that region. It's going to look to cost approximately $29 billion. When we look at the amount of commerce that's going to be coming up from the Gulf of Mexico, through the Mississippi River, into the Chicagoland area and, yes, through the Great Lakes and back and forth, this is something that we must, at this point in time, not rush to judgment. I recognize that we have been studying this problem for a period of time. I recognize that there are actually even interim studies. In fact, there is an interim study that's even out. Interim study number 3 has been actually out allowing us to move forward and to try to address some of the problems. I would ask my colleagues that we do not rush to judgment. This is a decision that will have an enormous effect on thousands of jobs and on commerce across the Great Lakes going actually down to the Mississippi River and into the gulf. Today when we're talking about jobs and the economy, we have to look at how many things we can promote. I spent time in, actually, the locks. I have gone through the locks several times. I use them not only for recreational use, but I have also seen the barges come through. This is a very active lock, and it's one that we need to make sure is alive and well. I do want to recognize that we have a problem with Asian carp. It's not one that we want to ignore, and certainly please hear that I am not saying that we should ignore it. I think that we need to continue the studies. We need to be looking at alternative ways to try to prevent it from invading the Great Lakes. No one is going to be a greater proponent of the Great Lakes than I am, but this is an amendment that I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to rise up and stand against. I yield back the balance of my time.