Keith Ellison

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, we've been here for about 5 months so far. It's easing up on June. It won't be long until it's summertime. Yet, Mr. Speaker, the Republican majority has not brought a single bill to create a single job. I was very pleased to hear the gentlewoman from North Carolina say that they are marking up a bill on jobs. It would be the first one, if it ever gets here. That's a shame, because I think when people voted last November, they were thinking, hey, we've got to do something about some jobs. And yet the Republican majority has dallied away and done everything but work on jobs. Yeah, they've tried to take away the Affordable Care Act and take away health care from people who really need it. Yeah, they've tried to do a whole lot of things, push a social agenda. They've done all these things, but they have yet to focus on the one thing that Americans need most, which is a job. If you want to reduce the deficit, you've got to have people making some money, and that means getting some jobs. People pay taxes. People would love to pay taxes, but they would do it if they had work. But they don't have work because our Republican majority has got other things to do. Remember, jobs are the key. I am looking forward to Republicans bringing a bill to the floor.

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chair, today I rise to offer an amendment to H.R. 1213, and I rise in opposition to the underlying bill. My amendment is very simple. It directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit a report to Congress 6 months after the enactment of the bill, a report which examines the possible delays and potential enrollment reductions in the health care exchanges that will result from this bill. Yet, before I dive into my amendment, Mr. Chair, let's review just for a moment. From the year 2000 to the year 2006, the Republicans controlled the House, the Senate and the White House. They controlled all three of those institutions at a time when Americans were literally going bankrupt because of medical debt. The fact is that the Republicans refused to do anything at all to try to help Americans within our health care system, which was dysfunctional and broken. They did nothing. They stood back and watched 60 percent of all bankruptcy filings happen as a result of medical debt. They sat back and watched 47 million uninsured Americans as they faced nothing more than emergency rooms as relief. They sat back and watched small businesses either have to offer no health care insurance at all or have to stomach enormous health care burdens as premiums just galloped along day after day. They sat back and watched while auto companies produced vehicles where as much as $2,100 per car went to nothing but health care costs. This is the Republican Conference that now seeks to try to take away what the Democratic Caucus and the United States Congress passed the last time. Instead of trying to say ``we're here to do something; we're here to offer some solutions,'' all they want to do is to strip away from Americans that little bit of protection from the vicissitudes of the health care insurance industry that they have been subjected to for so many years. Instead of saying ``we're here to help,'' they're here to help the insurance companies. That's whose side they're on. It is a shame and a disgrace, and I am very, very sad to see this bill on the floor today. So what I'd like to do is to offer an amendment, Mr. Chairman. I offer an amendment to say, if we're going to do this, if we're going to take away from the American people these exchanges that are going to give them a little bit of relief, let's at least know what we're doing. Let's at least figure out what the effects are going to be on the American people instead of just snatching out of their hands these exchanges that are designed to give them a little bit of relief from the health care insurance companies. Let's find out who is going to be delayed and what potential enrollment reductions are going to exist. Let's figure it out. This is an important and a meritorious amendment, and I think the least the Republican Conference can do is to say, You know what? If we are going to go back to the bad old days, which was before the Affordable Care Act was passed, at least we ought to know what harm we are going to be doing to the American people. So I urge support of this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chair, why all the attacks on the Secretary of Health and Human Services? I believe our Secretary of Health and Human Services is an honorable person, and there is no basis to attack her integrity on the House floor. That again is a disgrace and a very sad occasion. This Secretary of Health and Human Services was appointed by a duly-elected President, and was confirmed by the Senate. Yet the Secretary has to withstand all of these attacks on her integrity. The fact is that this is still nothing but a diversion and a distraction. This is an attack on the American people's legislation to fix this health care system. As the gentleman goes on and on about government, look, health insurance companies, which have absolutely no accountability except to their stockholders and their highly paid CEOs, are denying care, denying treatment, denying doctors. This is the tragedy that Americans are living through every single day. By the way, to the tune of as many as 52 million people, Americans have gone bankrupt, have lost their livelihoods, and have been uninsured. What is the gentleman's answer to that? We've heard nothing about this--only what's wrong, only blaming government. In this democratic Nation, which I am proud of, he attacks our government, the American people's government. This again is an abomination and a sad thing. Let me just say, if the insurance companies love the bill so much, why have they lobbied against it to the tune of $14 million a day? I remember standing on this House floor, seeing the insurance company lobbyists here every day. They spent as much as $14 million a day to defeat the Affordable Care Act. This is the bill that, according to the gentleman, they love so much. The fact is that that, again, is not accurate. It's untrue. This is a good amendment. It just adds a little bit of sunshine which will help people get into exchanges to get affordable health care insurance policies. As that is stripped away and snatched out of their hands, Americans will at least know why and the impact of it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. ELLISON. I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. I asked the gentleman when the Ryan budget created a surplus. He could have given me a year; he didn't. That's because he's probably embarrassed about when that is. Let me tell you when the Progressive Caucus budget comes to surplus: 2021. That is known as a responsible budget. We are making a surplus by 2021. And by the way, that is Heritage Foundation mathematics. It's not $16 trillion; it is $3.9 trillion over 10 years.

Mr. ELLISON. I would like the gentleman's words taken down for the reference to certain Members of this body as socialists.

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chair, the people's budget contains a provision for infrastructure development and the National Infrastructure Bank. I want to agree wholeheartedly with Congressman Blumenauer. We can not only put America back to work but we can strengthen the infrastructure that will make it safe to go across a bridge. We cannot neglect the bridges and the roads, the high-speed optical fiber cables and all these things that our country needs for a 21st century infrastructure. It's a jobs program. The people's budget is talking about jobs.

Mr. ELLISON. I have a question for the gentleman: When does the Ryan budget create a surplus?

Mr. ELLISON. I reclaim my time.

Mr. ELLISON. I yield to the gentleman from Indiana.

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chair, point of order.

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chairman, the point was made earlier that the Progressive Caucus' budget, which addresses a gas tax, is somehow not a good thing to deal with our Nation. But the infrastructure needs of our country, over $3 trillion--according to the Society of Engineers, says that we need $3 trillion in infrastructure spending. Let's do something and put America back to work by rebuilding our Nation's infrastructure.

Mr. ELLISON. I will yield for an answer to the question, not for a filibuster.

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Chairman, we are in a debate of generational proportions. The promises that were made during the 1960s and before that, and even after that, about expanding our country, making it a greater country, widening its embrace, are now being abdicated. We are seeing a budget, offered by our Budget Committee chairman, that says to our seniors who have cut a path for all of us younger people, You know what? We can't be there for you any more. We are seeing a budget where we say to our students, who are the intellectual drivers of our economy, we cannot be there for you any more. As a matter of fact, two-thirds of this budget, two-thirds of this budget, two-thirds of the cuts are from low-income programs that serve people who are making it, hardworking Americans who are trying to make it every single day. But that's where the cuts come from. The question on the table is: What's the proper role of government? We believe the proper role of government is to look after our seniors. They believe grandma has to figure out what she is going to do. We believe that young people have to have an opportunity, and things like the Pell Grant are going to help them and help us. They believe if you are smart enough to go to college, you should pay for it by yourself, or maybe get a high-cost loan to do that. We have a different vision of America. As a matter of fact, we have a vision that the people who are well to do and the corporations who have done so well should help out more. We believe in equity and a shared burden.

Mr. ELLISON. We believe in equity and a shared burden. In fact, the big five oil companies have received profits that are enormous when you look at them on this chart. The gentleman keeps talking about tax reform. I would love to know, what corporate loopholes are you going to close? Are you going to close these Big Oil subsidies, or not?

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mourn the passing of Civil rights activist, leader, and community advocate Elizabeth Ann Samuels. Elizabeth Samuels was known by those in the community of North Minneapolis as ``Mother Liz'' for her nurturing and strong demeanor and as a champion of human and civil rights. A longtime resident of North Minneapolis, Mother Liz graduated from North High School and attended Augsburg College. Mother Liz served her neighborhood and the African American community in a number of key civic posts. For example, she spent many years as Director of the American Red Cross in North Minneapolis and also worked for the Coalition of Black Churches, the African American Leadership Summit, and the Willard Homewood Organization. Mother Liz was deeply dedicated to her friends, family, and community and touched the lives of many people through her work, volunteering, and care-giving. I ask that we remember the spirit and passion for equality and peace that Mother Liz helped shape in the Minneapolis community.

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Madam Speaker, I raise a point of order against H. Res. 194 because the resolution violates section 426(a) of the Congressional Budget Act. The resolution contains a waiver of all points of order against consideration of the bill, which includes a waiver of section 425 of the Congressional Budget Act, which causes a violation of section 426(a).

Mr. ELLISON. Reclaiming my time, thank you for finally getting around to that ``no.'' Well, I think that makes the point here, Madam Speaker. The fact is that this particular Republican action is yet another opportunity to degrade and take away the basic social safety net of America while doing nothing to get Americans back to work. Americans deserve to work. Americans thought that they were going to get a majority that would help them get back to work back last November, but they were sorely surprised when the Republican majority got in and decided to do nothing to help Americans get back to work. All the majority has done is strip away programs and things that will help Americans do better, to take programs and money away from police officers, to fire public employees. This has been their agenda, and this is too bad. I think that this is a shame, and it certainly is an abandonment of what people thought they were getting in November. So, Madam Speaker, this particular point of order raised today does address the critical issues that must be addressed. But, at the bottom, we are still looking at 13 weeks with no jobs and Republicans offering legislation that literally would put nearly 1 million people out of work. So I ask my colleagues to stand with the American people. Let's move America forward. Let's reject the rule and the underlying bill by voting ``no'' on this motion to consider this unconstitutional Washington trickery. I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. ELLISON. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. ELLISON. Madam Speaker, I would ask the gentleman, would he be amenable to stripping out all but the Member pay issue that's contained within the bill? Would he be willing to do that?

Mr. ELLISON. I have the time and I have reclaimed it. I do appreciate the gentleman's decision not to answer how many jobs this bill is going to create because it certainly creates none. In fact, it destroys jobs. And it is really a shame. And I think that if the gentleman wanted to give us a number, even an estimate, just some sort of an estimate as to how many jobs this bill is going to create, we certainly could have a good dialogue about how America goes forward. But unfortunately, Madam Speaker, the gentleman cannot answer that question because the Republican majority has been exposed. They have a no-jobs agenda. And this bill they propose to deem and pass today would cut upwards of 1 million jobs and as low as 700,000. This is a no-jobs agenda. At this time, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Tonko).

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

Mr. ELLISON. Reclaiming my time, I do appreciate the gentleman's decision not to answer my question.