Renee Ellmers

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago on Saturday, April 16, North Carolina was struck with vicious tornadoes that caused unprecedented destruction and despair throughout the State and in my district. The loss of property will take years to rebuild, but the lives that were lost can never be replaced. In an instant, lives were cut short, leaving families with a gaping hole that can never be filled. With over 24 deaths throughout the State, this tragedy has touched each of us on a personal level. Our district was hit especially hard with six of our 10 counties affected, but thanks to the resources provided by President Obama's emergency declaration and officials at FEMA, we have been able to turn this tragedy into a swift recovery. On behalf of all North Carolinians, I would like to thank the officials at FEMA, the American Red Cross, the Small Business Administration, and emergency first responders for taking swift action and providing our district with supplies, funding, and on-the-spot guidance for victims. While we still have a tough road ahead, our district can take heart in the fact that every step is being taken to ensure that help will reach everyone affected and in a swift and efficient manner. I hope that all Americans will keep the residents and families of North Carolina and those families in Alabama and the other States that have been so terribly affected in their prayers as we continue to work in the rescue effort going forward. Thank you. God bless America.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you, my learned colleague from North Carolina. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule and the 2011 budget agreement that we have passed. We have already heard some of the aspects that this budget agreement addresses, and I am going to address some additional aspects. I am very pleased to see this House once again value the culture of life. The FY 2011 budget now reinstates the D.C. Hyde amendment to ensure that no congressionally appropriated funds, Federal or local, are used to pay for elective abortions. According to the Susan B. Anthony List president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, Congress will save the lives of an estimated 1,000 unborn children when it votes to restore this amendment banning the use of taxpayer dollars to pay for elective abortions in the District of Columbia. It adjusts the U.N. Family Planning Agency funding from $55 million to $40 million. It adjusts international population control/family planning funding from $648 million to $575 million. It adjusts title 10 domestic family planning funding to $300 million, which is a cut of $17 million. This budget also calls for an up-or-down vote in both the House and the Senate, Madam Speaker, on the defunding of Planned Parenthood. While the fight is certainly not over, we are making great strides in the ongoing effort to not only get our country on a strong fiscal footing but to honor the value of lives born and unborn.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my colleagues, and call on Senator Reid to pass a bill to avoid the government shutdown. I've been sitting here listening to my colleagues across the aisle, and I am in complete amazement at their lack of ability to remember history accurately. Thanks to the efforts of Speaker Boehner, this House, this Republican leadership, has consistently led. We did what the 111th Congress did not do: We passed a budget to fund the government through the end of the fiscal year. H.R. 1 was passed under an open rule, with open debate, and truly reflects the will of this House and the people that sent us here with their votes last November. Again, open debate, and it truly reflects the will of the people. Their message was, and is, get serious about cutting spending and change the culture in Washington so we can get our Nation back on a stable fiscal path. Remove many of the uncertainties facing our families and businesses, both large and small, and we can create an environment for job growth. Unlike my colleagues across the aisle, we here in government cannot create jobs. The private sector creates jobs. It has been 48 days since the House Republicans passed this bill, but we have yet to see a bill passed in the Senate to fund the government for the remainder of the year. Yesterday, House Republicans listened to the will of the constituents who thought it shameful that our Nation's bravest women and men, volunteering to put their lives on the line for our freedom, should have to face prospects of not getting paid during this government shutdown. With the passage of H.R. 1363, we fund the troops for the remainder of the year, regardless of any prospect of a shutdown, so those men and women fighting in the three theaters now and their families will not have to face the worry about whether they will get paid. Yet to hear Senator Reid's refusal to consider this bill in the Senate, and to hear President Obama threaten to veto this bill is nothing less than shameful. To choose to put politics before our soldiers and their families, to me, is appalling. Mr. Speaker, it is time for the President and the Senate majority leader to end this political game and work with us to ensure and provide for the Nation's military families to continue to fund our government. The fact is discretionary spending has increased over 83 percent under the current administration, and the Senate majority leader and the President are choosing to shut down the government over a less than 2 percent cut in spending.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to thank my colleague and friend from New York and to point out the fact that, over the years, she has just been a tireless, dedicated supporter of women's issues, family issues, and of giving her voluntary support of legal services to facilities that provide domestic violence havens in New York. She is a strong advocate for the White Ribbon Campaign, and I am proud to stand with her today in support of ending violence against women. We show our support today by wearing these white ribbons that represent a pledge to never commit, condone, or to remain silent about violence against women and girls. So let's start this discussion by defining the different forms of violence against women. Domestic violence occurs when one person in an intimate relationship uses a pattern of controlling assaultive behavior to abuse, threaten, harass, and intimidate the other partner. This violence comes in many forms. In its simplest terms, it is emotional abuse; name-calling; playing mind games; put-downs; threats--they can be physical or emotional--intimidation; using looks; smashing things; loud voices or actions to put you in fear of what might happen; isolation; controlling where you go, what you do, what you see; driving away friends and family; and of course sexual abuse and the use of children: making you feel guilty about the children, using custody or visitation to harass you. None of these forms of abuse are acceptable, and part of the White Ribbon Campaign's objective is to bring these issues to light. The bottom line here is that there are men in this country who want to protect the women they love. Through the White Ribbon Campaign, they are speaking out against these atrocities that take place. They are educating and calling on their fellow man to stop the violence. While we are taking a moment today to bring this important issue to light, I want to take a moment to commend the many facilities in my congressional district that are helping to provide a safe place for women but that are also working toward bringing families back together by working through the violence issues. S.A.F.E. of Harnett County is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide safety and to serve as an advocate for sexual assault and domestic violence victims, survivors, and their families. In Chatham County, North Carolina, the Family Violence and Rape Crisis Services has helped numerous people through effective programming. One victim said, ``The pieces of the puzzle are coming together. The Family Violence and Rape Crisis Service has given me the strength to be who I was supposed to be on my own.'' In Johnston County, Safe Harbor is another private, nonprofit agency that was created in 1984 with $500 and a donated phone line. This agency served around 3,000 victims in 2009. There are numerous other facilities in my congressional district that are also doing good work toward stemming the tide of domestic violence. I want to commend them for their hard work and dedication to the downtrodden. As I close today, I also want to commend the men who support the White Ribbon Campaign. I applaud them for rising up and for reaching out to educate. It takes a strong man to take this kind of action.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this legislation. Let us be clear: This legislation would simply prohibit direct Federal funds--taxpayer money--from being made available to National Public Radio, or as we know it, NPR, and would prohibit public radio stations from using Federal funds to pay for their NPR dues. The bill would prohibit public radio stations from using Federal funds for the production or acquisition of programing. I want to be very clear: I am in support of the arts. However, I do not believe that NPR has the right to public funds from our hard-earned taxpayer dollars when they receive plenty of funding from private sources. These prohibitions would not affect a local radio station's ability to use Federal funding for their operations or for the reduction of their own programing. NPR already receives direct Federal funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Department of Education, Department of Commerce, and the National Endowment for the Arts. They also get a considerable amount of money from local radio stations. Why do they need more?

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you so much, my esteemed colleague from Ohio. Your comments are so pertinent to today's fight. We are women. We are conservative women. As for those who have come before us, as you pointed out so eloquently, we don't know what they believed, but we are starting to unveil all of that. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of women, to honor the rich contributions women have made in the history of this world. I want to take a moment to discuss the strong pro-life movement that my colleagues and I are continuing to fight today. I rise in support of and fight on behalf of women. In this month dedicated to women, I ask them to choose life for themselves and for their children. The original feminists were, indeed, against abortion. These women believed that there was power in motherhood and in choosing life. Alice Paul, the author of the original Equal Rights Amendment, said it best: Abortion is the exploitation of women. It is this exploitation by groups like Planned Parenthood that frighten me for the women of our country. It has been proven that a woman who has had an abortion is six to seven times more likely to commit suicide in the following year than a woman who chooses to deliver her child. We all know of the syndrome postpartum depression. Women who abort are 65 percent more likely than women who deliver to be at risk for long-term clinical depression. Sixty-five percent of U.S. women who had abortions experienced multiple symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, which they attributed to their abortions. In another study, 60 percent said they felt ``part of me died.'' Compared to women who deliver, women who abort are more than twice as likely to be subsequently hospitalized for psychiatric illnesses within 6 months and to subsequently require significantly more treatments for the psychiatric illnesses through outpatient care. There are also numerous health risks that can occur after an abortion is performed. Reproductive complications and problems with subsequent deliveries can occur, one of these being pelvic inflammatory disease, which is a major direct cause of infertility. After an abortion, there is a 7- to 15-fold increase in placenta previa in subsequent pregnancies, which is a life-threatening condition for the mother and baby that increases the risk of birth defects, a still birth and excessive bleeding, leading to the possible loss of life of the woman. Honestly, I could go on and on about the aftereffects of an abortion, but I think that the picture has been made quite clear. The picture has been made, as Susan B. Anthony said, who believed it was not sufficient merely to denounce abortion. Anthony considered it the work of women to prevent this violation. This is the task that Susan B. Anthony gives us to continue today. Like Anthony, we, too, must challenge the status quo for the sake of women and their children. Women deserve better than abortion.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. It is. It's a particular mussel. Let's find the name just so you're familiar with it. It is the dwarf wedge mussel, and apparently that dwarf wedge mussel is found down in the wetlands of the lower area there, so they have avoided that area. And then there are some other wetlands there as well. Certainly there are ways we can work around these issues and not go through an entire town that has been developed for years and years.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Go right through, go right through the very middle of it.

Mrs. ELLMERS. And the thing is, there is potential for that highway to go through there, but right now as we speak, the town of Garner is basically stuck. There is no growth. There is none whatsoever because any potential business, any potential job that could be coming there is not. It is turning away from Garner, North Carolina, for this very reason.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Absolutely.

Mrs. ELLMERS. And they look somewhere else. That is what is happening. This is why the people of Garner, North Carolina, are outraged. And rightly so. This is a situation which has been hanging for awhile. It needs to be addressed, and it needs to be addressed today. I have asked all entities involved, let's all look at this and use some common sense and make the right choices and let's save the American taxpayers some money.

Mrs. ELLMERS. It is.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. Today, I rise on behalf of the people of Garner, North Carolina. They are faced with a very difficult situation these days, one that is threatening, and it actually as we speak is basically shutting Garner down for business. As you can see from the chart, I will point out the red line there. That red line is essentially going through the town of Garner, North Carolina. It is an extension of Highway 540. And this is the proposed site from the Army Corps of Engineers. And as you can see, if you look at the chart, there are some other very colorful options to consider as well. However, those options go through areas of wetlands and things, and the area that goes through Garner, North Carolina, that's the option that they are looking at because it's the only option that is outside of any wetlands and out of any areas that would harm such things as the dwarf wedge mussels. Now, basically, what we are faced with today is a situation where Garner, North Carolina, is shut down for business. Right now, potential businesses wanting to relocate or set up shop or move to the area, individuals maybe wanting to move to Garner, North Carolina, are reconsidering that choice because they see that there is a potential highway going through the center of their community, which is kind of a ridiculous situation. Many of the organizations that are involved right now have all said that this is not a viable option. And yet we continue to look at it. We continue to allow Garner, North Carolina, to be shut down for business, potential loss of jobs. We have individuals that live in Garner such as Brenda and Jerry Summer, who are an elderly couple that have children and grandchildren who have moved back to Garner to be near them, and they have the threat of having that highway go right through the middle of their living room. We also are faced with a situation where the Springfield Baptist church, which has been there for 140 years, 2,000 parishioners, they will literally lose their church and 50 acres of land. This is continuing because of the Clean Water Act and basically the Army Corps of Engineers' refusal to remove the red line from consideration. We have met with them. We have asked them to take that option off the table and to save the American taxpayers that expense of doing the study. They know it is not a viable option. They know it's going to hurt business. They know that there are potential other options there, and yet we continue to look at it. I have the utmost respect for the Army Corps of Engineers but, quite frankly, this is a waste of American taxpayer money and a potential threat to business, and continuing in Garner, North Carolina, all so that we can preserve a mussel, all so that we can preserve and route around wetlands. You can go anywhere in North Carolina and it is pretty much considered a wetland except your developed areas that are already in progress. I'm not against the highway, the loop being finished, but certainly there are other options that could be looked at. You can see there is an orange line, a blue line, a pink line. They're all there. They all connect, and these are all viable options. Some of the other organizations that are involved in this, like the North Carolina Turnpike Authority, have already dropped three other options from consideration because of public protests in those towns about potential harm to the communities. Garner stands to lose a projected worth of $9 million in investments and hundreds of jobs. Investors are literally walking away while the town stands in limbo because of this potential project that is going to take place here. We cannot continue this. This is what is happening. We must stand for the people of Garner, North Carolina. We must stand for the people of America, who are continuously saying: Let's use common sense. That's the issue here today. Common sense. If we all know this is not going to be the project that's ultimately proposed, let's take it off the table. Let's not spend American taxpayer dollars. Let's preserve the business community of Garner, North Carolina, and all the good folks there who are potentially going to lose their homes. Let's do it now. Let's not wait. This is a ridiculous situation, and I think the American people have had just about enough of it. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, so much for allowing me to stand for the people of Garner, North Carolina.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Yes; that is correct.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, the Army Corps of Engineers is working to put a highway straight through the town of Garner, in my district, slicing it in half. I rise today for the Town of Garner, whose voices must be heard. The Red Route would pass through the living room of Brenda and Jerry Summer, older residents whose children and grandchildren have moved back to Garner to be close to them. They say it will be the worst thing in the world if they had to move, and have no idea where they would go. Heartbroken, is how Mrs. Summer described the situation. I rise for the seniors at the Village at Aversboro that moved in with the confidence they are buying their final home. Instead, they're being put through an emotional period of stress, not knowing where they'll end up. I stand for the thousands of families that would be displaced and have to find new homes. I rise for the 140 year old Springfield Baptist Church, and the 2,000 parishioners, who would literally lose all of their property which is some fifty acres of land. All because of the Clean Water Act and the Army Corps refusal to remove the Red Line from consideration. The oppressive regulations under the Clean Water Act are stifling economic growth and job creation. The Act allows a Dwarf Wedge Muscle and a portion of wetlands to paralyze a town and displace countless families and businesses. It gives the Army Corps of Engineers the power to stop development and job growth in their tracks. The situation is especially frustrating since the North Carolina Department of Transportation and the North Carolina Turnpike Authority say they will never build the highway. Even though the road is not a real option, the Army Corps insists on moving forward, spending hundreds of thousands in taxpayer dollars to study road that will never be built. Meanwhile, the town of Garner is ``Closed for Business'' and economically crippled as the state spends years studying a road with no future. I'm not saying the highway should not be built. I'm simply asking why the federal government is spending millions in tax payer dollars on a road with no future. Common sense dictates the Army Corps should find a viable option. Common sense dictates the Army Corps should remove the Red Line from the Map today. As this map demonstrates, other options are much less destructive and even less costly to build. These options do not split a town in half and should be studied in place of the Red Line. The North Carolina Turnpike Authority has already dropped three other options from consideration because of public protests in those towns about the potential harm to the community. As each day goes by, Garner loses millions of dollars. Garner stands to lose a project worth $9 million in investments and hundreds of jobs. Investors are literally walking away while the town stands in limbo, a hostage to a heavy handed government agency. Further, the proposed route would cut across several tributaries flowing into Lake Benson, a major source of drinking water for Garner. Runoff from the road would empty into the lake, increasing sedimentation and the risk of other pollutants. With unemployment in my district at almost 10%, the federal government should get out of the way and let businesses grow. It's disappointing that the Army Corps, at the behest of Washington regulators, would consider the interests of a few tiny mussels ahead of the interests of the people of Garner. The Orange Route is the original plan proposed and has been on the map for nearly two decades. In Garner, millions of dollars in investments and thousands of jobs would be lost. Twenty-six commercial lots will be destroyed, with a total tax value of over $30 million. Approximately 510 residential lots in Garner representing a tax value of over $106 million would be leveled. I came to Washington to stop out of control spending and waste and remove job-killing regulations. It didn't take long to find examples of waste and job-killing regulations right here in our district with the continued study of this ``Red Line.'' This option must be taken off the map so Garner can begin growing again. Garner families are fighting for their homes and livelihoods, and I stand with them, ready to fight until the Red Line is removed from consideration.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you. I'd like to just contribute a little bit more on the overall burden that ObamaCare places on our States in covering patients on Medicaid. As we've seen, this has grown, especially with the recession and the undue costs to our States' budgets to provide Medicaid at no cost sharing from the patients. I think that this is a key issue. It's basically free health care for those individuals at taxpayer expense. And it's just a huge strain on our States' budgets, as my colleague has pointed out. One of the key factors--and very important, certainly very important in health care--are the preventative mandates. Certainly preventative medicine is a way that we can all heal, that we can all be looking for those issues that can down the road prevent excessive costs. But such things as no copays or deductibles for colonoscopies, mammograms, such things like this is there again, an undue cost to our States at taxpayer expense. It's just too much of a burden. You know, I want to help everyone. I think that everyone should be able to have health care. As we know, if you pull up to an emergency room in any hospital across the country, you will receive health care. So the misnomer that there are those individuals who are not receiving health care is really an untrue statement. Now, of course, you're going to receive a bill for that care. And I think that just as if you go to the grocery store and you have your cart full of groceries when you check out, you have to pay for it. It's the same thing with health care. Health care is a business, and someone has to pay for it. But when we continuously pass this cost on to our taxpayers and, of course, our State budgets, it is just unbelievably difficult; and, of course, that is what ObamaCare does. It increases the number of patients on Medicaid, and it is just an unsustainable cost.

Mrs. ELLMERS. I would like to expand on some of the points that you're making there. We're basically talking about the same issues, and we can see what an increase in costs this is going to be and how incredibly difficult it would be to put this in place. And, you know, this isn't yet another situation where the good intentions and well-meaning intentions that are put forward to help this situation are just truly not the answer. You know, basically, how do we increase the access to health care coverage? Medicaid is not the route to take. There again, it passes too much cost on to our States and it is not--it is an imperfect situation. And I'll expand a little bit on the Congressional Budget Office numbers. Very conservative estimates indicate Federal spending for Medicaid is expected to reach $427 billion by 2019. And the Congressional Budget Office notes the program will consume more than 4 percent of GDP by 2050. You know, one of the unintended consequences to this--you know, we were talking about some of these bad situations, poor outcomes. One of the things that we're seeing right now, unfortunately, in health care as we move into this transition into ObamaCare is the decrease in Medicaid reimbursements to physicians. They're not very good to begin with, and I would say that that's probably going to decrease to doctors and hospitals as we decrease the reimbursement to hospitals especially. This will basically--we were talking about the possibility of rationing of care and knowing that this is down the line and the quotes, of course, that we see from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid. But basically what we're seeing here is that physicians will be forced to have to stop taking Medicaid patients. As we all know, physician offices are businesses. They're small business owners. They have staff that they have to pay. They have payroll that they have to meet. And, unfortunately, when faced with a situation like this--we're already seeing it with Medicare as well; physicians, you know, having to dial back on the number of Medicare and Medicaid patients that they're seeing. This ultimately will not help the situation and get that health care for the American public that we're looking for. If this is the answer--well, let's just say it's not the answer. We're creating another problem with this solution. And once again, how will we deal with that down the road, with these incredibly large numbers of costs that we're passing on to our taxpayers?

Ms. ELLMERS

Ms. ELLMERS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I think we've come to the point now where we do need to discuss that ObamaCare is not the answer. We have all discussed this over and over again. I would say that it's probably a good reason that I was elected because I ran on repealing it--that and cutting taxes and cutting spending. And it all ties in together. Those of us who are in health care have been aware of the need for reform for quite some time. I think any of us can say that we've seen the costs increase. We've seen the cost of health care insurance increase. And yet we've all felt that our hands were tied. We didn't know how to address it. The bureaucratic system, as my colleagues have pointed out, just dealing with billing and trying to get the care for patients alone can just take over your office. We have seen these things. We know there are problems that exist, but we all agree that it needs to be a patient-centered, doctor-nurse- patient relationship that we have to be putting forward. And it has to be in the private sector. There are ways to do this. There is a role for government in it, especially when we are talking about Medicare, Medicaid, and those who are unfortunate. We want everyone to have health care. But there are ways we can address it. It is not a health care crisis; it is a crisis of culture. We have to change the culture that we are dealing with. We want everyone to have affordable health care, and there are simple solutions we can put in place to do that.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Chairman, let's be reminded why we are here today. We are here because the leadership of the 111th Congress couldn't even pass a budget. However, my colleagues across the aisle did manage to pass this monstrosity with a closed rule and no debate. This, my friends, is ObamaCare. No one had time to read it, much less understand how it would actually affect small businesses. As a nurse and small business owner, I can tell you that this bill is devastating to health care and the economy. Calling a government takeover of one-sixth of the economy ``reform'' over and over and over again does not make it so. Not only should we pass this amendment; we should pass this CR so we can save the American taxpayers from funding this outrageously bad bill. Then we can get to work providing real health care reforms that give the decision-making back to the doctors, nurses and patients, not to Washington bureaucrats.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Chair, on rollcall No. 106, in the fury of 2-minute votes, I mistakenly missed the vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.'' Amendment No. 263 Offered by Mr. Broun of Georgia

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Chairman, today we are debating amendments on a continuing resolution because the leadership of the 111th Congress failed to do one of their most basic jobs last year: Pass a budget to fund the Federal Government. Left without a budget to work with and our financial house in shambles, it is clear that we are in a state of financial crisis. Our debt requires immediate action, and the CR is just the beginning. I came to Congress because, like many other new Republican Members of the freshman class, I run a small business, sticking to my budget and trying to make plans for the future. All the while I was watching Washington politicians drive this country's economy into a ditch. I knew that something had to change. My friends on the other side of the aisle are trying all the same worn-out tricks. But I am here to say to the American people, this is not about tricks or politics. This is about preserving the greatness of America. No one in this Chamber finds joy in the tough decisions we have to make, but we can no longer ignore them. The American people have elected this Congress to be good stewards of their money. Today is not a happy day. This is not a happy speech. Government spending and burdensome regulations have driven the American people to anger and frustration with good reason. Sadly, our Nation stands on the edge of bankruptcy. Our love for future generations of Americans requires that we not ignore today's problem only to find them, years from now, in irreparable financial ruin. Regardless of the program, today's deficit spending is tomorrow's tax increase. In my neighborhood, there have been three babies born recently. Each of those babies now owe $45,000 in Federal debt. We are fighting for our very survival. At risk are the freedoms representative of a free market economy and free society; the freedom to choose, freedom of private industry to compete, freedom from burdensome taxation, and freedom from mandated government programs. Washington today is slowly smothering the personal liberty Americans so greatly esteem. As the 112th Congress struggles to pass legislation that meets our Nation's current challenges, fundamental disagreement remains. Unfortunately for the American people, the debate is being framed by my colleagues on the other side as ``vicious cuts to vital programs by Republicans who simply don't care.'' Hear me now when I say this has never been farther from the truth. Today we come to terms with the fact that we cannot spend money on everything we want, regardless of the good intentions. For years politicians have ignored these problems. Not this Congress. Not this Congresswoman. The people elected us to end the talks and take swift action, and we must. As a small business owner, when finances get tight, we cut where necessary. Raising prices isn't always the option. As painful as it may be, you make tough decisions to cut waste, operations, production costs, and eventually jobs as a last resort. Why should the Federal Government be any different? Today's debt crisis is a very real threat to our liberty. Liberty allows people to work hard and achieve what they want, be responsible for their own actions and be free. No one shackled by debt is free. Today's budget crisis is dangerous and threatens our basic freedom. Free societies value every citizen equally, placing no preference one over another. I believe that no one should be entitled to another's hard-earned provisions, and that government should support its citizens, not burden them with insurmountable debt and obligations they cannot fulfill. Government spending is not the answer to our looming problem. I know there will be those who argue that my rhetoric is too harsh and that the financial crisis is not as bad as it seems. This crisis is real; and without immediate action, America will continue spiraling toward financial disaster. Today, I challenge my colleagues to let real leadership begin. No longer should we turn to China to finance that which we cannot afford. Let us have the courage to right our wrongs, the strength to see it through, and the vision to lead with the powers entrusted to us from the consent of the governed, rather than selfish ambition. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Mr. Speaker, in all of my years in business, I can honestly say that I have never seen an administration so prepared to regulate nearly every ailment, either real or perceived. Nearly every segment of industry has been subjected to increased regulation, whether it be banking, energy, automotive, services, and of course, health care. Ronald Reagan once said, ``Government exists to protect us from each other. Where government has gone beyond its limits is in deciding to protect us from ourselves.'' As a nurse and small business owner, I worked with my husband as a clinical director of the Trinity Wound Care Center in Dunn, North Carolina, where I saw firsthand the damage that government regulations can do to the growth of small businesses. The costs of these rules pile up. It's easy to understand why businesses are reportedly sitting on $2 trillion in cash. Businesses don't know the true cost to comply with the rules just imposed and are concerned about the costs and rules yet to come. No business can properly plan with roaming regulatory activity. This halts job growth and investment in its tracks. Just yesterday, a small business owner in my district testified in the Small Business Committee about this issue. He said working through a recession is tough, but adding to the burden with cumbersome and confusing new laws and regulations makes a recovery twice as hard. The uncertainty being created by Washington is stifling his small business recovery. He testified that the new health care law and the uncertainty it is creating for small business owners makes it harder for him to determine what his costs are. This is a time when he is struggling to meet the most basic costs of running his business. Another witness, a restaurant owner, even stated that if he had to start his business today, he would probably decide against starting.

Mrs. ELLMERS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. He even stated that he wouldn't start his business. He further stated that he still may have to close his doors. Beyond existing businesses, regulations may prevent new firms and startups from entering the market. These startups are the very businesses that create the jobs in America. According to a study using business dynamic statistics between 1977 and 2005, in their first year new firms add an average of 3 million jobs. My message today is simple. We must remove burdensome regulations so that businesses can grow and entrepreneurs can start new businesses.

Mrs. ELLMERS

Mrs. ELLMERS. Repealing it allows us to start with a clean slate and look at market-based reforms that will actually lower health care costs, increase accessibility, let Americans keep the plans they have and like, and forestall impending drastic changes that have created uncertainty in the lives of so many Americans and businesses. To this Congress, I will work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to repeal and replace the law's job-killing regulations and State-bankrupting mandates. The bill to repeal the so-called ``Affordable Care Act'' is very simple, and my vote will be to overturn this job-killing law. To this Congress, I will work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to repeal and replace the law's job-killing regulations and State bankrupt mandates.