Al Green

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I thank the gentlelady from California. How much time do we have remaining, Mr. Speaker?

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I thank you for your words, and I trust that you will continue the fight. You have been an outstanding champion for women's rights. At this time, I am honored to yield to the Honorable Barbara Lee, the former chairperson of the CBC and a great Member from the State of California.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I thank the gentleman for his words. I now yield to the gentlelady from Texas, who is a colleague, and we share a common boundary in the State of Texas--our districts are adjacent to each other--the Honorable Sheila Jackson Lee.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, it's time for this House to act on the American Jobs Act. It not only makes good sense, it makes dollars and cents for businesses. Businesses that hire persons who have been looking for work for more than 6 months will get a $4,000 tax credit. If that person happens to be a veteran, it becomes $5,600. If that veteran happens to have a disability that is service connected, it becomes $9,600. It's time to act on the American Jobs Act. It makes good sense. It also makes good dollars and cents for business.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the following vote: Welch (VT)/Rush (IL) Amendment to H.R. 2401. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on this amendment.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the following votes: H.R. 2076--Investigative Assistance for Violent Crimes Act of 2011. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on this bill. H.R. 2633--Appeal Time Clarification Act of 2011. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on this bill. H.R. 1059--To protect the safety of judges by extending the authority of the Judicial Conference to redact sensitive information contained in their financial disclosure reports, and for other purposes. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes'' on this bill.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today it is my honor to pay tribute to Bernice Friedlander, who will mark her 90th birthday on Saturday, July 30, 2011, in Houston, Texas. On this special day we will all look back and see the hallmarks of a life well lived. Her quiet determination, unfailing kindness, and unyielding spirit have made her a pillar not only of a proud and loving family, but of all that have come to know her. Beneath a humble and quiet exterior lies a generous and kind soul. She is beloved not for a litany of accomplishments, but simply for who she is. With such an uplifting and giving nature it is easy to see why she inspires so much love and warmth in others. For decades she was the dedicated wife of her beloved husband, the late Silas Friedlander. She has been a wonderful mother to her adoring daughters Nancy and Susie, and a generous and doting grandmother to Kevin, Nick, Tyler, and Ashley. We throw modesty aside today so that we can give the heartfelt thanks that Bernice is long overdue. Her unending love and devotion to those who have the privilege of calling her family have made their lives so much richer for having had her there. Happy birthday Bernice, may you enjoy yourself in happiness and good health for many years to come.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the following vote: H. Res. 363--Rule providing for consideration of H.R. 2584--Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2012. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on this resolution.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chairman, this amendment is indicative of why we are in opposition to much of what is being said today. This amendment assumes that there is some sort of onerous regulation or some sort of invidious discrimination that has taken place within the CFPB when, in fact, the CFPB has not issued one regulation, not one. And because it has not issued one regulation, one can only assume that much of what is happening today is onerous speculation and invidious prognostication because there seems to be this notion that this agency is going to be harmful, but it hasn't done one thing. There is this concept of throwing out the baby with the bathwater, but there is no bathwater. There is no bathwater to throw out because the baby hasn't done anything. The CFPB has done absolutely nothing, and we are now trying to overregulate it before it has an opportunity to pass a single regulation. It was not the CFPB that created the crisis. It did not create 3/27s and 2/28s. It did not create prepayment penalties that coincide with teaser rates. It did not create negative amortization. It did not create the dastardly yield spread premium which allowed people to qualify for prime mortgages and be forced into subprime mortgages. The CFPB has done nothing. It is an effort on our part to make sure that many of the onerous actions that took place, that caused us to be in the position that we're in, that these actions cannot happen again. I stand in opposition to this amendment. I also stand in opposition to the bill because the bill would weaken the CFPB to the extent that it can't do what it is intended to do, and that is protect consumers. Somebody, some agency ought to stand there for consumers. This agency is that agency. It's the watchdog. We do not need a watchdog without any bite. Let's keep the bite in the CFPB. Let's make sure that it can protect consumers and make sure that we don't get the products back on the market that we had before. This amendment would allow persons who are on the board, who do not have a vote to petition, in a sense, they would become empowered by this ability to petition, even if it doesn't impact the industry that they happen to represent. I stand in opposition to it. I think the CFPB, as presented, is the best way for us to proceed.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I rise to claim the time in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) and reserve the right to close.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Chairwoman, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, it is just a matter of time before we will rue the day that we did not build out the infrastructure across the length and breadth of our country. Our President has proposed that we have an infrastructure bank such that we can take care of the needs on this side as well as the needs on this side. We will rue the day that we did not build out our transportation infrastructure. One example, in 2005, in Houston, Texas, Rita hit the gulf coast. We had thousands of people being evacuated from a major urban area, and as they were moving away, the highways became clogged. They were stopped on the highways. People spent nights on the highways. Trains are a part of the emergency evacuation system in this country, and we need more rail so that we can evacuate people in times of emergencies. 9/11/01, who can forget? The skies were clear. There was a full ground stop. More than 4,000 planes were grounded. No one could fly. Trains became a part of the emergency evacuation system so that people who could not fly could still make their destinations. It is time for us to wise up and realize that the President is right. It is time for us to, in the parlance and vernacular of those in the streets of life, to 'fess up and tell the truth. We should not put Peter ahead of Paul. We should not rob one to pay the other. It is time for us to take a holistic approach and show some vision. Let's move to create jobs across the length and breadth of the country with this infrastructure program. Let's give architects who have offices and business and laborers and engineers jobs. Let's give them jobs to do. And the good news is you cannot export these jobs overseas. You don't have to worry about them being outsourced, because they will all be done right here in the United States of America. Let's rebuild this country. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, C.A. Tindley was right when he proclaimed, ``Harder yet may be the fight.'' When they tried to privatize Social Security, we fought and held them back. We fought the good fight. When they tried to minimize the CHIP program, Children's Health Insurance Program, we fought the good fight and we held them back. When they tried to destabilize Medicaid, we fought the good fight and we held them back. They are now trying to minimize and voucherize Medicare. We will fight the good fight. We will hold them back because C.A. Tindley is right: ``Harder yet may be the fight; right may often yield to might; wickedness a while may reign; Satan's cause may seem to gain. But there's a God that rules above. with hand of power and heart of love.'' When we're right, He'll help us fight. Harder yet may be the fight, but we will hold them back.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, in these times of great difficulty and uncertainty, our senior citizens want to know where we stand, and I want the senior citizens to know that I stand with them. I will not vote to voucherize Medicare, and I will not vote to socialize to the extent that we privatize Social Security. Medicare has been there for millions of our senior citizens. It is a program on which they can depend. In their minds, Medicare is better care. We have 40 million seniors depending on Medicare. We cannot take that from them. Many of the seniors in my district depend on Social Security to the extent that, if they don't have Social Security, they do not ``have.'' These two programs mean a lot to the people that I represent. No privatization of Social Security and no voucherizing of Medicare. I will vote to sustain them and protect them.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the vote on: Flake Amendment No. 2 to H.R. 2112. Prohibits the use of funds to be used for the construction of any ethanol blender pump or any ethanol storage facility. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on this bill. Amendment Offered by Mr. Lipinski

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the votes on: Polis (CO) Amendment (#1). Requires review of permits by the Interior Department to take into consideration all applicable safety, environmental and fisheries laws, such as the National Environmental Policy Act, the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no''' on this amendment. Garamendi (CA) Amendment (#2). Implements the independent BP spill commission's recommendation by requiring that in reviewing a drilling permit, the Secretary consult with an independent drilling safety organization not affiliated with the American Petroleum Institute. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no''' on this amendment. Markey (MA) Amendment (#3). Implements offshore drilling safety reforms recommended by the BP Spill Commission and would set specific new minimum standards for blow-out preventers, cementing and well design. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no''' on this amendment.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, the American people are confronting a dilemma, and the dilemma is simply this: to privatize or not to privatize. When all is said and done, that's the dilemma that we face based upon what the opposing party proposes. The simple solution to education is to simply privatize and to give them vouchers. The simple solution to Social Security is to privatize and to place it in the stock market. The simple solution to health care is to privatize and to give them vouchers. For every complicated problem, there is a simple solution that's usually wrong. As the economy continues to emerge from the worst recession in generations, the CBC budget understands the increased need for income security programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Unemployment insurance, Medicaid, and Section 8 housing vouchers. As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, I have worked hard over many years to ensure adequate funding levels for housing and community development programs, such as the Fair Housing Initiatives program and the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing program. I am pleased that the CBC budget supports investment in these key programs. For Fiscal Year 2012, the Administration has requested $75 million for new HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers, which will end homelessness for an estimated 11,538 of our nation's veterans. HUD-VASH combines tenant-based voucher assistance for homeless veterans with case management and clinical services provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) at its medical centers in local communities. Public housing authorities who are awarded HUD-VASH vouchers develop partnerships with VA medical centers to help homeless veterans find permanent supportive housing. It is estimated that approximately 60,000 homeless veterans will need HUD-VASH vouchers. A recent report issued by HUD and the VA indicated that on a single night in January 2009, 75,609 veterans were homeless. Over the past three fiscal years, Congress has appropriated $75 million a year for 10,000 new vouchers--for a total of 30,000 vouchers. To continue moving towards the goal of ending veterans' homelessness, Congress should provide an additional 11,538 vouchers in FY 2012. I am pleased that the CBC Budget makes homeless veterans a priority by providing additional funding to Section 8 which will ultimately ensure adequate vouchers in FY 2012. The CBC Budget also provides additional funding for community and regional development programs. I am pleased that the Fair Housing Initiatives Program is listed among programs targeted to receive additional support. This week marked the forty-third anniversary of the signing of the federal Fair Housing Act which was signed into law because of the efforts of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to bring civil rights and justice in housing to all Americans. The Fair Housing Act outlawed discrimination in housing based upon race, color, religion, and national origin. Despite its passage more than 40 years ago, approximately 4 million fair housing violations are estimated to occur each year, many of which involve veterans and military personnel. However, according to the National Fair Housing Alliance, just 30,000 are reported to federal, state, and local fair housing authorities and only a handful are investigated with less than 120 actually resulting in charges. This number appears low given that housing discrimination is perceived to be one of the root causes of the current foreclosure crisis. Fair housing education and enforcement, primarily provided by private, non-profit fair housing organizations, play an important role in fighting housing discrimination and predatory lending. With support from the federal Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP), these organizations investigate over half of the nation's reported housing discrimination complaints, counsel people who have been victims of housing discrimination, and enforce fair housing laws through housing testing programs. The President's Budget proposes $42.5 million in funding for the FHIP program in FY2012 which provides level funding from the previous year. FHIP is a key federal program that provides funds to enforce the nation's fair housing laws, combat housing discrimination and ensure equal housing opportunities at the state and local level. Given the ongoing foreclosure crisis, which has forced many families to enter the rental market, strengthened fair housing programs are more important than ever. As the housing market slowly recovers, the need for sustained funding for fair housing enforcement is critically important. I am pleased that the CBC budget recognizes the importance of this program by providing additional funding for it as well. In addition, I have introduced H.R. 284, the Veterans, Women, Families with Children, and Persons with Disabilities Housing Fairness Act of 2011, which aims to provide the necessary enforcement to guarantee equal opportunities and prosecute housing discrimination, as well as to be a deterrent for this kind of behavior. It is my hope that these combined efforts will bring us closer to ending housing discrimination, especially against disabled persons and particularly against our veterans. I ask my colleagues to vote ``aye'' on final passage of the Congressional Black Caucus Alternative Budget for Fiscal Year 2012.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the following vote: Motion to Recommit H.R. 910 (rollcall No. 248). Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on this motion.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I was unavoidably detained and missed the following votes: rollcall vote 175--H.R. 793--To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 12781 Sir Francis Drake Boulevard in Inverness, California, as the ``Specialist Jake Robert Velloza Post Office''. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on this bill; rollcall vote 176--H. Con. Res. 27--Providing for the acceptance of a statue of Gerald R. Ford from the people of Michigan for placement in the United States Capitol. Had I been present I would have voted ``yea'' on this bill.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Chairman, there is a more basic and fundamental question that we are confronting today. That question is, Can we continue to go out of our way to help major corporations? As a matter of fact, $700 billion. Can we go out of our way to help them and make sure that the programs work for them and then turn our backs on the taxpayers that helped those very same major corporations? That's the basic question that we have to contend with. Are the banks and the major corporations too big to fail and are the taxpaying Americans who helped bail them out too small to help? Can we continue to end programs that help people stay in their homes that did not create the exotic products, that did not create prepayment penalties that coincide with teaser rates, that did not create loans wherein you qualify for your teaser rate but you don't qualify for your adjusted rate? Can we continue to allow them to be evicted when we can help some of them? We may not be able to help everybody, but when you can help somebody, you ought to try to do the best that you can and help those that you can. With reference to the FHA refi that passed, that was ended yesterday by a vote of this House, that bill did not lose money unless persons failed to pay their mortgages. It was only if mortgages were not repaid that FHA came forward and covered the cost. So to say that it cost $8 billion is incorrect. It cost whatever at the end of the program may have been spent; but that money had not been spent, so the money was there. There was also a premium to be paid by persons who got the refis. FHA was going to help a lot of people stay in their homes and help a lot of communities and neighborhoods maintain their integrity and their property values. We, today, have an opportunity to help people with emergency mortgage assistance, people who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own because of this downturn in the economy. It is a very simple premise. Will we allow ourselves to save major corporations and deny the people, the taxpaying Americans, some help in their time of need? If there is one thing that I heard from American people, it was: Where is my bailout? Well, when we come up to the plate, and we try to help people who actually need and merit the help, somebody comes forward and finds a reason why we can't help them. This is the day to help those American people. Let's not let them be too small to help while others will allow banks to be too big to fail.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this is about our veterans. I have but 1 minute, so please allow me to speak on behalf of our veterans for 1 minute. This is a moment of truth for us. Our veterans have been there for us. We had the courage of our convictions to send them to war. They have done their jobs, but many of them are returning home to properties that are being foreclosed upon. That will be abated. This is an opportunity for us to spend 0.859 percent of the $1.6 trillion that we have spent in Iraq and Afghanistan to help our veterans retain their homes. They have been there for us. The question is: Will we be there for them today? Don't you take up time to make sure that the veterans don't get what they deserve. Veterans have worked hard for us. We sent them to war. Let's now make sure that we take care of them in peace. Let's take care of our veterans.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Thank you very much, the Honorable Donna Christensen. I appreciate greatly your organizing this opportunity for us to speak this evening on something that is exceedingly important to this country, and that is the history of African Americans in America. African Americans are no different than any other Americans. We are all the same. There is only one race--the human race. To a certain extent, I always have some degree of consternation whenever we have a black history celebration or occasion such as this. I have this degree of consternation because I really think we should just have one history, and it really should be American history; but we have these occasions because some of the accomplishments of some Americans have not been properly acknowledged, and as a result, we want to make sure that American history includes the history of all Americans. So we talk about the history of African Americans, the history of Africans in the Americas--in the United States of America, if you will. Many names come to mind. We always mention Thurgood Marshall. We always mention Rosa Parks. We always mention the great heroes and heroines who have been on the forefront of making America great. Today, I would just like to mention nameless faces, persons who have never made headlines, who work full time, who take care of the family, who pay taxes, who have never complained by way of a protest, a march. They have done their duty as citizens in this country, and I want them to know that there are those of us who pay attention to the fact that they, too, have made America great. They are nameless faces in the crowd, but they have made a great statement by being honorable, hardworking, law-abiding citizens. To those who continue to do their duty as citizens, we thank you for what you have done. We want you to know that we who have been honored to serve in the Congress of the United States of America will not allow the rollback of the clock on many of the programs that are of benefit to all Americans. This will include, of course, those of benefit to African Americans. We will fight to protect the Department of Education. It means something to have a Department of Education in this country, especially to persons who at one time were lawfully denied the right to get an education. We will fight to protect laws that fight discrimination. Lilly Ledbetter v. Goodyear involved an Anglo lady, but that case had implications far beyond any given ethnic group. We will fight to make sure all persons are treated equally on jobs, and this includes African Americans. So, to those of you who work in the trenches, who never or who rarely, if ever, complain, I want you to know that there are people in this Congress who are working every day to make sure that your status as an American is always protected and will always be honored. You, too, deserve the rich and noble history associated with you that we associate with Rosa Parks, that we associate with Dr. King, that we associate with Thurgood Marshall. You are as much a part of this history as they are. We honor you and we love you. God bless you and God bless all Americans. God bless the United States of America.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Speaker, I think I now understand what Dr. King meant when he said that the truest measure of the person is not where the person stands in times of comfort and convenience, but rather, where do you stand in times of great challenge and controversy. This is a time of challenge and controversy that will measure our truest measure as people of goodwill. I ask anyone to show me the empirical evidence connoting that we should reduce funds to get better service, to get better scrutiny, to get better cops on the beat with the SEC. Every police department in this country has some problem or has had some problem. No one would say let's eliminate the police department because it has not performed up to a standard of 100 percent. The SEC is not perfect but what it does is this: It oversees 38,000 entities, 11,450 investment advisers, and these investment advisers are managing $33 trillion. Some things bear repeating. These investment advisers, 11,450 of them, are managing $33 trillion. Do we really want to take the cops off the beat? Would we ever make such an announcement as it relates to any police department in this country? Let us stop for just a moment and take a deep breath and understand what is about to take place here. We are about to send a signal to those who would perform dastardly deeds that we are going to allow you to do this with impunity, not because we want you to do so, ostensibly, but because there will not be the deterrent in place that we know should exist to prevent them from doing these dastardly deeds. So I'm going to ask all of my friends on both sides to stop, take a deep breath, and let us ask ourselves: In this time of challenging controversy, will we prevent the SEC from overseeing the 7,600 mutual funds as they properly should, from overseeing the 5,000 broker-dealers as they properly should, from overseeing more than 10,000 companies as they properly should, 35,000 entities as they properly should? This is a time of challenge and controversy, and I am proud to say that I am going to stand for making sure that those who invest are properly protected. This is our time. This is a moment to stand up and be counted. And I hope that every investor out there will look to see who stood for making sure that investments are properly protected and that the integrity of the system is properly in place. I stand for doing the right thing, and the right thing is to make sure that this SEC has the right amount of capital in place to protect our investors and our investments. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Madam Chair, I move to strike the last word.