Steny Hoyer

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlelady for yielding. I was in the cloakroom having some lunch, and I heard the gentlelady's comments. Most of us--a lot of us--went around this country listening to people as well as speaking on behalf of our respective candidacies and parties. What I heard around America was that they want people who will sit down together and try to solve the problems that confront America's families and America's workers. I want to say to the gentlelady from Illinois, my experience with her, throughout her career, has been that she is one of those types of people. And I want to thank her. I want to thank her for her decency. I want to thank her for her hard work. I want to thank her for her commitment to country first. It's been a privilege to serve with you, Judy, and I look forward to being your friend for many years to come. I wish you great success in the future. I wanted to say that because too often the public sees us confronting one another and sometimes being angry with one another, but you and I have had the opportunity to work together and I know the good heart that you have and the openness that you have displayed, and I thank you for that.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlelady.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, since August of this year, the people of Prince George's County, Maryland, have lost two of their finest. Tragically, in separate incidents, two Prince George's County police officers were killed in car crashes. Both men served with distinction and were dedicated to keeping our communities safe. On August 20, while he and his partner were in a high-speed pursuit of a suspect in an attempted car theft, Officer Adrian Morris's police cruiser veered off of the Capital Beltway near Laurel, Maryland. Adrian was killed in the line of duty, and his partner, Mike Risher, severely injured. An immigrant originally from Kingston, Jamaica, Adrian wanted to be a police officer since a young age. While attending Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, he participated in the Prince George's County Police ``Explorers'' program, which helps young people learn about and prepare for careers in law enforcement. Adrian achieved his dream by joining the Prince George's County Police Department's Sixth District in 2010. When he was killed this past August, Adrian was only 23 years old. His mother, Sherrin Crosdale, and a younger brother survive him. In a second, tragic setback to the men and women of the Prince George's County Police Department, on October 18 an accident took another officer's life. Off-duty Officer Kevin Donnell Bowden was headed home in his police cruiser after a shift when he was killed in a crash in Clinton, Maryland. Kevin had been with the force for six years, serving at the Oxon Hill station. His colleagues remembered him as a steady officer with a sense of humor who loved his job. Kevin grew up in the area and graduated from Surratsville High School. He loved football and was an avid fan of the Dallas Cowboys. Kevin, who was 28 years old, was also a devoted father of sons DeAndre and Joshua and daughter Mahogany. The loss of these two outstanding officers was a terrible blow to the Prince George's County Police Department and to all who call the County home. Adrian Morris and Kevin Bowden represent the finest tradition of service to our communities, and they will be sorely missed. I join in mourning their passing and in comforting their families and communities during this difficult time, and I am confident that their memories will inspire young people to follow in their footsteps in service to county, state, and country.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative--known colloquially as ``SMECO''--on 75 years of serving communities in Maryland's Fifth District. Since its humble beginnings bringing power to a handful of farmers, SMECO has become a major utility that fuels economic growth across Southern Maryland. In 1937, SMECO was first incorporated in the wake of President Roosevelt's New Deal initiative to connect rural areas with electricity. With assistance from Roosevelt's Rural Electrification Administration, SMECO brought affordable light and power to families in Charles, St. Mary's, and Calvert Counties for the first time. Over the years, SMECO expanded its service and brought electrical power to communities the major urban and suburban utilities had left in the dark. As one of the oldest and largest electricity cooperatives in the country, SMECO is owned by the families and businesses it serves, with all profits reinvested in infrastructure improvements or as rebates to shareholders. What began with 400 families just before the Second World War today provides power to over 147,000 homes and businesses across Southern Maryland. Mr. Speaker, on behalf of all the people of our District, I want to thank the men and women of SMECO for their hard work throughout the years. Whether it is a snow storm or a hurricane, they immediately go to work and, within days, restore power for most shareholders who have lost their connections as a result of downed wires. I commend them for their focus and diligence during these emergencies and for continuing to earn praise from shareholders for their preparedness and responsiveness along with respect from utility management professionals across the country. I also join in celebrating this milestone of 75 years of creating opportunities for rural Marylanders. For three quarters of a century, the men and women of SMECO have played a vital role in the economy and community of Southern Maryland for which they are to be commended.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues today from both sides of the aisle to stand with the people of Israel in support of their sovereign right to defend themselves against Hamas terror. Over the past year alone, Hamas has launched approximately 900 rockets and artillery shells from Gaza into Israeli civilian neighborhoods. My colleagues, think for just a minute: if rockets were coming from Mexico or from Canada, we would not stand for it for one minute. This week, we saw Hamas fire rockets that struck as far north as Tel Aviv. And today, we have disturbing reports that at least one rocket hit near Jerusalem--the seat of Israel's government and a city holy to Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike. That Hamas would specifically target Israel's Parliament building, as reports indicate, shows the great disregard Hamas has for the very idea of democracy, which does not exist in Gaza. By strengthening the United States relationship with Israel, this Congress will send a powerful message to Hamas and all in the region who would cause Israel harm. The right of self-defense cannot be allowed to go unexercised by a government dedicated to the protection of its people. We will stand with Israel. And we also, Mr. Speaker, lament the loss of life of Palestinians. Every life is important, so it is not that we stand insensitive to the lives of Palestinians, but they need to stop the violence and the attacks. Israel has the right to defend itself, and we will stand with them.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Martin Breland on his recent selection to the Board of Directors at the National Association of Federal Credit Unions (NAFCU). Mr. Breland has been president and CEO of Tower Federal Credit Union in Laurel, Maryland, since 1994. Under his leadership, Tower has experienced significant and healthy asset growth. With over 16 branches spanning four counties, Tower is the largest federal credit union in the state of Maryland and provides a range of financial products to meet the needs of their 124,000 member-owners, a number of whom live in my district. Prior to becoming CEO in 1994, Mr. Breland served in other capacities at Tower including Vice President of Finance and Vice President of Member Services. With over 30 years of experience in the financial industry and an M.B.A. from The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Mr. Breland is a welcomed addition to the NAFCU board. In his new role he will have the opportunity to play an important role in public policy formation. I wish Mr. Breland the best of luck in his new role on the NAFCU Board and look forward to working with him in this capacity. I ask that my colleagues join me today in congratulating Mr. Breland on this achievement.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, that is a sample of the dysfunction and inability and unwillingness to compromise on which Mr. Ornstein and Mr. Mann spoke. I now yield to my friend from New York (Mr. Tonko).

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman from California for his leadership, not only for farm country but for all of the people in this country on behalf of getting people back to work, making jobs available, and making sure our farmers are secure, and particularly for making sure that we address the epidemic of violence perpetrated against family members. I thank the gentleman for his leadership. I yield to somebody who is as strong a voice as we have in this House on behalf of the working men and women in this country, the gentlewoman from California, Lynn Woolsey.

Mr. HOYER. And so this 112th Congress convulses to an ugly end of its time before the national elections. All of us must be sad, and the American people are angry and sad that this Congress has been so inattentive to the needs of the American people. Mr. Speaker, today House Republicans are leaving town and will not return until after the November elections. Two very respected political scientists--not Democrats or Republicans; one a representative of the more conservative think tank and another a more liberal think tank--have written a book about the dysfunction they have seen in this Congress. Mr. Mann and Mr. Orenstein--quoted by many reporters from many journals, from all different perspectives--they said this: We have been studying Washington politics in Congress for more than 40 years, and never, never have we seen them as dysfunctional. In our past writings, we have criticized both parties when we believed it was warranted. Today, however, said these two respected political scientists and observers of Washington, today, however, we have no choice but to acknowledge that the core of the problem lies with the Republican Party. They went on to say that the GOP has become an insurgent outlier in American politics. It is ideologically extreme; scornful of compromise; unmoved by conventional understanding of facts, evidence, and science; and dismissive of the legitimacy of its political opposition. That is the nub of the problem. Our Republican colleagues are leaving without getting their work done. I said, ``their work done.'' Without getting our work done, the work of the American people. Comprehensive jobs bills, middle class tax cuts have not been extended, farmers are left on their own to face the worst drought in decades--the worst drought in decades--and a farm bill reported out of the Republican committee lays unconsidered by this floor. Reported out of their committee, from their majority, and they haven't brought it to the floor, while farmers remain in trouble. We've not reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act, and we have not passed the postal reform bill. I am glad to take this Special Order, Mr. Speaker, to say to the American people that we're prepared to stay. We're prepared to stay and work on these bills. And I'm going to talk about some of these bills, but my colleagues are here as well. I first want to yield to the former president of the Senate of Vermont for his observations as we leave this town, my friend, Mr. Welch from Vermont.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for his comments. He is absolutely right. Mr. Speaker, just for the knowledge of all of our Members, the Senate did pass a middle class tax cut, making sure that 98 percent of our taxpayers would not get any increase in their taxes on the 1st of January. That bill is over here. It has not been brought to the floor, notwithstanding the fact, I believe, that every one of us believes that those taxpayers ought not get an increase. So there is overwhelming support for that bill, bipartisan support, but it won't be brought to the floor. On the Violence Against Women Act, to ensure that women and families are not subjected to dangerous domestic violence, it passed 68-31 through the United States Senate; not passed here. Postal reform passed 62-37 in a bipartisan vote in the United States Senate; not paid attention to here. The farm bill, which passed with 64 votes--almost 2- 1 in the United States Senate on a bipartisan vote with 16 Republican Senators voting for it--has not been brought to this floor. Yet we walk away. We walk away from the American people. I now yield to my friend from Illinois, the gentlelady from Illinois, Jan Schakowsky.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the distinguished Member from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky) for her comments. Nobody fights harder for working people and seniors in this Congress than Jan Schakowsky, and no one is sadder that we have been so lacking in attention to the issues of concern to those folks. I now want to recognize Allyson Schwartz from the State of Pennsylvania, who has also been a great leader and a member of the Ways and Means Committee and who is trying to work on behalf of jobs and growing our economy. I yield to my friend from Pennsylvania.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlelady for her comments. No one works harder on health care and is more focused on the delivery of affordable care to all of our people, but particularly concerned about health care for our seniors. How ironic it is that the pledge that the Republicans made was to repeal and replace. I'm going to talk a little bit about that. But there has been no replacement. On the one hand, they want to eliminate the guarantee that Medicare gives to people to have the security that health care will be available to them; and on the other hand they offer nothing to replace it, no alternative, except to increase substantially the cost of those seniors when they are in need of health care. I thank the gentlelady for her work, and I thank her for her leadership on this very critical issue. I'm now pleased to yield to the distinguished minority leader, the former Speaker of the House, who has been instrumental in ensuring affordable health care is available to all of our people, Nancy Pelosi of California.

Mr. HOYER. Madam Leader, thank you for your comments and your leadership. You are so correct in studying the statistics of the Dow, having doubled. It's actually up now probably about 105, 110 percent. The Standard & Poor's is up more than double, and the NASDAQ is up more than double over those years. In January of 2009, I'm sure most people tragically remember, we lost 818,000 private sector jobs that month. Last month we gained 92,000 jobs. Is there anybody who could say a loss of 818,000 jobs isn't a lot worse than the gain of 92,000 jobs--92,000 jobs is not enough. We need to do more. The President offered a jobs bill. It has not been brought to this floor, notwithstanding the fact in the Pledge to America they said this is a transparent Congress that would be allowed to work its will. That bill has not been brought to the floor. For the last 30 months we have gained, straight, more jobs, 4.6 million jobs to be exactly correct, while 4.4 million jobs were lost in 2008 alone. Are we better off gaining 4.6 million as opposed to losing 4.4 million jobs? We have had 12 straight quarters of economic growth. The last four quarters of 2008 in the last administration was a net 13 percent decrease in GDP. Yes, Mr. Speaker, the leader is correct. We're better off today, but we could be much better off. We ought to be better off if we hadn't walked away from a jobs bill, hadn't walked away from investing in an infrastructure bill that gave certainty. We didn't even bring that bill to the floor. We walked away from making sure that the health care bill works properly, walked away--and I'm going to recognize Mr. Costa--walked away from the farmers of America, walked away this day as we have walked away in the past. Mr. Costa is from farm country. He understands the pain being experienced in farm country, and he knows how terrible it is to have simply walked away, walked away from the House-passed bill out of committee and walked away from a bipartisan Senate bill. My friend is such a strong voice on this floor, such an active member of the Agriculture Committee and such a proponent of farm country, not only California, which he represents but through this country. I yield to my friend.

Mr. HOYER. The gentleman may know this better than I because he works so closely with the ag community, but over 70 farm organizations and farmer-focused organizations came to town a week or two ago and all said pass the Senate bill, not because they believed it was perfect, but because they believed it was a bipartisan bill that would bring relief to farm country and give some certainty to the farming community. I think I'm correct on that.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlelady for her comments, and I yield to my friend, Suzanne Bonamici, who was such an effective State legislator. She was overwhelmingly elected in a special election. And every day since that election, she has been working hard on behalf of hardworking men and women not only in Oregon, but throughout this country. And I know that she's disappointed that we're walking away from our responsibilities. I yield to my friend.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentlelady for her comments. I want to now recognize the distinguished gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Carnahan), who's been such a leader on so many of these issues.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for his comments. General Leave

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include therein extraneous materials on the topic of this Special Order.

Mr. HOYER. I yield to my friend from New Jersey (Mr. Holt), an effective Member of this House.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for his very compelling comments. I know that, Mr. Speaker, you've heard us speak and the Members have heard us speak, and one might say, well, these are Democrats speaking about the non-productivity and non-attention to the people's business of this Congress. But some years ago, just a few years ago, 4 years ago, the Republican Party, our friends on that side of the aisle, nominated John McCain to be their President. What does John McCain say of this Congress? ``The worst since 1947 statistically, the worst ever as far as I'm concerned,'' Senator John McCain told reporters Wednesday when asked to assess this Congress. That was September 19, 2012, just a few days ago. Bipartisan observation. This walkaway Congress is the least effective in which I've served, and I've been here for 31 years. I want to yield to my friend who came to Congress the same year I did, who unfortunately is leaving, one of the great leaders of this Congress and responsible for putting the referee back on the field so that we will not have another financial meltdown that plunged this country almost into depression, the distinguished Member from Massachusetts, Barney Frank.

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for his very cogent comments. I would remind him the Leader talked about that, and he's talked about it. Mr. Speaker, I think you will recall--George Bush, Republican President of the United States; Hank Paulson, Republican Secretary of the Treasury; and Ben Bernanke, who I think is neither Republican nor Democrat but appointed by the Republican President.

Mr. HOYER. President Bush came to us and said: The country's in trouble, at risk of going into depression. We need you to act. Who acted? The Democrats, in a bipartisan response to President Bush. Who walked away? Two-thirds of the Republican Party, the President's party. Two-thirds of them walked away. As a result, we failed the first time. We came back and added another 30 Democrats, 172, and the Republicans couldn't even get to 100 to support their own President to keep this country out of depression. Ladies and gentlemen, 2 years ago as the previous election approached, Republicans unveiled a long list of pledges. Their Pledge to America reads, and I quote: A plan to create jobs, end economic uncertainty, and make America more competitive must be the first urgent domestic priority of our government. So, first we offer a plan to get people working again. That's what they said. We are still waiting for that plan, and we have walked away. Twenty-one months later, Republicans have not offered a comprehensive plan to create jobs and boost competitiveness. Nor have they allowed Democrats to bring major items of our Make It in America--expand manufacturing, create jobs, give good-paying jobs with good security to Americans that will then redound to the benefit of all agencies and job creators and small businesses that service those manufacturers. When President Obama proposed his plan, the American Jobs Act--which economists say would have expanded by 1 million or 1.5 million jobs-- Republicans blocked it outright, not brought to the floor, not given a vote. Instead of making jobs their priority, it seems to have been last on their to-do list, at a time when it remains the first concern for millions and millions of Americans and for our side of the aisle. Mr. Speaker, let me read another excerpt from the Republican pledge: With common-sense exceptions for seniors, veterans, and our troops, we will roll back government spending, putting us on a path to balance the budget and pay down the debt. However, over the last 21 months Republicans have torpedoed every serious attempt to reach agreement on deficit reduction. Why? No revenues from the very wealthy in America. Not because we don't like the very wealthy, not because we want to penalize the very wealthy, but because we need to keep our country on a financially secure path, and those of us on this floor can contribute a little more to that effort. Pushed to the extreme by their Tea Party wing, House Republicans early on embraced an ``our way or no way'' that made compromise impossible, refusing to accept any solution that included revenues or that ended unnecessary tax breaks for the wealthiest in our country. That's why the middle class tax cut passed overwhelmingly in the United States--well, passed by a majority--in the United States Senate languishes here unconsidered, which would keep 98 percent of America from any concern about having their taxes increased on January 1. Why? To protect the 2 percent. How sad. In pursuit of their extreme budget agenda, they pushed our country to the brink of default, leading to--for the first time ever in the history of our Nation--the most creditworthy nation on Earth being downgraded by the Standard & Poor's rating agency. To avert that default, Republicans insisted on creating the sequester that so many of them now lament. It was their creation. In fact, in their cap, cut, and balance bill, what is the default position they take? Sequester. Meanwhile, led by Chairman Paul Ryan, Republicans passed two budgets that would end Medicare as we know it, end the guarantee, end the security that it gives to people who are seniors and going to be seniors; guts social programs that keep millions out of poverty; and doesn't balance over the next 30 years. Susan Collins, Republican Member of the United States Senate--I showed you John McCain, Mr. Speaker--she says: It is very frustrating to have worked on legislation that really matters to our country, like the cybersecurity bill and legislation to save the postal service, and just have them gather dust. In other words, she worked in the Senate across the aisle with Democrats and sent that bill here--both those bills--and we have not acted. We have walked away. Mr. Speaker, we have made our point: Walking away has been the practice of this Congress. Not getting the work done has been the practice of this Congress. How lamentable it is for the American people. But as President Obama said: They have a choice. May they make it well. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I'm sure America has been watching the ads. The ads say that black is white, and they say it over and over and over and over again. And they hope the American people believe that black is white. But it's not enough for them to say it on ads, now they bring it to this floor in the last 7 hours of the session of Congress before the election. Are we dealing with jobs? No. Are we dealing with violence against women? No. Are we dealing with farmers who are in distress? No. Are we dealing with middle class tax cuts? No. Are we dealing with postal reform as the postal department goes broke? No. What are we doing? We are trying to reaffirm an ad that some people are spending tens of millions of dollars on to misrepresent the facts. Mr. Speaker, black is not white. I can say it one time, a hundred times, a thousand times: black is black, and white is white. This action the administration has taken is to produce more jobs, more work to get more people back to work. How? To respond to Republican Governors and Democratic Governors who say, I have a better way of doing it. By the way, that's what you proposed when you were in charge and we had President Bush in office on at least the three occasions that the chairman has just mentioned. White is not black, and black is not white. Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today exemplifies the do-nothing Republican Congress. Once again, Republicans are choosing to focus on a political message over serious issues like jobs, middle class tax cuts, or the farm bill. Instead, we're here today discussing a Republican bill that misrepresents the facts in an attempt to simply score political points. How sad for the American people. At issue is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program which was created in 1996 when Republicans and Democrats worked together to achieve welfare reform. So you understand on that side of the aisle, I was a Democrat who voted for welfare reform. I was a Democrat who said we ought to expect people to work if they can work. I'm also a Democrat that says we have to help people when through no fault of their own they can't work or have lost work. The previous speaker talked about how we weren't concerned about jobs. In the Bush administration, 4.4 million jobs were lost in the last 12 months of the Bush administration. Over the last 30 months, we've created 4.6 million jobs. I ask you, who cares about jobs? Who creates jobs? There were, of course, 22 million jobs created in the Clinton administration. We heard a lot of talk about that at our convention. I didn't hear anything about the Bush administration at the Republican convention. George Bush was not there, he was not mentioned, and the record was certainly hidden. We care about jobs. We care about people getting to work. We also care about helping people. We can do both. Defeat this bill. Black is not white, and white is not black.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, in order to compete in today's global economy, we need to attract the best and brightest math and science students from around the world. I think we all agree on that. American technology and Internet companies--which are far and away the best in the world--are in dire need of more highly educated engineers and scientists. We're just not producing enough here. In the long term, we need to educate more Americans in STEM fields, but we also must increase the number of STEM visas so that our businesses can hire the top international graduates of American universities. This could be a broadly bipartisan bill. It could pass easily. But once again, unfortunately, we have chosen a good bill and inserted a partisan poison pill, making it impossible to pass the Senate or attract broad bipartisan support. How sad it is that that's been the history of this Congress. That poison bill is, of course, the elimination of the Diversity Visa Program, which ensures that individuals from a broad array of countries have the opportunity to seek a better life here in America. The Statue of Liberty, with her torch raised, is being brought down just a little bit. We don't know where our next great innovators will come from, and we ought to not close the doors on those who have been waiting patiently to have their number called in some far off corner of the world. That lottery is not only their salvation, but also our benefit. It's part of what makes America great. I call on the Republican leadership to withdraw this bill and instead take up the bill introduced by my friend, the gentlewoman from California, Representative Lofgren, which accomplishes the objective I think we all want to accomplish. That version would create opportunities through a new STEM visa program without taking current opportunities away. I commend Ms. Lofgren for her work on this issue and for helping to sustain that yearning for America that still moves the hearts of millions around the world. In light of what I have just said, Mr. Speaker, I would ask the gentleman from Texas if he will yield for the purpose of allowing me to make a unanimous consent to amend his bill by striking all after the enacting clause and replacing the text with that of the gentlewoman from California's alternative, H.R. 6412, the Attracting the Best and Brightest Act of 2012. I tell my friend that will accomplish the objectives that you've talked about and I've talked about in getting high-tech people, the availability, for our companies here in America. They need them, we want them, we ought to get them; and we ought to do it in a bipartisan way. This is an opportunity for bipartisanship that unfortunately has not come as often as we would like. I would ask my friend to allow me to make that unanimous consent, that we agree to that. And I guarantee the gentleman we will get very substantial numbers of votes on this side of the aisle for that proposition, and I hope on your side as well. Would the gentleman yield for that unanimous consent? The gentleman has been instructed not to yield to me for that unanimous consent, I understand? I regret that your side of the aisle wouldn't give me that opportunity for America--for America and our high-tech businesses.

Mr. HOYER

Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield to my friend from Virginia, the majority leader, for the purpose of inquiring about the schedule for the week to come.