Jeb Hensarling

Mr. HENSARLING

Mr. HENSARLING. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate a Fifth District newspaper, The Monitor, on the tremendous honors it received at the 2009 Texas Press Association Convention. The Monitor is a fixture in Mabank, Texas, and it represented the community proudly in the Semi-Weekly Division of the annual Texas Press Association's Better Newspaper Contest. Mr. Kerry Yancey, Editor of The Monitor, received 1st place in the Sports Photo category, 3rd place in Featured Photo and 4th place in Sports Coverage. Ms. Pearl Cantrell, Managing Editor of The Monitor, and Mr. Yancey teamed-up to win 3rd place in News Writing. As the Congressman of the Fifth District and subscriber to The Monitor, I am extremely pleased to see their hard work receive such deserving recognition. On behalf of the residents of the Fifth District of Texas, I would like to congratulate Mr. Kerry Yancey and Ms. Pearl Cantrell, as well as the entire staff at The Monitor, on these accomplishments.

Mr. HENSARLING

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

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, I think it's very interesting to get a lecture from the gentlelady on fiscal responsibility, since she just voted for a budget that will triple the national debt over the next 10 years. When the deficit was $300 billion and falling, the majority leader Steny Hoyer called it fiscal child abuse. Here's an earmark to add $200,000 to fiscal child abuse. We ought to cut it out. And I urge adoption of my amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire how much time I have remaining?

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk, amendment No. 6.

Mr. HENSARLING. Well, it was an interesting discussion, Mr. Chairman. I'm not sure it's worthy of borrowing $200,000 dollars from the Chinese and sending the bill to our children and grandchildren. I'm sorry that the gentleman from Pennsylvania couldn't make it here tonight. I know he is busy with many, many earmarks. According to the April 19 edition of the Washington Post, Murtha, dubbed the King of Pork by critics, consistently directs more Federal money to his district than any other Congressman--$192 million in the 2008 budget. I don't know what the unemployment rate is in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, but around the rest of the Nation it's averaging 9.5 percent. And if he would choose not to spend $200,000 dollars for weed- whacking along this river basin, maybe we could have more jobs in the rest of America. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING. This is an amendment that would strike an earmark, better known as pork barrel spending. Specifically, $200,000 requested by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Murtha) for the Natural Biodiversity of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for conservation strategy at the Kiski Basin. If one goes to the Web site of Natural Biodiversity, they will learn that ``they control invasive, nonnative plants.'' ``Holistic habitat management techniques are being used to restore riparian buffers on sites throughout the Kiski-Conemaugh and upper Juniata drainages.'' I hope I pronounced those properly. Mr. Chairman, permit me to put this amendment into a broader context. Clearly, the national priority has got to be job growth, economic growth. And, by any standard, the economic policies of this Democratic Congress, the economic policies of this administration have been an abject failure: 2.6 million jobs lost since February--467,000 jobs lost last month alone; 9.5 percent unemployment throughout the land--the highest unemployment in a quarter of a century. Mr. Chairman, what do we have to show for it? Nothing but debt. Mountains and mountains of debt in spending for our children and grandchildren, already. $9,810 per household to fund a $1.13 trillion government stimulus plan; $3,534 per household to fund a $410 billion omnibus; $31,000 per household to fund a $3.6 trillion 2010 budget. Tripling, tripling the Federal debt in 10 years. More debt in the next 10 years than in the previous 220; billions for Chrysler; billions for GM; billions for AIG. Borrowing 46 cents on the dollar, borrowing it from the Chinese, sending the bill to our children and grandchildren. That's the context, Mr. Chairman. So I ask one and only one thing. Here's an opportunity. Here's an opportunity for the taxpayers to maybe save $300,000. Not to borrow that money from the Chinese. Now I have no idea--I have no doubt, I have no doubt that the gentleman from Pennsylvania is sincere. I'm sure good things can be done with this money by the Natural Biodiversity and their holistic habitat management program. I have no doubt that good things could be done with that money. But let me tell you other good things that can be done with the money. That money could be used to go against the deficit so we don't borrow money from the Chinese, so we don't send the bill to our children and grandchildren. And if we're going to spend it, Mr. Chairman, maybe we ought to spend it on small businesses--small businesses that are capitalized with $25,000, on average, according to the SBA. We could save eight small businesses in America. But, most importantly right now, we could tell America that we know what the priorities are--and it's not weed management by Natural Biodiversity in the Kiski River Basin. I have no idea how this became a national priority. I'm sure, again, that important things can be done with the money, but is it worth borrowing the money from the Chinese and sending the bill to our children and our grandchildren? I think not. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING

Mr. HENSARLING. Madam Speaker, since the Democrats have taken control of Congress, we have seen their idea to increase the deficit tenfold. We've seen their idea to triple the national debt in 10 years. We've seen their ideas to bail out AIG, GM, Fannie and Freddie, and the list goes on. And today's new idea, a new national energy tax costing every American family $1,500 to $3,000 a year, but only if they choose to turn on a light, cook a meal, or drive their children to school. Don't take my word for it. Listen to the President of the United States, who said that under his plan, electricity rates would ``necessarily skyrocket.'' That's from our President. Estimates are our gas prices will go up about 77 cents a gallon at the pump. Now, all of this is due to global warming concerns, and, Madam Speaker, these are legitimate concerns. We have a right to be concerned, and man-made activity does contribute. But is this a smart policy? You know, if India and China don't participate, it is for naught. Even our own Federal Government estimates, at best over a course of a hundred years, this may impact global temperatures \2/10\ of 1 degree. Frankly, that variance occurs naturally every single year. Think about the severe job loss, millions and millions of jobs lost due to the competitive disadvantage we have. There are smarter ways to deal with global warming, but we hear nothing about clean coal from the other side. We hear nothing about nuclear from the other side. Think about the huge loss of national wealth that could have been used to cure cancer, send a generation to college, help launch millions of small businesses. Now, Madam Speaker, some call it ``cap-and-trade.'' It will cap American opportunity. It will trade away American jobs. It's time to reject the new national energy tax.

Mr. HENSARLING

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Speaker, I move for reconsideration of the vote.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. HENSARLING

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, this is an amendment that would strike an earmark in the bill for the Arts Center of the Grand Prairie in Stuttgart, Arkansas. I'm not a big fan of earmarks, be they congressional earmarks or administration earmarks. That's not to say that all earmarks are bad. In fact, the gentleman from Texas to my left here, Mr. Chairman, has proposed several very worthwhile earmarks. But, Mr. Chairman, we are not living in normal times. We are in severe economic stress in our Nation today. And as I look at what has happened in the United States Congress, what I have observed is that in the history of Congress never have so few voted so fast to indebt so many. Already on top of a staggering, staggering national debt, we have seen a $700 billion bailout program that continues today, a $1.13 trillion government stimulus bill that does nothing to help our economy, a $400 billion omnibus bill chock full of even more earmarks. All of this is costing hundreds of thousands of dollars to hardworking American families. Mr. Chairman, the President himself has said that he is losing sleep at night over the national debt. Well, I would love for the President to sleep better at night, and maybe he could quit proposing the bailouts. Maybe Members of Congress could quit proposing all of the earmark spending. Now, this is relatively small as far as the dollars are concerned, $155,000 apparently to fund an afterschool and summer arts program. But, Mr. Chairman, under this Democratic Congress, the national debt will triple in 10 years. The Federal deficit has gone up tenfold in just 2 years. We're borrowing 46 cents to spend $1 here. We're borrowing money from the Chinese, and we're sending the bill to our children and our grandchildren, which causes me to question, is this the best expenditure for $155,000 of the taxpayer money? Mr. Chairman, I'm a veteran of many of these earmark battles. They have been going on for years. I know from history what we will hear. Number one, we will hear, Nobody knows my district like I do. Mr. Chairman, I concede the point. I do not know the gentleman from Arkansas' district like he does. I suspect I will hear that good things can be done with the money. Mr. Chairman, I concede the point. I'm not familiar with the Art Center of the Grand Prairie. My guess is they do wonderful, wonderful work, although I am unfamiliar with how it's necessarily related to Juvenile Justice. I will hear that Congress has the authority to spend this money. I concede the point. Congress has the authority to spend the money. It doesn't mean it's smart. It doesn't mean it's wise. It doesn't mean it's helpful. But yes, Congress has that power. My complaints are twofold. Number one, again, when we're borrowing 46 cents on the dollar, borrowing money from the Chinese, sending the bill to our children and our grandchildren, encountering more debt in the next 10 years than in the previous 220 combined, we've never seen levels of debt since World War II. Is there any time that we decide, maybe something isn't a national priority? And as good as the work that they do at the Art Center of the Grand Prairie in Stuttgart, Arkansas, I would suggest to you that there are alternative uses for this money that would help families in America, and it is not a priority, and we must start this spending discipline somewhere. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chair, may I inquire as to how much time is remaining on each side?

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, contrary to the gentlelady from Maine, I did not come here quite angry, but I do come here disappointed. I'm sure that her motives are good and pure, but she has brought to us an earmark that takes $200,000 away from taxpayers in my congressional district in order to benefit people in her congressional district. Maybe she doesn't understand what $200,000 means to the working families of the Fifth Congressional District of Texas; and, ultimately, maybe she doesn't understand borrowing 46 cents on the dollar, borrowing it from the Chinese in order to send the bill to our children and grandchildren, something that Majority Leader Steny Hoyer once described in increasing the Federal deficit, fiscal child abuse. We must have priorities. We must reject this earmark. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am certainly not equipped to speak to the $3 radio generation, but I think I can speak somewhat to the $50 iPod generation because the $155,000 to be used for the gentleman's earmark will be borrowed from the Chinese and sent to that generation. Now when the Republicans were in control and we had a $300 billion deficit, the now Majority Leader Steny Hoyer called that fiscal child abuse. Now we have a $1.8 trillion deficit. This earmark makes it $155,000 worse. Fiscal child abuse for the iPod generation. It should not be accepted.

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

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, I rise as the designee of Mr. Lewis of California to offer amendment No. 76 as printed in the Congressional Record.

Mr. HENSARLING. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. This amendment would strike a $200,000 expenditure, another earmark, for the Maine Lobster Research and Inshore Trawl Survey. I believe, if we've counted properly, there's roughly 1,100 different earmarks contained within this appropriation. Again, I want to make it very clear that all earmarks are not bad. But I'm not a fan of earmarks, be they congressional or administration. Too often in the earmark process, what we observe, what the American people observe is a triumph of special interest or local interest over the national interest or the public interest. Too often we see a triumph of seniority in political considerations over merit. Too often we see the triumph of secrecy over transparency, and all too often for this body, Mr. Chairman, the American people believe they see money coming in on one end of Capitol Hill and earmarks coming out of the other. The system is broken. The system must be reformed. Again, Mr. Chairman, relative to the Federal budget, it may be a small portion of the total spending. It is a huge portion of the culture of spending. We need a culture of saving. You cannot earmark, bail out, borrow and spend your way into prosperity, no matter what my colleagues on the other side of the aisle believe. It cannot be done. We have seen no example in history whatsoever. Now, Mr. Chairman, I have no doubt that this Maine Lobster Research and Inshore Trawl Survey is very important to the State of Maine. I have no doubt about that. I wonder, though, how much Federal money is already going into lobster research. I wonder if it is truly a Federal priority. How about catfish? How about pecans? How about research for yams and sweet potatoes? Are those, indeed, national priorities? And if it's not a national priority, if it's important for the State of Maine, why didn't the State of Maine pay for it? If it's important to these local communities, why don't the local communities pay for it? Why didn't the Chamber of Commerce pay for it? Why don't commercial companies pay for it? Why don't co-ops pay for it? Somebody needs to explain to me why the Dublin family in Palestine, Texas, that needs money to pay their mortgage, why do they have to pay for it? Why does the Mauk family in Athens, Texas, when they need this money to put gas in their car, why do they have to pay for it? Why does the Lilly family in Kaufman, Texas, that need money to pay for their health care premiums on their insurance, why do they have to pay for it? I don't understand that, Mr. Chairman, and I don't think it's right. I don't think it is right at a time of economic crisis. You know, we're losing small businesses by the thousands. The average small business is capitalized by $25,000. This $200,000 expenditure right here, that could mean the difference of saving eight small businesses and the jobs they represent in this great Nation of ours. But instead, it's going to be spent on the Maine Lobster Research and Inshore Trawl Survey. No doubt it's important to Maine. No doubt they're doing good work. But Mr. Chairman, again, is it worth borrowing money from the Chinese, sending the bill to our children and grandchildren, and maybe being the first generation in America's history to leave the next generation with a lower standard of living? It's not fair. It's not smart. It's not right. It needs to be rejected. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, never in the history of Congress have so few voted so fast to spend so much and indebt so many. The Democrats are in a program to spend more money than we have seen in the history of this institution, and apparently they want very few speed bumps along the road to bankrupting America. Thus, last night, almost three-quarters of the Republican amendments that would reform, improve government programs, make them more efficient, save the American taxpayer money were ruled out of order. But I suppose, in a modicum of respect for the democratic process, a handful of amendments were made in order. I suppose I'm happy that mine was one of them. Mr. Chairman, recently, our President has said, Without significant change to steer away from an ever-expanding deficit and debt, we are on an unsustainable course. We have to take the painstaking work of examining every program, every entitlement, every dollar of government spending and ask ourselves, is this program really essential? Are taxpayers getting their money's worth? Can we accomplish our goals more efficiently or effectively some other way? Why is this important? It's important because already we have seen spending out of control. We are seeing spending at levels that we have never seen before. The national debt will be tripled in 10 years. In just 10 years the national debt will be tripled. The Federal deficit has increased 10-fold, 10-fold in 2 years. We've seen the taxpayer being forced to shoulder $6,000 per household to fund $700 billion of bailout money, $9,810 per household to fund a $1.13 trillion government stimulus plan, $3,534 per household to fund a $410 billion omnibus plan, and the list goes on and on and on. Mr. Chairman, you cannot bail out, borrow and spend your way into prosperity. So, in the spirit of what the President said, when we're looking at a Federal Government that consists of roughly 10,000 Federal programs spread across 600 agencies, at a time when American families are suffering in this economy, maybe, maybe we ought to take a look at a few and see if we can't sunset them so we can provide sunshine and morning to the budgets of the American family. I believe the Legal Services Corporation is one such program. It hasn't been reauthorized in almost 30 years. The program has a history of waste, of fraud, abuse. Listen to a recent GAO report of last year: expenditures were insufficient in supporting documentation. Out of seven of the 14 grantees we visited, we identified systemic issues involving payments that lack sufficient supporting documentation that made it impossible to determine whether the expenditures were accurate, allowable, or appropriate. Employee interest-free loans, one grantee we visited was using grant funds to provide interest-free loans to employees. Three grantees used legal services money to purchase alcoholic beverages. Lobbying fees, taxpayer money used for lobbying fees. This isn't me saying this, Mr. Chairman. It's the General Accountability Office. Again, a program of history of waste, fraud and abuse. Now, I believe the line item in this budget, Mr. Chairman, is $440 million. Now, we've got a choice. One, it's a program that's been unauthorized since 1980, reported instances of waste, fraud and abuse. And should we actually be taxing taxpayers to force them to subsidize their neighbors to turn around and sue them? I don't think so. I don't think so, Mr. Chairman. Dollars have alternative uses. We can use $440 million to save our children from this explosion of national debt, something, something that the majority leader once called fiscal child abuse. We could save small businesses at a time where we desperately need job creation, or the money could be put on automatic pilot, once again, and we could subsidize people so they could turn around and sue their neighbors. Let's save the American Dream. I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire how much time I have remaining?

Mr. HENSARLING. I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Chairman, I heard the gentleman say that we all have concerns over the national debt. I must admit I haven't seen a lot of that concern on the other side of the aisle since they proposed a budget that will triple it in 10 years. I didn't hear any answer to the charges of the Government Accountability Office about the waste, the fraud and abuse endemic in this program. I would also point out to the gentleman, there are pro bono law firms, lawyers that work on contingent fees. There are other options besides taking money away from the Dublin family of Palestine, the Mock family of Athens, the Lilly family of Coffman that I represent in this institution. Their budget, their budget needs to be improved, not the legal services. And I urge adoption of the amendment.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk, No. 79.

Mr. HENSARLING. Yes, I am.

Mr. HENSARLING. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk made in order by the rule.

Mr. HENSARLING

Mr. HENSARLING. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of William C. ``Dub'' McCarty, and recognize his commitment and service to his community, the State of Texas and to our great Nation. Dub, a resident of Athens, Texas, passed away last month. He was a loving husband of 58 years to JoAnn. He was a proud father to daughters Cynthia and Mary Lou. He was a devoted grandfather of Cole, Kyle, and Michelle, and great grandfather of Kristen, Preston, and Daniel. And finally, Madam Speaker, he was my dear friend. Dub was born in 1929 in Scurry County, Texas, and graduated from Lamesa High School. After graduation, Dub proudly, proudly defended our Nation during the Korean war by serving in the United States Army. When his service ended, Dub began what became a legacy of leadership in our free enterprise system and service to his community. Dub returned to Lamesa to work and eventually own his own clothing business. He gave back to his small West Texas community by shaping the lives of younger men as an Order of DeMolay Dad and as a longtime Boy Scout leader in Lamesa. Dub then moved to my hometown of Dallas, Texas, where he began a long career in corporate group insurance management. After that though, he set his sights eastward to the pine trees and lakes of East Texas, and began a fire and casualty insurance business in Henderson County. As a business owner, he helped countless members of his community achieve their American dream, and he took great pride in his community. His record of service today is still unmatched in East Texas. He served as the Cedar Creek Chamber of Commerce president. He helped establish the Cedar Creek Library. He was a charter member of the library's board of directors, and he and his wife, JoAnn, worked tirelessly to support and grow that library. He led the Cedar Creek Kiwanis Club and was Division 26 lieutenant governor for over two years. He served as secretary treasurer of the Athens Kiwanis Club. He took a leadership in their annual pancake breakfast. He was an active member of the Athens Rotary Club. And, Madam Speaker, the list of community service goes on and on. Now, we all know across America that the Rotary motto is ``service above self.'' Dub lived those words every day of his life. He led by example, and his example represents the best of the American character. Madam Speaker, Dub was not indifferent to the direction of his State and Nation either. He cared passionately about faith and family and free enterprise and freedom, and he chose to put his principles into action by serving as chairman of the Henderson County Republican party for 8 years. That's where I first met Dub McCarty, this kind, giving, caring individual. He was always upbeat. He always had a smile on his face and he always knew that if we worked together, that America's best days would lay ahead of her. He made a difference. As the congressman for the Fifth District of Texas, I'm honored and, frankly, humbled to recognize my good friend, Dub McCarty. On behalf of all the constituents of the Fifth District of Texas, and a grateful Nation, I would like to extend our heartfelt condolences and prayers to JoAnn and the family. Dub will be greatly missed, but I take solace in knowing that his contributions will live on, and that the people who had their lives touched by Dub McCarty will never forget. Madam Speaker, I am one of those people. Godspeed to Dub McCarty. He has left us, but he has gone on to now hear those words in a different place, ``Well done, good and faithful servant.''