Marcy Kaptur

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, today the majority of Republicans in this House voted against extending unemployment benefits. Every single Democrat voted to extend unemployment benefits. Let me say that again. Today the majority of Republicans in this House, which is supposed to be the people's House, voted against extending unemployment benefits. Every single Democrat voted to extend unemployment benefits. How hopelessly out of touch with reality these House Republicans and their majority leader, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) are. Have they not noticed the jobless recovery? The gentleman from Texas (Mr. DeLay) said he would not support extending unemployment benefits. Let me remind him, unemployment benefits are earned benefits. Every day our office gets phone calls from constituents asking whether Congress will extend their unemployment benefits, earned benefits. We are getting so many calls because hundreds of thousands of Americans have exhausted their unemployment benefits and they have not been able to find new jobs. In our community Sunoco advertised for 10 jobs, and over 2,000 people applied. This week in my district another company is shutting down, Georgia Pacific, Dixie Cups, over 207 more jobs gone. The good jobs just are not coming on line. The President says, bring it on. Well, I say, bring on the jobs. Where are they? So through no fault of their own, 9.1 million Americans are out of work. And with each passing month more and more of these unemployed Americans take a step closer to the brink as they find themselves not only out of work but also out of unemployment benefits which they have earned. No pay check coming in, bills to pay, no new jobs on the horizon, trying to hang on, and now no unemployment check. That is due to a Republican Congress that does not care. Mr. Speaker, we all heard President Bush back when he was running as a moderate talking about compassionate conservative. Mr. Speaker, where is the compassion? People are getting desperate, but the Republicans in Congress are turning a deaf ear to their cries. Look what the Republican leadership did here today, voting no, the majority of Republicans voting no to extend unemployment benefits. House Republican leaders said here tonight, there is no problem with no jobs. Just go out and try to find some. That is right. The Republican line is that the economy is back and there is no reason to pass unemployment benefits. They are so hopelessly out of touch. George W. Bush is the first President since Herbert Hoover who has lost more jobs than he has created. Where is the compassion for the 395,000 workers who exhausted their regular unemployment benefits on December 22, just before Christmas? Or what about the 400,000 workers who exhausted their benefits last month, the largest number of workers ever to exhaust unemployment benefits this past January? The pain inflicted by the Bush administration's economic policies has spread from coast to coast. Hardest hit is North Carolina. More unemployed workers are expected to exhaust their jobless benefits than any other State, over 61,000 workers. In nine States, the number of unemployed workers who will exhaust their regular benefits will set a new record. North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Indiana, South Carolina, Idaho, Vermont, Arkansas, where is the compassion for people in these States? In 10 other States, the number of unemployed workers who will exhaust their regular benefits by summer will be the second highest on record: California; New York; Texas, where the majority leader is from; Ohio; Illinois; New Jersey; Wisconsin; Connecticut; Arizona; Nevada. More than half the unemployed workers cut back on spending for food and more than half postponed medical or dental appointments. Without unemployment benefits, almost half the long-term unemployed workers would be in poverty. With unemployment benefits, only 19 percent would fall into poverty. Why is there not a resounding number of Republican Members who see extending unemployment benefits, which are earned benefits, as a matter of compassion? They are so hopelessly out of touch. I hope that the American people will write the Members of the other body, the Senators, and tell them to pass an extension of unemployment benefits. That is our hope now that the majority of Democrats in this House have sent that bill for their approval.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, the holiday season 2003 marks the passing of a loved and beloved member of our community of Toledo, Ohio. Rose Kennedy, a mother for our community and a pioneering activist of her North Toledo neighborhood, passed from this life on December 26, 2003 at age 76. I came to know Rose and her husband Bob nearly three decades ago as she vigorously pursued improvements in her neighborhood, Toledo's oldest. Small in stature, unassuming by nature, she worked on larger- than-life projects side-by-side with community leaders on the revitalization of the heart of our city, starting in North Toledo with beautification initiatives. Most notably, North Toledo's signature effort, the Buckeye Basin Greenbelt Parkway, has Rose's imprimatur. Without Rose Kennedy's personal tireless efforts, this major parkway construction which diverted traffic from North Toledo streets and upgraded the entire region with a linear greenbelt in the heart of our city would not have been realized. She pursued this goal for nearly a quarter century, and proudly stood by as the dream was finally brought to fruition and ribbons cut. In addition to her community activism, Rose Kennedy, together with her husband Robert, brought a sense of family to eighteen children: four adopted and fourteen fostered. She explained, ``These kids needed love and that was about all we had to give them.'' The oldest of six children, Rosalie Kennedy spent her entire life in her North Toledo neighborhood. After marriage, she and her husband were involved in veterans' organizations-heading up the Toledo chapter of the DAV in the 1950's--in addition to neighborhood groups. She worked with the Northriver Development Corporation and the Economic Opportunity and Planning Association. Civic-minded as well, Rose served for many years as her precinct's Democratic committeewoman. Rounding out her community and civic responsibilities, she also served her faith as Secretary to her church, Salem Lutheran Church. In spite of her family and community demands, Rose found time to enjoy her hobbies of crochet and crossword puzzles and reading. She was an ordinary woman who accomplished extraordinary feats. To her husband, children, grandchildren and greatgrandchildren, we extend our heartfelt sympathy. Rose Kennedy lived life large, and her actions left a lasting legacy. We will miss her earnest resolve, her unrelenting dedication, and the loving gift she gave of herself.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, as the prior speakers were dealing with the foreign wars in which the United States is engaged, here at home the Bush administration has built an economy teetering on a house of cards, or should I say an exploding house of debt. There is more economic anxiety in our country than at any time that I can remember since the Reagan recession of 1982. President Bush is trying to act as if nothing is wrong, but people know better. They know something is wrong, something deeply wrong with America's economy here at home. They know that jobs are going overseas by the thousands, and they do not know how much worse things are going to get before they get better, or if they are ever going to get better. More and more people are wondering whether our jobs are ever going to come back. In my district, almost every week brings the news of another plant closing. This week it is Georgia Pacific, maker of Dixie Cups, leaving Sandusky, Ohio, and 206 long-time workers terminated. Hundreds and hundreds of family-owned tool and die and machine tool businesses in Ohio and the Midwest have fallen victims of unregulated competition from China. The manufacturing sector in the Nation's heartland is in the intensive care unit, and President Bush is offering Band-aids. He was in Ohio last week, he came to us empty-handed, but then he went around the country and raised millions more for his campaign coffers. In his State of the Union address delivered here, he did not even propose extending unemployment benefits for those workers who have lost their jobs. There is great economic anxiety in our land because workers do not know how much longer they can hold on to their health benefits. There is great economic anxiety in our land because people see Congress and the President giving $87 billion to Iraq and the President's corporate cronies, but leaving 43 million Americans without health care coverage. There is great economic anxiety because the average American family lives by a rule that Washington breaks every day. It is called the rule of balancing your checkbook. If a family bounces a check, their bank hits them with a fee for insufficient funds. But apparently that does not apply to President George Bush and his Republican Party. They have proposed the biggest budget deficits in history and call it economic progress. President Bush has proposed a back-breaking $521 billion budget deficit for this year. And when we add in the Social Security funds that they are borrowing, it is actually $709 billion. Next year, his deficit is proposed at $364 billion, but it is actually $607 billion if he does not raid the Social Security fund. And if he is as wrong this time as he has been in his fiscal projections in the first 3 years, the budget deficit for fiscal year 2005 will hit over $734 billion. That is the highest deficit in history, and that does not even count the additional funds that they are going to add for the war in Afghanistan. We seem to have a President who talks a lot about national security, but has forgotten about economic security. I can remember, coming from our family, what happened back in the 1920s and 1930s when Washington spent with abandon. We know that Wall Street likes debt, but they like it too much, and they deal in paper wealth, not real wealth. And when our predecessors during the 1920s and 1930s forgot the difference between real wealth and paper, and spent with abandon, they literally brought down America's families and financial system right around them. The dollar lost its value, and we face that precipice again. The Great Depression of the 1930s was the largest economic disaster our Nation ever experienced. Our family, like everyone else in the Nation, felt the impact of wild behavior on Wall Street and reckless government in Washington. Our family lost all their meager savings, and I am sure that the irresponsible people who have raided our people's 401(k) plans have done the same thing in this modern day. Just ask the former employees of Enron. And I do not mean George Bush's close personal friend, Kenneth Lay. I mean the people who lost everything when the Lay scam was exposed. A look at the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, the largest hole in history. It is supposed to ensure our workers' pension benefits in private companies. It is over $11 billion in deficit. The President says it is not a crisis. It surely is a crisis when the largest instrumentality that we have to back up our workers' retiree benefits does not have the insurance to do it. He best pay attention. Mr. Speaker, the economic anxiety that is gripping America tonight is real. We are losing jobs to unfair trade agreements. The President wants to expand NAFTA. Workers are running out of unemployment benefits. The President says there is no crisis and, therefore, no need for extended unemployment benefits. Retirees are losing their pensions, and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation is losing money hand over fist. The President says there is no crisis, but indeed the system is at risk. Mr. Speaker, in closing, let me say to the American people the way to change our Nation for the better is for people to register to vote from coast to coast. If we can change the captain of our floundering Ship of State, we can put firm new leadership at the helm and begin moving again toward a better tomorrow for all.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. I am pleased to be the sponsor of H. Res. 58, a resolution recognizing the accomplishments of Ignacy Jan Paderewski as a musician, composer, statesman, and philanthropist and recognizing the 11th Anniversary of the return of his remains to Poland. I have been joined by thirty-six of my colleagues, including: Representatives Ackerman, Baldwin, Bell, Berkley, Berman, Berry, Blumenauer, Brady, Brown, Burton, Cardin, Crowley, Dingell, Emanuel, Engel, Fattah, Frank, Goode, Gutierrez, Hoeffel, Holt, Kanjorski, Kildee, Kleczka, Kucinich, Lantos, Lee, Lipinski, Lofgren, McDermott, Menendez, Price, Quinn, C. Smith, Thompson, and Watson. On June 12, 2003, the House Committee on International Relations unanimously voted in favor of H. Res. 58. I urge the House of Representatives to consider this important piece of legislation honoring Mr. Paderewski, Polish-Americans and the Polish people. H. Res. 58 Whereas Ignacy Jan Paderewski, born in Poland in 1860, was a brilliant and popular pianist who performed hundreds of concerts in Europe and the United States during the late 19th and early 20th centuries; Whereas Paderewski often donated the proceeds of his concerts to charitable causes; Whereas, during World War I, Paderewski worked for the independence of Poland and served as the first Premier of Poland; Whereas in December 1919, Paderewski resigned as Premier of Poland, and in 1921 he left politics to return to his music; Whereas the German invasion of Poland in 1939 spurred Paderewski to return to political life; Whereas Paderewski fought against the Nazi dictatorship in World War II by joining the exiled Polish Government to mobilize the Polish forces and to urge the United States to join the Allied Forces; Whereas Paderewski died in exile in America on June 29, 1941, while war and occupation imperiled all of Europe; Whereas by the direction of United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Paderewski's remains were placed along side America's honored dead in Arlington National Cemetery, where President Roosevelt said, ``He may lie there until Poland is free.''; Whereas in 1963, United States President John F. Kennedy honored Paderewski by placing a plaque marking Paderewski's remains at the Mast of the Maine at Arlington National Cemetery; Whereas in 1992, United States President George H.W. Bush, at the request of Lech Walesa, the first democratically elected President of Poland following World War II, ordered Paderewski's remains returned to his native Poland; Whereas on June 26, 1992, the remains of Paderewski were removed from the Mast of the Maine at Arlington National Cemetery, and were returned to Poland on June 29, 1992; ``Whereas on July 5, 1992, Paderewski's remains were interred in a crypt at the St. John Cathedral in Warsaw, Poland; and Whereas Paderewski wished his heart to be forever enshrined in America, where his lifelong struggle for democracy and freedom had its roots and was cultivated, and now his heart remains at the Shrine of the Czestochowa in Doylestown, Pennsylvania: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives-- (1) recognizes the accomplishments of Ignacy Jan Paderewski as a musician, composer, statesman, and philanthropist; and (2) acknowledges the invaluable efforts of Ignacy Jan Paderewski in forging close Polish-American ties, on the 11th Anniversary of the return of Paderewski's remains to Poland.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, tonight while Americans are watching the New Hampshire primary in anticipation of new leadership for our Nation, they are watching and waiting for the new budget proposals from President Bush. President Bush came to our Toledo community last week, the day after he delivered the State of the Union address right here in this Chamber. He ran into a hornet's nest. The community college where he spoke had just announced layoffs in the workforce training field the President was there to highlight. The unemployment in Toledo had just increased to 8.4 percent. Our part of the country has been hit extremely hard by the jobless recovery. We have more than 300,000 unemployed workers in the State of Ohio, and that, of course, does not even count the workers who have given up looking. The family-owned tool and die shops that dot the landscape of the Great Lakes region are dying. I received an e-mail last week from one of these small business owners telling me about the devastation in the tool and die sector. ``I have something that most of you should be concerned about in Congress. I just counted the auction brochures I have collected since February 1, 2002, until January 22, 2004. Would you believe 629 auctions?'' And those are just the ones this businessman received. He says, ``Our President thinks that everything is great and our economy is bouncing back and we will all be in the bucks this year. I have received a report that estimates 50 percent of the shops in the Detroit area will fold by the end of 2004. So how do you get this message up to Washington? I guess we need to fire up the voters and clean house this fall. Have a good day. Larry.'' In his State of the Union address, President Bush failed to mention extending unemployment benefits. This is a huge issue in our part of the country. People have paid for those benefits and they do not understand why the Republicans would refuse to extend unemployment benefits. They certainly do not understand why the Republicans refuse to allow even a vote on extending unemployment benefits. In the short term, unemployment benefits are highly stimulative for our local economy. They prevent a cratering of consumer demand, and we all know that the consumer is propping up this weak U.S. economy. In the long term, a countercyclical program for public works jobs could help a lot. Investing in our communities and putting people to work so that our deficit starts to come down makes sense. Just replacing one city's, Toledo's, wastewater treatment system, the bill for that $400 million. Indeed, that is double the $250 million the President said he wants to spend nationwide on new job training programs. Investment in public works can put people to work. Frankly, we have people out of work now who already have the skills needed to assume a job. They just do not have the jobs. I just visited Sunoco Refining in my district. They had advertised for 10 people in that company; 2,400 people applied. That is a staggering indicator of how many people are looking for work in just one place in America. A news article in the Grand Rapids, Michigan, paper just north of where we live announced the closure of Electrolux, a household name in this country. They make vacuum cleaners; 2,700 workers will be terminated. Their jobs are leaving for Mexico. What kind of strange world is it when an American legend company like Electrolux that made vacuums that are bought by our own citizens, but then those jobs move to Mexico and made there by workers who make a dollar an hour but cannot afford to buy the vacuum cleaners because they are all shipped back here to the United States, what kind of sense does that make? We have seen this system time and again. The people in Mexico who have the jobs that the people in Ohio used to do do not make enough money to buy the very products they make. Americans lose their jobs to Mexico, and they have to shop more at discount stores such as Wal-Mart that are filled with goods made by people who had the jobs that the shoppers used to have. It is really interesting. We are outsourcing that production. So the question is, are we going to be a Nation of workers, builders and producers, or are we going to be a Nation of discount shoppers looking for that last bargain while wondering how to survive without a decent wage and without health care coverage? That is really the choice of this year's Presidential race. Mr. Speaker, I am surely glad this is an election year. It is time for America's voters to really ring in a hopeful and really productive new year for our country. The article I referred to earlier I will include at this point in this Record. [From the Grand Rapids Press, Jan. 17, 2004] Whatever It Takes--City Is Down But Not Out Over Electrolux (By John Hogan, Matt VandeBunte and Julia Bauer) The thermometer outside Greenville's Chemical Bank registered a bone-rattling 2 degrees at daybreak Friday, although morning commuters didn't need a sign to tell them of the chill. Three miles away, pickups with cold, anxious Electrolux workers idled in snow-covered parking lots. Even though these third-shift workers punched out at 7 a.m., they waited 30 minutes to learn whether their jobs were heading 1,400 miles south, where it was a relatively balmy 51 degrees. Electrolux worker Jerry Cannon was not one of them. The longtime Greenville resident decided he would rather sip coffee at Mike Huckleberry's restaurant a mile away. ``It's kind of hard to make yourself go to work when you know what's coming,'' said Cannon, a welder trying to raise four teenagers on $15.61 an hour. ``I think Electroux knew Oct. 21 what they were going to do. I wish they would just have told us.'' Indeed, Friday's ``official'' 7:30 a.m. announcement by Swedish-based Electroux that it will close Montcalm County's largest employer in 2005 was anticlimactic. Townspeople and employees saw the handwriting on the wall-- notably the corporate statement one week before that a city/ state incentive package fell far short of an $81 million annual goal, the amount Electrolux said it would save by moving. Some Electrolux workers will return to school; others hope the improving economy brings jobs. Their message? Don't cry for Greenville. This town of 8,000 thrived on timber well before refrigerators came along, they say, and it will thrive long after refrigerator production moves to South Carolina and Mexico. Bold? Perhaps. Mike Huckleberry calls it a homegrown confidence that Swedish executives, NAFTA and milquetoast politician's cannot derail. I'm confident, and my fellow businessmen are all confident Greenville will survive,'' said Huckleberry, who opened his downtown restaurant 12 years ago. Once you work through feelings of betrayal, or ``pure corporate greed,'' as some workers suggest, there's confidence. It is expressed in American flags, warm greetings and handshakes in a town founded 160 years ago when New Yorkers John and Deborah Green opened a sawmill on the Flat River. If you have any doubts, stand under the Chemical Bank sign on the south side of M-57 west of downtown, and note the stream of taillights heading to jobs in Grand Rapids. ``We're getting people willing to drive to Grand Rapids because it's only 30 miles away and they still get the benefits of small-town living,'' Huckleberry said. Greenville Mayor Lloyd Walker agrees. ``Greenville is not going away,'' he said. ``We're king of the trading center for a larger area of up to 100,000 people.'' Although Electrolux rejected annual incentives of $48 million--saying they were nearly $33 million short--Walker is confident the same package can draw interest from other U.S. manufacturers. ``The incentive package will be in place,'' Walker said. number crunching Until a week ago, the Electrolux Task Force thought it had gathered nearly $7 million in annual tax incentives and $30 million in cost savings from a proposed new factory. Union leaders proposed another $31.6 million in concessions, or about $13,000 for every worker. The package from UAW Local 137 required membership approval, which was far from guaranteed. Final tally: $68.6 million, just $12.4 million short. Or so they thought. But Electrolux whacked $20 million off the estimate for newplant savings, casting the total package into a $32 million hole. Filling it would have cost more than $27,000 a year per worker. At $15 an hour, most workers earn just over $31,000, plus about $12,000 in benefits. ``Overall, our analysis of the proposed new factory would save less money annually than was anticipated in the estimate,'' Electrolux spokesman Tony Evans said. ``Also, it would cost for more to construct and operate than was anticipated.'' Huckleberry, 55, a Greenville Chamber of Commerce board member, says he believes all the work that went into the incentive package still can bear fruit. Other manufacturers have already made queries about future uses for the plant covering three city blocks on the west side of North Irving Street. There is still caution, certainly. In addition to the 2,700 workers who lose their jobs, more than 800 others work for area companies that send refrigerator parts to Electrolux. Among the largest is Clarion Technologies, which makes vegetable crispers. ``It's not just suppliers, it's 2,700 people who aren't coming in to have coffee,'' retiree Donovan Harms said over a cup at Middlebroook's Bakery and Coffee Shop in downtown Greenville. ``It's going to put a real bummer on this town. We'll survive, but the town certainly won't be the same as it is now. moving on Area churches are mobilizing to offer counseling for Electrolux employees, and are planning a community worship service. ``We are going to do whatever it takes to heal and move on,'' said the Rev. Jerry Jones, pastor at First Congregational Church of Greenville. Apathy, not Electrolux, is the biggest enemy, he said. The community must pull together ``with a message of hope.'' As if to convince himself things will be all right, Huckleberry embraced two customers--both Electrolux workers-- as they left his restaurant mid-morning Friday. ``We'll make it. You guys will be OK,'' he said. Many of the workers, some 60 percent who live in Montcalm County, feel the same way. ``We all built this place; my dad started here in 1966,'' said 47-year-old John Baker, who today marks his 26th year with Electrolux. He married in November and a year ago bought a home in Lakeview, about 25 miles away. ``It's going to be hard for a guy like me to find a job,'' Baker said. ``I've thought about going back to school. Hopefully it'll work out.'' ``I've been getting ready for this day,'' said 43-year-old Gordy Heminger of Belding, who plans to go into house construction. ``A lot of the guys in the plant, even the older ones, are going back to school. What else can they do?'' Huckleberry is quick to point out the plant will be making refrigerators through 2005, plenty of time for the city and its workforce to make necessary adjustments. ``We've got an airport, an industrial park and homes are being built all over,'' he said. ``This isn't going to happen tomorrow. We've got two years to figure this out.'' True enough, agrees 39-year-old Shirlene Taylor, who stopped in with a friend Friday for scrambled eggs and toast. ``The people you work with are like family, but the big corporations don't care about that,'' said Taylor, who recently lost her job at Attwood Corp. in Lowell, a former subsidiary of Steelcase. ``We'll make it. Greenville is still a wonderful town.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, last evening the President of our country addressed us here in the House Chamber, and it is always a great historic moment when that happens. But subsequent to his address, he left on Air Force One this morning for our home district and landed there at taxpayer expense in Air Force One, 6 weeks before the Ohio primary. With his campaign coffers loaded, I am a bit surprised that he did not use campaign funds for his visit today. He moved from the Toledo Express Airport to Owens Community College in order to talk about worker training or job training, which is one of the topics that the President addressed in his address last night. And one of the questions I would ask the President is his administration has cut job- training funds over the last 3 years and though Ohioans welcome any job-training funds this administration finally sees the light of day to produce, I am wondering if the President could not also concentrate on job creation so that jobs are there for workers who receive the training. It was somewhat ironic that in this morning's Toledo Blade, the major daily in the region, it was pointed out that though the President is talking about job training at Owens College, the headline reads ``Owens lays off training employees before Bush's visit,'' and one of the several workers who has been handling workforce development at Owens College says she has worked there for 7 years and has been given a pink slip and is this not ironic. Another worker says, ``I've been informed that my position has been eliminated.'' She had been employed at the college for 25 years and started there as a student in 1978. She said, ``I'm 5 years from retirement. I really had thought after all this time I'd finish my career at the college and I'd still be a benefit'' to the college. ``It's just really hard for me to believe.'' The other names of those who have been pink-slipped at Owens College I will place in the Congressional Record. This morning, as the President spoke, in his remarks he talked about job training. And Terry Thomas, the executive director of the Ohio Association of Community Colleges, which represents Owens College along with 23 other technical and community colleges in the State, added that there has been little funding for workforce development in Ohio; so any money from the government would help. I would also like to place in the Record that the Bush administration and the Taft administration, both Republican administrations, have had a devastating impact on the State of Ohio where we have had now over 300,000 people out of work and 167,000 manufacturing jobs just in the last 3 years disappear from our State; and while all this is happening, hundreds of millions of dollars that I have voted for here in Congress have not been used by the State of Ohio. Indeed, there is over $242 million still available for job training and workforce development on deposit here with the Federal Government under programs that have been severely cut back by this administration, and the State of Ohio is not spending those dollars. There are severe problems in Ohio, and it is one of the reasons that Owens College cannot do as good a job as it might do simply because of poor performance by our State government as well as cutbacks in these workforce development programs here at the Federal level. Mr. Speaker, the Bush administration nationwide has the worst record of job creation since Herbert Hoover, since the Great Depression. Over 2,700,000 Americans are without work today. The President did not even use the words ``extending unemployment benefits'' in his remarks last night. What a tragedy. Few States have been more severely impacted by the failed Bush administration policies than our State of Ohio. So it is an honor for us to receive a President of the United States, but, really, he should be coming to help us. He should be coming to release the dollars that I had voted for here at the Federal level, and, most of all, helping us with job creation. He is landing in a major corn producing State in Ohio. He could be helping us with transitioning America to fuel independence. Our farmers want to build ethanol plants and biodiesel plants in order to help this Nation break its dangerous addiction on foreign petroleum. Why does he not help us? When over 60 percent of the petroleum that fires this economy is imported from some of the most dangerous places in the world, we need his help. Our State has been devastated by Republican economic policies at the national level and at the State level. Community after community has seen its jobs destroyed. The soaring Federal budget deficit and unemployment ranks deserve the President's attention. I am just so sorry he could not help us with job creation and workforce development when he visited our district today. [From the Toledo Blade, Jan. 21, 2004] Owens Lays Off Training Employees Before Bush's Visit (By Ryan E. Smith) Just days before President Bush's visit today to Owens Community College to tout job training programs at such two- year schools, at least six Owens employees who handle work- force development have been given pink slips, The Blade has learned. The timing of the news, so near the presidential visit and expected speech about proposed federally funded job training grants for community colleges, was not lost on Kathy Munger. Ms. Munger, who has worked at Owens for seven years, is one of those given a pink slip. ``It's very ironic,'' she said. Although some of those who received the two-week notices on Friday may be able to relocate in other departments, Ms. Munger, a training coordinator, and three other employees interviewed by The Blade said they will no longer have jobs. ``I've been informed that my position has been eliminated,'' said Pam Pullella, director of special projects who has been employed at the college for 25 years and started there as a student in 1978. ``I'm five years from retirement,'' she said, ``I really had thought that after all this time I'd finish my career at the college, and I'd still be a benefit. It's just really hard for me to believe.'' Others with the college's Center for Development and Training who confirmed to The Blade that they have received pink slips were Dr. Joseph Conrad, director of health and wellness; Jim Kronberg, director of spatial projects; Donna Brecht, records specialist, and Veronica Rice, records specialist. All work on the Perrysburg Township campus except for Mrs. Brecht and Ms. Rice, who are part of the college's Findlay operation. Owens President Christa Adams called the personnel action a ``realignment,'' but could not say last night whether any of the movement would result in layoffs. She and other officials were busy preparing for the President's visit and could not be reached for further comment. Earlier in the day, Owens officials refused to discuss any of its work-force programs with The Blade. The affected employees who spoke with The Blade said they believe the cuts at the Center for Development and Training are not the only ones to occur at the college. They said they were given no reason other than restructuring. Dr. Conrad, who has been at the college for almost eight years, said he worries about whether the programs will be able to function adequately with the reduction in personnel. ``It has to be detrimental,'' he said. ``We don't have the manpower to continue the level of service to the community.'' Mrs. Brecht, 40, who said she helps put together classes and make sure there are enough instructors, indicated the move will leave Findlay's Center for Development and Training with only half its manpower. She said she will not be bumped to a new position because she is the ``low man on the totem pole.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, this evening the President will address this Congress and America. Tomorrow morning he will travel to northwest Ohio, the region in which I reside and represent. Ohio's snow-covered fields and towns this time of year give a placid impression, but they mask the fire that is burning inside the homes that dot the real Ohio that the President will not visit. It really is too bad. Air Force One will pass over most of us in northern Ohio on Wednesday morning, tomorrow. Sealed off from the general public in a tight security bubble, the President will land at an airfield and travel by interstate as highway patrol and sheriff's deputies close overpasses and hold people back in half-mile cordons. The President will not see them. The dutiful national press corps, with credentials issued by the White House, will be subjected to a similar fate, never meeting the folks who really live there. The motorcade will lock in its guests, ushering them to Owens College, where tuition has just been hiked by 9 percent. An invitation-only audience will await. The White House is staging photo ops and messages less than 6 weeks before Ohio's primary on March 2. But taxpayers and not the President's brimming campaign coffers are paying for Air Force One on this visit to the heartland in Ohio. So let this message go forth. The President has the worst jobs record since the Great Depression and Herbert Hoover: 2.7 million Americans are jobless. In December, only 1,000 new net jobs were created nationwide. 300,000 Ohioans are out of work. Their unemployment benefits and health insurance are evaporating. College tuition across our State is skyrocketing. The average graduate ends up a debtor with $17,000 in debt as they begin their careers. 1,300,000 Ohioans have lost their health insurance, nearly 80,000 more than when this President assumed office. Since 2001, another 167,000 of Ohio's manufacturing jobs have disappeared. High tech, ballyhooed to have been our salvation, has been on a precipitous decline with hardware and software jobs being outsourced to India and China. America and Ohio are being emptied of our wealth-producing jobs. Our trade deficit is at record levels. In 2003, imports exceeded exports by $484 billion. NAFTA has hurt us deeply. These are not just numbers. These are people. Each billion dollars in trade deficit costs us 20,000 jobs. Hoover in Canton is gone, as is Dixon Ticonderoga in Sandusky and Acuity Lighting in Vermillion which is closing; Campbell Soup in Sidney; GE in Bucyrus; Goodyear Tire in Greenville; Honeywell in Elyria; International Paper in Cincinnati; Lucent Technology in Columbus; Mr. Coffee in Glenwillow; Philips Electronics in Ottawa; and now Electrolux just across the border in Michigan. When the President visited our region on September 6, 2001, I respectfully handed him a letter on Air Force One inviting him and President Fox to travel with me to meet the thousands of workers in Ohio who were losing their jobs to NAFTA and their Mexican counterparts who are also sliding backwards. He never bothered to answer. I mentioned this to him at the White House Christmas party that year and asked him about a reply. He winked and joked, and this is a quote: ``The letter must have gotten lost in the shuffle.'' He did not ask for another. Is it any wonder the heartland fires are burning? The trade deficit is not mashed potatoes. Jobs lost to Mexico, China and India drag down our Nation's economic growth by nearly a third and every year of the Bush presidency it has worsened. The President will speak in Wood County, Ohio's largest corn-producing county, and my hope is he will urge new ethanol and biodiesel production to offset rising petroleum imports from foreign countries. They equal 60 percent of what our Nation consumes, the highest ever. As gas prices in northwest Ohio just topped $1.65 per gallon and the per barrel cost of oil now at over $35 per barrel, do we not want America to transition to energy independence? Since 50 cents of every farm dollar earned today is Federal subsidy, what a gigantic job- creating gift the President could give to Ohio and to America by helping launch us on energy independence. Mr. Speaker, when the fires burn in the heartland, we know America will feel the heat. Since 50 cents of every farm dollar earned today is federal subsidy, let's put it to work to remedy the nation's chief strategic vulnerability--reliance on imported crude, a key component of our trade deficit. Promoting bio-fuel independence would create vast numbers of new jobs here at home, far more than Mars exploration or the billions being spent for Iraq rebuilding. Ohio is plagued by deficits due to the poor economy. Declining revenues have used the state to raise taxes--fuel taxes, sales taxes, cigarette taxes, property taxes. Whatever federal tax relief the Bush Administration might have envisioned has been eaten up by rising state taxes. Even with Mrs. Bush's Reading campaign, our local libraries suffered state cutbacks, had to close down services, and were forced to seek a local levy to sustain normal hours. The public sector isn't the only pressure point either. Ohio bankruptcies broke a record with over 10,500 last year, and the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp just announced a troubling $11.2 billion deficit threatening the solvency of our nation's private retirement plans. This is serious indeed. Each year of the Bush Presidency, his budgets have ballooned the federal deficit. 2003 goes down as the worst red ink in history! The bipartisan Concord Coalition calls the Bush budgets the ``most irresponsible'' ever. Our national debt has now broken $7 trillion, and we are adding $2.03 billion to the debt each day. This poor management threatens the long-term solvency of Social Security and Medicare. The International Monetary Fund has warned that these net financial obligations, heavily floated through borrowing from foreign countries, pose ``significant risk for the U.S. and the world.'' The U.S. economy as a whole will end up paying 40 percent of its total earnings in a few years, to pay interest on this ``unprecedented level of external debt for a large industrial country.'' It doesn't have to be this way. For 8 years, Congress and President Bill Clinton labored to balance annual budgets, on a track to pay down the long-term debt. Now the President will come to Northern Ohio to talk about jobs and a $120 million national new job training initiative. Ironic since Ohio, due to abysmal Republican management in Columbus, still has failed to obligate $242 million in job training and transition funds for which I have voted, the second-most of any state in the nation. Ohio is under watch and being fined for poor performance in federal job training efforts. These dollars were meant to help unemployed workers gain a foothold in this economy. I hope that during his visit, this President will join me in my efforts to recapture these funds for Ohio's workers despite an inept State government. Ohio's workers could use his help. In Ohio, we are grateful to be a battleground state in Election 2004. Ohioans seek good jobs with good wages; health and retirement benefits that can't be taken away; affordable education for youth; and prescription drugs under Medicare for seniors. We seek respect for veterans, in theatre and afterwards fiscal responsibility and energy independence. Every citizen must ask the question in this Presidential election year: Am I, and America, better off now than we were four years ago? When the fires burn in the heartland, we know America will feel the heat.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I am deeply, privileged today to extend on behalf of the Kaptur and Rogowski families and my brother Steve and myself sincerest appreciation to each of you for offering your support, comfort, and love to Hank's beautiful wife of 50 years, Jackie, and the entire Kalinski family; Linda and Bob, Diane and Jim, Debbie and Jeff; to Hank's sisters Vergie, Sophie, Esther and in memoriam of Angie, Jean and his brother Edward; to his treasured gandchilden, Brian, Heather, Matthew, Kevin, Eric, Shawn, Stacey, and in memory of Jason; and to his four great grandchildren, Tyler, Justin, Connor and Alexis; and his nieces and nephews. We join together today to pay tribute, in sorrow, but also in celebration, of the life of a patriarch, the father of his family, of a truly good man from a working class family, who loved life. What a lasting gift Hank is to each of us--a happy man. He is smiling on us now, for surely he knew we would be here together with Jackie, at this family gathering. He enjoyed being with family more than anything else in the world. He is experiencing a peace now that the world could not give. Hank remains with us now in a spiritual way. Hank had more than a smile. He had a grin. We all loved to laugh with Hank. That wonderful laugh that came from deep within--not too loud, but genuine. You knew he wouldn't want anyone to be sad, but to be gratified he lived the life he wished to live for most of his years. And Jackie, you and your family bestowed on him the greatest gift of his life--your unconditional and constant love. As he was asked to bear this enormous cross of affliction for so many years, you walked at his side. He did so with a rare dignity born of uncommon strength and raw courage. He would want us to cheer his decade long marathon and his family's deep devotion. His suffering became a prayer for all of us and our poor world. Every person who witnessed this great ``Kalinski prayer of devotion'' was changed by its power. Who can ever forget the nurses and doctors who would be overcome by Hank's grin and laughter, even under the most difficult circumstances. The glint in Hank's eyes had no equal. Now, can you imagine he was the father of three daughters, and the brother of five sisters. But, he was a man's man, a husband to an exceptional wife, a true friend to his sons-in-law, a man who knew how to stand by his loved ones, a builder, a veteran. He was always there, sometimes not uttering a word. He was a Gary Cooper type of character, a quiet strength. He didn't have to show it off. Happy. Kind. Generous. Funny. Hardworking. Wise. A family man who took unending delight in his grandchildren and great-grandchildren crawling at his feet or sitting on his lap. You never heard him utter an unkind word. So many precious memories: Christmas, Easter, birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, parties and more parties. perch fishing, darts, his gardens, homemade gifts like the wooden horses that held address plates for our homes, Pearl and Wersell streets, his dog Puck. I can recall how he went out of his way for each of us. He would make such an effort to meet me along the Lagrange Street Parade route, year after year. Always there. If Hollywood were to cast a true husband and father, brother and friend, they would cast Hank in the leading role. You still will find him with you--in unexpected moments. You will know he is there, and everything will be all right. I once asked a holy woman why God gave such trials to people who are so good. ``To make us strong,'' she said. Hank taught us love, joy, and perseverance. He has been a man for others, who showed us how to love life. May God carry his soul gently in his passage to peace. We know God joins with us today as we pray, ``Sleep well my good and faithful servant.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time. I also want to express my deep appreciation from the Democratic side of the aisle for the over two decades of professional and honest service that Hank Moore has devoted to the people of this country. I thank him for his professionalism and courtesy throughout, and wish him well in the months and years ahead. The Committee on Appropriations will always be his home, and we hope he returns to see us. I also dedicate my remarks today to Mr. Joe Skeen, who passed this past weekend in New Mexico, and to his wife, Mary, and family. It was a joy to work with him. He was a man who did not lead by partisanship, but by a deep concern for our country. Our Nation and its people are better for the years he devoted here. His perseverance, honesty and intelligence have made their mark. He and his good sense of humor will never be forgotten. Mr. Speaker, as the ranking member of the subcommittee, I would like to discuss some issues regarding this conference report. In working with the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Bonilla), it was not easy to make some of the decisions we were faced with. But first and foremost, I would like to focus on the fact that so many of the decisions, unfortunately because of the time constraints, that relate to Agriculture and the Food & Drug Administration happened behind closed doors and without full sunlight. Therefore, it makes it very difficult to support this bill in its entirety. In terms of the funding levels, the Agriculture division of this bill is $62 million lower than both the House and Senate bills. It is almost $1 billion below last year's bill, a reduction of almost 5 percent, even though mandatory programs, which do not have the control of this committee exerted upon them, have increased by 12 percent. On conservation, such an important issue, as we increase in population and as resources become more dear, we find the conference report cuts $70 million more from Farm Bill conservation programs for a total reduction of over $490 million. Finally, I want to focus on rural housing, also reduced, and I am deeply concerned that our prescription drug title to permit the importation of prescription drugs that are safe into our country was also dropped, even though we asked that it be included, and the House so voted. I wanted to end by saying that behind closed doors, just a few weeks ago, the country of origin labeling provisions were eliminated from this bill, 2 years past their scheduled implementation date, not just for meat, but produce was added. I would like the American people to know, if we look at the over 600 people who just got sick in Pittsburgh at Chi-Chi's restaurants, one of the ways we get at that problem is by tough country of origin labeling on produce as well as on meat. Behind closed doors, our attempt to do that was absolutely subverted. It is with great disappointment that I come to the floor today and say this bill could have been a lot better than what is before Congress today.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to oppose this GOP drug company bonanza that is going to make affordable drug prices impossible for the majority of this Nation's seniors. What a shame.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, on October 19, 2003, Roman Catholics, humanitarians, and social justice advocates the world over celebrated the beatification of Mother Teresa of Calcutta by Pope John Paul II in Rome. Beatification is one of the steps toward sainthood in the Roman Catholic Church. It is impossible to encapsulate the life and work of Mother Teresa into one entry. Many know the basics of her story: born in Albania in 1910, she turned from a comfortable existence when she decided to become a Catholic nun in 1928. Assigned to a convent school in Calcutta, she taught geography and history. Feeling the need to serve God and her fellow human beings in another way, Mother Teresa founded a religious order, the Missionaries of Charity, in, 1948. The order was based on reaching out to the poor, the suffering, and the dying wherever they were: streets and alleys, shacks and hovels. From that first mission there are now more than 400. The work has expanded to hospices for AIDS patients so that these sufferers, along with the least among us, enjoy comfort and some measure of peace in their final days. Though 5,000 sisters are now members of the order, thousands more volunteer for periods of their lives in the Missionaries of Charity. So many of these are inspired by the diminutive foundress herself. ``My vocation is love'' she said. ``There is joy in transcending self to serve others.'' Celebrated throughout the world for her works, honored with many awards including 1979's Nobel Peace prize, Mother Teresa is already considered a saint by many of those whose lives she touched. No one who met her, who shook her strong hands, who looked at the deeply wrinkled face, who spoke to the dark eyes which penetrated into one's soul, who listened to the deep and powerful voice, came away from the encounter the same person. Even people who saw her only casually were moved by her graceful strength and quiet dignity. I am reminded of a leader in our own country recalling a story of a time on an airplane when people saw her and took out their checkbooks. She never said a word, simply her presence called them to help. In more dramatic ways, meetings with Mother Teresa changed the course of people's lives. Still, she eschewed such trappings of notoriety, gaining her greatest sustenance from her love of God and her work to alleviate the suffering in the world. More than anyone else in our time, Mother Teresa lived Christ's admonition ``Whatsoever you do to the least among you, that you do also to me.'' She ignored the accouterments of affluence by admonishing, ``God does not ask me to be successful, he only asks me to be faithful.'' She wrestled within herself and struggled through daily hardships, yet she somehow transcended the difficulties and was cherished as a living embodiment of God's love for every human being. I close this recognition of Mother Teresa's beautification with her own summation of her life's work: ``My community is the poor. Their security is my own. Their heart is my own. My house is the house of the poor--not just the poor, but the poorest of the poor: those who are so dirty and full of germs that no one goes near them; those who do not go to pray because they are naked; those who do not eat because they do not have the strength; those who collapse on the sidewalks knowing they are about to die while the living walk by without even looking back; those who do not cry because they have no more tears left.'' In one's own lifetime, rarely does a person observe a living saint. Mother Teresa will remain for all time such a living legend. May her selflessness inspire a world beleaguered by war, affluence, and ancient hatreds.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a truly remarkable man, The Honorable Joseph Flores of Toledo, Ohio. Recently retired from the Lucas County Juvenile Court, Judge Flores has graciously served our community for several decades. For many who came to this area, Joe Flores was the first person who greeted them and welcomed them to our community. Whether it was as attorney, mentor, or friend, he was dedicated to helping others recognize their potential. A proud Mexican American, Joe was born August 2, 1934 to Carmen Ventura and Jose Suarez Flores in Toledo. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1956 with a degree in Political Science. He entered into the United States Navy's Officers Candidate School and completed 52 months of active duty, ending in 1961, having attained the rank of Lieutenant Commander. While still in the Navy, Joe Flores met his wife, Mary Jane, a naval nurse, and the two were married in 1964. They are the parents of two children, Andre Jose and Maria Carmen. Returning from the Navy, Joe decided to attend law school. He graduated from Ohio Northern University in 1964 and practiced law in Findlay, Ohio for one year. Moving to Toledo in 1966, Joe practiced law with attorneys Charles Doneghy and Robert Penn. Interestingly, all three became judges. He decided to run for elected office because he enjoyed interacting with people when Judge Doneghy would ask him to help at various events. Joe Flores was elected Judge of the Lucas County Juvenile Court in 1981. ``At that time, few Latinos were part of the legal community. Becoming known as the Judge who could speak Spanish, he ended up being asked to do a variety of translations. Judge Flores is thought to be the first elected Latino Judge in Ohio. Carlos Cordova was an acting judge at the time, but was not elected to the post. Since then, Ohio has had two other Latino Judges, Jose Villanueva (Cuyahoga County Common Pleas) and Gustalo Nunez (Lorain Municipal Court.) Recognizing his contributions to the legal profession and the Hispanic community, the Latino Peace Officers Association created the Judge Joseph Flores Award in May 2003. The award will be given annually to a Latino Peace Officer who exhibits exemplary service to the community. The group decided to name the award after Flores due to his instrumental role in integrating the Toledo Police Department with more Latino Peace Officers. I am pleased to pay special tribute to my friend Judge Flores for his pioneering efforts on behalf of Latinos in Northwest Ohio. Understanding the importance of a representative voice in the local community, he was the first Latino on many boards as he stresses the importance of community involvement for Hispanics/Latinos. Judge Joseph Flores forged his career with courage and determination, despite facing many obstacles along the way. He blazed the trail where none existed, and his legacy continues to inspire new generations of Latino leaders. Onward!

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, teamsters Union Local Number 20 celebrates its 100-year anniversary in 2003. For a century, hardworking men and women have come together for the good of the many as they strove to bring their families a better life. Chartered in 1903, Local 20's first members were icehouse workers. Over the years, four Teamsters Locals came together to form the present-day Local 20, 7,200 members united. Teamsters Local 20 represents members in fifteen counties in Northwest Ohio, including not only truck drivers but nursing home workers, candy makers, and makers of fiberglass. Uniquely, in a truly representational form of operation, stewards from every shop the union represents form the Stewards Council, which sets the policy for the union. As noted in the union's history, much has changed in the hundred years since Teamsters Local 20 has been chartered: horses were driven rather than trucks, one of two children died in childhood, women were denied the right to vote, there were no child labor laws, no civil rights, no Social Security, no workers compensation, no unemployment compensation, no federal protection for working rights and unions, no workplace safety requirements, no overtime pay or minimum wage, no right to bargain collectively, and no forty hour work week. The history of our nation's social protection as these basic rights were guaranteed is the history of the Teamsters as well, for their struggles are intertwined with our nation's awakening to social justice. Without Teamster families, and the millions of others in the labor movement, we would yet be in those dark ages of the past. This 100th anniversary is a good time to remind all Americans that we would not enjoy the standard of living we enjoy now without the efforts of united labor. Daniel Webster said, ``Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable.'' Though he meant these words in another context, their meaning rings true for our own time. It is the union men and women who built this nation, who power it now, and whose prosperity must drive it forward. I am pleased to recognize the 100th anniversary of Teamsters Local 20, and pay special tribute to its members as we commemorate this milestone. Thank you for your contributions to the labor movement, to our communities, our nation, and our future.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, this year, the Oberlin, Ohio, Fire Department celebrates its 150th anniversary. Established in 1853, today the department boasts a staff of 30, state-of-the-art equipment, safety and educational programming, and professional recognition. The community has celebrated the sesquicentennial with a parade, summertime events, a traditional firefighter competition featuring an old- fashioned bucket brigade, hose race, and water ball contest, displays and an open house, and culminating in a special dinner this fall. The mission of the Oberlin Fire Department is ``To proudly protect lives and property by providing prompt, skillful, cost-effective protection and life safety services.'' It is routinely recognized for successfully meeting this mission with the prestigious yearly Life Safety Achievement Award. It serves the 10,000 people of Oberlin and New Russia Township in northeast Ohio with emergency responses, college fire safety courses, school and community educational services, and fire prevention efforts. For a century and a half, ordinary men and women have conducted themselves with extraordinary bravery as they skillfully guarded the safety of their fellow citizens in Oberlin. I am proud and humbled to represent these fine people, and join with the community in a resounding ``thank you!''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) for yielding me this time and compliment the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Hill) for bringing forward this resolution, along with the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Shays). All of us cared very deeply for our beloved colleague, Frank McCloskey. To his wife, Roberta, to his children, family and friends, to the citizens of Indiana, you sent America a beautiful man to serve here in this Congress. I can remember when Frank first arrived. We were both babies of the 1980s here. The economy was not so good. He being from the Hoosier State, and I from the neighboring Buckeye State, were fighting to try to restore some economic sanity to the country so people could have decent jobs at good wages and we could manage our accounts in a way that would be responsible for future generations. He was a part of that great struggle of the 1980s. I remember how in the 1990s after his trip to the Balkans, he would come up to us on the floor and say we cannot tolerate this genocide. I remember his very straight, erect figure becoming a bit bent as the weight of that affected him. I could see it in his face. The young Congressman who had come here was taking on a cause that was global in proportion. He truly made a difference. Millions and millions of children will grow up in a different and better world because of the life that he lived. He was beyond reproach in terms of his honor and his devotion to public service. He always had a good word for us. He was such a pleasant gentleman here. He added to the comity. Partisanship was not the main aspect that drove Frank. When we look up on the wall of Congress, there is a saying by Daniel Webster which talks about performing something in your time and generation worthy to be remembered. Surely, Congressman Frank McCloskey of Indiana fits that level of achievement as a Member of this precious body of the Congress of the United States, and we send deepest condolences to his family. He made a difference.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, tonight, several Members on the Republican side of the aisle gave 5-minute Special Orders on government waste, while today's New York Times talks about the war in Iraq and the difficulty that the Bush administration is facing in managing that war and in restoring Iraq's economy. Now, I do not think most Americans thought when we went into Iraq that we were supposed to restore the economy, but there has been a great deal of mission creep, obviously, and with no stability there and, with no security, investment does not happen. Of course, it is not a free-enterprise economy, and a lot of their former businesses and State-owned companies are in trouble. This particular article talks about a shoe company that would fashion leather and finish shoes. Thousands of people there are without work as a result of the war and the bad conditions. So the Bush administration is taking cash and paying over 2,000 workers in just that company; imagine how many companies there are in Iraq, just to kind of ``buy the peace'' so that there is not more unrest. Meanwhile, here in Congress, about a week ago, we tried to get a bill passed that would give $1,500 to each of our soldiers' families who are in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. Guess what? The very same Republican party that is handing out $100 bills in Iraq forced the defeat of that measure offered by the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Stupak) here in the House. Very interesting priorities, in my opinion, and absolutely wrong. Now, last Friday, President Bush came to Ohio, our State, and I thought he might be coming to stop the loss of jobs, because that particular day there had been an announcement of another 525 jobs, this time Federal jobs, that had to do with the Department of Defense that were being taken out of Cleveland, Ohio. The President did not say anything about those jobs when he came. He probably did not want to because his own Department of Defense made a big mistake. They took these Federal jobs that had been with the Defense Finance Accounting Service at the Department of Defense through the Cleveland office, and they decided they were going to move them to Texas. They said, we are going to contract these jobs out. Now, did they provide the workers in Cleveland with the same kind of money they are providing to the workers in Iraq? No. What they did was they moved the jobs to Dallas, Texas because they contracted out the jobs to a company, and I want to get the name of the private company correctly here; oh, Dallas-based Affiliated Computer Services. The President said he was going to save money by contracting out these Federal jobs. But do my colleagues know what? They made a big mistake, because the government workers actually saved the taxpayers $20 million. The subcontractors that the President hired in Texas and, gee, is that a coincidence, is going to cost the taxpayers of our country 20 million more dollars, not less dollars. It is funny that it was in Texas. While the President was in Ohio, while our jobs were leaving for Texas and costing the taxpayers of our country $20 million more, the President took down a cool $1.2 billion in Columbus, Ohio for his campaign. He bagged a cool million in Ohio, a little bit over $1 million. Then he went to Texas and took $1.4 million down there in a big fund-raiser. Very interesting. Now, he was in California, I think it was yesterday, and he stood in front of people's homes that have had their properties burned to the ground. Unlike Iraq, he did not hand out any money; he just sympathized, empathized with the people and said they would get FEMA loans. Give them loans in California. And then he proceeded, while these people have just lost everything and they are getting loans from FEMA, to talk about Iraq and the $87 billion that he is going to spend in Iraq. What I really want to know from President Bush is, how are we going to know, as the American people, when we have won in Iraq? Now, back in May, I think the President got on a ship and it said, ``mission accomplished.'' So the American people thought things were winding down. Well, they were just beginning. We have now lost more troops in Iraq than before the President stood in front of the sign that said ``mission accomplished,'' and I want to know how will we know when we have won? When we have trained 200,000 Iraqi police to keep the security in the country? At what level will we have to have their force in order to know that we have to leave? Will we have won when we finally find Saddam Hussein? Will we have won when Iraq holds their own elections next year? Will we have won when we assure ourselves that there are no weapons of mass destruction? The President already said when Hurricane Isabel hit the East Coast here and captured all the headlines, there was a story that was buried in the paper where he said: Well, there were not any weapons of mass destruction. But that is why we went in. So I would like to ask the President, please, tell us what the exit strategy is. How will we know when we win in Iraq, and how much is it going to cost us?

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take the time of the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards).

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. I want to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) for putting this special order together this evening so we can place on the record a number of our deepest concerns about the way in which contracting is being handled relative to the war in Iraq, and particularly some of what appears to be war profiteering by some of the highest officials in our government and some of the private firms with which they have had association. I came down here this evening because as a member of the Committee on Appropriations, when funds were being debated for Iraq and Afghanistan, I was denied the opportunity, and I emphasize, denied the opportunity to even offer an amendment to require competitive bidding in any contract associated with this war effort. I could not believe that I was not even allowed to offer the amendment. I remember I was told, ``Well, you know, Congresswoman, they are going to take care of that over on the Senate side,'' I mean, ``in the other body.'' I said, ``Oh, are they?'' Then I found out the way they are going to take care of it is only to allow a provision to be offered for reporting back. That means once the horse was out of the gate, maybe some contracts would be reported back, but there would be no competitive bidding. Then I learned this last month that only the contracts after March 1 might be reported back. I said, ``No, no, no, what about the contracts for Halliburton and Bechtel that preceded March 1? That is what is at issue in the current supplemental that is working its way through this Congress.'' I thought, oh, that is very interesting. So I cannot get competitive bidding considered as a real amendment. Even in the reporting-back amendments it is everything that comes after March of this year, maybe, and we closed the door on what happened before March 31 of this year. So my question is, who is trying to hide what? Who is trying to hide what? So I come down here as a disgruntled Member tonight, because I should have been allowed the opportunity. We are not talking about tiddly- winks here. We are talking about the largest supplemental in American history. $87 billion was just voted out of this House, and yet there were no requirements for competitive bidding, and the reporting-back requirements are flawed. We need to know who got how much money and we need to understand who is benefiting from the taxpayers' largess and who is profiteering. The gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) has put on the record some very important information, and it has to do with the amount of money that Halliburton is being paid to move petroleum and gasoline from Kuwait to Iraq. Now, remember, Iraq has the second-largest oil reserves in the world, and it is estimated that it would normally cost 70 to 98 cents for a gallon of gasoline to move from Kuwait to Iraq. Well, how come Halliburton is charging upwards of $1.78, anywhere from $1.48 to $1.78 a gallon, and the American people then are paying for that differential? How is that happening in all of this? There is an estimate that Halliburton is actually making from this anywhere between $300 million and $900 million, because about a third of the dollars they are getting relate to the transport of fuel from Kuwait to Iraq. So this is not something small. This is not a little asterisk or a little tiddly-wink or whatever. This is a huge amount of the additional funds that we were requested to spend as a Congress. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers reported that as of September 18, last month, the United States had paid Halliburton over $300 million to import approximately 190 million gallons of gasoline into Iraq, and that meant that on a per-gallon basis for that tranche of shipment of fuel, Halliburton charged the United States an average price of $1.59 a gallon to import gasoline into Iraq. And that did not include Halliburton's additional fee of 2 percent to 7 percent, which increases the cost to our taxpayers to $1.62 to $1.70 per gallon for fuel that should move at a rate in that region of anywhere between 73 cents, as I said, and 98 cents a gallon. Somebody is making an awful lot of money. Halliburton has received over $3 billion in task orders relating to the war and reconstruction in Iraq, and most of that is not competitively bid. When did we ever have contracts of that magnitude not competitively bid? I would just like to place on the record, if I might this evening, information on the amount of compensation that Vice President Cheney, who had been the chief executive officer of Halliburton, is receiving. Vice President Cheney made a statement on national television that he was not receiving any compensation, had no financial interest in Halliburton, and I would beg to say I think he has forgotten some pretty important facts, even that his own financial disclosure forms reveal. For example, a special report done for the Congressional Research Service indicates that he is in fact receiving deferred salary and holding 433,333 Halliburton stock options. I wish to place on the record tonight what he is receiving in deferred salary and what he is receiving in stock options and other benefits. Let me start with deferred salary. Deferred salary paid by Halliburton to Vice President Cheney in 2001 equalled $205,298. I think when you have that much money and you are getting your salary as Vice President, my question is, why do you not donate it? Why do you even take this money? In 2002, his deferred salary from Halliburton was $162,392. Halliburton is scheduled to make similar payments to him in 2003, 2004, and 2005, and he has an ongoing corporate relationship from company funds that are being paid. In terms of stock options, his financial disclosure form stated he continued to hold these stock options, and they are in three categories. There are 100,000 shares valued at $54.50 a share, so for that tranche of shares, that value is $5,450,000. He then has 333,333 shares, and I wonder how that number was picked, valued at $28.12, and then he has 300,000 shares. Imagine. I mean, I do not know how many people here own stock, but 300,000 shares valued at $39.50 is a huge amount of money. The total value of these shares right now is over $26,674,990. So to say that the Vice President has no interest in Halliburton's future, one would have to be a fool, or not be able to read, even to hold that position. He absolutely has a financial interest in this company. His family has a huge financial interest, and it is a gross interest. It is not some side issue. The Vice President's deferred compensation and stock option benefits are in addition to a $20 million retirement package paid to him by Halliburton after only 5 years of employment. I would like to know how many Americans listening tonight have a $20 million retirement package for only working 5 years. I think of how many of our people have lost their retirement packages. I have people in my district struggling to hold on to benefits and are paying more for health insurance from the retirement programs they had been promised. A third of the private sector plants in this country have gone belly up or have been cut. I can see why this Vice President cannot identify with the pain of unemployment or the pain of 45 million Americans without health insurance, or the pain of Americans who cannot afford prescription drugs. He is not even living in the same world. Halliburton paid him $1.4 million in cash bonus in 2001, and that does not include the millions of dollars of compensation paid to him while he was employed by the company. So I wanted to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) for putting this Special Order together tonight. What was interesting about the no-bid contracts that Halliburton received when we had Hurricane Isabel and that made the front pages all over the country, including here in Washington, the Bush-Cheney administration slipped in an additional $300 million in no-bid contracts to Halliburton, and it was placed, I do not know, on page 27 or 35; it was buried somewhere in the paper that weekend. But, literally, that brought the total amount of taxpayer dollars paid to Halliburton to over $2.25 billion, of which $1.25 billion, and this is not million, even million would be a lot, but this is $1.25 billion from the no-bid exclusive contract given to Halliburton. Mr. Speaker, I am really pleased tonight to be down here to help place this on the record as one Member who was denied the ability in her own committee and on this floor to offer a competitive bidding amendment for all contracts related to the war effort.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. So there are no Federal standards. I can tell the gentleman that in Ohio our secretary of state displayed five different technologies in our State House. I sent down a computer security team from our region in the State from all of our major universities and said, please assess the machines. These were all people involved in computer security. They came back and reported to me that of the five systems under review in Ohio, not a single one they would rate either excellent or very good in terms of both ease of use to the voter and security. That was a devastating finding to me. Even though I voted for HAVA, I went back to the drawing boards and looked at what was going on in my State. My State at this point has received the $41 million to buy machines, to buy technology which is probably not enough money to get an optical scanner and a paper trail, but it has not received the larger amount of money it should have received, $117 million, to do the voter education and all of the work that is necessary to bring up these new systems. So even though we voted for this law, just Ohio is $66 million short in trying to bring these technologies up by next year. I wanted to place this on the Record. Timing is vital. While communities are waiting to find out exactly how much money they may be getting, and some others do not want to move on acquiring equipment until they are sure of how much money they will be receiving, it is important to keep in mind: While HAVA does state that new election machines should be in place for 2004; it is possible to get an extension until the first federal election held after January 1, 2006; But in order to get this extension, an application must be submitted no later than January 1, 2004, at this point, to the General Services Administration, providing good cause for why the exemption should be granted; GSA did send a letter to every governor and state election director when the initial Title I money was provided last year. However, they have not yet sent out a reminder of the impending deadline. So far, only Illinois has applied for the extension, and this request was approved last week. Other reasons why the extension should be requested: Gives more time to make sure that the right machines are acquired, if new machines are acquired; Gives more time to test and verify the machines; More importantly, it gives more time for the vote verification provisions of the Holt bill to be implemented in a fashion that will be the most efficient with respect to any new voting machine system. And it gives more time for people to decide whether or not they actually want to buy new machines, because while HAVA provides for new machines, it does not mandate them if current voting systems can demonstrate that they meet the integrity requirements of HAVA.

Ms. KAPTUR. That is what I mean. If I might just take one additional moment of the gentleman and then complete my remarks. One of the reasons I think this is important is when we passed the Help America Vote Act, the Bush administration was to have appointed an election commission that would set Federal standards for the development of the technologies that you know are so critical. They have not done that. In fact, the commission does not even exist, so there are no Federal regulations.

Ms. KAPTUR. I want to thank the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt) for his extraordinary leadership on this very, very important piece of legislation that he has introduced, H.R. 2239, taking his great intelligence and experience as a physicist and wedding it to his legislative experience here in the Congress and trying to help our Nation improve on the voting systems that we have, but to do so in a way that every voter will be confident that when they cast their ballot that their vote is really in there, in that machine. In fact, I begin with that statement because one of the leading election officials in my own district said to me, Congresswoman, I do not have confidence that in what is being done right now that I can answer to the citizens of this county that their vote will be in there. How do they know it's in there? Give me the confidence that I know it's in there. I said, I am supporting Congressman Holt's bill so that we get an auditable paper trail at every precinct. I would say that in addition to being a U.S. Representative, which I was elected to rather later in life, the very first office I was ever elected to and still hold is precinct committeewoman in my own home precinct. Ohio is unlike some of the other States in the Union, but we value every vote at the precinct level. We count the votes at the precinct level. Under Ohio law when you cast your vote and there is a paper trail currently in every precinct in our county, over 500 of these precincts, the votes in that precinct are counted right there. They are not taken to another location. Both Democrats and Republicans count these votes together, and there are actual documents that they have to handle, physically handle and then tally and then those votes are both sent to the board of elections in a central location, but also posted on the door outside that precinct. Any voter can go and take that tally at the end of the day. We have a very transparent system, one in which our major parties have confidence. Every tally that is done in the voting logs that are assembled in every precinct, they are added up. Sometimes mistakes are made in the precincts in terms of the tallies but then those are caught at the central board of elections, and we try to really assure that the count is as fair as possible. If it is not, if people have any concern, if there is a one-vote margin in an election, you can go back to the paper trail and you can go back and see what was done in every single precinct in the county. I wanted to say to the gentleman, I think that this verification is so extraordinarily important. What happened in Florida at the moment could not happen in Ohio because in Florida they move their ballots to a counting station. They do not count in every precinct. Speaking as a Buckeye, speaking as an Ohioan, I do not want our rights taken away from us at the precinct level. I also would, if the gentleman will allow me, wish to place in the Record this evening for every election official in this country, at every county in the country, at every precinct, at every board of election, I have found great confusion as to what the Help America Vote Act actually requires and the Federal Election Commission on its Web site has what is required by the Federal law, every single year. And indeed it is not until January 1, 2006, that every State and jurisdiction is required to comply with the voting systems requirements of the Help America Vote Act that we passed last year. Some people are under the impression that they have to have everything done by next year. They do not. They can get a waiver that they have to file with the Federal Election Commission this coming January. The secretaries of state of our country should have notified counties of this. But I can tell you, as I go out into my Ohio counties, the local boards of election simply do not know this. There is great concern and there is great consternation. I will place this in the Record. I would also like to say to the gentleman from New Jersey, in addition to his bill which I hope we can pass expeditiously, I would urge our State legislatures to adopt no-fault absentee voting, that if there is any concern next year at any precinct or a doubt about the integrity of that machine, that voters can have an alternate way of casting a vote in that county through no-fault absentee voting or indeed even paper ballots at the same precincts, so that people have confidence that their vote will be counted.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, due to my attending the funeral of a member of our family on Wednesday, October 8, 2003, a day for which I requested and was granted leave of absence, I missed five recorded votes. I would like the Record to reflect that had I been here for these votes, on rollcall 535, final passage of H.R. 3108, Pension Funding Equity Act of 2003, I would have voted ``yea.'' On rollcall 536, H.R. 2297, Veteran Benefits Act of 2003, I would have voted ``yea.'' On rollcall 537, H.R. 2998, to amend title 10, U.S. Code, to exempt certain members of the Armed Forces from the requirement to pay subsistence charges while hospitalized, I strongly support this bill and have been complaining to the Secretary of Defense regarding unconscionable charging of $1 per minute for men and women on duty in Iraq who want to call home, and would have voted ``yea.'' On rollcall 538, H. Res. 355, commemorating the 100th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United States and Bulgaria, I would have voted ``yea.'' On rollcall 539, expressing the condolences of the House of Representatives in response to the murder of Swedish Foreign Minister Anna Lindh, I would have voted ``yea.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for raising several critical issues this evening, including the disparity between those Americans who are losing their jobs and certainly very privileged people in this country including the Vice President of this Nation. Mr. Speaker, I want to follow up on what the gentleman was saying about the compensation that the Vice President receives from his former corporation, Halliburton Corporation. The gentleman is absolutely correct in what he says; and in addition to the figures he has placed on the record, the Congressional Research Service issued a report that the other body requested, including not just the funds that the gentleman mentioned for the Vice President, but also deferred salary and stock options, 433,333 of them to be exact, and Halliburton stock owned by the Vice President. And here is what these benefits pay him. In deferred salary, according to this report, in 2001 Vice President Cheney received $205,298 from Halliburton while he is serving as Vice President and permitting no-bid contracts to go from the Department of Defense to this Vice President. In 2002 he received $162,392; and similar payments are to be made in 2003, 2004, and 2005. So there is an ongoing corporate obligation paid to him in company funds. In addition, he has these stock options, 433,333 of them in three different traunches. The value of those stock options today alone are valued at over $26,674,990. It is not as though he does not have an interest in what happens to that company. And this is in addition to a $20 million retirement package paid to him by Halliburton after only 5 years of employment that he held with that company and a $1.4 million cash bonus paid to him in Halliburton in 2001, and additional millions of dollars of compensation paid to him while he was employed by the company. Now, compare that to the people in our country who are losing their jobs and those we are having to fight for here on this floor to get extensions of unemployment benefits. One of the aspects of the job loss in our country and related to the trade deficit with China and with all of the nations is the fact that when these countries, the people in these countries sell us goods, financially our dollars go back to that country and the companies in that country. And it is very interesting what they do with their dollars. First of all, they purchase pieces of us so that the brain of the corporation is no longer located in this country, but rather wherever those companies are located which means that we become a derivative economy. Secondly, those dollars that end up in the hands of foreign interests are being used to purchase our public debt. And one of the hidden aspects of this horrendous trade deficit that we are racking up is that countries like Japan and China and the Middle Eastern oil kingdoms are buying larger and larger pieces of us. In fact, they now own well over a trillion dollars of our debt on which we are paying them interest. Is that not a fine how do you do? According to the latest year for which I have figures, we paid over $85 billion in interest to these foreign creditors to the United States, the largest being Japan. In 2001, we paid her $26.1 billion of our tax money. Those are dollars we did not pay to our citizens. We did not sell savings bonds to our citizens and ask them to pay the interest to them. We paid the interest to Japan, which will not open our markets to their products and continues to exclude our suppliers in their automotive supply chain, but we paid them $26.1 billion. We paid China and Hong Kong, this was back in 2001, before this deficit was going up as much as it is now. It was horrendous back then, but it is getting worse. We paid China back then over $10 billion, $10 billion. So just China and Japan alone we had over $36.5 billion in interest. That is more money than we put into NASA. In one year NASA's budget is about $14.5 billion. We could run three NASAs for what we are paying just in interest to Japan and China. Now, to the oil kingdoms we paid over $6.7 billion, $6.7 billion. Could that not put a lot of our young people through college? Could that not educate new doctors for the future for free, for free? We could pay for their tuition and ask them to serve in the underserved areas of this country. We paid Korea and Taiwan $5.6 billion. So if you total everything up, $85 billion in interest as of 2 years ago to these foreign creditors, people who are buying our debt because we cannot self-finance anymore. The hole of the debt is getting bigger and bigger. We cannot even buy it ourselves. We are pawning it off to foreign interests. Literally, it has gotten so bad that nearly half of the Treasury securities that are sold every year in our country are being purchased by foreign interests. So the share of foreign ownership of our debt is growing every year. Because when these countries that are responsible for our trade deficit end up getting our dollars, they buy a piece of us. Think about that; $85 billion dollars, we could take care of all the disability compensation for our veterans. We could increase hazard pay for our young men and women in the Armed Forces who are giving their lives every day. We had a measure on the floor last week for $1,500 which was defeated despite our objections. We could triple it. We could take care of TRICARE for our Guard and Reserve and the families who are part of that system. The Republican leadership will not allow that bill on the floor. We could create a real whole health care system for not just active duty but for our Guard and Reserve across this country. We could build new water systems all over this country for $85 billion. Only a portion of that would it take to modernize water systems under every city in this country. So the cost of this kind of trade deficit with China, with all of the other countries, the lost jobs here at home, and then the insidious erosion of our own financial independence, because of the transfer of those dollars to others would then essentially weaken us because we end up owing them rather than paying bills when they come due. Mr. Speaker, in closing this evening I think it is important to place on the record our deep concerns about the Bush administration wanting to expand NAFTA to include all of Latin America. As the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) has indicated, if we had a balanced trade account with Mexico and with Canada as a result of NAFTA, would it not make sense to do that? But, in fact, after NAFTA's passage, we went into a gigantic deficit with Mexico, the largest in our history, the same with Canada, which means that we are sucking in imports with these countries when, in fact, they promised us with NAFTA that we would be creating jobs in our country by exporting to those countries. That is not happening. It is working exactly the reverse, both in industry and in agriculture. Now the Bush administration wants to use that flawed template in order to expand to a larger portion of the hemisphere. In whose interest is that? When the original NAFTA is not working, why would you want to expand it? Why do you not fix it so that we do not continue to hemorrhage more jobs and continue to fritter away our financial independence as a Nation? CAFTA will be considered here before the end of the year or perhaps before next June, we are not sure; but we ought to think hard about not making the same mistake again and think about how we are go to repair these big holes of deficit that we are building both on the trade front and on the deficit front for our Treasury accounts. Mr. Speaker, we will have more to say on the condition of the economy of the United States in the days and months ahead; but surely the Bush administration cannot be proud of its record, and surely we need leadership, new leadership here in Washington, to help us get our Nation in a stronger situation for the future generations than we have found it.

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, this evening I would like to address the issue of the economy in our country and the dismantling of our manufacturing and economic base. President Bush owns the worst record of job creation since the Presidency of Herbert Hoover. More than 3.2 million Americans have lost their jobs since this President was installed in office. The Bush administration's destruction of jobs across our country indeed has spread like wildfire. From Massachusetts to the Carolinas, from the Midwest to California. Now, they have even tried to take away our overtime pay. Isn't enough enough? Accelerating job loss under this administration is the norm, not the exception. Indeed, in less than 3 years the Republicans have lost 3.2 million jobs and at the same time added $3.3 trillion to our national debt. Today 9 million of our citizens are out of work and cannot find a job. The gentlewoman from Oregon (Ms. Hooley) has a discharge petition in this House, so that we can extend unemployment benefits to those who simply cannot find work inside the boundaries of this country. That bill should not require a discharge petition. It should come to this floor immediately because it is necessary for those who will lose their benefits by the end of this year. President Bush has the worst record of job creation, actually he has created no new net jobs, of any President since Herbert Hoover during the great depression. Every President since World War II has created jobs but for this President. This year, the United States is going to lose more manufacturing jobs. It will mark job loss in the manufacturing sector every single year of his Presidency. And if you look at the accelerating loss of manufacturing jobs, this has never happened since World War II in our country. We have lost 2.5 million manufacturing jobs. The Great Lakes States are being hollowed out in the steel industry, in the machine tool industry, in the automotive parts industry. The Carolinas are being hollowed out in furniture, in textiles. Massachusetts has suffered enormously, as much as any other State in our Union. There seems to be no end to the job killing across our country. More bad news on job losses hit California today. And more people are looking longer to find work. Mr. Speaker, 5 million people are working part time because they cannot find a full-time job. So the Bush administration's record on jobs is abysmal. But the rich are getting richer thanks to President Bush's massive tax breaks for millionaires. But half of America's families get nothing from his tax package. And the middle class is getting squeezed as usual. In return for meager tax cuts, they are facing enormous increases in local and State property taxes, gas taxes, special levies. And tuition rate increases for college students are going up across our country and going off the charts. In Ohio, for instance, our State has raised tuition 40 percent. It has recently suspended new entrants into what is called the Ohio Tuition Tax Authority, the 529 program, that allows parents to save for their children's college education. They do not want any more people in the program because there is not any money for it. Our State is closing libraries on Sundays and forcing the burden of paying for libraries not on the general tax duplicate for the whole State, but they are pushing it down on property taxes. So the middle class has had a net increase in taxes since this President took office. The middle class is getting squeezed as State and local governments rack up record levels of debt, cut important services, and raise taxes and user fees. This Congress just approved an enormous amount of money for Iraq and yet not a single dime was approved for our States and localities that are running record deficits and are being forced to cut services. More pressure on our families, more pressure on our workers. Listen to these numbers. Nine million Americans out of work, the most in a decade. Almost 4 million Americans, 4 million, out of unemployment compensation. That is 13 million Americans right there. 151,800 manufacturing jobs lost in Ohio under this President's watch. 145,300 manufacturing jobs lost in North Carolina. 297,700 manufacturing jobs lost in California. 215,300 more unemployed people in New York since Bush took office. We witness daily the real and deepening crisis in manufacturing. Between January 1998 and August of 2003, U.S. manufacturing employment dropped by 3 million persons. During the Bush years, the pace of job washout has accelerated dramatically. In fact, manufacturing share of our Gross Domestic Product fell below 14 percent last year. As the Economic Policy Institute notes, the manufacturing sector occupies a special place in U.S. economy because productivity growth in manufacturing has historically outpaced the rest of our economy, driving real increases in our standard of living. We know that well in our part of the country, the Midwest. Good paying jobs in factories with good benefits are the key to our great middle class, the key to achieving the American dream, to buying a home, to putting your kids through college. Manufacturing fosters supply and demand growth, providing the basis for durable economic growth for the wider economy. But total employment in manufacturing in the United States used to be about 18 million workers, ranging between 16.5 and 19.5 million. However, that has plummeted to 14.6 million workers as of August of this year. This record low level of manufacturing employment in our country coincides with the largest trade deficits our country has ever recorded. For the first time in almost 40 years, despite an increasing population, we have record low employment in manufacturing. The net result is a lower standard of living, greater economic pressure on our families, a fracturing of communities, a diminished tax base for schools, local governments and angry citizens, among other things. The jobs did not just disappear like the horse and buggy. They have gone to other countries. Americans are still driving cars, but American workers enjoy less of a market share compared to foreign companies. Americans still use refrigerators, but they are more often made in Mexico or China, rather than Iowa. I present this particular chart this evening on the U.S. trade deficit, the balance, because every single year it has gotten worse and worse and worse until this past year of 2002 and this year of 2003 we are hovering at half a trillion dollars in more imports coming into our country than exports going out. And just in that one year alone, that level of trade deficit translates into an additional 1 million lost jobs. Because for every billion dollars of trade deficit, of more imports coming in here than exports going out, you lose 20,000 jobs. So multiply $500 billion by 20,000 and what do you come out with? An additional million lost jobs. We have never hemorrhaged jobs and income to this extent. Americans still use steel for bridges and buildings and vehicles and appliances, but our steel industry is under siege from dumped steel and foreign competition. Americans still eat food, but more and more of our food is coming from foreign countries as farmers across this country bite the dust. And the average age of farmers in our Nation is now 58 years of age. Americans still use telephones and electronic equipment. They still watch television, but those products are now made in Mexico or Asia. Our demand has not changed, in fact, it is greater than ever, but the problem is on the supply side. Our factories have lost market share, which translates into fewer orders, which translates into fewer jobs, which translates into greater unemployment and the dismantling of our mighty industrial and agriculture economy. How long can this go on? Can America regain its competitive edge? The staggering rise in this U.S. trade deficit, particularly with China, claims millions and millions of more jobs. And these are the figures for China. The U.S. trade deficit with China alone this year will rise to over $103 billion. That means 2 million lost jobs just related to China. And it is no surprise if you think about your own experience when you go to the store, look at the tag. Where is it from? That job is being created somewhere else at slave-level wages, but it certainly is not being created in this country. And that creates a siphoning off of income by our citizens somewhere else. The staggering rise in the U.S. trade deficit with China, I mean look at this, it is absolutely gigantic, never experienced before in our Nation's history, is claiming millions and millions of more jobs every year. It is a product of bad deals, bad deals, bad trade deals such as NAFTA and the World Trade Organization and most favored nation status for China, giveaways on the part of the U.S. Congress, and the Bush and Clinton administrations. Selling American workers and our companies down the river has been a bipartisan effort by some here in Washington, but the bill is coming due. Between the first quarter of 1995 and the second quarter of 2003, the overall trade deficit skyrocketed to over $411 billion, dominated by over $408 billion in the deficit in manufactured goods. Since 2000, the year Congress approved permanent normal trade relations with China, a communist country, the largest U.S. trade deficit in American history has been amassed with China. The deficit with China exceeded $100 billion last year alone, and this year shows no sign of slowing. The manufacturing trade deficit, according to the Economic Policy Institute, alone for all of the nations from which we are importing goods reached $491 billion by the end of 2002. The Bush administration says it wants to solve the problem with China alone by manipulating currency rates, and I can tell them it will not work. Because it never worked with Japan. I can remember back in the 1980s when they patted me on the head in a very patronizing way as a young Member of Congress and they said, Marcy, do not worry about the trade deficit with Japan. When the yen- dollar relationship reaches maybe 90 yen to the dollar, everything will work out. You know what? It never did. It did not matter whether the yen was 90 to the dollar or 230 to the dollar. When you have a controlled economy and you prohibit imports, and you have Keiretsu supplier chains into which other country's companies cannot bid, you will never balance the trade accounts of this country because other nations do not play by the same rules. And so Americans still buy cars and trucks, and still drive cars and trucks, and still buy refrigerators and stoves, and televisions and computers and DVD players, and still consume vastly more than any other people in the world, but we are losing manufacturing jobs at a record pace. And it is dragging down our entire economy. Have you noticed? Mr. Speaker, this is not just a regional issue. It is not just about the Midwest, although we in the Midwest understand the importance of manufacturing to our economy. Earlier this week on Capitol Hill, a Republican polster told a briefing that the jobs in the Midwest are going and they are not coming back, and he explicitly mentioned Ohio. I refuse to accept that. And I know my dear colleague, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) refuses to accept that because we know we cannot withstand the loss of millions more of our manufacturing jobs and this type of hemorrhage, and turn this republic over to our children and grandchildren in better condition that we found it. Mr. Speaker, I have some comments I want to make about when these countries get these dollars from the United States, what they end up doing with our dollars, but I would be very happy to yield to my colleague, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) who fought with us so valiantly in our efforts to amend NAFTA before its passage and to deny this kind of trade access to China without getting something on the other end.