Daniel Lungren

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for extending the time on this. This is a valuable person, a valuable time, and I thank you. At this time, I would extend 3 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Souder).

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. I yield 30 additional seconds to the gentleman from Florida.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence). (Mr. PENCE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. I would like to close. Thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of the time. Mr. Speaker, let's make one thing clear, Jack is becoming a greater and greater quarterback the more we speak. He threw a lot of interceptions, and he would be the first to admit it here. As I said before, he is my friend. He was my great friend. He was my mentor. I used to kid him and say he was one of my childhood heroes, which would kind of drive him crazy, but it was true that I first got to know of Jack Kemp when he was a young quarterback with the then Los Angeles Chargers. But I really got to know him in this place and thereafter. I got to know his family; Joanne--no better person you could meet; his children, Judith, Jennifer, Jeff--and in the resolution it says James, I know him by Jimmy. When Jimmy joined the Canadian Football League team that was actually located in Sacramento, Jack and Joanne called and said, we don't know anybody else in Sacramento, would you take Jimmy in? So Jimmy stayed with us for a number of weeks while he started his professional football career. Jack was the ever-vigilant father. He had his ideas. Jimmy said not too long ago, as Jack was in some of his toughest times and was unable to talk, he said, ``We've established a new relationship with dad; he has to listen to us now.'' On the last chance I had to talk with Jack shortly before Christmas, we had a great discussion. And we talked a little bit about Christmas and about where we were going. And Jack said that we were family, but there are so many people that could say that. I say that Jack is one of my best friends, but I met a large group that could say that because once you met Jack, you were his friend forever. I said before and I will say it again; there may be somebody out there who didn't like Jack Kemp, but there is no one in this world Jack Kemp did not like. That makes all the difference in the world, particularly when you're in this tough business called politics. When you understand someone who loves you because you are another son or daughter of God, you understand what it is like to be a true American. Jack was a true American. Jack was someone who inspired, who led, at times infuriated, but all the time loved. He is someone who will always remain in the memory of those who knew him. He is someone who believed in those words inscribed above your head, Mr. Speaker, ``In God We Trust.'' He did trust in his God. He trusted in his family. He trusted in his country. We will miss him. I know that God is embracing him now as Jack looks down on the work we do. God bless you, Jack. And God bless this country.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this is the definition of bittersweet. Bitter because Jack Kemp was one of my best friends; sweet because we are here marking a remarkable person, a remarkable history, and a remarkable contribution to this House of Representatives. Jack Kemp, yes, served with distinction in this House. But more than that, he gave this House life. As I was saying to another Member who served with him, as did I, when you talk about Jack Kemp, a smile comes to your lips, not because he walked with the swagger or arrogance of a former athlete, but because he walked with the grace of a former athlete who extended that grace to his public service. Jack Kemp was a remarkable man. Jack used to say that he probably showered with more African-Americans than most Republicans had met. Jack was referring to his service as a member of the AFL, American Football League, and then a member of the AFC, where he gained the respect of his teammates no matter what their color. As a candidate for Vice President of the United States, Jack became one of the very few people in the history of the United States to run for that office who had been the founder of a union and president of a union. He helped found the AFL Players' Association and worked with John Mackey, who was the president of the NFL Players' Association, to try and make more equal the bargaining position of players versus the owners and the league. Jack took great pride in that. But more than anything else, Jack Kemp was a family man. His family never came second to him in anything he did. He told me one time that he was trying to inspire his children and he would leave notes on their pillows at night. One of the notes he would write would say ``be a leader.'' I took that as an example for myself, and as my children were growing up, I would say to them as they went to bed ``be a leader'' or sometimes leave them a note that said that. That was something I got from Jack Kemp. Jack was also a man of the House. If you listened to him in various settings, he would repeat that phrase. I remember it very well when I was privileged to be among those in the crowd in the Cannon caucus room when Jack launched his ultimately unsuccessful but nonetheless inspirational race for President of the United States. As he bid the House good-bye, he said, ``I may be leaving the House, but I will for the rest of my life be a man of the House.'' And I believe he was to the very marrow of his bone, to his last breath. Jack loved this House. He understood what this House represented. He understood that this place is, yes, an institution for the people of America. But he understood that it was populated by human beings. He understood that politics was not only policy, but it was people. He understood that in order to make a compromise, you had to know the person across the aisle. You had to have some empathy for them and the lives they lived and the families they had. And in a very real sense, Jack elevated this House because he understood the foundations of this House. Jack, yes, became famous for his enunciation of the principles that underlie supply-side economics, but it was much more than that. If you knew Jack, you knew it wasn't about the theory, as the impact of the theory. Jack believed fundamentally that in order to help our neighbor, we had to respect our neighbor. In order to try and bring people up from their bootstraps, you had to recognize their basic humanity. He understood that government, yes, stands for the purpose of helping people, but we needed to help people help themselves. If you look at his ideas, his thoughts, his work on enterprise zones, it was rooted not in political philosophy; it was rooted in his love of his fellow man. He actually believed every single person was in the image of God. He actually believed that, whether you were black or white or Hispanic, whatever you were, you were of equal value in the sight of God, and that was Jack Kemp to the core. So if you listened to him argue on the floor, he would implicitly and explicitly articulate the vision that every single person was worthy. And that motivated his philosophy and that motivated his debate and that motivated the bills that he supported on the floor. He was for enterprise zones because he thought that you could unleash the power of the individual. He thought that one way of elevating the downtrodden in our society was to give them opportunity. He believed in opportunity. He thought he was the embodiment of opportunity, and he wanted to extend opportunity to every single person in this society. Jack was an inspiration to those who knew him. He wasn't perfect; he would tell you that. Sometimes he acted like a quarterback and you would have to tell him that we weren't in a huddle. And thank God for his wife, Joanne, because Joanne could tell him there wasn't a huddle going on, and he would get that half-crooked smile on his face and he would chuckle and listen. And he would incorporate your ideas and he would always be welcoming of them; and sometimes later you would hear him talking and you would hear one of your ideas being expressed by Jack Kemp in that vibrant way. Mr. Speaker, you might get the idea that I thought a lot of my friend Jack Kemp, because I did. But it was more than just friendship; it was brotherhood. This place is a better place because Jack served here. This place would be a better place if we had more Jack Kemps here. This place is a greater institution because of his service here, and we will be an even greater institution if we don't just memorialize him, but we embody many of the traits that he brought forth to this floor. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. At this time, Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to someone who had the privilege of serving with Jack Kemp on his staff, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Ryan). (Mr. RYAN of Wisconsin asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield 1 minute to the Republican leader, the distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Boehner).

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I would yield the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) 30 seconds. (Mr. WOLF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support this resolution, which does authorize the use of the Capitol Visitor Center for the purpose of celebrating the birthday of King Kamehameha. The ceremony, which will take place in Emancipation Hall in close proximity to his famed statue in the National Statuary Hall Collection, appropriately honors the birth of the legendary warrior. In addition to uniting and protecting the Hawaiian Islands, King Kamehameha established the principal Hawaiian law pertaining to the peaceful treatment of civilians during wartime, which today serves as a universal model for human rights. I thank Chairman Brady for taking up this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to join me in support. With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I urge all Members to support H. Con. Res. 80, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in tribute to a good and great friend who was also a great American leader that we lost this last weekend, Jack Kemp. Jack Kemp was not only an inspiration to many, but he is a model for those of us who serve in this House. Through the years, his searching intellect, his impressive leadership ability, his buoyant personality, and, yes, his dedication to his family, was something to inspire all of us who had the opportunity to know him and those of us who were able to call him friend. I remember that he told me one time that as busy as he was, he always used to take the time to try and give some inspiration to his children, and at times he would write a little note to them and put it under their pillow, and oftentimes it would say these simple words: ``Be a leader.'' I copied that from Jack, and I would remind my children before they would go to bed to think of themselves as leaders, not just followers. Jack had that kind of effect on people. I was speaking to another Member of Congress recently and I said, when you think of Jack Kemp, you immediately have a smile on your lips because of that buoyant personality, that ultimate sense of fairness. Today, we talk about athletes having a swagger. Jack didn't walk with a swagger. He walked with the grace of an athlete. And there was a certain graciousness about him as he approached anybody on this floor. Democrat, Republican; liberal, conservative; white, black, Hispanic, it didn't matter. Jack treated you all the same. Jack genuinely believed that there was goodness in everybody, and even when disappointed he would still come back to that fundamental thought of his that if you could reach just a little bit deeper, if you talked to someone just a little bit longer, if you fought a little bit harder, maybe you could find agreement and maybe we could move this country forward. It was a great experience being one of Jack's friends. I often thought that there might be someone out there who doesn't like Jack Kemp, but I don't think there was a single person that Jack disliked. And that could be irritating at times when he was an ally of yours and you were dealing with a difficult issue, and you would say, Jack, don't you hear what they are saying? Doesn't it get you irritated? And he would give you that half crooked smile and have that raspy chuckle, and he would just keep on going. I remember when I was with him, as were several other Members in the House, I believe it was over in the Cannon Caucus Room, when Jack announced his candidacy for President in 1988. At the end he said something to this effect. He said, ``While I am leaving the House, I will always be a man of the House.'' And I believe he was, until the day he died. Today, as we deal with difficult issues, it would do us good to remember Jack; not as someone of the past, not as someone who made great contributions to this country in his life, but someone whose spirit remains and whose example should be an example to us all. We dealt with difficult issues when he was here in the House; the Contras, Soviet Jewry, the Cold War, the march of communism, high taxes, difficult inflation, questions about where we were going. And Jack dealt with all of those issues. But he dealt with those issues not only with a smile, but with a clarity of vision and an approach that invited people to sit down and debate with emotion, but with civility. There could be no better example for us today. The incandescence of his personality, the generosity of his spirit, the genuineness of his friendship, I thank God for all of those things. And I think today as we deal with these difficult issues, rather than just to have a tip of the hat to people like Jack Kemp, we ought to say, your inspiration, your leadership and your example will continue to burn brightly in the hearts of Members of this body and we shall always remember your belief in the goodness of America and the goodness of its people. God bless you, friend.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Well, the gentleman's statement is only true if you believe that when you buy a carbon credit and pay for it, that actually amounts to money. If somehow, magically it doesn't cost anybody anything, even though it's being auctioned on the market, and then that cost is going to be passed on to the consumer, which is, in the nature of a tax.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. What we have here is an argument that if you can't pay for it back home, you can pay for it here because somehow we have an unlimited amount of money, and it has no impact on anybody whatsoever. As if inflation has no impact.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. I will be happy to yield.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Madam Chair, I yield myself the balance of our time. I have never been in a place where a $4.3 trillion budget over the period that we're talking about, which is what the Republican budget is, is somehow seen as parsimonious. The other side seems to suggest that we are not attempting to try and pay for those things for which there is a reason for the Federal Government to be involved. Secondly, I would say this. I have been a leader for the last two Congresses in an effort, on a bipartisan basis, to try and reduce or to encourage the President to negotiate with Russia to reduce our overall nuclear weapon arsenal, and the President has indicated this last week he's going to do that. But I have looked at the figures, and if we reduced it to the numbers that the President is talking about that we've urged, it wouldn't even come close to be the cut that you're talking about on your side. The suggested cuts in defense spending in this budget, in the Democratic budget, but in this budget particularly, it doesn't just cut fat. It cuts muscle. It cuts sinew. It cuts bone. It makes us less able to defend the American people. And let's just be very, very clear about that. No one, no respected member of any previous administration in terms of national defense has suggested that you can support this kind of a budget presented here. So let's make it very clear to the American people what we're talking about here. Are we going to do the fundamental job of preserving liberty and preserving freedom or are we, in fact, going to cut defense and, in the process, burden our people with more spending, more taxation, more borrowing, increasing the size of government, which ultimately takes freedom away from individual Americans?

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Madam Chair, may I inquire as to whether or not the other side has more than one speaker on this subject.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. At this time, I would like to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. McHenry).

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Madam Chair, I will reserve at this time.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. I will reserve.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Madam Chair, I yield myself 1 minute. Madam Chair, when I listen to some of the debate on the floor, I wonder what the American people might think. As I reflect on the words that were just spoken, it sounds like we have a greater imperative to somehow deal with this notion of climate change than we do with defending the American people. The budget that's presented to us by the Congressional Progressive Caucus cuts defense enormously, and yet we keep hearing that, well, we don't want to take any money away from the troops, we don't want to take any money away from the equipment. But we cut defense enormously. And one has to ask, what is the first obligation of government? It is to create a modicum of security so the American people can live their lives in a sense of safety, so they can attempt to be the best that God gave them the skills to be. That's the first obligation of local governments, the first obligation of State governments, and I would hope at some point in time in this debate it would be acknowledged by the other side that it is the first obligation of the Federal Government.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. At this time, Madam Chair, I would yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois.

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California

Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California. Madam Speaker, if one looks to the exceptionalism of America, one finds that at its base is freedom. We've always had an agenda for freedom--freedom with responsibility. Today, we have a budget that's made up of numbers. People wonder how does that somehow have anything to do with freedom. Well, if you spend too much, if you tax too much, if you borrow too much, what it means is you give greater and greater power to the Federal Government, to elected representatives, to nonelected bureaucrats to make decisions for you and your life, not only today, but in the future. For the young people that are listening, they ought to understand that the impact of this budget today will be far greater on them than it will be on me. Why? Because we are about to embark on a budget that will give us more debt than at any time in the history of America. And we and those of us who are here will not live long enough to pay it off. The young people are the ones that are going to pay for it. They are in fact going to have less freedom rather than more freedom unless we come to our senses and vote for a budget that is consistent with the American agenda of freedom.