John Larson

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Our topic today is a solemn one and yet a hopeful one. It is about the 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy. He speaks to us still. In November 1983, I submitted an op-ed piece to our local paper, the East Hartford Gazette, on President Kennedy. It is hard to believe that 30 years have passed since I submitted that document. Most, including myself, and especially the Kennedy family, would rather not dwell on the events that transpired on November 22 and that ensuing weekend, but rather on the President's birth, and celebrate his heroic service. Indeed, May 29 should be a national day of remembrance. I am proud to say that the entire New England delegation has dropped in a resolution today calling upon Congress to recognize May 29, the birthday of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, as a day of remembrance. President Kennedy, if we were alive, would be 96 years old. It is hard to imagine, even today, because of the image of that youthful, vigorous, witty, energetic man who we still see in TV clips and who speaks to us still. That beautiful man was taken from us in the summer of his years. For my parents' generation, December 7, 1941, as President Roosevelt appropriately put it, would be a day that would live in infamy. For my children and so many of this current generation, myself included, September 11, 2001, will be recalled as another day of infamy. For my generation, however, it remains November 22, 1963, the day the Nation stood still in shock and disbelief. As a New Englander, the shot heard round the world on that day was not the one fired at Lexington and Concord, but in Dallas, Texas. That shot cut down the 35th President of the United States, ended dreams of Camelot, and cut short the life of an American hero. Almost everyone can recall where he or she was and what they were doing when they first heard the news of the assassination of John Kennedy. Fifty years after his death, the country still gropes for answers and searches to fill the void created by his departure. It was sixth period in Mr. Desmond's French class when Mrs. Bray's voice, noticeably shaken, announced over the loud speaker at East Hartford High School that the President had been shot. An unsettling silence that was laden with anxiety fell over a perplexed and unbelieving class. Attempts to calm the class were fumbled by a visibly stunned teacher as he sought answers to a host of questions. Such an irrational act. It just couldn't be. In what seemed to be within minutes, Mrs. Bray's tearful voice announced that the President of the United States had died. Hollow disillusionment and deep sadness engulfed not only the classroom, but the entire Nation. Despair was replaced by speculation concerning the perpetrator of such an act. Walking home from school, conjecture of this heinous crime centered on the KGB and Castro as likely culprits, but even conjuring up these villains brought no resolve. When I reached home, my mother, with Kleenex in hand, sat motionless next to the TV. She was glassy-eyed, shaken, and unable to comprehend the events of the day that saw the first President born in this century--and the first Catholic--struck down. The family gathered around the TV and waited for Dad to come home. Surely, he could explain. When my father arrived, everything from the Russians to the Texans were mulled over, as he revealed various theories discussed in the shop at Pratt & Whitney Aircraft, but all with the same anguish and perplexity. Thus began a family vigil with Walter Cronkite. But even he, the most trusted man in America, couldn't explain to the viewing public the way it was on November 22, 1963. It was a numbing experience for our family and the rest of the country as we sat in shock, traumatized, as the first real-time media account of the sixties unfolded in our living room. In a weekend that never seemed to end, we witnessed a Nation in mourning, the apprehension and then murder of Lee Harvey Oswald, and the subsequent arrest of crime figure Jack Ruby, all unveiling and unfolding themselves on TV. The plot only seemed to become more complicated. The complexities of American society and the very fabric of our way of life in this Nation hit home like never before. What I most recall, and what I believe most Americans recall, from that weekend are the vivid scenes and images of that ordeal: The distressed widow in a blood-stained pink suit, with all the dignity and strength and nobility that she could muster, being met at Andrews Air Force Base by Robert Kennedy; the long lines passing through the Rotunda to pay their last respects, including James Michael Fitzgerald from our hometown in East Hartford; the veiled face of Jacqueline Kennedy as she kneeled over the coffin, clutching the hand of her daughter, Caroline; the Kennedy brothers in silhouetted support of the First Lady and the family; those boots placed backwards in the stirrups of Black Jack, the horse following the caisson; the procession of world leaders en route to Arlington; a weekend of images culminating in John-John's final salute to his dad. I will never forget that weekend of tragedy, wrought with emotion and dream-crushing reality. Its impact and the impact of other events in that decade perhaps won't be fully understood, though we are fixated on this. Before I yield to our leader, to put it in perspective, I would say this. As William Manchester noted: In November of 1963, among the living were Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and 58,209 young men who would die in Vietnam over the next 9 years. I yield to our leader, noting that, as we said at the outset, we prefer not to dwell on the events of the day but on the heroic nature of this President and what he meant to so many people--and continues to do so. He continues to speak to us, as does our leader, Nancy Pelosi, who knew him personally.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the leader. I would point out, in history there are often iconic pictures. One has to wonder in looking at the pictures that grace museums across this country: That man who set a torch to be passed to another generation, could he have known when he was shaking Bill Clinton's hand that he would be a future President of the United States? Could he have known when he met with Tommy D'Alessandro's daughter that she would be the first woman Speaker of the House? That was the inspiration of Kennedy, who touched so many people, and our leaders Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer typify a generation drawn into public service not only because of the inspiration but because of the calling of President Kennedy to public service. The minority whip, Steny Hoyer.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mike Capuano for organizing this Special Order. Both Steny and Rich have said it well. Everything that is rich about public service is embodied in the service provided by Barry Sullivan. As Rich pointed out, to have come here with Tip O'Neill and Joe Moakley puts you in the pantheon of stars in New England. I point out to Mr. Capuano that Rich Neal is not only the dean of the Massachusetts delegation; he is the dean of the New England delegation, as well. Barry Sullivan is New England through and through. He is Irish. He is Catholic. He is the Red Sox. He is the Celtics. He is the Bruins. He is the Patriots. He gets us through the day. My first encounter with him came over in the Pennsylvania corner where he would be summoned on a regular basis. I thought for a while he was Jack Murtha's personal valet. I did not realize that there was one of those little white buttons that they press. But automatically, Barry would appear out of the backroom and immediately assure Mr. Murtha that things were all right, how things would be done for the day, what time we would get out of here, et cetera. All of the essentials that Members need. The wonderful thing about Barry, his three sons, and Barbara is that they epitomize class. He is such a gentleman, even among the most tense of situations, he is there for all of us--most notably to remind you that you forgot to vote, to stick your card in, and adhere to the rules of the floor here. It is that class and the professionalism that he brings to the job. The elevation of public service is something that another man from Massachusetts provided to all of us. To elevate public life, whether as an elected official or whether in the service of your country, whether it is being a Clerk in this House, whether it is running the Democratic Caucus, or whether it is being in the Peace Corps, John Fitzgerald Kennedy made it elevated, the whole notion of public service. Barry, you exemplify the nobility that Kennedy ushered in and gave credence to a life of public service. Well done, a son of Boston, a son of Ireland, and, of course, a Red Sox fan. God bless you, Barry, and your entire family.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentleman from California for organizing this hour, and I appreciate the eloquence of our colleague from New York, both of whom have addressed the most important issue of the day, in fact, the last 8 days, as Mr. Garamendi has articulated. Mr. Speaker, we find ourselves dealing with the issue ``de jure.'' Each day the goalposts move, each day the American public sits in utter amazement and disgust with its elective representatives. It is astounding to them to see the greatest Nation in the world brought to its knees. Our forefathers were very prescient--and certainly George Washington, who Daniel Webster, the Senator from Massachusetts in this Chamber-- well, actually, it would have been down the hall--got up on the 100th anniversary of George Washington's birth and talked about the President's admonitions. Amongst his keenest admonitions was about that of ``excessive'' party spirit. Now, in Washington's day, there weren't political parties, as we know them. It wasn't Democrat or Republic; it was Federalist or anti- Federalist. He knew very well and was concerned deeply about what factions could do. He warned about the outside influence of party. But what he was most concerned about is what happens within a government if people in that very government are at war with their own existence, are working against the interest of the government and therefore the people. So we find ourselves this evening as Members of the minority coming to this floor and asking for one simple thing from the majority, and that is a vote. Now, we understand that we have asked for votes on this floor--we have asked for votes to put the country back to work. As the gentleman from California has articulated on many occasions to come here and talk about making things in America and allowing a vote to put us back to work, we have been denied that opportunity. We have been denied the opportunity here to vote on nutrition and funding and making sure that important bills like the agriculture bill, that the very poor amongst us and the very needy are fed. We have been denied an opportunity to vote on immigration, as you heard Charlie Rangel talk about so nobly earlier this evening. We have also, most importantly, been denied a vote here that is fundamental to our democracy. The most fundamental thing and the most patriotic thing that we do in a society is vote. Yet here, because of the tyranny of the majority, 200-plus Democrats are not allowed a vote. More importantly, the American people are not allowed a vote on the continuing of its government. As the gentleman from New York pointed out, not only is it the continuation and shutdown of government, but on the near horizon defaulting on the full faith and credit of the American people. This is unconscionable. But Washington was prescient when a few, dangerously are at war with their own government, who seek to bring that government down, who seek to bring the government down through a shutdown; and then by not paying the bills that this body and the other body have racked up, the greatest Nation on the face of the Earth. We need to be able to express the will of the people. All we ask of the majority party is for a vote, a simple vote, as the gentleman from New York said, on a continuing resolution unencumbered that does nothing more, and at the levels that they have requested, but put the Nation back to work and then respond quickly to the need to pay our debts without being held hostage. You are not holding Barack Obama hostage, Mr. Speaker. You are not holding the Democrats in Congress hostage, Mr. Speaker. You are holding the people of the United States hostage. For the sake of fairness and being responsible, bring the bill to the floor for a vote. Allow the minority the opportunity to vote. If you don't have the votes, let it be so, and let the world know, and let every American citizen know, where their Members stand on this issue. Stand with your country. Do not let it be shut down. Do not let it default. At least give us a vote.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentlelady. Mr. Speaker, there is only one question before us this evening, and that question has been proffered by so many on the other side of the aisle. That question, as articulated by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews), is to do what's fair, to do what's fair for the American people--not Democrats, not Republicans, not Green Party, not Tea Party, but the American people. The American people in the greatest land, the greatest country in the world deserve to have their government open; and they deserve to know where their Members stand. Do you stand with your country? Do you stand for your country? Or do you want to take it down this evening? Stand up for your country. Stand up for America. Stand with us this evening, and keep this government going in the name of fairness.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, on September 10, 2013--I was not present for rollcall votes 450-452 due to a meeting at the White House with Vice President Joe Biden. If I had been present for these votes, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall vote 450, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 451, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 452. personal explanation

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan. Most importantly, I'm here today because I want to thank my colleagues on the other side of the aisle for their embrace of ObamaCare. After 38 attempts to repeal it, we see at least, however grudgingly, an acceptance and understanding of the importance and significance of this very important care. Whether this embrace is the kiss of Judas, as some may say, or some may say this is just merely a charade, I commend them for understanding that Medicare isn't an entitlement. After all, it's the insurance that people have paid for. Every American knows this because all they have to do is go to their pay stub to check it out. So we thank our colleagues for this embrace of this very important issue before us today. I thank them because I see an opportunity here. I see an opportunity to bring forward the best of public health, the best of science and innovation and technology, the best of entrepreneurialism, kind of like what the Heritage Foundation came up with and that a Republican Governor piloted in a Democratic State, which is what we now today call the ``Affordable Health Care Act.'' There are studies that suggest that there is over $700 billion to $800 billion annually in fraud, abuse, waste, and inefficiencies. Let's work together to drive out the inefficiencies. Thanks for the embrace today and the understanding that if we do this, we cannot only pay down the national debt, we can end sequestration and we can provide an opportunity for our citizens to make sure they live out their lives in dignity by having the most important program for their retirement--Medicare--there for the future. I thank my colleagues.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of America's birthday, on this Fourth of July. Also, in honor of the Colbert family who created the Capitol Concerts annual Fourth of July celebration broadcast to millions across our Nation each year on PBS. This year marks its 33rd anniversary. I ask every American to take the time to remember all of our families in harm's way and their loved ones. And to reflect upon all of those who have fallen on battlefields of honor, and all of our wounded warriors across the Nation, so that we may be here this day. I submit this poem, penned by Albert Carey Caswell. High on a Hill High! High on a Hill! As once each year, Our Nation is given so such a thrill. . . As so appears. . . America's great Birthday Party so here. . . As all out across this County Tis of Thee, This celebration so PBS! Broadcasting to young and old, Yea Jerry and Michael, they the Men, presenting broadcast gold! And out to all of our Armed Forces, All in Harm's Way, As from where America's Greatest Honor so comes this day! As for all of them and their families we now so pray! And as the music starts, It so urges us all to so get up and so dance! To so celebrate this great romance, Of America's Birthday as another year does so advance! While all in the front rows, Are all of those, America's Greatest Heroes! Her Wounded Warriors, Who for all of us all have such selfless magnificence so chose! As it's all so here in our Nation's Capitol! A place where history now so rules! As PBS and The Capitol Concerts, Brings to us the entertainment world's real who's who! All in Democracy's home, Asking us all to towards Freedom and Independence to so let all our hearts so roam! As it all so began, When a great Boston family, the Colberts', so lent their helping hand! To so create The Capitol Concerts celebration, 33 years ago they created this great sensation! As high up on this Hill, As where they so broadcast to so give all a thrill! And the reception's better here still! So that all out across the heartland, America's homes are no so filled! So filled, With Rock and Roll, Country Western, To Classical music to inspire our very souls! For you will never so see, Such a more inspiring sight than all of these. . . All in the shadow of The United States Capitol, And The Washington Monument with fireworks exploding all in

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Well, you know, inefficiencies, as I said, were going to be our focus. Let's talk about that just from a practical standpoint. You say the word ``inefficiency'' and what do people actually think? Think about the last time you were in any doctor's office, or made any trip to the emergency room, and the number of forms you had to fill out, the number of forms where we have complicated a system that needs to be streamlined. One of the things that our colleagues and I should embrace is the need for us to streamline regulation in the process so that it becomes simple, cost-effective, electronically or digitally driven in a way that both reduces costs and adds to a better quality of life for the individual. When Mr. Bertolini speaks, he talks about, as you point out, developing coordinated care with our areas, our centers of expertise. Whether it's the Mayo Clinic or, in Ohio, the Cleveland Clinic, or whether it's Sloan Kettering, whether it's Jackson Labs in the State of Connecticut, by working in conjunction and coordinating the best outcomes, and then also doing this locally, from the bottom up, that coordination, quite frankly, hasn't existed before. That's what's driven our health care costs up so dramatically. No other Western democracies in the world, some that have more aging populations than we do, face a similar crisis. We have the opportunity to attack this like no other nation in the world. Just a word about the genomic project. Jackson Labs is located in my district in Connecticut, and they're known for their Nobel Prize winners because of what they have been able to do with mice. Mice, as I know the gentleman from Ohio knows, because of their lack of an immune system, allow them to be great vehicles to test with respect to breakthroughs in disease and how we deal with disease. Well, when we add the genomic project to that, and the advances that we can make in cancer, heart disease, diabetes, all of the areas that plague us, we now have, at our disposal, but instead of a multitude of tests, and random testing, we can now get down to an individual's DNA and make that change. That is enormous cost savings. That is the full embrace of science and technology and innovation. That should be the discussion on the floor here, the greatest breakthroughs and what we're going to do, and how it's American ingenuity, it's American innovation, it's American doctors and surgeons and medical manufacturers and medical devices and chemistry, through pharmaceuticals and all the science that we've brought to bear. We put a man on the Moon in less than 10 years. Can we solve this problem? Of course we can. And it's on the cusp of being solved. Let's embrace what the private sector is doing. Let's embrace our scientific and university communities and our labs in a way that we're coordinating with them, coordinating in a way that we drive out the inefficiencies, because our end goal here is the consumer, it's the patient, it's the citizen of this country who's paid tax dollars for this, who's bought into an insurance system, who believes that his country, or she believes that her country, is there for them in their time of need as we make these critical transitions. The American people want to see us here in this body working together. Let's work around the issues that drive us, the national debt, securing Medicare for the future, and understand that we have the tools, many of which we owe to the public health system, and the innovation, the labs, the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, and all that's been done in our universities, as well as the entrepreneurial expertise and the creation and innovation that comes from our great system. Let's enjoin that in a way that we solve problems, solution-oriented legislation that gets over the ideological divide and recognizes that we need common outcomes on behalf of the American people.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. The gentleman makes excellent points; and it's a point that underscores that, within this system, as the gentleman points out, we are going to need that high quality of care. But our care coordination problems have been driven by flawed designs. The coordination of care in the new era, with all the science, technology and innovation that we can bring to bear on this problem, and the flawed design of our payment systems, are what we need to correct. The beneficiaries will not only be our veterans who return home and are in need of our care, but our general population in dealing with this. The exchange is going to present a great opportunity, an opportunity to have a paradigm shift, an opportunity for us to come together and solve major problems. And you know what? As the gentleman from Ohio knows, if we solve the national debt problem, then we don't have an issue with sequester, we don't have an issue with debt ceilings, and we can get about the infrastructure system that we desperately need in this country to further enhance jobs. But within the innovation, technology, and manufacture of drugs and of medical devices, and the technology that grows out of health care, we have a whole economy that's ready to burst and boom as well. That's what we've got to be about. That's what I believe the American people want to see us solving. And I'm glad that we've taken the time this evening to do that.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Fifty percent of the costs.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentleman. I see that our time has expired. I thank the Speaker, and we thank everyone for the opportunity to lay out this case of coordinated care and cooperation, reducing our national debt, and securing Medicare for our citizens. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. It isn't just the CEO of Aetna. As I was pointing out earlier, a number of studies, whether they be done by Reuters, whether they be done by Dr. Blumenthal and a number of groups focused on this issue, they all arrive at the same conclusion: the system is inefficient in its form, and how do you improve that system. We're at a fork in the road here, as Dr. Blumenthal from the Commonwealth Fund points out. Health care policy, we either are going to end up in a situation, as the poster points out, where we cut payments, reduce benefits, and restrict eligibility for public programs, or we re-engineer health care and improve the health care costs, improve the outcomes for patients. As Mark Bertolini from Aetna says, the answer lies not in cutting people's benefits but in improving their care. This is the juncture that we're at. It would seem to me that, especially in this body, that we now have an opportunity. We all agree that the national debt is a problem. We know that health care is the primary domestic driver of that debt. We have an opportunity to change that. We have a structure, the framework of which, as I said in my opening remarks, was provided by the Heritage Foundation and was pioneered by Mitt Romney in Massachusetts as Governor, and done successfully. Let's expand on that opportunity, only make it better. Make it better because we know the great virtue of public health and all it has meant for the wellness of this country. We know the great strength of our hospitals and doctors and our scientific community, our innovators, our manufacturers, our medical devices, our pharmaceutical companies, we know the great genomic project that is going to have remarkable abilities that are going to enhance the quality of life like we have never seen it before. Instead of arguing the old wars and the last battles, we have to be embracing the future in a way that makes the American citizenry secure in the outcome of knowing that science, technology, and innovation, their government and the best of the private sector, are all working on their side. It's not a question of choosing one or the other; it's embracing all three in a way that both lowers the costs, demonstrated in study after study after study, and that will also enhance the quality of health for our individuals. So many people in Ohio, I know, have problems that have dealt with this.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I believe I will be joined by my colleague from Ohio (Mr. Ryan), whom I will recognize at the appropriate time. We wanted to make this Special Order this evening about solution- driven legislation and about the need on behalf of the United States Congress to come together in a nonpartisan manner and get after the concerns that this Nation cares so deeply about, most notably those as they relate to jobs and security and the well-being of the country. This evening, Mr. Speaker, what if I told you that we could deal with all of the rising costs of health care, bring down the national debt and that we could do so while providing better quality, coordinated patient-centered care? There might be some skepticism. What if I further told you that we could do it without raising taxes or cutting Medicare? In fact, what if we did it by extending the benefits of Medicare? What if I were to tell you, Mr. Speaker, that this idea germinated with the Heritage Foundation, a conservative organization dedicated to conservative ideas, and was piloted by a Republican Governor in a Democratic State and served as the basis for what we now call the Affordable Health Care Act? The Affordable Health Care Act, in its final form, was something that a number of colleagues on the Democratic side didn't necessarily prefer. It was not their first choice. A number wanted to see a single- payer system or Medicare for all, but that is not what transpired and that is not what is the law of the land nor is what is upheld by the Supreme Court. We need, in this body, a paradigm shift that will allow us to come together and embrace the ideas that we all agree upon in a way that we can move this Nation forward. The budget leader in the Republican conference is Paul Ryan, a distinguished, bright, and capable gentleman. We agree that health care costs are what are driving our national debt. There is no doubt about that. Statistics will reveal that. Further, when it comes to improving patient care, patient outcomes, making sure that we provide for our elderly, making sure that we have a continuum of care for people, that's something that's neither Democrat nor Republican. That's something that is truly American and that we all agree on. Where we may disagree but where we can come together is in recognition of how we get to the solution, solve this problem, instead of these endless ``tastes great, less filling'' debates that go on in the United States Congress. To do so, you have to be bolstered by studies. This slide will show that there are no less than 10 different studies that have been authored by private sector individuals that all point to one thing: that there's $750 billion to $800 billion annually that's wasted in fraud, abuse, and inefficiencies. This evening, we want to focus on the inefficiencies, noting of course that fraud, abuse, and waste are very important, have been documented several times on ``60 Minutes'' and other notable sources as well, and certainly is something that will help us in terms of bringing down the costs of health care, which, of course, solves our problems with the national debt. Health care costs in the United States of America have risen to 18 percent of our gross domestic product. This next slide will demonstrate clearly that we are way above every other Western democracy, and this is what the inefficiencies of a system have produced: a hodgepodge system that is inefficient and driven upward in its cost because of the lack of coordinated care and outcomes that suggest a new paradigm shift and people coming together and embracing that which is in the public health care system that works and does extraordinarily well, all that's in the realm of science, technology, and innovation that we get from the National Institutes of Health and for the Centers for Disease Control that have been taxpayer funded and produced miraculous opportunities and a better quality of life. Then, thirdly, to embrace that with the private sector, entrepreneurial efforts to drive inefficiencies out of a system. This chart demonstrates how that can be done and that there is both the profit in doing it for the private sector and the results of lowering that cost for the public sector and an outcome for patients that is centered around wellness, their well-being and their security in the later years of their life. It's that combination that we believe can work. How do we know that that is so? We're fortunate to see, even in this time of politics where there has been disagreement and too much politics around the quality of health care, that our citizens rightly deserve and the private sector in our hospitals with our doctors, with our surgeons, with our medical devices, and with our entrepreneurship are coming to embrace. The passage of the Affordable Health Care Act is, in fact, a paradigm shift. What do we need to shift to? How do we need to move that forward? Mark Bertolini, the president of Aetna, based in Hartford, Connecticut, said that the one thing we have to make sure of is that we're not taking away benefits from people who are going to pay for the medical devices--the hospitals, the doctors, the insurance, and the pharmaceuticals that they all need. We need to enhance that system. Economists like Clayton Christensen have talked at length about how we need to be disruptive in economies, and in doing so, disruptive in terms of our innovation. With the genomic projects at hand and the potential for people to be living well beyond the age of 100 for my children and for current generations, as we all know obviously living longer, there's a need for us to embrace commonsense solutions and not issues that either say we have to drive down the debt at the expense of beneficiaries or that we have to raise taxes to help the beneficiaries. How about we drive out the inefficiencies within the system, get after the fraud, abuse, and the waste, and work together as Democrats and Republicans and achieve the goals that we were sent here to do by both lowering the national debt and securing the future by making sure that there is Medicare there for all of our recipients? I think of so many people nearing the age of retirement who get trapped in this gap. Once you turn 56, you start thinking, Is my company going to keep me to age 65? What is going to happen to my pension? But most importantly, what is the bridge I'm able to take to get to Medicare and will it be there? There's got to be a resounding ``yes,'' and the important thing is that there's a path forward to this. Two things that are important to remember: One, that the national debt is real and that we all agree that it has to be addressed, and the primary driver is health care; Secondly, Medicare is not an entitlement. It's the insurance that people paid for. It's taken out of your paycheck. And if we drive the inefficiencies out of the system, we actually can enhance the Medicare system and make it solvent well into the future while paying down our national debt. That should be the focus of the United States Congress. It will help the economy, but most of all, it will help people in terms of the quality of care that they need. This is what we hope to achieve in Special Orders and prevailing upon our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to come together and discuss solutions that will both reduce the debt and preserve the Medicare system. A person who understands this better than most, who has made firsthand trips to hospitals and has written books, in fact, or at least a book, as I seek to credit you beyond your authorship, Mr. Ryan, but certainly someone who understands the importance of coordinating care in such a manner that an enlightened new Republic that we are will be able to participate in the wholeness and wellness that can come from this paradigm shift afforded by the Affordable Care Act, and where reasonable minds can come together to achieve these goals. I yield to my colleague, the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ryan).

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, having traveled home this weekend and listened to so many back in my district concerned about the lack of solutions and the lack of effort on behalf of the United States Congress to get things done, I told them to take heart, that sometimes these things are difficult. And I added: What if I tell you that we could deal with the rising cost of health care, we could bring down the national debt, and do it all by providing better quality, coordinated, and patient-centered care? That would be a good goal, they surmised. And what if I told you we could do this without raising taxes or cutting Medicare benefits? And what if I told you that all of this notion began from the seeds of an idea that was an outgrowth from the Heritage Foundation, piloted by a Republican Governor in a Democratic State, and that served as the basis of the Affordable Health Care Act, which is the law of the land? The Affordable Health Care Act was not, in fact, what many Members on my side of the aisle support--a single-payer plan or a Medicare-for-all approach. But the law of the land is based on the Heritage Foundation idea and a Republican Governor from Massachusetts' formula for making sure that we could provide care to all of our citizens. Although the health care act has become politically driven and charged, what the American people want to see is a Congress that's serious about solutions, solutions that are workable on behalf of the American people. So let's start where we all agree. Paul Ryan has stated over again, very eloquently, that the rising cost of our debt and deficit is due to health care. I agree with him. When it comes to making sure that quality is improved for patients and care is coordinated more effectively, these are not Republican or Democratic ideas; these are American ideas, and why we need to move forward. We have no less than 10 separate studies--studies from the Institute of Medicine, Reuters, the Commonwealth Fund, among others, that show that there is between $750 billion to $800 billion in waste, fraud, abuse, and lack of coordination within our health care system. Why, then, would we consider, with that kind of waste, taking any money out of Medicare or taking any money away from the beneficiaries who use that to pay for their hospitals, their medical devices, their pharmacists, their doctors? What we need to do is face what the reality is. The reality is that the United States spends 18 percent of its gross domestic product on health care. We need to drive those costs down. By doing so, as businessmen will tell you, any model that is that inefficient, when the rest of the world is at 8 and 9 percent for health care and provides universal access to health care, and we're at 18 percent, with millions of our people still uninsured, if we drive that down and wring out all the inefficiencies, the waste in the system, then we can have health care for our constituents that's both coordinated and essential and drives down the national debt. All we have to do is recognize a simple fact. Take the very best of our public health system. Take the very best of science, technology and innovation. And then take the very best of our private sector and its entrepreneurs and have this body come together in a coordinated fashion to bring that about. It's happening without us. It's happening in the private sector, where leaders like Mark Bertolini from Aetna and others around this country are taking steps to drive down the cost of health care. They're doing it by coordinating care with the Mayo Clinic, with the Cleveland Clinic, with Sloan Kettering, with labs like Jackson Labs in my State. All of this is focused on making sure that we're going to have better outcomes for our people. We can do this together. Let's work toward solutions. This Congress is capable of doing it.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise to associate myself with the remarks of my dear colleague from Connecticut, Elizabeth Esty, who has done such a remarkable job in representing that district and especially the families of Newtown, Connecticut, in the aftermath of this horrific tragedy. Mr. Speaker, the time for us to act is long overdue. The hard truth for the United States Congress is, as Congressman Mike Thompson pointed out, since Newtown, 5,000 Americans have lost their lives at the point of a gun; 5,000 Americans since Newtown. The United States Congress has a responsibility to act and do its constitutionally obligated desire to get this bill passed. Now, whether you believe this is the correct course of action or not, as the President said in his State of the Union message, you still have a responsibility to vote. This is a democracy. Every day that we delay a vote on this bipartisan bill, Congress is complicit--Congress is complicit--in the deaths of those American citizens who wait for action as Congress sits by as 5,000 more victims die at the point of a gun. I commend the families of Newtown, and the whole world was heartened when Mark Barton stepped out into the Rose Garden with the President of the United States and reiterated a phrase that has held them all together: that their hearts are broken, along with those of the entire world as we look down at this tragedy, but their spirit is not. And they are undaunted in their determination, driven by the memories of those teachers and administrators and students who died so tragically. They--both students and teachers--were willing to stand in the way of violence, and the United States Congress can't do its constitutional responsibility and stand up and vote? All of us in America watched as the United States Senate, with families in the gallery, voted on background checks that 91 percent of the American people agree with, voted it down. No teacher in America could explain the next day how the vote was 54-46, and it lost. Citizens all across this country take heed: do not give up. Continue to fight this fight. Fight what's wrong with Congress about not taking votes when they should and about a system in the Senate where a majority prevails and a vote goes down because of the cloture rule, an arbitrary rule in the United States Senate. The outrage has to start outside of this building because here in this building, people remain complicit in the acts that will only continue to take place if Congress does not take action.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to the people of Oklahoma and our colleague, Representative Tom Cole, whose district has been devastated by the latest catastrophe that has befallen our country. I recall the great courage of Tom Cole on this floor and in his conference, putting aside politics and ideology and voting for relief after Hurricane Sandy. As the death toll rises and the search and rescue valiantly continues, let us not just offer our prayers, as much as they are needed and welcomed, but let us act as united citizens and send, with all due speed, relief for the people of Oklahoma. Disasters and tragedies should never be about ideology or politics or geographic locale. When Americans are in need of help, this Congress needs to respond. That is who we are as a people. That's what leads us to become a more perfect union. Any American befallen by tragedy or national disaster needs the assistance of their Nation and their fellow Americans. Let us act in this Congress before we leave. Before we go on an extended break, let us take action on behalf of the citizens of Oklahoma. Let us put aside and let us damn politics and ideology and act on behalf of the American people and these people of Oklahoma who are enduring so much through this natural disaster. God bless America.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak out against the senseless violence that engulfs our communities and across the nation. America's greatest strength comes from its rich diversity of culture, race, ethnicity, religion and perspectives. Separately, these are the threads that define who we are as individuals. Pull these threads together, and they create a tapestry of who we are as a nation. Let us never forget that there are two threads each of us living in this moment, no matter our background, share in common: the invisible bond of citizenship and the experience of childhood. However, far too many children living in this nation never have the chance to know a true childhood. In my mind, a true childhood is a time in our lives where we have enough. Enough love to know we have value, enough food to allow us to never know hunger, and enough supports in our communities to better ensure our health and safety. These are but a few of the important elements that a child needs enough of in order to better ensure a healthy and successful adulthood. Americans from every walk of life have together mourned the loss of the innocent children who died on December 12, 2013, and rightfully so. We mourned the lives lost from the shootings in Phoenix, Aurora, Columbine and Virginia Tech. For our nation's children who are trying to grow up in our nation's urban settings, the opportunity to realize adulthood is placed in jeopardy because of gun violence on a daily basis. In the last 12 years in Connecticut, 94 children have died from gun violence. In that same span of time, more than 924 were injured and maimed by firearms. The majority of these firearm injuries and deaths occurred in Hartford, New Haven, and Bridgeport. The children and youth who die each day in our cities from gun violence are every bit as precious, every bit as deeply loved and missed as any child who dies anywhere else in our nation. I stand here today on the floor of the House to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the 20 lives senselessly cut short by gun violence the last 18 months in the city of Hartford. Today, here in the United States House of Representatives, we mourn the loss of: Jimmy Narvaez-Gonzalez 07/20/2012. Eric Perez 07/22/2012. Benjamin Grate 07/23/2012. Errol Campbell 08/14/2012. Johnny Armstong 08/27/2012. Esmerito Perez Mendez 09/24/2012. Ramon Perez 09/24/2012. Sonja Rivera 09/27/2012. Omar Santana 10/05/2012. Shane Oliver 10/20/2012. Verall ``Anthony'' Hampton 11/11/2012. Ricardo Arroyo 12/03/2012. Jazzy Delgado 12/23/2012. Sawaire Kirchindath 02/28/2013. Kwante Feliciano 03/25/2013. Kelly Cooper 03/25/2013. Jimmy Q. Roberson 04/03/2013. Kelly McCaskill Coupe 04/25/2013. Shaman Jenkins 04/28/2013. Javar Pretson 05/05/2013. In the words of Senior Pastor, Stephen Camp of the Faith Congregational Church in Hartford, ``We pray for those parents and relatives who grieve still for the loss of their loved ones taken by senseless violence . . . these victims whom we remember, leave mothers and parents who search still for God's hope and God's assurance.'' May all of our actions in this Congress reflect the hope of these parents, and parents everywhere who pray that no other mother or father knows what it means to mourn a child lost to senseless violence.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Master Harvey Goldblatt, a devoted educator who is affectionately known to students, alumni, and parents as simply, Master G. After 19 years of dedicated service as the Master of Pierson College, Professor Goldblatt will step down from this position, but will continue as the Chair of the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures. The Masters of Yale's residential colleges are responsible for all aspects of its operation--ensuring students have a place to live, study, and dine together. Master G was transformational for Pierson College and worked hard to enrich the student experience. Whether it was supporting their research, immersing them in other cultures, or taking the time to greet each student by name--Master G was a tireless advocate for their best interests. Originally from Hamilton, Ontario, Master G received a Bachelor's Degree in Russian from McGill University in 1969. During his studies at McGill, Master G was the first North American to study abroad in the Soviet Union. He received a Master's in 1972 and a Ph.D. in 1978 in Slavic Languages and Literatures, both from Yale University. Master G shared with the students, parents, and alumni of Pierson College his time, energy, and a strong devotion to their shared community. In return, they have asked me to express their gratitude to him for being a beloved friend and mentor. We thank Professor Goldblatt for his continued service to Yale and look forward to meeting the next generation of young thinkers and leaders who will follow in his good example.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I have an idea: What if The Heritage Foundation had an idea to reform our entire health care system? Even better, as Mr. Neal says, what if that idea was piloted successfully by a Republican Governor in a Democratic State who would go on to become their nominee for President? What if that idea were brought to fruition nationally through the Affordable Care Act so it could provide American citizens, especially the uninsured and those with preexisting conditions, to become the focus of our energy and concern in Washington? An emphasis on wellness by seeking to enhance the best in the private sector, the best in the academic sector and the public health initiatives that have guided this great country of ours? What if we do what the American people expect us to do, instead of quibbling over partisan issues--rolling up our sleeves and coming together for a solution to the American people?

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. What if we come together, and instead of quibbling over the Affordable Care Act, we rolled up our sleeves and put the Nation to work? Every day we waste in ideological turmoil is another day lost in the opportunity to help the American people and the key, as Mr. Ryan states, to driving down our national debt. Come together with us, Republicans, solve this issue for America.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentleman. I rise today to oppose the Pay China First Act, and I do this with a heavy heart because I know the number of talented individuals that we have on this committee and the process that we've been through where we're working together. It astounds me that somehow the ideological tail of the Tea Party wags the whole Republican effort in this area, and the ideological reach of the Tea Party exceeds the certainty that we should be bringing to the American people. Instead, we're playing hostage politics again, holding up the American people, creating all the uncertainty that we don't need in this kind of climate instead of demonstrating that we can sit down and work together. I get the politics. I understand how you have to accede to a group that continues to take us to the precipice and then pull back. The American people are through with it. Let's sit down, deal with this, and then move on; create the certainty that will create the jobs here. Let's not find ourselves in a situation that becomes almost oxymoron, where we're paying China first, at the expense of Americans when there is no good reason why we should be dealing with this issue whatsoever, other than the hostage politics that it creates to deal with an ideological minority that drives the other side.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise to associate myself with the remarks of the legendary John Lewis. I also stand in praise of Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who, yesterday, came with all the grace and eloquence to talk about the need to bring the country together in the aftermath of what took place up in Boston, and to bring comfort to families. Yesterday, the other body brought little comfort to families, especially families from Newtown, Connecticut, who had traveled there, who had lobbied, and were looking for a commonsense, practical answer to a solution that plagues this country. They got a vote. The vote was 54-46. But no fifth-grader waking up in America today says how could you get a vote of 54-46 and lose? This is the most deliberative body in America, the House of Representatives, and we owe the people of this country, whether from Newtown, or whether from Aurora or wherever you are, in Chicago or across this great Nation of ours, we come here with a responsibility to vote.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I rise to commend Joe Manchin and Pat Toomey for coming up with a rational approach that 92 percent of Americans all agree with in the need for universal background checks as they relate to our gun laws. The bill was taken up today in the Senate, and the vote was 54-46. Every fifth grader in America is astounded that that bill was defeated. Only in the United States Senate, the other body, could that take place--that a vote of 54-46 would not pass. So, disheartening as it is and in reeling from the events that have taken place in Boston on Patriots' Day, children all across America cannot be reassured by their parents tonight that they are safe, but the NRA will sleep well this evening. Mission accomplished. But there is another Chamber and an opportunity for the House of Representatives to speak its will on the violence that has been perpetrated across this country: in the commonsense background checks that are needed here in this country.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, our hearts as well go out to the victims and the families of those who were killed and seriously wounded in Boston on Patriots' Day. This has been a very difficult time for our country. At that event in Boston were families from Newtown, Connecticut, invited to celebrate Patriots' Day in Boston. The Red Sox play in the morning, the Marathon takes place, families gather, and again, America faces another tragedy. Last week, family members from Newtown came to the Hill to lobby Congress, to ask Congress what the President of the United States has asked of us, both in the State of the Union and in his two trips up to Connecticut. What the President has said is: however you feel about the issue of gun violence, however you feel about the Second Amendment, we deserve a vote, both in the other body, in the Senate, and here, on the floor of the House of Representatives; a vote not only for the 20 children and six teachers and administrators who died in that tragedy on December 14, but for people in Tucson and Aurora and on virtually every street in cities all across America where we have seen this needless and senseless violence take place. Patriots' Day, another act of violence. Strides are being made in the United States Senate. Compromise is being offered on something that 92 percent of the American people agree with: universal background checks, universal background checks to keep guns out of the hands of terrorists. The United States of America is currently mocked by Adam Gadahn, an American al Qaeda on the FBI's Most Wanted List, who taunts America and says this, and you can see it on BuzzFeed: America is absolutely awash with easily attainable firearms, large-capacity clips. You can get them, even without any identification. This from the most wanted on the FBI list. We need to vote in the United States Congress. If these young children had the courage to go after their assailant, if the teachers stepped in the way to protect, does Congress have the will and the courage to stand up and merely do what it was elected to do? Cast a vote in both Chambers. Cast a vote on behalf of the American people. Cast a vote on behalf of these children, on behalf of these parents who have come here to beseech the United States Congress only to do its responsibility, to do what we take the oath of office for. Ninety-two percent of the American people believe that we need universal background checks. We have to make sure that our bodies, both the Senate and the House, take up this legislation. In the aftermath of yet another tragedy, on Patriots' Day, the most patriotic thing we can do is vote.