Devin Nunes

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. If you would yield just for clarification, because I know that there are folks just now coming in. They are here on their vacations and they may have missed the beginning of this. But what we are talking about here is that well over $100 billion has been given to AIG. We had the House bill that every Member of Congress admitted that they didn't read. As a matter of fact, Mr. Boehner sat right there where you are, Mr. LaTourette, and asked if anyone had read it, and no one said they had read it. He dropped the bill right there on the floor. And the language that you talked about that awarded the bonuses was not in the bill at that time.

Mr. NUNES. So the Senate bill and the House bill come together, and suddenly that's put in its place, and now we are sitting here with legislation. After giving well over $100 billion to AIG, now we are going to give these folks bonuses, millions of dollars in bonuses, and no one knows who's done it.

Mr. NUNES. Just for clarification again, Larry the Cable Guy didn't do it, right?

Mr. NUNES. If the gentleman will yield, he has done that recently.

Mr. NUNES. If the gentleman will yield again, you have a long history before you came to Congress. You worked for the people of Ohio. You were involved as a district attorney, and I know that you had prosecuted many people and upheld the law. And so as we are beginning to go through this and beginning to look at who is out there, who possibly did it, we still, here we are, what, almost 6 months after we passed the stimulus bill, and no one knows where this language has come from.

Mr. NUNES. I just want to thank the gentleman for bringing this to the people's attention. This is really the only avenue that you now have is to come before the people, to come before the whole world, and you have laid out a very compelling case that, quite frankly, we're not getting anything done. In fact, we don't know who's doing what around here. I am troubled by this, what you've brought to the floor of the House; and I hope that you will continue your effort to figure out and get to the bottom of who did this.

Mr. NUNES. So nobody knows who did the AIG bonuses; no one knows who put that legislation in; and now no one knows who shut down the automotive plants, the auto dealers. We're sitting here with 300,000 people out of work in the largest democracy in the world, which is supposed to be a deliberative body where the Congress is supposed to make the decisions, and we have no answers.

Mr. NUNES. It's us. It's the people.

Mr. NUNES. If the gentleman would yield, one of the important points here that you've made is that this task force, this unelected task force that has no experience in running anything to do with cars--in fact, some of them don't even own cars--have now made this unilateral decision to close these dealerships, and the way that they were able to do that is because the government has now taken over ownership of the car companies.

Mr. NUNES. How many people were on the task force?

Mr. NUNES. Maybe they were going to take a boat.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Mr. Speaker, I'm going to draw your attention to the board here. Mr. Speaker, there are 435 Members of the House of Representatives. There are 256 Democrats in the House of Representatives. It takes 218 votes to pass the government takeover of health care. Mr. Speaker, it's priceless that the Democrats can't come up with 218 votes to pass the government takeover of health care.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, I rise to a question of the privileges of the House and offer the resolution previously noticed.

Mr. NUNES. Yes, Madam Speaker.

Mr. NUNES. Under rule IX, questions of the privileges of the House are those that affect its rights collectively, its safety, dignity, and the integrity of its proceedings. Madam Speaker, this privileged resolution allows us to rectify the problems that the Democrat leadership has created out in California. If we move forward with this today, 40,000 people can go back to work and we can move on and everybody will be fine. So I urge the passing of this resolution today, and I yield back.

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, I appeal the ruling of the Chair.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Mr. Speaker, I wasn't going to come down here, Mr. Speaker, but then I heard the distinguished Democrat leader, Mr. Hoyer, come down and chastise us for using 1-minutes. Mr. Hoyer, you know why we're using these 1-minutes. It's because you've cut us out of the process. For the first time in this Nation's history, appropriations bills aren't under open rules. So we have no opportunity to offer amendments under the appropriations bills. So you can understand why, in my district, having almost 20 percent unemployment, some of the highest unemployment in the country because this government fails to act to get water to the people to provide for the general welfare of the people of my district, this is why we come down here, Mr. Hoyer. So I would suggest that we probably won't do this again because you will probably take away this advantage that we have of using these 1- minutes to make our case before the American people. I assume this will be the last day we have unlimited 1-minutes, but I can promise you that if you just go back to the open rules process on the appropriations bills, we will gladly not use these unlimited 1-minutes this way.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 2(a)(1) of rule IX, I rise to give notice of my intention to raise a question of the privileges of the House. The form of the resolution is as follows: Whereas, on May 25, 2007, U.S. District Court Judge Oliver W. Wanger issued a ruling that directed the Bureau of Reclamation to reduce water exports from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to protect a three-inch minnow called the Delta smelt; Whereas, on December 15, 2008, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, based on the Wanger Ruling, issued a Biological Opinion on the Delta smelt that permanently reduced water export from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta which is traditionally delivered to cities and farms in the San Joaquin Valley and the Los Angeles and San Diego basins; Whereas according to a University of California at Davis study, based on the water reductions outlined in the Delta smelt Biological Opinion, revenue losses in the San Joaquin Valley of California for 2009 will be $2.2 billion and job losses at 80,000; Whereas according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate in the San Joaquin Valley has reached the highest level in the Nation; Whereas region wide unemployment in the San Joaquin Valley of California is nearly 20 percent and some cities have an unemployment rate of 40 percent; Whereas thousands of people who once relied on employment in the agricultural sector are now unemployed and struggling to meet their most basic needs, such as providing food for their families; Whereas, on March, 1, 2009, the Sacramento Bee reported thousands of people have been turned away from local food banks as supplies are not ample enough to meet local needs; Whereas, on April 14, 2009, the Fresno County, California, Board of Supervisors proclaimed that the man-made drought has created an economic crisis; Whereas on June 4, 2009, despite the ongoing man-made drought in California, the National Marine Fisheries Service issued a new Biological Opinion on the spring-run Chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead, the southern population of North American green sturgeon, and Southern Resident killer whales which further reduces water supplies to Californians; Whereas, on June 19, 2009, California's Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency for Fresno County, California, and petitioned President Barack Obama to declare the county a Federal disaster area; Whereas on June 28, 2009, the Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar visited Fresno, California, and held a town hall meeting in which nearly 1,000 people attended to express their dissatisfaction with the lack of action by the Obama Administration; Whereas, on July 6, 2009, the Los Angeles Times reported that during Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's town hall meeting on June 28, 2009, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation, Mike Connor, pledged to provide financial aid to starving families and an audience member replied ``we don't want welfare, we want water''; Whereas, on June 29, 2009, CBS 5 Eyewitness News reported that hundreds of San Joaquin Valley farmers protested outside the Federal Building Plaza in San Francisco which houses Speaker Nancy Pelosi's district office; Whereas, on June 29, 2009, CBS 5 Eyewitness News reported the protestors blamed Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congressman George Miller for the water shortage in the San Joaquin Valley; Whereas, on June 29, 2009, CBS 5 Eyewitness News reported that protestors were holding signs that said ``ESA Puts Fish Ahead of People'', ``Congress Created Drought'', and ``New Endangered Species: The California Farmer''; Whereas, on July 1, 2009, the Fresno Bee reported that a crowd of 4,000 marched through the streets of Fresno, California, to demand that the Federal Government end the man-made drought; Whereas, on June 18, 2009, the Democrat leadership held open Roll Call Vote 366 for the purpose of changing the outcome of the vote; Whereas during this vote, House Democrat leadership was seen on the House floor pressuring Members of Congress to change their Aye vote to a Nay vote in order to defeat the Nunes Amendment which would have helped to relieve the water crisis in California; Whereas, on July 8, 2009, during the mark-up on the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010, a debate was held on the Calvert Amendment which would have restored water deliveries to Californians; Whereas during the mark-up, the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, David Obey, said ``Recognize there are certain actions, that if you take, this bill won't pass, your earmarks in the bill won't become law''; Whereas Chairman Obey violated Clause 16 of House Rule 23 by linking passage of the Calvert Amendment to loss of earmarks; Whereas, on July 14, 2009, despite historical tradition of open rules during the appropriations process, the Rules Committee blocked an amendment to the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 that would have restored water deliveries to Californians; Whereas, for two years, the House of Representatives has known about the man-made drought in California without taking legislative action to resolve the crisis; Whereas the lack of action by the House of Representatives has demonstrated that fish are more important than families; Whereas article 1, section 8 of the United States Constitution enumerates that the Congress shall have the power to provide for the general welfare of the United States; Whereas the House of Representatives has willfully and knowingly failed to provide for the general welfare of the San Joaquin Valley of California; and Whereas the failure of the House of Representatives to carry out its duties has subjected the House to public ridicule and damaged the dignity and integrity of the House of Representatives: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Committee on Natural Resources is instructed to discharge H.R. 3105, the Turn on the Pumps Act of 2009, for immediate consideration by the House of Representatives.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, I come before you today to mourn the loss of a remarkable individual in our community. Kelly Murray grew up in my district in the City of Visalia, CA, and destiny led her away from her place of provenance, touching the lives of so many whom she met along the way. A former Navy officer with an exceptional career, she had just received tenure at the Loyola College Graduate Center in Columbia, Maryland, when she became the victim of a tragic accident that claimed her life as well as that of her 7-year-old daughter, Sloane Murray, late last month. Kelly Murray, PhD., graduated from Exeter High School and studied at Occidental College. She eventually went on to earn a Master's degree and a Doctorate degree from the California School of Professional Psychology. Her career in the Navy was notable and distinguished. She held several postings across the country, including that of Psychologist at the Naval Hospital and at the Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms, California; Staff Psychologist at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland; and Instructor of Psychology and Leadership at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Kelly's shining career also included an invitation to work at the White House counseling federal employees soon after September 11, 2001. Kelly Murray was a practicing psychologist who, with her husband Sean, was raising 6 children. She coached multiple youth soccer teams and organized an annual summer camp to bolster girls' self-esteem. Kelly was a positive force in her community; she will be dearly missed by her family, friends, and all those who knew her. I offer my heartfelt condolences to her family, and wish great strength upon them all that they may cope with this extraordinary loss. Kelly is survived by her husband, Sean Murray, and their 5 other daughters, Jillian, Meghan, Maeve, Catherine Quinn, and Kieran. She is also survived by her parents, James and JoAnn Welter of Exeter, California, and sister, Tammy Tuttle of Powell Butte, Oregon.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, article I, section 8 of the United States Constitution says that the Congress shall have the power to provide for the general welfare of the United States. Congress has the basic responsibility to provide water to its citizens, Mr. Speaker. To say it bluntly, this Congress has failed in its constitutional duty to provide water to its citizens. It's been 651 days since I warned this government of the imposed drought in California, the government-imposed drought. Since then, the Democrat leadership in this country has sat back and watched the vibrant economy of the San Joaquin Valley deteriorate to a level similar to a third world country. Unemployment in the San Joaquin Valley of California is nearing 20 percent, with some communities at 40 percent. Despite this economic catastrophe, the Democrat leadership in this country has remained silent. Thankfully, around midnight on Tuesday, Mr. Speaker, my friend from California (Mr. Calvert) offered an amendment, during the Energy and Water Appropriations markup, which would have restored the flow of water to communities. A 30-minute debate followed this, which included absolutely outrageous and outright threatful statements. One of my colleagues on the committee opined that California's water is critical to salmon and other endangered species, like the killer whale. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues, killer whales, these orcas live up here north of Washington. Mr. Speaker, what do killer whales have to do with landlocked farmers way down here? How is this possible? Then my colleague went on to say, ``The culprit is not the Endangered Species Act but climate change.'' Mr. Speaker, what does climate change have to do with 40,000 people without jobs? I find it ironic that my colleague in 2003 didn't have the same concern when he supported the energy and water bill which overturned the Endangered Species Act on the silvery minnow. In fact, 31 of my Democrat colleagues on the Appropriations Committee supported the exact same bill in 2003 to protect the silvery minnow. What has changed for my Democrat colleagues? The silvery minnow and the delta smelt are both 3-inch bait fish. Another member of the committee declared that the Calvert amendment was a ``wish amendment.'' Wish is certainly the right word to use. My constituents wish that the Democrats in this body would do their job. The same Member went on to threaten members of the committee that if they supported the Calvert amendment, they would lose their earmarks. It's amazing what happens around this place when the clock strikes midnight and they think no one is watching what people say. My message to you is, we are watching. I put the entire hearing up on YouTube for everyone in the world to see the pathetic excuses that were made in that committee that night. My colleagues have complained that California farmers are putting fishermen out of work. But the truth is, the Federal Government put the salmon fishermen out of work. In fact, the Federal Government paid $100 million to the salmon fishermen not to fish. It doesn't take $100 million to solve the crisis in California, Mr. Speaker. It doesn't even take a penny. Just turn on the pumps, and restore the flow of water, is all we're asking. It's unfortunate that the Democrat majority has made it quite clear they are going to ignore their constitutional duty to provide for the general welfare of its citizens. The other night my good friend from Idaho (Mr. Simpson) said during the debate, ``The Endangered Species Act wasn't written by God. It was written by man. If we can't make exceptions to it when necessary, what kind of Representatives are we?'' The gentleman from Idaho is correct. My constituents don't want your welfare. They want the Democrat leadership in this body to do their job.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, I am submitting the following information regarding H.R. 1945, Tule River Tribe Water Development Act. The entity to receive funding authorized under this act is the Bureau of Reclamation. The project will benefit the Tule River Tribe located at 340 N. Reservation Road, Porterville, CA 93257. I certify, to the best of my knowledge, that neither I nor my spouse has any financial interest in this project; the project is not directed to an entity or program that will be named after a sitting Member of Congress; the project is not intended to be used by an entity to secure funds for other entities unless the use of funding is consistent with the specified purpose of the authorizing legislation; and the project meets or exceeds all statutory requirements for matching funds where applicable.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, don't be deceived by the comments of the Democratic Party. This bill is a tax increase. This bill is the largest tax increase in American history. I ask my Democratic friends, Is this really what you have come to? Do you want to throw away the economic prosperity for nothing, because that's what this bill does. And for what, to satisfy the twisted desires of radical environmentalists. I would ask my colleagues one more question. How will you force China, India, and anyone else to accept this economic suicide pact? The dirty little secret is that you can't. While you congratulate each other today, I remind my colleagues the State of California is out of water. We have communities with 40 percent unemployment. And in the meantime, Democrats bring up fairy- tale legislation to the floor, phantom green job legislation. However, we agree on one thing. We should try to reduce our carbon emissions. Republicans have a plan, an all-the-above plan where we drill for American resources, we drill for oil in America. We take the revenue and we put it into solar, wind, nuclear technologies. That's a real plan, Madam Speaker. This bill is a scam.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. Madam Speaker, 636 days and counting. This is the number of days that have passed since I asked the Democrats in this body to take direct action and avoid destruction of the San Joaquin Valley. Instead, we've had 636 days of inaction, 636 days of a man-made drought, a California dust bowl. Last week there was a close vote, apparently too close for the Democrat leadership. The bipartisan amendment I offered would have stopped the Obama administration from taking additional measures to starve the people of the San Joaquin Valley of water. The Democrat leadership will not risk the possibility of defeat again. No mistakes this time. No vote will be allowed on the House floor this week on my new amendment to the Interior bill. The hypocrisy of this situation is that the Democrat majority champions working families but in reality is just backing the radical environmental element in this country. For the San Joaquin Valley, the Democrats in this House have chosen the 3-inch minnows over working families. What we are witnessing is the greatest elected assembly in the history of the world starving its citizens of water, acting like a despot who tortures the innocent just to stay in power. Make no mistake--raw power is what we're witnessing, power that injures and wounds, exercised at the highest levels of this government, straight from the Obama White House and the Democrat leadership in this Congress. They will say anything and do anything to keep power. Their victims are my constituents, the people of the San Joaquin Valley, who have done nothing to deserve this cruelty at the hands of this government. The clock is ticking. There's very little time left. This Congress must act and act now. At this moment, Madam Speaker, Members of this body are at the White House having a luau; and in the meantime, there's 40,000 people without jobs in the San Joaquin Valley because of the inaction by the Democrats and this Congress. Come back. Stop the luau. Stop the partying, and come back, and vote ``no'' on this rule and allow an amendment on this bill to bring people of the San Joaquin Valley. Come back. Stop the party. Come back now.

Mr. NUNES

Mr. NUNES. My friend from California, Mr. Lungren, is exactly correct. This is all we can do. The Democrat majority, they're correct. This isn't a solution to the problem, but it's all we can do. Maybe we can have a unanimous consent agreement tonight. I have a bill ready to go. We can vote on it tonight so we can get the pumps back on so we can get water to these people so they can go back to work and provide for their families. Mr. Chairman, a guy in a food line in Mendota not long ago told the national media he didn't want to be in the food line. He only wanted a job to provide for his family. The Democrats control Congress. The Democrats control the White House. How much longer does the guy have to wait to feed his family? How many more jobs must we lose? How many? I want to know. How many jobs should we lose? Is 40,000 jobs in the San Joaquin Valley not enough? Should we go to 80,000 jobs? 150,000 jobs? Should we put a million acres out of production? You guys are in control. Why don't you tell us how many acres you want out of production tonight so we can end the misery. Tell the people, Look, you've got to move out of the valley. Maybe they can move to the bay area. Maybe there would be work there for them. Maybe they'll get green jobs. I don't know. But right now, a half a million acres are out of production. So how many more acres are we going to put out of production? How many more people are going to starve because of the inaction by the Democrats in this body? How many more? That's all I want to know. I will yield if anyone wants to answer me how many jobs we're going to lose.