Ted Poe

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I'm prepared to close. We have no other speakers.

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield the gentleman 1 additional minute.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Kingston).

Mr. POE of Texas. I have one other speaker.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to my fellow Texan, Mr. Barton.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I support House Resolution 129, which recognizes the historical significance of the Merced Assembly Center to the memory of the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed his Executive Order 9066, which authorized the internment of Japanese Americans. President Roosevelt took this action even though, as chief historian for the Army Stetson Conn said, ``The only responsible commander in the military who backed the War Department's mass evacuation plan was the President himself, the Commander in Chief.'' Even Attorney General Frances Biddle and FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover advised against this policy. In 1942, President Roosevelt authorized the Army to evacuate more than 100,000 Japanese Americans from the Pacific coast States including Washington, Oregon, California and Arizona. Interestingly, Mr. Speaker, many Japanese Americans loyally served in the United States military during World War II while their families were interned. This overbroad and unnecessary approach to maintaining America's security serves as a continuing reminder that the civil rights of American citizens should never be lost even in the mist of the chaos of war. Also, Mr. Speaker, this policy did not apply to German-Americans. Approximately 20 percent of the United States military during World War II were made up of Americans with German heritage. But German-Americans were not interned as Japanese Americans were. Congress eventually enacted the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 in which it apologized on behalf of the Nation for the fundamental violations of the basic civil liberties and constitutional rights of these individuals of Japanese descent. President Ronald Reagan signed that act into law on August 10, 1988, proclaiming it ``a great day for America.'' Over 20 years later, we stand here today to renew our Nation's commitment to remember the past and shepherd its lessons into the future. Part of remembering those lessons is remembering some of the tragic details. One site in particular, the Merced Assembly Center, located in Merced, California, was the reporting site for almost 5,000 Japanese Americans during the war. As a young child, it has already been said, our colleague Mike Honda and his family were held at the Merced Assembly Center prior to being interned in Colorado. Since then, he has championed the cause of preventing this type of injustice from ever happening again. The Merced Assembly Center serves as a symbol of America's stumbling. But our country has regained footing and has appropriately apologized for the tragic mistake of President Roosevelt and his Executive Order 9066. And it is reaffirming its commitment, through this resolution before us today, to never forget its mistakes lest they be repeated to the detriment of our children and our children's children. I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the sky is falling, the sky is falling, but never fear, the Federal Government is here. But in another failed attempt to save the day, the administration announced they would use the full force of the government to spend our way out of this crisis. Congress hasn't even passed the $835 billion stimulus package and the Treasury Department announces $2 trillion more for the bailout for the fat cats on Wall Street. With that new emerging threat on the horizon, the stock markets tanked. Government is not the answer. They are the problem. These ideas do little to address the economic situation. It is just more scare tactics and government-savior rhetoric. Reagan once said that the most feared words in the American language are, ``We are here from the Federal Government, and we are here to help you.'' The Federal Government can't spend money it doesn't have. This will be debt that Americans yet to be born will have to pay off. The Congressional Budget Office said all of this spending will have a negative effect on the economy. Let Americans keep more of their own money, tax cuts for all those that pay and report their taxes. Wasteful government spending is not the answer. It is the problem. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, we hear a lot about the economy, as we should, but I would like to focus on the cost of all of this money that the government says it needs to spend. The front page of today's USA Today is headlined, ``Trillions Aimed At Financial Recovery,'' and here we see a photograph of the Treasury Secretary, Mr. Geithner, scratching his head as he is talking to Members of Congress when he testified yesterday. Now we hear about the billions spent for this program and the trillions spent for this program all in the name of helping the economy. I would like to focus on the cost of all of this. If you add up all of the bailout packages from last year, the so-called stimulus packages, and the bills yet to be passed but promised to be passed this year, plus the debt that it will cost Americans yet to be born, it is $9,700,000,000,000. Now that is the biggest number I have ever seen in my life. And $9 billion, it is hard to relate to what 9 billion or $9,700,000,000,000 is. Well, let's try to focus on how much that really is in terms maybe we can understand. If you add up all of the major wars that the United States has been involved in since we were a country, and you put 2009 dollars to those figures, this amount of money still would not cover the cost of the American Revolution, the War of 1812, the War Between the States, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean war, the Vietnam war, the Iraqi wars and the Afghanistan wars. We would still have enough money left over in 2009 dollars to pay for the Louisiana Purchase in 2009 dollars, the Gadsden Purchase in 2009 dollars, and Alaska in 2009 dollars with money still left over. Now that is a lot of money. It has been estimated also that this amount of money would pay for 90 percent of all of the home mortgages in the whole United States. Now we're talking about real money. Or looking at it another way, if you divided this money up with all the people on the face of the Earth, each one of them would get about $1,500. That is a lot of money. And yet, this is the amount of money we are going to try to spend all in the name of saving the economy and saving the country. I question, first of all, whether or not it will work. But more importantly, where are we going to get the money? We don't have the money. So we are going to have to borrow the money. And probably we will borrow the money from our good friends over in China. Oh, they're ready to lend us money and let Americans pay interest on it. The Congressional Budget Office has done some work, it hasn't been publicized much, about the new stimulus bill, the $835 billion bill that just passed the Senate that is coming back to the House in a conference bill maybe tomorrow, Friday or whatever. And they said even if you spend that money, that is not going to help the economy. So now we've got two problems. One, we don't have the money. And the stimulus bill may not even help the economy. This country has done the stimulus bill thing before. This is not the first stimulus bill. It was tried right after World War II. In fact, we now have a total of eight stimulus bills that one Congress or another has passed all in the name of trying to stimulate the economy. And history has shown, basically, they just didn't work. They weren't as effective as they were expected to be. So, although we have philosophical differences between this side and the other side about how to help the economy, I would submit maybe we need to step back and rather than say government's the answer in spending money that we don't have, taking money from taxpayers who are paying their taxes and working, taking it and giving it to the government and letting the government dole it out to different special interest groups throughout the country in the effort to stimulate the economy, rather than follow that philosophy, why don't we let Americans just keep more of their own money? Do something really remarkable, tell the American public, everybody that pays taxes is going to get a tax deduction. Everybody, including corporations and small businesses. Then, when Americans have more of their own money, they will be able to stimulate the economy by spending it the way they decide, rather than the way we decide how to spend that money. And that will give small businesses, when they have more capital, the ability to hire people to come work for them. You see, businesses, especially small businesses, are where jobs are created. They're not created by the Federal Government; they're created by the private sector. I submit we ought to try the tax cut approach. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to talk about the spendulous bill that is coming before the House once again. If you add up all of the money it's going to cost us in this spendulous bill, it's going to total $9.7 trillion. Now, I had to put it on two poster boards here, Mr. Speaker, so we could see how long a number that is. That includes, of course, the big bailout bills that were passed, and, of course, the debt on the spendulous bill and future debt that we're going to require because of agreements to provide aid in this new bill. Now, just to give you--I mean, nobody understands what $9.7 trillion means. So let me try to explain it in terms maybe we can understand. If you take all the home mortgages in the United States, every one of them, this will pay off 90 percent of them by this bill that we're getting ready to pass. It's also enough to give every person on the face of the earth $1,500, every one of them, no matter where they are. That's how much $9.7 trillion is. That means everybody could get some money from the United States on this bill. Putting it another way, if you add up the cost of the wars in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq, this is 13 times that amount. And it's been figured that if you add up in current 2009 dollars the cost of all the wars that the United States has fought in, the Revolutionary War, the War Between the States, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Iraqi wars and the Afghanistan wars, it still is less than $9.7 trillion. If you add up the wars and if you then figure out how much it cost us in 2009 dollars for the Louisiana Purchase, the Gadsden Purchase, and the whole State of Alaska, that's still less than $9.7 trillion. So we're talking about real money here, Mr. Speaker, on this so- called ``spendulous'' bill that the House will get to vote on again at the end of this week. This House stimulus bill, as it is properly called, is bigger than 168 of 180 national economies that are measured by the World Bank. Let me say that again. If you take 180 countries and their national economy, this bill is bigger than 168 of them. So we're talking about money that, first of all, probably will not even work to stimulate the economy. We've been told that spending equals stimulus. That is just not true. Government spending on government programs doesn't mean that the economy is going to be better. All it means is the government, our government, is going to get bigger. Many economists argue that there's no historical precedent for a stimulus spending driven economy, and they base that on history. You see, we've done this stimulus package before. Since 1948, there have been eight stimulus packages that have come to the House of Representatives, that have passed, and history has shown none of those really stimulated the economy at all. They had no effect on the economy, but we don't pay any attention to history. We just think we can make it happen by spending a lot of government money. And of course, we're not convinced, those of us who don't want to spend this kind of money, that it will stimulate the economy, and besides all that, we don't have the money, Mr. Speaker. We're just flat broke. We've got to borrow the money. We've got to borrow it from somebody else in the world like China and pay interest to China, of all countries, so that we can take this money from Americans yet to be born and give it to different interest groups in the United States, all under the pretext of we're going to stimulate the economy. It doesn't make much sense to me to be spending this kind of money, which is real money, on this so-called fake stimulus package. Maybe we should not spend any money at all. Maybe we should think about letting Americans, who pay taxes, and do report their taxes to the IRS, let them keep more of their money, an across-the-board tax cut for everybody that pays taxes. They would have more of their own money to begin with. Government wouldn't be taking it from them and deciding what to do with it. Let them keep their own money, and they can spend it how they see fit. And maybe they will stimulate the economy by the way they choose to spend it rather than wasteful spending by the Federal Government, the government growing bigger, the government getting more involved in everything from the banking industry to the how-to-make-a- Federal car, and all of these other programs where we're getting the nationalization of this. It's not the answer, Mr. Speaker, and that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. I urge adoption of this resolution.

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield 3 minutes to the cosponsor of this bill, the gentlelady from North Carolina (Mrs. Myrick).

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As a Nation, we are not judged by the way we treat the rich, the famous, the powerful, the important folks that live among us; but we as a community in this Nation are judged by the way we treat the most vulnerable among us, the weak, the innocent, the children, and the elderly. That is how we will be judged as a Nation. It is important that we then pass this legislation to help protect those innocent among us, and in this bill it happens to be the elderly. I urge adoption of this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlelady from Oklahoma (Ms. Fallin).

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time that I may consume. I'm pleased to support H.R. 908, the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program Reauthorization of 2009. Roughly 5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's disease or dementia. Of these, 60 percent will become lost from their families or their caretakers. If they're not found within 24 hours, up to half of them become seriously ill or even die. H.R. 908 increases the chance of locating missing persons suffering from these diseases within the critical first 24 hours. Specifically, the bill provides grants to nonprofit organizations to help create and maintain programs to assist in locating missing patients and family members with Alzheimer's. We passed similar legislation in the last session of Congress, sent it to the Senate, and the Senate made a few changes and sent it back to us for our approval here in the House, but we did not have enough to consider the bill before Congress adjourned at the end of last year. H.R. 908 contains compromise language from the Senate version of the last session of Congress. These programs and organizations this legislation aims to help are often significantly useful to local law enforcement when a person suffering from these mind-altering diseases goes missing. Because these patients are often disoriented and confused, tips and information from family, friends, and doctors are very critical. H.R. 908 provides support to these organizations, indirect assistance to local law enforcement, protection to patients, and some peace of mind to the families and loved ones. I urge all my colleagues to support this bill. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this H. Res, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Linder).

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume Mr. Speaker, I support House Resolution 71 which acknowledges the lifelong service of Griffin Bell to the State of Georgia and, of course, to the United States. Griffin Bell was the son of a cotton farmer, and he rose to become one of the most respected legal counselors in the whole United States. He was appointed by President Kennedy to serve as a judge on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. He left the court after 14 years of service on that bench to rejoin the law firm of King and Spalding. In 1986, President Jimmy Carter nominated him to become the Attorney General of the United States. In that role, Judge Bell operated in a remarkably open manner that has not been duplicated since. Every day, he would publicly post his contacts with third parties, including meetings and calls from the White House, Members of Congress, and others outside the Justice Department. His efforts to strengthen transparency of his office did much to rebuild confidence in the Justice Department after the Watergate scandal. As Attorney General, Judge Bell led the effort to pass the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. At the time, he gave testimony to Congress in which he made clear that the legislation ``does not take away the power of the President under the Constitution.'' Judge Bell also led negotiations that resulted in dividing his former appellate courts into two circuits: the Fifth Circuit, based in New Orleans, and the 11th Circuit, based in Atlanta. Judge Bell was known for his love of rooster pepper sausage and for his wide and bold-colored ties. He was a figure full of personality as he was wise, and greatly respected by Members of both sides of the political aisle. Judge Bell passed away earlier this year on January 5, 2009. He and his sage advice and his opinions will be missed. As a former judge and prosecutor, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution to honor the life of Judge Bell, a man committed to justice because, Mr. Speaker, justice is what we do in America.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate my good friend and fellow judge from Texas (Mr. Green) for introducing this legislation, an individual I've known for now over 30 years and have been through a lot together back in the State of Texas and proud to see that he has introduced this legislation. With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Franks).