Trey Radel

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Heavy-handed government has been chipping away at our freedom and your freedom and your opportunity for generations, whether it's Big Government Democrat programs or, to be bipartisan, Big Government Republican programs. And that brings us to this debate today on the Affordable Care Act, which is not affordable and it is not about health care. It is about control. Your freedom, your choices between you and your doctor no longer between you and your doctor. Someone from here in D.C., in some way, shape, or form will be involved in your most personal decisions. Freedom and opportunity, the freedom to choose insurers, insurance, and your doctor in a truly free market now gone. This repeal is about your opportunity, which ObamaCare is already taking away from you. I want you to have a job. I want you to work more than 39 hours a week. This repeal is about your freedom. I want you to keep more money in your pocket. I want you to have low premiums. I want you to have a choice--your choice, not Washington, D.C.'s. This Affordable Health Care Act is not affordable and it is not about health care. It's about control.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, in this great country of ours, since our founding, we've always had a distrust of government. And, quite honestly, I think that's a healthy thing, most especially today as we learn about what both the Department of Justice and IRS have done. What we are learning is that this is a threat to your First Amendment: freedom of speech. And let there be no question the order of importance. It is your very first in your Bill of Rights: freedom of speech. I believe that these rights are so sacred, so precious that I'm introducing the Free Flow of Information Act to protect journalists from the prying eyes of this Federal Government. It is my hope that Republicans and Democrats alike will support this just like then- Senator Obama did in 2007. A select few in these agencies represent the worst when it comes to a heavy-handed government working to shut down your basic right to speak out as an individual or report the news as an organization. Now is the time that we stand up and say, Our society is not about I, the Federal Government; it is about we, the people. And to quote my generation's music from Public Enemy to Rage Against the Machine: ``We gotta fight the powers that be; we gotta take the power back.'' In other words, we need to stand up and say that we see the abuse from a few in Washington and we must return the power back to the people. After all, Washington works for you. Not a party. Not an ideology. Your government--elected and unelected--works for you, not against you. But now we clearly see that both the IRS and the Department of Justice are working against you, working to stifle, to shut down your God-given right of freedom of speech, that freedom often carried out by the press. In the United States, we are so unique and so powerful because we really share a common belief of some pretty simple things. You should be able to speak your mind. Again, it's called ``freedom of speech.'' And journalists should be able to do their job and do so without the fear of a heavy-handed tyrannical government threatening or stifling them. It's called ``freedom of the press.'' But now we see an entire culture of government acting on their own behalf, not even beholden to an administration, party, or even a belief. These are rogue agencies that we are talking about, unelected, unchecked, without boundaries, without ethics, and without a shred of respect for the Constitution or you. These individuals are some people on some floor of some building named after some dude that you've never even heard of messing with your life. And if you don't think that wiretaps or IRS audits are going to hit you, think again. Two groups from my home in southwest Florida were hit so hard by the IRS that they quit. They shut down their groups. That was it; enough is enough. This is the clearest example of how the government is coming after you to strip away your most basic rights. These groups were made up of hardworking Americans just like you. Their goal: to teach people about the Constitution. Think about that for a second. They wanted to teach people about the very document that tells you you have the right to say what you want. They're now gone. And let's look at the Department of Justice wiretapping, seizing and prying into the lives of journalists. I worked as a journalist for almost 20 years, living with what I thought our government also believed in--freedom of the press. The freedom to investigate, share, and speak out on injustice. And from journalists to partisan pundits, Rachel Maddow to Bill O'Reilly, they're coming for you next. Sean Hannity to Chris Hayes, you'll be tapped next as you try to shed light on truth, on injustice, or just try and get some answers. Where does all of this end? Well, this is where the so-called far left and far right need to embrace each other. Whether you are a Tea Partier or part of the Occupy movement, this is about you. Whether you are an evangelical Christian wanting to share the word of God or an atheist simply asking for a more secular society, this is about you. This is about you--your freedom of speech, your ability to express what you believe in. This is about you. Washington insiders should not be dictating your life. The more it's about them, it's not about you. The more government grows unchecked and unbalanced and out of control, the more it's about them and not you. I believe in you. Stand with me and let's take the power back and return this government to we the people. I promise to stand with you.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, I was recently in the beautiful, spectacular, booming country of Colombia, in part reaffirming a relationship with our ally and friend, and also there to make sure our investments are safe. Our investments are safe, and they're paying off by growing the Colombian economy, and for you, the hardworking American taxpayer, growing our economy right here in the United States. Free trade and economic freedom mean that both countries prosper. Their economy is growing and the income inequality gap is getting smaller and smaller, meaning a larger middle class. When Colombia does well, the United States does well. And while we may have a few differences here and there with other countries in Latin America, let there be no doubt that Colombia is a bright, shining example for all of the world when we work together. So to our friends from all over Colombia: paisas, rolos, costenos, vallunos, opitas, llaneros, y Calenos. Using your native language, let's continue to share our common dream of opportunidad y libertad para todos: opportunity and freedom for all.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 125, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, the President warned Americans would feel the pain of sequestration. What he failed to mention was his White House would play politics to guarantee pain was felt. House Republicans told the President to prioritize and find places to cut American families would not feel. He refused. This is why I am proud to support the Reducing Flight Delays Act, correcting the gross incompetence happening at the White House to ensure Southwest Floridians see shorter wait times at airports.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the House Republican budget, a balanced budget. Let me be very, very clear about this. A balanced budget means jobs. Again, a balanced budget means jobs. Think about this for a second. Your family at home, you balance your budget; why can't Washington? Businesses balance their budget; why can't Washington? And House Republicans today, all we're asking is to balance the budget in 10 years. Think about this. If you have a 10- year-old, by the time we balance the budget, your 10-year-old will basically be almost done with college. So in a bipartisan fashion, I would say look at the 1990s. Let's look at President Bill Clinton who balanced the budget with a Republican- controlled House, opportunity and jobs ran rampant. We need to return to that today. So we're asking this President, Please, work with us, Mr. President. But what is worse in all of this is how Senate Democrats have failed to serve you. The last time that they even passed a budget was before the iPad existed--before the iPad existed. We're willing to compromise; we're willing to work with people. But how can we work with Senate Democrats when they're not working at all? They're not doing their job at all to serve you, the American people. Their budget right now that they're working on does nothing more than raise taxes. They want more of your money, more money out of your paycheck. Ask yourself, does Washington really need more of your money? We're $16 trillion in debt. We have deficits that we can't even wrap our arms around, and they want more of your money. If you had a financial adviser that put you a million dollars in debt and then ripped through your savings for your children's college education and all of your checking account and said, ``Yeah, just give me some more money and we'll solve the problem,'' would you do it? Absolutely not. More than jobs, though, we're also working to save Medicare and Social Security, the commitments that we have made to the American people. So let's take a look here at the big picture. Here's a budget breakdown of where we're at right now. Look, your eyes will glaze over when we start talking about the trillions of dollars that we spend. But let's take a look at what you pay versus what you expect. This blue part right here is on autopilot. No adults have come to the table to talk about where we're at today and how to actually save your Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid in this big blue part. We're doing that today, House Republicans, in balancing the budget. But this is what you expect from the Federal Government: your education, roads, bridges, a healthy environment, and what's mandated by the Constitution, our Armed Forces to protect us. But this is where it gets really scary. All of this blue part here for Medicare and Social Security is what we take in. In other words, all of our cash on hand, if you will, the money that you pay the Federal Government every time you get a paycheck or pay your income taxes, this is all devoted to Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security. In other words, everything else--your education, the environment, our roads, bridges, ports, Armed Forces--all of that money to pay for that basically is borrowed. It's borrowed--or worse, just printed. This is the sad reality that we're facing today. But with Republican House leadership and working with Democrats who are actually willing to come to the table and compromise--and not just work with us, work for you--we can save Social Security and Medicare. And by the way, when you hear Democrats or you see the videos of them throwing your grandmother off a cliff or telling you that Republicans just want to cut, cut, cut, no; this is about save, save, save. And in the words of a hip-hop band from my generation, Public Enemy: don't believe the hype. House Republicans are working today for you. We're working to save Social Security and Medicare. We're working to save this economy and, ultimately, this country for you.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. Mr. Speaker, as a freshman, I am the first to make fun of myself and, quite frankly, of both parties. It seems that last session's budget negotiations consisted of Democrats making videos of Republicans throwing your grandmother off a cliff while wonky Republicans would be in the corner, talking about the debt-to-GDP ratio and other things that most hardworking Americans don't have time to think about or understand. But let me tell you what we can all understand: Republicans are doing what Senate Democrats have not done in years--we will pass another budget. So why does this matter to you? It matters because a balanced budget means jobs, opportunity and, ultimately, more money in your pocket. More money in Washington means less money for you--less money for your gas, your groceries, your rent, your mortgage, and maybe your next vacation to Florida. Now, being bipartisan, do you know who understood that more than anyone? President Bill Clinton. With a Republican House, the budget was balanced. We conservatives are working hard to balance that budget today for your opportunity and your job. We are here working for you.

Mr. RADEL

Mr. RADEL. I'd like to thank the gentleman from Louisiana for his hard work. I would like to take a moment to speak, in fact, in support of the Scalise amendment. In doing so, there's a much bigger picture here, a bigger picture that, quite frankly, isn't even being talked about when it comes to the challenges our country faces today. Our problems go beyond Republican and beyond Democrat. Our problems are numbers, debt and deficits that we cannot even begin to wrap our arms around. So what we must do as a country and beyond party lines is work together as Americans. Today I ask for your support of this amendment to demand accountability and transparency from Washington, accountability when it comes to your money--not tax dollars, not stimulus dollars--your money. We often hear from the President that we cannot cut, cut, cut, and I agree. This is not about cutting. This is about saving. This is about saving Social Security, saving Medicare, saving our economy and ultimately our government. In the big picture, we must demand that we, as elected officials and servants of the people, are held accountable. Both the Scalise amendment and the Require a PLAN Act do just that.