Louise Slaughter

Ms. SLAUGHTER

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel), a member of the Ways and Means Committee. (Mr. RANGEL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews). (Mr. ANDREWS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly).

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I yield myself 30 seconds to comment on the supercommittee. When was the last time we had a bipartisan group like that? Simpson- Bowles, which got absolutely nowhere; the Gang of Six in the Senate, again which got absolutely nowhere. And six and six, I can imagine what it is going to be like to get somebody to be the seventh vote on the other side.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I yield to the gentleman from California.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. If I may respond to the gentleman, I don't think the Gang of Six was any outside committee. I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel).

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott), a member of the Financial Services Committee.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer), a member of the Budget and Ways and Means Committees.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from New York, the ranking member of the Small Business Committee, Ms. Velazquez. (Ms. VELAZQUEZ asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I yield myself the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, we should never have found ourselves where we are today, facing a self-inflicted crisis and being asked to vote for a bill that has so many flaws. The prolonged debate that led us here has caused the world to question our Nation's credibility and already inflicted harm on the U.S. economy. The irony of our situation is the other side claims to be bringing certainty to the market, but the reality is they have undermined faith in the United States Government's ability to lead the global economy. Throughout this debate, Congress has gotten lost in the crisis created instead of the true crisis of unemployment that faces our constituents. Nobody, even Members of Congress, especially Members of Congress, should have the ability to bring the faith in the American Government to its knees. It's high time we address the crisis of jobs in our country and resolve the self-inflicted crisis we are facing today. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I thank my good friend, the gentleman from California, the chair of the Rules Committee, for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Ms. SLAUGHTER asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, today we face a self-inflicted crisis, and the majority's proposed solution is no solution at all. The debt ceiling was created, ironically, to avoid forcing Congress to approve every new issue of debt. The debt ceiling was originally introduced to pay for World War I and was designed to be a formality that would help our country and economy operate smoothly and without interruption. All these years later, it having done that, the debt ceiling now appears to have outlived its usefulness. In fact, I believe we should abolish the debt limit altogether and never face a crisis like this again of whether we will be a responsible country that pays our bills. Only one other country has the debt limit, and that is Denmark. I think we really need to look at this as an anachronism from 1917. Regardless, throughout the life of the debt ceiling, raising the ceiling has never been questioned. Since 1960, the ceiling has been raised 78 times. Throughout this time, there's been no quid pro quo demanded to raise the debt ceiling, no ransom demanded in exchange for raising our debt ceiling and preventing default. That is, until today. Bringing our Nation to the brink of collapse has been a conscious decision of the majority party. Placing ideology before country, they are demanding controversial and unacceptable cuts or else they are willing to let our Nation default. We have been warned by the United States Senate and the President of the United States that the proposed legislation will not be passed into law. They have said it repeatedly. They have said it clearly. Yet the majority continues to believe this bill can actually avert the danger of default. They're playing a dangerous game of chicken, asking the Nation to give into their demands if we want the American economy to live to see another day. I simply cannot agree to the extreme demands being put forth by the majority today. After pulling yesterday's legislation from the floor, the majority has introduced a piece of legislation that demands the impossible. Today's bill doesn't just require a vote on a constitutional amendment; it demands that a constitutional amendment be approved by both Chambers of Congress this fall. If the amendment doesn't pass, then we not only face the prospect of default again 6 months from now, but we have even fewer options to avoid default. If previous proposals are any guide, the constitutional amendment would place the burden of debt reduction squarely upon the middle class, threatening Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, and Members of Congress would be given a Sophie's choice: Do we vote against this amendment and protect Medicare or do we vote for the amendment to avoid economic default? This is totally unnecessary. In effect, this legislation releases one hostage and takes another. Six months from now, we would be forced to choose between a constitutional amendment and putting the Nation back on the brink of default. I refuse to trade hostages with the majority and prolong this crisis for another 6 months. I urge my colleagues to put the country before any ideology and come together to solve an urgent and serious crisis that we are facing today. It's our duty to put the welfare of the country before all else. That is why we were elected by the people who expect us to do just that, and that is what we swear to do. It is time we answered the call. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on today's bill and urgently, urgently, get back to serving the American people. And we spent far too much time on the useless bill. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the ranking member on Ways and Means, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin). (Mr. LEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to a member of the Committee on Ways and Means, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett).

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Scott), a constitutional scholar.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews). (Mr. ANDREWS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 1 minute to yet another constitutional scholar, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Watt), a member of the Judiciary Committee.

Ms. SLAUGHTER. I am pleased to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran).

Ms. SLAUGHTER. Madam Speaker, I am delighted to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank), the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee.