Christopher Shays

Mr. SHAYS

Mr. SHAYS. I yield to the gentleman from New York.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Committee on the Budget, we were looking at getting at some of the what I would call the corporate loopholes, the corporate write-offs, and I just find it somewhat disingenuous that when we attempt to do that, then we are being accused of hurting the poor. The bottom line is we have a special provision to big businesses in Puerto Rico who admittedly are there working to employ people, but in some cases, the write-off is $100,000, $200,000 benefit per job for some of these very large corporations. These large corporations, some of them are in my district, they benefit from it. But we are saving basically $4.9 billion over 10 years. We are phasing it out over 10 years. We are taking that $4.9 billion, and we are truly helping in a whole host of ways. Expensing for small business to me makes sense, but I particularly like the work opportunity tax credit. We are giving a tax credit to individuals that hire what I would call the least employable, the people who are on welfare, the people who simply have not had work experience. I am proud that my side is dealing with the minimum wage, having an economic engine along with the minimum wage. We are given a vote to have a vote up or down on the minimum wage. We have that. We are given a vote to also provide an economic engine for our companies who employ. One of the best, to my mind, ways of looking at it, the work opportunity tax credit. It is going to be funded in part by eliminating what I call a significant loophole to large businesses who happen to just have activity in a possession of the United States. So I applaud what the Committee on Ways and Means has done. I thank them for eliminating what I think is a loophole that does not benefit enough people and in the end allow for small businesses to pay the minimum wage.

Mr. SHAYS

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as we enter the Memorial Day weekend to pay tribute to a truly great American, Americo Vespucci Napolitano. Nappy, as he is known by friends, served his country in Ireland, England, and Normandy as a member of General George Patton's 3rd Army Division. He was awarded the Purple Heart after being wounded during a battle in Brez, France. Following his 6 years of service in the military, Nappy joined the U.S. Postal Service, where he was employed for 30 years. After moving from Bridgeport to Trumbull, CT, Nappy joined American Legion Post 141 in the mid 1950's. Since that time he has been a stalwart member of the Post and is personally responsible for spearheading many of the organization's initiatives over the years. Having held every major position in the Post, he served as Post Commander on six occasions. Nappy was responsible for starting the Salvation Army bell-ringing project, the American Legion baseball team and the college scholarship program, as well as the Post's academic and scouting awards programs. He is well-known as a tireless worker for his community and country and has given back to both in exemplary fashion over the years. He is a model for our youth and a symbol of that which is best in our country. It has been my pleasure to pay respect to this great American as the entire country prepares to remember all those who served our Nation in its times of need.

Mr. SHAYS

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California [Mr. Cunningham] who risked his life in Vietnam for our defense through 300 missions and was shot down on the 300th mission.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Bartlett].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Miller].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Porter], the chairman of the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 30 seconds to talk real specifics and the truth about our budget. Under Medicare, our budget goes from $196 to $284 billion. That is a 45-percent increase in spending in our program in Medicare. We have the same kind of increase in Medicaid. It goes from $95 to $140 billion. Only in this city when you spend so much more do people call it a cut. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina [Mr. Sanford].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 30 seconds to just correct a few points that were made by my colleague. First, we have no increase in copayment in our Medicare, no increase in the deductible, and we keep the premium at 25 percent. There is no increase in premiums. We only increase the premium for the wealthiest in our country who make over $100,000. They may pay more in Medicare part B. Second, there are no tax cuts for the wealthy. What we have as a tax cut is a $500 tax credit for families making less than $100,000. Families making less than $100,000 in our bill will get $500 per child, regardless of wealth, under $100,000. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida [Mr. Stearns].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California [Mr. Radanovich].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Iowa [Mr. Nussle].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I am opposed to the amendment.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 1 minute to correct my colleague. On Medicaid, we are increasing spending from $95 billion to $140 billion. My colleague may call that a cut but it is not. It is an increase in spending. We increased Medicare from $196 billion to $284 billion. We are increasing Medicare. My colleague took a chart and then proceeded to mislead, in my judgment, the facts. Medicare is growing from $196 to $284 billion. That is not a cut. It is a 45-percent increase in spending. Medicaid is going from $95 billion to $104 billion. The student loan program is going from $24 billion to $36 billion. We do have a cut, $500 tax cut for children for families making under $100,000. We pay for that tax cut. It is not like 1981, like my colleague would try to imply. We pay for it. We set aside the money by making further reductions in the budget. Mr. Chairman, this coalition budget spends more, It raises more money in revenue. It goes after senior citizens by going and paying them less in their Social Security benefits. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes and 30 seconds to the gentleman from Mississippi [Mr. Parker]. (Mr. PARKER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona [Mr. Kolbe], my colleague on the Committee on the Budget. (Mr. KOLBE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Smith].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to my colleague, the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Portman].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote. A record vote was ordered.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself 15 seconds to apologize to the gentleman from Maryland [Mr. Hoyer]. He was right on one and wrong on another. We are paying for our taxes; I disagreed with him there. But he did make the point that we were allowing Medicare and Medicaid to grow, and I misunderstood his comments, and I apologize to the gentleman. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Gekas].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from New York [Mr. Lazio], the chairman of the committee that is reforming housing.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Neumann]. (Mr. NEUMANN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arizona [Mr. Hayworth].

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I am opposed to the amendment. The gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Kasich] will be coming shortly, and he will be opposed.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the balance of my time. As a moderate Republican who has voted for a number of budgets that have taken care of people, I have seen the result of our work. The result of our work in some cases is 12-year-olds having babies, it is 14-year-olds selling drugs, it is 15-year-olds who cannot read their own diplomas, it is 24-year-olds who have never had a job, it is 30- year-old grandparents. We have a caretaking society, and it has become a caretaking society because of what we have done in the Federal Government. When I was elected from the State government to the Federal government, I thought the Federal Government could do it better. It cannot do it better because what it does is, it adds up all the people in a room, adds up their entire shoe size, divides the number of people by the shoe size, and say, ``Here is 8\1/2\, wear it. If your shoe size is 10, I'm sorry. Here is 8\1/2\, wear it.'' We have a society that is going in the wrong direction. Our budget changes that. We increase the student loans, we increase Medicare, we increase Medicaid, we increase welfare payments. But ultimately what we are trying to do, as a columnist said, in the final analysis, it is not what we do for our children but what we have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings. We are looking to transform our caretaking social and corporate welfare state into a caring opportunity society, a carying opportunity society where we teach people how to grow the seeds so they can do it for themselves. So I compliment my colleagues on the other side. There is compassion in that budget, but it is headed in the wrong direction.

Mr. SHAYS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Arizona [Mr. Kolbe]. (Mr. KOLBE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)