Ellen Tauscher

Mrs. TAUSCHER

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of my neighbor, the gentleman from northern California, Mr. Miller, and his substitute amendment. Mr. Chairman, I have worked for 30 years, and the working parents and families in my district are spending less and less time with their families and young children. They are driving too long to the office. Many of them get on airplanes to commute to make a sales call. Many find themselves looking for opportunities for flexibility, and when they hear the rhetoric of H.R. 1, many of them say, aha, perhaps there it is. The truth is that H.R. 1 appears to be well-intentioned but, in my opinion, it does not offer the kind of flexibility, the kind of voluntary options and the real money that American workers want. The people of my district do not want to be forced into the position of deciding whether the comp time to go to the soccer game is put at a vexing choice of whether they have the money to buy the soccer shoes. This is about real wages, Mr. Chairman. This is about the opportunity to have people have the opportunity to spend the money that they expect to be earning. Paycheck protection is the fundamental right of all American workers. The opportunity to have pension and Social Security money put forth by an employer is denied by H.R. 1. I believe that we need to vote for this Miller substitute amendment.

Mrs. TAUSCHER

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, last week more than 100 members of the Democratic Caucus signed the Tauscher-Stenholm-Minge letter that called on both the President and the Republican majority to present a CBO- scored balanced budget proposal. This letter was an attempt to move the stalled budget process forward in a bipartisan manner. As a former investment banker who spent 14 years on Wall Street, I find it is inconceivable that we could go yet another year without coming to a resolution on a balanced budget. Today, I am encouraged to hear Speaker Gingrich has suggested delaying tax cuts until a balanced budget is reached. If the Speaker or any of our colleagues would like a blueprint for balancing the budget without raising or cutting taxes, I ask them to take a close look at the Blue Dog Coalition budget. Our budget deals with tax cuts outside the scope of the balanced budget plan while keeping them consistent with a balanced budget. The coalition budget is a plan that can help us move forward toward achieving a truly bipartisan balanced budget. I implore my colleagues to listen to the American people who sent us here. Let us go to work on balancing the budget. We cannot wait any longer.

Mrs. TAUSCHER

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my Republican colleague from southern California for yielding. Mr. Speaker, as the Representative of the 10th Congressional District in California, it is one of my great pleasures and honors to be able to recognize and praise distinguished constituents from my area. I rise today to honor the accomplishments of a gentleman from my district who throughout his life has worked to improve the lives of others. Although I have never had the pleasure to meet this man in person, I was lucky enough to learn of his service to my community and the State of California through the kind words and praise of Congressman Rogan and through the admiration of his colleagues in the education community. I speak of Mr. Ralph Laird, Jr., a man who has served his country in numerous ways throughout his lifetime. Mr. Laird began serving his country during World War II, in which he fought as a soldier in the U.S. Army. After returning from the war, Mr. Laird made a fortunate decision to return to California, where he chose to dedicate his life to education. Mr. Laird has been a teacher, a coach of a championship basketball team, a vice principal, a principal, a dean, and an assistant superintendent. In my district, among other things, he has served as the principal of Pleasanton's Amador High School for 8 years and later as assistant superintendent of the Amador School District. In his spare time, Mr. Laird has served on the Pleasanton City Library Board, coached little league baseball, been an active member of the Pleasanton Rotary Club, and served as a camp director for the YMCA. I believe that the people of the 10th Congressional District and the State of California have been enormously blessed to have someone like Mr. Laird working on their team. Again I would like to thank my colleague from southern California for bringing to my attention the accomplishments of this outstanding gentleman. Mr. Laird has done a great service to the people of my district and to California's children. Additionally, I would like Mr. Laird and his family to know that my prayers and the prayers of the people of the 10th Congressional District are with him during this very difficult time.

Mrs. TAUSCHER

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the rule before us today, and I object to House Resolution 89. I am disappointed that the Committee on Rules has chosen to restrict debate on this measure, and I hope my colleagues will vote to defeat the previous question and allow us to offer the Minge-Stenholm-Tauscher substitute. Our substitute, Mr. Speaker, is quite simple. It says that not only should the President have a CBO-scored balanced budget plan by April 7, but that the House Committee on the Budget must present one as well. This is a reasonable request, and it is one that is made in the spirit of bipartisanship. It is an effort to place all the parties on a level playing field and to help facilitate useful discussions on balancing the budget. Mr. Speaker, I regret that we are here today not to debate the merits of different budget proposals, but it looks like it is a cynical attempt to make the President look bad. It is counterproductive to be considering House Resolution 89, but it is even worse that the rule prevents us from offering an amendment to apply the provisions of House Resolution 89 to the Committee on the Budget as well as the President. My colleagues on the Republican side say they are simply trying to get the President to submit a budget using CBO numbers, but that begs the question: Where is the Republican budget? I came to Congress with a commitment to make the difficult choices necessary to balance the federal budget. I am proud to be a cosponsor of the Blue Dog Coalition budget proposal that makes those choices. Now it is time for the Committee on the Budget to do the same. The Minge- Stenholm-Tauscher substitute would apply the same rules of the game to each participant. I urge my colleagues to defeat the previous question and support this evenhanded alternative to House Resolution 89.

Mrs. TAUSCHER

Mrs. TAUSCHER. Mr. Speaker, I am proud that in my first opportunity to speak on the floor of the House, I am rising to voice my strong support for the blue dog coalition budget. The coalition budget is a commonsense approach to deficit reduction. It does not rely on gimmicks, nor do we postpone the tough cuts until the final years of the plan. At this point the blue dog budget is the only budget plan that will balance the budget by the year 2002 and take the Social Security trust fund off budget by 2005. As Members of Congress, we must show our constituents that we can make the tough choices necessary to put our fiscal house in order. The coalition budget proves that we can balance the budget, save Medicare and Social Security, and preserve our commitment on education. If we colleagues are truly looking to balance the budget in a bipartisan manner, I urge them to take a long hard look at the blue dog budget. This is the right plan for Democrats and Republicans to begin to form a truly bipartisan consensus on a balanced budget.