Paul Tonko

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. As these instruments were invented to circumvent regulation, the Democrats have said yes, we're concerned about that. We want to fix it. Republicans say no. The vote was clear. No to Wall Street reform. You look at the GDP growth. You look at the changes that have come since the first quarter of 2009. We were hitting a job loss that was incredibly difficult, nearly 750,000 jobs lost per month. Lately, 187,000 jobs increase. We talked earlier about December 2009 forward. In the last 4 months, 84 percent growth of the private sector from those over one-half million jobs; 573,000 jobs created. So the GDP is improving. The household income lost $17.5 trillion over the last 18 months of the Bush Presidency. Now 60 percent recovered, some $6 trillion recovered. And it goes on and on and on. And even with the tax situation, I know that Representative Driehaus is concerned about the tax situation. The tax cut that was part of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act was a part of it, but there are tax cuts galore. And the gentleman from Ohio, I believe, wants to address that factor.

Mr. TONKO. And I think the results here are driven by a number of things, choices, contrasts. The choice here was to put American families, American workers, small business, as a high priority. No more alignment with Big Oil, big banks, insurance companies, credit card companies. Let's drive a benefit, let's drive the focus for America's hardworking families across this country; 98 percent of Americans were part of that tax cut that was part of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act; 98 percent of Americans and small businesses, a tremendously strong statistic, a contrast to the behavior before, the decade before, which found two wars off-budget. Let the credit card cover that, I guess. Tax cuts for the highest income brackets, off-budget. A deal with the pharmaceutical company, Medicare part D, which suggests that Medicare paid for a part of the program, when we know seniors, oftentimes retirees, dug into their pocket to pay for pharmaceutical costs. So we come up with a health care reform measure to which Republicans said ``no.'' Contrast again, Democrats say ``yes.'' We make certain pharmaceutical costs are covered. We make certain that deductibles and copays are taken out of the picture for our Medicare-eligible population. There are huge contrasts here, siding with people who really make America's economy work. They invest their money on basic core needs. They work paycheck to paycheck and then invest in the community. So when we had an opportunity here to further grow opportunity for this country and for people, we said ``yes'' to student loan reform, said ``yes'' to community college investment. Republicans said ``no.'' All of these activities, all of this legislation, all of these improvements, all of this sensitivity, all of this fairness is equating to a resurgence in the economy. Because what is it? The large, broad middle class that needs to be fairly treated in public policy terms and budgeting are now being able to have more dollars available. The GDP tells the story. The household income situation, the graph that we had here last week talked about trillions of dollars, $17.5 trillion of household income lost in the last 18 months of the Bush Presidency. That Bush recession drained American households. And now, since the beginning of '09, 30 percent of that has been recovered. Some $6 trillion has been recovered. We're not stopping there. We're going to continue to go. The choice here is, based on the contrast, very clear. Do we continue along the path of progress or do we, as the President said a few days ago, give back the keys to the people who drove the car into the ditch and it was a painful measure to pull the car out of the ditch?

Mr. TONKO. Thank you, Representative Garamendi. I would just close with this and thank my colleagues for joining me. The change is working. The contrast is stark. The choice is clear. And so I appreciate my colleagues sharing some very strong thoughts about what's happening here for the good. It has been a climb out of the toughest times America has known, but we need to continue to pursue in the direction, I believe, that has been strengthening our economy and, therefore, the American families, the American workers, and the American small business community. Mr. Speaker, I yield back.

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Thank you, Representative Dahlkemper, and thank you, Representative Wasserman Schultz, for bringing us together this evening to share the facts and just the facts, which I think is an important bit of exchange and messaging that needs to be done with the American public. And, you know, if you don't believe what you are hearing here, because perhaps you have been swayed by some very gloom-and-doom news info that's been coming your way, take the word from Fortune magazine of April 16 of this year. On April 16, Fortune magazine reported that we have taken a sharp U- turn in the past couple of months and that there are better days for American businesses and workers just around the corner. Well, that's telling it like it is. And why? Because this House, the leadership of this House, the President and his administration, working together, we have enabled a very sharp, laser-type focus on American workers, on working families in this country. And it's now that sort of priority that has been established here in the House of Representatives, working with the administration, to make certain that we crawl out of this economic recession, the Bush recession that gripped this Nation, brought this country to her knees economically, and now people have said, We will give you the keys; we will put you in charge. And there is a spirit of optimism that is obviously being expressed in consumer data that's being recorded now in the past several months where there is a swing upward. As Representative Wasserman Schultz pointed out in the V formation, that downward straight line of the V was under the Bush recession. And then as we swing upward, that upward straight line of the V is that blue portion of this graph that talks about the comeback. You know, it's mimicking a story of the past where under the Clinton administration 22 million jobs were created and under the Bush administration, 1 million. One million. So there is a stark difference there. The policies that are being initiated here under the watch of President Obama and the leadership of this House have produced a track already that if it's extrapolated over the next 8 months, for a year's worth of data, we will surpass in 1 year what 8 years' worth of information tells us happened during those Bush years. And 8 million jobs lost. That goes beyond what the Great Depression produced for this country. So I think that the spirit of optimism is driving the comeback. It's perhaps why that optimism spoke to those numbers of the new home sales. The home sales in March alone rose by 27 percent, a record month-to- month increase that goes back 47 years. So it's that sort of consumer confidence, the optimism, as you alluded to, Representative Dahlkemper, of growth in the manufacturing activity out there which is extremely valuable. We see ourselves as a Nation that produces and responds to the needs of consumers out there. Any nation that wants to stay strong needs to grow its manufacturing sector. We are seeing that happen. So, so many of the indicators out there are suggesting that we are on that comeback trail. We are hoping it's a straight line comeback. We don't want any other format out there but a straight line. We believe that as we go forward and continue to invest, and I believe that's the right word, invest in the American workers, in businesses, where we have not aligned and put the highest priority value to Wall Street banks, to credit card companies, to the insurance industry, to all of these efforts and the big oil companies; we have instead put our focus and our priority with American workers, working families, job creation and retention, and the numbers are there. They are beginning to show that the proof in the pudding here is that sound policies to turn the thinking around, to pull us out of the economic woes, and we can trail it. We are trailing it now, and the data speak for themselves. So this is a great hour, a great opportunity to exchange the facts and nothing but the facts and allow people to understand that we are climbing upward with a spirit of optimism and confidence that's being marked by so many measurements out there that are to the good.

Mr. TONKO. And obviously the decline did not happen overnight. We saw that there were months upon months upon years of activity that really did not respond favorably to the needs of America's consumers, America's business community, in particular her small business community. So the huge climb back of 30 percent recovered, recaptured, $5-plus trillion, maybe $6 trillion, at this point is a remarkable comeback in a relatively few short months. So this is the start of a comeback, and it certainly is not good enough. We want more. We want more good news. But to keep the direction afloat, to keep the momentum rising means to allow for the progress to continue. And I believe it is very obvious that with the control here in Congress and in the White House, there is a serious desire and design to produce this comeback that was so desperately needed and in a way that is remarkably sound, in investing in issues and areas of activity that were back-burnered for far too long. They held back progress. And now, not only are we producing jobs, producing relief, strengthening confidence, growing the economy; we are doing it with an investment in futuristic outcomes where we are dealing with cutting-edge opportunities in R&D and basic research and job creation in activities from trades to Ph.D.s. This is the full spectrum. This is the beauty of this innovation economy. But at least there is a leadership that gets what needs to be done and is in fact impacting favorably the outcomes here.

Mr. TONKO. If the gentlewoman would yield, what the Representative is pointing to in the red is 18 months' worth of activity, $17.5 trillion worth. That is $1 trillion per month.

Mr. TONKO. I do. Representative Wasserman Schultz, you talked about the comeback issue. One can't help but wonder what would have happened if these economic policies were continued to rule the outcome. If they had continued to rule the outcome, we would have probably hit the Great Depression level. And so I think the effort here is to bring in--it's not like we're excluding people from being part of this solution. But obviously, if we're not getting the support from the other side, we're going to continue to move forward with progressive policies and reforms. And I think what is inspiring is that this Nation is replete in her history of people responding in the toughest times, responding with their greatest sense of courage and determination at a time when we have faced some of our toughest struggles. We saw that happen in the Depression. We saw a President lead this Nation out of that depression and bring people back to work and invest in a way that grew us to a stronger level than when the economic crisis began. And certainly when we look at this, I believe that that history of this Nation, our history speaks to us in a very bold and noble measure to continue to pursue, to invest in a way that will create a stronger outcome. And we will put together an organized, structured, progressive bit of policies that will address and plan our future for this economic recovery. I represent a district that is the home of the Erie Canal and that canal is a series, a necklace, I like to call it, of mill towns. And they were given birth to by the creation of this Erie Canal. But it showcased--my point of mentioning it here is that it showcased the pioneer spirit that's in the DNA of Americans where these mill towns became the centers of invention and innovation. And it gave birth to a westward movement that built this Nation and continues to allow us to express our manufacturing prowess. Well, this package, the stimulus package, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, invested in America, in her workers, in her businesses, in her small businesses that was mentioned earlier, in a way that is now turning the picture around. It's that U-turn of which Fortune magazine speaks, wrote about it on April 16 of this year, that we are now seeing a brighter day; it's around the corner for business and workers. And so in the toughest times we have shown our best outcomes. We have come together in a way that allows us to be constructive and instructive on how we're going to crawl out of a mess. The important thing here is to please join in the effort. Don't thwart the effort, don't deny, diminish it. I see what we tried to do with America COMPETES as an act on this floor to grow the R&D investment, to allow us to compete effectively with China. And what do we have? We have an effort to diminish or deny that sort of progress. So join us in the constructive efforts. Join us in building the solutions. But do not deny American workers for generations out the sort of solutions that will enable us to be our best in the toughest times, and that's what we're seeing here. The numbers are showing it. We're on a comeback. And it's interesting how history is repeating herself where we have this administration proving that they are going to invest--invest in technology, invest in broadband, communication, hardwiring of communities that are rural or impoverished, as in inner city neighborhoods, allowing us to invest in energy with smart grids, smart meters, smart thermostats, invest in our transmission and distribution systems. All of it is important.

Mr. TONKO. Absolutely. And thank you again for bringing us together this evening. It's a pleasure to join with our colleague from New Mexico and you from the State of Florida to really share these regional observations because it's happening across the country. Just yesterday I was at a community that I represent, a small town, a small city, that is utilizing Recovery Act moneys to produce photovoltaic--to install, I should say, photovoltaic panels at their senior center, at their firehouse, and improvements in energy efficiency at their city hall. This translates to, like, $65,000 worth of savings per year. Who does that affect? The property taxpayer. So it's property tax reduction simply by creating jobs and reaching to innovation. That's the beauty of the investments made here. It's not about special interests, it's not about going to the big oil companies and the big Wall Street banks and going to the insurance industry and the like. It is a reform package that talks about long overdue investment. My gosh. We look at China and her investment in a clean-energy economy, and if we don't understand that we need to be in this global race to win it, we understand I hope--we show it here in this leadership, in the majority, the Democratic majority in the House--that we understand by our actions that whoever wins this global race on clean energy becomes the kingpin of the global economy. We will be the exporter of energy innovation and intellect. These are jobs that will grow, just like we saw technology grow when we won the space race four decades ago.

Mr. TONKO. Representative Heinrich, I believe you want to join in.

Mr. TONKO. You know, when I spoke of the small town, the small city that we shared in the good news with yesterday, the city of Waterbury in Albany County in Upstate New York, that is one expression of what could be repeated, is being repeated over and over again with municipalities in this country. Then you put that into the business sector and the energy efficiency improvements they are making with the stimulus activity. You talk about households where we put $5 billion into weatherization programs to again create stronger energy environments within which to live. No family should be asked to live in poor energy environments. They are wasteful. Those are wasteful situations in terms of energy supply and dollars that are expended. So when we look at the track record here, you talk about whose side are you on, we are looking at over one-half million jobs created since December, 84 percent of which were in the private sector category. When we look at tax relief, we are not talking about just the upper income strata that was the situation for the Bush administration, but now we are talking about 98 percent of Americans getting relief, to the point where tax bills are at their lowest level since 1950. So we are talking about a whole different approach, a whole different attitude. And it is embracing the bigger landscape, the people-scape of America, where the masses are brought into consideration and the priority is with the working families. Main Street and side streets come before that Wall Street situation. Wall Street recklessness created Main Street joblessness, and that thinking is over. That huge red block pointed to by Representative Wasserman Schultz is now a situation that meant two wars, off-budget; it meant a doughnut hole, give it to the insurance industry in the Medicare program area. It meant all sorts of tax cuts to the few in society. That was economic ruination. And, now, this swing upward didn't just happen. It took straightforward thinking, it took laser-sharp focus, it took sensitivity to those who were bearing the brunt here.

Mr. TONKO. Mr. Boccieri is right on point. I believe that, to the messaging out there, there could be those critics that want to resort to phantom statistics. But when you look at what is happening out there, there is no denying that these bits of fact that we are sharing here this evening are all recorded, they are documented. And it is that sort of fact, not fiction, that will rule and guide the policies as we go forward. The fact that factory orders have increased by the largest amount in more than 9 years is encouraging news. It is back to the point that Representative Boccieri made about people want to produce, they want to create, they want to manufacture in this Nation. And the fact that these factory orders are up beyond limits from 9 years back in recordkeeping is encouraging news. It tells us that there is confidence again, there is optimism that is ruling the day, and that the turnaround, that huge U-turn of which Fortune Magazine wrote is becoming more and more real in the lives of people. Car sales rising by 20 percent. That is so important to a region like that of Representative Boccieri that is so hooked to the auto industry. Upstate New York in many of its regional economies is directly linked to that auto economy and to the industry. So a 20 percent rise in sales for automobiles is an important stat that we ought to look at. So again, the repeated message here this evening--and again, Representative Wasserman Schultz, thank you for bringing us together. The tone, the theme that we have talked about, Representative Heinrich, is this wonderful opportunity to continue along the course of progress, or the reverse is to hand over the keys to those who drove the car into the ditch, and that pulling the car out of the ditch took quite an effort and it took a while. We're not where we want to be yet, but we're certainly moving in steps forward and upward that are taking us to a new plateau and doing it in a way that is investing in American workers, investing in American business in a way that allows us then to compete more effectively in the global marketplace. That is a multitude of good that we have embraced in the policies that have been established and that are being put into place and then now are obviously working. The proof is in the pudding, as they say. The facts, only the facts, that's what we need to share here. Forget the scare tactics. Forget the talk of doom and gloom. Let's look at what's happening, and let's embrace it with a spirit of optimism and with that tremendously characteristic sense of pioneer spirit that is part of the DNA of America. Americans, through all ages, have been about creating jobs and creating and discovering new opportunities. We won a space race four decades ago. We need to enter in boldly and armed to do what we can with this clean energy race that is global also.

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of Wall Street reform and ask, Which side are you on? In my opinion, the debate on Wall Street reform is straightforward. There are those who support hardworking American families and small businesses against those who wish to protect the status quo and big Wall Street banks which are to blame for the current recession. For example, last year this House passed the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. None--that's right, zero--of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle supported that bill. The other side can no longer ignore American families who have worked hard and played by the rules, only to see their homes foreclosed on, their retirement savings lost, their business destroyed, or their jobs wiped out. We need commonsense reforms and stronger consumer protections to ensure that a crisis on this order of magnitude never happens again. It is time we streamlined government and put a cop on the beat of Wall Street to protect American families and businesses. Absent this cop, Wall Street will regulate itself as it did under the previous administration. The American economy cannot afford to live through real-life tragedy again and neither can her families.

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Madam Speaker, on rollcall No. 243 I was detained on business. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California and the gentleman from Wisconsin. I rise today in support of H. Res. 1280, a resolution that I introduced to recognize National Healthy Schools Day. National Healthy Schools Day recognizes the importance of having a clean, healthy and safe indoor environment in our Nation's schools. Each day millions of students, teachers, and staff go to work and school in our Nation's schools. Not all of these are healthy environments, especially for our young children. The EPA estimates that up to one-half of those schools have problems with indoor air quality. And 32 million students attend schools that have self-reported environmental problems with their facilities that can affect our children's health and learning. Indoor air quality is one of the most common environmental problems in schools, which can aggravate children's allergies and asthma problems. Nine percent of our Nation's schoolchildren have asthma, which is the leading cause of absenteeism in schools. Other common environmental problems in schools include mold infestations, lead and copper contaminated drinking water, playgrounds and classrooms with high levels of pesticides, unchecked furnaces and buses leaking carbon monoxide, and exhaust from gasoline-powered equipment. These problems affect the health of our Nation's schools and the people in them, and can contribute to absenteeism, learning difficulties, sick building syndrome, staff turnover, and liability issues for our school districts. Research shows that simple steps can be taken to make our schools healthier. Heating and ventilation equipment can be improved to enhance indoor air quality. New schools can be built with a healthy design at non-polluted sites, in more sustainable ways that reduce energy and maintenance costs. Nontoxic products can be used for cleaning, maintenance and teaching. The use of natural light can be improved. Healthy and high performance schools are designed to improve the indoor environment for the students and staff members who go to work and school in these buildings each and every day. They are more energy efficient and lead to better overall health. Many States, in fact, have already adopted guidelines for building healthy and high performance schools, like my home State of New York. National Healthy Schools Day draws attention to the importance of having a safe and healthy school environment for our Nation's students. National Healthy Schools Day is supported by the Healthy Schools Network, the EPA, the National Education Association, and many more organizations. I am proud to be counted as a supporter of National Healthy Schools Day, and look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues here to ensure that every student has a healthy environment in which to learn. After all, our children are the foundation for this country's great future. Shouldn't we be providing them with the safest and healthiest places to learn?

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, in the aftermath of health care reform, one can't help but ask rhetorically why there would be forces out there that would deny progress? Why promote misinformation? Why refuse to set up exchanges for the business community? Why promote a repeal? I think it is pretty straightforward and easy to determine that there are those who are fighting for the people's interest ahead of those insurance profit column rises over the last decade. I think it is a threat to those asking for and ensuring that the doughnut hole will be closed, and adult children up to the age of 26 will be able to stay on their parents' coverage, no more caps on coverage but really benefit people in this insurance struggle they have faced in the past. It is pretty obvious, this is an effort by those who have wanted to dismantle Medicare as we know it, those who want to privatize Social Security, those who want to protect the insurance industry's profit margin to yet score another victory with repeal. I think we have a solid effort going forward. I believe we should stay the course.

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the 90th anniversary of Russo's Bar & Grill in Amsterdam, New York, a city I have proudly called home my entire life. John Russo opened Russo's in 1920 as the Mohawk Grocery Store. After the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, John turned the grocery store into a tavern and pool hall. He then passed it to his children, Pat, Angelo, Vince, and Lou. Other than Lou's sad passing, the others are still alive and well today. The restaurant eventually was passed along to its current owners, Mike and Barbara Russo. However, Russo's is much more than a run-of-the-mill restaurant. Russo's is about family, a gathering place, old American ideals, an immigrant's dream, and a successful small business. Perhaps that is why even then-candidate Hillary Clinton recognized the importance of Russo's, making a campaign stop there during her successful 2000 run for a United States Senate seat. Nearly a century ago, John Russo planted his dream seed, which germinated and grew over generations to what we see today, a continuing tradition and legacy of fine food, family gathering, a sense of place, and a gathering post after local community meetings and events. Russo's has the recipe for success, tasty success, for 90 years. Congratulations, Russo's.

Mr. TONKO

Mr. TONKO. 1970, yes. It goes by quickly.

Mr. TONKO. Exactly.

Mr. TONKO. I think it is interesting, as you pointed out, this whole Earth Day celebration covers a multitude of needs, but a multitude of opportunities that transcends a number, just travels over so many dynamics out there, from agriculture, to wildlife, to the ecosystem, to water supplies, water usage, air quality, environment, energy requirements and needs. And all of that brought into a compilation of a bigger picture, a thoughtfulness, a planning that enables us to have these strong and measurably improved programs, all while creating job opportunities and developing a strategy that places the environment in the hands of the next generations in a much better outcome than we inherited. That is acting with responsibility. It is acting with tremendous engagement in an issue area and issues that are so correlated and so important to the outcomes here not just in these United States but around the world. And as a leader in the world, I think it is important for us to show by example and to teach by this sort of flavor and provide the inspiration that will lead to progress around the world. You know, you talk about the impacts that are made with the wildlife and with the ecosystem that you just described, with perhaps a threatening situation out there with lesser area of space available. The same is true in our ag economy when we look at opportunities that need to respond to agscape around the country. We need to be able to partner with our friends in agriculture in a way that enables them to deal with their concerns in a way that is transitioned into an opportunity. Just recently we announced, in the last several months, the opportunity for yet another grant that is going to SUNY Cobleskill that I represent, part of the State University of New York system. And they are an ag and tech campus. They are working on a biowaste to bioenergy project that will enable them to create a fuel source and enable us to keep our water streams cleaner, reduce our dependency on landfills, and enable us to go forward and respond to an energy supply in terms of a newly formulated gas that is now part and parcel of this. And they start talking about what this demo means to the outcome and where you can overlay this opportunity on several municipalities out there. And there is absolutely opportunity for our troops. When you look at how you are developing this fuel supply, you can avoid transportation through war zones that is very, very dangerous. I mean, in talking to this veteran who was part of Operation Free who traveled to my district to speak on behalf of Veterans for American Power, she spoke of the danger zone when she drove trucks through some of these enemy territories that are responded to by situations like this with new developments that come our way. So there are ample needs that are addressed simply in very academic terms that are science and tech applications. I serve on the Science and Technology Committee. It is a wonderful assignment to be able to witness day in and day out what is happening to the auspices of that committee in a way that builds progress based on the investment and research. And that R&D opportunity for this country, a willingness for us to produce those investments that then translate into success stories that then further translate into business opportunities and job growth are what it's all about. And it is a recommitment to that agenda on this eve of Earth Day that I think is so essential and so much a framework of what's driving this majority in the House of Representatives to build that new day, that new outcome, and working with the new administration to take what was placed on the back burner. When you think of that Recovery Act, when you think of what was taken from that back burner in terms of smart grids, smart thermostats, smart meters, investment in renewables and R&D, in battery development, in energy-efficiency opportunities, along with broadband for our communities and wiring for a new day for our neighborhoods that are perhaps distressed, and for areas that are very remote or very rural, these are ample opportunities that should have been embraced a long time ago. But we are breaking away from some of that dependency on those big industries that were the tail wagging the dog.

Mr. TONKO. I think both you and I see the merit that is brought forth by working through SEEC as a coalition to provide that green outspokenness and to work with our partners in government to make sure we respond to their, perhaps, district concerns or some of the efforts of folks to hold you back, to walk through that, talk through it, and policy through it. And we are visited today also by one of the co-chairs of that awesome coalition, Jay Inslee from the State of Washington, who is yet another outspoken voice for green thinking here in the House of Representatives. Welcome, Representative Inslee, to sort of bring us to a close on our hour of discussion about Earth Day tomorrow.

Mr. TONKO. And I think there's such a coupling here. I think if we can speak to the focus, the vision, that the Democratic majority in the House embraces, it's pushing efforts the way of small business. So many of these entrepreneurial efforts, the innovation that is driven by these whiz-kid ideas, are substantiated by investments in their prototyping, their testing; and then we need to further commit to deploying these to the commercial networks. While I was at NYSERDA, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, we were involved with a demonstration project on kinetic hydro, utilizing the turbulence of the East River along the edge of the island of Manhattan to create energy simply through the movement of water with a turbine sub the surface of that water and relying on the turbulence. We disassembled that demo, sent it to the labs in Colorado for DOE, found out the improvements that were required for the blade design, the fin design, the assembly itself of the gearbox, made those improvements, and now there is expectation that perhaps 1100 megawatts worth of power can be realized in one State like New York alone simply through the motion of water. These are things that should be invested in. These are the opportunities that are growing jobs out there and that can respond in much more environmentally friendly outcomes for our energy needs and energy needs around the world. That pioneer spirit should not be denied and that breaking of, the departure here, our thinking is far removed from that partnership that was, I think, hurtful to us where we're relying on those oil industries, this majority has said, ``Look, let's make that break, let's go into a new energy arena.'' And now you look at the accounts in Newsweek, in Business Week of late, they're talking about the wonderful growth that is coming to the economy because of the Recovery Act, because of that stimulus bill that you talked of. That is providing a lot of impetus for reform, for growth, for change, for recovery. At the same time we're responding to the needs of our energy and our environment, and that needs to be recognized on this eve of Earth Day. I think we can take a great bit of enthusiasm and encouragement from that latest bit of news. But as a scientist that you are and as one who's an engineer here in the arena, I think that we can continue to push the emphasis on technology that's so important as we just made mention with batteries. I'll talk about that. I think you want to share something here.

Mr. TONKO. Absolutely.

Mr. TONKO. I certainly think that this move to innovation, which can be a job growth factor, if that's being denied simply because of an association, a kinship, a partnership with Big Oil, with industries out there as an industry, with big oil companies, then that is a detrimental outcome, one that really needs to be exposed for what it is. To continue with tradition, to continue with that comfortable, cozy relationship, to be able to do the subsidies, to be able to reach out, to empower those traditional sources in a way that has been advocated because there are friendships out there, people enjoy that partnership continuing, that needs to be refocused. It needs to be brought to the attention of the American public, to the consuming public. And I think that the innovation that can be inspired here, and it's part of the value added that I believe you bring to this House, Representative Holt. I have been with you in many discussions and I enjoy your passionate plea to really invest in research and development, basic research. You are absolutely right. When we do that, we need to see R&D investments equal to economic development, to job growth. They're not just investments made with no jobs growing from them but we're developing very sound jobs, very good-paying outcomes. You talked about the innovation. One of the impacts out there of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, one of the stalwart efforts of the ACES with R&D investment is to look at the battery as the linchpin, that's that linkage that takes us to this new era of energy thinking. We have seen many of these opportunities, investments made over the last couple of months through the Recovery Act into lithium ion as an advanced battery production out there and the concept of some of the sodium-based. For me in my area with GE and the sodium-based outcome, these are the cornerstone, the building block to the future. If we develop that mastery of innovation in the battery concepts, we then unleash untold stories of success in the energy-related areas.

Mr. TONKO. Representative Holt, if you'll suffer a disruption, if you will yield, you triggered a thought. Just recently my district hosted the only stop in New York State, actually in Schenectady, of the Operation Free Tour. As you know, it's a bus tour being conducted by veterans for American power and they are doing a coast-to-coast tour, hitting all of the States. It was so impressive. We invited veterans from all vintages, from World War II, from the Korean War, from the Vietnam conflict and up to the present day, more present-day veterans that have committed in uniform and have fought on foreign soils in defense of this nation. Very impressive, very impressive visits by these folks. They, at our stop in Schenectady, New York, had three spokespersons: one veteran from the State of Arkansas, who has done two tours of duty as a marine in Iraq, spoke to the crowd, spoke to those assembled. We had a visitor, a veteran from the State of Wisconsin. She drove a truck, I believe, with the Army in Iraq. And then finally a veteran from the State of New Hampshire who as an Army officer did a tour of duty in Iraq and a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He is now at Yale Law School. To a person, each of these veterans spoke of the wisdom, the no- brainer, as we might call it, of moving to energy independence for Americans; energy security. They witnessed the outright destruction of troops, the threat to the troops, the supreme sacrifice oftentimes made simply by forces of Taliban that they believed are fed by the treasuries of these unfriendly nations to which we feed over $400 billion a year; unstable but, more importantly, unfriendly governments to the U.S., using those dollars from their treasury to work against our operations for freedom-loving people around the world. They also spoke to--and it's what your comments triggered in me--the concerns for global warming, for climate change. They said, this is an issue of national security. Beyond our domestic programming for energy security and energy independence, it's a national security issue. Because what they believe is happening is that with drought, with floods, with famine, you're creating the perfect storm that finds people weakened by famine and a much more robust competition for available land around the world. It's a breeding ground for terrorist activity. The veterans who were there, many of whom had fought in the Second World War, walked away from that saying, what an interesting way to approach the issue. They were impacted by the thought process that was inspired by each of these three veterans, recent veterans, to the honor roll of American history, but to a person these two men and one woman spoke in very relevant terms about what our energy policy can mean to our troops and to the goals of our military into the future. It just makes so much sense, from a national security, energy independence, energy security concept and perspective if we move forward with clean energy thinking and an innovation economy that can be inspired by that thinking. I think that their comments are very relevant to today's eve of celebration of Earth Day.

Mr. TONKO. I would be happy to yield.