Peter Welch

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, I would ask the gentleman from California if he is ready to close. I am the only remaining speaker on my side and will reserve my time until the gentleman is finished.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from California for his kind remarks about the Chair of the Rules Committee, Ms. Slaughter. I also thank him, as we all do, for his support on both the open rule and the merits of this legislation. The bottom line here is, we are all in it together. We know that we have major problems to solve. One of them is global warming and one is energy independence. This legislation is a practical step that was brought to us by the cooperation of both sides of the aisle on the Science and Technology Committee. The Rules Committee is presenting an open rule. There will be more to come. Its commitment is to fair debate, and it is going to have to balance the responsibility of making decisions about how best to allow this body to debate clearly and directly the major issues that come before this Congress. We can make progress by working together. It is our goal to continue to do so. That requires that the committees be given an opportunity to do their work. Amendments are going to be brought up in committees and recommended or rejected. That was done in this case. It is going to be the commitment of the Rules Committee to make the debate on all legislation that comes before this body as fair as it possibly can be. Mr. Speaker, this is an important step. We have to give the American people some confidence that we can take concrete steps to move ahead, and that is legislation, day by day, week by week, month by month, year by year, where we are moving in the right direction. What we have done on energy in less than a month is move away from an excessive and damaging reliance on fossil fuels by passing two pieces of legislation, if this passes, that move us in a new direction. That is the right thing for this country; it is the right thing for Republicans and Democrats to work together to achieve. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this rule and on the previous question. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution. The previous question was ordered.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, I, too, am a new Member of Congress and proud to be part of an institution that has been the cradle of democracy, and very proud to be part of this new class of Republicans and Democrats that came here in the year 2007. Mr. Speaker, in Vermont, and I think across America, average citizens were somewhat bewildered when they looked at what was happening in Washington. When they saw us go from a record surplus to a record deficit, the only conclusion they could come to was we had lost our way. When they saw that the drug companies prevailed in actually getting legislation that prohibited price negotiation to get the best price for taxpayers and seniors, they thought America had lost its way. When they saw that over the course of 9 years, Congress had allowed itself nine pay increases totaling $31,000, but the minimum wage worker was stuck at $5.15 an hour, they thought America had lost its way. When they saw that when major legislation was brought before this body and the vote was extended for 3 or 4 hours in order to arm-twist, persuade people to change their votes, they thought Congress had lost its way. I believe what this election was about across America was people in Vermont and people in districts from Vermont to California saying that they wanted Congress to start solving problems. What this 100 hours was about was making a down payment to America, where we are trying to give confidence to Americans that this Congress can do the work that needs to be done to improve the lives of average, everyday people. The strength of our democracy has always depended on a strong middle-class and opportunities for people at the low income level who want to climb the ladder of opportunity. What we have done in this first 100 hours, frankly, working together with many on the other side of the aisle, is establish that we actually can govern and we can pass legislation that will be meaningful. We have rejected politics as being about finding wedge issues that will divide us so that we can focus on economic issues that can unite us. And this is a beginning, it is not an end. These first 100 hours, in my view, have been remarkable. We have changed the way Congress does business by enacting ethics reforms; no meals, no free trips, no free travel, and we did this with the support of 68 Republicans. To return to fiscal responsibility, we adopted pay-as-you-go budgeting. That is going to impose itself on Republicans and Democrats, whether proposing spending increases for programs you favor or tax cuts you might want to advocate for. We did this with the support of 48 Republicans. To help working families who have really been squeezed as our economy starts widening between those who have and everyone else, we passed cuts in student loan interest rates that will save the average student about $4,400 over the life of the loan, and we did that with the support of 124 Republicans. We passed, of course, the first minimum wage increase in 10 years, and that is going to help America's lowest paid workers, and we did that with all the Democrats and the support of 82 Republicans. And on and on; on stem cell research, on the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission, and the commonsense step of ending tax breaks for Big Oil that costs taxpayers $14 billion, while it increased our dependence on foreign oil and put off the day when we embraced the challenge and obligation all of us know we have, to move towards alternative energy. What we know is this: America has very severe challenges: Health care, 47 million Americans without it; health care for the Americans that do have it, that they are increasingly finding they can't afford; bringing our troops home from Iraq; restoring our budget to balance; moving in a new direction on energy. What we know is true is that the only way we are going to solve those problems is if we work together. We are in it together, and it is by working together, as we have in these past 100 hours, that we can make progress for America. Mr. Speaker, thank you for this opportunity.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, the issue for us in this Congress is procedure, but it is really about substance. In the last Congress, what happened was something that you can't make up. Oil companies have enjoyed $125 billion in profits over 3 years, were the beneficiaries of legislation that lowered taxes for them by about $14 billion. You can't make it up. What this legislation is about is addressing that and for the first time taking a step in the direction of providing incentives for what every American knows is long overdue, and that is to provide incentives for alternative energy opportunities. We need that to strengthen our economy and create good jobs; we need that to strengthen our position in foreign policy so that we are independent; and we also need it to begin addressing global warming. This legislation is the beginning, it is only a beginning. There is going to be an enormous amount of time for the committees to take up the large issues and for us together to take the broader steps that are required to become truly independent on energy.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Madam Speaker, it is with great pride that I stand here before you today to celebrate the birthday of a great Vermonter, public servant, and friend. For more than 50 years Jack Fraser has made public service his way of life. Jack first joined the Norwich Fire Department in 1955. At the time, Jack was simultaneously enrolled at the University of Vermont and participating in the ROTC program. When he graduated in 1960, Jack was commissioned as an officer in the United States Army. Always one to take on the toughest challenges, Jack became an Army Ranger and served two tours of duty in Vietnam. He continued in the military after he returned home, teaching as an ROTC instructor at the University of Vermont. He retired from the US Army Reserve in 1990 with the rank of Colonel, having served his country for 35 years. Meanwhile, Jack had continued his public service in the Norwich, Vermont Fire Department, becoming Fire Chief in 1995. Under the leadership of Chief Fraser, the Department modernized and improved its fire apparatus, its training equipment, its rural fire protection, and its rescue operations. Jack developed particular expertise in the field of hazardous materials, developing Norwich's first hazardous materials response plan. Largely as a result of his work, the town of Norwich earned one of the highest public protection classification rates in Vermont. Jack officially retired from his civic duties on December 31, 2006. Please join me today in thanking Jack Fraser for all he has done for his town, his country, and the state of Vermont.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Madam Speaker, I am proud, as part of our first 100 hours, that Congress has committed to expanding higher education opportunities to more Americans. Education has always been the great equalizer in this country. With each generation doors are opened through greater access to education. The health of our economy and prosperity of our middle class rests on having a highly-skilled and well-educated workforce. We all know stories of working class families struggling to make ends meet to put a child, sometimes the family's first generation, through college. It is a struggle millions of families go through, as college costs skyrocket year after year. Reducing the debt burden these families and students face is the least Congress can do to help meet their commitment and sacrifice. H.R. 5 will provide a significant reduction in student loan interest rates for students who borrow under the subsidized student loan program. This legislation is worthy in its intent and it is legislation I support. However, it is my hope to work with my fellow members and the distinguished Chairman of Education and Labor to recognize the important role small, not-for-profit lenders play in opening doors to more working families. I believe it makes sense to distinguish not only between large and small lenders, but those that lend on a not-for- profit basis and who reinvest all revenues into additional student financial assistance. Our goal is to improve educational opportunities for students and it is a goal I know our non-profit lenders share.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, a special interest over the public interest, there is no more vivid example of special interests trumping the public interest than the Medicare Part D legislation that we must reform today. Extending a drug benefit to our seniors on Medicare is the right thing to do. Even in its current form, it has helped thousands of Vermonters and hundreds of thousands of Americans. But when this Medicare drug benefit was first passed, a worthy extension of this good program went terribly wrong because of the wrong-headed prohibition on the Federal Government's ability to do the obvious: negotiate fair prices for the taxpayer. This program fails on its most fundamental level, cost. Failing on cost, it impedes access. The lobbyists who had such an influence in writing this bill bewildered our seniors and ripped off our taxpayers. The public interest, the interest of our seniors and taxpayers are who we represent today and who we can help today with the passage of this bill.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, $2.32 for a gallon of gas, $2.99 for a gallon of milk, $20 or $25 for a single day of childcare. These are real prices and, too often, real choices that working Americans face every day. In Vermont, and across America, we have had a proud tradition of self-reliance and sense of community. We need to combine these two values, self-reliance on the one hand and community on the other, by rewarding work and making work pay. We send a message every day to our citizens and our workers that we value work and that government has a role to play in ensuring opportunity to everyone willing to contribute. It is time we matched that message with our own leadership. It is no accident that in Vermont and more than 20 States around the country, Republicans and Democrats, working together, have led in the effort to reward work with a reasonable minimum wage above our national minimum last set nearly a decade ago. There are few more important tasks before us than addressing the growing economic gap between America's wealthiest citizens and low income workers. Last year, millionaires were given tax breaks that put an average of $40,000 in their pockets, and yet middle class workers who earn less than $20,000 received just two dollars. Two dollars--for the whole year. That is rewarding wealth rather than work. Today a full-time minimum wage worker earns just $10,712 annually-- more than $2,000 below the poverty line for a family of two. Asking millions of our neighbors to work full time without a wage above poverty is wrong. I believe that Congress must raise the federal minimum wage to $7.25 an hour to help life every minimum wage worker out of poverty. Today and together, we can begin to restore a balance, by rewarding work and not just wealth, acknowledging we are all in this together.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, it is with mixed emotions that I stand here on my first full day as a Member of Congress to say good bye to a great Vermont statesman. Senator Bob Stafford passed away last December at the age of 93. I feel a deep sense of pride to have the first Bill I introduce be one that honors Bob Stafford's commitment to Vermont by redesignating the White Rocks National Recreation Area as the ``Robert T. Stafford White Rocks National Recreation Area''. Senator Stafford was born in Rutland in 1913. He had a long and distinguished career as a civil servant to the state, serving the state for nearly 30 years first as Governor, Representative, and Senator. Robert Stafford was a man who knew Vermont, and understood how to best serve Vermonters. It was through his many public service positions around the state that he learned the importance of moderation and bipartisanship. He served as Rutland County State's attorney, as Deputy State Attorney General, and then as State Attorney General. In the late 1950's he was elected Lieutenant Governor, and in 1959 he became Governor. In 1960, Bob Stafford was elected to Vermont's sole seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He won five successive re-elections. In September 1971, he resigned his House seat to accept appointment to the U.S. Senate following the death of Senator Winston Prouty. After winning a special election in 1972, he proceeded to represent Vermont in the Senate for the next 17 years. When he came to Washington, a member of the Republican Party, he formed many close relationships with members of both parties. Senator Stafford was able to be effective because of his reliance on moderation and compromise. He was a leader among his peers, and became an advocate for issues that were close to him and to Vermont. Affordable education and his dedication to the environment became his most important issues. The Stafford Student Loan program has made higher education more accessible for millions of Americans. While his achievements in the areas of education and federal disaster relief were very important, it is the legacy he has left behind for the work he did in protecting the environment that he was most proud of. Bob Stafford shared Vermonters' belief that we have a moral obligation to leave for our children a cleaner environment than the one we inherited. He was a leader and visionary who helped shape and strengthen some of our Nation's most critical environmental laws for over two decades. Serving as Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee from 1981-1986, he led the charge to expand and strengthen the Superfund toxic waste cleanup law in the mid 1980's. Please join me today in honoring the tremendous life and service of Senator Bob Stafford. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and pass the Congress by unanimous consent. The Senate bill was ordered to be read a third time, was read the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Natural Resources be discharged from further consideration of the Senate bill (S. 159) to redesignate the White Rocks National Recreation Area in the State of Vermont as the ``Robert T. Stafford White Rocks National Recreational Area,'' and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. WELCH of Vermont

Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time. Together, we have a lot of work to do: To help working families get ahead, restore America's standing in the world, and bring our budget back in balance. Making progress is what our constituents in 435 districts around this country have elected us to do. To be sure, our differences will be intensely debated. However, our mutual obligations is to do everything we can to move our country forward by confronting directly and immediately the challenges before us. To succeed in the job our constituents sent us here to do, we must lay out rules in a regular order that Members can count on. These ground rules will not guarantee an outcome, but they will set out a framework where we, as an institution, make progress and serve the public. That is why the Democratic leadership embraces three very simple, straightforward principles that will help us succeed. As the Member from California has laid out, we set out today to establish a regular civility in this body. Civility, it is mutual respect, really, requires straightforward ground rules to guide debate. It requires adherence to rules that apply to all. Each of us will know and be able to assure the citizens who elected us when it comes to votes in this, their representative body: Members will have time to read what they are voting on; Members will have time to vote, but votes will not be held open for the purpose of changing the outcome; and Members will vote on conference reports that are the ones agreed upon by the conferees, not ones altered after the fact. These rules, applied to all, will help us do the work of the people we represent. Our debates at times will be intense, as they should be, but we must strive to have our debates on the merits. The rules we propose for your consideration are basic. They are rules that apply to legislators in Vermont where I am from, and probably rules that your own legislators take for granted: Time to read and review before voting, timely voting procedures, and considering conference reports as signed. Mr. Speaker, I served 13 years in the Vermont legislature, sometimes in the minority and sometimes in the majority. We in Vermont were proud of the legislative process and standards that we set. Those in the majority couldn't do things simply because they had the power. Minority voices were heard, Members were kept informed, and our legislative process was respected. We did have intense debates on the issues, but more often than not, not always, at the end of the day, good ideas were considered and we were able to move Vermont ahead. These changes that we present for your consideration today are not just about process, they are about passing good, substantive legislation. These new rules to establish civility to this body are essential for Congress to do the work of the American people and to build the trust of those we serve. We face looming challenges in America, to the security of our families and to the security of our country. And nobody and no party has a monopoly on the good ideas required to steer us forward. The simple and straightforward rules of engagement will help all of us do that. Yesterday, the minority leader, in handing over the gavel to the new Speaker, was graceful and was wise when he reminded us that we can have disagreements without being disagreeable. Both the Speaker and the minority leader stated on our behalf what we all know to be true: All of us are here for the common purpose, to make America a better place. There is and must be room for all of our voices to be heard to achieve our common purpose. The rules we propose will help us do that. How? By establishing very clear ground rules that apply to all, the majority as well as the minority, to every Member, committee chairs and ranking members, House veterans and House freshmen. One and all alike.