before the house a communication from the speaker the speakers rose washington d c march twenty eighth two thousand and seven i hereby appoint the honorable tammy baldwin to act as speaker pro tempore on this day signed nancy pelosi speaker of the house of representatives the prayer will be offered by the guest chaplain rabbi paul felton temple israel albany new york the author of liberty and equality who created all human beings in his image bless all of you as you have been shows and by the citizens of this great bastion of democracy to represent them may grant all of you the privilege of discovering his will and doing it wholeheartedly may touch our lives with the spirit of wisdom and insi may grant all of you the ability to make wise decisions and the satisfaction of doing a multitude of good deeds may strengthen you to walk in paths of honesty to courageously meet every challenge and to overcome all obstacles may you be blessed with long and peaceful lives lives free from shame and reproach lives filled with many years of physical vitality so that you may see all your heart's desires the goodness fulfilled and the work of your hands established the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house her approval thereof pursuant to clause one of rule one the journal stands approved the pledge we'll be led by the gentleman from new jersey mr without objection the gentleman from new york is recognized for one minute thank you madam speaker madam speaker i rise today to welcome my very dear friend dr rabbi paul sultan and to thank him for offering the opening prayer this morning for the united states house of representatives rabbi stilton has served the community of new york's capital region for over thirty years as rabbi of temple israel the largest conservative synagogue  northeastern new york he began his career at temple israel as the education director where he was responsible for fostering growth at every educational level including the addition of an adult education program rabbi sultan has made enormous contributions not just the temple israel but to the entire community he founded the holocaust survivors and friends in pursuit of a justice he also hosted a three day national holocaust conference for fifteen hundred protests opponents at temple israel has also organized a multitude of services for the community kristallnacht and the holocaust memorial commemorations through the efforts of dr rabbi paul sultan temple israel has received numerous awards from the united center agog of conservative judaism in addition to education awards for programming high school education and the framework for excellence and agog school program award i am proud to welcome my very dear friend dr rabbi paul so in this morning and to thank him on behalf of the entire united states house of representatives ma the chair will recognize for up to fifteen requests for one minute speeches on each side for what purpose does that gentleman from new jersey seek recognition but without objection this is figure out rather than pulling out the tired old talking points of tax and spend i wish my colleagues and my good friends on the other side would actually read the democratic budget budget resolution really makes for pretty good reading if they did they would see that nowhere in the budget do we call for any increase in taxes nowhere fact if the republicans read our budget they would see that it actually directs the ways and means committee which i'm a member to come up with immediate relief for middle income families who would otherwise be subject to the alternative minimum tax unless we reform that tax nineteen million families will have to pay higher taxes in two thousand and seven the president played games with this tax coming up with only one year a one year fix you here in your own districts democrats are committed to coming up with a permanent solution our budget allows the ways and means committee to extend other middle income tax relief including the child tax credit marriage penalty relief while many true to the pay go pay as you go principle mr speaker this is a good budget that provide tax relief to middling income families and at the same time finds balance within the next five years i suggest we take a look at it for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise gentleman is recognized madam speaker in all my years of public service i've never had a constituent tell me that they are taxed too little whether it's income taxes property taxes estate taxes capital gains taxes car taxes or some other tax americans give plenty of money to the government but for house democrats it seems that's not enough how else do you explain a budget resolution that proposes the largest tax increase in american history by letting all of the tax cuts expire their bush their their budget plan will deliver a hard blow to working families in our vibrant economy by bringing back the marriage penalty twenty three million taxpayers will see their tax bill go up by cutting the child tax credit and have thirty one million taxpayers will pay an average of eight hundred fifty dollars more a year in all house democrats are asking hardworking americans to fork over an extra four hundred billion dollars over five years madam speaker the other side will try to sell this budget but don't be fooled this is tax and spend politics at its worst going to be required to go back for what purpose is a gentleman from california ri speaker what can brown do for you you may be familiar with this race as it is because it's the new u p s advertising slogan during the past one hundred years u p s has indeed done much for american workers and the american economy headquarters in atlanta georgia u p s employs more than four hundred twenty seven thousand people and is the world's largest package delivery company it's incredible to know that this global behemoths began in seattle washington as a messenger service by nineteen year old teenager who borrowed one hundred dollars through two thousand and seven u p s is celebrating its milestone one hundredth birthday by hosting employee events around the world the celebration in more than fifty five u cities and revolves around the arrival of the mobile centennial exhibit i was pleased south carolina second congressional district had the opportunity to participate in u p s success when the birthday celebration came to the midlands and rich mcardle was introduced as the new district manager in conclusion god bless our troops and we'll never forget september eleventh i know the gentleman has expired for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise the greatest social movements of our time he dedicate himself the fighting for safe working conditions reasonable wages decent housing and outlawing child labor for farm workers they were chavez embrace nonviolent tactics to help focus national incident on the problems world and the legacy of one who serves to remind us that together all things are possible are in spanish thank you madam speaker you about my time gentleman's time has expired for what purposes the gentleman from south carolina writes without objection the gentleman is recognized madam speaker this week the democrats will bring to the floor their budget fiscal year two thousand and eight that they passed out of committee and this budget promises to do two things raise taxes and increase spending my republican colleagues and i will put forth a substitute that uses commonsense to balance the budget in five years and lower spending reforms unsustainable entitlement programs and encourage economic growth with out raising taxes madam speaker as a result of the republican supported tax policies passed in two thousand and one through two thousand and five every taxpayer who paid income taxes this year will get tax relief my republican colleagues and i believe govern should limit taxing and spending and ease the burden on the economy let the country grow the difference between the two budgets are plain and simple the democrats trust government the republicans trust people urged mcauliffe colleagues to support the fiscal responsible republican substitute when it's brought to the floor later this week for what purposes the gentleman from indiana wri without objection so ordered the gentleman is recognized madam speaker i rise to pay tribute to one of my distinguished predecessors in representing the district i am now privileged to serve in congress and to celebrate his recent eightieth writing most of the federal legislation enacted concerning schools colleges and universities services for the elderly and the disabled libraries museums the arts and humanities during his last four years on capitol hill john brad i'm a service house majority whip under speaker tip o'neill our distinguished former colleague was a dedicated and highly effective legislator and shaper of national policy he has also been president of the nation's largest private university new york university madam speaker many members of both this chamber in the senate on both sides of the aisle served with dr brad amiss i believe they will share my sentiments and expressing our admiration for his outstanding public service and join me in wishing him well thank you madam speaker for what purpose does the gentleman from indiana arise without objection so hard the gentleman is recognized madam speaker when it comes to the new democrat congress it's the one nine hundred seventy s all over again think about it we have hostages in iran congress is making plans to withdraw from another unpopular war and the democrats return to the floor of congress with plans to tax and spend once again higher taxes for working families small businesses and family farms to finance billions of dollars  new spending with absolutely no reform of entitlements the real threat to our children and grandchildren the g o p budget alternative will balance the budget by the year two thousand and twelve without tax increases without raiding social security and with truly historic entitlement reform i say madam speaker say no to bell bottom disco and the tax and spend politics of the one nine hundred seventy s say yes to the republican budget veterans increase in seventy seven years in a letter the american legion writes nation i watch this fall and they will keep will help cover the ongoing cost of the war to care for the men and women of the united states armed forces and their families to warn all americans of the looming taxation tidal wave that's coming under this new democrat majority democrats of on bail their tax and spend budget proposal which will bring upon the american people the largest tax increase in our nation's history rather than allow americans to make choices about how best to spend their own money it's clear that democrats feel that they and washington bureaucrats better understand what's good for american families are democrat colleagues repeatedly claim that the america that the republican tax cuts only benefit the wealthy well madam speaker the lowest income americans are about to find out just how untrue that tired rhetoric is the tax hikes will hit all americans in every tax bracket middle class low income families and small businesses but there's an alternative house republicans have vowed to not just expand but make permanent the pro growth low tax policies that have brought recovery to our economy madam speaker we can move away from this tired trend of bigger and bigger government we can return money back to the rightful owner the american taxpayer and we should start right now for what purposes the gentleman from new hampshire rise without objection so ordered the gentleman is recognized thank you madam speaker when i ran for congress i ran for the rest of us the bottom ninety nine percent of us who as a social worker i knew were not getting a fair shake under this administration and its followers i knew they had created the greatest deficits in american history and that was it middle class have been harmed and i stand here with great pride to ask my colleagues in the house to pass this democrat budget which actually finally represents the middle class what does this budget do under the president's own budget proposal the democratic house budget protects middle class families from a tax increase our resolution protects nineteen million families against the alternative minimum tax and creates of easer and creating a permanent fix the reserve fund will also accommodate other middle class tax cuts including extending the child tax credit marriage penalty relief the extension of the ten percent individual tax credit and the elimination most state taxes compare these middle tax cuts to the five hundred billion dollars increase the president proposed in his budget over the next ten years madam speaker this democratic house is committed to balancing the budget in the next five years without raising freeway in kingwood texas on sunday afternoon they were probably talking about the upcoming birth of a nesses baby boy it nice you'll go mr terrace was blasting down that same freeway in his pickup truck he came up behind maria and vanessa and slammed his truck into the back of their car smashing the trunk into the front seat killing them both maria nessa and also nothing new tara was three times the legal limit drunk witnesses who were following him driving saying he was so drunk he could barely hold his head up after this coward killed the ortiz he fled from his pickup and ran but he was finally captured and held for the police bah bah standard gomez get terah had already been convicted three times for drunk driving and he was an illegal from mexico but he had never been deported after any of his convictions if he had maria vanessa and the baby would still be here how many more americans illegal immigrants need to be killed before the fans start deporting been eighty years old a saturday and i guess the most personal thing i can say is how he affected my life and the lives of countless people he gave voice to the powerless in this country he gave voice to the issues of the environment human rights labor rights education and turned a whole generation on the whole community to look forward to opportunity and to stand up and protect the very fundamental rights that each one of us as an american holds to says that chavez is not just an icon to such of his is a living legacy of what this country's unfinished business is the unfinished business of giving word to each human being in this country and i would end with a quote by such obvious we can choose to use our lives for others to bring about a better and more just world for our children that is the greatest opportunity we have with back for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan arise for one minute revise and extend without objection so ordered the gentleman is recognized madam speaker my home state of michigan is currently experiencing really hard economic times we have the highest unemployment in the nation we have the lowest personal and income growth in the nation dropping home values tightening family budget government overspending combined with declining revenue from the soft job market has forced my state into a fiscal crises and our democrat governor thinks that the way to solve the problem is by raising taxes and increasing government spending and here in washington we also have a spending problem and a deficit that is too large so what do the democrats offer the largest tax increase in american history almost four hundred billion dollars and massive new government spending the democrats are also pushing arbitrary and are calling me and i've fuel economy standards that could decimate our domestic auto industry and cost even more michigan jobs madam speaker the people of michigan just can't take it anymore they don't need bigger government they need bigger paychecks and i asked a democrat leaders to take pity on  michigan please just give michigan a break are you back for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california arise without objection the gentleman is recognized thank you madam speaker i rise this morning a strong supporter of a threat seventy six a resolution to create a national holiday in honor of a great human being a speaker already nine states celebrate his life the legacy that he left on the history of this nation must be recognized he made a difference not only for latinos not only for migrant workers but for the poor and the working poor and he also built a coalition of conscience across racial and economic boundaries i am reminded today of the political support says are provided to me during my first campaign for the california legislature he truly help me win my very first election and for that i am deeply grateful i urge my colleagues to join us in supporting the movement for a national holiday in honor of this great civil and human rights leader camps into the poverty of the migrant workers life he became a historical figure we embody humility an extraordinary strength during his peaceful struggle for social justice he was an individual who represented the ones who had less and had no representation whatsoever he dedicated his entire lives tirelessly championship the champions in the rights of the former laborers and along with him was  founder of the united also founder of the united farm workers union fighting for better wages and conditions for those individuals that pick pick our fruit and and feet our nation says the chavez has been an extraordinary icon in the home in my home state of texas in san antonio we honor his legacy during the annual says our chevys march to recognize those individuals that labor picking up our food additionally we cannot travel anywhere in the united states without seeing a town or city or street named after this amazing individual we as an internal texas have said so chavez boulevard as well as others throughout the country hope that his legacy  will continue to remain and i ask members and i rise today to encourage my colleagues urging the president the congress to establish a national holiday for sets of chavez and encourage them to support a chart seventy six and i expired to section two of house resolution two sixty nine pretty proceedings will now resume on h r eight thirty five which the clerk will report by title h r eight thirty five a bill to reauthor reauthorize the programs a little apartment of housing and urban development for housing assistance for native hawaiians when proceedings were postponed on tuesday march twenty seventh two thousand and seven ten  debate remained on the bill the gentleman from hawaii mr abercrombie and the gentleman from california mr campbell each have five minutes remaining who yields time gentleman from h certainly you time to the gentleman we're out virtually at the end of our remarks although it probably would be useful madam speaker to reiterate from last the evening's proceedings but i will be happy to yiel at this point the gentleman from california i thank the reader and reserve the balance of my five minutes please i thank the gentleman from hawaii and i do claim the time in opposition however i think the arguments village of the bill were made last night and so i y move to the conclusion i indicated last night and i think it was agreed to by mr baucus of alabama and others by way of material that has been entered into the overwhelmingly last week and with significant support from from the republican side of the aisle was that it was supported in committee by republicans and democrats the bill is here before the the congress as a result of a and the issue before us is about refinancing of all mortgages this is not about whether the original law the department of wind under which the whole i know department white homeland was established is to tional on the contrary i'm that that issue has been raised and it's perhaps should be raised in another context namely if someone wants to change the underlying law that we shouldn't punish my constituents or anybody's constituents for the fact that they appear before us and in the form of a bill trying to carry forward on the admonitions required of them in this instance by the department of housing and urban development in order to get their mortgages refinanced let me say that discrimination against non hawaiians the federal appeals court ruled that was not the case in fact returned it to the u s district court to see if the plaintiffs were eligible quote in any other capacity as a other than whether it was constitutional so we all we have as recently as the last thirty days court appeals court admonitions that the constitutionality of having programs for hawaiians is in fact constitutional if someone wants to argue that please let's argue it on the basis of of a bill that addresses that  itself rather than the bill which is before us which has to do with with the refinancing of mortgages please don't punish people that are trying to own their own homes to keep their own homes because of some ideological all time for debate has to expired pursuant to house resolution two sixty nine the bill is considered read and the previous question is ordered the question is on engrossment and third reading of the bill those in favor say aye those opposed no the ayes have it third reading a bill to reauthorize the programs of that apartment of housing and urban development for housing assistance for native hawaiian a number seeking recognition passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table madam speaker the gentleman from california is recognized for what  major legislation ahead today in the house include veterans health care bill and also the fiscal year two thousand and eight budget plan the senate passed their version last week live house coverage here on ceased and the senate on c span too as they continue working on the iraq war funding bill couple of votes yesterday of note the one in the afternoon reported here by c q senate democratic leaders scored a major victory tuesday as members rejected forty eight to fifty republican attempt to strip u s troop withdraw language from iraq war spending bill republicans bruce smith gordon smith of oregon and chuck hagel of nebraska joined with most democrats to reject the amendment by thad cochran of mississippi mark pryor of arkansas was the only democrat to vote amendment as well as independent joe lieberman of connecticut who caucuses with the democrats he also supported it from the c q article on that vote against and it continues debate you can follow that on c span too we're also covering today a house hearing and oversight hearing looking into the government services administration the administrator g s a administrator rita doane testifying this morning that's live on c span three and on c span radio and tomorrow on c span three at ten o'clock we will hear from kyle sampson the former chief of staff to alberto turney general alberto gonzales he'll be tough testifying on the firing of u s attorneys that will be live tomorrow morning at ten on c span three you can also watch to watch it on line c span dot org and follow it on c span radio thank you madam speaker by the direction of the committee on roles i call a palace resolution two seventy five and ask for its immediate consideration for the purpose of debate only the gentleman will suspend the clerk a report the resolution calendar number thirty six house resolution two seventy five resolved that at any time after the adoption of this resolution the speaker may pursuant to clause to be of rule eighteen declared the house resolved into the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the concurrent resolution house concurrent resolution ninety nine revising the congressional budget for the united states government for fiscal year two thousand and seven  the congressional budget for the united states government for fiscal year two thousand and eight and setting forth appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years two thousand and nine through two thousand and twelve the first reading of the concurr resolution shall be dispensed with all points of order against consideration of the concurrent resolution shall be dispensed with all points of order against consideration of the concurrent resolution are waived general debate shall not exceed four hours with three hours confined to the congressional budget equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on the budget and one hour on the subject subject of economic goals and policies equally divided  controlled by representative maloney of new york and representative saxton of new jersey or their designees after general debate the concurrent resolution shall be considered for amendment under the five minute rule the concurrent resolution shall be considered as read no amendment shall be in order except those printed on the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution each amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the report may be offered only by a member designated in the report be considered as read shall be debatable for the time specified in the report and shall not be subject to amendment all points of order against the amendment printed on the reporter waved except  the adoption of an amendment in the nature of a substitute shall constitute the conclusion of consideration of the concurrent resolution for amendment after the conclusion of consideration of the concurrent resolution for amendment amendments offered by the chairman of the committee on the budget pursuant to section israel five eighty five of the congressional budget act of one nine hundred seventy four to achieve mathematical consistency the concurrent resolution shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question of its adoption section two during consideration in the house of house concurrent resolution ninety nine pursuant to this resolution not withstanding the operation of the previous question the chairman postpone further consideration of the concurrent resolution to such time as may be designated by the speaker the gentleman from ohio is recognized for one hour for four hours of general debate three to be controlled by the chairman and ranking member of the committee on the budget and want to be controlled by representative maloney of new york and representative saxton of new jersey the roll also makes an order three substitute amendments by representative scott of virginia representative woolsey and representative ryan of wisconsin madam speaker budget more than anything else this government produces are a state  f what matters to us and what does not they are moral documents they tell us to what degree we care to look after the old and protect the young they indicate our responsibilities to commitments both abroad and here at home they give life to our greatest dreams as a nation they are the hope we leave for our children and because of the legacy we bestow upon our people and they can be examples of great courage or and absolution of congress's responsibility to set priorities consistent with strengthening our people in our communities madam speaker as it concerns the budget it has been a long six years for this nation the budget has been out of balance fiscally and it has been out of balance with the needs of the american people just six years ago we were looking at a projected five point six trillion dollars surplus that is collapsed into a nine trillion dollars deficit for every american in this country there is twenty nine thousand dollars worth of debt the majority not only crash the car into a ditch they expel aerated after landing there allowing mud to cave in on top of it that was the fiscal situation democrats found when we arrived here a few more months ago in the majority since president bush took office in two thousand and one my home state of ohio alone has lost over two hundred thousand manufacturing jobs and three million been lost nationwide job growth overall has slowed to a significantly slower pace in recent years than under the clinton administration at a rate even below the level necessary to keep pace with population growth sadly our families have even less purchasing power today than they did in january of two thousand and one and the debt has continued to pile up with no accountability no fiscal responsibility no effort to place priorities in the right places to curb wasteful spending to do what needs to be done to make sure that the program consistent with the values of this nation social security medicare and medicaid as chip and community block grants continue to be able to survive in short the policies and acted in recent years will have devastating effect on our future competitiveness and standard of living if we continue down the same destructive road but it is a new day and we have a new path to follow one that says that it's more important to take care of our wounded veterans that it is to take care of oil companies one that does that kids can cannot grow up to thrive and go back to this great nation if they do not have the health care when they are young one that says that a measure of a nation can be taken in small things like heating assistance for the elderly and nutrition programs and local schools and special assistance for those with disabilities indeed it is in the small print  of the federal budget that we find our worth as a government which is why i am proud both as a member of the budget committee and as a member of congress to support this democratic budget it's the first time in a very long time that congress has before it a budget that is fiscally responsible and in line with the needs of the american people this budget makes critical investments in education health care our veterans our communities and our economy while at the same time at hearings of paygo principles and returning our budget to balance by twenty twelve the reckless economic policies of the last six years have been immensely damaging to our economies long term global competitiveness and particularly lee to our workers the democratic budget will strengthen middle class families by providing funding for job training programs health care and education particularly in math and science these are all essential investments in our workforce that will lay a solid foundation for a growing economy and improve our competitiveness the democratic budget rejects the president for kone and cuts to programs that provide healthcare to the poor to our children and our seniors nine million of the neediest children in this country and two hundred forty two thousand in the state of ohio lack health insurance coverage and the funding levels in the president's budget put as many as one million of these children at risk to fall off the s chip program in contrast the democratic budget provides for a fifty billion dollar increase as allowing us to reach millions more children than we reach right now making our children's healthcare needs a federal government priority the democratic budget also rejects the three hundred billion dollars in medicare medicaid cuts proposed by the administration access to health care should be a right not a privilege in this nation and it does not serve any of us to roll back the clock on the health care initiatives that has served us so well up until now the democratic budget is also about investing in our communities it provides for increased funding for community development block grants the social service and it saves community services block grants which was zeroed out in the president's budget i have personally spoken with a number of the community officials in my own district that would have been affected by the proposed cuts and block grant programs and i will tell you that at the local level these programs are lifeline for our neighborhoods and towns they address needs an affordable housing education and nutrition they promote financial literacy and assist with child care needs special services to children with disabilities and in our cities the c g fund to help provide affordable housing and services to our most vulnerable populations in short we should not be trying to do away with programs that work the democratic budget also makes education a priority from early childhood to lifelong learning to that and our budget provides three billion dollars over the current services level for education training and social services these increases are an investment in our future and will be vital to our global competitiveness we've increased funding for those just beginning their education like the thirty eight thousand children and head start in ohio and we've taken steps to make college education more affordable through pell grants and a higher education reserve fund we've included five to train more math and science teachers and finally the democratic budget reflects a major shift  priorities by providing five point four billion dollars in an increase in the veterans affairs budget which is an eighteen point one percent increase over two thousand and seven levels and the largest increase in history recently it has become clear that the needs of our brave men and women who have served our country so honorably have not been met we've heard heartbreaking stories of wounded veterans who must wait up to six months for disability determination and about the a facilities that are in disrepair the more than one million veterans in ohio and the more than twenty four million nationwide deserve nothing less than our full support anything less is simply unacceptable a budget reflects the soul of a nation it can give life to our most honorable pursuits and provide proof of a best of our attention it's a result of stone which those who look upon us from the present and from the future can decipher our words and our courage it is with those thoughts in mind that i'm proud to support this budget for consideration by the house thank you madam speaker i reserve t floor today the massive an irresponsible tax increase included in this budget would be the largest in american history weighing in at a shocking three hundred and ninety two point five billion dollars over the next five years this democrat budget which is balanced on the back that everyday taxpayers will be used to finance bloated new government spending that my colleague just spoke about that will be well above the rate of inflation through two thousand and twelve while ignoring the brew the brewing entitlement crisis spending more spending and more spending rather than worrying about the brewing entitlement crisis that faces this nation around seventy seven million baby boomers will be retiring in the near future and will begin collecting social security medicaid and medicare funding this new spending represents the greatest economic challenge of our era and is a challenge to the democrat budget also and one which i have chosen to completely ignore while going on a spending spree everywhere else if physical discipline is what the democrats promised voters this past fall then by my count it took all of about three months for the democratic candidates to aband their campaign trail promises and sure show their true tax and spend stripes here again on the floor today this deeply flawed budget would increase taxes on almost eight million taxpayers in my home state of texas costing each of them an average of twenty seven hundred and fifty five dollars per year it would collect these taxes by allowing the two thousand and one and two thousand and three tax relief provided by the republican congress to expire in real terms for every taxpayer this means reducing the child tax credit for working families so that government can compel acts twenty seven billion dollars more to finance the new spending that the democrat majority chooses it means reinstating the marriage penalty and the death tax to collect an additional one hundred four billion dollars so that the majority can kick that further down the road rather than reforming and strengthening our nation's entitle ment's programs and it means completely ignoring the alternative minimum tax prices which is projected to hit twenty three million middle class families if not dealt with quickly than a speaker i believe the voters watching this debate on c span understand what these tax increases main for our economy and our ability to compete globally for you see i remember just a few short years ago when america was shipping thousands and thousands of jobs overseas and then the tax cuts took place and now we can't find enough workers in america better speaker i would suggest to you that is the way to be globally competitive when you have plenty of jobs in america but they certainly also realize that voters and those people watching this debate that what it would mean for a family of four when sixty thousand dollars in earnings it would mean a tax increase of some sixty one percent it means that a single parent with two children and thirty thousand dollars in earnings would see a tax increase of sixty seven percent and it means that an elderly couple with forty thousand dollars in income would see their taxes increase by a whopping one hundred fifty six percent now one would think that a tax increase of almost four hundred billion dollars impacting every american taxpayer would be enough to finance the democrats appetite for big government programs but hold on this is just the start there's more to come this budget also contain twelve words or funds or pet  ious which sets the stage for more than one hundred fifteen billion dollars in future higher spending for which will have to be financed by let me say you guessed it the taxpayer higher taxes for the last four years responsible budgets passed by the republican party kept discretionary spending at or below inflation for all non defense non homeland security spending this budget plan brought forward by the democrats brings this tradition to a screeching halt by allowing about twenty five billion dollars more in discretionary spending than requested by president bush or even the spin story of sifts spin strip the senate which asked for about seven billion dollars less than the house thankfully it is not too late to stop this fiscal train wreck my friend the ranking member of the budget committee paul ryan has proposed an alternative budget that achieves bring in our balanced budget by two thousand and twelve and in the raid on social security without raising taxes the republican alternative maintains our strong economy reforms and strengthens entitlement programs and does this while keeping in place the tax relief did so much to our economy since two thousand and one without meaningful tax relief passed by recent republican congresses our economy would have to see this massive job growth with seven seven million seven point six million new jobs or roughly six one hundred seventy thousand per month in economic growth a three point five percent a year that it has experienced over last fifteen quarter republican budget contains no increase in marginal rates and leaves in place the temper sent bracket for low income filers it includes no reduction in child tax credit no rollback of the marriage penalty or tax relief and no increase in capital gains or dividends tax rates it provides for an extension of alternative minimum tax relief the research and development tax credit and the state and local sales tax deduction that is so important to people all across this country including the seventeen states that it benefits it is the right on social security and fully funds the president's request for national defense and the war on terrorism it also makes important budget reforms such as a legislative line item veto earmark transparencies requiring paygo to be offset by spending reductions not tax increases discretionary spending caps requiring a vote on any debt limit increase and requiring a vote on any bill that seeks to spend or authorize more than fifty million dollars madam speaker i encourage all of my colleagues to listen very carefully today about what the choices are that are on the floor of the house of representatives and what they can support i stand up for fiscal discipline economic growth responsible budgeting and b rules and budget committee from massachusetts mr mcgovern thank you gentleman from massachusetts is recognized for five minutes madam speaker i am proud to rise in support of this rule and in support of this budget resolution it provides our families in years and children with economic security health care and nutrition madame speaker five point four million more people live in poverty today than in the year two thousand that's over thirty five million total and twelve point four million are children one in every eight americans is hungry one in eight does not know whether they'll be able to put food on the table madam speaker every single member of this congress should be ashamed by these statistics the united states is the only wealthy industrialized nation in the world that tolerates widespread hunger amongst its people including its children the decision to tolerate hunger in america has serious costs for us as a nation we constantly hear that we are a nation committed to leaving no child behind but children who are hungry who live in poverty cannot keep up they cannot develop thrive they cannot learn or play with energy and enthusiasm hunger stunts the physical mental and emotional growth of millions of our children when these children become adults they are more likely to have lower earnings and low productivity in the workforce their poor health means more illness that requires large health care expenditures their early mortality robs our economy of their labor and consumption they are more likely to engage in crime which results in monetary and personal cost to their victims and to the taxpayers with the cost of our criminal justice system and sadly they are also more likely to be victims resulting in similar costs in other areas we see the difficulties faced by our seniors who are due humanised and demoralised when they have to choose between utilities and food many need special diets and adequate nutrition for their medications to work effectively but unfortunately hundreds of thousands lack adequate food and when we fail to end hunger among our elderly we choose to add to their immediate and long term health care costs even while we hasten their deaths these are some of the priorities addressed in the democratic budget resolution this budget resolution recognizes the burden faced by families when they are forced to choose between rent food heat and medicine and provides funding for children's health care and provides funding for programs like lie he had starred in low income housing and i want to thank sharon spratt for holding a budget hearing on hunger and inviting boston pediatrician deborah frank and south carolina food banker denise holland to testify about the urgent need to address hunger in america i only wish more of my colleagues that attended that hearing we heard how food stamp benefits provide a first offense against hunger but are too meager to solve the problem how food stamp benefits average just one dollar per person per mail how the minimum monthly benefit is stuck at the decade's old level of ten dollars and how the program is missing four and every ten eligible people madam speaker it is unconscionable that the program's proven to combat hunger in america continually under attack the commodity food supplemental program is continually zero by the bush administration the food stamp program is constantly derided with fraud waste and abuse cited when according to the g a o it is running at the most productive levels in the history of the program it is unconscionable madam speaker that legal immigrants people here legally with proper documentation must wait five years for the food stamps they may need today simply because they happen to be newcomers to our nation this is simply bad policy and it needs to be fixed immediately and it doesn't contravene the children in need who receive breakfasts and lunches during the school year  denied food during the summer months simply because school isn't in session the next farm bill needs to invest the additional federal resources to improve these federal anti hunger programs it should improve the food stamp benefit open eligibility to vulnerable and under served groups and adequately fund and fully utilize u s d a resources to support emergency food assistance and other commodity assistance programs that serve the needy this budget resolution by providing a twenty billion dollars reserve fund for the farm bill and by rejecting the president's arbitrary eligibility cuts to food stamps and the elimination of the commodity supplemental food program not only makes a strong statement on the need to combat hunger in america it actually takes concrete steps to do so this resolution deserve support for the economic and food security it provides all our people but and let me stress it is only a beginning and being hunger is not in should not be a partisan issue the moral and economic cost affects every community in america there is not a single community in america that is hunger free so i call up on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work together here in the congress and in our communities to courageous the sustained and comprehensive investment necessary to end hunger and to make us a stronger nation one step in this pa is to pass the budget budget resolution before us you know back balance of my time gentleman's time has expired gentleman from texas like you better speaker this time i would yield you'll for such times he may consume to the gentleman from san dimas california expand spending and a wide range of areas i could not help but think about why it is that i chose to run for congress and why i know my republican colleagues stepped up to the plate to run for congress we want to defense capability  none but we also madam speaker want to do everything that we possibly can to reduce the size and scope of government encouraging individual initiative and responsibility one of the things that troubles me as i listen to the arguments propounded by so many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle is that they talk about a need that is there and we all want to make sure that we have dress the very important societal needs that are there we want to put into place and title not reform in the area both medicare and medicaid why not only so that we can save taxpayer dollars but so that we can ensure that the medicare and medicaid programs are more effective and provide needed assistance to those who are out there who truly are in need the problem that i have is they talk about all of these programs it undermines it undermines initiative and responsibility and what we want to do with our budget madam speaker is everything within our power as mr sessions said so well to make sure that we keep taxes low one of the things that i find to be very troubling is that our colleagues on the other side of the aisle hate most hate most the tax the taxes that have actually created a surge in revenues to the federal treasury we all know that the budget that they are going to be bringing forward puts into place the largest tax increase in american history we always held up the one nine hundred ninety three clinton tax increase that not one republican voted for as the largest tax increase in history and i'm proud that when we won our majority in one nine hundred ninety four we brought about major changes that in fact repealed which parts of that nine hundred ninety three tax increase but madam speaker that nine hundred ninety three tax increase which has been held up as the model of the largest tax increase increase in american history pales in comparison to this three hundred and ninety two point five billion dollar tax increase that they are advocating in this budget and madam speaker i say that they hate most the taxes that the tax cuts that have created greatest surge in revenue i'm referring of course to capital gains i've been one who's long advocated a zero capital gains tax rate and one of the things that we've found is that reducing the top rate on capital gains has not done what virtually every green eyeshade prognosticator looked at is what happened they said there would be a loss in revenues the federal treasury we found of course that there has been a surge in revenues to the federal treasury why because it has encouraged economic growth to the point where the deficit this year is actually seventy three billion dollars lower than it was last year and that's as we have cut taxes met the very important funding priorities a homeland security and national security and we still have been able to actually reduce the federal deficit as a percentage of our gross domestic product the deficit today which everyone decries democrats republicans like to cry is in fact lower as a percentage of the g d p than almost ever and in light of that madam speaker i think it's very important for us to recognize we have a strong vibrant growing economy today i was very surprised when the distinguished chair of the committee on rules last night late last night we were reporting out this rule talked about how devastating the economy is and madam speaker i will tell you it is  devastatingly good economy just this morning we got the report that there has been an increase in durable goods purchases we have a four and a half percent unemployment rate we continue to say one hundred and forty six million americans more than ever in the history of our country are working today that's not an accident we've gone through terrorist attacks corporate scandals the economic downturn and because of the policies that we put into place we have the strongest most dynamic thirteen trillion dollar economy we've ever seen in the history of the united states of america madam speaker we talked to an economist last night who said to me  you know i had no idea that they would move this quickly to increase spending and increase taxes and that's exactly what they're doing and that's why we need to reject this rule and clearly do everything that we can to reject the tax and spend budget that they have propounded and support mr ryan's alternative without a you back to my time gentleman yield back general woman from ohio is recognized thank you madam speaker before yield to my ne speaker i want to point out that the democratic budget does not raise a single penny of taxes period and with that man speaker i yield three minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from california  distinguished member of the rules committees mismatched doing the gentlewoman from california is recognized for three minutes i thank the general a d from ohio so healing the time man a speaker i'm proud to support this role and to enthusiastic in the ethics i support is solid and balanced budget resolution and invest in strategic priorities for the future while putting the nation on the path to fiscal stability and approaching this debate i would ask that members in our constituents keep in mind that we are not starting from scratch the previous leadership that it's with a fiscal disaster that can't be repaired overnight but this budget gets us on the right track in a responsible and strategic way that is governing governing is not easy every choir is making hard choices but making hard choices today is better than congress abdicating it responsibility to choose altogether because the alternative to making hard choices is passing debt onto tomorrow's decision makers leaving our children and grandchildren like my own and i and robbie with a diminished quality of life with pay go rules that budget draws a line in the say and if you want new mandatory spending or tax cuts find a way to pay for on to the next generation is no longer an option under this budget we're not going to eradicate the deficit as quickly as some would like and we can spend as much on domestic priorities as would like but this budget gives us a type of solid foundation that will allow us to tackle our fiscal challenges while still investing in the most important priorities this budget recognizes that we need to invest in health care and education for our children it recognizes that we must move to a clean energy economy by driving research and development and by promoting scientific innovation and that we must provide for our veterans who have served honorably and deserve the best care possible finally this budget recognizes that the tax code should be fair for hardworking families whether it's your fat family budget or the federal budget you can either one reduce the amount of money being spent or to create some out of money coming in than speaker democrats have flat out rejected option number one of spending less and declared their allegiance allegiance to option number two of raising taxes and they have done both with the fervor that our country has never seen before the democrats five year budget plan would spend more money each and every year and at a rate faster than the inflation rate this means that each year the size of the federal government would grow bigger and more rapidly than the american economy to pay for the record record levels of spending in their budget the democrats plan to raise taxes on the american people more than any other time in our country's history that's right raising spending to record levels and to pay for it with the largest tax increase in american history this budget does not extend tax relief from the marriage tax penalty it doesn't extend the thousand dollar tax child tax credit that many young families use it doesn't end the death tax it doesn't fix the alternative minimum tax for middle class families it doesn't protect the lowest tax rate and would again impose taxes on lower income americans who right now pay no taxes thanks to the two thousand and one tax relief law passed by the republican congress this tax relief should not be repealed or allowed to expire to pay for more government spending this tax relief that was passed in two thousand and one in two thousand and three should be main permanent for the american people and speaker on important priorities for my state like the extension of the state and local sales tax deduction from the federal tax and county payments for rural schools the democrat budget falls short it offers only promises but no real action the republican plan on the other hand sets aside real dollars to extend the state and local sales tax reduction for another year so i encourage all members who believe in fair sales tax fairness to think carefully about this when casting their vote on the issue of payment to rural schools in counties with federal forests this budget allows an extension but it takes no real steps to make it happen  and i as i have said before on this issue i am disappointed that the democratic leadership denied the opportunity to an extent to attach an extension of this legislation to another bill a bill that is in fact in science into law madam speaker republican plan i'll be supporting hold the line on spending sets priorities and allows taxpayers to keep more of their hard earned money and invested as a see fit not how the federal government sees fi colleagues to oppose this rule and the budget resolution offered by the democrat majority and support to substitute offered by mr ryan of wisconsin and i yield back the balance of my time gentleman's time has expired gentleman from ohio thank from our friends on the other side of the aisle about the largest tax increase in american history well the fact is we are today going to be able to talk about the largest tax increase in american history but it is not contained in the democratic budget is the largest tax increase in american history is one point eight trillion dollars that the president's budget anticipates as a result of the collection of the alternative minimum tax it's never been a priority of the of the republicans to deal with this looming disaster indeed they squandered six eight years of hard earned democratic surpluses unprecedented surpluses squandered in a heartbeat in their relentless pursuit to give tax benefits for those who need them most there are a few items in there that would have broad bipartisan been  real agreement of the ten percent bracket tax credit for families making some reasonable adjustment in the inheritance tax but no they were not interested in dealing with areas of agreement and then solving the alternative minimum tax each year they've kicked the millionaire tax down the road it's long since morphed into something that is not a millionaire's tax it isn't going to be a tax under the president's proposal and with the republican priorities it's going to be a tax on every two income working family in america with children that have any sort of middle income they're going to be paying the alternative minimum tax and in fact it's go cost them more to compute in many cases than the actual tax they get whacked twice in two thousand and one in two thousand and three the republicans refused to do with this looming challenge and instead gave all sorts of tax breaks to all sorts of people and avoided solving this problem in two thousand and four when we had a four billion dollar problem with our overseas manufacturing tax credit that mor into a hundred and thirty seven billion dollar tax grab bag and ignored the all alternative minimum tax and i put forth to the administration in our hearings in both ways and means and in budget where their priority while their priority is not fixing the alternative minimum tax when your patch they want to extend all of these tax breaks for the good and some of the frankly some of the bizarre for people like paris hilton well madam speaker the democratic alternative is focusing on what the real problem is what we're doing in ways and means we've made a commitment our number one priority is to solve the alternative there's as is evidenced in their substitute is going to take all of the potential headroom they have thirty additional seconds the channel an additional thirty second chair recognizes the gentleman for thirty to make that and that challenge in solving the problem even more difficult by permanently extending all of those tax increases without any offsets the democratic alternative is responsible it speaks to the needs of working men and women fiscal stability and most important our priorities stopping the looming tax tsunami of the alternative minimum tax which will in fact be the largest tax increase in american history thank you and i yield back the gentleman's time has expired the gentleman from texas thank you madam chairman by the way i encourage the gentleman from oregon to read the bill the democrat budget does not address the alternative minimum tax as he stated madam speaker at this time i'd like to yield three minutes to i would i was a gentleman familiar with the time i mean reexamine the pay as you go rule job from taxes controls the time thank you reserve fund out there in the future does not fix a darn thing madam speaker at this time i'd like the old three minutes to the chairman of the suburban illinois mr kirk gentleman from illinois is recognized for three minutes and then a gentleman from a texas man a speaker the budget coming before this house does more than approve the largest tax increase in american history that is what it includes but what this budget is notable for is what it also does not include the leaders of the republican tuesday group in the study committees came together to outline reforms to help the government spend less and why should we do that let's note that in one nine hundred sixty one when president kennedy took office the federal government spent just ninety eight billion dollars we didn't hit our first trillion in till nine hundred eighty seven we broke the second trillion in two thousand and two and in two thousand and ten we will go above the three trillion dollar level the federal debt held by the public has climbed to over three trillion in two thousand and six a three hundred percent increase in the last quarter century this year interest payments on our debt alone will top over two hundred billion dollars now last night i offered an amendment co sponsored by congressman's dense pence and hensarling and we laid out some commonsense reforms that this budget should include like statutory discretionary spending limits like the kind approved by president clinton that helped us spend less like provisions to slow the growth of entitlement spending by requiring offsets for any new benefits allowed like enforcement tools that restricted the definition of emergency spending that would have helped us not declare a spinach farm or bail out last week as a national security emergency which we did in the supplemental appropriations bill like a crual accounting to show what the taxpayers long term obligations are and to clearly lay out for the american people our financial position and finally periodic audits and summaries updating the accounting rules we use so the american people always have the most transparent view of what their government is doing unfortunately last night the rules committee rejected this amendment we will not even be allowed to vote on these commonsense reforms ironic because most of these reforms were taken from the democratic blue dog group that has advocated strong financial controls but somehow backed this effort to deny this amendment from even a vote i urge this house to reject this rule and allow these commonsense reforms to go through if the past is our guide even the budget that the congress will consider today and tomorrow will be waived shortly because when the supplemental appropriations bill comes back from congress it will can include a provision that says the budget act is entirely waived and one hundred twenty six billion dollars twenty three billion dollars over the president's request will be passed waiving the budget that we even approved tomorrow you'll bet gentleman's time has expired gentleman from ohio is recognized thank you the four year old i'd just like to remind the public that those on the other side of the aisle who are here today preaching about fiscal responsibility are the same the same people who when they were in charge for six years took a projected five point six trillion dollars surplus and collapse it into a nine trillion dollars deficit and with that i will yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from ohio mr k senate gentleman from ohio is recognized for one minute to speaker the president's fiscal year zero eight budget request funding for the iraq  war through two thousand and nine the democratic budget except that timeline includes one hundred forty five point two billion for military operations in iraq and afghanistan as requested by the president for fiscal year zero eight requests fifty billion  fiscal year two thousand and nine that is in addition to the five hundred ten billion we've already spent on the war another ninety seven billion pending in the supplemental according to c r s the total if approved would be over eight hundred billion dollars for war while our schools our health care and quality of our environment are in decline the budget should reflect the mandate democrats were given in november yet were mirroring the president's plan for the war in his budget request to fund the war the supplemental calls for withdrawal by august two thousand and eight why does the budget encourage the war to continue into two thousand and nine if we were serious about trying to stop the war the budget should not contradict the supplemental language this budget does not end the war it continues it through the end of president bush's term the american people want the war to end now not in two thousand and eight not in two thousand and nine but people want the war to end now john as time has expired gentleman from texas thank you madam speaker this time i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from unnecessarily limits debate on middle class tax cuts together with a colleague from pennsylvania we offered an amendment to ensure that the child tax credit is included in the budget but the majority will allow us to offer that amendment today or even have a debate about it it's a shame that this amendment in defense of the middle class families was not allowed the new majority must still be convinced it's their money and not the taxpayers thirty one million taxpayers would see their taxes increase in two thousand and eleven when the per per child tax credit is cut in half and that's just the start the average tax hike on one hundred seventy five thousand middle class families and taxpayers in the vat a would be almost three thousand dollars we will likely be told that the budget assumes the cost of this tax provision will be addressed along with seven others through some  mirrors policy my western values told me what happens when you assume instead the murphy heller amendment guaranteed that the funds would be there for families instead of wish for wishful thinking madam speaker to my colleagues do the middle class families make too much money as a child born after two thousand and eleven somehow less expensive than a child born in two thousand and ten is a child tax credit a partisan issue you have those colleagues of mine in the majority like the blue dogs lost their way or have they just been muzzled we're going to hear a lot from the majority a day about the children but apparently that's only when it comes to government spending not middle class tax cuts their rhetoric on tax rings hollow when congress is muzzled on such a critical debate don't assume vote this rule down and for middle class tax cuts for families  gentleman's time has expired the gentleman from ohio madam speaker i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from connecticut a distinguished member of the budget committee ms doro gentlewoman from connecticut is recognized for two let's be clear the two thousand and eight budget resolution a democratic proposal leaves the tax cuts in place plans for their extension and extend the child tax credit and will do that if my colleagues on the other side of the aisle care to wish about the child tax credit they would entertain lowering the eligibility threshold so that families who make less than ten thousand five hundred dollars a year in this nation could be eligible for the child tax credit they refuse to do that take their words with a grain of salt today my friends as a nation we face great challenges challenges in education and health care challenges that the federal government has the ability that capacity the resources and the moral obligation to help us meet our job is to help create real opportunity to give people the tools that they need to succeed the budget that we considered today reflects our nation's values and puts us on the right path to meet our obligations i'm proud of the work that we have done with this budget because i believe it addresses our most urgent priorities and for the first time in six years we have a budget that makes an investment in children and in famil puts children first by addressing their healthcare needs it rejects the inadequate funding level proposed by the president for the s chip the children's health care program our nation's health care problems have become increasingly desperate as chip is virtually only story that we have covering nearly a million more children and working families today than even president clinton anticipated when he created it and republicans are great recently i received a letter from my governor by republican governor the state of connecticut saying as much this budget expands coverage to the estimated six million children eligible but not currently enrolled in s chip this budget focuses on education a quality education is more closely tied economic prosperity than ever it's critical to thank competitive in today's global economy the president's budget reduces our commitment to education investment for a third year in a row can have another minute  as we face record school enrollment the academic requirements under no child left behind and rising college costs to say nothing of increased competition from china and india the president's budget takes us in the wrong direction for this country now is the time to invest more in education and not less the funding allows for an infusion of new resources for no child left behind an idea where the federal government has a promise to keep and it works to make higher education more affordable through a commitment to the pell grants than a speaker i support this rule i support this budget it represents a commitment to fiscal responsibility and a greater investment in our future have heard that this big increase that she's talking about in s chip is in a reserve fund not paid for going to have to find an offset somewhere if they're going to get to it so preserved in the budget handling i think my good friend in the gentleman from texas for yielding our i rise in opposition to this rule any family it's any tax is fiscally responsible and i agree with my colleague from texas i can hardly believe some of the things i'm hearing on the house floor the democrats madam speaker obviously want to have it both ways they claim on the one hand that they've done this incredible job of balancing the federal budget and then they claim that they actually preserve tax relief in the budget but if anybody would bother to read the document the only way they achieve balance is by taking away all of the tax relief that we've enjoyed in the last several years they would bring forward the single largest tax increase in american history and guess what madam speaker twelve years ago last time that they were in power guess what they did they brought forth the single largest tax increase in american history certainly they at least get an a for consistency but you have to give them an f for fiscal responsibility and i would point out to the proceeding speaker the gentle lady from connecticut and i have the honor of serving with her on the budget committee had the democrats felt so strongly about preserving the tax relief they had ample opportunity in committee to preserve the tax  american families and they chose not to do it i mean this is a budget which may be worthy of a pulitzer prize in fiction but it's full of orwellian speak it's something that's worthy of the twilight zone it makes no sense you cannot claim that you're not reducing your pending you're preserving tax relief and you're balancing the budget all at the same time you're taking three different sides of the argument it does not wash in this democrat budget is also silent absolutely stone cold silent on the number one fiscal issue facing our nation and that is at a control entitlement spending if we don't we form these entitlement programs it will lead to a doubling of taxes on the american people our children in our grandchildren the single largest tax increase in history will pale in comparison if we don't act today this is a budget for the next election it's not a budget for the next generation you can't have a fiscally responsible budget and remain silent silent on the number one fiscal challenge facing the nation today if you want to save medicare if you want to save so security if you want to save medicaid you have to reform these programs in the democrat budget again is stone cold silent they speak of their reserve funds but madam speaker there's no reserves and there's no funds again this is fiction this is pure unadulterated fiction what isn't fiction is the largest single tax increase in american history that's going to fall upon american families is going to fall upon him hard because every time the democrats increase the federal budget they're cutting some family budget they're taking away from the families ability to send a child to college they're taking away from the families of billeted to help a parent with long term health care they're taking away a family's ability to buy that first tell make a down payment on their first home every time you take away every time you increase the federal budget you're taking away from the family budget and so these two documents stand in stark contrast the democrat budget single largest tax increase in history gentleman's time is expired gentleman from texas is recognized for two additional minutes again this contrast could not be stark the single largest tax increase in american history and i remind my colleagues on the other side to please please think the families that are in your district that actually pay these taxes you may think we're having a debate on how much our society is going to spend on health care and housing and education that's not the debate i think we're having i think we're having a debate about who's going to do that spending is it going to be government bureaucrats or is it going to be american families and my state of texas the average american family the average texas family's going to have to put additional twenty seven hundred dollars a year under the democrat plan to have the single largest tax increase in american history and i asked my constituents madam speaker what is this going to mean to you and i've heard from several of my heard for example from diana in t congressman i want to let you know that i am a single mom that does not receive any type of child support in an increase of this amount would break me i would be at the risk of losing my home with this type of increase i am writing to ask your help to keep this from happening this would be devastating to middle income families that's what diane and mosquito wrote brian in dallas this tax increase would affect our ability to pay tuition and books for our daughter to go to college while she's a junior this year we're trying to save money for her education but as the cost of education increases this year the last of these funds this increase in taxes will have a negative impact on our ability to send her to college again this largest single tax increase in american history will have devastating impacts on american family so the two budgets sit in stark contrast one preserves the tax relief that has helped bring  gentlewoman from ohio thank you madam speaker before you all died just like to to respond again our budget resolution does not contain a single penny of tax increases period and i will tell you what does not wash to the  gentleman who just spoke what doesn't wash is that we are getting this lesson of fiscal responsibility from the party that took a projected five point six trillion dollars surplus and collapse it into a nine trillion dollars deficit that madam speaker i will yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from rhode island mr land seven gentleman from rhode island is recognized for one minute yes and then his consent to revise and exten madam speaker i rise in strong support of the rule of the democratic budget for f y two thousand and eight this measure provides robust funding for our most important programs while maintaining our commitment to fiscal discipline last year democrats promised to move the country in a new direction and that's exactly what this budget does this budget restores many programs the president proposed to cut while cheating balanced by two thousand and twelve it meets our commitment to defense and homeland security by implementing the nine and medicaid by providing funding to cover millions of children without health insurance something particular important to my constituents in rhode island it was funds for education programs such as pell grants and promotes investment programs that help us move closer to  know texas thank you mr speaker at this time i'd like to notify the gentlewoman that i do not have any further speakers and would wish to reserve my time until she ran down her speakers and then i would close from my side and she can then close for he gentleman reserves the balance of this time the gentlewoman from ohio thank you mr speaker i am the only remaining speaker on this time so i will close and if you would like to proceed i thank you gentlemen very much mr speaker thank you so much  r speaker we've heard the debate today about this budget about the priorities of the new democrat majority about how they have set aside all these eleven reserve bonds and we've seen member after member after member from the new democrat majority take credit for all these things that are going to be done and yet in fact what they are is reserve funds set aside to find a way to either increase taxes or to find an offset we think that this is in their responsible way to run the government we think this is an irresponsible budget we think raising taxes three hundred ninety five billion  dollars which is included in that budget we heard the testimony last night from the chairman of the budget committee and the ranking member that the assumptions that are based on the democrat budget are that the the tax cuts will go away the tax increases will fill their their place we disagree with that we think that hardworking american families deserve the right and the opportunity to continue their best wishes for their families for their children's education take care of their family needs through the hard earned money that they are and to be able to keep that rather than bring it for more spending that this new democrat majority has in mind mr speaker i'll be asking members to oppose the previous question so that i may have been the rule to make an order a very thoughtful amendment offered by mr brady of texas which was rejected by the rules committee last night the democrats on the committee voted down on party lines mr brady's amendment would amend the budget resolution to add reconciliation instructions to the committee on ways and means to extend the state and local sales tax deduction through two thousand and twelve currently the democrat budget resolution does not contemplate the extension of any meaningful tax relief provided by republicans in two thousand and one or two thousand and three in fact  democrat budget resolution is that reliant on tax increases to reach this balance as americans make their household budgets they should be able to rely on a consistent and fair tax code the democrat budget resolution will undermine this go imposing double taxation and will help eliminate the stability in the tax code that americans deserve so even if all the substitutes are defeated we will still be able to consider and debate this very important amendment thank you mr speaker in a document released march twenty eighth the center on budget and policy priorities stated quote are claiming that the budget plan adopted last week by the house budget committee which the full house is expected to vote on this week would constitute quote the largest tax increase in history and quote this claim is incorrect the house plan does not include a tax increase and quote that is what the center on budget and policy priorities stated mr speaker or last november the american people made it clear they are ready for a government that  responsible this nation spoke aloud in clear when to put a new party in power in congress asking for responsibility and a new direction in our fiscal priorities education health care the care of our children our seniors and our veterans these are issues that americans are concerned about our budget restores common sense to our national spending and say entity to our national priorities it re stores the president's attempts to cut children's health care programs and community block grants and it puts forth the single largest increase in veterans spending in our nation history and not a moment too soon if funds math and science programs for our kids and programs like head start and pell grants that provide access to education that so many of our children need and this budget concerns itself with the need to create jobs and build a bright economic future every store's funding for job training programs mr speaker is time for congress to be accountable to american taxpayers once again it is time for congress to be accountable to our children's future once again i urge a yes vote on the previous question and on the roll back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution the question is ordered on the previous question goes in favor say aye those opposed in the opinion the chair the eyes have it the speaker going on that on demand question are postpone a moment from florida writes mr speaker mr speaker by direction of the committee on rules i call up house resolution fifteen thirty eight the wounded warrior bill and ask for its immediate consideration the clerk will report the resolution house calendar number thirty five house resolution two seventy four resolved that in any time after the adoption of this resolution the speaker may pursuant to clause to be of rule eighteen declared the house resolving to the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the bill h r fifteen thirty eight two i'm entitled ten united states code to improve the management of medical care personnel actions and quality of life issues for members of the armed forces who are receiving me care in an outpatient status and for other purposes the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with all points of order against consideration of the bill are waive except those arising under clause nine or ten of rule twenty one general debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour and twenty minutes with one hour equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on armed services and twenty minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on veterans affairs after general debate the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five minute rule it shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five minute rule the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on armed services now printed in the bill the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read all points of order against the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute  waived except those arising under clause nine or ten of rule twenty one notwithstanding clause eleven of rule eighteen no amendment to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be in order except those printed in the report of  committee on rules accompanying this resolution each such a minute may be offered only in the order printed in the report may be offered only by a member designated in the report shall be considered as read shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and then off own it shall not be subject to amendment and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole all points of order against such amendments  waived except those arising under clogg nine or ten of rule twenty one at the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendment the committee shall rise and report the bill to the house with such amendments as may have been adopted and the member made mand a separate vote in the house on any amendment adopted in the committee of the whole to the bill or to the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments there to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or without instruction section two during consideration in the house of h r fifteen thirty eight percent to this resolution not withstanding the operation of the previous question the chair may postpone further consideration of the bill to a time does ignited by the speaker the gentlewoman from florida is recognized for one hour mr speaker for the purpose of debate only i yield the customary thirty minutes to the gentleman from washington mr hastings alltime yielded during consideration of the rules for debate only i yield myself such time as i may consume and ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks without objection mr speaker house resolution two seven four provides for consideration of h r fifteen thirty eight the wounded warrior assistance act of two thousand and seven under a structured rule world provides one hour and twenty minutes of general debate with one hour equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on armed services and twenty minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on veteran affairs the rule right waive all points of order against consideration of the bill except clauses nine and ten of rule twenty one the rule provides that the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on armed services shall be considered as an original bill for the purpose of amendment and shall be considered as read the rule waives all points of order against provisions in the bill as amended the rule makes an order only those further amendments printed in the rules committee report accompany in the resolution in this case eight democratic amendments and four republican amendments the amendments may be offered only in the order printed in the report may be offered only by member designated in the report shall be considered as read shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent and shaab not be subject to amendment and shall not be subject to a demand for a division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole all points of order against the amendment except for clause nine and ten of rule twenty one are waived the rule provides one motion to recommit with the re without instructions finally the rule permits the chair during consideration of eight h r fifteen thirty eight to postpone further consideration to a time designated by the speaker mr speaker the american people and this new congress demand through this rule and this legislation that the executive branch move beyond the rhetoric of support our troops to concrete actions that sustain our brave men and women in uniform and their families by providing the quality health care they deserve when they return from the battlefield supporting our troops does not mean that you simply salute as you send them off to war ask them to serve and sacrifice for our great country but it also means that they are supported when they come home their families are respected and our wounded warrior warriors receive sapir your health care for their physical injuries and mental scars now this might sound familiar from the washington post the conflict in iraq has hatched a town of desperation and dysfunction clinging to the pilings of walter reed the wounded are socked away for months and years in random buildings barracks in and around the military post mostly what the soldiers do together is wait for appointments evaluation signatures and lost paperwork it's like one military wife said if iraq don't kill you walter reed will while a part of walter reed has a full bar there is not one counselor or psychologist assigned there to assist soldiers and families in crisis an idea that was proposed by walter reed social workers but rejected by the military care command that runs the post to the other end of pennsylvania avenue i say what a shame that the american people had to have their eyes opened by two dedicated washington post reporters as to the treatment of our veterans the inco and the profound this respect these reporters spent hundreds of hours document documenting the intimate struggles of the wounded warriors who live at walter reed their stories triggered others from across the country like in my hometown paper of the tampa tribune the tampa tribune last week told the story of soldier john barnes who was injured by a mortar in iraq just last year barnes was fortunate he had a mother who was a dedicated nurse who stood by him during his days of all terrain barnes now twenty three was frequently left unintended his mother valerie wallace said even though he had a severe brain injury he fell repeatedly orderly failed to arrive on time to wheel wheel him to appointments medicines were given in the wrong doses paperwork was lost or never file i don't think anybody planned this war far out said wallace an energetic woman who looks younger than her forty five years if you're going to invade a country and you're expecting to be there for years you've got to know there's going to be thousands of casualties she said how are you going to take care of them where are you going to put them waltz is a registered nurse who has worked for more than a decade at tampa general hospital she wasn't intimidated by the staff at walter reed and she knew what questions to ask still the layers of bureaucracy were overwhelming they need to remain constantly vigilant the need to remain constantly vigilant was exhausting trust quickly evaporated nobody tells you anything wallace said nobody prepares you for anything you're very much on your own in a world you don't know or understand and you are so overcome with grief and worry that you can't think straight anyway will these and other stories involving military families across the country and all americans to stand up and demand better treatment for our troops and families who have sacrificed so much as speaker pelosi reminds us often the support provided to our troops by the bush administration has not matched their sacrifice and mr speaker we will rectify that today i wish i wish back in late two thousand and three when an army specialist from tampa named corey mcgee contacted my office as i was a county commissioner before i was elected to congress his family contacted me and said corey has been shot in a firefight in fallujah after an i e d blew up his tank he was shot in the neck and paralyzed and eventually flown to walter reed and in some god given circumstance i happened to be traveling to washington that weekend and was able to assemble a care package his family to deliver to cory but they couldn't find out what his situation was we called and called we enlisted the help of the united states senator at the time who was on the veterans committee we still couldn't get through the bureaucracy i had to travel with the senator staff to walter reed hospital tracked down the doctor to find out what brave cory mcgee's prognosis was he's a brave young guy and really really in his condition couldn't ask for help on his own and you know what after that he thanked us profusely for contacting  family filling them in and he said i'm sure we won't have to call you again they're going to take good care of me he returned to tampa and i was surprised a few weeks later to get a phone call from this brave army specialist because he was having trouble getting his physical therapy appointments at the veterans hospital so this bill though it's a step in the right direction today it comes a bit too late i wish this bill and i wish the attention had been focused earlier and the respect paid to the by the bush administration as i visited the baselines medical v a center in st petersburg just a few weeks ago you see there are a few brave soldiers there who are very symbolic of soldiers across the country that are suffering from post traumatic stress disorder one of the soldiers was in his early twenty's had served in iraq come back trying to get his life together but it was too much the mental scars were too much the post traumatic what he explained to me was what he needed when he came out of the service was a helping hand he needed someone proactively to say are you all right son rather than give him a checklist to check off to make sure he was ok tough guys they're not going to own up oftentimes to the fact that they can't sleep at night and they want to drink their sorrows and memories away fortunately and i think the american people can be very hear today to know that this is a bipartisan effort under the leadership of our speaker nancy pelosi i am very fortunate to serve on the armed services committee under the leadership of chairman ike skelton and i salute him and the ranking member for moving this legislation quickly we salute the veterans affairs committee and chairman bob filner but mostly the leadership of the american people who have cried out for change through this rule and this bill we going to improve the health care mental health for our wounded warriors we're going to tackle the bureaucracy on their behalf we're going to establish a toll free hotline so that families and soldiers and anyone who cares about them can report deficiencies in our system we're going to require expedited action we're going to thanks to the leadership of subcommittee chair vic snyder now numbers of congress that have desired information about rich soldiers returning to their districts are going to be notified members of congress oftentimes can be the best advocates for these returning soldiers and now it will be a requirement in the law we're going to provide medical advocates to these soldiers we're going to improve support services to families and rather than mismanaged resources we're going to turn the white house's privatization initiative around and require accountability coming from tampa the home of the haley v a center and one of the four polly trauma centers in the country especially heartened by the provisions in this bill that improve veterans health care by providing more physician residents in those poly trauma center a b c news anchor bob woodruff brought this to life in his hour long expos a few weeks ago he visited the haley poly trauma center in tampa where the most critically injured soldiers are sent for their health care the brain injuries the spinal cord injuries what dr robert scott the medical director at that facility told me a few weeks ago is even though the poly trauma center is directly across the street from the your university of south florida college of medicine they can't get the physician residents in training the feds are not providing enough we need these doctors in training to learn and train about these critical war injuries and the physical therapy that our soldiers need so mr speaker i urge this new congress to chart a new lady from florida for dealing me the customary thirty minutes mr speaker i yield myself as much time as i may consume and ask unanimous consent to revise extend my remarks without objection this is speaker our men and women in uniform routinely risked their lives to protect  our along with their families they make many sacrifices and service to america there is no question that they deserve the very best care that our nation can provide the situation at walter reed army medical center was unacceptable to all i'm encouraged that immediate steps have been taken to address the problems there but it's just as important to take action to prevent similar problems from happening at any of our military health facilities under republican leadership mr speaker recent congresses have increased spending increase spending per veteran expanded the concurrent receipt written budget nearly double funding for veterans health care and enhanced benefits for those from the war on terror now congress is taking a another step forward and a proper step forward in improving services for both our active military and our veterans mr speaker the underlying bill before us today makes common sense improvements to ensure that our military men and women have access to the care that they have earned and to help maintain excellence throughout our military health system for example this legislation creates a new toll free hotline for reporting deficiencies at military health care facilities calls for a study to identify infrastructure needs and authorizes funding to support wounded warriors and their families it assigns a medical case manager and a patient advocate to each service member receive an outpatient care and make sure that these professionals are property train the process currently used to determine if a soldier can return to active duty is improved so that wounded service members are afforded an opportunity to have input into this is you know whether they should retire from the service provisions are included to provide those separating or retiring from service with  transition into the v a system and a number of doctors at v a hospitals facilities is increased as are speakers impossible to talk about military and v a health care systems without mentioning the unique challenges face by veterans in rural areas by districts in central washington has one of the highest concentration of rural veterans in the northwest although i am working with the v a to get a new outpatient clinic up and running the northern part of my district access to health care in mainz an issue of concern for me and my constituents who are all too often are forced to drive hours and sometimes wait months to even get the most base take care so mr speaker  particularly disappointed then the minute offered by mr pearce of new mexico was rejected last night in the rules committee and will not be allowed to be considered on the floor today we are missing an opportunity to make a good bill even better by improving care for our red rural veterans the pierce amendment is based on a bill that i have co sponsored that were unable to v a to partner with existing hospitals and local communities on a case by case basis so that veterans in many rural areas can be cared for closer to home this to me mr speaker is a commonsense approach to get top notch care to veterans without delay i'm at loss to understand why anyone would oppose this improvement for caring for veterans similarly mr moran of kansas has had an amendment that i also support and unfortunately it too was rejected by democrats on the rules committee our support for improving veterans health care should not be a partisan issue i'm pleased that both democrats and republicans on the armed services committee have made the underlying bill the wounded warriors assistant act a priority and that committee approved it  speaker i support the bill and i reserve the balance of my time the gentleman reserves a balance of his time the gentleman from florida mr speaker i am proud to yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from the rules committee mr kerry of new york the gentleman from new york is recognized for two minutes thank you i think my colleague from the rules committee for yielding mr speaker i rice today in strong support of the rule in the underlying bill the wounded warrior assistance act improvements in medical technology over the years allow for more servicemen and women to survive the injuries sustained in battle during world war two for every soldier that was killed two were wounded now this ratio is up to six hundred to one these incredible medical developments allow many more men and women to return home to their families but their injuries tend to be much more serious and in many cases require additional care for the rest of their lives last month  had an opportunity to visit with wounded soldiers recovering at walter reed medical center i met several young men moon did in iraq one a constituent of mine from upstate new york as i stood next to the mother of one of the soldiers i saw a look of sadness on her face and at that point it struck me when if one of my two teenage children were lying in that bed i know that i would want the absolute best treatment and care for my children and our brave troops deserve nothing less sadly the administration's mismanagement of the war in iraq has extended to the home front as well the selfless men and women who volunteered to defend their country have been neglected and were not only sent into battle without adequate resources they also returned home to inadequate resources and when they ask for help no one answered we make a promise to our soldiers to provide for them when they return home from battle and it is absolutely unacceptable that this promise has been broken the wounded warrior assistance act will ensure that more than twenty five thousand service members who have sustained injuries in iraq and afghanistan receive the world class treatment and care and services they have so bravely earned and deserve this bill creates an efficient system for transition of records from department of defen and to the general gentleman is recognized for an additional minute i think the late defense department of veterans administration that establishes a support system of counselors advocates in case managers to ensure timely comprehensive care and  a number to call to report problems in facilities so that one of soldier asks for help someone answers mr speaker our men and women in uniform deserve the absolute best care that this nation has to offer my colleagues to renew our promise to indeed blessed that we have produced the incredible men and women who defend our freedom through their service and through their sacrifice in our military and every one of those who serve do so voluntarily and out of a deep love of america and a commitment to the freedom that our nation bestows they deserve every last measure of support to ensure that when they are wounded they receive the best possible care and let me say this the military medical corps has in large measure provided absolutely incredible care to those wounded in battle the advancements in battlefield medicine and the care of our wounded warriors after they are removed from the battlefield has allowed countless of our soldiers to recover fully who in past conflicts may not have survived in fact the statistics that are coming out of theater are really a remarkable tribute to the doctor and to the nurses who are engaged there and those who provide care to our soldiers deserve our thanks and our praise and our gratitude however the recent discoveries that walter reed army medical hospital disturbing and totally unacceptable and we cannot allow any more building eighteen incidents to occur and we must do everything that we possibly can to ensure that it does not and this legislation that we're going to be debating shortly is a huge step in the right direction it will begin to streamline the bureaucracy of the military medical system and lighten the case load of case managers by providing more assistance it will provide a hotline for those receiving substandard care to report the problem so that those situations can be dealt with quickly and that the patients receive the care that they deserve when they need it and it will provide for a smooth transition from the department of defense health system to that he part of veterans affairs cutting more red tape so that the focus can be on the patient and not on the on the paperwork we cannot allow those who have fought our foreign enemies in the defense of freedom to come home and fight the federal bureaucracy to get the health care that they need as a member of the house armed services committee i am very proud to support this important piece of legislation that our committee produced in a bipartisan way and i certainly want to thank chairman skelton and ranking member hunt hunter who are both patriots and veterans who have served the cause of freedom for their dedication to the care of our troops and for their work in bringing this legislation forward to the floor today mr speaker i strongly support passage of the underlying bill the wounded warrior assistance act our brave men and women wonted in defense of liberty democracy and freedom deserve no less and  speaker and i think the gentlewoman for yielding time for her leadership on this role and in the armed services committee i rise in support of the role and strong support of h r fifteen thirty eight the wounded warrior assistance it's an outrage that our brave men and women who have served our nation's so honorably have returned home as recent press accounts have revealed face and face problems getting the care they so rightly deserve as i've said before our troops must have and we must provide that which they need for any mission upon which they are sent and they must have and we must provide that which they need they return home my home state of ohio has six thousand three hundred forty seven brave soldiers currently serving in afghanistan and iraq and if they are injured in any way they must have the care they need when they return home and the roughly sixty thousand veterans in my congressional district and over one million veterans in ohio and all of our veterans across this nation deserve better support and assistance than many of them have received the legislation before us arose out of a lack of oversight and transparency that should have been in place but was neglected by the administration and past congresses this bipartisan bill ensures that our wounded soldiers and their families can feel secure in the knowledge that they will now be properly cared for and treated with the respect and dignity that they have earned and most certainly deserve ensure that all of our veterans get the care and assistance they need and improves the overall veterans health care system to make it easier for them to access the news lastly this bill puts into place strong oversight and inspection requirements to ensure that the events of walter reed and other facilities around this nation never ever happen again let's pass this role and pass this very important  yield back the balance of my time the gentleman yield back the gentleman from washington i have no more requests for time so i'll reserve i time the gentleman reserves the gentlewoman from florida mr speaker i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from arizona mr mitchell the gentleman from arizona is recognized for two minutes thank you mr speaker just weeks ago an outraged nation learned about the terrible conditions many of our wounded warriors had t as they recovered from the battlefield injuries at walter reed medical center we've all heard the sad stories of all the walls and rat droppings of building eighteen even worse we've learned that these dilapidated conditions extended beyond walter reed to other military facilities and even veterans facilities where troops turn veterans face a long complicated and confusing process to get the benefits and care they've earned conditions like these and miles of your credit red tape rob our troops and veterans of what they deserve the most dignity respect and honor it's absolutely unacceptable and i'm proud that this congress is taking action just last week house approved more than twenty million dollars to clean up the mess that walter reed and we approved more than five hundred fifty million to get rid of the backlog of maintenance requests at veterans bacillus and that's a good start last month i introduced the dignity for wounded warriors act for two thousand and seven which was the first legislation introduced in this house to prevent another episode like that of walter reed from ever happening again and i commend the house armed services committee for putting forward this legislation which also establishes guidelines for how returning soldiers should be treated and measures of accountability all of our troops and all of our veterans are entitled to quality health care and should be treated with respect and dignity they deserve these are great first steps but we still have a long way to go to ensure our troops and veterans are treated properly they have my commitment that we will continue to take care just as they are taking care of us and i yield back the balance of my time the gentleman's time has expired the gentleman from florida i'm the last speaker for this side at this time will close on the rule there's a gentleman wish to reserve a time i'll reserve my time and allow the gentleman from washington to make his closing statement mr speaker i inquired my friend from something that's needed now that we are engaged in this war on terror and bills like this in my view deserve an open rules so that you can have give the opportunity for members on both sides of the aisle to try to improve this good pro better and i cited two examples where the rules committee did not make an order to bills that dealt specifically with our veterans and rural areas so while i support the underlying bill mr speaker i am opposed to the rule because i think the rules should have allowed more of an order or for that matter have made the made this an open rule and i think that ought to be the standard when we have strong bipartisan support for for legislation so with that mr speaker i yield back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the gentleman from florida is recognized thank you mr speaker mr speaker four years after the start of the war in iraq and less than one hundred days since the swearing in of this new congress this congress will act today and i urge my colleagues to support this rule and this legislation so we can pass the wounded warrior assistance act of two thousand and seven let's send a message let's stand up for our brave troops in the field not just when they're serving on the battlefield but they return home let's give the families the respect they deserve and make sure that we're providing superior health care whether it's a physical injury or mental scar and with that mr speaker the yes vote on the previous question and on the rules i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution without objection the previous question is order pursuant to cause of rule twenty the chair will now put each question on which further proceedings were postponed in the following order ordering the previous question on house resolution two seventy five adopting house resolution two seventy five in order the unfinished business business of the vote on ordering the previous question on house resolution two seventy five which the were ordered the clerk will report the title of the resolution house resolution two seventy five resolution providing for consideration of the concurrent resolution house concurrent resolution ninety nine revising the congressional budget for the united states government for fiscal year two thousand and seven establishing the congressional budget for the united states government for fiscal year two thousand and eight and setting forth appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years two thousand and nine through two thousand and twelve the question is question is on ordering the previous question those in favor will vote  opposed no members will record their votes by electronic device this is a fifteen minute