macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I think the real message should be that the President should not negotiate against the civil rights of Americans. Sometimes its important for those of us who have had life experiences to reflect on them. I remember as a younger girl riding in a segregated railcar. isolated from others because of the color of my skin. Civil rights have expanded. but there are many who stood against themthe 1957 bill. the 1964 and 1965 bills. Americans will find out that health care is a civil right and that this is one of the most historic and lifechanging bills ever passedthe Affordable Care Act. Rather than stand in the way to defund ObamaCare. I want to stand with the young cancer victim who will now be able to get insurance. I want to stand with the young child who had leukemia and who was denied insurance and died. I want to stand with small businesses that will now be able to provide health insurance for their workers. I want to stand with understanding that. in fact. this bill is going to work. Thats the fear on the other side. They are willing to defund the government because they dont want America to know that one of their civil rightsgood health careis coming and going to work. I ask everybody to go to HealthCare.gov because your civil rights are coming on October 1.
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

Mr. Chairman. I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Page 14. after line 14. insert the following new subsection:
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

Mr. Chairman. I rise today to offer an amendment that would protect Native American sacred and cultural sites associated with the land conveyance outlined in the bill. This bill transfers land out of the public domain and into the hands of a private mining company with no guarantee of protecting sacred sites. Currently. the cultural and sacred sites of Apache Leap and Oak Flat are located on public land and not on an Indian reservation. Although these sites are not on an Indian reservation. theyre still sacred to the San Carlos Apache. Yavapai Indian Tribe. and other tribes in Arizona. just as a Catholic church. where I practice my faith. is considered a holy place even though its not located in Vatican City. Because these sacred and cultural sites are currently on public land. they are protected under certain Federal laws. This bill would transfer the lands that contain these sacred sites to a private company for private ownership. effectively taking away any protections under Federal law. Additionally. it is important to protect the subsurface area of these sacred sites. which this bill does not do. Native American sacred sites. just as a church or temple. have both surface and subsurface religious quantities. Would we allow subsurface mining below the National Cathedral? I would say not. I have heard from my colleagues the mining would take place below the ground and therefore leave the sacred sites undisturbed. but this is a rather absurd argument and. quite honestly. not factual. Mr. Chairman. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

Mr. Chairman. I yield 1 minute to the very distinguished gentlewoman from Minnesota . one of the cochairs of the Native American Caucus.
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

Mr. Chairman. I yield myself the balance of my time. I dont know where to begin with the comments suggested by one of my colleagues whom I respect. Mr. GOSAR. I dont know how to be more clear. These sacred sites are on public land. I think it would be a new low for this Congress to go and tell tribes across America that sacred sites that are not located on a reservation are no longer sacred. Im surprised. Im appalled. I think tribes across the country would be. as well. With regard to sections 4(i) and 4(j). I ask the author of the legislation to come back and read it with me. The way that I read this. theres only one section of law that is referred to that cant be enforced because this is on private lands. not on public lands. and the area thats identified in the law is the National Environmental Policy Act. What happens when this land is given from a public perspective back to a private perspective is we lose the opportunity and ability to enforce the National Historic Preservation Act. the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. and the administrations December 2012 memorandum of understanding to protect sacred sites. Mr. Chairman. I submit into the RECORD all the organizations across America. including all the tribes from Arizona. that are opposed to this underlying legislation. Mr. Chairman. I have here not a picture of Apache Leap. but a picture of what happens with blockade mining. So even in the poor attempt that talks about trying to address Apache Leap. the author of the legislation failed to include Oak Flat. which is a sacred site that would be covered here. This is what happens with blockade mining. Dont take my word for it. as I will submit into the RECORD a presentation by Resolution Copper Mining. In this. which I wish I would have blown up. Resolution Copper shows pictures of how this starts to cave in. It will eventually look like this. Mr. Chairman. this is a commonsense piece of legislation. In your words. this will improve the law. This will improve what were trying to do here. This doesnt give the Secretary blanket authority to do anything. Lets just protect sacred sites and work together. The Congress has always done this. Theres a reason why Democrats and Republicans have come together to create a Native American Caucus and to advocate for tribes across America. The Congress has always stood strong. Mr. Chairman. I ask my colleagues to please give due consideration and support this amendment. I hope to work with the majority and Chairman HASTINGS. whom I respect very much. to try to get this addressed. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

I thank the chairman. Mr. Chairman. I dont believe that anyone is suggesting that items are being waived. The fact of the matter is. when land is transferred from a public domain to a private domain. it goes away. And thats the problem here. And I am glad to hearand I know the profound respect that Chairman HASTINGS has for tribes across the country and the sacred sites. protections-
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: BEN RAY LUJAN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New Mexico

Mr. Chairman. I demand a recorded vote. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII. further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from New Mexico will be postponed.
Date: 2013-09-26
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

I was in my office. Congresswoman. and I could not help but both agree and hear you. I wanted to come just to applaud you for. first of all. restoring and educating this House on the issues of federalism. local control. and also of reintroducing them to Washington. D.C.. which gained local control and gained the right to elect its local officials. Alsomaybe most people dont knowit has an operational budget that is balanced and that. in actuality. could continue to run its services for its people. as the Congresswoman has indicated. but for the passthrough that is required here in the House of Representatives. I simply wanted to come and applaud you and say a government shutdown is for naught. It is not good for anyone. and it is shameful that it is tied to the defunding of ObamaCare when the millions of Washingtonians. who are here. who dutifully provide for this House and this Senate and all of those who come in and out of Washington. D.C.. the millions of tourists. the international guests. that we would dare tell them. without a vote. without a voice. in terms of the voting voice. to say not only are we shutting down the government that is going to hurt all of America. were going to shut you down and youre in local control with your own monies. ready to run. ready to help. ready to provide for the safety and security of the comings and goings of those who work in the Federal Government in the House of Representatives. So I could not miss the opportunity to again reinforce my commitment to the legitimacy of Washington. its right to a voting representative in both the House and the Senate. and. as well. the fact that you make a very potent argument. because in many of our jurisdictions. city government may still be operating. Of course. many people will be hurtSocial Security. the military. veterans. the soldiers families who dont get a paycheck. What the Congresswoman is saying. and I want to add to that. insult to injury coming from this shutdown is the fact that a whole city would not be able to operate the Nations Capital where people are now heading to by airplane for whatever visits they may havetourists. international guests. I just met with an international leader today. They will all be coming to a city that will literally be shut down because my Republican friends want to defund ObamaCare and dont have the respect to give you the waiver. the position that you have asked for to make sure that Washington. D.C.. runs. I thank you for alarming us. I hope that as we enter into our discussions tomorrow that we will raise this issue and that those of good common sense will come to their senses not only for the people of the District of Columbia in hearing your plea. but theyll come to their senses for the American people and keep this government running.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: DANNY K. DAVIS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Illinois

Mr. Speaker. I believe that Obama does. in fact. care. and that care is evidenced by the fact that we passed the most major piece of health legislation that we have done since the mid1960s. since Medicare and Medicaid. So its amazing to me that I continue to hear colleagues in both the House and the Senate who are attempting to deny the existence of this legislation. legislation that was passed by both Houses of Congress. signed into law by the President of the United States of America. upheld by the Supreme Court. which says that it is indeed constitutional. and still there are colleagues trying to deny the existence of this law. That is amazing. As a matter of fact. its real. Its passed. Its been affirmed. And its going to stay. My county government. Cook County government. has already. with a waiver. signed up more than 100.000 people. just waiting to get enrolled into its county care program100.000 people. none of whom will have to worry about preexisting conditions. 100.000 people in Cook County. none of whose children under 26 will have to worry about having health insurance coverage because they can have it on their parents policies. 100.000 people. none of whom will have to worry about running out of benefits. 100.000 people in Cook County. one county. who will have their own primary care physician. who will be able to see a doctor and go to the clinic on a regular basis. But thats nothing compared to the more than 30 million people in this country who. for the first time in their lives. will have health insurance coverage. I hear all of the discussions about the negative impact. Well. you ask a person in need of health care who has never been able to get it how much of a "negative impact" its going to have on them. I agree that the Senate has passed a continuing resolution which does not fund the government for the extended period of time that wed like to see and need to see. But I can tell you. I would rather have that than to have people worrying and wondering whether theyre going to be able to see a doctor when they need to see one or go to the hospital or take their child to a regular doctor rather than having to go to the emergency room. So I would urge my colleagues. lets be in agreement with the Senate. And lets move right now. todayand if not today. tomorrowto pass a continuing resolution that keeps our government funded.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. were here on a Saturday. and were probably in the Idontbelieveit crowd. Its not because were here on a Saturday. but because the peoples business must be done. I hope that the backdrop of the U.N. resolution that dealt with 15 countries that stood together to bind themselves against Syrias holding of chemical weapons may be an example for the coming together of this body. Something historic happened because people listened to each other. I hope that as we move towards some mode of peace. as we work to reconcile the terrible violence in Syria. the killing of Syrians. we first ensure that those chemical weapons do no harm to anyone in this world. I hope the Republicans can listen and understand that it is always the other persons interests that should be promoted and put first. That is to say. this Nation must fund itself and we must pay our bills. A good lesson. for once. from the United Nations. We all would do well to understand that we can work together.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts for yielding and for his leadership. We do live in a constitutional Republic. That constitutional Republic requires for this Nation not to be held hostage by selfcentered special interests. We come to the floor today to stand in opposition to the minority of the majority holding the vast numbers of Americans who want a rational approach. to continue the operation of this government. and to be able to make a difference. So I rise today and say that martial laweven the concept of itis one that finds itself with a very difficult premise. Whatever we want to throw down today. the American people have to take it. And so if someone rises and says there are Medicare cuts. we have to take it and believe that it happens. The Affordable Care Act did not do that. In fact. the Affordable Care Act rescued seniors from the abyss of the doughnut hole. When you threw them over the doughnut hole. when they were drowning in the doughnut hole because of Medicare part D. weve helped them cut their prescription costs. And so this misrepresentation about the Affordable Care Act and the urgency to defund it is a misnomer. its incorrect. and its just plain wrong. This proposed CR. or continuing resolution. that now wants to delay the individual mandate. Mr. Speaker. I dont think my colleagues remember the hours and days and weeks of hearings that we had in this place. Maybe they dont remember the little girl who was suffering from leukemia that went into an insurance company with her family in California and died because the insurance company would not cover her because she had a preexisting disease. I wonder what it feels like to see your child die in your arms because there is no insurance. I will not vote for anything that will delay the individual mandate while young women over the age of 26 who are susceptible to early cancer will not be able to find affordable. reasonable health insurance. Not on my watch. I will not vote for this rule. And I ask you not to vote for it. It is interesting that we can cut $40 billion out of food subsistence for 46 million Americans75 percent are children. 23 percent are disabled. 11 percent are elderly. and some of them are the families of soldiersbut we can vote today to give fat cats subsidies. You will divide us like that if you want to make sure that you take care of your district and not take care of America. Well. I came today to rise on the floor of the House to say that the Founding Fathers stuck together in the Thirteen Colonies when they declared their independence. Theres something about unity for the greater good. And I refuse to let this House fall on the spear for individual selfish perspectives- because I got mine. you get yours. America deserves better. We will vote in the best interest of America. It is to continue this government and provide for ObamaCare and make sure that theres health care for a better America.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. it is time for my Republican colleagues to do more than repeal. It is time for my Republican colleagues to pass a bill. Who can deny that the House is controlled by my Republican colleagues? They control every committee. they control every subcommittee. They are in control. Who can deny that they have the opportunity to pass the perfect bill to deal with health care in this country? Where is the bill that will deal with closing the doughnut hole for senior citizens? Where is the bill that will help those who have preexisting conditions to acquire insurance? Where is the bill that will deal with the cap that has been placed on insurance prior to ObamaCare? They are in charge. The logical question is: Why havent they passed a bill since the Affordable Care Act passed more than 3 years ago? It is time to do more than repeal. You have to have a bill. It is time for my Republican colleagues to do the logical thing. to do the judicious thing. to do the prudent thing: pass your bill. Then we can see how ObamaCare passed to what you have. which of course is the perfect bill. Its time to do more than repeal. It is time to pass a bill.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: GENE GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of the Drug Quality and Security Act. This important bill is the result of weeks of bipartisan and bicameral negotiations. I want to thank my colleagues. Representatives MORGAN GRIFFITH and DIANA DEGETTE. for joining me in our efforts over many months. I also want to thank Chairman UPTON. Ranking Member WAXMAN. Chairman PITTS. Ranking Member PALLONE. Chairman Emeritus DINGELL. and my good friend Congressman MATHESON for all their leadership through this process and their commitment to getting this final product to the floor. It was a group effort. which is how this body should function all the time. This bill is not perfect. We heard those concerns. and we have tried to address them. but the nature of compromise is not getting everything. The Energy and Commerce Committee investigated last years outbreak and found there were breakdowns in the regulations at the State and. most concerning. at the Federal level. Large operators were able to sell products interstate in an unregulated gray area. In the case of the NECC. their sterile facilities were far from sterile. They operated without fear of penalties for far too long. and people died because of that. Im proud to say that this bill fixes the problems that led to the fungal meningitis outbreak. and it requires the FDA to succeed where it failed in the past. Bad actors concerned more with profit than with public health ought not to be able to operate with impunity again. I hope that the FDA uses their enforcement discretion to maintain patient access to important drugs from nuclear pharmacies. certain repackaged drugs. and drugs for "office use." While I acknowledge there are problems. it is most important that we act to protect the public health. Our constituents. when they seek care. will now have the confidence that a sterile compounded product really is sterile. We must make sure another fungal meningitis outbreak is never allowed to occur again. This bill succeeds in that goal. and I am proud to support it.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

I want to thank the chairman and the ranking member for the great work on an issue that so many of us have noted and advocated for over the years. As a former member of this committee during the time of the Democratic majority. I still continue to have a great sense of the importance of the work. Having traveled to a number of countries and engaged with our diplomatic staff and the State Department. let me put on the record the crucial work that our diplomatic corpsour diplomat staff. the staff at the State Department. the Secretary of Statedoes and is engaged in for the safety and security of the American people. Their work is vital. They are partners with the defense. but more importantly. they are partners for reconciliation and coming together. It is evident by their great work of where we are in Syria. along with the President. and of course. most recently. some of the outreach that has gone on with Iran. But my main point for speaking today is. having physically visited a number of the diplomatic sites in highrisk and highthreat posts. I am ecstatic about this legislation that provides a matrix. along with working groups for security measures and funding. along with the review of a diplomatic security. with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy. which. when I went to oversee the Algerian election. they were very much involved. as they are and as they were in Egypt. and as they were in many other places where there are difficult circumstances. And then of course to be able to enhance security for the diplomatic staff and security. to protect the civilian. but also the military. Our marines are very able. as those who are there at posts. they provide enhanced security for those particular posts.
Date: 2013-09-28
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

One of the things that I am most excited aboutand I thank the author of the amendmentand that is the issue of best value for security. That is a crucial bipartisan agreement that makes common sense. that on the security of our men and women who leave these shores to be instruments of peace. diplomatic engagement. and be the face of the American people in very difficult postswhether its Iraq. Afghanistan. or whether it may be Egypt. whether it may be Pakistan. and other places beyondthat it is our duty to ensure that the posts that they are in have the highest level of security quality. both from technology and also from the physical bricks and mortar. So I rise today because I wanted to first acknowledge the valiant service of all of those who have served. I also want to make note of those who we have lost. who have served in the diplomatic corps in places far beyond our borders. and to thank them and thank those who serve in the State Department and who are serving as we speak. and the United States Marines. who across the world secure these very valiant public servants. I support the legislation.