macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2000-03-23
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. there has been a lot of debate today. Our budget clearly protects 100 percent of the Social Security surplus. Our budget strengthens Medicare and prescription drugs. I am going to save retiring the debt to last be cause I think that is an important issue here. Our budget promotes tax fairness. our budget restores Americas defense where it should be. and our budget strengthens and supports education. The reason we are here today with our debt is because the Democrats controlled this Congress from 1962 to 1994. and every dollar they took in. they spent $1.20. Since Republicans took over Congress. since 1994. for every new dollar we took in. we only spent 50 cents. But that is not the main issue today. I rise to draw attention as to why we should not pass this amendment. and that is because this amendment puts the Federal budget on auto pilot again. We need to reform government. we need to get rid of the waste. Let me show my colleagues one agency we could attack to get rid of much of the waste. and that is HUD. HUD is losing taxpayer dollars in huge amounts by keeping large inventories of foreclosed FHA houses. Just let me list a few of the statistics that we have. The Federal Housing Administration. FHA mortgage insurance paid out almost 77.000 claims. or $6 billion. in 1998. There is no reform for that. That cost is passed on to consumers in higher premiums. In 1997. singlefamily homes stayed in Federal inventory on an average of 5.4 months. in 1998 it was 6.6 months. and in 1996. they had 25.000 singlefamily homes in inventory. and in 1998 it increased to 40.000. and in 1999. it was 50.000. The HUD singlefamily inventory was valued at $1.9 billion in 1996. and it increased in value to $3.3 billion in 1998. Fifteen percent of HUD inventory properties are held longer than 12 months. The industry average out there has about 3 months in inventory for 12 months. In 1996. the average loss for
Date: 2000-03-28
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. my colleagues have heard of eliminating the Social Security earnings penalty. Well. we are finally doing it today. It has been a long fight for our seniors. but today we are going to vote to end. the Social Security earnings penalty. The gentleman from Texas (Chairman ARCHER) has been working on that issue since 1973. and I have been working on it since I got in the Congress in Our seniors deserve the right to work without being penalized by the Federal Government. Senior Americans are diligent. experienced. productive. and they want to work without the fear of losing their Social Security benefits. This country was built by Americans of all ages who labored to realize their dreams. We have always rewarded work in America. and it is high time we rewarded. not penalized. our seniors for their hard work.
Date: 2000-03-28
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 910. the "San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Initiative." The San Gabriel Basin supplies drinking water for almost one and a half million people in Southern California. It is a valuable natural asset whose management is vital for all who depend on it. H.R. 910 encourages the input of local industry and businesses. community and environmental leaders and government officials from the local. state and federal levels. Instead of costly litigation to punish or shield from liability. H.R. 910 provides incentives for these groups to participate in clean up and management efforts. for ground water and water sources affecting the San Gabriel Water Basin. One of the greatest obstacles to ground water clean up is the economic cost incurred by private industry and the controlling government authorities. This bill addresses this problem by authorizing funding for technology research that will allow for more costeffective clean up. Beyond this effort. it also provides for technology development that will help maintain cleaner groundwater systems. As our population continues to grow. it is important that we protect our groundwater resources against pollution. H.R. 910 provides $25 million dollars in research funding to study ways to prevent future groundwater contamination in areas. like the San Gabriel Basin. which supply drinking water. Through this research private industry and government agencies will have better resources to devise water management plans for future development. I believe that this bill provides us with a model for future clean up efforts around the country. It maintains the groups already involved in the clean up while empowering those who have vested interests in this clean up effort. I would like to thank the Chairman of the Rules Committee for his efforts in constructing this legislation. and urge Members of this House to support H.R. 910.
Date: 2000-03-28
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. I thank all onboth sides of the aisle for their support. Today. 800.000 seniors are one step closer to gaining their freedom to work. It sounds unbelievable. does it not? To think that. since 1935. when Social Security was first proposed. we have been penalizing our seniors for working. That is right. Since the inception of the Social Security system. our seniors have lost $1 in benefits for every $3 they earn over a set amount. Currently. as was stated. seniors may only earn $17.000 before losing their benefits. But today. thanks to the hard work and dedication of the gentleman from Texas (Chairman ARCHER). Speaker HASTERT. the gentleman from Florida
Date: 2000-04-04
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise to honor an American hero. Last week. I had the opportunityto present Robert Eugene Elledge of Pomona. California with the Order of the Purple Heart for Military Merit service. On May 10. 1951. as Mr. Elledge and his division began to crawl the hill they were ordered to take. his helmet was cracked into many pieces by enemy fire. After he was placed in an ambulance. he learned that his company had been annihilated. only four survived the Second Chinese Communist Forces Spring Offensive. also known as Battle of Soyang or. as Mr. Elledge recalls it. the May Massacre. Mr. Speaker.. 49 years ago. Mr. Elledge felt -that his experience warranted a purple heart. and he began to inquire about when he might receive this honorable award. It seems that the paperwork requesting the medal was lost. Last Friday. 49 years after surviving the May Massacre. tears came to Mr. Elledges eyes when he received the medal that he waited for so patiently. The Korean War is often referred to as our "forgotten war." While his paperwork may have been forgotten. the sacrifices that Mr. Elledge made for this country in Korea will always be remembered.
Date: 2000-04-05
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. we have a grave problem in our country today: illegal pornography and obscenity. It is rampant in our society. It is readily available to all our children on the Internet. and the health and safety of our children are at risk. Under the Reagan and Bush administrations. the Department of Justice successfully and aggressively prosecuted illegal pornographers. They rarely lost any of the hundreds of cases brought to court. In one 2year span. they successfully prosecuted over 200 obscenity cases. Since President Clinton took office. prosecution of illegal pornographers and obscenity has all but ceased. Prosecutions are down 75 percent. In 1997. there were only 6 prosecutions of illegal pornographers by all 93 U.S. attorneys. In March 1998. the Adult Video News Magazine. the trade magazine for the porn industry. announced it is a great time to be an adult retailer. This lack of prosecution has sent a clear message to the makers of illegal .pornography and illegal obscenity that it is okay to make and distribute such material. Under the Clinton administration they will not even be prosecuted for their crimes. It is time for the Clinton administration to get to work and enforce existing antiobscenity laws.
Date: 2000-04-06
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Madam Chairman. I ask unanimous consent that the modification to the amendment be considered as read and printed in the RECORD.
Date: 2000-04-06
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Madam Chairman. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Chairman. I would like to respond to that. This does not reverse the direction of the program. The program always did this for years until about May of 1999 when HUD changed the program. What we are saying here is the program worked before. We were working with communities that were being funded. They were eliminating drug and crime problems. We changed that situation in May of last year. It is wrong. Now we are punishing those programs that are successful. We are saying let us change the program back to cover them for a 5year period once they have it under control to eliminate this problem. Madam Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2000-04-11
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of this lifeaffirming resolution. When mothers abandon their own children. we have a problem in our society with how we value life. In California. and in the Los Angeles area specifically. the reports of abandoned babies have increased dramatically. This resolution will help us understand the full scope of the problem. In addition to gathering information on how prevalent this problem is. those of us in Washington need to take some concrete steps to make sure that the laws value life. We should support protection for mothers who take newborns to hospitals or- some other safe haven rather than dumping them in a trash bin or leaving them on a doorstep. We should support the legislation of the gentleman from Virginia and the gentleman from South Carolina
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time. and I appreciate the gentlemans help in getting this through the committee. I appreciate the help from the Democrat side as well. I want to ask my colleagues to support this legislation which I introduced. It is to establish a -memorial honoring our Nations disabled veterans. The memorial expresses our thanks and. at the same time. honors the nearly 2.3 million disabled American veterans in our country today. This memorial would pay tribute to the men and women who have fought in every major conflict this Nation has entered since the great Civil War. including 471.000 wounded in the Civil War. 234.000 wounded in World War I. 670.000 wounded in World War H1. 100.000 wounded in Korea. 300.000 wounded in Vietnam. and nearly 500 wounded in the Persian Gulf War. Despite those staggering numbers. they do not even begin to represent those who returned with no visible physical wounds but who suffered more through emotional agonies wrought by war. There are monuments. memorials dedicated to the wars our Nation has fought and to those who lost their lives in the effort to preserve the freedom that we all enjoy. But we have not properly acknowledged the sacrifices of those who went. and fought those same battles to preserve the same freedoms and who paid a severe price. We have yet to honor those who returned from battle with the scars and wounds which serve as daily reminders of how just costly a war can be and how precious the privileges that we enjoy in this Nation are. This memorial would be the only one dedicated to disabled American veterans. many of whom are still living. thereby giving the American people an opportunity to honor and express their gratitude to those who have sacrificed so much for each of us. It has been 25 years since the conclusion of the Vietnam War. which we have seen on TV in the past week. and 50 years since the Korean War. Those are two wars in which I fought. And I fear the passage of time is going to allow our wounded veterans to fade from the Nations memory and conscience. This memorial will ensure that our Nation will not forget the dedication and devotion to duty. honor. and country demonstrated by all disabled American veterans. It is time to honor their commitment to this Nation and to our freedom which we so richly enjoy. God bless everyone. I hope my colleagues can see clear to passing this bill. . SE H2363
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate joint resolution (S.J. Res. 40) providing for the appointment of Alan G. Spoon as a citizen regent of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. S.J. Res. 40 provides for the appointment of Alan Gary Spoon to serve on the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. This 17member board. which governs the Smithsonian Institution. is comprised of the Chief Justice and Vice President of the United States. three Members each from the House and Senate. and nine citizens who are nominated by the Board and approved jointly in a resolution of Congress. Alan Spoon has served as chief operating officer and director of The Washington Post Company since May of 1991 and was elected president of that organization in September of 1993. Prior to that experience. Mr. Spoon also served as president of Newsweek Magazine. The Washington Post Companys involvement in areas of education and electronic information services. as well as producing technology publications. can prove to be a useful background in his service to the Smithsonian. Before joining The Washington Post. he was a partner with an international consulting firm specializing in corporate strategy. Mr. Spoon also brings previous experience with the Smithsonian as a member of the National Museum of Natural Historys board of directors. I believe the Smithsonian can benefit from Alan Spoons financial. marketing. and management background. I. urge my colleagues to support S.J. Res.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on S.J. Res. 40.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate joint resolution (S.J. Res. 42) providing for the reappointment of Manuel L. Ibanez as a citizen regent of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. Dr. Manuel Luis Ibanez has been on the Board of Regents. I can vouch for his ability. He is being asked for reappointment to an additional 6year term with the Smithsonian Institution. He served as president of Texas A&M University in Kingsville and is presently Professor of Microbiology. As a current citizen regent of the Smithsonian. he brings a unique knowledge of science because of his specialization in bacterial physiology. He possesses a broad background in academic and public service and combines that with his institutional experience in the areas of grants. awards. and funding. Dr. Ibanez has been a successful fundraiser while serving as president of Texas A&M University and lends that experience to an institution that relies on constantly increasing its private fundraising base. He has also expressed support for expanding the Smithsonians traveling exhibitions to reach parts of our country that do not normally have access to such exhibits. Dr. Ibanez has served successfully on the Smithsonians Board of Regents for the past 6 years. I urge my colleagues to support S.J. Res. 42. which reappoints Dr. Ibanez for another 6year term. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman from Maryland for his comments and I tell him that I appreciate those comments. Because Dr. Ibanez. of course. does live down near the valley in Texas and it is hard to get here. and sometimes those regents come from far away and we are proud to have representation from all over this Nation. It is a great institution. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2000-05-02
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on S.J. Res. 42.
Date: 2000-05-03
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise to ask my colleagues to fulfill Congress promise to fund special education at the 40 percent level that was promised in 1975. For the past 25 years. Congress has consistently ignored its responsibility to special education students. The result has impacted all students in public schools throughout our Nation. In Orange County. California. the special education funding shortfall now exceeds $70 million annually. Each year. local school boards face the inevitable question: What programs will be cut to meet our responsibility to educate students with special needs? The paradox is unfair. We have required these school districts to provide high quality services to a population with significant needs with only a fraction of the funds we promised. Mr. Speaker. on behalf of the school districts which have struggled to balance the needs of all their students. I implore my colleagues to support H.R. 4055. This bill sets out a plan that will allow Congress to meet the 40 percent funding promise it made to all by 2010. If we fail to fulfill this commitment. we will continue to fail not only children with special needs. but all students in public schools.
Date: 2000-05-03
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. it is a rare occasion when we agree with the Department of Labor on legislation. but today we do. This bill will ensure that all employees. including rank and file workers. are allowed to participate in employeeprovided stock option programs. With the advent of new technology and Internet companies that offer stock options to lure the best and the brightest. we must make sure that outdated laws do not stifle our growth and innovation. It is unfair to allow only top executives to participate in these stock options. excluding those who provide the labor for the same company. but on an hourly basis. I believe rank and file employees deserve the chance to make their fortune. secure their retirement. and increase opportunities for savings. The time is long overdue to help millions of workers and employees achieve the American dream.
Date: 2000-05-09
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise today because of my deep concern for Americas national security. A recent Associated Press which ran on May 5 reported that the U.S. Air Force readiness to fight is now at a 15year low. representing a 28 percent decline since the Cold War. Roughly 115 of it 329 combat units were not fully capable of performing their mission. In the article. a senior military official blamed the budgets that did not allow enough for spare parts and did not offer service members salaries competitive in todays booming economy. That is why I find it ironic that I also came across an article in the May issue of National Defense magazine which quoted Vice President AL GORE as saying the Pentagons budget is currently in the "right zone" to meet todays national security needs. Mr. Speaker. current White House advisers. as well as the Vice President. have publicly stated while ample financial resources to increase defense are available. they are not needed. It is this lackadaisical attitude that has contributed to the monumental problems that we now face. As a Member of Congress. I am becoming more and more concerned about our national leaders attitude and how they impact our ability to. as our Constitution states. "provide for the common defense" of this country. This trend must be reversed. We must have strong leadership and redefine our national security policy. Resources must be provided to replace our aging ships. helicopters. tanks. artillery and other equipment. Most importantly. we must begin to treat our servicemen and women and their families with the respect they deserve.
Date: 2000-05-09
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I rise on behalf of the families of Californias 41st district which continue to grieve over the loss of a loved one who died as a result of serving our Nation in Vietnam. While the Vietnam Memorial is a commanding monument which demands its observers attention in a compelling and somber way. it does not recognize the ultimate sacrifice made by many of our soldiers. Although numerous men and women returned home. for some. the battle did not end. Many lives were destroyed by cancer as a result of exposure to Agent Orange. For others. the battles raged on nightly in the form of terrible. extremely stressful dreams that were inescapable. These service men and women should be remembered alongside their colleagues on the mall. With Memorial Day quickly approaching. I urge you to support this measure. While it is simple in naturejust a plaqueit speaks volumes about our respect for these soldiers.
Date: 2000-05-10
Speaker: GARY MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I rise in support of H.R. 3709. which will extend the moratorium on taxing the Internet. However. I must point out the irony of passing this measure while continuing the Federal excise tax on telephone service. H.R. 3709 tells the States that they cannot tax access to the Internet. a measure which I thoroughly support. But in order to access the Internet. one must have a phone line. For the past 101 years since the Spanish American War. the Federal Government has levied an excise tax on this item. As we debate limiting States ability to tax the Internet. we should also limit the Federal Governments ability. I feel that this Congress must take responsibility for the tax it has imposed on the phone services which impact the Internet. My colleague just talked about the problem called the digital divide. the disparity between those who can afford high technology innovation such as home Internet service and those who cannot. By eliminating this unjust Federal excise tax on the telephone. Congress takes a step forward in decreasing this gap. Mr. Chairman. the Spanish American War is truly over. Should We not repeal the tax instituted to pay for it and make Internet access cheaper for everyone? I urge my colleagues to support the Internet Nondiscrimination Act and to take the next step by repealing the phone tax.