Date: 2011-02-15
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Chair. sometimes this is a complex debate when we hear words like "CR" to a lot of our voters and others who are paying attention to the work that they have sent us here to do. And a lot of times they try to ensure that we use vernacular that. what does it mean? Were in the budget year of 2012 or budget year 2011 or were doing a CR. I think the plain and simple of it is were trying to ensure that what you are getting now if youre on a job. if youre a police officer. that we dont turn the lights out on you. And my concern is to let you know that we have been steadily improving. The private sector has been creating jobs under the Democratic policies under President Obamas guidance and. frankly. under this new budget that well debatethat is not what were debating todaythat speaks about competitiveness and speaks about infrastructure rebuild. putting Americans to work. So my gripe with the CR that my friends on the other side of the aisle have now put forward is that they originally came up with a $60- to $74 billionmaybe a thoughtful analysis of what we could cut. Remember. this is in the middle of you working and all of a sudden somebody comes and gives you a pink slip. But rather than stick with what might have been a thoughtful analysisand. again. I had not studied it. it had not been introducedall of a sudden they go by the "We have to be dominated by voices of which force us. without thought. to now make it a hundred billion dollars." Im as angry about the deficit and want a strong budget. which were not doing right now. and want to work with my good ranking member. chairman of the Defense Subcommittee in the last Congress. Mr. DICKS. on a thoughtful passage going forward. but I want to make sure we stay on a pathway of creating jobs. There is something to cutting spending. You have my commitment. We came out with a compromise 2 months ago. in December. Some of us agreed. some of us did not. But there were sizable tax cuts. I voted for tax cuts before. But let me tell you why what were doing today is enormously dangerous: 1.330 cops will be off the street. 2.400 fewer firefighters will be off the street. we will take teachers out of classrooms and lose 25.000 new construction jobs. There is a provision in the CR that wants to rescind stimulus dollarssounds like a bad thingbut those dollars are in the pipeline for construction projects where men and women of America are working and feeding their families. Does that make sense. dollars that they pay taxes back to this country? I dont understand a plan that takes from the working man and woman in this country. I dont understand a plan. for example. that takes $2.5 billion away from highspeed rail. which all over America there has been a sense of inspiration about moving us to more efficient transportation. But the number of jobs to be created cannot be counted. Thats an investment in this country. Or do you want to undermine the air traffic control system and begin to trouble Americas airways? I sit on the Homeland Security Committee. chair the Transportation Security Committee. I am very hesitant to make a willynilly cut to the FAA. And so what disturbs me is: Why could we jump or why did we jump or how do we jump in 48 hours from $60 million to $74 million of which they said they were cutting? This is a continuing resolution. which means it allows the government. in essence. to keep going on what we are ongoing with. It means people are out there working. doing the bidding of the American people. And. before you know it. because there were complaints and people talking about what they campaigned on. and all of a sudden its a $100 billion cut with no thought. Now. I respect people being elected by their constituents. but it is interesting when you read polling numbers from individuals who happen to come from that background of the tea party that want to cut everything. and you ask them about something in their jurisdiction. Say. for example. an Air Force base. The polling numbers show. Dont cut my Air Force base. but you can cut somebody elses. So heres my concern. Madam Chair. How do you cut Juvenile Justice and the COPS program? How do you cut the Justice Department for all of the voting rights enforcement? I want to stay on a path. This CR is not a pathway of creating jobs. its no jobs. and it stops America in her tracks. Lets stay on track and keep investing in jobs in America.