macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-10-23
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 327. the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act. Mr. Speaker. the measures in this bill are designed to reduce the alarming incidence of suicides among our vets. According to a recent study conducted by Portland State University. male U.S. military veterans are twice as likely to commit suicide as men who havent served in the armed forces. The report is a painful reminder of why we must adopt the measures outlined in this bill to assist our military personnel returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. The Portland State study followed 320.000 men over age 18 for 12 years collecting data on those who participated in the National Health Interview Survey. The researchers found that men who had served in the military at some time between 1917 and 1994 were twice as likely to die from suicide than men in the general population. In addition. veterans who committed suicide were more likely to be older. white. better educated. and married. But the report offered few clear indicators for the high suicide rates. That in part is the purpose of this legislationto locate the root cause of the high suicide rates and to reverse the situation. There are approximately 25 million veterans in the United States. and 5 million veterans who receive care within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Based on CDC data. VHA mental health- officials estimate 1000 suicides per year among veterans receiving care with VHA and as many as 5000 per year among all living veterans. Representative BOSWELLs bill is a bipartisan effort to get at the root of this troubling trend and to find solutions. This bill -requires the. Veterans Administration to.consider the special needs of veterans who suffer from post traumatic stress disorder and mandates the development and implementation of a comprehensive program to reduce the incidence of suicide among all veterans. The bill accomplishes this by reqWring that appropriate Veterans Administration staff are able to recognize risk factors for suicide and are aware of the proper protocols and best practices for responding to crisis situations involving veterans who may be at high risk. The legislation also requires the designation of a suicide prevention counselor at each department medical facility and authorizes the availability of 24hour mental health care. a hotline. staffed with trained mental health personnel. and expanded outreach and education services for veterans and their families. We must put an end to this tragedy affecting the many vulnerable men and women who have worn our countrys uniform and who Serve this country proudly today. I believe this legislation is an important step in that direction. and I am happy to support it.
Date: 2007-10-25
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize the skill. the dedication and the sacrifice of our Nations first responders. In particular. I would like to honor and thank all of the first responders who are on the front line perilously tatives right now fighting the fires in Southern California. We rely on our first responders to help us survive the most difficult and the most challenging experiences that we face. I am proud that when we passed H.R. 1 this year. Congress took critical steps to provide Federal support for our Nations first responders. These steps included increasing the amounts of funding available to States and localities for hazardous preparedness funding. what we are facing in California right now. and establishing a standalone communications interoperability grant program so that our first responders could speak to each other as they were on the front line in these emergencies. The Federal Government must continue to provide States and localities with all the resources that they need to effectively respond to these emergencies. Please keep all of our first responders and the residents who have been affected by the Southern California fires in your thoughts and prayers.
Date: 2007-10-25
Speaker: GENE GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. I thank my Chair ofthe Energy and Commerce Committee. The legislation before us today is not about politics. Its about providing childrens health care coverage to 10 million lowincome American children. This bill is paid for. Its paid for more than the $190 billion the Presidents asking for a supplemental to support the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is for the ten million children and parents who are hardworking Americans but cannot afford private health insurance. The bill is clear on undocumented children. No Federal funding will be spent on undocumented immigrants. The bill is clear on childless adults. For 1 year they get coverage. and these adults actually got a waiver. these States got a waiver to cover these adults. So theyre going to have 1 year. and then theyre off of it. The bill is clear on family income. Only the lowestincome children are covered with a prohibition on coverage of children above 300 percent. You cant go above 300 percent. Most are at 200 percent. but some are at 300. Madam Speaker. 4 months of spending in Iraq is enough to provide SCHIP to 10 million children for 5 years. More than 80 percent of the American people support it. and I urge my colleagues to support it. Weve prioritized it to the lowincome. Weve prioritized itlo citizens. Weve prioritized children. Its about priorities. not politics. and the Congress should be able to put aside politics and unite behind these priorities for our children.
Date: 2007-10-25
Speaker: DALE BOSWORTH (democrat)
Chamber: H

Chief. Department of Agriculture. Forest Service. Washington. DC. DEAR CHIEF BOSWORTH: I write once again regarding the issue of the availability. in case of emergency. of the Russian fleet of firefighting aircraft as addressed in your letter of August 25. 2005. Your letter represents an unacceptable and unwarranted change from what you stated in a meeting in my office on July 1. 2005. At the conclusion of that meeting it was my clear understanding that the United States Forest Sdrvice (USFS) would undertake specific steps to see that Russian airtankers would be available to use in an emergency. should enough American firefighting assets not be available to respond to an extraordinary challenge. In your most recent correspondence of August 25. you once again assert that Federal Aviation Administration certification is a prerequisite for any action to be taken by the- USFS to ensure Russian firefighting planes could be used if necessary. However. as you expressed to me in our meeting. this is an USFS internal rule. not required by any statute. Such a policy. I believe. and you agreed. can and should be put aside if it could endanger life and property in this extremely volatile fire season. If another significant fire explodes in addition to the wildfires now raging in Southern California. USFS assets may be stretched dangerously thin. I think that we can agree that bureaucratic procedures and regulatory impediments not required by law should not get in the way of these Russian planes being made available and used if life and property is otherwise in danger. If steps must be taken to ensure the interoperability of these Russian assets with our existing fleet in case of such an emergency. then why not take those steps? You seemed to agree with that logic at our July meeting. Your letter. however. represents a reversal of what I believed was agreed upon in our conversation. That is no small matter. After Hurricane Katrina. the American public will not stand for decisions. in the face of an impending calamity. made with more mind to political turf protection than helping people. Steps must be taken to ensure that all options are available in case we face massive wildfires in the West. If the worst case scenario occurs and all options that could have been available are not. there will be a severe accounting. In the meantime. I find the USFSs inaction to be deplorable. I look forward to your prompt response and. above all. action in response to this matter. Sincerely.
Date: 2007-10-29
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. today I rise in support of H. Res. 726. a bill responding to acts of rape and sexual violence in the Darfur conflict. Rape and sexual violence are often used as weapons of war. It is estimated that between 20.000 and 50.000 women and girls were raped during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s. between 250.000 and 500.000 were raped during the genocide in Rwanda. and today. there are reports of wide and systematic rape and sexual assault of women and girls in the Darfur region. The United States was the first government to refer to the killing in Darfur as genocide. but this has had little impact on ending the suffering. The suffering continues because. the Sudanese government resists the efforts of the international community at every step and the Chinese government refuses to use its unique influence to force the Sudanese govemnment to change its actions. In fact. China may even have prolonged the crisis by shielding Sudan against the collective efforts of the United Nations. The crisis is now in its 4th year with no end in sight and the suffering of men. women and children continues. That is why I am encouraging passage today of H. Res. 726. H. Res. 726 requires the U.S. State Department and USAID to develop a women and girls Darfur initiative for the purpose of providing victims and potential victims of rape in Darfur. eastern Chad and the Central African Republic with much needed comprehensive and quality medical supplies and health services. The bill also calls upon the Secretary General of the United Nations. the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. the African Union. the European Union. the Arab League and other nations to immediately take steps to ensure that a hybrid UNAfrican Union peacekeeping force is deployed that can properly protect women and girls from and respond to acts of rape and sexual violence. We cannot stand still in the face of systematic and widespread rape in the Darfur region. The U.S. Congress has a moral obligation to reach out and do all it can to put an end to this tragedy. I strongly support this important piece of legislation and encourage my colleagues to do the same.
Date: 2007-10-29
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Thank you. Madam Speaker. Tonight I rise to address the House and the American people regarding the U.S. Peru Free Trade Agreement and its effect on working families. But before I launch into my remarks. I want to be clear. I am committed to trade. I believe trade is an essential component to the development and strengthening of our economy. Done the right way. trade can increase our access to raw material for production and create American jobs. It can open foreign markets to our goods and services and bring new and unique products into the United States. Done the right way. trade can not only contribute to the economic prosperity of America and its working families. it can also strengthen the economic and political stability of our trading partners. It is because I believe in the many positive impacts that trade can bring when done the right way that I have been fighting for a new trade model.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. the childrens health insurance legislation passed by the House last month was a bipartisan bill that provided health care coverage to 10 million American children. Although it received overwhelming support from the American people. from 43 Governors. and a vetoproof majority in the Senate. the majority of House Republicans rejected it and said they had specific concerns. To address their concerns. House Democrats met with Republicans and introduced a revised SCHIP bill last week. We clarified three key points. One. there wasnt any possibility of higher income families being eligible. two. it further clarified that immigrants without documents would not have access to the program. and. three. it phased out over 1 year the coverage of childless adults. But. Madam Speaker. Republicans in this body just cant take yes for an answer. Even after addressing their concerns in this revised bill. many of our colleagues still insisted on standing with President Bush. instead of with working American families.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill to amend the Internet Tax Freedom Act to extend the moratorium on certain taxes related to the Internet and to electronic commerce.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. I yield 32 minutes to the gentlelady from California. a colleague of mine whos very knowledgeable on Internet tax issues.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. at this time. I .am pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentlelady from California . a colleague of mine on the subcommittee and the Committee on the Judiciary.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: ZOE LOFGREN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Madam Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 3678. In a welcome and refreshing instance of bipartisan. bicameral cooperation. the Senate took our bill and improved it. The longer moratorium means that service providers will have more certainty when deciding whether to make critical investments in basic infrastructure of the Internet. The 7year extension is longer than any that has ever been approved by any previous Congress. Consideration of this bill today shows that the Democrats in the 110th Congress truly understand the importance of the Internet to our economy. Equally important. the bill as amended makes absolutely clear that Internet access embraces ancillary services such as email. instant messaging and personal storage capacity. This change removes ambiguity with respect to these services. and thereby encourages robust competition among Internet service providers. And importantly. today is October 30. By passing the extension of the Internet tax moratorium with ample time for the President to sign the bill into law. we avoid the almost .certain disruption that would attend any further delay. Failure to act would be a mistake and a step away from the pledges we made in the Innovation Agenda. I continue to believe that a permanent ban on the taxation of Internet access is important to maintaining and improving our place in the information economy. I remain a proud cosponsor of my friend ANNA ESHOOs bill that would have made the moratorium permanent. I will continue to work with her and
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: LINDA T. SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Madam Speaker. H.R. 3678. as amended by the Senate. remains a strong bill that provides muchneeded clarity to the communications and Internet industries and strikes an appropriate balance in addressing the needs of States and local governments while helping keep Internet access affordable.I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting it.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: ZOE LOFGREN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. as Chair of the California Democratic delegation. I rise along with Speaker PELOSI. Chairman WAXMAN. and my Republican colleagues to honor the heroic services. actions. and sacrifices of our first responders. State and local officials. volunteers. and others who participated in responding to last weeks devastating outbreak of wildfires in Southern California. This was the worst outbreak of wildfires in California history. Over 500.000 acres burned. nearly 1 million residents evacuated. over 3.000 residential and comniercial properties destroyed or damaged. 116 reported injuries. seven reported fatalities. I have no doubt that the quick and valiant response of our firefighters. police officers. National Guard. and thousands of selfless volunteers saved lives and hundreds of millions of dollars. The State of California owes these brave men and women our gratitude. California and our Nation also owes a debt of gratitude to our neighbors. Canada and Mexico. for volunteering their own firefighters and equipment. I would also like to commend the cities. counties. and State for showing great leadership and preparedness in dealing with this disaster. Leadership at the local and State government levels allowed for effective coordination with Federal agencies in the allocation of resources and making sure our residents were out of harms way. Because of the change in weather pattern. coupled with the extraordinary efforts of firefighters. we are now beginning to contain most of these fires and are closing the evacuation shelters. However. many families are going back to literally ruins of their former homes. lives. and communities. I ask that all of my colleagues continue to stand with our - California neighbors as they begin to rebuild their lives. The fires may be dying down. but the emotional impact and financial hardship faced by these families are only beginning. With the leadership of Speaker PELOSI. Senators FEINSTEIN and BOXER. and Chairman DICKS. we hope to quickly move an emergency appropriations bill to help the rebuilding process for the families. cities. and counties affected by this devastating wildfire. This resolution today. cosponsored by every single member of our 53memberstrong bipartisan delegation is. I believe. the first legislative step forward for Congress to meet the needs of California as she recovers from this disaster.
Date: 2007-10-30
Speaker: ELIOT ENGEL (democrat)
Chamber: H

Congressman from New York. before hewas a Member of Congress. he was on that stage fighting for the basic human rights and dignity of Soviet Jews and human rights worldwide. as was our very good friend
Date: 2007-10-31
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I would urge my colleagues to support this legislation. We could leave this to the marketplace. and you could throw your workers out on the street with no notice. no health care. no training. and thats it. and just tell them. welcome to the globalized world. We thought we would try a different tack. We thought we would give workers notice where it is practical for employers to do so so the worker would have time to deal with the implications of a lost job on their family. to try to save their home. to try to save -their kids education. try to save the automobile. figure out how to get another job or how to get to retirement. We also know that many workers that are released dont have health care coverage or cant get it in the marketplace. So we extended COBRA. We made that decision many years ago. Forty million people have used that to get them to another health care plan or to hold on to their coverage as long as they possibly could. We said for older workers. you can take it to Medicare. If you are over 55 years old and you have worked there 10 years. you can use COBRA. You pay all the premiums. you pay the administrative cost. but at least you have coverage. For some people. thats absolutely vital. because once they lose coverage. they cant get it again because they cant afford it or because they have preexisting conditions and they wont write that policy for those individuals. This is just about whether or not we are going to treat Americans with some sense of decency who work all year long. provide for their families.. work hard. play by the rules or whether they are just going to have to crash to the street and lose their income. their houses. their cars. their kids education. Thats the choice we get today. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2007-10-31
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of H.R. 3920. the Trade and Globalization Assistance Act of 2007. Growing global economic integration means the U.S. economy is more protected from domestic economic shocks because more people in more countries are buying American goods and services. But globalization can also produce harmful short term affectssuch as when American jobs are lost as a result of trade. That is what H.R. 3920 is about. H.R. 3920 helps those American workers who lose their jobs by no fault of their own as a result of trade and who need assistance in meeting the new challenges of the changing global economy. The types of assistance provided include additional training. long term education. short term income support. and health care. The bill expands trade adjustment assistance to service workers including government employees who are laid off because of trade. When trade adjustment assistance started- in 1962. U.S. trade in services was not significant. Today. the service sector comprises more than 70 percent of the U.S. economy. H.R. 3920 updates trade adjustment assistance to account for the size and growing significance of the American service sector. The bill also expands assistance to more manufacturing workers by eliminating restrictions on what country a U.S. factorys jobs are moved to or whether the loss of jobs are "downstream" so that all workers impacted by trade are covered regardless of where the factory relocates or where the import competition came from. H.R. 3920 also helps American workers adapt to the needs of the changing global economy by enabling them to upgrade their skills. This bill doubles training assistance and provides up to 130 weeks of additional income support for workers who require a longer educational period. such as when finishing a college degree. Mr. Speaker. today the Peru Free Trade Agreement was reported out of the Ways and Means Committee by a vote of 390. Many of us supported the Peru FTA because of the landmark workers rights and environmental provisions negotiated this past May that were inserted in the agreement. They were also influenced and encouraged by .H.R. 3920 because they. like myself. feel more confident that American workers harmed by trade will get the assistance they need to meet the new challenges created by a global economy. I am proud to support H.R. 3920 the Trade and Globalization Assistance Act of 2007. and I encourage my colleagues to do the same.
Date: 2007-11-01
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I rise today to set the record straight. This administration has accused Congress of being a "failure." and that is simply not true. I think the President has this Congress confused with last years "DoNothing Congress." This Congress has successfully passed numerous pieces of legislation that have been supported by the majority of the American people and the President has signed into law. We passed. for example. H.R. 1. to implement the 9/11 Commission recommendations and to provide greater protection for first responders and security for our country. We have raised the minimum wage. improved our economic competitiveness. and enacted the College Cost Reduction Act. I am particularly proud of this law. which increases funding for Federal Pell Grants by more than $11 billion and will make college more affordable for lowincome students. And then of course there is SCHIP. This Congress has bent over backwards to address concerns about the legislation. and yet this administration continues to oppose health care for our Nations most vulnerable children. I am proud to go home this weekend and tell my constituents about what this Congress has done.