macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2002-05-08
Speaker: GARY G. MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. our military uses students loan repayment to recruit for shortages in critical military occupational specialties such as the Medical Corps. If you are on active duty. tuition assistance is not taxed as income. If you have been honorably discharged and received education assistance through the GI bill. it is not taxed as income. However. if the military needs to recruit an individual for an occupation specialty that is needed. the student loan repayment is taxed as income. For example. if the military pay is $24.000 per year and he or she receives $20.000 that year to pay a student loan. they are taxed at an income level of $44.000 and the tax payment has to come out of a $24.000 salary. This is wrong. Support H.R. 4555 to correct this.
Date: 2002-05-09
Speaker: JO ANN DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of the rule and to draw attention to a part of H.R. 4546 that is critical in helping to protect the environment and keeping Americas commitment to care for our Nations reserve fleets. also known as the Ghost Fleet. located in the James River. MARAD is mandated to dispose of all national defense reserve fleet ships by September 30. 2006. The authorization relating to ship disposal and scrapping for the Maritime Administration is of critical importance. I am happy to report that the merchant marine panel. with my strong support. just authorized 20 million to more quickly dispose of surplus vessels that cause serious potential danger to our environment. I would like to see more dollars allocated to this national priority. but after zero dollars in fiscal year 2002. I believe this funding puts us back on track to rid our fleet of these aging ships. Additionally. this measure also allows for financial assistance to environmentally mitigate and reef these same vessels. We must begin to think out of the box to solve this looming problem. Cleaning. then reefing. these ships will create cost savings and will allow us to scrap them more rapidly. We have to work toward the September 30. 2006 deadline and to encourage adequate funding this year to get .the job done. Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank our distinguished Committee on Armed Services chairman. the gentleman from Arizona . and especially thank the gentleman from California
Date: 2002-05-09
Speaker: JEFF MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Chairman. I rise in support of the Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003. H.R. 4546. The legislation remedies a longcommitted wrong that has been used against our re.tired military veterans for many years. By providing $5.58 billion over 5 years towards retiree benefits. H.R. 4546 begins full concurrent receipt for veterans suffering from a disabled rating 60 percent or greater. These individuals have given decades of their life and service to this great country. and they will begin to receive their earned retired pay along with their earned disability payment. This agreement builds upon the work of the Committee on Veterans Affairs and the Committee on Armed Services over the last couple years. and finishes the work done last year that made the policy change. Due to the meticulous work by the Committee on the Budget. the requirement to have a full budget offset is no longer needed. and that section has now been removed as a stipulation that claims must be made within 4 years of military separation. Mr. Chairman. I am proud to be a member of the Committee on Armed Services and proud to support this fiscal year 2003 defense authorization. H.R. 4546.
Date: 2002-05-09
Speaker: JEFF MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Chairman. I rise today in support of the Bob Stump National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003. H.R. 4546. Mr. Chairman. yesterday. in Pensacola. FL. the Navy suffered an air training accident whereby seven military and civilian contractor personnel are missing at sea. And while the search continues. and we pray for a successful recovery. this event is a reminder of the risks our uniformed men and women endureeither at home or away. I believe this legislation does much to honor and reward military service and I am proud to be a member of the House Armed Services Committee and proud to have contributed to the work before us. Mr. Chairman. this legislation remedies a wrong. long committed against our retired military veterans. By providing $5.58 billion. over 5 years. toward retiree benefits. H.R. 4546 begins full concurrent receipt for veterans suffering from a disabled rating 60 percent or greater. These individuals. who have given decades of their life. serving this great country. will begin to receive their earned retired pay along with their earned disability pay. This agreement builds upon the work of many people. the least not the veterans who walk these halls. write letters or otherwise make the effort to contact their Member of Congress. Due to the meticulous work of the budget committee. the requirement to have a full budget offset is no longer needed. Additionally. this legislation eliminates a stipulation that disability claims must be made within four years of military separation. effectively enacting my bill. H.R. 3620. Navy training. an important function in my district. is supported in this bill by the authorization of 10 additional Joint Primary Air Training Systems. also known as JPATS. The Navy and Air Force will sue this system. consisting of both the T6A aircraft and a groundbased training system. for primary pilot training. The T6A will replace both the Navys T34 and Air Forces T37B fleets. providing safer. more economical and more effective training for future student pilots. Mr. Chairman. in closing I would like to thank Chairman STUMP for his service to this committee. to the men and women in uniform and to his country. It is my honor to have had the opportunity to serve under his leadership.
Date: 2002-05-09
Speaker: JO ANN DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. today I rise to support the en bloc amendment containing a Sense of Congress on Aircraft Carrier Force Structure. This amendment would do 2 things. First. it would commend the crews of the aircraft carriers that contributed directly to Operation Enduring Freedom and the homeland defense mission. Many people are aware that our aircraft carriers contributed to our initial actions in Operation Enduring Freedom. but most people are unaware as to- the number of carriers and also the incredible effort and number of aircraft carriers it took to effect our initial response to the attack on September 11. Second. this amendment would recognize the full value and worth that our carriers have for Americas power and force projection capabilities. There is no doubt that the aircraft carriers have been integral to our war in Afghanistan. We have all heard the story of how the USS Enterprise turned around and went back when the captain heard about- what was going on. Every munition and bomb dropped from a carrier air wing has been a precisionguided munition. The carriers worked around the clock after the attacks on September 11. Mr. Chairman. the Sense of Congress expresses a simple truism that is laid out in the Quadrennial Defense Review. The Navy needs. at a minimum. at least 12 aircraft carriers. r Mr. Chairman. I would strongly encourage all of my colleagues to vote in support of this en bloc amendment.
Date: 2002-05-09
Speaker: JO ANN DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I rise today to speak against this amendment to expand abortion services in military hospitals overseas. Let us be clear on what we are really talking about. What this amendment does is to allow the use of hard earned taxpayer dollars to fund abortions in our military overseas hospitals. This violates the strongly held convictions of millions of Americans who do not want their tax dollars going to fund activities that they believe are wrong. The other side will argue that the procedure will be paid for by the woman seeking the abortion. But this clearly ignores the obvious fact that the infrastructure. the medical facilities. the equipment are all paid for with taxpayer dollars. This amendment is fundamentally about how we use our taxpayer dollars. which should not be a controversial issue. The overwhelming majority of taxpayers oppose the use of publicly held Federal dollars for abortion. This amendment has been rejected six times by the same House. Do the right thing today and vote against the passage of this amendment again.
Date: 2002-05-14
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of H.R. 3694. the Highway Funding Restoration Act. critical legislation introduced. by my friend and colleague.
Date: 2002-05-15
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. nearly 9 million people have gone from welfare checks to paychecks. thanks to Republicans. 0l 1030 Let me give an example of a constituent in my district. and I will call her Janice. She is a single mother of a 5yearold. and last spring Janice lost her job in a soft economy. With a tight labor market and no college degree. Janice could not find a job to support her family. But thanks to welfare reform and the good people at a Texas Workforce Center. Janice applied for welfare the very next day. She did not want to stay on welfare. she wanted to find a- job. The center helped her organize her options and find a job at a manufacturing plant. They also helped her find child care. Mr. Speaker. eventually. the y helped her find a job in the Garland Independent School District. She now has selfsufficient pay. a regular schedule. full benefits. and even retirement. After 6 months of steady work. Janice and her family moved from welfare to work. Janice is a story of determination. Janice is a story of hope. I salute her and an even better welfare reform bill today.
Date: 2002-05-16
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. since 1996 nearly 9 million people have gone from collecting welfare checks to paychecks thanks to Republicans. One shining example of the success of welfare is a constituent of mine I will call Janice. Janice is a single mother of a 5yearold. Last spring she lost her job in the soft economy. Thanks to welfare reform and the good people at the Texas Workfare Center in McKinney. Janice found a job and child care. becoming selfsufficient with full benefits and retirement after just 6 months. Mr. Speaker. she illustrates .what many of us have known all along. the 1996 Republican welfare reforms have worked. Child poverty has fallen sharply. Nearly 3 million children are no longer welfare kids. and that is because more parents are working. Employment by mothers most likely to go on welfare has risen by 40 percent. Welfare caseloads have fallen by 9 million. Nine million people. Is that not great news? Nearly 50 percent of Texas welfare recipients have left welfare because of the successful model created by Congress and enacted by thenGovernor George Bush. Critics ask if it is not broken. why fix it. Well. even the best race cars go for tuneups. and that is what we are doing with this bill. This bill requires States to put 70 percent of their welfare caseloads to work 40 hours a week. 16 of which can be used for education and training. This bill encourages. not discourages work. It reflects the Presidents plan to encourage healthy. stable marriages. Today we begin the next step in welfare reform based on the Presidents priorities. This legislation will help even more low income parents know the dignity that comes with a paycheck instead of a welfare check. By passing this bill we can help even more low income Americans inprove their lives for themselves and their children. and that is what welfare reform is all about.
Date: 2002-05-22
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of seniors who want prescription drug coverage. today. tomorrow and always. and against those who do not. Earlier this month. Congress Daily noted that a Senate Democrat prescription drug bill would sunset in 2010. That is right. the bill would just stop in 2010. Sorry. seniors. no more drugs for them after 2010. That is plain wrong. First. Democrats block permanent tax relief. Now they want to block prescription drug coverage. Well. seniors better start saving. so when their benefits end. they will have money to buy their drugs. Hold on. just think about this. That is impossible. because the same Democrats refused to permanently extend tax relief so people can save some of their own money or even empower seniors to save their own money in a medical savings account. Well. twothirds of seniors have prescription drug coverage. The onethird going without are my top concern. Our Republican plan will help. and help them for life.
Date: 2002-05-22
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I rise to engage in a colloquy with the chairman of the committee. as well as my colleague. the gentleman from Virginia . also I think that the gentleman from Virginia and the gentlewoman from North Carolina also are concerned. This regards section 1103 of the bill dealing with the Federal loan guarantee program for air carriers. The airline industry has changed dramatically and permanently since September 11. Business air travel is down 30 percent industrywide and total industry revenue is down 15 percent since 2000. It is an unfortunate reality that some carriers financial situation is currently unsustainable. We cannot now pass the provision that moves the goal post on the very companies for whom the legislation was intended when it was passed a mere 9 months ago. I ask the chairman. this section would upon enactment of the bill delay disbursement of loan guarantees until October 1 of this year. Is it the chairmans understanding that while this provision would prevent the actual issuance of a loan guaranteed until October 1. that the air transportation stabilization board may continue and complete prodessing of applications during the remainder of this fiscal year?
Date: 2002-05-22
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

I thank the gentleman for his assurances. Mr. Chairman. I include in the RECORD a letter from the Office of Management and Budget which clearly states the provisions which we are considering today permit the Air Transportation Stabilization Board to continue to complete the processing of qualified loan guarantee applications that are properly filed.
Date: 2002-05-22
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I think one of the purposes of colloquy is to assure we have full leadership working to make sure one way or the other. the right thing happens should they qualify for this loan. In fact. the money will be available on a timely basis. We have received assurances that this. it still has to go through conference: There is Senate language that still needs to be worked through. and I just want to say I am comfortable with the fact that we are going to work this out. but I appreciate the gentlemans being very aggressive on this issue because I think it is very important. not just for the airline. as the gentleman has mentioned before.
Date: 2002-05-23
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chairman. I move to strike the requisite number of words. Mr. Chairman. it is not about Colombia. It is about our own military. That is what this bill is about. That is what you people should be talking about. Freedom is not free. I am standing here before you as a 29year Air Force veteran. During that time I had the honor of running two military bases. At that level. you know firsthand what it takes to keep our military safe. strong and secure. And when you are in charge. you want to give them. the best. They need great planes. tanks. trucks and munitions. This bill helps give our military men and women just that. America is a whole different country since September 11. A terrorist attack. designed to tear us apart. has actually put our Nation closer together. We cannot desert our troops now. Despite the ill wishes of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. this bill shows our military that America cares about them and wants the best for them. This bill wouldreplenish depleted attack munitions. The war will be long. Our troops have been strong. So we must give them more munitions they need if they are going to fight for our freedom. Sadly. no one knows more than I the horrors of fighting without munitions. I fought in both Korea and Vietnam. When I was in Vietnam. we ran out of munitions because this Congress would not fund them. We are at that same point again. I had to carry munitions on a mission that I was not supposed to carry that munition on. They were cannibalizing airplanes. They are doing that today in our services. And the gun that was cannibalized on my airplane did not fire. Because that gun did not fire. I was shot down. I tried to fire at the enemy. but nothing came out. It was on that tragic mission. April 16. 1966. that started my 7 years in captivity. more than half of that time in solitary confinement. Please. I urge you not to let that happen to any other member of our military. We must learn from our mistakes. Our men and women in uniform deserve the best America has to offer. not the worst. Make no mistake. the U.S. military has come to the aid of America. It is time that America came to the aid of our military. We must win the war for freedom. It is not for freedom just for America. It is for the freedom of the world. Let us help our military. God bless you all. I know you will.
Date: 2002-05-23
Speaker: JO ANN DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: S
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I move to strike the last word. Mr. Chairman. normally I do not get up and say much about this. but I sit here tonight and I hear all this -about Social Security and how we are raiding the trust fund. We are not doing that. We are trying to scare our seniors. The seniors Social Security money is going to be there. We are not doing anything to take their money away from them. This bill is about a war that is going on. This bill is about helping our military men and women who are out there on the front lines right now. and we are sitting here doing scare tactics. demagoguing. I am not sure what we are doing on this floor tonight. I sit here and listen to all of this. and I do not quite understand it. We are not raiding the Social Security trust fund. we are just trying to help our men and women who are out there fighting for us. I just do not understand why we are sitting here arguing like this about something that is not happening. This is about giving the President and giving our men and women in the military the dollars that they need to fight our war on terrorism. We are not taking dollars away from our seniors. and I think it is shameful. absolutely shameful. that Members are trying to scare them.
Date: 2002-06-04
Speaker: GARY G. MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. the purpose of H.R. 2941. the Brownfield Development Enhancement Act of 2001. is to provide communities with new options when it comes to financing brownfields redevelopment projects. The best way to explain this bill is to begin by describing how the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Developments section 108 loan program and the Brownfields Economic Development Initiative. or BEDI. grant programs work. If a local community wishes to pursue cleanup and redevelopment funds from HUD. first. they must apply for a section 108 loan. In order to secure this loan. they must put up a portion of their Community Development block grant money as collateral. After obtaining the section 108 loan. cities may then apply for a BEDI grant. Unfortunately. many cities are extremely hesitant to tie up their CDBO funds as loan collateral. Further. some States actually prohibit their cities from doing this. Because these cities are locked out of the section 108 loan program. they are locked out- of the BEDI grant application prpcess as well. H.R. 2941 offers a fundamental change to the status quo by delinking the BEDI grant program from the section 108 loan program. Additionally. this bill also creates a pilot program for a revolving loan pool. As a result. cities will have new options. they can proceed. as under current law. by applying for a section 108 loan. to be secured by a portion of their CDBO funds. and then apply for a BEDI grant. cities can simply apply for a BEDI grant. cities can apply for pilot program funds. or any combination of the above which best meets their project needs. Before I continue. I would like to thank HUD Secretary Mel Martinez and his staff for their assistance and insight on this program. I also appreciate the support I received from the gentleman from Ohio . the chairman of the Committee on Financial Services. and the gentlewoman from New Jersey . the chairwoman of the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity. In addition. I would like to thank the gentlewoman from New York . who has worked tirelessly on this issue since H.R. 2941 was introduced.
Date: 2002-06-05
Speaker: GARY G. MILLER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: California

Madam Speaker. I would like to commend Chairmen OXLEY and BEREUTER for their leadership in crafting a very reasonable bill. and I rise in support of H.R. 2871. California is the fifth largest economy in the world. but it benefits from the strategic role of the ExportImport Bank. During fiscal years 1996 to 2000. 722 companies from California benefited from the assistance. 225 communities benefited. total value of exports were $8.3 billion. and 120.403 jobs were sustained. Most importantly. regardless of the rhetoric we have heard on the floor today. 72 percent of the transactions assisted small businesses. and that is most important. for small businesses are the engine that keeps this economy moving. Far too often when we talk about numbers and figures. we do not apply it to a name and a face. Services provided by the ExportImport Bank to small businesses are overlooked. really. and that is a big issue today. But there are a lot of success.stories. including ZMG Enterprises in Walnut. California. owned by Mr. Joe Gomez. ZMG Enterprises is a longstanding user of the banks shortterm. multibuyer insurance policy to cover the sale of nearly $11 million in annual sales of canned vegetables. fruits and table sauces. primarily to Mexico. For a small company. a familyowned business. $11 million is a lot of revenue to generate for a company. Mexico has traditionally been a COD country. This insurance policy backed by the bank enables Mr. Gomez to offer shortterm credit to Mexican supermarkets so that the grocers can purchase more of his product in a single sale and there are reasonable guarantees. There is no money being lost. It is benefiting entrepreneurs in this country. specifically in California. the State and the district I represent. This is a good bill. I would encourage any individuals who have questions to take time to read the bill before they listen to some of the rhetoric on this floor.