Date: 2005-11-04
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

What we are here going to say is that the emperor truly does have not clothes. If you remember that story. everyone in the kingdom in that story refused to acknowledge that the emperor was buck naked because they were worried about the consequences.. They wanted to make sure that nothing happened to them. Well. we are not afraid. We are not afraid. It needs to be highlighted and underscored. What they are doing to the American people needs to be brought out. and we are saying do notbelieve us. This is not what KENDRICK MEEK and DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ are saying or TIM RYAN or any of the other Members that have come to this floor to share angst and concern. We are saying look at the third party validators that we have saying the exact same thing. We are saying look at the religious leaders who are "urging and who just yesterday came to the Congress to urge the congressional leadership not to put forth these drastic cuts that are going to hurt people. This is from todays Washington Post. This is not a quotation from someone else. This is in the story on the budget cuts. It says. With so many controversial provisions. the House measure is forcing Republican leaders to scramble for support in what could be the most difficult vote of the year. Well. I would agree. This should be the most difficult vote of the year. When you are cutting. peoples food stamps. when you are cutting their childrens ability to get free and reduced lunch. when you are cutting $4.9 billion from child support programs that help people collect money from deadbeat dads. yeah. I would guess that is a tough vote. Lord. I would hope so. It goes on to say. Some Republican moderates are balking at cuts t6 antipoverty programs.. especially in light of the $70 billion tax cut that could come to a vote soon after the budget bill. more than wiping out that bills deficit reduction. Well. here it is. It isnot what DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ and KENDRICK MEEK are saying. The article describing the budget cuts. the reconciliation bill. specifically says that there is no deficit reduction in what they are doing. What they are doing is to try to preserve the tax cuts for the wealthy. make sure that their right wing. that their right flankdoes not go absolutely ballistic. because that wing of the party does not care about taking care of people. They are trying to make sure they preserve what they have and what the upper echelon has. Let us talk about because if you do not believe the Washington Post. you think it is paper that is off the mark. let us just go through what some of our religious leaders are saying. We are not talking about- liberal religious leaders or progressive religious leaders. We are talking about mainstream religious leadership that came here yesterday and joined in prayer at the Capitol. They included Reverend Dr. Bob Edgar. who is the general secretary of the National Council of Churches of the United States. Jim- Wallis of Sojourners magazine. Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center. and Eleanor Giddings Ivory of the Presbyterian Church. Let me go through a couple of things that they said in urging the Republican leadership not to do this. not -to harm and cause harm to the people that this budget will affect. Reverend Jim Wallis: "As this moral battle for the budget unfolds. I am calling on Members of Congress. some of whom make much out of their faith. to start some Bible studies before they cast votes to cut food stamps. Medicaid. child care and more that hurt the weakest in our Nation." Rabbi David Saperstein: The budget reconciliation package with its $50 billion in program cuts and $70 billion tax cuts giveaway is morally unjustifiable. Reverend Eleanor Giddings Ivory of the Presbyterian Church: I am here today to express concern for the Federal budget reconciliation packages under consideration in the House and the Senate. Our Nation is about to balance its budget on the .backs of the poor. Is that a moral thing to do? Clearly the answer is. no. it is not. Let me just tell you. I was so moved by Rabbi Sapersteins comments in their effort yesterday. He. as is the practice of many of our religious colleagues on both sides of the aisle but particularly because the Republican leadership and its Members like to use their faith so often to underscore how they have injected values into government. Rabbi Saperstein urged our colleagues and said that they ought to remember that the Bible urges us to "deal thy bread to the hungry." not. "steal thy bread from the hungry." He asked us to remember Proverbs stern. warning: "Do not steal from the weak because he is weak and do not oppress the poor in the gate." � I could go on. but there have been many more than just the religious leaders that were here yesterday who have urged this Congress not to take these actions. It not only will harm people. cause grave harm for people who have already been on the brink. it will not improve anything. It does not reduce our deficit. It does nov improve our economy. It only brings harm. and I think if we are going to subscribe to anything it is the physicians oath. That should be something we live by. which is first do no harm. When we get here. we should commit to doing no harm. and it appears unfortunately as though the Republican leadership came here to do the opposite.