Date: 2007-01-10
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Thank you. And I want to go back to the minimum wage for just a second. because this is the second day now that we have. had the opportunity to watch Speaker PELOSI preside over our legislation that is passikig out of the House of Representatives with the speed that we want. which should demonstrate to the American people that we share their priorities. Yesterday was H.R. 1. Today was H.R. 2. And one of the things that.. combined with the Six in 2006 agenda and our commitment to move this country in a new direction. that she committed to on our behalf was bipartisanship and making sure that this is the most inclusive bipartisan House of Representatives in history. And what I thought was the most emblematic of that and that was really telling of the difference between the way we are running this institution versus the way the Republican leadership ran it is that I looked up on that board with the vote tally at the end. and this is the first opportunity that we have had in the time that I have been here. in 10 years. as the gentleman from California indicated. the first opportunity we have had to have a straight upordown. clean vote on the minimum wage. The first chance. Before. we had to go through all this rigmarole and shenanigans. and we had to do motions to recommit and use procedural moves in both the Appropriations Committee and on this floor to get remotely close to a vote on the minimum wage. And you know how in the last Congress. in the 109th. when we would come on the floor as the 30Something Working Group and we would lament the antics of the Republican leadership and the armtwisting that they did. and even on those procedural motions where we were trying to get a vote even close to the minimum wage. they would wrench the arms of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle behind their backs and make them vote "no." Well. what was the vote today? That vote on H.R. 2. on the minimum wage. there were 201 Members more that. voted "yes" than voted "no". There was a 201 vote difference. Now. we have fewer than a 201 vote margin here. We are in the majority. but our majority is about 30 or 32. It is not 201. So look at what bipartisanship and inclusiveness does. And when you are finally allowed a free vote. a straight upordown vote on the American peoples priorities. we had a huge bipartisan margin to increase the minimum wage. And that is beautiful. That is what democracy is all about. Now. without violating rules and directly addressing the Speaker. it is so refreshing to see my good friend from Florida in the Chair tonight. and that is about as close as I will come to naming the gentleman from Florida. but I really was so gratified to watch us begin to go through the Six in 2006 agenda and finally deal with the priorities of the American people.. Lastly. Mr. DELAHUNT. I want to thank you for your kind words. The thing that makes me so humble and proud and excited about the opportunity that I have to chair a subcommittee in appropriations is. if you recall. Speaker PELOSI last week. when she took the gavel from the gentleman from Ohio. she talked about how she was able to bust through the marble ceiling. And the wonderful thing about Speaker PELOSI is that when she did it. like the leader that she is. she took other people with her. She didnt just bust through it for herself. Her busting through the marble ceiling gave so many of us. the diversity of this caucus. an opportunity to be a participant in making the world a better place for the American people.