macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-12-09
Speaker: GENE GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I am not so sure about a noted Texas landmark. but I want to thank you for scheduling a Special Order for our good friend. RALPH HALL. I rise to pay tribute to a great American who has dedicated his life to protecting and serving our Nation and the great State of Texas. Representative RALPH HALL. a true gentleman. RALPH began his commitment to service seven decades ago when he joined the United States Navy and served as an aircraft carrier pilot during World War II. Returning to Texas after the war. RALPH began private law practice in Rockwall. Texas. where he served as county judge in the 1950s and represented that area in the Texas State Senate from 1962 to 1972. That is when I first met RALPH HALL. because in 1972 he ran for Lieutenant Governor in Texas in the Democratic primary. There were a few other folks in that race. so RALPH didnt make it into the runoff. But RALPH was elected to Congress in 1980 as a conservative Democrat. where he served our State honorably on the Energy and Commerce Committee and the Science Committee. where he was chairman from 2011 to 2013. In 2003. RALPH became a Republican. His votes were always conservative. though. My job in the 1990s as a deputy whip on the Democratic side was to whip Texas Members. So I would go to RALPH. and he was the distinguished gentleman. And that is just not a title. he really was. He would tell me. he said: Well. GENE. what do you want me to do? I said: Well. RALPH. I want you to vote thisaway. He said: You know. GENE. I cant really do that. I said: Well. RALPH. can you vote late? RALPH was always a conservative. no matter what Republican or Democratic label he had. I had the honor of serving with RALPH in Congress since 1993 and on the Energy and Commerce Conmittee since 1997. and RALPH has always been. like I said. a true gentleman to me and to all I have ever seen him work with. I will best remember RALPH as a true hero of Texas who was a committed public servant. either in uniform or elected official. and always stayed true to his beliefs and did everything he could for his constituents. Mr. Speaker. Congressman HALL will be sorely missed by all of us. and I want to thank him for both his hard work and dedication for years. but more importantly for his friendship to a lot of Membersnot just Texans. but a lot of Members in Congress. RALPH will be very fondly remembered.
Date: 2014-12-09
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I thank the chairman for yielding. and I thank him for holding this Special Order for a very dear friend to all of us.
Date: 2014-12-09
Speaker: EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Thank you very much. Mr. RUSH. I appreciate the fact that you are holding this hour. Mr. Speaker. I rise for the honor of the work of Mr. JOHN DINGELL who will retire this year as the longestserving Member. with 59 years as a Michigan Representative. Since 1955. Congressman DINGELL has represented the southeastern Michigan area and served on the Committee on Energy and Commerce and twice as chairman. When I learned that Mr. DINGELL would retire at the end of this term. I was saddened to know that we would lose such a fine leader and advocate for social democracy. however. we must continue Mr. DINGELLs fight for all Americans. He is wellknown for his battles on behalf of civil rights. clean water. Medicare. and workers rights. He is also the author of many pieces of legislation that enhance the protection of public health such as the Affordable Care Act. While he expanded public health and advocated for environmental conservationism. Mr. DINGELL also combated corruption and waste via his chairmanship of the Committee on Energy and Commerce. He exerted strong. unwavering oversight of the executive branch through his committee. and his successes in Congress earned him the 2014 Presidential Medal of Freedom. Through his career in Congress. he was willing and able to work across the aisle to accomplish tasks that made Americans lives better. A true advocate for the people. Mr. DINGELL dedicated his life to ensuring that public health safety of the American people was always in the forefront. Whether authoring the Clean Air Act or the Patients Bill of Rights. Mr. DINGELL was unwavering in his questions to protect Americans. I urge my colleagues to recognize the accomplishments of Congressman JOHN DINGELL and join me in congratulating him on an outstanding career in public service.
Date: 2014-12-09
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise today to honor the incredible service of the Dean of the House of Representatives. JOHN DINGELL. In his 59 years in the House. JOHN DINGELL has experienced dizzying twists in national politics and turns in world events. And through it all. he succeeded in building a consistent record of achievements true to his core principle of social justice. If you rely on Medicareor plan to in your retirementyou can thank JOHN DINGELL. After fighting for its creation. he was the one presiding over the House for its historic passage in 1965. If youve benefited from the Affordable Care Act. you can thank JOHN DINGELL for his pivotal role in passing this landmark legislation. and for continuing his fathers fight to make affordable health care available to all Americans. If youve benefitted from a safe workplace or fair pay. you can thank JOHN DINGELL for being a champion of the American worker and a tireless advocate for policies to help our businesses create jobs and our middle class get ahead. And if you simply enjoy outdoor recreation and the ability to breathe clean air and drink clean water. you can thank JOHN DINGELL for his vision. He brought Republicans and Democrats together to pass legislation that protects our environment. On a personal note. I want to thank JOHN DINGELL for his wisdom and good counsel over the years. His guidance and effort were essential to passing the DISCLOSE Act in the House in 2010. That bill would have required groups spending millions of dollars on political campaign ads to disclose to voters who is bankrolling them. Unfortunately. the bill failed by one vote in a filibuster in the Senate. If JOHN DINGELL had been in the Senate. he would have gotten it passed. Thank you JOHN DINGELL for all that youve done for our country.
Date: 2014-12-09
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New York

Mr. Speaker. I am testifying before the Rules Committee right now. but I will submit my statement for the RECORD. To know him is to love JOHN DINGELL. He taught me that dedication to the legislative process and getting it done comes first. It is a great privilege to speak about the career and accomplishments of my good friend.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I stand here this morning as a proud American and proud of this Republic which elected the first African American President 6 years ago. and reelected him 2 years ago by an overwhelming vote. I rise today to celebrate my outstanding colleague and dear friend. Representative MARCIA FUDGE. on the completion of her term as the 23rd chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. I have had the honor and privilege of working along with Representative FUDGE on the Science. Space. and Technology Committee when she first was elected to the House of Representatives in 2008. Since that time. I have watched her thrive as a fearless leader on Capitol Hill. not only for her constituents of Ohios llth District. but for African Americans and other underrepresented citizens all over the country and internationally. As chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. Representative FUDGE is only the seventh woman to serve in this capacity. and she has been groundbreaking in her fight to tackle difficult issues facing underrepresented communities of color during her 2year term as chair. Mr. Speaker. under Representative FUDGES leadership. the Congressional Black Caucus has continued to be the conscience of Congress. working tirelessly to steer good policy to the forefront. Over these past 2 years. Representative FUDGE. in her role as chair. has faithfully represented the underrepresented voices as they pertain to job creation. education. health care. national security. and a host of other pressing issues. Her intricate policy knowledge. political savvy. and ability to build coalitions have been of tremendous value to the Congressional Black Caucus and to the Nation. I can speak on behalf of all of my colleaguesand you have just witnessed them here present in the Chamberin saying that we will sorely miss her leadership. and we thank her for her service as chair. I am confident that Ms. FUDGE will continue to serve selflessly and devote her time and talents to the CBC and its goals. and I look forward to continuing our important work together because it is far from being over.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New York

I thank the gentleman. my good friend. for yielding and for all of his hard work on this issue and on many others. Mr. Speaker. I rise in opposition to this rule because I believe the approach we are taking jeopardizes the passage in the Senate of a good. bipartisan compromise to extend the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act. or TRIA. TRIA is incredibly important to New Yorkand to the entire countryand it is critically important that we pass a longterm extension of this bill. After 9111. all construction in New York City stopped. You could not even build a hot dog stand. Thousands of people lost their jobs. and business ground to a halt because we could not get terrorism insurance. The only insurance available was from Lloyds of London. and it was difficult to get and incredibly expensive. If we do not reauthorize TRIA. no business will be able to get terrorism insurance in this country. and all construction will stop. costing thousands of jobs in our country. I must say. of all of the government programs that helped New York rebuild. I would say this program was the most important. and it did not cost taxpayers one dime. I want to emphasize that I strongly support the TRIA compromise in this bill that was reached between Chairman HENSARLING and Vice Chair NEUGEBAUER. along with Senator SCHUMER and Ranking Member WATERS. However. the deal reached did not include the end user margin bill that is also included in the underlying TRIA bill. which Senator SCHUMER and many other Senators are strongly objecting to. The reason this was not part of the agreement is that adding unrelated bills that amend DoddFrank makes it much more difficult to pass this bill in the Senate. Where there are any changes to DoddFrank. many Senators take exception. It is very difficult to pass them. This. unfortunately. jeopardizes the chances of passing this important reauthorization of TRIA in the Senate. and it is extremely important to the overall economy of this country to pass this bill. Separately. I want to note for the record that I support the end user margin bill. which would simply clarify that end users of derivatives. such as airlines and manufacturers. are not subject to DoddFranks margin capital requirements.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: CAROLYN B. MALONEY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: New York

I voted for this bill in committee. which. as noted. passed this body with 400 votes. and also on the floor. However. I strongly oppose this rule because it puts TRIAs passage in the Senate in jeopardy. and this is truly unfortunate. Before the Rules Committee. Ranking Member WATERS and I suggested that we divide this out. have TRIA and the other billthe DoddFrank. the regulatory billseparate so that there would not be a problem in the Senate. Unfortunately. that did not happen. and I am extremely concerned that this puts in jeopardy the passage of a bill that is critically important to the economy of this country.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. today I missed the following vote: S. 1000Chesapeake Bay Accountability and Recovery Act of 2014. Had I been present. I would have voted "yes" on this bill.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I thank Mr. THOMPSON for his leadership as ranking member and formerly chair. and Mr. HUDSON. Let me also acknowledge Mr. RICHMOND. who is the ranking member on the Subcommittee on Transportation Security. It is clear that this committee. Homeland Security overall. has worked together for the betterment of the national security of this Nation. and these legislative initiatives in particular. I remember distinctly the hearings. the collaboration with a number of groups. and so I rise today to speak on the transportation security bill regarding best practices to improve transparency with regard to technology acquisition programs. and for other purposes. The Transportation Security Administration. now under Homeland Security. is one of our vital organs that relates to the security of America. We only need look at special holidays throughout the Nation and throughout the year and realize how vital the aviation system is and how important it is to work together with the Transportation Security Administration. covering TSOs and certainly a large component of research and technology dealing with the security of our airports. This initiative is an important one. It is almost unspeakable to have this size of inventory. some $185 million in assessment. languishing in warehouses under the name of the Transportation Security Administration. Over the years as a ranking member and chairwoman on Transportation Security and now Border Security. likewise I have joined my colleagues in fighting for small businesses because there lies technology. So this initiative to open the doors for the idea of a multiyear technology investment plan and underutilized innovation opportunities that can be provided in this area of security I believe is very important. and then of course to insist that 16 percent not be the number that we rely upon in terms of investment and opportunity for minorities and small businesses. I support this initiative. and I must at this moment add my support for the legislation dealing with insisting on an aviation security advisory committee. I want to congratulate Mr. THOMPSON on that and indicate that the issue of aviation security matters needs collaboration. Let me finish by saying. as we experienced over the last year. a decision to add or take away what item you could bring through securitywe found out that collaboration on this is crucial. So this is an important initiative. and I thank both the managers on the floor. and I support both of these initiatives and congratulate them for moving the security of America further.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: DAVID SCOTT (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Georgia

Thank you very much. Madam Chairman. Mr. Speaker. I am sure. as those who are watching this on CSPAN across the Nation. we can comfortably say that what we have in motion on the floor of the House of Representatives is something that Alexander Hamilton leaned over and said to Thomas Jefferson: "My friend. what we have here is an oldfashioned. good old compromise." Compromise. a word that has been out of our lexicon for so long that the American people are looking for us to put it back in. Well. that is what we have on this floor. It is a compromise. Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the ranking member because of her tenacity and her leadership because in his vision on the other side. the distinguished Chairman HENSARLING. who is a very good friend. in his own way sought for a $500 million trigger. We on our side felt that we wanted to hold to the $100 trigger which is when the actual Federal assistance would go into action. and we knew that that was further. I commend the ranking member and I certainly commend Mr. HENSARLING for agreeing and recognizing that we would come to the 200 level. I also want to thank Mr. HENSARLING for including in this NARAB. that is such an important measure. and many people may not realize this. but we have worked on NARAB for 10 years in the Financial Services Committee. It has been a major part of my whole legislative history in this body every year working on it. I want to thank you. Chairman HENSARLING. for listening to us. talking. and agreeing to make this a part of this bill that we have before us. Thank you very much for doing that. The other part. I want to thank both. and I certainly want to thank our ranking member for her wisdom in compromising on the end user. Now. we all know of the differences with DoddFrank. I tried to have a clear view on this. and it was very important that we make this technical change. so that we dont let our ranchers. our farmers. and our manufacturersnone of which had anything to do with the Wall Street debacle and none of which are financial institutionsthat we will exempt them from the cumbersome and the overbearing need to put margins out when they are doing swaps and derivatives. Ladies and gentlemen. this is an excellent bill. it is a good bill. and it is one that we urge to move forward.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: DANNY K. DAVIS (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Illinois

Mr. Speaker. let me thank the gentleman from Michigan for yielding. Let me be clear. I yield to no one in terms of my support for programs and activities to help those who are in need. I ardently support Federal tax policies that support charities. I have hundreds of charities and foundations in my congressional district. and even more throughout the State of Illinois. They all provide tremendous support to individuals in great need. But I dont believe that this bill is necessary at this moment in order to provide those services. I am disappointed and cannot support this irresponsible bill that adds to the deficit. The Republican leadership talks a great deal about fiscal prudence and even requires in their budget resolution that any tax extender made permanent be offset with other revenue measures. Republican leadership easily could have paid for this bill by closing a tax loophole or two. Republican leadership easily could have brought up this bill under a rule that allowed an offset to be added. Instead. they have chosen to add to the deficit in a political ploy. So I say again. Mr. Speaker. and I pledge to my constituents and to the charitable organizations to work in a bipartisan way to advance charitable benefits. However. I cannot support this irresponsible bill. The President has issued a veto threat. and I support the President.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: DAVID SCOTT (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Georgia

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. As my colleague from Georgia has just eloquently stated. there is a great need for this. everybody is in agreement on it. The Cotton Number 2 contract is needed as a hedging tool for our cotton industry globally. It is needed so that we can have both delivery points inside as well as outside the United States because our global markets are now more global. As my colleague. Mr. WESTMORELAND. mentioned. we have not touched this law since 1916. That is nearly 100 years. You can imagine so much has changed. It is very. very much more global. and we do not need to put our cotton participants in trade. in marketing. in commodities at a disadvantage. as was indicated. to other markets. This is urgent. If we do not move within the next 3 weeks. so that we can have this on the books as law in time for our cotton participants in the United States to be able to function for their year 2015in the cotton business you start early. you start in January and February. so it is very urgent. The legislation benefits everybody. All participants are in agreement. The bottom line is that this legislation is about modernization. Our markets. as I said before. have become much more global. It is a technical correction. It will help our cotton farmers. our cotton producers. and those who have to hedge in the marketplace around the world. and it does notdoes notput our cotton industry in the United States at a disadvantage globally. I certainly urge that we all accept this amendment and move forward with a very. very important part of American industry. the cotton industry. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I. too. want to thank my colleague and the gentlewoman from south Florida. who has really been a passionate advocate and whom I have stood in solidarity with on this and so many other issues. Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of the Venezuela Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act of 2014. I do so as the proud representative of Westonzuela. my hometown. and one in which we have an incredibly rich and vibrant community of Venezuelans and Venezuelan Americans. As the representative of one of the largest communities of Venezuelans and Venezuelan Americans in the United States. I am here to strongly speak out against the continued. unconscionable abuses of the Maduro government against innocent citizens. Earlier this year. facing a repressive government and crushing economic conditions. thousands of Venezuelans peacefully protested to demand their basic human rights and dignity. In response. President Maduro and his security forces brutally suppressed their own citizens in the streets and used the judiciary to squash voices championing freedom of expression and democracy. Although President Maduro has tried to further silence these voices by limiting media coverage of the ongoing oppression and repression and terrible economic conditions of his country. we can still hear the demands for justice and for dignity. This bill would impose sanctions on those individuals in Maduros regime who have ordered the arrest or prosecution of anyone exercising their right to peacefully assemble or protest. or those who supported those actions. Through our action here today. we signify the determination of the American people to stand for freedom and democracy. and this bill reinforces the sentiments and actions of the U.S. Congress and the Obama administration. Along with my colleagues. I stand in solidarity with those brave Venezuelans continuing to advocate for their rights. including opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. who outrageously remains in prison. I look forward to this measures passage and to President Obamas signature. and working with the Obama administration and our allies to hold these perpetrators of the injustice accountable for their crimes.
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

It is an honor to stand with the California delegation tonight in saluting two extraordinary Members of the United States Congress. GEORGE MILLER and HENRY WAXMAN. two friends. two individuals who have been an inspiration to me and so many other Americans. What is extraordinary about these two men is that they greeted every day of their 40 years here in the United States Congress as if it were their very first day. with the same determination. with the same drive. with the same passion to make our country a little better place than they found it. Make no mistake. they came here on a mission to build a more just. a more inclusive Nation. where every American has a fair shot at the American Dream. and through that determination and that perseverance. they succeeded. If you look around the country today. in almost every aspect of American life. these two gentlemen have left their mark. from health care to education to workers rights to protecting our environment. They have changed the arc of American history. One quality really stands out when I think about both these individuals: fearlessness and moral courage and a willingness to take on the most powerful special interests on behalf of the common good. no matter the personal risk. no matter the political cost. They have been warriors for the public good. sometimes happy warriors. sometimes just tough warriors. but always standing up for what is best in America. It is the job of those of us who remain here to dedicate ourselves to carry on the work that these gentlemen carried out for the love of their country.