macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 1997-06-03
Speaker: STROM THURMOND (republican)
Chamber: S

who volunteered at the age of 40. and who landed on a glider at Dday. missed the 50th anniversary because he had a son graduating from high school. This is an extraordinary man. He has served as a State senator. a circuit court judge. a Governor. a soldier in time of war. a Presidential candidate. and now is the oldest and longest serving Senator in our Nations history. It was my pleasure to serve with STROM THURMOND on the Armed Services Committee. and I can say as one who was there. he worked for only one purpose: To ensure our countrys national defense remained strong. During his last campaign. Senator THURMOND asked the people of South Carolina one simple question: Who can do more to help steer the future of America toward the conservative principles we believe in? Who can best continue to diligently and effectively help all the people of South Carolina? The people of South Carolina spoke resoundingly that the person was STROM THURMOND and returned him to the U.S. Senate. We are here today to honor their choice and their confidence in this gentleman. STROM has announced that it is. after all. a mans prerogative to change his mind. He has announced- that he will no longer support continual service without term limits. So. now that he has embraced term limits. in a magnanimous gesture he has announced that he THURMOND. I saw this episode repeated will not run for reelection in 2002. We on another occasion. think that really is magnanimous be- I noticed a remarkable excitement cause there are few South Carolina which young people enjoyed when runpoliticians who would have the energy ning with STROM THURMOND. This exto take on the man that we have affec- citement is not restricted to mistionately dubbed "The Thurmonater." cellaneous strangers that STROM met He began his career in public service across the country. Last summer. I as a coach in 1923. and 74 years later he found that STROMS son. Paul. was a remains a coach and teacher to all of member of my fraternity. Beta Theta us. Pi. and that several of his fraternity Senator THURMOND. it is a pleasure brothers were interns in Senator THURand an honor to work beside you. and I MONDs office. I invited them to lunch wish you continued success in a long in the Senate dining room where. midand healthy life that I know you will way through our meal. STROM entered have. with constituents from South Carolina. Mr. President. I yield the floor and I I was deeply touched while watching suggest the absence of a quorum. Paul greet his dad and the constituents
Date: 1997-06-04
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. June 1 through 7 is iecognized throughout the -country as National Small Business Week. I cannot think of a more worthy group to honor. Small business is the heart of not onlyour economy but of bur communities. I hope that my colleagues here in the Congress will be participating in events in their districts to honor this vital sector of our economy. Small business is the engine not just of our Nations economy but of our communities. Typically it is the small business people who are the charitable and civic leaders in our neighborhoods. Small business accounts for 99.7 of the Nations employers. employing 53 percent of the private work force. contributing 47 percent of all sales in the country. and responsible for 50 percent of the private gross domestic product. Yet small business owners face a tax and regulatory system that overburdens and demoralizes them. Government is meant to be the servant of the people. Yet the existing Federal tax and regulatory state unfairly acts as judge. jury. and master of honest. hardworking Americans. In the last 2 years. Congress has passed legislation that helps small business struggle from under the thumb of the Federal Government. the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act and Regulatory Flexibility Act. to name a few. However. there is still a long way to go. This Congress is dedicated to championing legislation designed to encourage small business growth and prosperity. and I am dedicated to becoming one of its chief advocates. Mr. Speaker. I insert the following for the RECORD.
Date: 1997-06-05
Speaker: DAVE HOBSON (republican)
Chamber: H

He has been of enormous help to me through this program. really since 1993. I have personally been working on this since 1989. But the gentleman came on the committee. along with my dear friend. the gentleman from Connecticut. Mr. CHRIS SHAYS and the gentleman from New Jersey. Mr. BOB FRANKS. and they were all particularly special. particularly my friend. the gentleman from Ohio. Mr. DAVE HOBSON. who would take my calls at 1:30 in the morning. I would wake him up. try to get his advice in certain areas. We had a lot of struggles and we have developed some very deep friendships on this committee as a result of this effort. I want to suggest to the people here in the House and to the Speaker that what is remarkable about this debate is I thought that this was going to be like game one against Utah. where we would have to sink a basketball at the buzzer. and in that famous pose of Michael Jordan at the end. he just gave him that hand. We thought it would be a buzzerbeater to balance the budget. What we are seeing happening is a sea change in the attitude of the House of Representatives. Frankly. it is a sea change we are seeing in the Congress. It is one to embrace. it is one to be joyful about. it is one to celebrate. rather than the fighting. the dynamics of this whole debate of change to an era of less government and more power back to the people. Mr. Speaker. I yield the balance of my time to the very distinguished gentleman from Ohio .
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. for 40 years Congress was in the hands of liberal Democrats who succeeded brilliantly in accomplishing two things. First. they made absolutely sure that. come rain or shine. Government would keep getting bigger and bigger year after year. Second. they made absolutely sure that. come rain or shine. Government would take more and more of your money year after year. For the great middle class. playing by the rules and paying taxes. big government liberalism soon became the No. 1 obstacle standing in the way of their hopes and dreams. It is time for change. It is hard to save for your future when Government pursues policies that punish saving. It is hard to pass on the family farm or the family business to your children when the Government hits you with a death tax that the children are unable to pay. It is hard to believe in the American dream anymore when the Government leaves future generations a legacy of more debt and higher taxes. Fortunately. Mr. Speaker. the 1997 budget finally puts an end to 40 years of expanding Government and endless taxation. This Congress should stand squarely behind the balanced budget.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act applicable to the construction of the AuSable hydroelectric project in New York. and for other purposes.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. under section 13 of the Federal Power Act. project construetion must begin within 4 years of issuance of a license. If construction has not begun by that time. the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission cannot extend the deadline and must terminate that license. H.R. 848 and H.R. 1184 provide for extensions for the construction deadline if the sponsor pursues the commencement of construction in good faith and with due diligence. H.R. 1217 provides additional time to complete construction of a project. These types of bills have not been controversial in the past. The bills do not change the license requirements in any way and do not change environmental standards but merely extend construction deadlines. There is a time in which we have to act. since construction deadlines for one project expired in February and the others expire in the coming months. If Congress does not act. the FERC will terminate the licenses. the project sponsors will lose millions of dollars that they have invested in these projects. and communities will lose the prospect of significant job creation and added revenues. I should also note that the bills incorporate the views of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The Energy and Power Subcommittee solicited the views of FERC. and the agency does not oppose any of the three bills we have up today. I would like to briefly describe the first of the bills. H.R. 848. It is a bill to extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project in the State of New York. The AuSable project is very important to the village of Keeseville. Te Prescott Mill hydropower project wds the symbolic heart of the community and the major employee in Keeseville from 1832 until the 1960s. The demise of Prescott Mill in the 1960s caused economic hardship in the village that can be felt today. Redevelopment of the project will provide a badly needed boost to an area that is going through some very hard times. Jobs are important everywhere. we all know that. but especially in Keeseville. whose unemployment is nearly 18 percent. The Prescott Mill projectwould permit the village to attract more businesses. provide 35 temporary jobs during construction and 75 permanent jobs. There is extensive sup.port in the village of Keeseville for this particular project. There is a need to act on H.R.. 848 in a timely manner. since the construction deadline expired last February. Mr. Speaker. I ask that Members support H.R. 848 for the people in Keeseville. NY. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the .balance of my time.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 848. the bill just passed.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act for the construction of the Bear Creek hydroelectric project in the State of Washington. and or other purposes. as amended.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. H.R. 1184. as amended. authorizes the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the deadline for commencement of construction of the Bear Creek hydroelectric project in the State of Washington. The reason for this legislation is the same as with other hydroelectric license extension bills. The onset of intense competition in the electric industry is driving utilities to lower their costs and avoid making longterm commitments. As hydroelectric projects are typically financed through longterm power sales contracts. it has been difficult for manyproject developers to secure financing to construct licensed projects. There is a need to act on this legislation in a very timely manner. since the construction deadline expired on December 9. 1997. I should note that H.R. 1184 does not ease the environmental requirements of the license but merely extends the construction deadline. H.R. 1184. as amended. also would restore a sentence in the Federal Power Act that was erroneously deleted by the General Accounting Office Act of 1996. In the last Congress. both the National Defense Authorization Act and the General Accounting Office Act provided for the deletion of the last sentence of section 6 of the Federal Power Act. The intent of both laws was to strike a requirement that the FERC would file all issued hydropower licenses with the General Accounting Office. However. since theNational Defense Authorization Act was enacted first. the General Accounting Office Act erroneously deleted the nexttolast sentence of section 6 of the Federal Power Act which addressed the authority of FERO to revoke hydropower licenses. H.R. 1184 would restore this sentence to -the Federal Power Act. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has no objection to this particular legislation and I urge the support of 1184. as amended. Mr. Speaker. Ireserve the balance of my time.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 1184. the bill just passed.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act for the construction of a hydroelectric project located in the State of Washington. and for other purposes.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. H.R. 1217 would direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to extend the deadline for the completion of construction of the Youngs Creek hydroelectric project in the State of Washington. The commencement of construction of this project was initiated in a timely manner. and the project developer expended about 25 percent of total project cost. which is $5.3 million. However. the developer has been unable to secure financing to complete project construction due to uncertainties in the electric industry. H.R. 1217 extends the deadline for the completion of construction until May 4. 2004. As is the case with others. the extension under the bill does not change or alter the environmental requirements in any way. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has no objection to this legislation. I would urge support of H.R. 1217. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would also like to congratulate the gentleman from Washington for his excellent work on these last two bills. I know it is very. very important to the State of Washington. his district.
Date: 1997-06-10
Speaker: DAN SCHAEFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1217. the bill just passed.
Date: 1997-06-11
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. the liberals are nervous. The taxandspend crowd is outraged. The big government supporters of the status quo have declared war. And what is all the fuss about? The reason for the anxiety is pretty clear. Those who built the welfare state over the past 40 years are about to have their credit card taken away. What I hold in my hand. Mr. Speaker. is my congressional voting card. It is given to each Member of Congress. For some it is like a credit card. We stick it in the box. we press the button and we spend and spend and spend. and my children and your children are given the bill. Well. guess what. Mr. Speaker? After 40 years of big government liberalism. the frenzy of credit card madness is about to end. With nothing to show for it but $5 trillion in debt and thousands of broken liberal promises. Washington is about to act responsibly for the first time in memory. Washington now has the opportunity to pass a balanced budget with tax cuts. an absolute nightmare to those who built the welfare state over the last 40 years. But their day is past. This balanced budget represents a new era. Mr. Speaker. the era of credit Card madness is over.
Date: 1997-06-18
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. there seems to be a lot of confusion on the other side of the aisle about who is giving and who is taking. I am talking. of course. about those of my colleagues who believe this liberal baloney about giving. giving the people that which already belongs to them. Not a day passes in Washington without the left wing of Congress mindlessly repeating something that I hold to be blatantly false. that the politicians are giving anybody a tax break. Only in Washington do people define taking a little less to somehow be giving. Now. the wealthy. who give the most. sometimes hundreds of times more than anybody else. are not taking from anyone. Yes. Mr. Speaker. that is the key to the liberals failure to understand this issue. Every time Tiger Woods wins another tournament or Bill Gates brings about another software innovation to the marketplace. or a farmer in Colorado buys another section. no one is worse off by their achievements. Government takes from them. not the other way around. The term "tax cuts for the rich" is just another liberal euphemism for their genuine belief that the fruits of their labor does not really belong to them. and that these politicians in Washington should have greater claim to it than they do. "
Date: 1997-06-18
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise today to warn the working men and women of this country that the President has broken his word. He says he is going to veto a tax bill that contains exactly what he agreed to. badly needed tax relief for families and children. Through his spokesman. the President says he will not sign a tax bill that contains a $500perchild tax credit. estate tax relief. and a capital gains reduction. I am outraged. first. that he would once again break his word. and second. that no one is holding him accountable. Every American who is faced with high taxes deserves an explanation. It is time for the President to quit playing games. Mr. President. honor your commitment. America needs tax relief now.
Date: 1997-06-18
Speaker: LINDA SMITH (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Washington

Mr. Chairman. as a member of the Committee on Resources from the beautiful State of Washington. I rise in strong support of this bill. The National Sea Grant College Program is very important to the Pacific Coast. but especially to my district. I want to commend the gentleman from Alaska of the Committee on Resources and especially the gentleman from New Jersey who is also the bills sponsor. But never to forget the subcommittee staff because they actually do so much of the work in making sure that the bill works right. The National Sea Grant program is a network of over 300 colleges. universities and research institutions throughout the country focused on the wise use of marine resources. Literally thousands of coastal communities and small coastal businesses depend on Sea Grant for a wide range of services and for critical. impartial. scientific advice and help. Over half of our Nations population resides in coastal districts and Sea Grant plays a significant role in improving the lives of our constituents through highquality competitive research. education and community outreach. For example. in my home State of Washington. Sea Grant has helped save our States shellfish industry which is dominated by small familyowned operations. They have done this through the development of a highquality. yearround triploid oyster. Sea Grants information on strategic planning and financial management of public ports has been unmatched. in our area at least. and the programs effort in small coastal communities in our area are demonstrating economic and social benefits of waterfront revitalization. H.R. 437. as reported by the Committee on Resources. makes significant improvements in the program by streamlining the proposed review processes and reducing administration. Now this is capping the overall program costs while still serving the communities. and this is what this Congress is all about. doing it better. balancing the budget and still serving. I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill. and I again want to thank the chairman for introducing it and for its sponsor.
Date: 1997-06-19
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I guess it is not surprising to hear so many Democrat voices voice opposition to tax relief. The same liberal Democrats who claim to care so much about children have a strange way of showing it. According to the House Committee on Ways and Means. 657.000 children in the State of Connecticut would be eligible for the tax credit if the Republican tax bill were to become law. That is $1.1 billion for Connecticut children. Mr. Speaker. In the State of New York. 3.1 million kids. that is 3.1 million kids. Mr. Speaker. stand to benefit from the Republican tax relief package. That translates into $5.3 billion for New York children. Do these liberals really want to deny that help to their States children? Perhaps this is how the liberals now define compassion. take money away from the parents. set up some huge Government program and hire bureaucrats to replace parents.
Date: 1997-06-19
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. the average worker is working longer and harder to achieve the American dream. in part because it has been 16 years since this Congress has passed any significant tax relief. This is about to change. The House and Senate have drafted bills which would provide five important areas of relief for our workers. our families and our children. They include a $500 per child tax credit. death tax relief. capital gains reduction. expanded IRAs and education initiatives to help children afford college. These were agreed to by the President and the Congress and this Congress has held up its end of the bargain. but the President is backtracking. Tell me. is the President for tax relief or not? It is time for the President to quit waffling. Americans want. need and deserve tax relief now.
Date: 1997-06-19
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman from Michigan for bringing this issue forward and for his leadership in the effort. In the conference that we had yesterday to announce the bill. of course we were joined by many people from the agriculture industry. as well as the steel industry. and many individuals. many industries represented that shipping and goods and services throughout the country. and the Jones agent. back in the 1920s is the age on this thing. was described as an act which increases the cost of goods and services to consumers. Now. I come from a State where we produce a lot of wheat. an awful lot of corn. a lot of cattle. and a lot of pork. and so on. and shipping is an incredibly important mode of transportation for these goods that need to get to market. The wheat farmers. as one example. in Colorado tell me that the cost of a bushel of wheat is increased by upward of $1 per bushel because of the regulatory impact of the Jones Act. I commend the gentleman from Michigan for bringing this issue forward. By deregulating this particular industry. we stand a chance of turning these numbers around. actually increasing the number of ships produced in the United States. the number of people employed in the industry by appealing to the benefits of the free market. and in the long run. reduce the cost for consumers throughout the country and strengthen our global and competitive position.
Date: 1997-06-19
Speaker: BOB SCHAFFER (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Colorado

Mr. Speaker. it is interesting. when you hear the liberals here in Washington. as we heard all day today- talking about the Congress giving something to taxpayers. this notion that government gives something away when we lower taxes is a fallacy in and of itself. It really underlies the problems with the arguments that they try to make. insulting our efforts to try to provide tax relief for American families and to allow for families to keep more of what they earn for themselves. This government takes things away from the American people. It confiscates the wealth of families and sends it here to Washington where we distribute -it to the charity of the governments choice.