macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chair. I yield myself 2 minutes. I rise in opposition to this amendment to remove the requirement that States and school districts implement teacher evaluation systems. We put $17 billion into this system every year. and we ought to at least see if we can make sure that those who are responsible for implementing it have the opportunity to improve their skills. to improve their talents. to collaborate with one another so that they can improve the teacher and learning environment. That is the goal of the evaluations: to take the skills that teachers bring to the classrooms and see. in consultation with others. with the principals. with their peers in that school district. whether or not we can improve their skills to deliver the education that we know that our children need. We know that all teachers are not of the same talent. but by having evaluations. you. in fact. have the ability to then raise the skills of those individuals. If you would travel the country. and if you would talk to younger teachers all across the country. they would tell you how excited they are about evaluation systems. how excited they are about the collaborationabout their working with one another. I have visited teachers in the process of doing that. in developing that informationin developing the skills and in watching one another teach and in presenting the various lesson plans and curriculums. and then weighing back and forth what was more effective and what was less effective. what they would change. and how they would do it differently the next time. Under this legislation. under our legislation. we encourage local districts to do that. We want them to take control of it. We want teachers to be in the design of those systems. Yet now the idea that you would not require some evaluation of the people who are delivering this education is just to go back to a time when it didnt matter. I guess. who dropped out of school or who didnt thrive or who didnt do wellbut thats not this economy. thats not our social structure. and thats not the desire and the hopes and aspirations of the parents and of the students in those schools. So I would hope that we would oppose this amendment and that we would defeat this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I demand a recorded vote. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII. further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Louisiana will be postponed.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I yield myself 2 minutes. Mr. Chairman. I rise in opposition to this amendment offered by the gentleman from Utah. I just dont quite understand it. If a State doesnt make application for various funds that are available under title II. I dont know why you would prohibit a district from doing so. I dont know the rationale for the States decision not to make application. but that may have very little to do with the needs of a particular school district. In my State. it might be a large district like Los Angeles or it might be a small rural district in the northern corner of the State. If they feel that these funds would help them and they have a need for those. I dont know why and I dont know that were interfering with any great relationship here between States and the Federal Government. I dont pretend to be familiar with the exact governance in the State of Utah. but in California the districts are pretty darn autonomous and our county offices of education are very autonomous. and very often a county office will apply for these kinds of funds in an area of smaller school districts to bring them together to utilize those funds in the most efficient way to continue. Most of title II is about the development of teachers and professional development. I oppose this amendment. I think it just makes it much more difficult and more bureaucratic for local school districts. Weve heard time and again here that these are the people who know best. so apparently they know better than the State officials. but were going to let the State officials block them from doing what they know is best when they decide what is best is to try to access title II. So I oppose this amendment. and I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I didnt say they were autonomous. I said that they operate nearly autonomous. I guess if the State wanted to rein them in in California and Utah. they would rein them in. But they make applications all the time for title II funds. and apparently California and Colorado may want to do something about that. That sounds like a State problem. Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I ask unanimous consent that my request for a recorded vote on amendment No. 12 be withdrawn to the end that the Chair put the question on the amendment de novo. The Acting CHAIR. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California?
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I want to commend the gentleman for his amendment and thank him for all of his work and leadership that he has brought to the committee on charter schools. And I will vote for the amendment if the gentleman can say again five times "starter charter startup funds." If you can say that really quickly five times. then I will vote for the amendment.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I want to commend you so much for offering this amendment. In touring schools my entire time in Congress and talking to parents and talking to school officials where we have these kinds of resources available to engage parents. the outcomes of the students are very often dramatically improved. The participation by the parents is dramatically improved. The participation by the parents at home with the students is changed in a very dramatic fashion. Just recently. in the North Bay in the San Francisco area up in Napa County. the participation of the parents with English learning students who are in kindergarten with the use of an iPad and getting the parents to come together and understand this technology. how it could help their children learn English. how it could help them learn English. and then imparting with the parents that they could also use it for job search. the engagement was just phenomenal. and these students continue to soar as they now are in the third grade. So these kinds of possibilities where you bring parents and get that kind of involvement. it changes it so much. Helms Middle School in my district. we not only tore it down and rebuilt it. but we made it a community school with family engagement. and there are parents on that campus all of the time engaged with their kids education. with their neighbors kids education. and their own education. I really commend you. I think this is a very important amendment as we seek to have parents involved in schools. and thank you so much.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chair. I claim time in opposition to this amendment. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chair. I rise in opposition to this amendment. This is some kind of political exercise. I dont know what the value of this is to the public. It is to take Federal officials in the Department of Education. including the Secretary. and somehow going to create a lot of makework for them. I think it is unnecessary. I dont quite understand the theory behind it. There is program consolidation going on. so we are going to learn the average wage of the people whose jobs were unfortunately. I guess because of sequestration at the moment. eliminated. and I dont know how that will help the education of the young children. Then we are going to figure out the average salary. All this information is available to the Appropriations Committee. It is a matter of public record. It is available to the public. But we will go through some kind of computation then. those who are left making more than $100.000. I really dont know. again. what this has to do with the education of young children across this Nation. Again. I know we had to pass an amendment to say this. but its already the law. There is nothing that requires any State. any school district to accept these programs. You have to sign up. You have to make applications for programs. If you dont make applications. you dont get them. This isnt forced down your throat. Its very hard to make sense out of this amendment.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

In reclaiming my time. I understand transparency when its of value. I understand transparency when its directed to a specific purpose. This is transparency in the sense that the general knowledge of these wages is a matter of public record. as your salary and my salary are a matter of public record. When you get it all compiled. then what are you going to dosend out notices to everybody in the United States as to where this resides and how they can get ahold of it? Put it online? Thats what youre going to spend your money doing? Its already available. They can look up somebody in the Department of Education at any time.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

In reclaiming my time. why doesnt the Appropriations just tell the Congress the results of sequestration? Theyre involved in sequestration every day. Why dont they just file a report and tell the Congress and tell the public and put out a press release and tell the people. "This is what happened"? Why do you have to mandate all of this sort of "make work"? I thought the purpose was to try to eliminate unnecessary work for people.
Date: 2013-07-18
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

The gentleman has time remaining. and I dont have much time. I would just say that. again. this really doesnt address the major concerns underlying this bill. and that is that this bill continues to let students down and that this amendment does nothing to ensure that students graduate from high school. If you want to talk about serious transparency in this bill. students with disabilities become invisible in terms of the accountability by school districts as to how theyre doing with their education and if education has been offered to them and if theyve had a chance at assessment so they can demonstrate what theyve learned. This legislation doesnt do that. and this amendment doesnt help that in terms of transparency. Its some mindless transparency about the wages of government officials thats already transparent and all a matter of public record. It doesnt do anything about what the impact is of sequestration on the poorest schools in some of the poorest districts in the countryin trying to educate some of the poorest kids in this country. kids who need those additional resources. This bill grinds away on those. and this amendment doesnt change it. This amendment doesnt change the block grants that now allow money to leave the public sector. to leave public schools that are in desperate need of these resourcestaking care of the title I students and schoolsand then send that off to the private sector. So the transparency here is all wrong. The real transparency is what this legislation does. and the American people ought to understand how damaging this is to our local schools all across this country and how exceptionally damaging this legislation is to the poorest schools in our country and in our States and to the students who are going to those schools and who are trying to achieve a firstclass education. That opportunity is being denied to them under this legislation. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: At the end of the bill add the following:
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. well. as we started. the reason why the Federal Government got engaged in education is because I remember times in the South and across America when there was unequal education and we needed the U.S. Department of Education. More importantly. we needed the courts. Today I stand here and ask for a simple inquiry made by the U.S. Department of Education: Are State agencies effectively closing school districts and not seeking to improve them? A very fine example is the closure of the North Forest Independent School District in Houston. Texas. Its solvent. 50.000 registered voters. 7.000 students. had received awards. and what did the State agency do. the State agency came in. to the opposition of the community. teachers. supporters of a combined effort between a public school and charter school. proposed coming together to put forward the best proposal to keep this school teaching our children. support by Republicans and Democrats. and an autocratic State agency closed the school district. So this is a simple inquiry. It is an inquiry as to whether or not you want to boost up the taxpayers and boost up the parents who have no standing. It is a question of whether or not you want to make sure that there is a basis of a fair appeal as opposed to an autocratic process. a dictatorial process. I ask my colleagues. all of them have faced this. No one wants to interfere with the running of a school district or interfere with the administrators or educators. but what you do want to interfere with is business decisions closing rural school districts and closing urban school districts and not allowing the people. the teachers to be able to understand and to give input into the best process. Mr. Chairman. I would like to refer to the Center on Reinventing Public Education. and I would argue in closing. Mr. Chairman. that this amendment gives opportunity. I ask you to support the Jackson Lee amendment. I yield back the balance of my time. The Acting CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Texas .
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. I demand a recorded vote. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII. further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlewoman from Texas will be postponed.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I rise to claim the time in opposition. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman is recognized for 5 minutes.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Chairman. this amendment just doesnt address the realities of the current law. First of all. the underlying bill takes away the choice that parents have today. This amendment wants to pretend like its a choice. When the gentleman from Utah says the money follows the child. no. in Utah they have State equalization. Its the same amount of money wherever you go. No money follows you. The suggestion in the Cantor amendment is that somehow this money will follow you. except that it requires States and districts to set up an entirely new bookkeeping system. These are people who say they dont want to burden those districts. The fact of the matter is. under current law. parents can choose to send their children to another school. Whether all of the money will follow them or not. under the Cantor amendment. theres no mechanism and theres no money. There is no full entitlement to the money. I know the gentleman wanted to have vouchers. and this is an imitation voucher. but it doesnt work. It simply doesnt work for the child. for the parents. or for the school districts. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

The reason some schools dont have a lot of title I money. or some title I money. is they dont have title I students. It follows the students to those schools.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I have an amendment in the nature of a substitute at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Strike the text and insert the following:
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Can I inquire how much time I have remaining? The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from California has 5 minutes remaining. The gentleman from Minnesota has 71/4 minutes remaining.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. if I might inquire as to the time remaining. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman from California has 3 minutes remaining. The gentleman from Minnesota has 21/4 minutes remaining.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Chairman. Members of the House. this substitute that I have introduced on behalf of the Democrats creates a fundamental choice for this body in our vote later today. It creates a fundamental choice of whether or not this Nation is going to go forward and provide a highquality education to every student or whether this Nation is going to go back to a time when students are left out of this system. when resources werent provided. when schools werent keeping up. Its also a question of whether or not were going to break a promise and go back on our constitutional responsibility to make sure that all students have access to that educationpoor students. minority students. Englishlearning students. students with disabilities. Are we going to hold school districts and schools accountable for providing that educational opportunity for those students. and will those students have the same access to a highquality education that in many instances is available across town. in the next neighborhood. but not in their neighborhood or isnt accessible because its not friendly or welcoming to students with disabilities or students who are learning the English language? Will they have the same rights to that education? We know from this economy and this economic downturn that we need every one of those students to be able to be productive. successful. and achieving. But thats not what the Republican bill promises. It grinds down the funding available to these school districts for poor and minority children and for students with disabilities. It grinds it down because it marks it down to the sequestration label. So quietly and silently. school districts all over the Nation are going to be losing the resources for these poor children. Were stealing money from the poorest people in this country to achieve deficit reduction. but tax reform maybe next year. the year after. or the year after. Economic justice sometime later down the road. Today. this is about education justice and whether or not every student and every family is going to have access to a highquality education that no longer depends on their Zip Code or the neighborhood or the town in which they live. You know. its been said very often from the other side that somehow all we want is a Washingtonknowsbest solution and what they offer is something opposite of that. No. what weve put together in this substitute is different than Washington knows best. This is about parents who know best. parents who demand the accountability that is in the substitute and not in the Republican bill. Because they want to know if their child is learning in that schooltheir child who may be poor. their child who may have disabilities. their child who may have learning problems. They want to know if their child is learning. This is parents who want to know best. teachers who want to know best. who want the resources so they can teach those children. the business community that wants a welltrained workforceThe Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

An educated workforce. Thats why the Business Roundtable. thats why the Chamber of Commerce opposes their bill. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Educators who want a strong system. thats why they oppose their bill. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Parents who want it. thats why they oppose their bill. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Children are running out of time in this Nation because theyre grinding down and streaming their money. The Acting CHAIR. The gentleman will suspend. The gentleman is not recognized.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I demand a recorded vote. The Acting CHAIR. Pursuant to clause 6 of rule XVIII. further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from California will be postponed.
Date: 2013-07-19
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. let me thank the gentleman from Virginia for his courtesy. and I thank the Speaker. Yesterday was the 95th birthday of former President Nelson Mandela. What a joy to be able to hear that during the time of celebration that we had here in the United States Congress. President Mandela. who had been ill for a period of time. had earphones on and was looking at television. The words that came from the minority and majority leader. Republicans and Democrats. the Speaker and leader. Republicans and Democrats and various leaders of the House. commended and recognized that a man who had come from the tyranny of separation and apartheid. who had to be against his government in order to free his people. could be recognized and applauded. because when he walked out of Robben Island. he walked without bitterness. And one of the greatest opportunities that he gave to the world was the idea that there could be a democratic election in South Africa. And from that time. he has been a man who promoted peace and promoted love and led his nation out of the devastation of separation and bitterness with kindness and love. Im delighted to stand on the floor today and say: happy birthday. Madiba. happy birthday. President Nelson Mandela. And if its Gods will. may you live forever onward in better health.