macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2008-09-18
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Madam Speaker. I thank my distinguished friend. Ms. CASTOR. Americans are tired of spending more and more of their paycheck. of their resources. for their energy needs. And for months they have been calling on us to take up legislation that will help lower the price of gasoline. Now just like the overwhelming majority of the American people. we in the minority in this Congress have been calling for legislation that will help the American consumer with the skyrocketing price of energy. Yet every time we have tried to debate real energy legislation. the majority has blocked and has stymied our efforts. In August. the majority decided to go on the recess instead of seeking to solve an extraordinarily high priority for the American people. the rising gas prices. I guess the majority must have heard quite a bit from their constituents in August because when they re-. turned in September. they decided they would finally say they would debate energy legislation. On Tuesday of this week. the majority brought to the floor legislation. the socalled Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act. which does nothing to produce energy or provide Americans with energy security since it will only increase our dependence on unstable foreign sources of energy. The bill brought to the floor this week by the majority was a farce. It will never be enacted into law and was only put together to provide the majority with an attempt at political cover so they can say that they passed energy legislation when in reality they did nothing. Now the majority is set to end this Congress and any chance to actually pass genuine comprehensive energy legislation. Thats where we are today. Well. we do not have to leave here and head home without having considered comprehensive energy legislation. Madam Speaker. I will be urging my colleagues to vote with me to defeat the previous question so the House can finally consider genuine solutions to rising energy costs. If the previous question is defeated. I will move to amend the rule to prohibit the consideration of a concurrent resolution providing for adjournment until comprehensive energy legislation has been enacted into law. Madam Speaker. I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of the amendment and extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.
Date: 2008-09-18
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

By voting "no" on the previous question. Members can assure their constituents that they are committed to enacting legislation to help their constituents with rising energy prices. I also remind Members that the previous question in no way will prevent consideration of H.R. 3036. this legislation on environmental grants to schools. I encourage a "no" vote on the previous question. Madam Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-23
Speaker: DEAN STONE (republican)
Chamber: S

The Daily Times. Maryville. Tennessee. DEAR DEAN. It is an especially good idea to celebrate your birthday and that of The Daily Times all at once. because for me. and I am sure for most Blount Countians. it is hard to separate the two. That was true when I was a Maryville High School student years ago and you hired me to contribute to the Times school news page. But it is even more true today because for the last half century I have so much enjoyed your photographs. your stories. and your opinions about Blount County. No one has ever done a better or more complete job of covering our families and communities. Years from now. when anyone looks back to try to understand Blount Countyits history. its people. and its mountains--the first place to go will be to a Dean Stone photograph of Cades Cove. or "Bits of stone" about some family. or a carefully reasoned editorial about why we should think now about what our countys landscape will look like later. Happy birthday. Deanand MaryvilleAlcoas The Daily Timesfrom a grateful former paperboy and school news correspondent. Sincerely.
Date: 2008-09-23
Speaker: ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN (republican)
Chamber: H

for her leadership. for her leadership on human rights. She has been a stalwart for years. and I want to thank her for her tremendous leadership. I want to thank Mr. McGOVERN for sponsoring this. and for his commitment as well. And I especially want to thank Congressman FRANK WOLF with whom Ive been in Congress now for 28 years. And there is no one that I know or have ever met who cares more deeply. more passionately. more. fervently. nor works more effectively to promote human rights around the globe. I have traveled with FRANK. I would be more than happy to carry his bags. He is just such a tremendous individual. Ill never forget when the International Religious Freedom Act was being considered. It was his legislation. He was the prime sponsor. I held a number of hearings on it as chairman of the Global Human Rights Subcommittee on the Foreign Affairs Committee. and there was significant opposition to that legislation. The Clinton administration was against it. on the record. said so in hearings. Assistant Secretary for Democracy. Labor and Human Rights. John Shattuck. couldnt have made it more clear. They made a bogus argument that the legislation would set up a hierarchy of human rights. visavis. all other human rights. Our argument was religious freedom was integral. and a necessary part of a fabric of protecting everyone who was weak and disenfranchised. That includes religious believers. regardless of what their belief system might be. And we wanted to speak out in a very powerful way.
Date: 2008-09-23
Speaker: JUDY BIGGERT (republican)
Chamber: H

This. Mr. Speaker. is much needed legislation to enhance and to improve a program that assists families who hold a section 8 housing voucher with the goal of leading to economic independence. .Under the Family SelfSufficiency Program. public housing agencies work with welfare agencies. schools and businesses to develop a program that gives participating Family SelfSufficiency families the skills and experiences necessary for them to obtain employment that pays a living wage. Now. this is not an expensive program. In my State of Wisconsin. for example. eight public housing authorities have successfully competed for Family SelfSufficiency Programs with awards ranging from $34.000 up to only $47.000. But while it is expensive. its inexpensive. It is very successful. While my home public housing authorities in Milwaukee do not anticipate the section 8 family selfsufficiency programs. they do have a public housing family selfsufficiency program in its second year. which is very similar to the section 8 selfsufficiency program. They have linked in really creative way to a "Make Your Money Talk" program. Its a wealthbuilding program that is partnered with the Wisconsin Womens Business Initiative Corporation. and they have 39 families enrolled. Based on prior outcomes. participants have used their savings generated from family selfsufficiency to start a business or purchase a home. One resident in particular. a resident of the Westlawn housing development. has started her own cleaning business that has become quite successful. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-25
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. the news on this Wall Street bailout has me fuming. Taxpayers want. need. and deserve answers and accountability. The Treasury Secretary should not have the authority to spend $700 billion with zero oversight. Meanwhile. a provision in the bill says that banks that bought Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac preferred stock get better tax treatment than an individual who bought preferred stock. That is wrong. Why shouldnt banks be held responsible for their mistakes? I am not sure this is the best Way to fix the problem. We need to discuss serious alternatives before we ask Americans to shoulder billions in additional debt. Hundreds of my constituents have called outraged at this Wall Street rescue. They want to know when we are going to bail them out. I am outraged too. Taxpayers deserve better from America.
Date: 2008-09-25
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H

of Florida. Madam Speaker. I would like to thank my good friend. Mr. CARDOZA. the gentleman from California. for the time. and I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker. on the opening day of this Congress. the distinguished chairwoman of the Rules Committee.
Date: 2008-09-25
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

No. I would inform my friend that we have no other speakers. So at this time I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-25
Speaker: TIM MURPHY (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Pennsylvania

I thank Ranking Member DEAL. also Chairman PALLONE and Ranking Member BARTON and Chairman DINGELL for their work on this bill. but particularly to Representative GENE GREEN. the cosponsor of this legislation. for his hard work and commitment and also really for the teamwork that he engineered with the committee to work on this. There are about 1.100 community health centers that employ about 6.000 physicians. They provide critically affordable primary care to more than 16 million people nationwide. It is important to note when people toss about numbers of the number of uninsured in America. and many of those uninsured are extra covered by Medicaid. many by their private plans. but these 16 million people we agree really are uninsured folks in America. and the community health centers are a place where they can have a quality health care home. When we note that what happens with community health centers. what they provide in terms of primary care. dental care. podiatry. mental health care. and so many other areas that provide care. particularly in prenatal. it is of great concern that there simply are not enough physicians and other health care providers to give that care. The greatest vacancy rates are in rural and inner city health centers where their vacancy rates range between 19 and 29 percent of the current workforce. These are shortages of physicians. nurse practitioners. physicians assistants. midwives. dentists. and all of those are open because the community health centers simply do not have the money to pay for all of those employees. What Im disappointed about in this billand I know Congressman GREEN worked very hard. as did Congressman DEAL to keep this in hereis the idea that we cannot let physicians volunteer at these centers. I know were all jointly disappointed because the community health centers. if they were able to have physicians volunteer at these centers. they could be covered by the Federal Torts Claim Act. Otherwise. they have to rely on paying their own malpractice insurance. which could run tens of thousands. if not well over $100.000. and community health centers cannot afford to cover that cost. The legislation I offered would have allowed Good Samaritan doctors to volunteer their time helping those in need. We have to come back -to this next year because in the meantime. many people without health insurance. or who are underinsured. rely upon community health centers for a whole host of their care. I look forward to working with my House and Senate colleagues in the future to ensure that legislation allowing doctors. nurses. psychologists. and other specialists to volunteer their time at community health centers. We must make that a law in order to provide care for so many people who need it at. I might add. a very. very low cost. Again. I thank Chairman DINGELL. Ranking Member BARTON. Chairman PALLONE. Rankifig Member DEAL. and Representative GREEN for their hard work on this. bill. Their impassioned teamwork to help provide care to those most in need is to be applauded.
Date: 2008-09-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

That being the case. Mr. Speaker. "man is man plus his circumstances." That is one. I think. of the wisest sayings I have ever heard by one of the great philosophers of the 20th century. Jose Ortega y Gasset. who led a fascinating life. He was a professor in various universities in Spain. actually dabbled in politics. was a member of the parliament during the Second Republic in the 1930s in Spain. and then was a longtime exile. Toward the end of his life. I think he returned to Spain but just for a short period of time because he did not outlive the Franco dictatorship and Ortega y Gasset never wanted to live nor. quite frankly. visit his country under dictatorship. But that phrase. "man is man plus his circumstances." I think. summarizes so much of life. And so we today. while not engaged. because this is a procedural debate and I would expect my friend on the other side of the aisle to agree that perhaps it is not one of the most popular to watch if a guest were here in the galleries because it is procedural. this debate. And yet process really is key to the functioning of representative democracy. Mr. Speaker. Why do I say that: because the rights of the minority are just as important as the right of the majority to rule. You cant have a functioning. a genuine. representative democracy unless. along with the right of the majority to rule. the minority has the right to be heard. And the opposition. the minority. has the right to play a significant role. And so process is what makes that possible. Without process. guaranteeing the rights of the majority to rule and the minority to be heard and to have all of the procedural rights followed by the majority. without that process. there can be no representative democracy. And so even though this debate may seem somewhat technical. process is important. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Ortega y Gasset. In Spain. you often have compound names or long names. Ortega y Gasset. An extraordinary philosopher. really a liberal in the best sense of the word and an open man. a man open to realize. my distinguished friends. that good ideas often come from not only both but all pQlitical viewpoints. And Ortega y Gasset was one such thinker. I highly recommend him to such an erudite. studious not only here Member of the House but generally a man of the law as my friend.
Date: 2008-09-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

I thank my distinguished colleague for his remarks. and for this opportunity of being able to bring forward the points that we both brought forward today. Mr. Speaker. let me say at this point that Americans are really upset with regard to spending more and more of their paycheck for energy needs. For months they have been calling on Congress to consider legislation to help lower the price of gasoline. Just like the American people. the minority has been calling for legislation that will help the American consumer with the skyrocketing price of energy. Yet every time the minority has tried to debate comprehensive energy legislation. the majority has blocked and stymied our efforts. fl 1245 In August. the majority decided to close shop. head back to their districts. instead of really seeking to solve. in a comprehensive manner. this extraordinary issue facing our constituents. which is the rising price of gasoline. So I would imagine the majority heard quite a bit from their constituents in August. because when they returned in September they decided that they would finally. at least. debate energy legislation. Last week the majority brought to the floor their socalled Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act. which really. ironically. did nothing to produce energy or provide Americans with energy security since really it only. that legislation. increased our dependence on unstable foreign sources of energy. So that bill is most unfortunate. Also. it wont be enacted into law. and it was only put together to provide the majority with a kind of political cover to say that they actually passed energy legislation. when. in reality. they did nothing. Now. the majority is set to end this Congress and. really. any chance to actually pass a comprehensive energy bill. comprehensive energy legislation will also end with this Congress for now. Our point is that this is not appropriate. We think that the energy issue is of extraordinary importance. and that we should not leave without comprehensive energy legislation. Mr. Speaker. I will be urging my colleagues to vote "no" to vote with me to defeat the previous question so that the House can finally consider comprehensive solutions to rising energy costs. If the previous question is defeated. I will move to amend this rule to prohibit the consideration of a concurrent resolution providing for an adjournment until comprehensive energy legislation has been enacted into law. Mr. Speaker. I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of the amendment and extraneous materials immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.
Date: 2008-09-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

By voting "no" on the previous question. Members can assure their constituents that they are committed to enacting legislation to help their constituents with rising energy prices. I also remind Members that the previous question in no way would prevent consideration of any of the suspension bills. I urge a "no" vote on the previous question. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-27
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. I thank the gentleman for yieldink. I feel like I am intruding on a legislative committee lovefest here. but I understand the camaraderie that surrounds your committee. and I appreciate the work that you are doing on this issue. particularly making sure that the Deepwater program works and works well. I would just like to take a moment to comment on the portion of the legislation referred to earlier relating to the semisubmersible vessels. Language addressing this issue has passed this House on two occasions. in connection with the Coast Guard authorization. as well as a freestandingbill on suspension. Congressman TED POE of Texas and I sought to enact criminal penalties for the use of these stateless vessels which. as you examine them. have no legitimate use other than to transport illegal vessels and perhaps other threats to our national security. The only substantive difference in the language before us today is that it also includes a Senate provision which would provide the option of civil penalties of up to $1 million. which would give the Federal prosecutors additional flexibility to end this illicit commerce. Lets understand what were talking about. Selfpropelled submersibles and semisubmersibles are watercraft of unorthodox construction capable of putting much of their bulk under the surface of the water. which makes them very difficult to detect. The selfpropelled submersible and semisubmersible vessels are typically less than 100 feet in length. usually carry between five and six tons of illicit cargo. Now. we found that they carry drugs. guns and people. but we also should be concerned that they could potentially be vessels to carry weapons of mass destruction. The range of these vessels is astonishing. its sufficient to reach the southeastern United States from the north coast of South America without refueling. According to recent press reports. in order to cover even longer distances. some of these vessels have been caught while being towed by larger ships with the idea that they would be released for the final approach to the shores of California or off the northeast coast of the United States. In the last 2 weeks alone. the Coast Guard has seized two of these vessels carrying over 14 tons of cocaine. Now. to put that in perspective. the value of one of these loads was nearly $200 million. Mr. Speaker. its time to shut down these new seaborne threats to our Nations communities and to our overall national security. And I would urge support of this bill for many reasons. but particularly for this as well.
Date: 2008-09-27
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of the bill H.R. 6600. the Medicare Identity Prevention Act. I thank Mr. DOGGETT for bringing it up. Apparently we cant get any resolution on Social Security so we need to do it one baby step at a time. Americans are rightly worried about the security of their personal information. including their Social Security number. Practically every day we hear about another data breach in the private or public sector where identity information of hundreds. if not thousands. of people is stolen. According to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. the total number of known records that have been compromised since January 2005 is over 158 million. Even though Social Security numbers were created to track earn-
Date: 2008-09-27
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.
Date: 2008-09-27
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. its wonderful to be on the floor here this Saturday evening with you and with my colleague on the full committee. And this is one of several bills that we are bringing to the floor to finish up the work of the Homeland Security Committee for this Congress. I rise in support of S. 2816. this bill to provide the Secretary of Homeland Security with the authority to appoint the Chief Human Capital Officer at the Department of Homeland Security. The bill was introduced by Senators VOINOVICH and AKAKA. and it repeals a provision in the Homeland Security Act that includes this official among DHS officials to be appointed by the President. This bill will provide uniformity by allowing DHS to operate under the same guidelines as other Federal agencies. where the head of the agency has the authority to designate the director of human resources. The Homeland Security Subcommittee on Management. Investigations. and Oversight has held a number of hearings on personnel issues at DHS. and we understand. all of us on the full committee. just how impqrtant this bill is. DHS Undersecretary for Management. Ms. Elaine Duke. has informed Congress about the need for this legislation. Under Elaine Dukes effective leadership and guidance. a number of significant improvements have been made at DHS. She is now overseeing the transition of DHS to the next administration. which is critical to the continued operations of the Department and the security of our Nation. As everyone in this Chamber knows. the creation of the Department of Homeland Security was the greatest reorganization of the Federal Government since the creation of the Defense Department. And its had its ups and downs. but I think now it is generally moving in the right direction. and I believe the current Secretary of DHS is to be commended for the tremendous work that he has done. The Department of Homeland Security Authorization Act for fiscal year 2008 included a number of provisions to strengthen personnel programs and systems at DHS. We in the House passed that bill last year. but the Senate did not. Unfortunately. the House did not act on a DHS authorization bill in 2008. I would hope this would be a priority for the 111th Congress early next year. Until then. I would urge passage of the bill before us today. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2008-09-27
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I would urge support for this bill. With that. I would yield back the balance of my time.