macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2010-07-26
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Madam Speaker. I rise today to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. which was designed in 1990 in an overwhelmingly bipartisan approach to implement laws that would provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities. Why did we wait so long? How grand it is to be able to respond to those disabled. who are challenged. who are intellectually challenged. physically challenged. and who are experiencing difficulties that they should not as a full American citizen. So this law provides them with the armor to prevent discrimination. Today. in Houston. Texas. I was very proud to be with the City of Houston and their 20th celebration of the Americans with Disabilities Act at the West Gray MultiService Center. I can assure you that this evidence of serving people was a grand celebration. So many were there. celebrating at the West Gray MultiService Center in Houston. Texas.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Madam Speaker. Democrats are committed to growing our economy and getting Americans back to work. We want to continue to support Americas manufacturing workers by closing tax loopholes that outsource U.S. jobs overseas. These savings will pay for hometown tax credits for small businesses to expand American manufacturing jobs. The Democrats are boosting incentives to create American clean energy jobs and build stateoftheart wind turbines. solar panels and other new technologies. We can pay for this by ending subsidies to big oil companies. government giveaways to companies that rake in millions of dollars. We are strengthening the rules that the U.S. Government and its contractors buy American. especially to build our transportation. energy and communications infrastructure. And we are telling foreign countries like China to honor fair trade principles or lose American business. In just over 1 year we have turned our economy around. going from losing nearly 800.000 jobs in the last month of the Bush administration to 6 straight months of private sector job growth totaling nearly 600.000 new private sector jobs created just this year. We are heading in the right direction and Democrats are going to ensure that U.S. manufacturing will continue to lead us into economic recovery. America will make things once again.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

I thank the distinguished chairman. Having recently returned from Afghanistan. I can say to you that our soldiers are resilient. and the people of Afghanistan are looking for their government to provide them with the leadership and the resources to improve their quality of life. But our plan is not working. And now that we have two of our trusted and wonderful naval personnel missing. and we realize that this is a place that needs a plan. we cannot continue to support this war when the Government of Afghanistan will not stand up. They will have the necessary security forces. They need to be in front of the line. And we need to provide moneys for Pell grants. for teachers. and firefighters. and police officers. for the settlement for black farmers. 100.000 of them. and for youth jobs and summer jobs for people in America who are unemployed. and those families who need support as a bridge to carry them over. I believe in this Nation. and I believe in our soldiers. I salute them. And I believe it is time to bring them home with honors. They are our heroes. They have done what they needed to do in Afghanistan. They provided for a democratic government. Its time now to bring them home with honor. Vote "no" on this supplemental.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

I thank the distinguished manager and I really applaud Congressman KUCINICH for allowing us to come to the floor today and discuss a crucial aspect of Americas foreign policy. Frankly. I believe it is time for us to come home from Afghanistan. having just returned just over 2 weeks ago. in the early part of July. when I was able to see the enormity of corruption and the lack of standing up by the Afghan Government. But I saw the resilience of the United States military and the willingness of the people in Afghanistan to be able to desire a better quality of life. I think that we are now poised to build the Afghan national security forces and to remove our forces from the dangers of the Taliban neighbors who live in Afghanistan. who are not leaving. who have a difference of opinion. In the instance of Pakistan. I think it is key that we recognize that there are some troubling circumstances. And yes. we do have some questions as relates to the people of Pakistan understanding the great humanitarian work that the American people have done. the work theyve done with USAID. the work theyve done in helping to build schools. and it is the responsibility of the Pakistan Government to be able to emphasize what the presence of the United States is all about. I do not want boots on the ground dealing with hostility. We have boots on the ground all around the world. but theyre not engaged in hostility. Theyre providing. if you will. a level of peacekeeping and friendship and cooperation. Now we need to rid ourselves of the involvement of the ISI in undermining American soldiers in Afghanistan. They cannot be playing around with the Taliban while we are investing treasure. But at the same time Pakistani army or military forces is investing their treasure and we are trying to provide them with the training that is necessary. I believe that what Congressman KUCINICH has done here is important. and he is absolutely right to be able to have this discussion and to recognize that something is awry. Weve got to work together on the humanitarian side to be able to inform the Pakistani people and the Pakistan Parliament and government officials to not run away from the humanitarian work that the United States is doing. We have just passed a multibilliondollar bill that is going to work on building and helping to rebuild Pakistan from the education and social and health carewise. So the training that is being done by our military should be done in a peaceful mode. That should be annunciated by the officials of the Pakistan Government. and they should not run away from the good things that we are doing there. My concern to be able to acknowledge or affirm that we have troops there under the War Powers Act would suggest that we are there in a hostile manner.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

We are perceived with hostility because there has not been a standing up by our friends in Pakistan that we are working collaboratively in a diplomatic manner to enhance the quality of life and to provide for the security. if you will. of the Pakistan people. working with or with their military in the forefront. So I would argue that we have much work to do in Afghanistan. our troops need to come home. and the technical assistance that is being given to the neighbor Pakistan must be defined as that and not defined as a hostile mannor. Im looking forward to us clarifying the relationship and ensuring that the Pakistan intelligence is not undermining this diplomatic. civilianfocused effort of our military using training techniques and to be able to cooperate by allowing the Pakistani military to interact with our military for procedures and process. It is clear that we have a very contentious situation in the region. Pakistan. India. Bangladesh.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

We have a contentious relationship there. but I have great hope as the cochair of the Pakistan Caucus that. working with Pakistani Americans. building on the core of humanitarianism that we are working with with the Pakistan American Foundation that has been developed. that we can overcome the image and the perception the Pakistan people have that were not there to work with them to fight the Taliban. to fight against al Qaeda. to fight against Osama bin Laden. and to put them forward trained and equipped to be able to work on behalf of the Pakistan people.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. on H. Con. Res. 301. rollcall 473. I was unavoidably detained in a hearing. Had I been present. I would have voted "no."
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. I thank our chairman. BOBBY SCOTT. for bringing this forward and to Chairman CONYERS for bringing this forward. You know. about a year and a half ago we put the first stalking legislation together for what we call the UCMJ. the Uniform Code of Military Justice. That is the code or the laws that govern our military. Since I am the ranking woman on all military issues here. I was the author of that. Having looked at that and done that for the military code. I thought about all the issues that were still outstanding in the current Federal civil code. So I am here today to thank you. Mr. Chairman. for allowing me to bring this long overdue piece of legislation. the STALKERS Act of 2010. Representative VIRGINIA Foxx of North Carolina and I have bridged party lines to introduce H.R. 5662. and I want to thank her for her leadership on this issue. There is also a companion bill that will be introduced in the Senate. we hope. next week. No one can deny that the Internet is a remarkable tool. capable of connecting billions of people throughout the world. Unfortunately. it has also proven to be an effective weapon for stalkers to prey on innocent people. Current Federal stalking statutes simply have not caught up with what is going on with the new tools and the emerging technologies that criminals have at their disposal. So the STALKERS Act would bring our lives into the 21st century by giving law enforcement the tools that it needs to combat stalking in the digital age.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

I do. thats because I bleed orange and blue. and Mr. RYAN knows that. and I appreciate the recognition. And were also joined by our good friend who has been a weekly staple of these important message hours where were trying to communicate to our constituents and to people across the country and to our colleagues about the progress that weve been able to make that has been so significant and evident. One of the things that I wanted to highlightMr. RYAN. Im not sure if you have gone over any of thisbut I think an important chart that we usually begin with when we talk about the private sector that has been made. the privatesector employment increases over the past year and a half. And if you look December of 2007 all the way through to June of 2010. you can see the dramatic job losses that occurred during the Bush administration. The Bush administration ended right about here in January of 2009. and when President Obama took over. we at this point in the year passed the Recovery Act. the stimulus package that injected $787 billion into our economy. both in terms of an infusion of spending as well as tax cuts. 98 percent of Americans received a tax cut. mostly focused on tax cuts for small businesses and working families. And then at that point. thats when you see the job growth curve start to shift from almost 800.000 job losses a month in the month before President Bush left office and President Obama was inaugurated. then you begin starting to gain jobs to today where you look in June of 2010 where we have added jobs for six straight months. an average of 100.000 jobs per month. almost 600.000 jobs created this year alone. And if we keep on this pace. by the end of this year we will have created under President Obamas leadership and the Democratic leadership in this Congress more privatesector jobs in this year than the entire Bush presidency. I mean. thats just the facts. and its an unbelievable fact. We have turned the economy around. and weve begun to go in the right direction. We have a long way to go but look at the other indicators. Look at the stock market. Look at the three straight quarters of growth in the GDP. Look at the 11 straight months of growth in the manufacturing sector. America has always been about making things. Mr. TONKO and Mr. RYAN are from communities where your constituents. the people that sent you here to represent them. theyre used to rolling up their sleeves. doing a hard days work for a hard days pay and making stuff. and we want to make sure that we can get America back to work making things again. And thats why we have our Making it in America agenda that were going to be talking about over the next few weeks as we enter the August recess period. And were so pleased to be joined by our good friend Mr. TONKO. a new Member who has been doing a fantastic job.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. RYAN. a couple of years ago. when we would be out here each night with the 30something Working Group. our symbol was the Republican rubber stamp that was emblematic of the philosophy of our friends on the other side of the aisle. I think we should take a walk down memory lane. Maybe we want to bring the rubber stamp back because it does appear that they have not shed those tendencies. and thats evidenced in the choice that Americans are going to have over the next few months. Lets go through some of those choices. You are talking about how important it is that we go back to making things in America. that we revitalize the economies that had manufacturing as the backbone of cities and towns throughout this country. throughout the Northeast and the Rust Belt and evenI dont even like the term "Rust Belt" because it implies something thats irretrievable. You know. once something is rusted out. your perception is its not able to be regained. I know we dont believe that. and we believe in investing in the concept of making America and that its more than just a concept. that we are going to put resources into making sure that when we have a choice that we choose to make sure that its Americans that are doing the manufacturing for the things that we need here. and we are doing that by backing that up with action when it comes to our policy decisions as well. So are the Republicans. Their actions are vastly different than ours. We propose to close tax loopholes that allow outsourcing U.S. jobs overseas and use the savings to pay for hometown tax credits for small businesses to expand manufacturing jobs. And what do they do? They vote. "they" being the Republicans. vote 1701. 170 Republicans voted "no." to 1 that votes "yes" to protecting tax breaks for companies that shipped jobs overseas. 1701 they voted to keep that tax loophole intact so that we could continue to allow companies to get tax breaks when they ship jobs overseas.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Lets take it one step further. Its not just bad enough. okay. to say they voted to protect the tax break. On top of that. 95 percent of House Republicans have signed a pledge to protect those tax breaks. signed a pledge. put their name on the line and said. I am going to protect tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas. Its absolutely mindboggling. We want to make sure that we protect companies and give tax breaks and incentivize companies that make decisions to create jobs here in the United States. in your district in New York. in your district in Ohio. in districts across this country. And they would rather have those jobs created in China and in other countries and boost up their economy.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

And your point is very well taken. We had to use a procedural motion just to be able to get around there being an obstacle to the America COMPETES Act coming to the floor and being able to get a straightup vote. And when it came right down to it. we were for it and most of them were against it.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Absolutely. Thank you very much. Mr. TONKO. Just to veer a little bit in a different direction towards. again. the choice that Americans are going to be facing. because your facts are stubborn things. You can run away from a lot of different things. Facts are just persistent in chasing you. Theyve been chasing the Republicans. those stubborn facts. for a long time. One of the facts is that Republicans are consistently on the record of voting against statutory payasyougo legislation. Now. back in the Clinton administration when PAYGO was first establishedand that was a tough. tough vote that Democrats led the way on. made sure happened under President Clintons leadershipthe country finished his Presidency with a record surplus. which was handed to President Bush and he promptly squandered in just a few short years. If you look at this chart. we will start back in the Reagan administration. And I want to start back in the Reagan administration becausewalk with me down memory lane. shall we?
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

I know its painful. but I think its instructive. As you walk with me down memory lane. lets look at under which Presidents we operated on a deficit and under which Presidents we operated at a surplus. President Reagan. $1.4 trillion deficit. President Bush. didnt get any better. got worse. $3.3 trillion deficit. Go to President Clinton. we went from a record deficit at the time to a record surplus of $5.6 trillion. And then when President Bush finished office after being handed a record surplus. he finished office with an $11.5 trillion deficit. handing that record to President Obama. And. as you said. after having driven our economy off a cliff. now the Republicans are asking for the keys once again. Facts being stubborn things. as I mentioned. the Republicans consistently voted against statutory PAYGO. In fact. under the Bush administration. they allowed statutory PAYGO to lapse. which is. in large part. why we ended up in a deficit situation. They deficitspent like drunken sailorstwo wars not paid for. the Medicare prescription drug part D program. As good and as pleased as we are that seniors have their prescription drugs paid for. we know that program was deeply flawed. could have been a thousand times better. Ultimately. we were able to fix it in the Affordable Care Act. But they blindly spent. through tax cuts and spending. and now suddenly seem to have found religion when it comes to spending and deficits.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

One of the things that is important to note. Mr. RYAN. is that. when we became the majority once again in 2006 and over the last several years. we reestablished statutory PAYGO. First. we established it in rule. Then we passed it in statute. One hundred percent of the Republicans in this body voted "no." They voted against making sure that we made a commitment in the law to not spend more than we take in. to pay for the legislation other than in emergency spending. and obviously. weve been in an emergency. Weve been. you know. pretty careful about what we declare as an emergency. making sure that we have covered the legislation with payfors. They havent believed in payfors in years and years. if ever. Lets keep in mind the taxcutting policy that they had. which was exclusively focused on the wealthiest 1 percent of Americans. which also wasnt paid for. I mean tax cuts are spending. and there is nothing wrong with tax cuts. We have to balance tax cuts with our spending policy. but when you dont collect revenue. that is less revenue that we have in the Treasury. which affects the deficit as well. So I mean their total disregard for balancing the books is not something that theyre going to be able to run away from. and we are not going to let them run away from it.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. TONKO. I want to bring us back to the choice. to the choice of going in the direction that we have been taking the country. which is a new direction to reinvest in America. to make sure that we can create jobs here and not give tax breaks to companies that send jobs overseas. to reestablish statutory payasyougo rules so that we can make sure we pay for the legislation we pass and so that we dont spend more money than we take in. Lets walk through some of the other bills that we have passed here to make sure we can focus on our own economy and can compare the record because. again. this is going to be about a choice that Americans are making. How about the Small Business Jobs and Credit Act? That was legislation that provided loans to small businesses and access to capital for small business startups to help support the economic recovery and to create jobs. Ninetyeight percent of Republicans voted against that legislation. How about the Small Business Jobs Tax Relief Act? That was a bill that provided tax incentives to spur investment in small businesses and that granted small businesses some tax penalty relief. Ninetyseven percent of Republicans voted against that legislation. How about the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act? It is legislation that would help create or save more than 1 million American jobs and prevent corporations from shipping jobs overseas and sticking American taxpayers with the bill. Eightythree percent of Republicans voted against that legislation. There is the HIRE Act. That bill would give small businesses tax incentives to hire jobless Americans. Between February and May of 2010. an estimated 4.5 million new workers were hired. making American businesses eligible for up to $8.5 billion in tax exemptions and credits under the HIRE Act. Ninetyseven percent of Republicans voted against that legislation. I could keep going. I mean. really. this is an unbelievably long list of jobcreating legislation that we have passed. that we have put out here on the floor of this House.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Over 95 percent of Republicans voted against it. So we could continue to move in the direction in which we have been goingjob creation. spurring the economy. investing in Americaor we could backslide toward the Bush era and go back to the exact same agenda as they have committed to focusing on. but Im not sure that Ive met anybody who wants to go back to that agenda.
Date: 2010-07-27
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Thank you. And I look forward. as we go into the August recess. talking with our constituents about how weve begun to turn this economy around. I want to close out the last couple of seconds with the focus on tax cuts. remind people that tax bills in 2009 were at their lowest level since 1950. and we look forward to continuing to work on that. striking that balance. And Mr. RYAN. well turn it over to you to close us out.