Date: 2006-09-12
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

The Republican majority is big on the talk. in the stump speech and having the press conference with security. homeland security. all this kind of stuff. But when it comes down to the printed word. when it comes down to the budget that is handed out from the White House and when it comes down to what this Republican majority.does. it is 2.000. from what the 911 commission called for. and what we called for as House Democrats. versus the Presidents proposal. and you can look it up on line. that only asks for 210 agents. Democrats fought for the funding on almost five different occasions. Again for the record. Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. H.R. 1268. a motion to recommit. and 2.000. vote number 160. and that happened on 5/5/05. Also you look at House bill 2360 was blocked. it was an Obey amendment. vote number 174. That was on 5/17/05. It failed. 223 to 185 on a partisan vote. H.R. 1817. a motion to recommit. 2005. again vote number 188. again failed on partisan lines. You start talking about on border security and closing the gaps. On nine separate occasions over the last 5 years. Democrats put forth -motions here on this floor. because that is the only thing we can do. Being in the minority. we are not able to bring the bills to the floor. because the majority is blocking those bills from getting out of committee. And they are noted right here. and I am not going to go through that at this particular time. but all of this is on line. HouseDemocrats.gov. if anyone wants to go on and get this information. Also when you start talking about aviation security. Democrats offered a motion to require air cargo to be screened within 3 years. The motion was rejected by Republicans. again 2005. vote number 188. 5/18/05. Democrats have spoken repeatedly on the issue of transit security. making sure that we authorize including a $2.8 billion initiative to improve transit security and a $1 billion initiative to improve rail security. Substitute amendment defeated again. So when you start look looking at the RECORD and what the RECORD says versus what is said here on the floor by the Republican majority and the rubber stamp majority. I wish the rubber stamp Republican majority would stop fighting us and start saying to the President. guess what. we no longer want to rubber stamp everything that you send here. I just wish the Republican majority would just leader up and say hey. Mr. President. So you start reading the paper. could someoneget me a newspaper. please. because I want to just have it as a prop. because as Americans start reading the paper. they are reading about how Republican Members of the House and the Senate. the President flies into town. they get on the plane and leave town. Some even get in their car and go. "I was on the other side of my district." Well. let me tell you something. if the President of the United States is in my district. I think I would know. I think it would be some sort of news flash or some sort of email that would come to me and say. you know. the President is coming in your district today. will be in an elementary school. Maybe you want to be there. He is the leader of the free world. Maybe you want to be there. The reason why they are taking flights while the President is coming in the reason why they are finding something else to do while the President is in their town is the fact that they dont want to be caught in the same situation with the President of the United States because they have not stood up to the President and said no. you cant put us in a financial situation as far as the eye can see as it relates to deficits and foreign countries running the world. You cant pick up the paper today not talking about a Republican running from. the President of the United September 12. 2006 . CO States and dont want to be around when the President is around. or explaining why they are not there. That is some excuse. I hope I never get to the situation where I have the President of the United States coming into my district and I have to explain that I am somewhere else while the President is there. And the bottom line is this: People cannot face the music when it comes down to dealing with the policies of this administration. and better yet. you being in the position. there is only 535 of us. being in the position. as I come in for a landing. Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. to be able to bring about change on behalf of the American people. to say this is not going to happen. to say I know you want to start a war in Iraq. but we still got this business over here with al Qaeda. who had everything to do with 9/11. who trained the individuals that carried out the 9/11 plot. But. meanwhile. while we are over therelooking for Osama bin Laden. and we have him cornered. I got this unfinished business. the President said. over here in Iraq. because I got a problem with this leader over here. We got to take him out. But what about the after player? What is going to happen once you get to Baghdad? How are you going to bring stability? Who is going to be in the coalition? Calling up a couple of friends? Ill send 25 troops. Ill send 30 troops. You are not allowed to talk about it. Everything is secret. We have the then sitting Attorney General comes to the U.S. Congress over on the Senate side and tells the Senate. you are either with us or you are with the terrorists. 0l 2340 What kind of mess is that? So when it comes down to Article I. Section 1. and if the American people want the kind of representation they need. I am not talking as a Democrat. even though we were given an hour by the Deqiocratic leader and we are all members of the Democratic Caucus. This is America. I guarantee you if the shoe was on the other foot. Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. I cannot help but imagine the kind of chaos and protest and finger pointing and them and they and all of the things that will be said. Some of the stuff will have to be stricken from the RECORD because the Republican side will be carrying on about the Democrats. But they cannot say it. They cant do it. They cannot even kind of paint a picture because they have been in charge of the whole thing since it started. So if the American people want a new direction. if the American people want accountability. if the American people want a House and a Senate that will carry out article I. section 1 of the U.S. Constitution. and a lot of blood is on this constitution. but if they want that. then they will vote for a new direction in November. I am done. ladies and gentlemen. with begging the Republican majority to stand up on behalf of the American people because I am looking at what the oil companies are getting. They are getting theirs. I am looking at what these contractors are getting. either it be Katrina or the war in Iraq. They are getting theirs. I am looking at the issue of health care and all of the people that are running to the bank with all of the dollars and all of the influence and all of the access into this Congress. They are getting theirs. Meanwhile we are sitting around here talking about the minimum wage and we cant even get a doggone bill passed off this floor to be able to provide the American people with a minimum wage. Meanwhile we are giving ourselves a nice fat pay raise every year. $4.100 here. $3.100 there. Oh. we have the money for that. But we dont have the money for the people who are punching in and punching out every day. Madam Speaker. this has to come to an end and that is the reason why. Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ. that I believe there is a wind of change. It may not be outside the hall of this Chamber. .but it is out there in America. It is in towns and it is in big cities and it is in emerging areas and it is in young people and older people that have decided in the past I am not going to participate. but I believe they are going to participate to save this country.