macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2006-07-19
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. last May I voted in support of H.R. 810. I rise again today to override the veto of this legislation. I want to take this opportunity to reiterate why I believe that expanded Federal funding of stem cell research is good public policy. We are aware of the potential embryonic stem cells hold. They could hold the key to the greatest mysteries of medical science. offering cures for those afflicted with Alzheimers. Parkinsons. juvenile diabetes. spinal cord injuries and others. I hope they do. On the other hand. they can be nothing but a source of false hope. another disappointment for those who wish for a return to health either for themselves or their loved ones. The only certainty is that we will never know the answer if our scientists are overly constrained in their efforts. Without the wherewithal of the National Institutes of Health. we face the prospect of numerous State agencies attempting to set up research protocols. something they are not well equipped todo. Good science takes time. We must not throw caution to the wind at the hint of miraculous cures. Indeed. left unconstrained. this type of research could lead to dangerous outcomes. H.R. 810 provides ethical guidelines by which federally funded researchers must comply. I believe it would be far preferable to have the Federal Government setting standards in this field rather thana hodgepodge of States and private entities. The Federal Government should lead the way. I supported President Bush when he announced his plan to allow federally funded research on 60 preexisting lines. Now. though. we only have 22 lines with significant shortcomings that make them of dubious value. Federally funded U.S. researchers are at a technical disadvantage as they lack access to newer stem cell lines. Our top stem cell biologists are moving into nonfederally funded research or even going overseas to pursue their woik. We should not allow this to happen. There is no question that many difficult questions attend this debate. and many feel strongly that there are ethical reasons not to pursue embryonic stem cell research. But I strongly feel there are ethical reasons why we should. I cannot look at a couple whose child is suffering from a debilitating disease in the eye and tell them I am not doing everything as their elected official. I came to find a cure. I cannot look a researcher in the eyes and tell him I will not let him explore the promise. I urge my colleagues to vote to override this veto.
Date: 2006-07-19
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I have heard it said that the Presidents veto is a political game. There are no political games being played here.- except yesterday when the authors of this bill that is before us argued that people should vote against H.R. 5526. the Alternative Pluripotent Stem Cell Therapies Enhancement Act. Why would they do that? A bill that would allow a neutral. that is neutral with respect to ethics. opportunity to develop pluripotent stem cell therapies. And yet we are told here that we are allowing ideology to get in the way of science. What was yesterdays request by those who authored this bill? You know. we have to consider ethics. Science cannot tell us what to do. It tells us what we can do. but it does not tell us what it is ethically appropriate to do. This country leads the world in medical research. but it also leads the world in ethical action. We should not be losers in either side. Support the Presidents veto.
Date: 2006-07-19
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Madam Speaker. I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 921. Let us be very clear from the outset of this debate: the current conflict was caused by the violent attacks of two terrorist organizations on Israel. in Israel. Israel has the sovereign right and responsibility to protect and defend itself from these terrorists. The roots of this problem must be addressed if there is to be any true cessation of violence. Iran and Syria mustcease their finanbial and military support of terrorist organizations. Hezbollah must be disarmed and no longer be allowed to operate. U.N. Resolution 1559 must be fully implemented. The government of Lebanon must be allowed to govern the whole of its territories. President Abbas must guarantee peace. exercise full control over the Palestiniancontrolled territory and the Hamas terrorist attacks originating in Palestiniancontrolled territory must be permanently stopped. This latest violence only confirms what we have known since 9/11: the forces of extremism and terrorism must no longer be allowed to terrorize peoples and countries who desire to live in peace and freedom. The approach taken by President Bush has been appropriate. Without an end to terrorist operations by Hamas. Hezbollah. and other enemies of Israel. there will be no hope for peace. The United States should not negotiate with terrorists and neither should Israel. Despite the recent setbacks. however. we should continue to try to promote peace in the Middle East because it is vitally important to the safety and security of America. We must continue. to encourage peace. but all parties must be willing to truly accept Israels existence and come to the table if peace is to have a chance. Unfortunately. without an end to terrorist operations against Israel by Hamas and Hezbollah. there is no hope for a lasting peace in the Middle East.
Date: 2006-07-25
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. I rise today to praise the House for having passed H.R. 4472: This is a very bittersweet moment for me. Passage of the bill should bring a sense of accomplishment. but as I think of little Jessica Lunsford. only tears come to my eyes. Today. she would be doing her summer reading. going to the movies with friends. and enjoying the last few weeks of summer before school begins. Instead. a perverted criminal assaulted.. murdered and then buried her in his backyard and robbed her of those moments. He could do that because law enforcement and parents did not have the tools that they needed at the time to protect children. With the passage of the Childrens Safety and Violent Crime Act. they will. I cannot imagine the suffering and total terror she must have felt at the hands of so vile a monster. and Congress cannot afford to wait one day longer for this bill to become law. I certainly look forward to the signing ceremony at the White House so parents will know that their children are much better protected because the laws are stronger against sexual offenders and predators.
Date: 2006-07-26
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I rise today in support of H.R. 5682. the United States and India Nuclear Cooperation Promotion Act. India is a strategic friend and ally of the United States. Indian Americans have made an indelible mark upon the culture and diversity of our nation and I was proud to sponsor H. Res. 227 that recognized the contributions of Indian Americans to our nation. which the House passed earlier this year. India and the United States have a strong history of cooperation. Directly after the September 11. 2001 terrorist attacks. India was one of the first countries to offer immediate aid to the United States. As the two largest pluralistic. freemarket democracies in the world. it is only natural for the United States and India to seek to strengthen our bilateral relationship. Last July. President Bush and Prime Minister Sing issued a Joint Statement declaring a new era of respect. reciprocity and cooperation. spanning the fields of high technology. space exploration. counterterrorism. defense cooperation and energy security. This legislation lays the statutory foundation to expand nuclear research. nuclear power and nonproliferation cooperation- with India that would allow full trade in civil nuclear energy. In exchange for such trade. India has agreed to separate its military and civilian nuclear programs over the next eight years. placing 14 of its 22 reactors under permanent international safeguards. as well as all future civilian thermal and breeder reactors. It has also agreed to maintain its unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing and to work with the United States toward a fissile material cutoff treaty. Mr. Chairman. the United States should seize this opportunity to forge a strategic alliance with India to expand civil nuclear energy production in that country. In closing. I thank the leadership for allowing this legislation to come to the floor today and urge an aye vote.
Date: 2006-07-27
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. by direction of the Committee on Rules. I call up House Resolution 952 and ask for its immediate consideration.
Date: 2006-07-27
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. for the purpose of debate only. I Sield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from California . pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution. all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
Date: 2006-07-27
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker. Yeats wrote many wonderful. beautiful things. We in the Rules Committee deal with reality. The reality of the rule that we bring to the floor today in order to bing the underlying legislation on information technology for the health care industry brings forth and authorizes six amendments. six amendments to be debated by this House. Our function is to listen. and we listened hour after hour after hour after hour. with great respect. in the Rules Committee to our colleagues who come forth with multiple ideas. We bring forth six amendments for the consideration of this entire body today. Of the six amendments. four are authored by Members of the opposition. of the Democrat Party. one is a bipartisan amendment. Republican and Democrat. and one is a Republican amendment. We think we are being fair. Mr. Speaker. So we seek not to bring forth the beauty of Yeats. but in dealing with reality. in dealing with listening to hours of testimony from our colleagues. in authorizing four amendments of Democrats. one of a Republican. one of a bipartisan nature. we think we have done a fair job. And that is what we have authorized for consideration. for debate by this House in the rule that brings forward this very important legislation that we will be hearing about. and we will be hearing about as the authors of the legislation explain it in detail. I am very proud to be a supporter of the legislation. It is important that information technology reach as much of the health care industry. patients. as possible so that mistakes are avoided. and so that access to the great advances of technology are made available to the largest number of people. There are important issues that this legislation is going to be bringing forth and dealing with and that this debate will entail. 0I 1115 Now. obviously in order for debate to begin. we have to pass the rule -which sets the terms of the debate. We are proud of those terms of debate. the extraordinarily fair nature of the terms of that debate. As I have said. Mr. Speaker. four amendments made in order are Democrat amendments. one is a Republican amendment. one is a bipartisan amendment. Mr. Speaker. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2006-07-28
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Thank you. Mr. Chairman. for that time. I normally dont do this. but I rise in opposition to this pension bill on which I am a conferee. The original House pension bill had no specific industry relief. In the House bill we did not pick winners and losers. However. the Senate bill did 8ontain specific airline industry relief. The four legacy carriers that maintain pension plans were all treated the same. Within that industry. there was no picking winners and losers. Yet this bill that we are debating chooses to favor two bankrupt airlines. Delta and Northwest. I appreciate the comments previous on Northwest. I think they need the help. It gives them extra relief for having run their pension plans even into the ground. The two airlines that are not threatening the retirement security of their employees. American and Continental. are being punished for having gotten wage and benefit concessions from their employees during very hardfought. but successful. negotiations. American Airlines has been working closely with their pilots. flight attendants. and ground crews to be sure that this is an airline that keeps flying and keeps its promises to its employees. Yet the bill debated here tonight will give Delta and Northwest a huge competitive advantage. I will vote against this bill because all four legacy carriers should get the same interest rate. I believe. for unfunded promises. The Senate bill and the draft conference report that has been circulated by the Senate would provide for parity for all four airlines on the interest rate. Those who support this deal say American and Continental are being greedy. I say American and Continental need the same interest rate as the other two or they are going to be hundreds of millions of dollars at a disadvantage against their direct competitors. As a matter of fact. American just reported. I think. somewhere around $300 million profit in this year. and $600 million is what they would be cost by this bill each year. I am standing with the Texas delegation and airlines that keep their word. Our Texas airlines have worked hard to keep their word with their employees. This Congress must give equal treatment for our major airlines. I urge a "no" vote.
Date: 2006-09-06
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. I rise today in frustration with the Senates delay in protecting Americans by taking up the House border security bill. Employer verification and enforcement are vital to upholding our immigrant laws. Innocently hiring an illegal. alien because there is no system in place is one thing. Knowingly violating our immigration laws for cheap labor is another. Not only does this hurt Americans by driving down wages. it invites an influx of illegal aliens that overwhelms our border security. H.R. 4437 cracks down on those who compound our immigration problems by hiring illegals. fining them up to $25.000 per employee when they consist: ently violate the law. To the Senate we need to say. listen up. Listen to what the American p6ople are saying and pass H.R.- 4437. This must become law this year so we can stop the massive illegal flow and secure our borders.
Date: 2006-09-07
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. -Speaker. by direction of the Committee on Rules. I call up House Resolution 981 and ask for its immediate consideration.
Date: 2006-09-07
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. for the purpose of debate only. I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from California . pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution. all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
Date: 2006-09-07
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky . who has done so much to bring this legislation to the floor.
Date: 2006-09-07
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. Americans are frustrated. Back in May. the Senate passed the "No Illegal Alien Left Behind" bill which hands rights and benefits to lawbreakers on a silver platter. Clearly we have a large hurdle to overcome in compromising with this very atrocious bill. However. with each day that we fail to pass meaningful border security reform. Americans become anxious that we will do nothing or even worse that we may cave in to the Senate. I heard from more than 14.000 constituents over the last month who emphatically told me that they do not want amnesty for law breakers. Listen up America: We must stand united behind the border security bill passed by the House. H.R. 4437. and to proclaim to Americans that we agree with them and we will never give amnesty to illegal aliens.
Date: 2006-09-13
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I thank the chairman for yielding. Mr. Speaker. like many. I was affected by 9/11. As a matter of fact. that is the reason I decided to return to public service and sought an opportunity to serve in this body after a 16year absence. I have spent a considerable amount of time with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle attempting to fulfill my obligation in that regard. And I am reminded. basically because of my service as attorney general of California. that oftentimes we not only need to mark something that has happened inthe past but we need to also talk about the things that we have effectively done to respond to whatever challenges occurred out of that event. because if we do not. we fail to help lead the people. that is. we fail to tell our constituents that those sacrifices that they have made. the programs that they have enacted through us. have had merit. Because if you do not do that. after a while those you seek to represent have no sense that we are actually doing something effective. So it seems to me very much appropriate. not shameful. that the chairman of my committee would construct this resolution that not only cites the tragedy of 9/11 but talks about the efforts we have made in this Congress. with the executive branch. to respond to the challenges that came out of that tragedy. Earlier this year the. House- overwhelmingly passed the SAFE Port Act on a bipartisan basis. 4212. This act addresses port security defenses within and beyond U.S. ports. As a matter of fact. as we are now speaking. the United States Senate is dealing with that. We have taken steps to prevent our own facilities from being used against us as weapons of mass destruction and to protect our critical infrastructure. A few months ago our committee passed legislation to guard against terrorist attacks on our chemical facilities on a bipartisan basis. Finally. we have taken steps. as importantly. to respond to the suggestion by the 9/11 Commission to do something about securing our country by preventing terrorists and their weapons from being smuggled across the borders. So that is the reason why. in fact. we have this included in this resolution. So. Mr. Speaker. rather than taking exception to this resolution. I would hope that we would join together on a bipartisan basis to say certainly the journey has not ended. but we have done a lot. And anyone who stands here and says that we are not safer today than we were on 9/11 either is tragically uninformed or is intentionally misinforming the American people. Yes. we have more to do. But we should look back on those things that we have joined together to do successfully.
Date: 2006-09-13
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. I thank the chairman of the committee who has worked very. very hard on these issues and trying to put together bipartisan agreement on many of the issues that come before our committee. Five years later. the terrible events of September 11 are still fresh in the minds of Americans. On the same day we saw heroism and sorrow of so many. we saw the hatred and evil of a few. These events served as notice to our Nation that we were not as secure as we had thought. In response. our country has made substantial progress towards securing our borders. infrastructure. and airlines. There is still a ways to go. but we are safer today than we were on Despite chaos surrounding the events of September 11. America showed great. great strength. We witnessed an outpouring of goodwill. patriotism. and togetherness all across the country. In the. face of such adversity. Americans came together under a unified front. Republicans and Democrats worked side by side to address the critical needs of those people devastated by terrorist attacks. Listen up. America. Today. 5 years later. partisanship and political bickering have replaced the solidarity the entire world once witnessed. This is the last thing that our country needs. This past Monday. many of us were back in our districts attending events relating to the tragic events of 9/11. There are many first responders who previously. I admit. probably lived in the chairmans district and other areas around New York City who have since moved to Florida. Many of them retired after seeing the tragic events of 9/ 11. after working hard. very. very hard at the site of the World Trade Center. They moved to other States. Many of them also moved because they lost loved ones in 9/11. ana they could not be there. They just could not be there every single day to see the hole where the World Trade Center once was. Those are the people who gave so much. who lost their family members. that we should be consoling today. and certainly. this resolution does exactly that. Mr. Speaker. in these trying times it is important that we remember that all Americans are in this fight against terrorism together. I ask that my colleagues find it within themselves to put aside their political differences and do what is best for the United States of America. and that is to vote for this resolution.
Date: 2006-09-13
Speaker: JO ANN DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support of House Resolution 994. The terrorist attacks upon our country changed the way that we live forever and provided us with a cruel reminder that freedom and liberty have a price. The attacks reminded us there are extremists in this world that would do anything. including sacrificing their own lives to destroy ours and our way of life. The attacks reminded us that democracy and the benefits of a free government cannot be taken for granted and must continually be fought for. Mr. Speaker. we are safer than we were 5 years ago. But until we can say with confidence that we are safe. the constant fight for freedom can never end. Until families can go to bed at night feeling secure. we cannot stop the fight for freedom. Until our young people can know without a doubt that America holds a safe. prosperous future for them. our battle can never cease. We -in Congress are tasked by the Constitution to defend the homeland. and we take this task very seriously. Our men and women in uniform are getting the job done. and our first responders have answered the call. Our intelligence forces have played a vast role in protecting America. And together we are safer today. However. we must remain vigilant and prepare to fight these radical Islamic terrorists whenever and wherever they may strike. Retreat has never made us stronger and. by Osama bin Ladens own words. is a sign of Americas weakness. There is no room for halfway approaches here. We must do what is needed to protect our country. We are using and must continue to use both diplomatic and military measures and tools available to protect America. As we look back 5 years ago this week. we must remember the horrors of that time. But more importantly. we must remember the resolve adopted by all of us to defend freedom and fight with all our might to combat the forces that look to destroy us. It is through vigilance and the passion for freedom that we will win this war and truly make Americasafe.
Date: 2006-09-13
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I am now pleased to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from New Jersey . member of the Appropriations Committee and vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Defense Appropriations.
Date: 2006-09-13
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. I yield for the purpose of making a unanimous consent request to the distinguished gentleman from Florida. the. former chairman of the Appropriations Committee. Mr. YOUNG.