macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-11-14
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Thank you. Mr. ALTMIRE. Here is the bottom line. There is a dramatic and stark difference between the Republicans priorities and the Democrats priorities. There is one priority. and only one that you will ever hear from the other side. and that is to continue to fund the war in Iraq. continue to put our troops in harms way. continue to have their families separated from them. continue for them to have longer and longer tours of duty. more and more strain. more and more tours of duty. Here are our priorities. We passed the largest increase in veterans benefits in the 77year history of the VA. We passed legislation to increase the minimum wage. We passed legislation to expand access to health care for 10 million children. We passed legislation to cut the student loan interest rate in half. The list goes on. And what do you hear from the Republicans? Nothing. You hear. lets put more money into the war in Iraq. Lets lengthen the time that the men and women fighting on our behalf spend there. Lets send them over there for more and more tours of duty. Do you ever hear anything from that side of the aisle in terms of an agenda. in terms of getting anything done? All I hear is "no." All I hear is. "pot going to do that." All I hear. again. is. "Yes. Mr. President. Whatever you say. Mr. President." Our criticism of them. Mr. MEEK and
Date: 2007-11-14
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

If the gentleman will yield. What is clear here is there is a threat of panic running through the caucus on the other side of the aisle because we are up to 16 of their incumbent Members who have decided to bail and who recognize that the ship is listing and has been listing badly and is in danger of just completely going down. There doesnt appear to be any likelihood of the ship righting itself in the near future. They arent expected and arent expecting to get their act together and focus on an agenda that the American people support because they have been a onenote. tunnelvision party for far too long. So you have 16 that have decided to retire already. with. we are sure. more to come. Its just not surprising because they do not share the priorities of everyday working families. Americans who want the Congress to focus on a new direction and not give them more of the same.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Chairman. I rise in support of H.R. 3915. the Mortgage Reform and AntiPredatory Lending Act of 2007. H.R. 3915 restricts the harmful mortgage lending products that have wreaked havoc on our local communities. In my district in Orange County. California. the cities of Anaheim and Santa Ana are feeling the effects of irresponsible lending practices that resulted in numerous foreclosures. Onethird of the homes on the market in those cities are available because they were foreclosed on. Borrowers who will only purchase a home once or twice in their lifetimes should not be blamed for the current situation. Through the licensing of mortgage loan originators. the establishment of loan origination standards. and the enhancement of consumer protections. H.R. 3915 takes appropriate steps to stop predatory lending practices without placing an undue burden on responsible mortgage originators and lenders. These new standards will provide needed safeguards without preventing potential homebuyers from obtaining loans. Eventually. the financial services industry will recover from the current mortgage crisis. and we must ensure that the predatory practices of the past are not repeated in the future.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chairman. I also would like to thank the chairman of the full committee. Chairman FRANK. Ranking Member BACHUS. the subcommittee Chair and ranking member as well. Mr. Chairman. this is a very simple and straightforward amendment. This amendment deals with minimum standards for mortgage originators. and it requires that mortgage originators receive a certain amount of training. Ii 1630 The bill itself right now requires at least 20 hours of education. of which at least 3 hours of Federal law shall be included in the regulations as well. along with 3 hours of ethics. What this amendment does is include in the ethics training instructions on fraud. consumer protection and fair lending issues. It is very straightforward. It is not complicated. Mr. Chairman. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Chairman. I would simply close by indicating I am very pleased to see the bipartisan effort that has been generated by this bill. This is a good bill. and I ask .all of my colleagues to please support it. Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: VAN HOLLEN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Chairman. I thank Mr. BACHUs and the chairman of the committee as well. I appreciate your willingness to work on this issue as we go forward. Mr. Chairman. I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be withdrawn.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. in August I urged my colleagues to vote against an unconstitutional Senate bill. Simply put. that bill trampled on our constituents constitutional right to privacy. Today. I am proud to rise in support of the RESTORE Act. a bill that provides the intelligence community the tools it needs. but that restores the constitutional rights of Americans. Mr. Speaker. we can be both safe and free. and this bill strikes the right balance. This bill permits surveillance of foreigntoforeign communication. It allows us to listen in on Osama bin Laden or any other terrorist who threatens our troops or country. This bill will keep us safe. But this bill also requires a warrant from the FISA Court in order to eavesdrop on the communications of ordinary Americans.. and it requires a court review of targeting procedures to ensure Americans rights are protected. This bill restores our civil liberties. Mr. Speaker. our colleagues across the aisle would rather play politics with this bill and unleash arguments of mass distortion. so let me be clear: nothing in this bill gives our constitutional rights to terrorists. . Our Republican colleagues create this smoke screen in order to hide the fact that they have taken away those same constitutional freedoms from Americans. We need not choose between our secure and liberty. With the RESTORE Act. we can have both.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: PATRICK J. MURPHY (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Penn

for the purpose of making a unanimous was not the primary purpose. you have to sylvania. Mr. Speaker. this has been a consent request to the gentleman from wonder what the primary purpose was. This very powerful and emotional debate Virginia . bill would allow the surveillance to be contoday. and the issue is very close to my (Mr. SCOTT of Virginia asked and ducted but the administration would be reheart. I did not mean to offend anyone was given permission to revise and ex- quired to reveal the "true purpose of the wireacross the other side of the aisle. And tend his remarks.) tap to the secret FISA court. I ask the Speaker and the other side Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. I want to emphasize that we for unanimous consent to withdraw the I rise in favor of the legislation. do not have to balance security and privacy. paragraph that may have given offense Mr. Chairman. I appreciate your leadership It is therefore important to note that everything to some Members that were on the on efforts to address warrantless surveillance that the administration can do in its own bill. floor. under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance it can do under this bill. We just require them
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: ZOE LOFGREN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I would note that the motion to recommit itself leads to a nonsense sentence. adding "United States. a State sponsor of terrorism." to section 18. Its inexplicable nonsense. It also guts the bill. On August 2. I rushed to the floor to say that we were passing a bill that was a terrible offense to the Constitution. It gutted the fourth amendment. This bill does not. Mr. Speaker. I urge its passage.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I am so honored to stand here tonight and say farewell to a very dear friend. Dean Aguillen has had a tremendous impact on my life. I have a legislative director that he recommended who has done a stellar job. And while I am sure he has been helpful to many and probably a little bit more helpful to some than others. I think he deserves the title of a real live angel in the House of Representatives. And "while some measure their lives by days and years. others by heartthrobs. passions. and tears. the surest measure under Gods sun is what for others in your lifetime have you done." Dean. I thank you for what you have done for others in your lifetime. God bless you.
Date: 2007-11-15
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I want to thank you. It has been a long day. It is now 11:30. so I want to thank you for recognizing what has been done here for the greening of the Capitol under the leadership of Dan Beard and the Speaker. And. I want. to take my very efficient cell phone. I am going to walk. and it is going to be very efficient. pretty carbon neutral. and I am just going to walk home. And if you are still here I will watch you on CSPAN. But it has been a great education. and I am sure this House staff would like to officially go home. I think this has been a very important review of our first year. and it is only the beginning. And as Congressman INSLEE has said. so many of the. changes we are not even aware of because they really dont interfere. They dont change the way we do business or the way we eat at the cafeteria or wherever it is. It is just greener. better. smarter. and in many instances it saves us money. So thank you very much for your recognizing this first year of the greening of the Capitol.
Date: 2007-12-04
Speaker: LORETTA SANCHEZ (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I am pleased that today the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3887. the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2007. This is an issue that impacts countries around the world. whether they are a source or destination for trafficked persons. Official estimates are that between 2 to 4 million persons are trafficked each year. including approximately 17.500 individuals who are trafficked into the United States. One country that is a major source of trafficking victims is Vietnam. The congressional district that I represent in Orange County. California. is home to one of the largest Vietnamese constituencies outside of Vietnam. Hence. I have met with many people who have been trafficked from Vietnam. as well as advocates who work to help these victims. I have personally visited Vietnam 3 times. and it has been apparent from my trips that human trafficking is a major problem facing women. children. and men in Vietnam. Vietnamese women are trafficked to other countries in Asia and elsewhere. where they are subsequently forced into marriage. labor. and prostitution. Often. Vietnamese women are promised employment. and given fake working papers. but then they are instead sold into marriage. the commercial sex industry. or labor. These women often find themselves in a foreign country. with no legal status. and no ability to speak the language. Given the large numbers of trafficked persons from Vietnam. and around the worid. I am glad that the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act adds technical assistance and support to assist foreign governments with the prevention and prosecution of human trafficking cases. It is critical that the Unitbd States share its resources to combat trafficking with the rest of the worid. All of the members of our world community must work together to fight human trafficking. The United States must also work to improve its efforts to combat trafficking within our own borders. This bill will assist with enhancing the rights of victims. who are trafficked into the United States. and will provide special protections to child victims. H.R. 3887 is an important step in the worldwide fight against human trafficking. At the same time. we must continue to work on this issue in our local communities. In my district. a number of agencies. including law enforcement. service providers. and community organizations have. joined together to form the Orange County Human Trafficking. Task Force (OCHTrF). This task force operated for several years without any funding. I am proud that I was able to help them secure funding to continue their collaborative efforts to fight human trafficking. I commend the OCHTTF for its efforts. and hope that more local communities will stand together to protect the rights of all persons to live free from forced marriage. prostitution. and labor.
Date: 2007-12-04
Speaker: I NSLEE (democrat)
Chamber: H

Madam Speaker. I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 837) providing for the concurrence by the House in the Senate amendment to H.R. 710. with amendments.
Date: 2007-12-04
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

I thank the gentleman for yielding. And. one. I want to commend him on the success of getting provisions in this legislation on renewable electrical sources that he just pointed out will make all of this better in the future as we see a convergence of transportation. as we see a convergence of energy efficiencies in our homes and our businesses. and then to have a clean. green. and renewable way to generate that electricity. This is going to be a remarkable gift to the American people. to the American economy. to American businesses. One of the things weve seen first and foremost is in so many instances the amount of money that is being saved by those who are investing in this effort in their businesses to make them more efficient. to make them greener. and to make them cleaner. I am very excited that this legislation. which you have led the fight on. is also going to include the. CAFE standards. the improvements in the miles per gallon that people can expect to get from cars in the future. that we will provide for 35 miles per gallon by the year 2020.. which will dramatically change the transportation picture in this country. and then joined with the hybrid. with the renewable energies. can change our dependence on imported oil. And combined with other provisions of this legislation. we know that we have the opportunity to dramatically impact for the good the American economy. our climate. our environment.- and the health of our neighborhoods and our cities. So t]Ais energy bill. which many people said was not going to be possible at the beginning of this year. will be a major vote for those of us who are concerned about our dependence on foreign oil. our dependence on fossil fuels at all because of the impacts on the climate. the impacts on the health of our constituents. And its going to be a remarkable vote when it takes place. This legislation also provides for energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training. Were now starting to see in this country. as more and more investment is made by the private sector. that we need skilled workers who know how to work in these facilities. who understand the technology. who understand the mechanics of these operations. And thats going to provide real opportunity to working people in this country to create jobs all over this country. not just on the coast. if you will. butin the Midwest and the Southeast. in the Southwest. where wind. where other renewable energy sources
Date: 2007-12-05
Speaker: LINDA E. STIFF (democrat)
Chamber: S

Acting Commissioner. Internal Revenue Service. Washington. DC. DEAR ACTING COMMISSIONER STIFF: Under present law. more than 23 million taxpayers will be subject to higher taxes in 2007 unless legislation is enacted to limit the reach of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). We realize that this fact is causing concern for. many taxpayers and is creating administrative difficulties for the IRS as the agency prepares for the upcoming filing season. As the leaders of the Congressional taxwriting committees. we want to assure you that legislative relief is forthcoming so that no new taxpayers will be subject to the AMT for taxable year 2007. To accomplish this. we are committed to extending and indexing the 2006 AMT patch with the goal of ensuring that not one additional taxpayer faces higher taxes in 2007 due to the onerous AMT. In addition to allowing the personal credits against the AMT. the exemption amount for 2007 will be set at $44.350 for individuals and $66.250 for married taxpayers filing jointly. We plan to do everything possible to enact" AMT relief legislation in a form mutually agreeable to the Congress and the President before the end of the year. We urge the Internal Revenue Service to take all steps necessary to plan for changes that would be made by the legislation. Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter. Sincerely yours.
Date: 2007-12-05
Speaker: AL GREEN (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

I thank Chairman CONYERS. I thank Ranking Member LAMAR SMITH. I would like to also thank the colead on this piece of legislation. while it is a resolution. I consider it to be a piece of legislation. and that. of course. would be Representative LAURA RICHARDSON. I thank the floor manager. RANDY FORBES. all of the staff. and I especially thank the 60 persons that signed on as cosponsors of this resolution. Mr. Speaker. I am proud to have sponsored H. Res. 826. the condemnation of noose intimidation. Noose intimidation. It has received bipartisan support. and it has received it because America is a country of hope. not hate. In America. we celebrate our diversity. We love knowing that we can live together and that we can have the kind of harmony and peace that America has always promised all of its citizens. Noose intimidation has no place in America. Noose intimidation is the invidious hanging or displaying of a noose for the purpose of intimidation. humiliation. or denigration. When it is *done under circumstances that may constitute a crime. it ought to be investigated. And if a crime has been committed. it ought to be vigorously prosecuted. Recently nooses have been found in North Carolina at a high school. New Jersey at a Home Depot. Louisiana on a school playground. and in Houston. Texas. ata factory. Fifty to 60 incidents involving nooses have been reported since September 7. This is per the Southern Poverty Law Center. Thirty more lawsuits have been filed by EEOC concerning nooses. Four thousand seven hundred persons were lynched. Many of these were Latinos. Jewish Americans. Italian Americans and African Americans. This was done between 1882 and 1959. America is a country of hope. not hate. For this reason. we believe in the words of the Pledge of Allegiance "liberty and dustice for all." That is why this legislation is important. We believe in the words in the Declaration of Independence that all persons are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights. among them life. liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That is why this resolution is important. Dr. King reminded us that it is not where you stand in times of comfort and convenience but. rather. where you stand in times of challenge and controversy. I am so proud that my colleagues have stood with us in these times of challenge and controversy to condemn noose intimidation. And I close with these words from Dr. King. He said. "It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me. But it can keep him from lynching me." And I think thats pretty important. God bless you. and I thank you.
Date: 2007-12-06
Speaker: HERSETH SANDLIN (democrat)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of the rule and this historic bills commitment to clean. renewable energy and its positive impact on strengthening our national security and our economic prosperity. One of the most important aspects of this bill is the appropriately aggressive renewable fuels standard it contains. which builds upon the first renewable fuel standard passed in the Energy Policy Act of 2005. which I supported. And it recognizes the contributions that rural America is ready. willing and able to make toward meeting our Nations energy needs. Like many of my fellow South Dakotans. like so many Americans. I strongly support expanding our commitment to the production and use of renewable fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel. This legislatioh will mandate that we produce at least 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels in this country. by the year 2022. and 1 billion gallons of biodiesel by 2012. For the past 2Y2 years we have seen how the first renewable fuel standard. an initial step forward reforming our Nations approach to energy production. has resulted in tremendous technological change and tremendous opportunities. The new RFS will continue to drive the development of new and efficient processes to turn rural Americas natural abundance into energy. I urge my colleagues to support this rule and this bill. in large measure because of this renewable fuel standard which reflects a compromise with the Senate that improves the structure of the standard. while retaining the overall volume and schedule of the Senate bill. The RFS contained in the provisions we consider now include a 9 billion gallon requirement of conventional biofuels in 2008 to address the serious circumstances faced by the industry today. It accelerates to 2009 and 2010 the start dates for advanced and cellulosic biofuels and their significant H14266 cc greenhouse gas reductions. It increases the total overall mandates in the intervening years. through 2016. and. importantly. it includes specific targets for biodiesel. Again. I urge my colleagues to vote "yes" on the rule and to support this historic legislation.