macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2007-09-19
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Speaker. yesterday in the House Judiciary Committee we heard from Admiral McConnell. who is the Director of National Intelligence. over the need for us to reenact that bill which we passed just 11/2 months ago. which reformed FISA. which of course is the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Mr. Speaker. probably in the 3 years that I have been here. in my second tour of duty as a Member of Congress. no more important bill did I vote on than voting the passage of a reform of FISA. The admiral indicated that twothirds of our foreign terrorist targets were blinded from our review as a result of a FISA court decision under the old FISA. That is why we needed to pass the reform. We put a 6month leash on it. that is. it will go out of existence in 6 months. There is no more important thing for this body to do than to pass a reform of FISA that makes permanent the changes that we adopted just 12 months ago. Our Nation depends on it. Our children and our grandchildrens future depends on it. Lets make sure we act responsibly.
Date: 2007-09-19
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. after terrorists attacked New York City and Washington. DC on September 11. 2001. our Nation came together. Without a study commission or partisanship. Congress quickly passed the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act to help business owners. and acted swiftly again by passing an extension in 2005. Now again. less than 2 years later. we just considered another TRIA extension. If Congress can come together and help businesses after a terrorist attack. we should be able to come together to help homeowners who cannot afford the skyrocketing costs of insurance. For over 3 years. Congress has forgotten about homeowners around the country who are grappling with everincreasing insurance rates. For these reasons. Mr. BUCHANAN and I offered an amendment in the Rules -Committee that would have added homeowners reinsurance as losses covered under TRIA. This measure would have helped new families. parents. and grandparents who are homeowners. Sadly. the Rules Committee did not allow this amendment to be part of the rule and so Members did not have the opportunity to help their constituents. Although I voted for TRIA. we should be saddened that the majority .chose only to help business owners today and to ignore the insurance crisis facing homeowners.
Date: 2007-09-20
Speaker: TIM MURPHY (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Pennsylvania

Madam Speaker. I rise today to recognize the career of Dr. Pascal Spino of Greensburg. Pennsylvania. a remarkable physician. After serving. 60 years as a pediatrician. Dr. Spino is retiring after this long career. In 1954. he founded the first well baby clinic in Westmoreland County. which provides free exams and immunizations to children up to 6 years old. In1972. Dr. Spino started the Render Any Needy Child Help program to provide medical care for abused children. He then went on to create a Level II nursery and modern pediatric department at Westmoreland Regional Hospital. Dr. Spino has received a number of recognitions. including Dr. Spino Day in Westmoreland County. for his lifetime commitment to helping others. More than 4.000 people were in attendance. despite a downpour. of rain. I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Dr. Spinos career. personal sacrifice. and devotion to improving our health care system and helping children.
Date: 2007-09-20
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Madam Speaker. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I will be asking Members to oppose the previous question so that I may amend the rule to allow for the consideration of House Resolution 479. the earmark accountability rule. At the beginning of this Congress. we all heard about the new majoritys socalled improved earmark rules. As the Congress has worn on. we have noticed that while the new majoritys rules changes perhaps look good. on paper. they havent actually accomplished much since the majority has turned the other way when it comes to the actual enforcement of the. new earmark rules. Granted. the majority has had to acquiesce to several demands of the minority when it came to appropriation conference reports.- yet we have continued to hear reports of nondisclosed earmarks appearing in all sorts of bills. not just appropriations bills. This rules change would simply allow the House to openly and honestly debate the validity and accuracy of asserted earmarks contained in all bills. not just appropriations bills. If we defeat the previous question. we can address that issue today and restore the credibility of this Congress when it comes to the enforcement of its own earmarking rules. Madam Speaker. I ask unanimous consent to have the text of the amendment and extraneous material appear in the RECORD just prior to the vote on the previous question.
Date: 2007-09-25
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I rise with the same sadness that was manifested by the ranking member. Mr. DREIER of the Rules Committee. when he spoke about the fact that on an issue like this. if there is ever an issue where we should be able to come together and extend a program. it is this one. But as we saw last night. with the long. thorough testimony before the Rules Committee. the excessively exclusivist process that has been engaged in by the majority really has affected. in a significant and unfortunate way. the product before us. And Mr. BARTON pointed out. as has already been explained. that he was excluded from the process. And for example. on an issue. despite the fact that its a major expansion of SCHIP. that were facing a major expansion here of SCHIP on a very important issue which is the inclusion. for example. of legal immigrant children. they have not been included. For example. thats why we have the National Hispanic Medical Association saying we do notsupport this legislation. this SCHIP bill that does not include legal immigrant children. You have the National Hispanic Leadership Agenda: "We cannot support legislation that extends health coverage to some children while explicitly excluding legal immigrant children." H10808 Co The National Council of La Raza: "We are particularly disheartened that a congressional debate focused on expanding access to health care to children would perpetuate an exclusion for legal immigrants." Now. one thing would be. Mr. Speaker. if due to limited resources we were simply extending this program. a program that we all agree is so necessary and important. But to see an expansion of the program that excludes legal. and I reiterate. legal immigrant children and pregnant women is most unfortunate. Thats why I would include into the RECORD. Mr. Speaker. these letters. My distinguished friend Mr. PALLONE last night was saying. well. you know. some people in the Senate didnt want that. thats why we dont do it. Mr. BARTON pointed out in Rules that he would have been happy to be there supporting this provision for legal. and I repeat. legal immigrant children. Perhaps that would have been the difference in being able to solve this problem. Again. exclusivist process leads to an unfortunate result in policy. If theres ever been an example of that. were seeing it this afternoon. So I oppose this rule. Mr. Speaker. and. at this stage. this unsatisfactoryproduct that is being brought before us and that we should vote down today.
Date: 2007-09-25
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I must oppose this bill today. but I have got to make it clear that I do support childrens health insurance. I believe this bill flat misses the mark. While wellintentioned. this legislation is a massive expansion of a governmentrun healthcare program that takes resources away from the very children it was meant to help. As ranking member of the Social Security Subcommittee on Ways and Means. I am deeply disturbed by the part of this bill that makes it easier for illegal immigrants to be covered under this program. In the last Congress. Republicans worked hard to ensure that everyone in this childrens health program are really U.S. citizens. Because of that effort. States now require applicants to show documents like -birth certificates. drivers licenses or passports in order to prove U.S. citizenship. This new legislation weakens this standard. All applicants would simply be asked to provide a Social Security number and a name that would then be verified by the Social Security Administration. This process is ripe for massive fraud and abuse that will leave American tax dollars paying for healthcare for illegal immigrants. In addition. we have the responsibility here in Congress to. spend the taxpayer dollar wisely. I know my constituents dont want the Federal Government doling out billions of dollars to pay for illegal immigrants health care. Congress should just pass a responsible extension of this important program before it expires. not play politics with our kids health care. Americans deserve. want. and need. for our children to have good health care. and we need to do it today.
Date: 2007-09-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I will be asking for a "no" vote on the previous question so that we can amend this rule. and allow the House to consider a change to the riles of the House to -restore accountability and enforceability to the earmark rule. Under the current rule. so long as the chairman or sponsor of a bill. joint resolution. conference report or managers amendment includes either a list of earmarks contained in the bill or report or a statement that there are no .earmarks. no point of order lies against the bill. This is the same as the rule in the last Congress. However. under the -rule. as it functioned under the Republican majority in the 109th Congress. even if the point of order was not available on the bill. it was always available on the rule as a question of consideration. But b6cause the Democratic Rules Committee specifically exempts earmarks from the waiver of all points of order. they deprive Members of the ability to raise the question of earmarks on the rule. This amendment will restore the accountability and enforceability of the - earmark rule to where it was at the end of the 109th Congress to provide Members with an opportunity td bring the question ofearmarks before the House for a vote. Last year. the distinguished new Speaker said that if she would become Speaker. she would require all earmarks to be publicly disclosed and would "put it in writing." However. the new majority is falling quite short of the promise. Certainly this week. this is the second rule we are considering this week. and the second time the majority has disregarded earmark transparency. Thats 0 for 2 this week. not.a good week for transparency. Certainly it could be said its a good week for hidden earmarks. 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: 2007-09-27
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the United States Air Force. Time and again. the brave men and women of the United States Air Force have answered the call of duty to serve and protect this gieat Nation. Its because of them that we have- the best Air Force in the world. and they will continue to expand that legacy of true excellence and air dominance. As a 29year Air Force veteran. its my honor to congratulate them on 60 years of exemplary service and wish them many more years of air superiority to come. They all are shining examples of "service before self." one core motto of the Air Force. They protect the safety and security of all U.S. citizens. As they say in our song. "Nothing will stop the U.S. Air Force." God bless all the men and women of the United States Air Force. I salute you.
Date: 2007-09-27
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Chairman. I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time. I rise to engage my good friend Chairman FRANK in a colloquy concerning the bill.
Date: 2007-09-27
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida and Mr. BONNER changed their vote from "no" to "aye." So the amendment was agreed to. The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
Date: 2007-10-01
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Madam Speaker. I rise this evening to highlight one of the most important pieces of legislation yet to pass this Congress: the Veterans AffairsMilitary Construction appropriations bill. Each year from 1995 to 2006 the Republicanled Congress passed record increase Hi1046
Date: 2007-10-02
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 635. As our Founding Fathers recognized.. the strength of this great Nation derives from the tolerance we espouse. America builds strength from its diversity. I am proud to be a part of a country where every person may practice their religious beliefs without fear. At a time when religious differences are igniting conflicts throughout the world. America serves as a beacon of hope that religious tolerance is not only achievable. but only serves to make a country stronger and more viable. The Islamic faith follows the lunar calendar. During the ninth month of the lunar calendar. called "Ramadan." the Arabic term for intense heat and scorched earth. Muslims throughout the world celebrate the revelation of the Quran. In 2007. the month of Ramadan lasts from September 13 to October 12. This sacred month is observed with prayers. fasting. and charity. I believe we could all use a time of peace. and reflection. Ramadan embodies these principles. and I applaud our Muslim friends and neighbors for their sincere religious beliefs. I encourage my colleagues to support this resolution.
Date: 2007-10-02
Speaker: MARIO DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Madam Speaker. on September 19. the State of Florida took a very principled stand against terrorist regimes by divesting roughly $1.3 billion of public employee retirement funds from companies that invest in Iran and Sudan. Iran is actively developing nuclear weapons despite protests from the international community and has repeatedly threatened to wipe the State of Israel off the map. Sudan continues to engage in genocide against its citizens. resulting in more than 400.000 deaths and more than 2 million people forced to seek refuge in neighboring countries. The American peoples hardearned money should not go towards helping state sponsors of terror or enhancing illegal nuclear programs. Madam Speaker. I am extremely proud of Florida and its leadership for taking this remarkable step on this issue. and I hope other States will join in this effort. Obviously. more can always be done to stop funding and to take funding away from state sponsors of terrorism. but this is an important step that the State of Florida has taken. For that. I commend the State of Florida and the State elected officials.
Date: 2007-10-02
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

I thank my dear friend for yielding. Mr. Speaker. its sad to have to take the floor to discuss the issue that we are discussing this evening. We recognize we are in the minority. and in this great representative democracy. as in all representative democracies. the majority gets to rule. We recognize that. But as indispensable and a key ingredient of representative democracy as the rule of the majority is respect for the minority. So what we are speaking about this evening. Mr. Speaker. first. I would say its -the great contrast. the extraordinary contrast between the promises made by the new majority they would institute fairness and transparency as they ran and when they ran the House of Representatives. The contrast between those promises and the performance of almost now the entire first year of this Congress. first session of this 110th Congress. the contrast between the promise and the performance is really extraordinary. I would like to read a quote by the now distinguished chairman of the Rules Committee last December. She stated. "We are going to give people an honest and contemplative body that they can be proud of once more. We are going to have a much more open process."
Date: 2007-10-02
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

I think the ranking member is pointing to a very important point. and that is that as the time approached and when we issued our report. and I think its important to point out that that report was put online last week. I think other distinguished members of the Rules Committee are going to point out the problems that we had with regard to even getting authority to have a Web page.
Date: 2007-10-03
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. let me talk. first of all. about what the legislation does. It establishes a 7year term of office for the over 60 Inspectors General in the Federal Government. This gives them continuity from administration to administration. so theyre not political lackeys. they are professionals. It limits the Presidents authority to remove a Senateconfirmed IG. and thats about half of them. except on certain grounds. for example. permanent incapacity. inefficiency. neglect of duty. malfeasance. conviction of a felony. or conduct involving moral turpitude. That gives the IGs independence from pressure from the appointing administration. At the smaller agencies. a different standard applies. There. an IG can be removed. but it will require 30day advance notification to Congress before an agency head removes the agencys IG. The legislation also authorizes IGs to submit their budget requests to Congress independent of the Presidents budget submission. This is something that Im going -to have an amendment on later that I think will clarify it. This also codifies an executive order establishing the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency. This is a coordinating council of Federal IGs. as well as an integrity committee to investigate allegations of wrongdoing by IGs. And unfortunately. we see that. these people are human beings as well. It increases the salary of IGs and prohibits IGs from receiving bonuses. It enhances IG power by granting limited personnel. authority. expanded subpoena authority. and increased ability to deputize IG agents. It strengthens the GAOs authority to conduct investigations. for sworn testimony it requires congressional notification of agency noncooperation. and it expands IG ability to pursue false claims and recoup losses resulting from fraud. Now. the administration has issued a negative statement of policy on this for two reasons. One. they dont like the limitation on the Presidents authority to remove executive branch officials. On that. I think we have gone overboard. working together. both parties. to try to put reasonable limitations. but at the same time maintaining a higher level of independence for IGs than you will find at other levels. And I think institutionally. as Members of this House. the changes in this bill I.. think are worth supporting. I would oppose the administration in that. The second concern is the independent submission of the IGs budget to Congress. and we are offering an amendnfent to try to clarify that. which I will speak on later. Once again. this legislation was introduced by Representative Jim Cooper from Tennessee in February. It was approved by our committee by a voice vote in August. In addition to a substitute offered by Representative CooPER. which made a number of technical changes. the committee did adopt an amendment offered by me to limit the application of removal for cause in a way that I think we are all comfortable with. So. again. I want to thank the players who have brought this to this stage. Mr. Chairman. I reserve the balance of my time.
Date: 2007-10-03
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

If the gentleman has no further speakers. I will take a minute and sum up and yield back. Let me just say again. I want to thank the author of this legislation. I want to thank Mr. TOWNS for moving this through subcommittee and Chairman WAXMAN. I just want to note. for IGs to work successfully. they need to work with their agencies. I think however we write the law. the President that appoints and the Senate that confirms. we need to look for more accountants. Frankly. we have seen a surge of people coming out of the U.S. Attorneys offices. and they make this more adversarial than it needs to be. A good IG is going to work with their agency to identify waste. fraud and abuse. not enter into a gotcha mentality. For government to work. you need them all working together. You need an independent IG. there is no question about that. But the person in that office ought to be right there with the agency head making sure that things work. That doesnt always happen. I dont think we can write any law that makes that happen. That is going to depend on the goodwill of the people. the agency heads and the IGs working together. But I think this legislation goes a long way toward establishing that independence. giving the IG the authority that they need. But the iest is going to be up to the appointing President and the confirming Senate to get the right people in these jobs. professionals who want to be a part of government and making it work efficiently for the taxpayer. Hi1190 Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.