mesut/congress_speeches huggingface dataset:
HONORING ELBERT BENNETT
James Comer (Republican, KY) \u2014 2017-4-5

today I would like to recognize Mr. Elbert Bennett for his service as president of the Kentucky Magistrates and Commissioners Association board of directors. Elbert, one of nine children, was born in Princeton, Kentucky. After graduating Caldwell County High School in 1967, he began working at The Times Leader newspaper in Caldwell County. He has accomplished much since starting at that newspaper. prgtoken Elbert held office in the Kentucky Young Farmers Association and was elected magistrate in 2002. Prior to this election, Elbert served 20 years on the Fredonia City Council. Elbert has been a lifelong cattle farmer, is the former president of the Fredonia Lions Club, and is an active member of the Cattlemen's Association. prgtoken Most recently, Elbert has given his time to the Wounded Warrior Project, cooking barbecue and hosting veterans on his farms. Elbert is widely known and respected as a barbecue cook, cooking for thousands at church events, Lions Club events and children's events. prgtoken In 2008, Elbert Bennett's peers elected him to the Kentucky Magistrates and Commissioners Association board of directors. He has held every office inside the State association, including sergeant-at- arms, secretary, treasurer, vice president, and president. prgtoken While president of KMCA, the association has had many legislative victories, including stabilizing essential 911 resources for cities and counties in Kentucky. One of Elbert's most notable accomplishments as president of KMCA is the association's annual children's shoe drive, which donates over 600 pairs of shoes annually to needy schoolchildren all across the Commonwealth of Kentucky. prgtoken He was recently elected to the Kentucky Association of Counties executive board as second vice president, where he represents the magistrates and commissioners. prgtoken I cannot speak highly enough about Elbert Bennett and how his service has positively influenced the First District and the Commonwealth of Kentucky as a whole. I am honored to recognize Elbert Bennett today and the great work he does for the people of our State.
CLIMATE ALARMISTS OFFER NO SOLUTIONS
Lamar Smith (Republican, TX) \u2014 2017-4-5

climate change alarmists always predict cataclysmic events that will inevitably occur when the world's temperature rises by more than 2 degrees Celsius. prgtoken But all the howling and gnashing of teeth signifies nothing. It is all posturing for their own purposes, including a desire to control people's lives or get another government grant or an academic promotion. prgtoken The Paris climate agreement, supported by about 200 countries, would, at best, only prevent an increase in temperature by one-sixth of a degree Celsius. prgtoken If the Paris Agreement has little impact on global temperatures, then no regulation proposed by the administration nor any single bill introduced in Congress would have any significant impact on climate change--not one regulation, not one piece of legislation. prgtoken So the next time you hear or read about some imminent calamity due to climate change, remember it is just all words and no action. prgtoken The real solution isn't more ineffective and costly regulations. It is innovative technology that will make all forms of energy cleaner and less expensive.
RECOGNIZING JOHN ALBAN FINCH
Tom Reed (Republican, NY) \u2014 2017-4-5

I rise today to honor the life and legacy of John Alban Finch. prgtoken Fifty years ago today, on April 5, 1967, a fire broke out at Cornell Heights Residential Club, an off-campus student dormitory in Ithaca, New York. The fire claimed the lives of eight students and one professor from Cornell University. prgtoken Mr. Finch was the professor who perished in the fire. On the night of the tragedy, he immediately took action by awakening his neighbors in the building and calling the Cornell Safety Division. Despite heavy smoke, Mr. Finch ran back into the building to help other occupants escape to safety. A total of 62 people escaped the fire, many of whom attributed their survival to Mr. Finch's heroic and selfless actions. Tragically, Mr. Finch did not survive. prgtoken Mr. Finch gave his life to save those in need--the true definition of a hero. prgtoken Mr. Finch was an assistant professor and faculty advisor for the Ph.D. program at Cornell University. He originally came to Cornell in 1960 as a graduate student on a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship. Mr. Finch earned a master's degree in 1961 and a Ph.D. in 1964. The following year, he began working as an Assistant Professor of English and an instructor in the English honors program. Mr. Finch was a distinguished scholar and highly valued faculty member. prgtoken I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring the life of John Alban Finch and recognizing his lifelong commitment to serving others.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 1219, SUPPORTING AMERICA'S INNOVATORS ACT OF 2017, AND PROVIDING FOR PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PERIOD FROM APRIL 7, 2017, THROUGH APRIL 24, 2017
Bill Huizenga (Republican, MI) \u2014 2017-4-5

I appreciate the opportunity to rise, and I do feel like, to clarify, the bill title of H.R. 1219 is Supporting America's Innovators Act. prgtoken Our colleagues have seen time and time and time again that the other side has wanted to come to the floor and talk about everything other than what we are dealing with. But I do want to lay out, as one of the senior members of the committee, what has happened in Financial Services when we have dealt with this. prgtoken Last Congress, this exact bill passed 52-2 in the committee, with the ranking member supporting the bill. There were no dissenting minority views that were offered. And now, with this particular piece of legislation, H.R. 1219, there were no amendments even offered at the Rules Committee. prgtoken So which is it? My friends across the aisle complain when we don't do regular order. They complain if this had gone on suspension. I am kind of reminded of Groucho Marx in his movie, ``Horse Feathers.'' Whatever that is, I am against it. That seems to be their attitude. prgtoken But I do look forward to working with my colleagues across the aisle to make sure that they join me in supporting government funding when we are going to be dealing with that here shortly. prgtoken So on to our bill here, H.R. 1219, unless the opposition, the other side of the aisle, would like to continue to talk about a lot of nongermane things; I will keep bringing up Susan Rice and her illegally unmasking people if they would like to do that. We can continue with that conversation. prgtoken I would prefer to talk about H.R. 1219. So we know that small businesses and entrepreneurs are the heartbeat of the American economy, and access to financial capital is vital for entrepreneurs seeking startup money, or to operate, or to expand their businesses. However, gaining access to capital has remained an enduring challenge for small businesses. prgtoken The financial crisis and the Great Recession made the situation worse as capital became increasingly hard to access from institutional banks and various capital players. And while conditions have improved somewhat in the recent years, many entrepreneurs continue to struggle with accessing the capital that they need to compete and to grow. prgtoken In order to succeed, these companies need capital and credit, which is the lifeblood for growth, expansion, and job creation. Yet the government continues to construct arbitrary walls that cut them off from essential financing as smaller companies are caught in a sea of regulatory red tape created by Washington bureaucrats oftentimes. prgtoken As we had a similar bill yesterday, I made the point at that time as well. We know that 60 percent of all net new jobs that have been created here in the United States, 60 percent of all net new jobs that have been created here over the last 2 decades, have come from these small businesses. prgtoken Congress has made strides in tailoring the regulatory envir
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN'S WISDOM
Tom McClintock (Republican, CA) \u2014 2017-4-5

Congress is fundamentally a deliberative institution. Deliberations take time, and they are often messy. In fact, the bigger the issue, the messier the deliberations. prgtoken The designers of our Constitution wanted a great, big, ugly debate every time a decision was being made. They wanted the subject held up to every conceivable light and every voice in the country to be heard. prgtoken This is certainly true of the effort to replace the collapsing bureaucracy of Care with the patient-centered marketplace that we have long promised. prgtoken These deliberations must continue until they bear fruit because there is no excuse for failure. Care is only getting worse. prgtoken Last year's average 25 percent premium increase is likely to be followed by even bigger increases this year. The flight of healthcare providers from the system is only going to accelerate. The rapid expansion of Medicaid, which could exceed defense spending by next year, is not only fiscally unsustainable, it doesn't even guarantee care. prgtoken Dwindling Medicaid providers and lengthening waiting lists means that many Medicaid patients have no recourse but to flood emergency rooms. prgtoken The original Medicaid population, the elderly, the blind, the disabled, who were only reimbursed an average 57 cents on the dollar, are pushed to the back of every line by able-bodied Care expansion patients who are reimbursed at 90 percent. prgtoken The American Health Care Act is far from perfect. I have argued vigorously for a comprehensive bill rather than the current piecemeal approach that we are following. prgtoken Now, I lost that debate, but I haven't lost sight of the ultimate goal: to restore our healthcare system as the best in the world. prgtoken I could list a lot of things that could be made better by the current bill, and perhaps they will be in our extended negotiations, but those who expect perfection in our legislation fundamentally misunderstand our system. prgtoken Congress was never designed to make perfect law. It was designed to make the best law that is acceptable to the most people. And it is pretty good at that when we let it be. prgtoken When the Constitutional Convention seemed hopelessly deadlocked, Benjamin Franklin declared that he didn't entirely approve of our Constitution, but he had learned, over the years, to doubt a little of his own infallibility and to recognize the limitations of making decisions with others. prgtoken He noted that when you assemble a group of people to benefit from their collective wisdom, you also had to accept their collective shortcomings and realize that a perfect product is never possible from such a process. prgtoken In another speech, he recalled being an apprentice tradesman trying to fit together two pieces of wood. It was often necessary, he said, to shave a little from one and then a little from the other until you had a joint that could hold together for centuries. In this s
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 1219, SUPPORTING AMERICA'S INNOVATORS ACT OF 2017, AND PROVIDING FOR PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PERIOD FROM APRIL 7, 2017, THROUGH APRIL 24, 2017
Randy Hultgren (Republican, IL) \u2014 2017-4-5

I thank my good friend from Colorado. prgtoken , I rise today to support the rule providing for consideration of H.R. 1219, the Supporting America's Innovators Act of 2017. This is a bipartisan piece of legislation that has seen productive debate and almost no opposition when it was considered by the House Financial Services Committee. The House considered a very similar bill last July that received 388 votes here in the House in support. prgtoken Congressman Patrick McHenry has been steadfast in his dedication to finding opportunities to update our securities laws so we can harness the true power of our capital markets. In recent memory, this started with the JOBS Act, which was very bipartisan and has been crucial to reinvigorating our capital markets. However, there is still more we can do. prgtoken The Supporting America's Innovators Act of 2017 increases the limit on the number of individuals who can invest in certain venture capital funds before those funds must register with the SEC as investment companies under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Currently, the act limits the number of investors in an investment company fund to 100 if the fund is to be exempt from registration with the SEC. This registration is an extremely costly regulatory requirement that is not always appropriate. prgtoken The Chamber of Commerce describes this as a fix to what has come to be known as the ``99 investor problem,'' that is, the requirement that certain venture capital funds register with the SEC once they reach their 100th investor. Increasing this low threshold, originally set in the 1940s, would allow venture capital to continue to play the important role in the economy that it has in the past. prgtoken Unless Congress updates this threshold, startups, the driver of job creation and economic growth in our districts, will continue to be choked off from what should be easily accessible and affordable capital. prgtoken , I urge my colleagues to support this rule and to support this bipartisan legislation.
THE COST OF DEFENDING OUR COUNTRY
John J. Duncan, Jr. (Republican, TN) \u2014 2017-4-5

defense spending was $348 billion in 2002. Now it is well over $600 billion a year, and this total does not include the military construction budget which has totaled more than $181 billion over the last 10 years, and many billions more in supplemental appropriations. There is presently a request for another $30 billion supplemental appropriations for the military. prgtoken On top of all this, almost every year for the 29 years I have been here, there has been an end-of-the-year omnibus appropriations bill which always contains even more for the Defense Department. prgtoken I have always believed that national defense is one the most important, most legitimate functions of the Federal Government. But I am also a fiscal conservative. prgtoken With our Nation $20 trillion in debt and many trillions more in unfunded future Social Security and pensions liability in the years ahead, we desperately need some fiscal conservatives in the Pentagon. prgtoken I realize that the easiest thing in the world to do is to spend other people's money; and you can never satisfy any government's appetite for money or land. They always want more. But it is a myth to say or think that the Defense Department is underfunded when defense spending has doubled since 2002. prgtoken Yet, even though this spending has gone way up, most people around the country seem to believe it has gone way down. We hear some saying the military has been decimated or has undergone drastic cuts. This has been a masterful public relations job, I assume, by the Pentagon, working with defense contractors and think tanks funded by the defense industry. prgtoken Last year, we spent $177.5 billion for new equipment, tanks, planes, weapons of all sorts. Most of this equipment does not wear out after just 1 year, yet we keep spending similar amounts on new equipment every year. prgtoken I mentioned that the military construction funds are in a separate bill, not in the regular Defense Department appropriations bill. The $181 billion we have appropriated over the last 10 years in this bill means you probably cannot find any military base in the world without new construction going on, and much more that is only 3 or 4 years old or even newer. prgtoken We have a $20 trillion national debt. Last week, I read in The Washington Times that the estimate now is that we will be $91 trillion in debt 30 years from now. Obviously, if we allow that much debt, we will be printing so much money that our Social Security and military and civil service pensions will be worth very little. prgtoken In the biography, ``Bonhoeffer,'' about the famous theologian, by Eric Metaxas, it says that, in 1921, the currency exchange rate was 75 German marks to the dollar. The next year, it was 400 marks to the dollar. Then inflation really took off, and, by early 1923, it was 7,000 to 1. prgtoken Metaxas wrote: ``The resultant economic turmoil would make the bleak conditions of a few months ear
HONORING 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF SURETY BONDS
Sam Graves (Republican, MO) \u2014 2017-4-5

I rise today to recognize the 75th Anniversary of the National Association of Surety Bond Producers (NASBP). Formed in 1942, NASBP is a national trade organization representing firms employing licensed surety bond producers and allied professionals. NASBP producers specialize in providing surety bonds for construction contracts and for other purposes to companies and individuals needing the assurance offered by surety bonds. The NASBP bond producer stands as the bridge between the construction firm and the surety company and works closely with the construction business to position the business to meet underwriting requirements to obtain surety credit for bonded work. Surety bonds are a time-honored, vital component of federal and state procurement systems, where a furnished surety bond evidences a contractor's qualifications to undertake the contract sought and taxpayer funds are protected through the surety bond's guarantee of performance I want to again extend my good wishes and recognize NASBP on its 75th Anniversary, and I encourage my colleagues in the House of Representatives to do the same.
PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 1219, SUPPORTING AMERICA'S INNOVATORS ACT OF 2017, AND PROVIDING FOR PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PERIOD FROM APRIL 7, 2017, THROUGH APRIL 24, 2017
Ken Buck (Republican, CO) \u2014 2017-4-5

the balance of my time. prgtoken , I appreciate my friend from Massachusetts quoting me yesterday, and I would love to just emphasize a few of the words that he said a moment ago: I also shudder to think if Hillary Clinton won the Presidency. prgtoken My friend was kind enough to focus his half hour on H.R. 1219, Supporting America's Innovators Act of 2017. It is, in fact, a great piece of legislation, and I am proud to close now on that bill. prgtoken We have the opportunity today to improve access to capital for America's entrepreneurs and startups. The men and women who start companies in this Nation put everything on the line. They give of their time and their financial resources. They give of their weekends and evenings and vacations. prgtoken Our economy relies on the small businesses that these men and women create. Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy. They provide jobs and important products and services. They contribute to the life of their communities. prgtoken If we want to grow our economy, if we want to increase hiring, if we want to improve our quality of life, then we need to unleash America's entrepreneurs and startups. That is why we need to support this bill. prgtoken We must expand access to credit for small-business owners. We need to make it easier for angel investors to take a risk on young companies. We are not asking the American taxpayer to take a risk or spend any money on this. We are simply asking the Federal Government to allow angel investors to join together in larger groups to invest in promising young American companies. prgtoken I am encouraged that this bill represents a bipartisan effort to make small-business owners in this country more rewarding. When the cost of starting a small business is outweighed by the reward, our country will benefit from the resulting innovation and job creation. We simply need to give entrepreneurs the tools they need to succeed, and one of those tools is access to capital. prgtoken America's entrepreneurs and startups need H.R. 1219. Americans who want to work for small businesses need H.R. 1219. Americans who want to buy great products, access incredible services, and visit amazing websites all need H.R. 1219. prgtoken I thank Chief Deputy Whip McHenry for introducing this important bill, and I thank Chairman Hensarling for bringing this legislation before us. I also thank Representative Velazquez, Representative Hollingsworth, Representative Sherman, and Representative Gottheimer for cosponsoring this legislation. prgtoken I ask my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on the rule and vote ``yes'' on the bill.
ARTHUR C. BUTLER'S 100TH BIRTHDAY
Neal P. Dunn (Republican, FL) \u2014 2017-4-5

I rise today to honor Mr. Arthur C. Butler, Sr. of Lake City, Florida who turns 100 years old today. prgtoken Mr. Butler has led a life of service to this country and represents the best of America. He served as a Technical Sergeant in the 10th Fighter Squadron of the U.S. Army Air Corps. prgtoken In 2015, Mr. Butler was awarded the French Legion of Honor for his role in the liberation of France and the Battle of Rhineland. During his tour he witnessed General Patton and troops march through his base outside Paris on their way to the Battle of the Bulge. prgtoken Mr. Butler is also a Knight Chevalier in the French Legion of Honor. prgtoken Mr. Butler has been a pillar of the community and a member of the Lake City Lions Club for over 60 years. prgtoken , please join me in wishing Mr. Arthur C. Butler a Happy 100th Birthday and thanking him for his service to our great country.
AMENDING THE VETERANS ACCESS, CHOICE, AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2014
Gus M. Bilirakis (Republican, FL) \u2014 2017-4-5

while the Veterans Choice Program is by no means perfect--the chairman said this, as well as the ranking member--many of our men and women who wore our Nation's uniform rely on it for increased access to quality health care. prgtoken I strongly support S. 544 because veterans should have certainty that their care will continue, and I am optimistic that our efforts to reform and build upon the Choice Program will yield positive results going forward. The intentions and goals of the Choice Program are good, giving our true American heroes more choices and more focused care; but, clearly, some areas of the program need improvement. I hear that from my veterans. prgtoken We have already taken some solid steps to make the program work better for veterans, but not enough. We will have the opportunity to fix this in a bipartisan fashion; for example, one positive step: The eligibility rules initially stated that a veteran had to live 40 miles as the crow flies from the nearest VA facility. We changed it to 40 miles driving distance. That is just common sense; isn't it? I think it is. We have also made reforms to increase the number of non-VA providers who are allowed to participate in the program and expand eligibility to all enrolled veterans. prgtoken There is much work to be done, there is no question. The only way we can continue improving the Veterans Choice Program and ensure that veterans see no interruption to their health care is to eliminate the sunset date. prgtoken , I urge passage of S. 544.