Mr. President, I rise today to recognize a remarkable Arkansan at the end of a 38-year Army career. LTG Aundre Piggee, who will retire in September, is the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army for Logistics. His nearly four-decade career has…

Mr. Speaker, let me say, for the record, that the feeling is mutual. I admire and appreciate the great relationship that Mr. Yarmuth and I have.

Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time I have remaining. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Arkansas has 3\1/2\ minutes remaining.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy), the distinguished Republican leader of the United States House of Representatives; my friend and colleague from Bakersfield, California; and a man that I know…

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, it is not the most ideal situation to be in. As I reflect back on the many days I spent in my district--and I am about to go back there for the August recess, and I am going…

Mr. Speaker, on occasion it is important to reach out to the rural areas of our country for wisdom, and we are going to reach out to west Texas, near Clarendon, Texas. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Thornberry), my…

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, one of the most fundamental duties of Congress is to fund the government. I am pleased that, after months of uncertainty, a budget agreement has been reached, thanks to…

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. A constant theme on our side has been that of national security, a reason why we should support the agreement that has been hammered out between the administration and the four…

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Fort Worth, Texas (Ms. Granger), the ranking member on the House Appropriations Committee and a former mayor. I believe mayors have a pretty good idea of what it takes to get things…

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise), the distinguished Republican whip.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Corona, California (Mr. Calvert), who is the ranking member on the Appropriations Committee that funds the national defense of this country.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to read from a book that we are all very familiar with, the Constitution of the United States, for just a moment. One of my concerns about what we are doing…

Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There appears to be a sufficient second. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll. The legislative clerk called the roll.

We can either fight and bicker about trivial political matters or we can work together to make progress and actually address the healthcare crisis.

Healthcare cannot and should not be a political issue if we truly hope to help all Americans.

In the United States of America, we can do much better in healthcare. We can cover more people. We can cover preexisting conditions.

Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 501. ____________________

Health insurance premiums are spiraling out of control, patients can barely afford essential medications that keep them alive, and costs to obtain care are outrageously unaffordable.