On the recordDecember 13, 2011
I want to thank the gentlelady for yielding time and for her leadership on an issue so critical to extending a safety net to those who are desperately looking for jobs and who need this bridge over troubled waters at this point. Mr. Speaker, the Republican bill would gut unemployment benefits to the millions of Americans who are looking for work when there are, roughly, four people for every one job. It would reduce unemployment benefits down to 59 weeks from 99 weeks at a time when we are facing a serious crisis among our long-term unemployed. It makes no economic sense, and quite frankly, it is heartless. The Lee-Scott amendment would have replaced these Republican Christmastime cuts with real extensions of unemployment benefits, and it would have added an additional 14 weeks of unemployment insurance for the millions of Americans who have already exhausted their benefits, but the Republicans did not make any amendments in order--no fixes allowed to the heartless and senseless cuts that this contains. This bill is really a sham. It's a shame, and it's a disgrace. It will cost our Nation jobs, and it is a slap in the face to job seekers. We should really be about the work of reigniting the American Dream, not making it more of a nightmare for people as this bill would do.
