Maxine Waters

I think this legislation is critical to restoring the balance between fighting terrorism and protecting our civil liberties and freedoms.

I have re-introduced legislation, H.R. 1800, the National Security Letters Reform Act of 2009, to address these issues.

The current preemption clause insulates assignees from liability for their own conduct if it is not under the rubric of fraud.

I'm concerned about the bill's preemption provisions.

Many of us are committed to comprehensive reform.

We cannot solve this simply by talking about deportation of everybody.

To tell the truth, to recognize where the problems are, and to call upon immigrants to share in the solving of this problem.

We have to have immigration reform in a comprehensive way.

I am committed--understanding all of the problems, understanding the violation of civil rights, understanding the criminal elements...

This bill restores discretion to judges and allows them to make individualized determinations.

I reintroduced the Major Drug Trafficking Prosecution Act, H.R. 1466, to end mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenses.

The Major Drug Trafficking Prosecution Act of 2009 goes to the root of the problem by creating a more just system.

We had to confront that very issue when we imposed sanctions against the apartheid regime in South Africa.

I am extremely sympathetic to the Iranian people on the ground, the innocent civilians and citizens who are at the mercy of the leadership of the Iranians in charge and the U.S. Government.

I think given the state of their economy at this time, which is in terrible shambles, that this will further cause them to have to think about whether or not they are going to completely disable their entire economic sector.

I was the author in the State of California of the divestment legislation that divested our pension funds from businesses that were doing business in South Africa.

I certainly think that this committee can play an important role in creating the public policy that deals with Iran.

Funding for the Trust can also be used to help us make good on our long-overdue promise to provide safe, decent and affordable housing to the millions of Gulf Coast families still being affected by Hurricane Katrina.

We must reinvest in our public housing stock to ensure that this housing of last resort is always available to those who need it most.

I urge the Committee to account for this aggressive budget authorization.

A budget should be more than just a list of programs and dollar amounts--it should reflect our values as a Congress.

I thank Chairman Spratt and the Members of the Committee for allowing me to testify on this important legislation.

I do not want to see small broadcasters, minority broadcasters, out of business.

So they're not deducting this from the artists' earnings at all?

Am I to understand that, say, the big copyright holders who invest and who promote and who charge the artists for every aspect of the promotion and whatever they do, they are not getting a return on investment?