Sam Farr

I think the point is so well taken, the fact that there is no effort in this legislative body, the only body that can change the law. We are having hearings here where people want to hear and smear or just listen and say, we will finish…

I rise this morning to ask the Republican leadership: When are we going to legislate? If something is broke, let us fix it. Mr. Speaker, every Congress before this one was able to vote here and act on campaign finance reform. The House…

She won by 900 votes. So you have a very close election, and yet they are not going after you and doing a witch hunt in your district in Massachusetts. After all, you are close to Canada, you could have had some Canadians sneak over and…

In the election next door, the gentleman from California, Mr. George Brown, he won with 17 more votes than the gentlewoman from California, Ms. Loretta Sanchez, 17 more votes; the same type of mix of ethnic populations. Is anyone going…

I just disagree with the author of this amendment that the way of getting there is to rob Peter to pay Paul. I think when we rob an educational account to pay for a medical account we have no gain. However, as I am certain you will find…

I will give a very clear answer to the gentleman's question. The U.S. Constitution protects us on a takings issue, and most constitutions, including that of the State of California, protect us on a takings issue. There is absolutely no…

What? There is a restrictive use because you might measure the weather, because you might measure the rainfall?

Name one single property right issue that is violated by naming this as a biosphere.

I rise in favor of this bill with the amendment, accept that because it is essentially a bottom-up process and we all got here from local government, and this is where people who live on the land take care of it, both sides of the issue…

We have a clear choice to continue along with cutting out the nuclear arsenal that the Soviet Union has built up. It would be foolish not to continue dismantling that. This program is the cooperative threat for reduction. It funds support…

I appreciate that explanation. My point that I made to the gentleman from California was that I think the bill goes far beyond what he originally intended, because it goes into projects that are greater than levees. It goes into dredging…

It is too bad we have to schedule a special order to discuss campaign finance reform. We ought to be doing this in a regular session, in a regular time, to vote on a bill, not just to talk about the bill.

I really believe that in every community we have certainly wonderful natural beauty. I did not even mention the 27 golf courses. But I think every community in America has something historically beautiful about it, and certainly people…

Mr. Speaker, I am rising in support of this bill as an original cosponsor. I think Members have heard in the debate... The successful places, Disneyland and so on, are able to do this on their own.

I have authored it as a substitute to the Republican bill. The rule, as it is designed in coming before us right now, reflects what the Republicans want, which is new law with no spending limits; no limits, no caps, and no reform. But, I…

I appreciate your allowing us to have this colloquy. Without people talking, sometimes it is kind of lonely in this chamber. But my point is limiting raising that money in your district will put the advantage on a wealthy person versus a…

The difficulty with your plan is you have no limits. If you are concerned about PAC contributions influencing, whether they be labor PAC's or business PAC's or whatever the ideological framework of a PAC may be, you put no limits on them…

I think that every worker has a right to know where their contribution is going. I do not think that your provision is the one that I support because it does not apply equally to corporate as well. A PAC contribution is a PAC contribution…

We do not even need to go back to last year. We can talk about this year. We have the same action by the Republican leadership in the Senate this year on the bill that was a counter bill to the one the gentleman has authored in this House.

I am glad the gentleman asked, because in the 103d Congress with a bipartisan vote, we passed a bill over to the Senate. It was very similar to the bill that President Bush had vetoed in 1992. That bill ironically was filibustered by none…

I am not sure they can even get enough support from their own Congress. Fortunately I do not think they will get the support.

People come here from all over the world to watch Congress in session. It is an opportunity to see how in this country laws are made. What we are about tonight is the special order talking about what is going on in a room upstairs here…

We have received 362 letters in favor of limiting campaign finance in congressional campaigns. We have received two to suggest we ought to spend more money, or are opposed to the limits. It is running over 150 to 1 in favor of exactly what…

I want to just publicly thank you for the effort that you have had in leading the bipartisan effort to bring a sensible bill to the floor for a vote, and hopefully you will get that vote. I am certainly supportive of it. If that is not…

I think he pointed out to us that in that debate we have a lot of people to come down to the well as conservatives who seem to know the price of everything and the value of nothing. Transfer that into campaign reform and that price tag is…