Xavier Becerra: “Mr. Chairman, my father has never skied in his life, my father has never played tennis in his life. I doubt he even wore…”

“Mr. Chairman, my father has never skied in his life, my father has never played tennis in his life. I doubt he even wore a pair of skis or touched a tennis racquet in his life. But for more than 50 years he did work with a pick and shovel, and now my father has tendons in his hands which are contracted and tendons in his hands which are hardened. Pick and shovel and constantly stooping down, that is what my father did in building the great Nation that we have in America. Now was it repetitive action that caused those tendons to contract and harden? I do not know, but we should have information to determine if in fact that is what caused my father's tendons to contract and harden. But this legislation does not even allow OSHA to collect the information to make that determination. Whether or not we should have standards now, I will not make that judgment, but we should at least be allowed to collect the information needed to make that judgment. This bill under the Republican leadership would not allow it to happen. I will go back and tell my father what the Republican Congress wishes to do on this particular issue.”