some of the moderation in the Medicare cost growth was ACA-related.

the New York exchange announced last week and the headline in the New York Times is 'Health plan costs for New Yorkers set to fall by 50 percent.'

The fact of the matter is the real issues that face and the real challenges that face the U.S. economy are not being addressed here today.

I would encourage all of my colleagues--as well as anyone listening--it would be helpful to just maybe pick up the phone and call the Congressional Research Service...

We were promised by the new majority regular order when they took control of this Congress.

As the poison of sequestration is now seeping through America's economy, society, and national defense, there's a lot of folks in this city who are suddenly running around saying that they oppose sequestration. But I think if you look…

The premise of H.R. 2667, the employer mandate bill, which is part of the rule here today, is that somehow the administration overreached by announcing this postponement of the employer tax measure which was part of the Affordable Care…

On July 1, the front page of The Washington Post had a headline which showed in many respects just, again, the disconnect between this town and the rest of the country. It said: ``They said the sequester would be scary. Mostly they were…

Because of inaction of this Congress, people are losing 20 percent of their paycheck. That's what's hurting the American economy right now. We have a bipartisan immigration bill which cleared the Senate which we know, from CBO, would…

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I hope that bill will serve as a foundation on which to build a bipartisan reform effort moving forward.

Those who are disabled from their work on behalf of the American people should not be forced to bear any of that cost.

I think it is going to give us a great record as we move forward considering, again, the possibility of a bill that hopefully will be as bipartisan and successful in the House as last year.

I hope today's hearings will explore GAO's findings and help us understand whether we can expect any changes to the Department of Labor's proposal.

This finding applies to both executive branch workers as well as postal workers.

I will toot my own horn here--allows for, again, a benefit that extends beyond retirement and no conversion in terms of the calculation of the benefit.

At every corner, and specifically in the Senate and the House Rules Committee, Republicans have blocked consideration of any bill that would provide debt relief to students.

I mean, I haven't heard a lot of disagreement on-- across the aisle here as we talk forward.

there were not enough safeguards in 1911 to allow a rate to reset every year while a student is still in college.

84 percent of the American public supports protecting that lower rate in a polling that came out.

the 10-year Treasury note yield rate on that date was 2.02 percent; today it is 2.65 percent.

It is costing students around $1,000 more per loan because we haven't acted.

This should have never happened.

We need to do something, so my recommendation... would just take this bill up in committee that we put forth with Mr. Courtney.

Many don't believe that it should be a profit center, that we don't think the rates ought to go high enough to more than cover the cost of the loan.