James Davis

the argument which we just heard in opposition to the amendment is that as a matter of public safety we should not continue to follow the Clinton roadless rule. I would like to share some facts which I think undermine that argument…

The statistics suggest that there is between a $13 million and a billion-dollar backlog in terms of what we need to do to construct and maintain roads in these parks. And instead of concentrating on that, we are going to be subsidizing…

Mr. Speaker, the legislation that passed this body a few weeks ago will essentially turn the Medicare program over to private health insurance and the HMOs, the very organizations that have dropped 52 percent of the Medicare enrollees in…

the only defense in support of a voucher was a misstatement on the other side that there is a guaranteed issue that even seniors with health problems over 65 are guaranteed HMO coverage. That is a false statement. There is no guarantee…

The motion to instruct represents an attempt to identify two areas that must be addressed if there is to be a compromise, if there is to be a prescription drug benefit under Medicare in this Congress. I daresay virtually every Member of…

one of the things that we can all agree upon here today is that there ought to be an open and honest debate in our country and with our seniors as to exactly how to accomplish writing a prescription drug benefit. There are Democrats here…

A lot of citizens and taxpayers from my home in Florida are confused about this tax cut. They have said to me, at a minimum, tell us the truth. It has been described as a $350 billion tax cut. On that basis, the proponents of the tax cut…

The tax cut that the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Spratt) referred to, for which there was a bipartisan consensus, was a tax cut that evenly spread the benefits out and provided a true stimulus. The tax cut that was passed on an…

In my home State, Florida, the historically low interest rates have contributed to prosperity for so many more than any tax cut I have ever heard promised in Washington. What has Chairman Alan Greenspan said in front of the Committee on…

this bill tonight, while a welcome step, will leave by the end of the year 2 million Americans without the safety net that they have contributed to when they were employed as far as the unemployment compensation tax, as a part of benefits…

I just want to close by pledging to the chairman my support to continue the drilling in the central and western part of the gulf where there is ample supply and apparently a different standard about environmental degradation with respect…

I respectfully disagree. We know the level of supplies out there. These areas have all been previously inventoried. There is no doubt as to the supply, or in the case of the waters right off the coast of Florida, I would say the lack of…

Tonight the Congress starts its debate as to the budget resolution, which represents a statement by the Nation as to our priorities as a country. On the eve of war, this is a more solemn event than ever, and I think it is fair to say that…

I take tremendous pride in offering this resolution, with others, not to celebrate just a victory, because that is not exactly what happened on Sunday. The Bucs did not just win, I think they won with class and they won with style. It is…

I wanted to start by thanking Wayne's family and the people of Utah for sharing him with us, citizens of the United States, Members of Congress, the many people who were touched by Wayne. Wayne was a wonderful husband, a wonderful father…

I wanted to commend the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Ney) on their work. Mr. Speaker, as a Floridian I need to provide a little more sober assessment as to where we are and where we need to go. I…

I rise in honor of the Bayshore Patriots, a group of four proud Americans from Tampa whose patriotism inspired thousands of people from across Tampa Bay to join together this morning for "Flags Along Bayshore: Tampa Remembers 9-11," an…

about 1 year ago, former Congressman Joe Scarborough and I led a debate on the floor of the House that is remarkably similar to the one today, except it had to do with the coast of Florida. One of the arguments we raised was that the…

There is one question that lingers. Where are the fiscally responsible members of the Republican House of Representatives? So many of my colleagues campaigned, as many Democrats did, on the virtues of the balanced budget and paying down…

this debate today should be about the highest priority of the Congress and the Nation and, that is, national security. Instead, what we have heard from the other side is they will do whatever it takes to pass this bill. One of the…

If I could inquire further of the ranking Democrat on the Committee on the Budget, the biggest fear I have with what happened today is that we have failed to adopt a credible blueprint. The budget resolution is supposed to be our…

I ask the gentleman, where does that leave us on two critical challenges we face: first, assuring there is a reasonable and fair rate of reimbursement to doctors and hospitals in rural areas and overcrowded other hospitals; and how do we…

I would like to further elaborate that just a couple of years ago that interest payment figure the gentleman cited was closer to $225 billion, and, just to put that in context for the folks at home, that was almost as much as we spent on…

It seems to me that it is important to understand how we got to where we are to avoid repeating history and going deeper into this hole. I know the Congressional Budget Office which is widely regarded as a nonpartisan, apolitical office…

when this debate started, the chairman referred to this as a wartime budget. We are united in the war on terrorism. What exactly are we fighting for? We are fighting for a democracy. We are fighting for the right to have an open and honest…