Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I join my colleague, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, in urging the Speaker of the House to bring to this floor the U.S.- Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement, an agreement that's good for Illinois farmers, good for…

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Ladies and gentlemen of the House, today I rise to urge the Speaker of the House to bring forward the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement. I also ask my colleagues to support this agreement. It's an agreement…

I rise to support the U.S.- Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement, to urge the Speaker of this House to bring the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement to this House floor for a vote. And let me tell you this: this agreement is good for the…

I reluctantly stand in opposition of this legislation. We had an opportunity to develop bipartisan legislation, and I regret that was not achieved today. New energy taxes won't create energy . . . but they will destroy jobs. Reliable…

you know, trade and exports are important in States like Illinois, and particularly the district that I represent. In Illinois, 17,000 businesses depend on exports for their survival. Forty percent of the corn soybeans and pork and beef…

last month the members of the Ways and Means Committee heard compassionate testimony on several of the tax and benefit provisions for veterans, military families and volunteers in the bill we are considering on the floor today. Several…

I want to thank my friend, Jerry Costello, for yielding and join in honoring the life and service of someone who was a friend to many in this Chamber. My friend and predecessor, George Sangmeister, served in this body for 6 years…

H.R. 3668 contains temporary extensions of several important programs that affect low-income families with children. I urge its passage. The subcommittee on which I am the ranking Republican, the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Income…

in 1997, I voted ``yes'' to create the Children's Health Insurance Program. I was proud a Republican Congress put this plan into place, and I support reauthorization of this program, but I oppose this bill before us. Why? This bill…

Trade is important to my home State of Illinois. One in five manufacturing jobs depends on trade; 40 percent of agricultural products are exported from Illinois; and I would note, of the 17,000 Illinois companies that are dependent on…

I came to Washington this week with plans to vote for a bipartisan farm bill, a good bill that came out of committee. Lo and behold, I read that the Democrat leadership demanded that the Ways and Means Committee come up with a tax increase…

I rise to join in the strong bipartisan support for this legislation which is critical to our need to continue working to reduce poverty, to create jobs and to strengthen democracy. Today this House has an opportunity to continue moving…

let me begin my commending my friends, Chairman Gordon and Ranking Member Hall, as well as my friend, Mr. Lampson, who is managing the bill this morning. My amendment is pretty basic in what we are trying to achieve. I want to note that…

Today politics trumps policy. If regular order had been followed in this House, allowing this tax increase to go through the Ways and Means Committee, we would have a better understanding of the consequences of today's $14 billion tax…

I rise in support of what we have before us, which is good legislation, a package of legislation that is good for workers and a package of legislation that is good for small business. This legislation deserves bipartisan support. First…

I rise in support of what is a very good trade agreement, both for the United States as well as for our friend and ally, the nation of Oman. It was interesting, I hear a lot of references in this body to those who argue that every one of…

our Nation is addicted to oil, and it is a national security issue. The fact that two-thirds of the oil that we consume is imported puts us at risk. Today left-wing autocrats like Venezuela's Hugo Chavez have told us very clearly they plan…

the statistics say it all: two-thirds of the oil we consume today is imported. Sixty percent of our trade deficit, the increase, is as a result of oil imports, and today we are paying $3 or more per gallon of gasoline. The message is…

on rollcall No. 284, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.'' Amendment No. 8 Offered by Mr. DeFazio The CHAIRMAN. The pending business is the demand for a recorded vote on the amendment offered by the…

I stand in support of H.R. 12 expressing the condolences of this House and the support for the people of the countries that have been impacted by the tsunami in Asia. A friend of our country, Sri Lanka, was one of the countries most…

I rise in support of the position taken by the chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Shaw), in opposition to an amendment offered by my longtime friend and respected seatmate of 10 years, who I…

today we come before this House in a saddened state. A man of unquestioned integrity and strong character has passed from our Nation's midst into the hands of God. Ronald Reagan was a man with a good heart, and he had more of an impact on…

It is a simple extension of existing law, existing law that eliminates the marriage tax penalty for 36 million married working couples. The example of a couple in the district that I represent who are those who face higher taxes if we fail…

it has been an honor to have been the sponsor of H.R. 3538, as well as the two previous pieces of legislation honoring three fallen war heroes from my State of Illinois. This legislation, H.R. 3538, the Marine Capt. Ryan Beaupre Saint Anne…

I rise again today to pay tribute to another fallen brave hero from my home State of Illinois, a brave hero from the war on terror and Operation Iraqi Freedom, Army Private Shawn Pahnke. Under the legislation I am offering today, H.R…