Harold Volkmer: “I wish to first thank the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Yates] for giving me 4 minutes, and I have to agree with…”

“I wish to first thank the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Yates] for giving me 4 minutes, and I have to agree with everything that the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Obey] has just said, and I would like to maintain that thought just a little longer because to me, what I am seeing happen in this House, and I have seen it since December 15, is something that I, who have served here now starting my 20th year, have never seen before, and I say that in the history of this country no one has ever seen before, no Member of this House in all those 207 years has seen the cynicism of what I call the radical right wing Republicans led by our Speaker in the approach to how we run the Government, and that approach is, Mr. Speaker, they use blackmail. If they cannot get their way on a balanced budget provision or reconciliation bill which they call a Balanced Budget Act, then they are going to shut down the Government until the President agrees to what they want in a balanced budget. Now that is as simple as that, my colleagues. It is pure blackmail. I never thought that I would ever see a Member of Congress elected by his constituents elect to use a shutdown of the Government in order to get their views on something. We are seeing it right here today on this bill.…”