Rob Andrews: “6 million Americans are about to lose their right to overtime protection, police officers, firefighters, preschool…”

“6 million Americans are about to lose their right to overtime protection, police officers, firefighters, preschool teachers; and I believe that a majority of this House is ready to vote against that proposal and is ready to restrain that proposal from becoming law. I have, Mr. Speaker, to commend the majority because they have found a new way to subvert the will of the majority. On two occasions what the majority has done is permit a proposition to come to the floor, lose, as they did in the case of the Medicare vote, lose as they did in the case of protecting civil rights under an amendment to the PATRIOT Act, and then fix the result after they have lost. This time they have come up with a new strategy. Because the majority knows it will lose this vote on overtime, they are prohibiting the vote from coming to the floor in the first place. If the Labor-HHS appropriations bill were reported out of committee and brought to this floor, this House would get a chance to work its will and defeat this proposal that will deny 6 million Americans the right to overtime. I say, Mr. Speaker, to the majority, bring it to the floor. Let the House work its will. Let the majority protect the rights of 6 million Americans.”