like many in this Chamber, yesterday evening I was struck with a sense of unfairness and sadness, learning the news of Walter's passing, somebody who has worked so hard to get here. Yet, it seemed to me that Walter would have us focus on…

this conference report is really a mixed bag. There are many provisions I strongly support. There are others I just as strongly oppose. On balance, I believe I must oppose this bill because I am deeply concerned about the impact of some of…

our decision to allow smoking in this Chamber, the Speaker's lobby and the cloakrooms impacts not just ourselves but hundreds of employees, many of whom are here on a regular basis. Reports from our employees that I have received indicate…

one of the joys of serving in the House is being able to bring young visitors here to the floor, but when I bring children on the House floor, they are often surprised to see Members of Congress smoking here in the Chamber. My young guests…

I rise in opposition to myriad amendments to the Commerce, Justice, State and the judiciary appropriation bill to either dramatically reduce or eliminate funding for the Advanced Technology Program [ATP] at the Department of Commerce. High…

I recently returned from a weekend visit to the metropolitan areas of Seattle and Miami, where I had an opportunity to visit with a wide array of individual citizen activists, academics, journalists, government officials, health…

it would be easy to join the administration and friends on both sides of the aisle in their acclaim for their tax and budget agreements, unfortunately, I don't believe a ``yes'' vote is in the best long term interest of our country. To be…

It is disingenuous at best to suggest that a vote for this amendment is going to save one dime of taxpayer money. There is a big difference between subsidy and public guarantee. There are some things that are desirable that no individual…

H.R. 1818 provides States with needed flexibility in addressing juvenile crime, and for that reason, it has my support. But this bill is, at best, a partial solution. In a country where kids and guns are a deadly combination, any juvenile…

if we eliminate the Federal commitment to the arts by eliminating or severely reducing the National Endowment for the Arts, I believe we do a great disservice to the American people. Likewise, if we eliminate our commitment to the…

I hope that this debate will spark a serious analysis and real action on the problems related to roads in our national forests. For people who care deeply about the environment and look beyond the rhetoric, it is sometimes hard to know the…

I personally am disappointed and saddened with the turn of this debate on a tax cut proposal. In the rush to pass the Republican tax program, we are leaving behind the vast majority of Americans. It shortchanges working families, some of…

this is a high water mark for me in the last 2 years I have been able to be in Congress, being able to be a part of this discussion on our relationship with China. It is bipartisan, it makes a difference, it is Congress at its best and its…

We are talking about American economic competitiveness. We know that the Japanese are spending trillions of dollars, and we are debating here on the floor whether or not we are going to add $12 billion in order to meet our current…

I strongly urge a no vote on this rule. Every day 1 million children go home in this country to households with loaded guns. Fifty-five percent of the guns in this country are loaded, kept in homes. It results in the death of approximately…

I do agree with my colleague the gentleman from Oregon, that we ought to learn from the past. But I am afraid that debate here today is largely beside the point. First and foremost, the bill today addresses something that simply is not a…

for many the Postal Service indeed represents the Federal Government. Post offices are the heart and soul of many small towns across America, and they are part of the heritage of every community. Yet, in many instances, people feel…

I am here today to argue on behalf of two of these bills that will do that in terms of having a more balanced transportation system. One, House Resolution 37, would give congressional employees here in the District of Columbia and in our…

I strongly object to the characterization of this bill as an effort to derail term limits. My goodness, nobody could derail term limits more than the so-called proponents have done today. Item after item after item has bit the dust. This…

during my service as a local official in Portland, OR, we worked hard with employers, including government employers, to provide transit passes for our employees as an alternative to single occupant vehicles. We found that transit pass…

The Packers are not an ordinary football team, their fans are not ordinary fans, and their community is not an ordinary community, in large part because 1,950 residents of Green Bay own their football team. The Packers are a vital part of…

for me, the Gingrich episode represents much of what is wrong about the American political system today. It is unfortunately a failing which occurs on many levels. At its core is the behavior of the man twice removed from the Presidency…

We need ISTEA and the money that it brings. But more important, to deal with the problems of our increasingly mobile populations, is the flexibility that that legislation entails. More important than money is the local planning framework…

I oppose the challenge to the President's veto of H.R. 1833. Whatever one's belief on abortion, the late-term procedure most be viewed separately, for this is a procedure to be used only as a last resort to save a woman's life or to avoid…

Before us today is a measure that means a great deal to us in Oregon, naming the new courthouse after Senator Hatfield. I know it is not going to be the last memorial as tribute to Oregon's senior Senator but in many ways it will be the…