it has struck me as I have listened to the debate here that there are many myths propagated about CAFTA, the proposed free trade agreement between the Dominican Republic, Central American nations and the United States. One is that we are…

at a time of record-high energy prices, the growth of the economy is at risk, and it is critical that Congress take the necessary steps to put in place a comprehensive energy policy. The bill before us, frankly, is more limited in scope…

This resolution puts our trading partners on notice that the U.S. Congress will not tolerate predatory trade practices. This resolution also pressures the administration to use its legal authority, including remedies that in my view could…

I want to make it clear here, a vote for this resolution is a vote for a strong domestic steel industry. The American Iron and Steel Institute supports this resolution. A vote against this resolution is a vote against the vital interests…

the American tax system is a Frankenstein's monster that terrorizes individual taxpayers while casting a cold shadow over the productive sectors of the U.S. economy. It is too complicated. It is riddled with obvious inequities. It punishes…

in recent days, a lot of people have heard about the Republican tax plan that passed the House as part of a 90-10 plan, which sets aside 90 percent of the existing surplus to save Social Security and also sets aside 10 percent of the…

while I have the highest respect for the colleagues who are involved and who have expressed these concerns, I would point out to these gentlemen that this insurance issue is not new. The Yasuda/INA venture, which is controlled by a…

Today, Madam Speaker, we take up legislation that is freighted with more emotion and ideology than almost any other that this Congress may consider this year. Yet the outcome of this debate will shape our relations with one of the great…

You bet we did not. Because there were things in there like limiting the expenditure of campaigns to $70,000. I mean, a whole campaign spending $70,000, trying to reach the voters. In the Senate they limited it to 8 cents per voter, 8…

I believe very strongly that families who save to put their kids through school, whether it is primary, secondary school, or college, whether it is a private institution or a public institution, should be able to save without having those…

Mr. Speaker, our tax system hangs like an albatross around the neck of the American taxpayer, stifling savings and productive investment, and arbitrarily punishing or subsidizing activity and making the process of paying taxes…

Mr. Speaker, every American should have the right to aspire to the American dream. In America, every citizen should have the opportunity to participate in our economy to the extent of their talent or abilities. Unfortunately, many…

while I salute the intention of the authors of this legislation, I rise to strongly oppose this bill, freighted as it is with unintended consequences. This legislation would put our foreign policy and our trade policy on auto pilot to be…

In my district in western Pennsylvania, most working families and retirees depend on Social Security as the keystone of their retirement security. These families are clearly at risk because of the grim shadow of looming bankruptcy that has…

if the opponents of this resolution are successful, it will indeed have a chilling effect. It will have a chilling effect on efforts to open up and provide sunshine into every area of government, because the issue before us is basically a…

this legislation before the House today provides valuable support for a growing American economy. The programs that are reauthorized under Senate bill 1139 play a limited, but beneficial, role in promoting the most dynamic sector of the…

It is stunning, but the IRS is the only place in the American system of law where a citizen is guilty until proven innocent. Traditionally, the taxpayer, when notified by the IRS that his tax payments failed, in their view, to satisfy his…

in my area of northwestern Pennsylvania one of the biggest challenges facing the middle class is the affordability of education, and this is something that affects middle-class families across a range of circumstances. It is the single…

making education affordable, whether at the college level or at the primary and secondary level, has to be one of the primary concerns of Congress. Our Republican tax bill adopted this year contained provisions that provided real tax…

briefly, I rise as a member of the Committee on Ways and Means and as the former principal tax staffer for the Senate Republicans in Pennsylvania in strong opposition to this amendment. We have to realize that these revenue estimates that…

In the debate on whether to continue normal trade relations with China, the opponents of trade have failed fundamentally to answer one question: What will ending our engagement with China accomplish? It will not improve human rights or…

Today we will vote on fundamental welfare reform legislation, a mainstream proposal that working families across the Nation have been demanding for years. Three decades and $5 trillion ago, this Nation declared war on poverty. What was the…

let me say I come to this Congress as a strong supporter of the restriction on unfunded mandates, and I come to this Congress as a former finance officer. I am strongly opposed to this point of order because I think it stretches that rule…

addressing the crisis in Medicare by preventing the Part A trust fund from going bankrupt may be the most important and the most difficult challenge for this Congress. Mr. Speaker, Medicare is part of a social compact we have with…

while H.R. 1215, the Republican tax program, helps working families, promotes economic growth, and creates jobs, it also helps millions of working senior citizens. Current law imposes harsh penalties on senior citizens, particularly those…