On the recordNovember 18, 2021
I thank Chairman Neal for yielding. This Build Back Better bill is the third leg of a three-legged stool that balances the American Rescue Plan signed by President Biden last March and the bipartisan infrastructure bill signed by President Biden last Monday. These three bills provide the wherewithal to fix our roads and bridges, repair our rails, deepen our harbors, and provide long awaited broadband to households and neighborhoods. Mr. Speaker, I have often remarked that America is not in need of being made great. It is great and has been for a long time. {time} 2030 I often quote Alexis De Tocqueville's observation that America's greatness is not that it is more enlightened than any other nation, but rather, that it has always been able to repair its faults. The Build Back Better Act will repair some longstanding faults, many of which have been exacerbated by COVID-19 and our feckless early response to it. This Build Back Better legislation will make healthcare accessible and affordable for 2.2 million low-income, uninsured Americans that exist in the Medicaid coverage gap. It makes benefits accessible and affordable to millions of children who will be able to continue receiving the child tax credit. It will make childcare and preschool accessible and affordable for children who have been struggling to get a fair start in life; and it will make housing accessible and affordable for their parents.…





