On the recordApril 8, 2014
Mr. President, I think what we just heard was a number of our Members have amendments they are going to talk about and offer when we get on the bill--and I assume we will at some point--so we can debate and vote on them. We are talking about an issue that is important to people across this country, and we have amendments that we think would improve, strengthen, make better the bill that is going to be on the floor that has been described as the Pay Equity Act by the Democrats. We actually think there is a better way to do this. We think there is a way that actually would improve the wages, provide better job opportunities, and better opportunities for advancement for women. This morning the majority leader quoted Ralph Waldo Emerson who said, ``America is another name for opportunity.'' I could not agree more with that statement. The American dream is to work hard and achieve upward mobility. Americans want good jobs, and they want to earn a fair wage. But the current Obama economy is doing everything it can to hurt the American dream. The economy is stagnant. There are 10 million Americans who are unemployed--nearly 4 million for 6 months or longer. Household income has fallen. Right now there are 3.7 million more women living in poverty than there were when the President took office. I will repeat that. There are 3.7 million more women living in poverty today than there were when the President took office.…





