let me start by saying how many thousands there are that would benefit from the tax credit in my district; 85 percent of them would still benefit from it if for the 105 Members on the Republican side who signed the letter saying that we…

would it not be great if the Pollyannas and the supply-side ideologues were correct that the road ahead for America is paved with candy? I like candy as much as the next guy. I like tax cuts. They want to give a $500 tax credit per child…

there is a circus outside, but the real show is here with the rings on the inside. In ring No. 1, the incredible fire acts. You remember last week when we approved--some of us did not approve of it--burning your citizenship card in order…

on the first day of Congress I joined the call for openness in this Congress, and frankly, we have not made very much progress. During closed-door Senate-House negotiations last week, Republican legislators bestowed a multi-million-dollar…

the section that is being deleted by the Cox amendment requires the foreign manufacturer to appoint an agent for service or process. The prior amendment of the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Conyers] did not touch that issue at all. So what…

the philosophy of this amendment is embodied in the first sentence, which is to empower individual consumers with the information to avoid defective products; court records in all product liability actions are presumed to be open. The…

If the young women who are pictured on this box of Girl Scout cookies, if they get injured and they are scarred or maimed for life, will they get less unless the amendment is adopted than the corporate lobbyists who sent these boxes of…

there is considerable irony in the fact that the distinguished chair of the Committee on the Judiciary should lead off the presentation of this amendment by pointing to the example of what 17 States do with their statutes of repose…

the House, previously, by an overwhelming margin adopted the amendment of the ranking Member, the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Conyers]. It does deal with trying to assure parity that we, for once, do not give all the advantages to the…

A couple of questions that the gentlewoman's comments have raised. The first one is I believe every Member has received today a package of old fashioned Girl Scout cookies. Does the gentlewoman have any understanding of why these special…

This is as the gentleman suggests a poorly crafted amendment that applies not only to careless conduct but to grossly careless conduct, to intentional conduct. It applies not only to the family physician that drags this legislation along…

Mr. Chairman, perhaps it is a peculiar observation at a time when we focus so much attention on lawyers and lawsuits to suggest that maybe a little bitty part of the problem of malpractice in this country, malpractice litigation, is…

this bill as written discriminates against the young child who has a limb severed or is decapitated, really, as a result of playground equipment, a senior citizen who is burned horribly in a fire with a defective heater, a student who is…

at the same time last year I sat on the highest State court in the State of Texas, struggling with this very issue. Our court looked at what the standard should be on the question of punitive damages. It looked at ``clear and convincing…

Let me ask the gentleman if the lack of any data to support this bill is why these special interests are hiding behind the skirts and the little league outfits of the Girl Scouts of America, and whether you are aware of the fact that the…

For every one of these so-called horror stories they tell us about, there is a real live horror story, just like you told us about at McDonald's.

there may well be some debate about which of the various pieces of legislation considered this week is the most outrageous. Is it the reversal of 200 years of American law with reference to the way attorneys are handled in our society? Is…

Yet it is the kind of statistic that has been brought out every day this week and I guess we will hear it tonight and tomorrow also. It is totally and completely misleading, and this bill is going to do nothing about that statistic. Any…

A further question, Mr. Chairman. The gentleman mentioned diversity jurisdiction. Does this also apply with reference to removal? In other words, if someone filed their action under State law in a State court that did not have a draconian…

If I understood that last answer, about frivolous or fraudulent suits, you would get the impression that this only applies to frivolous or fraudulent suits. Is it not correct that there is no requirement to prove frivolity or to prove…

So they could have limited this bill to frivolous and fraudulent cases but instead, as a way of discouraging even legitimate suits that sometimes, of course, in a court in front of a judge and a jury could go either way, if someone takes a…

Because the effect, as I understand your amendment now as amended, is by the States or the localities within a State that is certified meeting the other requirements could apply directly to the Attorney General of the United States and…

can there by any doubt in the America of today that crime, that lawlessness, that violence that is afflicting our families and their homes and their businesses on streets and highways across this country is a No. 1 concern? Indeed at the…

Mr. Chairman, like most Americans, I support the line-item veto. Too often wasteful spending has slipped into a statute, it has hitched a ride into the statute books, and this is a way to try to prevent it. We need to seize on every tool…

I come from America's Sun Belt, with a strong belief in sunshine for our Government and a commitment to sunset for new Government initiatives, including even the most well-intentioned and appealing reforms, such as that provided us today…