David Obey

Mr. Speaker, to recapitulate, there are a number of appropriation bills which still have not passed, but a number of them primarily because they just got caught up in accidents that started out to happen to somebody else, and we can fix…

I plead fully guilty in resisting the idea that American prosperity can only be expanded by further suppressing worker wages. In my view, when we try to disallow Davis-Bacon rules, that is what we do. Now, my colleagues may call that big…

One of the most important is the privacy issue, the illegitimate use of Social Security numbers to allow anyone who uses the Internet to invade the privacy of each and every American if they are shrewd enough on how to go about it. That is…

The very first rescission action the Republican Congress took when they took control is to try to cut LIHEAP, and the gentlewoman from Connecticut and I blocked it in the Committee on Appropriations. We beat you on that vote. This is about…

Mr. Speaker, I do not intend to take 30 minutes. Let me simply say that the gentleman from Florida is right. We have to approve this resolution again to keep the government open. I am concerned about two developments. Number one, early…

One simple question. The people the President is concerned about have been in this country for 15 years. If the gentleman does not want these people who came from the countries they come from to get the same treatment that prior immigrants…

I would just note that I welcome the comments of the gentleman from Florida, although I would say they are at some variance with the fact that we were just told at about 11:30 by one of the key conferees that he did not intend to meet…

Mr. Speaker, ``Groundhog Day.'' That is what it feels like to me. Last night, almost the last bit of business we did, we passed a 1-day resolution continuing the government. This morning, because there is obviously not much to do on the…

All I can say to the House is that if they have listened to him and they have listened to me, or if they have missed what either he or I said, they have not missed much.

Mr. Speaker, we have no choice but to vote for this CR, as the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young) indicates. Before we do, I think we need to simply take note of the fact that these continuing resolutions are supposed to enable us to get…

I find it ironic that the only dollar item in this bill over which there is a dispute is the provision which prevents funding for the Government to proceed with a suit against the tobacco companies for past losses to the Federal Treasury…

I think to understand our concern about today people need to understand what the record was yesterday. And if my colleagues take a look at what our Republican friends in the majority have tried to do on education since the day that they…

Directing that 7 percent of the education money that is spent in this country be spent on national priorities is not what I call running roughshod over local control. What we are saying is they control 93 percent of the funds. Spend it any…

I want to clear up one thing. It is not that I am objecting to the Stevens amendment. What I am trying to do is raise concerns about how it is going to be applied, whether it will be applied evenly to all bills, including Labor-HHS…

I think there are many good things in this bill, and I especially want to say that I think that the debt relief provisions in this bill are long overdue. They will not cost the American taxpayers, because this is debt on the part of…

Mr. Speaker, the fact is the administration asked for $1.3 billion in renovation funds. They asked for $1.75 billion for class size. You merged that into a block grant. They asked for $3 billion. You gave them $2.7 and block granted it. We…

I want to talk, however, about something which has been attached to this bill in the form of the Stevens amendment, because I think that amendment brings us face-to-face with what has essentially been the institutional dishonesty which has…

I think the gentleman misheard the distinguished minority leader. I did not hear a single word of criticism about the gentleman's work product.

taking back my time, I would simply say the gentleman has asked why is it that local school districts do not recognize these same priorities. The fact is that they do, and that is why they are asking us to pass these programs. Take a look…

We just met with the principals and got stiffed. We were just told by the principal from your party on the Senate side I would not move one dollar. And we were asked by the Senate chairman of the Committee on Appropriations to sit down and…

The gentleman knows that I said on this floor and I said to you that I would be prepared to be here any day, Saturday, Sunday or Monday, if your leadership was prepared to be here. Because it is obvious they are the people making the…

As the gentleman well knows, we have stayed here for three weekends waiting to find someone to negotiate with. And as the gentleman also knows, no one with the power to make decisions on the issues has been here. I do not have any…

You got the offer. We are waiting for your response. We were told that we would get it on Monday. And I am relying on Senator Stevens, he is a man of good faith, and I am relying on you to be ready Monday to deal with it. But I have been…

Are we supposed to meet with Senator Specter again who says there is no give? We were told we should meet with people at a higher level on Monday. That is what we are doing. As you well know, your leadership has kept you on a tight leash…

I just want to make it clear I will be happy to cancel my plane in 5 minutes if the Republican leadership of this House will be here tomorrow so that every time we get a, well-we-have-to-check-with-upstairs response from the gentleman, we…