Scott Klug: “I think this is an indication in the dialog we just saw, a very clear indication in the fundamental debate here. There…”

“I think this is an indication in the dialog we just saw, a very clear indication in the fundamental debate here. There were 30 hearings and townhall meetings in Wisconsin, and there were 120 hours of debate, there were 2,000 residents who participated in those townhall meetings and in those hearings as well. That is where the debate should take place, and that is where the debate has taken place and that is where the vote was. The issue is whether my colleagues trust the Wisconsin State Legislature to run its own program or whether they think it is necessary for the Federal Government in Washington to rewrite it. I do not think it is. Again, as for waivers and waiver records, the Clinton administration has denied waivers in Illinois, Massachusetts, and Wyoming. Waiver requests have been withdrawn because of the administration's strings in New Mexico, Ohio, and South Carolina. The following States have waivers pending: California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Utah. Mr. Speaker, I think each one of those States is capable of making its own decision, and I think that is the fundamental question before us today: Do we trust the residents of Wisconsin or do we trust the bureaucrats in Washington, DC?”