Providing for Consideration of the Senate Amendment to H.R. 1314, Ensuring Tax Exempt Organizations the Right to Appeal Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Rules Committee met and reported a rule for consideration of H.R. 1314, the Bipartisan Budget Agreement of 2015. The rule makes in order a motion offered by the majority leader that the House concur in the Senate amendment to H.R. 1314, with an amendment consisting of the text of the Bipartisan Budget Agreement of 2015. The rule provides for 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the majority leader and the minority leader.

Mr. Speaker, I want to start with a phrase I often share with my fellow Members: In a negotiation, you are always going to get less than you want and give up more than you would like. I think that is a fitting way to describe the bill we find ourselves presented with today. In an era of divided government, that is the reality we find ourselves in.

At the beginning of the negotiation, the President demanded a clean debt ceiling increase with no changes and no conditions. In addition, he wanted more spending and higher taxes. Given that, I think the deal that we have before us is a testament to our leadership's ability to negotiate.

As I said yesterday, Mr. Speaker, nobody is going to be popping champagne corks at either end of Pennsylvania Avenue over this bill. It is what most things are in divided government, in a system of checks and balances, and in an era of polarized politics. It is a deal that leaves both sides unsatisfied, but it is a deal that avoids default, prevents a government shutdown, and adequately funds our military. Moreover, it reforms and funds the Social Security Disability Insurance Fund, saving it from bankruptcy, and prevents a crippling increase in the premiums paid by many people who receive Medicare part B.

There are any number of provisions that Members on both sides can point to as reasons to oppose this legislation. I, myself, would have negotiated a different deal. But in determining one's support for this legislation, I encourage Members to look at what the alternative would be, and that is this: the first default on our Nation's debt in the history of this country, significant cuts to our military in a time when we need our military the most, and an almost 50 percent increase in Medicare premiums for many of our seniors. That is the reality of what happens if we do nothing.

Mr. Speaker, I am encouraged by a number of provisions in this legislation. First, just like the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013, this legislation sets forth 2 years of budget certainty for the Appropriations Committee. That certainty puts us on a path to ensure consideration of full-year spending bills for the next 2 years, just as we were able to accomplish this past fiscal year.

In addition, this budget certainty provides the needed investment for our military. With the ongoing conflicts across the Middle East, Russian activity in Eastern Europe, and Chinese claims in the South China Sea, it is clearer now than ever that America needs a robust military.

Mr. Speaker, most importantly, all these discretionary spending increases are fully paid for by offsets in mandatory programs.

In addition to these critical investments, the legislation before us makes a number of commonsense, structural reforms to SSDI, like requiring a medical review before awarding benefits, and expanding Cooperative Disability Investigations units to investigate sophisticated fraud schemes before benefits are awarded. These reforms both ensure that the disability trust fund will be able to pay full benefits and ensure that those who truly are disabled have access to this important program.

Beyond that, Mr. Speaker, this legislation realizes over $30 billion in Medicare savings within the budget window and countless billions in years to come.

I am pleased to again be talking about the real drivers of our debt: the two-thirds of our government spending that is on autopilot. If we are unable to deal with these mandatory programs, they will end up bankrupting us.

Finally, Mr. Speaker, this legislation suspends the debt ceiling through March 15, 2017. Since its inception in 1917, 20 debt limit laws also included a change in fiscal policy. I am pleased that this debt limit increase is yet again accompanied by mandatory reforms.

Of course, Mr. Speaker, I would have preferred stronger reforms, but, in this era of divided government with a Democratic President and a Republican Congress, no one will be able to get everything they want.

The President wanted a clean debt limit increase. Congress wanted significant entitlement reforms. What we are left with is a compromise which lowers the trajectory of our debt, but also assures the world that the United States will pay its bills.

While not a perfect piece of legislation, I believe this moves us in the right direction and funds critical priorities for our Nation. I urge support for the rule and the underlying legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I just want to make a couple of points. First, I want to thank my good friend for her work on this and her cooperation. I agree with many of the points she made, certainly about the fact that I hope this heralds a new beginning.

Worth noting, we did have a budget agreement 2 years ago, and that worked pretty well for a couple of years. I am pleased to see that this follow-on agreement is here before us today. I think it will give us 2 years of stability.

My friend will understand if I take mild exception with some of her remarks about being shut out of the process. Those of us who were here in the minority on the Republican side of the aisle certainly remember not being allowed to offer amendments to the Affordable Care Act, seeing the stimulus act come to the floor with no committee, and, frankly, having the long-time practice of appropriations bills coming under open rules totally suspended.

But, in the spirit of cooperation today, I will leave it at that. Let's look ahead. I think my friend is exactly right when she suggests this bill not only solves some important issues that are in front of us in a bipartisan way, a give-and-take way, but creates an opening and an opportunity going forward.

I really think, if we get this rule passed--and I am sure we will--and we get the underlying legislation passed--I am sure we will be able to do that as well--that next year offers us an opportunity to do what we have not done around here, really, since 2006, and that is see every single appropriations bill come to the floor under an open rule so that Members on both sides can participate in the most important process of governing ourselves, and that is the appropriation of the taxpayers' dollars for the functioning of government.

If we can build on this and achieve that, I think a lot of people on both sides of the aisle who are concerned about regular order and who, frankly, have never seen it work will have an opportunity to watch it work.

I would suggest the fact that we already have an agreement as to what the top-line number will be on what we spend in the normal appropriations process might make it easier for a lot of the votes to be more bipartisan.

Frankly, I know that is certainly possible in my committee, the Appropriations Committee, and I think that is something that Members are genuinely looking for: an opportunity to debate priorities and discuss, but also to come together when there is common ground.

Again, I want to look at this bill. I know there will be some controversy about it today and there will be some people who would have liked to have done some things differently. Frankly, I suspect every Member would like to do things differently.

But the reality is we are in a period of divided government. We do operate in a system of checks and balances. It has been an exceptionally polarizing political environment. The fact that, with all of those challenges, the Speaker, the majority leader, the President, and the respective minority leaders of both Chambers could come together and find enough common ground to accomplish the things that this accomplishes is something that we ought to laud, not to disparage.

I look forward to working with my friend. I look forward to this becoming the foundation for a much more productive 2016, where we can do something we have not done for a long time, and that is operate under regular order throughout the entire appropriations process. That is going to be my New Year's resolution after we get an omnibus done.

I think this will set the ground for getting that done by early December and we can have stability next year and an opportunity to legislate the way I think most Members, regardless of party or philosophical point of view, want to legislate.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I want to say I think my good friend from New York makes an excellent point. There are going to be some issues like this that I think we need to look at very carefully in the coming weeks and perhaps find some common ground on. In an agreement of this magnitude, occasionally we are going to have some problems.

I have some other areas of concern in some of the offsets, agricultural crop insurance being one of them. I suspect, in the coming weeks, perhaps we can find some common ground on these issues. I certainly hope so.

Of course, if we get an omnibus spending bill done, which this is the foundation or the predecessor for, then we will have a vehicle where perhaps we can address some of the concerns that my friend raises and as I know others have in different areas with respect to this agreement.

Again, I want to thank my friend for bringing the issues forward. I think they are important to air and make note of. I just pledge that I will do what I can to see if we can find some common ground here and iron out some of these knotty problems that we have.

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Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to just reiterate a number of points that I opened my remarks with.

First, I don't think this is a perfect bill. I doubt that anybody on this floor does. However, it is the only deal that can be considered in the timeframe we have before the debt limit is breached.

Secondly, the deal ensures an appropriate level of discretionary government spending for the next 2 years, a level that robustly funds our military and ensures America's security.

Finally, this deal is fully paid for and includes mandatory offsets that will build over time, further decreasing the trajectory of our expanding debt, shifting the burden to where the true drivers of the debt are and where the supercommittee was intended to actually find cuts and brings us back to fiscal balance.

Before I conclude my remarks, Mr. Speaker, I also want to add a personal tribute, if I may, to our Speaker. This is probably the last significant piece of legislation that this body will pass under Speaker Boehner's leadership. He was instrumental in forging it.

I know there are many people who are critical of particular aspects of this deal or about the process. Indeed, our Speaker himself has used rather colorful language in expressing his opinion of the process by which we arrived at this agreement.

However, I think it is worth noting that, in the finest traditions of this House and the institutions that we all cherish, the Speaker, the President, the majority leader, the minority leader in the House, the minority leader in the Senate, came together, put aside differences, and found common ground.

In doing so, they solved some really difficult issues for us. They dealt with an impending default to make sure that didn't happen. They dealt with a potential government shutdown or at least bought us the time to deal with it between now and December 11.

They made sure that the additional discretionary spending that they both agreed to was offset by a variety of means. They included a really important reform in the Social Security disability system that, again, will keep it from going bankrupt and help millions of Americans who need help.

Finally, they also made sure that millions of Americans who are facing literally 50 percent rate increases under Medicare part B will not have those increases. That is no small achievement.

And John Boehner, for 25 years in this institution, from a freshman to the highest pinnacle that we have, the Speakership, has operated with integrity and has operated from principle, but has never been afraid to try and find common ground for people with different points of view. I, for one, appreciate the manner in which he has led our House, the manner in which at the very last minute he continues to work for the good of the American people and to reach across the aisle to find common ground with those with opposing views and opposing partisan affiliations.

I appreciate the manner in which he has dealt with our own Conference, which is the largest since 1928, and, consequently, probably the most fractious. He has worked with Members of differing opinion and found common ground and brought us together.

So I just, again, speaking for myself, want to say how much I have enjoyed, throughout my entire career, having had the opportunity to serve with Speaker Boehner, first as a freshman member on his committee when he chaired Education and the Workforce, then at the leadership table when he became the leader of our party, and, finally, just as another Member who admires and appreciates his many, many accomplishments, his character, and the manner in which he has led.

So, with that, Mr. Speaker, I want to again thank the Speaker of the entire House, Mr. Boehner, for his distinguished service to this institution and to this country and for being a valued friend and a person that I genuinely admire and I think people on both sides of the aisle genuinely admire.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

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