Recognizing The Significance Of Merced Assembly Center

Floor Speech

RECOGNIZING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF MERCED ASSEMBLY CENTER -- (House of Representatives - February[[ 11, 2009)

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Mr. SCALISE. As we talk about this resolution that we're debating that's a resolution I support, I want to read the very last segment of this, in the resolve portion, where it says, ``so that the United States remains vigilant in protecting our Nation's core values of equality, due process of law, justice and fundamental fairness.'' I think it would be real helpful for a lot of people on the other side to go and read those statements and then look at what's happening with this massive $840 billion spending bill that's rolling through this Congress at breakneck speed, with no debate, no opportunity, as we're finding out, to have any real formal presentation of a conference report on a bill that's going to saddle our next generation and future generations with the most massive debt in this biggest spending bill in the history of our country.

And I think if we look, we're starting to hear today that one of the reasons that they're rolling with so much haste, much more important to them that they pass it quickly than that we get it right, and one of the reasons we're finding out is that some of the leadership are taking a vacation.

Now, I don't know about other Members, but I know people in my district
that are unemployed that are looking for jobs, would much rather see us spend the time, stay here, cancel the vacations, because many of them are canceling their vacations; make sure we spend the time to get it right. That's the most important thing to the American people.

And so as we look at this bill that we're debating, this resolution that talks about fundamental fairness, I think we need to be concerned about the fundamental fairness to the American people of getting it right. And we don't need to look back and figure out how to start over from scratch. History tells us that massive spending doesn't work. FDR's Treasury Secretary, in one of the largest spending bills in history, this bill, this spending bill that the administration's pushing through tops it. FDR's own Treasury Secretary said, we have tried spending money. We're spending more money than we ever have spent before and it does not work.

We need to take a different approach. There's a much better alternative on the table, and for whatever reason, some in the leadership don't even want to look at it. Let's take the time and get it right.

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