Extension of Unemployment Benefits

Floor Speech

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Ms. CHU. Thank you so much. And I truly appreciate the gentlelady from Ohio for her leadership in putting this Special Order together on such a critical topic.

I rise today to call attention to the plight of millions of American families. Across the country, men, women, and children are caught in the crosshairs of Republican political calculations. Instead of providing emergency relief to Americans laid off during this latest recession, a partisan Senate minority is blocking this vital aid.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle should be ashamed. Time and time again, when asked to solve our Nation's problems, they've instead shown why they've been known as the party of ``no,'' and it couldn't come at a worse time. Throughout our country, we face the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. It's the legacy of 8 years of the Bush administration.

My hometown of Los Angeles lost over 84,000 jobs this past year. That's the greatest decrease for any metropolitan area in America.

Congressional Democrats want to confront this problem head on. That's why a majority of Senators have tried not once, not twice, but three times to temporarily extend unemployment benefits, because any economist will tell you that, in addition to helping individual families, the program stimulates the entire economy.

But the obstructionists just don't care. They don't care about the 368,000 Californians who've lost benefits since their filibuster began a month ago. They don't care about the 2.1 million Americans in other States who've also been cut off. They don't care about people like Marcelo and Maria Gonzalez.

For 34 years, Marcelo worked for the same credit card manufacturing company. The job provided a paycheck and peace of mind. But 16 months ago, his facility cut back production and Marcelo lost his job. Fortunately, unemployment benefits kept food on the table for the Gonzalez's and their two children, that is, until Republicans cut off the program and its aid to families like Marcelo's.

Now, this obstruction doesn't just keep food off American tables. It keeps American people out of work. People like Annette Tornberg. Last summer, Annette lost her job at a Sacramento book bindery, and last month, she lost her weekly $270 in unemployment benefits. This means that Annette can no longer buy the gas she needs to drive to job interviews. You see, Annette, like the vast majority of those on unemployment, use these funds as a bridge to their next job, not a replacement for it. The notion that emergency relief somehow discourages people from looking for work is not only misguided, it reflects a lack of faith in hardworking Americans like Annette.

This Republican opposition, however, goes beyond a lack of faith. It is a deliberate means of allowing millions to suffer, worrying about whether they can put food on the table, and we cannot let this happen.

It's time for this stonewalling to end. Senate Republicans need to get out of the way so Annette Tornberg can get that new job, so Marcelo Gonzalez can start putting food on the table again, and so that millions of Americans who are out of work, through no fault of their own, can once again get the emergency relief and peace of mind they need to make it through these tough times.

So, tonight, I'm calling on Republicans to stop hurting American families, stop playing politics with this problem, and start letting the Senate and millions of Americans get back to work.

And again, I thank the gentlelady from Ohio for this very, very important Special Order and allowing us to say what we need to on this very important issue.

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