Fairness and Justice for the American People

Floor Speech

Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, it's a difficult time to talk because Ms. Schakowsky has said just about everything that I was planning to say. She said it extremely well and synopsized the issue.

It basically comes down to fairness and justice for the American people. And the President, who has been burdened with problems caused by the Republican Congress and the Bush years, wars in Iraq, wars in Afghanistan not paid for, prescription drug bill not paid for, and Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans which have caused most of the deficit and the problem with the debt ceiling, and now we're not calling on them to make some sacrifice and to pay for it.

Most everybody in America knows about dieting. Most of us are a little overweight. Michelle Obama will tell you that any day. We need to watch our weight. But when you go to diet, you've got to reduce your calories and you've got to exercise some more. Spend some calories, reduce some calories. That's the way you diet. It's the same thing with the budget.

If you had a problem at home with your budget, kind of having a problem, well, maybe you think, I won't take that vacation and go to Miami Beach and stay in that three-star hotel. I'll go to Fort Walton and stay in a two-star hotel. And maybe I'll get another job or work some more overtime. You increase your income, you decrease your spending, and you get it together.

This Congress, though, has got the problem because of dealing with this, and the debt ceiling's independent of all of it. Many Members of Congress on the Republican side have pledged not to raise revenue. Well, you've got to do both. You've got to cut some things, and you cut some things that don't decrease your ability to increase jobs later on or increase jobs now, and you increase revenue at the same time. You have to do both.

Some of the Republicans have pledged never to do revenue. Well, that means they've got one arm tied behind their backs--never increase revenue.

You come to the table and you try to get a bargain. You negotiate in politics. You've got to have both hands at the table, one give and one take. Both sides have to come, open palms, friendship, no guns. Here we are.

But they've got one hand tied behind their backs. That's the problem we've got. So we're not being able to negotiate because one side comes ill-equipped, unprepared, incapable.

Last week we had a new Member here from California (Ms. Hahn), and the Speaker read to her and she repeated the oath of office: I pledge to support, I swear I will support, the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

We've got a domestic enemy right now, and it's the idea that we're not going to pay our debts: The full faith and credit of the United States goes by, interest rates go up, jobs go down, credit card rates go up, home mortgage rates go up, 401(k)s go down, stock market drops 10 percent. Yet we're not doing it. We're considering a pledge to some third-party person that said, No new revenue, arm behind my back, instead of, I will support the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

So that's the problem we've got.

I had a town hall last night on the telephone. My constituents can't understand why we have the problem. I tried to explain it to them. They're concerned about their Social Security checks coming or their veterans check coming. They could be cut off if we don't get this done and we don't have money to pay our debts.

People living simply on Social Security are endangered, and yet millionaires and billionaires go on. Hedge fund guys, they earn billions of dollars--millions at least, billions for some--pay 15 percent, something called carried interest on their income, 15 percent. But the average person out there is paying 25, 26, 34 at the most; 15 percent for the richest guys in New York spending money outrageously and the ones that almost brought this economy down.

Somebody asked me, Is this thing going to pass?

I don't know. But I'll tell you this: In my life, and I hope nobody out here listening has had that situation, Mr. Speaker, I've had kidney stones. They're easier to pass than this.

Mr. Speaker, I've got a pain in my side.

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