Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives 12192017 20171219

Nothing from this bill because washington journal live 7 a. M. Eastern, you can see this at cspan. Org. The house is gavelling in next. Reform beginning with rule debate and expect final passage early afternoon, the house floor on cspan. Conroy. Chaplain conroy let us pray. Loving god, we give you thanks for giving us another day. In the ending days of the first session of the 115th Congress Help those members of the house and senate to act wisely and carefully in the important work they do. And as our nation passes through this holy season for millions of americans, may there be goodwill in our communities and peace and reconciliation where those virtues are so sorely needed. May all that is done within the peoples house be for your greater honor and glory. Amen. The speaker pro tempore the chair has examined the journal of the last days proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. For what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition . Mr. Thompson mr. Speaker, clause 1, rule 1, i demand a vote on agreeing to the speakers approval of the journal. The speaker pro tempore the question is on agreeing to the speakers approval of the journal. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The journal stands approved. The gentleman from pennsylvania. Mr. Thompson mr. Speaker, i object to the vote on the grounds that a quorum is not present and i make a point of order that a quorum is not present. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. The pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentlelady from illinois, ms. Kelly. Ms. Kelly i pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. The speaker pro tempore the chair will entertain up to 15 requests for oneminute speeches on each side of the aisle. For what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition . Mr. Thompson mr. Speaker, request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for one minute. Mr. Thompson mr. Speaker, i rise today in support of the conference report to accompany h. R. 1, the tax cuts and jobs act. For the First Time Since 1986 there is a real opportunity to challenge the status quo and simplify the tax code. The final agreement lowers rates and significantly increases the standard deduction for both individuals and joint filers. American families will see the Child Tax Credit expand to help parents with the cost of raising children. Importantly, the graduate tuition voucher exemption and student loan deduction have remained to ensure our commitment of opportunity through education. I and many of my colleagues urged the Conference Committee to keep these important provisions intact. H. R. 1 eliminates obamacares individual mandate penalty tax to allow americans the flexibility to buy health care thats right for them. Job creators will see the Corporate Tax rate lowered to 21 on january 1, 2018, which is the largest reduction in our nations history. Mr. Speaker, this is just some of what this once in a generation proposal does to help america to keep more of their hardearned paychecks. I encourage my colleagues to join me in voting for h. R. 1. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois seek recognition . Without objection, the gentlelady from illinois is recognized for one minute. Ms. Kelly thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today because the majority is working to pass a tax scam that will raise taxes on my constituents. For nearly a year republicans have promised tax reform that benefits middle class families. Once again, there is a big difference between what the majority says and what the majority does. Instead of being a tax break for middle class americans, this is a tax scam that will force hardworking illinois moms and dads to pay the bill for tax giveaways to the rich and wellconnected. That is just wrong. Mr. Speaker, the American People know its a scam. A new poll from Monmouth University found half of all americans believe that g. O. P. Tax scam will raise their taxes. These folks are right. It will raise their taxes, especially for families in illinois and in the second district. Mr. Speaker, i will never vote to raise my constituents taxes just to pay for massive tax giveaways to major corporations and a handful of superwealthy families. I urge my colleagues to vote no and stand with americas middle class and working families, the backbone of our nation. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. Mr. Poe mr. Speaker, nearly 700 Million People across the globe lack access to water. This is a disturbing world crisis. In many countries, women and children walk for miles and face countless risks just to find some water. Mr. Speaker, water is not just about drinking. Its about sanitation, its about hygiene. It prevents diseases and drastically improves the quality of life. Thats why i worked with my friend, representative earl blumenauer, for the water for the world act. This bill has made it u. S. Policy to improve International Access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene. I applaud the administration on issuing the global water strategy required by that law and i look forward to seeing its implementation. The road ahead is long. 80 of the countries receiving u. S. Aid still suffer from water issues. With our godgiven resources, we have an obligation to make sure people receive the basic element of life clean water because water is life and thats just the way it is. Ill yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. Mr. Costa mr. Speaker, i rise today to stand with the dreamers, both in the San Joaquin Valley and throughout our country. Protecting our dreamers is the responsible, moral and just thing to do. The majority of americans want Legal Protection for our dreamers, and Congress Must listen. Ive been listening to those who visited my offices. University president s, religious organizations, my constituents who simply want us to provide legalization for these individuals whove come to this country at an average age of 6 years of age. This is the only country theyve ever known. Passing the dream act is a priority for democrats and has strong support for many republicans. We just need to vote on the bill. Im a cosponsor of the dream act and ive joined nearly 200 of my colleagues signing a discharge petition to bring this legislation to the floor. I now call on my republican colleagues to do the right thing and allow a vote on the dream act. I will continue to advocate for policies that protect our dreamers. I urge our dreamers to continue to make their voices heard as they had across this country and to urge people in congress to do the right thing. We must stay vigilant in our efforts to protect these individuals, and we as americans understand what these individuals mean to our country. Pass the dream act now. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from michigan is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. As i travel the seventh district of michigan, i have met with many hardworking families who are living paycheck to paycheck. Moms and dads struggling to pay the mortgage, make ends meet. Mr. Walberg many businesses weighed down by a burdensome and outdated tax code. We developed the tax cuts and jobs act with them in mind. For families across my district, our plan means more jobs, more takehome pay, and more money in their pockets. At every income level, people will see meaningful tax relief. On top of that, our plan will help Small Businesses thrive, boost job creation here at home and make our economy stronger and more competitive. Mr. Speaker, the choice before us today is clear. Web prop up a broken we can prop up a broken tax code and maintain the status quo or we can pass the most sweeping tax decades and hree deliver historic tax relief to those who need it most. Lets pass the tax cut and jobs act and ensure a Brighter Future for the families we represent, and i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlelady from washington seek recognition . Without objection, the gentlelady from washington is recognized for one minute. Ms. Jayapal mr. Speaker, i rise today to urge my colleagues to say no to this outrageous tax bill and do what is right for the American People. This bill gives more riches to the richest republican donors at the expense of middleclass families and the poorest. This bill does what the American People already said no to which is it dismantles the Affordable Care act, it throws 13 million americans off of their health care and increases premiums for millions more. This tax bill eliminates most of the state and local Tax Deduction and shortchanges so many communities across the nation, slashing Education Funding by as much as 152 billion over the next decade. This tax heist runs up the deficit by 1 trillion to 1. 5 trillion and triggers automatic spending cuts to medicare, medicaid, and services that children and seniors depend on. This tax scam gives 80 of the benefits to the top 1 . That is a war on any idea of opportunity and income inequality in this country. It is not tax reform, and i urge a no vote. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from North Carolina seek recognition . Without objection, the gentleman from North Carolina is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, our police men and women wake up every day and do a job that is dangerous and often thankless. They are truly servants of the public and protectors of those who cannot help themselves. If that werent enough, i wanted to speak briefly today to highlight officers who have gone even further. Mr. Speaker, the fraternal order of police recently held a cops and kids event in morrisville, North Carolina. Through their generosity, more than two dozen families got around 100 worth of clothes, toys and gifts for their loved ones. Mr. Budd the stories of struggles are the stories we see around the country this christmas. Im awed and humbled by the efforts of these officers. I want to especially congratulate tommy chipman, president of the fraternal order of police and duck wyatt, the second Vice President , and all those who participated to help make this christmas a better one for families in the community. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Green mr. Speaker, i would ask to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore does the gentleman seek unanimous consent . Mr. Doggett for those with silk stockings, its a very Merry Christmas indeed. Cold. Get the billionaires gets stucked. Its like a white elephant. The bill billion airs get the good gifts. The how many millions of dollars the trump family will personally stuff in their pockets cannot be precisely determined only because of republican collusion to continue to cover up trumps personal tax returns. Excluding the public, refusing to even permit democrats to offer an amendment, republicans dumped this proposal out this weekend and now demand an immediate vote. The dangers lurking in this bill for economic opportunity, for tax fairness are very real, but they are overshadowed by the dangers to our democracy from these trump tactics to impose his rule on america. Republicans decided the only way to pass their program was to hide it. Lets reject it today. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from florida is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, i rise to recognize mr. Thomas who will be retiring on january 10, 2018, after 43 years of faithful service to North Central floridas community in Law Enforcement. He began his career in green coast springs, florida, in the Police Department on september of 1974. He served his Hometown Community until 1982 and then moved to gainesville, florida. Mr. Yoho upon his move, the officer started working for the sheriffs office. He is currently a warrant investigator officer, and after 35 years of dedicated Law Enforcement service with an exemplary record, tom will begin starting the next chapter of his life. Tom is a shining example what it means to be an american. Hes dedicated his life to serving our community, and i have no doubt he will continue to do so in retirement. I am proud to represent such a hardworking individual and also to have the honor of being his friend. For myself and all of floridas third district, i wish him the very best in his welldeserved retirement and i yield back. Thank you. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlelady from North Carolina eek recognition . Without objection, the gentlelady from North Carolina is recognized for one minute. Ms. Adams mr. Speaker, i rise today to honor the life of calvin earvin, a native of new jersey and resident of greensboro who passed away november 25, 2017. Cal, as he was fondly called, was an honorable man, dedicated to his community and mentoring young student athletes. He served as coach of a Basketball Team and later as professor and head coach of North Carolina a t Basketball Team for 18 years. He recognized the importance of education, ensuring the dedication and perseverance that his athletes learned on the court was also exhibited in the classroom. A devoted citizen to the greensboro community, he served in countless civic roles including treasurer of the tourism bureau, a lifelong member of the naacp. He he brought his generous spirit and heart home with him too. A loving husband to his beloved wife kathryn and to his nephew who is like a brother. Cals golden heart shined a bright spot in my life too. He will be sorely missed. His loss will be felt throughout our entire state and beyond. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with his wife, kathryn, and his family, his friends, and his community. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from South Carolina seek recognition . Without objection, the gentleman from South Carolina is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, this is a great day for a mayor of South Carolina, monday, january 2, 2018. Let me reimmediate the proclamation, where serving as an elected official in local government will require sacrifice, passion, and dedication. Was s george c. Shepherd elected as the mayor on november 10, 2009, after serving two years as the citys pretell. Whereas the mayor faithfully and dutifully served elected as the mayor on november 10, 2009, after serving the may for eight years and as during h o terms of mayor, the city solidified its place in the region. The mayor, godspeed in your retirement and thank you for your service to a great city. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from kentucky seek recognition . Mr. Yarmuth request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from kentucky is recognized for one minute. Mr. Yarmuth thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this morning i saw a dramatic bit of evidence why the person people overwhelmingly reject the republican donor relief bill known as the tax reform bill. Chairman brady, ways and Means Committee, the author of this bill, was asked why he didnt do anything in the bill to change the carried Interest Deduction. That provision, which allows Billionaire Hedge Fund managers to pay a lower income tax rate than tens of millions of regular americans. He said the middle class americans dont care about that. Working families dont. I understand why he didnt want to try to defend the protection of carried interest. There is no defense for it. Heres why every american ought to care because every dollar of lost revenue that goes back to those Billionaire Hedge Fund managers will result in cut services for the vast majority of americans. Medicare, medicaid, Social Security, and many others. And it will add to the debt that their children and grandchildren will have to pay for. Thats a good reason why everyone should care about this bill and why it is a scam on middle class americans and ought to be rejected. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas seek recognition . Unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. Revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman from arkansas is recognized for one minute. I thank my friend. Im glad my friend is in the chair for today. I rise to salute the u. S. Navys newest vessel, the u. S. S. Little rock, and her brave crew. Commissioned this past saturday, the new u. S. S. Little rock was built in wisconsin and is a combat ship that will operate in waters close to shore. The vessel carries the namesake of Arkansas State capital and proud history of the former u. S. S. Little rock. Its also fitting to hopor the former u. S. S. Little rock, completed in world war ii, she was one of six vessels to be converted to a guided missile cruiser. The first u. S. Navy ship to be named for little rock, arkansas. The only world war ii cruiser on display in the United States, the former u. S. S. Little rock is the soul survive sole survivor of the cleveland class. Mr. Hill it served as distinction as a flagship for the second and sixth fleet i thank all those who served on the former u. S. S. Little rock, and i wish the new u. S. S. Little rock the best as she carries out our nations critical Maritime Strategy and protects our interests across the globe. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois seek recognition . I ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentlelady from illinois is recognized for one minute. Mrs. Bustos thank you, mr. Speaker since donald trump became the leader of the Republican Party, they said they would stand up for americas workers. There were promises to stop outsourcing and bring millions of manufacturing jobs back home. But the two big items on paul ryans agenda had been cutting your health care and a tax scam that is a direct attack on americas middle class. 86 million xes on middle class households. It hands 83 of its benefits to the wealthiest 1 . And perhaps worst of all, its a job killer that will help big corporations move jobs overseas. They claim it does just the opposite. But why are they trying to ram this thing through so fast . Because they know that in the fine print our new loopholes that are new loopholes that make it easier for companies to ship our work out of america and pay less taxes. Sure, this bill will create jobs. It will create them over in china and mexico and malaysia. Mr. Speaker, this tax scam is a huge broken promise. We can do better. Thank you very much. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from the commonwealth of kentucky seek recognition . Without objection, the gentleman from kentucky is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to recognize my good friend the Simpson County judge executive, jim henderson, of the first Congressional District of kentucky. Judge henderson has served his Community Since 1998 when he was elected as the youngest county judge executive in kentucky and has continually devoted himself to organizations which advance the development and prosperity of Simpson County. Judge hernedson has decided to transition into a new role as Deputy Director of the Kentucky Association of counties, where he will be overseeing their daytoday operations and working with local government officials in all 120 counties throughout the commonwealth to advocate for legislative solutions that best meet the needs of their constituencies. R. Comer his personal and professional networks and impeccable record of achievement have prepared him to serve kentuckys local officials in a direct and expanded capacity. Although he will be missed in his current role, im grateful for his steadfast leadership and tireless contributions to Simpson County, as well as his friendship and guidance. I join his family, friends, and all those who benefited from his efforts throughout the years in wishing him Great Success in his new role and Deputy Director. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota seek recognition . To address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore does the gentleman seek unanimous consent . Yes, i do. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for one minute. Mr. Ellison i thank the speaker. Mr. Speaker, in a few hours from now the Republican Caucus will bring forth a tax bill. This bill will redistribute wealth from working americans up to the very richest people in our country. And it will result in massive deficit and it will result in deficits and it will result in a starvation of the government to stop it from doing the critical things it needs to do to afford the expenses of our country and to help americans leave lead bert lives. Eficits and it will but better lives. After thats done, mr. Speaker, it will do one more thing at least three more things that are very, very bad. One of them is that the corporations that get all this money, the wealthy individuals will, one, do stock buy backs, and promote their personal wealth they will give each other bonuses, to give each other greater personal wealth. They will have more money to do more mergers to concentrate markets even more so that we have more monopoly around. And they will buy political influence to further corrupt our democratic government. This is a bad thing and i am looking forward to a big strong no. Thank you. The speaker pro tempore for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition . Mr. Session good morning, mr. Speaker. By direction of the committee on rules i call up House Resolution 667 and ask for its immediate consideration. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the resolution. The clerk house calendar number 111. House resolution 667. Resolved, that upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider the conference report to accompany the bill, h. R. 1, to provide for reconciliation pursuant to titles ii and v of the concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2018. All points of order against the conference report and against its consideration are waived. The conference report shall be considered as read. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the conference report to its adoption without intervening motion except 1 one hour of debate; and 2 one motion to recommit if applicable. Clause 5 b of rule xxi shall not apply to the conference report. Section 2, upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the house the bill, h. R. 3312, to amend the doddfrank wall street reform and Consumer Protection act to specify when Bank Holding Companies may be subject to certain enhanced supervision, and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendment recommended by the committee on Financial Services now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of rules Committee Print 11549, modified by the amendment printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution, shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except 1 one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on Financial Services; and 2 one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Section 3, the requirement of clause 6 a of rule xiii for a twothirds vote to consider a report from the committee on rules on the same day it is presented to the house is waived with respect to any resolution reported through the remainder of the first session of the one hundred Fifteenth Congress. Section 4, it shall be in order at any time through the remainder of the first session of the one hundred Fifteenth Congress for the speaker to entertain motions that the house suspend the rules as though under clause 1 of rule xv. He speaker or his designee shall consult with the minority leader or her designee on the designation of any matter for consideration pursuant to this section. The speaker pro tempore the chair the speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas for one hour. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, during consideration of this resolution all time is yielded for the purpose of debate only. I also will yield the customary minutes to the gentlewoman, who is the d, Ranking Member of the rules committee, ms. Slaughter, pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore without objection. The gentleman is recognized. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Session mr. Speaker, i rise in support of this rule and the underlying who is the Ranking Member of the rules committee, ms. Slaughter, pending which i yield myself such time as i may consume. Legislation. O tempore this rule provides for consideration of h. R. 3312, the Systematic Risk designation improvement act of 2017, and the conference report accompanying h. R. 1, the tax cuts and jobs act. Mr. Speaker, this rule and specifically the underlying conference report, is the reflection of a bicameral agreement between the United States house of representatives and the United States senate. Whereby we took some of the best ideas from across our not only conference but this country from our respective ideas to make a tax bill that would combine them for the best interests of the American People. Mr. Speaker, the bottom line is, is that what were doing here today is that the Republican Party is relying upon the greatest system ever invented, the Free Enterprise system. The Free Enterprise system has brought the United States of america not only the greatest Economic Opportunities in the world, but it is a system of rule of law. It is a system of tax code, and a system of ideas that has made america the envy of the world. I also get politically what is happening. Were taking what the Democratic Party and president obama did to raise taxes by 1 trillion, the largest tax increase in the history of the United States, and we are trashing that today. Were saying that the production that it made of 1. 2 over eight years is unacceptable to the United States of america. It was unacceptable then. And we will not allow that to be the gauge that we will measure our success in the future. Secondly, were also going to deal properly and fairly with the Affordable Care act. A law that put placed extensive burdens not only on people who did not want the Health Care Bill that was placed forward, but placed a tremendous cost on them, the middle class of this country, and the American People. What were doing today is bold. Were going to make the big deal, the big deal. The American People want and need a stronger, brighter economic future. Its a progrowth bill that will overhaul our tax code and unleash our Free Enterprise system. It lowers tax rates on businesses of every size. So job creators can focus on hiring workers, increasing paychecks, and growth. Growth and competition are the keys to an expanding economy. More jobs and increased wages in my home of dallas, texas, has allowed texas to lead the nation not only in job creation but to make us the envy of the world. Were now going to do that for the entire United States and help make back home for every member of congress competitive in the world market. With the highest Corporate Tax rate in the industrialized world, the United States today has a broken tax code that has forced businesses to not only move their jobs and research overseas, it has forced us to be able to strand billions of dollars of economic advantage that should be in the United States. That changes today. The tax cuts and jobs act will stop and reverse that trend. It will encourage companies to bring their jobs back to the United States by lowering Corporate Tax rates to be competitive anywhere in the world at 21 . And encourages u. S. Businesses to bring their foreign earnings home. Unleashing trillions of dollars in our economy. That is the future that the Republican Party wants for the United States of america and the Free Enterprise system. The conference report also simplifies tax filing. It eliminates costly special interest tax breaks. It protects the abilities of Small Businesses to write off interest on loans and offers a firstever 20 Tax Deduction to business organized as scorps, partnerships, l. L. C. s, and sole proprietorships. This will be a boom not only for the stock market, which we have seen since the day after the election, but we have seen a boom on main street as job creators and new Small Businesses are seeking to reinvest not only in their business, in their community but for the opportunity for the benefit of workers in the United States of america. The tax cuts and jobs act is a direct and immediate boost for middleincome americans who have been struggling, struggling for eight, now nine years to get a handle on not only their ability to work with a broken tax system but the ability to work with their own local businesses to make sure that their city succeeds also. It reduces the tax rates for lowincome and middleincome americans. It increases the Child Tax Credit to more families and more than doubles the standard deduction. With this piece of legislation today, legislation for middleincome families will allow them to be a part of an Economic Growth model for years to come. We are proud of what we are doing and delighted that we offer this not only to the United States house of representatives today but to the American People to see the republican answer for Economic Growth and development vitality for the United States of america. Mr. Speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time is reserved. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker. Good morning. I thank the gentleman for yielding me the customary 30 minutes, and i yield myself such time as i may consume. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Slaughter well, mr. Speaker, i think americas pretty apprehensive this morning. Certainly those who know that two american president s and one governor of kansas have tried trickled down fairly recently and found it did not work at all and indeed caused great economic harm. But we are walking into trickled down once again. I think there is a word that describes what you do the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. I wont use that word but i suspect most of you know exactly what im talking about. This particularly at this time when this economy was really booming, really doing well, i appreciate there were pockets where people were not getting jobs and was pointed out by richie neal frequently last evening, we have a skills gap that jobs are going unfilled in america and thats what we really should be working on today. Corporations are awash with money. The stock market is booming, and we have the lowest Unemployment Rate in 17 years. Why in the world would we trifle with that to try a failed trickled down policy again . Now, emergency procedures were used to bring the bill before us today. Now, nobody could have any amendments or anything to it. It was an emergency. We were not reauthorizing the Childrens Health insurance program, which a lot of people think is an emergency. Because it provides health care to more than nine million children. Were not reauthorizing Community Health centers, which serve more than 25 people and having killing plained, the money, that means planned parenthood, the money, that means a lot more people need the Community Health centers. We are not reauthorizing the perkins loan program. Hose expired september 30. Instead, despite a record of 86 months of job growth, every single month for 86 months we have grown job and an Unemployment Rate that remains steady, the majority is prioritizing tax cuts. Not tax cuts for the middle class. Dont let anybody tell you this is tax reform. It isnt. Its moving around of rates. Very specifically geared toward helping the rich. Nothing much for the middle class who make hard to make ends meet but tax cuts for the wealthy. The middle class will see their money go directly to the rich, and thats what the bill was designed to do. You can tell by who wrote it. Theres not a single democratic fingerprint or a breath anywhere to be found. Instead, it was crafted by the lobbyists who virtually run washington under the majoritys leadership. Some swamp clearing. Consider this. There are 11,000 registered lobbyists in washington, d. C. More than half of them, more than half of 11,000 reported working on the issues involving taxes during the first twirts of this year 3 4 of this year. Ear of the 20 organizations that hired the most lobbyists to work on tax issues have reported lobbying specifically on tax reform covering the matters included in this bill. Now, this is the quote of alltime. One lobbyist admitted to the New York Times that few members actually had any influence on the final product and they said, quote, youre dealing with 14 people instead of 535 people. Saying specifically as much as can be possibly said that the 535 people in the congress representing the people of the United States didnt do a thing on this. They wrote it. The New York Times has reported that the travel industry lobbyists directly emailed those writing the bill to kill an amendment on tourism because they have been critical of President Trump. Business lobbyists, after securing the lowest Corporate Tax rate in the early version of the bill, called the members of the majority and made it even more favorable to them. They secured the removal of the corporate alternative minimum tax, a provision to design the very rich from getting away with paying no taxes at all, and we know some people who have done that. The majoritys been very clear about who the bills written for. One member of the majority, congressman Chris Collins said, quote, my donors are basically saying, get it done or dont ever call me again, end quote. But mr. Speaker, what about the average american . What about workers and members of the middle class who cant write big campaign checks or who dont have an army of lawyers to scour the tax code on their behalf . Those are the people who will be forced to pay the price for providing the wealthy with these tax cuts. Former new york city mayor michael bloomberg, certainly a man who prefers business, knows a thing or two about running a business and he recently wrote this quote. Corporations are sitting on a amount of cash reserves. Nearly 2. 3 trillion. That figure has been climbing steadily since the recession ended in 2009, and it is now double what it was in 2001. The reason c. E. O. s this is an important point. The reason c. E. O. s arent investing more of their liquid assets has little to do with a tax rate. They are not waiting on a tax cut. It is pure fantasy to think that the tax bill will lead to significantly higher wages and growth as republicans have promised, end quote. Now, thats not somebody envy of business. He calls this bill a 1 trillion blunder. This is really remarkable time in the United States knowing we are on the brink of passing a bill that will adversely impact virtually every american except the rich. The majority has the votes and theres not much democrats can do to stop it. And let me say again. I am glad democrats are not involved in writing it but its an insult to the word reform to be associated with this bill. The American People know theyre not getting what they were promised by the majority. We know a president who campaigned mightily on doing away with carried interest but its still in the bill. The bill hurts the middle class, our children, the elderly by eliminating and veterans, by the way, by eliminating many of the deductions they rely on. Under this bill the personal exemption is eliminated, the mortgage Interest Deduction is limited, state and local Tax Deduction is limited mightily and the moving expense deduction for individuals has been eliminated. Even the Affordable Care acts individual mandate is eliminated. That will cause premiums to go up by 10 for those in the individual market. And 13 Million People will lose their insurance. 13 million. I want to pause on that because ive stood here at this very spot when there were all these 60 bills to repeal obamacare so we can insert this now in the tax bill which will really hurt it. I always wondered why there was such a rush to take Health Care Away from persons. I guess somehow that money obviously that medicaid money will pay for a lot of this tax cuts for the rich. All the tax cuts made for individuals will expire in 2025. The tax cuts for corporations are permanent. Thats not what we call reform. That keeps our tax code complicated by design. Wealthy families and big corporations can continue taking advantage of a system they helped create. Broken promises are embedded throughout the legislation. For years i heard members of the majority come to the floor talking about the need to address the National Debt. Apparently that was little more than a talking point because this bill explodes the debt by 1. 5 trillion and completely unpaid for. Law requires programs, a 25 billion cut to medicare. This isnt fear mongering. This is fact. Speaker ryan said just last week, and i quote, were going to have to get back next year. Next year were going to say, oh, my, were going to have to do something about this spending and this debt. So well have to cut spending and what does he want to cut . The things he always wanted to cut. He says, and i quote, we will have to get back next year at entitlement reform, which is how you tackle the debt and the deficit. And weve known hes wanted to do that for a long time. So let me say this to the public watching today. When this majority speaks of reform, be very worried about your future. Because they push this scam under the guise of socalled reform is simply a corporate giveaway. Soon theyll be back here talking about reforming Social Security and medicare to pay what is going to happen here today. So lets call it what it really is, a systematic dismantling of the social contract. It will impact everyone from children to veterans to the disabled and it begins today with this bill to help the wealthy who havent even asked for it. I reserve the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleladys time is reserved. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield three minutes to the distinguished gentleman from the Financial Services committee to talk about a piece of this bill thats from Financial Services, the gentleman from st. Elizabeth, missouri, congressman luetkemeyer. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from missouri is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Luetkemeyer thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you for your steadfast support on so many important Financial Services issues. Mr. Speaker, first, i want to quickly lend my support to the tax package slated to be considered by the house today. This legislation will bring simplicity and fairness to the tax code. It will lower tax rates so individuals and job creators can invest in our communities and hire more workers. I also want to commend chairman brady and the house leadership for their incredible work on this issue. Secondly, mr. Speaker, believe it or not, theres another bill slated to be considered today by this body. H. R. 3312, Systemic Risk designation improvement act. It will remove the illconceived approach in doddfrank to designate Bank Holding Companies as systemically important Financial Institutions or sifis. The designation of sifis is based solely on size. More than 50 billion in assets is subject to enhanced regulatory supervision and a variety of special assessments. This approach fails to take into account differences in Business Models or risks posed to the financial system. As a former Bank Regulator i can tell you this isnt a responsible basis for supervision. A fact has been recognized by d chair yellin, former treasury secretary lew. Even barney frank, author of doddfrank, has said the 50 billion threshold is completely arbitrary and has had negative implications on our economy. This legislation closely ties the safeguards intended in the designation of a Bank Holding Company with the risk to the system. My legislation will require the Federal Reserve to examine not just size but also interconnectedness, the extent of readily available substitutes, global crossjurisdictional criteria, criteria they use in their own risk calculation analysis. An inefficient regulatory structure can have real economic consequences. We should no longer let the sifi process lead to Marketplace Disruption or penalize Companies Based on size alone. Its time to take a more pragmatic approach to this process and more generally the punitive Regulatory Regime hitting Financial Institutions and their customers. Its time to actually manage risk and limit real threats to our financial system. This legislation received broad bipartisan support when it was reported by the Financial Services committee with a vote of 4712. That means nearly 80 of our Committee Members voted in favor of this legislation. I hope our house colleagues will join us in supporting h. R. 3312 later today, and thank you, again, mr. Chairman, for your leadership and your help with this initiative. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, i yield one minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. Doggett. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. Mr. Doggett mr. Speaker, the worlds biggest Corporate Tax dodgers get the most out of this bill, a 40 reduction in the Corporate Tax rate, and the right to bring back those profits they have hidden in caribbean hide aways for pennies on the dollar. Another loophole will encourage jobs in america to be exported abroad. A long commute to work if the job is in europe or asia. Of course, they have camouflaged this Corporate Tax giveaway with some changes for individuals. Who gets those . Well, its a whos who of not you. The trump family, real estate moguls, their billionaire buddies. Disguised as a middle class tax relief, this retched bill targets the middle class with a dime of every dollar that is in the bill. Americans will really get is americans will really get is more debt. And the coming cuts that these republicans will insist on medicaid, edicare, and educational opportunity. Tax fraud is criminal, but passing this fraudulent tax bill apparently is not. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Session at this time id like to yield three minutes to the distinguished gentleman, member of the Republican Leadership, from michigan, congressman mitchell. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from michigan is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Mitchell thank you, sir. Mr. Speaker, i rise to set the record straight on tax reform. They would have you believe the tax reform is only a benefit to the wealthy or hearing them today a plot by the trump family. Thats simply partisan rhetoric. I have long said i would only vote for tax reform that helps families living paycheck to paycheck. Families like the one i grew up in. By dad worked on the line at General Motors and my mom worked at salvation army. More money in their pocket from their paycheck every week would have made a huge difference. They worked hard to support their family and raise seven children. And that little bit of money would have made a difference. And undoubtedly now will make a difference for the American People. Thats exactly what this plan does. It puts meaningful money back in the pockets of working families. A typical family is projected to save over 2,000 a year. Now, that may not sound like much to some on the other side of the aisle, where i grew up thats huge. 57 of americans who dont have ough money to cover a 500 emergency, that money matters. For businesses it means investment, hiring, and better wages. I talked to Business Owners across my district and they have had the same message. Cut taxes so they can increase wages and hiring. Vick, a restaurant owner, talked to me about tax cuts that would help his business. We pay our taxes first, people second, we pay our bills third, and if there is anything left over, we get paid. Our tax shouldnt be challenge or impediment for small Business Owners like vic. Americans pay more in taxes than they pay for food and clothing. This. This. Fix this tax plan does that. This tax plan helps families and businesses across my district and across america which is why i proudly support t i urge my colleagues to do the same. Support it. I urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter im delighted to yield one minute to the gentlewoman from florida, ms. Castor. The conferee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from florida is recognized. Ms. Castor here were about one week before christmas and the g. O. P. Has proposed a tax bill that ebenezer scrooge would love. It is a big bahhumbug for america and the families and communities we represent back home. Their bill will raise taxes on millions of american middle class families while showering tax breaks and new loopholes on the super rich and big corporations. It is fundamentally unfair. And it does this with a massive increase to our National Debt of about 2. 3 trillion. In essence, mortgaging the future for our kids and grandkids, and squeezing out our ability to invest in medical research, modern infrastructure, and they admit they are going to look to cut and raise costs on families who depend on medicaid and medicare. It is not fair and they even go so far as to rip Health Coverage away from 13 million americans in this bill. Another attack on the a. C. A. In florida we have 1. 7 million f my neighbors who rely on Health Care Dot gov insurance pool. They are in essence giving them a lump of coal for christmas. Defeat this bill, vote no on this scrooge tax bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Session by the way, the gentlewoman would want to state that were not taking this away. There will be a oneyear transition. So, sorry, it will not be ebenezer scrooge at christmas. It will be the bright lights of a big future that lies ahead for us. Mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield five minutes to the distinguished gentleman from butler, pennsylvania, congressman mike owe kelly. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for five minutes. Mr. Owe kelly mr. Okelllily i rise in support mr. Kelly i know sometimes the message goes back and forth and unfortunately this idea of identity politics is what we have to play all the time. I stead of talking to the American People, we talk past the American People. And we try to make it so divisive that they cant see the facts. I would just tell my friends on the other side, as a child growing up i think all of us the same. We would sit down about this ime of year and write a letter to santa. We would ask santa claus for everything we wanted. And it was mailed off to the north pole. Then we come down Christmas Morning and see that Christmas Tree and those gifts laid out. We never got everything we wanted. We were sure thankful for everything we got. This to santa. We would ask santa claus for everything we wanted. And tax cut and jobs act is so critical. When we talk about debt, if i were to tell an investor for every dollar you invest i can return 1. 90 on it they would be excited. Let me explain something when we talk about American Families, not republican families, not democrat families, libertarian families, aim talking about American Families. Typical family of four earning 73,000 a year will see a cut in their taxes of 2,059. A single parent with one child earning 41,000 a year will see a tax reduction of 1,304. I would ask my friends, please do not be on the wrong side of history. You will have an opportunity today to do something that is great for america, to i would ask my friends, please America Great again. We look at everything thats going on. And we decide that somehow in this house we must be divisive and not united. When we think that somehow giving people more of their own money back is the wrong policy. When we think that somehow giving tax relief to every single american is the wrong policy. When we think that the tone and tint of somebodys skin, shape of their eye, where they worship, where they live, what they earn is the main issue, and we can divide them as a people, that is absolutely wrong. It is totally unamerican. What is truly proamerican is making sure that every single american gets to keep more of her or his money that they earn, and they dont have to give it to the government. Nothing could be more simple. Nothing could be more easy. I would ask all my friends to please, lets act in the best interests of america. Forget the identity politics. Look whats good for those neighbors of yours. Look whats good for those friends of yours and that family of yours. Lets decide where americas going to go. We have seen a dramatic rise in our economy since the last election. This tax cut bill, this jobs bill, will allow this economy to take off. Where all boats will rise, not just red boats or blue boats, but red, white, and blue boats and it will happen at the best of the year. A time when people look to this house to do the right thing for the right reason, because good things happen when we do that. This is an Incredible Opportunity in the history of the country. This is an Incredible Opportunity to show the American People that were not divided as a house. Were united. Were united in doing the right thing for them. Because it is the right thing. And good things will happen. So i would like to wish all my friends on both sides of the aisle and all those folks at home a very Merry Christmas and a happy holidays, and on Christmas Morning i guarantee you you may not get everything that you wished for, but you are going to be so thankful for everything you got. Lets pass this tax cuts bill and jobs bill and make sure america moves forward. Laboredlabored, we have for too long behind the rest of the world. Individuals have more take home Pavement Corporation also stay home. They will make investments in land, bricks, and mortal, and equipment, and education and making our workers the best mortar, and equipment, and education, and making our workers the best in the world. We will not only participate, lee dominate and that will trickle down to every single american. Not just red, white, and blue, not just republicans or democrats, but every single american. What a wonderful gift for christmas. Thank you so much. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the entlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from kentucky, distinguished Ranking Member of the committee on the budget, mr. Yarmuth. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from kentucky is recognized for one minute. Mr. Yarmuth i thank my fellow kentucky native for yielding. Today, my republican colleagues will vote to approve an unpopular bill. American people dont buy that this bill will help American Families. More than 83 million middle class families will see a tax hike. The people see the republicans have sold their souls and principles to give tax cuts to wealthy corporations and to pay back their billionaire donors. They know the republicans have abandoned any claim to fiscal responsibility. After all, nonpartisan analysis conclude this bill will add more than 1 trillion to the debt. But the Republican Leadership has a plan to make up the difference and its something else. They are already working on legislation to make massive cuts to medicare, medicaid, and other programs families need. This isnt tax reform. This isnt help for the middle class. Its a scam. Its fraud. And it will have dangerous long lasting consequences for the American People. I urge my colleagues to defeat the rule and to reject this scandalous republican donor payback legislation. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield three minutes to the distinguished gentleman from the rules committee, the gentleman from fair hope, alabama, congressman bradley byrne. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from alabama is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Byrne i thank the chairman for yielding and for his continued leadership. We are on the cusp of something truly historic that will make life better for millions of people across the United States. By reforming the tax code, we will be able to put more money in peoples pockets and create a fairer and simpler tax system. Under the current tax code, welloff individuals and big businesses can hire lobbyists and lawyers to help them find loopholes and special interest giveaways all at the expense of working americans. With our plan, the tax code will be simplified. Loopholes will be closed. And the Playing Field will be leveled. I want to make one thing clear. If you are looking for a tax plan that benefits the elite, the well connected, and 1 , then you need to look at the current tax code. Mr. Speaker, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle are going to Great Lengths to defend the current tax code that truly benefits the top 1 . For example, the democratic leader has called the tax cuts and jobs act, quote, the end of the world, close quote. So apparently given the hardworking giving the hardworking people in this country is to her, armageddon, close quote. Listen, stop with all the doomsday political rhetoric, cut to the chase, and say what this bill really does. It cuts taxes on hardworking americans and allows them to keep more money in their pockets. It supports American Families by increasing the Child Tax Credit and doubling the standard deduction. It grows the American Economy by making the Corporate Tax code actually competitive with other industrialized countries. It benefits main street businesses and alabama and across the country in alabama and across the country with a new 20 tax reduction for passthrough income. It will lead to greater Economic Growth, higher wages, and more jobs which is exactly what the American People sent President Trump and the Republican Congress to washington to do. So lets save the political hyperbole for another day. Pass the tax cuts and jobs act and give the American People a Real Christmas present and put more money in their pockets. I yield back. Ms. Slaughter im pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from minnesota, mr. Ellison. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Ellison i ask the American People to ask themselves have you ever seen a republican bigtime tax cut for the wealthy and Big Companies ever trickle down to them . If you look over the course of these things that they do every few years, all they do is concentrate wealth at the very top and take money out of the hands of working people. They starve government and make it more difficult for your government, which is of, by, and for the people to help you with disaster, with Social Security, medicaid, medicare, or any kind of program that you need. It just starves the government of its ability to make your life better. But you know what, mr. Speaker. Another thing about this particular tax bill. You know, theyve been studying it, and there is going to be one tremendous beneficiary of this tax bill. Its going to be wells fargo. Wells fargo, which will see its Corporate Tax rate drop down to 21 from the 35 it is now is going to make on average a 13 increase in earnings per share. Remember that big company, that big company that opened up a bunch of accounts people didnt need, sold People Insurance it didnt need. They will be doing better. American families will be doing worse. Vote no on this rule. No on the tax bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, id like to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from taylorville, illinois, the congressman, rodney davis. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from illinois is recognized for one minute. Mr. Davis i thank chairman sessions for his leadership and for yielding. Mr. Chairman, we are about to make history this week by delivering a tax cut to families at every income level. The math clearly shows the average family of four making the countrys Median Income of 73,000 will receive a 2,000 tax cut. Yet, many of my twrends on the other side of the aisle continue to friends on the other side of the aisle continue to say this will raise taxes on millions of middle class families. Thats just not true. Unless youre referring to 2025 when these tax cuts expire and we go back to the status quo. Why is there an Expiration Date . Because many of the same people using this as a talking point against this bill are the reason they sunset. If we could get 60 votes in the senate requiring just a few of my friends on the other side of the aisle to work with us, we ould make this tax cut for middle class families permanent. I will give them another chance to support tax cuts for those in their district. I will have a bill that make the individual tax cuts permanent. I dont think anyone believes we will let them expire. Nonetheless, i will make sure this is in place for middle class families this year and make sure theyre here to stay. I hope each and every one of my colleagues will sign on as a cosponsor. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Slauth mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california, ms. Lee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. Ms. Lee i want to thank the gentlewoman for yielding and for your leadership. I rise in strong opposition to this bill and the underlying bill which is the greatest tax scam in americas history. Its cruel and its cold hearted. It steals from low and middle income families and lines the pockets of millionaires, billionaires and wealthy corporations and, yes, it makes it easier for corporations to ship jobs overseas. Now, for weeks republicans have been selling the pipe dream that tax cuts for the rich will somehow trickle down and benefit the majority of americans. That is so far from the truth. Just yesterday the Tax Policy Center revealed that 83 of the tax breaks in this country go to the top 1 . Whats worse, 86 million middle income households will face tax hikes and 13 million americans will Lose Health Care coverage. Mr. Speaker, constituents in my Congressional District are afraid of their future because this tax scam is going to severely devastate families in california. Nearly two million californians stand to lose their state and local deductions if republicans succeed. This is truly a slap in the face to the American People. Republicans have always already and always, yes, made it clear that this tax scam is a trojan horse for republicans to take an ax to medicare, Social Security, and programs that lift people out of poverty. But the public is not going to let them get away with this. They will remember who is shattering their lives. This bill is ruthless. It makes clear the republicans only value the lives of the wealthy and their donors. Thats whose side theyre on. Well, democrats are on the side of middle and low income families who are working hard just to make ends meet, to take care of their children, to make better wages and who are fighting for a better future. We should oppose this bill and this tax scam bill excuse me and this rule. Its really a raw deal for the American People. The public knows whose side were on. The public knows whose side that the republicans are. Thank you and i yield the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas with 10 3 4 minutes remaining. Mr. Sessions thank you very much, mr. Speaker. At this time id like to if i could advise the gentlewoman to balance out the time i will allow her to have the next couple speakers so we can equal the time so i reserve my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time is reserved. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker. Im pleased to yield 1 1 2 minutes to the gentleman from rhode island, mr. Langevin. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from rhode island is recognized for 1 1 2 minutes. Mr. Langevin i thank the gentlelady for yielding. Mr. Speaker, today we are debating the final version of the republican tax bill which i cannot support. This bill was flawed from the start. First of all, it was never deficit neutral. And there was never a bipartisan negotiation. This is a republicanonly bill, and it was developed without any input at all from democrats because they never sought our input at all. My republican colleagues say it will jumpstart the economy. Well, we can do just that, by providing tax cuts to working class families. Whose paychecks are already stretched far too thin and would reinvest that money in the local economy. Now, instead, this bill provides them with crumbs and temporary crumbs at that. Under this plan, corporate cuts, though, would be permanent. This bill well see an entirely different, more expensive individual tax code in 2025 when the middle class tax cuts expire. This bill also balloons the National Debt. Make no mistake about it. And it repeals a Critical Health Care Provision that will result in 13 million americans becoming uninsured. Now, these days i hear a lot about accountability and encouraging competitiveness for the American Worker which i support, but this bill with its novel loopholes and flawed trickled down philosophy does neither. Its a wasted opportunity. I believe its not too late, but the way this bill is written, i cannot support it. This was written for corporations and the wealthy 1 in this country. It was not written for a strong middle class. We can do better, and i urge my colleagues to oppose this bill. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york with 12 1 2 minutes remaining. Ms. Slaughter 12 1 2, all right. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield one minute to the gentleman from the gentlewoman from texas, ms. Jackson lee. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from texas is recognized for one minute. A bill that is done in the dark of night, in the midst of crisis like chip, perkins funding for our students, the lack of funding for that, the lack of funding for chip and for health care for millions of americans and yet our friends on the other side go without shame in passing the g. O. P. Tax scam bill. In the Houston Chronicle they aptly put winners and losers and they aptly put at the top of the winners would be the trump organization. This is a Christmas Gift for the trump family, no one else. With huge cuts to the uninsured, to commuters, and to homeowners in high tax states. This is not a Fair Distribution of funds, and its certainly going to impact those who are still suffering from hurricanes all over the nation. So i ask the question, why the rush . Why the rush to give tax cuts to the top 1 and increasing taxes on millions of middle class americans to pay for a permanent tax . The American People have it right. Permanent tax cut for the rich. They have it right. This is the worst catastrophic bill that has ever been passed by the members of the Republican Party and the house of representatives. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is no longer recognized. Ms. Jackson lee i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions thank you, mr. Speaker. We continue to reserve. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter im pleased to yield two minutes to the gentleman from vermont, mr. Welch. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from vermont is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Welch i thank the gentlelady. We do need tax reform. We need tax reform that we all described in the beginning as something that would help the middle class, it would simplify taxes, and would be revenue neutral. This bill, sometimes described by its authors as doing those things, accomplishes none of those things. First of all, the middle class. Wages have been stagnant. The jobs people are getting arent paying the bills and we know the Biggest Challenges we face is increasing investment, increasing wages and increasing security. There is some benefits in this bill for the middle class. But lets get real. Those benefits are tiny and theyre temporary. Vermont family, if youre lucky, we get hit with the salt deduction loss, you might make a couple hundred bucks. But at what price . Once these benefits expire, 83 of the benefits of the individual tax rate go to the top 1 . At what price . 2 trillion added to the deficit, and let me tell you this. Vermont families, hardearning families, working families, theyd like a tax cut but not one that their children and grandchildren are going to have to pay. That is unconscionable. What about these Corporate Tax cuts . We want simplification so were competitive. Theres a 40 reduction for multinational corporations, but in this bill, is there any corresponding requirement that they start reinvesting in america . Exactly the opposite. There is a lower tax rate for companies that invest abroad, send jobs abroad rather than invest at home. Thats outrageous. And what happens because of this deficit . Medicare is going to be cut directly as a result of this tax bill. And the infrastructure plan we all want is evaporating. I yield back, defeat this rule, defeat this bill. Mr. Sessions mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield three minutes to the gentleman from ennis, texas, chairman barton. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Barton i thank the gentleman. Id ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Barton mr. Speaker, im one of the few members that was here back in 1986 when we had the last major tax cut before this body. The president was Ronald Reagan. The speaker of the house was tip oneill. They worked together on a bipartisan basis to cut taxes across the board. The result was the Economic Growth of the late 1980s and the early 1990s, up until the early 2000s when we had 9 11. Its one of the best votes i have ever taken as a member of this body. Well, now were here on another major tax bill. The problem this time around is that theres no bipartisanship. Why is that, mr. Speaker . Its not because the republicans dont want to be bipartisan. Its because the democratic leadership this time around has just said no. This tax this tax bill is a good bill. The distinguished gentleman from vermont that just spoke is correct in that its not revenue neutral. But mr. Speaker, revenues are at an alltime high. Were going to raise more money this year than we ever raised before at the federal level. Let me repeat that. Raise more money than weve ever raised before at the federal level. Isnt it time to give hardworking americans a little of that money back . Thats what this bill does. It cuts rates for every working american. Let me repeat that. It cuts rates for every working american. No matter what your tax rate is today, under this bill, its going to be lower. If youre an individual. If youre a corporation, its going to be lower. If youre one of these passthroughs, its going to be lower. Every american who is paying taxes today is going to pay less taxes starting january 1, 2018. Thats a good deal. Thats a good deal. We are cutting taxes across the board for every working american. We repeal the individual mandate under obamacare. Unfortunately, it doesnt kick in until 2019, but we still repeal that. This is a good bill. It is a historic bill. It is a bill that everybody in this chamber will benefit from regardless of whether you vote for it or vote against it. So when the time comes this afternoon to vote yes or no, im voting yes for america. Im voting yes for americas future. Im voting yes for every working american whos paying taxes today. Lets put more money back in their pockets. Lets double the rate of growth for the economy. Lets put more americans at work. Lets show some faith in the American People. Vote yes. With that id yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter i yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from connecticut, ms. Delauro. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from connecticut is recognized for two minutes. Mr. Speaker, the biggest economic challenge of our time is that too many people are in jobs that do not pay the ms. Slaughter i yield two enough to live on. Wages are not keeping up with rising costs. Too many families struggle today to make ends meet. Some have two or three jobs. They cant afford health care. They cant afford some cant afford to put food on the table. They dont take vacations. Their retirement is in jeopardy. But its the big corporations, the millionaires and billionaires, they are writing the rules to make government work for them. And its the republicans who are their comrades in arms who are rigging the game against the middle class. Senator orrin hatch, who wrote this bill, said, and i quote, i have a rough time wanting to spend billion and billion and trillions of dollars to help people who wont help themselves. Wont lift a finger. And expect the federal government to do everything. This is the ugly truth of this republican tax bill. I say to senator hatch, the federal government has taken good care of you. Its about the great people of this nation that were not taking care of. Thats what this vote is about. This is where their values are. They are on display. The final bill is even worse than we feared. It lowers the tax rates for the wealthiest people even more. It repeals a key element of the Affordable Care act. Kicking 13 Million People off their insurance, raising premiums by 10 . Dont let them fool you on the chide tax credit. It is a shameful proposal. It shuts out military families, rural families, large families, minimum wage workers, those with the youngest children. If you make 400,000 a year, you get a 4,000 Child Tax Credit. If you make 14,500 a year, you get 75. Who are they fooling with this bill . And you know what . My colleague just a minute ago said, those in this chamber will benefit. You bet. Were eligible for the Child Tax Credit, but lowincome families are not. This bill fails the middle class. It benefits the richest 1 . The speaker pro tempore the gentleladys time has expired. Ms. Delauro i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from texas. Mr. Sessions thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, at this time id like to yield three minutes to the distinguished gentleman from lawrenceville, georgia, the rules committee designee to the Budget Committee and the gentleman who sits with esteem on the rules committee, the gentleman, congressman rob woodall. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from georgia is recognized for three minutes. Mr. Woodall thank you very much, mr. Speaker. I thank my chairman for yielding me the time. Were in the rules Committee Last night, mr. Speaker, and we were having the same kind of conversation. Were going through the list one by one by one of all the families and how folks were going to benefit about the children and graduate students, folks facing medical challenges. We went through one by one by one and talked about all the folks who will benefit from this tax cut. It was powerful. But i was reminded, mr. Speaker, that when we started this conversation it wasnt even a tax cut conversation. It was an Economic Growth conversation, mr. Speaker. It was an Economic Growth conversation. Where we have ended up is there are going to be tax benefits for every single working family in the country. But where we started was how do we get those wages for working families up . How do we get job creation up . How do we get america growing not at this stagnant rate of the obama years but powerful rates as we saw in the bush years, clinton years, as we saw in the reagan years. That was the conversation. Mr. Speaker, if we had historically normal Economic Growth, not fantastic Economic Growth, historically normal Economic Growth we would have a balanced budget in this country today. There is an economic consequence of economic failure. What we have done in this bill, mr. Speaker, by allowing businesses to expense their investment, allows them to make their employees more productive on day one. That is going to have a powerful impact, not just on employee wages, mr. Speaker, but on Economic Growth across the entire country. This bill is not about should we pay taxes, we must. This bill is about how we pay taxes. Can we do it better . Does america need to be the worst in the world or can we be first in the world . Were answering that question today. Were answering that question today and with every single vote a member in this chamber casts its not about everything in this bill exactly the way you would have crafted. I assure you, mr. Speaker, it is not. The question is, does this bill move us in a direction of competitiveness across the globe . It does. The question is does this bill focus on wages and growing those wages . It does. The question is in this opportunity that we have did we ake it or did we waste it . We havent answered that question yet, mr. Speaker, but i believe late on today we will. Well answer in the affirmative. Give us a chance. Should it have taken us 31 years to get to this place . It should not. Can we make danchese together today for the con make a difference together for the country today . Yes, we can. It will be a powerful difference. It will be one of the proudest votes i have had the opportunity to take. Mr. Chairman, thank you for your leadership on this. Mr. Speaker, thank you for your leadership on this. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter let me yield myself 30 seconds. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is recognized. Ms. Slaughter this has been the ost awful process. The democrats werent involved in any of it, for henchs sake. Almost didnt get to see a copy of what they had. I think the debate we have had here today must be similar to the one we had in the reagan administration. David stockman, who talked Ronald Reagan into trickledown, he says today it didnt work. It dew point work then. It dew point work for president bush. It didnt work for the governor from kansas. Very recently, that didnt wrk work. It isnt going to work this time. I am apalled appalled were doing this. This is the worst process we have ever been through. We operate on thompson jeffersons manual in the rules committee. We thomas everysons manual in the rules committee. We dew point. We de we didnt. If we defeat the previous question, i will offer an amendment that prohibit will i legislation from being considered on the floor that limits or repeals the state and local Tax Deductions or repeals the a. C. A. s individual mandate. Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment in the record along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Ms. Slaughter i am pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from new york, the Ranking Member on the committee on foreign affairs, mr. Engel. The eaker pro tempore gentleman from new york is recognized for one minute. Mr. Engel i thank my friend from new york. I have been here a long time now. I have to say this is one of the worst pieces of legislation i have ever the gentleman from new york is seen. Zed one of the worst processes i have ever seen. When you were a kid and went to high school and college, and you learned how a bill becomes a law, take that and throw it out because the Republican Leadership here doesnt want to work with democrats. The reason there are no democrats working with you is you shut us out. You wont let us have any input. You wont do anything with us. This is not the way to govern. Absolutely not. Someone near and dear to me once said, the Republican Party is the party of the rich person. And the Democratic Party is the party of the working person. If that was ever true, it certainly is true today. Rich people do really, really well. Middle class and poor people dont do well at all. In fact, the Corporate Tax breaks last for years and years and years. And the other tax breaks for the middle class expire in five years. This helps the rich, it hurts poor, helps the middle class. Even Ronald Reagan tried to be bipartisan and have democrats work with him. What ever happened to my friends on o the on the poor, helps class. Even Ronald Reagan republican side who lech sure about fiscal responsibility . This blows a hole in the budget. Its irresponsible. My state of new york which is a donor state is getting screwed. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman is no longer recognized. The gentlemans time has expired. The gentleman from texas with 4s 4 minutes. Mr. Session thank you very much. I would like to advise the gentlewoman were through with our speakers that i will be closing for us. I allow her to consume her time. Ms. Slaughter thank you, mr. Speaker. I have one more speaker. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman reserves his time. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter im pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from rhode island, mr. Cicilline. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman from rhode island is recognized for one minute. Mr. Cies wleeny thank you mr. Cicilline thank you, mr. Speaker. I thank the gentlelady. I rise in strong hope that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will defeat this job killing bill that will explode the deficit and hurt working people. Its important to note 83 of the benefits of the cuts of this bill go to the top 1 . 86 million hardworking middle class families will actually see a tax increase. Of course we need to reform our tax code, but we need to do it in a way that raises wages, produces goodpaying jobs, and make sure people have a bright irfuture. This does the Brighter Future this. Does the opposite t ransacks medicare and medicaid. Its very, very important to recognize its not going to create jobs. This is trickledown economics. Let everyone at the top hold on to all their money. And it will trickle down to the rest of us. It doesnt work. This is a failed economic policy. This does not support strengthening the middle class. We need to defeat this bill and reform our tax code in a way that will promote job growth, raise wages, ensure working families can get ahead. There are millions of americans who will go to bed worrying about how they are going to take care of their family, make ends meet. This bill will make that problem worse. I urge my colleagues to defeat it. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. The gentlelady from new york. Mr. Speaker, the members of the majority have lined up today to tell the american how great this bill is. If thats true, why were they afraid of holding a single hearing or listening to a single outside expert . In 1986 tax bill had over 30 hearings and 430 witnesses. And took well over a year. This one about three months. Written apparently by lobbyists. There wasnt a single hearing held on the text of this bill. Not one. It was jammed through ways and Means Committee where our amendments, democrats, were blocked. Democrat members had under an hour to review the final text before voting. It was rushed to the rules committee a day earlier than announced with only four hours notice so nobody had a chance to read. And the majority there blocked 140 bipartisan amendments. This has been a secretive process on both sides of the capitol. Senators received the text of the final bill also within an hour of the vote. The nearly 500page bill in the senate was riddled with errors, lastminute edits, and illegible handwritten changes in the margins. There was a single meeting of the Conference Committee between house and senate. Members there were prohibit interested offering amendments or even seeing the negotiated text. Imagine that. Couldnt even see what they are supposed to vote on. Senators and representatives sat around a table for show while the press reported that the deal, even before the meeting had started, had already been reached. The democrats had no say at all. House ways and means chairman kevin brady says hes proud of the process. But it will take a separate bill to correct some of the errors here. There is no reason to believe would he include democrats in that process, either. It would be another partisan effort. Let me remind everyone watching that we used emergency procedures to meet this bill. In this Congress Disaster relief is not an emergency. Isnt that amazing . Funding chip and Community Health centers is not an emergency. Disaster fund something not an emergency. Rushing these tax cuts to the wealthiest among us is an emergency. This bill, which has no deadline, is their top priority, while real emergencies are being ignored and it is shameful. I urge a no vote on the previous question, on the rule, and the bill. And i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back her time. The gentleman from texas with 4s 3 4 minutes remaining. Mr. Sessions thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, i want to thank the gentlewoman from new york, the gentlewoman, the Ranking Member of the rules committee, and really each of the members of for their ommittee diligence in working yesterday for a long period of time as the rules committee met last night not only to consider this, but to offer full and open for thei debate. E in working yesterday an opportunity for the gentleman, mr. Neal, from massachusetts, to come and speak. Representative of the Democratic Party, the gentleman from illinois, mr. Roskam, to come and represent the ways and Means Committee. Antidistinguished gentleman from the woodlands, kevin brady. The chairman and the distinguished gentleman from the woodland, kevin brady. The chairman of the committee d. An to articulate not only the ideas behind the bill but what were going to do. Mr. Speaker, it is true, it is true that what were doing is taking what was done by president obama and a democratic majority in the house and senate that raised taxes to trillion dollars. That in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 011 really raided the American People by raising taxes on them, by causing an economic down turn, a g. D. P. Rate of 1. 2 . It is true that we promised this last election through the election of donald trump to make America Great again. Part of making America Great again means making americans great again also. Making americans not only proud of their country but giving them an economic opportunity, and that is what the Republican Party is doing here. We have heard not only from mike kelly, congressman kelly who spoke about making america better, making the Free Enterprise system better. We heard from congressman woodall how being in 24th place which is what america is, 24th in the world in doing business and friendly environment. We cannot survive in 24th place, 24th place by keeping the current tax code we have, where over and over and over we see not only Companies Move to other locations within the United States of america, moving offshore, stranding dollars. Jobs going with that. What were attempting to do in this bill is make america number one, making america and the American Worker number one again. Were going to make the big deal, the big deal for people wherever you live in the United States. Were going to offer an opportunity for you to not only be taxed less but that business that is in your city, your state that proudly they represent their hometown, they will have an opportunity to now be competitive. Forget this, oh, republicans want to move jobs offshore. That is what we are sick and tired of hearing. Were sick and tired of hearing that jobs and investment go overseas. Theyre coming back to america because this place as americans instead of being at the bottom of the rung in terms of taxes wrung in terms of taxes we are going to be competitive, where the American Worker will get a chance to stamp made in america on those items they want. Made in my hometown, pride of authorship of knowing not just is my country going to get better but my community and myself will be better. It is about financial responsibility but its also about the integrity of the Free Enterprise system. The Free Enterprise system is the greatest Economic System in the history of the world. It will continue to produce great and Better Things for so many people, but, mr. Speaker, the Democratic Party tried to kill the Free Enterprise system when they came after the Free Enterprise system. We knew it and we saw it and the world saw it too. 1. 2 g. D. P. Growth as opposed to now with a new viewpoint about making America Great, we have not only doubled g. D. P. But we have added net one million jobs. And if the summer had not produced the storms it had, no telling what our job growth would be. This is what lies ahead, and this is what this republican bill does. So for that reason i urge my colleagues to support this rule and the underlying bill on this conference report. I yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution. The speaker pro tempore the question is on ordering the previous question on the resolution. Those in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. In the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, i request the yeas and nays. The speaker pro tempore the yeas and nays are requested. Those favoring a vote by the yeas and nays will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. Members will record their votes by electronic device. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 , this 15minute vote on ordering the previous question will be followed by fiveminute votes on adopting the resolution if ordered and suspending the rules and passing h. R. 4254. This is a 15minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ] the speaker pro tempore on this vote the yeas are 233. The nays are 187. The previous question is ordered. The question is on adoption of the resolution. So many as are in favor say aye. Those opposed, no. The ayes have it. The gentlelady from new york. Ms. Slaughter mr. Speaker, i ask for a recorded vote. The speaker pro tempore a recorded vote is requested. Those favoring a recorded vote will rise. A sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. Members will record their votes by electronic device. This is a fiveminute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc. , in cooperation with the United States house of representatives. Any use of the closedcaptioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u. S. House of representatives. ]