Congressional Record United States Th of America PROCEEDINGS and DEBATES of the 112 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION
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E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 112 CONGRESS, SECOND SESSION Vol. 158 WASHINGTON, FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2012 No. 81 Senate The Senate was not in session today. Its next meeting will be held on Monday, June 4, 2012, at 2 p.m. House of Representatives FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 2012 The House met at 9 a.m. and was PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE I understand that times are tough and people called to order by the Speaker. are looking everywhere, but this is just not The SPEAKER. Will the gentleman right. My grandfather was known as a gentle from Connecticut (Mr. COURTNEY) come f giant, but if he were alive today, I think he forward and lead the House in the would oppose this with force. Pledge of Allegiance. PRAYER Mr. Speaker, Bob Stafford knew that Mr. COURTNEY led the Pledge of Al- a higher education was the clearest The Chaplain, the Reverend Patrick legiance as follows: path to the middle class in this coun- J. Conroy, offered the following prayer: I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the try—and he was a good Republican. We Eternal God, we give You thanks for United States of America, and to the Repub- should not let the interest rates dou- giving us another day. lic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. ble. There is no justification for having We pause now in Your presence, and these interest rates go from 3.4 to 6.8 f acknowledge our dependence on You. percent. We have 30 days to act. We ask Your blessing upon the men ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER and women of this, the people’s House. f The SPEAKER. The Chair will enter- Keep them aware of Your presence as THE FOREST PRODUCTS FAIRNESS tain up to five 1-minute requests on they face the tasks of this day, that no ACT OF 2012 each side of the aisle. burden be too heavy, no duty too dif- (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania f ficult, and no work too wearisome. asked and was given permission to ad- Help them, and indeed, help us all, to STUDENT LOAN DEBT dress the House for 1 minute and to re- obey Your law, to do Your will, and to (Mr. WELCH asked and was given vise and extend his remarks.) walk in Your way. Grant that they permission to address the House for 1 Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. might be good in thought, gracious in minute and to revise and extend his re- Mr. Speaker, the USDA Biobased Mar- word, generous in deed, and great in marks.) kets program was created to provide spirit. Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, the other new markets for farm commodities and Make this a glorious day in which all day, I received a letter from a con- to encourage consumers to purchase are glad to be alive, eager to work, and stituent, Lana Kunkel. Like many environmentally friendly biobased ready to serve You, our great Nation, Vermonters, she is concerned about the products. Unfortunately, under the and all our fellow brothers and sisters. doubling of Stafford student loan inter- current law, most forest products are May all that is done this day be done est rates scheduled for July 1. excluded from both the Federal pro- for Your greater honor and glory. This is very personal for her. She curement preference and the market Amen. used the Stafford loan to get a good label of the USDA Biobased Markets education and start a career as a nurse. program. For instance, bamboo ply- f She is now a contributing member of wood is already eligible for the BioPre- the community. She is also the grand- ferred label and is used as a ‘‘green’’ al- THE JOURNAL daughter of former U.S. Vermont Rep- ternative for hardwood flooring or lum- The SPEAKER. The Chair has exam- resentative and Senator Bob Stafford, ber. ined the Journal of the last day’s pro- for whom the Stafford student loan The Forest Products Fairness Act of ceedings and announces to the House program is named. Here is what she 2012 modifies the definition of his approval thereof. had to say about her grandfather: ‘‘biobased product’’ to clarify that for- Pursuant to clause 1, rule I, the Jour- I know my grandfather’s intention for est products should be included in the nal stands approved. these loans was accessibility and not profit. Biobased Markets program if they b This symbol represents the time of day during the House proceedings, e.g., b 1407 is 2:07 p.m. Matter set in this typeface indicates words inserted or appended, rather than spoken, by a Member of the House on the floor. H3365 . VerDate Mar 15 2010 00:38 Jun 02, 2012 Jkt 019060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 4636 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A01JN7.000 H01JNPT1 jbell on DSK7SPTVN1PROD with HOUSE H3366 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE June 1, 2012 meet the minimum biobased content get discharged, we give them the op- It is clear that the House must con- requirements. The Forest Products portunity to capture those jobs imme- tinue to fight against ObamaCare until Fairness Act of 2012 will enable U.S. diately. either the Supreme Court overturns producers to build back a competitive When I introduced this bill, several this law in its entirety or until we have advantage through stronger, expanded weeks later, the Senate introduced a willing partners in the Senate and the product markets and new economic op- companion bill, and now, today, the White House. portunities so that the industry can President has declared his support for f better compete in the global market- the bill. It is time to show leadership SUZANNE MCDANIEL: A HERO TO place. in both Houses, to show leadership in VICTIMS Including U.S.-made forest products the Presidency, and to pass this bill. as part of the USDA’s BioPreferred Our brave men and women who have (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was program is a win-win for consumers served so bravely and sacrificed so given permission to address the House and producers. It will promote healthy, much deserve jobs when they get home, for 1 minute.) well-managed forests and the protec- high-paying jobs that will allow them Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, tion of communities that rely on these to get back into our society. today I rise to celebrate the life of a jobs and industries to survive. friend and someone who changed the f lives of victims throughout the Nation. f b 0910 Suzanne McDaniel appeared in my EXPIRATION OF INTEREST RATE court years ago as one of the first pros- PASS THE DISCLOSE ACT FOR STAFFORD STUDENT LOAN ecutor-based victim assistance direc- PROGRAM (Mr. PALLONE asked and was given tors in the State of Texas. She went on (Mr. COURTNEY asked and was permission to address the House for 1 to start the Texas Crime Victims given permission to address the House minute.) Clearinghouse, the first of its kind any- for 1 minute.) Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, Ameri- where in the United States. Mr. COURTNEY. Mr. Speaker, in 29 cans are growing more and more cyn- In recognition of her incredible work, days, the interest rate for the Stafford ical of politics and politicians with she was tapped as the State’s crime student loan program is going to in- good reason. Citizens United opened victim information officer, educating crease from 3.4 percent to 6.8 percent. the floodgates to unrestricted special- and influencing the community and the This will add thousands of dollars of interest campaign spending in elec- State legislature with her vast knowl- additional debt costs for middle class tions, and we need to put an end to the edge of victims’ issues. This led to her students all across America. influence of secret money in our elec- role as a legislative liaison for the Yesterday, The Christian Science tions. State coalition of victim organizations Monitor reported that Speaker BOEH- I advocate the DISCLOSE Act. It and her leadership on the board of the NER called this issue a phony issue and would shine the light on secret money National Organization of Victim As- a distraction from the real issues. in political campaigns. The DISCLOSE sistance. There is nothing phony about adding Act requires public reporting by super- Suzanne’s accomplishments are far thousands of dollars of added debt to PACs, corporations, unions, and out- reaching, touching lives in Texas and middle class students. There is nothing side groups within 24 hours of making a throughout our Nation. A crime victim phony about the Federal Reserve Board campaign expenditure or transferring wrote: report that came out yesterday that funds of $10,000 or more to other groups Suzanne feels everyone is important and showed that student loan debt in- for campaign-related activities. needed in the fight to improve assistance for creased by $30 billion in the first quar- Mr. Speaker, I tell you, when I’m on crime victims. I have never heard her say, It’s not my job. In fact, she has never been ter of this year, surpassing credit card the trail and I talk to my constituents, everyone is outraged by the millions, shy about poking her nose into things and of- debt. The only thing, frankly, that is a fering assistance. Her enthusiasm and dedi- pretense around here is the work and possibly billions, of dollars that cation is boundless.