Congressional Record—House H377
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February 4, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H377 President Bush has led our country further bring home the tens of thousands men and GENERAL LEAVE and further away from the fold of the inter- women whose lives have been placed on the Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I ask national community, ignoring the United Na- line for no good reason. We must see change unanimous consent that all Members tions Security council’s findings, and virtually for the better. may have 5 legislative days within demolishing the international support we had More numbers: which to revise and extend their re- received following September 11th. He has For the cost of every cluster bomb, we can marks on the subject of my Special challenged Americans to a ‘‘you’re either with enroll 2 children in Head Start. Order. us or against us’’ agenda, which leads to the For the cost of every minute of the war on The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Iraq, we could have paid the annual salary most dangerous kind of patriotism—where KING of Iowa). Is there objection to the questioning and dissent are considered un- and benefits for 15 registered nurses. For request of the gentleman from Mary- American. Well I, as an American and a pa- every hour of the war on Iraq, we could im- land? triot, am now standing again to ask questions prove, repair, and modernize 20 schools. For There was no objection. about the cost of this war. the cost of one day’s war on Iraq, we could We spent $396 billion in military spending have prevented all of the budget cuts to edu- f alone for 2003. As big as this number is, it cation programs in 2003. For the amount of b 2030 does not even include the cost of the Iraq war, money we spend ever week in Iraq, we could REPORT ON TRIP TO LIBYA, IRAQ, which was funded through two additional sup- build 142,857 units of affordable housing. For AFGHANISTAN, UZBEKISTAN, plemental requests; the first for $79 billion, the the amount of money we spend to buy one AND MILITARY HOSPITAL IN second was another $87 billion. Together, that stealth bomber, we could pay the annual sal- GERMANY amounts an amazing $562 billion. For 2003, ary plus benefits for 38,000 teachers. We that amounts to almost $11 billion dollars might be able to give a few of them a raise— The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. spent ever week, and more than $1.5 billion image that! KING of Iowa). Under the Speaker’s an- spent every day. Compare that to this year’s Each day the Pentagon spends $1.7 billion, nounced policy of January 7, 2003, the Department of Education budget of $54 billion, which is enough to build 200 new elementary gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. which works out to less than 150 million dol- schools, house 136,000 homeless, or provide WELDON) is recognized for 60 minutes lars per day, which averages out to less than Pell grants to one million college students (per as the designee of the majority leader. $3 million per day in education spending in day!). Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania. Mr. each state. $1.5 billion on the military, $3 mil- With less than the cost of ONE of the Iraq Speaker, the topic of my Special Order lion on education: so where are our priorities? supplementals, we could do all these things: this evening, and I think I will be Here at home, 9 million Americans are un- Provide basic health and food to the world’s joined by other Members from both employed, 35 million live under the official poor: $12 billion. Rebuild America’s public sides, is our recent trip to Libya, Iraq, poverty line, 44 million have no health insur- schools over 10 years: $12 billion. Reduce Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and our mili- ance, and millions more are unable to make class size for grades 1–3 to 15 students per tary hospital for our troops in Ger- ends meet. States face their worst fiscal crisis class: $11 billion. Reduce debts of impover- many. But before I get into my com- since the Great Depression, and the yearly ished nations: $10 billion; Provide health insur- ments about the trip, let me put some federal budget deficit is passing $500 billion ance to all uninsured American kids: $6 billion; specific quotes from Dr. Kay, who has and growing rapidly. My own state, New Jer- Increased federal funding for clean energy and just been referred to by a previous sey, is facing a projected $5 billion budget def- energy efficiency: $6 billion; Public financing of speaker, who made the allegation that icit for 2004. all federal elections: $1 billion; Fully fund Head Dr. Kay said there was no basis for our And this administration doesn’t intend to Start: $2 billion. activity in Iraq. change course anytime soon. According to the Other countries military spending: Russia— Mr. Speaker, let me put the actual 2005 budget released this week, they are $65 billion; China—$47 billion; Japan—$42.6 quote in the RECORD, not something planning to spend $2.2 trillion on the military billion; U.K.—$38.4 billion. that is paraphrasing, but the actual over the next 5 years. These combined are a total of $193 billion, quote. In an interview that Dr. Kay For 2004 alone, they plan to spend $399 bil- which is less than half our FY ’03 or FY ’04 conducted on NBC TV, he was asked to lion on the military (which does not include military spending—not including the cost of comment on whether it was prudent to any possible future supplemental funding re- Iraq and Afghanistan. go to war. Dr. Kay said, ‘‘I think it was quests for Iraq or Afghanistan) which is more Please don’t confuse military spending with absolutely prudent. In fact, I think at than the combined spending that year for edu- the safety and security of our Nation. It is a the end of the inspection process, we cation, Health, Justice, Housing Assistance, common misconception that higher military en- will paint a picture of Iraq that was far International Affairs, Veterans Benefits, Nat- hances homeland security. However, many of more dangerous than we even thought ural Resources & Environment, Science & these responsibilities fall onto our struggling, it was before the war.’’ Space, Transportation, employment, Employ- under funded State and local government Mr. Speaker, that is not me para- ment Training, Social Services, Income Secu- agencies, whom we know as ‘‘first respond- phrasing; that is not me summarizing rity, Economic Development, Social Security, ers,’’ and to agencies outside of the Defense or putting my own spin on what Dr. Medicare, Agriculture, and Energy. Department, such as the FBI, FEMA, and the Kay said. That is a direct quote from Where we spend our money is a telling sign Coast Guard. This massive military spending Dr. Kay, and the American people and of where our priorities lie. We have aban- budget addresses none of these programs. our colleagues need to understand that doned our children, our teachers, our laborers, Another matter of concern to me is not only as we analyze what has been said in the our homeless, our veterans, and our seniors in how much money we’re spending on our mili- findings of the Kay report, that we ac- order to fund these regime-changing, unilateral tary, but how that money is being spent. The tually look at those statements, as op- military actions. We are under funding No President’s $87 billion supplemental contained posed to trying to spin them. Some of Child Left Behind, IDEA, after-school pro- an astronomical waste of taxpayer dollars. our colleagues on the other side, espe- grams, and family literacy programs. We have These are just some of the administration’s re- cially those running for the Presi- not extended unemployment benefits for those quests: dency, have tried to put a spin on what without jobs. We have offered our seniors a $100 million for several new housing com- Dr. Kay said. It is more important for Medicare program that does almost nothing to munities, complete with roads, schools, and a the American people and for our col- cut their prescription drug costs, and we’re medical clinic; $20 million for business class- leagues to look at in actuality what he threatening to destabilize their Social Security es, at a cost of $10,000 per Iraqi student; said. through privatization. $900 million for imported kerosene and diesel, But, Mr. Speaker, there is one more I am very concerned about the direction in even though Iraq has huge oil reserves; $54 point I want to make on this whole ef- which our country is headed. We’re sliding fur- million to study the Iraqi postal system; $10 fort of the spin of Dr. Kay, which ties ther and further down a slippery slope where million for prison-building consultants; $2 mil- into our trip, because of the 45 meet- our county’s basic needs are not being met. lion for garbage trucks; $200,000 each for ings that we held over the 7 days, vis- That is why this year’s presidential election is Iraqis in a witness protection program; $100 iting eight different countries and so key. We need a leader that can mend the million for hundreds of criminal investigators; traveling 25,500 miles in military air- relationships broken by this unnecessary war and $400 million for two prisons, at a cost of craft, including a military aircraft to and its ill-administered aftermath.