Speeches
April 10, 2018
Speeches
James Madison, the father of the American Constitution, said that its most important provision was giving the Congress, and not the President, the authority to declare war.
April 10, 2018
Speeches
It’s important to ask ourselves how the tax reform is doing, and I thank my colleague for organizing this time tonight. In my district, the average family is paying $1,900 LESS federal income tax this year – which means $1,900 MORE they can spend to meet their needs.
Issues:
February 24, 2018
Speeches
When Delavan, Illinois approached its 125th anniversary in 1961, a resident wrote to Wilford Funk of Funk and Wagnalls asking what word described it. Funk couldn’t find one, so he invented the word “quasquicentennial” and it soon appeared in print and entered the English language. It’s an important word on this occasion, and it is a rare word in California -- only 94 other California cities are old enough to have had a quasquicentennial.
Issues:
February 22, 2018
Speeches
For years, I’ve only been able to report to you what we SHOULD be doing to revive the economy. Today, FINALLY, I can report to you what we HAVE done – and THAT it is working.
Issues:
January 18, 2018
Speeches
With the bill now taking effect, I believe people are about to see their paychecks grow, their job prospects brighten, and their family finances improve.
Issues:
January 9, 2018
Speeches
The overarching objectives of this subcommittee bear repeating: to restore public access to the public lands; to restore good management to the public lands, and to restore the Federal government as a good neighbor to those communities most impacted by the public lands.
December 19, 2017
Speeches
I opposed the House version of the tax reform bill because the loss of broad-based deductions like state and local taxes would have caused significant tax increases on many of my middle-class constituents in the high-tax, high-cost state of California. It increased the marginal tax rate on high income earners and abolished life-line deductions such as casualty loss, medical expenses and student interest. I urged that we should leave no taxpayer behind. I want to thank Chairman Brady, the Republican Leadership and the conference committee for heeding these concerns. Their final product exceeds my expectations, and on behalf of California taxpayers I can now offer my enthusiastic support. The new version leaves the casualty loss, medical expense and student interest deductions intact.
Issues:
November 15, 2017
Speeches
This amendment assures that the tax reform bill leaves no taxpayer behind. It retains all the provisions on C-corporations and pass-throughs that are desperately needed to produce the kind of economic growth that our country is capable of. It strikes the provisions in the bill that change the personal income tax code and replaces them with a permanent, one percent across-the-board reduction in the rates in every bracket. This should fit within the existing budget authority and save an average family about $600 per year on their taxes.
Issues:
November 11, 2017
Speeches
I’d like to begin this Veterans day by travelling back to the day after September 11th, 2001. I want to pause for a moment, and ask you to remember what you felt as the sun rose that morning. I don’t mean the shock or horror or outrage. There was something far more important, when we sensed our country was under attack and in great danger.
November 1, 2017
Speeches
Forty-five years ago, Congress enacted laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act, that promised to improve the health of our forests. They imposed what have become endlessly time-consuming and ultimately cost-prohibitive restrictions on our ability to properly manage our national forests so that we can match the tree density with the ability of the land to support it. After 45 years of experience with these laws, I think we’re entitled to ask, “How are the forests doing?” The answer is damning.