Senate Proceeding 11-03-09 on Nov 3rd, 2009 :: 0:46:55 to 0:54:40
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0:46:52 to 0:47:12( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: in that direction. mr. president, that is the republican health care plan. i thank the presi a senator the presiding officer: the senator from rhode island. mr. reed: mr. president, i again rise to urge our colleagues, particular on the

0:46:55 to 0:54:40( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Jack Reed

0:47:13 to 0:47:33( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: other side, to join us in passage of extension of unemployment insurance. are in the midst of a very, very complicated and important debate on health care, and we're being urged to move forward on that. but something that's more pressing, in my view, is the need to extend benefits to

0:47:34 to 0:47:54( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: people who are running out of the ability to support their families. and by my count, we have on this side of the aisle been trying for 25 days to do something that the other party did with bipartisan cooperation and a vote of

0:47:55 to 0:48:16( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: of the rules. as the president ofhe senate knows, this is the way in the house for noncontroversial legislation to move forward without any delay. it's a very -- it's not used for major legislation like this typically. so that, i think, underscores the bipartisan solution the house proposed to us more than 25 days ago.

0:48:17 to 0:48:37( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: now, to compound matters, the other side is now doing more than just delaying benefits for they are also needlessly delaying tax cuts for small business and first-time home buyers. this is a very disturbing precedent. the american people, as my colleague was talking about, want to see some results, want

0:48:38 to 0:48:59( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: us to see us move on issues that are of critical importance to them. what could be more critical and more important than providing extended benefits to those who have lost their jobs and are in a very difficult economy? what could be more important to our economy and to so many people by providing or extending

0:49:00 to 0:49:21( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: further benefits of the tax treatment of new home buyers, which has produced an increase in sales and investment? this is the time, i think, to move forward and to also help small businesses. the legislation before us includes not only the extension of unemployment benefits, the tax break for home buyers, but

0:49:22 to 0:49:43( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: also preferential tax treatment for small business in terms of the ability to access losses in the past. now, with the winter and the holidays approaching, this legislation can't come soon enough for millions of americans who are feeling the effects not of the last eight months but of

0:49:44 to 0:50:05( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: the last eight years of the bush economy. this legislation will help people literally put food on the table. it will give them a sense of support and sustenance as they go forward. it will help continue the expansion of the economy we've seen. last year, for the first time in almost a year, we saw growth in the american economy. 3.5% of g.d.p.

0:50:06 to 0:50:27( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: to sustain that, we have to keep, i think, incentivizing in many different ways our economy. and two of the provisions that are included are, again with bipartisan support, provide those incentives. small business will get relief in terms of net operating losses. individual purchases and the real estate market will get the

0:50:28 to 0:50:50( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: stimulus of the addition and extension of the tax treatment of purchase of homes. but we could anticipate another cloture vote this week, another procedural hurdle to do something that everybody says we should have done my colleagues on this side have suggested amendments that a

0:50:51 to 0:51:12( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: not germane, some that would repeatedly have been taken up already, indeed have passed. but this should be something more people. we have legislation before us

0:51:13 to 0:51:33( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: which incorporates us, not just an unemployment extension but two other measures for first-time home buyers. and face delaying tactics. the reality is that 4,000 in my state need this help right away. they need the unemployment benefit extension. and there are thousands more rhode islanders who will exhaust

0:51:34 to 0:51:54( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: their benefits in the next several weeks. 3,000 rhode islanders are receiving extended benefits,he final tranche of unemployment insurance for most. they'll be without any real support if we don't move this week. if we don't move promptly timely. the latest compromise provides 14 weeks of unemployment

0:51:55 to 0:52:17( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: insurance to jobless americans in all states and 20 weeks in those states that have the highest unemployment rate, above 8.5%. as i mentioned before, it also provides help to the home market and help to the small business community. these are amendments that are important. they're important to all of us.

0:52:18 to 0:52:38( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: we can look back with some sense of progress on our recent g.d.p. numbers,ut you can't feed your family on g.d.p. you need -- when you're unemployed looking for work, not finding it, you need unemployment compensation benefits.

0:52:39 to 0:53:00( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: you can't keep this recovery in the housing markets going as robustly as it is t has some further assistance, in my view. and you have to create, i think, further benefits for small business so they can begin once again to hire americans. the key to our economic crisis

0:53:01 to 0:53:21( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: is not growing g.d.p. it's growing employment. and these efforts, these latter efforts will be pointed in that direction as we help those people who are without jobs today. and this crisis is nationwide. not red state, blue state problem. it's our problem. too many americans will exhaust their benefits by the end of the

0:53:22 to 0:53:45( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: year. hundreds of thousands have already exhausted benefits. so this delay has real consequences in the lives of all of our constituents in every part of this country. it's already been a month that the house passed their legislation. we could have passed ts, i believe. in fact, if you look at the record, the number of cloture

0:53:46 to 0:54:07( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: votes and everything else, we just passed, just yesterday a substitute -- cloture vote, a substitute amendment by 85-2. typically when we h votes, we don't go through further procedural motions. we by unanimous consent take up the measure and pass it routinely.

0:54:08 to 0:54:28( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: what's lacking here? not the 60 votes for cloture. it's i.e., it is the consent of our republican colleagues to move forward. they're not denying us. they're denying themerican people. we should take this measure up

0:54:29 to 0:54:41( Edit History Discussion )

Jack Reed: immediately. 85-2 cloture votes. 85 people will come down, perhaps even all 100, and for this bill. but it will be a month after we