Press Release

I thank the gentlewoman from New York for yielding time. I'm proud to stand with her and with other Democratic members in support of the women's access to comprehensive, affordable health care. Access that was greatly expanded by the Affordable Care Act, which passed two years ago this week and which my Republican colleagues want to repeal.

Today, Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member George Miller, Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, and Rep. John Tierney introduced the Workforce Investment Act of 2012.

The Republican budget introduced by Rep. Paul Ryan today is a repeat of last year’s budget: it once again ends the Medicare guarantee while protecting tax cuts for the wealthy.  It slashes investments in innovation, education, and infrastructure, which puts our economic recovery at risk and threatens American jobs.  It does not reduce the deficit in a responsible way, instead placing the burden of deficit reduction onto seniors, the middle class, working families, and the most vulnerable by refusing to ask the wealthiest among us to contribute.

I've had the honor of serving alongside Gary Ackerman in Congress for nearly thirty years, and during that time I have come to know him as a faithful public servant, a fighter for New York families, and a dear friend. As a public school teacher, Gary taught students the workings of our system of government and the value of justice for all. Later, as a community journalist, he helped bring people together and remain informed about issue affecting their neighborhoods. As a State Senator and U.S. Representative, Gary brought that same concern for his community, its families, and future generations to legislating. 

Today, the President came to Maryland to reiterate his commitment to an all-of-the-above strategy to combat rising energy costs.  He is right to say that there is no one silver bullet that will bring down the price of oil or gasoline, but that we ought to keep building on the gains we have made over the past three years in increasing domestic energy production and making investments in new vehicle, alternative fuel, and energy production technologies that harness power from solar, wind, and biofuels.  This Administration has already made significant progress in reducing our dependence on foreign sources of oil, and we now import less than half the oil we consume.  At the same time, millions of acres in this country are now open to new oil and natural gas exploration.

"After weeks of watching House Republicans attempt unsuccessfully to bring a highway bill to the Floor, today the Senate passed bipartisan legislation in the long tradition of working together on investing in our transportation infrastructure...

"I want to thank Jay Inslee for his years of service in Congress. He is a good friend, and it has been an honor to be his colleague in the House. Jay is a leader on clean energy issues, working for policies that create clean energy jobs and protect our environment ...

 President Obama’s announcement today of a National Network for Manufacturing Innovation represents a major step in our efforts to revitalize manufacturing in this country and remain the world’s innovation leader.