"In just over a month, House Republicans have gone into high gear..." - Political Analyst Charlie Cook in CongressDailyAM, published by the National Journal

That's the verdict of a widely respected, independent political analyst who specializes in covering Congress and national affairs.

Despite cries about a "do nothing Congress" coming from some with partisan motives, a look at the REAL record of the last few months tells a very different story. Congress has been working steadily all year and has stepped up the pace in the past couple of months.

We've been working overtime to get the people's business done. And the facts show that we are producing results - to lower taxes for working Americans, provide prescription drug coverage for seniors, help seniors on Social Security and bolster important projects across Tennessee's 3rd District.

As of last week, the House had passed 11 of 13 Appropriations bills needed to run our government and make sure that we avoid any kind of shutdown or other disruptions when the new federal fiscal year begins on Oct 1.

Our work pace is well ahead of previous Congresses. By July 1, we had already passed 10 appropriations bills. That compares with seven passed by the same date in 1996 and only five passed in 1998.

"Very few times has the chamber done this much this fast," Cook said in Congress Daily AM. "Some House veterans even compare last month to periods under the gavel of former Speakers Gingrich and Wright, when the assembly line was running at high speed." Of course, Newt Gingrich is a former Republican Speaker of the House, and Jim Wright is a former Democratic House Speaker.

Spending bills passed include Energy and Water appropriations that are very important both for the Oak Ridge Department of Energy Complex and areas all over the 3rd District. While we do not yet have everything we want in terms of Appropriations needed for the 3rd District, we have laid a solid foundation for the 3rd District when the final bills are signed into law later this year.

Here's a quick look at just a few of the things we have accomplished thus far this year:

• Marriage Penalty: The House has passed a bill that would provide $182.3 billion in tax relief over 10 years to 50 million working Americans, including up to 200,000 couples in East Tennessee. Unfortunately, President Clinton has vetoed previous versions of this bill. Members of his party in the U.S. Senate have stalled and fought passage of this long overdue reform that will ENCOURAGE family building instead of DISCOURAGING it as the tax code does now. Last week, we passed the bill in a bipartisan 259-159 vote in a form that will make it more difficult for opponents to use delay tactics in the Senate.
• Social Security: Earlier this year, we passed a bill to give our senior citizens relief from an unfair provision of the law that costs senior citizens between 65 and 69 one dollar in Social Security benefits for each three dollars of income they earned over $17,000. Some seniors want to keep working; others have to - but none should be PUNISHED for working. The Senate passed this bill. And fortunately, President Clinton reversed himself on this issue and actually signed this bill. This is an excellent example of what can happen when people work together across party lines for the good of all.
• Prescription drugs: The House has passed a bill to provide prescription drugs for seniors. Frankly, this bill needs improvement. I voted for it, but view its passage as a first step in the process that hopefully will lead to a bill that helps seniors who need it without creating a vast new government bureaucracy.
• Third District: With help from Vice President Gore, the Administration proposed $1.9 million in maintenance and repair funds to help keep Chickamauga Lock in Chattanooga open until it can be replaced. The House passed the Energy and Water Appropriations bill containing this money, and I'm confident that it will be in the final bill. In the North End of the District we were able to get an additional $25 million for the Y-12 Weapons plant in Oak Ridge to help make up for under funding by the Clinton Administration last year.

Also, the Senate is moving toward approval of $240 million in funding for the nation?s premier science project - the Spallation Neutron Source in Oak Ridge. I will work as hard as I can when different versions of this bill are worked out between the House and Senate to make sure that we get as much money as possible for this vitally important project.

Make no mistake about it, we still have work to do so that we can provide a fully productive year for the folks of the 3rd District and everywhere else in our country. But for anyone to take the political position that this Congress is not way ahead of previous Congresses in passing significant legislation and getting our work done would not be right or fair.

Together we are making great progress and passing important legislation for the American people.