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Next week, the United States House of Representatives will return to
the nation’s capital to reconvene for the second session of the 109th Congress
and on Tuesday evening, President Bush will deliver the annual State of
the Union Address. This is not a time for politics as usual; this
is a time to be united, to look to the future and move ahead to meet the
many challenges facing our nation. I look forward to hearing the
President’s thoughts for the year ahead and I am hopeful that he will address
important issues such as lowering the prohibitive cost of gasoline, solving
the problems with Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage, and cleaning
up Washington in the wake of scandal.
In the weeks prior to Hurricane Katrina, without question, the overriding
matter of concern from small businesses, farmers, and families was the
unprecedented spike in gasoline and diesel prices. In the aftermath
of the devastating hurricane season, the nation watched those gasoline
and diesel prices continue to climb. American families are feeling
their wallets tighten as they struggle to find the balance between soaring
gasoline and diesel prices and everyday living expenses such as food, healthcare,
and prescription drugs. I voted in support of the Energy Bill signed
into law last summer. While I believe the bill is a good first start,
it simply does not go far enough to reduce our dependency on foreign oil
and increase domestic production. This is why I have co-sponsored
H.R. 1398, legislation that mandates we have ten percent ethanol in all
gasoline and diesel by the year 2010 and five percent biodiesel in all
diesel by the year 2010. Increasing the amount of ethanol and
biodiesel in our domestic fuel will allow the U.S. to become less dependent
on foreign oil, provide a new market for our farm families, create jobs
and economic opportunities at those ethanol and biodiesel plants, and reduce
the price we pay at the pump by as much as 60 cents a gallon.
In November 2003, Congress passed landmark legislation to create Medicare
Part D, a voluntary prescription drug plan to provide coverage to 42 million
elderly and disabled Americans who qualify for Medicare coverage.
I did not support this legislation – this law actually contains language
that states the Federal Government shall be prohibited from negotiating
with the big drug manufacturers to bring down the high cost of medicine.
Unfortunately, even though the federal government had two years to work
out kinks in the system, there have been major problems in the electronic
system and thousands of beneficiaries throughout the country are being
denied promised prescription drug coverage from the federal government.
I am a cosponsor of the Medicare Prescription Drug Savings and Choice Act
of 2005 (H.R.752), which would enable the Secretary of Health and Human
Services to enter into negotiations with pharmaceutical manufacturers to
bring down the high cost of medicine. I urge the President to support
this bill so we can better meet the needs of Medicare beneficiaries and
establish a more meaningful prescription drug benefit.
Unfortunately, Washington has recently been riddled with scandal as
some have chosen to ignore current law which governs the relationship between
lawmakers and lobbyists. I believe one must lead by example; until
a law is passed to clean up Washington, neither my staff nor I will partake
in privately funded trips, accept gifts, or meals paid for by a lobbyist.
I am committed to demanding honest leadership and open government from
this Congress and ending the illegal endeavors that have come to pass in
recent months. I urge the President to demand the toughest of penalties
for those who have broken the law and destroyed the trust of the American
public.
As Congress prepares to return to Washington and begin legislative business
for a new year, I will take back to Washington, D.C. the issues and concerns
I have discussed with many of you as I traveled throughout Arkansas’s Fourth
Congressional District this month. It is my sincere hope that President
Bush will take to heart the everyday and real concerns of the American
people. While the issues facing this country today are complex and
cannot be solved overnight, I am cautiously optimistic that the President
and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle will work together to address
the real problems and find workable solutions that face our nation today. |
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