June 19, 2009
Supplemental Appropriations
On Tuesday the House passed the Conference Report for H.R. 2346: Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2009. As you may recall, when this legislation first came before the House last month I voted against it. Despite that first NO vote, I carefully considered whether enough had changed to garner my support. After much reflection, I came to the conclusion that it did not. I still don't think that H.R. 2346 gets us closer to ending these conflicts.
As I have stated in the past, I am convinced that President Obama will change the course of the wars and I thought about supporting this bill to demonstrate that I believe he will focus on a new strategy. In the final analysis, I realized that I still have too many unanswered questions over how we will bring an end to these conflicts. I do think that this Administration will work hard to answer the questions many of us have and continue focusing on a strategy that starts bringing our men and women in uniform home.
I voted NO. H.R. 2346 passed and is expected to be signed by the President. The entire vote is recorded below:
|
YEA |
NAY |
PRESENT |
NOT VOTING |
DEMOCRAT |
221 |
32 |
0 |
3 |
REPUBLICAN |
5 |
170 |
0 |
3 |
TOTAL |
226 |
202 |
0 |
6 |
MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION |
6 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
Fiscal Year 2010 Appropriations
This week the House began consideration of the Fiscal Year 2010 Appropriations bills. The first to pass was H.R. 2847: Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. This legislation increases funding for the Community Oriented Policing Program (COPS), giving communities access to additional money for personnel, technology and other needs. It also increases funding for the Office on Violence Against Women, which will be used to strengthen and expand services available to survivors of violence. H.R. 2847 increases funding for a number of scientific and climate change initiatives, including $1 billion for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and 2,000 new graduate student research fellowships. More than $2 billion is also provided for climate change research and education.
I voted YES. H.R. 2847 passed and the entire vote is recorded below:
|
YEA |
NAY |
PRESENT |
NOT VOTING |
DEMOCRAT |
235 |
8 |
0 |
12 |
REPUBLICAN |
24 |
149 |
0 |
5 |
TOTAL |
259 |
157 |
0 |
17 |
MASSACHUSETTS DELEGATION |
10 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Climate Change
I recently attended a Green Energy rally, hosted by MoveOn.org , at the Boston Building Materials Coop in Mission Hill. If you're interested in watching a video of my remarks at the rally, you may click here. I am always impressed by the passion that constituents have for the future of the planet. As I often do, I tried to explain the practical politics of saving the environment.
To pass an energy bill, we will need 218 votes in the House. In order to get that number, we will need the votes of Democrats from coal regions and from steel regions. They represent constituents who reasonably fear the collapse of the industries that employ them. It is inevitable that compromises will be made. Once the American Clean Energy and Security Act, better known as the "Waxman-Markey bill," comes to the floor, I will weigh all aspects of it before deciding how to vote.
On most legislation I believe that the perfect should not be the enemy of the good. On the other hand, I do not want to support and pass "reform" legislation that fails to do the job. My staff and I are watching the energy bill closely. I urged those who attended the rally to keep in touch with my office. This week, several constituents came to my Cambridge office to talk further about the bill, which may be ready for consideration next week.
What's Up Next
Next week, the House is expected to continue consideration of FY 2010 appropriations bills.