Default Prevention Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, my colleagues, the last few days in New York people have been asking me: Do you really think Paul Ryan is going to become Speaker of the House? I said: No. They said: Why? Don't you believe he is intelligent, smart, dedicated? I said: That is just the problem. I can't find anyone that I know and like that is more conservative than Paul Ryan. Paul Ryan, if he were to become Speaker, would be saying to the Republicans: I cannot accept this responsibility unless you respect the integrity of the United States of America. They said: Well, Charlie, what does that mean? I said: Well, Paul Ryan wouldn't allow us to go into default. Paul Ryan would support increasing the debt ceiling. Paul Ryan would recognize that we need our infrastructure, we need our jobs, we need education. They said: Well, what is the difference with that? I said: If Paul Ryan were to get these type of commitments from the Republican Party, Speaker Boehner never would have left, McCarthy never would have left.

So what are we going through today? Well, Paul Ryan knows that this is not going to become law. Why? Because it doesn't make any sense.

It is almost like if you were in a corporation--since we are using analogies--and they say: We promise you you are not going to go bankrupt. You say: Well, how are you going to do that, since the only people that you have to pay are those you borrowed money from? Well, what about the cost of manufacturers? What about the salaries of the workers? What about the health benefits? What about the other things that make America great? Well, we didn't say that we are going to protect you for that. But just for the principal and the interest that you have to pay, you protect it.

This doesn't make any sense at all. But since it is going to be vetoed, this must mean something to those people that, when you say government, they get angry, when you say Obama, they see red, when you find cooperation with Democrats, they say that you are not faithful to the Republic.

So I don't know who these people are. We don't see them. They don't talk this way. But someone that can believe that just paying off debt, foreign and domestic, and not taking care of our veterans, not taking care of our military, not taking care of our health concern--if you really think that these things are just going to be forgotten, these are not the principles that Paul Ryan believes in.

So, if this passes, if it is vetoed, can't we try to believe that, if you really want to have a Republican Speaker, take this garbage off the table, say you are going to cooperate for our country? This is more important than Republicans and Democrats.

We are talking about the prestige, the full faith and credit of the United States of America. People don't ask whether you are Republican or Democrat. They just want to know are you going to pay your debts.

I thank you for this opportunity.

And, Paul, if they don't want you as Speaker, we will keep you as our chairman.

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