BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

(Mr. GRIFFITH asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Mr. GRIFFITH. Madam Speaker, I rise today to encourage the rejection of this health care bill. The American people have spoken out time after time, and I'm puzzled why Congress is still considering it. Done in secrecy, this bill will cost jobs, raise taxes, and slash Medicare benefits. And as a physician, I know this bill will be bad for patients. It's terrible for our economy, and it's damaging to the very people we are trying to help.

Although the past is no guarantee of the future, it is, however, instructive. This administration has a failed stimulus package, a failed banking system, a failed cap-and-trade, and numerous questionable interventions into General Motors, AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and others. This kind of track record gives the American public no reason to trust this administration with its health care. I urge my colleagues to listen to the will of the American people and vote ``no.''