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I am morally opposed to abortion and will do nothing to encourage its use. Furthermore, I am, and have been in the past, a cosponsor of legislation to ban the partial-birth abortion procedure. Most recently, on July 24, 2002, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 4965, legislation to ban partial birth abortion, with my support. In addition, I have voted for such legislation in each of the last three sessions of Congress, and I also voted twice to override former President Clinton's veto of this bill during the House's successful veto override votes in the 104th Congress and the 105th Congress. However, the Senate in both instances failed to override the President's veto; therefore, this grotesque abortion technique (virtual infanticide) is still legal. (Additional comments on file.)

(Except to save the life of an indigent mother) During my 28 years as a legislator (four as a State Senator and 24 in Congress) I have always voted against the use of public funds for abortion, except to save the life an indigent mother. (The one exception in my voting record occurred on a June 30, 1993, vote that allowed Medicaid funding of abortions to save the life of an indigent mother, and in cases of rape and incest. Since I was given no other legislative opportunity to vote for a restriction on Federal funding for abortion only to save the life of an indigent mother, the modified amendment was the only opportunity to stop Federal financing of abortion on demand.) These concerns and principles will certainly continue to guide my analysis of any legislative efforts to provide funds for abortion.

…[W]hile I voted for the final version of the current Farm Bill, I also believe that the Farm Bill should have had meaningful payment limitations. Because of my concerns about this matter, I voted for a motion to recommit, which would have sent the legislation back to the conference committee with instructions to include the payment limitation reforms as provided in the Senate-passed version of the Farm Bill. Unfortunately, this motion was defeated by a vote of 172-251. …Prior to completion of the House-Senate conference on the Farm Bill I circulated a letter to my House colleagues urging them to support payment limitations in the new Farm Bill. This letter…expressed support for a Senate-passed amendment…which would have limited payments to $225,000 for individuals and $275,000 for husband and wife entities….It is clear that strong payment limitation language would have improved the integrity of the farm program payments and helped to retain public support for these programs essential to rural areas. In the past five years, ten percent of the producers received two-thirds of the payments. Unfortunately, the current Farm Bill does little to change that situation….(Expanded comments on file.)

I welcome the decision outlined in the Treaty of Moscow to reduce deployed strategic nuclear warheads. The treaty, which was signed by the U.S. and Russia on May 24, 2002, signals that the countries can cooperate in a post-Cold War setting. Furthermore, the treaty signals to other countries with nuclear capabilities that they must continuously reassess their national security interests and, where possible, diffuse tensions through carefully controlled arms reductions. I say "carefully controlled" because I strongly support continued vigilance and cooperation with Russia and other countries with nuclear capabilities to fight the proliferation of nuclear weapons and technologies to rogue regimes….Overall, all U.S. arms reduction agreements must be carefully considered through the lens of what is best of U.S. national security interests, but undoubtedly there can be an additional reduction of nuclear weapons in future agreements between Russia and the U.S., if the nuclear development programs of other countries (e.g., China) do not make such reduction inadvisable….Indeed, the current war on terrorism has demonstrated that the development of certain new weapons capabilities is critical as we seek to address new, uncertain, and asymmetrical threats. (Expanded comments on file.)

Generally the issue of the death penalty has been left to the individual states (not the Federal Government) so long as certain constitutional protections and procedures are established and respected….There are a few Federal criminal laws which allow for the death penalty….I continue to believe the death penalty should be a sentence available alternative to judges for first-degree murder and treason.

Like many other Americans, I am concerned that some of the voucher programs being considered could do great damage to many public school systems. While I greatly value church and other private school systems…the availability of universal public education of elementary and secondary school students is one of the basic and most important elements underlying the success of America's great and unique experiment in democracy….As a matter of principle I will avoid or oppose any actions, policies or programs that would be likely to do significant damage to public education in America. Despite good intentions the widespread use of vouchers will damage public support for America's public school systems. Also, the constitutional responsibility for elementary and secondary education is assigned to the states under the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Therefore, I will always be at least skeptical about any enlargement of the Federal role in public elementary and secondary education.

I believe that the issue of whether physicians should be allowed to administer or prescribe lethal injections or drugs for their terminally-ill patients under the U.S. Constitution is matter best left to each state and its respective state legislature.

I support it but such legislative initiatives must be carefully drawn. As you may know, charitable choice provisions first became law in 1996 as part of welfare reform legislation, which was enacted with my support. Charitable choice allows religious organizations to provide Federally funded services from specifically named programs on the same basis as any other nongovernmental provider without impairing the religious character of the organizations or the religious freedom of recipients….Thus far, legislation has been enacted that would allow charitable choice for the welfare-to-work grant program, the Community Service Block Grant Program and substance abuse treatment and prevention programs….H.R. 7, the Community Solutions Act of 2001…was passed by the House on July 19, 2001, by a vote of 233 to 198, with my support. However, the Senate has not yet acted on this measure.

It can be done with care only in a very limited number of situations where it is likely to be effective….I believe that the United States should actively promote international respect for human rights. Experience has demonstrated that the single most effective method of promoting human rights is to support democratic institutions in developing nations….I also strongly believe that firm and reasoned diplomacy is an invaluable tool to deal with very specific human rights concerns, and I personally have pursued this option on numerous occasions. On the other hand, public vitriolic denunciations of offensive behavior only occasionally produce the desired change. As a general rule, I am opposed to unilateral sanctions imposed against a nation in order to elicit changes in human rights behavior, as such sanctions are almost always worse than nonproductive—they are counterproductive….The United States has long withheld arms sales from regimes that the Administration identified as rogue regimes. I fully support the President's authority to deny weapons sales to such regimes. (Expanded comments on file.)

Funding substantial and rapid debt reduction for poor nations that commit benefits to relieving poverty?  Support

I strongly support debt reduction targeted to the poorest of the poor—countries who (sic) have no means to repay the debt. However, I do not believe that the United States should be unilaterally responsible for all such debt relief (needs to be multilateral and also involving non-governmental lenders). Also, I do not believe the U.S. should provide relief for debt incurred through corruption, incompetence, truly excessive military expenditures, or corporate/bureaucratic greed. In the previous 106th Congress, I was pleased to be a cosponsor and active supporter of the Jubilee Debt Reduction Act (H.R. 1095),…which passed the U.S. House. Subsequently, on November 18, 1999, the House approved the fiscal year 2000 consolidated appropriations legislation that includes most of the international debt relief package proposed in H.R. 1095. I supported and worked for the inclusion of this language and voted for this consolidated appropriations bill….(Expanded comments on file.)

I certainly recognize that reasonable and responsible health care reform is one of the most important issues before Congress and America. While Congress in 1996, with my support, passed health insurance reform legislation which included portability and limits on preexisting conditions, I do believe that additional health care reforms are needed to slow the drastic increases in health care costs, including prescription drugs, and to provide better access to affordable health care insurance. In general, I favor an approach that would combine the best of public and private elements, maintain quality, cut bureaucracy, and preserve the best features of our private health care system. In addition, as a fifth-generation Nebaskan I want to ensure that nay changes are adaptable for the conditions in rural areas. (Expanded comments on file.)

…President Bush announced that he will allow Federal funding for stem cell research on existing stem cell lines. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), there are more than 60 existing stem cell lines worldwide available for research. I support the President’s decision. This is an important area of research, with potential and hope for those with certain diseases, such as diabetes and Parkinson's. However, there are serious moral and ethical questions concerning the destruction of human embryos. The President, I believe, made his decision based on a scientific and moral basis. As of yet, we have not had a specific vote on stem cell research in the House of Representatives. However, for the past several years, in annual appropriation bills, there has been a prohibition of the use of Federal funds for human embryo research, which I have supported….

On July 16, 2001, Rep. Dave Weldon (R-FL) introduced H.R. 2505, the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2001, which would ban human cloning for any purpose. During House floor consideration of H.R. 2505 on July 31, 2001,…Rep. James Greenwood (R-PA) offered a substitute amendment that would have banned human cloning for the purpose of reproduction, but would have allowed the cloning of embryos for the purpose of research ("therapeutic purposes"). The amendment failed by a vote of 178-249. I voted "no" on the amendment as I do not believe it is morally acceptable to clone human embryos for any purpose, including research. There may also be constitutional questions. Subsequently, H.R. 2505 was passed by the House by a vote of 265-162, with my support. Unfortunately, the Senate has failed to act on this legislation.

First, it must be stated that most such individuals euphemistically called "undocumented immigrants" are properly called "illegal aliens."…And, second, if people in this category are properly called illegal aliens (as opposed to aliens who only do not have proper identification), they are violating U.S. immigration laws. We should do nothing to reward people who have violated U.S. immigration law or to encourage other aliens to violate our laws. Therefore, I must strongly state that I am opposed to the general concept of granting amnesty to illegal aliens and, in particular, granting amnesty to an estimated three million illegal aliens currently living and working in the U.S. I certainly believe that our country’s immigration laws must be enforced. Making frequent exceptions to the rules and granting frequent amnesties to specific ethnic groups sets a dangerous precedent. It erodes public support for our current immigration and refugee resettlement systems….Furthermore, it undoubtedly has been disadvantageous to those foreign nationals who are waiting in line to start the legal process of gaining U.S. citizenship….(Expanded comments on file.)

It is too early to make such a decision, but my mind is not closed to such action. I supported the most recent attempt in Congress to raise the minimum wage when on October 26, 2000, the House passed legislation (conference report for H.R. 2614), which included an increase in the minimum wage from $5.15 to $6.15 over two years. Ultimately, as legislation was restructured at the close of the previous 106^th Congress, the minimum wage proposals were laid aside. However, it is unlikely that the current 107^th Congress will consider any such increase in the minimum wage prior to adjournment. I believe that an increase in the minimum wage could be partially justified by the relatively minor decline in purchasing power of the minimum-wage dollars since the rate was last increased in 1997….Moreover, I believe that any future legislation to increase the minimum wage probably should include small business tax relief provisions to offset the additional costs due to the increased minimum wage.

The welfare reform law of 1996 (the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Act or TANF), of which I voted in support, marked a turning point in national welfare policy, as the new policy aimed to encourage personally responsibility by promoting work, reducing non-marital births, and strengthening and supporting marriage….The result has been a historic decline in the welfare rolls, substantial increases in employment by low-income mothers, unprecedented increases in earnings by low-income females heading families, and a sustained decline in child poverty, particularly among African-American children….On May 16, 2002, the House passed the Personal Responsibility, Work and Family Promotion Act (H.R. 4737) by a vote of 229-197, with my support. However, the Senate has not acted on this bill. This legislation extends the authorization for the TANF block grant through fiscal year 2007. Additionally, H.R. 4737 increases the number of hours recipients must work in order to receive TANF assistance, and requires states to gradually increase the percentage of families who must engage in work or work-related activities. The measure also authorizes increased funding for the two programs that help provide child care for welfare recipients and provides $2.9 billion in each of the next five years for the mandatory child care program to help recipients leave welfare for work, $200 million more each year than is currently provided. (Expanded comments on file.)

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District 2

Abortion

Constitutional Amendment to protect the right to life of prenatal human beings?  Oppose

Use of taxpayer funds for abortion?  Support

I would support this in the very limited instances in which a doctor believes it is vital to the health of the mother.

Target federal support to small and medium-sized, family-owned-and-operated farms and ranches?  Support

Additional cuts in nuclear weapons beyond those in the treaty between the U.S. and Russia?  Support

I would support this only if these cuts were matched by Russia in a verifiable framework, and if we still retained enough for limited deterrence.

Abolish death penalty and replace it with imprisonment for life without possibility parole?  Oppose

Education-expense tax relief?  Oppose

Vouchers/Scholarships?  Oppose

While in theory vouchers are a good idea, in practice they lead to sharp inequalities. Schools decide which students they want and not the other way around. I support our local private schools, but I feel we must stand by our public system. I do support making college more affordable by expanding the current tax relief for tuition.

Legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia?  No Position

I do support death with dignity. However, I would want to make sure that very strict guidelines were in place to insure (sic) the safety of the patient. I would also want this to be seen as only a last resort option. It is currently illegal, but I would consider changing the law if I had more information.

Facilitate participation by churches and religiously affiliated institutions in government-funded anti-poverty programs?  Support

I would support this with certain restrictions. These organizations must conform to federal law and must make sure that no federal funds are used to promote a particular religious viewpoint. I would want to see the specific legislation, but generally, I support this with safeguards.

Linking U.S. foreign policy to performance on human rights?  Oppose

I believe free trade is the quickest way to spread human rights across the globe. I would support opening trade to Cuba for this very reason. As for military aid, while I am opposed to arming dictators, I would not want to hamstring our national security options.

Funding substantial and rapid debt reduction for poor nations that commit benefits to relieving poverty?  Support

Of course it would depend on how "rapid" we do it. However, I believe that debt reduction and economic development in these countries is not only the right thing to do, it also helps our economy in the long run by opening new markets.

Legislation using mandates to assure universal and genuine access to affordable health care coverage?  Support

Support to an extent. I do not support government mandated universal health care. However, I support closing loopholes in patent law that drug companies exploit to keep costs unreasonably high. Drug costs are the biggest force driving health care costs. By closing loopholes we can make health insurance much more affordable for everyone.

Using taxpayer funds to subsidize research that involves destroying live human embryos? Support

Stem cell research is vital to important medical breakthroughs that will rid the world of some of its most horrific illnesses. It is crucial for research in cancer, diabetes, MS, Alzheimers, HIV, and other key areas. Nebraska scientists are leading the charge in these areas, and I stand by their efforts.

Legislation to ban human cloning for any reason?  Support

We just don't know enough. I would strongly support this. Cloning is dangerous and we must be very careful.

Legalizing status of undocumented immigrants under certain conditions?  Oppose

Increase federal minimum wage by at least $1.50 by January 2005?  Support

I would absolutely support this. Nebraska's hard working families deserve a livable wage.

Provide resources to ensure that work supports are adequately available for families transitioning to self-sufficiency?  Support

We need to encourage people to get off welfare by helping them make the transition. It is not only good for families, it also saves the government in the long run.

Constitutional Amendment to protect the right to life of prenatal human beings?  Support

I am co-sponsoring an amendment that protects the right-to-life of each human being from the moment of fertilization.

Use of taxpayer funds for abortion?  Oppose

The federal government should not finance a procedure many Americans find morally objectionable.

Target federal support to small and medium-sized, family-owned-and-operated farms and ranches?  Support

We must support and defend our rich tradition of family farming by helping small farmers survive lean times. I support placing limits on the level of income eligible for federal assistance to ensure that help is available to those who need it most. I also supported provisions in the Farm Bill, such as LDP and countercyclical payments. That protect Nebraska's small family farmers.

Additional cuts in nuclear weapons beyond those in the treaty between the U.S. and Russia?  Oppose

We must retain the right to defend ourselves against rogue countries and terrorist groups. Nuclear deterrence is key to this strategy. I support President Bush's initiative to reduce nuclear stockpiles.

Abolish death penalty and replace it with imprisonment for life without possibility parole? Oppose

The death penalty is appropriate punishment for some murder cases.

Education-expense tax relief?  Support

Vouchers/Scholarships?  Support

I support education vouchers, but believe this decision should be made by each individual state, not mandated by the federal government. I have voted for legislation to increase contribution limits for education savings accounts and making them usable for K-12.

Legalize assisted suicide and euthanasia?  Oppose

Rather than demean human life by offering to kill terminally-ill patients, we should concentrate on increasing doctor's authority to administer pain-controlling drugs to ease suffering.

Facilitate participation by churches and religiously affiliated institutions in government-funded anti-poverty programs?  Support

Faith-based organizations have a much higher success rate than government programs in aiding the poor and needy by providing hope instead of just food and shelter. Taxpayer dollars should be given to programs which have been proven effective, regardless of religious affiliation, as long as an individual has options and there are safeguards to protect the religious nature of faith-based charities.

Linking U.S. foreign policy to performance on human rights?  Oppose

Open trade is necessary to more closely monitor human rights violations and exert appropriate pressure for change in foreign countries. Displaying the power of freedom and democracy through open trade is the most effective tool for change.

Funding substantial and rapid debt reduction for poor nations that commit benefits to relieving poverty?  Support

I have supported debt reduction in annual appropriations bills. It is my hope that debt reduction will help these countries in producing food supplies and medical care and relive their poverty.

Legislation using mandates to assure universal and genuine access to affordable health care coverage? Oppose

We must concentrate on lowering costs and expanding access without injecting government bureaucracy into the health care system. Establishing and "external review" process for disputed insurance claims, letting patients choose their own doctors, and expand medical savings accounts while allowing 100% tax deductibility of self-employed individuals will go along way in improving our current health care system.

Using taxpayer funds to subsidize research that involves destroying live human embryos?  Oppose

I am, and always have been, morally and ethically opposed to the federal funding of research in which human embryos are destroyed, discarded, or knowingly subjected to risk of injury or death. We must not, under any circumstance, create human life simply to destroy it for the sake of science.

Legislation to ban human cloning for any reason?  Support

I co-sponsored, voted for, and spoke in favor of the Human Cloning Prohibition Act when it passed the House of Representatives last year. This bill would comprehensively prohibit attempts to clone a human being, including for research on stem cells. I will continue to actively work towards a comprehensive ban until it is signed into law.

Legalizing status of undocumented immigrants under certain conditions?  Oppose

While I do not support a blanket amnesty, reasonable immigration issues such as extending 245(I) should be addressed. I voted for this legislation because it allows immigrants who came here legally but whose status become (sic) undocumented to stay here and apply for permanent residency. We should not be forcing the separation of families simply because of a broken bureaucracy.

Increase federal minimum wage by at least $1.50 by January 2005?  Oppose

Raising the minimum wage often hurts those who are in the most need—by setting the bar for initial job entry too high, the minimum wage blocks entry level workers form getting jobs and learning valuable job skills. I prefer a policy course to make the minimum wage irrelevant. As it is in many industries.

Provide resources to ensure that work supports are adequately available for families transitioning to self-sufficiency?  Support

I am proud to have voted for the Welfare Reform Bill, which would build on the success of the 1996 law in giving individuals the resources they need, including child care and educational credit, to lift themselves out of poverty and onto the road of self-sufficiency.

I am a small farmer/rancher. I know first hand that farm subsidies favor large farmers. I could design a farm program that would increase the number of small family farmers and at the same time save taxpayers’ money and help revitalize rural communities. But having no farm program would do most of this! The Constitution does not authorize a farm program.

I am not all that familiar with this treaty. However, one of the legitimate roles of government is to provide defense. A strong nuclear arsenal is a good defense strategy. A treaty with a nation who might attack us is meaningless anyway.

Capital punishment is a good deterrent to crime. However, whatever form of punishment we use we must get police and prosecutors to seek justice instead of numbers. Putting the wrong person to death or in jail is not justice. Too often police, prosecutors, and media go after a suspect and convict him regardless of facts.

We need tax cuts for everyone. I tend to favor vouchers, however, with the government's record it would use them to control and corrupt private schools. I favor the complete separation of school and state. By that I mean we need to eliminate government operated schools and government funding of education. Education is too important to have the government involved.

This would be going in the wrong direction! Making government bigger when we need smaller! Libertarians favor elimination of the income tax and unconstitutional government programs such as welfare. When we eliminate the income tax we will revitalize the economy and have less poverty. Faith-based institutions (which are more efficient than government) will have plenty of money to care for the poor.

If a people are free, they must be allowed to buy and sell from whomever they wish. Government should not tell you or me who we can or cannot do business with. We should not give military aid to any foreign nation. Then they cannot use it against us later.

Poor countries are poor because of corrupt government. Foreign aid or debt reduction will only aid the corruption. If these countries will adopt a Bill of Rights, end socialism and fascism they will prosper. We should tell them that verbally and by example. We should also collect Europe's WW II debt.

We need to be reducing fascism in the United States not expanding it. Freedom works. As government gets bigger problems get bigger. Most of our problems can be traced to big government including high priced health care.

I believe some of the claims about cloning are far fetched. We must not clone a person for "spare parts". We must not clone a person for research. I would not oppose cloning as means of reproduction for infertile couples.

We are a nation of immigrants. Today's immigrants like the immigrants of the past are seeking opportunity and freedom. We should welcome them.

Minimum wage laws should be repealed. Minimum wage laws reduce job opportunities for the inexperienced and handicapped workers. For a free economy to work and provide wealth for the largest number of people it must be free. Fascism is never a violable (sic) solution for problems. Wage control is fascism.

As most big government solutions, it sounds good. But big government solutions never perform as expected. The real answer is to end the income tax to improve the economy and create jobs. End the government welfare entitlements and allow people to give some of their wealth to private and faith-based charities to care for those in need.

Constitutional Amendment to protect the right to life of prenatal human beings?  No specific response

Simply put, I believe in the sanctity of life and will vote consistently reduce the impact of Roe v. Wade. I intend to work with the President toward our common goal of reducing the number of abortions performed in this country.

Comments stated above.

The issue of payment limitations for agricultural producers is a sensitive and often controversial one, about which people have strong feelings. I would have liked to see more stringent payment limitations reform than what was included in the Farm Bill. However, the limitations contained in the Farm Bill conference report should be a prudent step in the direction of reform but should not result in major fluctuations in land values that would harm the financial security to those rural Nebraskans who have no retirement funds beyond their land or disrupt local taxing entities. The total dollar limitation on commodity payments is reduced from $550,000 in the original House bill to $360,000 in the conference report. The creation of a cap of $2.5 million on adjusted gross income also limits the amount of payments that will be made. The conference report also establishes a commission to study and make recommendations regarding farm program payment limitations and the impact of any future changes to payment limitations on farm income, land values and agribusiness infrastructure.

President Bush announced the United States would be withdrawing from the ABM treaty with Russia, citing recent threats to our national security following the events of September 11th as the basis to withdraw. Currently 12 nations have nuclear weapons programs, while 28 have ballistic missiles. Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Pakistan, Iran, China, and Syria all have missile programs. There is the possibility that terrorist organizations will obtain nuclear weapons and use the technology against the Untied States and our allies. By developing a missile defense system, we increase the chances of protecting U.S. cities from a rogue nuclear attack. We have seen that terrorist organizations are willing to use any means possible to harm countries with whom they do not agree.

I am not convinced that the death penalty is a strong deterrent of violent crime. It is more costly to execute someone than to have that person serve a life sentence in prison, and a small percentage of innocent people (according to DNA evidence) are sentenced to death. Data also exists that indicates that minorities receive the death penalty at a higher ratio than Caucasians when committing the same crime. For these reasons, I would be in favor of a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, so that research can be done about its validity.

I do not support the idea of school vouchers because I believe they would be a bad fit for the Third District of Nebraska. I would rather see additional investment in public education than have a situation where schools are punished, resources depleted, and a few students leave for a private or parochial school. Quite often, those remaining in the public schools would be left with even fewer resources than before.

I voted to pass H.R. 7, the Community Solutions Act, that would allow faith-based organizations to create a partnership with the federal government to help those who need it the most, encourage charitable contributions and empower families to break the cycles of domestic violence and low achievement. Faith-based groups have been remarkably successful in combating poverty and treating addiction. We should embrace these successes, rather than hinder them.

I believe that the private sector plays an important role in the delivery of quality health care. Competition promotes quality, service, and choice of providers, which many Americans have come to expect and appreciate. In brief, the patients bill of rights legislation passed by the House last summer provides the full range of patient protection provisions, including physician choice, emergency room coverage, direct access to OB/GYN and pediatrician care, and a ban on gag rules. It also provides a binding, independent physician review, and increases access to health insurance for individuals and small businesses through medical savings accounts and association health plans. This legislation would allow patients to hold their health plans liable if they have been wrongly denied needed medical care, but only after an independent review panel decision is rendered.

The embryo is the elemental beginning of human life. Since I believe strongly in the sanctity of life, I can no more support the destruction of an embryo than I can support the taking of a human life outside the womb. To do so puts one in the very awkward position of determining at what point a human life is truly human as opposed to being an "object" with no rights. Because of this, I do not believe that the use of tax dollars should be devoted to research resulting in the destruction of viable embryos or fetuses.

The House first passed H.R. 1885 on May 21, 2001, with my support, by a vote of 336-43. H.R. 1885 was again considered on the House floor on March 12, 2002, with an amendment added to include the Enhanced Border Security Act. H.R. 1885 amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to extend Section 245(i), which would allow immigrants already determined by the Immigration and Naturalization Service to be eligible for permanent legal resident status to apply for their immigrant visas while remaining in the United States.

I have heard from many in the Third Congressional District about raising the federal minimum wage. Raising the minimum wage is a very complicated issue. Some argue that increasing the minimum wage will help raise people out of poverty. Others have shown that raising it will cause businesses to eliminate low paying entry-level jobs. I believe that, at least in the Third District, raising the minimum wage could cause more problems than it might potentially solve. Because many businesses in rural areas are already struggling to make ends meet, requiring them to pay their employees an extra dollar an hour could potentially cause them to eliminate jobs.

In late May, the full House of Representatives considered H.R. 4737, the Personal Responsibility, Work, and Family Promotion Act. The House passed this legislation by a vote of 229-197, with my support. This bill reauthorizes and improves the program of block grants to states for temporary assistance for needy families (TANF), improves access to quality childcare, and other important programs.

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