SIUSLAW NEWS ❚ WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19, 2017
Town hall
from 1A
“It would never go up by
more than 1.5 cents per gallon
per year,” DeFazio said.
The current federal gas tax of
18.4 cent per gallon has not
been increased since 1993.
“Forty percent of the national
highway system needs total
rebuilding, 140,000 bridges
need repair or replacement and
we have an $85 billion backlog
in transit,” DeFazio said.
DeFazio and Sen. Bernie
Sanders have also introduced a
bill to change the way cost of
living adjustments (COLA) are
calculated for Social Security
benefits.
The bill proposes to place
more COLA emphasis on phar-
maceuticals, food costs, rent
and medical expenses.
According to DeFazio, the
bill would also eliminate the
cap of $128,000 on Social
Security withholding.
“If you remove that cap,
Social Security actuaries proj-
ect that the fund will be solvent
for at least 75 years,” DeFazio
said.
He clarified that the actuaries
only project out 75 years.
The only other options to the
JACK DAVIS/SIUSLAW NEWS
Rep. DeFazio addresses 200 constituents April 17.
pending Social Security fund-
ing crisis, according to
DeFazio, are to raise the retire-
ment age, cut benefits or priva-
tize the program.
During his talk, DeFazio
used two charts to show the
potential impact the recently
withdrawn American Health
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In referencing the first chart,
DeFazio said, “A 64-year-old,
not eligible for Medicare, earn-
ing $30,000 per year, would see
their premium go from $1,700
per year to $14,600. Now how
does that work?”
The second chart showed tax
breaks the AHCA would have
given to people earning more
than $200,000 per year. No one
earning less than $200,000
would receive a tax break.
The first question from the
audience asked why President
Donald Trump was willing to
spend money on recent military
exploits, but wanted to cut med-
ical benefits.
DeFazio said the War Powers
Act gave the president the
power to use discretionary use
of force not covered in the con-
stitution, but that he had to sub-
mit a report to Congress and
request further authorization.
“It is not just (Trump),”
DeFazio said. “President Bill
Clinton did not ask for authori-
ty for Bosnia and President
Thank You Florence
for a
great
Barack Obama didn’t in Libya.
This is not a new occurrence,
but it is a tremendous concern.”
A question referencing a
recent local Immigration
Control and Enforcement (ICE)
raid was asked.
“What are you doing to pro-
tect immigrant families and
what do you recommend we
can do?” the person asked.
DeFazio said, “We need
comprehensive immigration
reform in this country. We may
reintroduce an immigration
reform bill again, around spring
or summer, when there is no
one to pick the crops. Maybe
then we can get a little more
support. ICE, under the law, can
apprehend people who are here
illegally.”
An audience member asked
about the current budget pro-
posal and informed DeFazio
that the ICE detainees taken
from Florence last month were
being held in a private prison
facility near Tacoma Wash.
She said, “Incarceration and
profit should not be in the same
sentence.”
DeFazio said, “The Obama
administration adopted a rule to
say they were no longer going
to enter into contracts for pri-
vate prisons or detention. This
administration did away with
the rule. I know they are plan-
ning on more private facilities.
This is a public duty, like
national defense, which we also
contract out too much.
“The contractors cost a lot
more than federal employees.
All we are doing is subsidizing
profits. We are not more effi-
cient and we aren’t even saving
money.”
One constituent said, “I’m
concerned about the decimation
of the EPA and the federal gov-
ernment’s denial of climate
change. There has to be enough
Republicans out there that
understand that clean air and
clean water are a priority.”
DeFazio said he didn’t think
the EPA budget would be cut 31
percent as Trump’s budget pro-
posed.
“People seem to forget why
we have some of these rules.
The Willamette River was an
open sewer. We had the
Cuyahoga River back east catch
fire. We had black snow in
Pennsylvania and killer inver-
sions in California. I don’t think
they will easily go down the
path of repealing the most basic
protections we have. But they
are chipping away at it,”
DeFazio said.
He pointed to protest march-
es and town hall meetings as
ways to put pressure on
Congress.
“(Republicans) are beginning
to realize that, yes, it might
have been good campaign rhet-
oric and it might have excited
their base, but the majority of
people don’t agree with (reduc-
ing the EPA),” DeFazio said.
“Keep being informed and
speaking out.”
An attendee said, “Would
you please address all the ethics
violations we hear about our
current administration?”
DeFazio said that when
Congress passed the conflict of
interest laws, they did not
include the president or vice
president.
“The strict letter of conflict
of interest doesn’t apply, but the
constitution says that a presi-
dent can’t get any benefits from
a foreign entity,” DeFazio said.
He gave two examples; ques-
tioning what might be revealed
in the president’s tax returns
and discussing the government
lease agreement with the Trump
organization for the Trump
hotel in Washington, D.C.
“The Ways and Means com-
mittee has the authority to
request taxes. A friend of mine,
New Jersey Rep. Bill Pascrell,
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moved that the committee
request Trump’s taxes. The
committee voted down party
lines not to require the taxes.
This is the first president in
modern history not to release
his taxes,” DeFazio said.
He continued, “Then there is
the lease on the (Washington,
D.C.) hotel. My committee has
jurisdiction over General
Services Administration (GSA)
that does government buildings
and leases.
“The contract that was writ-
ten after the civil war says, ‘No
elected official of the United
States can benefit from this
lease,’” DeFazio said.
After several inquiries to the
GSA, DeFazio, who is the sen-
ior Democrat on the committee
that is chaired by a Republican,
received a startling staff brief-
ing from the GSA.
DeFazio said, “They are no
longer required to respond to us
(DeFazio or his staff). This
breaks with any precedent. The
chairman doesn’t want to ask
this question. I’m the ranking
member. Throughout every
administration, ranking mem-
bers of committees were always
given the authority to ask ques-
tions of agencies and get written
responses. There is litigation
pending on this by a public
interest group. We’ll see where
that goes.”
A question was asked about
Medicare’s high pharmaceutical
drug costs.
“It is outrageous that we
don’t take Medicare recipients
as a group and negotiate lower
drug prices. Every other devel-
oped nation on earth negotiates
lower drug prices for all their
citizens, no matter what health-
care plan. That is why you can
go to Canada and buy your
drugs for a fraction of the price
you can get them here. We are
the only country that doesn’t do
that,” DeFazio said.
He added, “The excuse of the
pharmaceutical companies is,
‘We need that money to develop
new drugs.’ They are spending a
lot more money on direct to
consumer advertising.”
One participant asked about
the president’s proposed budg-
et.
“It has been rejected. I’m not
aware of anybody on Capitol
Hill who said, ‘I support that
budget,’ including a large num-
ber of Republicans. That is not a
realistic budget,” DeFazio said.
He addressed two specific
items of the budget.
“(Democrats) will not de-
fund Planned Parenthood and
we are not going to support that
stupid wall,” he said.
DeFazio said the wall would
not stop drugs and illegal immi-
grants from coming into this
country.
“The French built a great line
before World War II called the
Maginot Line. The Germans
just went around it. Trump is
proposing to cut the heck out of
the U.S. Coast Guard (budget).
The commandant of the Coast
Guard said, ‘Even if you build
the wall and even if the wall
works, if you cut our budget,
people are just going to come
around on the shoreline,’”
DeFazio said. “The best thing
Congress could do is to pick up
comprehensive immigration
reform. The budget for 5,000
more ICE agents and to build
the wall is absurd,” DeFazio
said.
Single payer healthcare,
Alzheimer’s disease treatment
and liquid natural gas pipelines
were additional topics dis-
cussed during the 90-minute
town hall.
DeFazio may be contacted
by
email
at
www.
defazio.house.gov or at 202-
225-6416.
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