Are You Better Off?

ARE YOU BETTER OFF?

(Ms. SCHAKOWSKY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Yes, it was a famous American who once asked, "Are you better off today than you were 4 years ago?" To most Americans, the answer is "no." That is not just me saying it. A Gallup poll found that 62 percent of Americans are dissatisfied with the way things are going here at home.

There is a reason why a majority of Americans believe that our country is headed in the wrong direction under the leadership of President Bush. Median income has dropped 3.3 percent since President Bush was elected.

Two million Americans have lost their jobs since President Bush got his.
Three-and-a-half million people have moved onto the poverty rolls since President Bush moved into the White House.
Four million more people are uninsured since President Bush was sworn in.
Our constituents are being gouged at the gas pump while President Bush fills his campaign coffers with checks from big oil and big gas.

Consumer confidence, which was at 115.7 in January 2001, was at 92.9 last month.
College tuition, up 14 percent in 1 year.
We are not better off.