WHEELING - The U.S. president "can't spend a penny unless it's approved by the House," U.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan told students at Wheeling Park High School on Friday.
"It's an incredibly powerful organization," Mollohan, D-W.Va., said of the White House administration. "And the only way to reign in power is the power of the purse."
Mollohan also noted he's a member of the House Appropriations Committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies. In this role, he is responsible for crafting the annual budget bill containing funding for the departments of Justice and Commerce, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Science Foundation, among other agencies.
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Kathy Finsley, left, general counsel for Ohio County Schools, meets with U.S. Rep. Alan Mollohan, D-W.Va., as Mollohan visits Wheeling Park High School on Friday. Finsley worked with Mollohan’s wife, Barbara, when both were speech pathologists for Ohio County Schools.
Every bill pertaining to federal spending must start in the U.S. House, he said.
Friday marked Mollohan's first visit to WPHS since being elected in 1982. His wife, Barbara, has worked as a speech pathologist for Ohio County Schools.
Mollohan addressed a gathering of senior social studies students at the school, who came prepared with questions pertaining to his duties and recent issues before Congress. Mollohan was asked to describe a typical day for him as a congressman.
He told the students he typically has "six to eight meetings" scheduled on a Monday and that the days "get busier by mid-week."
"My schedule tracks the budget process," Mollohan continued. "We'll have budget hearings most every legislative day through April."
Representatives from such agencies as NASA and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency come before Mollohan's subcommittee each year to explain their requests for budget allocations.
"In between, I try to meet with constituents," he said.
Recently, Mollohan said, constituents have been wanting to speak to him about proposed health care reform legislation.
"It's probably because everyone is touched by health care or will be someday," he said.
The students asked him what his view was on proposed health care reform.
"I supported health care," he said. "I voted for it, and obviously I'm for it - at least enough to vote for it. I'm very much in favor of reform."
He acknowledged there are concerns about balancing the need to provide health care with its costs.