Honoring Toby Keith's commitment to members of the Armed Forces.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend a great Oklahoman and American patriot, whose unceasing support for the men and women in our armed services has been a hallmark of his career. Country music star Toby Keith was born and raised in my hometown of Moore, Oklahoma, and is now a resident just south of us in Norman, Oklahoma, and has made it his mission as an entertainer to keep our troops entertained and to boost their morale as they serve this Nation in some of the most dangerous, remote places on the planet.

This resolution outlines Mr. Keith's commitment to our troops and encourages other entertainers to take into consideration Toby Keith's deep commitment to boosting the morale of our Nation's soldiers when supporting USO operations.

As many of you know, Mr. Speaker, Toby Keith is one of the most successful country music stars of the last two decades. His songs not only appeal to a wide variety of listeners but are also critically acclaimed.

On a personal note, I'll tell my friend on the other side of the aisle, he's actually a very good Democrat. But like all of us, I think he's an American and I'm proud to say an Oklahoman, far ahead of being affiliated with any political party.

Despite his fantastic success as a performer, I'm here to highlight the work Mr. Keith has done for the United Service Organizations. Since the founding of USO in 1941, thousands of celebrities have taken time out of their lives to visit service men and women who sacrifice their lives for the cause of freedom. These shows not only help to boost morale among our troops but also help to connect our Armed Forces to America when they are far from home, Mr. Speaker.

Since before the United States entered the Second World War, the USO has been the bridge between the American public and the U.S. military. These performances also remind the troops that we are all eternally grateful for the work they do.

Today, the USO delivers its programs and services at more than 130 locations around the world. More recently, the USO opened centers in Kuwait, Qatar and Afghanistan to support service members participating in Operations Enduring and Iraqi Freedom. The organization relies on over 25,000 volunteers, and servicemembers and their families visit USO centers 5.3 million times a year, Mr. Speaker.

Country music personalities have always been an essential element of the USO's entertainment. In the early years, performers like Gene Autry, another notable Oklahoman--actually Gene Autry, Oklahoma, is in my district as well, Mr. Speaker--Patsy Cline, and many other acts from the Grand Ole Opry have traveled around the world to entertain our troops. Today, performers like Neal McCoy and Lee Ann Womack have all gone to Iraq to entertain our troops. However, few celebrities have visited our troops fighting the war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan with as much fervor and frequency as Toby Keith.

Mr. Speaker, Toby Keith has made six USO tours, including entertaining over 135,000 U.S. service personnel in Iraq, Afghanistan, Cuba, Germany, Belgium, Kosovo, Italy, and Africa. In fact, he has volunteered to perform at some of the most dangerous and remote locations in the Persian Gulf, including forward operating bases with populations of as few as 50 servicemembers that require Apache escort helicopters to reach. In many of these cases, these places and the garrisons literally haven't had entertainment in many, many months.

The USO also noted in our discussions with them, Mr. Speaker, that Toby's brought back valuable insight from forward deployed troops, including things they would request from the USO and the American public. As a result, the USO has developed a program called USO Delivered, which includes transportable USO centers for remote areas.

On April 28, 2008, while performing in one of these dangerous locations, Kandahar, Afghanistan, mortar fire disrupted one of Mr. Keith's concerts. Instead of packing up and going home, Toby Keith returned to the stage to finish the show. This attitude, that all troops no matter where they are stationed deserve our support, is what makes Toby Keith an exemplary patriot, and all entertainers should, and I'm sure do, take a good lesson from his dedication to our men and women in uniform.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Keith's visits to the USO are not only places where he deserves recognition for supporting our troops. He also freely provides tickets to military personnel for all of his shows in the U.S., and servicemembers showing military ID are allowed to eat and drink for free at his restaurants. Toby Keith also reflects his deep admiration for the troops in his hit song ``American Soldier'' which hails the work that our Armed Forces do to protect us all on a daily basis.

Mr. Speaker, at a time when the thousands of Americans question the merits of our missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is essential that our service men and women know that we support their dedication to America, regardless of our political disagreements at home. Toby Keith has been a stalwart supporter of our troops throughout his career and deserves our recognition and our appreciation. Regardless of one's opinion on our involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan, supporting our men and women overseas is certainly something that all Members of this body encourage and support.

Mr. Speaker, I urge Members to vote ``yes'' on House Resolution 1255 and honor a true patriot.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to recognize for such time as she may consume my distinguished colleague from Washington (Mrs. McMorris Rodgers).

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers and simply want to thank the gentlelady from Guam for working with me on this bill. It's personally important since I have the great honor of representing Toby Keith, and he is, indeed, a great American and certainly somebody in Oklahoma we're very proud of.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1255) honoring Toby Keith's commitment to members of the Armed Forces.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 1255 to honor Toby Keith's commitment to strengthening the morale of our Armed Forces and working with the United Services Organizations, the USO, to accomplish this important task. I thank my colleague from Oklahoma, Mr. Tom Cole, for bringing this measure before the House.

Toby Keith has gone above and beyond his celebrity to bring members of our Armed Forces the joy and laughter of entertainment no matter where in the world they serve. From Cuba to Kosovo, Italy to Africa, and many more locations, both welcoming and dangerous, Mr. Keith has played for more than 135,000 men and women in uniform.

In April of this year, Mr. Keith performed in Kandahar, Afghanistan,

where the nervous sounds of mortar fire disrupted his concert. However, Mr. Keith continued to travel to remote and dangerous locations bringing a bit of the American spirit and character alive on stage. His travels are a testament to the importance of morale in the men and women who continue to serve our Nation abroad every day.

By working with the USO, Mr. Keith has helped bring together two very different worlds: the world of an average American who can work during the day and watch a concert at night, and the world of the military abroad who must keep constant guard both day and night.

Mr. Keith's performances and even the free meals he gives the military at his restaurants remind both Americans working at home and those serving abroad that we must keep each other in our minds and hearts and we must keep our morale high. Like Mr. Keith, we should all find something positive to contribute to each other as we face these dangerous times.

By passing this resolution, we are honoring a person who has used his talents to serve the men and women in uniform as they continue to serve our country. Toby Keith is just one of the hundreds of entertainers who have volunteered to entertain the troops with the support of the USO to generate a spirit and morale that is invaluable to this Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support House Resolution 1255.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, at this time I have no further requests for time. I am prepared to close after my colleague has yielded back his time. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole) for co-managing the bills here. I've enjoyed it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I was unable to be present for votes on June 9 or 10. For the information of my constituents and my colleagues, I want the Record to reflect how I would have voted on the following votes I missed.

On rollcall 388, on H. Res. 1255 expressing support for designation of June 2008 as National Safety Month, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 389, on H. Res. 1243 expressing the immeasurable contributions of fathers in healthy development of children, supporting responsible fatherhood, and encouraging greater involvement of fathers in the lives of their children, especially on Father's Day, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 390, on H. Res. 127 recognizing and celebrating the 50th anniversary of the entry of Alaska into the Union as the 49th State, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 391, ordering the previous question on H. Res. 1253, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 392, on agreeing to H. Res. 1253 the rule providing for consideration of the Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act for 2008, H.R. 6003, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 393, on H.R. 6028 the Merida Initiative to Combat Illicit Narcotics and Reduce Organized Crime Authorization Act, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 394, on H. Res. 1063 marking the 225th anniversary of the treaty of Paris of 1783, which ended the Revolutionary War, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 395, on H. Con. Res. 318 supporting the goals and ideals of the International Year of Sanitation, I would have voted ``yes.''

On rollcall 396, on H. Con Res. 336 honoring the sacrifices and contributions made by disabled American veterans, I would have voted ``yes.''

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the motions to suspend the rules relating to the following measures be considered as adopted in the form considered by the House on Monday, September 15, 2008:

House Resolution 1255, House Resolution 1372, House Resolution 1425, House

Concurrent Resolution 410, H.R. 2352, H.R. 2535, H.R. 3437, H.R. 5293, H.R. 5350, H.R. 5736, H.R. 6064, H.R. 6503, and H.R. 6855.