Celebrating the Fortieth Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing.

Mr. Speaker, as we discuss this bill about natural gas, I think we need to look much beyond that one issue. Republicans have introduced legislation called the American Energy Act. It's an all-of-the-above solution to our problems with dependence upon foreign oil, and, Mr. Speaker, we've got to stop that dependence upon foreign oil.

We're buying oil from countries that hate us, and they're utilizing our dollars to fight us, to kill our men and women in service. And the only way we are going to bring an end to that is to not only look to natural gas, but to look to nuclear energy, look to alternative sources of energy, look to things such as wind, solar, biomass. We need to find ways of having clean coal technology. I know a lot of people find that to be an oxymoron, but, in actuality, there is technology today that will lead to clean coal technology.

Mr. Speaker, we have to be good stewards of our environment. That tax-and-trade bill--some call it cap-and-trade. I call it tax-and-trade or cap-and-tax because it is about revenue--that's not going to do anything about our environment. All it's going to do is create more revenue for the Federal Government to pay for this ObamaCare plan that we are going to be debating in committees here in the House this week and possibly voting before we leave for the August break.

But, Mr. Speaker, America is suffering. We're suffering from high energy costs. Certainly, the gasoline prices have been lowered from $4, as it was not many months ago. Just recently I saw gas, as I drove to the airport this morning in Walnut Grove, Georgia, was $2.169, but that's still too high, and we're headed higher in the near future.

Mr. Speaker, it's extremely difficult for Georgia Power to get the permitting for the two new reactors that they want to put at plant Vogtle, just south of my district, just south of Augusta, Georgia. It's extremely difficult for people to do the research and development to look for alternative sources of fuel. Natural gas is being shut out as a means of powering our vehicles, powering many things that it could power.

Mr. Speaker, we need an all-of-the-above energy plan. I hope that the U.S. Senate will defeat the tax-and-trade bill that we passed here because it will be disastrous. It will raise the costs of all goods and services here in America. It will raise the cost of health care, medicines in the drug store, doctor bills, hospital bills. It will raise the cost of food. It will cost every single individual in this country more money, and I hope the American people will stand up and say ``no'' to the tax-and-trade bill that this House passed and that the Senate is considering, will consider this fall. I hope they'll stand up and say ``no'' to ObamaCare, which will increase the time it takes for people to get x rays and surgeries and the necessary medical evaluation and treatment that they need. Thus, people who have cancer will be denied the life-saving drugs that they so desperately need or the surgery that they need.

Mr. Speaker, we're heading down the wrong road in this country. This House is taking this country down the wrong road of higher deficits.

And I hear people on the other side blame President Bush for the deficits he's created, but President Bush's deficits are piker levels compared to the deficits that have been created by this Congress since this administration took over 6 months ago. This President has presented a budget that was passed by this House that will create more debt in the next 5 years than every President, including George Bush, from George W. Bush all the way back to George Washington, more deficit, more debt than has been created by every single President.

We cannot continue to spend our grandchildren's future. Our grandchildren are going to live at a lower standard of living than we do today because of this tremendous debt that we've created.

Mr. Speaker, it has to stop, and I hope the American people rise up and say ``no'' to ObamaCare. I hope they will stand up and say ``no'' to this tax-and-trade, tax-and-cap bill that the Senate's considering. I hope they will say ``no'' to a new stimulus package, nonstimulus bill that the President talks about that he wants to bring forward.

Mr. Speaker, we've got to stop spending the money of our children's future. It has to stop. It's outrageous, and the American people need to understand that they are the key to rising up and telling their Member of Congress in the House and the Senate ``no.'' ``No'' to cap- and-trade, ``no'' to ObamaCare, ``no'' to any more stimulus, ``no'' to any more Wall Street bailout, ``no'' to taking over any more financial institutions, ``no'' to spend, spend, spend.

Mr. Speaker, we cannot tax and spend our way to prosperity. It never has worked. It was tried during the Great Depression, and it didn't work then. It's not going to work today. We seem to have elitists that think that they can do it better, but socialism never has worked, never will work, and it's time for the American people to stand up and say ``no'' to it.

Mr. Speaker, we need to have natural gas as an alternative source of fuel for our automobiles and buses and trucks. We need to have all these energy sources. We need the American Energy Act passed into law. We need to cut taxes on small business and leave dollars in their pockets so that they can create jobs, so they can buy inventory, so we can get our economy back on track.

Mr. Speaker, the Republicans are charged by the Democratic folks on the other side of being the Party of No, but it's actually the Democratic Party that's been the Party of No. We are, as Republicans, the Party of K-N-O-W. We know how to stimulate the economy. We know how to lower the cost of health care. We know how to fix the problem that we have with energy.

And, Mr. Speaker, it's time for the American people to stand up and say ``no'' to this steamroller of socialism being driven by Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, fueled by Barack Obama, and say ``yes'' to the Republican alternatives that we desperately need, as a Nation, to fix the economy, to lower the cost of health care for all Americans, to get people back to work, and stop this killing jobs and killing our economy.

So the American people, Mr. Speaker, need to stand up and say ``no'' to the Democratic plan and ``yes'' to the Republican plan.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Madam Speaker, unfortunately I missed some recorded votes on the House floor on Thursday, July 16, 2009.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on rollcall vote #555 (On agreeing to the Price of Georgia amendment to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #556 (On agreeing to the Emerson of Missouri amendment to H.R. 31 70), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #557 (On agreeing to the Blackburn of Tennessee amendment to H.R. 3170, ``aye'' on rollcall vote #558 (On agreeing to the Broun of Georgia amendment to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #559 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #7 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #560 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #8 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #561 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #9 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #562 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #10 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #563 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #11 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #564 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #12 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #565 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #13 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #566 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #14 to H.R. 3170), ``no'' on rollcall vote #567 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #15 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #568 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #16 to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #569 (On agreeing to the Flake of Arizona amendment #17 to H.R. 3170), ``no'' on rollcall vote #570 (On Motion to Table Appeal of the Ruling of the Chair to H.R. 3170), ``no'' on rollcall vote #571 (On passage to H.R. 3170), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #572 (On Motion to Suspend the Rules and pass H. Res. 476).

Madam Speaker, unfortunately I also missed some recorded votes on the House floor on Friday, July 17, 2009. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on rollcall vote #573 (to Table Appeal of the Ruling of the Chair), ``no'' on rollcall vote #574 (on ordering the previous question to H. Res. 653), ``no'' on rollcall vote #575 (on agreeing to H.Res. 653), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #576 (on agreeing to the Hastings of Washington part B substitute amendment to H.R. 1018), ``no'' on rollcall vote #577 (on passage to H.R. 1018), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #578 (on agreeing to Heinrich of New Mexico Part A Amendment No. 9 amendment to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #579 (on agreeing to Cao of Louisiana Part A Amendment No. 10 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #580 (on agreeing to Blackburn of Tennessee Part A Amendment No. 11 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #581 (on agreeing to Campbell of California Part B Amendment No. 2 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #582 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 1 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #583 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 3 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #584 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 4 to H.R. 3183), ``aye''

on rollcall vote #585 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 5 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #586 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 10 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #587 (on agreeing to Flake of Arizona Part C Amendment No. 11 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #588 (on agreeing to Hensarling of Texas Part D Amendment No. 1 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #589 (on agreeing to Hensarling of Texas Part D Amendment No. 2 to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #590 (on agreeing to Hensarling of Texas Part D Amendment No. 4 to H.R. 3183), ``no'' on rollcall vote #591 (on motion to recommit with instructions to H.R. 3183), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #592 (on passage to H.R. 3183).

Madam Speaker, unfortunately I also missed recorded votes on the House floor on Monday, July 20, 2009. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on rollcall vote #593 (On approving the journal), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #594 (on motion to suspend the rules and agree to H. Res. 607), ``aye'' on rollcall vote #595 (on motion to suspend the rules and agree to H.R. 2245).

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 607 which honors and commemorates the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. This event marked an extraordinary achievement in the history of mankind as we explored beyond the bounds of our own world and landed upon another.

On May 25, 1961, in a speech to Congress, I remember hearing President John F. Kennedy set the goal of landing Americans on the Moon and then returning them safely to Earth. The space program and NASA were in their infancies. This was an audacious goal; but the point was not about accomplishing what was easy but that which was very difficult, that which was extremely hard.

Kennedy knew that inspiring our Nation to rise to this challenge would serve to organize and measure the very best of American capabilities. The Apollo program expanded on the knowledge and experience gained from the Mercury and Gemini human space flight programs as well as from precursor robotic and lunar exploration activities. Prior to Apollo 11, four Apollo missions were sent into space and around the Moon to gather data.

On July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 crew, consisting of Mission Commander Neil Armstrong, Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin, and Command Module Pilot Michael Collins, launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida, atop a Saturn 5 rocket that would carry them beyond the pull of Earth's gravity on their historic 4-day trip to the Moon. As they left the Earth, they did not know whether they would ever return. They were intrepid explorers, the Columbuses and Magellans of our generation, risking their lives to explore the unknown for all of us.

On July 20, 1969, after traveling 240,000 miles through space, the Apollo 11 crew successfully landed the Lunar Module Eagle on the Moon in the Sea of Tranquility. During that momentous event, millions of people in America and around the world watched in awe as Neil Armstrong took his famous first step and became the first person to walk on the surface of another celestial body.

The Apollo 11 Moon landing was the culmination of years' worth of experience, and the combined efforts of tens of thousands of engineers, scientists and other devoted individuals and organizations that were committed to accomplishing the task that had been set upon them 8 years earlier.

The very successful landing was one of the most significant and important events in the 20th century. It inspired an entire generation to strive toward great accomplishments in space, as well as on Earth. It resulted in the greatest increases in science and engineering enrollments at all of our colleges and universities. It continues to inspire new generations as we prepare to journey back to the Moon and beyond, to other destinations in our solar system.

Today as we celebrate the Apollo 11 mission and reflect on the future of our space program, we should reexamine the lessons learned from Apollo. America's economic, educational and technological strength can benefit from a clear, challenging and inspirational goal for human space exploration. It will take national leadership at all levels, and we need to adequately fund the endeavor. If we succeed, we will continue to lead the world in science and engineering enrollments at our colleges and in our universities, and our technology and industry will continue to be the envy of the world.

As President Kennedy knew, the difficult challenges of space exploration serve to organize and measure our abilities, but they also lead to unanticipated spinoffs in areas such as health care, materials science and microcomputing that can be harnessed for other pressing national needs. On this anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission, I hope we heed the lessons of the past and push forward into the future.

I urge Members to fully support our Nation's space program. And I urge them to support House Resolution 607 celebrating and commemorating the 40th anniversary of this extraordinary achievement.

Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with a poetic tribute penned by Albert Carey Caswell in honor of the Apollo 11 astronauts and the fortieth anniversary of the landing of a man on the moon. I asked that this be placed in the Record in honor of all of those dedicated and most heroic Americans who have over the years in the space program made it all possible, as Mars looms next.

Forty Years Ago This Day . . .

Forty years ago this day . . .

Three brave hearts hurdling through outer space . . .

To walk upon the moon . . .

A moonlit sky . . .

As upon her are placed all eyes . . .

All in wonder, all in such grace and awe . . .

As throughout time such dreams were made . . .

But, since the very dawn . . .

To walk on the moon, this rhyme . . .

For as long as woman and mankind . . .

Have looked up upon these Sea of Skies . . .

To find . . .

To find that enchanting moon, all in time . . .

This dream has grown . . .

To walk upon the Moon . . .

Lover's all in embrace . . .

On starlite nights, up there their souls are placed . . .

Such thoughts of fancy, all in hearts have raced . . .

To walk upon the Moon . . .

As a dream as old as time, has swooned . . .

As it was but forty years ago this day . . .

As three lone men, three lone souls led the way . . .

Hurdling through outer space, all out there own their own . .

.

As to the moon they would go . . .

But riding on the very edge of death . . .

As their most heroic of all hearts would crest . . .

All in that historic quest, to walk upon the Moon . . .

While, upon crude primitive machines of mankind their fine

lives were pledged . . .

``One step for man, one giant leap for mankind'' as said . .

.

Walking On The Moon!

As generation after generation . . .

But, dreamed of solving this equation . . .

Of walking on the Moon . . .

Until, a bright star named Kennedy . . .

Into a future this torch he'd seed . . .

To walk upon the Moon to succeed . . .

As launch by launch . . . mission by mission . . .

As was set a trajectory, a course of action all in his vision

. . .

By all of those, who now so lie in such soft cold quiet

graves . . .

All so we could be here . . .

Walking on the Moon . . .

To them we say, God Bless you all!

And to all of those families who've lived without . . .

We pray with such thanks and gratitude, no doubt . . .

For your loved ones sacrifice, this world has blessed . . .

As those final moments passed . . .

Which now lie etched, all in our hearts to last . . .

For we will long remember, these true pioneers of space . . .

Early explorers, who would not wait

As into grave danger their fine lives they placed . . .

Armstrong, Aldrin, and Collins who stood fast . . .

Walking on the Moon . . .

For all great explorers have so met that test . . .

With a journey begun . . .

A star lite night . . .

As two lovers gaze up in sight . . .

Up upon those skies so bright . . .

But, where dreams are made . . .

For as long as courageous quests live on . . .

All carried in hearts of men and women of faith so strong . .

.

They such magnificent dreams will live on . . .

Can but Mars be far behind?

Forty Years Ago This Day!

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 607) celebrating the Fortieth Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon Landing.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 607, the resolution now under consideration.

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

I rise in strong support of House Resolution 607 which was introduced by Ranking Member Hall, with Chairman Gordon, Chairwoman Giffords, and Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee Ranking Member Olson as original cosponsors. I want to thank Mr. Hall and the others for their initiative in introducing this resolution.

The Apollo 11 Moon landing was one of the most significant events of the 20th century. It is only fitting that we celebrate it today as we mark the 40th anniversary of that historic event. That successful landing was a culmination of 8 years of sustained hard work and dedication by countless engineers, scientists, technicians and others to meet the audacious challenge laid down by President John Kennedy in 1961 at a time when it looked as though the Soviet Union had an insurmountable lead in the space race. It took the efforts of many to make Apollo a success, and they all can take pride in what they accomplished.

What had seemed only a lofty centuries-old goal of humanity a mere decade earlier became a wonderful reality when Mission Commander Neil Armstrong proudly announced on July 20, 1969, ``Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.''

Mr. Speaker, the inspiration and hard work that undergirded the successful Apollo 11 mission also laid the foundation for a host of technologies on which today's society depends. Apollo also stimulated as well as enthused generations of engineers and scientists who have contributed so much to our Nation's well-being in the ensuing decades.

In short, the Apollo program continues to deliver benefits to our country even today. Yet the legacy of Apollo is also the example of the brave astronauts who carried out those risky, challenging missions. Let us all honor the unforgettable accomplishments of the crew of Apollo 11: Mission Commander Neil Armstrong, Lunar Module Pilot Buzz Aldrin, and Command Module Pilot Michael Collins, who participated in the first expedition to set foot on another celestial body. Their cool bravery and professionalism captured the imagination of the American people, and they remain genuine national heroes 40 years after they returned home from the Moon.

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I would again like to recognize and thank Ranking Member Hall for introducing this resolution along with Chairman

Bart Gordon, Chairwoman Gabrielle Giffords, and subcommittee Ranking Member Olson. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.