Stephen Michael Gleason Congressional Gold Medal Act

Mr. President, I am here to speak about honoring Steve Gleason with the Congressional Gold Medal.

Steve is well known in Louisiana and throughout the gulf coast and to football fans across the country. He is a Washington State native, as Senator Murray recently spoke, but he lives in New Orleans with his wife Michel and son Rivers.

Steve played in the NFL for 8 seasons, mostly with the New Orleans Saints. He is famous as a New Orleans Saint. On September 25, 2006, on ``Monday Night Football,'' the first game back in the Superdome when it reopened after Hurricane Katrina, the Saints were playing their archrival and division opponent, the hated Atlanta Falcons. The Presiding Officer probably likes the Falcons.

The Falcons were punting from deep in their own territory. Steve broke through the line and blocked the punt. Fellow Saint Curtis Deloatch recovered the ball for a touchdown.

The stadium erupted. There were 70,000 fans in the Superdome stadium. I was watching on TV. Al Michaels was blown away. It was an incredible moment, not just for the football team but because it was the first game in the Superdome, having just been reopened after Hurricane Katrina, which had almost destroyed the city and, indeed, the whole gulf coast, and it had much more meaning.

The emotion was for the play but also for what the play symbolized for the game. Steve Gleason's blocked punt symbolized, as Steve would say, ``no white flags.'' New Orleans and the gulf coast were back, and despite Katrina's devastation, we would not surrender.

Now Steve demonstrates that ``no white flags'' resolve in another arena. In 2011, Steve was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also called Lou Gehrig's disease. He cannot speak and, except for moving his eyes and blinking, he cannot move. But Steve can still think, and because he can think and because of what he has done with his thoughts is why he inspires and why we wish to honor him with a Congressional Gold Medal.

He has a difficult challenge, but his accomplishments addressing that challenge are what is noteworthy. After his diagnosis, Steve and his wife began a mission to show that patients with diseases such as ALS cannot only live, but they can thrive.

Steve declared that there would be ``no white flags,'' and that became the mantra of something he began: the Gleason Initiative Foundation. This foundation helps to provide individuals who have neuromuscular disease or other injuries with cutting-edge technology, equipment, and services. It raises global awareness about ALS to find solutions and an end to the disease. It has also helped hundreds of people with ALS experience life adventures they never thought possible.

Steve's story and mission have been chronicled by national and local media outlets as well as a 2016 documentary, ``Gleason,'' which shows what his life has been like since 2011.

When first meeting Steve, you would expect to feel pity. Yet, as you walk in and meet him and see what he has done, as he speaks to you through the machines he has helped to develop, you feel inspired. His perseverance and commitment to giving hope to others is amazing.

I will give a partial list of what he and his wife have done since his diagnosis. He founded the Gleason Initiative Foundation, of which I just spoke. Steve, in partnership with Microsoft,--and I have a poster here showing Steve and the Microsoft team--developed eye-tracking technology that allows him to communicate and to move.

So as Steve looks up--again, he can only move his eyes and blink his eyes--he can look at this keyboard and if it says, ``Turn my wheelchair to the right,'' he looks there and blinks his eyes and his wheelchair will turn to the right.

He has prerecorded statements. So if you walk in, he will blink at a prerecorded statement that says: ``Hello. My name is Steve Gleason. How are you?''

If he wishes to say something spontaneously, he can blink, blink, blink, and it will say: ``Well, let's discuss this further.''

It is not all just ``let's talk business.'' He has his iTunes on there. He can blink and get his favorite song. There is a multiplicity of functions that allow the man to live--and not just him, because among other accomplishments Steve Gleason and his wife Michel have achieved, he led efforts to enact legislation, the Steve Gleason Enduring Voices Act, to make these devices available to those suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. It was a bill that I was privileged to introduce and that has passed into law.

Steve continues to challenge the heads of industry and medicine to improve the technology and the science to find a cure for ALS. He opened the Team Gleason House for Innovative Living, where up to 18 people can live as productively and as independently as possible.

A few years ago, Steve hosted a global summit, bringing together researchers, patients, caregivers, and others in the ALS community. The summit resulted in the single largest coordinated and collaborative ALS research project in the world, called Answer ALS. It has nearly 2 dozen research institutions, 1,000 patients, and 20 trillion data points that will help to find unknown pathways to lead to new treatments or to cures.

In recognition of Steve's work, in April I introduced legislation with Senators Murray, Kennedy, and Cantwell to honor Steve Gleason with the Congressional Gold Medal. Steve's story is so compelling that in less than 2 months, over 70 of our colleagues joined to affirm Steve's inspiring story and impact upon his fellow Americans to make him worthy of the highest honor Congress can bestow.

Steve should be awarded this medal. He is an example of what makes our country great. He has given hope to many. He gives hope to all those who have ever received a devastating diagnosis, and his message is simple: Your life still has meaning. Your best years can still be ahead of you.

Steve is a role model, not just for those in the disability community but for all Americans. I suspect that what

he may appreciate most about this honor is the attention it brings to find solutions and cures for those with diseases such as ALS.

I would like to thank my colleagues, their staff, and everyone else who has helped build support for this legislation including Microsoft, the ALS Association, the NFL, and the New Orleans Saints.

I wish to encourage my colleagues in the House to cosponsor this legislation and to pass it as soon as possible.

I would like to thank Steve for continuing to be an example of commitment, perseverance, and inspiration.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be discharged from further consideration of S. 2652 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be considered read a third time and passed and the motion to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.

I yield the floor.

Mr. President, I join Senator Cassidy and many of our colleagues in recognizing one of Washington State's favorite sons-- Spokane's own Steve Gleason.

I have to say, as a fellow Cougar, sponsoring this legislation to recognize Steve's legacy of excellence--from

Martin Stadium in Pullman, to the NFL, to his avid work as an advocate in the health world--was a no-brainer for me. But our bill to award Steve the Congressional Gold Medal--the highest honor Congress can bestow on an American citizen--has been embraced and cosponsored by more than 70 Members of this Chamber from both sides of the aisle is a testament not just to the incredible respect Steve has garnered across our Nation as a standout athlete but to his inspiring leadership and tireless advocacy that has made an indelible impact on our Nation and our culture.

Of course, Steve's skills and talents on the football field are legendary. Many will not soon forget that iconic blocked punt at the Superdome in 2006--a play that helped lift up the spirits of an entire community that was still struggling in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Yet it has been Steve's work off the gridiron that has had perhaps the most lasting impact on our country and on our future.

Since being diagnosed with ALS in 2011, Steve has become a passionate warrior for ALS survivors and their families. Through his Gleason Initiative Foundation, Steve actively supports critical research efforts to combat ALS and helps to raise much needed public awareness about the condition while also providing ALS patients with leading-edge technology, equipment, and services to help them not only live with their ALS diagnoses but to thrive.

In motivating others by his lived example, Steve, together with his wife, his mother, and everyone at Team Gleason, has inspired hope in individuals throughout Washington State and across the globe, and he has undoubtedly changed countless lives for the better.

Few people make Washington State as proud as Steve Gleason, and I am delighted to sponsor this legislation to award him the Congressional Gold Medal. I urge our colleagues to support our efforts.

I thank my colleague Senator Cassidy for his leadership on this and for working with me on an important piece of legislation that will recognize an incredible human being.

I yield the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I missed some votes on Wednesday, December 19, all votes on Thursday, December 20, and some votes today. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows:

Roll Call Vote Number 440 (Passage of H.R. 7327, the SECURE Technology Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 441 (Passage of H.R. 7279, the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 442 (Passage of H.R. 6227, the National Quantum Initiative Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 443 (Passage of H.R. 6652): YES;

Roll Call Vote 444 (Passage of S. 1520, the Modernizing Recreational Fisheries Management Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 445 (Passage of S. 3530, the Museum and Library Services Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 446 (Agreeing to H. Res. 1180): NO;

Roll Call Vote Number 447 (Agreeing to H. Res. 1181): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 448 (Concurring in the Senate Amendment to the House Amendment to S. 756, the First Step Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 449 (Passage of H.R. 7328, the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 450 (Concurring in the Senate Amendment to H.R. 5075, the Ashanti Alert Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 451 (Passage of H.R. 7093, the Clean Up the Code Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 452 (Passage of S. 2896, the Justice Against Corruption on K Street Act of 2018 or JACK Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 453 (Passage of S. 2961, the Victims of Child Abuse Act Reauthorization Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 454 (Passage of S. 2679, the Veterans Small Business Enhancement Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 455 (Passage of H.R. 7227, the Taxpayer First Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 456 (Concurring in the Senate Amendment to H.R. 4227, the Vehicular Terrorism Prevention Act of 2019): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 457 (Passage of S. 2652, the Stephen Michael Gleason Congressional Gold Medal Act): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 458 (Passage of S. 2765, the RBIC Advisers Relief Act of 2018): YES;

Roll Call Vote Number 459 (Concurring in the Senate Amendment to H.R. 5509, the Innovations in Mentoring, Training, and Apprenticeships Act):

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 2652) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Stephen Michael Gleason.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material on this bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, this important bill has wide bipartisan support, and I urge all Members to support this legislation.

Mr. Gleason who was a former player with the New Orleans Saints, has done significant work in the area of ALS--in ALS education and advocacy and its damaging effects.

I, like many people in this Chamber and many people across the country, have been touched by this personally, with friends or family members, and we know the ravages that occur with this horrible disease, ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this important legislation, the Stephen Michael Gleason Congressional Gold Medal Act, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to reserve, but I would like to note to my friend from Louisiana, as a Lions fan, it is much easier to be supportive of a Saints player than if this guy had actually been a Green Bay Packer.

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

Mr. Speaker, I will note to my colleagues that as a Detroit Lions fan, I, too, don't have a football team, but I am proud to stand on the floor today and note that this is an important time to address these things. We all, as a nation, are thankful for the work of Mr. Gleason in this important issue, and I do urge support from all of my colleagues.

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

Mr. Speaker, let me thank my colleague, Mr. Clay from St. Louis, and my colleague from Michigan. I understand the difficulty in saying very loud the ``New Orleans

Saints,'' but I just want to also thank Senator Bill Cassidy, and Senator Patty Murray for authoring this bill and working so hard to get it across the finish line. I would also like to thank Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Representative Steve Scalise for working with me in the House.

The Congressional Gold Medal is a special award, and today we are coming together to support giving it to a special person. This is an award for people who dedicate themselves to causes bigger than themselves and for those who work tirelessly to help the lives of others. Both of those describe the son of Who Dat Nation, Steve Gleason.

Steve, after being diagnosed with ALS, came together with his team to form Team Gleason, and he declared then that there would be no white flags in dealing with ALS. Steve is a selfless individual who has used his life to raise awareness of ALS and who has been instrumental in developing technology in order to combat this disease.

He has done so much that has tangibly improved people's lives now and will continue to do so for years to come. That is why I am proud to introduce this bill in the House and to be standing here today concurring in the Senate bill to honor Steve's contributions to society.

Mr. Speaker, I would urge my colleagues to support giving the Congressional Gold Medal to our son of Who Dat Nation, Steve Gleason.