Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding the time to me.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on the rule for H.R. 6 and, in particular, an amendment made in order by that rule, and that is the Markey-Johnson amendment to prohibit drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

I strongly oppose drilling in the refuge, one of our Nation's most treasured places. The coastal plain is a priceless piece of American wilderness that has been set aside for future generations in recognition of its unique wildlife values. We should not steer our energy policy to drilling in this remote wilderness area, the biological heart of the refuge, home to caribou, polar bears, grizzlies, musk oxen, and migratory birds.

Drilling in ANWR would be extremely shortsighted. The scant amount of oil we would wring from this pristine area, estimated by the U.S. Geological Survey to be the amount the U.S. consumes in just 6 months, would cause irreparable damage to the area. By drilling there, we would set a dangerous precedent that no wilderness is sacred.

There is an even more important reason to oppose drilling in ANWR, and that is because ANWR is merely the most graphic example of the wrong-headed nature of our energy policy. We cannot drill our way out of our energy dependence. We cannot drill our way

out of our dependence on foreign sources of oil.

I believe in the American entrepreneur. I believe in that spirit. I believe in our ability to develop technologies that will dramatically reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. Many of those technologies already exist. Many of them are on our roads. They have just to be incentivized, to be cultivated and developed further.

The biggest lost opportunity of this administration has been the failure to set a goal for this country of cutting our dependence on fossil fuels in half in the next decade. This would wean us from foreign oil. This would clear our air, and this would preserve once and for all the sacred places like ANWR.

Mr. Speaker, 88 years ago, Armenian teachers, clergy, businessmen, writers and doctors were rounded up and killed. The events of April 24, 1915, set the stage for the first genocide of the 20th century, the extermination of more than 1.5 million Armenian men, women and children at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

With one of the largest Armenian expatriate communities in the world, April 24 has become an integral part of America's history--but debate over the genocide is still an annual and bitter conflict.

Even though modern-day Turkey was established in 1923 out of the ashes of the Ottoman Empire and was not the actual perpetrator of genocide, it spends millions of dollars each year to fight recognition of the Genocide. Despite this well-funded effort, there is no serious academic dispute about the Armenian Genocide. Our own National Archives houses diplomatic dispatches that vividly describe the systematic destruction of an entire people.

News accounts from the American press also provide a trove of primary source evidence. Headlines, such as the following from the New York Times, describe the horrors: ``Armenian Officials Murdered by Turks,'' ``Appeal to Turkey to Stop Massacres,'' ``Tales of Armenian Horrors Confirmed,'' ``Wholesale Massacres of Armenians by Turks,'' ``Armenians Are Sent To Perish in Desert,'' ``Turks Depopulate Towns of Armenia,'' ``Million Armenians Killed or In Exile,'' and ``The death of Armenia.''

When the Armenian Genocide occurred, the heinous crime had no name. In denouncing what he was witness to, our own U.S. Ambassador Henry Morgenthau chose the words ``race murder'' to describe the atrocities. Raphael Lemkin, an International law scholar, ultimately coined the term genocide in 1944.

As a Polish attorney, Lemkin was appalled by the Turkish atrocities against the Armenians and tried to get European statesmen to criminalize the destruction of ethnic and religious groups. He was dismissed as an alarmist. Years later, when Hitler invaded Poland, Lemkin lost 49 family members in the Holocaust.

Landing as a refugee on American shores, Lemkin resolved to devise a word to convey the evil under way. In 1944, while working for the U.S. war department, he invented the term ``genocide''--citing the Armenian case as an example.

In 1948, in the shadow of the Holocaust, the international community responded to Nazi Germany's methodically orchestrated acts of genocide by approving the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. The Convention confirms that genocide is a crime under international law and defines genocide as actions committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group.

The United States, under President Harry Truman, was the first nation to sign the Convention. In 1988, President Ronald Reagan

signed an Act that implemented the Convention and criminalized genocide under U.S. law--putting the United States on record as being strongly opposed to the heinous crime of genocide. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the signing of that convention.

I will soon introduce a resolution, along with my colleague Mr. Radanovich and several other Members of Congress, that recognizes this important step taken by the United States 15 years ago, to ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust, the Armenian Genocide, and the genocides in Cambodia and Rwanda, among others, will not be forgotten.

Euphemisms, vague terminology or calls for more discussions are just some of the dodges used to avoid Turkish discomfort with its Ottoman past. There is nothing to discuss, there is nothing to discover, there is nothing to be gained by denial--but there is much to be lost.

Let us not minimize the deliberate murder of 1.5 million Armenians. Let us not equivocate. Let us not temporize. Let us instead pay homage to the memory of those innocent victims and honor the courage of the survivors. Let us call genocide, genocide.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to announce the introduction of a piece of legislation that will provide an e-government solution to the complicated process of signing kids up for health insurance, the SCHIP Web-Based Enrollment Act of 2003. This bill provides a simple, targeted method for expanding access to children's health care by giving States the flexibility they need to implement web-based enrollment programs for SCHIP.

The Balanced Budget Act of 1997 established the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), a program that allows States to cover uninsured children in families with incomes that are above Medicaid eligibility levels. Like Medicaid, SCHIP is a Federal-State matching program, but spending

has fallen well below allotment levels for a variety of reasons. One of the most striking reasons is that States have had difficulty enrolling enough children to meet the allotment standards. Enrollment in SCHIP has involved lots of redtape, and the complexity of the application has discouraged families from signing up.

To address this problem, States are beginning to utilize new technology and the Internet to streamline enrollment in SCHIP and Medicaid. This new technology has enabled States to reduce program enrollment time, improve accuracy, increase access for applicants, and centralize social service applications in State government. States that have launched or are planning to launch web-based enrollment in SCHIP include: California, Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington.

While web-based enrollment is promising, many States are challenged by high start-up costs. This bill would provide States with more flexibility to use their Federal SCHIP funds for this kind of activity, and would create a grant program to help States promote web-based enrollment.

The SCHIP Web-Based Enrollment Act of 2003 meets these objectives in the following ways:

First, it would allow States to use unused, ``retained'' (redistributed from the Federal Government back to the State) SCHIP money for this effort. Under current law, a State may use up to 10 percent of retained 1998 allotments for outreach activities approved by the Secretary. The bill adds an additional provision under that section that allows States to use any amount of their retained funds for web- based enrollment outreach.

Second, the bill establishes a separate grant program, allowing States to apply for additional funds (separate from SCHIP money) for this purpose. The grant program would make $50 million available over 5 years, and grants would be subject to a match rate. The match rate would be tied to their SCHIP match rate, but States would be eligible for up to 20 percent more than their rate, not to exceed 90 percent.

Finally, this legislation provides assistance to States from HHS for development and implementation of the web-based enrollment system by providing information and technical assistance.

There are 9 million uninsured children in the United States. In fact, a child is born without health insurance every minute in this country. We must do everything we can to make it easier for families to enroll children in the health insurance programs available to them. I believe that this bill will provide the necessary means to help states expand enrollment in SCHIP. I urge my Colleagues to support this important legislation.

Madam Speaker, this afternoon I want to recognize the patriotism of our men and women of the Armed Forces who, halfway around the world in Afghanistan, in Iraq, and elsewhere, are in harm's way. They are brave, they care deeply about this country, so deeply they would lay down their lives for it, and have.

This is worth our reflection as we gather here in the comfort of this Chamber, air-conditioned on a hot day. We should take a moment to think about our troops, to stand in their boots, and to give our thanks. Our soldiers deserve our unqualified support, and in Congress we must do everything we can to make sure they have it, whatever they need to do their job, to do it quickly, to do it with a minimum loss of life, and to come home safely. Whether they are in Basra, Baghdad, Bagram, or Afghanistan, we stand by our troops.

War is cruel. Innocent lives are lost, families are devastated. We cannot but turn on the television to see graphically the horrors of war; some of our soldiers dying or dead, the loss of innocent civilian lives, some by errant bombs, others by the deliberate murder of Saddam's regime as it fired on those in the street.

What we do not often recognize, because it is not thrust in our living rooms or our consciousness, is another terrible truth that peace, too, can be cruel. The peace of Rwanda, where millions died as the world watched. The peace of Kosovo, where tens of thousands were ethnically cleansed before we acted without the approval of the United Nations. And the peace of Baghdad, too, was cruel. The peace of torture and rape, of starvation and repression, of a failed sanctions regime that Hussein used cynically to kill his own people. That, too, is cruel. And lastly, the peace of September 10 was cruel, holding the promise of a long and precious life for 3,000 Americans who would not live out the week.

Americans who oppose the war have many important points to make but must resist the temptation to merely attack the administration uncritically or nonconstructively, or to defend in any manner the indefensible regime of Saddam Hussein. The failure to disarm Iraq peacefully, notwithstanding 17 resolutions of the United Nations, was not alone the United States' responsibility. It was a failure of the world body, of the United Nations, of the collective security of mankind.

Despite the intoxicating simplicity of the argument, the war in Iraq is not about American desire for oil, though our dependence on it is far too great. It is not about contracts for the French, although contracts they have. And it is not about debt to the Russians, although billions they are owed. Rather, it is about the post-Cold War failure to erect an edifice upon which the peace of the world can be built. And this problem, without our genuine reflection and determined effort, if left unattended and ignored, if lost in the dilution of a simpler answer, may mean that Iraq is only the second in a long line of future conflicts.

When the war is over, more hard work lies ahead. We must not only rebuild the Nation of Iraq for the Iraqi people, but we must rebuild the institutions of the world community which have been devastated by the last few months of fractious debate at the United Nations. These two tasks, to restore Iraq and to restore the collective security apparatus of the world, must go hand in hand. Indeed, we need the one to help repair the other. The United Nations must play the pivotal role in the provision of food and medicine to the Iraqi people and assist in the administration of Iraq until that troubled land becomes a self- governing nation.

Many have argued that democracy is incompatible with the traditions and tribal rivalries of the Iraqi people, or that a nation drawn artificially together on a map must tear if not held together by the noxious glue of tyranny. We must not have such low aspirations for the Iraqi people who have great talents that have not been allowed to flourish, and we must never indulge in the prejudice that any people are less capable, less suited, or less deserving of democracy. Democracy is the institutional reflection of the God-given rights of liberty, belief, and expression.

Democracy must be nurtured beyond Iraq and Afghanistan. We must be unstinting in our support for democratic movements in authoritarian nations. Democracy must come not only to our adversaries but to our allies as well, to the Saudis, to the Egyptians, and to Jordan. We must work to open these closed societies and closed economies to free the creative tall talents of their peoples, to lift the standard of living and expose the germ of terrorism to the cleansing power of opportunity.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Sabino Cici who will retire from the San Gabriel City Council after 25 years of service to the city and community. Sabino was elected to the San Gabriel City Council in 1978, and appointed Mayor four times.

Sabino Cici has been a business owner in the San Gabriel community for 32 years. Throughout his professional and public service career, Councilman Sabino Cici has been an enthusiastic, committed leader and participant on numerous community and regional boards. He currently serves as Director of the Los Angeles County Sanitation District, Director of the San Gabriel Valley Animal Control Authority, and Delegate to the League District Attorney's Community Advisory Council. Sabino has also been actively involved with the San Gabriel Chamber of Commerce, Community Hospital Founders Trek, United States Air Force Association, San Gabriel Kiwanis, Italian Catholic Federation, and the Peace Officers Association.

Sabino's distinguished list of accomplishments while on the city council include building municipal economic reserves, creation of an Economic Redevelopment Agency, revitalization of the historic San Gabriel Mission District, implementation of the $5 million Millennium Miles Program to rehabilitate San Gabriel's streets, seismic and ADA retrofitting of City Hall, and restoration of the legendary San Gabriel Civic Auditorium.

An active member of the San Gabriel community, he has supported and participated in the creation of exciting, fun-filled programs and events to educate and communicate the unique story that is San Gabriel and celebrate San Gabriel's diversity such as the Alhambra-San Gabriel Lunar New Year Parade and Festival, Christmas in April, Three-day San Gabriel Birthday & Festival, California History Day, Mission District Mercado, National Night Out, and Kids Day.

Councilman Cici celebrates 12 years of marriage to Kathleen ``Cookie'' Cici. Together the Cici's have six children and four grandchildren.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in congratulating Sabino Cici on an impressive and long spanning career as city councilman and for his invaluable commitment and involvement in the City of San Gabriel.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Dominic Polimeni who will retire from the San Gabriel City Council after 13 years of service to the city and community.

Born May 23, 1940, in Dunmore, PA, Dominic Polimeni was raised and educated in Buffalo, NY. He attended the University of Buffalo and graduated from Bryant and Stratton Business Institute. A 31-year resident of San Gabriel, Mayor Polimeni was elected to the San Gabriel City Council in April, 1990.

Reflecting a team spirit approach and courteous respect for others, Mayor Polimeni's example encouraged a cohesive city council whose collective objective is to put San Gabriel first in order to accomplish community and regional goals.

Dominic Polimeni's city council highlights include building municipal economic reserves, creation of an Economic Redevelopment Agency, revitalization of the historic San Gabriel Mission District, implementation of the $5 million Millennium Miles Program to rehabilitate San Gabriel's streets, seismic and ADA retrofitting of City Hall, restoration of the legendary San Gabriel Civic Auditorium, the three-acre Smith Park Expansion Project, created ordinances and supported public safety and other department programs to improve the quality of life for San Gabriel residents.

An active member of the San Gabriel community, he has supported and participated in the creation of exciting, fun-filled programs and events to educate and communicate the unique story that is San Gabriel and celebrate San Gabriel's diversity such as the Alhambra-San Gabriel Lunar New Year Parade and Festival, Christmas in April, Three-day San Gabriel Birthday & Festival, California History Day, Mission District Mercado, National Night Out, and Kids Day.

Dominic Polimeni retired from the County of Los Angeles as Administrator of Alhambra Municipal Court in 1996 after a distinguished career spanning 36 years. Mayor Polimeni and

his wife Barbara, will celebrate 39 years of marriage this year, and have three children and five grandchildren.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in congratulating Dominic Polimeni on a truly exemplary professional and public service career, and for his dedication and unwavering commitment to the city of San Gabriel.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

Mr. Chairman, today I rise to urge my colleagues to support the Blue Dog budget plan, a fiscally responsible proposal that recognizes America's priorities at a time when our country is at war and our Nation is in debt.

The budget resolution before us today is seriously flawed. It is a step in the wrong direction that ignores the realities we are facing as a Nation. The Blue Dog budget, on the other hand, recognizes the costs of waging war, addresses the state of our struggling economy, and answers the needs of ordinary Americans across the Nation.

As we speak, men and women in uniform are fighting to disarm Iraq and are battling al Qaeda in Afghanistan. Hundreds of thousands are now serving their country after being called up, leaving their jobs and their families, many on short notice and at great financial and personal costs. Our troops are indeed making huge sacrifices.

But what about the average American who is not on Active Duty or in the Reserves? How have the rest of us been called upon to make our own contribution to the security and prosperity of the United States? The budget resolution before us includes a host of large tax cuts weighted heavily toward America's wealthiest families. Certainly this cannot be the sacrifice we are expected to make.

In every other conflict since the Civil War, the Commander in Chief has called for an increase in revenues to meet the national defense. Will we be the first generation since the Civil War to reduce revenue during wartime?

Over the last 2 years we have lost almost 2 million jobs. How can we afford to consider large and long-term cuts that will neither improve our defense, stimulate our economy, nor help those most in need?

Many of us who supported tax cuts when we were at peace and enjoying historic surpluses must now oppose any fiscally irresponsible budget with even larger cuts, now that we are at war and spiraling into severe debt. I must ask, where have all the fiscal conservatives gone? Where have they fled from the majority party?

In addition to the much-needed stimulus, the Blue Dog plan prioritizes national defense and homeland security. These priorities are fully funded at levels requested by the President.

While we provide strong support for our national defense and homeland security, we must not turn our backs on important domestic priorities. The American people are begging for a budget that invests in education, health care, and includes a Medicare prescription drug benefit. The Blue Dog plan responds to Americans across the country and provides a $400 billion plan for prescription drugs over the next 10 years.

Mr. Chairman, this plan, the Blue Dog plan, will provide for our defense and homeland security needs, it will provide a vital economic stimulus and sustainable tax relief for ordinary Americans, and the plan will move our country forward with investments in health, education and other domestic priorities. Our plan will accomplish these goals and achieve $2 trillion less in debt than the administration's plan over the next 10 years.

Americans are a proud and generous people, more than willing to sacrifice for a worthy cause. If, instead, we give ourselves a gift no other war generation has given themselves, we will denude our ability to defend the homeland, or shift the costs to the next generation.

Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing, with my colleague Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, the Military Tribunals Act of 2003 to provide congressional authorization for tribunals to try unlawful combatants against the United States in the war on terrorism.

As the war on terrorism continues and more suspected al Qaeda terrorists are arrested, Congress must ensure that justice is delivered swiftly and responsibly in order to punish the terrorists as well as to prevent future attacks.

Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution provides that it is the Congress that has the power to establish tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court. Up until now, however, there has been no congressional authorization for military tribunals. Efforts to form such tribunals, to date, have been performed solely by executive order of the President with clarifying regulations promulgated by the Secretary of Defense.

Some would argue, not implausibly, that despite the clear language of Article 1, Section 8, congressional authorization is not necessary; that as Commander-in-Chief, the President has the authority to regulate the affairs of the military which extends to the adjudication of unlawful combatants. However, if Congress fails to act, any adjudications by military tribunal will likely be challenged in court on the basis that the tribunals were improperly constituted.

The Military Tribunals Act of 2003 establishes the jurisdiction of these new courts to quickly and efficiently prosecute suspected al Qaeda terrorists who are not U.S. citizens or lawful residents. The bill preserves the basic rights of habeus corpus, appeal, and due process. Furthermore, this legislation protects the confidentiality of sources of information, protects classified information, and also protects ordinary citizens from being exposed to the dangers of trying these suspects.

Perhaps of most importance, in the context of a war without a clear end and against an enemy without uniform or nation, this bill requires the President to report to Congress on who is detained, for how long, and on what basis.

Mr. Speaker, in sum, the Military Tribunals Act of 2003 gives the Commander-in-Chief the power to try unlawful combatants, provides the confidence that these judgments will be upheld, establishes clear rules of due process, and ensures that the hallmarks of our democracy are not compromised.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to pay special recognition to Ms. Anna Gutierrez, an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District. Over the years, Ms. Gutierrez has given selflessly of her time and energy to many different organizations in the City of Monterey Park and surrounding areas.

A forty-three year resident of Monterey Park, California, Anna was a payroll supervisor for Blue Chip Stamps for twenty-five years, and a payroll supervisor for Figgie International for nine years. Despite working full-time, she found time to volunteer at all of her children's schools: Sacred Heart of Mary School, Cantwell High School and Marian School. Besides her children, Dennis, Carolina and Jeffrey, she has four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

After her retirement in 1994, Anna volunteered to serve senior lunches at First Methodist Church and participated in two senior citizen clubs, the Friendship Club and the Senior Affairs Club, both in Montebello, California. Currently she is a member of the Montebello Breakfast Club and treasurer for the Los Angeles Monterey Park (LAMP) Optimist Club.

For many years, Anna has been a docent of the Monterey Park Historical Society Museum and is in charge of the school children tour program. She volunteers for the City of Monterey Park as a Commissioner on the Historical Commission and is a Precinct Poll Inspector for citywide elections. In addition, she assists the Monterey Park Police Department by participating with the Monterey Park Senior Citizen Patrol.

Of all her activities, the organization that is nearest to her heart is the Maryvale Orphanage in Rosemead, California. An active participant for over eight years, she volunteers in many ways, including fundraising, assisting in rummage sales, and packaging Christmas gifts for the economically disadvantaged.

Ms. Gutierrez's breadth of volunteer work is remarkable and all who have the opportunity to work with her are better off for the experience.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring a remarkable woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Anna Gutierrez. The entire community joins me in thanking Ms. Gutierrez for her continued efforts to make the 29th Congressional District an enhanced place in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to recognize an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Ms. Mary W. Boger. Ms. Boger's passion for community volunteerism, especially on behalf of children and education, has made the City of Glendale and surrounding areas a better place in which to live.

A product of the Glendale Unified School District, she attended Pasadena City College, then had a successful career in the business world. Mary and her husband, Dr. Donald Boger have raised eight children in total: JoAnn, Terry, Debbie, Scott, Elizabeth, Melanie, David, Charles, nine grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

A strong advocate of education, Ms. Boger has served on numerous school committees and task forces, including Citizens for Glendale Community College, and the School Facilities Bond Committee. In addition, she has volunteered with the Glendale Parent Teacher Association, Glendale Healthy Kids, Verdugo Hills Visiting Nurse Association, Safe Places and Glendale Youth Coalition. She is currently a member of the Glendale Unified School District Board of Education, serves on the Glendale YWCA Board of Directors, and is President of Las Candelas.

Mary has received many awards, including the Glendale News Press Woman of Achievement Award in 1998, the California Legislature's 43rd Assembly District Woman of the Year in 2000, and the Glendale Community College Alumni Association's Award of Merit for Career Achievement and Community Service.

The time, energy and love she gives to our community is extraordinary, and the residents of my district have benefited greatly from her dedicated service.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring a remarkable woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Mary W. Boger. The entire community joins me in thanking Mary Boger for her continued efforts to make the 29th Congressional District a healthier and safer environment, especially for children, in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to recognize an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Ms. Sally Kendall Baldwin. Ms. Baldwin's passion for community service, especially on behalf of education and the arts, has made the City of San Gabriel a better place in which to live.

A native Californian, Ms. Baldwin attended UCLA, majoring in Elementary Education. In 1960, she met and married Harry Baldwin, currently a San Gabriel City Councilman, and they have two children, Kendall and Gregory. After college, the Baldwin family moved to San Gabriel, California.

As a young mother, Sally was involved in the Boy Scouts of America, San Gabriel National Little League and the San Gabriel High School Quarterback Club. After her children were grown, she became involved in the Pasadena Shakespeare League and efforts to raise funds for the renovation of the San Gabriel Mission.

Ms. Baldwin has been instrumental in the efforts toward unification of the San Gabriel School District, which was accomplished in 1992 and the school bond issue to renovate elementary schools, which passed in 2002. A teacher in the San Gabriel Unified School District for the last twenty-eight years, she will retire in June 2003. She began the Annual Community Read-in at McKinley Elementary School. Last year, she worked with the Los Angeles Master Chorale on a project for her students to learn how to write lyrics and melody, and perform their own songs with members of the Chorale.

Currently, Sally is Executive Vice President of the Asian Youth Center, a member of the San Gabriel Historical Society and the Metropolitan Associates, an outreach of the L.A. Opera Company. In addition, she is active in The Church of Our Saviour Episcopal Church, serving as a Vestry member, an usher and a Lay Eucharist Minister.

The time and effort she gives to our community is truly remarkable, and the City of San Gabriel has benefited greatly from her dedicated service.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring an extraordinary woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Sally Kendall Baldwin. The entire community joins me in thanking Sally Baldwin for her continued efforts to make the 29th Congressional District an enhanced environment in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to pay special recognition to Joan Vizcarra, an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District. Ms. Vizcarra's passion for community service, especially on behalf of education has made the City of Temple City a better place in which to live.

Ms. Vizcarra graduated from California State University at Los Angeles, majoring in psychology. Currently a realtor, she is attending the Phillips Graduate Institute taking a graduate program in psychology to obtain her marriage and family therapy license. Joan and her husband, Fernando Vizcarra, a Temple City Councilmember, have been married thirty-four years and have two children, Lara and Erin, and one grandchild.

Joan has been a member of the Temple City Unified School District Board of Education for twelve years, including serving on the budget and multicultural subcommittees. She is a board member of the Temple City Educational Foundation and a member of the site committee for Cleveland Elementary School's LEARNS program. In addition, Joan is a member of the California Association of Realtors and is the legislative liaison for the California School Boards Association. Ms. Vizcarra's past volunteer participation includes the Temple City Parent Teacher Association, Campfire Girls, the Arcadia Board of Realtors, the Temple City Kiwanis Club, and various political organizations.

The effort and time Joan gives to our community is truly remarkable, and the City of Temple City has benefited greatly from her dedicated service.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring an extraordinary woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Joan Vizcarra. The entire community joins me in thanking Joan Vizcarra for her efforts.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today to recognize an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Ms. Jacqueline ``Jacquie'' Fennessy. Over the years, Ms. Fennessy has given selflessly of her time and energy to many different organizations in Altadena, California.

A 45-year resident of Altadena, Jacquie and her husband, Dr. William J. Fennessy have five children, William, Brian, Michael, David, Daniel, and twelve grandchildren. As a young mother, she was involved in the Boy Scouts of America, the local Parent Teacher Association and Little League. In 1986, she became the Executive Director for Patron Saints Foundation, a position she currently holds. The foundation is an association that awards charitable grants to non-profit health care organizations in the west San Gabriel Valley.

Jacquie has served on the Altadena Town Council since 1992, serving as Chair for three terms. The consummate volunteer, Ms. Fennessy is also a member of the Altadena Chamber of Commerce, Christmas Tree Lane Association, Altadena Heritage and the Altadena Conservancy. Her board memberships include the Sheriff's Support Group of Altadena, Scripps Home, and the Altadena Historical Society. Active in Altadena's libraries, she has been an Altadena Library Board of Trustee member since 1994, serving two terms as President, and a member of Friends of the Altadena Library for nearly forty years.

Jacquie has received many awards, including the California Legislature's 44th Assembly District Woman of the Year in 1999, Pasadena Mental Health Association's Community Volunteer of the Year in 1998, and Citizen of the Year in 1998 by the Altadena Chamber of Commerce.

The time and energy she gives to our community is truly remarkable, and the greater Altadena area has benefited greatly from her dedicated service.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring a remarkable woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Jacqueline ``Jacquie'' Fennessy. The entire community joins me in thanking Ms. Fennessy for her continued efforts to make the 29th Congressional District a better place in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to pay special recognition to Ms. Dorothy Cohen, an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District. Over the years, Dorothy has been an outspoken advocate for the residents of the city of South Pasadena, California.

Ms. Cohen has been a member of the South Pasadena City Council since 1994, serving as Mayor for two terms. Some of her greatest accomplishments on the Council include the re-opening of City Hall five days a week, repainting the city's historic water tower, advocating for a quarterly city newsletter and serving as its editorial advisor for seven years, adoption of the tiger lily as the city flower, and her efforts to preserve the quality of life for the citizens of South Pasadena.

Dorothy is a fourth generation Californian and a forty-one year resident of South Pasadena. Prior to her marriage in 1950 to Jerry Cohen, a reporter and features writer for the Los Angeles Times, she was a reporter and television columnist for the San Diego Union Tribune. While raising her children, she worked part-time for fourteen years for the South Pasadena Unified School District. During that time, she actively participated in the South Pasadena Parent Teacher Association and the Girl Scouts of America.

A long-time supporter of public libraries, Ms. Cohen was a cofounder of the Friends of the South Pasadena Public Library Bookstore in 1984. She currently serves as the chair of its Steering Committee and volunteers weekly in the bookstore. She is past president of the Friends of the Library, Library Board of Trustees and the League of Women Voters.

Dorothy has participated in numerous city task forces over the years, such as the Downtown Revitalization Task Force, the General Plan Advisory Committee, and the Mission Street Specific Plan Committee. Most recently, she co-chaired the Gold Line Railway Station Art and Design Advisory Committee.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring a remarkable woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Dorothy M. Cohen. The entire community joins me in thanking Ms. Cohen for her continued efforts to make the 29th Congressional District an enhanced place in which to live.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the accomplishments made by our Nation's most distinguished women during the month of March. It is my great honor to recognize extraordinary women who are making a difference in my district.

I stand today, to recognize an outstanding woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Ms. Roberta H. Martinez. Ms. Martinez's passion for community volunteerism, especially on behalf of Latino-American history and culture, has made the City of Pasadena a better place to live.

Ms. Martinez earned her BA in music, her MA in music history and is a practicing musician. Currently she is narrator and vocalist for the Aztec Stories Project, scheduled to play at the Ford Theater in Los Angeles in the fall of this year. Besides owning her own production company, she is a guest lecturer, historian, and an elementary and middle school substitute teacher. She and her husband, James Grimes, reside in Pasadena, and have two children, Kate and Matthew.

Roberta is host/producer of an award-winning cable access television show--Casa Martinez--musica y mas in Pasadena. As a producer, she has worked on many annual projects including the Adelante Mujer Latina conference, Latino Fest, and the Cinco de Mayo celebration. In addition, she is the founder and current Chair of the Latino History Parade and Jamaica. One of the projects Roberta is most proud of is the history project ``The Past Lives Vividly in the Present: a history of the Latino Community in Pasadena'' that she researched and produced.

Roberta serves on numerous boards and committees, including the Pasadena Historical Museum, the San Gabriel Valley Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Pasadena Latino Forum, Latino Heritage Association, Leadership Pasadena and the Zonta Club. In addition, she assists the City of Pasadena by participating on the Arts Commission, the Pasadena Community Access Corporation, and the Northwest School Site Steering Committee. In 2002, Roberta received the Pasadena YWCA's Woman of Excellence in the Arts Award.

The time and energy she gives to our community is truly remarkable, and the City of Pasadena has benefited greatly from her dedicated service.

I ask all Members of Congress to join me today in honoring a remarkable woman of California's 29th Congressional District, Roberta H. Martinez. The entire community joins me in thanking Roberta Martinez for her continued efforts to making the 29th Congressional District a better place in which to live.