Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, thank you for yielding me time, and thank you for your leadership on this legislation.

As an original cosponsor of H.R. 1257, I rise in support of this bill. CEOs should be held accountable to shareholders. Whether you have invested $100 or $100 million in a company as a shareholder, you should be allowed to find out the terms and conditions of the compensation package for the company's CEO.

Shareholders should also have the right to express their satisfaction or dissatisfaction over a proposed compensation package. And that is exactly what H.R. 1257 does. It allows shareholders a chance to share their opinion with the board, which will help grant boards pause before approving a questionable compensation package.

This bill does not represent a completely new idea. In fact, the United Kingdom has used a nonbinding shareholder vote approach since 2003. Australia has a similar system. Granting shareholders a say over executive compensation in these two countries has improved dialogue between executives and shareholders and has increased the use of long- term performance targets in incentive compensation. This policy change has clearly worked.

American companies have also started to take notice. Most recently, AFLAC adopted a nonbinding shareholder vote for its CEO's compensation package. In addition, Institutional Shareholder Services reports that 52 other companies are also considering adopting similar policies.

It is now time to grant shareholders in the United States the same rights as their British and Australian counterparts. We need to make sure that all companies take AFLAC's lead by passing H.R. 1257. I urge my colleagues to grant the shareholders more access to the process of forming an executive compensation package.

I urge a ``yes'' vote on this bill.

Madam Speaker, the Democratic budget is receiving rave reviews from a broad variety of outside groups. Here are just some of the examples of what Democrats are hearing.

The American Legion praised our budget because it includes $3.3 billion more for veterans than the President's budget, making it the largest veterans increase in 77 years. In the letter, the American Legion writes: ``As a Nation at war, this funding will help cover the ongoing cost of war to care for the men and women of the United States Armed Forces and their families.''

The American Academy of Pediatrics writes: ``This budget includes a significant commitment to infants, children, adolescents and young adults through its funding of SCHIP and Medicaid.''

And the watchdog group OMB Watch writes: ``We applaud its commitment to restoring fiscal responsibility by seeking to eliminate the Federal budget deficits by 2012, adopting the pay-as-you-go principle requiring that any new tax cuts and mandatory spending be paid for.''

Madam Speaker, the Democratic budget shows that we can fiscally be responsible while also meeting the critical needs of the American people. This budget deserves strong support.

Mr. Speaker, they say when you have bad news, get it out on Friday night. That's exactly what happened last Friday when the Justice Department released documents indicating that Attorney General Gonzales led a meeting of top aides to discuss the firing of U.S. Attorneys. This document completely contradicts the Attorney General's own statement that he did not participate in any discussion and only had cursory knowledge of the U.S. Attorney dismissals.

The Attorney General's contradictions were followed yesterday by a Justice Department official taking the fifth and refusing to testify. This is unacceptable, particularly after Gonzales himself said that all Justice Department officials would be made available to Congress.

The administration needs to make Justice Department and White House officials available to Congress so that we can continue to provide oversight. This Congress will continue to ask tough questions so that we may ensure U.S. Attorneys are free from political pressure.

Madam Speaker, this week the war in Iraq enters its fifth year. Today I doubt anyone in this Chamber will stand up and say that it has gone as expected.

Our troops have served this Nation admirably, but the Bush war cabinet failed to properly plan for a war in Iraq. As a result, even the Pentagon now admits what many of us have been saying for months: A civil war is being fought in Iraq.

This week, we have an opportunity to send the President a message that this war is not going to go on indefinitely. Even in the face of increased violence in Iraq and the lack of real progress towards a political solution, congressional Republicans continue to pledge to stay the course.

Madam Speaker, the days of rubber-stamping the President's requests are over. The American people want Iraq to take responsibility for its own nation. The only way that is going to happen is if the Iraqi Government knows we are not going to be there indefinitely.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor Joseph Simunovich, who at the end of his 3-year term is being recognized for his service as chairman of the board of governors at Hackensack University Medical Center (HUMC). Mr. Simunovich has been the driving force behind the implementation of vital policy that has advanced the successful actions of HUMC, thus contributing to its prestigious reputation.

In addition, Mr. Simunovich currently serves as a member of the board of directors for United Water Resources, and as vice chairman for the board of Directors of United Water New Jersey--New York. In this position, Mr. Simunovich is responsible for setting public policy and strategic planning, focusing on external affairs and government relations. Since joining the company in 1992, Mr. Simunovich has been vice president, and senior vice president, as well as president and chief of staff of United Water Management and Services.

Active in governmental and civic associations, Mr. Simunovich was appointed by Governor Thomas Kean in 1986 as a member of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA). He was reappointed as vice chairman of the EDA by Governors James Florio and Christine Whitman for six consecutive terms, having, to date, the longest tenure in the organization's history. Mr. Simunovich also completed a 1-year assignment as a loaned executive to the Governor's Management Review Commission.

Joseph Simunovich's life in public service started even earlier. As a resident of West New York, he was elected to the Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders, where he served for 12 years. Mr. Simunovich was also appointed chairman of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority by Governor James E. McGreevey in 2002, where he led the integration of the Garden State Parkway into the Turnpike Authority.

Mr. Simunovich has been a member of numerous boards of directors including New Jersey City University, the New Brunswick Development Corporation, the National Association of Water Companies, and the National Council for Public Private Partnerships.

Please join me in honoring Joseph Simunovich for his guidance and service, and in congratulating him and his family.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Phillip Connelly for his service to thousands of professors and students as well as for his years in the Navy and in public service. Mr. Connelly is also an outstanding representative of the Irish-American community of the city of Bayonne.

Phillip Connelly is vice president of Administration and Finance at Kean University in Union, NJ. Mr. Connelly is responsible for multiple vital departments of the university that assist in the learning and welfare of 13,000 students and 12,000 employees.

Mr. Connelly spent most of his professional career as a dedicated public servant. For 7 years, Mr. Connelly was the business administrator of the city of Elizabeth, the fourth largest municipality in the State. His experience in public service was acquired early on as accountant for the city of Bayonne. Mr. Connelly was promoted to assistant and business administrator. During that time, Mr. Connelly was elected to the Hudson County Board of Chosen Freeholders, where he served for 3 years.

Phillip Connelly traces his Irish heritage to County Fermanagh where both his mother and grandmother were born. Mr. Connelly is known as being dedicated and loyal. For his contributions to the Irish-American community he is being honored with the ``Friends of Brian Boru 2007 Man of the Year Award.''

Let us honor this accomplished native and resident of Bayonne, and join me in congratulating his wife Maryann and son Patrick for the distinction bestowed upon this outstanding New Jersey family.

Mr. Speaker, 2 weeks ago the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released a primary analysis of the President's fiscal 2008 budget and found that the administration would fall short of its claim of balancing the Federal budget by 2012 without raising taxes. This contradicts comments made by the President when he unveiled the budget last month and claimed that his budget will be balanced by 2012 without raising taxes.

According to the CBO report, the President's budget will run a $9 billion deficit just 5 years from now. That report also concludes that the President's budget will lead to higher taxes for millions of middle-class Americans. First, his budget only includes a 1-year tax fix for the alternative minimum tax, which will lead to a $247 billion tax increase on middle-class families over the next 5 years. Then the President's health care plan will result in a tax increase of $500 billion over the next 10 years on middle-class families. This is unacceptable.

Mr. Speaker, it is time that the President levels with the American people about the budget that he proposed a month ago.

Madam Speaker, I rise here today to honor five outstanding citizens of Bayonne for their contributions to preserving their Irish heritage, which have enriched and united our community and earned them the praise of their countrymen. They are all being honored at the 2007 Bayonne St. Patrick's Day Parade.

Mickey McCabe, Grand Marshall 2007, a Bayonne native, is a founding member of the Bayonne St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee. As founder and president of McCabe Ambulance Service and the McCabe Institute of Emergency Preparedness, Mr. McCabe is well aware of the medical emergency needs of his community. Mr. McCabe serves in various state and county agencies including the New Jersey State EMS Homeland Security Task Force Planning Agency.

Virginia ``Ginger'' Boele Kemp, a member of Ireland's 32, is the President and owner of Four Season's Travel. A community activist, Ms. Kemp founded the Bayonne Hometown Fair. A member of the Rotary Club of Bayonne, Ms. Kemp was the club's first woman president. Ginger Kemp helped raise over $30,000 as a member of the Bayonne Tsunami Relief Fund and over $51,000 as co-chair of the Katrina Relief Fund.

Bridget Antczak, County Cork Association Aide, is a lifelong resident of Bayonne. The Environmental Consultant has a rich Irish heritage and is the granddaughter of John O'Connell, who was influential in the building of the County Corkmen's Club. Bridget has been a member of the St. Patrick's Parade Committee since 2004.

Sharon Nadrowsky, Irish American League Aide, serves as the representative to the St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee. Mrs. Nadrowski serves on the St. Mary's Star of the Sea Sports Committee. She continues to instill

in her children and her community the traditions of her grandparents, who hail from County Tipperary and County Kilkenny.

Mary O'Connell, born and raised in Bayonne, is past President of the County Donegal Association and remains an aide to the organization. Her mother Nora was born in County Mayo and her paternal grandfather from County Donegal. Mrs. O'Connell also served the patients of the prestigious Hoboken's St. Mary's Hospital for 10 years.

Please join me in honoring these proud members of the Irish Community of Bayonne. Their numerous contributions have enriched the lives of their neighbors, and their love of their heritage continues to preserve the Irish tradition for future generations of Irish-Americans in New Jersey and the United States.

Madam Speaker, The Washington Post headlines said it best: ``Rotten Homecoming--This is no way to treat a veteran.''

A 4-month Washington Post investigation found frustrating delays some of our returning soldiers are facing in receiving the compensation they are owed for the service to this Nation. One soldier was sent to Walter Reed after being smashed in the head by a steel cargo door of an 18- wheeler near the Iraqi border. Now the Pentagon is saying that the soldier's mental impairment comes from his being slow in high school, not from the dramatic head injury he suffered in combat.

Madam Speaker, this Congress has already begun investigating the outrageous problems our soldiers are facing at Walter Reed. President Bush cannot send them off to battle without properly caring for them when they return home.

Mr. Speaker, it is easy to tell where President Bush's priorities lie when you look at his proposed fiscal year 2008 budget. It is with big business and the wealthiest 1 percent.

This proposed budget is fiscally irresponsible, creating trillions of dollars in new deficit, but it is also morally irresponsible for slashing funding for Medicare, education, energy, homeland security and veterans.

The President's budget slashes Medicare and Medicaid funding by about $300 billion over the next 10 years, without offering relief to millions of Americans without health insurance. The Bush budget also cuts funds for renewable energy grants, despite his State of the Union pledge to tackle our Nation's energy crisis. He even reduces State homeland security preparedness grants. Perhaps worst of all, the Bush budget cuts veterans health care by $3.5 billion.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats will put the needs of working families first in our budget in the coming weeks.

Madam Speaker, I rise here today to honor an outstanding resident of the City of Hoboken. Richard Del Boccio is retiring after 40 years of dedicated service as an educator and public official.

Mr. Del Boccio, who was born and raised in Hoboken, began his career in education in the early 1960s, and for 15 years made his mark in the lives of thousands of students as Principal of the Salvatore Calabro School. Later, as Interim Superintendent, Adjunct Professor at St. Peter's College and State Appointed Principal Mentor, he continued to mold and oversee the Hoboken School System, inspiring students and faculty alike, and setting and example for young minds to follow.

Richard Del Boccio's teaching and mentoring led him to fight for the improvement of his community as a public official. Elected Hoboken Councilman at Large, he became involved in the betterment of his native city and the lives of his constituents. Mr. Del Boccio became City Council President and retires as Councilman of the Second Ward of the City of Hoboken.

Mr. Del Boccio cemented his commitment to public service by being a member of various community organizations, including the Hoboken Memorial September 11th and Pier C Park Waterfront Steering Committees, and taking active rolls as Co-Chairman of the Youth Advisory Committee and Co-Founder of the Neighborhood Block Watch Committee. His dedication won him the Christopher Columbus Award for Community Service in 2005.

It is my privilege and honor to recognize Richard Del Boccio for his dedication to Hoboken and the people of New Jersey. I ask that my colleagues join me in wishing him, his wife, children, and grandchildren continued health and happiness in the future.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of this resolution on behalf of the 32,000 men and women from my State of New Jersey, and all the other servicemen and women that have been deployed since 9/11. I am so proud of their sacrifice and service to our Nation, and I will continue and always support them. After all, I am standing in front of you as a product of the sacrifices our soldiers have made in the name of liberty and freedom throughout the history of this country.

I also rise on behalf of my constituents, the people of New Jersey, and the people of this Nation whose tax dollars are paying for this war in Iraq. Since the beginning of the war, $379 billion has been appropriated. Another $235 billion is slated for the upcoming supplemental appropriations. We are currently spending $8 billion a month in Iraq, and the American people are footing the bill.

All this money could have been used to declare war on some of our domestic problems here at home such as poverty, improving our schools, ensuring access to health care and investing in affordable housing. This money could have been used to invest in our children, our family, our veterans, and especially our elderly. But it wasn't.

Instead, American taxpayers have also committed more than $38 billion

to Iraq reconstruction. About 33 percent of this money is targeted for infrastructure projects like roads, sanitation, water, electric power and oil production. However, I am concerned that only 25 percent of the Iraqi population has access to drinkable water.

I am concerned that of the 136 sanitation and water projects, only 49 are said to be completed. I am concerned that the residents of Baghdad only have 4\1/2\ hours of electricity per day. And I am concerned that the current oil production in Iraq is half of what it was prior to the war.

Since the reconstruction project started, the Coalition Provisional Authority can't account for almost $9 billion of the taxpayers' money. Every year, $4 billion has been lost because of lack of oversight.

There have also been many problems with poor project and quality management. For example, the Baghdad Police College cost $75 million, and it was built without the proper plumbing for waste water. It has become a health and a structural hazard. The Basrah Children's Hospital is running $48 million over budget and is a year behind schedule. And after spending $186 million, Parsons has only 6 of the 150 planned health care centers completed and only 14 more will be finished. The list goes on and on.

Madam Speaker, the Iraqi Government says $100 billion is needed over the next 4 years to rebuild the country's infrastructure. Madam Speaker, the Iraqi Government seems to think they have open access to U.S. dollars. The Iraqi Government and the Iraqi people must take responsibility and help rebuild their country. Our support is not open- ended, and neither are our tax dollars.

Madam Speaker, I support this resolution and this debate because our troops and our constituents can no longer afford to have this Congress support the administration's failed Iraqi policies. They failed to give us the necessary oversight for Iraq reconstruction efforts, they failed to listen to the advice of the military commanders, they failed to listen to the American people, and, as a result, they failed to provide a plan to success in Iraq.

Mr. Speaker, since the beginning of the war in Iraq, congressional Republicans have stood on the sidelines as the Bush administration proved time and time again that it could not manage the war.

When Democrats took control of Congress we vowed things will be different. Mr. Speaker, we are living up to that promise. In the last month, House and Senate committees have held 52 hearings on the war in Iraq. Congress is finally asking the tough questions of this administration.

This week each of us has an opportunity to speak on the President's troop surge. Every single Member of this House will have 5 minutes to speak on the resolution. The House has not debated the issue of war like this since the first gulf war in 1991.

Mr. Speaker, the American people want Congress to take its oversight responsibility seriously. And this new Democratic Congress is doing just that.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share my thoughts on the Department of Housing and Urban Development fiscal year 2008 budget. In my opinion, it is disgraceful. This budget cuts vital housing assistance programs, leaving low-income families, elderly and the disabled out in the cold.

The President's request cuts the Community Development Block Grant by 20 percent, cuts public housing programs by 7 percent, cuts disabled housing programs by 47 percent, and cuts elderly housing programs by 22 percent. The budget eliminated entirely the HOPE VI housing program, among others.

At the same time, the President also cuts the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program by 56 percent. So with both cuts to housing and the heating assistance programs, the President will leave the most vulnerable out in the cold. I hope that this Congress will act with more thought by appropriating more funding for these vital programs.

Mr. Speaker, as President Bush moves forward with his unpopular plan to send an additional 22,000 troops to Iraq, it is crucial that this Congress take a hard look at how this surge affects our national security throughout the rest of the world.

Last week, General James Conway, the Marine Corps Commandant, told the House Armed Services Committee that if troops were needed somewhere else in the world, the response would be a lot slower than we might like. Army Chief of Staff Peter Schoomaker went as far as saying that pooling resources for troops in Iraq limits our ability to respond to emerging strategic contingencies.

Mr. Speaker, after hearing all these warnings from military officials about the President's escalation plan, Congress must step in and voice its opposition in the name of protecting our national security. The days of rubber stamping the President's war plans are over.