Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, Indiana lost one of its finest this weekend. I was deeply saddened to learn of Julia Carson's passing and my thoughts and prayers are with her family during this difficult time.

I have known Julia for more than 20 years, and am a better person for it. She was a dear friend and her spirit will unarguably live on not only in the halls of Congress, but in the neighborhoods of Indianapolis where she touched the lives of so many. She had an enormous presence in Indianapolis and was always striving to help those in need.

Julia embodied the true meaning of a ``liberal''--a woman who was always fighting for those without a voice. She championed civil rights and walked alongside Martin Luther King, Jr., fighting for equality. She was to me, and so many others, a true hero.

Julia was not only proud to be a Member of Congress and represent the fine people of Indianapolis, but she was constantly amazed at how far she had come. As many know, Julia had a difficult upbringing but only used those experiences to strengthen and shape her political views. Julia constantly reminded us all how fortunate we are to be Members of Congress.

I will miss Julia very much. But, her spirit will live on for decades to come. She was a truly faithful person and took much comfort in that. I am so honored to have known Julia for so many years and to have worked so closely with her. She leaves behind a legacy of charity, service and an unwavering commitment to helping others.

Madam Speaker, I think it's a true testament to how people felt about Julia Carson based upon the fact that the hour has expired allotting time for her colleagues to get up here to say a few kind words about her and now we are in overtime and the hour is over and we still have colleagues on the House floor who want to take the time to eulogize our friend and colleague Julia Carson.

I have known Julia for over 25 years. In this business of politics, you have friends and then you have allies. I can, with a great deal of assurance, tell my colleagues here that Julia was a friend, not just an ally. She was that, too. But I came from a small town in southern Indiana to the Indiana legislature back in 1982; and one of the first people I ever met was from the great city, the large city of Indianapolis, Indiana: Julia Carson. And I will be honest with you from the rural community and the kind of sheltered atmosphere of southern Indiana and small-town Indiana, I, quite frankly, didn't know how to take Julia Carson when I first met her. She was something else. But as the years went by and I had the time to serve with Julia both in the legislature and now here in Congress, I had come to love Julia Carson, a true friend. Not just a colleague, but a true friend.

We have all heard the stories about how she was revered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Indianapolis Star was the newspaper there, and there was some friction between Julia and the Indianapolis Star because the Indianapolis Star was basically a Republican-leaning newspaper. So there were moments between the Indianapolis Star and Julia. But just recently the headline in the Indianapolis Star, and it was a large headline, said: ``A Warrior for Indianapolis.'' And that's exactly what she was.

She was one of a kind. She had grace and she had flair, and she had a great sense of humor. She was a Hoosier to the core. She was the epitome of everything that Indiana is. And we will miss her.

I come to this microphone today with mixed emotions: sadness by the loss of Julia, but also a sense of good memories that we have about Julia Carson. The one thread that all of us have been speaking about and I will speak about it too was Julia was a champion, a champion for the downtrodden and the poor. She made no excuses that she was a liberal in the good sense of the word. She wanted to make life better for all Americans, not just a select few.

Julia, we'll miss you.

I do believe that when she walked into the pearly white gates, as Congressman Rush said, that the angels applauded.

Well done, Julia. We love you and we miss you.

I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.

Madam Speaker, we have a lot of Blue Dogs here this evening to talk about this issue because Blue Dogs feel very passionate about PAYGO rules and our national debt. The national debt exceeds over $9 trillion. One of the largest expenditures in our Nation's budget, second or third only to military spending, is the interest that we pay on that national debt.

Now, we are at a critical time because now we are at a stage of the legislative process where the rubber meets the road. As has already been mentioned here, there is a large issue looming next year for millions of Americans, and that issue is the alternative minimum tax. The alternative minimum tax was passed many years ago with the idea that only the wealthy who didn't pay any income taxes ought not to have that advantage, and so the alternative minimum tax was put in place. Little did we know when it was passed many years ago that we would advance up to 2007, which is the present time, and we would find that next year when people have to pay their income taxes, they will learn that many middle-class Americans will have to pay this tax as well.

So not only the wealthy will have to pay the alternative minimum tax but also many millions of middle-class people will have to pay the AMT. We need to fix that. And the Blue Dogs are committed to making sure that we provide tax relief for those millions of middle-class Americans who are going to be hit with this tax next year.

But this is where the rubber meets the road, because by giving millions of middle-class Americans tax relief, it's going to cost more than $50 billion. We have got to figure out a way to pay for that because in this House, we have pay-as-you-go rules, which simply means that if we are going to cut taxes or we are going to increase spending, we have got to figure out a way to pay for it. The many Blue Dogs here this evening are here passionately to make sure that we hold our ground because a storm is brewing here, Madam Speaker.

By passing this new alternative minimum tax, there are those in this Chamber and those in the other Chamber who do not want to pay for it. And the Blue Dogs stand before you today in front of America to make sure that we have the political courage to pay for this tax relief for millions of Americans in this country. Because if we don't do this, that $9 trillion that we are already in debt increases to $10 trillion and $11 trillion and then $12 trillion, and it goes on and on and on and on.

There are those in this body and the other who don't believe that this is an important enough issue and therefore we should ignore the PAYGO rules. That's the storm that is brewing in the next couple of days. And the Blue Dogs stand before the American people to say that we are still going to fight the battle of making sure that we restore fiscal discipline to this body. And that's the reason why so many passionate Blue Dogs are here this evening, because that storm is brewing. The time is ticking away. The threat of exceeding our expenditures over what we take in from income is at a threshold. And that's the reason why so many Blue Dog Democrats are here to talk about it this evening. And I hope the American people are listening.

To put it in perspective and why these rules are so important to be in place, it's important to note that since President Bush took office, the gross national debt has increased by $3.427 trillion. And since President Bush took office, we have borrowed $1.2 trillion from foreign sources. We've got to stop this madness.

Now, there are those in this body and outside this body, certain newspapers that consider themselves conservative newspapers like the Wall Street Journal, who believe that this issue is not important, that the Blue Dogs are wrong on this. We are not wrong on this. We have got to stop this madness, and we have to implement those PAYGO rules. It worked in the 1990s up until 2002 when we actually reversed our Nation's budget deficits and had surpluses. And it was because we stuck to the very rules that we are talking about tonight. And if we don't stick by these rules, then the days of deficit spending are going to return.

When the Democrats took over control of Congress in last year's elections, we promised to implement these PAYGO rules and stop the madness of these huge deficits that we had in place. And now we're on the verge of breaking the very rules that we put in place, and that is the reason why the Blue Dogs stand before you this evening.

I am proud to be a Blue Dog. I'm proud that the Blue Dogs have pushed

this issue to restore fiscal sanity to our Nation's budget. And I think it's the reason why we have so many that are about to speak about it.

I give the gentleman from Arkansas my appreciation for allowing me to speak on this very important issue.

Madam Speaker, on Wednesday, November 4, 2007, the town of Vevay, Indiana, tragically lost their first son in Iraq. SGT Kenneth R. Booker died from wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device attack while on patrol in his Stryker armored vehicle in Mukhisa, Iraq.

After graduating from Switzerland County High School in 2000, Kenneth enlisted in the Army. He had already served in Afghanistan and Iraq-- celebrating his 21st and 22nd birthdays respectively while serving overseas--before being deployed to Mukhisa, Iraq.

At one point, Sergeant Booker was assigned to military intelligence, but did not like being stuck behind a desk. He requested a transfer back to infantry duty, joining a Stryker Brigade Combat Unit. Sergeant Booker was well aware that his new unit was destined for Iraq.

Described by loved ones as having a tremendous sense of humor, constantly had fun, was good natured, and kind; Sergeant Booker was, simply put, a ``wonderful person.''

The day after Sergeant Booker's death, his mother, Becky Graham, sent a Christmas care package to her son, unknowing that he had been killed the previous day. In the care package she included a note to her son stating that if he could not be home for Christmas, Christmas would come to him.

Sergeant Booker's father always had faith that his son would be safe, but that even the best of soldiers are killed in the line of duty.

Sergeant Kenneth R. Booker was a true hero. I, with Sergeant Booker's family, the town of Vevay, and the State of Indiana mourn this brave Hoosier's premature death. His friends and loved ones are in my prayers.

Madam Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chairman, I yield myself as much time as I may consume.

Thank you, Madam Chairman, for allowing me to present this simple amendment to the MEJA Expansion and Enforcement Act.

Just yesterday, The New York Times reported that since January 2005, there have been more than 200 shootings by U.S. contractors in Iraq where the contractors fired the first shot.

This type of action on behalf of these contractors is wholly unacceptable. However, our government did not have the option to prosecute all of the bad actors, until now. I applaud the gentleman from North Carolina for introducing this bill to correct this inequity.

The bill before us would provide a mechanism to enforce complaints regarding all contractor and contractor personnel misconduct through newly created FBI Theater Investigative Units. My amendment is a simple one that would enhance the bill that would require the Director of the FBI to submit annual reports to Congress outlining the success of these Theater Investigative Units.

Specifically, the reports would include the number of reports received by the Theater Investigative Units relating to criminal misconduct by contractors or contract personnel; the number of reports received by the Theater Investigative Units relating to fatalities caused by the use of force by contractors or contract personnel; number three, the number of cases referred to the Attorney General; and, last, any statutory changes necessary for the Director to carry out the duties required by this act. Progress reports are necessary to ensure that these units are being used efficiently and appropriately.

Thank you again for the opportunity to present my amendment. I urge all of my colleagues to support my amendment and the underlying bill.

Again, I would reiterate that the author of the bill, the gentleman from North Carolina, has specifically seen the need for this kind of a bill. My amendment, I think, enhances his bill dramatically.

Madam Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Chairman, I yield the balance of my time to my good friend from North Carolina (Mr. Price).

I thank the gentleman from Arkansas for yielding his time. I also thank him for his great leadership with the Blue Dog Coalition and making sure that our message of fiscal discipline does get out.

I would like at this time to take a little history lesson about how we have gotten to the point where we are right now with a $9 trillion deficit. That figure is hard to believe, $9 trillion, our Nation's government is in debt.

Back during the 1980s, there was a Republican President who came up with an idea called supply-side economics. During the campaign of the 1980s, that candidate was criticized for this economic policy. It was claimed to be very risky.

As a matter of fact, one of the candidates that was running on the Republican side called it voodoo economics. Basically, what it was in the 1980s was a policy that would dramatically cut taxes with the idea that if we cut taxes dramatically, there would be more money that would come to the coffers of the United States Government and deficits would no longer be around.

The trouble with that is that it did not work in the 1980s. I have to say that the Democrats who were in the majority in the House and the Senate that time endorsed this concept and passed this piece of legislation into law.

So taxes were dramatically decreased, military spending went dramatically up, and deficits went dramatically up during the 1980s.

During the 1990s, this policy was rejected under a Democratic President who was elected. He was of the opinion that we needed to get our fiscal house in order. And so during the 1990s, the supply side economics theory was rejected and PAYGO rules were put into effect in the 1990s.

What happened? Those PAYGO rules worked, and around 2000 and 2001 our government, for the first time in a very long period of time, actually produced surpluses. And it was projected that these surpluses would amount to trillions of dollars, projected out in the 21st century.

Then we had another election, and the old policies of the 1980s were reinstated again, those policies in the 1980s called supply side economics that caused huge deficits. PAYGO rules were thrown out the window again, not reinstated.

And here we are again, as Mr. Davis from Tennessee has already indicated, during that time period where PAYGOs were thrown out the window and supply side economics were reinstated, we've increased our deficit by $3 trillion, and now we're facing a $9 trillion deficit. The second largest expenditure in our Nation's budget is the interest that we pay on that deficit. This has got to stop. The gentleman from Arkansas earlier said, this is crazy, and it is crazy. When the Chinese Government is buying our debt, buying our paper, loaning us their money, affecting our foreign policy, we have to get our fiscal house in order.

And I'm so proud that I'm a member of Blue Dog Democrats. I joined the Blue Dog Democrats back in 1998 when I first got elected. I served three terms, and then the good people from southern Indiana decided I needed a little bit of a rest, and I took that rest for 2 years, got reelected 2 years later, and immediately joined the fiscally responsible group called the Blue Dog Democrats, and I'm glad that I am.

Now, Blue Dogs just don't bark. They also put into place policy. And one of the things that we have done is introduce the Fiscal Honesty and Accountability Act. What does the Fiscal Accountability Act do? It reinstates statutorily the PAYGO rules that have led us out of this debt in the past and into surpluses. They were instrumental in producing the surpluses that we enjoyed in the late 1990s and the early 2000s.

This bill also closes a loophole in current law that allows almost any spending to be designated as emergency spending.

Now, for those who are listening on C-SPAN, what does that mean? You know, we can pay PAYGO rules in the House, and all PAYGO rules means is if we're going to spend extra money or we're going to reduce taxes, you've got to figure out a way to pay for it. It's pretty pure and simple, but it requires discipline.

One of the ways that Congress gets around the PAYGO rules is by enacting spending measures. For example, we may have an emergency spending measure on the war in Iraq.

Well, Members of Congress from both parties use that spending measure to insert other nonrelated emergency spending measures into the emergency spending in order to get around the PAYGO rules. The Fiscal Honesty and Accountability Act will stop that practice; and it's the Blue Dogs who are leading the charge and making sure that we stop playing games with our Nation's budget, because we really do have to get serious here now about doing something about our Nation's budget. It's swirling out of control. I think most people are shocked when they learn that the Chinese Government is buying a lot of our debt in this country, affecting our foreign policy. This kind of practice needs to stop. And the Blue Dogs are leading the charge in making sure that it does get stopped by passing the Fiscal Accountability and Honesty Act.

Now, other things that we are doing, we're offering a balanced budget amendment and we're trying to pass a resolution strengthening the budget process. When I talk about the Blue Dogs are not just about bark but about policy as well, I mean it. We're putting our actions where our words are, and we're here tonight to talk about that and to ask the Congress to pass the Fiscal Honesty and Accountability Act, which implements PAYGO rules and stops the clowning around with emergency spending measures.

So, Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to have this opportunity to join my fellow Blue Dogs to talk about fiscal responsibility. I applaud the leadership of the Blue Dogs on this particular issue. We're going to keep on barking. We're going to keep on implementing policy. I thank the gentleman from Arkansas for yielding me this time, and I yield back my time to him.

Madam Speaker, 2007 marks the 150th anniversary of the town of French Lick, Indiana. Many of my colleagues in Congress may recognize the town's name as the birthplace of one of basketball's finest, Larry Bird. But, those of us who have had the pleasure of spending time in French Lick know it for much more. I am looking forward to celebrating French Lick's Sesquicentennial with its residents this coming weekend when the festivities commence on Friday, September 28,

2007. The celebration will feature an array of events, such as the Queen's Ball, Historic Home Tours, Commemorative Post Mark, Pumpkin Festival Parade, Carnival Rides, Historic Train Rides, Time Capsule Dedication, live musical performances, art show, and golf tournament.

French Lick has a long and distinguished history. In the 1800s, as pioneers began settling the Indiana Territory, one of the few roads connecting Louisville and Vincennes was the buffalo trail through current day French Lick. Several pioneers established hotels and other business trades along the route, leading to the founding of French Lick in 1857. Some of these early residents included the likes of Dr. William Bowles, who constructed the first health resort sometime between 1840 and 1845; Charles Edward Ballard, the town's most famous entrepreneur known for his successful management of saloons and casino operations; and Ferdinand and Henry Cross, brothers whose artistic talents enriched the lives on travels to the town. Henry's work would later be used for the sketch of the buffalo on the United States nickel.

The tourist demand for French Lick's magical, health-rejuvenating water led to the construction and remodeling of the French Lick Hotel. One of the hotel's most famous owners was a resourceful entrepreneur named Thomas Taggart. Taggart, who served in several elected positions including as Mayor of Indianapolis and as a U.S. Senator, also lead the State Democratic Party beginning in 1892 and the National Democratic Party in 1905. After fire destroyed part of the original hotel, it was Taggart that expanded and rebuilt the facility with its trademark yellow brick, six story front. Thousand of travelers flocked to the new hotel as a resort destination prior to traveling to other destinations or attending popular events such as the Kentucky Derby in nearby Louisville, KY.

The mineral springs of the French Lick area brought many travelers to the region, but it was the gambling that established the Spring Valley as the leisure destination during the first half of the twentieth century. Although seen as a ``victimless crime'' to many, gambling was illegal and in the late 1940s raids on several casinos ended the practice in the area. The resulting loss of tourism to the area created an economic hardship in the region and the French Lick Hotel passed among several owners. It was in the late 1990s that residents of the town and surrounding region, aided by Historical Preservationist such as William Cook, began restoring the Grand Hotels of the area. Coupled with the legalization of gaming in 2003, the French Lick Springs Resort Hotel and town has returned to its formed grandeur as a resort and leisure destination.

Congratulations French Lick on this historical occasion. All Hoosiers look forward to seeing how this unique and wonderful town develops for decades to come.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 593) congratulating scientists F. Sherwood Rowland, Mario Molina, and Paul Crutzen for their work in atmospheric chemistry, particularly concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone, that led to the development of the Montreal Protocol on Substances That Deplete the Ozone Layer.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H. Res. 593, the resolution now under consideration.

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

I rise today in support of House Resolution 593, legislation that congratulates scientists Frank Sherwood Rowland, Mario Molina, and Paul Crutzen for their work in atmospheric chemistry concerning the formation and decomposition of ozone.

In 1973, Frank Sherwood Rowland and Mario Molina began studying the impacts of CFCs in the Earth's atmosphere at the University of California, Irvine. The chemists discovered that CFC molecules were stable enough to remain in the atmosphere until they reached the middle of the stratosphere. There the molecules would finally be broken down by ultraviolet radiation, releasing a chlorine atom.

Rowland and Molina proposed that these chlorine atoms might be expected to cause the breakdown of large amounts of ozone (O3) in the stratosphere. Their argument was based upon an analogy to contemporary work by Paul J. Crutzen, which had shown that nitric oxide could catalyze the destruction of ozone.

Drs. Crutzen, Molina and Rowland were awarded the 1995 Nobel prize for

chemistry for their work on this problem. The Montreal Protocol was a landmark international agreement designed to protect the stratospheric ozone layer. The treaty was originally signed in 1987 and subsequently amended in 1990 and 1992. The protocol stipulated that the production of compounds that deplete ozone in the stratosphere, including chlorofluorocarbons, were to be phased out by the year 2000.

The work of Dr. Rowland, Dr. Molina, and Dr. Crutzen was vital to the development of the Montreal Protocol, the reduction of ozone depleting compounds, and the restoration of our atmosphere. I applaud their work and ask that my colleagues support this resolution which thanks them for their important contributions to science.

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

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1657) to establish a Science and Technology Scholarship Program to award scholarships to recruit and prepare students for careers in the National Weather Service and in National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration marine research, atmospheric research, and satellite programs.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 1657, the bill now under consideration.

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

I rise today in support of H.R. 1657, legislation that establishes a science and technology scholarship program. This program will award scholarships to recruit and prepare students for careers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, better known as NOAA, related to weather, atmospheric, marine, and satellite research.

There is a growing concern that too few American students pursue science, math, and engineering degrees. H.R. 1657 provides incentives to study in these areas and go on to work at NOAA. The bill is based upon the Robert Noyce Scholarship program at the National Science Foundation.

I applaud the foresight of my colleague, Representative Rohrabacher, in introducing this important legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill on the floor today.

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

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

Madam Speaker, H.R. 3106 would rename the post office in Ferdinand, Indiana after David Nord, the only Vietnam veteran from Ferdinand who was killed in action in the Vietnam War. This idea first came to my attention because of the hard work of David's family and his friends. They called me. This bill represents what we, as Members of our Congress, are here for, and that is to represent our constituents back home. I'd like to thank and recognize a few people who have been influential in getting this accomplished. First I would like to recognize David Nord's brother Dan and the rest of the family David left behind, including his son, David Nord II. Dan has been very active in making sure his brother's life is remembered and honored.

Like Dan, Frank Begle, a fellow soldier of David Nord's in Vietnam, has been a driving force in getting the Ferdinand post office renamed to honor David Nord.

Also Kathy Tretter, the editor and co-publisher of the local paper in Ferdinand, population of about 800 or 900 people. The Ferdinand News contacted my staff about this effort after working on stories about David's life.

I would also like to thank my colleagues in the Indiana delegation for all cosponsoring this bill.

Let me take a moment to touch on why the post office in downtown Ferdinand should be renamed to honor David Nord. David Nord is the only Ferdinand native who was killed in Vietnam. He was drafted into the Army, and in talking to his younger brother Dan, David was not very excited about having to go to Vietnam. But he did his duty to his country, and for that we give him thanks.

David rose quickly through the Army ranks because of his hard work and skill. And when he returned home briefly in 1969, he came home to marry his long-time girlfriend. Unfortunately, and tragically, shortly thereafter, David returned to Vietnam and was killed on Monday, June 23, 1969, when a tank he was commanding had to stop because the rubber tracker which propelled the vehicle forward slipped from its drive wheels and David was hit by a grenade. He died instantly, as well as most of his crew.

David's son was born just a few months after his death, and David, I know right now, is trying to get to a television screen to see his father being honored here this afternoon.

A friend from Ferdinand who was stationed in the same unit as David tells stories about how David used to give starving Vietnamese women and children his Army rations. That was the kind of guy that he was.

David left behind his parents, his wife, his younger brother and a son he never met.

Staff Sergeant David Nord was honored with the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Vietnamese Campaign Good Conduct Ribbon, Combat Infantry Badge, National Defense Service Ribbon, Vietnam Service Medal, Expert Badge with Rifle Bar, and Sharpshooter Badge with Rifle Bar.

His family still lives in Ferdinand, Indiana, as well as his son David Nord, Jr. Clearly, David deserves this recognition, and it's an honor for me to introduce this resolution. And I urge all of my colleagues to support this very important bill for David Nord and his family and for the city and town of Ferdinand, Indiana.

Mr. Speaker, when I was campaigning last year for this seat in Congress, we talked about a lot of issues. We talked about Iraq. We talked about global warming. But we also talked about a very important issue on ethics. Ethics in Congress. It is disappointing to me that people in Indiana and around the country don't have a lot of respect for Members of Congress. I think our approval rating right now is at 23 percent. And one of the reasons why the approval rate is at 23 percent is because we're not doing a very good job in Congress in investigating the wrongdoings of a few Members.

And I want to emphasize it's just a few Members. Because most Members in this August body are honorable people. But there are a few that are spoiling the basket. We need to do a better job of policing the Congress of the United States. And so one of the things that I have done and one of the campaign promises that I want to keep that I made during the campaign last year is making sure that we clean up our act in Congress. One of the ways that we do that is changing the way we govern ourselves here in Congress. Right now in Congress, the Ethics Committee has a hard time with investigating Members of Congress because they are our colleagues. It's kind of like investigating members of your own family. It's hard to do. It's just natural that Members of Congress are reluctant to investigate the wrongdoings of their own Members. And so I think we need a change. We need to have an independent body of members who are investigating the minor wrongdoings of Members of Congress. And so I propose and have introduced legislation that would set up a new committee of Congress, of former Members of Congress who know this institution, who respect this institution, who will do the investigations that need to be done about a few Members of Congress who are misbehaving.

This new body would have subpoena powers. They would have all the powers that the present Ethics Committee has to them now, but they would be independent. And that's what we need. We need an independent committee that would investigate the wrongdoings of a few Members of Congress. We need to make this bipartisan. We need to restore the respect and honor of this Congress. A 23 percent approval rating is not acceptable and we need to do a better job. I believe that having former Members of Congress on a committee to investigate the wrongdoings of a few, and I emphasize a few Members of Congress, is the way to go. We need to make progress on this. We need to do this. We're going into the August recess. I hope that when we come back after the August recess that we will actually implement and pass into law an independent body of former Members of Congress to investigate those people who are doing what they should not be doing and that we can get about the business of restoring the integrity of Congress. I think it's very important.

I've been in politics for 20 years. It's an honor for me to serve in this body, and to think that only 23 percent of the people have faith and confidence in the Congress is not acceptable. I believe that setting up an independent committee of former Members of Congress can help at least restore some of the integrity that we have lost in Congress.

Madam Speaker, my hometown of Seymour, Indiana, has lost one of its finest. Although Carter A. Gamble, Jr. was born and raised in Georgia, he called Southern Indiana home for a short while. Carter Gamble was tragically killed in Iraq Sunday. My deepest condolences go to his family--his wife, Peggy, his children, including one on the way, his extended family, particularly Jackson County Sheriff Marc Lahrman and Carter's grandparents, Bob and Helen Lahrman. Carter served this country so notably and honorably. He was deployed to Iraq twice, the second time reenlisting in the Army knowing he would likely be sent to Iraq. I thank him for his unwavering commitment to our great Nation. I thank his family for loving and supporting him. Carter will be greatly missed and was taken much too soon from his young and growing family. Let us all keep Carter Gamble and his family in our constant thoughts and prayers.

Madam Speaker, on Monday evening, June 18, 2007, the community of Floyd County, Indiana, experienced a tragic event that resulted in the loss of two lives. Two members of the Floyd County Sheriff's

Department, Frank Denzinger and Joel White, were shot when they arrived on the scene at a home to which they had been called. Deputy Sheriff Denzinger did not survive the shooting, Deputy Sheriff White was seriously injured, and later that evening, police discovered that the teenage boy who shot them had also fatally shot himself. This small, southern Indiana community has not experienced a tragedy of this proportion in decades, and is still reeling from it. I would like to first of all commend the noble work, day in and day out, of the Floyd County Sheriff's Department and all of our local law enforcement in Indiana. I would like to offer my sincere condolences to Deputy Sheriff Denzinger's family and friends. Frank Denzinger, 32, of Lanseville, Indiana, leaves behind a loving wife, Tara, and young daughter, Avery Grace. Frank was known as not only a loyal peer to his fellow law enforcement agents, but also to his family. He was taken much too soon from his wife and daughter. I want to thank Deputy Sheriff Denzinger and his family for their service to our community, as well as remind all Hoosiers to pray for both the Denzinger and White families.

Madam Speaker, on Sunday night, June 3, 2007, the U.S. House of Representatives lost one of its own, a distinguished gentleman from Southern Indiana. Former Congressman Earl Lee Hogan passed away Sunday evening, leaving behind a notable career of public service to Hoosiers. Born in 1920 in Hope, Indiana, Earl Hogan represented the Ninth District of southern Indiana from 1959 to 1961. As a young man, Congressman Hogan served his country as a bombardier on a B-17 in the Air Force, from 1940 to 1945. During his Air Force career, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, and Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters. Congressman Hogan had a long career in law enforcement in Bartholomew County, serving first as deputy sheriff and then sheriff. Following his congressional service, Congressman Hogan took several positions focusing on rural development and agricultural issues. I thank Congressman Hogan and his family for their commitment and dedication to public service and all that they have given to the people of Southern Indiana. Congressman Hogan will be missed, but he leaves behind a record of service that speaks volumes about this honorable man.

Mr. Speaker, today the House will consider H.R. 1716, the Green Energy Education Act. As the lead Democratic sponsor of this bill, I am pleased that it has moved so quickly through committee. I believe its rapid movement onto the floor of the House for a vote is indicative of the bill's importance and timely subject matter.

H.R. 1716 promotes the design and construction of energy efficient buildings by authorizing the Department of Energy to partner with the National Science Foundation (NSF) in support of multidisciplinary graduate education and curriculum development activities that will enhance the DOE's broad energy technology development mission. By working with the NSF, DOE will help develop the next generation of engineers and architects to work effectively together to produce buildings and incorporating the latest in energy efficient technologies.

Buildings in the U.S. consume a disproportionate share of our energy and electricity. We must do something to make our buildings more energy efficient and friendly to the environment. In fact, buildings in the U.S. consume more energy than any other sector of the country, including industry and transportation. According to 2003 U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) statistics, U.S. buildings consume 39 percent of our nation's primary energy and 70 percent of electricity.

We need to do everything we can to address the harmful things we are doing to the environment. This bill is a step in that direction--making buildings more energy efficient and less stressful on our energy and electrical supplies. And, it will save businesses considerable sums of money in the long run.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote for this important bill and take a step forward in easing our dependence on foreign and harmful energy sources.