Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the passage of this legislation, the Traumatic Brain Injury Reauthorization Act of 2014.

I want to thank Chairman Upton and Ranking Member Waxman; Chairman Pitts; my friend from New Jersey, Ranking Member Pallone; and Mr. Gene Green of Texas for their thoughtful consideration and support for millions of traumatic brain injury survivors and their families. Additionally, I want to thank my fellow cochair of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force, Congressman Tom Rooney of Florida, for his leadership on this important issue as well.

Throughout my 13 years working on this issue, I have witnessed firsthand how these programs make a difference in people's lives.

You have heard the numbers, but let's go beyond the numbers. Traumatic brain injury has become the signature wound of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Twenty percent of our soldiers deployed are estimated to have experienced a brain injury. Many returning servicemembers suffering from TBI will receive care and rehabilitation services within the Department of Defense and Veterans Affairs.

But others suffering from TBIs that are initially undiagnosed or misdiagnosed will later look to the civilian community and local resources for information and service. That is why it is essential that we continue to foster civilian-military collaboration, like the Department of Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, to build a system that ensures returning troops receive what they need to put their lives back together again.

Unfortunately, TBI remains the silent epidemic in this country. That is why the legislation today is so critical.

The TBI Act is the only legislation that specifically allocates Federal funds for programs supporting individuals with brain injury.

Originally passed in 1996 and reauthorized in 2000 and 2008, the TBI Act represents a foundation for coordinated and balanced public policy on prevention, education, research, and community living for people living with TBI and their circles of support.

And it has produced results. For nearly 18 years, the Traumatic Brain Injury Act has successfully provided direction and legal authority for the vast traumatic brain injury community.

Grants within the TBI Act have helped States improve access to health and other services for persons with TBI. Prior to this law, they did not have the tools to even assess their own needs.

Thanks to the TBI Act and its directive to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we now have a record of incidents, including details and prevalence, plans for prevention, and, finally, access to treatment. We have also begun to educate the public and provide much- needed scientific data for our scientists, health care providers, and policymakers.

Additionally, under this act, the National Institutes of Health is conducting basic and applied research in TBI, making great strides in our knowledge of the brain and the impact of TBI. Mr. Speaker, this is in direct correlation to the President's BRAIN Initiative. We keep on meeting together to explore this new horizon, which I think is going to dramatically have very positive consequences.

The Traumatic Brain Injury Reauthorization Act of 2014 will elevate the TBI program within Health and Human Services by moving the program from Maternal and Child Health's Children's Program, in acknowledgement of the impact of TBI across the age span, including older adults and returning servicemembers and veterans. Our intention is for the program to be relocated to the Administration on Community Living to better coordinate with Federal agencies regarding the long-term services and support available to individuals with other disabilities.

Brain injury survivors from all walks of life, and their families, look to community and local resources for all types of information and assistance. Regardless of the source of the injury, this legislation will ensure the framework, the information and research resources, are available to help.

Mr. Speaker, only a strong commitment will allow us to continue the incredible advances we have made in the area of basic brain injury: prevention, detection, early treatment, physical and mental rehabilitation, long-term care, and patient advocacy issues.

I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this important bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Honorable Gary F. Giardina who, after 36 years of service to the people of Clifton as a member of the Clifton Police Force, is being honored for his retirement on Sunday, June 1, 2014. A life-long resident of the City of Clifton, Gary Giardina devoted 36 years to the community that raised him, most notably serving 4 years as Clifton's 9th Police Chief. I am extremely proud to represent such a noble and committed individual in the 9th Congressional District, and I am extremely grateful for the service Chief Giardina has contributed to our community.

Chief Giardina's passion for public service began in his teenage years, when he began training in 1978 through the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act. His extraordinary work ethic and enthusiasm for public service earned him a permanent spot in the Clifton Police Department a few short years later. Not long after his appointment to the force, his success was dampened by a traumatic injury when he was run over by a vehicle traveling on Route 3. Doctors concluded that the damage would render his entire right arm permanently useless. However, his prognosis could not stop his passion for public service; he was determined to return to the police force. He was finally able to return to the force after enduring a long brutal battle through physical therapy. While life continued to present obstacles for then-officer Giardina his resilience persisted, even through lay-offs, demotions, and even brushes with death until 1988, when he was finally recognized for his incredible tenacity and was appointed to the Narcotics and Patrol Division and promoted to Sergeant.

Over the next decade his skill as a leader would earn the respect of his fellow officers and propel him to the rank of Lieutenant where he would assume command of the Community Policing Division in 1997. He was then given the rank of Captain and assigned to Field Operations in 2002. As head of the Field Operations Bureau, he was responsible for the Patrol, Traffic, and Communications Divisions which collectively made up the largest component of officers in the department until he would reach the pinnacle of his career when he was appointed as the Chief of Police in 2010.

During Chief Giardina's long career he was also able to continue his education and eam a Masters of Administrative Science degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and a Baccalaureate degree from Jersey City State College of Criminal Justice. Chief Giardina is also a National and State Certified Public Manager. He has always been a strong believer in open communication and cooperation, not only within the department but also with other City, County, State, and Federal Departments. Chief Giardina has always said, ``There are no unimportant jobs or people in this agency. Evetyone plays an essential role in success of this Police Department''. This type leadership is what has made Clifton, New Jersey a safe and welcoming place to live.

As Co-Chair of the Congressional Law Enforcement Caucus, I have been honored to work first-hand with him on a long list of public safety issues in my district. Chief Gary Giardina has always exemplified the virtues that merit all of his accomplishments. He has been a leader, a mentor, and friend to many of us and I am honored to have worked with a man of such integrity.

The job of a United States Congressman involves much that is rewarding, yet nothing compares to recognizing and commemorating the achievements of individuals such as Chief Gary F. Giardina.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that you join our colleagues, Chief Giardina's coworkers, family and friends, all those whose lives he has touched, and me, in recognizing the career of Chief Gary F. Giardina.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to thank my friend, Rabbi Stephen Roth, a resident of the Ninth Congressional District of New Jersey, for offering the opening prayer before the House of Representatives.

Rabbi Roth hails from Brooklyn, New York City, and was ordained in 1972 by the Brooklyn Rabbinical Seminary. For 20 years, he served as the founding rabbi of Congregation Eitz Chaim in Passaic, New Jersey, inspiring and guiding countless members of his congregation.

In addition to his work as a teacher, mentor, and counselor in his community, Rabbi Roth also served as the softball coach for the Torah Academy of Bergen County, as well as the Kushner Yeshiva High School. Rabbi Roth has, no doubt, served his community so well, thanks to the loving support of his wife of nearly 35 years, Fern, who is with us today, as well as his three children and 13 grandchildren.

So on behalf of the United States Congress and my constituents in New Jersey, I want to thank my friend Rabbi Roth for serving as guest chaplain in the House of Representatives today.

Madam Chair, I move to strike the last word.

Madam Chair, I just want to say to Frank Wolf: you are good man, and I wish you the best of luck. You raised the respect of this institution, and that is pretty difficult to do nowadays, Frank. I wish you the best of luck.

As cosponsor of this amendment, along with some others, I want to thank all of those folks who came aboard. We have to struggle every 2 or 3 years. I think it is the responsibility that we, in some way, support our local communities, our county sheriff departments.

The COPS program has been a great success. In fact, the two most effective and efficient programs in the Congress of the United States are the COPS program and the fire program--FIRE Act. We know where every dime is going, we know how it is spent, but we certainly couldn't accept a 61 percent cut for a fiscal year.

So this is going to allow us, Madam Chair, to hire over 1,000 police officers. God knows we need them. When we take our oaths, some of us who have had good fortune every 2 years, God willing, the first thing we talk about is defending the United States, defending the Constitution, and defending against attacks from the outside, as well as inside. We have an obligation and responsibility.

So we are taking this very, very seriously. The gentleman from Washington and I were the cochairs of public safety in the Congress, and we work on this all year around, not just budget time.

So I am proud to work with the Congressman from Washington, and I thank, wholeheartedly, the gentleman from Virginia and wish him the best of luck. You have made a big difference in this Congress, and I mean that sincerely.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Chair, I rise today to discuss an important issue facing our troops--primary blast injury and its connection to traumatic brain injury.

TBI has become the ``signature wound'' of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with 20% soldiers deployed are estimated to have experienced a brain injury. I would like to thank Chairman McKeon and Ranking Member Smith for their commitment to this issue in recent authorizations.

As Co-Chair and Co-Founder of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force, I have spent the last thirteen years fighting for patients with brain injuries, both on and off the battlefield. We all know that traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the signature wound of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and while we made great progress on ensuring our soldiers have the best care, there is still more work to be done.

The high rate of TBI and blast-related concussion events resulting from current combat operations directly impacts the health and safety of individual service members, and subsequently the level of unit readiness and troop retention. The Department of Defense (DoD) is actively seeking strategies to prevent, mitigate, and treat blast- related injuries, including TBI.

Since I began working on this issue, our knowledge of the brain has expanded at an incredible pace. In recent years, we have made strong investments in TBI research. The DoD's Peer-Reviewed Psychological Health and TBI Research Program conducts extensive research on TBI; however, little is known about primary blast injury and its connection to TBI. Primary blast injury occurs when an explosion generates a blast wave traveling faster than sound and creating a surge of high pressure immediately followed by a vacuum. Studies show that the blast wave shoots through armor and soldiers' skulls and brains, even if it doesn't draw blood. Researchers still do not know the exact mechanisms by which primary blast injuries damages the brain's cells and circuits. However, the blast wave's pressure has been show to compress the torso, impacting blood vessels, which then send damaging energy pulses into the brain. The pressure can also be transferred partially through the skull, interacting with the brain.

My amendment would direct the Department of Defense to conduct a study on blast injury mechanics covering a wide range of primary blast injury conditions, including TBI. Understanding how a primary blast injury affects the brain is imperative to developing appropriate prevention measures, including ensuring proper equipment. I was glad to see this amendment pass the House last night, and I hope that it will be adopted in the final bill after negotiations with the Senate.

Mr. Chair, this budget is fundamentally unserious. We have heard this now for 4 years in a row. My friends on the other side of the aisle come down to the floor with their draconian budget claiming they are reluctantly forced to make tough decisions because the specter of a debt crisis is right around the corner--this, despite the fact that our deficit is falling at the fastest rate since the end of the Second World War. We said this: we would do it, and we did it.

This supposedly looming debt crisis is going to be so incredibly bad for this country that we need to reluctantly gut programs that help low and moderate Americans to prevent it.

And you stand there and stand up there and talk to us about tax-and- spend Democrats? You can't balance your budget without the Affordable Care Act. Isn't that a honey? You have done everything to dismantle it, over 50 votes to get rid of it. Now you are using it and the revenues to balance your budget. Ho, ho, ho. How very convenient of you. Their prescription to prevent this impending disaster is exactly what their Randian world view prescribes in the first place.

Tax cuts for the wealthy paid for on the backs of those not so wealthy. Unfortunately, it leads to only one conclusion. The Republican Party does not care about our deficits.

Mr. Chair, in the words of Vice President--remember him--Dick Cheney, he proclaimed, ``Deficits don't matter.''

So, you have had a call to religion. You have come back. Your budget, the deficit is simply an excuse to cut the social safety net. So I say, let's vote down this phony budget and get on with the real thing, Mr. Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this legislation. This is an illusion, another one.

The NCAA Men's Basketball National Championship game is tonight. I know that many of my colleagues are looking forward to watching some high-level competition from these two great squads. However, at some point, you can be assured, you will see one team's coach yelling at the referees. Guaranteed. They will be screaming in their faces, convinced that they are calling too many fouls and that they are being biased against their team. You can be assured that the coach yelling at the refs the most will be the one whose team is losing.

This is basically the same thing that is happening here on the floor today, Mr. Speaker, on this bill, and all the other so-called budget process. You can't get away from process. You don't want to talk about results. You are always talking about process, process, and process, trying to work the refs because you are losing this argument.

The ref in this case is the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. You referred to that many, many times, nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office.

The bill before us today, offered by my colleague from New Jersey, would require the Congressional Budget Office to score Federal loan guarantee programs in a way that makes them appear more expensive than they actually are. That is what you are all about.

I have served on this Budget Committee for the last 4 years. We can't do our job right if we don't have accurate estimates of what Federal programs really cost.

This bill will absolutely make our job harder by making us work with inaccurate data. In fact, all in all, the Congressional Budget Office estimates that this bill, your bill, would have increased the estimated cost of Federal credit programs in 2014, would have increased them by $50 million, all by waving your magic wand.

Now, this isn't really about finding the best technical way to measure the costs of each program. That is what you say. It is working the refs in a way that would make even Coach K proud.

It is nothing but a dishonest attempt to make worthy government programs appear more costly, so that those who are ideologically opposed to government and government spending can more easily undermine those very programs. That is what this is all about.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle don't like the Federal loan guarantee programs that help first-time homebuyers, that help less fortunate Americans pay for their education. They are willing to cook the books in order to make a better case for their elimination.

Mr. Speaker, we could do better than this. We can argue about these programs on their merits instead of resorting to budgeting sleight-of- hand, process.

I am strongly opposed to the bill. We could be voting to raise the minimum wage and give a raise to 27.8 million Americans to $10.10 per hour. That is what we should be debating on this floor.

We could finally consider the immigration reform legislation that the Senate passed nearly a year ago. We should be debating the UI-- unemployment insurance--rates to restore unemployment benefits to more than 2 million Americans, including 125,000 in our own State of New Jersey.

But, instead, we are here today considering a bill that does nothing except enable the majority's fringe ideology, pave the way for even more cuts to the most vulnerable in the future.

Will the gentleman yield?

Thank you very much to my colleague from New Jersey.

First of all, no one on this side of the aisle ever suggested that we need no rules.

See, what you are trying to do is put everyone at extremes, and that is where we are many times because you are the majority and we are the minority. And I respect that.

But don't say we don't want the rules. We fought for rules.

I thank the gentleman.

Mr. Speaker, this isn't as complicated as one would pretend it to be. First of all, the CBO says, if this was the law of the land, in other words, if this bill would have been passed by both the House and the Senate when it first came up, it would have cost us $50 billion more in the 2014 budget.

Now, I find that hard to believe that you would accept that, when you practically, the gentleman that I am speaking to right now, through the Chair, has voted ``no'' on everything under the Sun. So I find that difficult to believe.

There need to be rules, particularly in all financial matters. Those rules have a purpose.

I am telling you, this is a process question and this does not, in any manner, shape, or form enhance the passage of a budget that we can live with, we Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4278, the Ukraine Support Act.

This bill will send an important signal to the Ukrainian people that the United States of America will stand by them as they resist Russia's aggression. This is not just a symbolic gesture on our part. In addition to the condemnation of Russia's actions through targeted sanctions, this vital legislation provides assistance to stabilize Ukraine's economy and to support important anti-corruption initiatives.

As a great nation of over 45 million people and a breadbasket for Europe and the world, Ukraine has the potential to be a true economic powerhouse. But decades of mismanagement and corruption at the highest levels have stifled Ukraine's economic growth and military readiness.

This weakness has allowed Russia to bully its way into Ukraine's internal affairs--culminating in the recent invasion and annexation of Crimea. Although the world has condemning this illegal land grab, Russian actions continue to threaten Ukraine's prosperity and territorial integrity.

Our support is vital to ensuring that Ukraine has the ability to defend its sovereignty and strengthen its democracy in order to resist external coercion. By extending a hand to-Ukraine, we give them the opportunity to shake off Russia's influence once and for all. The people of Ukraine, as well as Ukrainian Americans in New Jersey and around the nation, want the United States to hold true to our values by standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine in her time of great need.

I am grateful that we can come together on a bipartisan basis to quickly bring forward this much-needed legislation. It is high time that we solidified our commitment to Ukraine. Much more remains to be done, but this bill is a step in the right direction. I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, to quote a very famous President:

There they go again.

This is an alternative universe, through the Speaker, that you are trying to create.

For years, we have been talking about how to reform SGR and how to pay for our Medicare providers. I, along with my Democratic colleagues--and some Republicans--supported past efforts to repeal and replace SGR once and for all, but we have never been able to get it done.

That changed late last year. The Energy and Commerce Committee passed unanimously a bill to repeal and replace SGR. Building on that proposal, Republicans and Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee and in the Ways and Means Committee here, which I sit on, came together and passed the bill that repeals SGR and replaces it with a payment system that rewards providers for delivering quality care to our seniors.

What you have done, through the Speaker, is to take months of thoughtful bipartisan policymaking and thrown it away in order to score some really poor and cheap political points. All you are trying to do is undermine affordable care.

What are you going to do with the 13 million people who can't get affordable care if we delay the personal mandate? You have never come up with an answer. You have never had an answer to what are you going to do about health care. All you can do is criticize and criticize.

Delaying the individual mandate will result in 13 million fewer Americans getting health insurance through the ACA and higher premiums for those with health insurance.

You want it to fail. You don't want it to succeed. You forgot what you did back 9 years ago when we passed the premium D. We went back to our districts and made it work, even though we voted against it. That is the American way.

Learn the American way. It works. Don't go on recess.

Mr. Speaker, I want to state for the record that today, March 11th, I was unavoidably detained in my district and missed several rollcall votes. Had I been present I would have voted: ``aye''--rollcall vote 115--On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass H.R. 3474--Hire More Heroes Act of 2013; ``aye''--rollcall vote 116--On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass H.R. 3979--Protecting Volunteer Firefighters and Emergency Responders Act of 2014, as amended; ``aye''--rollcall Vote 117--On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass H. Res. 499--Condemning the violation of Ukrainian sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity by military forces of the Russian Federation, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4152. This critical legislation will make Ukraine eligible for U.S. loan guarantees, helping to bolster Ukraine's struggling economy. Strong financial aid for Ukraine will send a message that the United States and the international community are backing the Ukrainian people with more than words. This step will help free Ukraine from Russia's economic coercion.

Russia's aggressive campaign to seize Ukrainian territory in the Crimean Peninsula and beyond presents a grave threat to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. This is a crucial moment for Ukraine--any misstep from either side at this moment could lead to all- out war. It is critical that the United States and the international community act decisively to support the Ukrainian people and isolate Russia for its transgressions.

I appreciate the work that the Obama Administration has already undertaken to suspend trade talks and military cooperation with Russia--as well as to assemble an economic aid package for Ukraine. It is fitting that the United States has quickly recognized the legitimacy of Ukraine's new government, reflecting the right of the Ukrainian people to choose their own future.

However, we must recognize that tough talk alone will not persuade Russia to change its course. Russia needs to feel tangible consequences for deploying troops in Ukraine. Our partners in Europe, particularly Germany, are positioned to have a large economic impact on Russia through sanctions. It will be critical to bring them along in our efforts. Russia should also be stripped of its current G8 presidency and suspended from the G8. G8 members should boycott the 40th G8 Summit, scheduled for June 4 and 5, 2014 in Sochi.

I represent New Jersey's Ninth Congressional District, which is home to a large and active community of Ukrainian Americans. I am proud to have a productive and longstanding relationship with New Jersey's Ukrainian Americans. Since this crisis emerged, I have hosted meetings in my office and listened to the advice of those with close ties to Ukraine. The Ukrainian American community has proven to be an invaluable resource, and I am grateful for their guidance.

The people of Ukraine need support to realize a peaceful, democratic solution to this crisis. That's why it is so fitting that the United States act to support Ukraine. Once again, I urge my colleagues to support this vital measure for Ukraine in its time of need.

Mr. Speaker, it must be very painful for people to watch this when affected--whether you are on a river or whether you are on the ocean--because it is painful to see that some of the people who are opposed to this bill also voted ``no'' on the Sandy relief, so they are being consistent anyway.

After Sandy, many of my constituents in towns such as Moonachie and Little Ferry are now experiencing a second blow from skyrocketing flood insurance rates. In particular, the home sale trigger has resulted in drastically higher flood insurance rates for prospective home buyers, putting a wet blanket on real estate markets in flood-prone areas.

The bill before us today contains some very important changes. It provides immediate relief to homeowners by repealing the home sale trigger and reducing the rate of possible increases. I am hopeful that we can revisit flood insurance reform in a way which will provide relief to second homes and small businesses.

Although these are important first steps, I know we can do better, and I thank all those who contributed to this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I sincerely have the greatest respect for the good doctor. I think he is a reasonable man and a good person, but when you are explaining, you are losing.

I rise in strong opposition to this legislation.

After we learned last year about the inexcusable way the IRS evaluated applications for tax-exempt status--because that is what is at the heart of this issue--I was hopeful that we could have a bipartisan response. After all, it was not only conservative groups, as you have heard, that had their applications singled out solely because of words like ``Tea Party.'' No one is denying that. Progressive groups were inappropriately filtered as well. My Democratic colleagues and I were equally outraged by this behavior. We put it on the record. But those hopes faded quickly when it became apparent that my colleagues on the other side weren't actually interested in investigating this wrongdoing and fixing the problems.

This bill is just the latest example of how, instead, they are only concerned with scoring cheap political points. Where I am from in Paterson, New Jersey, we would call this Pyrrhic sophistry. That is what we would call it. Empty arguments, deceitful. That is what that means.

The examples the Republican leader pointed out could be under section 527. But if you are under 527, you need to disclose where the money came from. So you choose not to be under section 527 of the Tax Code. You would rather be in another section. And what is that other section? You are not tax liable and you don't have to disclose who gave you the money.

What is this? Russia? China?

You heard the numbers. We are talking about billions of dollars. The difference? They would have to disclose where the money came from.

No evidence of any retribution has been found yet within either political party. So this is really a witch hunt. For the American people, unfortunately, it is the integrity of our electoral process here that is on trial.

The fact is that the Supreme Court's rulings have legalized a torrent of hundreds of millions of dollars in corporate spending that has infected our elections.

We ask again today, join us in correcting that decision by the Supreme Court. It has infected our legal process.

One of the most egregious newly legal big spenders are organizations operating as 501(c)(4) tax-exempt groups. They could easily be under section 527. We created a special section of the Tax Code precisely for tax-exempt political groups. No, they don't want to go under those groups, because if they go under those groups, they have got to tell us who is contributing to them.

This is absolutely chicanery. These regulations aren't some wild- eyed, down-the-rabbit-hole conspiracy theory to prosecute the President's political enemies.

They are simply about preserving congressional intent and providing clear rules of the road, both for tax-exempt groups and the IRS, about what exactly is political activity so they know what is permissible under the law.

This isn't about free speech. This isn't about being a Tea Party or a Progressive. Spend all the money you want to say whatever you want about any election. Just don't expect to be able to do so while calling yourself a tax-exempt social welfare group.

We are paying more taxes because these people are getting away with it. That is the bottom line. And you, I know, Doctor, are totally against that, because you would not really, in the final analysis, prefer that some groups are better than others--those particularly who don't tell us who donated to the group.

Madam Speaker, I thank both Mr. Eliot Engel of New York and Mr. Chris Smith of New Jersey for leading us through what are important things for us to contemplate, because what is applicable to Ukraine is applicable to a lot of places in this world. So I am a proud cosponsor and a strong supporter of H. Res. 447. It expresses our solidarity with the Ukrainian people and affirms their right to choose their own future.

In this room, not that many years ago, we brought in the Prime Minister. Many of us had these flags, the colors of the Ukraine country.

Mass protests have broken out in Ukraine following President Yanukovych's decision in November to back away from negotiations for closer integration with Europe. So Russia has their fingers in all of this. Beware.

There was an agreement which had been supported by millions of Ukrainians in Ukraine and around the world.

We have known about the violence. We have known about the detainment because folks just expressed their legitimate dissatisfaction with Yanukovych's government.

However, the current crisis in Ukraine had deeper roots. Almost a decade ago, the Orange Revolution led to the annulment of a fraudulent election which would have brought Viktor Yanukovych to power. In the wake of protests and civil disobedience on a massive scale, the Ukrainian people, instead, chose President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. She is in jail. She is in jail right now, as we speak, still. Now the democratic gains made as a result of that Orange Revolution are at risk. Viktor Yanukovych has gained the presidency, and former Prime Minister Tymoshenko, as I said, is still in jail.

The use of force to suppress open expression by political opponents or popular protests could never be tolerated in a free and democratic society, and those within the Ukrainian Government who authorized these brutal crackdowns should be held accountable for their egregious abuse of power.

There has been a strong outpouring of support for the protesters from the large and active Ukrainian American community, many of whom live in my district, the Ninth Congressional District of New Jersey.

Ukrainian Americans deeply desire a solution to this crisis which respects the fundamental rights of their sisters and brothers in Ukraine to free speech, press, and peaceful assembly. It is my sincere hope that the United States can facilitate a peaceful resolution to the crisis in Ukraine which respects the will of the Ukrainian people and brings justice to those who have been harmed through wrongful arrests and violence.

As we saw in Syria, crackdowns on nonviolent protests can lead to an all-out civil war, and we still do not do what we should be doing with those refugees from Syria. That is a disgrace.

We need to act now to help the people of Ukraine before the violence escalates further. I urge my colleagues to join this vital show of support from the American people to the people of Ukraine.

I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) for yielding.