Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak on this legislation to establish military tribunals for terrorist suspects.

This legislation was made necessary by a U.S. Supreme Court decision in June in the case of Hamdan v. Rumsfeld, in which the court ruled that the military commissions created by the Bush administration violated both U.S. and international law. This important legislation is necessary to create a lawful framework in order to bring to trial such terrorist suspects as Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks on America. Without passage of this legislation, the United States will have no legal means to bring to justice those who have participated in the most heinous acts of terrorism against our country.

I agree with my Democratic colleagues who rightfully argued we should have been allowed to consider substantive changes to the bill such as those contained in the Skelton motion to recommit, which I voted for. The Skelton language would have provided for expedited consideration of the statute's constitutionality and required the statute to be renewed in three years, but unfortunately, the Skelton motion failed to pass. Although the Republican Majority would not allow consideration of proposed Democratic amendments, it is important to note the significant and substantive changes that have been made to the bill to correct the serious flaws of the original White House proposal.

Specifically, the bill would replace the White House's denial of habeas corpus rights with a process known as combatant status review in which detainees may challenge their detention within the confines of the military commission system. In addition, the manager's amendment assures the prohibition of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, codified in the Detainee Treatment Act (Pub. L. 109-163, P.L. 109-148). It also clarifies that defendants will be able to examine and respond to redacted classified evidence being used against them.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6166 is not a perfect bill, but I will vote for it so the United States can move forward with prosecuting terrorist suspects in a manner consistent with our values in a fair and just system.

Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Committee on Homeland Security, I rise in opposition to H.R. 5825, the Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act. I strongly support aggressive action to protect America from the threat of terrorism. We must do whatever it takes to defeat our terrorist enemies and defend our core principles. But this bill is unnecessary and goes too far and empowers unaccountable bureaucrats to violate the rights of law-abiding Americans.

Since the terrorist attacks on our nation on September 11, 2001, I have consistently supported the modernization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) through my votes in favor of the USA PATRIOT Act and its reauthorization (P.L. 107-56, P.L. 109-177), the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2002 (P.L. 107-108), the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization Act (P.L. 107-273), and the Department of Homeland Security Act (P.S. 107- 296).

FISA is a modern, flexible statute that is a vital tool for the FBI, CIA and the NSA in their investigations of terrorism and espionage. This law provides intelligence and law enforcement officials the authority to monitor the communications of those who would do us harm while protecting the privacy and civil liberties of U.S. persons as guaranteed by the Constitution.

H.R. 5825 is an ill-conceived, election-year ploy that would expand executive wiretap authority to unprecedented levels and expose the daily, innocent communications of American citizens to review by faceless bureaucrats.

Mr. Speaker, we must provide our law enforcement officials with the tools and resources they need to plug gaps in our homeland security and to penetrate global terror cells, but the House Republican leadership attempts to weaken the U.S. Constitution by lowering the standard of the Fourth Amendment to score political points. I support the bipartisan Harman-Flake alternative that represents a balanced approach to defeat the terrorists while safeguarding our rights.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to call on this House to pass legislation to end America's dependency on foreign oil.

Earlier this week, I attended the opening of Piedmont Biofuels in Pittsboro, North Carolina. This plant is already producing thousands of gallons of B-100 biodiesel made from soybeans grown in my home State. This plant is a model for the future of our energy independence.

The technology exists today that can turn our crops into biofuels. What we don't have is the infrastructure to facilitate the use of these fuels.

My colleagues and I have introduced H.R. 5372, the BIOFUEL Act, to ramp up this infrastructure immediately. The legislation will facilitate the increased production of vehicles that run on biofuels and provide tax credits and incentives to gas station owners who update their equipment to be able to sell these fuels.

The legislation also increases research and development into biofuels, investing in cutting-edge technology that will utilize energy from sources such as agricultural waste and byproducts.

Now is the time to end America's dependency on foreign oil. The answer to our energy needs is growing in our fields.

Mr. Speaker, today the House considered House Resolution 994, to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Most of us were here in Washington on that fateful day, and after the attacks we knew our lives had changed forever. Although I may not agree with every provision of this resolution, I voted for it to support our troops and to commemorate that tragic day.

House Resolution 994 is an effort to honor those thousands of innocent people who lost their lives that day as well as remember the bravery and sacrifice of the fire fighters, law enforcement officers and rescue personnel who worked feverishly to save them.

This resolution also recognizes the brave men and women of our armed services who responded with authority, precision and when needed, force, to root out the cowardly perpetrators and protect Americans and our interests both here and abroad.

Although we pause on September 11th to reflect and say thanks, on this day we must also renew our commitment to securing the homeland and protecting our values every day.

It is our responsibility to remove bureaucratic roadblocks and provide our Nation's first responders with the interoperable communications equipment they so sorely need.

We must seek the correct balance between securing our Nation and protecting the civil rights that serve as the basis of our enduring democracy.

And we must honor our commitment with continued support of our troops overseas.

It seems like only yesterday when this Nation joined together in recognition that the forces that divide us from one another can never overcome the transcendent unity we have as Americans.

Five years ago Members of Congress stood shoulder to shoulder on the step of this Capitol and pledged to work together to remember this day and honor the sacrifice of the fallen.

This is a pledge we should remember every day and not just once a year.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the Republicans' National Voter ID act. This bill imposes new Federal ID requirements on all voters in Federal elections and would have the effect of disenfranchising millions of American citizens. H.R. 4844 requires all States to demand that voters provide government-issued identification in order to vote in the 2008 election, and a copy when voting absentee or by mail, and proof of citizenship in order to vote in the 2010 election.

Unfortunately, H.R. 4844 undoes the progress of the Voting Rights Act Reauthorization enacted just 2 months ago by imposing a 21st century poll tax. This bill would disenfranchise the elderly, people with disabilities, and minorities. The costs of obtaining the documents needed to prove you are citizen are high. A birth certificate usually costs $1- $15; and according to the State Department only 27 percent of eligible Americans have passports, which cost $97. Naturalization papers, if they need to be replaced, cost $210. While supporters of H.R. 4844 promise to help some citizens who don't have money to pay for these documents, we cannot bank on the promise from the Republican majority who have refused to honor their commitment to the Help America Vote Act.

Mr. Speaker, let me state clearly that I oppose voter fraud. Currently, there are very strong federal statues on the books to penalize voter fraud and I support their vigorous enforcement. The Help American Vote Act, which I supported, gave States resources to both expand access and prevent voter fraud. Yet, the Republican majority has under-funded the Help American Vote Act by $800 million. I oppose this legislation, and urge my colleagues to reject this 21st Century poll tax.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this sham legislation and call on this Congress to pass serious reform legislation to clean up the corruption in the People's House.

The culture of corruption under the current Republican Majority is a stain on the honor of everyone who serves this institution. The former Republican Majority Leader has been indicted, one former Republican Member of the Appropriations Committee is serving a lengthy Federal prison term, and just this morning we learned that a former powerful Republican Committee Chairman has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges. And throughout the current l09th Congress, the Republican Leadership has shut down the Ethics Committee that has responsibility for maintaining the integrity of the U.S. House.

I support full disclosure of all Member-directed appropriations to shine a light on the process and ensure any special interest provisions can pass muster of public scrutiny. It is well past time for Congress to pass serious lobbying reform to clean up this institution.

Unfortunately, House Resolution 1000, the so-called Earmark Reform Act is a fraud. It would do nothing to expose the Alaskan ``Bridge to Nowhere'' because it does not apply to authorization bills. And on appropriations bills, this proposal sets up a huge loophole because it does not apply to what is known as the Manager's Amendment. This omission simply sets up a new conduit for the Republicans' earmark excesses.

Mr. Speaker, I regret the Republican party bosses refuse to bring legislation to clean up the corruption in Congress, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting against this scam legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation to reauthorize NOAA and call on the agency to work to develop an inland warning system. Six years ago I held a Hurricane Summit in the Second District of North Carolina. This was in response to the devastation that was brought to my State by Hurricane Floyd. Hurricane Floyd was one of the most devastating storms to hit the United States in more than 25 years. When Hurricane Floyd roared ashore in North Carolina in September of 1999, the storm took at least 56 lives, and left damages upwards of $6 billion from the Carolinas to New England.

Although the National Weather Service uses the Saffir-Simpson Scale to classify hurricane strength according to wind speed, Hurricane Floyd showed us that much more damage, death, and destruction can be created by unexpected inland flooding. One year ago this fact was displayed again with disastrous intensity during Hurricane Katrina when the damage was not just limited to the immediate coastal areas of the gulf coast. After the storms there were inland areas in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama that were inaccessible for weeks following the severe flooding.

The purpose of my Hurricane Summit was to bring together meteorological experts from universities, the National Hurricane Center, and the National Weather Service to develop a more accurate index for inland flood monitoring. With the information gathered at this summit, I drafted legislation to ensure that NOAA and the National Weather Service make significant improvements to their inland flood warning system. H.R. 2486, the Inland Flood Forecasting and Warning System Act of 2002, was passed in the 107th Congress and enjoyed wide bipartisan support.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation directed NOAA and the National Weather Service to improve the capability to forecast inland flooding associated with tropical storms and hurricanes, to develop a distinctive inland flood warning index for emergency management officials, and to train emergency management officials, National Weather Service personnel, and meteorologists to use these improved forecasting techniques for inland flooding.

An important part of this legislation requires the National Weather Service and NOAA to report annually to Congress on the progress of this new flood index. I would like to continue to work with the members of the Science Committee and the Appropriations Committee to ensure that NOAA provides these reports to the Congress in a timely manner.

Congress must provide the proper oversight to NOAA to ensure that the progress in developing an improved inland flooding index can be put in place to save lives.

Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to join my Democratic colleagues to call for a new direction in our Federal budget priorities. I want to thank my friend Artur Davis from the Budget Committee and the Democratic committee staff for arranging this series of speeches on this very important subject.

The Federal budget is much more than a boring government document or irrelevant policy paper. The Federal budget is our Nation's mission statement. The budget is our collective expression of our national priorities, and it reflects the values of our national leadership. Unfortunately, the values of the current national leadership, as reflected in the Federal budget, are a sorry state of affairs.

I am very proud that during my first term in this United States House, Congress and the President joined together to move toward balancing the Federal budget for the first time in decades. Democrats and Republicans reached across the partisan aisle and worked together to balance the books for the first time in over a generation.

The surpluses generated from the balanced budget were used to pay down the national debt, strengthen the Social Security Trust Fund and to make key investments in essential services like education and health. And we had enough left over to fund cutting-edge research and development that is the gateway to America's economic future and quality of life.

Unfortunately, all of that progress was reversed when the current administration took office. The current administration and the Republican Party bosses here in Congress have passed incredibly irresponsible budgets with disastrous results for our economy and for future generations. These record deficits and rising national debt present a crushing burden as our legacy and produce profound neglect of our basic infrastructure.

Just this morning, the Raleigh, North Carolina, News and Observer reported my State is running billions of dollars short in funding necessary to rejuvenate aging roads, schools and water systems. The 2006 North Carolina Infrastructure Report Card by the American Society of Engineers gave my State a C-minus grade on nine key categories of infrastructure readiness.

Mr. Speaker, I believe the Federal Government needs to work in partnership with our States and local communities to meet the needs of our people.

I have worked for several years with my good friend Congressman Charlie Rangel of the Ways and Means Committee to pass Federal legislation to leverage school bonds on the local level. This legislation will make a real difference throughout America to build new schools, relieve overcrowding, enhance safety and improve education for our children. Unfortunately, under the current Republican regime, we cannot even get a hearing on the Rangel-Etheridge bill.

But worse than not passing new bills, the Republican budget fails to pay for the laws they have put on the books. For example, the No Child Left Behind, which the President bragged about as

his signature legislation reform achievement, has never been fully funded. To date, Republicans in the White House and Congress have shortchanged our schools roughly $50 billion that they promised under No Child Left Behind. Talk to any educator. They can tell you. Promises unmet are programs unfulfilled.

This disgraceful record is a direct result of those misguided budgets. I believe in my bones that public education is one of the best investments that we can make in building a bright future, but under the current Federal budget, the taxpayers will pay nearly three times as much to service the interest on the national debt as we will invest in education at the Federal level, and nearly 45 percent of that national debt is held by foreign investors like China, Japan, Europe and elsewhere.

Mr. Speaker, America needs a new direction. The first place we can start is reversing the current budget priorities that we have that are out of touch with our American values.

I congratulate my colleagues for leading this series of speeches on this important issue.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak on H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act. Although I voted to pass this bill to demonstrate my support of strong border enforcement, it is yet another example of the House Republican leadership's piecemeal approach to immigration reform.

America's immigration system is broken, but instead of implementing comprehensive, commonsense solutions such as increasing the number of border agents, funding more detention beds and enforcing current immigration law, House Republicans have chosen to manipulate this issue for partisan political purposes.

In December of 2004 I voted in favor of H.R. 10, the 9/11 Commission Recommendations Implementation Act. This bill, which passed the House on a vote of 282-134 and which the President signed into law on December 17 of that year, authorized Customs and Border Patrol to hire 10,000 new border agents over the next 5 years as well as add 35,000 detention beds to hold illegal immigrants while they are being process for deportation.

Although the bill passed overwhelmingly, House Republicans refused to back up this important legislation with the necessary funds to implement the provisions. The President, who signed the bill into law, only provided funds for 210 border agents in his fiscal year 2006 budget request.

The United States cannot secure its borders with only physical barriers. We can only achieve effective immigration reform and border security through a combination of consistent enforcement of current immigration law, the addition of the thousands of additional border security personnel that Congress has already authorized, and the implementation of a fair, balanced immigration plan that encourages lawfulness, rewards hard work and safeguards families.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues in recognition of National Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week. This special week, the nation pays tribute to HBCUs that make such a difference developing young minds and shaping our future.

As defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965, HBCUs are ``any historically black college or university that was established prior to 1964, whose principle mission was, and is, the education of black Americans, and that is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency or association determined by the Secretary (of Education) to be a reliable authority as to the quality of training offered or is, according to such an agency or association, making reasonable progress toward accreditation.

Nearly fourteen percent of our country's African American students in higher education are enrolled at HBCUs. These colleges and universities are preparing a new generation of leaders, business people, teachers and scholars. They play a vital role in ensuring that our higher education system is the finest in the world. This year's HBCUs Week is themed, ``The Tradition Continues: New Successes and Challenges,'' which is a tribute to the rich tradition of HBCUs and the enduring role they play in the weave of our social fabric.

North Carolina is home to several HBCUs, and I am particularly proud of the two in my Congressional District; Shaw University and Fayetteville State University.

Shaw University, located in Raleigh, was founded in 1865, making it the oldest HBCU in the South. Shaw is a private, coeducational, liberal arts university, awarding degrees at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Affiliated with the Baptist Church, the primary mission of the University is teaching with the commitment to maintain excellence in research and academic programs that foster intellectual enhancement and technological skills. Shaw stresses character development, which includes religious, cultural, social and ethical values. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, a major force in the Civil Rights Movement, got its start at a conference held a Shaw in 1960. Dr. Clarence G. Newsome currently serves as President of Shaw University.

Fayetteville State University is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina. The primary mission of the university is to provide quality education to its students through a basic liberal arts foundation, specialized professional training, and specific graduate programs. The university is fully accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In addition, individual university departments, degree programs, and service functions hold memberships and accreditations with appropriate professional organizations. Chancellor T.J. Bryan is the tenth Chief Executive Officer of the 138- year old HBCU and the first female to head the institution.

Mr. Speaker, as the former Superintendent of North Carolina's public schools, I know well the outstanding contributions made to our state and nation by Shaw University, Fayetteville State University and all of our Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and I am pleased to join my colleagues in paying tribute to national HBCUs Week.

Mr. Speaker, right now in my district in rural North Carolina, folks are very concerned about the high cost of fuel. I rise tonight to call on this Congress to take action now to help the people who are suffering from this very serious crisis, not only in my district and State, but really in this country.

Gas prices are higher than they have ever been in the history of our country, and rural Americans are getting hit particularly hard. Our farmers are watching most of the profits from the crops that they harvest go back into their fuel tanks or their tractors and their equipment.

Our school districts in rural North Carolina are having trouble keeping the buses on the road. Rural Americans as a whole feel a greater pinch from these outrageous fuel prices. They have longer commutes just to get to the grocery store, to the doctor's office and to their church on Sunday.

Yet, while Americans are struggling to make ends meet, big oil companies are making record profits.

I support legislation to crack down on price gouging of gasoline and fuel. I also believe that it is our duty in this body to find alternatives to what has become a dangerous reliance on foreign oil.

As the co-chairman of the Democratic Rural Working Group, we have introduced H.R. 5372, the Biofuels Act of 2006. This is legislation that will help bring Americans a step closer to energy independence.

Today, we have the technology to solve our energy crisis. Other countries are already making significant progress and are far ahead of the United States in their energy independence. Countries such as Brazil already use over 80 percent ethanol and biodiesel, and they are 100 percent energy independent.

The Biofuels Act would increase production of vehicles that are E85 compatible and provide the tax credits to service station owners who update their equipment. We have the ability to turn soybeans and cellulose into biodiesel and ethanol. What we don't have is the infrastructure to maximize our ability to use these fuels.

Instead of the same old giveaways to big oil companies, the Republican leadership in this Congress should allow a vote on the legislation that we have introduced, H.R. 5372. Other countries have accomplished their energy independence. Americans can, too. Now is the time. The answer to our crisis of energy is growing in our fields.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I served in business for 19 years and have been in public life a long time. I have signed a lot of contracts, but never in my life have I signed a contract that I have not read. We are asking the Members of this body to sign a contract with the American people that we have not read.

Mr. Speaker, as gas prices hit another record high, I call on this Congress to pass visionary legislation for America's energy independence.

This summer, middle-class families are being squeezed like never before by the high price of gasoline and farmers are watching their profits erode. With the big oil companies pocketing record profits, the only action the Republican Congress has taken is more giveaways to Big Oil. We need a new direction in this country that will once and for all put us on the path to energy independence and free us from our reliance on foreign oil sources.

Rural America feels this crisis every day; and as cochairman of the Rural Working Group, I have worked with my colleagues to draft legislation to secure America's energy independence through the bounty of American agriculture. The answer to the energy crisis is growing on our farms, and H.R. 5372 will upgrade our infrastructure to tap these homegrown resources. Specifically, the Biofuel Act will facilitate the production of vehicles that can run on E-85, ethanol-based fuel and soybean diesel and provide tax credits to encourage gas station owners to update their equipment to handle these new environmentally friendly fuels.

Mr. Speaker, it is time for a new direction for America; and Congress must take action now to secure America's energy future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to join my colleagues in paying tribute to Tim Friedman on the occasion of his retirement from the House after 30 years of faithful service. Tim is a native of Lackawanna, NY, a suburb of Buffalo. He arrived in Washington in 1976 and started his career in the House of Representatives on July 19, 1976 under the patronage of the Hon. Dan Rostenkowski.

He worked as a Doorkeeper under the Hon. James T. Molloy from 1976 to 1982. In 1982 he transferred to the office of the House Sergeant at Arms. Tim was appointed as Assistant Manager of the House Democratic Cloakroom in 1985 by the Hon. Thomas P. O'Neill, Speaker of the House.

Tim married Colleen Early in 2003. They are avid golfers and are building a home in Wallace, NC. I hope they have a splendid retirement in Down East, NC.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5684, the Oman Free Trade Agreement, because I think it is the right thing to do. I am going to vote for this agreement because I believe that free trade can be a way to promote our national security through international cooperation and economic growth.

The country of Oman is an important ally of the United States in a part of the world where we need more friends. It is also a country that is growing, one that will provide economic opportunities and jobs to our Nation through increased exports. Upon passage of this agreement, Oman will provide immediate duty-free access to 87 percent of U.S. agricultural exports and 100 percent duty-free trade in industrial and consumer products.

Mr. Speaker, Oman is a friend to the United States and a leader in the Middle East region. Oman has demonstrated this by passing tough new labor laws, normalizing relations with Israel, and supporting the U.S. efforts in Iraq. Passage of this agreement will demonstrate that we can do more to enhance our Nation's national security through cooperation and economic development.

Although this legislation is not perfect, approving the Oman Free Trade Agreement is in America's national interest, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bill.