Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Priya Vulchi--a remarkable young woman who, this year, earned the 2017 Congressional Gold Medal.

A resident of Princeton, Ms. Vulchi demonstrated an immeasurable passion for the education and advancement of our nation's leaders. Working with Princeton Public Schools, Ms. Vulchi created a racial literacy tool to assist educators initiate dialogues around race- related topics in the classroom. Ms. Vulchi is also a co-founder of Princeton CHOOSE--a student-led organization that aims to overcome racism and inspire harmony through exposure, education and empowerment. Further, Ms. Vulchi is a published author of a racial literacy teaching tool that was piloted in Princeton Public school in the spring of 2016 and officially used by all 5th grade teachers in the school district for the 2016-2017 school years.

Along with her commitment to education, Ms. Vulchi pursued journalism and became the Head Copy Editor for her school's monthly newspaper. Finally, Ms. Vulchi crossed the country in her travels to Hawaii to visit the Haleakal National Park. There she visited the Eats Maui Volcano and learned more about volcanism and the ecosystems of the National Park.

Beyond the Congressional Gold Medal program, extraordinary individuals like Ms. Vulchi exemplify the best and brightest of our nation's future. As a resident of New Jersey's 12th Congressional District, I couldn't be more proud of her for taking up such a difficult challenge and making a positive change for themselves in their community.

Mr. Speaker, I sincerely hope that my colleagues will join me in congratulating Ms. Vulchi on her amazing accomplishment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Elena Boal--a remarkable young woman who, this year, received the 2017 Congressional Gold Medal.

A resident of Princeton Junction, Ms. Boal has demonstrated an immeasurable passion for theater and the arts. A crew member for a number of theater productions, buildings sets, and working backstage on shows she has made it her mission to elevate the importance of arts in her own community. She continues to give back to youth that will become our nation's future leaders by volunteering with the West Windsor- Plainsboro Alliance for the prevention of alcoholism and drug abuse and through Urban Promise Trenton serves as a tutor at the Trenton Free Public Library. Her dedication to greater good, devotion to her local community and the improvement of the lives of those around her speak to her character and is to be admired

While being a pillar of hope and progress for her community--Ms. Boal remained committed to being a well-rounded student athlete as a member of the lacrosse team and skilled sailor, successfully charting a course through the Chesapeake Bay.

Beyond the Congressional Gold Medal Award program, extraordinary individuals like Ms. Boal exemplify the best and brightest of our nation's future. As a resident of New Jersey's 12th congressional district, I couldn't be more proud of her for taking up such a difficult challenge and making a positive change for themselves and their community.

Mr. Speaker, I sincerely hope that my colleagues will join me in congratulating Ms. Boal on her amazing accomplishment.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the Congresswoman so much for her leadership and this Special Order hour and considering this subject matter that we are going to discuss.

I want to talk a little bit about something that has sort of been my observation and my experiences for a very long period of time and I think that are actually exacerbated by this Presidency that we currently have in this House. Let me, by way of association, just comment positively to the remarks of my colleague and the former speaker, Hakeem Jeffries from New York.

I entitled my remarks ``From the Cradle to the Grave.''

From the cradle to the grave, Black people in America are required to be resilient, courteous, and persistent. The rules are always different.

From the cradle to the grave, Black people in America must be comfortable and confident in ourselves, but only so much so that we do not intimidate or aggravate.

From the cradle to the grave, Black people in America are told our plight, our struggle, and our sacrifice is a mere fantasy in post- racial America while we witness the reality of institutional racism, conscious discrimination, and our rich history erased or appropriated.

From cradle to grave, Black people in America experience this racism and discrimination walking home from the corner store eating a pack of Skittles, listening to music at a gas station, or simply sitting in our neighborhood park.

We experience this racism and discrimination showing up to school in our natural hairstyles, shopping in our favorite stores, or even just showing up to work--including the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Last Wednesday, it was reported that Black troops are far more likely than their White counterparts to face court-martial or other forms of military punishment.

National data shows us that Black girls are 5.5 times more likely to be suspended from school than White girls. That rate actually balloons in my State of New Jersey to 8.5 percent. More than 60 years after Brown v. Board of Education, school systems in the United States are still separate and unequal.

As of 2014, California had 31 open desegregation cases. In 2016, a Presidential candidate ran a campaign on divisive rhetoric that targeted our communities, our well-being, and our safe spaces. It only gets worse.

From the cradle to the grave, we are told to calm down, sit down, and be courteous and humble. From the cradle to the grave, the experiences, the challenges, the stories, our history, and even our very being are kept out of boardrooms, classrooms, voting booths, department stores, history books, movie screens, television scripts, and the like.

But let me just tell you that, from the cradle to the grave, we are built to persevere, we are strengthened to overcome, we are born to lead, we are committed to uplift, and we are fully equipped to soar with weights on our shoulders even in these times and even under this Presidency. And guess what. We do.

Madam Speaker, in the wake of the financial crisis, 7.8 million American consumers lost their homes through foreclosure. The failure to have a responsible regulatory environment also resulted in taxpayers paying $7 trillion to bail out financial institutions through loans and, according to some reports, an additional $22 trillion through the Federal Government's purchase of assets.

My home State of New Jersey was severely impacted by this crisis and still feeling the effects. So this is personal.

The Financial CHOICE Act is the wrong choice for Americans. This bill guts many of the commonsense protections that are outlined in Dodd- Frank and severely restricts the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from doing its job.

The ``Wrong'' CHOICE Act gives Wall Street a hand while ignoring the needs of hardworking Americans. It will allow predatory lending practices to go unchecked and profiteers on Wall Street to skirt consequences.

Wall Street reform and other Democratic policies have given our country the strongest consumer protections in history.

I will continue to stand up for hardworking Americans and reject the ``Wrong'' CHOICE Act before Republicans pave the way back to the dark days of the financial crisis.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge and celebrate the 90th birthday of Lady Betty Coles of Trenton, New Jersey. She was wonderfully celebrated this weekend at a party attended by over 100 family members and friends, thanks to her daughter and son-in-law, Tracy and Robert Ross.

Lady Coles has distinguished her family, church, and community with countless years of dedicated service, love, and leadership by example. She has enriched our community as charter member of the Epsilon Upsilon Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha since 1952, and continues her years of service as a member of Shiloh Baptist Church.

Personally, I am grateful for her friendship, her stewardship, her mentorship, her leadership, and her dedication to not only New Jersey, but our global community.

May God continue to bless Lady Coles on this milestone year, and we are forever grateful to Him, having sent her our way.

Mr. Speaker, on Saturday, New Jersey's 12th Congressional District lost a man of great strength and valor. We lost a husband, a father, an activist. For many others, we lost a great friend.

Lonny Kaplan and I met in the 1970s and long maintained a friendship of love and mutual respect. He is not only a statesman, but a hero. His commitment to political activism, especially towards pro-Israel causes, made him instrumental in strengthening the relationship between the United States and Israel.

Lonny was a respected leader in the Jewish community both here in the state and nationally, and will long be revered by those who had the honor to know him. The loss we feel as a congressional district and as a nation is deep, but I know that Lonny will never be forgotten by the countless lives that he touched.

Mr. Speaker, it is our honor to congratulate Leon J. Zimmerman of Trenton, New Jersey on his retirement after a 50 year career spanning governmental affairs, public relations, journalism, and communications.

Operating his own consulting firm for 44 years, Mr. Zimmerman was a highly regarded veteran of the New Jersey state lobbying corps. During his career, he represented several clients, including government agencies, businesses, private corporations, and trade associations. He also represented clients from industries like insurance, harness racing, and security alarms. One of these was the Professional Insurance Agents of New Jersey (PlANJ), which he represented for 43 years. PlANJ will be honoring Mr. Zimmerman at their convention in June 2017. Moreover, prior to starting his own public relations firm, Mr. Zimmerman was a national award-winning journalist for more than 12 years with the Bergen Record.

Throughout his career, Mr. Zimmerman held several positions and received numerous accolades. From his service to the insurance industry, he was recognized with the PlANJ Legislative Award in 1990 and received PlANJ's Distinguished Insurance Service Award in 1998--the first time this award was presented to an individual who was not an insurance industry official. During his work on harness racing, he served as President of the North American Harness Publicists Association, President and Chairman of the U.S. Harness Writers Association, and the founding President of the Association's New Jersey Chapter. He also received the Harness Horsemen International Media Award in 2006, North American Harness Publicists Golden Pen Award in 2000, and the U.S. Harness Writers Member of the Year Award in 1998 and 2011. In addition, for his work in the security alarm industry, Mr. Zimmerman was recognized with the NJ Burglar and Fire Alarm Association President's Award in 1992 and 2004, and he was honored with the National Burglar and Fire Alarm Association Executive Director of the Year Award in 1992.

Mr. Zimmerman was also involved in other professional and civic activities. For example, he served as President of the New Jersey Legislative Correspondents Club, and he was a speaker for courses and seminars in high schools and universities. In addition, Mr. Zimmerman was an advocate for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He served on the Governor's Council on the Prevention of Developmental Disabilities, and he was a member of the Board of Trustees of Bancroft, a leading nonprofit, and of the Association for the Advancement of the Mentally Handicapped, Mercer County Chapter. He was also Executive Committee member and Chairman of Committees on Legislation and Advocacy for the New Jersey State Developmental Disabilities Council.

Mr. Speaker, we sincerely hope that our colleagues will join us in congratulating Mr. Zimmerman on his retirement after his illustrious career and thanking him for his service to the public and his community in New Jersey.

Mr. Speaker, first of all, I want to announce that my foster shadow, Shaderra Riddick, who is a Rutgers student studying anthropology, is with me today in the gallery. I am delighted to have her with me, and I offer these remarks on her behalf.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask a simple question to my colleagues here who support President Trump's budget proposal: What kind of America do you envision?

What kind of America do you envision when you support proposed tax plans that line the pockets of Wall Street investors, yet raise taxes for the working men and women struggling to make ends meet.

What kind of America do you envision when you support rewarding corporations that willfully and admittedly evade American tax laws by stashing profits overseas and, even with proposed tax amenities, still punish their rank-and-file employees that can't save because they are paid below a living wage?

What kind of America do you envision when you proudly support the elimination of Federal agencies that protect our workers from discrimination or subject our children to an environment that is unhealthy and harmful to their health?

The President's budget proposal released yesterday is built on heartless cuts to Medicaid; SNAP; Social Security disability insurance benefits; additional income for poor seniors, disabled adults, and children; and public assistance for needy families.

It threatens regular Americans' ability to buy a home and the ability for that home to even be an investment worth the risk.

Mr. Speaker, sadly, this budget is the latest in a series of actions that begs

the question: What kind of America do my Republican colleagues and the President envision for our future? One where the investor class thrives, but the majority of working-class Americans suffer? One where our environment provides temporary profits, but irreparable harm? One where we make a promise to seniors while they work hard to build and sustain our economy, but, upon retirement, snatch away their investments, along with any safety net?

Mr. Speaker, I envision a different America. I envision an America where an honest day's work, no matter where you clock in, deserves a living wage. I envision an America where my granddaughter, Kamryn, will make the same amount as your grandson for the same work. I envision an America where we double down on our investment in public education, and where we double down on our investment in this country's future. I envision a country where commonsense gun legislation limits the opportunity for tragedy to strike in our schools and churches at the hands of hatred and bigotry.

The America I am working toward is an America that celebrates the richness of our diversity, seeks to right past wrongs, an America to be envied.

Mr. Speaker, I refuse to concede that we were too divided along this aisle that we can't create new, good-paying jobs, educate our kids, train our workers, create jobs for those workers, and create an America ripe with new opportunity for all.

Mr. Speaker, the America I envision, the America I believe in, the America that we deserve is within our reach. Unfortunately, that America is threatened, ignored, and displaced with this President's budget proposal.

So, again, I ask this question of the President and of my Republican colleagues who will support this callous and shameful budget proposal: What kind of America do you envision, and when will you stand up and fight for the America we all deserve?

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for the opportunity to discuss this bill, and I want to thank the colleague from across the aisle here who has illuminated the future as it relates to undertaking this whole issue.

It is with that in mind that I want to speak to the value of the use of official time.

While I am not concerned so much about the collection of the information as to what is happening, I am concerned with how it is being translated and will be used in the future.

For decades, both Republicans and Democrats alike have strongly supported the use of official time because it streamlines the efficiency and quality of government. We should be thanking our union representatives who use official time to address workplace problems and operational issues within our government.

Within our Federal Government, official time leads to swift conflict resolutions that would otherwise require costly litigation, improves the relationship between labor and management, and protects whistleblowers who have exposed government waste and abuse. In some cases, it has even saved lives, as in the issue of AFGE local president Kathleen Dahl, when there was a breakout of Legionnaires' disease.

Furthermore, official time costs one-tenth of 1 percent of the cost of salaries and benefits for all Federal employees. That is a fraction of employee compensation. Ultimately, it saves taxpayers dollars and ensures transparency.

So while we may be discussing today simply a bill that will record the time that is spent in such a noble and important function, it is simply a precursor to the disparaging of union workers and Federal workers as we move forward. Mr. Speaker, I oppose any movement in that direction.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. Chris Rodriguez, and to commemorate his service to the people our state as Director of the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security. Director Rodriguez is a dedicated public servant who has worked tirelessly in the intelligence field to protect and serve New Jersey and the American people.

Director Chris Rodriguez has served in multiple capacities in the U.S. Federal Government including serving more than a decade in the Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S. Department of State. He was a crucial member of the Counterterrorism Center following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 where he collaborated with federal, state, and local levels to identify and counter potential threats to the United States.

Director Chris Rodriguez began working for the people of New Jersey in 2011 where he oversaw the Department of Law and Public Safety, the Department of Military and Veterans' Affairs, the Department of Transportation, and the Department of Homeland Security and Preparedness.

Director Chris Rodriguez honorably served our country both at home and abroad. We owe a tremendous debt to our Veterans who have served in defense of our great nation, for their sacrifices have allowed the United States of America to serve as a beacon for the promise of liberty.

I thank Director Christopher Rodriguez for his many years of service to the people of New Jersey and I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

Madam Speaker, I want to thank the Congresswoman for having this Special Order to address this issue and for continuing to be such a leader on behalf of this great democracy that we have.

Although I was not in Congress when this AUMF was established, more than 15 years later, it is clear this authorization is not designed for this endless and perpetual war on terror.

I commend the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee) for her bravery and her unwavering stance for what is right.

Sadly, what the gentlewoman feared is now our reality. Just today, U.S. forces participated in an airstrike against the Assad regime under the umbrella of the same AUMF. This is just the latest example of this virtual endless war we are able to wage in the Middle East and beyond.

As of January 2013, DOD reported 7,008 U.S. military deaths in the war on terror in addition to the over 50,000 that have been wounded. This does not include the huge numbers of civilians killed and families that have been impacted by the U.S. military machine. This is compounded by the harsh reality that, according to Pentagon statistics, suicide, not combat, is the leading killer of U.S. troops deployed to the Middle East to fight Islamic State militants. Between 2001 and 2010, the rate of suicide in the military has doubled.

When we decide to commit our troops to our mission, it needs to be with clear goals and the explicit approval of Congress, approval that aligns with the goals of the administration and the Commander in Chief. Anything less puts personnel at risk, draining vital resources, finances, and our military.

We are taking our military away from readiness everywhere. We are making tactical and deliberate actions less feasible by spreading our military capacity thin. We are not doing our job if we allow carte blanche to any President to wage a nebulous war.

This is not just a bipartisan issue, this is an American issue.

I have voted against funding bills that maintain operations under the 2001 AUMF under the previous administration and feel no differently today. Quite frankly, based on the actions of this President, I have even less confidence that he has a reasonable and targeted plan to deal with such a complex military issue.

We need a deliberate process. We need a new AUMF that establishes strict parameters, attainable goals, and, most importantly, accountability. There is a real cost here, a human cost here; so whether it is an additional 1 or 1,000, our troops demand more, our allies demand more, and this country of ours deserves more.

Mr. Speaker, this year, the American Society of Civil Engineers once again gave America's infrastructure a D-plus rating.

During Infrastructure Week, I must highlight the need for action and investment in our Nation's infrastructure. Our roads, bridges, and waterways are neither Republican nor Democrat; they belong to all of us.

From the New Deal to the Federal interstate highways, infrastructure projects have traditionally enjoyed broad bipartisan support and leadership. Improving and maintaining our 21st century transportation system creates access and opportunities for all, allowing for job creation, economic growth, and fostering innovation.

As we continue to wait for the President to put forth a plan and true efforts toward investment in our Nation's crumbling infrastructure, we bear witness to hundreds of millions of dollars in lost economic productivity and a threat to the safety and security of our Nation.

It is time to build. It is time to invest in America.

Mr. Speaker, tomorrow marks President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office. While President Trump has claimed that this is the most productive any President has been, he has not met his own deadlines that were set during his campaign and subsequent victory.

Since day one, this administration has pursued only works that represent the detriment to this country and our democracy. He has made outlandish, hateful, and harmful healthcare proposals. He has plans to gut the Federal budget in exchange for tax cuts for his wealthy friends. He has rolled back the progress made by the Department of Justice under the previous administration. He and his family continue to make money off of his position, and he has used the Congressional Review Act to roll back protections for our environment, public education, gun safety, and women's rights.

We are 100 days in, and we have over 4,000 more days to go. Mr. President, Mr. Speaker, and the residents of New Jersey's 12th Congressional District, we are counting down those days.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the talent and hard work of the youth in New Jersey's 12th District.

This past weekend, a group of East Brunswick High School students were recognized as the best team from the Northeast in the We the People competition. Competing against more than 1,200 students, this team demonstrated knowledge of constitutional principles in both historical and contemporary contexts.

This weekend, students from John Witherspoon Middle School of Princeton and West Windsor-Plainsboro South High School will come to Washington to compete in the final round of the 2017 National Science Bowl.

To all of these students: The guidance of your teachers, Alan Brodman, Bill Merritt, and Sunila Sharma, and your hard work is evident, and New Jersey's 12th District is very proud of you.

It is an honor to represent a district that continues to emphasize the importance of STEM and civic education, and encourage our Nation's youth to thrive.

Mr. Speaker, Judge Neil Gorsuch's lifelong appointment to the Supreme Court would have serious consequences for all Americans, but especially the health and well-being of African- American women.

In 2013, by ruling that corporations have the right to deny access to contraceptives on employer-sponsored health insurance plans, Judge Gorsuch proved that he believes the reproductive decisions of women nationwide can and should impact their livelihood. This is problematic and troubling.

For Black women and so many women across the world, birth control is a matter of health and life. We rely on contraception to treat endometriosis, manage uterine fibroids, unplanned pregnancies, and quell PMS symptoms.

In 2013, Judge Neil Gorsuch made the decision that his overarching commitment to religious freedom as a constitutional and statutory right is more important than lifesaving reproductive care.

In 2013, he proved he should not be confirmed to the United States Supreme Court. For this reason and a host of others, I implore my colleagues in the Senate to take all available steps to oppose Judge Gorsuch's nomination.