Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, the spike in gasoline prices after hurricanes Katrina and Rita has drawn national attention to domestic energy supplies, as well as fuel efficiency standards. Instead of the Bush Administration and the Republican Congress offering a bill reducing gas prices, home heating prices, declare our Nation's energy independence, protect the environment, and put funds into increasing energy research and development, this Republican Congress promotes a bill that includes massive subsidies to oil companies at the expense of Americans.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated much of the energy infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico. The region contains 47 percent of the Nation's oil refining capacity, and 19 percent of the Nation's natural gas production. Immediately after Hurricane Katrina the national average price for gasoline increased 46 cents to $3.07 per gallon.

Home heating costs, including home heating oil, natural gas and electricity are predicted to increase 50-90 percent over last year's prices. Since 2001, home heating oil costs have nearly tripled, and natural gas costs have more than doubled, nearing crisis levels for homeowners and Americans on a fixed and low income.

President Bush recently gave a speech calling on consumers to conserve gasoline and other fuels. I have yet to hear the President urge oil, coal, utility, and energy companies to reduce their costs. During a time oil and refinery company profits are more than 200 percent, the Republican solution is to offer subsidies to a profitable industry, to rollback environmental regulations, and to increase gasoline and home heating prices to Americans.

This bill is anti-consumer and anti-environment. The American people need real relief at the gas pump and with their heating bills. Democrats support an energy policy that helps Americans by stopping price gouging and increasing refinery capacity to keep gas and home heating prices low. The bill before us today will do nothing to lower gas prices at the pump or lower home heating costs.

If the alternative offered by my Michigan colleague, Representative Bart Stupak is accepted, we would have a strong energy bill. The Stupak substitute gives the Federal Trade Commission new powers to prohibit price gouging for gasoline, diesel, natural gas, home heating oil, and propane. The substitute also creates a new Strategic Refinery Reserve that would give our country the ability to produce refined oil products during extreme energy situations. This approach is more favorable and will help Americans at this most difficult time.

The underlying legislation is a bad deal for America. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting against passage of the energy bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Illinois for yielding me this time, and I thank the gentleman from Tennessee for controlling the time and allowing us to present this to the American people.

I first want to thank Dr. John Kline, a psychologist in my district who has been on this for many years. He is a former Harlem Globetrotter and now a psychologist in the City of Detroit who has been working tirelessly with me to see that we honor the men, particularly the men, and now the women who play in the WNBA, for their talent and for their commitment to the sport of basketball. Dr. Kline has been working on this for some time, and he established in 1996 the Black Legends of Professional Basketball Foundation where he works himself to see that the players reach the Hall of Fame in the basketball world. I want to thank Dr. Kline for his tenacity, and my staff thanks him, and we look forward to working with him.

Basketball has been a dream come true for many young people in America and around the world. They are able because of the pioneers who have gone before them to present themselves in the discipline and the competition that the sport requires. I want to first say before there was a Bill Russell and a Cazzie Russell, as well as a Michael Jordan and Dr. J, in 1920, as was mentioned by my colleague, other gentlemen came forth and began to play organized basketball that began and created a competition that endured in men the skill, the tenacity, the commitment and the competition to move forward.

As was mentioned, in 1922, the first team, the New York Renaissance was established, and in the 27 years that followed, they played every year. After them, in 1930, the Harlem Globetrotters were organized to play basketball, and even though they could not play in the NBA, they continued to play.

It is important that as we move into this new season of the NBA, which will be starting in the next month, that we not forget those who set the pace, both African-Americans as well as European-Americans and others who played the sport of basketball and brought it to our country and now around the world.

The Basketball Legends Professional Foundation is here to recognize and to assist, under Dr. John Kline's leadership, that men be inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame as Dr. Kline has done. It is important that we continue the sport of basketball. Not only is it a character-building, competition-raising, beautiful sport, it also offers cities around the country the opportunity to participate. I would like to at this time send a shout out to the Detroit Pistons, world champions in 2003 and also in the semifinals in 2004.

So as we pay homage to Earl Lloyd, a former 1950's basketball player from my district, as well as some of the others that came before him, let us remember that the NBA was started many years after the African- American basketball players played their sport. Together it has evolved into a wonderful sport. I urge my colleagues to adopt this resolution. It is called the resolution recognizing the contributions of African American basketball teams that started in the 1920s.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Tennessee as well as the gentleman from Illinois, and let us continue to remember that through competition and sports, we too can build a strong America and a strong family.

Madam Speaker, in less than a month the 2005-2006 professional basketball season will begin, and I am proud that the resolution being considered today pays tribute to the founding African-American basketball teams and players who made the game what it is today.

In the past, Congress has recognized the contributions of the Harlem Globetrotters, one of the first barnstorming teams that roamed the United States before professional leagues were integrated, and the professional Negro Baseball Leagues. But no one until now, has recognized the contributions of the early African-American basketball teams and their players.

Before the New York Knicks of the newly formed National Basketball Association signed Nathaniel ``Sweetwater'' Clifton in 1950, an African-American, organized professional basketball was a whites-only sport. Accompanying Clifton to the NBA were Earl Lloyd, and Chuck Cooper. Cooper, Lloyd, and Clifton may not be household names, but their place in the NBA's history will be secure forever.

The First white pro-basketball team was founded in 1914.

The first African-American team came into being in 1922 with the organization of the New York Renaissance. They were known as the New York Rens. The New York Rens became one of the first great basketball dynasties in the history of the game, compiling a 2,588-539 record in its 27-year span as an organized basketball team.

The New York Globetrotters--the forerunner of the Harlem Globetrotters--were organized in 1930. Other teams that came into being include the New York Enforcers, the Harlem Clowns, the Harlem Road Kings, the Harlem Stars, the Harlem Ambassadors, and the Philadelphia Tribunes.

African-American basketball teams had a different style of play from their white, professional counterparts. They played for the ``fast break'', shot with one-hand, made short, crisp passes, and emphasized a vigorous style of defense. Their style stood in marked contrast with the waltz-paced game played by the two-hand set shooters of the all- white basketball teams. These African-American barnstorming teams introduced a style of play that makes the world sport of basketball the wide-open, fast paced game it is today.

Before Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul Jabar, Julius Erving and Michael Jordan, we celebrated basketball notables such as Tarzan Cooper, Pop Gates, John Isaacs, and Goose Tatum just to name a few.

Their love for the game allowed them to conquer many hardships on their barnstorming tours. They traveled from town to town, often sleeping in their cars because they were refused lodging. They were denied service at restaurants and suffered all the indignities of Jim Crow laws.

The barnstorming African-American basketball teams were exceptionally talented, and they had the chance to prove it, when in 1948 the Harlem Globetrotters beat the world champion Minneapolis Lakers led by pro- basketball's first big man, George Mikan, the game's first superstar.

Special thanks go to Dr. John Kline, a former Globetrotter, who resides in Detroit, Michigan, which I am privileged to represent. Dr. Kline has made it his personal mission that the great players who made this game what it

is today are not forgotten and that their legends continue to be noted in the annals of basketball history.

Dr. Kline founded in 1996 the Black Legends of Professional Basketball Foundation to honor black pros who played prior to 1960. Dr. Kline was recently inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame. The Foundation which he heads lobbies for African-American players to be considered for induction into the National Basketball Hall of Fame to make sure these men finally get their due--in much the same way that Negro League baseball players have finally begun to get recognition for their talents and sacrifices.

We are proud of his work and a copy of this resolution will be presented to the foundation, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, and the National Basketball Association.

Mr. Speaker, personal reasons require my absence from legislative business following 5:10 p.m. today, Thursday, September 29, 2005. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on H.J. Res. 68, making continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2006 (rollcall No. 507); and ``aye'' on H. Con. Res. 178, recognizing the need to pursue research into the causes, a treatment, and an eventual cure for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, supporting the goals and ideals of National Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Awareness Week, and for other purposes (rollcall No. 508).

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize NextEnergy, a non-profit organization in my district of Detroit. It is a leader in the development and research of technologies that will make our nation more energy independent.

On September 29, leaders from Michigan and around the country will celebrate the grand opening of the NextEnergy Center, a state-of-the- art alternative energy innovation center. This is a wonderful day for everyone interested in making sure that Michigan is at the forefront of alternative technologies which will create jobs and ensure energy security with economic growth in the years ahead. As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, I have been a supporter of Congressional funding for this effort, and I have no doubt that this federal investment will pay many dividends.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the City of Detroit and the State of Michigan revolutionized personal transportation with the development and production of motor vehicles. The automobile industry became a key part of our state's heritage and way of life.

Now at the dawn of the 21st century, we need to find new ways to power our cars and trucks. We want to develop better systems to improve energy efficiency and reduce air pollution. And we know that there is no better place to lead this new effort than from the heart of the Motor City. We have the knowledge, the talent, the expertise, the creativity, and the drive to get the job done.

With the opening of the NextEnergy Center, another important milestone has been reached. It will showcase a new breed of emerging technologies. From my discussions with the automobile companies and other industry leaders, I know that advanced technologies offer great promise for the future. But

much research and testing is still required before some are commercially viable. That is why the NextEnergy Center is so important and will play a vital role in developing breakthroughs.

By working with the automotive, electric power and defense industries, NextEnergy offers an exciting mix of opportunities. I am pleased that companies from Minnesota, New York, Texas and other states recognize the value of this effort and are signing up to do business.

The commitment to alternative energy innovation will ultimately address the needs of consumers, train a new generation of workers and lay the foundation for technologies in the marketplace. The future is bright for NextEnergy and I am pleased to be a supporter.

Mr. Chairman, I reluctantly rise in opposition to the passage of the H.R. 2123, the School Readiness Act, a bill that reauthorizes the Head Start program through fiscal year 2011. Although the underlying bill enjoys wide, bipartisan support, the adoption of the amendment offered by the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Boustany) has the effect of being a poison pill and makes the bill unpalatable.

The Boustany Amendment permits faith-based organizations providing Head Start service to hire and fire on the basis of religious affiliation. The adoption of this amendment allows faith-based organizations to discriminate in hiring. This practice will work against a key object for which Head Start was designed to address: moving children and families out of poverty.

The Boustany Amendment also drives a wedge within the faith-based community. The Head Start program was first established 1964 through the cooperation of African-American churches throughout the segregated South. From its birth, Head Start and the religious community have developed a strong partnership in the delivery of critical education and social services that have been the building blocks to escaping poverty. This relationship has worked well for generations and now it will be jeopardized if this provision is allowed to remain in the bill. Many faith-based organizations who sponsor Head Start programs have experienced no problems in fulfilling their spiritual mission and honoring the non-discrimination in hiring requirements under the Civil Rights Act. Permitting faith-based organizations to use federal dollars to discriminate in hiring is a step backwards in the continuing struggle for civil rights, a step I am not willing to support.

To remove the civil rights protections guaranteed under this program compromises the very purpose of this program. For this reason, I cast my vote in opposition to H.R. 2123.

Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to acknowledge and celebrate the life and vast and phenomenal achievements of John H. Johnson, the CEO, chairman, founder and publisher of the Johnson Publishing Company Inc., in Chicago, Illinois.

Mr. Johnson rose from humble origins to become an icon in the African-American community. It was his vision and creation that launched Ebony and Jet magazines which became staples in black family homes. His publications depicted positive and factual images of our culture, accomplishments and social advances and plight. Through his resourcefulness, tenacity and love for his people, he created a vehicle for us to see images of ourselves and read articles that reflected our human condition.

I have vivid memories of growing up and seeing Ebony and Jet in the home of my parents and seeing pictures of my race and individual struggles to secure civil rights for all African-Americans. Ultimately, the efforts of Mr. Johnson resulted in the creation of a publication that achieved a circulation of 1.7 million readers with a monthly readership of 11 million persons.

Truly, John H. Johnson deserves all the accolades we heap upon him. In an effort to highlight the diverse beauty amongst our people, John Johnson produced the Ebony Fashion Fair; the world's largest traveling fashion show. The efforts of John Johnson resulted in him being able to employ over 2,600 people and sales in excess of $388 million.

The contributions of John Johnson were acknowledged and commended by U.S. presidents. President Nixon brought John Johnson with him in 1957 on a tour of the continent of Africa where they visited nine countries. In 1959 he accompanied President Nixon to Russia and Poland, and in 1961 he was appointed by President Kennedy to serve as the Ambassador to the Independence Ceremonies of Ivory Coast. President Clinton awarded him with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

I am pleased to acknowledge the contributions of John H. Johnson, a publishing pioneer, entrepreneur, visionary and African-American icon.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to recognize and congratulate Mr. Christopher R. Getz from Grosse Pointe, Michigan for his selection in the top 5 rounds of the 2005 Major League Baseball Draft.

Being drafted by a Major League Baseball club is a rare accomplishment that only 1,500 high school and college ball players across the country ever achieve, but to be selected in the first five rounds is truly a triumph. Only 1 of 150 is drafted. I am proud to have such a distinguished athlete from a city in my district.

Christopher attended Grosse Pointe South High School, excelling in baseball and setting records for batting average, doubles, stolen bases, saves and more. In 2001, Christopher led his team to a state championship against Grand Ledge.

He attended Wake Forest and was ranked one of the best second baseman in America by Baseball America in his freshman year.

Christopher later attended the University of Michigan where he continued to shine. Some of his numerous accolades include NCAA Division 1 District V player of the year, All-Big Ten second baseman for two consecutive years, and selection to the all-tournament team at the big ten championship. Christopher finished his college career with an astounding .355 batting average.

With his numerous awards and impressive statistics it is no surprise Christopher was selected in the first five rounds of the Major League Baseball draft to the Chicago White Sox. I am proud to recognize Christopher as an impressive ballplayer and constituent, and I wish him the best of luck in the Major Leagues.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Mississippi for yielding to me and for his leadership during this difficult time. We are here to stand with you and to offer assistance to you.

And to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Jefferson), whose district has been so devastated, we are here to say that we support you wholeheartedly.

I want to thank the millions of Americans, individual Americans and families, who have brought into their own homes, into their churches and into their schools many people who find themselves homeless. I want to applaud the American citizenry for stepping up at a time when our Federal Government did not.

In our own State of Michigan, we have received evacuees. The governor advised today that no more evacuees would be coming to Michigan, but I am here to say, Madam Governor, that they are still coming to Detroit. We have 300 families in Detroit right now and we are housing them, we are clothing them, we are feeding them, and the medical community in Detroit has come together under the leadership of Mayor Kilpatrick.

I want to pledge to my colleagues, the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Jefferson) and the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Davis) that we will continue to do that. We are here to serve, to represent, and to take care of the least among us. And so we will do that, my congressional brothers. And I want the governor of the State of Michigan to know that we appreciate her, but we will take care of these people as they come to our doors from this grief-stricken region.

I want to applaud Secretary Alphonso Jackson and HUD, who has been working with our mayor to make sure that we have the facilities available. Our private community has stepped forward, our hotel industry, our manufacturers of food, and our health care industry. That is how we are able to do what we are doing in the city of Detroit, and we will continue to do so.

We need the Federal Government to cut the red tape. There is too much red tape here. We have an emergency. We have put out $10.5 billion, which has been passed by both Houses of Congress. I am told today that Halliburton got $500 million of that already in a no-bid contract to help in New Orleans, to relieve the streets of its water. I wonder why we could not find others. At the same time, I have families who have been stopped from getting the food and nutrition that they need.

FEMA must develop a plan. I, too, call for the firing of Mr. Brown, the FEMA director with no emergency management experience, as well as his deputy, a friend of the President's, with no emergency management experience. We need real professionals in this time of need. The CBC stands ready, our Congressional Black Caucus, to do what we must do, and we will be visiting the stricken area soon now.

I was in an appropriation hearing today where we discussed the tens of billions of dollars, over $250 billion, that is being spent in the reconstruction of Iraq. Must we be there? Maybe. But should we take care of America's people? We must. So I call upon this Congress and the President to work together to make sure that American people are taken care of.

I witnessed this morning on a morning show a family with the last name of Allen, a wife whose husband works for the housing department in Louisiana, who stayed in Louisiana to help the people who were left there. The wife and one of the sons were evacuated. This family has a son fighting for this country in Iraq.

So, you see, they are American citizens, many who have been evacuated because of a national disaster. We owe them. They pay taxes. The seniors, the frail, they built this country. We owe them.

Let us rise up, America. This Congress can do better and we will do better, because we cannot let them down.

Mr. Speaker, I want to extend my condolences to the families who have lost loved ones in the natural disaster we have witnessed over the last 5 days. Our hearts go out to them and we are working desperately to address this desperate situation.

I pay tribute to Democratic Leader Pelosi for giving this effort to provide for supplemental funding relief for the hurricane victims in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida the priority attention and urgency it deserves. Because of her forward thinking and sensitivity to the scope of this disaster, we are here today in this special session of Congress doing what we should be doing: responding to the needs of the thousands of victims of this natural disaster to make sure the money is available for food; water; emergency supplies; temporary shelter; command, control, and communications networks; public safety; public health and sanitation; and other forms of emergency assistance.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for acceding to the gentlelady's call to convene the House to pass this $10 billion package. Today, we demonstrate that partisan politics stop when it comes to responding to the needs of thousands of Americans who find their very lives imperiled by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. We are showing that Congress can lead and provide a rapid response when misfortune strikes.

This is not the time for recriminations. There will be plenty of time for that when Congress reconvenes next week to review the slowness and inadequacy of the response and consequence management efforts of the natural disaster that struck our Gulf Coast. The experience of my congressional office in trying to contact responsible Federal agencies involved with the effort shows that communications between congressional offices, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, and other responding Federal agencies has not improved since 9/11.

What shocks us as Americans is that the we are witnessing human tragedies on our television screens on a scale we do not expect to see in America. It is hard for us to accept a human tragedy like we see in the third world happen on our own shores. It is even harder for us to accept that our response to this human tragedy is no better than what we see by lesser and undeveloped countries. The lack of an effective response and plan of action has us all in shock.

While no class has escaped the human tragedy, the disproportionate numbers of victims are black, poor, aged, disabled or otherwise physically debilitated. These are the people who are the lowest priority in emergency evacuation plans because we do not know how to address their fundamental needs. They are the first who depend on the Government for services, the first at the mercy of the elements but the last on civic emergency action plans.

Our hearts go out to those who are stranded and dispossessed. We need leadership to address their needs. The private sector like the hotel industry and the civic community

must step up to offer assistance. The city of Detroit has offered to transport 500 families to Detroit to shelter them and meet their basic human needs. The Mayor of Detroit, the Honorable Kwame Kilpatrick, has worked with FEMA, local hotels and food manufacturers to provide temporary shelter for an estimated 500 families. He has gained the cooperation of the city of Detroit School District to accommodate the children of dislocated families. We need more State and civic leaders to step up.

I also want to acknowledge the offers of assistance our government has received from the international community. Governments from other countries have offered their expertise in airlifting residents and in other humanitarian response recovery techniques in our time of need. I hope we are big enough to accept these offers where there is a need.

Again, I thank Democratic Leader Pelosi and the Speaker for seeing that Congress does its part to respond quickly. To all the victims, their families and loved ones, please know we stand with you in our actions and prayers.

Mr. Speaker, will the gentlewoman yield?

Mr. Speaker, I first want to say that these people are not refugees. They are American citizens who pay taxes and are raising their children. I would hope that we would not relegate them to something less than American citizens.

I rise in support of the legislation and would like to report on what the City of Detroit is doing. Mayor Kwami Kilpatrick has put together an organization with the private sector as well as FEMA over the last 48 hours, and we are offering to the families that have been decimated 500 housing spots immediately. We have been working with the United Way and the health care industry to provide the resources that these families will need, housing, health care, water, food, clothing.

We in the City of Detroit stand ready, under Mayor Kilpatrick's leadership. We have spoken with the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), as well as the gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Davis), and the gentleman from New Orleans, Louisiana (Mr. Jefferson), and all have agreed to work to move them now.

We need other government officials from around the country to step up and to bring them home. The people of New Orleans have nothing to go back to.

Mr. Speaker, we are proud of our Mayor and the City of Detroit. Detroit has stood up, through Mayor Kilpatrick's leadership, and we ask that other cities around this great Nation of ours who have the wherewithal, because private companies are ready to help, and they have helped us.

The Detroit public schools have agreed to take children from the ravished areas. I thank the Mayor of Detroit as well as my colleague for yielding me this time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition to H.R. 5, Help Efficient, Accessible, Low-Cost, Timely Healthcare (HEALTH) Act. This bill would hurt patients who are harmed by medical malpractice by arbitrarily capping damages, denying justice to injured patients and their families.

This bill makes a number of changes to current law affecting medical malpractice lawsuits filed in Federal and State court, including limiting the amount of non-economic and punitive damages that could be awarded to a plaintiff, and restricting the contingency fees that can be charged by attorneys. The bill also pre-empts State laws that conflict with the enforcement of any of its provisions. The measure does not, however, pre-empt any State statutory limits on the amount of compensatory, punitive or total damages awarded in health care lawsuits. The provisions of the measure dealing with caps on awards would apply only to those States that have no statutory limits on damage awards in health care lawsuits.

The bill seriously restricts the rights of injured patients to be compensated for their injuries, while rewarding insurance companies for bad investment decisions and doctors for practicing bad medicine. In the 13th District of Michigan and in many districts across the country, physicians have either retired prematurely or relocated their practices. The supporters of this bill claim their proposal would reduce insurance costs for doctors. This bill does not lower premiums for doctors, contains no insurance reforms, and would not address the rising cost of health care.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support the Democratic substitute, which would directly address rising premiums by reforming malpractice insurance and stopping frivolous lawsuits. The Democratic substitute does not restrict the rights of injured patients who file meritorious claims. It requires certification, with civil penalties, that a pleading is not frivolous, factually inaccurate or designed to harass. It includes a 3-year statute of limitation; establishes an alternative dispute resolution process; limits suits for punitive damages; and applies 50 percent of awards from any punitive damages to a patient safety fund at HHS. Finally, it requires insurance companies to develop a plan to give 50 percent of their savings to reductions in medical malpractice rates for doctors.

It is unfortunate the Democratic Substitute was not adopted. H.R. 5 in its present form does not address rising premiums and denies justice to injured patients and their families.

Vote against H.R. 5.

Mr. Speaker, despite the President's oversell, this bill does nothing to improve our energy independence and does little to provide for a cleaner environment. The bill does nothing to lower gasoline prices, which are at an all-time high.

This bill is a corporate giveaway to the largest multinational oil companies, coal, utility

and other energy companies, who stand to receive a windfall of $14.5 billion in tax breaks over 10 years. Taxpayers are going to subsidize billions in loan guarantees to these industries, so the energy industry can be free to fail without having to face little financial risk. That is a sweet deal.

With oil selling at $60 a barrel, this bill provides royalty-free drilling rights to the multinational oil companies to drill on public lands. This is making a sweet deal even sweeter. When the American consumer fills his or her car with gasoline selling over $2.30 a gallon, they will be secure in knowing that the record profits they are paying for big oil are being subsidized further at the expense of their tax dollars. Taxpayers are being asked to donate more than $14 billion in tax breaks, most of them to the oil and gas companies, the utilities, the nuclear industry and the coal industry. That is sweet on top of a sweeter deal for Big Oil. The renewable energy and energy efficiency industries are left with little.

The bill preempts the ability of state and local governments to block the siting of Liquefied Natural Gas terminal in densely populated urban areas. It will weaken environmental protections with new loopholes for the oil and gas industry. It will allow the process of hydraulic fracturing, which involves injecting diesel fuel into groundwater supplied and exempt other industry practices from the Clean Water Act, exemptions and the National Environmental Policy Act.

This bill will authorize exploratory efforts to prepare for oil and gas drilling off the Outer Continental Shelf, including areas that are currently closed to drilling. One area that I am pleased to report is that the bill does ban drilling in the Great Lakes.

This exercise is an unfortunate one. It is short on helping the nation's energy needs and long on subsidizing the oil and gas, nuclear, utility, and coal industries. Americans pay more than their fair share to support the record profit margins of the energy industry and now they are being asked to subsidize those record profits even more. This is a bad deal for American consumers. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting against the passage of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 3045, the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). My opposition is based on my conclusion that CAFTA is another chapter in trade legislation that will spur job losses, depress American wages, eviscerate laborer's rights, emasculate the environment, and contribute to our nation's deficit.

Recent statistics from the Labor Department indicate that America has lost more than 2.5 million manufacturing jobs since the passage of NAFTA. In my home state of Michigan, we have experienced a net job loss of over 200,000 manufacturing jobs due to exports.

Throughout the U.S., American workers suffer with anxiety about the elimination of their jobs each time we pass another free trade agreement. They know that factories are being relocated to foreign countries where they will be immune from paying U.S. taxes, and will be able to pay workers a fraction of U.S. hourly wages that range from $14 to almost $18. Each time we pass another trade agreement, their worst fears are realized.

According to the United Nations International Labor Organization (ILO), the average hourly wage earner in Nicaragua makes 95 cents; $1 in Guatemala, and $1.25 in El Salvador. Such minuscule wages pose a tremendous incentive to Asian and U.S. manufacturers to build factories and strategic alliances in Central America. The same factories that will be created in Central America will be able to avoid strong environmental laws that exist in the U.S., thereby contributing to environmental degradation throughout Central America.

If Americans have any concerns about the prospects posed by CAFTA, we need only look at the explosion of our deficit after the passage of NAFTA. Our trade deficit with Mexico mushroomed to $15 billion from a figure of $3 billion, resulting in a loss of 200,000 high wage U.S. jobs.

I am a very concerned that worker protection provisions throughout Central America will be weakened if CAFTA is passed. The legislation omits an important protection that was included in NAFTA--that labor enforcement proceedings not be unnecessarily complicated. I reject the hypocrisy of a trade agreement that would sanction placing the welfare of low wage earners in jeopardy. In my state of Michigan, we have strong worker protections in place. I cannot in good conscience support a measure that would pose potential harm to workers throughout countries in Central America.

Finally, supporters of CAFTA state that its passage will facilitate the elimination of tariffs and quotas and will ultimately result in increased trade and long-term growth. In reality, consumers and laborers in Central America will not be able to afford American manufactured goods. They will, however, be able to manufacture goods in Central America that will be sold in America with a profit margin that could not be realized if the same item were manufactured domestically.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to HR 3045, the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). Passage of this bill will accelerate job losses, contribute to our deficit, circumvent labor rights and contribute to global environmental degradation. My constituents have overwhelmingly expressed their concerns and opposition to HR 3045. I urge my colleagues in the House to defeat this measure and stand up for fair and free trade.

Mr. Speaker, personal business prevents me from being present for legislative business scheduled for today, Monday, July 25, 2005. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on H.J. Res. 59, expressing the sense of Congress concerning the establishment of an appropriate day for the commemoration of the women suffragists who fought for and won the right of women to vote in the United States (rollcall No. 417); ``yea'' on H. Con. Res. 181, supporting the goals and ideals of National Life Insurance Awareness Month (rollcall No. 418); and ``yea'' on H.R. 2977, designating the ``Abraham Lincoln Birthplace Post Office Building'' (rollcall No. 419).

Mr. Chairman, I rise today to oppose H.R. 3199, the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism and Prevention Reauthorization Act. I want to emphasize at the outset that I share the concern of my House colleagues that it is essential to protect our Nation and its citizens from terrorists seeking to harm our homeland and its citizens. I agree with my colleagues that no safe harbor should be available to terrorists. There should be no doubt that I wholeheartedly support enabling law enforcement officials with the authority to surveil and prosecute terrorists. But it is critical that we resist the temptation to develop laws that assault the constitutional protections afforded to Americans.

I am alarmed about the scope of a number of provisions in the bill that are likely to lead to the abuse of personal freedoms enjoyed by Americans. Section 215, Seizure of Records, causes me great concern. This provision allows the FBI, based on the premise of conducting a terror investigation, to obtain any record, after receiving approval from a secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, FISA, Court. My concern is that law enforcement agencies can engage in such activity without meeting the standard legal threshold of ``probable cause'', thereby leading to potential cases of abuse.

I am also very concerned about the ability of law enforcement agencies to conduct ``Roving John Doe Wiretaps''. Under this scenario, criminal investigators can obtain wire tap authority to employ devices that roam with someone who has been designated as involved in terrorist activity; that device can be attached to an instrument that can be transported through multiple jurisdictions.

Section 213 that allows for ``Sneak and Peek'' authority related to searches and seizures. This is a provision that allows for run-of-the- mill criminal investigations to be employed while conducting the war on terrorism. The problem with this provision is that 90 percent of the searches are used for drug and fraud cases and not for terrorism. I am concerned about the lack of oversight that could apply to these types of investigations.

I recognize that some of the provisions of the PATRIOT Act have served a useful purpose and are scheduled to end. The process of reviewing provisions and determining whether to extend them allows the House to evaluate the effectiveness and appropriations of the provisions. Two of the provisions in this bill are now being scheduled to extend for 10 years as opposed to the 4 years in the expiring legislation. In this scenario, a flawed provision could extend 6 years beyond the normal time frame. Fourteen sections of H.R. 3199 bill will become permanent, and will have virtually no oversight.

I continue to have great reservations about the use of National Security Letters, NSLs. National Security Letters are applicable within Section 505. The NSLs deny individuals due process by barring targets of investigations access to court and the right to challenge the NSLs. The NSLs allows institutions, i.e. banks, Internet Service Providers, ISPs, to divulge critical information about individuals under investigation. Private information about an individual can be shared with law enforcement, but the organization would be ``gagged'' from revealing its efforts. This is a terribly flawed and wrong process.

Mr. Chairman, I content that it is essential to protect the constitutional rights of American citizens as we engaged in the ongoing war on terrorism. I urge my colleagues to stand up for the Bill of Rights and resist the temptation to curtail those rights in our collective pursuits to develop legislation to counter the threats posed by terrorists. My review of H.R. 3199 causes my great concern that we are undermining the civil liberties of Americans. I stand as a patriot for America and our Constitution, and in opposition to H.R. 3199. I urge my colleagues to join my in defeating this measure. I support sending this over-reaching legislation back to committee, and ask the Judiciary Committee to come back with a better bill that does not shed our civil liberties that are guaranteed in the Constitution. It is vital that we

address terrorism specifically, while simultaneously ensuring that these statutory provisions continued to be forced to comply with the legal threshold of probable cause.