Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, it is with great admiration that I rise today to join all of the people in the village of Harlem and my Congressional District to pay tribute to Mr. James Baldwin, a legendary writer who broke new literary ground by exploring racial and social issues embedded in American history.

On Saturday, August 2, 2014, the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce, the Harlem Arts Alliance, the New Heritage Theatre Group, Columbia University School of the Arts, The National Black Theater, Street Corner Resources, Harlem Renaissance High School, and HARLEM WEEK, Inc. joined elected officials, community board members, residents, and poet laureates to recognize August 2nd as James Baldwin Day in celebration of his 90th birthday. Among the many tributes, the marquee of the famous Apollo Theater read ``Happy 90th Birthday James Baldwin.'' Above all, a portion of East 128th Street, between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue, where he once lived was renamed ``James Baldwin Way''.

Mr. Baldwin was born to Emma Jones, a single mother, on August 2, 1924 in Harlem, New York. While he never met his biological father, Mr. Baldwin did have a father figure growing up, Baptist Minister David Baldwin. The preacher's religious influence had a lasting impression on James and his writings. The language of the church shaped the cadences and tones of his work, becoming unmistakable hallmarks of his literary style. He would go on to spend three years as a youth minister.

After striking out on his own and moving away from home, Mr. Baldwin published short stories in national periodicals under the tutelage of his mentor, Beauford Delaney, a renowned Harlem Renaissance painter. Disillusioned by the growing bigotry towards African-Americans and the gay community, Baldwin left our country and settled in France at the age of 24. He found that the distance gave him enough space to reflect on his experience as a black man in white America. Please allow me to quote Mr. Baldwin's later thoughts on this dramatic change in his life: ``Once I found myself on the other side of the ocean, I saw where I came from very clearly . . . I am the grandson of a slave, and I am a writer. I must deal with both.'' Through his writing, Baldwin was forced to confront this enlightening reality.

While he spent much of his life abroad, Baldwin was recognized as a quintessential American writer. In 1953, Baldwin published his first novel, a semi autobiography called Go Tell It on the Mountain, which explores the repression, moral hypocrisy, religious inspiration, and community ties that characterized the Black American experience. His two collections of essays, Notes of a Native Son (1955) and Nobody Knows My Name (1961), as well as his two novels, Giovanni's Room (1956) and Another Country (1962), were immediate bestsellers. The works Baldwin published during this unsettling time in American history, explored the deep-rooted racial tension with eloquence and unparalleled honesty. As his collection of notable literary works continue to exude words of strength, power, and wisdom, his writing will forever remain an essential part of the American literary canon.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join me as we celebrate this year, the 90th Birthday of Harlem Renaissance Poet Laureate James Baldwin.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to recognize the continuous efforts of The City of Osan in South Korea, to honor the men of Task Force Smith, the first American unit to engage North Korean troops in July of 1950, following the immediate outbreak of the Korean War on June 25, 1950. As an artillery operations specialist in the all-black 503rd Field Artillery Battalion in the 2nd Infantry Division, I arrived in Pusan, South Korea, in August of 1950, shortly after Task Force Smith valiantly held back the North Korean assault and made it possible for my unit to eventually begin moving north as the U.N. Forces advanced deep into North Korea.

The City of Osan, Kyung-gi Province and the Korean Government, with the help of former U.S. Congressman Jay Kim, are planning to construct a memorial park at the site of the Battle of Osan to honor the troops of Task Force Smith and all the other forces from the participating U.N. nations that fought to protect South Korea from the communist invasion.

The Task Force Smith Memorial Park will encompass some twelve acres along the road where a hastily organized force of 540 Americans dug in on July 5, 1950 to slow the advance by a larger, better equipped force of North Korean tanks and infantry. Some 181 Task Force members were killed, wounded, taken prisoner or counted missing in action, but they were able to delay the North Korean advance while other U.S. and Korean units prepared defensive positions. The Memorial Park will include walking paths, historical markers, statues, pavilions and 540 pine trees, one planted for each of the soldiers of Task Force Smith.

This past July 3, former Congressman Jay Kim, his wife, Jennifer Ahn, along with four Task Force Smith veterans and their family members traveled to Korea to participate in the 59th annual ceremony to commemorate the U.N. Forces First Battle Memorial. Those in attendance were: John H Sanchez (52nd) from Waukesha, WI, William C Coe (B co) from Cohoes, NY and daughter Suann M. Ingle, Norman Matthews (C co) from Dexter, MN and his wife Lindy Matthews, Charles Fronapfel (MED co, POW) from Lakewood, CO and son Lee Charles Fronapfel, and Lisa Gay Sholl in honor of her father, Norman Fosness (B co) of Fargo, ND.

According to Osan City, the museum was built in 2013 to remember and honor the brave soldiers of Task Force Smith. Now they want to expand and include a memorial park to provide a place for Korean children to learn and carry forward this special memory and a special appreciation of the friendship between the United States and the Republic of Korea.

Osan is an especially important place to remember the sacrifice and dedication of our American troops. At this site some 540 young Americans, ill-prepared and ill-equipped, were thrown into battle against tremendous odds on behalf of a people and a nation they barely knew.

The relationship between our two countries is a precious one that will continue to grow. It is amazing that after all these decades, Korea and the Korean people have never stopped thanking us. Korea will always have a place in my heart as it does in the hearts of all U.S. veterans who have served then and those who serve now.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in tribute to a very important and influential citizen of this Good Nation, Mr. James Allen. Mr. Allen has recently stepped down as Executive

Director and CEO of the Addict Rehabilitation Center (ARC) which began in 1957, at first as a small day program which met in the Manhattan Christian Reform Church. Mr. Allen is an inspiring man who has brought much needed assistance, love, and care to the addicts of our community, taking the steps to bring them back into the folds of society.

Even without his accomplishments in terms of giving back to the world, Mr. Allen's personal story of struggle and growth is enough in itself to merit this tribute. Mr. Allen was himself a heroin addict, and had pushed away his family, friends, and all of his emotions in order to maintain his negative relationship with his drug of choice. After ten years of hopelessness and lack of connection with the world around him, Mr. Allen made the toughest decision addicts are faced with: to get help for his problem. He had the support of his wife, Mary, who pushed him to join a treatment facility in Kentucky. It was there that Allen overcame his previous anger and contempt for religion, and he began to pray to God to help him through his struggle. With an amount of work unimaginable to those who have never dealt with addiction, Allen overcame his dependence on heroin. His journey is an inspiring one, and I am honored to call Mr. Allen my friend.

Yet Mr. Allen's fight did not end here. In addition to facing the daily battles recovered addicts must face throughout their lives, Mr. Allen took the next step to help others dealing with similar struggles. His life crossed paths with that of another dear friend and civil rights leader, the late Reverend Dr. Eugene S. Callender of the Manhattan Christian Reform Church, and he immediately volunteered to assist the Reverend with a church-sponsored narcotics rehabilitation program. Since that day, Mr. Allen has not paused in his goal of helping other addicts change their lives around. As founder of the Addict Rehabilitation Center, he transformed the small church-funded program into a successful, far-reaching organization. Under Allen's loving and committed leadership, ARC has served thousands of people dealing with substance abuse, and the hope he brought to these people's lives will forever remain in their hearts.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize El Catano, affectionately known as ``La Casita'' Community Garden, which celebration took place on Saturday, June 7th in celebration of the 2014 National Puerto Rican Day Parade. In 1994, Jose and his sister Esther Reyes decided to look for an empty lot to start a community garden. The garden would be named after the Town of Catano, which is located across from the bay of San Juan, Puerto Rico. The lot was a rat infested dumping ground for garbage, needles and crack vials, before Jose and Esther took on the challenge and collected over 200 signatures throughout the immediate neighborhood to acquire the lot in support of a community garden. Support grew from community organizations and businesses, which enabled Jose and Esther to acquire the lot and to clean it. In 1995, La Casita de Catano Community Garden was born.

Traditionally, there is a Puerto Rican Day Festival held each Saturday before the parade--New York City's third largest--along Third Avenue in East Harlem, with community members transforming the El Catano Community Garden into a celebration of Puerto Rican food and music. The presiding Mayor of Catano often joins local residents in the festivities at the garden, where a past mayoral plaque commends the successful work of its founder Jose Reyes--who established the garden 20 years ago--in organizing tournaments between the El Catano Community Garden's own baseball team and teams in Puerto Rico.

La Casita stood up to the Giuliani's Administration efforts to close the garden in favor of market rate and commercial development. In 2008, under the leadership of the late City Councilman Philip Reed, El Catano Community Garden was saved. Councilman Reed enlisted the New York Restoration Project (NYRP) to restore this 2,500-square-foot site in partnership with Denali Construction. Re-envisioned by acclaimed landscape designer Billie Cohen, the space--Cohen's tenth garden design for NYRP--features an intricate pattern of bluestone tiles in front and pavers arranged in concentric circles in the back of the garden. Additional highlights include planting beds for perennials such as roses and rhododendron. El Catailo's new design is well-suited to the garden's primary use as a community gathering space and frequent site of birthday parties, christenings and baby showers, as well as children's activities and educational workshops. In addition, local senior citizens use the garden to play cards and dominoes and, each year, NYRP partners with garden members to host a family-friendly domino tournament. This garden is situated in an area starved for open green space within blocks of 10 schools and in close proximity to five New York City Housing Authority properties. The densely populated neighborhood's residents are primarily of Hispanic, Latino and African- American descent.

The Board of Directors of the El Catano Community Garden remain in constant contact with their counterparts in their hometown of Catano, Puerto Rico. Every June and through the assistance of Carmen ``Puruca'' Ruiz they are honored to receive the Honorable Jose A. Rosario Melendez, Mayor of Catano during their annual National Puerto Rican Day weekend of activities at La Casita Community Garden.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join me and the New York Congressional Delegation in paying tribute to Jose and Esther Reyes as they continue to maintain and keep the culture of Puerto Rico alive at ``La Casita de Catano''.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to recognize the National Organization of Black Veterans (NABVETS) and its visionary and founder, Brigadier General (Ret.) Robert A. Cocroft for his distinguished service as National Commander. This year, under the leadership of President and Chief Executive Officer Wendy McClinton, Black Veterans for Social Justice, Inc. hosted the National Organization of Black Veterans National Conference and Convention in New York City, which took place from August 14th to August 17th, 2014. The theme for the 2014 Convention was ``Transitioning to the Next Level: Fighting for Your Focus''. This theme was very apropos, because the conference honored Brigadier General (Ret.) Robert A. Cocroft who retired as National Commander.

The National Association for Black Veterans, Inc. (NABVETS) is a membership service organization with the charge to address issues concerning Black and other minority veterans. NABVETS has served as a leader to address the unmet concerns of minority and low-income veterans through direct services, empowerment training and collaborative partnerships; and in the service design to address the ``holistic'' issues of homelessness among veterans. Since inception, NAB VETS has provided direct services to 65,000 veterans and on behalf of 240,000 veterans--primarily of the Vietnam and post-Vietnam era.

Robert A. Cocroft served with the Army in Korea during the Vietnam War and had an active career in the Army Reserve. He served as the Deputy Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, President of the National Association for Black Veterans, and President and CEO of the Center for Veterans Issues (Milwaukee, Wisconsin).

Robert A. Cocroft was born in Conway, Mississippi, Nov 16, 1946 and was raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He entered military service via the draft in 1966, while as a student at the University of Wisconsin- Oshkosh, where he studied and played football.

During his illustrious military career and service, he was once offered a position in military intelligence, but declined because he believed that as a Black officer he would be used to spy on student demonstrators such as the Black Panther Party. He describes going to Panama for jungle training and becoming anemic due to taking required anti-malaria drug Primaquine, which reacted with his G6PD deficiency. Sent to Korea, he mentions assignment to headquarter Special Troops and processing military personnel with the 8th Army and touches on racial tension, infiltrators along the Demilitarized Zone, attitudes towards Republic of Korea soldiers, and estimates of military strength.

After return to Wisconsin, he joined the 84th Division of the Reserve, while also working and going to school full time. He graduated from the Army War College, climbing the chain of command to Assistant Division Commander for Operations with the 98th Division. Cocroft examines the problem with minorities getting administrative discharges and then having great difficulty getting veteran benefits, and the unfairness of this compared to the amnesty offered to draft dodgers, who were mostly white. He reports that now the segregation problems are not racial, but gender-based, and he addresses the issues of fraternization and different standards for women. Cocroft emphasizes that the American people need to decide what they want from their military. He retired at the rank of Brigadier General.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join me and very grateful Nation in paying tribute and salute to Brigadier General (Ret.) Robert A. Cocroft.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life of Tuskegee Airman Joseph Herman Spooner, a life-long resident of the Village of Harlem. As noted by the family: On September 11th, 2014, America surrendered a living legend to the annals of Black American history. Inextricably intertwined to the importance of this day ``September 11th'' in American history, a Tuskegee Airman at 94 years old, has passed over.

September 11 reminds all of us every year that `freedom is not free' and the strength of our nation depends on men and women, such as Joe Spooner, a decorated World War II original member of the 99th Fighter Squadron/332 Fighter Group stationed out of Tuskegee, Alabama.

Joseph Spooner was born on October 30th, 1919 to Joseph and Georgianna Spooner. Joseph was hilarious and loved to play jokes on people. He was high spirited and the life of the party. He had 6 children and three generations of grandchildren. He attended PS 179 Elementary School, PS 165 Robert E. Simon, and graduated from Dewitt Clinton High School in which he excelled in academics and athletics. He loved to play and watch sports. In his early years, he played Semi-Pro Basketball on a team called the Columbians.

At the time he was drafted Joseph Spooner was a freshman at The City College of New York. Having played with the likes of Negro Basketball League legend John Issacs and ``Pop'' Gates of the original Harlem Globetrotters he made his family proud qualifying to pursue a college education during such a racially charged and segregated time period. America in the 1940's, was unforgiving for people of color, it was an impossible dream come true, yet a dream deferred. Joseph Spooner left college, abandoning a basketball scholarship to serve his country.

Joe enlisted into service in 1942, and in 1943 this Black American hero was commissioned for duty with the Tuskegee Airmen. On April 1943, the 99th Fighter Squadron in their P-47 Thunderbolt fighters went into combat bound for North Africa, where it would join the 33rd Fighter Group and its commander, Colonel William W. Momyer. Given little guidance from battle-experienced pilots, the 99th's first combat mission was to attack the small strategic volcanic island of Pantelleria in the Mediterranean Sea to clear the sea lanes for the Allied invasion of Sicily in July 1943. The air assault on the island began on 30 May 1943. The 99th flew its first combat mission on June 2, 1943. The surrender of the garrison of 11,121 Italians and 78 Germans due to air attack was the first of its kind.

The 99th moved on to Sicily and received a Distinguished Unit Citation for its performance in combat led by Col. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., Commander of the Tuskegee Airmen 332nd Fighter Group. Though subject to racial discrimination, both at home and abroad, the 996 pilots and more than 15,000 ground personnel who served with the all- black units would be credited with some 15,500 combat sorties and earn over 150 Distinguished Flying Crosses for their achievements. With over 200 combat missions the Tuskegee Airmen did not lose a single bomber. They did everything in their power to protect and shield the bombers.

As American history has now recognized the heroism and amazing exploits and air battles that took place in the skies over Europe by the 99th Fighter Squadron/332 Fighter Group, Joe as Armorer may have had the most important role by which he was responsible for loading the fighter planes with ammunition. In 2006, I introduced legislation to honor the Tuskegee Airmen with the Congressional Gold Medal. In March of 2007, Tuskegee Airman Joseph Herman Spooner received the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor from President George W. Bush

Great men, like our beloved Tuskegee Airman Joseph Herman Spooner are temporary gifts we have in this world, but their accomplishments and achievements are far remembered and forever lasting. Mr. Speaker, I ask my distinguished colleagues to join me in celebrating the life of Tuskegee Airman Joseph Herman Spooner.

Mr. Speaker, I have never felt more proud of my colleague from New York, for the great leadership that he has provided, since his arrival in this august body.

This is such a great country, and I love it so much. I was raised in the shadow of the Statue of Liberty, and when I graduated from law school, having been the only one in my family having gone to college, I think my mother said, ``Thank you, Jesus,'' and I said something like, ``Thanks for the Constitution, and thanks for being born in America.''

Like anything else you love, if there is an illness, if there is a problem, you would want to know what can you do to cure it. How can you make it all that our country can be? How can we say that we have a cancer that, until we recognize that we do, then we don't really love the country?

How can we be able to say that White and Black in this country are equal and that those who work hard and live by the rules have the same opportunities as each other, when we know that we have this cancer that sometimes we are able to make the country do a lot better than it has since our people were the only ones who were actually brought here in chains?

I marched from Selma to Montgomery, and things that I never had the opportunity to dream--because equality never was on the list in my community--but if, as a result of this, I have lived long enough to see African American men and women be elected to local and State offices around this country, to come here and join with nine African American Members of Congress in 1970 and to walk tall and know that, in that short period of time, we have grown to over 40, 45 Members of Congress, does that mean that we have rid ourselves of the cancer? I think not.

How can we do it? It is by admitting that we do have that problem because, whether we are talking about Ferguson or Watts or Harlem or Bed-Stuy, until we admit that we have this illness and that we have this problem, then singling out the success of some of us in this country does not heal the wounds that have been left through the centuries of racial hatred and prejudice.

We have been able to say we were freed by the Emancipation Proclamation, but the truth of the matter is our people have been in slavery more than we have been so-called free people, and the fact that they said that you are no longer a slave didn't mean that you were an American with all the rights and the privileges of it.

It hasn't been that long that I can remember my grandfather from Accomac, Virginia, talking about innocent people being lynched in Virginia, and it hasn't been that long that our people have been granted the constitutional right to--what--vote, and it hasn't been that long ago that they even said that our schools should be desegregated or the military desegregated.

Until we reach the point that African American parents don't have to tell their kids to act differently just because of their color, that they have to succumb to a type of conduct that you teach them, on one hand, to be a man and stand up for your rights, but if he is in uniform, then beg and plead and don't say anything that might irritate him--I think--I really believe--that the people who unconsciously don't know and don't care about the heavy weight that Black folks have carried in this country over the centuries that they were brought here cannot possibly love the country as much as they would if they were to say it was not a Ferguson problem, it is an American problem.

They should be able to ask what is it that they could do. I would humbly suggest that the first thing you do is to acknowledge that you have that problem.

Some people may talk about payment for restitution for past crimes committed against human beings, but that restitution could be the ability to say that we are going to make certain that people of color in this country would be able to have access to the same type of education, live where they want to live, compete against anybody for the job and not feel that they are inferior because people have been taught that, just because they have a different complexion, that they are superior, and they think that because they were born on third base that just being born means they can hit a home run.

The fact is that all of us, collectively, would know that, whether you

are black or brown or yellow--or whatever the complexion is--that the greatest benefit and asset that we have as a nation is that we bring in all of these cultures together to build the greatest Nation on Earth.

Whether we have another Ferguson in another 10 years or 20 years, it doesn't have to be. What has to be is that we cut this poison out of the system of this great country and openly say that we have this problem, and then, as the parents of Mr. Brown would want, that death would have been just another sacrifice that one of us has made to wake up this wonderful country to do what has to be done.

Let me thank you for constantly reminding us that we have come a long, long way from how we got here, but we have a long way to go. Thank you so much.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to celebrate the life of Jonathan P. Hicks, beloved brother, renowned lecturer, a distinguished scholar, an award-winning writer and journalist with more than 30 years of experience covering politics, business, industry and the role of people of color in the world of business. Simply put, Jonathan was a force of nature that is widely respected in literary and activist communities across the world and by people of all ages, races, and backgrounds.

For nearly 25 years, Jonathan worked for The New York Times, where he covered the politics of New York State and New York City. During that time, he developed a reputation as one of the foremost authorities on the inner workings of the political culture in New York City and New York State. He was a frequent guest on local radio and television news programs where he regularly offered political analysis and commentary. He was also the author of the Politics 5-B column for The Times' website. After leaving The Times, he worked as a senior fellow at the DuBois Bunche Center for Public Policy at Medgar Evers College in Brooklyn.

Jonathan served as the host of Urban Focus, a weekly radio program that brings together politicians, policy makers, industry practitioners, scholars and expert analysts. Urban Focus explores a range of issues that affect under-served communities and communities of color from Crown Heights, Brooklyn, to Cape Town, South Africa. The discussions serve to both draw attention to problems and highlight solutions for issues of concern to these communities.

He was co-editor of the book, From Disaster to Diversity: What's Next For New York City's Economy. It is a collection of essays by a number of prominent New Yorkers, published by the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy. Before passing away, Jonathan was editing the book, Black, Brown and Green: Ensuring A Role for People of Color In the Nation's Green Economy. It is to be a collection of essays, published by the DuBois Bunche Center.

Jonathan also served as the scriptwriter for ``Back Door Channels: The Price of Peace,'' a documentary film which examines the behind-the- scenes events leading to the historic Camp David meeting between Egypt, Israel and the United States. The film was selected to open the 2009 Monte Carlo Television Festival.

Always willing to share his wealth of knowledge and experience, Jonathan was a guest lecturer at a number of colleges and universities, including the London School of Printing, Columbia University, Swarthmore College, Southern University and the University of Missouri. He has also been a member of the visiting faculty at the Maynard Institute Summer Program for Minority Journalists at the University of California at Berkeley and the Century Foundation's Century Institute Summer Program at Williams College. In addition, he was a recipient of The New York Times' Publishers Award and has also received the public service writing award from the New York Association of Black Journalists. Furthermore, he has received awards for excellence in journalism from the New York Chapter of the National Black MBA Association and from the Arizona Press Association. In 2009, Jonathan traveled to Liberia on a grant from the Ford Foundation to write articles and produce broadcasts about the redevelopment of the country following the 14-year civil war that ended in 2003. He was also charged with laying the groundwork for a training program for professional and aspiring journalists there. Upon his return, Jonathan and his wife, Christy DeBoe Hicks, launched the J. P. Hicks Family Mass Communications Scholarship, which seeks to support the next generation of journalists in Liberia. The scholarship provides assistance for aspiring journalists, covering cost of tuition, fees and books for a period of up to four semesters at the University of Liberia. It also provides for online, one-on-one mentorship with professional journalists. Furthermore, Jonathan was involved in a number of philanthropic issues. He served for four years as chairman of the Kappa Alpha Psi New York Foundation, a role in which he helped raise $250,000 for scholarships for college-bound students in New York City.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that you and my distinguished colleagues join me in celebrating the life and career of a man who has devoted his life to promoting racial equality and the ideals this country was founded on. Jonathan P. Hicks remains a true American hero and quite simply a literary vanguard, and I suspect it will be a long wait before we ever see another of his kind.

Mr. Speaker, it is a great privilege to recognize Donald Frazier MacIver, Jr., who has dedicated his life to serving his country, his community, and his fellow military service members and veterans. Donald's service began as a Senior Medical Specialist Non- Commissioned Officer in the U.S. Army's elite 5th Special Forces Group. In Vietnam, Donald showed the depth of his commitment to service by participating in extraordinarily hazardous missions behind enemy lines as a member of the covert Military Assistance Command Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG). His military decorations include the Bronze Star Medal.

In the last fifty years, Donald has worked tirelessly to advance the dignity and equal treatment of GLB service members and veterans. In 1993, Donald was arrested at the White House for his nonviolent civil disobedience in protest of the implementation of the U.S. military's discriminatory ``Don't Ask, Don't Tell'' policy. Donald has also served as a volunteer consultant on proper treatment and dignity for those living with HIV and AIDS. His contributions to the HIV/AIDS community include time as the Chair of the Community Advisory Board of the New York University Medical School, NYU Langone Medical Center, and Bellevue Hospital Center HIV/Hepatitis/Infectious Diseases Research Networks, and volunteer consultancy to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Public Health/Clinical Public Health. In 2011, Donald was awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the VA Office of Public Health/Clinical Public Health for his ``dedicated service and commitment to improving the care provided to our nation's veterans.''

As president of the Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual (GLB) Veterans of Greater New York, Donald's leadership inspired GLB veterans who were discharged from the military for ``homosexual conduct'' to demand the respect and honor due for their faithful service. When unforeseen circumstances forced the closing of the GLB Veterans' office in January 2014, Donald went once again to action. Concerned that decades of activism and records of the discriminatory treatment of GLB veterans would be lost to history, Donald selflessly volunteered hours of his expertise to a coalition dedicated to preserving the GLB Veterans' archives. In March 2014, Donald singlehandedly organized, securely packaged, and transported sixteen boxes of archived records to a secure storage site in Bronx, New York. His continued stewardship of the records protects the memory of military veterans who faithfully served our country in World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and elsewhere. It is impossible to calculate the value of Donald's contributions to GLB veterans' recognition and equality in New York City and the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to applaud the efforts of a group of Korean-American leaders in the United States as they successfully launched the first Korean-American Service Day, (``KA Service Day'') on Saturday, November 8, 2014, with hundreds of volunteers participating in various events held in New York, Atlanta, Washington DC, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

KA Service Day was conceived by the Network of Korean-American Leaders (NetKAL), a leadership program organized by the Center for Asian-Pacific Leadership at the University of Southern California for the purpose of incubating the next generation of Korean-American leaders. In 2014, the eighth class of leadership fellows convened in New York City over the course of six months and, as in years past, was challenged to come up with a community service project with far- reaching impact. The creation of ``Korean-American Service Day'' was an idea put forth by the 2014 class of NetKAL fellows.

The five-city service day aimed to encourage Korean-Americans across the nation to give back to their local communities. Some of the volunteer opportunities ranged from food pantries and meal programs to outdoor restoration projects. They partnered with non-profit organizations, such as City Harvest to distribute fresh produce in the South Bronx neighborhood of my congressional district in New York City. From sorting donations to the Downtown Women's Center in Los Angeles and planting trees in a community greenspace in Atlanta, volunteers on KA Service Day demonstrated their collective will and power to become positive agents of change in our society. I hope that the huge success of the inaugural KA Service Day will inspire thousands of dedicated volunteers to help grow it into one of the largest days of service in America.

As a Korean War veteran, I have been proud to witness the Korean community flourish across our nation. Since 1903, when they first came to America, Korean immigrants have played a vital role in shaping our society through their strong family ties and hard work. They have inspired us with their entrepreneurialism and perseverance toward building success and wealth for their families and communities. As a Congressman representing the communities in the New York metropolitan area I have been greatly impressed by the tremendous contributions made by half-a-million Korean Americans and 1,000 professional, educational, religious, and trade organizations, as they play a vital role in the Great City of New York. I am grateful to them and the members of NetKAL for their leadership in making a positive impact on our society.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize support for public broadcasting and the American Graduate initiative in advance of American Graduate Day on September 27th.

Each year nearly one million students fail to graduate on time, and public media is working with partners across the nation to reach a goal of a 90 percent high school graduation rate by the year 2020. With the help of the American Graduate initiative and the many other institutions and initiatives grappling with this issue, remarkable progress toward this goal has been made in recent years. American Graduate Day puts faces on the dropout numbers and increases understanding of the risks and solutions through national and local content, covering all facets of the dropout issue for broadcast, web and mobile platforms.

An October 2013 study conducted by the Everyone Graduates Center at Johns Hopkins School of Education finds that the American Graduate initiative has succeeded in building community capacity to meet the national priority of ending America's high school dropout crisis. More than 80 public radio and television stations in over 30 states have joined forces with over 1000 partners and at-risk schools to shed light on the problem and share solutions. The dropout rate in the tri-state area is alarming, and I see students in my district struggling to complete their education every day; I support this important initiative that delivers real impact in our fight to end this dropout crisis.

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

It is awkward and embarrassing to stand on this floor to discuss something described as a Jobs for America bill.

Fortunately, we Democrats don't have to expend too much energy because of the lack of credibility that the majority party has with any type of legislation designed to help those people who are without employment.

The irony of this whole thing is that our distinguished chairman spent hours, days, weeks, and months putting together a tax reform bill that, even though it could be challenged in parts, all tax writers and people who respect the necessity of reforming the Tax Code lauded him for the work, the fairness, and, most of all, the lack of partisanship that went into that bill.

Indeed, many of the provisions that are in this bill that could better be described as an opportunity for corporates to avoid paying taxes, many of those provisions in this bill were repealed in the chairman's bill that he presented to the Congress to be considered for reform.

Let me strike that from the record. He did not bring it to the floor for it to be considered for anything. It was a strong political statement that he knew the majority of his party would not support.

Having said that, it was a fine piece of legislation that gained support by eliminating the very same violations of equity and fair play that are now in this bill.

$500 billion tab. $500 billion cost, not paid for, not a promise to pay for. And half of this is to make permanent the extension of bonus appreciation, which all economists, including those in the Congressional Research Service, say that in order to be effective, it should not be made permanent.

In any event, I think, as we go home, we should recognize that there will be opportunity when we come back to really get together and have an effective bill.

To do this, the Republican majority should not bring to the floor bills that have passed the House and been rejected already by the Senate, but should sit down with the administration, with the Senate, with the minority in the House and work out something that is for the good of all Americans.

This happened yesterday, where we had honest, serious disagreements. But at the same time, we came together as a Congress in the House at least on what is good for the country.

So, quite frankly, I don't think I will be using all of my time because what is before the House today is not a jobs bill but a public relations piece of political advertisement.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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

If we were serious about passing a bill that has been rehashed in this House and no action has been taken upon it, common sense and reason would dictate that we would work with the Democrats, work with the Senate, and work with the President to get one passed.

This bill transcends over eight or nine different legislative committees, and the ranking member--one who has so much jurisdiction over this issue--would share with the House and the country what parts of this bill she believes would create jobs, if any part.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).

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

Certainly, we all will be getting a lot of mail from the logging companies asking for this legislation in order to create jobs. I wish included in this package would have been the earned income tax credit, a bill that keeps people who work hard each and every day out of poverty by subsidizing their wages, but that is too much like creating jobs, and it is not in this package.

I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson), a distinguished and articulate Member who serves on the Judiciary Committee and has a ranking position on the subcommittee that has jurisdiction over part of this bill.

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

I want to thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania, my friend, who eloquently mentioned how the Congress should and could be working more closely together. Again, I say that yesterday proved it.

I am certain that the eloquent gentleman from Pennsylvania would have to agree that, if we were passing bills in the House and they were not going anywhere, any legislator would have to find out why.

It would seem to me that we would go to the minority party, we would ask

to sit down with the Senate, we would work with the Department of Labor and the administration, and we would do that just before we were going home to attempt to get reelected.

I don't challenge the sincerity of the gentleman from Pennsylvania, but just bringing in bills that you know are not going to pass the Senate, bringing in bills the administration has already said that they would veto is not the way to success. It may be a good political statement, but it is certainly not the way to pass legislation.

I have the great honor to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings), who has distinguished himself nationally in terms of being a legislator with a heart and common sense.

He is the ranking member of the Oversight Committee, that has attempted to show the entire country exactly what is going on and not going on in the Congress. I look forward to his eloquent remarks on this sensitive, important subject.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would not suggest to the distinguished gentleman from Illinois what he should be doing as a part of the majority, but if I had a bill as good as the one that he had, I certainly would not allow it to be included in this piece of political legislation. Because it would serve the veterans of this great country, I would say, give me a break and let the House and the Senate and the President give this legislation a chance.

But I am not in the majority, and I respect that you are doing the best you can with what you have to work with, and I respect you for that.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen), who is the ranking member of the Budget Committee.

Most Americans know, like with our family, he has the responsibility to suggest to this august body exactly how much we are spending, how much we owe, and which is the best way to bring some balance to it, and I am so proud to be able to serve with him.

I yield the gentleman from Maryland 30 more seconds.

I yield the gentleman as much time as he may consume to close.

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

Mr. Speaker, before I yield to the gentleman from Maryland to inform the gentleman from Georgia more about these corporations that are attempting to flee the United States, I would like to have good news for the distinguished chairman of the committee that this veterans bill has been so popular on the other side of the Capitol that it appears as though it is included in a Senate bill and, as we talk, is actually being attacked by the Republican minority on the other side. So, at least as relates to the veterans, if we can take it out of this hodgepodge that has politically been put together, maybe collectively we can do something for our beloved veterans.

As far as the gentleman from Georgia is concerned, he had a problem in identifying the U.S. company that is going to receive a bonus, that is fleeing their tax obligation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen) so he can help clarify those issues to explain exactly how this provision is costing us.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett), a hardworking gentleman on the Ways and Means Committee, one who has been outspoken on all of the issues that concern national security as well as the protection of our economy.

I yield the gentleman an additional 2 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Kind), my friend and a distinguished, eloquent member of the Ways and Means Committee.

I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis), one of the hardest working members of the Ways and Means Committee.

I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, as we close out on this bill, I would like to enter into the Record a report by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. This is an objective report on the subject that we have just talked about, and that is whether or not the Affordable Care Act has caused a loss in full-time jobs. This report clearly shows that we have had a rise in full-time work in connection with the health care reform bill.

[From Off the Charts, Sept. 17, 2014]

Census Report Shows Rise in Full-Time Work, Undercutting Claims by

Health Reform Opponents

(By Paul N. Van de Water)

Yesterday's Census Bureau report shows that the share of

workers with full-time, full-year work rose in 2013, while

the share with part-time, part-year work fell. This finding

further undercuts assertions that health reform is causing a

large increase in part-time employment--as proponents of a

House measure to change health reform's rules on covering

full-time workers claim.

Health reform requires employers with at least 50 full-

time-equivalent workers to offer coverage to full-time

employees--defined as those who work at least 30 hours a

week--or pay a penalty. Critics claim that employers are

shifting some employees to part-time work to avoid offering

them health insurance. But the data provide scant evidence of

such a shift.

To the contrary, part-time work became less frequent last

year. ``An estimated 72.7 percent of working men with

earnings and 60.5 percent of working women with earnings

worked full time, year round in 2013, both percentages higher

than the 2012 estimates of 71.1 percent and 59.4 percent

respectively,'' according to the new Census report. These

data are consistent with a recent Urban Institute analysis

that found little evidence that health reform has increased

part-time work.

The share of involuntary part-timers--workers who'd rather

have full-time jobs but can't find them--tells a similar

story. If health reform were distorting hiring practices, as

critics assert, we'd expect the share of involuntary part-

timers to be growing. Instead, as the chart (based on Labor

Department data) shows, it's down by 1\1/2\ percentage points

from its post-recession peak. My colleague Jared Bernstein

finds that this pattern is typical for this stage of a

recovery.

Later this week, the House will consider a proposal (part

of a so-called ``jobs bill'') to raise health reform's

threshold for full-time work from 30 to 40 hours. But this

step would make a shift toward part-time employment much more

likely--not less so.

Only about 7 percent of employees work 30 to 34 hours (that

is, at or modestly above health reform's 30-hour threshold),

but 44 percent of employees work 40 hours a week and thus

would be vulnerable to cuts in their hours if the threshold

rose to 40 hours. Employers could easily cut back large

numbers of employees from 40 to 39 hours so they wouldn't

have to offer them health coverage.

If you exclude workers at firms that already offer health

insurance and thus won't be tempted to cut workers' hours,

more than twice as many workers would face a high risk of

reduced hours under a 40-hour threshold than under the

current 30-hour threshold, according to New York University

economist Sherry Glied.

There's little evidence to date that health reform has

caused a shift to part-time work. There's every reason to

expect the impact to be small as a share of total employment,

as we have explained. And raising the cutoff for the employer

mandate from 30 to 40 hours a week would be a step in the

wrong direction.

Now, the gentleman knows also that in order to get a bill passed, it really helps if you get the cooperation of the President of the United States.

I would like to submit a statement for the Record from the administration which says that if this bill was to reach him that he would be forced to follow the advice of his administration specialists and veto it.

On the other hand, I think it is abundantly clear that the Speaker knows that the President has reached out to him and to the Senate to come together to create jobs.

Statement of Administration Policy

H.R. 4--Jobs for America Act

(Rep. Camp, R-Michigan, and 4 cosponsors)

The Administration strongly opposes House passage of H.R.

4, which incorporates several bills that have previously been

passed by the House during this Congress, including a number

of bills for which the Administration issued Statements of

Administration Policy strongly opposing passage and

indicating that, if presented to the President, his senior

advisors would recommend that he veto them.

The Administration wants to work with Congress to make

progress on measures that strengthen the economy and help

middle class families, including pro-growth business tax

reform. The Administration continues to support tax proposals

that would benefit the Nation's economy and small businesses,

such as making permanent the research and experimentation tax

credit and increased expensing for small businesses. However,

making traditional tax extenders and costly business tax cuts

permanent without offsets, while at the same time allowing

taxes to increase on 26 million working families, represents

the wrong approach.

In addition, the Administration welcomes ideas to improve

the Affordable Care Act. However, H.R. 4 would undermine that

Act by shifting costs to taxpayers and causing fewer

Americans to have employer-sponsored health insurance

coverage.

Also, the Administration is committed to ensuring that the

benefits of regulation justify their costs and that they are

tailored to advance statutory goals in a manner that is

efficient, is cost-effective, and minimizes uncertainty.

However, H.R. 4 would throw all major regulations into a

months-long limbo, marking a significant departure from the

longstanding separation of powers between the Executive and

Legislative branches and, fostering uncertainty and impeding

business investment that is vital to economic growth.

Furthermore, the bill would impose other unnecessary

requirements on agencies that would seriously undermine their

ability to execute their statutory mandates.

Finally, the Administration is committed to sound long-term

management of Federal lands for continued productivity and

economic benefit, as well as for the long-term

health of the wildlife and ecological values sustained by

these holdings. However, H.R. 4 includes numerous harmful

provisions that would impair responsible management of

Federally-owned lands and undermine many important existing

public land and environmental laws, rules, and processes.

If the President were presented with H.R. 4, his senior

advisors would recommend that he veto the bill.

Lastly, I would like to say, as the distinguished chair moves on to his retirement from this august body, that for as long as the gentleman has been a member of this Ways and Means Committee that I have admired and I continue to respect the fine work that he has contributed to the committee as well as to this House, and that his honesty, candidness, sincerity, and hard work to make this a better Congress and a better country certainly is appreciated now and will be in the future.

And I would hope that the hard work that he has done on tax reform-- which is a very difficult, complex subject to deal with--that we might try to remember him for the fine work that he has done over these years, rather than on the eve of an election, where sometimes the leadership would want to make a political statement.

I, for one, will never associate him with this piece of legislation, but, rather, for the outstanding contributions that he has made year after year, session after session--not for Republicans, not for the committee, but for this great country. And I thank him for his friendship over the years.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is 10:40, September 17, 2014. And for me, this is an historic event, because I will be able to tell my grandkids and those who would listen that on the eve of the House of Representatives taking a vote that would expand the war powers of the President of the United States, that I stood in the well of the House talking to a House that was void of any Member of the House of Representatives.

I make this point not so much to indicate the importance of anything I might say this morning, but because I really think that the whole country should be concerned about the gravity and importance of the vote that we take today, which in my 44 years I cannot think of any vote that is more important and certainly more historic.

It goes unchallenged that the vote today would expose more members of the military to bodily harm. It is clear that the administration has called this a war on ISIS or ISIL. It is abundantly clear that the threat to our national security is subject to a whole lot of debate. And while I may not have the answer to whether or not there is a threat, to me, I cannot think of anything more important than the 435 Members of the House and the 100 Members of the other body, at least before we vote, to be able to debate this issue.

I intend to vote against the amendment that would include an expansion of our military venture, which means

that I will be forced to vote against the concurrent resolution. But I think the House Members, Republicans and Democrats, should resent the fact that these votes are combined into one vote.

The vote as to whether or not it is constitutional, the vote as to whether or not it is a threat to the United States security, the vote as to how we are going to pay for it, the vote in terms of who is going to make the sacrifices, these are the things that should be debated. There is no lawful reason why these two issues have to be joined in one vote.

I do hope I get an opportunity to bring an amendment to the authority of the President to use military force by conditioning it to two things: that if this Congress and the American people believe that we have a threat to our national security, then by all means we should be prepared to make the sacrifices to protect our country.

What are those sacrifices? Well, one is financial sacrifice. Because the trillions of dollars that was spent--I think it is close to $6 trillion since we have been involved in the Middle East--most of the profits have been made by the military industrial complex. But the $6 trillion comes out of our budget, and there is not a war tax. I think we need that.

The other question has to be that we cannot dismiss the military that is in Iraq today and those that may be in that area, whose lives are endangered. That is less than 1 percent of United States population is making the sacrifice. We already lost 6,800 American lives in this war, and it is very difficult to explain to their families and friends at funerals what the cause was or whether we won or lost.

But the question should be once we make a determination that there is a threat to our national security, we should have the mandatory Selective Service Act reinstated. We already have it on the books. We should activate it to make certain that if you are voting to put more men and women's lives into jeopardy, make certain it is universal men and women would be selected to make certain that they provide for a national service of some sort.

So what I am suggesting is that I can never believe that this country would be voting this day and that the debates would be that I would be talking to an empty Chamber in pleading for the American people that if you are going to make a decision that we should really go to war, because there is a threat to the security of the United States of America, one, that should not be debated just on the question of the continuance of support of the budget of the United States.

Mr. Speaker, let me thank you so very much for giving me this opportunity to address the House.

I think today and tomorrow may be recorded in history as one of the most serious decisions that this Congress has had to make. Personally, I don't know enough to see where the President needs authority to do what we are about to allow him to do because of a threat to the United States of America.

I have talked with everyone that is willing to listen to me in my congressional district and they have given me a whole lot of things that they are concerned about. But I haven't come close, as much as they love this President of the United States, in convincing them that training people overseas that we don't know to fight ISIS is in their best national interest.

The point that I asked to come to the floor is that it is so easy to try to bring justice to a situation if it doesn't cause you anything or any inconvenience. Already we have lost trillions of dollars and over 6,000 lives in this area, and I don't think we have yet to declare war.

What I am suggesting on drafting legislation is that if it does reach the time that this honorable body is prepared to discuss all of the issues and determine whether or not any enemy is a threat to the United States and that we are going to go to war with them, that we should attach to that two provisions that would force every American to evaluate whether or not they believe that they are prepared to make sacrifices.

One of them, of course, is a war tax. These last wars, the only people who have suffered were those people who had boots on the ground or those people who know people or those people who went to the funerals. Certainly those that have gained profit because we needed their services overseas, they haven't made any sacrifices.

When it comes down to discretionary spending, what I consider a threat to the United States of America is our failure to provide money for research, for development, for education, for jobs, for infrastructure. But if we attach the two things to any bill where we are prepared to debate and determine whether our great Nation is being threatened, then I don't think it is asking too much of Americans to be able to say, yes, we are willing to pay taxes for it, and, yes, we are ready to have mandatory recruitment of young men and women who are prepared to say that if our Nation is in trouble we all should be doing something.

But all these people that are willing to fight with other people's kids I think is not the standard that this august body should have.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the 2014 recipients of the coveted Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

Presented annually by the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations--NECO, the Ellis Island Medals of Honor pay tribute to our Nation's immigrant heritage, as well as individual achievement. The Medals are awarded to U.S. citizens from diverse ethnic backgrounds who exemplify outstanding qualities in both their personal and professional lives, while continuing to preserve the richness of their particular heritage and culture. We honor these outstanding individuals because the important work they do today, creates a better world for all of us tomorrow. Since the Medals' founding in 1986, more than 2,000 American citizens have received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, including six American Presidents, United States Senators, Congressmen, Nobel Laureates, athletes, artists, clergy, and military leaders. This Medal is not about material success, nor is it about the politics of immigration; it is about the people who have committed themselves to this nation, embraced the opportunities America has to offer, and most importantly, who have used those opportunities to not only better their own lives but make a difference in our country and in the lives of its people.

Citizens of the United States hail from every nation known to man. The iconic metaphor of this nation as a veritable melting pot of cultures continues to ring true, and it is this diversity that adds to the unique richness of American life. It is the key to why America is the most innovative, progressive and forward thinking country in the world. The Ellis Island Medals of Honor not only celebrate select individuals but also the pluralism and democracy that enabled our forebearers to celebrate their cultural identities while still embracing the American way of life. This award serves to remind us all that with hard work and perseverance anyone can still achieve the American dream. In addition, by honoring these remarkable Americans, we honor all who share their origins and we acknowledge the contributions they have made to America.

I commend NECO and its Board of Directors headed by my good friend, Nasser J. Kazeminy, for honoring these truly outstanding individuals for their tireless efforts to foster dialogue and build bridges between different ethnic groups, as well as to promote unity and a sense of common purpose in our nation.

Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in recognizing the good works of NECO and in congratulating all of the 2014 recipients of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. I also submit the names of this year's recipients.

2014 Ellis Island Medal of Honor Recipients

Salpy Akaragian RN-BC, MN; Iran Davar Ardalan; Marina

Arsenijevic; Sherry S. Bahrambeygui; Lily Ring Balian; Maria

Bartiromo; Gerald A. Benjamin; Robert S. Bennett; Norbert R.

Berg; Narpat Bhandari; Barbara J. Bowers, M.D., Ian Bremmer;

Major General Mark A. Brilakis; Charles Ta-Peng Chang; Edwin

M. Chang, M.D.; Hazem H. Chehabi, M.D.; Quyen D. Chu, M.D.;

Vice Admiral Daniel L. Cooper; Brigadier General Ruben A.

Cubero; Vice Admiral Philip Hart Cullom.

H.E. Archbishop Hovnan Derderian; Samir A. Desai; Paul J.

DiMare; Captain Jeffrey F. Dixon; Diana L. Ecclestone; E.

Llwyd Ecclestone; Salim F. Fadil, M.D.; Phillip Frost, M.D.;

Chief Thomas P. Galati; Diana Xing Wu Gao; Jean-Pierre

Garnier, PhD.; Colonel Michael J. Gould; General Frank J.

Grass; Scott Green; Felix `Phil' Grucci; Admiral Harry B.

Harris, Jr.; Samuel R. Harris; Richard B. Herman, Esq.;

Evander Holyfield; Joan B. Horning.

Professor David P.J. Hung, O.M.D., PhD.; Vahe Imasdounian;

Jae Kung Jeung; Larry E. Jodsaas; Yue-Sai Kan; Shaygan

Kheradpir; Minsun Kim; Gary Sze Kong; Gwen S. Korovin, M.D.;

Dr. Alma Kunanbaeva; Kin Y. Lam, M.D.; Norma Lerner; Anita

Bevacqua McBride; Douglas W. McCormick; Honorable Robert Carl

McFarlane; Raffi Megerian; Dr. Aria Mehrabi; David C.

Meltzer, Esq.; Ali Mojdehi; Darioush Nasseri, M.D.; Jerar

Nishanian.

Herbert V. Nootbaar; Dattatreyudu Nori, M.D.; Pejman Nozad;

Ivan Obolensky; Fatih Ozmen; Frank Pallone, Jr.; Peter Kihyo

Park; Jorge M. Perez; Lauren Pizza; Rabbi Joseph Potasnik;

Arun Kumar Pramanik, M.D.; Helen Psaras; Major General L.

Scott Rice; U.S. Representative Edward R. Royce; Major

General Jay Santee; Elizabeth Sarquis; Timothy R. Scully,

CSC; Ketki Sharadkumar Shah, M.D.; Yash Paul Soi; Andrew

Strzalkowski.

Abdul M. Suleman; Elie Tahari; Honorable David H. Thorne;

Honorable Gaddi H. Vasquez; Elizabeth Lee Vliet, M.D.;

Honorable John P. Walsh; Robert R. Weinstine, Esq.; Honorable

Jesse White; Steven W. Wong; Yannis C. Yortsos, PhD; Lotfi

Zadeh; Tim H. Zagat; Charles Zhang.

And receiving the International Ellis Island Medal of

Honor, Ahmet Calik and Nigel Lythgoe.