Floor Statements

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3961, and I feel so proud that the Ways and Means Committee was able to make a contribution with the other two committees, Education and Labor as well as Energy and Commerce, to

bring the John Dingell medical reform bill before this House and before this country.

What it does, really, is a new way to provide health care that is perfected in such a way that the patients are able to get medical care before they become patients, have preventative care, to provide for new doctors to be able to be made, and to get rid of a flawed physician payment system that, indeed, will strengthen the Medicare program.

At the end of the day when you hear the opposition, most all of their comments are going to be negative and saying ``no.'' Even when we make our case as to why we should fulfill our obligation to the doctors, they will make some decisions here, procedure decisions, which my friend Mr. Barton gets fed up with, but I assume he will be leading the race and saying that there should be a way to resubmit this bill to the committees to do something all over again.

If that is the case, I am certain that the American Medical Association as well as the older people and those people who need these doctors will not have to fear anything because their answer to this will be rejected, and once again we will be able to fulfill the promise that we made with the health bill by making certain they have doctors in order to support it.

At this time, Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to Chairman Pete Stark, who has made such an important contribution over the years to reform our health system, and I ask unanimous consent that he be allowed to control that time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Breast Cancer Awareness Month. As the month draws to a close, it is important that we acknowledge the impact that breast cancer has had on both women and men in our country. This October marks the 25th anniversary of the inaugural National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, celebrating a quarter century of awareness, education, and empowerment.

Each year, approximately 200,000 women and 1,700 men are diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 40,000 women and 450 men die from it. Breast cancer is sadly the most common cancer in women in the United States, but fortunately, there are about 2.5 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States today. This disease affects the lives of

so many women and their loved ones, and it is of the utmost importance that the public is aware of current information and treatment options.

I commend organizations like Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and others, for its dedication to educating the citizens of our community and keeping them updated on the status of relevant research. I appreciate its commitment to providing more opportunities for individuals to learn about the disease, by spreading the message of prevention and awareness to wider audiences. In order to prevent breast cancer, we must increase our awareness, which makes research, early detection, and treatment all the more important as a woman's best defenses in the fight against this deadly disease.

In acknowledging and honoring Breast Cancer Awareness Month, doing so, we will educate our loved ones across the Nation--many mothers, sisters, and friends--on the importance of early detection, so that we may prevent as many women from dying as possible.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the SLE Lupus Foundation and the Lupus Cooperatives of New York for their contributions to help people with lupus and for fighting gender and racial disparities in the treatment of lupus for almost 40 years.

Systemic lupus erythematosus, SLE, commonly called lupus, is a chronic and potentially fatal autoimmune disorder. It is one of the Nation's least recognized major diseases, and it disproportionately affects women, particularly women of color. In lupus, the body's immune system forms antibodies that can attack virtually any healthy organ or tissue, from the kidneys to the brain, heart, lungs, skin, joints and blood. Lupus is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and stroke in young women. No major new treatments for lupus have been approved in 50 years.

The SLE Lupus Foundation, headquartered in New York City with a West Coast division in Los Angeles, was founded in 1970. It is a nonprofit organization that provides direct patient services, education, public awareness, and funding for novel lupus research on the national level. The Foundation deals with the predominance and severity of such lupus complications as kidney and cardiac disease in Blacks, Hispanics, Asians and people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds.

Madam Speaker, in 1998, the SLE Lupus Foundation opened the first Lupus Cooperative of New York in East Harlem. The Lupus Cooperative programs ensure that people of lupus receive the medical treatment, emotional care and practical assistance needed to live with this chronic disease, no matter their gender, or ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Over the past decade, the Lupus Cooperatives have focused on communities characterized by high poverty rates, large numbers of uninsured residents, numerous single-parent families and a population at highrisk for lupus. They have worked actively to address gender and racial health disparities by demonstrating a collaborative model for the management of chronic illness among young, inner-city minority women.

The SLE Lupus Foundation is a member organization of the Lupus Research Institute National Coalition, which has affiliate organizations nationwide. Through the Lupus Research Institute National Coalition, the SLE Lupus Foundation has created visibility for the needs of underserved populations through awareness-building, advocacy and direct education programs on a national, state and local level.

Highlights of accomplishments include:

``Invisible No More'' forum on race and lupus at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2004;

Educational panel on heart disease and lupus presented at the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference in 2005;

Spanish language public awareness campaign to alert Hispanic women to the dangers of lupus in 2005;

Congressional briefing on racial disparity in lupus to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus in 2006;

Five-City series on the increased risk of heart disease in people with lupus, particularly young women and African-American women. That was presented in conjunction with the Association of Black Cardiologists in 2007. The series was held in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Detroit;

National Lupus Health Education for Physicians and Health Care Providers--in partnership with the Office of Minority Health and Human Services.

Madam Speaker, the SLE Lupus Foundation has accomplished and will continue to accomplish great things for people with lupus. I am grateful to the SLE Foundation and the Lupus Cooperative of New York for the work that they do to help people with lupus nationwide.

Madam Speaker, I rise with great pride to join New York Democratic County Leader Keith L.T. Wright and the Harlem Council of Elders to pay tribute to Egyptologist and Pan-Africanist, Dr. Yosef A.A. Ben-Jochannan (Dr. Ben), Harlem's internationally renowned historian and educator of the African Diaspora.

In 1918, Dr. Yosef A.A. Ben-Jochannan, affectionately known as Dr. Ben was born in Gondar, Ethiopia to Krstan ben Jochannan, a lawyer and diplomat, and Tulia Matta, a native of Puerto Rico, who was a homemaker and midwife. Dr. Ben's parents were both of the Jewish faith. His father was a member of the ``Falasha,'' or Beta Israel, and his mother was a descendent of Spanish Sephardic Jews. Krstan ben and Tulia met in Madrid, Spain, where she was attending college and he was working as a diplomatic attache. Soon after their marriage, they traveled from Spain to Ethiopia where their son, Yosef, was born.

In Ethiopia, he spent the first five years of his life, later on moving to the Americas. He said in later interviews that, in the 1920s, the Ethiopian government sent his father to Brazil to help develop its coffee trade. They lived for about a year in Rio de Janeiro before a 1928 coup in Ethiopia saw the overthrow of Empress Zauditu and the consolidation of power under Emperor Haile Selassie. After the change in political leadership, the family decided not to return to Ethiopia but instead settled permanently in Puerto Rico. Yosef was raised primarily in the town of Fajardo, located on the eastern side of Puerto Rico, and the nearby islands of St. Croix and St. Thomas, where his mother had relatives. He was thus fluent in Spanish and English from an early age.

Dr. Ben attended the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, where he first studied law, but later switched to civil engineering. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1939. In his senior year of college Dr. Ben wrote and self-published a booklet titled Nosotros los Hebreos Negros (We the Black Hebrews) about his experience growing up black and Jewish on a predominately Catholic island where at the time people of African ancestry were commonly viewed as inferior. Dr. Ben's father was fluent in several languages and often spoke with his son about the significance of Ethiopia's ancient past. However, at school and in the community, he frequently heard the view that Africa was a backward and wretched continent. In response to this, his father sent him to visit his grandparents in Ethiopia, where he stayed for several months. To get there, Dr. Ben traveled by ship to Egypt, then took a train through that country to Ethiopia, and thus began his lifelong fascination with Africa's 4,000-mile-long Nile Valley.

Upon his return to Puerto Rico, he worked briefly as a lawyer and in 1941 moved to New York City with his maternal uncle, Casper Holstein, a self-made millionaire and philanthropist who had become rich from the Harlem

``numbers racket.'' Holstein was one of the largest contributors to Marcus Garvey's Universal Negro Improvement Association, and was also politically active in his native Virgin Islands. Dr. Ben gained a unique insight into the rich cultural milieu of black New York, including its lively street life, informal ``numbers'' lotteries, street-corner preachers, and politics. At the time, Harlem was the epicenter of African American activism in support of Ethiopia, which had been invaded and occupied by Italy under Benito Mussolini during World War II. Although the occupation ended the year he arrived in New York, Dr. Ben joined the Ethiopian World Federation and African Nationals in America.

Ben Jochannan initially found work as a draftsman, but he was drawn to the study of Africa and its ancient history. He began to speak on Harlem street corners, mostly about African history, taking part in a tradition of public speechmaking that was one of the neighborhood's unique attributes, joining such noteworthy contemporaries as Arthur Reid, Carlos Cooks, and Wentworth Matthew. He then came to know several members of the Harlem History Club's leading intellectuals and historians such as John Henrik Clarke, J. A. Rogers, John G. Jackson, and Richard B. Moore. During the late 1940s, Dr. Ben met and befriended a young man known as ``Detroit Red,'' who used to hustle on the corner below his Harlem office. Their friendship deepened after ``Detroit Red'' joined the Nation of Islam in prison, returning to Harlem as Malcolm X. They remained close up until Malcolm's assassination in 1965.

Through this early period of his life in the United States, Dr. Ben maintained the Jewish faith of his upbringing, attending Harlem's Commandment Keeper's Ethiopian Hebrew Congregation led by Rabbi Wentworth A. Matthew and other synagogues. In New York, he continued to struggle as he had in Puerto Rico, with the prevailing societal presumption that tended to question his identity as an African Jew; while at the same time, his study of ancient Egyptian history and spiritual practices was having an ever increasing impact on his thinking. He later wrote in several of his books, his differences with other Jews and his intense identification with the African American struggle eventually caused his complete break with Western man's Talmudic Judaism.

In the 1950s, Dr. Ben worked as a researcher for UNESCO and with the Zanzibar mission to the United Nations until that country merged with Tanganyika to become Tanzania in 1961. He later began teaching as an adjunct professor in New York, mostly as a lecturer on African history at such schools as Marymount College at Tarrytown and at Columbia Teacher's College. In 1957, Dr. Ben led a group of nine African American educators to Egypt to show evidence of his contention that sites such as Abu Simbel, the temple of Isis at Philae Island, and the royal tombs of the Valley of the Kings were the remains of ancient black civilizations. He began a series of these trips over the years, and by his estimation led several thousand African Americans to Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia over the next four decades. The trips not only facilitated his own study and writing, but they came to be a major part of his legacy as a teacher and contributor. In 1960, Dr. Ben self- published his first work produced in the United States, entitled, ``Black Man of the Nile,'' which he sold for $5 a copy at Lewis Michaux's National Memorial African Bookstore on Lenox Avenue. In 1961, he married Gertrude England, of St. Croix. The couple would go on to have nine daughters and three sons. They also adopted six other children. Throughout his career as a writer and teacher, Dr. Ben remained a fixture of the Harlem community where he raised his family.

When Harlem was engulfed by several days of social unrest during the summer of 1964, after the police slaying of a local teenager, Dr. Ben was one of several Harlem activists who met with New York Mayor Robert Wagner and, later, John Lindsay to address systemic problems facing the black community in New York.

As a historian and anthropologist, Dr. Ben would return to the Nile Valley more than fifty times and self-publish forty-two books on African pre-history; the civilizations of Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia; and on religion. His work argued that the creators of ancient Egyptian civilization (the builders of the pyramids, the Sphinx, and cities and lodges) were Black Africans who first migrated north from the Central Rift Valley of present-day Tanzania and Uganda. He claimed that mainstream publishers refused to publish his work, saying that there was not sufficient public interest in them and that the publishers had no way to fact-check his claims. His books were known for their tendentious tone and crude presentation that included newspaper clippings, hand-drawn maps, and an informal, idiosyncratic writing style. However, these shortcomings did not reflect a disregard for academic standards such as citation, footnotes, and bibliography, which he supplied extensively. Dr. Ben chose to write in a manner that could be readily absorbed by both lay readers and researchers with little more than a middle-school education. He also steadfastly criticized the overall presentation of African history in American universities and museums. In the late 1960s, Dr. Ben worked briefly as a writer for a New York publishing company, W. H. Sadlier, where he wrote textbooks on African history such as Southern Lands.

In 1973, he served as an adjunct professor of History and Egyptology at Cornell University's Africana Research Center, where his longtime friend and colleague John Henrik Clarke was teaching. Dr. Ben taught there for fifteen years, a period during which he also served as a visiting lecturer at the Faculty of Languages at Al Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt. In 1979, he traveled to the South Pacific where he lectured in Papua New Guinea about the native population's origins on the African continent. In 1984, he became one of six founding members of the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilization (ASCAC), an organization of black scholars focusing on the ancient African world. The other founders were John Henrik Clarke, Asa G. Hilliard III, Jacob H. Carruthers, Leonard Jeffries, and Maulana Karenga.

Dr. Ben was a popular and sought-after lecturer on college campuses nationally and internationally, celebrated for his direct, polemical style and wit. In 1993, Mary Lefkowitz, a Wellesley classics professor, mentioned him prominently in a Wall Street Journal editorial that fueled an acerbic national debate about ``Afrocentrism'' in academia. Dr. Ben, a lifelong bibliophile had amassed a personal library of over 15,000 books chronicling African and African American history. Outside of academia, Dr. Ben's reputation remains high particularly among many African American laypeople. Today, he can be frequently spotted around Harlem where residents greet him warmly as Dr. Ben!

Madam Speaker, I rise with great pride to join New York Democratic County Leader Keith L.T. Wright and the Harlem Council of Elders to pay tribute to the Harlem Consumer Education Council's founder and president Florence M. Rice.

Florence M. Rice was born on March 22, 1919, in Buffalo, New York. During her childhood, Rice spent several years in the Colored Orphan Asylum and in several foster homes in New York. Upon completion of the eighth grade, Rice left school for work as a domestic seamstress where she became a member of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. Rice spoke out against the discriminatory practices against African American and Latino workers. She participated in a congressional hearing held by my predecessor Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., in 1962, which probed dressmaker union's policies. After testifying, Ms. Rice was blacklisted in that industry.

In the 1960s, Rice founded the Harlem Consumer Education Council, waging a war against corporations who discriminated against African Americans and other minorities. The council organized many successful New York City boycotts and picket lines against grocery stories, furniture stores, and individuals found to be overcharging minorities. Rice's biggest victory was against the New York State Public Service Commission, forcing New York Telephone to stop charging low income residents pre-installation fees. The Harlem Consumer Education Council investigated over 100,000 complaints.

During the 1970's, Florence was appointed Special Consultant to the Consumer Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board. She also taught consumer education at Malcolm-King College and has lectured to thousands at her workshops and seminars. In the 1990s, Rice was responsible for the Bell Atlantic Technology Center in Harlem. Today, the center, Verizon, is dedicated to educating business people, students, senior citizens and other customers about the latest advances in telecommunication technologies. She has lectured in several different countries, including South Africa, where she was named a delegate in the first World Consumer Congress. She has held a number of state, national and international positions. In 1975, Florence served as the Official Member of the United States Delegation to the World Congress of the International Women's Year in Berlin, and in 1976 she served as a representative to the United Nations Congress of Non- governmental Organizations.

Florence Rice is the recipient of the Lane Bryant Award for Volunteer Service, the Sojourner Truth Award, and the Ophelia DeVore Award for Community Service, the National Urban League Frederick Douglass Award, the Consolidated Edison Better Business Award, the Josephine Shaw Lowell Award, the New York Consumer Assembly Prestigious Special Award and the Harold C. Burton Republican Club's 1977 Woman of the Year Award. On June 29, 2006, Florence Rice was interviewed by The HistoryMakers.

Florence M. Rice is a very dear friend and indeed a National Treasure.

We have an expression in my community, ``God is good,'' and basically it means that it gives us all an opportunity in our lives to do some of the things that we had hoped and dreamed would be possible. Since God has been good to our country and to this Congress, it means that we have a responsibility to extend our power to make certain that people have access to health care.

It's really surprising that the other side would believe that, as a party, their answer to this crisis that we face as a Nation in providing health care to so many millions of people that don't have it, that their answer is ``no'' and their vote will reflect ``no.'' But a short visit to history would see that every time we're talking about compassion--Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare--their answer is going to be ``no.''

I want to thank our President for recognizing that even though we have to carry this load alone, it is an honor to be working under the leadership of Speaker Nancy Pelosi, our chairmen, Chairman Waxman and Chairman Miller, and all of the wonderful people that have worked together under the caucus chair of Mr. Larson so that we all would understand that we only have this one chance to get it right; Mr. Clyburn, who brought our votes together so that we are able to be here on

this Saturday to pass this. But to me, most of all, it would be the hardworking members of my committee, men and women who worked day and night to make certain that we got out our initial bill and we also found a way to pay for it. And not only to make certain that this great Nation of ours would not have a deficit but, indeed, would decrease the deficit of this country by $100 billion over 10 years. And the staff, of course, of the Ways and Means Committee that serviced not just our committee, but all of the committees in the House and every Member who needed to know just how can we get this thing right and to do the right thing.

How proud we are that nobody is going to be denied health care because they had a preexisting condition before that. How proud we are that we don't have to select our jobs based on the health insurance that we have. And how proud we are that people who lose their jobs will not be losing their health coverage.

It is a small thing for some people like Members of Congress that already have their insurance, but for those of us that have the compassion to understand what it's like not to be able to take care of your family or your dear friends, not to be able to have health insurance, and for a Nation to be able to say that we are competing with industrial countries all over the world and they provide education and health care for their children, and this great country of ours, with all of the wealth, have to shamefully say that we can't afford to take care of our own people.

So, to those who don't understand what we're doing, this is going to be a historic day for you as well. Unfortunately, it won't be like it would be for us, because we can now have our names under Roosevelt's and under Obama's and under the right thing.

God is certainly good.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this time to recognize the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz) for 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the distinguished gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott) for 1 minute.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize my friend and colleague, the outspoken Member from New York, Mr. Nadler, for 1 minute.

(Mr. NADLER of New York asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, for another view of health care in Texas, I yield 1 minute to Ms. Jackson-Lee.

(Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I couldn't agree with the last speaker more. This is an historic moment, and I certainly hope you, your friends, and colleagues think this through for the American people.

At this time, I have the pleasure to present to the body Mr. Lacy Clay, the gentleman from Missouri, and yield him 1 minute.

I yield myself 30 seconds, Mr. Speaker, because the gentleman who just spoke said that the Democrats didn't listen to the Republicans. Having had the honor to serve with outstanding Republicans on the Ways and Means Committee and having, as chairman, had hearings last year and throughout, quite frankly, there wasn't much to listen to until last Tuesday when, for the first time, you presented a bill. In any event, I appreciate the gentleman's contribution.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

We have been designated as one of the three committees to work on this bill for the President and for the House of Representatives. And we were privileged to work with Chairman Waxman as well as Chairman Miller. I don't think in the history of the Congress we have found three separate committees working in such cooperation. But as I said earlier, we had such hardworking, dedicated members and such a strong support staff that it's almost embarrassing that they are so limited in sharing with you the work and the time and support that they've given to this important issue for the Congress and for our country.

In any event, I have to admit, as Chair, there was one member that I relied on so much. He is the gentleman from California who since 1984 served and continues to serve as the chairman of the Health Committee. And so it is with a great deal of pride that I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Peter Stark).

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin). If there is a moral issue, I would like to be on his side.

(Mr. LEVIN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 90 seconds to the gentleman from the sovereign State of Georgia (Mr. Lewis), the true voice of justice in this Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 90 seconds to a true expert on our country's law system and tax system, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Neal).

Mr. Leader, you've been here long enough to truly understand how this system works.

As soon as we pass this bill, then we would expect the Democratic- controlled Senate to pass their bill. Then we will go into conference, and we will work the will of the majority in the House.

We had no idea that you would expect that a Member, especially one that you spoke in such glowing terms of as you have about me--that you would expect me on this floor, in front of all of my friends and colleagues, to guarantee you anything. I think any Member who gives a guarantee might be in violation of our ethics laws, so I wish you would kind of take a look at this before you would ask these questions.

Well, I haven't normally cut any deals with you as a Republican, but why don't you talk to someone on your level in the House leadership as you have in the past?

You asked me a question.

All I am asking, as long as you have been here, have you ever had any Member--

Have you ever gotten a guarantee like that from anybody since you have been here? No.

Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to Mr. Thompson of California. I thank him for the great contribution he has made to this bill that we present.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Nevada (Ms. Berkley) and thank her publicly for the great contribution she has made to this bill.

I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Schwartz) and I would like to publicly thank her for the many hours that she put in on H.R. 3200.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to my friend and leader from the great State of New York (Mr. Crowley).

(Mr. CROWLEY asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, I yield 90 seconds to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), and thank him for the great job he has done for the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I now yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 90 seconds to a hardworking member of the Ways and Means Committee from the sovereign State of New York (Mr. Higgins).

At this time, I yield 90 seconds to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Yarmuth).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 1 minute to the Congresswoman from California (Ms. Lee), who is the chairperson of the Congressional Black Caucus and has done such a great job on the question of diversity as well as other parts of the bill for women.

I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from New York, Congresswoman Velzquez.

(Ms. VELAZQUEZ asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Michigan, Congresswoman Kilpatrick.

Thank you. I yield 1 minute of that to the gentleman from the great State of New York, Gregory Meeks.

Mr. Speaker, at this time, I yield 1 minute to Congressman Conyers, the distinguished dean of the Congressional Black Caucus, senior Member of this great House of Representatives, and someone that had indicated his concern about health care from many, many years ago.

Madam Speaker, I yield for the purpose of making a unanimous consent request to Mr. Faleomavaega, my friend from Samoa.

(Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

I yield myself 2 minutes.

This is it for the members on the Ways and Means Committee and others that have demonstrated such outstanding leadership to be a part of history.

It's unfortunate that we were unable to create an atmosphere of bipartisanship because, certainly, the 40 million people that are without health insurance, we can't distinguish between those who are Republicans and those who are Democrats. Clearly, we had enough information of the number of people that were in the congressional district, all of our congressional districts, that had no insurance at all.

I am more than certain that my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have heard the very same stories we have: people who thought they were insured and they were not; people who wanted insurance and they would not insure them because they had some condition; other people who worked hard every day of their lives, but were not given insurance and they can't afford to buy it.

No, this isn't the Pelosi plan. This is a plan for all America, a plan to make us proud to know that our country is concerned about us and our children and our grandchildren. And, yes, the American Medical Association, AARP, and everyone is throwing papers around. But these are the groups, the national groups, that have asked America and this Congress to step up and fulfill our responsibility.

And it's not just for our constituents. It's for our great country, to have her as strong as she can be, to be able to know that we can compete with any other nation no matter what part of the world that we're in; and that our workforce will not only be educated and talented in order to compete, but we will be healthy.

Every industrialized country takes care of their people. It's not a political thing. Certainly here it's not a Republican or Democratic thing. It's, Are we going to be healthy? Are we going to be strong? Are we going to be certain that when you count America, count her among the healthy.

Madam Speaker, I want to bring to the floor an outstanding Member of Congress who is the subcommittee Chair on the Education and Labor Committee. As you know, three committees had jurisdiction and Education and Labor had jurisdiction. We had three chairmen. But we had one subcommittee chairman who has just been outstanding. He's been a friend of those without insurance, a friend of those who look forward to this bill's being passed.

So it is with great distinction that I yield the balance of my time to Mr. Robert Andrews from New Jersey, and I ask unanimous consent that he be allowed to control that time.

At this time, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Stark), the chairman of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health.

I would like to take this time to thank him for the great work he's done over the years, not just for our committee, but for this Congress, and I would like to thank him publicly.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington, Dr. McDermott, who worked his whole career down here to improve the quality of health care for all Americans.

(Mr. McDERMOTT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

No one has worked harder on this bill than Congressman Lloyd Doggett from Texas, and it's my honor to now yield 2 minutes to the gentleman.

Could I ask how much time I have remaining, Mr. Speaker?

I yield 2 minutes of that time to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) and ask him to share the great contribution he has made and the loopholes we find in the Republican substitute.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin, Ron Kind, and thank him for the great contributions he has made to looking at health care the way it should be, and that is value and not volume.

(Mr. KIND asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

I'm not going to be as difficult with the Republicans as some of my colleagues because I'm glad at the end of the day they finally understood the problem. And even though it was only Tuesday that they actually put something together for us to look at, at least we know that some of them are going in the right direction.

It's going to be tragic to explain this to the American people not only now but in the future as to when they had a great opportunity. They lost it on Social Security. They said government would become too big. They lost it on Medicaid. They said that would be too much for the poor folks, that they should have freedom instead of health care. And they certainly lost it in

Medicare where they made it appear as though it was going to be a Big Government takeover.

And now it just seems to me that they've proven how well government can do in these programs. And the fact that in lieu of just plain freedom, in lieu of telling people that they can get insurance if they're at risk, the whole idea that they're proud of people who cannot afford to do this at least to have the opportunity to do it.

So, Mr. Speaker, I just hope that some of those on the other side might allow morality to go beyond just party loyalty.

At this time it gives me pleasure to present to this body Chairman Waxman, who has done so much to make this a reality.

Thank you, Mr. Waxman, and also Chairman Miller.

As most of you know, the legislation from the three committees was blended, but so were our great staffs blended. We are here to thank them all for the great work that they put in, the countless hours that they put in to make this legislation a reality.

On the staff of the Committee on Ways and Means in the office of the Health Subcommittee, I would like to thank Chairman Pete Stark, who worked on this legislation, Janice Mays, John Buckley, Cybele Bjorklund, Debbie Curtis, Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Jennifer Friedman, Geoff Gerhardt, Tiffany Swygert, Drew Crouch, Marci Harris, Tom Tsang, Drew Dawson, Ruth Brown, John Barkett, Matthew Beck, Lauren Bloomberg, Brian Cook, and Cameron Branchley.

Because this legislation was the product of the three committees, I would like to thank the Health staffs of the Committee of Energy and Commerce as well as Education and Labor.

We are indebted to our staffs for the work that they have done. We want to thank the capable analysts at the CBO and the Joint Committee on Taxation. We may not always agree with all of the work that we have done, but we have put in a lot of long hours. They've worked day and night for all of us, for the Congress, and for our great country.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from New York, the Honorable William L. Owens, be permitted to take the oath of office today.

His certificate of election has not arrived, but there is no contest and no question has been raised with regard to his election.

Madam Speaker and my colleagues, on behalf of the delegation of the great State of New York, I have the honor to present to you this outstanding member of New York, this outstanding member of our great country.

Bill Owens was born in Brooklyn, raised in Long Island, and conducted his business life and service to this great country in upstate New York. As a retired United States Air Force captain, he has a beautiful wife, who is

with him today. He has three children and two superstar grandchildren, and it's my understanding that another addition will be added to this group.

Bill is a hardworking lawyer and a businessman from upstate New York. He is a job creator. At the former Air Force base in Plattsburgh, he was able to bring some creative activity, bring together businesses, and as a result of that, was able to bring 2,000 jobs to the great State of New York, most of them from Canada.

He comes here today as a supporter of education, as a supporter, naturally, of jobs, as a supporter of making this country all that she can be, and certainly as someone who would like to see all American citizens have access to health care, as most of you, I know, do.

So, Bill, we will be working with you and working for you. Congratulations. Our heartbeat is heavy for your victory, which we know is the Congress' victory and our Nation's victory.

I yield to my friend, the minority leader of the State of New York, and welcome him joining in with us, Congressman Peter King.

My colleagues, Congressman Bill Owens.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 3548) to amend the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008 to provide for the temporary availability of certain additional emergency unemployment compensation, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. Speaker, along with the Ways and Means Committee ranking member, Mr. Camp, we asked the nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation to make available to the public a technical explanation of the bill. The technical explanation expresses the committee's understanding and legislative intent behind this very important piece of legislation. It is available on the Joint Committee's Web site at www.jct.gov and is listed under the document No. JCX-44-09.

Over 6 weeks ago, the House sent legislation in a bipartisan way to the Senate to extend unemployment insurance for workers who live in high unemployment districts, high unemployment States, that have already used all of the tiers of the benefits available under current law. Since that time, hundreds of thousands of workers have lost or gone without unemployment compensation.

This committee, with the leadership and working together in a bipartisan way, sent to the Senate a bill which allowed an additional 14 weeks of unemployment benefits in every State and a total of 20 weeks in high unemployment States. Our committees worked hard together in order to soften the blow that so many hundreds of thousands of people have felt.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to Chairman Jim McDermott, who, over his lifetime, has spent so much time in trying to improve the quality of lives of those that have suffered economic deficits in this great country of ours, and with the permission from the Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that he be allowed to control that time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in memoriam of my dear friend, Labor Pioneer and Civil Rights Leader Willie James, who departed this life peacefully on Friday, October 30th, 2009. This strong spirited and God-fearing man dedicated his entire life to uplifting the hopes and dreams of African Americans and people in the Labor Movement and we are all consumed by his passing. In February of 1996, Willie James made labor history, when he became the first African American elected to serve as President of the Transport Workers Union, Local 100.

A native New Yorker, Willie James was born in Harlem Hospital on April 28, 1936 to the late Charles James and Geneva Nelson Surrency. From 1954 through 1957, Willie served his country in the United States Air Force as a proud member of the 80th Supply Squadron, Depot Special, and received the Good Conduct Medal for his demonstration of honor, efficiency and fidelity with great distinction. While in the service, he and a few other airmen formed a doo-wop vocal group that covered songs by the Platters and other groups. Willie was an accomplished Baritone and often told how the group was so good that people in Morocco thought they were the real Platters. After serving in the Air Force he returned to Harlem finding work as a shipping clerk.

Later in life he developed an attraction for exotic plants and beautiful flowers and in 1964, God blessed him with his own beautiful rose when he met and married Rosabelle. Their marriage lasted 41 years when she departed this life in 2005. Shortly after marriage he became a New York City Police Officer and in 1967 he began his career with the Transport Workers Union, TWU, Local 100 under the Manhattan and Bronx Surface Transit Operating Authority, MABSTOA.

He started with a metal-plating company where he was assigned to a unit with workers who were perceived as derelict workers beset by alcohol and laziness. Not looking down upon anyone but seeing the opportunity to help others; he discovered his masterful skill of organizing workers. He told the workers that if they worked with him he would make a case to the management to get them higher wages. After a series of meetings and negotiations with the bosses he won them a raise, and developed a promotional ladder for himself.

He rose through the ranks of TWU Local 100 and held a series of positions: MABSTOA DIVISION II Bus Operator; Division II Recording Secretary; Vice Chairman and Chairman at Amsterdam Garage; the Executive Board's Director of Education and Training; and Financial Secretary Treasurer. As he continued climbing the ladder of TWU he recalled how he continuously endured blatant racism.

Defying the odds in 1996, as the first African American elected to serve as President of the Transport Workers Union Local 100 Willie set the mark that raised the bar for all of us. Willie continued to climb the ranks in the TWU and in the labor movement. Serving as Vice President of the New York AFL-CIO; Vice President of the New York City Central Labor Council and Vice President of the International Transport Workers Union.

In addition to his sufficient contributions to the labor movement Willie James was a senior executive for The Municipal Credit Union serving in a variety of roles. From 1983-1992, he served as Upgrade Training Director; from 1992-1994, he served as Treasurer; from 1994- 2000, he served as President; from 2007-2009, he served as Acting Chairman; and in May 2009, Willie served as the Chairman. The Municipal Credit Union is one of the oldest and largest Credit Unions in the State of New York with more than 300,000 members and $1.3 Billion dollars in assets.

In the struggle for Civil and Human Rights, Willie James, a Prince Hall Master Mason of Joppa 55 and founding Member of the Society of Afro-American Transit Employees, SAATE, furthered his accomplishments and dedication to helping others by serving on the Executive Board Committee of the New York Branch of the NAACP; Executive Board Member of the Black Trade Union Leadership Committee; Executive Board of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionist; Member of the 100 Black Men of America, Incorporated; and Member of the Board of 500 MEN Empowerment.

Willie was also deeply involved in many civic and community organizations. He was an ordained Deacon at Mount Hermon Baptist Church in the Bronx, New York; and a very active Member of Mount Calvary Baptist Church in Harlem, New York. He served as a Deacon at Rockland Baptist Church in Pomona, New York until his death.

Willie James firmly believed that when the opportunity presents itself, one should selflessly help somebody without expecting something in return. He often quoted. ``Just ask the person who you are helping to pass the baton of love and concern to others in this race of life.'' Willie loved to sing and at every labor march and rally he used his mighty baritone voice to sing out against injustices and inequality; for fair wages and jobs; and Human Rights for all. I will always remember the songs of freedom and struggle that bellowed from the heart of this moral man.

Willie and his late wife Rosabelle leaves to cherish their memory: His sister, Janet Surrency Monroe; two children, Charles James and Daisy Moyd; three grandsons,

Everett, Damon and Kiel; eleven great-grandchildren; three great-great grandchildren; and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Madam Speaker, As a result of Willie James service to our Nation, he leaves a multitude of colleagues, constituents, benefactors, and laborers to continue the work he had manifested in his life for their prosperity and for future generations to come. Though Willie is no longer with us, we will continue to keep his memory alive in our hearts and minds, and continue to honor his legacy with our advocacy for the issues he cared about the most.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 783, ``Recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month,'' and celebrating the vast contributions of Hispanic-Americans to the strength and culture of the United States.

Through the centuries, millions of Hispanic men and women have traveled to the United States looking for the American dream and a better future for their families. They are today spread far and wide across the 50 States. Their arrival resulted in a remarkable mixture of Hispanic culture, traditions, music, food, and language with the American way of life. The Census Bureau reports that Hispanic Americans are the largest ethnic minority in our Nation today, representing 15 percent of the total population.

Hispanic Americans have created their own companies and businesses and are an integral part of the American workforce that keeps our economy moving forward. There are Hispanic Americans serving in the Senate and House of Representatives, but we must do more to increase these numbers and diversify Capitol Hill offices with better Hispanic representation. This year, Sonia Sotomayor, a Bronx native of Puerto Rican descent, became the first Latina to sit on the Supreme Court after being nominated by President Obama. Finally, we must pay respects to the over one million Hispanic veterans who have fought valiantly to defend this nation.

On both big and small scales, Hispanic Americans have left their mark, their heritage, and their contributions on this great country. Their music is heard through voices like Celia Cruz, Marc Anthony, and Tito Puente. Their food is widely available in menus across the country. Their Spanish language we have grown accustomed to hearing, understanding, and loving.

Hispanic American heritage is culture, life and beauty. I urge all my colleagues to extend their support to celebrate a cultural heritage and contribution that makes us the country we are.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the launching of the new National Street Basketball Professional League and to also honor my friends and our nation's legend's of Street Ball. National Street Basketball Association is a non-profit sports league organization headquartered in New York City. The corporation was established to promote amateur and professional street basketball and provide the highest competition platform of specialized league teams globally.

National Street Basketball Association offers professional basketball athletes (21 & older) who meet NSBA criteria with try-out opportunities to represent one of the statewide professional league member team divisions and compete on a national platform. In addition, the company provides amateur basketball services for youth, such as camps, clinics, tournaments and Life-Skill workshops. The company also devises custom training post and pre-season workouts to prepare athletes for their next level whether professional, college, varsity or AAU basketball.

National Street Basketball Association coordinates with elected officials, district leaders, local community and outreach organizations that support youth in sports. The company also sanctions local, regional and national ``Street-ball'' tournament organizations worldwide. Beginning the summer of 2009, the NSBA will host ``Pro-Ball Classic'', an unlimited men's basketball tournament nationwide through which they will select, try-out and establish the first six (6) member teams to represent their city and compete in their professional league. Each tournament city is divided in three (3) divisions, East Coast, West Coast and the Midwest with plans of adding a Men's International Division by 2010 when the league tips off.

Madam Speaker, at this time, I want to salute the 2009 Hall of Fame Inductees to the National Street Basketball Association, our Playground Legends of Street Ball: Nate ``Tiny'' Archibald, Ernie Brown, Freddy Crawford, Miles Dorch, Howie Evans, Artie Georges, Leroy Hendricks, Bobby Hunter, Zack Husser, John Isaacs, Floyd Lane, Johnny Matthis, Bob McCullough, Tony Rosa, and Reggie Threat Sr. Congratulations to my all of my friends and role models that grace the courts of our playgrounds and basketball Courts throughout Harlem, New York City, the Nation, the world and in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

For two consecutive weekends in October 2009, the National Street Basketball Association will launch its first nationwide annual fundraiser initiative, ``Hoops For Hope.'' This unique instructional basketball skills clinic will provide for young male and female athletes with the basic fundamentals of basketball, refine those skills already learned, Life-Skill workshops on Drug Prevention, Peer Pressure, Conflict & Resolution and allow for drills and play situations. This initiative will not only educate but rally the support of these youth athletes and further assist the American Cancer Society's efforts to help those suffering from this disease, become fearless and overcome it.

This spectacular event plans to feature guest speakers from the medical field, professional athletes from the NSBA, and district and community leaders in support of raising awareness of Cancer, encourage screening for early detection and promote basketball as an alternative to destructive leisure time activities and way to stay physically fit for life. In addition, the American Cancer Society Teen Challenge will conduct Health Workshops on Tobacco Control and Teen Smoking.

Let me congratulate and recognize Kim Champion, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Street Basketball Association. Kim is a former veteran Sports Executive, President of Creating Athletes For America Inc. with over 20 years of sports marketing and management expertise. She is also the founder of Women of Excellence Awards, Playground Hall of Fame, and the ``Pro-Ball'' National Basketball Classic tournaments.

Finally, let me also congratulate and recognize Jose Morales, Executive Vice President of the National Street Basketball Association. Jose, a legendary basketball executive in his years of basketball has headed up some of the biggest Street ball leagues on the East Coast, such as Triple Threat/Ron Artest Youth League and the FLAMES and Queensbridge Unlimited Pro-Leagues. He also helped promote and showcase some of NBA's top athletes in the league today including: Ron Artest, Rafer Alston, Lamar Odum, Eric Barkley and other all stars of the hardwood.

Let me thank my dear friend, Peter King, for taking time out on behalf of the entire delegation to give us an opportunity to pay tribute to one of our great Members of Congress and certainly one of our great eloquent members of the New York State congressional delegation.

I think John McHugh epitomizes what most Americans really look forward to when they think of their government or their Congress or their House of Representatives, and that is a guy that has principles, that sticks by them, and yet finds a way to get away from the harshness of partisanship during the time that he is representing their particular interests. This is especially so when one person of a party that probably has been for a lifetime has an opportunity to serve this great Nation under the leadership of a President from another party. I think that that really tests, whether you are Republican or Democrat or Independent, your willingness to understand that there are so many different ways to serve this great Nation. When he was called, it's my understanding that he didn't hesitate to respond when President Obama asked him to serve as Secretary of the United States Army.

I think during the rough partisan times that we are going through now,

that we ought to take advantage, as you have seen fit to do, Mr. King, to point out that it's not like this every day, it's not like this every year, and that fortunately the New York State delegation have managed to disagree without being disagreeable, to maintain our friendships, to have mutual respect. And at the end of the day when we have done our responsibility in one particular Federal job, that we are able to move forward and look forward to working with each other again.

Let me single you out for doing this on behalf of the delegation, on behalf of the Republicans, and, I would like to say, on behalf of the entire Congress.

Madam Speaker, I rise to thank President Barack Obama for his steadfastness in dealing with the state of emergency in my beloved Puerto Rico. An explosion at the fuel storage complex in Catano ignited a fire on Friday, October 23rd, that burned for two days, spewing thick, toxic smoke across the Caribbean region and forcing hundreds of people on the island to evacuate their homes. The fire affected 21 of the fuel depot's 40 tanks. The damages are now estimated at $6.4 million.

In a press statement issued by the office of the President's Press Secretary, President Obama swiftly declared that an emergency exists in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Furthermore, the President ordered federal aid to supplement Governor Fortuno's funds and other local response efforts in the area struck by explosions and fire.

The President's action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts. The purpose of this swift action is to alleviate the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the locals, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act. This will save lives, protect property and public health and safety, and lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe in the municipalities of Bayamon, Catano, Guaynabo, San Juan, and Toa Baja.

Although it's true that we can't personally drive those fire engines and we can't personally distribute aid, there are still lots of other ways in which we can all help. I, and my fellow colleagues here in Congress, can make sure that our government does not stray from its initial commitments and that bureaucratic red tape does not impede any relief efforts to the affected area. We can also appeal to constituents in our own home districts to give to the local charities that are involved in this effort, like the Red Cross or Catholic Charities.

We must never forget that our country's strength lies not just in the size of our military, but also in the depth of our compassion. Any effort will go a long way in relieving the suffering that continues to be felt by our fellow citizens and Commonwealth neighbors to the south.