Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of talk about the partisanship and venom in Washington this year. And while we will certainly see fierce debates in the future, I believe Members of this body can still come together and find common ground.

On the surface, my colleague Hansen Clarke and I are very different. He is a lawyer representing the city of Detroit with a liberal voting record. I'm a conservative physician representing rural northern Michigan and the Upper Peninsula. We are both new to this House and share an interest in learning more about the unique challenges facing Michigan's citizens. After meeting Hansen during freshman orientation, we agreed to tour each other's district.

In August I had the opportunity to head down to Michigan's 13th District in Detroit. There we toured employers such as Edward C. Levy Company and Mercy Primary Care Center and got to have some lunch on Mack Avenue. It was great to learn more about the district and be back in Detroit where I did my medical training. Next week Congressman Clarke will tour with me in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. We will be meeting with area employers in Marquette and Escanaba, and will be getting a chance to see the splendor of Lake Superior with a visit to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Munising. I hope Hansen will even get to try one of northern Michigan's famous pasties for lunch.

Mr. Speaker, although Hansen and I are from different parties and dramatically different parts of the State, we are united in the goal of improving economic conditions in the great State of Michigan. We believe that neither party has a monopoly on good ideas, and by working together, we can help shape a better future for our children and grandchildren.

Despite our difference of opinion on many issues, we both recognize that America remains a place in the world like no other, and that with liberty, courage, and hard work, there is no limit to one's destiny. I encourage all Members of this Chamber to pair up and schedule a visit to a different district.

Congressman Clarke, I'm honored to have you as my friend, and I look forward to having you in Upper Michigan next week.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I came to the floor to speak in favor of this bill because frankly, I find it hard to believe what I'm hearing from those arguing against it.

Does anyone honestly believe that passing this bill will create jobs only for an army of robots? Are you kidding me? Robots? According to one study, this bill may create as many as 3,000 real jobs for humans.

Mr. Chairman, my district in northern Michigan is a long way from Arizona, but we, too, have a rich history of copper mining. Today, people need copper in their daily lives, and the growing demand means we need more mines, creating more jobs in Arizona and Michigan. My own father was a miner.

Congress needs to demonstrate to the American people that it supports mining jobs and developing our Nation's resources, as this bill does in a way that is both environmentally responsible and culturally respectful.

I urge passage of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, last week, instead of making campaign bus stops and touting more stimulus spending, President Obama may have been better served coming to Rhinelander, Wisconsin, for a conference on jobs in the timber industry.

At the conference, Representatives Cravaack, Duffy, Ribble, and myself, along with Chief Tidwell of the U.S. Forest Service, met with loggers, mill operators, and forestry experts. And the consensus was clear: Bureaucratic roadblocks and lack of direction are preventing the responsible harvest of Federal timberlands and killing jobs.

Mr. Speaker, this is not about clear-cutting our Nation's forests. Responsible timber harvests make for healthier forests. They also create real jobs and grow the economy. As it stands, timber in the forests of the Great Lakes and across America is literally rotting on the stump and the Federal Government's bureaucratic snares are allowing it to happen. This cannot continue.

It is time President Obama and Congress recognize that the simplest and quickest way to create jobs is to release the handcuffs of overregulation and red tape.

Mr. Speaker, on the morning of September 22, the inaugural flight of the Upper Peninsula Honor Flight departed for Washington, DC. On this flight were more than 80 World War II Veterans bound for the memorial that was built in their honor. Surrounded by the giant, granite pillars and spraying fountains, there was a renewed sense of

shared sacrifice among the Veterans, and the honor of having been one of the 16 million men and women who served during World War II. This ``Greatest Generation'' is responsible for so much of America's prosperity, and on behalf of the citizens of Michigan's First District, I would like to recognize these heroes for their service, sacrifice, and continued patriotism. The motto of the Honor Flight Program reads ``We can't all be heroes. Some of us have to stand on the curb and clap as they go by.'' It was my pleasure to do so on September 22, 2011, and honor these heroes who are responsible for the greatest victory of the 20th Century.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this rule and final passage of the bill. In a time when government is borrowing over 40 cents for every dollar it spends, this bill makes needed cuts and puts forward a responsible and sensible framework for managing our Nation's natural resources.

I represent a vast district in northern Michigan that includes Federal forests, national parks, and three Great Lakes. I am particularly pleased that the committee included language to boost and streamline timber harvests in Federal forests, similar to legislation that I introduced earlier this year.

Right now on the Federal forests, for them to plan a timber harvest takes nearly 8 years to complete a harvest, from the beginning of the attempt to sell a parcel of land for timber and the actual harvesting; whereas, certified sustainable State forests take less than 2 years and certified sustainable county forests take a year.

Basically it comes down to jobs in my district. We have a lot of Federal land in northern Michigan, and people in my district depend on the timber industry for jobs. Every little town has a mill, a flooring mill. Jobs, high-paying jobs, and the frustration that comes from having a forest full of timber and being unable to harvest it because of onerous regulations and rules result in a less healthy forest and less jobs for northern Michigan.

We have a long way to go to responsibly harvest timber in northern Michigan and elsewhere in this country, but I believe this is a good start, and I am certainly looking forward to working with this committee in the future to continue to promote jobs in northern Michigan.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize several long time residents of Alger County Michigan, who were instrumental in resolving a long standing controversy about road access within Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

When Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore was authorized by the U.S. Congress in 1966 as America's first national lakeshore, the enabling legislation called for the construction of a ``scenic shoreline drive'' as part of the park's development. However, the legislation did not specify exactly where that road should be located. Due to other national priorities, including the Vietnam War effort, funds were never appropriated to actually design and build the road.

This delay led to tremendous frustration on the part of local individuals and units of government, many of whom felt misled into supporting the establishment of the park. However, as local pressure increased to fund the project, opposition to building a road through undeveloped portions of the park also increased, leading to many years of controversy.

Over the years, several alternative locations were considered for the road. But, in 1998, to protect the most pristine portions of the park, Congress amended the park's enabling legislation to actually prohibit the National Park Service from constructing a road through the main portion of the park, forcing a compromise solution.

That compromise, ultimately endorsed by the National Park Service and the Alger County Road Commission, called for the reconstruction and paving of an existing sand and gravel road; Alger County H-58. Using a combination of federal and state funds between 1990 and 2010, H-58 was re-designed and paved to provide improved access to and through Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and connect the two gateway communities of Munising and Grand Marais.

In the end, the Alger County Road Commission and the National Park Service worked very closely to design and build a roadway that would provide an outstanding scenic experience worthy of a national park. It is also noteworthy that in 2009, as the road project was coming to an end, Congress also provided permanent legal protection to the central portion of the park by establishing the Beaver Basin Wilderness. It took over 40 years, but with these two actions, the controversy about how best to balance road access and protection of nationally significant resources at Pictured Rocks had finally come to an end.

Over the years, many Alger County residents continued to strongly advocate for a road that would provide better access to the National Lakeshore. These included Connie Berube Binsfeld, who later served as Lt. Governor of Michigan and a member of the National Park Advisory Board; Doug Miron and Paul Heyrman, Chair and Vice-Chair of the Alger County Road Commission; the late Dennis ``Fuzzy'' Boyak, President and CEO of Peoples State Bank of Munising; Rochelle Cotey, Director of ALTRAN, the local transportation authority, and Richard and Chuck Nebel, a Munising banker and attorney-at-law. Munising native Mike Pond, a professional civil engineer, was involved in the design of virtually every detail of the road. Now that the road is complete, these local residents, along with others, have left a lasting legacy for Alger County and the visitors to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.

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Mr. Speaker, Northern Michigan mourns the loss of Army Specialist Robert L. Voakes, Jr., 21, from L'Anse. Robert, who was posthumously promoted from private first class, was killed during an insurgent attack in Lagham Province, Afghanistan. Robert was just three months into a 15-month Operation Enduring Freedom deployment in Afghanistan.

Robert graduated in 2009 from Baraga High School and enlisted in the military that November. He went to basic training at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri and was then stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. Robert was in the 164th Military Police Company, 793rd Military Police Battalion, 3rd Maneuver Enhancement Brigade.

Robert enjoyed sports, particularly basketball, and was a proud and active member of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. He is remembered as a quiet, thoughtful young man with an excellent sense of humor.

While Robert could have stayed in L'Anse, he chose instead to serve the cause of freedom and defend America's liberty in a distant country. Robert's deeds and daring will forever be illustrative of the selflessness and bravery that lives in Northern Michigan's young people. I can find no words that can express my gratitude for Robert's service or for the sypthathy I feel for his many loved ones whose lives have been shattered by this loss.

To Robert's family, I can offer only the hope that you may be comforted by the kind providence of the Almighty, and the knowledge that

so many in our area are praying for you more than they have ever prayed for themselves. I am well aware that my words will not soften your overwhelming grief, but in the words of President Lincoln, ``May God give you that consolation which is beyond all earthly power.''

On behalf of the First District of Michigan, I would like to express my profound sadness for the loss of such a noble young man as Robert Voakes. Northern Michigan has certainly lost one of its finest, and his memory and service will not be forgotten.

Madam Speaker, over the past couple weeks, we've seen an increase in the false attacks on this House's plan to save Medicare for future generations and prevent America from falling into an abyss of debt and deficits. These falsehoods represent a new low in political attacks. And to those of you who are trying to scare this country's seniors, I say, Shame on you. America deserves better.

Before coming to Congress this year, I spent 25 years as a physician treating patients in northern Michigan, many of whom were on Medicare. I find it ridiculous that some on the other side of the aisle accuse us of wanting to hurt seniors. The fact is we put forth a plan that ensures our children and grandchildren will have access to Medicare and doesn't change benefits for those at or near retirement. These false attacks are nothing more than a smoke screen from the other side.

The Democrats' plan, ObamaCare, calls for bankruptcy and rationing.

I ask my colleagues on the other side to stop playing politics and do what the American people sent us here to do, work together and face reality.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1657. I want to thank Congressman Stutzman for his leadership on this bill.

Before coming to Congress, I spent 20 years as a physician working at the VA health care system at Iron Mountain, and I am fortunate at this time to represent 68,000 veterans who call Michigan's First District home. When those veterans in my district decided to serve their country, they gave up the opportunity to pursue experience in a civilian career. Recognizing this sacrifice, Congress enacted laws giving service-disabled veteran owned small businesses preference when competing for government contracts.

Unfortunately, in a 2009 report, the GAO estimated that more than $100 million dollars had been awarded to firms that fraudulently claimed service-disabled veteran ownership due to ``significant control weaknesses'' within the Department of Veterans' Affairs and the Small Business Administration. By expediting the debarment process and strengthening the penalties for those who misrepresent their status, this new bill provides more protection for service-disabled veteran owned businesses.

I urge my colleagues to vote with me in support of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, let it be known, that it is a pleasure and honor to pay tribute to Joseph A. Tormala of Chassell, who was born and raised in the Copper Country by his parents, Ken and Mary Tormala of Atlantic Mine. He attended schools in Stanton Twp., and graduated from Houghton High School in 1983. He joined the Marine Corps in 1983 and married his high school sweetheart Sheila (Alatalo) in 1984, and they have one child, Katrina.

Joe attended Marine boot camp and Infantry Training in California during the Beirut crisis of 1983 and was trained as a Huey & Cobra helicopter crew chief, and in marine security forces. He served in numerous deployments from 1985 through 1988 in Operation Northern Wedding and in missions to the Mediterranean and Caribbean regions. He served in Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm and in Operation Fiery Vigil in the rescue, cleanup and evacuation of the Philippines during the eruption of Pinatubo. He left active duty in 1993 and moved back to the Copper Country.

As a civilian, Joe went on to complete his education with an Associate Applied Science degree from Vincennes University, and certifications in Forensic Science--Criminal Investigations, Certified Security Supervisor, Certified Protection Officer and FEMA Emergency Program Manager. He was Director of Campus Security for Suomi College/ Finlandia University, Houghton CO. Special Deputy Sheriff, Hancock Reserve Police Officer, Chassell Township Fireman, and DNR Volunteer Conservation Officer.

He rejoined components of the Army and Marine Corps 1994-2004 and participated in training missions across the United States, deployed with Task Force Timberwolf in Central America and participated in Operation Enduring Freedom in security missions following the 9/11 attacks, until his mobilization and activation for 15 months in the Liberation of Iraq and Operation Iraqi Freedom I.

During his service in the Marine Corps and Army, Joe was decorated for Combat Action and received other awards for personal leadership, achievement and meritorious service; including the Purple Heart for wounds received in action in Iraq. His units were cited in Joint Meritorious Unit Awards, Valorous Unit Award, Navy Unit Commendations, Meritorious Unit Commendations, Navy Battle E, Navy Sea Service, Army Overseas, and other Service and Campaign Medals for his 3\1/2\ years spent overseas in five tours with Marine and Army Units.

He is a volunteer by nature and has applied his entire adult life to serving others in the military, public safety, veterans' groups, and non-profits. He has been active in veterans' affairs for 25 years, notably organizing the Keweenaw Detachment #1016, Marine Corps League and Copper Country Chapter #789 Military Order Purple Heart with Vietnam veterans Gary Mattson and Tom Heikkinen. Joe continues to serve as a volunteer Michigan CCP Firearms Instructor and U.S. Army Ambassador for CRSC/TSGLI claims. He is a Christian and man of faith in God. He serves his local church in many capacities, and he and his wife, with their dog, Sunny greatly enjoy wandering the wilderness of the U.P. of Michigan and across America. The Copper Country is greatly honored to have Joe as the Grand Marshal of the Sixth Annual Parade of Thanks in Michigan's Keweenaw.

Mr. Chairman, this morning, a gallon of gasoline in my hometown of Iron River, Michigan, was $4.29. Unfortunately, most people are plagued with the fact of knowing that prices are going to go up even further in the next few weeks.

I believe that we in Congress know that there is no silver bullet that is going to lower prices at the pump. However, we have a responsibility here to craft policy and to pass legislation that will increase the supply of crude oil that will be produced here at home. As Members of Congress, it is our duty to take these actions to help lessen the pain of these prices on our families in Michigan and throughout the country.

Mr. Chairman, we need to find a long-term solution to high fuel prices. I believe that the full-day markup we held in committee last month was the first step and that passing this bill today will be the next step, but we have many further steps to take.