Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I request that my name be removed from H. Res. 106.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1676) to reauthorize the program of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for loan guarantees for Indian housing.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1676, the Native American Home Ownership Opportunity Act of 2007, reauthorizing the section 184 Indian Loan Program.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Frank and Subcommittee Chairwoman

Waters for their hard work in making this legislation a priority and recognizing the importance of the section 184 program.

This program offers home ownership, property rehabilitation, new construction and refinance opportunities for Native Americans. The primary purpose of the section 184 program is a 100 percent loan guarantee program for Native American families seeking home ownership who are members of participating tribes; 196 federally recognized tribes participate in this program, including 24 tribes from my home State of Oklahoma. Therefore, this program works by increasing home ownership in Indian country and improving the quality of life in Indian communities. Without argument, this program increased Native American home ownership in Oklahoma and throughout Indian country across the Nation.

Section 184 is administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Native American Programs, created in 1992 to address the lack of private mortgage capital in Indian country, and authorizing HUD to guarantee loans made by private lenders to Native Americans.

The section 184 program guarantees single-family residential loans for Native American borrowers, and provides for a 100 percent guarantee of the outstanding principal and interest and payment of other necessary and allowable expenses. The flexible underwriting, low down payment, higher loan limits, loan guarantee fee, and absence of income limits make this the most affordable loan program available to tribal areas.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

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

I want to thank also my friends, Congressmen Neugebauer from Texas and Renzi from Arizona for their work on this legislation and for their bipartisan effort here.

According to HUD, 4,200 loans have been guaranteed since the inception of the program, totaling $517 million. As lenders have become more comfortable with making loans secured by land in Indian country, interest in this program has only increased. My home State of Oklahoma represents 34 percent of the total loans guaranteed through section 184, thereby increasing the number of my constituents who have access to home ownership.

Again, I want to thank Chairman Frank and Subcommittee Chairwoman Waters for recognizing the importance of the section 184 program in Indian country.

Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the inclusion of Davis-Bacon in H.R. 720, the Water Quality Financing Act of 2007. I was absent for the vote taken on this legislation on March 9, 2007, because I was leading a House Armed Services Committee delegation to Iraq. I wish to state for the record that, had I been present for this vote, I would have supported the inclusion of Davis-Bacon language in H.R. 720. The Davis-Bacon Act, which dates back to 1931, requires every construction contract in excess of two thousand dollars to which the federal government is a party to pay all laborers and mechanics not less than the locally prevailing wage. I believe it is important for Oklahomans that federal contracts are not awarded to firms that seek to undercut the prevailing wages paid in our region. Government contracts should not be won by sacrificing fair wage rates for Oklahoma workers. For these reasons, I have supported the passage of Davis-Bacon in the past and would have also supported it on March 9th as part of the Water Quality Financing Act.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of our men and women in uniform, and in support of this resolution.

Nearly 230,000 Americans are currently deployed to the Middle East fighting the war on terrorism. Three thousand of those are from my home State of Oklahoma. These men and women are fighting for their country, not as Democrats or as Republicans, but as Americans.

I was not in Congress nearly 4 years ago when the war in Iraq began, but in the 2 years since I have served here I have not once encountered a colleague who does not support our troops. We have our disagreements over strategy, spending and even the war itself, but when it comes to support for the selfless Americans serving in uniform, we are unanimous.

For anyone, and I repeat, anyone to suggest anything to the contrary just distracts from this serious, serious debate.

As many of my colleagues have already noted, our troops are not the problem. They have done an outstanding job executing the mission that they have been given. The problem is with the administration's strategy. We owe it to the men and women of our Armed Forces to pursue a policy that offers them the best possible chance at success, not a plan that repeats past mistakes.

The President's decision to deploy an additional 21,500 American combat troops to Iraq is not the first time that we have had a surge of troops in this conflict. In April of 2004, January and October of 2005, and again in October of last year, we saw temporary escalations that provided no long-term reductions in violence. I am concerned that this latest plan is a renewed effort

for more of the same that does little to encourage the Iraqis to take responsibility for their own future. As one general told the Iraq Study Group, ``All the troops in the world will not provide security if the Iraqi Government does not make political progress.'' Rather than laying out a plan that establishes solid benchmarks for Iraqi security and the corresponding redeployment of U.S. troops, the President is pursuing a strategy that history shows does not work.

Former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Colin Powell, Commander of the U.S. Central Command General John Abizaid, Marine Corps Commandant General James Conway, and many other current and former military leaders have said more troops is not the answer. Our Nation's military is already stretched thin. This open-ended plan to increase American troop levels in Iraq would exacerbate the overextension of our Armed Forces and cripple our ability to respond to other crises around the world. Because we don't know what the future holds, we have to be ready for anything.

U.S. and coalition forces successfully removed Saddam Hussein from power, and the world is a better place for it. But we now find ourselves locked in the middle of an Iraqi civil war. The Iraq of today is vastly different from the Iraq we entered nearly 4 years ago, yet our strategy remains the same. We need to succeed in Iraq, but we need to redefine what success really is.

For over a year now I have joined our great chairman, Chairman Skelton, in his call for solid benchmarks in Iraq. We need a mechanism to measure our progress toward an Iraq that is responsible for its own security. It is in our interest, it is in Iraq's interest, and it is in the interest of the region to ensure that Iraqi personnel are trained and ready to take control sooner rather than later. Realistically, some of the more than 140,000 troops we already have in Iraq to secure the Iranian border would do more to further our goals in Iraq than sending more Americans into Baghdad. And that is a plan, my friends.

At the end of the day, military command decisions rest with the Commander in Chief. This resolution and this debate are not about micromanaging the war or forcing a withdrawal of troops. Public opinion polls should not dictate war strategies. The facts should. And the facts are that surges haven't worked in the past and experts agree it won't work this time.

The President knows we are all in this together. That is why I was very disappointed to see the administration move forward with such a dramatic escalation despite strong bipartisan opposition in Congress. Without a clear mission or effective benchmarks, it is too big of a gamble to take with so many American lives.

Mr. Speaker, I bring some bad news from my home State of Oklahoma. We are facing a terrible ice storm in the eastern portion of our State, the Second Congressional District. We have had many homes without power. We have had trees fall over. We have had individuals lose their life.

So I would like the record to reflect that I am not going to be here tomorrow because I think it is more important that I be with my constituents. The Governor of the State of Oklahoma, Brad Henry, is also going to be touring the damage with me. And I would like the record to reflect that if I were here in this Chamber, I would have voted ``aye'' in regards to the cost savings for our college students here in the Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Justin Whitefield, successful attorney, dedicated father, tremendous leader, and tireless advocate for agricultural development throughout Oklahoma and the Nation.

A native of Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, Justin Whitefield attended Oklahoma State University, earning a degree in Business, excelling in his studies and regularly recognized for his campus-wide leadership. Later attending the University of Oklahoma Law School, Justin Whitefield earned his Jurist Doctorate, repeating his academic excellence and class leadership.

Throughout his career Justin Whitefield was a forward thinking individual, helping better the community through his dedication to helping others and his commitment to youth and agriculture. Examples of his initiatives and contributions are the growth of scholarship programs through the Oklahoma Youth Expo to young people, the development and implementation of collegiate programs such as the Oklahoma Agricultural Leadership Encounter program, and the Oklahoma Youth Expo College 101 and the Academic All State Scholarship Program. While his primary focus was to bring recognition to others by honoring individuals through the Oklahoma Youth Expo Exhibitor Hall of Fame, he was also progressive in his ideas for events such as the Western Art Exhibition, the Master Showmanship Contest and the Cattle Fitting Contest.

In his most recent assignment as Executive Director of Oklahoma Youth Expo, Justin Whitefield's accomplishments were far-reaching. Prior to joining Oklahoma Youth Expo, he served as General Counsel for the Oklahoma Farm Bureau, served as an Attorney specializing in Government Relations for Derryberry, Quigley, Solomon and Naifeh Law Firm and served as President and Chief Lobbyist for Capital Resource Group.

As a result of an airplane accident, Justin Whitefield lost his life on November 4, 2006. He was not only a leader in Oklahoma, but he was my friend. We worked together during my service in the Oklahoma Legislature. I always found him to be a man of character, faith, and honor. We will truly miss him.

I am proud, Mr. Speaker, to thank him for his contributions to others, specifically the young people of Oklahoma.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to commemorate the groundbreaking of a memorial to the USS Oklahoma, which sank 65 years ago today in the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

Commissioned in 1916, the 583-foot USS Oklahoma escorted President Woodrow Wilson to and from France at the conclusion of World War I. She served in both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets through the 1920s and 1930s, and when the Spanish Civil War erupted in 1936, she steamed to Bilbao to ferry American citizens to safety in Gibraltar and French ports. One year and a day before the Japanese attack, the Oklahoma was assigned to Pearl Harbor.

The casualties aboard the USS Oklahoma represent the second-largest loss of life aboard any Pearl Harbor ship. Yet neither memorial nor marker exists to commemorate her and her crew. With today's groundbreaking at Pearl Harbor, we mark a significant step toward the creation of a lasting memorial to honor the 429 sailors, officers and Marines who perished on the ``Okie,'' many of whom until 2002 rested in unmarked mass graves.

I am proud to have worked with Congressman Cole and the other members of the Armed Services Committee to pass language in the 2005 Defense Authorization Act providing a site for the memorial. But the real credit for making this project a reality goes to the Oklahoma's remaining survivors, the people of the State of Oklahoma and the USS Oklahoma Memorial Committee, which is raising private funds for the memorial.

I hope that this long-overdue tribute provides some comfort to the Oklahoma's survivors and their families, knowing that their sacrifices that day will never be forgotten.

Mr. Speaker, at a time when America should be encouraging every high school student to attend college, the administration continues to drag its feet when it comes to making college more affordable.

While college costs at a 4-year public college have increased by 57 percent since 2001, the Pell Grant maximum has not been increased for 4 years straight. Investing in education must be a priority in the United States if it is going to maintain its advantage over other countries in an increasing global economy.

Our education policy must reflect that nothing is more important to our long-term economic growth than an educated work force. We should not leave this week without making this commitment to students across the country. We should bring up and pass an improved Labor, HHS appropriations bill that expands the size and the availability of the Pell Grants.

Madam Speaker, I introduced the Ouachita National Forest Boundary Adjustment Act to provide a technical correction to section 305 of the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996.

Section 305 provided for a land exchange between the Ouachita National Forest and Weyerhaeuser Timber Company but did not fully establish the new boundaries of the forest. My legislation would make this technical correction so that the boundaries of the forest would accurately reflect the land exchange.

This correction would allow the Forest Service to better manage the land, because the boundaries of the forest would be more uniform and would allow future land management adjustments without the need to continuously adjust the boundaries.

H.R. 5690 has the support of the administration, the local Forest Service office, Weyerhaeuser Timber Company, Plum Creek, and the members of the Arkansas delegation whose district would be affected.

The Forest Service is a valuable partner in preserving and managing the resource for Oklahoma and Arkansas, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation that will make managing the Ouachita easier for the Forest Service.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today to join my colleagues in support of the Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act.

I support this act for a multitude of reasons; however, I want to briefly talk about how this legislation is important to non-coastal states like mine.

Mr. Chairman, many people may question why a piece of legislation that opens the Outer

Continental Shelf should matter to states like Oklahoma.

Well, I am here to say that it is vitally important. It's important to the farmers of America's Heartland.

This bill will bring relief to the farmers who have seen their costs for fuel and crop inputs rise significantly over the last several years by increasing natural gas supplies.

The farmers and ranchers of America know all too well that natural gas is an important feedstock for the nitrogen fertilizers that are used on virtually every crop produced in this country.

Mr. Chairman, we can even take the farmers out of the equation and this legislation is still important to our nation.

Producing more natural gas will mean that we can reduce the cost of utilities for the nation's working families.

Finally, I want to call attention to the fact that natural gas is a clean source of energy. It is clean from its utilization as a fuel to the processes that are used produce it. In recent years, the technologies in the industry have dramatically improved leaving us with everything from cleaner diesel fuel to smaller footprints after drilling has ceased.

Mr. Chairman, this is our chance to help lower costs, create jobs, and even increase production of an environmentally-friendly domestic fuel source.

For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to support H.R 4761.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, my amendment would allow the scientists and support staff at the Agriculture Research Lab in Lane, Oklahoma, to continue their valuable work at the facility. The lab is important not only to my district and the State of Oklahoma, but also makes significant contributions to agriculture in the region, Nation, and across the globe.

When the center was established in 1985, it was in response to the need for new and improved innovations in agriculture for the south central region of this country. I believe that need still exists.

The ARS lab at Lane shares a facility with Oklahoma State University's Wes Watkins Research and Extension Center, named for one of my predecessors in Congress.

To give you an example of the work being done at this lab, scientists at Lane are leading research on watermelon vine decline. Watermelon growers have determined this to be the most important challenge they will face in the coming years. But with the experience and leadership that exists at Lane, they are confident they can meet this challenge.

The facility is recognized nationally and internationally as a center for excellence for vine crop research, especially on watermelons and cantaloupe. It is important our research facilities be spread across the State and country to provide the best research for varying soil types and climates.

For these reasons, Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the other side and the chairman.

Mr. Chairman, the sponsors of this amendment suggest that it will fix an error made by the Interior Department in failing to include price thresholds for royalty relief in leases issued in 1998 and 1999.

The fact is, most companies pay their royalty obligations as they are required. A very small number have disputed their obligations, and that matter is under litigation.

Congress should let the legal system do its work and not meddle.

The oil and gas industry spends billions of dollars in this country every year, providing good-paying jobs for Americans and providing energy to fuel this massive economy.

The Gulf of Mexico is one of the most attractive investment opportunities in the world right now, and it is in our best interest to keep it that way.

If we adopt this amendment, we will send a signal that the United States does not abide by its contracts and obligations.

In this time of high prices and unrest in oil markets, the last thing we should do is limit our access to our domestic resources.

If companies holding 1998 and 1999 leases are, in effect, precluded from participating in the 2007 sale, it will impair the domestic oil and gas supply chain. At a time of record-high energy costs and an uncertain global market, we need to encourage our domestic companies to invest here at home, not shut them out of the process.

Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to oppose this amendment that is full of unintended consequences and is wrong for America.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

The Ouachita National Forest, part of which is in my district, covers 1.8 million acres in central Arkansas and southeastern Oklahoma. It is about 70 degrees right now in Oklahoma, but in December of 2000, it was not so pleasant, as you can see by the photo.

A major ice storm hit approximately 340,000 acres in the Ouachita Mountains, closing State highways and county roads. In recovering from the storm, the Forest Service obtained the approval of alternative arrangements under the National Environmental Policy Act. Alternative arrangements must be approved by the White House and have only been used a handful of times to allow a quick response to catastrophic events such as the Ouachita ice storm. These arrangements allowed action on roughly 66,000 acres to reduce fuels and the risk of wildfire in the areas posing the greatest threat to public safety and private property.

The area within the alternative arrangements zone included 1,862 homes and 23 churches in my district. About 100 million boardfeet of timber was harvested; less than a third of that was damaged.

Alternative arrangements worked, at least for the acreage that was treated, but the White House simply does not have the time or the staff needed to respond to every catastrophic event. H.R. 4200, the Forest Emergency Recovery and Research Act, does this.

Ice storms and other devastating events will continue to happen. We need to make streamlined recovery available to public land managers.

The Forest Emergency Recovery and Research Act would help to make certain the next ice storm in the Ouachita National Forest and other parts of the country are responsibly restored.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support the rule and overall bill.

Mr. Speaker, on May 9, 2006, I withdrew my support for H.R. 5289, the Protection of University Governance Act. I cosponsored the legislation believing at the time that it would help schools such as Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant recoup costs associated with eliminating offensive mascots. Upon further inspection it is clear to me that this bill does not achieve that goal. Rather, this bill helps those schools that refuse to change and I cannot support that effort.

Changing a mascot is a costly proposition for a public college or university. For this reason, I feel our public institutions that have voluntarily decided to no longer associate themselves with offensive mascots need whatever assistance we can provide to them. Additionally, I feel that easing the financial burden of this undertaking could also encourage other schools to follow this responsible course of action.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3829. This bill will designate the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in my hometown of Muskogee, Oklahoma, as the Jack C. Montgomery Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Mr. Speaker, I think of very few other Americans who deserve to have an honor such as this bestowed upon them, and I am proud to sponsor this bill.

Jack C. Montgomery is a true American hero. His story of service to his country begins while attending Bacone College in Muskogee. During this time, he felt the call to serve his country during World War II, and enlisted in the 45th Division Thunderbirds of the Oklahoma National Guard.

Shortly thereafter, Lieutenant Montgomery found himself with members of the 45th near Padiglione, Italy on February 22, 1944. On this day, Lieutenant Montgomery's rifle platoon came under the fire of three echelons of enemy forces. Under enemy fire, Jack Montgomery single- handedly attacked all three enemy echelons. As a result of his courage, Lieutenant Montgomery's actions demoralized the enemy troops and inspired his men to defeat and capture 32 Axis troops.

Upon returning to the United States, a good Democrat, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, personally awarded Jack Montgomery the Medal of Honor, which is the highest honor for valor awarded to members of the Armed Forces.

Mr. Speaker, Jack Montgomery's distinguished military career goes far beyond the Medal of Honor. He was also awarded the Silver Star, the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart with Cluster, to mention only a few of his distinctions. Following World War II, Jack Montgomery was honorably released from the Army.

However, I am proud to say that he chose to continue his service to his country and his fellow veterans by beginning a career with a VA administration in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

Even following his retirement from the Veterans Administration, Jack Montgomery chose to continue helping his fellow veterans by volunteering at the VA Medical Center, also located in Muskogee, Oklahoma, where he worked for more than 750 hours driving a shuttle to transport veterans from the parking lot to the hospital.

Mr. Speaker, this VA medical center where the Medal of Honor recipient, Lieutenant Jack Montgomery, gave his time helping his fellow veterans is the same facility that this bill seeks to name in his honor. I find it only fitting that we honor an individual like Jack Montgomery for his selflessness, both on the battlefield and here at home in the United States of America.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 3829.