Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3246) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 15455 Manchester Road in Ballwin, Missouri, as the ``Specialist Peter J. Navarro Post Office Building''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the author of this bill, Representative Todd Akin of Missouri, who has authored this bill and carried it throughout the process, including here today.

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

I join with my colleagues from Missouri on the left and the right that we

are united by the naming of this post office on behalf of our fallen hero. Few things unite us in Congress like a recognition that men and women today are still paying the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Knowing the risk, serving a long time, Peter Navarro knew what he was doing when he went back to Iraq, and he did so knowing the risks that he took.

Many youth in America take risks, and they know not what they do and they lose their life; but the men and women of the Armed Forces know the risk, and particularly when they've already been in combat, return home, and go again. Sadly, more and more are going again for the second, third and fourth time; and Peter was no exception.

So today, as we name this post office on behalf of our fallen heroes from Missouri, hopefully we will take time to reflect about the many from Missouri who will not have something named after them but should never be forgotten for their sacrifice and their contribution to the freedoms we enjoy.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2158) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 14901 Adelfa Drive in La Mirada, California, as the ``Wayne Grisham Post Office''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

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

H.R. 2158, introduced by my colleague and friend, the gentlelady from California, Ms. Linda Sanchez, would designate the facility of the United States Post Office located at 14901 Adelfa Drive in La Mirada, California, as the ``Wayne Grisham Post Office.''

This bill enjoys bipartisan support. In fact, every Member of the California delegation supports it, all 53.

Mr. Speaker, it is fitting and proper that Wayne Grisham, a man who dedicated his life to public service, be recognized. Born in 1923, Mr. Grisham served as a fighter pilot in World War II and was shot down over Germany, earning a Purple Heart.

After a successful career in real estate, Mr. Grisham was elected to the La Mirada City Council, where he served for 8 years. In 1978, he was elected to serve as a Member of this body, representing California's 33rd Congressional District. He served for two terms.

In 1983, he was appointed by then President Reagan to serve as the director of the Peace Corps in Kenya. After his service in Kenya, Mr. Grisham was elected to the California State Assembly in 1984, where he served until 1998.

Sadly, Mr. Speaker, on January of this year, Mr. Grisham died at the age of 88. He is survived by his wife of 66 years, his son, daughter, and five grandchildren.

After his death, he was described by the distinguished chairman of the Rules Committee, Mr. Dreier--who Mr. Grisham lost to in a 1982 reelection bid--as being the model of civility and a true gentleman. Mr. Speaker, we don't hear that very much in this body. I'll repeat it; as the model of civility and a true gentleman.

I urge Members to join me in supporting this legislation in honoring a true public servant.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it is now my honor to yield such time as he may consume to a friend and colleague who would like to speak on Mr. Grisham's behalf, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis).

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

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2767) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 8 West Silver Street in Westfield, Massachusetts, as the ``William T. Trant Post Office Building''.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

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

H.R. 2767, introduced by the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Olver), would designate the facility of the United States Post Office located at 8 West Silver Street in Westfield, Massachusetts, as the ``William T. Trant Post Office Building.'' This bill is cosponsored by the entire Massachusetts delegation and was favorably reported unanimously from our committee in November.

Mr. Speaker, William Trant was a man truly dedicated to serving both his country and his community.

In 1943 he enlisted in the Army and saw combat in Europe, suffering wounds at both Normandy and Rhineland. For his service, he was awarded the Purple Heart, as well as numerous other service medals.

After returning from war, Mr. Trant began his career working for the United States Post Office there in Westfield. Following a short stint with the New York Giants minor league baseball team, Mr. Trant returned to his career at the postal service--as we know in government, it's always good to have a backup job if you're going to pitch--where he would continue to serve for 32 years.

Mr. Trant rose to the rank of the postmaster of that post office that he served in up through the process. He also, though, did many community works, including serving on the Westfield City Council for near 20 years and, in 1962, also served as acting mayor. It is fitting that we name the Westfield Post Office after its postmaster.

In 1967 he served as procurement officer in the Springfield Post Office, as well as the procurement director of services in the northeast postal district in Hartford, Connecticut.

Sadly, Mr. Speaker, in 2002 Mr. Trant passed away. He is remembered by many in Westfield as both an exemplary citizen and a person of character.

I urge all Members to join in support of this legislation to honor a true public servant, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I join with my colleague and move that we support unanimously the William Trant Post Office naming, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

The ranking member said a great deal of what I was going to say and he said it well. Brian Terry was, in fact, a special human being who dedicated his life to public service, first in the United States Marine Corps, then in local law enforcement, then at the Border Patrol. His only ambition was to be a Federal law enforcement servant.

He left behind a family asking a great many questions because just 10 days before Christmas a year ago, he was gunned down. In fact, we still don't have all of the answers. The ranking member, Mr. Cummings, and I continue to look for those answers. We learned only last week that there is an indictment in connection with his killing. We look forward to the Terry family having full and complete resolution of all the details around his death.

But for all the ambiguity that often happens in the heat of a battle that happens in law enforcement, there's no question about who Brian Terry was, what a special human being he was and why for only the second time in Border Patrol history will a facility be named for one of their fallen heroes. It was decades after the last fallen heroes before a facility not even envisioned at the time was named for them.

In this case we believe this is appropriate to do now. This was some one who knew the risk, and he went willingly into the highest risk down on our border. Here in Congress we often have a lively debate about the border and border enforcement. Brian Terry didn't debate border enforcement. He knew his job was to see that no one got past the border that wasn't supposed to.

Whether it was human traffickers, whether it was drug smugglers, whether they had high-powered rifles, or they were simply crossing the border illegally, he knew his job was to see that our borders were respected, and he did so out of a sense of duty and patriotism.

This act is hugely bipartisan at a time in which Congress is not so bipartisan. It is so because we know that the men and women of the Border Patrol, the men and women who support and protect one of the most basic aspects of national sovereignty, do so without looking at politics. They don't make the laws. They don't decide who gets to come to our country or not. They enforce them, and they enforce them in a way that we all can respect.

Our committee has an obligation to look into and to get the details of the unnecessary loss of his life. But I want to thank today Chairman Mica and Mr. Denham and certainly Ranking Member Rahall for moving this historic piece of legislation, one that brings an honor only once before ever given to a Border Patrol and Customs agent, to this one at the very facility where, if he were still alive, he would have returned after that Christmas back home in Michigan to his friends, his colleagues, the people whose flank he protected. He didn't get that opportunity to go home for Christmas. He didn't get to serve out his years with his friends and colleagues; and for that the family has our undying gratitude for his sacrifice and our apologies and our condolences for the loss.

Today, we're doing one of the few things we can do, and that is to honor on the House floor a fallen hero, a man who didn't fall in Iraq, but did fall on the Arizona border.

With that, I want to thank Mr. Denham for bringing this here in a timely fashion. I want to thank the Speaker for ensuring that this becomes law.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the honorable public service of Rita Geldert as she retires from City Manager of the City of Vista, California.

Mrs. Geldert was appointed as Vista's City Manager in 1997, after serving three years as Assistant City Manager. Under her tenure, Mrs. Geldert has helped spur economic expansion within the City and has helped to promote businesses and job growth within the community. Her tireless work to improve and strengthen infrastructure has not gone unnoticed. Mrs. Geldert has overseen countless projects that have had a great impact on the City and the surrounding area, ranging from the development of Vista Village to the new Civic Center.

Over the past 36 years, Mrs. Geldert has worked tirelessly in the field of public service. She has been active in the city management profession, serving on the Board of Trustees of the California City Management Foundation Board of Trustees while also being a member of multiple organizations relating to her position. Prior to her time spent as City Manager and Assistant City Manager of Vista, she was the Director of Finance and Administration for the City of Dana Point, Management Services Officer for the City of Merced, and Personal Officer for the City of Vacaville. These positions exemplify Mrs. Geldert's dedication to not only the community she currently serves, but to the State of California and its citizens.

It is an honor to recognize Mrs. Geldert on the occasion of her retirement from over three decades of contributions to California communities.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to please join me in recognizing Mrs. Rita Geldert's dedicated service to the City of Vista and the state of California.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the military service of Major General Anthony L. Jackson on the occasion of his retirement from the United States Marine Corps. I commend Major General Jackson's career and offer my sincerest thanks for his 36 years of dedicated service in protecting our nation.

Beginning his military career in 1975, Major General Jackson enlisted in Officer Candidate School and graduated in June of 1976, where he was assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, Camp Pendleton, CA. This was the start to a long and admirable career in the United States Marine Corps.

Major General Jackson retires from his post as the Commanding General of Marine Corps Installations West (MCIWEST), located aboard Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton. As Commanding General, Major General Jackson oversees seven bases with stations occupying over 160,000 acres throughout California, Nevada, and Arizona. Entrusted with a command of nearly 10,000 Marines, Sailors and civilians, Major General Jackson utilized the Corps resources to provide continuous, uninterrupted service support, in a time of war, to over 60,000 Marines and Sailors belonging to the First Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF). Additionally, he oversaw tenant organizations and commands belonging to Logistics Command and the Training and Education Command.

Major General Jackson artfully led his Headquarters Staff and utilized limited resources to address the most meaningful challenges confronting the operating forces, tenant commands and their dependants. His actions provided added value in the overall strategic war on terror, while simultaneously preserving land and air boundaries; confronting encroachment initiatives; enhancing training capability; and building a generous rapport with local, county and statewide officials.

His personal decorations include the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit Medal (w/two gold stars for second and third award), the Bronze Star Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal (w/two gold stars), the Navy Commendation Medal (w/one gold star), the Navy Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal (w/bronze star) Iraqi Campaign Medal (w/two bronze stars), Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal, Sea Service Deployment

Ribbon (w/silver and bronze star), Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon (w/bronze star), and the Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbon.

These recognitions are a true testament, among other things, of Major General Jackson's great dedication, leadership and commitment to our country.

I offer Major General Jackson my warmest congratulations and hope he enjoys a rich and rewarding retirement with his wife Susan and his two children, Brian and Blaine.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues please join me in recognizing the distinguished career of Major General Anthony L. Jackson.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the honorable public service of Shawn Nelson as he retires as City Manager of the City of Temecula, California.

Joining the City of Temecula in 1999, Mr. Nelson has been instrumental in improving the structure and services of the community. During his time, the City has grown quickly adding 32,000 new residents. Because of this, he has supported efficient community development, economic expansion, and job growth, making Temecula one of the most vibrant communities in the region. Mr. Nelson has worked tirelessly to improve infrastructure and has helped to encourage private investment in community projects.

Mr. Nelson has a long history of public service. Prior to his role in Temecula, he graduated from California State University, San Bernardino, in 1994 with a Masters of Public Administration. He has served as the Deputy City Manager of the City of Corona, was the Director of Community Services for the City of Temecula, the Parks Director for 29 Palms Park & Recreation District, the Recreation Supervisor for the 29 Palms Park & Recreation District, and the Recreation Leader of the Yucca Valley Park and Recreation District. His work has illustrated his dedication to the communities that he has served.

It is an honor to recognize Mr. Nelson on the occasion of his retirement after three decades of contributions to California communities.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to please join me in recognizing Mr. Shawn Nelson's dedicated service to the City of Temecula and the state of California.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the distinguished tenure of a constituent in my district, Ms. Suzanne Stewart Pohlman, on the occasion of her retirement as the founder and executive director of Interfaith Community Services located in Escondido, California.

As the creator, Ms. Pohlman has transformed Interfaith Community Services from a small food pantry into North San Diego County's most comprehensive social service agency and a nationally recognized model organization. Assisting over 35,000 individuals last year alone, Interfaith Services has been dedicated to serving and empowering the low-income, homeless, and underserved in North San Diego County for nearly 30 years.

Ms. Pohlman has established unique collaborations between faith centers, businesses, government and other not-for-profits to successfully achieve Interfaith's mission of providing resources to help persons in need attain self-sufficiency. Additionally, she has pioneered many housing programs, creating emergency, transitional, permanent supportive and permanent affordable housing stock for the North County community. Under Ms. Polhman's innovative management, Interfaith's programs have received multiple awards and now serves as a not-for-profit incubator to help emerging organizations develop the capacity to grow and succeed.

Time and again, Ms. Polhman has demonstrated her passion for helping people realize their own potential. I commend Ms. Polhman for her commitment to educating the community on ways--big and small--that we all can work to make a difference. Her hard work and dedication is seen through the lives she has touched.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that my colleagues join me in recognizing Ms. Pohlman's nearly three decades of service and leadership to the San Diego community as she retires as the Executive Director of Interfaith Community Services.

Mr. Speaker, for more than an hour, I've listened to floor debate, and it seems like one side wants to say that we have to cut and the other side says that any cut we do is wrong. One side says we have to do tax increases. The other side says no.

What the American people need to hear, Mr. Speaker, is we now spend almost a quarter of every dollar produced in our economy, and as my now deceased father-in-law would have said, Taxes are rocks in your knapsack. The American people cannot afford to have more and more weight on the economy.

This is not an argument about how much we spend. This is an argument about what the American people can afford in overhead that ultimately hurts our competitiveness in jobs big and small, foreign and domestic.

So I will be voting for this and every other initiative that can possibly give the American people a fighting chance to compete for good-paying jobs here and in competition with the rest of the world.

I urge the support of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I do not commonly talk on rules. Usually I come for the substance of the underlying bill, and I will be speaking later on the underlying bill, on the Judiciary's patent reform bill, but I would like to speak not only to the fairness of the rule and the appropriateness and the reason for passage but also perhaps clarify something related to the underlying bill in the case of Judiciary.

First of all, I'm delighted, delighted to see that we are reducing the amount of time for passage of a rule when they are like.

My colleagues on the other side of the aisle certainly know that at the beginning of every Congress, once every 2 years, we pass a massive rules package that every suspension and every other bill is essentially brought under. A rules package is nothing but a slight addition to the overall set of rules of the House, and if we do not produce one, then we operate under the rules of the House. So I'm delighted to see that we are using floor time more efficiently.

As to the question of the costs related to the upcoming bill on patent reform, I find something really amazing that I think all the Members should be aware of, Mr. Speaker, and that is this is a piece of legislation that has already passed by 95-5 out of the Senate. This is a piece of legislation that the ranking member and I have worked on for my entire 11 years here. This is a piece of legislation that every one of us has had input into and found ways to come together so that we had a 10:1 ratio when we passed it out of committee.

And when it comes to the costs, the American people, Mr. Speaker, have to understand this is simply talking about the exclusive fees that both Republicans and Democrats on the committee have demanded be used only for the patent office work and not be diverted. So, even if at some point we have to admonish the appropriators to stay within a number, we're only talking about how much of the money that the men and women who apply for patents, the men and women who invent, contribute for the purpose of having that passed.

So although people will pass dollars around, let's understand these are not tax dollars. These are dollars contributed with an application for a patent or for the extension, continuation of a patent. These are fees that inventors pay in order to have their inventions considered and retained, and nothing should be more sacred to Republicans and Democrats than making sure that those funds collected by these people are used there.

I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.

Reclaiming that 30 seconds, I fully understand my colleague's statement about the CBO scoring question, but understand, Mr. Speaker, that subject to appropriations, no money will be spent except money contributed in fees by those folks.

So whatever we must do in enactment of this law over time, we will do, but let's understand, we're not talking about the normal budget situation, where clearly any dollars that CBO is referring to are the dollars contributed by the men and women who invent things.

So I think we really have to look at that and say, We know they're entitled to 100 cents on the dollar. That's all we're doing regardless of scoring.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the distinguished career of Captain Thomas H. Farris on the occasion of his retirement from the United States Coast Guard (USCG). I offer Captain Farris my sincerest thanks for his 30 years of dedicated service in protecting our nation and safeguarding its future.

An accomplished aviator, Captain Farris possesses over 6700 hours of flight time in six different aircraft throughout his 30 years of service as a veteran of the U.S. Army and USCG. He most recently served as the Coast Guard's Chief of Aviation Safety. In that capacity he was responsible for the USCG Aviation Safety program and one of only three senior aviators exercising program level oversight over the design, development, implementation, delivery and sustainment of all USCG aviation programs.

Captain Farris has distinguished himself by extraordinary acts of leadership. Among his many achievements, Captain Farris won the U.S. Army's European Helicopter Championship early in his career along with 18 shipboard deployments and extensive airborne Law Enforcement experience in the North Atlantic, Caribbean and Eastern Pacific theatres.

Captain Farris' service in his current position as the USCG Captain of the Port of San Diego is the capstone to his military career. As the Coast Guard Captain for San Diego, he is responsible for the safe conduct of commercial maritime activity on all federally navigable waterways within an area that extends from 200 nautical miles offshore San Diego then east to the Colorado River from the Mexico border to Utah.

Along with his many roles and responsibilities, Captain Farris serves as the designated Federal Maritime Security Coordinator and Chair of the Area Maritime Security Committee overseeing commercial vessel and facilities compliance with the Maritime Transportation Security Act. He also serves as the Operational Commander for the USCG air and surface force carrying out Search and Rescue and Maritime law enforcement authority. Additionally, Captain Farris plays a pivotal role as the Senior Officer Ashore in San Diego as the primary local USCG representative to the San Diego County military, federal and civilian community.

As he enters this new stage of his life, I hope that Captain Farris will benefit from his years of work, just as the United States Military has benefited. I offer him my warmest congratulations and may he enjoy a rewarding retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to please join me in honoring all the brave men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces, and the admirable service of Captain Thomas Farris.

I have an amendment at the desk.

This is a critical amendment. If not now, then when? If not on this bill, then when are we going to get to looking at American job creators in a positive way? There is no question if this amendment is held to a point of order that it will be seen again and again by those of us who care about jobs in America.

The Web site that my committee launched, AmericanJobCreators.com, has already seen countless examples, in the thousands now, of different ways in which regulatory excesses have in fact cost jobs. Moreover, what we're seeing is a pattern of no cost-benefit analysis being done in any way, shape, or form on new regulations.

Promulgating regulations if they don't cost jobs, if they are a net benefit to the economy, wouldn't be a problem,

at least not overall. But in fact, we have had the EPA administrator, the former Minerals Management Service, now Ocean Energy, the Assistant Secretary of the Interior, and countless more before our committee, each of whom seems to be muddled about cost-benefit on the regulations they create. They often say, of course we do cost-benefit. Then if you say, well, what do the cost-benefits show on a particular regulation, they are never familiar with it.

It is in fact very clear that we know that we're costing jobs. The estimate by the Small Business Administration, I repeat the estimate by the U.S. Small Business Administration is that regulations cost $1.75 trillion, or about $8,000 per employee, perhaps as much as $10,000 per employee.

Not every regulation that costs money needs to in fact not happen. But it certainly should be a decision of the Congress, and not an unelected individual somewhere in a well-windowed office with beautiful carpeting deciding on their own to have guidance or rulemaking that costs American jobs.

The Department of Homeland Security is in fact one of the most insular organizations. They have proven not to know or care what America needs, only that they must do what they choose to do. This is an agency that is so, so, so excessive that they even found that sending FOIA requests to political appointees who redacted or simply didn't send them out was okay. That's the kind of thing that we need to deal with here in appropriations, and if not in appropriations, in broader legislation.

My amendment simply seeks to force back to Congress the responsibility for regulations that cost jobs. If a study is done and it doesn't cost jobs, it would go forward. The fact is that most of our laws require some cost-benefit analysis. But since they're able to do it without ever formalizing it, or waive it because they say they don't believe it would happen, we don't have that kind of fact. An amendment like this simply says if you're going to cost American jobs, come back to Congress.

With that, I urge passage of this amendment. I strongly believe that with 9 percent unemployment, and in California 11 percent, and more in other areas, it's time for us to say don't pass a new regulation that costs jobs unless you're willing to bring it back to Congress.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Point of Order

I do.

Mr. Chairman, I believe that, in fact, you will rule, if allowed to, on this point of order. It is unfortunate that our rules allow appropriators to legislate when they want to but don't allow us to bring sensible reform when we believe it is necessary. I am not legislating; I am limiting.

But I recognize that the ruling is inevitably going to go against us. I will endeavor to bring this to the attention of the body at every opportunity and will be drafting a bill that would change the whole regulatory format.

I would hope those who say on a technical basis they cannot support us today, even though they know that regulations are costing American jobs every day, will support legislation that would change this across government.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment.

I object.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the distinguished career of Sergeant Major Jeffrey H. Dixon on the occasion of his retirement from the United States Marine Corps. I offer SgtMaj Dixon my sincerest thanks for his 33 years of dedicated service in protecting our nation and safeguarding its future.

SgtMaj Dixon joined the Marine Corps in 1978 at Parris Island, South Carolina. On four separate occasions, SgtMaj Dixon was meritoriously promoted through the ranks with participation in the evacuation of a U.S. embassy, the Palestine Liberation Organization, and subsequent combat operations in Beirut, Lebanon--all within the first five years of his career.

In 1983, SgtMaj Dixon reported to 2/1 and completed a deployment as a Platoon Sergeant to Okinawa, Japan as well as a western pacific deployment. During this tour, SgtMaj Dixon's exceptional skills were set apart when his squad won the First Marines Rifle Squad competition. Shortly following, SgtMaj Dixon was selected along with nine other Marines to form what became the Combat Assault Training Section where he designed and instructed multiple courses that are utilized to this day.

SgtMaj Dixon's additional tours of duty include Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm, the 11th and 15th MEU, Operations Desert Thunder and Desert Fox, Task Force 58 in Afghanistan and Operation Iraq Freedom I & II. Throughout these deployments, SgtMaj Dixon distinguished himself by extraordinary acts of leadership time and again. Among his many accomplishments, his decorations include Meritorious Service Medals, a Navy Commendation Medal, Navy Achievement Medals and a Combat Action Ribbon. These recognitions are a true testament of SgtMaj Dixon's dedication, leadership and commitment to our country.

In 2007 SgtMaj Dixon was assigned as the SgtMaj for Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton where in 2008, as a reflection of his work, the Base won the Commander and Chiefs Installation Excellence award. Moreover, SgtMaj Dixon's service in his current position as the Sergeant Major for the Marine Corps Installations West has truly been the capstone of a remarkable military career.

SgtMaj Dixon's demonstrated leadership, dedication and expertise has inspired countless fellow Marines As he enters this new stage of his life, I hope that SgtMaj Dixon will benefit from his years of work, just as the United States Marine Corps has benefited. I offer him my congratulations and may he enjoy a rewarding retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I ask you to please join me in honoring all the brave men and women who have served in the United States Armed Forces, and the admirable service of Sergeant Major Jeffrey Dixon.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the honorable public service of Lieutenant Colonel Glenn Sanders as he leaves his post at the House Division of the Army Office of Legislative Liaison.

Lieutenant Colonel Sanders was commissioned as a Field Artillery Officer in the United States Army in 1990 at California State University, San Bernardino.

His first assignment was as a platoon leader in a Lance Missile Battery in Germany. His platoon performed one of the last Lance training missions in Europe prior to the nuclear missile system being decommissioned as part of nuclear weapons reductions agreements.

LtCol Sanders then served with the First Cavalry Division at Fort Hood, Texas. After reassignment to the Second Armored Cavalry Regiment in Fort Polk, Louisiana, he deployed to Haiti in support of Operation Uphold Democracy. His unit helped lay the groundwork for a return to democracy by ensuring security during several key elections.

Among his many duties, LtCol Sanders has also served as a Battalion Training Officer in the 420th Movement Control Battalion, an Assistant Professor of Military Science at North Dakota State University, and the Chief of the Mobilization Division at the Army's Training and Doctrine Command.

In 2009, LtCol Sanders served as a Congressional Fellow with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. During this time I had the pleasure of working with him as he played a pivotal role in supporting

the Committee staff on a broad range of national security related issues. Following his fellowship, LtCol Sanders has served as the Executive Officer in the Army House Liaison Division since January 2010.

LtCol Sanders holds a BA in Political Science from the University of California, Riverside, and a Masters in Public Administration from the California State University, Northridge. He is currently enrolled in the United States Army War College. LtCol Sanders and his wife Kari have been married for over twenty years with two daughters, Kira and Kelli.

It is an honor to recognize LtCol Sanders on the occasion of his farewell from the House Division of the Army Office of Legislative Liaison and his years spent in public service. Mr. Speaker, I ask you to please join me in recognizing LtCol Sander's dedicated service to the United States Army and the U.S. House of Representatives.