Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on the resolution just considered.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 270) recognizing the establishment of Hunters for the Hungry programs across the United States and the contributions of those programs efforts to decrease hunger and help feed those in need.

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

Mr. Speaker, I come before the House today to encourage the passage of House Resolution 270, which recognizes the establishment of Hunters for the Hungry programs across the United States and recognizing the contributions these programs make to decrease hunger and help feed those in need.

Hunters for the Hungry is a unique and innovative program that addresses hunger in communities nationwide. All across this country, hunters can donate their game and their fowl to Hunters for the Hungry, which processes the meat and provides it to food banks and other feeding programs. This cooperative effort between hunters, processors, and the hunger community is an innovative example of how groups can work together toward a single, worthy goal: working to make sure that no American goes hungry.

When the House Agriculture Committee considered this resolution in the 110th Congress, it received unanimous support; and I strongly encourage the passage of this resolution.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I now yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Courtney).

Mr. Speaker, I also would like to take a moment to extend my commendations to my distinguished friend from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey) for this very worthy, worthy resolution. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize for 2 minutes my distinguished friend and colleague from the great State of Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) who has a sterling reputation for working to make sure that no American goes to bed hungry in our country.

Mr. Speaker, as has been mentioned by each of our speakers, we certainly applaud the Hunters for the Hungry program for the great job that they're doing, but this should serve as also a wake-up call and a challenge to more Americans, more organizations where, as the gentleman from Massachusetts pointed out with his statistics, there's so much more that we must do to reach that goal, that we have no American, no American child, no one in this country going to bed hungry at night for we are the wealthiest country in the world.

And so the Hunters for the Hungry program and H. Res. 270 presents not only an opportunity to celebrate the Hunters for the Hungry program but to accept the challenge for us to do more to make sure no American goes to bed hungry.

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on the resolution just considered.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 164) recognizing the 40th anniversary of the Food and Nutrition Service of the Department of Agriculture.

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

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to pay tribute to the outstanding and important work of the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service on the occasion of its 40th anniversary by supporting H. Con. Res. 164.

Mr. Speaker, since 1969, FNS has fulfilled its mission by providing children and needy families with better access to food and a more healthful diet through its food assistance programs and comprehensive nutrition education efforts.

In this time of great economic recession, the employees of FNS have demonstrated their extraordinary commitment to public service by ably serving a record number of Americans in need through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. In recent months, nearly 35 million people have found it necessary to make use of this safety net program.

In addition, FNS serves specific sectors of our population by providing school meals; funding and commodities for food banks and soup kitchens; and specialized programs for Native Americans, the elderly, infant and children, and pregnant women.

For their exemplary efforts on behalf of Americans in need, I congratulate the employees of the Food and Nutrition Service of the United States Agriculture Department and encourage the speedy passage of H. Con. Res. 164.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, now it is with great pleasure that I'd like to yield 6 minutes to the cochairman of the Congressional Hunger Caucus and an outstanding leader in this Congress, the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern).

In closing, Mr. Speaker, I could not be more eloquent than my good friend from Massachusetts, Mr. McGovern, our distinguished co-Chair of the Congressional Hunger Caucus, because he spoke so well. But one salient fact that shows the significance of the Food and Nutrition Services and the work of our United States Agriculture Department in this area is the fact that when we look at child nutrition, and specifically our School Lunch Program, it has been documented in all too many cases that all too often that meal, that one meal from our School Lunch Program is the most nutrient meal that all too many of our young people receive each day. That shows the value of what the Food and Nutrition Service is doing.

We certainly commend the resolution, commend the work of Mr. McGovern of Massachusetts, and our United States Agriculture Department.

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

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on the resolution just considered.

Madam Speaker, let me thank Chairman Waxman for the excellent job he has done in providing leadership and for expanding the renewable energy standard to reflect the interests of my constituents in Georgia, and certainly the Energy Star home labeling program.

As you know, Mr. Chairman, there is one issue that I have discussed with you that I am very concerned about that we are working our way through, and I would like to enter into a colloquy with you. I am concerned about the jurisdiction of derivatives.

I serve on the Agriculture Committee and the Financial Services Committee. We feel very strongly that any language in this dealing with the regulation of derivatives certainly should be handled by the Financial Services and Agriculture Committees, and you and I have discussed that, and I would like to know how that is done, particularly in view of the fact that 95 percent of the 500 largest global corporations use derivatives for risk management.

I yield to the gentleman.

I thank you, and with that I will certainly support the bill and urge my colleagues to support the bill.

I thank Chairman Skelton for giving me this opportunity to speak on behalf of this very important and timely bill. I also want to commend President Obama and Speaker Pelosi for the leadership they have provided.

This is my 8th year in Congress, and for each of these 8 years I have worked hard on this bill of concurrent receipts. I can't think of a more important bill that we could offer at this time as we approach the Fourth of July when this Nation celebrates its independence and freedom. At the forefront of that, the reason we are able to celebrate this independence and freedom is because of the soldiers and our veterans. And we have long felt that it is not fair nor right if our soldiers are injured and disabled, and if they have to leave service, why should they have to choose between a retirement pay and disability.

What we are saying with this measure is the right thing to do, is to make sure our soldiers have both. I urge a unanimous vote for this. Every Member of this Chamber should vote ``yes'' on this important bill.

Thank you very much, Chairman Berman, and to Mr. Pence, for this very timely resolution.

This is a time of great thought and deliberation and concern of what the United States must do and say. Our words have got to be carefully calculated to make sure that they are seen as not meddling, as not trying to tell the Iranian people what to do, because, quite honestly, Mr. Speaker, the Iranian people have already spoken. They have decided, and I believe that is our responsibility, if we hold true to the principles of our Founding Fathers.

As I was coming over on the floor, I was thinking what I could say, and the words of one of our great founders and patriots beams very deep in my heart as I think and I watch the news reports of what is happening in the streets of Tehran, when that great patriot said, Give me liberty or give me death. That is why the United States of America cannot be silent. It is our foundation.

I was reminded of the words of Thomas Jefferson when he wrote that, All men are created equal, and are endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights, and among those life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

That is what we stand for. So it is important that we put this resolution forward, and it is important that the world understand that America is indeed that shining light of liberty and of freedom that Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson spoke so eloquently about.

We are proud to support the Iranian people, and we condemn the violence.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much.

This is really the most critical, the most important piece of legislation facing us right now. The situation in Pakistan is very tenuous; it is very critical. We have before us a very significant piece of legislation that has been expertly crafted. Yes, trade is a part of it because trade is important at this time to make sure that we are able to help sustain the economy of Pakistan at this very critical time.

Pakistan is in a fragile situation. Military aid is in here, yes, because Pakistan needs this. But we have the safeguards here because, let me just say, the other side mentioned something a little while back about the Department of Defense and their role. Let us go back for an example in Afghanistan.

In Afghanistan, we do not want another repeat of the very significant problem that the Department of Defense had in Afghanistan with losing-- yes, losing--significant military equipment to the Taliban.

The U.S. taxpayers deserve better, and in this bill we are giving them better. We are giving the oversight. In essence, we are making sure that aid that we give to Pakistan is properly used, that oversight is in place, that benchmarks are in place. We're making sure that any entity that is being used, whether it's military or certainly their nuclear weapons, do not fall into terrorists' hands or into other hands. We've made sure, under the leadership of Ms. Lee, who's on this committee, with the chairman's manager's amendment, that we have safeguards in here to make sure that none of these funds are used to even expand their nuclear capacity.

This is an extraordinary bill at an extraordinary time. It is heavily bipartisan, and I commend the chairman on an excellent piece of legislation.

Mr. Chairman, I rise to claim the time in opposition to this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment, while I'm sure well-intended by the gentlelady, would strike a section of the bill waiving the ban against dissemination of public diplomacy materials within the United States to make the film, ``A Fateful Harvest,'' available for public viewing.

Mr. Chairman, the Voice of America's Afghan service has produced this 52-minute documentary examining the narcotics industry in Afghanistan, including poppy growing, opium production, trafficking, law enforcement efforts, and the harmful health effects of drugs. It documents the challenges facing the Afghan Government as well as our own.

Financed by the Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the film has aired inside Afghanistan in Dari and Pashto. A low-resolution version of the film has been available on Voice of America's Web site and in six separate parts on YouTube.

Mr. Chair, Voice of America has received several requests for a clean copy of the documentary in its original high resolution and in one single piece for viewing at U.S. venues because of the film's educational value. Among those seeking access to this single clean copy are the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies Center on Politics and Foreign Relations and an Afghan students' group at the University of Virginia.

On the area of cost that my good friend on the other side pointed out, there is no cost. Any additional copies of the film will be made available for purchase, which would cover the cost of copying, however small it may be.

Mr. Chair, on many occasions during the history of USIA and the Broadcasting Board of Governors, Congress has passed legislation to waive the domestic dissemination ban, known colloquially as Smith- Mundt, to make a film available for public viewing in the United States. It is a simple matter with many precedents. This should be one of those occasions. And in reference to not having it done before, on three different occasions, Mr. Chair, three different authorizations, section 203 of the U.S. Information Agency FY 1990 and '91; section 204 in 1988 and '89; section 205 in FY97, different occasions when this has happened before. So with due respect for the lady from Florida, we certainly respect her; but we oppose the amendment.

Mr. Chair, I now recognize for 2 minutes the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Klein).

Mr. Chair, in closing, I would just like to again urge defeat of this amendment, with all due respect. And I might add, I was on Voice of America yesterday morning. They are fine people. They do a fine service, and this is a great acclamation for them as well. We respectfully speak in opposition to the gentlelady's amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, we strongly support the gentleman's amendment that would require the Secretary of State to make recommendations to Congress on the kinds of change needed to The Hague Convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction and, where applicable, to United States law.

Mr. Chairman, the purpose of The Hague Convention is to ensure that in situations where a child was wrongfully removed from his or her country or habitual residence by one parent against the will of another parent, the aggrieved parent has an internationally recognized means of recovering his or her abducted child.

Unfortunately, many American families have come face to face with the very real limitations of the current The Hague Convention and their efforts to recover parentally kidnapped children taken to other countries.

Such was the high profile case involving Mr. David Goldman of Tinton Falls, New Jersey, whose son Sean was kidnapped by Mr. Goldman's wife in 2004. This case has largely languished in Brazil's court since that time, despite the fact that Brazil is a partner with the United States in the Convention's enforcement. The legal process has only moved during periods of intense media attention and diplomatic activity on Mr. Goldman's behalf.

Changes to U.S. law and the Convention appear to be warranted to ensure that children can be quickly returned to their left-behind parents and their homes. This report will help us identify legal changes Congress can consider on behalf of the over 1,000 American children who are currently living in other countries as a result of a parental abduction.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment is an important step in addressing a problem that will likely get worse in coming years in light of the growing number of transnational births and marriages. We must continue to use the legal tools at our disposal to prevent or resolve these childhood abduction cases.

I support the gentleman from New Jersey's amendment.

Madam Chair, first of all, I would like to commend the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks) for his long service in this area of bringing attention to bringing equality to the cultures of Central America, South America, and Latin America. He is to be indeed commended.

Madam Chair, the United States and Brazil are strong partners with a common history and ancestry that, unfortunately, includes experiences of slavery, racism, and discrimination against citizens of African heritage. Still, the United States and Brazil, under the joint action plan, are working to learn from each other's experiences in order to combat racism, promote equality, and increase cooperation in a multitude of fields including education, culture, health, and sports.

Madam Chair, because combating racism and discrimination requires constant vigilance, I support the gentleman from New York's amendment, which will provide Congress with better information moving towards that end.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the historic city of Jonesboro, Georgia on the occasion of its 150th anniversary.

Officially founded as a town in 1859, Jonesboro existed as a small rural community until the rise of industrialization during the mid-19th century. Named after Colonel Samuel Goode Jones, an engineer who organized the construction of the first paved roads in town, Jonesboro continued to prosper until the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861.

The legendary Battle of Jonesboro will always be remembered by our nation as one of the more significant milestones of the American Civil War. Because of the defeat of Confederate troops at the Battle of Jonesboro, General Sherman's army was successful in occupying the city of Atlanta, an event which directly contributed to the surrendering of the Confederate army in 1865. Following the end of the Civil War, Jonesboro began an arduous and trying period of reconstruction, along with the rest of the American South.

The town of Jonesboro persevered through these numerous challenges and is known today for its extraordinary commitment to re-growth. Furthermore, the publication of Margaret Mitchell's internationally renowned novel, Gone with the Wind, has forever sealed this beautiful town and its remarkable past into our nation's cultural cannon.

Madam Speaker, I am honored to represent such a remarkable city, a city which has played such an integral role in the history of the United States. I congratulate Jonesboro on this date, the 150th anniversary of its town's formation, and grant my sincerest wishes for its prosperity and success in the years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 36) calling on the President and the allies of the United States to engage with officials of the Government of Iran to raise the case of Robert Levinson at every opportunity, urging officials of the Government of Iran to fulfill their promises of assistance to the family of Robert Levinson, and calling on the Government of Iran to share the results of its investigation into the disappearance of Robert Levinson with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this very important resolution, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, last month, President Obama delivered a very important video message to the Iranian people and to Iran's leaders, coinciding with Iran's Festival of Nowruz, a 12-day holiday marking the new year.

Mr. Speaker, I support President Obama's spirit of engagement, and I share his view that the United States and the international community should try to persuade Iran, through both diplomacy and economic sanctions, to comply with its legal obligations under the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty and under numerous United Nations Security Council resolutions.

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Robert Levinson, a retired agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, disappeared in Iran over 2 years ago. There is no better time than now, in the spirit of engagement with Iran, for the Government of Iran to share the results of its investigation into Mr. Levinson's disappearance with the FBI. Indeed, the Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in an interview with NBC on July 28, 2008, stated that the Iranian Government was willing to cooperate with the FBI in the search for Mr. Robert Levinson. Iranian officials also promised their continued assistance to his relatives during the Levinson family's visit to Iran in December of 2007.

This resolution under consideration urges President Obama and our allies to raise the case of Mr. Levinson with the Iranians at every opportunity. Indeed, this process has already begun. During a March 31 conference in The Hague, Ambassador Richard Holbrook handed an Iranian diplomat a diplomatic letter asking Tehran to ensure the quick and safe return of Mr. Levinson, as well as freelance journalist Roxana Saberi and student Esha Momeni, both of whom are being held in Iran. The resolution also urges the Government of Iran to fulfill its pledge to cooperate with the FBI. Both of these requests are more than fully appropriate.

Mr. Speaker, our hearts go out to the Levinson family. And we remain deeply committed to learning Mr. Levinson's fate in Iran and, if possible, hopefully returning him home safe and sound.

I strongly support this resolution, and I urge all my colleagues to do likewise. And I want to thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Wexler) for introducing this resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, this is a very important and timely resolution. As we have spoken to it, I think we all see its urgency, its humanitarian nature, and the very important challenge to the people of Iran and the leaders of Iran to do the right thing in this case.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 76) mourning the horrific loss of life in January 2009 caused by a landslide in Guatemala and an earthquake in Costa Rica and expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should assist the affected people and communities, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, first I want to thank Congressman Dan Burton for introducing this very important and timely resolution, which mourns the terrible loss of life caused by two natural disasters that occurred 4 days apart in Central America in January of this year. The first was a landslide that occurred on January 4, 2009, in Guatemala. The second was an earthquake on January 8, 2009, in Costa Rica.

The resolution before us conveys the deepest condolences of Congress to the families of the victims and urges that the United States Government maintain technical assistance to Central American countries regarding disaster management and mitigation.

On January 4, 2009, millions of tons of earth fell onto a road in the Alta Verapaz area, north of Guatemala City in Guatemala. Apparently, a geological fault triggered the movement of earth, sending 10 million tons of mud and rock down a hillside onto a road that runs from San Cristobal Verapaz to Chicaman, north of Guatemala City. At least 38 people were confirmed dead and up to 60 were missing, many of whom were coffee workers in the region.

Four days later, on January 8, 2009, a 6.1 magnitude earthquake shook the capital region of San Jose, Costa Rica. The earthquake's epicenter was 20 miles from San Jose at a depth of 21.7 miles, and the shaking continued for 40 seconds. Twenty-three individuals were confirmed dead, over 100 were treated for injuries, and nearly a dozen went missing, including many buried by resulting landslides.

Guatemala and Costa Rica have been frequently impacted by significant natural disasters including those in the aftermath of Hurricane Stan in Guatemala in 2005 that led to hundreds of deaths.

I agree wholeheartedly that it should be the policy of the United States to continue technical assistance to governments in the region at the national, provincial, and local levels in the area of the disaster management coordination. It is also essential that the United States take a long-term view with its regional partners and help them improve disaster mitigation techniques.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this very important and necessary and timely resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, I certainly again want to commend Mr. Burton for showing the leadership and at the same time showing the greatness of America, which has always been the timely response to other nations in their moment of great need and crisis.

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

I thank very much the gentleman from South Carolina.

Let me just be very, very brief. I want to take a moment to point out the fallacies in the Republicans' plan.

First of all, the Republicans' plan is based on the weakest effort to try to deal with an economy that is receding. It is of little value to base your plan on tax cuts at a time when the economy is in recession, at a time when the economy is, in many cases, in a depression.

We are losing, on average, 620,000 jobs every month, Madam Chair. That's 21,000 every day. How in the world are we going to make an economic policy based upon tax cuts, which are based upon income, when the income levels of our country is going down?

There's a reason why this country supports what the Democrats are doing under this Democrat President by over 60 percent. And that is because we understand what this economy needs now is growth--and the best way to get this economy to grow is to invest in the American people. And when you invest in the American people, the best way to do that is in education--to get our people educated and strong, to be able to get them retrained to get the kind of jobs that we will need in a new, restructured economy.

In terms of health care--not only to provide it in terms of lowering the cost, but to create jobs in the health care area. Nowhere is that need any greater in terms of jobs than in energy dependence.

That's why the American people are supporting the Democratic initiatives on this, and I urge a positive vote for this budget resolution.