Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words.

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

Mr. Chairman, I join today with the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey), the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Andrews) and others, myself included, in offering a Democratic substitute to H.R. 3030, the Community Service Block Grant.

I strongly believe that the Democratic substitute does two important things: one, it supports ongoing participation of faith-based providers and Community Service Block Grant programs; and, two, it restores basic civil rights protection for families and employees who benefit from participating in Federally funded Community Service Block Grant programs.

It was interesting to listen to the earlier discussion when one of the previous Members on the Republican side said that we Members of Congress on our side ask what religion people are before we hire them. I was pretty shocked. I do not know if I know the religion of any of my staff members. I do not even know if they are religious. So we do get revelations here when we have these discussions. And it does, once again, show the difference between the ideologues who are holier than thou when in their employment they are going to find out what religion you are before you can be hired.

It was also interesting that the same gentleman talked proudly about the former founders, the framers of the Constitution, and how they were so great in using the Bible to teach people as they have used government money to buy these Bibles to teach, one, the American Indians and, number two, simply to use religious people to teach.

Of course, these same framers of the Constitution were the same people that said I was three-fifths of a person. As you may recall in the Constitution of the United States, African Americans were considered three-fifths of a man. And when I was a youngster my grandfather always told me that his grandfather told him about this three-fifths of a man. That is what black people were. These great religious framers of the American Constitution had everyone as a full person but blacks were only three-fifths because in the census for Congress, they did not want blacks, who could not vote in the first place, to be allowed to distort the number of people in Congress in the South.

And so when we start talking about the framers of the Constitution, we need to have a whole day discussing the framers of the Constitution. Since the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Bartlett) brought it up, I just thought I would mention it.

I just want to say that, one, I certainly think that we are turning the clock back. For over 40 years, Community Service Block Grant programs have been instrumental in assisting families in poverty, and faith-based communities have made strong partners. It has worked. But as we know, back in 1998 there was a change in the middle of the night. An amendment was put in that changed charitable-choice provisions, which was added to allow religious organizations to receive Community Service Block Grants to use Federal funds to discriminate with respect to employment. This is new. That was done in 1998 when the bill was changed.

So I think that this really says a lot about the people on the other side of the aisle because they want to take Federal money and say that you have the right to discriminate. And on top of that, unfortunately, religion happens to be, on Sunday mornings it is the most discriminating hour in the United States' week, because most churches are totally racially segregated in most communities. So once you start bringing in religion as a way to hire, the next thing that will follow actually is that you will then find that racial discrimination will follow the religious discrimination.

So as we have all people from all races losing their lives daily in Iraq, where we have people in Afghanistan of all races fighting together, we find those who fostered this war on us saying we have got to separate people. We do not separate them on the battlefields. We do not ask the religion when they go out to try to get the enemy. But all of the sudden we are going to ask the religion of people. What hypocrisy. What hypocrisy. You can die on the battlefield under the American flag, but when you go to get a job you have to tell your religion.

I think that the day will come when all of this will pass by the board. It is sooner than we think. It is going to be in November this year.

Mr. Speaker, last year, I led the opposition to a pre- emptive war in Iraq--which, according to testimony given this week by former top U.S. Weapons Inspector David Kay, wasn't even pre-emptive. If Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction program, what potential harm were we pre-empting?

President Bush has led our country further and further away from the fold of the international community, ignoring the United Nations Security council's findings, and virtually demolishing the international support we had received following September 11th. He has challenged Americans to a ``you're either with us or against us'' agenda, which leads to the most dangerous kind of patriotism--where questioning and dissent are considered un-American. Well I, as an American and a patriot, am now standing again to ask questions about the cost of this war.

We spent $396 billion in military spending alone for 2003. As big as this number is, it does not even include the cost of the Iraq war, which was funded through two additional supplemental requests; the first for $79 billion, the second was another $87 billion. Together, that amounts an amazing $562 billion. For 2003, that amounts to almost $11 billion dollars spent ever week, and more than $1.5 billion spent every day. Compare that to this year's Department of Education budget of $54 billion, which works out to less than 150 million dollars per day, which averages out to less than $3 million per day in education spending in each state. $1.5 billion on the military, $3 million on education: so where are our priorities?

Here at home, 9 million Americans are unemployed, 35 million live under the official poverty line, 44 million have no health insurance, and millions more are unable to make ends meet. States face their worst fiscal crisis since the Great Depression, and the yearly federal budget deficit is passing $500 billion and growing rapidly. My own state, New Jersey, is facing a projected $5 billion budget deficit for 2004.

And this administration doesn't intend to change course anytime soon. According to the 2005 budget released this week, they are planning to spend $2.2 trillion on the military over the next 5 years.

For 2004 alone, they plan to spend $399 billion on the military (which does not include any possible future supplemental funding requests for Iraq or Afghanistan) which is more than the combined spending that year for education, Health, Justice, Housing Assistance, International Affairs, Veterans Benefits, Natural Resources & Environment, Science & Space, Transportation, employment, Employment Training, Social Services, Income Security, Economic Development, Social Security, Medicare, Agriculture, and Energy.

Where we spend our money is a telling sign of where our priorities lie. We have abandoned our children, our teachers, our laborers, our homeless, our veterans, and our seniors in order to fund these regime- changing, unilateral military actions. We are under funding No Child Left Behind, IDEA, after-school programs, and family literacy programs. We have not extended unemployment benefits for those without jobs. We have offered our seniors a Medicare program that does almost nothing to cut their prescription drug costs, and we're threatening to destabilize their Social Security through privatization.

I am very concerned about the direction in which our country is headed. We're sliding further and further down a slippery slope where our county's basic needs are not being met. That is why this year's presidential election is so key. We need a leader that can mend the relationships broken by this unnecessary war and its ill-administered aftermath. We need to bring home the tens of thousands men and women whose lives have been placed on the line for no good reason. We must see change for the better.

More numbers:

For the cost of every cluster bomb, we can enroll 2 children in Head Start.

For the cost of every minute of the war on Iraq, we could have paid the annual salary and benefits for 15 registered nurses. For every hour of the war on Iraq, we could improve, repair, and modernize 20 schools. For the cost of one day's war on Iraq, we could have prevented all of the budget cuts to education programs in 2003. For the amount of money we spend ever week in Iraq, we could build 142,857 units of affordable housing. For the amount of money we spend to buy one stealth bomber, we could pay the annual salary plus benefits for 38,000 teachers. We might be able to give a few of them a raise--image that!

Each day the Pentagon spends $1.7 billion, which is enough to build 200 new elementary schools, house 136,000 homeless, or provide Pell grants to one million college students (per day!).

With less than the cost of ONE of the Iraq supplementals, we could do all these things: Provide basic health and food to the world's poor: $12 billion. Rebuild America's public schools over 10 years: $12 billion. Reduce class size for grades 1-3 to 15 students per class: $11 billion. Reduce debts of impoverished nations: $10 billion; Provide health insurance to all uninsured American kids: $6 billion; Increased federal funding for clean energy and energy efficiency: $6 billion; Public financing of all federal elections: $1 billion; Fully fund Head Start: $2 billion.

Other countries military spending: Russia--$65 billion; China--$47 billion; Japan--$42.6 billion; U.K.--$38.4 billion.

These combined are a total of $193 billion, which is less than half our FY '03 or FY '04 military spending--not including the cost of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Please don't confuse military spending with the safety and security of our Nation. It is a common misconception that higher military enhances homeland security. However, many of these responsibilities fall onto our struggling, under funded State and local government agencies, whom we know as ``first responders,'' and to agencies outside of the Defense Department, such as the FBI, FEMA, and the Coast Guard. This massive military spending budget addresses none of these programs.

Another matter of concern to me is not only how much money we're spending on our military, but how that money is being spent. The President's $87 billion supplemental contained an astronomical waste of taxpayer dollars. These are just some of the administration's requests:

$100 million for several new housing communities, complete with roads, schools, and a medical clinic; $20 million for business classes, at a cost of $10,000 per Iraqi student; $900 million for imported kerosene and diesel, even though Iraq has huge oil reserves; $54 million to study the Iraqi postal system; $10 million for prison- building consultants; $2 million for garbage trucks; $200,000 each for Iraqis in a witness protection program; $100 million for hundreds of criminal investigators; and $400 million for two prisons, at a cost of nearly $50,000 per bed.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I would like to commend the Congressional Black Caucus for taking time out the first hour and now the gentleman from New York's second hour talking about the budget priorities because the budget is so important. The budget will determine how this Nation will survive during the next decades. It is important that we look at the budget priorities because, as I mentioned, it will say where we are going as a Nation.

Mr. Speaker, as I join my colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus in urging a reordering of the Nation's budget priorities, I think it is very important that we just listen to what the President has said.

State of the Union Speech and the Budget: Rhetoric Versus Reality.

Of course, as we know, the President talked about the fact that jobs would be created. He said 2.9 million jobs, I think, would be created; but we have lost 2.3 million since he has been in.

There are claims that more tax cuts would create jobs, not supported by facts. Claims about job growth, certainly overstated. Questionable commitment to manufacturing initiatives. We will talk about that a little more. Additional tax cuts will cost $1 trillion. Relief from the alternative minimum tax could cost nearly $700 billion. Up to $1 trillion will be needed for Social Security privatization plan. New tax-free accounts will have long-term impact on our deficit. The Mars proposal is likely to cost hundreds of billions of dollars.

The administration's budget has omitted the cost of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. Job training funds are just a drop in the bucket of what is needed. Proposal for drug testing and abstinence, but no additional funds for basic education. Basing Pell grant awards on course selections and not economic needs. Inefficient plans to help the underserved. Flawed efforts to lower health care costs. Additional health proposals that assist the healthy and the wealthy. No mention of veterans.

So as I go around my congressional district talking with my constituents, I hear a great deal of concern voiced about the direction in which our country is moving. I have not heard anyone tell me that their family has benefited from the tax cut which has taken billions of dollars away from vital areas of the budget. The concern I hear raised is about education, including Head Start, after-school programs, college loans, Pell grants, and the need for affordable housing. They talk about access to quality health care and a healthier environment.

So as I conclude, if the President supports the manufacturing sector of our economy, why did his administration propose earlier to phase out Federal support for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership program? If he supports job creation, why did his administration try to cut adult training and vocational education? If he cares about education, why did his administration propose a change to focus the Pell grant program away from making college affordable to low-income undergraduates?

Mr. Speaker, when the President took office, he inherited an amazing budget surplus of $5.6 trillion over 10 years. That has been squandered totally to the point where we have a $3 trillion deficit projected.

Does it make any sense to talk about missions to the Moon and Mars when the basic needs of our communities are not being met? We do not even have the true cost of the war in Iraq, a war we entered based on the administration's statements that Iraq definitely had weapons of mass destruction, none of which have been found, despite months and months of searching.

We are asked to spend $87 billion for new schools and prisons in Iraq, while schools in some of our communities are falling apart. It is time for us to restore some of the fairness and sanity to our budget process.

I look forward to working with my colleagues and hopefully with the administration to turn these things around.

The gentleman might remember there was supposed to be a .2 percent drop in the unemployment rate, and the administration said, see, we are doing the right thing. However, it was because tens of thousands of persons seeking employment simply decided to drop out of the market of seeking employment. Some decided to go back to school; others just disappeared. So the actual unemployment rate, even though they said it dropped two-tenths of 1 percent, this month there are more people unemployed than previously unemployed; but if you do not seek a job, you are not counted. It is a flawed kind of statistic that says that unemployment is dropping. It is not dropping.

It is a shame that we are even having this so-called jobless recovery. What does a jobless recovery mean? It simply means in the pockets of the corporations, because of the sending jobs offshore, they claim productivity is up. That is because when you pick up your phone to call a 1-800 number, it is picked up in Bombay or offshore. Doctors, I understand, when they do an EKG, it goes up and someone in an English-speaking developing country who is a trained physician looks at it and sends back what the diagnosis should be; therefore, the cost of a physician in our country is undercut. We saw the offshore development of textiles and toys and things, but now we are seeing high-level jobs also going offshore, and nobody is talking about that.

Mr. Speaker, as the gentleman mentioned, we talk about promoting the general welfare and we talk about providing for the common defense. There is no question that we have provided for the common defense even above the defense, but in a military budget that is a different budget than a defense budget. But are we providing for the other things that we said? We are not. Architects and engineers, buildings to be designed are being outsourced. We would like to have a 30-story building with glass and chrome; and you write up something and send it out, and engineers and architects in India are coming up with architectural designs for companies that win the bids.

And even the fact that the CEOs' ratio of pay to the worker in many countries, it may be 50 to 1, 55 to 1 ratio.

The ratio is how much more the CEO makes than the regular worker. If a worker is making $30,000 a year, in many countries the CEO would be making maybe 10 times that amount at the highest, $300,000, maybe 15 times in some places.

In the United States, it is almost difficult to quantify what the average salary is and what the CEOs are making. Pharmaceutical CEOs make between 25 and $30 million. That is the salary. That is what they make with bonuses, stock options, and salaries. In all of the industries, we see these salaries that are so far above what the average worker's salary is, it is difficult to quantify. I am afraid to give that number. It recently appeared in a New York paper about a week or so ago. We are driving people down.

The middle class is being squeezed. That little $300 people got as a tax rebate, while others got millions of dollars. I congratulate Senator Corzine who is a very wealthy person. He said he did not want the tax cut. He did not need it. He thought it was unfair when people who are struggling daily to make a living, just to move ahead.

We have people who cannot afford bus tickets for two or three kids going to high school, and a kid may have to drop out because the family cannot afford it. It is $50 a month in Newark. With three kids, it is $150. That is just one of the costs. We are making it difficult for struggling, working people to make ends meet.

The cost of education and health care have gone through the roof, whereas our wages have not only leveled off; they have dropped. We have not had an increase in minimum wage in years.

Finally, the Department of Labor as they are making new categories for workers who are ineligible for overtime through regulations, even though it has not been finalized, from what I understand on the Department of Labor's Web site, there are instructions for companies that might qualify on how they can move to take people in a new category as being ineligible for overtime pay and in steps one through five, how they can accomplish that. We are driving down the salaries of American workers and outsourcing of jobs going abroad. They said that would create more jobs in America in certain categories of jobs once the PRC, the People's Republic of China, continued to grow economically. We have not seen the impact here.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman allowing me this opportunity to have this discussion.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask my colleagues here in the U.S. House of Representatives to join me in honoring a very special person, Staff Sergeant Carol S. Murray, who has given outstanding service to our Nation and to this institution. Sergeant Murray will be honored this evening by her many friends, colleagues, and family members on the occasion of her retirement from the United States Army.

As the Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge and Administrative Supervisor of the Army's Congressional House Liaison Division since 1991, Sergeant Murray has earned an excellent reputation among members of Congress for her dedication and professionalism. I had the pleasure of getting to know Sergeant Murray when she accompanied a Congressional delegation to Haiti. She impressed me with her ability to handle with grace any situation which arose, while also showing deep respect to our host country and its residents during the diplomatic mission. I always enjoyed walking by Sergeant Murray's office in the Rayburn Building, because I knew I would be greeted with the warm, friendly smile she has for everyone. In her position, she was always willing to show newcomers the ropes, inspiring a sense of esprit d'corps which is so important for the morale of those serving in our military. In addition, whenever the Army was hosting a reception or event for a senior officer, she worked tirelessly to ensure that it was well-attended and successful.

Sergeant Murray began her career in July of 1984 after completing Basic and AIT at Fort Jackson. She served in Stuttgart as the postal clerk for 139th AG Postal, Robinson Barracks. Her exceptional performance led to other assignments, including providing primary training in office procedures and policies, and acting as a mentor for all newly assigned Military Personnel. Following her tour in Germany, she headed to Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to the XVIII Airborne Corps, where she served with the ``Fighting'' 305th AG Postal before leaving for Honduras and other numerous field deployments with the mighty 82nd Airborne Division. In January of 1988, she began working as a Postal Clerk with the 2nd Infantry Division, Camp Casey. She later worked as an Administrative Specialist to the Chief, Enlisted Records before serving as the Senior Administrative NCO for the Adjutant General's Office in the Military District of Washington.

Mr. Speaker, I know my colleagues join me in offering congratulations and best wishes for the future to Sergeant Carol Murray, a great soldier, patriot, and friend.

Mr. Speaker, let me thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Foley) for allowing me to have this unanimous consent and let me commend the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus for having this special order dealing with some of the very trying problems of our time.

In this new millennium, we will face many hurdles and we are going to hear the first the State of the Union address tonight. But today I would like to rise this afternoon to discuss the true state of the Union as it is, not as we would like it to be. We have our true land and then there is wonderland. And it is great in wonderland because all things are nice and we have the road that leads to all good things.

However, the true state of the Nation is more grim. It is time to face reality. There are too many people in our Nation who are still struggling. They are not enjoying the benefits that have been awarded to the more privileged among us. While the White House tries to put the best face on the economy, the fact is that we have lost about 2.5 million jobs in the last 2 years. Long-term unemployment is at a 20- year high.

While the wealthiest Americans enjoy the benefits of tax cuts, which was tilted their way, millions of Americans continue to live paycheck to paycheck, although the unemployment rate has dropped .1 percent. There are more people unemployed this month than were last month because thousands and thousands have dropped out of the hunt for a job because of the long-term unemployment. And they have just given up, they have fallen out.

So the unemployment rate is not even a true reflection of what is going on. The response of the Bush administration to this inequity is to make lopsided tax cuts permanent.

Our friends across the aisle who used to rail against budget deficits only a few years ago are now willing to overlook the largest, most alarming budget deficit in the history of this great Nation.

Under former-President Clinton's budget policies, we amassed a healthy budget surplus, which has now been totally squandered. We used to talk about mortgaging our children's futures. We do not hear that anymore.

What this means is that resources that can be channeled into positive action to address such key problems as jobs, health care, education, housing are no longer available. They have been drained by the irresponsible tax cuts for the very wealthy in our Nation.

The state of the Union today is weaker in many other ways. Racial disparities in health care continue to take a toll on minorities. Yet the administration's response to this national health crises is to sweep it under the carpet.

The Washington Post reported last week that a Federal report on racial disparities was rewritten for the first time in our history by the Department

of Health and Human Services to hide the fact that minorities in our Nation receive inferior health care for a wide range of diseases. In fact, the final draft of what was supposed to be a scientific study dropped the detailed descriptions of health disparities and removed a reference to national problems. This is a serious matter because studies have shown that even among patients with identical diseases and similar income levels, minorities are less likely to receive the same quality of care for diseases including cancer, diabetes, heart problems, AIDS, and other illnesses.

As our colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), pointed out, the first draft of the ``Health Care Racial Disparity Report'' mentioned the word disparity 30 times in the key-finding section, while the final version mentioned the word only twice and then even failed to define it.

As a member of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, I remain concerned about inequities in education of our children. This marks the 50th anniversary of the historic Brown v. the Board of Education decision which banned segregation in schools. Yet, the fact is that our schools have not reached the goal of racial integration. About one-third of African American students go to schools that are 90 to 100 percent African American. About 70 percent attend schools that are composed primarily of minority students. We need strong leadership at the top to reverse this trend and to really leave no child behind and to ensure access to a quality education for all of our students.

We are one Nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all; and we need to make that plan and dream a reality.

Mr. Speaker, we can only make our country stronger and we are better if we are willing to examine the real state of the Union and seek real solutions to our problems.

I hope we can pull together and address these issues so that we can begin to move forward again in crucial areas including the economy, health care, and education.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and offer my congratulations to a hero in my community, Mr. William Thomas. During this holiday season, we are lucky to have such a heartwarming reminder of the goodness within the human spirit.

As Mr. Thomas was riding to work with his wife, Jamelia, and two of their children, on East Hazelwood Avenue in Rahway, NJ, he saw a group of people gathered along the river's edge. Upon stopping, he observed a woman flailing in the water.

Disregarding his own safety, and not much of a swimmer himself, Mr. Thomas dove into the 50 degree water to rescue the drowning woman. Struggling to control the panicking, hysterical woman, he managed to pull her close enough to the shoreline for police officers to draw her from the river.

He then returned home to quickly shower and change clothes, setting out again on his drive to work at the Woodbridge Developmental Center in Avenel. He later discovered that the drowning woman also worked at this state-run residential facility for the mentally and physically impaired. They had never met.

Without a thought for his welfare, Mr. Thomas placed another human's life above his own. I am touched by his sacrifice and his service. I am honored by his presence in my community, and I ask you to join me as I salute Mr. Thomas and his outstanding display of compassion and bravery.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to recognize an outstanding public servant from my home state, Senator Richard J. Codey; as he ascends to the position of President of the New Jersey Senate. Senator Codey is being honored by his many friends and family members at a special ceremony at the Essex County Hall of Records in Newark.

Senator Codey has established an outstanding reputation for both his legislative achievements and his contributions to the community. Senator Codey was elected to the Assembly in 1973 and re-elected three times. He has served in the Senate since 1981. He represents the 27th legislative district, which includes Caldwell, Essex Fells, Fairfield, Livingston, Maplewood, North Caldwell, Orange, Roseland, South Orange, West Orange, and part of Newark. Senator Codey was selected Senate Co- President for the 210th Legislative Session beginning January 8, 2002. He will be selected President at the 211th Session of the Legislature in January, 2004. Senator Codey was Senate Minority leader from 1998 until 2002. He chaired the Senate Health, Institutions and Welfare Committee from 1982 to 1992, and has been a champion of the mentally ill and disabled in state institutions and group homes statewide. As a result of an undercover investigation he initiated, strict background checks and improved training standards for all employees of state psychiatric institutions were put into effect.

Senator Codey has received numerous honors and awards, including the state Psychiatric Association's ``Citizen of the Year'' award and the state Mental Health Association's service award.

A graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University, Senator Codey is a licensed insurance broker and president of the Olympic Agency. He is married to the former Mary Jo Rolli. They are the proud parents of two sons, Kevin and Christopher.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues here in the U.S. House of Representatives to join me in congratulating Senator Codey and wishing him all the best as he continues his outstanding public service.

Mr. Speaker, let me begin by commending the subcommittee chairman and our ranking member, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hinojosa), who has demonstrated tremendous leadership on this whole question of international studies. His background and the need for internationalizing our workforce, internationalizing our universities, bringing attention to Hispanic-serving institutions and ensuring that they get their just do as we move forward to educate the workforce in this Nation is second to none. It is certainly a pleasure for me to serve with him on this Committee on Education and the Workforce.

I rise in strong support of H.R. 3077, the International Studies and Higher Education Act of 2003. Education programs are vital to our Nation's colleges and universities. It is imperative that we train young men and women of all backgrounds to be prepared for our increasingly global society. Today we live in a global village. Everything is interdependent. World trade organizations, world bank organizations, organizations that deal with world health, the current campaign to eradicate polio in countries needs to have physicians from throughout the world, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control needs to have doctors that reflect the various cultures of the world.

So as we look at education, even though it is on a college level, we need to see the impact that it will have and should have in other agencies such as health, such as banking. So we must do more to prepare our students to take their place.

Unfortunately, though, this bill does not go far enough in recruiting and maintaining minority students in the field of international service. During the markup of the bill, I introduced an amendment which would have authorized the establishment of a Ralph J. Bunche scholarship for selected undergraduate fellows in the Institute for International Public Policy. We will be celebrating 100 years of Dr. Ralph Bunche's birth. The scholarship would have helped to underwrite the cost of studies of minority students. Dr. Ralph Bunche was a Nobel Peace Prize recipient. He did a tremendous amount of work in the Middle East, and he was a dedicated person during the 20 years he worked in trying to achieve global peace. The scholarship I was proposing would have helped to underwrite the cost of studies of more diverse students, minority students, in our country because in order for us to really have a foreign service that truly reflects the diversity of America, we must have more students from minority groups. We must have more Asian Americans and more Hispanic Americans and African Americans in our foreign service if we are, in fact, going to be successful.

The institute was created in 1992 in order to attract and retain women and minorities who are underserved. This legislation was supported by the United Negro College Fund and the American Council on Education; and hopefully as we move forward, that legislation will be adopted.

Mr. Speaker, I do support H.R. 3077, but in the future, hopefully, we can be a little more sensitive so we can really, truly have our foreign service reflect the great diversity of our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize an exceptional institution within my community, the Eureka Lodge No. 52, and to congratulate its members on reaching an exceptional milestone. Soon these men will celebrate the lodge's tradition of 100 years of dedication to their community and to each other.

From its humble beginnings in a barber shop in New Jersey, a group of men, led by Hodges Ford, sought to begin a Masonic Lodge in Montclair. The barber, Brother Joseph Hooper, joined these men, guiding their vision, and helping them to establish what is now Eureka Lodge No. 52.

The first lodge was founded on December 5, 1903, in Bloomfield, not Montclair, as there was no available hall to be found there. On January 22, 1904, Eureka Lodge No. 52 held its first meeting at Arab Hall, with 18 members--3 more than the minimum requirement of 15. In December of 1909, the Lodge was rewarranted and moved to Montclair at the request of the officers and members.

Thus began their many years of service to the community, remaining faithful to their claim that they are ``founded upon unity and brotherly love.''

The Eureka Lodge celebrated its 50th anniversary on December 3, 1953, at the Ivanhoe Inn in Irvington, NJ.

On November 21, 1965, the Lodge reached what it considers to be the pinnacle of their achievements--the laying of the cornerstone in their $50,000 Masonic Building. This building has become a source of pride for its members and the people within the community as it continues to be a meeting place for an affiliation with a long and distinguished past, proudly claiming 3 of its members as Most Worshipful Grand Masters.

I hope that you will all join me in congratulating the men of Eureka Lodge No. 52, whose members, both past and current, have been devoted to fraternity, fellowship, and service to their community.

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I rise today to recognize the legendary columnist, Jerry Izenberg, and his immense contributions to the Newark community through his organization, Project Pride.

Jerry Izenberg has been a newspaperman for over 52 years, most recently with the New Jersey Star-Ledger, contributing columns that have appeared throughout the United States, as well as Puerto Rico, Alaska, Mexico, Canada and Italy. As a sportswriter, Jerry Izenberg's accomplishments are incredibly vast. Over his career, he has won numerous literary awards and recognitions, has been inducted into seven Halls of Fame and has been an integral part of the sports world in the United States. To this day, he continues to leave his mark on the sports writing world, all the while inspiring numerous young writers. And above all, Jerry Izenberg has also managed to be a dedicated family man, with his wife, Aileen, four children and four grandchildren.

Despite all of these remarkable professional and personal accomplishments, I can say with confidence that Jerry Izenberg is most proud of his work with Project Pride. As a native of Newark, New Jersey, Jerry knew of the hardships that the people of that area face on a regular basis. When he founded Project Pride Incorporated 25 years ago, Jerry Izenberg took the personal initiative to create hope and opportunity for the children of Newark. Over the 25 years of its existence, Project Pride has helped send 902 kids to college, allowed the kids in Newark K-5 schools to study a variety of subjects and funded numerous community and athletic programs that have kept as many as 1,000 Newark kids off the streets. What is more amazing, Project Pride has accomplished all of it without accepting a single penny from Federal, State or local funds.

Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Education and Workforce Committee and a former teacher, I understand the significance of the work that Jerry Izenberg has done for the city of Newark. I know that my colleagues here in the U.S. House of Representatives not only join me today in recognizing the tremendous contributions of Jerry Izenberg and Project Pride, but also commending Jerry for his own personal dedication to continue providing the opportunity to so many of our youths.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize two exceptional members of my community, Mr. and Mrs. James and Susie Pierce, and to congratulate them on reaching an exceptional milestone. On September 22, 2003, this inspiring couple celebrated their 75th Anniversary, surrounded by family and friends.

Married in 1927, they moved in 1932 from Georgia to the Booker T. Washington Housing complex in Jersey City, NJ, where they still reside. James was 19 and Susie was 15.

Mrs. Pierce has served New Jersey for many years as a Licensed Day Care provider for the State.

Mr. and Mrs. Pierce have been members of Emmanuel Pentecostal United Holy Church since 1932, amassing 72 years of devotion and service. Susie served as Trustee for 40 years, President of the Ushers for 47 years, Women's Day Chairperson for 30 years, Hospitality Committee for 30 years, Acting Church Treasurer for 3 years, and YPHA for 12 years. She has been both a fieldworker for the New

Jersey District United Holy Church Sunday School and Chairperson for the finance department of New Jersey's District Ushers Union. In 1979, she was Women's Day's Woman of the Year and on Mothers' Day in 1986, she was honored by Jersey City Housing as the mother who has lived longest in the development.

James has retired from his years of service at the Domenico Bus Company and has held the positions of Deacon and Trustee at Emmanuel Pentecostal Church. He has committed himself to community service by recruiting neighborhood children to Sunday School and Church, even picking them up himself so that they might attend. These children, now adults, have grown and matured in the Lord, a living testimony to James' legacy.

Their beautiful family includes 4 children: James, a Serviceman in San Antonio, Texas; Akua Clark, a bank Vice-President in Franklin Park, NJ; Linda Stokes, a Guidance Counselor at Public School No. 8; and John, a Construction Worker in Jersey City. They also have 7 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren.

These fine people have been pillars in my community, and I am honored to call them my neighbors. Mr. Speaker, I know that my colleagues here in the U.S. House of Representatives join me today in saluting Mr. and Mrs. Pierce for their many years of service to their city and to their church community.

Mr. Speaker, on July 14, 2003, I was unavoidably detained and missed rollcall vote No. 357, the Ackerman-LaTourette amendment to the Agriculture Appropriations bill which would require that the USDA expend no funds to approve meat from downed animals--animals that are too sick to walk or stand--for food. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a true American hero. Kevin A. Bianchi, 40, was among three members of a Navy helicopter crew confirmed dead in a crash in Sicily on July 16, 2003. The fact that his older brother, Robert, a Navy helicopter pilot, was killed in a crash in the Philippines in 1986, adds to the enormous grief that his family now feels.

Kevin Bianchi came from a proud family tradition of Navy servicemen. Two of his three brothers served honorably with Kevin in the Navy. Indeed, Kevin himself graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in May 1985 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Science. He led fellow servicemen as captain of the Navy Wrestling team, and was commissioned and assigned to the Naval Academy staff as an Assistant Physical Education Instructor and Assistant Wrestling Coach. In June 1991, Cmdr. Bianchi reported to the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey California where he earned a Masters of Science degree in Information Systems Technology Management. Finally, in March 2001, he went to Newport, Rhode Island to attend the College of Naval Command and Staff at the United States Naval War College where he was awarded a Master of Arts degree in National Security and Strategic Studies.

His glittering academic career was mirrored by his successful service record. He served with honor on the Naval Air Force Atlantic Fleet in Virginia, and was promoted to the position of Air Operations Officer of the Pacific Fleet in San Diego, California. He was decorated on countless occasions in recognition of his service success. In addition to various service awards, Cmdr. Bianchi earned an Air Medal and Navy Commendation and Achievement Medals.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure that my colleagues here in the U.S. House of Representatives are inspired, as I am, by Cmdr. Bianchi's remarkable patriotism and exceptional valor. He was proud to serve his country, and refused to give up his career even after his family had been struck by tragedy. That Cmdr. Bianchi continued to put his life at risk on a regular basis, even after the loss of his brother in 1986, is proof of his unassailable courage and dedication. Let us join in extending our condolences to Cmdr. Bianchi's parents, who have now lost two sons in service to our Nation. Our thoughts and prayers will be with his loving wife Rita Barrie, and their three children, Kevin, Christopher and Julia.

Mr. Speaker, I stand today to mark the 156th anniversary of Liberian independence. On July 26, 1847 a young African American man from Virginia named Joseph Jenkins Roberts declared the colony of Liberia in West Africa an independent republic. The anniversary of this great day provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the history and progress of this nation. The recent civil strife and the impending humanitarian disaster add a sense of urgency to our thoughts.

In 1820, the American Colonization Society founded the Republic of Liberia, with a grant from President James Monroe as a place to send free Black Americans. Over the years, freed slaves and their offspring continued to settle in this small West-African state. In 1847, the people of Liberia declared their independence. They gave their country a flag and a

constitution modeled on that of the United States.

However, independence did not spell the end of Liberia's close historical links with the United States. American companies, such as the Firestone Rubber and Tire Company, have played an important role in shaping the Liberian economy. Liberia has been an important political ally of the United States. During the two World Wars, the republic allowed the United States to station troops on its soil. As the Cold War reached its peak, a mutual defense pact was signed and the United States built communications facilities to relay a ``Voice of America'' signal throughout the continent.

Unfortunately, the progress that Liberia made over the years has been spoiled by over a decade of civil war. The war has claimed the lives of 300,000 people, and has recently intensified, causing a humanitarian disaster on a large scale. A half of the population has been forced to flee their homes. Disease, death and destruction have become everyday elements of Liberian life.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure my colleagues in the House will agree that immediate action is imperative in Liberia. Every day that we delay intervention, more lives are lost. The people of Liberia call out for our help. We have a moral obligation to act. Plans for a multinational peacekeeping force led by the United States in conjuncture with troops from the United Nations and the Economic Community of West African States have been suggested. I am pleased to note that the President announced this morning that the United States will be positioning our military forces off the coast of Liberia to begin the process of assisting in this situation. My only hope is that this offer of assistance will soon be translated into practical concrete aid.

Let us give the people of Liberia something to celebrate this Independence Day. Let us help this great people recover the liberty from which their country takes its name. Let Liberia live!

Mr. Speaker, I am saddened to inform my colleagues of the death of Mr. Cole A. Lewis. Mr. Lewis was special to many. He was a man of conscience. His principles and ethics were impeccable. He did whatever he could. He was the true example of humanity. His life experiences shaped the man he became. He was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland where he graduated from the country's second oldest high school, City College. After high school he went off to Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. During World War II he enrolled in the U.S. Navy's V-12 program at Brown. He was commissioned in 1945 and served in the post-war occupation of Japan. He returned to Brown in 1946 where he graduated in 1947 with his original class. Cole Lewis and Nat Brush were married after graduation and moved to Newark, New Jersey.

Mr. Lewis was employed by the Prudential Insurance Company of America. He held many positions there including pioneer systems analyst for the installation of the company's first computer, and ending as vice president of community affairs. Mr. Lewis used his position in the community affairs department to benefit social and cultural programs in Newark and throughout the state. Although he was responsible for funding many of these programs he became personally involved. He was the founding director of the Community Food Bank of New Jersey, chairman of the New Jersey Committee for the Humanities, and an active officer and board member of Planned Parenthood, the Integrity House, The Catholic Youth Organization, the Education Law Center and many other groups.

Mr. Lewis was employed with Prudential for 37 years. Upon his retirement he became comptroller of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, serving nine years. His second retirement was brief, when he joined the staff of the Education Law Center, a pro bono advocacy group dedicated to bettering educational opportunities for underprivileged children in the state.

Mr. Speaker, I am sure my colleagues would have liked to meet Mr. Lewis who would have celebrated his 77th birthday this past weekend. I am also sure my colleagues would have extended their condolences to Mr. Lewis's family--his wife, Nat; and his two daughters, Susan Kenny and her husband, Thomas; and Deborah Sexton and three grandchildren; Sarah Kenny, Austin Kenny and Laura Sexton.