Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 609, the College Access and Opportunity Act. This bill recognizes the unprecedented challenges that America is facing from countries like China and India and targets resources to increase the number of math, science and engineering professionals.

As chairman of the House Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations subcommittee, which controls the budget of NASA, the National Science Foundation, the White House Office of Science and Technology policy and NOAA, I have spoken with groups of leading Americans who represent a cross section of our nation. Over the past few months, groups that advocate for business, education, and research and development have all told me that America is at the very least in a stall, and many believe in a decline, when it comes to global competition in science and technology. Three key measuring sticks are down: patents awarded to American scientists; papers published by American scientists; and Nobel prizes won by American scientists.

There is a critical shortage of math, science and engineering students in the United States. Unfortunately, there has been little public awareness of this downward trend and its implications for jobs, industry or national security in America's future. With the president's American Competitiveness Initiative announced at the State of the Union earlier this year, public awareness is increasing, but we still need to do everything we can to help attract more students to these fields.

Last April, I introduced legislation with Representative Vern Ehlers, MI, and Representative Sherry Boehlert, NY, aimed at attracting more students to math, science, engineering and related fields. H.R. 1547, the Math and Science Incentive Act, would forgive interest on undergraduate student loans for math, science and engineering majors who agree to work 5 years in their field upon graduation.

I appreciate Chairman McKeon and former Chairman Boehner's recognition of the value of using loan forgiveness as an incentive to attract and retain more students, particularly undergraduates, into these critical fields and the inclusion of this provision of this legislation as a provision in H.R. 609.

Authorizing the Secretary of Education to pay up to $5,000 of the interest accrued on student loans for math, science and engineering majors who agree to work for 5 years in their field of study may make all the difference in the world for a student considering whether or not to stick with an engineering degree program. These are certainly challenging subjects.

Recognizing how critical the competitiveness issue is today, the Education and Workforce Committee also included in H.R. 609 a provision for Honors Scholarships for students pursuing a baccalaureate, master's, or doctoral degree in science, math, or engineering as well as a provision for grants to better coordinate and implement reforms that improve math and science education, as well as better teacher recruitment and training.

H.R. 609 augments the recently approved National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grants, National SMART Grants. National SMART Grants provide grants of up to $4,000 to Pell Grant- eligible students in their third and fourth academic year of undergraduate education at a 4-year, degree-granting institution of higher education. The student must be pursuing a major in the physical, life, or computer sciences, math, technology, or engineering, or a foreign language. The student must also have a grade-point average of at least 3.0.

America is poised to mobilize again to ensure that our country remains the world leader in innovation. This bill helps our country face the challenge before us all. I believe our future as the solid world leader in innovation is again looking bright, particularly in light of the resources we're targeting at the higher education level.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 609 and thank the committee for its good work on this legislation.

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

The chairman of the Small Business Committee opposes this amendment, the chairman of the authorizing committee. This amendment keeps the application period for SBA disaster loans open indefinitely. This could expose the disaster loan program to waste, fraud, and abuse that would virtually be impossible for the SBA to accurately verify losses as more time elapses from when the hurricanes struck the gulf coast.

This amendment is also unnecessary because the administration has already had the ability to extend the application deadline, and has done so three times. So if they have the ability to do it, and they have done it, and they have done it three times, and your authorizing chairman would oppose it, why would you want to do it? In fact, the deadline was just extended for another 30 days, to April 10, for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

So, if there was a need, the administration would do it again. If the gentlewoman wants to change the parameters of the disaster loans, she should work within her position and with the ranking member and come up with something that everyone could agree on.

In the interest of time, I would just say that I oppose the amendment. It can lead to a lot of problems.

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

The administration has extended this several times.

Secondly, the gentlewoman seems to constantly be criticizing SBA at every turn. We are going to ask the National Academy for Public Administration, somebody, to find truth out here and then begin. If you constantly browbeat and it is not accurate, you should be careful when you say things, because words mean things.

The chairman was before our committee yesterday. And so what we are going to do is, we are going to ask the National Academy of Public Administration to take a look at all these charges that go back and forth, because if we are constantly attacking Federal employees in program after program after program, I mean words matter. We just can't use this institution to attack people.

This place has turned into a partisan pit and it is time to bring some objectivity. So what we are going to do, we are going to take all of your charges, all of your comments, all of your complaints, all of your criticisms, all your condemnations and ask the National Academy of Public Administration to look at it to find out some truth.

This is a bad amendment. You are on the authorizing committee. You could do it. If we are going to do everything here, why do we even need an authorizing committee?

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

Mr. Chairman, do I have the right to close?

Then I reserve the balance of my time.

How much time do I have, Mr. Chairman?

Several years ago, you said if we abolished the loan guarantees, the world would come to an end. We abolished them, and now the number of loans are up. They are at a record number.

So what we are going to do, and I think the body should know, we want the SBA to work well, we want them to make the loans, but if we are constantly hammering and criticizing and condemning and governing by press release we don't get very far. So what we are going to do is we are going to ask the National Academy of Public Administration, a nonpartisan group, to come in and look at the gentlewoman's charges and all these things and come back and give us an honest report so we will know. But if we are just harassing Federal employees and criticizing them at every step of the way, we really don't accomplish very much.

And I would say that you did say, and I will submit for the record what you said about abolishing the loan guarantees, but by doing that, we saved the taxpayer about $170 million. The loans are up. That was basically a subsidy for the bankers. The banking lobby wanted that and we took it away and now we saved the taxpayers money.

This is a bad amendment. Vote it down.

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

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment. This amendment has absolutely, positively, categorically nothing to do with an emergency supplemental bill that we are considering today. It is an attempt to stop a legislative proposal related to the fiscal year 2007 budget, which, as an authorizer, you will get to have that opportunity. And it will come out on the floor one way or the other, and the Congress will have the opportunity to vote on it.

The proposal will have to be considered by the committee. SBA cannot unilaterally make the changes. So the Congress should know that the authorizers in the Congress set the rate. It is not the administration. So we are going to have that opportunity when Mr. Manzullo and the members, minority and majority, make it.

Lastly, it is not necessary and it will have no effect, because it is just simply an attempt to prejudge a proposal by the administration for next fiscal year, and that is not something that you would do in a supplemental. If you would do that in a supplemental bill, we should just abolish every other bill and put everything in a supplemental bill, because then everything is a supplemental.

So it is a bad amendment, and I urge you to vote ``no.''

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

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

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

We would like to work with your staff and have our staff sit down so we can ask NAPA questions that you think are important, issues like this and other issues. What we want to do is work with you, get the National Academy of Public Administration to answer these questions and so we can find out one way or the other. Would that be appropriate?

I yield to the gentlewoman from New York.

But if there is something wrong with regard to the SBA, I think it is important to find that out and identify that with Mr. Manzullo and ask any questions you want to have NAPA answer so we can put it together and finally get to the bottom.

I urge a ``no'' vote on the amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

I do agree. Texans stepped up and helped out in a tremendous way. I hope the Attorney General will work quickly to deliver a plan that meets the gentleman's concerns.

Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

The committee accepts the amendment and congratulates the Member for doing this to help DEA. I think he makes a very powerful point.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

I am kind of surprised the amendment came up, to a certain extent. The gentleman from Texas, not this gentleman, but the gentleman he referred to, just came into town, and I have not had an opportunity to talk to him. I thought I was going to get to talk to him, and we felt that we were going out of our way to help.

The President has been requesting funding for the Lower Rio Grande Flood Control project for years and has again requested funding in the President's budget for 2007.

There are other areas of the country that have this problem, and so to do it here and not there, and there are gang problems around the Nation. Let us forget the full bills and put everything into the supplemental and so we can just have one big supplemental and not have to pass any other bills.

But to go through the normal process, the gentleman from Texas brought the issue of the Lower Rio Grande Valley Flood Control project to my attention last year. As a result, we included language in the IBWC account directing more funds be provided above the President's request for this project.

A week ago, the gentleman talked to me about additional moneys for the project in the fiscal year 2007 process. Funding for the International Boundary Water Commission should be addressed in the regular bill. This request does not belong in an emergency supplemental, and I urge a ``no'' vote on the Doggett amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I would tell the body, this really is not foreign aid. You cannot pick up the newspaper without seeing the threat that Iran is to the Nation. This is a priority of the administration, but a priority of everyone who cares with regard to changing the government that we have in Iran. I do not know how you put it, but it is not aid. Iran is a threat to the United States. Is that a fact? I think you would have a very hard time finding anybody who says, no, it is not a fact. It is.

Iran is developing a nuclear bomb. I have seen some reports that say it may be within 18 months to 2 years of having an nuclear bomb.

The Iranian government is intent on destroying Israel. The Iranian government is the one who funded the bombing of the Marines barracks in 1993 where 241 marines died. They fund Hezbollah. They are the ones creating the problem in Lebanon. They are the ones involved in the funding and the blowing up of the American embassy in Beirut, the first embassy and the second embassy.

We need to do everything we can to change the government and get information to the people. So what the administration is trying to do is to have some public diplomacy, to basically do what Democrat administrations and Republican administrations have done during the Cold War: public diplomacy, exchange programs, change their government through peaceful means.

This is not foreign aid. I would say on behalf of anyone who thinks that Iran is a danger, please, I would urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I said it before, but I will say it again: it is an emergency. My goodness, this country is putting together a nuclear weapon. The Bush administration, if you read the paper the last several days, has been meeting every day with experts around the world on the issue of Iran. To cut this money back pulls the rug out from the administration. Iran is a threat.

Iran is developing a nuclear bomb. Iran is the one that funded Hezbollah. Iran blew up the American embassy once. They blew up the American Embassy in Beirut a second time. Iran blew up the Marine Corps barracks killing 241 Marines. It is an emergency.

My God, the Iranians will be laughing at us if we were to reduce this amount of money. This is an emergency. So I just urge a ``no'' vote on the amendment.

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

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment. It strikes all the radio and television broadcasting. I think I made the point on the last amendment, the Garrett amendment, that this is important to the administration. If the President didn't do this, frankly, he would be subject to criticism by this Congress. This Congress would get up and say, why are you not doing more to change the government?

It is just not a good amendment. I urge overwhelming defeat of the amendment.

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

In the interest of time, if this is the one with regard to the election, we accept the amendment.

We have no objection and support the amendment.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for me to recognize U.S. speed skating champion, Joey Cheek, who won Olympic gold on February 13 in the men's 500-meter speed skating event at the winter games in Torino, Italy. Mr. Cheek decided to donate $25,000 in prize money to ``Right to Play,'' an organization that will use the money to benefit refugees from the Darfur region of western Sudan by using sports to advance development, health, and peace.

Not only is Mr. Cheek an incredibly gifted athlete, he has shown tremendous generosity using his own glory to shed light on the atrocities being carried out by the Government of Sudan against its own people. As co-chair of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus and having traveled to Sudan five times, I have no doubt that Mr. Cheek's donation will make a difference in the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Darfur.

I insert for the Record a State Department news release from February 16. I ask that my colleagues join me in recognizing Joey Cheek for his remarkable accomplishments, on and off the ice.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of Virginia and me to remember Calvin L. ``Boots'' Ritchie, a farmer and activist deeply committed to agriculture and his fellow farmers in Fauquier County, Virginia, who passed away on February 26.

Selected by the Fauquier Times-Democrat as ``Citizen of the Year'' in 1994, Boots will be remembered for his countless accomplishments, including co-founding People Helping People of Fauquier County, Inc., a local charity offering immediate help to residents of Fauquier struggling against natural disaster, illness, or sudden financial hardship.

We insert for the Record a Fauquier Times-Democrat obituary from February 28. A Fauquier native, Boots will be deeply missed by the people of the county, and at home by his family.

[From the Fauquier Times-Democrat, Feb. 28, 2006]

``Boots'' Succumbs to Cancer

Southern Fauquier farmer was outspoken advocate for agriculture,

education

Calvin L. ``Boots'' Ritchie, of Bealeton, one of Fauquier

County's leading citizens for the past two decades and an

active force behind a home-grown charitable organization,

died at home on Feb. 27 after a long and valiant fight

against cancer. He was 78.

A native son of Fauquier, Mr. Ritchie was born June 17,

1927 at Inglewood Farm, where he died.

He earned his unique nickname as a child, when he did his

chores around the farm ``wearing an adult-sized pair of

gumboots that reached to his hips,'' recalled his sister,

Hazel Bell, in a 1994 interview. ``He was about 5 or 6 years

old, and the name stuck.''

He spent his entire life working in agriculture, first on

the family farm and later, while engaged in custom farming.

In the mid-1970s, he founded the Fauquier Grain Company.

Mr. Ritchie came to the general public's attention in 1978,

when he was involved in the American Agriculture Movement.

The AAM sought 100 percent parity for farm products, and

made their point by staging a memorable ``Tractorcade''

demonstration that passed through Fauquier into Washington,

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for Mrs. Jo Ann Davis of Virginia and me to remember Calvin L. ``Boots'' Richie, a farmer and activist deeply committed to agriculture and his fellow farmers in Fauquier County, Virginia, who passed away on February 26.

Selected by the Fauquier Times-Democrat as ``Citizen of the Year'' in 1994, Boots will be remembered for his countless accomplishments, including co-founding People Helping People of Fauquier County, Inc., a local charity offering immediate help to residents of Fauquier struggling against natural disaster, illness, or sudden financial hardship.

We insert for the Record a Fauquier Times-Democrat obituary from February 28. A Fauquier native, Boots will be deeply missed by the people of the county, and at home by his family.

[From the Fauquier Times-Democrat, Feb. 28, 2006]

``Boots'' Succumbs to Cancer; Southern Fauquier Farmer Was Outspoken

Advocate for Agriculture, Education

Calvin L. ``Boots'' Ritchie, of Bealeton, one of Fauquier

County's leading citizens for the past two decades and an

active force behind a home-grown charitable organization,

died at home on Feb. 27 after a long and valiant fight

against cancer. He was 78.

A native son of Fauquier, Mr. Ritchie was born June 17,

1927 at Inglewood Farm, where he died.

He earned his unique nickname as a child, when he did his

chores around the farm ``wearing an adult-sized pair of

gumboots that reached to his hips,'' recalled his sister,

Hazel Bell, in a 1994 interview. ``He was about 5 or 6 years

old, and the name stuck.''

He spent his entire life working in agriculture, first on

the family farm and later, while engaged in custom farming.

In the mid-1970s, he founded the Fauquier Grain Company.

Mr. Ritchie came to the general public's attention in 1978,

when he was involved in the American Agriculture Movement.

The AAM sought 100 percent parity for farm products, and

made their point by staging a memorable ``Tractorcade''

demonstration that passed through Fauquier into Washington,

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor for Mr. Tom Davis of Virginia and I to remember the Honorable John F. ``Jack'' Herrity, former chairman of the Fairfax County, Virginia, Board of Supervisors, who passed away on February 1. If anyone is worthy of the title ``Mr. Fairfax,'' Jack Herrity is that person.

A driven leader during his time with the Fairfax County Board, Jack was the guiding force in setting the firm foundation for a growing and developing Fairfax County. His leadership brought us the Fairfax County Parkway, Interstate 66 inside the Beltway and the Dulles Access Road. The Virginia General Assembly aptly named the Fairfax County Parkway in his honor in 1995.

After attending Georgetown University as an undergraduate and as a law student, Jack formed Jack Herrity and Associates, a pension planning and insurance business. But public service was Jack's forte. He quickly became engaged in northern Virginia politics, serving on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors from 1971 to 1987. He was elected chairman of the board in 1975 and served three terms. He recognized the potential of Fairfax County to become the largest jurisdiction in the Washington area and helped develop the once sleepy rural crossroads, Tysons Corner, into the thriving commercial district it is today.

Jack Herrity carved a place which is now and will forever be unmatched in Fairfax County history. We honor and remember Jack for his countless accomplishments and unwavering dedication to the people of Fairfax County. We insert for the Record a Washington Post obituary from February 2. Jack will be deeply missed by the people of Fairfax County, and at home by his family.

[From the Washington Post, Feb. 2, 2006]

(By Lisa Rein and Peter Baker)

John F. ``Jack'' Herrity, the former chairman of the

Fairfax Board of Supervisors who ushered in a development

boom that transformed the county from sleepy bedroom

community to suburban colossus, died yesterday of heart

failure. He was 74.

Herrity, whose scrappy battle with a weak heart first

endeared him to Fairfax voters in the 1970s, succumbed to an

aortic aneurysm at Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he was

admitted two weeks ago with chest pain. He had a heart

transplant 12 years ago.

In his heyday, Herrity dominated Northern Virginia politics

as few others have, commanding attention with his pugnacious

style and unabashedly pro-growth policies. His was a classic

rise-and-fall political story--from his landslide victories

as the Fairfax economy soared to unprecedented heights to his

crushing defeat in 1987 when the onslaught of new cars

finally overwhelmed county roads and voter patience.

Herrity was engaged in county affairs until the end. From

his hospital bed last week, he was asking former aides to

help run his likely campaign for board chairman next year, a

race he lost in 2003 in a Republican primary. He was busy

fighting plans to extend Metrorail to Dulles International

Airport, saying the expense could not be justified. And, in

an about-face some local politicians saw as cynical, he had

joined in recent months with grass-roots activists--and the

woman who defeated him, slow-growth Democrat Audrey Moore--to

fight dense development planned for the county's last slivers

of open space. He was at meetings almost every night.

``To Jack's credit, if he had a difference of opinion [with

the county's leadership], he never sat on his hands,'' Eric

Lundberg, the Fairfax GOP chairman, said. ``He was willing to

engage in the battle.''

Herrity could be seen most mornings in a floppy wide-

brimmed hat walking his black Labrador retriever, Raven, on

the W & OD trail near his Vienna home, where he lived with

his wife, JoAnn Spevacek-Herrity. They married in November.

``He's a piece of our history,'' said Board Chairman Gerald

E. Connolly (D), who ordered county flags flown at half-staff

yesterday. ``He was a political adversary, but he would do it

more often than not with a certain twinkle in his eye. It was

more the love of the fight than the substance of the

moment.''

Herrity was the fourth person to serve as countywide

chairman but the first to hold the job for a full term, let

alone three. He defined the role as a quasi-mayoral position

even though it has no real executive power.

He played a major role in building what was commonly

referred to as the economic engine of Virginia. By fostering

a superheated business environment, he helped lure Fortune

500 companies such as what was then known as the Mobil Corp.

to Fairfax and convert a suburban crossroads called Tysons

Corner into a commercial center larger than downtown

Miami.

``Instead of jobs going out of the county,'' Herrity wanted

jobs to stay in the county, Northern Virginia developer John

T. ``Til'' Hazel said.

During this period of growth under Herrity, more than 1,000

people moved into Fairfax every month. The county grew into

the largest jurisdiction in the Washington area. From

Herrity's first election as chairman in 1975 to his ouster in

1987, the county's population jumped by more than a third,

from 554,500 to 746,600--surpassing most U.S. cities and even

several states. Today, more than 1 million people live in

Fairfax.

He was an advocate for improving the county's road network

and pushed to widen Interstate 66 inside the Capital Beltway.

He first opposed, then campaigned hard for a major new road

cutting through the county's midsection.

The General Assembly named the Fairfax County Parkway in

his honor in 1995.

It was his quick-witted, never-say-die brand of politics

that earned him a loyal following during a crucial transition

period in Fairfax history.

With his burly build, balding pate and ever-present U.S.

flag lapel pin, Herrity became a familiar figure in political

and civic circles. Known simply as Jack, he crisscrossed the

399-square-mile county almost every day in search of any

gathering of two or more people, often driving so fast that

he collected a glove compartment full of speeding tickets

that became legendary.

Throughout his tenure, Herrity was notorious for his

penchant for the outrageous, shoot-from-the-hip statements.

When county officials were thinking about building a major

government center, he suggested that they instead ``build a

circus tent and put the bureaucrats in it.'' He called Metro,

which opened while he was in office, a ``Mighty Expensive

Transportation Rip Off.''

His tart tongue extended to his rivals as well. In 1987, he

derided Moore as a gadfly with so little support on the board

that, if she made the motion, she ``couldn't get a second to

go to the bathroom.'' Four years later, he dismissed Rep.

Thomas M. Davis III (R-Fairfax) as a ``left-wing liberal''

whose support from a taxpayers group was ``like the chicken

endorsing the fox.'' His relationships with both had softened

in recent years.

Herrity saw no reason to apologize for his close alliance

with the region's powerful developers, who he said had helped

create a quality of life envied across the country--high-

paying jobs, good schools, low crime.

But his ties to the real estate industry became his

political undoing.

His 1986 conviction on a misdemeanor conflict-of-interest

charge for failing to disclose a relationship with a builder

only cemented Herrity's public image as a handmaiden of

developers. By then, voter support for the breakneck pace of

construction had dissolved amid maddening traffic gridlock.

He

suffered a major indignity in 1987 when he lost his prized

office to Moore by more than 21 percentage points.

He never fully accepted defeat. Years later, his address in

his telephone book was still the county government

headquarters.

``This was Jack's life,'' Davis recalled. ``When he was

defeated he couldn't move on to something else. He was a

doer. He could never sit still.''

The comeback Herrity methodically plotted collapsed in 1991

when he lost the GOP nomination for chairman to Davis, his

one-time protege, who also handpicked a Republican to run

against him in the 2003 primary for board chairman. Since his

departure from elective politics, Herrity also failed at bids

for Virginia governor in 2001 and county GOP chairman in

2004.

Born in Arlington, reared in Prince George's County and

educated at St. Anthony's High School in the District (now

All Saints High School), John Frances Herrity was the product

of a working-class Irish Catholic family of elevator

mechanics, union leaders and loyal Democrats. He spent much

of his youth hustling on the basketball court.

After high school and a tour in the Coast Guard, the

rambunctious young Herrity settled down to his studies at

Georgetown University, where he earned undergraduate and law

degrees and met his first wife.

After marrying in 1958, he eventually went into the

insurance business, where he worked as a consultant after his

return to the private sector.

It did not take long for Herrity to jump into local civic

affairs. He soon formed a homeowners association and became

the local Democratic precinct captain. But like many

Democrats in his era, he became alienated with his party's

lurch to the left and switched to the GOP just in time for

his first run for office--that of Springfield District

supervisor in 1971.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for the time and rise in support of the bill and would say that the subcommittee will be holding hearings to get to the bottom of this.

The funding provided in the bill translates into $4.8 billion in loans that will now be available to victims of the gulf coast hurricanes. The bill simply provides a temporary fix by shifting funds previously appropriated to the Federal Emergency Management Agency and redesignating them for the Small Business Administration disaster loan program.

The funding is needed immediately as a stopgap measure so that lending to affected homeowners and businesses can continue uninterrupted.

As a personal comment, when we listen to the different debates and comments and all the shows and all the attacking, the things going on in this city, I think it is really time for both parties to come together and to attempt to deal with some of these issues that we have in this country in a less partisan way. There was a very good article that David Broder did in the Washington Post about a week-and-a-half ago when he talked about when President Ronald Reagan was shot outside the Hilton, Tip O'Neill went to his bedside at the George Washington University Hospital and held his hand and prayed with him. There were differences in the country those days, but there was just a different tone.

So I would hope that we could return to the days of Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neill whereby the differences were less sharp and more civil to do which, quite frankly, with the problems that this country has both domestically and internationally, come together to do the best thing for the country.

With that, I appreciate the gentleman bringing up this bill.

Congress of the United States,

House of Representatives,

January 30, 2006.

Dear Colleague: You may have missed the David Broder column

below that appeared in the Sunday, January 29, Washington

Post on the same day my pastor preached a sermon based on

Ephesians 4:29-32 about being kind to one another.

There will always be real differences in our views on

issues, but there should not be an absence of kindness and

civility in our dealings with one another.

It would be a good idea for the Congress and the country to

adopt the Ronald Reagan/``Tip'' O'Neill model.

Sincerely,

Frank R. Wolf,

Member of Congress.

[From the Washington Post, Jan. 1, 2006]

When Partisan Venom Didn't Rule

(By David S. Broder)

The stench of partisanship is so strong in Washington these

days that it is difficult to remember that it was not always

the case that Republicans and Democrats were at each other's

throats. But, in truth, there was a time when friendship and

simple human compassion were far more powerful than any

political differences.

A wonderful reminder of that fact can be found among the

oral histories compiled by two dozen of Ronald Reagan's main

associates that are being released Sunday by the Miller

Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia. The

transcripts are available at www.millercenter.org. One of the tapes was furnished by Max Friedersdorf, who ran

the White House congressional liaison staff for Reagan.

Friedersdorf recounts in the interview what happened while

the president was recovering at George Washington University

Hospital after the assassination attempt outside the

Washington Hilton hotel on March 30, 1981.

Reagan was seriously wounded by John Hinckley, and the day

after the shooting, Friedersdorf got a call in the White

House from James Baker, Reagan's chief of staff, who was at

the hospital. ``Get over here,'' Baker commanded.

``I went over to GW Hospital and went up to the president's

room,'' Friedersdorf said, ``and Jim was outside the room

with Mrs. Reagan and her Secret Service agent. Baker said,

``I want you to stay here until I tell you to leave.''

What had happened, Friedersdorf learned, was that Nancy

Reagan ``was all upset,'' because Sen. Strom Thurmond had

come over to the hospital a few hours earlier and somehow had

talked his way through the lobby, up the elevator and into

Reagan's room, where he attempted to chat with the gravely

wounded president.

``Mrs. Reagan was outraged, distraught,'' Friedersdorf

said. So Baker directed him to take up the watch, and ``if

any congressman or senator comes around here, make sure the

Secret Service doesn't let anybody up, even on this floor.''

Friedersdorf said he remained on duty during daylight hours

for the next three or four days, and then word came from

Baker that the president had recovered enough to start to see

people.

The first person to be admitted, Friedersdorf said, was

Thomas P. ``Tip'' O'Neill, the speaker of the House.

When the Massachusetts Democrat arrived, Nancy Reagan

slipped out of the room and Friedersdorf retreated to a

corner of the suite where he could remain unobtrusive. ``Tip

got down on his knees next to the bed, and said a prayer for

the president, and he held his hand and kissed him and they

said a prayer together . . . the 23rd Psalm.

``The speaker stayed there quite a while. They never talked

too much. I just heard him say the prayer, then I heard him

say, `God bless you, Mr. President, we're all praying for

you.'

``The Speaker was crying. The president still, I think was

a little, he was obviously sedated, but I think he knew it

was the speaker because he said, `I appreciate your coming

down, Tip.' He held his hand, sat there by the bed, and held

his hand for a long [time].''

When I reached Friedersdorf last week at his retirement

home in Florida, I asked him how it happened that Reagan's

first guest was the leading Democrat on Capitol Hill.

``Well,'' he said, ``Tip was third in line of succession

[after the vice president] and the fact he was a Democrat

didn't bother anybody. We didn't even think about it. Tip had

been calling constantly to see how the president was doing.

And there was a bond there.

``I remember,'' Friedersdorf continued, ``the first dinner

the Reagans had in the private residence was for Tip and his

wife, and my wife and I were there. Tip and the president had

a drink or two and started swapping Irish stories.

``Often, after that, Tip would say pretty harsh things

about some of our legislative proposals, and the staff would

want Reagan to answer him. But they trusted each other, and

the president would say, `That's just Tip,' and let it go.''

I asked Friedersdorf if he could imagine that sort of

relationship flourishing now between the Republican president

and the top Democrats in Congress.

``Absolutely not,'' he said. Sadly, I think he is right.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table the Senate concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 74) making appropriation for the Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2006, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud today to recognize my constituent, Mr. Edward E. Nichols of Purcellville, Virginia, who has served the town of Purcellville in some capacity for the last 55 years. During his dedicated service to the people of Purcellville and Loudoun County, Mr. Nichols served 20 years on the Purcellville Town Council, 8 years on the Planning Commission, 5 years on the Board of Zoning Appeals, as well as on numerous other advisory committees.

It gives me great pleasure to recognize Mr. Nichols' contributions to the Purcellville community. Mr. Nichols's father opened ``Nichols Hardware'' which has been in business for 91 years. Even today Ed's son Ted is part-owner of the family business. Mr. Nichols and his wife Meg have raised two sons, one daughter, and are the proud grandparents of seven and also have one great granddaughter. Mr. Nichols should be commended on raising an exceptional family while continually remaining actively involved in his community. Today, at 86 years-old, Mr. Nichols continues to serve on the Board of Zoning Appeals, and shows tremendous passion for serving the people of Purcellville.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud today to recognize and commend my constituent, Ms. Allison Biggs of Front Royal, Virginia, upon being selected as one of three recipients of the 2005 Pamela Harriman Foreign Service Fellowship. In 1999 the College of William and Mary in Virginia, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of State, established the Fellowship program to encourage top students to pursue careers in public service.

The fellowships are offered to three outstanding undergraduates from across the nation. Ms. Biggs, a senior at William and Mary, is an accomplished student and community leader. She was accepted for a highly competitive internship in the State Department's Office of Policy Planning, working on nonproliferation and arms control issues.

Now more than ever, as a nation we need to do everything we can to encourage our best and brightest young people to explore the call of public service, especially in serving our international interests. The Harriman Foreign Service Fellowship program will help Ms. Biggs gain invaluable work experience, and I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Allison for receiving this outstanding recognition.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman Hyde and Ranking Member Lantos for expediting the consideration of H. Con. Res. 294, which condemns the Laogai prison system in China. I would also like to thank the 44 cosponsors of this resolution.

This system of over 1,000 prisons, camps and mental institutions serves as one of the Chinese Communist Party's main tools of political and religious repression. Chinese citizens held in these prisons have no right to due process, no trial, and are often arrested because of their political or religious views. Thousands of pro-democracy activists, Internet dissidents, labor activists, and religious and spiritual believers, including Han Chinese, Tibetans, Uyghurs, Mongolians, and ``house church'' Christians are languishing in the Laogai today.

The conditions in the Laogai prisons are abysmal. The system is based on a philosophy of reform through labor. Prisoners are forced to work extremely long hours in shocking conditions that often result in serious injury and even death.

In direct violation of several international treaties of which China is part, the Laogai prisoners are used as free labor to generate products sold on the international market. Next time you buy a product made in China, know that it may have been made by a Laogai prisoner in slave-like conditions.

Even more horrifying is the regular organ harvesting conducted in the prisons. Last week the deputy health minister of China even admitted to this horrific practice. Thousands of foreign patients and Chinese citizens receive organs harvested from Laogai prisoners. Can you imagine receiving an organ cut from someone arrested and killed because of their religious faith?

The Laogai prisons are truly modern day gulags.

I especially want to thank Harry Wu for his work in raising awareness about the Laogai system. Harry knows the system all too well, after spending 19 years behind bars in the Laogai after he was arrested because of his political beliefs. Harry has been courageous and relentless in his advocacy for human rights in China.

I am hopeful that this resolution will bring light to this abysmal system and urge a unanimous vote in support.

Mr. Speaker, today I shared the letter below from Admiral Lautenbacher, administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), to all U.S. coastal governors as well as the governors of U.S. territories.

During a recent radio broadcast, I heard a NOAA official state that it was not a question of if a tsunami would hit the United States, but when. The letter below from Admiral Lautenbacher confirms this statement.

It is my hope that our coastal states will contact the NOAA National Weather Service state liaison to receive more information about NOAA's TsunamiReady program.

It was only one year ago that the deadly tsunami struck Indonesia. We must not forget this tragedy and should remember how important it is to be prepared in the event of a natural disaster.

United States Department of Commerce, the Under Secretary

of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere,

Washington, DC, November 22, 2005.

Hon. Frank Wolf,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC.

Dear Representative Wolf: Thank you for your recent inquiry

regarding the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Administration's (NOAA) tsunami education and community

preparedness programs.

All coastal communities in the United States are at some

risk. It is a matter of when, not if, a tsunami will strike.

The anniversary of the devastating Indonesian tsunami of

December 26, 2004, can serve as an opportunity to educate

residents of the United States about our vulnerability to

tsunamis, and help them minimize personal risk.

Many lives can be saved during a tsunami if the community

and local emergency managers are educated and prepared. NOAA

has a ready-to-implement program available to coastal

communities called TsunamiReady. The TsunamiReady program

helps ensure a community is prepared--from understanding what

is a tsunami, to ensuring a warning notification system is in

place, and establishing evacuation routes and response

actions in case of a tsunami warning.

One key to a successful warning program is public

notification. TsunamiReady uses NOAA Weather Radio All

Hazards (NWR) as one method to alert individuals when a

warning is issued. NOAA Weather Radio continuously broadcasts

National Weather Service forecasts, warnings, and other

crucial weather information. NOAA Weather Radios can be

programmed to receive information specific to a certain area,

and sounds an alarm to alert users to dangerous situations,

including tsunamis.

For further information, please contact Kim Campbell

([email protected]), NOAA's National Weather Service

Performance and Awareness Branch Chief, at (301) 713-0462

extension 118, or the appropriate State Liaison office from

the enclosed list.

We appreciate your ongoing interest in NOAA.

Sincerely,

Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.,

Vice Admiral, U.S. Navy (Ret.), Under Secretary of

Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Weather

Service State Liaison Offices

Alaska: Anchorage, Robert Hopkins, Tel. 907-266-5117:

Juneau, Tom Ainsworth, Tel. 907-790-6804.

Alabama: Birmingham, Jim Stefkovich, Tel. 205-664-7829.

California: Sacramento, Elizabeth A. Morse, Tel. 916-979-

3041.

Connecticut: Boston, MA, Robert M. Thompson, Tel. 508-823-

1900.

Delaware: Philadelphia, PA, Gary Szatkowski, Tel. 609-261-

6600.

Florida: Tallahassee, Paul Duval, Tel. 850-942-8833.

Georgia: Atlanta, Lans Rothfusz, Tel. 770-486-1133.

Hawaii: Honolulu, James Weyman, Tel. 808-973-5270.

Louisiana: New Orleans/Baton Rouge, Paul S. Trotter, Tel.

985-649-0357.

Maine: Portland, Albert W. Wheeler, Tel. 207-688-3216.

Maryland: Baltimore/Washington, James Lee, Tel. 703-260-

0107.

Massachusetts: Boston, Robert M. Thompson, Tel. 508-823-

1900.

Mississippi: Jackson, Alan Gerard, Tel. 601-936-2189.

New Hampshire: Portland, ME, Albert W. Wheeler, Tel. 207-

688-3216.

New Jersey: Philadelphia, PA, Gary Szatkowski, Tel. 609-

261-6600.

New York: Albany, Eugene Auciello, Tel. 518-435-9580.

North Carolina: Raleigh/Durham, Darin Figurskey, Tel. 919-

515-8209.

Oregon: Portland, Steve Todd, Tel. 503-261-9247.

Rhode Island: Boston, MA, Robert M. Thompson, Tel. 508-823-

1900.

South Carolina: Charleston, Mike Emlaw, Tel. 843-744-3207.

Texas: Austin/San Antonio, Joe Arelano, Tel. 830-629-0130.

Virginia: Wakefield, Anthony Siebers, Tel. 757.899-4200.

Washington: Seattle/Tacoma, Christopher D. Hill, Tel. 206-

526-6095.

Puerto Rico: San Juan, Israel Matos, Tel. 787-253-4586.

Guam: Guam, Genevieve Miller, Tel. 671-472-0944.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4440, the redevelopment tax package. I want to thank Chairman Thomas, Chairman McCrery, and the Republican leadership for addressing the concerns of a lot of Members. There were 65 Members who signed the initial letter and 30 some that have signed the second letter on this issue.

We all want to help the people of the Gulf Coast, and every fair- minded American want to give hurricane-ravaged areas the Federal assistance they need to rebuild bridges, roads, hospitals, water and sewer.

While the Katrina tax package recently passed by the other body would allow benefits to rebuild massage parlors, liquor stores, and casinos because it does not contain a specific prohibition against it, this bill follows legislative history and regular order in where Federal dollars go to rebuild critical infrastructure like hospitals, homes, and communities.

The House bill, I again stress, following precedent in redevelopment assistance legislation going back more than 20 years, expressly prohibits tax incentives from going to industries that I referred. Congress has a long history of limiting certain types of businesses from receiving redevelopment tax benefits. The bill before us today continues that precedent of not allowing our constituents' hard-earned tax dollars in these times of record deficits to subsidize the rebuilding of a massage parlor, a liquor store, or a casino.

Just as Congress has historically done, we need to target our limited Federal resources to the areas that need it. It would be my expectation that when the measure comes out of conference, it will retain the provisions that ensure that tax incentives to rebuild the Gulf region are used wisely and effectively.

It would be very difficult, almost impossible, to go to a town meeting sometime and say that I have supported or anyone has or the Congress supported giving tax breaks to rebuild whether it be a gambling casino or a massage parlor or a liquor store, and what we are doing today follows the law that we have done in the past.

I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time.