Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a compassionate leader and true visionary from the Fourth Congressional District, Lorraine Carter. For over 35 years, Mrs. Carter has operated the VE Carter Child Development Center, and has served as forceful advocate for low-income children and their families.

Mrs. Carter came to Milwaukee from Nebraska in 1958, and worked as a special-education teacher before starting the VE Carter Child Development Center. Inspired by her own upbringing, she strove to provide a loving, stable and supportive environment for the young children she encountered in Milwaukee. VE Carter Child Development Center, one of the first childcare centers owned and operated by an African-American woman in Milwaukee, has grown into a city institution, with five centers that serve almost 500 children and employ over 150 workers.

Mrs. Carter advocated for quality childcare for low-income children long before its connection to lifelong success was widely acknowledged. Her work with children has taken her deeply into the lives of the families she serves. She has a passion for working with single mothers, helping them develop stable home lives for their children and assisting them in identifying and overcoming obstacles to their own success. In addition to VE Carter Child Development Center, she also operates a social service agency that serves nonviolent offenders--many of them parents--assisting them with finding employment and supporting their families and communities.

Mrs. Carter's leadership extends throughout the State, not only as an accomplished and articulate childcare advocate, but also as an advocate of education more generally. She has served on the board of the Wisconsin Technical College System, working to ensure that education and skills development continue to be accessible to low-income parents, helping them move out of poverty and create a better life for their children.

Mr. Speaker, for all these reasons and many more, I am honored to have this opportunity to pay tribute to Mrs. Carter's numerous and profound contributions to the Fourth Congressional District. I thank her for her love of children, her commitment to their families, and her visionary leadership in Milwaukee.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Interfaith Older Adult Programs as they celebrate their 30th anniversary. Over the past three decades, Interfaith Older Adult Programs has contributed greatly to enriching the lives of older adults and their caregivers in Wisconsin's Fourth Congressional District, advocating for the needs of senior citizens while also providing them with concrete ways to participate in and enhance their communities.

Interfaith Older Adult Programs grew out of an effort by several faith congregations to reach out to isolated older adults on Milwaukee's east side. From that humble beginning

in 1973, Interfaith Older Adult Programs has grown to a comprehensive countywide program. With the mission of linking older adults to a caring community, Interfaith Older Adult Programs has worked to find innovative and concrete ways to engage local residents in the work of caring for older adults, while ensuring that they have meaningful opportunities to continue contributing to their communities.

Interfaith Older Adult Programs provide the crucial support needed to enable older adults to continue living in their homes, while building a safety network that assists them with specific challenges. The Neighborhood Outreach Program, for example, provides transportation to medical appointments and grocery shopping as well as companionship to frail and isolated elders. Other programs match seniors with neighborhood volunteers who provide help with snow removal and other outside chores or provide a daily telephone check-in.

Interfaith has also been a primary conduit for enabling senior citizens to serve their communities. Key programs link seniors to volunteer opportunities with local nonprofit organizations throughout Milwaukee County, and connect them with foster children who need tutoring, mentoring, nurturing and counseling. Participating in these programs ensures the wisdom and expertise of our older adults is not lost, providing support for the community while also energizing older volunteers.

I am delighted to recognize Interfaith Older Adult Programs for their efforts on behalf of the older adults in the Fourth Congressional District. I thank them for their compassion, their vision, and their commitment to serving our elders, and I wish them another 30 years of success.

Mr. Speaker, It is an honor to rise today in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the City of Cudahy, a community that I am proud to serve as part of the Fourth Congressional District. Happy 100th Birthday, Cudahy!

Cudahy occupies a beautiful stretch of land that lies along the south shore of Lake Michigan. Settled on former Potawatomi tribal grounds, the City of Cudahy was incorporated in 1906, having emerged in the wake of Patrick Cudahy's decision to establish the Cudahy Brothers meatpacking plant there. Throughout the 20th century, the City of Cudahy contributed significantly to the development of the area's strong manufacturing economy, serving as home to a number of prominent local companies.

Cudahy's hallmark is its strong sense of community, a testament to the values and work ethic of the immigrant families who served as its backbone. Cudahy's slogan, Generations of Pride, conveys the sense of connection people feel to their hometown, and it is easy to see why. Early city planners ensured that generations of residents would have access to beautiful public parks, and preserved the shoreline for public use. From its

earliest days, Cudahy fostered a spirit of volunteerism and public involvement that is very much alive and well today. Modern-day community efforts--including the expansion of the local library, strong support for Cudahy Interfaith and Project Concern, and participation in a wide range of civic organizations--pay tribute to the actions of city founders who dedicated themselves to public service.

With the decline of manufacturing, Cudahy is now focused on redevelopment and identifying new engines for growth. Local leaders have proposed exciting projects and the community is engaging in vigorous debate. I am confident that city residents will continue to draw on their laudable history, carrying on the legacy of the generations that built this community. I am delighted to recognize the City of Cudahy on this occasion, to congratulate its founders and residents on their many accomplishments, and to offer my best wishes for the future.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of a prominent active citizen, businessman, and well-known philanthropist whose good works have had an impact on every corner of Wisconsin's Fourth Congressional District. Mr. Marty Stein passed away on March 2, 2006.

Raised in a modest immigrant Milwaukee household, Mr. Stein's business success vaulted him from humble origins to a major philanthropic career. Having lived out his own version of the American dream, he embraced every opportunity to afford others the same experience.

A true citizen of the world, Mr. Stein contributed to almost every major fundraising effort in the Milwaukee area. He not only took a special interest in issues of poverty and hunger, but he contributed widely and often. Well known are his associations as a patron of the Boys and Girls Clubs, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Hunger Task Force and the United Way. His support was central to the development of the St. Ann Center for Intergenerational Care. America's Black Holocaust Museum and the Betty Brinn Children's Museum were among his passions. These are but a few of his priority projects; in fact, his generous contributions are too numerous to list.

Mr. Stein also gave of himself, making a tremendous personal commitment of time and energy. He contributed to Big Brothers Big Sisters, but he also participated as a Big Brother, mentoring young children and helping them imagine and live out a better future. He helped refugee and immigrant services organizations stay afloat, but he also met those immigrants at the airport and personally welcomed them to Milwaukee. Mr. Stein was a passionate civic leader with global vision who understood that Milwaukee's fate was inextricably tied to an international community. He assisted with the airlift of Ethiopian Jews to Israel and funded entrepreneurial initiatives for youth in the then Soviet Union. His Jewish identity was the cornerstone of his drive to lead and his commitment to serve, and he traveled to Israel dozens of times as he deepened the spiritual dimensions of his leadership.

Mr. Speaker, in Marty Stein's death, we in the Milwaukee community have experienced a profound loss. Today I gratefully thank him and his family for their immeasurable achievements, I mourn his loss, and I salute his legacy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the extraordinary contributions of a community and labor leader in the 4th Congressional District. Ms. Mary Jo Avery, long-time member and officer of Local 4603 of the Communications Workers of America, has dedicated her life to public service. I salute her for her achievements as she retires from SBC-Ameritech after 32 years of service.

Within the labor movement, Ms. Avery worked tirelessly to advance women's leadership and to advocate for solutions to the unique difficulties women workers often face. An award-winning union leader, she also played a pivotal role in developing the Wisconsin Women's Network into a vibrant and powerful organization. She helped mentor, develop, support and advance women leaders, not only within the labor movement but in the broader community. Herself a devoted parent--mother of four, grandmother of 9, and great-grandmother of 5--she argued for establishing policies and practices that would facilitate workers' efforts to maintain a work/family balance. CWA's leadership on this issue no doubt drew many lessons from Ms. Avery's own personal experience.

Also a noted civil rights activist, Ms. Avery connected the labor movement to local and national civil rights struggles. She received the National A. Philip Randolph Rosina Tucker Award for civil rights leadership and the Black Women's Network's Outstanding Achievement Award. Since 1995, she has served as President of the Milwaukee Chapter of the A. Philip Randolph Institute, and was previously appointed to the City of Milwaukee's Civil Rights Commission.

I have known Ms. Avery for over 20 years. She has been an important ally in the struggle to realize ideals we both share, and has been a personal source of inspiration and support. In all she does, Mary Jo works to ensure that the promise of America is extended to those often left out--women, people of color, and other vulnerable communities. I commend her for these accomplishments, thank her for her groundbreaking leadership, and wish her a long and enjoyable retirement.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the extraordinary accomplishments and contributions of a leader in the Fourth Congressional District. Mr. Jesus Salas retired in December 2005, concluding an 18-year teaching career at Milwaukee Area Technical College, MATC. Though his teaching career has ended, he will no doubt continue his life's work advancing the cause of civil rights and justice.

A noted pioneer in the fight for civil rights, Mr. Salas participated in a series of landmark actions in the 1960s. Together with Father Groppi, Mr. Salas helped organize the Welfare Rights March in downtown Milwaukee, and was a leader in the landmark march from Milwaukee to the State capitol in Madison. He was part of a multi-racial group of civil rights leaders who together protested segregated housing, pushed for greater worker protections and demanded greater access to education for people of color.

Mr. Salas has exhibited a profound commitment to the rights of migrant workers. He pushed for enforcement of laws that would protect migrant workers from exploitative conditions, including low wages, unhealthy working conditions and poor housing. As the founder of Obreros Unidos, Mr. Salas led the first sustained effort at unionizing migrant workers in the Great Lakes region, and he served as the first Hispanic executive director of United Migrant Opportunity Services, Inc.

Furthermore, Mr. Salas is a staunch advocate for education. He fought to improve access to college education for Hispanic youth, while also demanding that educational institutions provide curricula that reflect the history and accomplishments of the Hispanic community. As a result of his efforts, the University of Wisconsin-Madison created a Chicano studies program, the Milwaukee Area Technical College instituted a bilingual education program, and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee created the Spanish Speaking Outreach Institute--now the Roberto Hernandez Center--to recruit, advise and support Hispanic students. Generations of Hispanic leaders to come will be able to thank Mr. Salas for working to ensure the increased educational opportunities they will enjoy.

I know Mr. Salas will continue to identify and advocate for educational innovations in his role as a member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents. Along with members of the Fourth Congressional District's Hispanic community, I extend to him my heartfelt congratulations and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the resolution. I congratulate the Iraqis for their successful election, and I ask for an open, honest debate on the prosecution of this war.

Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 571 completely dishonors our troops by politicizing an issue that deserves careful deliberation. The GOP leadership of this body has brought this counterfeit legislation to the floor not to benefit our brave men and women in uniform, but to score cheap political points.

I fully support legitimate initiatives which present a thoughtful strategy for withdrawing our troops from Iraq in a manner that secures their safety and Iraq's future. I am a cosponsor of two resolutions which would support this urgent objective. Yet this phony bill chooses politics over policy at the expense of real debate on a critical national issue.

Over 2,000 troops have been killed and over 15,500 have been seriously wounded. Reports indicate that at least 30,000 Iraqi civilians have lost their lives due to this conflict. It is a sad day for this country when, in response to this crucial issue, the best the GOP leadership can do is resort to backhanded political stunts.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer legislation along with my colleague from Kentucky, Congressman Harold ``Hal'' Rogers, which seeks to increase venture capital investment in small businesses located in low-income urban and rural communities nationwide. Our bill, the Securing Equity for the Economic Development of Low Income Areas--SEED--Act, would reauthorize and expand the New Markets Venture Capital (NMVC) program of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

The New Markets Venture Capital Program was established in 2000 for the purposes of making equity investments in small businesses located in economically distressed communities through the creation of NMVC companies. Many conventional venture capital firms have been unwilling to invest in economically disadvantaged areas. NMVC companies aim to help fill the access to capital gap that exists for many small firms in these communities.

New Market Venture Capital companies will leverage equity capital backed by SBA-guaranteed funds to invest in small businesses in depressed areas. NMVC companies can also apply for matching operational assistance grants to provide entrepreneurs with the services and technical support needed to help their businesses grow and succeed.

Through the program, 6 New Markets Venture Capital companies have been formed and are currently still operating and making quality investments in small businesses throughout the country. For example, the Southern Appalachian Fund located in Congressman Rogers' Congressional District was one of the original New Markets Venture Capital companies established during the initial round of funding. The Southern Appalachian Fund (SAF) is a $12.5 million venture capital fund offering equity capital and operational assistance to eligible small businesses located in the Appalachia regions of Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. In 2004 alone, SAF invested over $1 million in three companies, which helped attract an additional $1.7 million in venture capital funding for these firms. As a result, these investments assisted in the creation of over 50 new jobs in the region.

Unfortunately, though authorized, this worthy program has not received funding in each of the last 3 fiscal years. The SEED Act would reauthorize the New Markets Venture Capital program by providing $100 million in debenture guarantees and $25 million in operational assistance grants to fund the creation of a fresh round of NMVC companies. In addition, our legislation would incorporate small manufacturers into the mission of the program by encouraging the SBA to set up at least one company that is primarily involved in the investment and development of small manufacturing firms. The bill also seeks to diversify venture capital investments beyond the typical Silicon Valley and Northeastern corridors by

encouraging the formation of NMVC companies in each of the ten geographic regions of the SBA.

Many of my constituents have fallen on hard times and are in need of help. A large portion of my district is in the midst of an economic crisis at this moment. In 2002, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that 59 percent of working age African American males in Milwaukee were either unemployed or out of the workforce. In the past five 5, Milwaukee has lost 33,000 manufacturing jobs, an industry that was once the lifeblood of the local economy. And, according to a study conducted by the University of Kansas, Milwaukee ranks 49th out of the 50 largest U.S. cities in terms of per capita venture capital dollars.

Small businesses create nearly 75 percent of all new jobs and account for 99 percent of all employers. It is not a stretch to conclude that increased investment in small businesses leads to the creation of new jobs and sparks much needed economic development in areas that have experienced better days. And given the high levels of unemployment that exist in many distressed urban and rural communities throughout the country, the New Markets Venture Capital program would provide a crucial source of investment capital to small firms and help create new jobs.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this very important bipartisan bill.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to strenuously object to tucking the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families Act reauthorization into this budget reconciliation bill.

What this does is masquerade the Draconian policy changes of TANF that impinge on what we claim to be our priority, to help working families, particularly women, get back into the workforce. How can we do that, create productive workers in view of slashing the work supports so desperately needed by these marginal families?

How can we cut $11 billion from the Medicaid program and say we want these women to go to work? How can we cut $4.9 billion from child support enforcement and say that we want you to go to work? How can we not even provide an inflationary increase in child care funding, while we increase those work requirements and say with a straight face that we are trying to help people reach self-sufficiency? How can we claim to try to raise women up and families up from their conditions, when we slash educational opportunity, reduce educational opportunity into oblivion?

Well, Mr. Speaker, there are people who are prepared to tell me that we are increasing TANF benefits by almost $1 billion, but when you look at what we are doing, the $926 million over 5 years, scored by CBO, because they must include extensions of supplemental grants, which they are excluded by law from not projecting, if you look at that, and adjusting for this scoring factor, what we are actually seeing is a TANF spending reduction of $239 million. Yes, I said it, $239 million reduction in TANF services.

This basic block grant is frozen. It increases work requirements, but it does do one thing that I approve of. It eliminates two performance bonus programs, saving us $1.1 billion, but it plows that money, $349 million, back into marriage promotion programs.

Do we have any concern about the kind of domestic violence that this may spawn, or another $409 million for, quote, unquote, ``new research projects,'' researching and studying the poor, rather than providing the poor with the needed services like Medicaid, like child care, like educational opportunity? Instead, we are continuing to make this a windfall for what we call poverty entrepreneurs.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to my constituent, Mr. John Goldstein, in thanks for his distinguished record of leadership of Milwaukee's labor movement. John served as president of the Milwaukee County Labor Council for 8 years, capping off a career of local, national and international labor activism that included stints as secretary/treasurer of the Labor Council and president of the Amalgamated Transit Union. He left the Labor Council in September, 2005, to become the new executive director of Partnership for Working Families.

John's leadership and commitment to advancing workers' causes are well known. In his tenure as president of the Labor Council, he spearheaded several major campaigns, among them brokering a resolution with Milwaukee County that improved the climate for workers attempting to organize new unions. He also worked with Milwaukee's Common Council to pass legislation that ensures uniforms needed for city workers are not sweatshop-produced. More recently, John developed a coalition to advocate for the implementation of economic development policies that would benefit a wide array of workers and neighborhoods.

Throughout these efforts, and many others, John's leadership has been marked by a commitment to building broad coalitions to ensure that labor movement victories brought gains for the wider community. He is widely acknowledged as a pioneer in developing labor-community partnerships designed to address problems created by economic and racial disparities throughout the Milwaukee area. His colleagues included faith leaders, a variety of local union activists, and community organizations.

In his role as Labor Council president and through his career, John has prioritized labor organizing, mobilizing for economic justice, and building a strong member-to-member political organization for the benefit of the working people of Milwaukee County. I know he will continue to demonstrate exemplary leadership in his new position as national program director for the Partnership for Working Families. I am thrilled to know that he will be based in Milwaukee, and that while providing technical assistance and leadership to labor-community coalitions across the country, he will continue to enrich our community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to applaud an alliance of dedicated residents of the Fourth Congressional District for their passionate pursuit of peace and justice. On October 8, members of the Greater Milwaukee Chapter of the United Nations Association, together with an array of partner organizations, will host a Call to Action and Celebration of the Global Campaign to Make Poverty History.

This effort is extremely timely. Poverty has a devastating effect on the lives of those in developing countries, and creates structural problems for the global economy that ultimately harm our own economic well-being. The U.N.'s Millennium Development Goals call for progress in eight key sectors, including education, healthcare, environmental sustainability and gender equity. Taken together, these goals comprise a comprehensive strategy for reducing poverty and hunger.

In reality, addressing global poverty requires us to confront the impact of debt on developing countries' ability to invest in the infrastructure and social services needed to improve the quality of their citizens' lives. The weight of the international debt that many developing countries carry poses an enormous obstacle to real progress toward eradicating poverty. Debt payments to international creditors inhibit many countries' efforts to recover from natural disasters, or establish healthcare, education and clean water programs. Impoverished countries in Africa pay on average $14 per person in debt service payments to international financial institutions, but spend only $5 per person on healthcare.

In recognition of this fact, I cosponsored the JUBILEE Act, which directs the Secretary of

the Treasury to immediately begin working with the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the G8 to cancel the debts owed by the world's 50 most impoverished nations.

I want to thank my constituents for their participation in this effort. I am proud of my community's commitment to pursue justice, dignity, and economic self-sufficiency for all of the world's citizens. I urge my colleagues to join me in championing this global initiative that will help secure a better, more prosperous and peaceful world for generations to come.

Mr. Chairman, yesterday I voted in favor of H.R. 2601 which authorizes multilateral aid for the Department of State, the primary diplomatic arm of our government. It is more important than ever that we resolve international conflicts through persuasion and negotiation where it is possible, and I believe this bill, on balance, strengthens our ability to pursue that strategy. I am also pleased that this bill takes much needed steps to dismantle global nuclear

black-market supplier networks, which pose a very real threat to our national security.

That being said, I remain concerned about several ill-conceived amendments that were approved by this body. One such amendment attached the United Nations Reform Act, legislation which would almost certainly force the United States to withhold 50 percent of the dues owed the U.N. because the measure's reform benchmarks are simply not achievable within the required timeframe. Even the Bush administration opposes this bill on the grounds that it would handicap our ability to work with other countries to make the U.N. a stronger and more effective organization. I voted against the United Nations Reform Act when it was brought before the full House as a standalone measure last month, and again when it was offered as an amendment yesterday.

I am also disappointed that my colleagues voted to approve an amendment that removes contraception from the fistula-prevention section of the bill. Fistula is a devastating injury that occurs when a woman suffers prolonged, obstructed labor. Very often, this befalls young girls living in impoverished, underdeveloped countries where birth control is unavailable and basic medical treatment doesn't exist. One of the best ways to prevent fistula is to prevent pregnancies from occurring to begin with. That's why H.R. 2601 included a bipartisan fistula prevention section which would, among other things, expand the use of contraception in countries where this injury is prevalent. Unfortunately, this body approved an amendment cutting contraception from this section of the bill, thereby weakening good faith efforts to prevent this terrible condition.

Mr. Chairman, although I have concerns about both of these amendments, I am hopefully optimistic that they will be removed when a House-Senate conference convenes later this year.

Mr. Speaker, today on the anniversary of the first Women's Rights Convention, I want to address the inequities that still exist in today's workforce.

In 1996 when we destroyed the safety net for women and children by ending welfare, women have become even more reliant upon work for mere survival. Yet the lack of resources like child care, sick leave and disproportionate pay all conspire against most working women. As a matter of fact, the 9 to 5 National Organization of Working Women reported that women earned 76 cents for every dollar that men earned in 2004. Over a lifetime what that means is a 25-year-old woman who works until age 65 will earn over a half million dollars less than the average working male.

The playing field for women is uneven because 40 percent of single working mothers pay at least half of their cash income for child care, and half the States have cut child care availability. Far too many women are forced to cobble together part-time jobs in order to survive, and 70 percent of the workers who hold two or more jobs are women.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to have my name removed as a cosponsor of H.R. 2317.