Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I rise today as a proud original cosponsor of House Resolution 1066, recognizing the bravery and the efforts of the United States Armed Forces, the local first responders, and other members of Operation Unified Response.

Six weeks ago today, Haiti was struck by the largest earthquake to reach its shores in over two centuries. And while many of us were trying to grasp the tremendous impact of this disaster, the United States Armed Forces were mobilized. They were engaged in what turned out to be one of, if not the most key operation in Haiti's recovery.

Operation Unified Response was assembled almost immediately following the January 12 earthquake, and it was headed by the largest joint task force in the history of the U.S. Southern Command, SOUTHCOM.

At the height of the emergency relief efforts, there were more than 20,000 U.S. military personnel afloat and ashore working to facilitate search and rescue operations, delivering supplies, providing security in support of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief efforts.

In addition, the men and women of the U.S. military did a remarkable job in quickly standing up the airport in Port-au-Prince and in helping to repair and increase the capacity of many of the destroyed ports in that city. Before the earthquake, Port-au-Prince airport was averaging about 20 flights a day. In the days following the disaster, the airport was processing roughly 120 flights a day and really operating around the clock, 24 hours a day, thereby enabling countless shipments of vital supplies and resources to reach the citizens of Haiti during this most dire time of need.

Under the leadership of General Douglas Fraser, SOUTHCOM commander, and General Ken Keen, commander of the Joint Task Force-Haiti, Operation Unified Response has delivered, to date, and these are amazing numbers, over 2.5 million bottles of water, 2.2 million food rations, 14.1 million pounds of bulk food, and 125,000 pounds of medical supplies to Haiti's earthquake survivors.

In addition, our medical teams from the military have seen over 28,000 patients. They have performed more than 800 surgeries.

As the representative of Florida's 18th Congressional District, I take special pride in the instrumental role that SOUTHCOM has played in these vital relief efforts. I would like to again recognize the bravery of the efforts of all who were involved in Operation Unified Response. Thank you for your service.

And I thank my good friend and fellow Floridian, Congressman Kendrick Meek, for introducing this important measure. I encourage all of our colleagues to support it.

I thank the gentleman for the time.

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

I rise today as a proud original cosponsor of the bill before us, House Resolution 1059.

In the days following this horrific disaster, many of us watched the endless news cycles with cautious hope as search and rescue efforts were streamed live around the world. With bated breath, we watched as time after time earthquake survivors miraculously appeared from the rubble, each rescue helping to reinforce the faith, the strength, and the determination of all who were and are involved in the relief efforts in Haiti.

More than 130 individuals were ultimately saved from the rubble in the weeks following the earthquake, more rescues of survivors over more days than ever before. This is a testament to both the survivors and the rescuers. The U.S. search and rescue units are the best trained in the world. Without hesitation, several of these teams deployed almost immediately following the earthquake. We ultimately sent seven of our best teams, roughly compromising one-third of the entire urban search and rescue effort in Haiti. My own district was proud to send one team from both the city of Miami and Miami-Dade County.

Importantly, however, this resolution also recognizes the entire urban search and rescue team system that we have operating in this great country of ours. Because the U.S. swiftly contributed seven courageous teams to the search and rescue efforts in Haiti, there were a number of additional teams standing ready to deploy should they be called upon. It is this compassion and this courage which characterizes the spirit of the American people.

Helping to train and work with various international search and rescue teams on the ground, there is no doubt that the contributions of our urban search and rescue teams went far and beyond the many lives that they saved.

I had the honor to meet with Mr. Dave Downey, the team leader of the Miami-Dade County urban search and rescue unit, just a couple of weeks ago here in D.C. to thank and congratulate him for the heroic service not just of Mr. Downey, but of his entire team. And I extend my heartfelt gratitude to all our urban search and rescue workers who deployed in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake.

I talked about the Miami-Dade part of this rescue effort, but I also commend Miami Fire Chief Maurice Kemp and the City of Miami Department of Fire-Rescue for their heroic service in these efforts. The word ``team'' comes up a lot in this resolution, and that is how they acted, as a team, not as one unit versus another, but how we can come together as a nation. They represented the best of what America has to offer.

I thank my good friend, the Congressman, for introducing this important measure. I encourage my colleagues to support it. And I am so glad that Mr. McMahon put in there the contributions of Miami and Miami-Dade rescue units.

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

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I am a proud cosponsor of this bill, and I rise in support of House Resolution 1074, which honors the life of Miep Gies, who helped Anne Frank's family while they were in hiding and who preserved Anne's famous diary for future generations.

With Miep's passing on January 11, the world has lost a true hero. Before German occupation, Miep worked as an office assistant in Amsterdam for Otto Frank, Anne Frank's father. After Nazi Germany occupied Holland and after Hitler began to accelerate his plan for total extermination of the Jews, Anne Frank's father began to make plans to hide his family from persecution.

As Miep later recalled in the spring of 1942, Otto Frank sat her down and told her that they were going to go into hiding, and he asked her if she would be willing to help out the family by bringing them food.

Miep simply answered, ``Yes, of course.''

For 2 years, Miep, her husband and a number of her friends helped the Frank family and four other Jews hide in a small attic apartment behind the office of the Frank Family business. They brought them food and other necessities while putting their own lives at risk every day.

During their years in hiding, Anne Frank, as we all know, kept a diary, which described her experiences. This diary would later become one of the most widely read books in the world, providing millions of people with a glimpse of the Holocaust through the eyes of a young, bright and ever hopeful Jewish girl.

In August of 1944, the Gestapo discovered their hiding place, and they arrested the Frank family. After the Frank family was captured, Miep discovered the pages of Anne Frank's diary, and held them in safekeeping until after the war. She later gave the diary to Anne's father, who returned to Amsterdam after surviving Auschwitz. In fact, he was the only member of the Frank family who managed to survive. Anne's mother died in Auschwitz, and Anne and her sister perished in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.

Decades after the Holocaust, Miep stated the following about what she and her husband and a number of her friends did to help the Frank family and others:

``It seemed perfectly natural to me. I could help these people. They were powerless. They didn't know where to turn. I always emphasize that we were not heroes. We did our duty as human beings.''

What Miep and others did during the Holocaust to save lives, while putting their own at risk, was nothing short of heroism. Miep has survived and has received many honors for her heroism, including being knighted by Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands and receiving a medal from Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem.

Though Miep passed away last month, her relentless courage, her compassion and her contribution to preserving one of the most unique and important documentations of the horrors of the Holocaust will not be forgotten.

I thank my distinguished colleague, Congresswoman Kilroy, for introducing this measure which recognizes Miep's courage in risking her life to hide and to provide for the Frank family while they were in hiding. It commends Miep for retrieving and preserving the diary of Anne Frank. Further, it honors Miep for her bravery during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, and it honors her dedication to preserving the memory of Anne Frank so as to remember the terrible lessons of the Holocaust.

I support this important measure, Madam Speaker, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.

With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

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

I also rise in support of House Resolution 944, and I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Peters) and the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) for bringing this important human rights issue before us today.

The protection of members of vulnerable religious and ethnic minorities, including the smallest minority groups, is integral to the future of Iraq as a free and stable country. Iraq is home to ancient and diverse Catholic, Orthodox, and other Christian groups, including Chaldean, Assyrian, Syriac, and Armenian Christians, among many others. They have been targeted for kidnapping and murder by radical Islamic extremists. Various credible sources estimate that more than half of Iraq's Christians have already fled the country during the last several years.

However, these dangers are certainly not confined to Christians. The Baha'i faith remains prohibited in Iraq, and Iraq's ancient and once- flourishing Jewish community has reportedly dwindled to fewer than a dozen people.

All of us understand that Iraq's young democracy faces many challenges, including its own threats from insurgents and other extremists. But the marginalization, the displacement, the violence that threatens Iraq's minority communities also endanger the vitality and the inclusiveness of Iraqi society as a whole.

We must strive to ensure that the work that we and our allies do helps to build Iraq's capacity and commitment to protect its minority citizens, and we must encourage the Government of Iraq to ensure that its forthcoming elections are an opportunity to reinforce the growth of democracy and freedom in that country. Those elections should be safe, should be fair, should be transparent so that all Iraqis, including members of these vulnerable religious and ethnic minority communities, can participate. And we must not let members of those minorities under siege think that they are alone or that they are forgotten.

For these reasons, Madam Speaker, I am grateful for this resolution, which deserves our unanimous support.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf), the co-Chair of the Tom Lantos Congressional Human Rights Commission and the coauthor of this important measure.

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

Madam Speaker, I do have an additional speaker in case the gentleman would like to reserve his time.

Madam Speaker, I now would like to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan), a member of the Natural Resources, Oversight, and Transportation Committees, for his insight and the insight of his constituent who's very concerned about religious minorities in Iraq.

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

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

I rise today as a proud cosponsor of the bill before us, House Resolution 1048, commending the efforts and honoring the work of the men and women of the USNS Comfort and the United States Navy in the immediate response to those affected by the earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010.

The tremendous impact of this natural disaster appeared almost insurmountable at one point. Six weeks later, however, we have seen remarkable achievements and great promise for the future. The swift and comprehensive response of the United States has helped to save countless lives. In particular, the men and women of the U.S. Navy, particularly those serving on the hospital ship Comfort, have provided vital medical and relief services.

Before it had even reached the shores of Haiti, the Comfort was receiving patients flown in from the USS Carl Vinson. They had nearly 100 new admissions on their first day on station. Within 2 weeks of arriving, the Comfort had performed over 500 surgeries and provided 24- hour care for countless others. And as of late last week, nearly 800 surgeries had been performed. I join my colleagues in commending this tremendous performance and recognizing the admirable service of the men and women of the U.S. Navy Ship Comfort, and the many other Navy vessels and crews who have contributed to the relief efforts in Haiti.

In addition, I would like to recognize the ongoing selfless acts of the people

of the United States, including the Haitian American community, to provide relief to the people of Haiti. I have seen group after group from my own district in South Florida and across the country mobilize to provide medical assistance, humanitarian services, all kinds of goods to the Haitian people. I am confident, Madam Speaker, that with this type of ongoing support, Haiti will see a brighter future.

Again, I would like to commend and honor the work of the men and women of the United States Navy, and particularly those on the Navy Ship Comfort for the immediate response that they gave to the earthquake victims in Haiti. And I thank Congressman Murphy for introducing this important measure.

Madam Speaker, if I may, I would like to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Tim Murphy), the author of this resolution, a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce.

Madam Speaker, we have no further requests for time. I yield back the balance of our time.

My sincerest thanks and congratulations to the Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue Urban Search and Rescue team for their heroic efforts in aiding the relief work in Haiti. Their courage and dedication to helping save lives are examples for us all. Under the leadership of Division Chief Dave Downey, an 80-man team was sent to Haiti 1 day after it was ravaged by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake.

I would like to commend Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, under the direction of Fire Chief Herminio Lorenzo, for their courageous commitment and dedication to saving lives in south Florida and worldwide. As a result of their work in Haiti, lives have been saved and many more individuals have been aided.

Their selfless dedication and sense of mission are testaments to our Nation's highest principle. The team's experience in disaster relief efforts during Hurricane Katrina, in the aftermath of 9/11, and the 1999 earthquake in Turkey, as part of the national Urban Search and Rescue Response System, were invaluable to their rescue efforts in Haiti. Congratulations to all.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to applaud the outstanding work and selfless commitment of Mr. Pius Bannis. Mr. Bannis is the Field Office Director in Port-au-Prince for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. He has gone above and beyond the call of duty in the weeks since the horrific earthquake that devastated Haiti on January 12.

Working around the clock, Mr. Bannis has helped to process hundreds of adoption cases, helping to unite American families with their Haitian children in the aftermath of this tragic disaster. Mr. Bannis is a hero. Because of his tireless efforts and compassion, many of the most vulnerable children in Haiti are able to look toward a much brighter future.

I am inspired by the selfless dedication, and again thank Mr. Bannis, as well as all of the employees of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, for their extraordinary service in helping Haitian children.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor one of the most decorated ships of the United States, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Ingham. For 52 years, the Ingham protected our shoreline. Entering service in 1935, the Ingham delivered critical assistance to the United States in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

The Ingham protected Allied ships that were ferrying supplies to Great Britain during the Second World War. With the American flag flying high on her mast, the Ingham battled stormy weather, dodged German U-boats, sank an enemy submarine, and eluded enemy aircraft. The Ingham also served in the Pacific, acting as the amphibious flagship for four of the Philippine Islands invasions. It was from aboard the Ingham that General MacArthur planned and oversaw the critical capture of Corregidor.

More recently and closer to home, in 1980 over 125,000 Cubans fled north from the oppressive Castro dictatorship in battered rafts and stormy weather. The Ingham was instrumental in rescuing many refugees adrift in these makeshift rafts and bringing seven refugee vessels to safety, saving 122 lives.

She is the only ship in our history to receive two Presidential citations and has been awarded an astounding 14 Battle Stars and 19 ribbons. The Ingham and the many crew members who have served both on and below her decks are a testament to our great Nation. A total of 912 casualties are honored on a memorial plaque on her quarterdeck. Having paid the ultimate price for our freedom, these men and women earned our respect.

When the Ingham was decommissioned in 1988, she was the second oldest American warship afloat. Now a floating museum, it is through the exhibits and memorials within the Ingham that we can honor and remember all of those 912 service men and women and all that they have done in the service of our Nation.

The Ingham is a national historic landmark and serves as a national memorial to all Coast Guard men and women killed in action. It is through the leadership of former Key West Commissioner Bill Verge, a retired U.S.

Coast Guard Reserve member and a Vietnam veteran who serves as the executive director of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Ingham Memorial Museum, as well as Beth Nowell, development director for the museum, that the residents of Key West and I were able to welcome the Ingham to our maritime family with open arms. Towed in to stand tall alongside the active USS Mohawk, the Ingham will be open to the public as a living and breathing museum.

This historic ship has saved so many lives and helped shape the course of American history. She and her crews have performed every mission in the best tradition of the United States Coast Guard. I give thanks to the unwavering dedication and work of the crew of the Ingham for over half a century of service. The Ingham is a demonstration of what it means to be an American and why we should always be proud to say so.

So please come to Key West and see for yourself this beautiful museum, a testament to the brave men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard.

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

I rise today in support of my bill, House Resolution 1044, commemorating this year as the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi extermination camps. Over a million people were systematically tortured and brutally murdered there. The Nazis at Auschwitz conducted cruel medical experiments on prisoners, including children. They intentionally infected prisoners with diseases and performed forced sterilizations and castrations on adults.

Most of those who perished at Auschwitz were Jews. But others that the Nazis perceived as enemies or inferior to Hitler's Aryan image were also murdered at Auschwitz. It was hell on Earth. Leo Schneiderman, a Holocaust survivor said the following about his arrival at Auschwitz, and I quote: ``When we came in, the minute the gates opened up, we heard screams and barking of dogs, and then we got out of the train. And everything went so fast. Men separated from women. Children torn from the arms of mothers. The elderly chased like cattle. The sick, the disabled were handled like packs of garbage. My mother ran over to me and grabbed me by the shoulders, and she told me, `Leibele, I'm not going to see you no more. Take care of your brother.' ''

After years of misery and suffering, only a few thousands had remained when the Soviet Army arrived on a snowy day in 1945. Most of those survivors were too weak to realize that they had been liberated. We must remember what happened and ensure that humanity always prevails over hateful savagery and oppression.

The resolution we are considering today, Mr. Speaker, commemorates the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and honors the victims who perished at the hands of the Nazis. It expresses gratitude to the people whose efforts helped defeat the Nazi regime. It reaffirms the commitment of the House to bolster Holocaust education here in the United States and abroad, and to ensure that what happened during the Holocaust is never allowed to happen again.

And it also urges all countries to enhance their efforts to fight bigotry, racism, intolerance, and anti-Semitism. We must heed the lessons of history, remain vigilant, and stand firmly against purveyors of hatred who incite to violence against Israel, against the Jewish people, and all of us who stand for liberty and the fundamental rights of all human beings. As Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said at a ceremony last week which marked the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, and I quote: ``We will always remember what the Nazi Amalek did to us, and we won't forget to be prepared for the new Amalek, who is making an appearance on the stage of history and once again threatening to destroy the Jews. We will not take this lightly and believe that these are empty statements. We will never forget and always remember to stand guard.''

So as we commemorate the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, I urge my colleagues to keep those words in mind and work to support and ensure that the world will never again see another Holocaust. I would also like to use this opportunity to say that I will be introducing a bill this week that will open the door for Holocaust survivors to bring Holocaust-era insurance claims against insurance companies in the U.S. courts. This bill will force insurance companies to disclose the names of Holocaust insurance policy holders.

With that, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to render their full support to this resolution.

I reserve the balance of our time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas, Judge Poe, a member of our Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Mr. Speaker, I'd like to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce), the ranking member on the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to honor the brave work and the supreme dedication of the command and crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk.

The Mohawk has just returned from a 2-month deployment and is now home at Coast Guard Sector Key West. During their deployment, they were diverted to Haiti in response to the earthquake that hit on January 12. The Mohawk was the second cutter on the scene and the first to have Coast Guard crew members on the ground in Port-au-Prince.

On behalf of our grateful Nation, I thank each and every crew member for their role in this humanitarian mission. My most supreme appreciation goes out to Corpsman Second Class Elias Gomez. Corpsman Gomez will certainly be receiving commendations and awards in the coming months for his heroic actions in the gruesome scene that was Port-au-Prince.

Corpsmen Gomez set up a minihospital and triage directly in the streets of the capital. He set broken bones and he closed wounds, all the while having to create tools and making do with limited supplies. His actions were as resourceful, were as inventive and as innovative as they were lifesaving. Corpsman Gomez's ``dirt medicine'' was an example of American values at its finest. This great young American and father of four truly led by example, and I join with those whose lives he saved in thanking him for all that he has done.

Through efforts like those of Corpsman Gomez, the wonderful crew of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk helped save countless lives and performed their mission in accordance with the best traditions of the U.S. Coast Guard. Their assistance was both essential and invaluable.

We have all seen the devastation that is present at the island nation of Haiti, and it is beyond words. The United States has a unique duty to protect, to defend, and to support freedom, and all peoples, around the globe. As proven by the men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk, this noble cause lives on in our Nation's oldest continuous seagoing service.

The efforts of the command and crew of the Mohawk have supplied a lifeline of humanitarian assistance to Haiti and will certainly help ignite the spirit of hope for recovery in that devastated island nation.

Every day, I give thanks to our local Coast Guard personnel, no matter how they serve. Their efforts are first and foremost to safeguard our Florida coastline. This fact is never lost on me or anyone else in south Florida. We feel their presence every day and take comfort in the fact that the men and women of the Coast Guard Sector Miami, as well as the Sector Key West, truly lived their motto, ``Always ready.''

We as a nation can never repay those who serve, but we can take pride in knowing that those men and women have served not just our community but our neighbors in need as well. Their humanitarian mission reminds us all of what it means to be an American and why we should be so proud to say, every day, ``I am an American.''

The commitment of the U.S. Coast Guard is illustrative of how we must all do our part to help with continuing relief efforts in Haiti. To each and every crew member on the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk, I say thank you: Commanding Officer Robert T. Hendrickson, Executive Officer John J. Driscoll, Corpsman Second Class Elias Gomez, and all of the crew as well as the families who support these heroes, thank you. Your works are testimony to our great Nation. ``Always ready,'' and we thank you for it.

Thank you, U.S. Coast Guard. Thank you, Coast Guard Cutter Mohawk. Welcome home. Godspeed.

I rise today to recognize two outstanding Americans, my good friends, Ronald and Glenda Krongold, constituents of my congressional district. For decades, the Krongolds have dedicated themselves to the safety and security of our democratic Jewish State of Israel, including through their leadership in the National Israel Bonds Campaign. Ron served as vice chairman and chairman of new leadership.

Their work on Israel bonds has contributed greatly to Israel's thriving economy and its booming scientific, technological, and entrepreneurial sectors. Ron's expertise has also benefited our home State of Florida. He played a pivotal role in the negotiations of the Trade Understanding between our State of Florida and Israel, signed by then-Secretary of Commerce for Florida, Jeb Bush.

Ron and Glenda, for your dedication you have the appreciation of this House and of countless Americans and Israelis. Thank you for your work. Keep it up.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to ask how we can break the national 10 percent unemployment barrier which has now hit my home State of Florida hard with a totally unacceptable 11.8 percent unemployment rate.

The congressional leadership has created a cloud of uncertainty over the economy, with support for more oppressive regulations, skyrocketing deficits, tax increases, and trade barriers. The administration's spending policies, including the nearly $1 trillion stimulus bill, have drastically increased the national debt by 23 percent, while unemployment has increased by more than 3 million. And today the CBO announced that the U.S. deficit for the current fiscal year will come in at $1.3 trillion, which means that in the 1 year in which the party controlling the White House and Congress has been entrenched, the annual deficit has increased by over 300 percent.

We need to do everything we can to encourage entrepreneurs and small businesses to once again create jobs through sensible regulation, through reduced government spending, lower taxes and greater investment in education.

I am looking forward to the President's State of the Union message to see what course he has set for this year and will look forward to working with Members in a bipartisan manner to help bring our economy to full employment as soon as possible.

National School Counseling Week

Later on, Mr. Speaker, we will be discussing an important resolution which designates the week of February 1 as National School Counseling Week on behalf of each and every child that these counselors have helped. As a mother, as a grandmother, and as a former Florida certified teacher, I recognize just how important it is to fully support our children at every turn. School counselors across the Nation share the same commendable goal to meet the needs of every child. They work each and every day to offer our children their expert guidance and compassionate care. Whether at home or in school, every child will face new and sometimes difficult situations as they develop into young adults. Through a strong family, many children are able to navigate potentially difficult situations, emotions and decisions from a positive base. But even with the most cohesive and supportive of families, there are times when a growing child needs outside counsel.

Our school counselors can offer children this vital resource: trusted and impartial guides in times of uncertainty as well as thoughtful friends for uncomfortable questions. And they willingly work with all children, regardless of their background or history, and are often the last lifeline for our troubled children.

We all recognize that children go through tremendous social, personal

and emotional development, all while being tasked with achieving academic success. Ensuring that our children are prepared to be tomorrow's adults requires that each of these components come together seamlessly. Our children are being forced to grow up faster than any generation before them. Today's children live in an interconnected world that is vastly different from the one that our parents, or even we, knew. In this sea of rapid and radical change, it is reassuring to know that our school counselors will be there to support those children that need it most. They offer each child an indispensable link between the classroom and the real world. School counselors are without a doubt a vital link in our children's emotional and academic educations.

Always willing to lend their sympathetic ear and advice, school counselors are never far at hand when a child needs to express his or her fears, hopes and aspirations. School counselors are helping our children to develop into wonderful young adults each and every day. We should all welcome the opportunity to say congratulations to these unsung protectors of our children.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues later on today as we take up this bill to honor school counselors across the United States to vote in favor of this resolution, for it is a fine tribute to people whose life's mission is to turn today's children into tomorrow's leaders.

Thank you very much for the time, Mr. Speaker.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2949.

Two weeks ago today, Haiti was devastated by its largest earthquake in over two centuries.

The United States has been unparalleled in its efforts to assist Haiti in the wake of this catastrophe and it only makes sense that we would show the same compassion and generosity to the many Americans who were victims of this tragic disaster.

As my colleagues have shared, this bill will provide important temporary assistance to help U.S. citizens on a need basis as they return from Haiti and re-establish themselves here in the U.S.

When the earthquake struck, there were an estimated 45,000 Americans living in Haiti.

Since then, nearly 12,000 Americans have been evacuated.

This bill will help to cover the costs related to these repatriations.

Again, I rise in support of this important measure and if I may, would also like to take a moment to acknowledge the many Americans whose lives were lost as well in the earthquake.

My most sincere thoughts and prayers go out to all of the family and friends who lost loved ones that day.

This year marks the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi extermination camps. Over 1 million people were systematically murdered at Auschwitz in gas chambers or shot or tortured or starved to death or any cruel combination. Most of those who perished were Jews, but others that Nazis perceived as enemies were also murdered there.

As we honor the victims of the Holocaust and those who helped to defeat the Nazis, we must also reaffirm our commitment to enhancing Holocaust education programs in our schools and urge all countries to bolster their efforts in fighting bigotry, racism and anti-Semitism.

In the words of Elie Wiesel, who is an Auschwitz survivor, ``There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.'' Let our voices be heard loudly and clearly. Never again. Tomorrow is Holocaust Remembrance Day. Let's honor their struggles every day.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to salute Miami attorney Ira Leesfield on receiving the 2010 American Jewish Committee's Judge Learned Hand Award for Preferred Excellence.

The American Jewish Committee must have had Ira in mind when this prestigious award was created to honor the memory of Judge Learned Hand and the principles that he so well represented: individual rights and the importance of democratic values in an orderly society.

With his very strong professional background, outgoing personality and true compassion for our community, Ira Leesfield has been a strong voice for civil rights in south Florida for many years, and I am honored to count him as a friend.

As the senior and managing partner of Leesfield & Partners, P.A., Ira has received many other honors, including the Anti-Defamation League's Jurisprudence Award, and he was the first Florida recipient of the American ORT Jurisprudence Award.

I am pleased to join the American Jewish Committee, his family, friends, and neighbors in their celebration of Ira's countless contributions to our community and, indeed, to our Nation.