Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6891) to exclude government officials of the Russian Federation from certain international meetings, and for other purposes, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material thereon.

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

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 6891, the Isolate Russian Government Officials Act, sponsored by the Congresswoman from Missouri (Mrs. Wagner). I commend her for her work on this bill, and I appreciate that she worked with Chairwoman Waters to improve the bill.

The Russian Government participates, along with the U.S., in a wide range of international organizations that are intended to promote collaboration and harmonize global standards on critical issues like financial stability. However, Russia shattered any notion of international harmony by violating the sovereignty of Ukraine and its people with Putin's unlawful invasion.

As such, Russia should no longer have a seat at a table of meetings of a wide range of important bodies, including the Basel Committee and the International Organization of Securities Commissions.

I applaud the Biden administration for securing the suspension of Russia from the Bank for International Settlements and the Financial Stability Board. It is time to kick the Kremlin out of every other room and pass H.R. 6891.

Madam Speaker, for these reasons, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC, May 9, 2022.

Hon. Maxine Waters,

Committee on Financial Services,

House of Representatives, Washington, DC.

Dear Chair Waters: In an effort to work cooperatively and

to expedite consideration of H.R. 6891, Isolate Russian

Government Officials Act of 2022, the Committee on Foreign

Affairs agrees to waive formal consideration of the bill as

to the provisions that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of

the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs takes this action with the

mutual understanding that the Committee does not waive any

jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in H.R. 6891

or similar legislation, and the Committee will be

appropriately consulted and involved as the bill or similar

legislation moves forward. The Committee also reserves the

right to seek appointment of Committee on Foreign Affairs

conferees during any House-Senate conference convened for

this legislation with your support for any such request.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter

confirming this understanding and ask that a copy of our

exchange of letters on this matter be included in the

Congressional Record during Floor consideration of H.R. 6891.

Sincerely,

Gregory W. Meeks,

Chair.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly), who is a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

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

I, again, thank Representative Wagner, her staff, as well as Ranking Member McHenry and his staff for working with us on this legislation.

I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting H.R. 6891, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6899) to prohibit the Secretary of the Treasury from engaging in transactions involving the exchange of Special Drawing Rights issued by the International Monetary Fund that are held by the Russian Federation or Belarus, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

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

Madam Speaker, I commend the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill) for his leadership on H.R. 6899, the Russia and Belarus SDR Exchange Prohibition Act of 2022.

Mr. Hill's legislation would codify the Biden administration's current position against exchanging any Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs, held by Russia or Belarus for U.S. dollars.

SDRs are a special reserve asset created by the International Monetary Fund to supplement the official reserves of its members. SDR allocations are distributed to all IMF member countries in proportion to their shareholding in the fund, and countries can hold their SDRs as part of their precautionary reserve balances or convert them for hard currency to finance balance of payments needs, pay for imports, adjust the composition of their reserves, or pay back IMF loans.

In August of 2021, the IMF issued a $650 billion general allocation of SDRs, of which $275 billion went to emerging market and developing countries to help transform the global pandemic crisis into a fair and resilient economic recovery.

Given the recent sanctions placed by the G7 group of nations against Russia's central bank and other Russian financial institutions, as well as the international sanctions against the banking sector in Belarus, it would be difficult for Russia or Belarus to find any country willing to convert their SDRs, especially since such a transaction would be viewed by the rest of the world as a hostile action.

Even if the central bank of Russia were able to acquire a key freely usable currency, such as U.S. dollars, euros, yen, or pounds, as a result of an SDR transaction, current sanctions would effectively immobilize those assets.

I think it is useful for Congress to reinforce the administration's position against the conversion of SDRs held by Russia or Belarus, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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

In closing, I thank the bill's author, Representative Hill, for giving the Members of the House the opportunity to act together against Russia and Belarus and their war against the free world. I urge Members on both sides of the aisle to join me in supporting H.R. 6899.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6015) to award a Congressional Gold Medal to Benjamin Berell Ferencz, in recognition of his service to the United States and international community during the post-World War II Nuremberg trials and lifelong advocacy for international criminal justice and rule of law, as amended.

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

Today I will share with my colleagues the incredible life story and mission of Benjamin Ferencz, the chief prosecutor at the Einsatzgruppen Trial in Nuremberg, Germany, the man who brought to justice the individuals responsible for orchestrating the horrific war crimes committed during World War II.

I thank the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Frankel) for sponsoring H.R. 6015, this bill, honoring Mr. Ferencz's life and legacy. Benjamin Ferencz and his family immigrated to the United States when he was an infant, fleeing the persecution of Hungarian Jews in Romania.

He grew up poor in New York, but his perseverance, intellect, and yearning for justice earned him a scholarship from Harvard Law School. He joined the Army shortly after graduation and was tasked with gathering evidence on Nazi war crimes against the Jewish people and other marginalized groups, a fate that his own family could have met had they not fled.

At the age of 27, he was appointed chief prosecutor for the United States Army for a case involving war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by 22 individuals from Einsatzgruppen, a Nazi secret police death squad operating in Nazi-controlled Eastern Europe. He declared in his opening statement that the purpose of this case was ``to affirm by international penal action man's right to live in peace and dignity, regardless of his race or creed . . . a plea of humanity to law.''

The 22 defendants were charged with the murder of over one million people, including Jews, ethnic minorities, political dissidents, persons with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQ community, those who the Third Reich deemed to be different and, therefore, lesser. Mr. Ferencz secured conviction for all 22 defendants.

He spent the following decade advocating for the institution of an international criminal court and the international rule of law to prevent something like the Nuremberg trials from ever being necessary again. As Ferencz stated, ``If law is to be respected it must apply equally to everyone everywhere. If a permanent international criminal court had already existed, these ad hoc tribunals would not have been necessary.''

Throughout his life, Mr. Ferencz sought to make the world a safer, more equitable, and more peaceful place through his denunciations of war and his advocacy for the institution of international criminal law.

For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 6015, which would grant Mr. Ferencz the highest congressional honor for his tireless efforts to advance justice.

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

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Lois Frankel), the sponsor of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Manning).

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleagues, the gentlewoman from Florida, Congresswoman Frankel, for her leadership in sponsoring H.R. 6015, and for working so hard to ensure that Mr. Ferencz receives the recognition that he so clearly deserves.

Through his prosecutorial work, his teaching, his written works and his advocacy, for the establishment of the International Criminal Court, he has directly and indirectly brought countless criminals to justice and left a lasting humanitarian legacy.

The recent reports of Russian atrocities being committed against the people of Ukraine are a reminder that war crimes are far from being a relic of a past.

Now more than ever, we must act to honor and uplift those who have dedicated their lives to advancing justice, peace, and giving a voice to the voiceless.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 6015, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mourn the untimely loss of Sergeant Daniel Martinez.

I express my deepest condolences to my friends and neighbors, the Martinez family. There is no greater pain than that of losing a child, and there are no words I can provide to mend your pain. But I want you to know that the entire Southwest Side of the region has your back.

Sergeant Daniel Martinez served his country with pride, forming close bonds with his fellow marines during his 4 years of service.

He will be remembered as a young man with a sense of humor who enjoyed watching movies and television with his siblings and loved to travel.

Daniel will be remembered by his family and our community for his commitment to his country. Above all, he will be remembered for his kindness and devotion to his family and friends.

Rest in peace, Daniel.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the passage of this year's omnibus spending bill and to express my excitement

for the community project funding the Fourth Congressional District of Illinois will receive.

These crucial funds, totaling over $10 million, will expand affordable housing; improve access to healthcare; support violence prevention and counseling; and even build an enclosure around a community swimming pool, an absolute must-have in the windy city.

Working class, immigrant neighborhoods like mine have never gotten the kind of investment and resources that other neighborhoods enjoy.

I started as an activist to change that, to bring resources to my community, and I am proud to announce that this vital funding package will transform countless lives.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the America COMPETES Act. We have heard a lot about competing with China on the global stage, and I strongly agree that we have to invest in American innovation.

But what does innovation mean if technological development and economic growth leaves everyday people behind? To truly compete, we must take a hard look inward.

Our economy is built on the backs of many low-wage workers, many of them being Latino, Black, and immigrant, like my neighbors in Chicago.

How can we compete globally as inequality rises, our healthcare system crumbles, and the middle class remains out of reach for millions?

I support the America COMPETES Act because it puts our focus on where it needs to be, on investing in communities. The bill strengthens our supply chains, builds sustainable technologies, includes people from diverse backgrounds in the STEM field, and protects and expands living- wage jobs.

It is about real access to opportunity, so more Americans can share in our country's wealth because our people are our strength.

Madam Speaker, last week, Chicago and the Nation lost a great champion for justice and civil rights, Dr. Timuel Black.

As a World War II veteran and a leader in the Black community that came to Chicago during the great migration, Tim always challenged the inequities he witnessed in the United States and abroad.

In his 102 years, Tim was a historian, educator, author, and civil rights activist. He inspired generations to fight for racial and social justice.

He fought alongside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and helped organize the march on Washington. He registered voters and raised funds to elect Harold Washington, the first Black mayor of Chicago, in 1983. He mentored the first Black President of the United States, Barack Obama.

On a personal note, I will always be grateful for Tim's support during my mayoral campaign in 2015. He said he supported me as someone who was able to communicate with everyone and transcend racial lines.

Tim profoundly shaped the struggle for civil rights in Chicago and across the country. I will seek to honor him by following his example and fighting for the voiceless in our city.

Rest in power, Tim Black.

Mr. Speaker, from this podium, and on the streets of Chicago, I have spoken out quite a bit about essential workers.

They work every day to keep our country going, often risking their lives, their families, and they deserve respect and dignity on the job.

But today, I want to talk about the courage that it takes not to go to work and to go out on strike for better working conditions.

As we speak, thousands of workers are on strike; from the nurses and healthcare workers to the people who make cereal, tractors, and whiskey. And tens of thousands more have taken strike votes and are ready to join them if they can't reach agreements with their employers.

It is a strike wave, and we are calling it ``Striketober.''

And I stand today in solidarity with these workers who are fighting for safer working conditions, a decent living wage, and the ability to retire with dignity.

Just in the past few weeks in my city of Chicago, I stood with Nabisco workers from the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers' International Union, auto mechanics from the International Association of Machinists, and employees at the Art Institute of Chicago who are fighting to join a union, AFSCME.

Only days later, the workers at a local tortilla plant in my own neighborhood, El Milagro, walked out protesting an unsafe workplace, unfair wages, and sexual harassment at the company's plants.

In recent years, teachers, nurses, county employees, nursing home workers, and even the symphony orchestra performers in our city went on strike.

They aren't just striking for themselves, they fought to provide community resources in our schools, improve patient care for our seniors, and create art for the public.

These workers and their struggles are the newest chapters of Chicago's historic role as the center of our country's labor movement.

International Workers' Day--celebrated around the world on May 1-- commemorates the Haymarket protests in Chicago in 1886, which led to the 8-hour workday and ended child labor.

The Pullman strike, brutally suppressed by our own government, is commemorated every year on Labor Day.

This is my own history, too.

I came to Chicago as an immigrant from Mexico, and my parents' jobs and benefits as Teamsters--and my own work as a member of the Retail Workers Union, as a member of the Teamsters, the United Legal Workers affiliated with the UAW--helped make me who I am today.

So when these workers walk out on strike, they walk out for all of us.

Safety at work, dignity in retirement, a living wage, these are important issues for everyone.

There is a picket line chant that says, ``If we can't get it, shut it down.'' And it is time that working-class people did just that.

Striketober was a long time coming. The Federal minimum wage has been at $7.25 for over a decade, but millionaires got 62 percent richer during the pandemic.

A vial of insulin costs $6 to make, but pharmaceutical companies sell it for as much as $275.

Rent, childcare, and medical bills go up and up, and pundits won't stop complaining about wage inflation.

So workers across the country are standing up to say: Enough is enough. And they are standing up for us.

So we have got to support these workers on the picket lines any way we can.

In Congress, this means supporting proworker legislation, like the Protecting the Right to Organize Act and the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, which guarantees workplace rights.

It means protecting frontline workers, from nurses to CTA bus drivers, to Instacart shoppers.

It means supporting workers at the bargaining table and on the picket line because when workers fight, we all win.

Si, se puede. Yes, we can.

Mr. Speaker, I want to honor the life of a community icon, an incredible storyteller, and a powerful voice of the Latino and labor rights movement, my dear friend Jesus ``Chuy'' Negrete.

Chuy was born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, but grew up in Chicago's southeast side.

Through his corridos, or folk songs, Chuy elevated the work of Cesar Chavez's United Farm Workers and national Farm Labor Organizing Committee.

Whether he was in the back of a pickup truck or in a parking lot, he would be there and he would play his heart out.

His music resonated with the Mexican-American community because it reflected the daily struggles of workers and immigrants.

Chuy loved to add humor to his lyrics, because he understood the power of making people laugh, especially during the toughest times.

He believed in the importance of honoring your roots and heritage, encouraging youth to learn about their culture and history, reminding them of its riches.

I thank Chuy for his music, for always conveying a sense of courage, giving us animo, giving us resolve, and encouraging us to stick together.

Rest in power, my friend.

Mr. Speaker, today, I want to honor the life of a family man, a entrepreneur, a community member, and a friend.

Don Camerino Gonzalez Valle, who passed away last week, embodied the American Dream. Camerino and his dad came to the U.S. to work in the Bracero program, just like my father had.

Camerino didn't fear hard work. He worked in the field, at meatpacking plants, as a taxi driver, and a bartender. But he found success by appealing to our community's cravings for food that reminded them of home. He founded Taqueria Los Comales in 1973, in our neighborhood of Little Village, serving delicious tacos al pastor, just like the ones you find in Mexico.

His strong work ethic and good eye for business soon turned into a restaurant with a chain of over 25 taquerias that went as far as Houston and Wisconsin. But Don Camerino was more than a businessman; he was, in a way, a father figure for many recently arrived immigrants who could find a plate of food and a job at his restaurants.

On holidays, like Thanksgiving and Christmas, he would keep the restaurant open so that the immigrants, who were far from home, could feel closer to their country of birth. Our common respect and admiration for our immigrant community is what brought us together as friends. He was also adamant about preserving important traditions, like la charreria, the Mexican-style rodeo, which he practiced with great discipline and honor.

When I decided to run for office, he supported me. My wife, Evelyn, and I send our thoughts to Don Camerino's family during this time. He will be sorely missed in our community.

Mr. Speaker, I commend both Chairman Pallone and Chairman DeFazio for their excellent work on moving forward the INVEST in America Act and clean water work as well.

I fought hard to advance equitable transit oriented development, create a National Frontline Transit Workforce Development Center, and ensure that our transportation system is focused on providing access to jobs and services for those who need it.

As we move forward toward a reconciliation package, I will keep fighting for robust investments to reduce carbon emissions and air pollution from transportation; expand mass transit and biking and walking options; and electrify every public transit bus, school bus, and commuter railroad in this country.

Mr. Speaker, we cannot wait any more for bold action. The climate crisis certainly won't wait.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of S.J. Res. 15, a resolution to repeal the OCC's so-called true lender rule.

Earlier this year, my State, Illinois, passed a law that protects our consumers from predatory, high-interest loans. Eighteen other States have done the same.

I introduced the House version of this resolution because the true lender rule undermines laws like ours, laws that keep working-class people out of cycles of debt they can't pay back.

The rule is a rubber stamp for rent-a-bank schemes, where a lender can dodge State law by having a bank's name on the loan paperwork. That is all. No skin in the game, no investment in our communities; just a name on the paperwork.

This rule doesn't encourage innovation. It encourages playing games. This isn't a partisan issue. As a matter of fact, last year, 82 percent of Nebraska voters joined States like Arkansas and South Dakota to protect their communities from unpayable debt, and this rule from the OCC provides bad actors with a new tool to ignore them.

So a broad coalition of over 400 organizations--rural, urban, suburban--have come together in support of this measure, and they include consumer advocates, labor advocates, veterans, credit unions, and many other actors, including evangelical congregations.

Madam Speaker, I urge this body to pass this resolution and empower working-class communities like mine that are targeted by predatory lenders, and voters across the country who support consumer protections.

Madam Speaker, today, I rise to honor my friend and activist Marcos Munoz, who lived a life of service and commitment to workers' rights.

Marcos migrated to the United States from Coahuila, Mexico, when he was 13 years old. He was looking to make money to help his mother and his siblings after his father left them.

He worked for a Texas rancher, who had him deported when Marcos asked for money he was owed after 5 months of backbreaking work.

When Marcos returned to the U.S. in his twenties, the abuse he experienced turned him into an activist, fighting for basic labor rights for farmworkers.

The late Cesar Chavez, leader of the United Farm Workers, recognized Marcos' leadership skills and asked him to lead efforts across the United States on behalf of the United Farm Workers union.

I met Marcos when he came to Chicago seeking support for the second grape boycott. I was a student at the University of Illinois at Chicago and learned a lot about labor organizing from him.

Marcos later made Chicago his home, settling in our neighborhood of Little Village, where he organized block clubs to create unity and elect representatives from the community.

He later became a steelworker, joined the United Steelworkers union, and spent his last years before retirement as manager of supplies and linen at Cook County Hospital.

Marcos passed away on May 15. I was lucky to call Marcos a mentor and a

friend. My wife, Evelyn, and I are thinking about his family during these difficult times.

May you be in glory, my brother.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Courtney Ann Neale, my office's press secretary and digital manager. Courtney passed away suddenly on May 23.

It is still hard to fully express how much my staff and I feel Courtney's spirit, her energy, and her strength, and we miss her. She was an activist to the core and a dedicated public servant, an untiring advocate for women, for working-class people, immigrants, and communities of color.

In the year before she joined our office, Courtney was diagnosed with several medical conditions that changed her daily life. Still, she continued her fight for a world where healthcare and education are guaranteed rights. Courtney stood strongly by her principles and--this I can tell you from personal experience--challenged those around her to do the same.

As press secretary and digital manager, Courtney was a member of my office's communication team. Now, communications on the Hill can feel a bit like a one-way street, getting the message out fast before turning to the next thing. But Courtney took the meaning of communications seriously. Even under the greatest time crunch, she seemed to approach each tweet, each press statement, as a two-way dialogue.

She not only got out our message; most mornings she would bring new messages in, raising attention to feedback on social media or local angles on national news. True to her title as a communicator, Courtney didn't just tell, she also learned and responded, ensuring that constituents were heard.

And while she was known as our office's authority on all things social media, she gracefully filled many other

roles in her personal life. She was an adventurous traveler; an avid reader; a doting dog mom; and beloved daughter, sister, and friend.

Despite the hectic Hill schedule, she still prioritized time with colleagues, friends, and family. Principled work was a passion, but a principled life was the goal.

So her memory is more than a legacy. It is a call to action, to take care of yourself, and take care of others as well, to give selflessly, and to savor what you have. Courtney dared to dream. She challenged us to act.

Alongside the many joyful memories she leaves with us, it is those actions that we remember. On and off Capitol Hill, Courtney helped advance the progressive cause and, through it all, remained a kind and grounded person.

As my staff and I mourn her passing, we also resolve ourselves to honor her legacy by continuing to fight for the better, fairer world that she so passionately believed in.

My prayers are with Courtney's parents, Jill and Kevin; her sister, Marissa; and the incredible network of friends she made along the way in Milwaukee, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.

Rest in peace, Courtney.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Pocan for yielding.

To Members of the body, the occupation must end, and there must be a just solution for both peoples. We cannot keep turning a blind eye to the practices that rob people of their generational homes or detaining children. Israeli and Palestinian families want to raise their children in safety and in peace, and we have got to take firm, diplomatic steps to support those goals.

While the evictions in west Jerusalem and the hostilities around Al Aqsa Mosque seem to have provoked the latest escalation in violence. We have got to take a hard look at how the situation has changed in recent years. The Biden administration must reverse Trump's detrimental actions and take steps to ensure that U.S. aid to Israel cannot be used for the seizure or destruction of Palestinian homes. We have also got to continue humanitarian aid to Palestinian territories.

The use of war-grade weapons and the killing of civilians must stop. I have always strongly supported a rights-based approach and a two- state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the current situation makes it more crucial than ever to pursue viable pathways toward equality, self-determination, and peace.

I sincerely thank Mr. Pocan and the Progressive Caucus for putting this Special Order hour together. I hope and pray that the death and self-destruction will end and that we may work toward a peaceful solution centered on the humanity and the rights of all involved.