Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor David von Dohlen, an upstanding member of the Nashville community, on the occasion of his retirement as treasurer of the Green Hills Rotary Foundation, a position he has held since 1989.

A charter member of the Green Hills Rotary Club, Mr. von Dohlen has freely contributed his time and efforts to the organization. He and his wife Betsy have participated in every club event and fundraising activity since the club's founding: the ``Trees to Trails'' Christmas tree recycling event, the Swing Dance dinner and auction, the Million- Dollar Shootout competition and the mini-car races in Centennial Park. He also volunteered his accounting skills as Club treasurer and treasurer of the Green Hills Rotary Foundation since its creation in 1989.

It should come as no surprise that Mr. von Dohlen has previously been recognized as the Green Hills Rotary Club's Man of the Year. Nor should it surprise anyone that, after twenty years of service, Mr. von Dohlen has elected to take a richly deserved break.

And so, Madam Speaker, it is my privilege to stand before this House today as a representative of David von Dohlen, a man who exemplifies the Rotary motto of ``Service above Self.'' It is people like Mr. von Dohlen who strengthen our communities and show the way for future generations--not through grand deeds or gestures, but through a life lived in service to others.

Today I ask my colleagues to join me in saluting David von Dohlen for two decades of service to the Green Hills Rotary Club, the Green Hills Rotary Foundation and to the people of Nashville, Tennessee. We celebrate his many contributions to our community and to our country. And in a week in which the President launched a national ``Summer of Service,'' we commend Mr. von Dohlen to our fellow Americans as a model of what citizenship and service can be.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Edward Stanley Temple, a man whose dedication to coaching track and field has earned him recognition as Tennessee's most honored and accomplished track and field coach.

Born September 20, 1927 in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Coach Temple was himself an all-state athlete in track, football and basketball. Temple graduated from Tennessee State University (TSU) in Nashville, Tennessee, earning both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees. For forty-four years, he served as the head women's track coach at TSU and taught sociology.

During the 1950s and 1960s, Coach Temple's ``Tigerbelles'' dominated the sport of track and field, earning a total of 23 Olympic medals, 13 of them gold. Coach Temple's Tigerbelles won their first medal in the 1952 Olympic Games when fifteen-year-old Barbara Jones Slater became the youngest woman to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field. One of the most notable Tigerbelles, Wilma Rudolph, became the first female athlete to

win three gold medals during the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome, Italy.

Coach Temple was the head women's track coach for two consecutive U. S. Olympic teams, in 1960 and 1964, as well as an assistant coach for the 1980 games. In addition to his coaching ability, Coach Temple was also a strong proponent of education and to his credit, thirty-nine of the Tigerbelle Olympians graduated from college with one or more degrees.

Coach Temple continues to contribute to the greater Nashville community as an active member of the YMCA, Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Nashville Sports Authority, New Hope Academy and Clark Memorial United Methodist Church.

On Tuesday, May 26, 2009, Coach Temple will be honored for his lifetime of achievements at an event in Nashville, Tennessee named ``The Man, The Memory, The Mission.''

Today, I join the citizens of my district in honoring Coach Edward Temple and his inspiring legacy that lives on in Nashville and throughout the world.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the accomplishments of my hometown American Legion Post 88 Auxiliary.

First, the Post Auxiliary has been a great help to my constituents and me monitoring legislation that benefits veterans and their families.

But Unit 88 also works directly to support our troops overseas. The Post Auxiliary had several mailings of care packages each worth more than $1,500 to servicemen and woman to let them know how proud all of Nashville is of them for giving their time, efforts and sometimes their lives to support our freedom. Besides the care packages, they sent over 900 pocket flags for our service people to carry with them. And the troops appreciate it. Besides many e-mails and thank you letters, the 732nd Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron sent a proclamation and flag thanking the Post for their efforts.

The Post Auxiliary works diligently to care for our veterans after they return from overseas as well. They visit veterans in the Veteran's Hospital in Nashville and in Murfreesboro, TN each month to give them goodie bags and visit with them. And they held a Christmas party at each facility to let the veterans know how much our country cares for and supports them. They participated in ``Operation Stand Down,'' a 3- day event to assist homeless veterans, by serving meals and donating clothing.

Funds were raised to send veterans' children backpacks for school and we gave needy veterans' children gifts and food at Christmas.

As I'm sure everyone is familiar with, the American Legion sells poppies every May in time to honor our veterans on Memorial Day. This year, the Post 88 Auxiliary raised over $1,300 and then hosted a fashion show to raise an additional $2,000.

Finally, beyond the work supporting our troops and veterans, the Post Auxiliary also serves our local community. The Post 88 Auxiliary raised funds to send 16 girls to Girls State where they learn about government and legislative processes. In December, they held a party for handicapped children complete with live music by the Timeline Band who was generous enough to donate their time. In February, the Post Auxiliary held an essay contest that had over 200 submissions on the theme ``America: Home of the Brave, the Land I Love.''

And as in every year since 9/11, the Post Auxiliary held a September 11 Memorial Ceremony to remember all those who lost their lives in that terrorist attack.

I'm proud to represent Post 88 Auxiliary. They are the best of Tennessee as well as the country.

Madam Speaker, I am honored to select Robert and Donna DePriest as the Fifth District of Tennessee's Angels in Adoption nominee this year.

Robert and Donna, and their children, Matthew and Melissa--all of Old Hickory, Tennessee--have devoted almost 15 years of their lives to the love, care, and support of numerous children from Tennessee's foster care system. I greatly admire their service to help provide a home to some of the neediest children in our society.

The DePriests stand out as foster parents because of their commitment to medically fragile children--many of whom had a very short life expectancy. The devotion and sacrifice this family has made to these special children has been truly above and beyond their call of duty. Due to the specific needs of these children, the family is often required to be specially trained in a variety of medical procedures. Though the level of care needed for these special children has frequently made it difficult for the DePreists to participate in family activities outside the home, they have still remained both willing and passionate about continuing to provide homes and care for many children in Tennessee.

The DePriest family has adopted four of the children that they cared for over the years. These children are Zachary, 12, Angel, 5, Heaven, 4, and Savannah, 2.

I appreciate all that the DePriest family has done, and thank them for their service. I hope that the DePriest family will continue to love and care for Tennessee's children for many years to come.

Mr. Speaker, for 18 years, Members of Congress have had the pleasure of working with an exemplary representative. And for 18 years, the constituents of northern Alabama have been represented by an extraordinary man. Today, I would like to honor the service of my friend and colleague, Bud Cramer.

Over his time here in Congress, Bud has generated a noteworthy list of accomplishments: co-founder of the Blue Dog Coalition, one of the strongest allies for NASA, and a tireless advocate for children, authoring the monumental National Children's Advocacy Program Act. He managed to balance national needs while staying true to his Huntsville roots. Bud, your absence will be a loss not just for the Blue Dog Coalition, not just for Congress, but for the Nation as a whole. I wish you the best in your years to come.

Madam Speaker, I would like to submit for the Record a letter of support for the economic rescue plan currently before Congress submitted by the Business Roundtable.

Business Roundtable,

Washington, DC, October 1, 2008.

To: Members of Congress

Re: Economic Rescue Plan

The failure to pass emergency legislation to rescue the

U.S. financial system will put our entire economy at risk.

The resulting turmoil in equity markets has already wiped out

hundreds of billions of dollars in household wealth and the

retirement savings of the American people. But the impact of

this crisis extends well beyond the financial industry.

As business leaders representing companies that generate

more than $5 trillion of U.S. GDP--more than one-third of the

U.S. economy--we are already seeing the damage spread to

every sector of our economy. Credit is being shut off to both

small businesses trying to meet payroll and families

struggling to pay college tuition bills. Retail sales are

declining each week as consumer confidence collapses. More

business failures, job losses and significantly higher

unemployment loom on the horizon.

Further delay will only increase these adverse impacts on

America's economy. We urge Congress to act immediately to

pass bipartisan legislation to stabilize the U.S. financial

system and contain the damage to our broader economy while

that opportunity still exists. The American people have

always risen to whatever economic challenges they have faced,

and with swift congressional action we can meet this crisis

and restore our economy to its historic path of strong growth

and rising prosperity.

Sincerely,

Enrique O. Santacana, President and Chief Executive

Officer, ABB Inc.; Miles D. White, Chairman and CEO,

Abbott; William D. Green, Chairman & CEO, Accenture;

Evan G. Greenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive

Officer, ACE Group; Gary C. Butler, President and CEO,

ADP; Ronald A. Williams, Chairman and CEO, Aetna Inc.;

Klaus Kleinfeld, President and CEO, Alcoa Inc.; John E.

McGlade, Chairman, President, and CEO, Air Products and

Chemicals, Inc.; James L. Wainscott, Chairman,

President & CEO, AK Steel Corporation; Thomas J.

Wilson, Chairman, President & CEO, Allstate Insurance

Company; Lee Styslinger, III, Chairman & CEO, Altec,

Inc.; Michael G. Morris, Chairman, President and Chief

Executive Officer, American Electric Power Company,

Inc.

Kenneth I. Chenault, Chairman and CEO, American Express

Company; James M. Cracchiolo, Chairman and Chief

Executive Officer, Ameriprise Financial; James T.

Hackett, Chairman, President & CEO, Anadarko Petroleum

Corporation; Paul W. Jones, Chairman and CEO, A.O.

Smith Corporation; G. Steven Farris, President, Chief

Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer, Apache

Corporation; Steven F. Leer, Chairman & CEO, Arch Coal,

Inc.; Patricia A. Woertz, Chairman, CEO & President,

Archer Daniels Midland Company; Charles G. ``Chip''

McClure, Chairman, CEO and President, ArvinMeritor,

Inc.; Dean A. Scarborough, President & CEO, Avery

Dennison; Ronald L. Nelson, Chairman & CEO, Avis Budget

Group; Riley P. Bechtel, Chairman & CEO, Bechtel Group,

Inc.; Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman and CEO, The

Blackstone Group.

W. James McNerney, Jr., Chairman of the Board, President

and Chief Executive Officer, The Boeing Company; Robert

A. Malone, Chairman & President, BP America Inc.;

Michael T. Dan, Chairman, President & CEO, The Brink's

Company; John A. Swainson, CEO, CA, Inc.; Harold D.

Boyanovsky, President and CEO, Case New Holland Inc.;

James W. Owens, Chairman and CEO, Caterpillar, Inc.;

Kathryn V. Marinello, Chairman and Chief Executive

Officer, Ceridian Corporation; Dave O'Reilly, Chairman

and CEO, Chevron Corporation; H. Edward Hanway,

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, CIGNA

corporation; Muhtar Kent, President and Chief Operating

Officer, The Coca-Cola Company; Mayo A. Shattuck, III,

Chairman, President & CEO, Constellation Energy; David

F. Dougherty, President and CEO, Convergys Corporation.

Douglas W. Stotlar, President & CEO, Con-way Inc.;

Wendell P. Weeks, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,

Corning Incorporated; Eric C. Fast, President & Chief

Executive Officer, Crane Co.; Michael J. Ward,

Chairman, President & CEO, CSX Corporation; Tim Solso,

Chairman & CEO, Cummins Inc.; Robert W. Lane, Chairman

and CEO, Deere & Company; James H. Quigley, Chief

Executive Officer, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu; Robert S.

Miller, Executive Chairman, Delphi Corporation; J.T.

Battenberg, III, Chairman, CEO--Retired, Delphi

Corporation; Andrew N Liveris, Chairman & CEO, The Dow

Chemical Company; Chad Holiday, Chairman and CEO,

DuPont; J. Brian Ferguson, Chairman and Chief Executive

Officer, Eastman Chemical Company.

Antonio M. Perez, Chairman and CEO, Eastman Kodak

Company; Alexander M. Cutler, Chairman and CEO, Eaton

Corporation; John C. Lechleiter, President and CEO, Eli

Lilly and Company; James S. Turley, Chairman and Chief

Executive Officer, Ernst & Young LLP; William G.

Walter, President and Chief Executive Officer, FMC

Corporation; Lewis Hay, III, Chairman and Chief

Executive Officer, FPL Group, Inc.; Jeffrey R. Immelt,

Chairman & CEO, GE; G.R. Wagoner, Jr., Chairman and

Chief Executive Officer, General Motors Corporation;

Marshall O. Larsen, Chairman, President & CEO, Goodrich

Corporation; Dinesh C. Paliwal, Chairman & CEO, Harman

International Industries, Inc.; David M. Cote, Chairman

and Chief Executive Officer, Honeywell International

Inc.; Brendan McDonagh, CEO, HSBC North America

Holdings Inc.

Mike McCallister, President and Chief Executive Officer,

Humana Inc.; Samuel J Palmisano, Chairman, President &

CEO, IBM Corporation; John V. Faraci, Chairman and

Chief Executive Officer, International Paper; Steven R.

Loranger, Chairman, President and CEO, ITT Corporation;

Steve Roell, Chairman and CEO, Johnson Controls, Inc.;

Timothy P. Flynn, Chairman & CEO, KPMG; Edmund F.

Kelly, Chairman, President and CEO, Liberty Mutual

Group; Stuart H. Reese, Chairman, President and CEO,

MassMutual Financial Group; Harold McGraw III,

Chairman, President and CEO, The McGraw-Hill Companies;

John H. Hammergren, Chairman and CEO, McKesson

Corporation; David B. Snow, Jr., Chairman & CEO, Medco

Health Solutions, Inc.; Gregory Q. Brown, President &

Co-CEO, Motorola, Inc.

John A. Luke, Jr., Chairman & CEO, MWV Corporation;

Thomas C. Nelson, Chairman, President & CEO, National

Gypsum Company; Jerry Jurgensen, Chief Executive

Officer, Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company; Dan

Ustian, Chairman, President & CEO, Navistar; Ted

Mathas, President & CEO, New York Life Insurance; C.W.

Moorman, Chairman, President and CEO, Norfolk Southern

Corporation; Daniel R DiMicco, Chairman and CEO, NUCOR

CORPORATION; Steve Odland, Chairman & CEO, Office

Depot, Inc.; Michael H. Thaman, Chairman and CEO, Owens

Corning; Richard L. Wambold, Chairman and CEO, Pactiv

Corporation; Jeffrey B. Kindler, Chairman and CEO,

Pfizer Inc.; Steve Angel, Chairman and CEO, Praxair,

Inc.

Dennis M. Nally, Chairman and Senior Partner,

PricewaterhouseCoopers; Larry Zimpleman, President and

Chief Executive Officer, Principal Financial Group;

A.G. Lafley, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive

Officer, The Procter & Gamble Company; Ralph Izzo,

Chairman of the Board, President & Chief Executive

Officer, Public Service Enterprise Group Inc.; Henry R.

Silverman, Chairman, Realogy Corporation; Keith D.

Nosbusch, Chairman & CEO, Rockwell Automation; Brenda

C. Barnes, Chairman and CEO, Sara Lee Corporation;

James H. Goodnight, CEO and Founder, SAS; Fred Hassan,

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Schering-Plough

Corporation; J. Patrick Spainhour, CEO, ServiceMaster

Global Holdings; George Nolen, CEO, Siemens

Corporation; Edward B. Rust Jr., Chairman and CEO,

State Farm Insurance.

Lewis B. Campbell, Chairman, President and Chief

Executive Officer, Textron Inc.; Marijn E. Dekkers,

President and CEO, Thermo Fisher Scientific; Tom Lynch,

Chief Executive Officer, Tyco Electronics; Edward D.

Breen, Chairman and CEO, Tyco International; Jim Young,

Chairman, Union Pacific; Louis R. Chenevert, President

& Chief Executive Officer, United Technologies

Corporation; Ivan Seidenberg, Chairman and CEO,

Verizon; Dan Fulton, President and CEO, Weyerhaeuser

Company; Jeff M. Fettig, Chairman and CEO, Whirlpool

Corporation; Steven J. Malcolm, Chairman, President &

CEO, The Williams Companies, Inc.; Anne M. Mulcahy,

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Xerox

Corporation; William D. Zollars, Chairman, President &

CEO, YRC Worldwide.

Madam Speaker, I will be unable to vote this afternoon on H.R. 6867, the Unemployment Compensation Extension Act. Had I been in attendance, I would have voted ``yea.''

Madam Speaker, I was absent for several votes on Tuesday, September 23, 2008, for personal reasons. Had I been present to vote on passage of H.R. 5244, the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights, I would have voted ``yes.'' Likewise, had I been present to vote on passage of H.R. 6897, the Filipino Veterans Equity Act, I would have voted ``yes.''

Thanks to my friend and colleague Mr. Towns of New York and my friend from Connecticut, Mr. Shays.

This is a very important bill for cleaning up the mess in government. Inspectors General are the watchdogs on behalf of the U.S. taxpayer to make sure that the waste, fraud and abuse that can occur in any Federal agency is cleaned up.

This bill is long overdue. We've been working on it for a long time. Sadly, it took many years for it to be brought up for a vote. But now with the Democratic majority, it passed, as my friend from New York noted, overwhelmingly. It has been passed in the Senate, and now will soon be enacted into law.

The key points are these: We needed to professionalize the IGs. These are wonderful public servants, but due to historical accident, some of them are appointed by the President, some are appointed by the agency heads, some of them are more independent than others. There's been a lot of confusion there, and they simply haven't had the independence and the accountability that they need to have to serve the U.S. taxpayer.

I want to thank, in particular, previous legislative directors that I've had who've worked on this bill for literally many years. Anne Kim deserves great credit. Cicely Simpson deserves great credit. And my current Legislative Director, James Leuschen, deserves great credit because these are the folks who really carried the ball during the years in which we were, literally, unable to get a vote.

Believe it or not, this bill even faced, this year, a Presidential veto threat; they were so worried about reducing the patronage that they had had in past appointments.

But now, finally, the IGs of America will be professionalized. That is good news, not only for every Federal agency, but also, most importantly, for the Federal taxpayer.

No matter how much oversight we conduct in this Congress, and I'm proud to see the Oversight and Government Reform Committee revitalized under Henry Waxman's leadership, because we are conducting the hearings that really should have been held over many years.

But no matter how watchful Congress is in looking over Federal agencies, we can't be on the ground in the agency every day the way Inspectors General can be.

So I want to congratulate my friends from New York and Connecticut because these two gentlemen are true public servants. Their hearts are in the right place when it comes to protecting the taxpayer, and now we've even persuaded the majority of the House and the Senate and the White House to do the right thing.

I hope we can have a substantial vote on the suspension for professionalizing Inspectors General of the United States of America.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize Lake Providence Missionary Baptist Church and offer my heartfelt congratulations on its 140th anniversary.

Founded in 1868, five years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the first members of the congregation were former slaves and their children, who worshiped together on former slave plantations. These faithful few endured many hardships, yet the congregation flourished under the guidance of their first pastor, Rev. Larry A. Thompson. Lake Providence Missionary Baptist Church grew from a scattering of plantations, establishing a permanent structure and soon becoming a beacon for the surrounding community.

Over the past 140 years, Lake Providence Missionary Baptist Church has seen over 20 pastors. Currently, Rev. H. Bruce Maxwell serves as pastor of the church, which has grown under each successive pastor. Today, the sanctuary seats over 3,700. Lake Providence Missionary Baptist now houses a range of ministries, offering programs for youth, young adults, and senior citizens. In the community it promotes health awareness, runs a prison ministry and offers bereavement assistance and counseling. Lake Providence Missionary Baptist stands firm in its vision to touch all citizens, no matter their age.

Madam Speaker, I join everyone in Tennessee's Fifth District in applauding Lake Providence Missionary Baptist Church. I ask my colleagues in the 110th Congress to join me in commending the church for continuing to shape the lives of the Nashville community and serving as a vital link in Nashville's history.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to salute a man who has touched the lives of so many Tennesseans, as well as many the world, through his long and distinguished military career, culminating as Chief of the Air Force Reserve and commander for the Air Force Reserve Command.

General John A. Bradley was commissioned in 1967 after completing the Air Force ROTC program as a distinguished graduate at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

As a fighter pilot, General Bradley flew 337 combat missions in Vietnam. He commanded a fighter training squadron, fighter group and wing and Reserve numbered air force. General Bradley also served as the Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for Reserve Matters. He has over 7,000 flying hours in the T-38, A-37, A-10, F-4 and F-16.

General Bradley's noteworthy service has been recognized for his service with numerous devices on medals for the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Combat Readiness Medal, Vietnam Service

Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal, and Kuwait Liberation Medal, Government of Kuwait.

General Bradley's superior leadership propelled the Air Force Reserve Command to meet or exceed every mission requirement while effectively managing limited resources in an ever-changing, post-September-11 environment. His ``One Air Force, Same Fight . . . an Unrivaled Wingman'' Vision provided a roadmap for the Air Force Reserve Command to execute over 39 Total Force Integration and Base Realignment and Closure changes affecting 75 percent of its units.

He supported the Combatant Commands with over 27,000 volunteer and mobilized reservists. He proactively led the Command's steadfast support of Operations Noble Eagle, Enduring Freedom, and Iraqi Freedom as well as the rapid response to the 2005 hurricane strikes. As the Air Force lead for the Air Force Smart Operations 21 Caring for People process, he made recommendations to improve programs essential to the health and welfare of Airmen.

General Bradley has retired home to Nashville, TN. On behalf of a grateful Nation, I thank General Bradley, his wife Jan and their daughter Leigh Ann for their commitment and sacrifices made throughout this distinguished military career. Congratulations on completing an outstanding and successful career.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor Brother W.L. Baker, a fine citizen and leader in Wilson County, Tennessee, on the occasion of his 100th birthday, August 3, 2008.

Brother Baker has served God as a Baptist minister for more than 80 years, preaching to all in earshot and ministering to all in need. In recent years, in his so-called retirement, Brother Baker has actively served several congregations across Wilson County. Even today, he is an associate pastor at Calvary Baptist Church and has been honored as the oldest living graduate of Cumberland University.

Madam Speaker, it gives me great pride to represent someone as selfless, as dedicated to God and fellow man, and as full of life as Brother W.L. Baker. In his actions, he serves as a role model for Americans everywhere and for all of us in the 110th Congress. We are a better people because of his 100 years among us. I ask you to join me in wishing him heartfelt congratulations on his birthday; may he have many more years of peace, gratitude and prosperity.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to recognize Varallo's, Nashville's oldest continuously operated restaurant, and offer my heartfelt congratulations on its 101st anniversary.

Founded in 1907 by Frank Varallo, Sr., a former traveling musician who played for the likes of President Theodore Roosevelt, Varallo's Restaurant has been a gathering place for Tennessee's governors and legislators, Nashville's mayors and politicians, musicians and movie stars, athletes and artists, business leaders and students, and anyone who was hungry.

Four generations of the Varallo family have served their world famous ``chile''--a special recipe acquired by Frank Varallo, Sr., during his travels in South America. At the age of 14, Frank Varallo, Jr., took over the business upon the death of his father. For more than 70 years, Frank, Jr., served the restaurant's unique three-way ``chile'' combination to generations of Tennesseans and made a reputation for himself by providing inspirational messages that came to be known as ``Thoughts from The Bottom of a Chili Bowl.''

Today, great-grandson Todd Varallo, who joined the business shortly after he graduated from high school, operates the restaurant and continues to serve up the ``chile'' that launched the restaurant's ``century of success.'' The restaurant also continues to be the scene of many negotiations, meetings, conferences and consultations that shape the course of Nashville and Tennessee history.

Madam Speaker, I join everyone in Tennessee's Fifth District in applauding Varallo's Restaurant, and I commend the entire Varallo family for their century-long service to the citizens of Nashville and middle Tennessee.

I thank my friend Mr. McDermott for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this bill. It does great work to help our foster children nationwide. It's long overdue, many of these reforms, and, thankfully, it's paid for. As a Blue Dog, my colleagues know that I am focused on fiscal responsibility issues. So this bill does good not only for the foster kids, but also it does not injure our budget.

I hope that people realize that while this bill is a very positive step, it is an incremental step. There is so much more that we need to do to improve our foster care and adoption system. My friend from Washington (Mr. McDermott) has a very comprehensive bill in this regard. We need to look at that. First we are going to have to figure out a way to pay for it. But investing in kids is an investment in our own future.

In my opinion, the area of foster care is perhaps the most broken area of Federal law. So let's not use this small step we are taking today as a reason for inaction in the future. Let's use it as a stepping stone to bigger, better, bolder reforms that would help the half million children who are in government supervision today. There are 10,000 in Tennessee alone, and we're not doing justice by these children.

Today's bill will help with kinship care and helping them get care when they have aged out of the system at 19, 20, 21, but there is so much more that we need to do.

So I thank my friend the gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott) for his amazing leadership in this year. It's an accomplishment what we are doing today. I urge all Members to support it. But this is just the beginning.

I thank the chairman, Ike Skelton of Missouri, who has done a tremendous job of leading this important bill through this Congress and including this very, very important amendment that I urge my colleagues to support.

No Member of this body has done more to promote roles and missions reform than Ike Skelton. He was present at the creation of Goldwater- Nichols back in the 1980s, and he is pushing the Pentagon hard today to keep America number 1, to make sure that we're getting our roles and missions right.

I am personally grateful that he sponsored the panel in which seven Members, on a bipartisan basis, reached unanimous agreement that we need to tackle this important subject.

I want to thank, in particular, my ranking member, Phil Gingrey, but all of the panel members, whether it's Mr. Larsen, Ms. Gillibrand, Admiral Sestak, Mr. Conaway and Mr. Davis. It was a very important effort to work on. I look forward to the passage of this amendment, when we can have a standing committee within the Pentagon itself to focus on this important issue.

So I congratulate all of my colleagues in the House. This is the Duncan Hunter Defense Authorization bill. This is a landmark bill for the strength and safety of our country. This amendment will make that bill even stronger for future generations.