Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support the Employee Free Choice Act. Too many workers are being harassed by their employers because they want to form a union. We must put an end to scare tactics. This bill restores the right of workers to bargain for a better life. It will help 6 million workers join for better wages, benefits, working conditions and improving the quality of life. No more employer harassment. Simple and fair. The card-based system is pressure free. When workers choose, bargaining results are more peaceful, worker- friendly. Please vote for this important legislation.

Madam Speaker, it is with deep affection that I tribute to the life of Viola DeLeon Munoz, long time San Bernardino community political leader and dear friend, better known by those who loved her as Vi.

Vi passed away in her Yucaipa home amongst the comfort of her family at the age of 75 on February 6,2007.

She was born on June 22, 1931 in Houston, Texas, but called the Inland Empire home for most of her life.

Vi was a dedicated public servant. She devoted herself to advancing her community, fighting injustice, and engaging herself politically by supporting Democratic and Latino candidates.

I still remember meeting with her, the day her and her husband Jess developed the Latino Chicano Democratic Club.

Vi's involvement with Democratic clubs, voter registration and her passion for improving the lives of Latinos in the Inland Empire are just a few areas in which she inspired those of us who know her.

Vi was also a business woman and financier for 37 years. The business that she and Jess owned earned her the recognition as one of the most successful business partners in the area and was the catalyst for Vi's commitment to the betterment of her community. It also served as the central point within the community, where many local leaders discussed political, economic, and social issues.

Some of her many accomplishments include: President and member of the 65th Assembly District committee, vice-chairwoman of the party's Chicano-Latino Caucus, and member of the San Bernardino County Democratic Central Committee since 1996.

Vi was also the founding member of the Yucaipa Democratic Club, the Comision Femenil Mexicana Nacional, and the Chicana Service Action Center.

She is survived by her husband of 56 years, Jesus (Jess) Munoz, Sr., sons Jesus Munoz, Jr., and Kenneth Munoz, daughter Beverly Munoz, five grandchildren and six great grandchildren.

Vi has left behind a wonderful legacy of community and political activism. The many relatives and friends who loved her dearly, know that she will be missed. Vi touched us all with her kind deeds and leadership in our community.

My wife Barbara, my family and I extend our deepest condolences to Vi's family. May God bestow his comfort upon them at this time.

Mr. Speaker, February 19th marks the 65th anniversary of one of the greatest mistakes in our country's long history.

On that day in 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, which authorized the internment of tens of thousands of Japanese Americans. This executive order was also applied to a smaller group of Americans of both Italian and German descent.

In recognition of the 65th anniversary of the internments, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 122. This resolution supports the goals of the Japanese American, German American, and Italian American communities in recognizing a National Day of Remembrance for those individuals who were unjustly imprisoned.

It is said that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. A National Day of Remembrance would increase public awareness of the events surrounding the internment of innocent Americans and their families.

While our society has made important strides towards ending racial discrimination and inequality in the 65 years since President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, we still have a long road ahead of us.

Just last week, alarming statistics were released on the resurgence of the KKK and other hate groups in the United States.

This is why we must pass this resolution. Our government and our leaders cannot make the mistakes of the past. Instead they must guide us to a greater understanding and respect for all Americans.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 63.

I thank the Armed Services Committee chairman, Mr. Skelton, for carrying this legislation in support of our military troops and opposing the President's plan to send at least 21,500 more troops to Iraq.

I speak today as a proud veteran who served in the United States armed service as a paratrooper in the 101st and 82nd Airborne Division.

As a veteran and as a Congressman, I voted against this war in year 2002 because no one could convince me why we had to be there in the first place. I was tormented with this decision. I talked to many of my constituents. I called the bishop in my area. I couldn't see what invading Iraq had to do with securing the homeland. No one in the administration could convince me that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But we sent our troops there anyway, without proper training or proper equipment.

This administration was in such a hurry to invade Iraq that we sent our military in there with defective body armor and Hummers that couldn't withstand the roadside bombs. In fact, before Congress made any appropriations for an Iraq invasion, the President took $600 million from our troops in Afghanistan and sent it to Iraq.

The administration has refused to listen to its own generals, to Congress or to the American people. They just do what they want.

After September 11, I was willing to do anything to make our country safe, like all of us. We came together in a bipartisan way. I believed in fighting terrorists in Afghanistan was the right thing to do, but the current situation in Iraq proves what we have been saying all along, that the Iraq war has not and will not make America safer. Instead, it is costing the American taxpayers $200 million every day. The money that we spent in Iraq could have sent 17 million high school students to college. Can you imagine, 17 million students going on to college right now that we could have provided assistance to, or paid for 6 million new school teachers, reduced the student ratio, funded the No Child Left Behind Act, or help with Katrina. But more money has been spent on this war, and yet it is costing us money for those that are losing their lives right now.

Over 3,000 men and women have given their lives for this war, and over 23,000 are coming home wounded or disabled. Mr. Speaker, over 10,000 of these troops are so severely wounded that they will never be able to serve again. Let me tell you, and you have to look at them, never able to serve again.

Now the President wants to send 21,500 more troops to the most dangerous part of Iraq. Why? Why are we sending our troops to fight in another country's civil war? Mr. Speaker, this isn't a strategy for success. This is a desperation attempt by the administration who can't admit that they made a mistake. They made a mistake, and they need to admit it. And the sooner we come to this realization, the better off this country will be. As a veteran, I understand that sometimes war is necessary, but as a veteran, I also know that war should always be the last resort because war means someone's sons and daughters won't come home. That means separating parents from their children, leaving their homes, someone making a sacrifice.

In my home State of California alone, we have lost 325 men and women in Iraq. Back in my home district, we have lost 10 outstanding young men. It just breaks my heart. Mr. Speaker, you don't put the American families through this kind of pain unless you are sure, beyond any shadow of doubt, that there are no other options. The President had failed to convince me in 2002, and I am still not convinced to this day.

I say let's support this resolution. Let's bring back our men.

General Leave

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arizona for allowing me the time to say a few words. And I want to raise my strong voice in support of H.R. 512. This is important legislation that would establish a commission to study the potential creation of a National Museum of the American Latino.

And I want to thank my good friend, Xavier Becerra, for sponsoring this bill and championing this cause, which is of great significance to many Hispanics, Latinos throughout the Nation, throughout the country, including myself.

This is a bipartisan legislation that basically asks for a study to create a National Museum of the American Latino. Bipartisan.

Currently, there are over 45 million Latinos in the United States, including Puerto Rico. The social, cultural and economic contributions of Latinos in the United States have an important history, an important history, and are growing daily. We must realize that.

American Latinos are natives to many different parts of the world. Some are from Puerto Rico, some are from South America, while others have roots and ties to Mexico. But while we hail from different countries, including from right here in the United States, we have different backgrounds, and many of us share a similar experience and a wealth of common values.

A national museum of the American Latino will help share this experience and the values not only with Latinos, but with all. It will be a sense of pride, tradition, culture and arts that would be exhibited to all Americans to see, all individuals.

I urge my colleagues to cast a vote in favor and understanding of heritage of all Americans and support this legislation.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to address the House for 1 minute.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Con. Res. 5, which would direct the President to establish Hire a Veteran Week.

As a veteran, I want to thank my colleague, Representative Holt, for introducing this resolution on behalf of our brave troops who fight for our freedom.

Madam Speaker, unemployment rates for veterans in their twenties are almost twice as high as their civilian peers.

This is unacceptable.

We're sending 18- and 19-year-olds to fight in a mistaken war in Iraq.

The least we can do is make sure that they have a good job when they come home.

The system is broken, Madam Speaker. And our veterans are paying the price.

Our veterans show us excellence in the battlefield--they will show us excellence in the workplace.

I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and to give our veterans the dignity and respect they deserve.

Madam Speaker, on January 19, 2007, Hrant Dink, a distinguished Armenian journalist, was shot dead outside the offices of his newspaper Agos in Istanbul, Turkey. A progressive voice of reason and hope for Armenians living in Turkey and around the world, Hrant Dink fought tirelessly to engage the Turkish community in open discussion of the many injustices Armenians have experienced in the past and present including the Genocide of 1915 and current human rights violations.

Hrant Dink struggied daily with the difficulties of disclosing the Armenian Genocide to the public in Turkey, yet he continued to make the difficult his lifelong passion. In his weekly columns, Dink often spoke of the complexities he felt being an Armenian who happened to be a citizen of Turkey--a country that fails to acknowledge that the Armenian Genocide occurred. As a result, Dink was charged and convicted of insulting Turkey's identity. In October 2005, after writing about the Armenian Genocide, he was given a 6-month suspended sentence.

Hrant Dink was killed because he was a courageous and outspoken journalist and continued to write his columns in hopes of educating and informing the people of Turkey. As Turkey continues to evolve as a modern secular state, it must understand that democracy requires more than free elections; freedom of the press is essential.

I express my condolences to the family, and colleagues of Hrant Dink. He was a courageous, committed columnist, and a mentor and friend to many. He will be remembered and missed.

Madam Speaker, tonight the President will give the State of the Union Address. For Hispanics, the State of the Union Address is disappointing. The President has broken his promise on education and cut funding for programs at the expense of Hispanic children. He has failed to support the higher minimum wage, and forced nearly 3 million of our workers to struggle to feed their families.

While Hispanics are fighting and dying in a mistaken war, President Bush still has no plan to make our country safer. Even when the country has cried for a comprehensive immigration reform, the President has failed to lead his own party to make the right course or take the right course of action.

Last November, Hispanics along with all Americans voted for a new direction for America. Thanks to Speaker Pelosi and the Democratic Caucus, half the Hispanic Caucus are now in leadership positions. Ya es tiempo para una nueva direccion! (It's time for a new direction!)

Mr. Speaker, I stand here in support of H. Res 51, a resolution that honors the contributions of Catholic schools.

As we get ready to celebrate Catholic Schools week, it's important to highlight and celebrate the contributions of the nearly 8,000 Catholic schools that exist in our Nation.

Catholic education has long been characterized by a commitment to high and appropriate standards in all aspects of its educational mission.

The history of Catholic schooling embodies a constant effort to promote academic excellence for a diverse group of students in an environment permeated by religious values and beliefs.

Aside from America's Catholic schools being internationally acclaimed for their academic excellence, catholic school students also learn responsibility, and how to become persons of character and integrity.

Father William Davis of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said, ``High achievement rates, high retention rates, high moral values and high student and parent satisfaction are the distinctive marks of a Catholic school.''

In my district and the surrounding areas, Catholic education is rather prevalent. The San Bernardino diocese contains at least 32 Elementary schools and 2 High schools. A new Preparatory high school is also in the works for the Coachella Valley area.

Catholic schools foster a sense of community. They encourage their students to be loving family members; and to be responsible adults within the workplace, as leaders of the world and as inhibitors of their communities.

I commend Catholic schools for holding high educational standards, instilling good moral values, and community sentiments.

Let us recognize and honor the valuable traits Catholic schools possess.

I urge the rest of Congress to stand with me, and support H. Res. 51.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 52, legislation paying tribute to Reverend Waitstill and Martha Sharp, an American couple who left the comfort and safety of their home in Massachusetts to save the lives of Jews in danger of being killed during the Holocaust.

Waitstill Sharp was a Unitarian minister and his wife Martha was a social worker.

In the late 1930s, amid the horrors of the Holocaust and a refugee crisis in Europe, the American Unitarian Association asked numerous ministers to cross the Atlantic and offer assistance. The Sharps agreed, despite the dangers and despite having young children at home whom they would have to leave behind in the care of friends and neighbors and members of their congregation.

In February 1939, the Sharps arrived in Prague, Czechoslovakia, where one of the world's largest Unitarian congregations was assisting Jewish refugees and others who opposed the Nazis, including trade unionists and political dissenters. A month later, the Germans occupied Prague, increasing the urgency of the Sharps' mission but also the risk. They remained in Prague almost six months.

Through their courage, creativity and persistence they were able to lead hundreds of people, likely thousands, to safety.

They again heeded the call to action, returning to Europe in 1940, this time based in Marseilles, France, where they helped smuggle people across the Pyrenees into neutral Portugal. The escape routes that they established enabled hundreds of refugees to survive.

Among those whom the Sharps saved from persecution and slaughter at the hands of the Nazis were many children, including Jewish children who are now elderly, living freely in America, and remember with gratitude the couple who saved their lives almost 70 years ago.

I should note that the Sharps and others who worked to save Jews not only had to worry about the Nazis and the Gestapo, Vichy officials, collaborators and informers but also had to overcome bureaucracy and anti-Semitism even among the U.S. State Department. Historians have documented that inaction, indifferences, failures and even outright hostility by American officials resulted in the tragic death of Jews during the Holocaust.

But today we do not dwell on this; instead we honor the Sharps for persevering despite such obstacles and adversity.

Some of the Sharps' surviving relatives and admirers claim they were merely ordinary people who did what anyone would have done in the face of suffering. While I would like to believe that all people of compassion would come to the aid of people in need, especially when lives are at stake, sadly I know that is not the case. It was not true during the Holocaust, and it is not true today as millions of people in America and around the world suffer poverty, hunger, disease and even genocide and yet still not enough is being done to help them.

The special and extraordinary nature of the Sharps' actions is clear by the rare and high honors they have deservedly received.

In June 2006, the Yad Vashem Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Israel honored Reverend Waitstill Sharp and Martha Sharp posthumously as ``Righteous Among the Nations'' for risking their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust.

And in September 2006, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. honored the Sharps.

There were definitely other brave, compassionate people who were inspired by their faith, values or their sense of right and wrong and therefore took steps, both small and large, to help Jews during the Holocaust. Some provided food and shelter, some refused to inform on their neighbors or cooperate with authorities enforcing murderous policies, some actively resisted against the Nazis, and some helped transport Jews to safety. But this was not the norm in Europe during the Holocaust. And we know the tragic, horrific results: over 6 million Jewish men, women and children perished.

So today we acknowledge the Sharps as American heroes, and I would add as heroes of humanity. Martha Sharp is the first American woman-- and she and Waitstill are only the second and third Americans--to be added to the honor roll of 21,000 ``righteous'' gentiles, or non-Jews, whose efforts saved countless lives during the Holocaust.

We also commend the Unitarian Universality Service Committee. UUSC was founded to

support the Sharps' work and helped rescue Jews and other refugees from Nazi persecution. The organization has continued to do good work in support of human rights all over the world and is actively engaged in efforts to stop the genocide in Darfur, Sudan.

As we honor the Sharps, let us be inspired by their heroic example and let us all commit ourselves to doing what we can--and what we must--to bring an end to human suffering.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the passage of the College Student Relief Act of 2007. This legislation will help families with the cost of college. Let's make college affordable and accessible for all students.

In California, the average student is graduating with over $15,000 in debt. Students are relying more on student loans. The cost to attend a 4-year public university has increased by 41 percent since the year 2001. Students can't afford to finish because the costs are too high. This legislation will help over 200,000 students in my home State alone. It also will give an opportunity for students to fulfill the American Dream in obtaining higher education.

We must do something about this now. It's good for our students and working families. It's good for our Nation and our future.

Let's support this legislation.

Madam Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank the chairman, Mr. Miller, for carrying this legislation. It is very important to thousands of students and giving them the accessibility to education. It is about time.

As Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, I believe this bill is a good start in helping Hispanic students across the Nation. I thank Congressman Ruben Hinojosa as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Education Taskforce for working to ensure Hispanic students have equal opportunity. Let's make sure that college is affordable and accessible for all students.

We need to prepare our students to make sure that we have a workforce for the 21st century. The only way we

can do that is to make sure that all students have access to affordable education.

We know that most of the students right now are relying on student loans. Forty-one percent right now have increased the student loans since the year 2001. So more students are relying on student loans. We want to make sure that it is affordable for every student.

Hispanics: 33 percent of Hispanics in their communities are under the age of 18 and the number of Hispanics attending colleges are growing in numbers. We want to make sure that they have access and an opportunity to fulfill their goals. It is not just about attending college. It is about completing college and making sure they become part of our workforce. In order to have a strong America, we must make sure that they fulfill their dream and opportunity. I am like many of those, the first one out of a family of 15 that was able to graduate; out of 15, the first one to graduate and obtain college. I went through the military, obtained the GI bill, obtained loans.

We want to make sure it is accessible and individuals have that opportunity. An educated nation is a successful nation. The only way we can do that is providing this service.

I encourage everyone to support H.R. 5. I thank Mr. Miller for carrying this legislation and caring about many individuals, and I thank my colleague across the aisle too as well, because he has cared about education.

We need to support this legislation to make sure that every student has access to affordable education, to make sure that we have the workforce that meets the needs of the 21st century.

Madam Speaker, I ask for unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks.

All of us here, representing Congress have the distinct honor and privilege of working in the one place where America's history meets the law of our land, the one place that displays the many historic monuments, memorials, and permanent images of our Nation.

One of the most powerful images in Washington for me is the image of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., conveying his dream during his 1963 ``March on Washington'' on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Dr. King dedicated his life to achieving equal rights for all Americans and had a clear vision on that day in 1963 for what America should look like today.

Dr. King understood government has a fundamental responsibility to meet the needs of all Americans regardless of race or economic class. His vision was for true equal economic opportunity for all. In his ``I Have a Dream'' speech, Dr. King spoke of the ``fierce urgency of now.'' He said, ``This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism.'' Those words were true in 1963 and continue to remain true today.

My Democratic colleagues and I are working hard to ensure that Congress fulfills its responsibility to realizing Dr. King's dream. Within these first 100 hours of this Congress, we have already passed legislation to make the American people safer, make our Congress more honest and open, make life better for our seniors, and to give a living wage to all Americans.

As our Nation celebrates Martin Luther King Day, we remember him as a beacon of change. Dr. King helped change America by leading the civil rights movement. He gave people the faith and courage to work peacefully for change to stop racial discrimination, and promote equality and opportunity across America. So on this day, and everyday, let us recommit to changing and working to bring about opportunity for all Americans.

Madam Speaker, as we celebrate Dr. King's birthday, let us carry out his vision for social justice, equality, and peace. Let us continue to work together for the common cause, in the effort of humanity and brotherhood, so all people may enjoy a better way of life and a higher dignity.

Mr. Speaker, the rising cost of prescription drugs has become a serious problem for millions of our national seniors. Forty- three million are enrolled in Medicare. In fact, more than 20 percent of seniors in Medicare are minorities: 3.9 million are African Americans, 3.1 million are Latinos, and 1.7 million are other racial and ethnic minorities. Many of them are already

on fixed income. Many of these high prices are forcing them to choose between medicine and paying for their rent or doing without something else.

What Republicans pushed through in the Medicare drug program promised to bring the drug prices down. Yet they have gone up. Yet they plan to protect the rich drug companies' profits and do not go far enough to lower these expenses that are affecting a lot of our minorities. I know firsthand because I have experienced that.

It is clear that this legislation has failed to bring down the drug prices. Giving the Secretary the authority to bargain with the drug manufacturers will result in lower costs for 22 million Medicare enrollees in part D. I ask that we support H.R. 4. This is commonsense legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Alice Paul, a woman who dedicated her life to equality, to give her a Congressional Gold Medal.

Alice Paul was a remarkable person who made America more democratic by fighting for equal rights and creating opportunities for women to participate in politics. Thanks to Alice Paul, Nancy Pelosi was able to become Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. Even after her death, her influence continues to be significant on our society and culture.

Yesterday marked the day that on January 10, 1918, the House of Representatives first voted to give women the right to vote by approving the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Alice Paul spearheaded the effort to pass the 19th amendment, granting all American women the right to vote.

Because of Alice Paul's legacy, my daughters, Natalie and Jennifer, have the right to participate in the electoral process. My grandchildren and their children will forever have this right.

Alice Paul's contribution to America cannot be understated. Without her, women may not enjoy many of the rights they have today.

Please cosponsor this important legislation.