Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my deep appreciation for our Nation's volunteer honor guards. As the Greatest Generation continues to age, a number of our World War II heroes are passing on. Volunteer honor guards serve as ceremonial guards, flag detail, rifle squads, and pallbearer escorts at many of these funerals.

The men of these honor guards receive no pay for their service. They purchase their own uniforms and provide their own transportation. Many of them are over age 70.

I would like to take a moment to personally thank the 23 men of the Bella Vista Honor Guard who served at my brother's funeral earlier this year. The men of the Bella Vista Honor Guard serve at more than 100 funerals in Benton and Washington counties in the Third District of Arkansas. Sometimes they serve at two funerals a day.

They are so representative of the thousands who volunteer nationwide to ensure that our veterans are given the honor and remembrance they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I know I speak on behalf of our entire Nation when I express my gratitude for the dedicated men of America's volunteer honor guards.

Mr. Speaker, this year marks the 125th anniversary of the Wiederkehr Wine Cellars near Altus, AR. Many of my colleagues might be surprised to know that fine wine is being produced in this small western Arkansas town and, in fact, has been for the past 125 years. In 1880, Johann Andreas Wiederkehr emigrated from Switzerland to America, choosing a spot in the beautiful Ozark Mountains to plant the grapes, blackberries and persimmons that would make the blend for his first wines. He chose the spot in the Ozark Mountains to settle because the soil, climb and shape of the countryside closely matched the conditions that had led to some of Europe's greatest wines.

One of the finest wineries in the country, the original cellar has been converted into the Weinkeller Restaurant, specializing in authentic dishes from the Wiederkehr family's homeland of Switzerland. The cellar is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the Wiederkehr family on this milestone. I encourage my colleagues to take a tour of Arkansas' wine country on their next vacation.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

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

I rise today to offer an amendment that would give the United Nations greater flexibility in the peacekeeping operations that they are involved in by allowing voluntary military personnel to serve at the Department of Peacekeeping Operations in New York. This was the norm until early 1999. Over time, 130 experienced officers had been loaned. They had expertise in mission planning, logistics, all of the things that are so important in these types of missions. There was a lull and because of the complaint of some of the other nations that 85 percent of this group came from developed countries, it was discontinued.

As a member of the Committee on International Relations, I frequently hear of the problems that we have with peacekeeping, the atrocities in various parts of the world. Again, I think that this is a situation that would greatly remedy that.

Rotating these professionals into the U.N. on a periodic basis provides a means for introducing new ideas, techniques, and experience without having to deal with terminating contracts or moving people and positions. It allows the system to deal with unexpected demands. The U.N.'s new operational responsibilities demand a more flexible approach.

I think the other thing is that this would not cost anything. This would be a mechanism where, in fact, I think we could save a great deal of money by being much more efficient. We are asking the United Nations to be more effective with their planning and their operations. The other thing that is important is that in no way does this require our Department of Defense to assign any U.S. military personnel. It only leaves the door open.

I want to thank my chairman and thank the ranking member for their work on this and, again, our staffs.

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

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

Not too long ago, my wife came to me. She had, the night before, seen a program on television. She said, John, is it true that the U.N. peacekeepers are trading sex for peanut butter with 9- and 10-year-old kids? She could not believe it. I looked at her, and I said, Cathy, it's true. That is happening.

I talked to Chairman Smith and he subsequently held hearings. They came over and assured us that things were getting better. We were told that basically the implication was on the battlefield, these things happen, sexual abuse occurs. My response was, This isn't sexual abuse. That taking pictures of 9- and 10-year-old kids, exploiting them, was child abuse and a criminal matter.

We heard that there would be zero tolerance. A week later, another television program and the guy said, We have heard there is going to be zero tolerance. He said, What does that mean? He showed pictures of these guys sneaking out at night to a village, again to do their work and showed a picture of a guy riding around in a U.N. vehicle with a prostitute.

I think we have worked, we have held our hearings, we have coerced. I think the time now is to demand accountability. Again, I would ask all of my colleagues to vote for this amendment.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the sacrifice made by Lance Corporal Aaron Mankin of Rogers, Arkansas. I grew up with Aaron's father Steve, and my children grew up with Aaron. They are a wonderful family.

Last month Aaron, a photographer and writer for the Public Affairs Office at Camp Fallujah, was badly wounded while serving in Iraq. He suffered intense burns and major lung damage when the armored vehicle he was traveling in ran over a land mine in Northern Iraq.

I had been in Fallujah several weeks before, and by chance Aaron saw I was there. He actually showed us around, and I cannot tell you how proud I was of him and how proud he was of being a marine serving his country in Iraq.

Aaron was sent to Brook Army Medical Center in San Antonio and placed in the ICU. The damage to his lungs was so extensive that he was placed on a ventilator. He had third-degree burns on his arms and had to have his thumb and two-thirds of his index finger on his right hand amputated.

Aaron's will to persevere is strong though, Mr. Speaker. He is off the ventilator, and he recently took his first steps since the accident. He has told his parents that he is looking forward to rejoining his fellow marines after rehab, and because of the Lord and His blessing, the doctors at Brook Army Medical Center feel positive about his chances of doing that.

Mr. Speaker, at the young age of 23, Aaron has made a tremendous sacrifice for his country. He is a true American hero. I ask my colleagues to keep Aaron and his family in their thoughts and prayers as he continues down the path of recovery.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 242, I was detained concerning a pressing legislative matter, Base Realignment in the 3rd District of Arkansas, and unable to vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Madam Speaker, I rise today to mourn the loss of Army Specialist Dustin Fisher. Dustin, a Van Buren, Arkansas, native, gave his life serving his country in Iraq. He was one of three soldiers killed by terrorists when a car bomb was detonated near Dustin's convoy in Baghdad on May 24.

This is especially hard because not only has our State and Nation lost a wonderful young man, but his father, Waldo, is one of the finest people I know. Hundreds of people attended Dustin's funeral on Monday, a tribute to the many lives he touched in the community of Van Buren. He was remembered as a ``fun-loving person'' who always held a soft- spot for the women in his life: his mother, Brenda; sister, April; and his wife, Alicia, to whom he was wed only weeks before being deployed.

Dustin always admired his father, Waldo, and his brother, Shane, who are both veterans. Dustin shared his father's love of country by following in his footsteps and enlisting in the Army in 2003. Waldo said that Dustin made him more proud than words could describe.

Madam Speaker, Specialist Dustin Fisher, at the age of 22, made the ultimate sacrifice for his country. He is a true American hero. I ask my colleagues to keep Dustin's family and friends in their prayers and thoughts during these very difficult times.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to support H. Con. Res. 159 to recognize the sacrifices being made by the family members of the Armed Forces and to support the designation of the week of June 12 as National Military Families Week. I want to thank the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) and the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Boren) for their leadership on this issue.

Over the last several years I have traveled around the world and met many young men and women serving our country. They have dedicated their lives to defending this Nation and the principles on which it was founded. They have dedicated their lives to protecting each of us and our families.

We have seen an increased awareness of the sacrifices these men and women have been making. Yet there are many more people that are being overlooked. There are husbands and wives who remain here in the United States while their spouses are making an enormous sacrifice. They are here working and caring for children and other family members left behind. These families face unique challenges while their loved ones are deployed. Yet they remain resilient because of the wonderful support system they have here at home.

As we designate a week to recognize and celebrate these families, I urge our citizens to come forward to support these families. We must get involved in our local communities. Several foundations, like the Armed Forces Foundation, the Wounded Warrior Foundation, and the Love Gift Fund, are busy assisting these families and need our help to carry on.

I also want to thank the gentlewoman from South Dakota (Ms. Herseth), who is a cosponsor of this bill who is unable to be here this morning.

Recently, I was in Landstuhl in Germany. This is the base that, when the soldiers are injured, they immediately come to out of Iraq. I was there, and we were in the intensive care unit.

A young man that had been wounded on night patrol, I was there in the afternoon, and he had been wounded at four o'clock the previous evening, had lost both his legs below the waist. He wanted to tell his story to us. They literally pulled out the breathing apparatus. He apologized that he could not speak very well and was telling his story, related what had happened. But the first thing he wanted to know was how his wife was doing and was there any way that we could get them paired up, and we reassured him that he would be with her the next day.

But, truly, we have situations like this occurring. We have situations like that. We have got just the day-to-day situation of the separation, the anxiety and things that are going on. So we have a great opportunity. And I want to thank the leadership and I want to thank their staff for giving me the opportunity to bring this resolution to the floor and encourage Members to vote for it and then again just encourage our community and country to take the opportunity to remember these people, not only in their thoughts and prayers but by deeds and action.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to mourn the loss of a great American, Todd Venette, whose life was cut short by a terrorist attack in Iraq.

Todd, a former Marine, was helping Iraq's young democracy as a government contractor when he was killed by a terrorist car bomb in Baghdad. As his friends and family would tell you, Todd was a selfless person who volunteered to reenlist shortly after the war in Iraq started. When he completed his tour, his dedication to the mission led him to return to Iraq as a government contractor.

A giving person, a mentor, and a servant are among the words that have been used to describe Todd. As a firefighter in Russellville, Arkansas. Todd helped protect the community. His service to the people of Russellville did not end there. Todd was instrumental in establishing a wrestling program for kids at the local Boys and Girls Club, putting his talents to work as a mentor to shape the lives of young people of Russellville in a positive way.

Mr. Speaker, Todd touched many people in his short life. I ask my colleagues to keep Todd's family and friends in their thoughts and prayers during these very difficult times.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2046) to amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to limit premium increases on reinstated health insurance on servicemembers who are released from active military service, and for other purposes, as amended.

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

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2046, as amended, the Servicemembers' Health Insurance Protection Act of 2005, provides several improvements to the Servicemembers' Civil Relief Act and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act.

Mr. Speaker, this is a bipartisan bill and was passed by unanimous consent in both the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity and the full Committee on Veterans Affairs. I am delighted to bring this important piece of legislation before the House.

The bill has several components. Section 2 of the bill would amend section 704 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, otherwise known as the SCRA, to limit premium increases on reinstated health insurance coverage of servicemembers who are released from active duty. Section 704 provides that a servicemember who is ordered to active duty is entitled, upon release, to reinstatement of any health insurance in effect on the day before actually beginning active duty.

This amendment would prohibit any increase in individual health insurance premiums from the period of time for which coverage would have been continued, had the coverage not been terminated due to military service. However, a health care insurance carrier would be allowed to increase the servicemember's premium if the general premium increase was implemented for all persons similarly covered during the period between the termination and the reinstatement.

Section 704 of the SCRA currently contains no express provision regarding premium increases. This amendment to the SCRA would ensure that servicemembers are treated fairly upon reinstatement of their health insurance and are not discouraged by premium increases from exercising their reinstatement entitlement rights.

Section 3 of the bill would amend section 4317 of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, better known as USERRA, to preserve employer-sponsored health plan reinstatement rights for certain Reservists who, prior to entering active duty, acquire TRICARE coverage under Title X. This TRICARE option only became available by an amendment to the TRICARE authority enacted in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2004 on November 24, 2003.

Under existing law, an employer is only required to provide employees returning from active duty with the same employer-sponsored health benefits they had when they reported for active duty. Unless the employer voluntarily chooses to allow immediate reinstatement of coverage, an employee would be required to wait for the next open enrollment opportunity provided by the employer.

Section 3 would confirm the health insurance reinstatement rights under USERRA to the change in TRICARE. This amendment to section 4317 of USERRA would protect both employees who did not actually report because

of cancellation of active duty orders and employees who served a period of active duty.

Section 4 of the bill would make a technical correction to the Public Law 108-454 regarding the VA's adaptive housing grant program.

Finally, section 5 of the bill would make a correction to the servicemembers' group life insurance provisions of H.R. 1268 regarding spousal notification for servicemembers' elections of coverage and designation of beneficiaries.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ginny Brown-Waite).

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Indiana (Chairman Buyer); the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans), our full committee ranking member; and the gentlewoman from South Dakota (Ms. Herseth), the Economic Opportunities Subcommittee ranking member, for their leadership and hard work on this bill. And, again, as was noted, I especially want to thank the staff.

Once again, this is a bipartisan bill, and I urge all Members to support the Servicemembers Health Insurance Protection Act of 2005.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 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 and include extraneous material on H.R. 2046, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to praise Bentonville High School senior David McMillon for his academic excellence.

When David was in the 10th grade, he scored a 35 on the ACT exam, just one point shy of a perfect score. That excellent score was 14 points higher than the national average. Now a senior, David took the test again, and this time managed to best his previous accomplishment by achieving a perfect score.

David was one of only 17 students who took the ACT last December to get a perfect score. It is quite an elite group when you consider that over 371,000 students across the country took this test last December. And David achieved this honor while serving as captain of the school's ACE team, earning the distinction of National Merit Finalist, and playing the lead in several Bentonville High School drama productions.

Madam Speaker, David McMillon should be praised for this accomplishment. This talented young Arkansan has a bright future ahead of him, and I congratulate him again on this accomplishment.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

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

First, Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank the Chairman of the Committee on Rules, the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), for making my amendment in order.

I would also like to express my pride as a member of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and I greatly appreciate the leadership of Chairman Young and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar). Mr. Chairman, I think the American public wants more than anything to see us working together, and I truly do appreciate the example this committee has demonstrated in that regard.

The other thing I would like to do is thank the staff. I am in the process of an amendment that would give the truckers an additional 2 hours of break time. I think I almost need to do an amendment that would give the staff a couple of hours of break time for the last 2 weeks. So we really do appreciate them.

Mr. Chairman, I represent the Third District of Arkansas and probably have more trucking companies and truck drivers in that district than any other part of America. In visiting with my trucking companies and visiting with the drivers, they have indicated under the current hours of service rule there were times they felt it would be beneficial if they could go off the clock and occasionally take a break.

Today, when I arrived at work, and I have as tough a schedule as anybody anyplace today, yet I have the ability, if I want to go and visit with somebody and take 30 minutes, drink a cup of coffee, take a nap, do things like that, I have the ability to do that and make it up later. Our truckers do not have that ability.

The Federal Motor Carriers have had over 300 complaints lodged in that regard. So what we are trying to do is provide an amendment that gives the truckers the ability to take up to 2 hours of off-duty time during the day. The rest times are optional, voluntary. The driver does not have to take the rest time unless he wants to. In fact, I have included specific language in the amendment which protects the drivers and preserves the time for them. It is apparent that the industry at this point has become very complex. It is difficult. One size does not fit all, and that is really what we are trying to alleviate.

Last year, I offered an amendment to basically say, let us go back to the old hours of service rule because of the difficulties we were having. During the markup last year, I spoke with Chairman Young and Ranking Member Oberstar, and in the course of that discussion I brought up the fact that the drivers, again, do not have the flexibility, they do not have the ability to take a break when they want to once the clock starts.

Ranking Member Oberstar, in the course of the discussion, understood that that was a problem. So what I did was to try to craft a rule that would come back to address that problem. I understand, though, that there are concerns that still exist with the amendment. So I visited with the ranking member's staff. I visited with Annette Sandberg, the administrator of the Federal Motor Carriers, trying again to further refine this thing so we can answer all of the problems that have come about.

I want to compliment Ms. Sandberg. She is in a very difficult situation. She and her staff are working very hard to get this resolved. Hopefully, we will be able to do that in the near future.

One thing I have been disappointed in, an effort to give drivers the ability to go off the clock when they feel like they need to, heavy traffic, for whatever reason. And something that has come about is I have been targeted, Wal-Mart is being targeted. I happen to represent them, and am very proud in doing that, and yet the reality is over 40 organizations are supporting this amendment, most of them key-voting this amendment. And the reality is also hundreds of thousands of truckers are also in support. I think the amendment is very worthwhile.

Again, I would like to work with the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), work with the Federal motor carriers, the drivers, all of the parties involved in the industry, so we can get in a situation where we can rectify it and give the truckers the flexibility that they greatly need.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor one of America's bravest, Specialist Lyle Rymer, II, who was a lifelong resident of the Fort Smith, Oklahoma, area. Lyle was recently killed in Iraq while honorably serving his country.

A member of Arkansas Army National Guard's 239th Engineering Company, Lyle was killed by an enemy sniper on January 28 while guarding members of his unit who were erecting barricades in preparation for the Iraqi elections. Lyle was a true hero who was on the ground, helping a new democracy prepare for their first free elections in over 50 years.

It seems that universally the members of Lyle's unit have the utmost respect for him. In news reports, they described him as a go-getter, someone who always strived to achieve more than was asked of him.

Mr. Speaker, Specialist Lyle Rymer, II, at the age of 24, made the ultimate sacrifice for his country. He is a true American hero. I ask my colleagues to keep Lyle's family and friends in their thoughts and prayers during these difficult times.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the thousands of people in Arkansas and across the Nation who gathered this week to protest the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade.

Like those who assembled, I believe strongly in the sanctity of human life. 32 years ago, the Supreme Court decided that a woman could end a life by terminating her pregnancy for any reason, including health, gender selection or because it was an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy. As a result, thousands of lives have been ended out of convenience mislabeled as a woman's right to choose.

Mr. Speaker, as we remember this powerful Supreme Court decision this week, I ask that we also remember that we have a responsibility to protect the precious lives of the unborn children to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor one of America's bravest, Airman 1st Class Jesse Samek. Jesse, a 2001 Rogers High School graduate recently died in Afghanistan while honorably serving his country.

A flight engineer assigned out of Nellis Air Force Base, Jesse was killed on October 21 st, when his helicopter crashed during a rescue mission. The mission that day was to carry a wounded Afghan election worker to a medical facility. Jesse was a true hero who was literally protecting democracy.

I attended Jesse's funeral and the outpouring of love and respect from his community was overwhelming. Over 300 people were there to honor him.

Jesse joined the Air Force in February of 2003 and was assigned to the 66th Rescue Squadron, an elite group that qualified for rescue duty on a HH-60 Para Rescue helicopter. His mother said Jesse loved that his job was to rescue and save people.

Mr. Speaker, Airman 1st Class Jesse Monroe Samek, at the age of 21, made the ultimate sacrifice for his country. He is a true American hero. I ask my colleagues to keep Jesse's family and friends in their thoughts and prayers during these difficult times.