Floor Statements

I want to thank the gentlelady from Ohio for holding this Special Order. Congresswoman Fudge, thank you very, very much. You are making a lasting contribution to this discussion, to this debate.

Voting rights are under attack in America. Quietly, gradually, State by State, the right to vote that many people died for has been taken away. Sometime ago, some of us came to this floor, I believe this past summer, to warn the American people about this dangerous trend. No one, but no one, seemed to be listening. But today, we can no longer ignore this trend.

Congressman Holt said just a few moments ago that the Brennan Center released a report that shows that voting law changes in States across the country will make it much harder for more than 5 million voters to exercise their constitutional right to vote. In 2011, we should be ashamed.

Today, we should be making it easy, simple and convenient to vote. Instead, we are creating barriers and making it more difficult for citizens to vote. There's not just one law, but many types of laws that are disenfranchising millions of voters: voter ID laws, proof of citizenship laws, barriers to registration, elimination of early and absentee voting, and making it harder to restore voting rights for people who have paid their debt to society. These laws are barriers to an inclusive democracy. They are a disgrace, and they are a shame to our democracy. We continue to step backwards toward another dark time in our history.

We cannot separate the dangerous trend across this Nation from our history and the struggle for the right to vote. Before the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, not so long ago, it was almost impossible for some citizens to register and vote. Many were harassed, jailed, beaten and some were even killed for trying to participate in the democratic process. In the 1960s, people stood in what I like to call immovable lines trying to register to vote. People waited day in and day out, only to be turned away and told that voters were not being registered on that day.

The same thing is happening today. States are passing laws to restrict voter registration and are doing away with the same-day voter registration. There is no reason that we cannot make it easy and convenient for people to register to vote. Ten years ago, the Carter- Ford National Task Force on Election Reform called the United States' registration laws ``among the world's most demanding'' and blamed those registration laws for low voter turnout. Because of registration problems, 3 million American citizens tried to vote in the 2008 Presidential election, but they could not vote. And with these new laws restricting voter registration, the problem would get even worse.

One of the most dangerous voting changes is the new voter ID requirements, which are disenfranchising millions of American voters. Approximately 11 percent of voting-age citizens in the country, or more than 20 million individuals, do not have a government-issued photo ID. Today, too many States require a photo ID in order to vote.

Each and every voter ID law is a real threat to voting rights in America. Make no mistake; these voter ID laws are a poll tax. I know what I saw during the sixties; I saw a poll tax. And you cannot deny it; these ID laws are another form of a poll tax. In an economy where people are already struggling to pay for the most basic necessities, there are too many citizens who will be unable to afford the fees and transportation costs involved in getting a government-issued photo ID.

Despite all of the new voter ID laws across the country, there is no convincing evidence--no evidence at all--that voter fraud is a problem in our election process. The right to vote is precious, almost sacred, and one of the most important blessings of our democracy. Today we must stand up and fight.

The history of the right to vote in America is a history of conflict, of struggle for that right. Many people died trying to protect that right. I was beaten and jailed because I stood up for it. For millions like me, the struggle for the right to vote is not mere history; it is experience. We should not take a step backward with new poll taxes and voter ID laws and barriers to voter registration and voter participation. We must ensure every vote and every voter counts.

The vote is the most powerful, nonviolent tool or instrument we have in a democratic society. If we allow our power to vote to be taken away, we will be facing the need for a new movement and a new nonviolent revolution in America to retake the same ground we won almost 50 years ago. We must fight back.

Thank you again for giving us a voice, giving us a way to fight back.

I want to thank my friend and colleague Mr. Levin for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to the United States- Colombia free trade agreement. Some of my colleagues do not believe that the issue of human rights and the issue of the rule of law should be addressed through our trade policy. Some believe it is not about stolen lands, ransacked homes. It is not about human rights activists whose families and friends were harassed and disappeared. It is not about murdered labor leaders. It is not about a crisis that is only comparable to Sudan.

Trade for the sake of trade. Money for the sake of money. Let someone else care. Let someone else do it. Let someone else work on the human rights. Let someone else fight for justice. Let someone else worry about peace, order, and tranquility. All we need to do is find the cheapest, fastest, and easiest way to make a buck.

My friends, we're mistaken to believe that this is not about us. But the crisis in Colombia affects every part of our region. It affects millions forced from their homes. It helped to create the drug cartels and international gangs. It impacts the cost of crack and cocaine on every single street on America.

We cannot ask someone else to address the violence. We cannot leave the question of corruption and impunity to another leader, another generation. We must demand these answers now. If we don't, who will? It is up to us. We can do better. It is on our watch.

Mr. Speaker, today is a very sad day. We could have taken our time and done it right.

Today, we are abandoning our duty to the people who elected us and to millions of Colombians who now know that their cries fell on deaf ears and cold hearts. We can do better. We must do better. This Congress and this administration must have the courage to stand up and do what is right and be on the right side of history. It is a missed opportunity for change, for good, if we fail to do what is right.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend and colleague, Congresswoman Terri Sewell from Birmingham, for holding this Special Order. Thank you for representing the people of the Seventh Congressional District of Alabama, especially Birmingham and Selma.

I grew up reading and hearing about Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, the man from Birmingham, Alabama. I grew up about 150 miles from Birmingham outside of a little town called Troy. The words of Fred Shuttlesworth, the actions of this man were so inspiring, I probably wouldn't be standing here today, I know I wouldn't be standing here today as a Member of Congress representing the good people of the Fifth District of Georgia if it hadn't been for individuals like Fred Shuttlesworth.

The Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth is the last of a kind. He was a fearless, determined, courageous leader for civil rights and social justice. When others did not have the courage to stand up, speak up and speak out, Fred Shuttlesworth put all he had on the line to end segregation and racial discrimination not only in Birmingham but throughout the State of Alabama and throughout our Nation.

As has been said so well before, he was beaten with chains, his home was bombed, his church was bombed, and he lived under constant threat of violence and murder; but he never, ever lost faith in the power of love to overcome hate.

He escorted brave young children to desegregate public schools in Birmingham. In 1961, and I will never, ever forget it, when I was only 21 years old, during the Freedom Rides, 50 years ago, when others were immobilized by fear, he was fearless and met us at the Greyhound bus station in Birmingham, Alabama, and welcomed us into his home. When we were trapped in the First Baptist Church a few days later, pastored by the Reverend Ralph Abernathy in downtown Montgomery, after we had been beaten by an angry mob and the church had been surrounded by individuals who tried to burn the church down, he stood up and he spoke. He gave us courage. He told us not to be afraid.

He worked tirelessly beside Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and others as he led the Birmingham Movement. In 1963 when Bull Connor, the commissioner of public safety, used dogs and fire hoses on peaceful protesters, including young children and women, Fred Shuttlesworth was there.

And I will never forget, Congresswoman Sewell, when we went back to Selma in 2007, Fred Shuttlesworth wanted to cross that bridge one more time. He was unable to walk. He was in a wheelchair. Then-Senator Barack Obama pushed the chair across the bridge. Former President Clinton came and kneeled down at the chair in front of Fred Shuttlesworth to pay tribute and homage to him.

This brave and courageous man must be remembered. In my estimation, he is one of the Founding Fathers of the New America. He helped liberate, not just the State of Alabama, not just the South, but he helped liberate America; and that's why we honor him. He helped change and made us a different people, made us stand up, walk, run, and march with pride. We owe him a debt of gratitude. He will be deeply missed.

When we go back to Birmingham, or to Montgomery, or to Selma, or any part of the American South, we may see a statue at the Civil Rights Institute or Museum in Birmingham, but we will see Fred Shuttlesworth all over

the South and all over the Nation, because he helped bring down those signs that said White Men, Colored Men; White Women, Colored Women; White Waiting, Colored Waiting.

America is different. America is better. And we are a better people because of this one brave, courageous man who had the audacity, had the ability, the capacity, to stand up and say, we will be free.

He said over and over again, Emanuel Cleaver: ``Before I'll be a slave, I'll be buried in my grave and go home to my Lord and be free.'' That's the message of Fred Shuttlesworth. I hope all of our young people, black and white, Latinos, Asian Americans and Native Americans, will study the life of Fred Shuttlesworth.

Thank you, Congresswoman Sewell.

Mr. Speaker, the two bills, H.R. 2681 and H.R. 2250, are an affront public health and to our environment.

When we take our air, waters and land for granted; when we show a simple lack of respect for nature and our environment, we unmake God's good creation. Over 40 years ago, Republicans and Democrats passed the Clean Air Act because they believed that every American child deserved to breathe clean air. They believed that every American child deserved an environment free from toxic pollutants that cause cancer and impair their ability to learn.

EPA standards, like the ones attacked in this bill, did not run our economy off the cliff. EPA standards did not drive us into debt, or stop the banks from extending credit. But here we are, ready to stop common sense protections are 11 years overdue. If enacted, these bills would make damaging changes to the Clean Air Act. We would stop future EPA standards from protecting our children and our families from mercury and toxic air pollution. 2,500 lives are lost for every year these pollution reductions are delayed.

There are protesters right outside this building, Mr. Chairman. They want us to take up the American Jobs Act. They want it passed. They don't need another attack on the Clean Air Act. They don't need another attack on the public's health. We're wasting their time, Mr. Chairman.

It is my strong belief that our country needs environmental protections and that real protections do not have to come at the expense of jobs or our economy. Whatever we do to the earth, we do to each other. I urge my colleagues to vote no.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate and express my thanks to the National Environmental Education Foundation, and the more than 180,000 volunteers lending their time and talent to the 18th annual National Public Lands Day. Mr. Speaker, this will be the largest, single-day volunteer effort for public lands in the United States. Eight federal agencies will participate along with more than 250 state, county, and city partners and a host of nonprofit groups. At parks, beaches, wildlife preserves and forests around the country, dedicated citizens will work to improve and restore the places that we all use for recreation, education, exercise and relaxation.

One such site, Mr. Speaker, is very dear to me. The Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site will see at least 300 volunteers weed, paint and place mulch around Dr. King's first home and the adjacent properties. I am so proud and grateful for the work they do in my district and in our country.

I am sorry I can't be with them on this special day, but I think it is appropriate that we recognize them from this great Chamber of public service. National Public Lands Day celebrates volunteerism and the importance of recreation and public lands to community health, so I think it is appropriate that we celebrate them. I hope all my colleagues will join with me in wishing the volunteers good health and a blessed event.

Mr. Speaker, the Voting Rights Act made it possible for all of our citizens to become participants in the democratic process.

Mr. Speaker, voting rights are under attack in America. There's a deliberate

and systematic attempt to prevent millions of elderly voters, young voters, students, minority, and low-income voters from exercising their constitutional right to engage in the democratic process. Voter ID laws are becoming all too common.

But make no mistake: Voter ID laws are a poll tax. People who struggle to pay for basic necessities cannot afford a voter ID.

The right to vote is precious and almost sacred and one of the most important blessings of our democracy. Today we must be strong in protecting that blessing. We should be making it easy, simple, and convenient for people to vote.

Before the Voting Rights Act of 1965, people stood in unmovable lines. Sometimes people were asked to count the number of bubbles in a bar of soap, the number of jelly beans in a jar. People were asked to pass a so-called literacy test. Lawyers, doctors, teachers, and college professors flunked the so-called literacy test. Before the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 46 years ago, many people were jailed, beaten, and some were even killed for trying to register and vote.

We must not step backward toward another dark period in our history. The vote is the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democratic society. We must fight back. We must speak up and speak out. We must never, ever go back.

We will not stand idly by while millions of Americans are denied their right to participate in the democratic process.

Mr. Speaker, the American people are sick and tired of Washington petty games. People's lives, their homes, their retirement, their health care are hanging in the balance. The American people are good, strong, resilient people. They are willing to sacrifice to get our country back on track. But they will not be played as fools. Middle class Americans know they are not getting a fair shake.

This bill protects tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, while the middle class pay more than their fair share and watch their retirement savings disappear. The American people know that there is a deliberate, systematic attempt to destroy Medicare, to damage Medicaid, and threaten Social Security. This is ducking, dodging, and destroying. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it must be a duck.

The American people want one thing. They want jobs, good jobs, jobs that pay the bills, give people back their dignity, and get people back on track with the American Dream. Our Nation deserves nothing less.

But this bill would destroy those hopes and those dreams. It will plunge our economy back into a deep recession. It will mean more lost jobs, more lost homes, and seniors living in poverty without health care and basic necessities. It will mean children going hungry, and it will keep smart young people from going off to college.

This bill will sell the very soul of our Nation. We, as Americans, are better than this. We are more compassionate than this. We know better.

It is easier to destroy than it is to build. Another generation of leaders did more with less; they built people up. We cannot turn back.

Vote ``no'' on this bill. Let's go back to the table and work on a compromise that prevents default, preserves our moral obligation to our seniors, and puts America back on the road to greatness.

Madam Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Chair, let me begin by thanking the ranking member, Mr. Dicks, and his staff for all of their hard work on this legislation. As always, they offer great assistance and guidance for all Members and staff, regardless of our differences on policy. Thank you all for all that you do.

Madam Chair, my amendment is very simple: It requires that the Department of Defense put on its Web site the costs of war to each American taxpayer. It is time for Americans to have a receipt for these 10 years of war. What has it cost us? How much cold, hard cash has been spent?

I have stood here time and time again and listened to debates about

how we don't have any money. There is no money for the elderly, no money for the sick, no money for the poor, no money for women, no money for children, no money for people who lost their jobs by no fault of their own. It just costs too much. No money for you, or you, or you.

But when it comes to war, war in Afghanistan, Iraq, and now Libya, there seems to be a bottomless pit of resources. And it is not fair; it is not right. We nickel and dime the people who need it most. But when it comes to war, there is a big fat blank check. We need to be honest with ourselves. We need to be honest with each other.

Across the country, there are Americans, hardworking, taxpaying citizens who oppose war. They oppose their hard-earned dollars being sent overseas to support 10 long years of war. But let me be clear, Madam Chair, they do not oppose paying their taxes. They are not anarchists or anti-government activists. But as conscientious objectors to war, these Americans want their taxes invested here at home.

They want to help provide food for the hungry, safe roads, and strong schools. They want Medicare and Social Security to exist for their parents, their children, and their grandchildren. They want their tax dollars to care for soldiers and their families when they return home. They want to see an end and a cure to cancer. They want a cure for AIDS. They want to see small businesses thrive and innovation become the engine of our economy. They want high-speed rail that rivals Europe and Asia. They want transit systems that are safe and get people where they need to go. They want government to work for them.

Even if you do not oppose war, don't you want to know what it costs you and your family? It's time, Madam Chair, it's time for the Department of Defense to be honest with the American people. This is not some wild, crazy, farfetched idea. It is simple, commonsense transparency and good government. This amendment takes a tiny, small step in the right direction.

Madam Chair, it is my hope and prayer that all of my colleagues will support this straightforward amendment.

With that, Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Point of Order

Madam Chair, I wish to speak.

I made my point, and I don't have another point to make.

Offered By: Mr. Lewis of Georgia

Amendment No. 119: At the end of the bill (before the short

title), insert the following:

Mr. Speaker, I rise today because the American people have grown weary of war. War destroys the dreams, the hopes, the aspirations, and the longings of a people.

A wise man once said, ``Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. This world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, hopes of its children.''

These are not the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. These are not the words of Gandhi. These are the words of a five-star General, President Dwight Eisenhower.

We have spent billions of dollars. Thousands of our sons and daughters have been left dead on the battlefield and scarred by the brutality of war. I'm glad that the President is bringing 10,000 soldiers home from Afghanistan, but we must do more to end this war and start investing in our future.

We cannot continue to fund this war while we tell our seniors there is no money for Medicare. We cannot fund war and tell our children and young mothers that we won't pay for food stamps. We cannot pay for war while our bridges and our roads are crumbling.

We cannot afford to make bombs and guns. We must use our resources to solve the problems of humankind, to build and not to tear down, to reconcile and not to divide, to love and not to hate, to heal and not to kill.

If we want to create a beloved community, create a beloved world, a world that is at peace with itself, if that is our goal, our way must be love, peace, and nonviolence, skilled diplomacy not military might.

We must lay down the tools and instruments of war and violence. Stop paying for war. Believe in the power of peace and end this war.

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. Chairman, I really want to thank Ms. DeLauro and Mr. Farr for their wonderful, unbelievable work.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the underlying bill. Mr. Chairman, nutrition programs did not run our economy into the ditch. Nutrition programs did not drive us into debt or stop the banks from extending credit. But my colleagues want to cut programs to feed millions of women, infants, and children. Who is next? I ask you, Who is next? The Republicans went after the seniors' Medicare. Now they are going after the babies. Who is next?

Mr. Chairman, the WIC program is a necessity. It is a lifeline. It is our obligation. This is not the way America treats our seniors. This is not the way America treats our mothers. This is not the way America treats our children. This is not the America we want to live in.

If we repeal the tax breaks for the wealthy for just 1 week, we could pay for this entire program. Make no mistake, this bill will reduce the number of people served by nutrition programs. Right now, over 50 percent of the children born in our country rely on this program every single day, every week. They serve almost 10 million people each year. My beloved brothers and sisters across the aisle know that, but they should also know that this bill will mean empty shelves at food banks and smaller portions at dinnertime--and not a dent in the deficit.

Make no mistake, make no mistake, this bill will hurt people. It will reduce the number of people who receive assistance. The poor, the sick, the mothers, these little babies. They didn't overspend our credit card. They didn't do it. They didn't overspend our credit card. Why are we doing this? Why are we punishing? Why are we cutting the WIC program? It is a lifeline. No one in this country should have to go hungry. It is not right. It is not fair. It is not the just thing to do. It's not the good thing to do.

The Atlanta Community Food Bank in my own district, in the heart of downtown Atlanta, is distributing 35 percent more food than last year. Their funding would be cut as well. Countless people are already on the waiting list. One such man in my own district, Johnny Battle, this man worked all of his life, and he worked very hard. Mr. Battle is 71, and his wife is 76. He can't look for work because his wife has fallen ill. He is her caregiver.

I say we should be their caregiver. We should look after those who are suffering through no fault of their own.

They receive emergency food assistance from Antioch Baptist Church when they can and receive only $16 a month in food stamps. Assistance from the food bank would make a huge difference in their lives.

Sixty thousand people depend on Atlanta Community Food Bank to make it through the month. We cannot allow more people to be pushed onto the waiting list like Mr. Battle and his wife.

Mr. Chairman, and my colleagues, our country is hurting. Our people are hungry. They need our help. This is not how America treats her children. This is not how America treats her seniors. This is not how America treats her little babies, the mothers.

I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``no.''

I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor and commemorate Marine Private First Class Ted Dennis Britt, who gave his life at Khe Sanh, on March 30th, 1968.

Ted grew up in my district; in Decatur, Georgia. He was born into a military family--His father was a Navy veteran of two wars, and his brother served in Afghanistan as a Brigadier General in the Georgia Army National Guard. Ted grew up playing baseball and joined the Marine Corps not long after graduating from Southwest Dekalb High School in 1967. It's hard to believe that he was already engaged to be married when he enlisted at only 18 years of age.

Mr. Speaker, in 1968, PFC Ted D. Britt, was one of many Marines serving in harm's way. Far from home, his family, and from everything he knew, Ted served gallantly and gave everything. Our country can never repay our debt to him or his family, but I wish to join with his friends and family in spirit, as they honor and remember him this week.

Mr. Speaker, as you would imagine, our military has already posthumously awarded PFC Britt the appropriate medals and ribbons for his bravery under fire. But I wish to add my voice to their chorus. I wish to help ensure that Ted's sacrifice is not lost to history--but remembered, honored and understood. I never knew Ted Britt, but his selflessness is what I will never forget.

To this young man's family, and to those who called him friend, I offer my thoughts and prayers. May God bless them and keep them in their moment of remembrance.

I thank my colleague and friend for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I oppose this amendment, and I urge every single one of my colleagues to vote ``no.''

Every single one of the last five Presidents--including President Reagan and Bush--understood the importance of the United States Institute of peace. USIP is not a think tank. They don't sit in the clouds shouting recommendations. They jump into the conflicts and work side-by-side with DOD and with the Department of State in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Listen to the generals and the commanders who are telling us that USIP saves the life of our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. USIP saves American taxpayers dollars around the world. This is not a partisan issue. It is not hawk versus dove. This is basic, common sense--prevent and stop conflict, promote dialogue, build bridges, and save lives.

I ask all of my colleagues to vote ``no.'' It moves us away from peace, this amendment. Give peace a chance. Give peace a chance.

I thank my colleague from Arizona for yielding.

Mr. Chairman, I have never been one to stand silent in the face of injustice. Today, I see before us one of the greatest betrayals in American history--the betrayal of our seniors and the disabled who rely on Medicare for their health care. We have made a social compact with our seniors, and the Republican budget breaks that compact. It is a disgrace and a shame.

Where is our sense of fairness? Where is our outrage? We can and we must do better.

Republicans head down a very dangerous path. We cannot, we must not, and we will not balance our budget on the backs of people who can least afford it. Our seniors, the disabled, the poor, the hungry--they have done nothing wrong. They do not deserve to bear the burden of these budget cuts.

Support and vote for the people's budget. It is the right budget, it is fair, and it is just.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the longest running war in our Nation's history. I want to thank my friend and colleague from Ohio for introducing this resolution.

War is not the answer. It is not the way to peace. We must root out the causes of hate and violence.

Gandhi once said: ``Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment, and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent than the one derived from the fear of punishment.''

Our path to peace in Afghanistan is not through war; it is not through violence. Enough is enough. The time is long overdue.

We are spending billions of dollars a week. Not another nickel, not another dime, not another dollar, not another hour, not another day, not another week. We must end this war and end it now.

I urge all of my colleagues to support the resolution.