Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, the Constitution states: ``This great nation of ours was founded in order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity.''

These words echo the principles that have served our nation well for the past 228 years. It is of paramount importance that today's youth have a firm grasp of the principles and ideals outlined in this hallowed document.

Mr. Speaker, as you may know, President Bush declared September 17th through September 23rd Constitution Week to commemorate the September 17, 1787 signing of the Constitution. I rise today to recognize Constitution Week and to honor civic education leaders and programs that have played an integral role in educating Missouri's youth about the Constitution.

One exemplary program worthy of particular praise is We the People: the Citizen and Constitution. This program educates students in junior high and high school on the merits of a Constitutional democracy and discusses the material in a manner that provides relevance to the students and creates a model for student civic life.

I want to draw particular praise for Millie Aulbur, who is the Director of Law-Related Education for the Missouri Bar. She has been a pillar in the civic education community, and her diligent work and strong leadership have vastly improved civic education programs in my home state. Likewise, she has been extremely effective in raising awareness of this issue with Missouri's Congressional delegation. Millie has recently succeeded in establishing a coalition of civic education leaders, known as the Advisory Committee for Civic Education of the Missouri Bar. I have known Millie since before coming to Congress, having served with her in the Missouri Attorney General office. I can say unequivocally that she is one of the finest and hard- working individuals I know. Her commitment to civic education and Missouri's youth is highly commendable.

Without these civic education programs and leaders, we run the risk that future generations of Americans will lack knowledge of the document upon which our democracy is based. Millie Aulbur's efforts set a fine example, and I urge my colleagues to learn more about civic education programs in their Congressional districts and to assist these valued civic educators in this noble endeavor.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

I would like to commend the gentleman from Texas for working with me. I would like to commend the gentleman and thank the gentleman for the advance notice seeking to rescind funding for a competitive grant that has been awarded to a constituent of mine. I would like to, but I cannot because he did not have the common courtesy to advise me of that in advance.

Certainly, the gentleman portrays the amendment in a simplistic way, and I know that is certainly great fodder for an election-year press release, but I would say to the gentleman that the grant itself does have substance.

First about the scientist. Dr. Laura King, who is a constituent of mine at Columbia, Missouri, I would like to put her curriculum vitae into the Record, Mr. Chairman, at this point.

Laura A. King, Ph.D.

Office Address: Department of Psychological Sciences,

University of Missouri

McAlester Hall

Columbia, MO 65211

(573) 882-6389

[email protected]

Date of Birth: January 4, 1964, Dover, Ohio

Academic Record & Honors

Ph.D.--1991 University of California, Davis, Psychology,

with distinction

M.A.--1990 University of California, Davis, Psychology

M.A.--1989 Michigan State University, Psychology, Phi Kappa

Phi

A.B.--1986 Kenyon College, English Literature with High

Honors & Distinction; Psychology with Distinction; summa cum

laude, ranked 2nd in class; Phi Beta Kappa; Semi-finalist for

the Mellon Fellowship in the Humanities, 1986; Awards for

Outstanding Junior English Major (1985) and Outstanding

Senior Psychology Major (1986)

Research Grants Awarded

NIMH/FIRST Award MH54142 $475,728.00, 1995-2000 ``Goals,

Identity, and Meaning in Life''

NIMH 2R01MH054142-06A2 (same grant, different name)

``Goals, Memory, and Self-Regulation'', 2002-2005; $450,000

Templeton Prize in Positive Psychology, $50,000 (including

$35,000 unrestricted research grant)

Awards

Chancellor's Award for Outstanding Research and Creative

Activity in the area of Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2004,

University of Missouri

Named a H.O.P.E. Professor for excellence in teaching, SMU,

2000

Maguire Teaching Fellow (for Teaching Ethics), SMU, 2000

The ``M'' Award presented by SMU for ``sustained

excellence,'' 1999

Mortar Board Senior Honor Society Faculty Appreciation

Award, 1998

Rotunda Outstanding Faculty Teaching Award, SMU, 1996

Faculty Member of the Month Award, SMU Student Association,

April, 1995

Professional Experience

2003-present--Professor, University of Missouri, Columbia

2001-2003--Associate Professor, University of Missouri,

Columbia

1997-2001--Associate Professor, Southern Methodist

University

1991-1997--Associate Professor, Southern Methodist

University

1988-1991--Teaching Assistant and Instructor, University of

California, Davis

1988--Graduate Assistant, Murray Lectures Committee, M.S.U.

1986-1988--Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University

1984-1986--Writing Clinic Tutor, English Department, Kenyon

College

Professional Affiliations

Society for Personology (Elected for membership, 2004);

Association for Research in Personality--elected Member At

Large, 2002; American Psychological Association; APA Division

8; American Psychological Society; Midwestern Psychological

Association; Society of Experimental Social Psychology;

International Society for Self and Identity

Editorial Activities

Associate Editor, Journal of Personality and Social

Psychology 1999-2003

Associate Editor, Personality and Social Psychology

Bulletin 1998-1999

Guest Co-editor, with Kennon Sheldon American Psychologist:

Special Section on Positive Psychology, 2001; Guest Editor,

Journal of Personality: Special Section: Personality

Development and Personal Growth, 2002; Editorial Board,

Journal of Personality, 1996-2003; Journal of Personality and

Social Psychology, 1997-1999; Ad hoc Reviewer, Psychological

Bulletin, Psychological Review, Personality and Social

Psychology Bulletin Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Social

Cognition, Journal of Research in Personality, Basic and

Applied Social Psychology, Journal of Social and Personal

Relationships, Psychological Science

Grant Review Panels

National Institutes of Health Panel RPHG-4, 1999-2003 SPIP,

2003-present; Special emphasis panels, 3/2000, 7/2000

publications

Articles

Scollon, C.N., & King, L.A. (2004). Is the good life the

easy life? Social Indicators Research 68, 127-162.

Twenge, J.M., & King, L.A. (in press). A good life is a

personal life: Relationship fulfillment and work fulfillment

in judgments of life quality. Journal of Research in

Personality.

King, L.A., & Raspin, C. (2004). Lost and found possible

selves, well-being and ego development in divorced women.

Journal of Personality, 72, 603-631.

Burton, C.M., & King, L.A. (2004). The health benefits of

writing about peak experiences. Journal of Research in

Personality, 38, 150-163.

King, L.A., & Smith, S.N. (2004). Happy, mature, and gay:

Intimacy, power, and difficult times in coming out stories.

Journal of Research in Personality, in press.

King, L.A., & Smith, N.G. (2004). Gay and straight possible

selves: Goals, identity, subjective well-being, and

personality development. Journal of Personality, 72, 967-994.

King, L.A. (2003). The Mysterious and Audacious World of

Melanie Klein. Contemporary Psychology, 48.

King, L.A. (2003). Money really doesn't buy happiness.

Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy.

King, L.A. (2003). Some truths behind the trombones?

Psychological Inquiry, 128-131. Invited commentary on

Lazarus.

Singer, J.A., King, L.A., Green, M.C., & Barr, S.C. (2002).

Personal Identity and Civic Responsibility: ``Rising to the

Occasion'' Narratives and Generativity in Community Action

Student Interns. Journal of Social Issues 58, 535-556.

King, L.A. (2002). Personal growth and personality

development: A foreword to the special section. Journal of

Personality, 70, 1-4

King, L.A. (2001). The health benefits of writing about

life goals. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27,

798-807.

Sheldon, K., & King, L.A. (2001). Why positive psychology

is necessary. (foreword to the special section). American

Psychologist, 56, 216-217.

King, L.A. (2001). The hard road to the good life: The

happy, mature person. The Journal of Humanistic Psychology,

Special Issue on Positive Psychology, 41, 51-72.

King, L.A., & Patterson, C. (2000). Reconstructing life

goals after the birth of a child with Down Syndrome: Finding

happiness and growing. International Journal of

Rehabilitation and Health, 5, 17-30.

King, L.A. (2000). Why happiness is good for you: A

commentary on Fredrickson. Prevention and Treatment, 3,

Article 4. Available on the World Wide Web: http:// journals.apa.org/prevention/volume3/pre0030004c.html.

King, L.A., Scollon, C.K., Ramsey, C.M., & Williams, T.

(2000). Stories of life transition: Happy endings, subjective

well-being, and ego development in parents of children with

Down Syndrome. Journal of Research in Personality, 34, 509-

536.

King, L.A., & Miner, K.N. (2000). Writing about the

perceived benefits of traumatic life events: Implications for

physical health. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin,

26, 220-230.

Pennebaker, J.W., & King, L.A. (1999). Linguistic Styles:

Language use as an individual difference. Journal of

Personality and Social Psychology, 77, 1296-1312.

King, L.A. (1998). Ambivalence over emotional expression

and reading emotions in situations and faces. Journal of

Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 753-762.

King, L.A., & Napa, C. (1998). What makes a life good?

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 156-165.

King, L.A., Richards, J., & Stemmerich, E.D. (1998). Daily

goals, life goals, and worst fears: Means, ends, and

subjective well-being. Journal of Personality, 66, 713-744.

King, L.A., & Pennebaker, J.W. (1998). What's so great

about feeling good? Psychological Inquiry, 9, 53-56. (Invited

commentary on Ryff & Singer).

King, L.A., & Broyles, S. (1997). Wishes, gender,

personality, and well-being. Journal of Personality, 65, 50-

75.

King, L.A., & Williams, T. (1997). Goal orientation and

performance in the martial arts. Journal of Sport Behavior,

20, 397-411.

King, L.A., McKee-Walker, L. & Broyles, S. (1996).

Creativity and The Five Factor Model. Journal of Research in

Personality, 30, 189-203.

King, L.A. (1996). Who is regulating what and why? The

motivational context of self-regulation. Psychological

Inquiry, 7, 57-61. (Invited commentary on Baumeister &

Heatherton).

King, L.A. (1995). Wishes, motives, goals, and personal

memories: Relations and correlates of measures of human

motivation. Journal of Personality, 63, 985-1007.

King, L.A. (1993). Emotional expression, conflict over

expression, and marital satisfaction. Journal of Social and

Personal Relationships, 10, 601-607.

King, L.A., Emmons, R.A., & Woodley, S. (1992). The

structure of inhibition. Journal of Research in Personality,

26, 85-102.

King, L.A., & Emmons, R.A. (1991). Psychological, physical

and interpersonal correlates of emotional expressiveness,

conflict and control. European Journal of Personality, 5,

131-150.

King, L.A., & Emmons, R.A. (1990). Conflict over emotional

expression: Psychological and physical correlates. Journal of

Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 864-877.

Emmons, R.A., & King, L.A. (1989). Personal striving

differentiation and affective reactivity. Journal of

Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 478-484.

Emmons, R.A., & King, L.A. (1988). Conflict among personal

strivings: Immediate and long-term implications for

psychological and physical well-being. Journal of Personality

and Social Psychology, 48, 1040-1048.

Chapters

King, L.A., Eells, J.E., & Burton, C.M. (2004). The good

life, broadly defined. In A. Linley, & S. Joseph, (Eds.),

Positive Psychology In Practice. (pp. 35-52). New Jersey:

John Wiley and Sons.

King, L.A. (2003). Measures and meanings: The use of

qualitative data in social and personality psychology. In C.

Sansone, C. Morf, & A. Panter, Handbook of Methods in Social

Psychology, (pp. 173-194). NY: Sage.

King, L.A., & Burton, C.M. (2003). The Hazards of Goal

Pursuit. In E. Chang & L. Sanna (Eds). Virtue, Vice and

Personality: The Complexity of Behavior. (pp. 53-70).

Washington, D.C.: APA.

King, L.A. (2002). Gain Without Pain: Expressive Writing

and Self Regulation. In S.J. Lepore & J. Smythe (Eds.), The

Writing Cure, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological

Association.

King, L.A. (1998). Personal goals and personal agency:

Linking everyday goals to future images of the self. In M.

Kofta, G. Weary, and G. Sedek (Eds.), Personal Control in

Action: Cognitive and Motivational Mechanisms (pp. 109-128).

New York City, NY: Plenum.

King, L.A., & Emmons, R.A. (2000). The assessment of

motivation. In A.E. Kazdin (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Psychology,

Vol. 5. (pp. 320-324). New York: American Psychological

Association and Oxford University Press.

King, L.A., & Napa, C. (1999). Ambivalence. In D. Levinson,

J. Ponzetti, & P. F. Jorgensen (Eds.), The Encyclopedia of

Human Emotions, New York, NY: MacMillan Reference.

King, L.A., & Pennebaker, J.W. (1997). Thinking about

goals, glue, and the meaning of life. In R.S. Wyer, Jr.

(Ed.), Advances in Social Cognition (pp. 97-105). Hillsdale,

NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Emmons, R.A., King, L.A., & Sheldon, K. (1992). Goal

Conflict and the Self-Regulation of Action. In D. M. Wegner

and J. W. Pennebaker (Eds). Handbook of Mental Control (pp.

528-551). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Emmons, R.A., & King, L.A. (1992). Thematic analysis,

experience sampling, and personal goals. In C.P. Smith (Ed.),

Thematic content analysis for motivation and personality

research (pp. 73-86). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Emmons, R.A., & King, L.A. (1989). On the personalization

of motivation. In T.K. Srull & R.S. Wyer, Jr. (Eds), Advances

in social cognition (V. 2., pp. 111-122). Hillsdale, NJ:

Erlbaum.

Manuscrips Under Review

King, L.A. Happy endings.

King, L.A., Hicks, J.A., Baker, A.K., & Krull, J. Positive

affect and the experience of meaning

King, L.A. & Eells, J.E. Older but wiser, and happier and

nicer: Folk concepts of maturity.

Lyubomirsky, S., King, L.A., & Diener, E. The benefits of

positive emotion.

King, L.A., Baker, A.K., & Burton, C.M. The relocation of

joy: Rediscovering happiness after a life transition.

Manuscripts In Preparation

King, L.A., Hicks, J., & Burton, C. Self disclosure vs.

self construction: Reconsidering the healing power of writing

King, L.A., & Williams, T. Enacting a life dream:

Implications for daily experience, and psychological and

physical well-being.

King, L.A., & Kennedy, T.D. What they did for love;

Generativity, subjective well-being and the career narratives

of professional dancers.

King, L.A., & Marquis, J. Making a contribution: Changing

life goals, generativity, and subjective well-being in

infertile individuals.

King, L.A. The consequences and correlates of the pursuit

of happiness.

Williams, T., King, L.A., & Eels, J. Are important goals

difficult? Person X Appraisal Interactions in Personal Goals.

Drigotas, S.M., & King, L.A. Intuition, emotional

intelligence, and social functioning.

Presentations

Invited Colloquia and Talks

King, L.A. (2004, May). Who I am and who I was: Stories of

the discovery and construction of meaning in life

transitions. Presented

in Symposium entitled ``Second Changes in Life:

Transformative Stories of Self and Society. Dan McAdams,

Chair. Foley Center for the Study of Lives, Northwestern

University.

King, L.A. (2004, April). Happiness and the Meaningful

Life. Keynote Speaker Address. Michigan Undergraduate

Research Conference. Kalamazoo College.

King, L.A. (2004, April). Stories of Life Transition:

Implications for Happiness and Personality Development.

Kenyon College, Gambier, OH.

King, L.A. (2004, April). Writing for Our Lives:

Implications for psychological and physical health. Kenyon

College, Gambier, OH.

King, L.A. (2003, May). A Meaningful Life: The positive

psychology approach to the Life Story. Psi Chi Distinguished

Speaker Presentation. Midwestern Psychological Association

Convention. Chicago, IL.

King, L.A. (2002, October). In favor of happy endings.

Presented at the International Positive Psychology Summit,

Washington, D.C.

King, L.A. (August, 2002). All that ends well really is

well. Invited address, presented at a Presidential Symposium.

American Psychological Association, Chicago, IL. Martin

Seligman, Chair.

King, L.A. (2002, February). The relative weight of work

and family in judgments of life quality. University of

Maryland, College Park, MD.

King, L.A. (2001, December). The Articulated Self: Writing,

revising and reinventing the life story. University of

Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.

Twenge, J., & King, L.A. (2001, October). A good life is a

good personal life. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

King, L.A. (2001, February). Goals, stories, and the

meaning of life. University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.

King, L.A. (2001, February). Healthy Pleasures. Two talks,

plus discussion presented as part of SMU's Godbey Lecture

Series, Looking on the Bright Side of Life, with Mike

McCullough.

King, L.A. (2000, April). Trivial Pursuits and Magnificent

Obsessions: The Role of Life Goals in Happiness, Health, and

Maturity. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.

King, L.A. (2000, Spring). The Psychology of the Good Life.

Godbey Lecture Series, Southern Methodist University. A

series of four lectures, plus discussion, presented in

Dallas, TX.

King, L.A. (2000, February). Are only bad things good for

us? University of Texas at Austin.

King, L.A. (2000, February). Lost and found possible

selves: The role of what might have been in subjective well-

being and personality development. Presented at the First

Annual Personality Preconference, The Society for Personality

and Social Psychology Conference. Nashville, TN.

King, L.A. (1999, October) Reconstructing the future:

Personal growth, subjective well-being, and physical health

in response to life changing events. Iowa Psychological

Association Convention, Pella, IA.

King, L.A. (1999, November). Lost and Found Possible

Selves: Implications for Well-being and Maturity. Feminist

Reading Group, Southern Methodist University. Dallas, TX.

King, L.A. (1999, April). What the stories we tell say

about us: Subjective well-being and personal growth.

University of Texas at Dallas.

King, L.A. (1998, February). A psychology of Goya's Los

Caprichos. Meadows Museum of Art. Southern Methodist

University, Dallas, TX.

King, L.A., & Napa, C. (1997, April). What makes life worth

living? Presented at the Midwestern Psychological Association

Convention, Chicago, IL.

King, L.A. (1996, October). Emotional disclosure: Basic

mechanisms and re-writing the life story, Universidad

Autonomous de Mexico (UNAM), Mexico City.

King, L.A. (1996, March). Personal goals and personal

development: Becoming the people we want to be. Southern

Methodist University, Dallas, TX.

King, L.A. (1996, February). Daily goals and best possible

selves: Implications for Subjective well-being. University of

Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.

King, L.A. (1996, April). Personal strivings, possible

selves and the meaning of life. Invited paper presented at

the Southwestern Psychological Association Convention, San

Antonio, TX.

King, L.A. (1995, December). Goals, wishes, and ultimate

life dreams: Explorations in personality and motivation. The

University of Houston, Houston, TX.

King, L.A. (1994, September). Goal conflict, ambivalence

and psychological well-being. Department of Psychiatry,

Universitat Ulm and the Psychiatric Hospital at Weissenau,

Germany.

King, L.A. (1994, September). Linking current goals to

future images of the self: Implications for well-being and

goal progress. Presented at an invited conference entitled

``Issues in Personal Agency.'' The University of Warsaw,

Poland. M. Kofta, G. Weary, and G. Sedek, Organizers.

King, L.A. (1994, December). Personal strivings and the

imagined future self: Implications for subjective well-being.

The University of Texas-El Paso, El Paso, TX.

King, L.A. (1993, November). Ambivalence over emotional

expression and the interpretation of emotional stimuli, Texas

A&M University, Bryan-College Station, TX.

Symposia Organized

King, L.A. Chair (2000, October). Happiness, Optimism, Hope

and Maturity: A social psychology of human strengths. Society

of Experimental Social Psychology. Contributors: Ed Diener &

Carol Nickerson, Sonja Lyubomirsky, C. R. Snyder, and Laura

King.

Selected Conference Papers

King, L.A., Baker, A. K., Velasquez, L., & Burton, C. M.

(2004). Changes, happiness, and maturity, APA.

King, L.A. & Baker, A. K. (2003). The Relocation of Joy:

American Psychological Association Convention.

King, L.A. (2002, April). Writing and revising your way to

health and happiness. Presented at the SPAM Meeting,

Columbia, MO.

King, L.A. (2002, February). The self looks upon itself

transformed: Narrative explorations in self change. Society

for Personality and Social Psychology, in a symposium

entitled ``Self Perception.'' Savannah, GA.

King, L.A. (1999, January). If it's positive, it must be an

illusion. Presented at the First Annual Invited Conference of

Positive Psychology, Akumal, Mexico.

King, L.A. (1998, June). Stories of life transitions: Happy

endings and subjective well-being. Presented at the Nags Head

Conference on Personality and Social Behavior.

King, L.A. (1997, August). Doesn't everybody just want to

be happy? Presented in a symposium entitled, ``Looking on the

Bright Side'' C. Langston, Chair. 105th Annual Convention of

the American Psychological Association. Chicago.

King, L.A. (1997, July). Finding meaning in traumatic

events: Implications for physical well-being. Presented in a

symposium entitled ``Trauma: Social, Clinical, and

Personality Perspectives'' Luc Vandenberg, Chair. 4th annual

European Congress of Psychology, Dublin, Ireland.

King, L.A. (1995, June), Linking current goals to future

images of the self: The case of Pre-med students. Presented

at the Nags Head Conference on Personality and social

Behavior, Highland Beach, FL.

King, L.A. (1994, August), Implicit and Self-Attributed

Motives: Relations to Private Wishes, Worst Fears, and

Awareness. Paper presented in a symposium entitled,

``Implicit and Explicit Motivation.'' W. Fleeson, Chair.

102nd Annual Convention of the American Psychological

Association. Los Angeles, CA.

King, L.A. (1994, August). Personal strivings and ultimate

life goals: Linking the present with the future. Presented in

a symposium entitled, ``Goals Units in Personality:

Development and Change of Personal Goals.'' C. Langston,

Chair. 102nd Annual Convention of the American Psychological

Association. Los Angeles, CA.

King, L.A. (1994, June). Personal goals and personal

development: Development as a deliberate process. Presented

at the Nags Head Conference on Personality and Social

Behavior, Highland Beach, FL.

King, L.A. & Whitmore, J. (1993, April). Ambivalence over

Emotional Expression and Interpretation of Emotional Stimuli.

Paper presented at the 65th Annual Convention of the

Midwestern Psychological Association. Chicago, IL.

King, L.A. (1992, August). Intrapsychic Conflict and Self-

destructive Behavior: A Vicious Circle. Presented at

Symposium entitled ``Self-Destructive Behavior: Clinical,

Social and Personality Perspectives'' R. A. Emmons, Chair.

American Psychological Association Convention, Washington,

Mr. Chairman, This great country of ours was built on the, backs of willing and abled entrepreneurs who, with a little faith and help, started their own businesses in hopes of achieving the American dream of prosperity and success. It is this desire to own a business that is the backbone of our economy. With small businesses representing more than 99 percent of all employers and creating roughly 75 percent of the net new jobs, it is quite clear to see their importance in the economy.

As such, I rise today in support of the amendment offered by the gentleman from Illinois to maintain level funding for the 7(a) loan program. One of the most successful tools in the Small Business Administration's arsenal, the 7(a) loan program helps qualified businesses acquire financing when they may otherwise be prevented from obtaining a loan through the normal financial channels.

During the 2002-2003 fiscal years, the 9th district of Missouri, which I have the distinct honor of representing, received $37 million in 7(a) loans. This translates into the creation and/or retention of more than 1,100 jobs in the small business community. For rural districts, like mine, this incentive is essential.

One example of this is Moresource, Inc. located in Columbia, MO, which is in my district and where I currently live with my family. In 1994, Kat Cunningham had an idea to create a business that would focus solely on the management of employee administrative matters, such as payroll, tax compliance, health benefits and other human resources issues. Her thought was that by handling these cumbersome and time consuming tasks, small businesses can focus on increasing productivity and their core business objective.

With the aid of a sizeable Small Business Administration 7(a) loan, Kat turned this concept into a reality and created Moresource, Inc. 10 years later, the company has grown from 5 internal employees and 200 leased employees to 7 internal and more than 1,500 leased employees. Kat will tell you that without the assistance of a 7(a) loan, it is questionable whether Moresource would have had the opportunity to get off the ground.

Stephanie Perkins also credits the 7(a) loan program with making her dreams come true. Because of challenges Stephanie faced in obtaining a loan through traditional lenders, the 7(a) loan program provided her with the capital she needed to start up her own business. Stephanie opened the doors to Brown Station Early Learning Center in the fall of 2000 with help from the 7(a) loan program. Since that time, she has almost doubled the employees in her daycare center, which provides Columbia working parents with the peace of mind of knowing that their children are in safe and caring hands.

These are just two examples of how critical the 7(a) loan program is to Missouri businesses. It also illustrates the hand-up it can provide to support and encourage women who are willing to take risks and start a business venture. In the state of Missouri, we have an estimated, according to the Center for Women's Business Research, 129,865 privately held companies in which women hold the majority of ownership, accounting for 30.8 percent of all privately held firms in the state. The success of these outstanding women has contributed to the employment of 241,992 Missourians and generated $26 billion in sales.

The 7(a) loan program is crucial to developing and sustaining small businesses in America. It is also small business entrepreneurs that we have to thank for the 1.5 million jobs that have been created in the past 10 months. Furthermore, these enterprising and hard-working individuals have brought us an unemployment rate that is lower than the decade averages of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. For these and many other reasons, I urge all my colleagues to support small business and economic growth with a vote for the Manzullo amendment.

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

(Mr. HULSHOF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Chairman, I want to, first of all, say thank you to my friend for his kind words and the work that he has done on the upper Mississippi; and, two, the chairman of the subcommittee during general debate, the chairman talked about trying to find a balanced approach, and I applaud that; and I think the underlying bill does just that.

We certainly appreciate trying to fund the critical programs through the upper Mississippi River basin. Despite, quite frankly, the recent core budgets that have made this task extremely challenging, it is critical that adequate funding be provided to support a multiple-use river, as the gentleman from Wisconsin spoke of.

Whether it is the Environmental Management Plan that he spoke of to the navigation study and a comprehensive plan for flood control and floodplain management, the Mississippi River does, in fact, have diverse uses and, accordingly, diverse needs.

Again, I applaud the chairman and the subcommittee who have worked with our office and our constituents to make a difference in the basin. In fact, I know that the chairman has logged thousands of miles personally to inspect and view many of the civil works projects around the country, and I would be remiss if I did not extend a personal invitation to the gentleman to come to Missouri and to see the upper Mississippi and especially the locks and dams as the previous chairman did some years ago.

In fact, it was on that visit that we had a chance to view from the air some of the true benefits of the Environmental Management Plan specifically, and it really gave me a sense of a greater appreciation for what the Corps of Engineers was doing with the EMP. Already hundreds of acres of prime wetlands have been reclaimed, critical back waters have been restored, habitats are thriving. We are helping to promote flood control throughout the region, and we know too often, I think, the Corps of Engineers receives only barbs for its environmental record; but I think its successes in the EMP, which has really only been limited by funding issues, are indeed worthy of praise.

So accordingly, I support the bipartisan efforts of the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Kind), my friend, as well as the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Hobson), to achieve this balanced approach to the management of one of our Nation's greatest natural resources, the mighty Mississippi.

Withdrawal of Request for Recorded Vote on Amendment No. 4 Offered by

Ms. Norton

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a distinguished group of Americans. On November 14, 2003 the Exercise Tiger Foundation held its National Adopt a Serviceman Program in Jefferson City. It is essential that we take a moment to remember not only the sacrifice of veterans of Exercise Tiger, but also those men and women currently serving our Nation in the military. Allow me, Mr. Speaker, to take a moment to remind all of us of the story of Exercise Tiger during the Second World War.

Unfortunately, for many people, the words ``Exercise Tiger'' hold no special significance. Few know of the sacrifice made by so many in late August of 1944. At its outset, Exercise Tiger was one of several training exercises conducted to prepare American and British troops for the upcoming invasion of Normandy. Concentrated on a beach near Dover, England, these operations were meant to prepare the raw recruits for combat, not provide them their first taste of war.

In the calm, early morning hours of April 28, 1944, tragedy struck. As eight Navy landing ships, or LST's, and their lone escort approached their landing area, nine German U-Boats patrolling the English Channel attacked. LST-507 was the first ship to be torpedoed; it quickly caught fire and survivors abandoned ship. Moments later, LST-531 was hit and sank within 6 minutes. The American ships quickly regrouped and returned fire, with LST-289 suffering significant casualties.

In a moment, the green American recruits became battle-tested veterans. Out of a 4,000 man force, nearly one-quarter were either missing or dead. While the heroism of the American troops under heavy enemy fire deserves high praise, the men who participated in Exercise Tiger had a job to do--practice landing operations resumed the very next day, April 29, 1944.

In most cases, the casualty information and details surrounding the mission would have been made public within days or even hours of the attack. With Exercise Tiger, however, this information was not released until after the D-Day invasion. This was necessary to keep the German military from learning about the impending invasion of mainland Europe.

As the world now knows, the allied invasion of Europe on D-Day was a success. Unfortunately, those who helped make D-Day possible have not been properly recognized for their sacrifice. This too, must change. We must take it upon ourselves to ensure that the virtues those who served in Exercise Tiger--courage, humility and steadfast devotion to completing the task at hand--remembered and documented for future generations.

As such, it is only appropriate that the Exercise Tiger Foundation has nominated eight members from various branches of the active and reserve forces as part of the National Adopt a Serviceman Program. This year's honorees are Staff Sergeant Patrick Reed, 1107th AVCAD, Missouri Army Reserve National Guard, Command Sergeant Gary L. Murphy, 139th Security Forces Squadron, U.S. Air National Guard, Master Sergeant Robert A. Jackson, 442nd Fighter Wing, U.S. Air Force Reserve, Staff Sergeant Billy Jack Roberts, 509th Bomb Wing, U.S. Air Force, Petty Officer 2nd Class Yancy Woodard, Staff Sergeant Matthew Beadle, U.S. Marine Corps, Sergeant Dennis Payne, 110th Engineers, Missouri Army Reserve National Guard, and Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Kristian Sova, U.S. Coast Guard. Without a doubt, their exemplary service to our Nation honors the example of those who came before them.

These individuals certainly deserve our recognition and support as they continue to defend our freedom both here and abroad. We stand united behind them, and united behind the freedom our Nation guarantees. May God continue to bless this Nation as well as all of those men and women who have served in uniform.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the gentleman's amendment.

Mr. Chairman, it has often been said that freedom is never free. Deposing the tyrannical regime of Saddam Hussein has indeed proved costly to America in terms of both lives and treasure. While we have joined with the Iraqi people to win their freedom, much remains to be done in order to secure that freedom for generations to come.

This debate is of similar gravity as that of last October, when this Congress authorized the use of force to enforce all relevant U.N. resolutions on Iraq. Today, we debate not the future war, but the future peace of a region.

After much deliberation, I find that the amendment offered by the gentleman from Indiana achieves the best balance between our obligations in Iraq as well as the obligation of the Iraqi people to play a prominent role in securing their own future. The parallel system of grants and loans would first build the foundations for a democratically elected government in Iraq. This new government would then find a willing partner in the United States to help finance needed investments in infrastructure and security. Democracy is not a spectator sport, and the Iraqi people must take the leading role to secure the peace for the long-term.

While I am well aware that this amendment might be ruled out of order on parliamentary grounds, it represents the best policy for our nation and for the Iraqi people. That said, failure in Iraq is simply not an option. It is with serious reservations that I will support this supplemental without the inclusion of the Pence amendment. As such, I urge the Administration to re-examine loans as a means of financing the reconstruction of Iraq.

Mr. Speaker, I am opposed to the motion to instruct, and I claim the time in opposition.

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

The hour is indeed late, Mr. Speaker. The majority of Americans, save a few insomniacs, are, in the words of my 3-year-old daughter, fast asleep. In fact, I see the yawns being stifled by staff members that have put in a good, long legislative day here today. I do not expect to use the entirety of the time allotted to me.

I want to applaud the gentleman from New York. I certainly share the gentleman's stated desire, at least the stated desire tonight to reduce the tax burden on working families in America. I wish the gentleman would have had his vote in favor of tax relief earlier, but that is another debate for another day.

When we think about the average worker's day in a couple of hours and the amount of taxes that that individual will have to have put forth, let me just give you a quick example. When the electric alarm clock goes off in a couple of hours, whether you hit the snooze button or turn it off, you are paying an electricity tax. When you get up and brush your teeth and take a shower, you are paying a water tax. If you drive to the convenience store to get your cup of coffee, you are paying a sales tax. When you drive on to work, you are paying a gasoline tax. If you use the phone during the day, you pay a phone tax. Obviously the day's work, you are paying an income tax, as well as a payroll tax.

When you get home, and thankfully about two-thirds of Americans actually own their own home, you of course pay a property tax.

When you kiss your spouse good night, you think that is free. Not so says Uncle Sam and the Internal Revenue Code because there is a marriage tax, and then if you build and you save and you invest and you risk and you sweat and you survive and you have a family business, yes, there is Uncle Sam at death's door taking up to half of your family business in something called the death tax.

So I share the gentleman's idea that the average working family in America is overtaxed, and there are a number of ways that we have tried in this Congress, in fact over the past couple of Congresses, to ease that burden, that heavy tax burden on America's working families.

The reason that I stand in opposition to the motion being offered by the other side proffered by the gentleman from New York is that the motion is deficient in several respects.

First of all, the motion that is offered by the gentleman from New York allows the child credit to drop from $1,000 to $700 shortly at the end of 2004. As a result, many of those low- and middle-income families that the gentleman talked about will receive a smaller child tax credit right after, as it turns out, next November's elections.

The House-passed bill that is currently awaiting a conference, and I would say to the gentleman I do not share the pessimism expressed here on the House floor because if he reads some of the publications, it appears that House and Senate conferees are beginning to work and move this package forward, but at least the House-passed version ensures that the child credit remains at the $1,000 level throughout the decade; and I would say simply to all Members of the House, if it is good policy now, if it is good policy through 2004, surely it is good policy beyond 2004. That is one reason that I strongly oppose this motion to instruct.

Secondly, the motion being offered by the gentleman from New York does not eliminate the marriage penalty in the child credit until the year 2010, and even then under this motion only does that for one measly, meager year. Under the Democratic motion, millions of children will be denied the child credit simply because their parents are married, and we are talking about those on the socioeconomic scale that

we have been encouraging the institution of marriage. So on the one hand we are encouraging them to enter into a state of matrimony. At the same time we say, but there is a penalty, again a marriage penalty for those of you single parents coming together who have children because we are denying you at least under the Democratic alternative this child credit through the marriage penalty.

So for those two reasons and others that perhaps we will have a chance to discuss later I think the gentleman's motion should fail.

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

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

What I would say to my colleague and friend from Connecticut is that we have had a number of recorded votes on this issue. And the gentlewoman is correct that on the first occasion that the motion was considered it did in fact pass by a narrow margin. We have had five subsequent votes, if memory serves, and on each of those occasions the motion did not pass.

I yield to the gentlewoman from Connecticut.

Reclaiming my time, Mr. Speaker, actually what the majority leader said was, when asked will the House take up the Senate bill, the majority leader then made the statement the gentlewoman suggests, and that was that, no, the House would not take up the identical language in the Senate bill. In fact, the House passed H.R. 1308, the All American Tax Relief Act of 2003, which was an amendment to the Senate version.

But I want to say just a couple of things regarding the comments that have been made. The House passed a budget, the Senate did as well. The two Chambers reconciled that budget number, and it was the Senate, of course, that drew the line in the sand, as it were, and said no more tax relief over $350 billion. And so what I think needs to be pointed out is that I think as a member of the Committee on Ways and Means, as we began to mark up the bill and move it through the committee process and bring it to the House floor, I cannot recall ever the discussion being that we needed to have this refundable child credit for low- income wage earners. It was only as an amendment on the Senate side, and then ultimately, of course, again with that $350 billion figure, they were unable to get it done. So, then, we come back and go through the legislative process again, and again I remain optimistic that the two bodies can get together.

What I want to say, though, specifically regarding this continued mantra about the amount of taxes that all Americans pay, as I stated at the outset, I continue to believe that all Americans are overburdened with State and Federal and local taxes. But what I would say to the gentlewoman from Connecticut or the gentleman or anyone else that wishes to make this point, we do not have the authority to bring down the property tax rates in

the State of Connecticut. There are some States that do not have an income tax and, in fact, draw revenue based entirely upon a sales tax. That is not within the purview of Congress. That is left up to the discretion of States legislatures.

We had a recent referendum in my hometown of Columbia, Missouri, whether we should raise the property tax levy for the school districts. We decided as a community that, yes, we should. That is not something, then, that we should collect taxes from someone from the Hamptons, that happens to be in the First Congressional District of the gentleman from New York, to suddenly help redistribute that Federal income tax money to pay for this school referendum that we had at the local level.

I will say this regarding the property tax. Back in 1975, the earned income tax credit was enacted. At that time in 1975 it was a temporary program to return a portion of the Social Security taxes that were paid by lower-income taxpayers. It was made permanent in 1978. In 1990, the program had become a major component of Federal efforts to reduce poverty. Now it is the largest anti-poverty entitlement program.

My friends on the other side talk about this child credit provision, this $3.5 billion over 10-year provision. Actually it is a 2-year provision, and yet every year, every single tax year, income taxpayers collectively put $30 billion of income tax monies into the earned income tax credit for those wage earners on the low-income wage scale, $30 billion for some 19 million Americans, at least tax filers, every year through the earned income tax credit.

Now, yes, we all work hard, we play by the rules, and those individuals that contribute to Social Security, it did a wonderful thing that we have a national retirement system that if you work 40 quarters that entitles you then to Social Security benefits. And that, too, payroll taxes are these dedicated taxes that finance Social Security and Medicare. I think it should be pointed out that Social Security offers a progressive benefit structure that is by design more beneficial to low-income workers.

And lastly, in many instances, the combination of the earned income credit and the current law child credit more than completely offsets this payroll tax liability. And so I think that this Congress has spoken on many occasions as far as the expansion of the earned income tax credit.

I think the child credit, again, is something that we have discussed. I think that the motion to instruct is deficient and would urge a ``no'' vote.

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

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

Before the gentleman leaves the floor, let me pose a hypothetical to him because I certainly respect the fact as a newly minted Member of Congress and having to agonize over some of these votes and I think the gentleman was sincere talking about weighing these various tax cut options. The hypothetical I would put to him, if there were in a conference between House and Senate a compromise that would actually increase the child credit to $1,000 per eligible child and maybe make that extension for a 5-year period of time rather than a 10-year period of time and if this hypothetical conference also would eliminate the marriage penalty in the child credit, would the gentleman from North Carolina be so inclined to support such a compromise?

I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina.

Mr. Speaker, I am going to reclaim my time. I appreciate the gentleman going on a rhetorical journey about the appropriations bills. I did not mean to put the gentleman on the spot, but I again believe that a compromise is, in fact, achievable.

Just a couple of points, Mr. Speaker, regarding the gentleman and his insinuation that Congress has been derelict in dealing with or in providing relief for working families. I go back to the year 2001 in the previous Congress. That is the first time Congress actually made the child tax credit refundable, which we now are talking about expanding. Also I would point out that the jobs and growth package previously enacted and now signed into law but which originated in our Committee on Ways and Means and then considered by this House accelerated those income tax rate reductions that are now law. The reason that there is more take-home pay in the next month's monthly paycheck is because of those accelerated income tax rate reductions, as well as doubling the standard deduction for married couples to try to at least eliminate to some degree the marriage penalty.

And so I would take issue with the gentleman's comment that Congress has not been doing its work as far as working families with those prior examples and again would urge a ``no'' vote on the motion to instruct.

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

Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?

I would say to the gentleman that the leadership on our side, and he referenced a number of leaders, the very fact that we considered on this House floor an expansion of the child credit beyond what is included in the Democratic motion to instruct, the All-American Tax Relief Act of 2003, H.R. 1308, shows the commitment of leadership to move this issue forward.

I would say to the gentleman that at least in some of the publications, at least Congress Daily of yesterday that talked about that there now is some dialogue between Senate conferees and House conferees, again I believe optimistically, and the President of the United States has said this is a priority for him, I believe we are going to have a compromise reached.

I appreciate the gentleman yielding.

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

What I would say to the gentlewoman from California who just spoke is a couple of points. The child credit actually, we phase out for upper- income individuals.

In fact, families that have children that are above a certain income threshold do not qualify. Their children do not qualify. I think what is interesting in all of this debate is night after night when we debate this motion to instruct and we talk about trying to provide for the children that we are only talking about some of the children; that is, children of the successful families do not qualify. But that is neither here nor there, but I wanted to set the record straight that as she talks about tax cuts for the wealthy regarding a child credit, those successful families do not qualify for the child credit.

What I would say to the gentlewoman, too, who just spoke regarding the Ramirez family and the teacher and mechanic with children, under existing law, and again this is sort of back of the envelope calculations, but under existing law, as I understand it, the Ramirez family already is entitled to the refundable child credit; in fact, a family with children whose annual income from salaries and wages is roughly $25,000. Their Federal income tax liability before the child credit is roughly $885. Their tax liability after the child credit is zero. In fact, with the refundable child credit, they get an additional $565, and part of that of course is refundable. The total check from the United States Treasury to the family like the Ramirez family is roughly, again back of the envelope calculation, $2,282. That is an income supplement that goes to good hard-working families like the Ramirez family as described by the previous speaker. So I think that they are already benefiting from actions of Congress, specifically the refundable child credit from 2001.

Again, I would just sum up, Mr. Speaker, and say that the Democratic motion to instruct actually allows the child credit to drop from $1,000 to $700 after the 2004 election. As a result, millions of low- and middle-income families will get under their motion a smaller child credit. The House-passed bill H.R. 1308 ensures that the child credit remains at this $1,000 level that we have decided to be appropriate throughout the decade. Again good policy now, good policy next year, good policy 5 or 7 or 8 years down the road. The Democratic motion to instruct should fail because it does not eliminate the marriage penalty in the child credit until the year 2010 and even then just for a year. So again under their motion millions of children will be denied the child credit because their parents are married. What signal are we sending across the country that we say that again if they do the right thing, work hard, play by the rules, and then choose to raise their family within the institution of marriage but it is going to cost them on their bottom line under the Democratic motion that they do not get this refundability if, in fact, they choose marriage as the course for their family?

The House-passed bill benefits middle-income families, married families, by eliminating the child credit immediately for married couples.

I did want to point out because I know it has been referenced on a couple of occasions the House-passed bill does not deny child credit to military families. Military families, including those that are deployed abroad, are already receiving a refundable credit and will continue to receive a refundable credit under the House-passed bill.

So I think, again, H.R. 1308, which has passed this House, is far superior than the Senate version. So I would urge a no vote on the motion to instruct. In Washington, DC, Mr. Speaker, pessimists are seldom prophets. I happen to believe in the best nature of this institution as well as our counterparts on the other side of the Capitol. I happen to believe that we will be able to find a good workable compromise for all children of working families. So I would urge a no vote on the motion to instruct.

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

Mr. Speaker, hopefully to further clarify some of the questions that have been asked, and I see the gentleman from New York (Mr. Rangel) has been provided a transcript from this morning's Committee on Ways and Means markup, what I would like to do is read the relevant portions, I think, which then necessitated the calling of the Sergeant at Arms.

This would be at page 15, line 331, the chairman stated, ``If the gentleman will suspend. If the gentleman from California would understand he is reading the table of contents, which is at the beginning of the bill.''

The remaining minority Member said, ``Oh, that.''

Line 335, ``Chairman Thomas. He will then move to the body of the bill. That is how these things work.'' To which the sole Member of the minority party that was left in the room said this at line 337, ``Its eloquence overwhelms me, Mr. Chairman, just like your intellect does. It is--oh, you think you are big enough to make me, you little wimp? Come on. Come over here and make me. I dare you.''

The transcript indicates in brackets ``laughter,'' to which the minority member then said, ``You little fruitcake. You little fruitcake. I said you are a fruitcake.''

Now, what the transcript does not indicate, and I would have to stay with the transcript, and just as many of us who have had previous experience in criminal courtrooms or civil courtrooms, the transcript is, of course, the cold recitation of words that are spoken.

If Members will permit me to characterize just a bit, I was sitting next to the gentleman from Colorado, and I would tell the Speaker that the words specifically regarding, ``Are you big enough to make me, you little wimp? Come on. Come over here and make me. I dare you,'' I happened to turn around in my chair because I am on the lower dais and looked up, and it was the sole Democratic member who was remaining who was directing those words directly at the gentleman from Colorado.

If Members would permit me to characterize a little bit more, even though laughter erupted, as someone who was witnessing this event, Mr. Speaker, the words were uttered in a very serious tone, dare I say in a threatening tone. I do not think I am mischaracterizing the import of these words.

This, of course, was done during the reading of the bill. Ultimately, the chairman was able to get a unanimous consent request. That is later reflected. Then we were able to move and consider the bill, but this was done before the Capitol Police were called; and were I the chairman in the same situation, I, too, would have contacted the Sergeant at Arms to return decorum to our committee room.

Mr. Speaker, what I would say to the previous speaker is the transcript is in fact true. What was not included was that in the transcript at the conclusion, again on page 18, line 24, ``And, without objection, it is considered as read.'' At that point, the chairman struck the gavel.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time.

Mr. Speaker, I have been listening to the discussion and the debate and the rhetoric, and I have been a bit disappointed by some of the arguments that have been made; not surprised by the arguments, but nonetheless disappointed. There have been some of my colleagues on the other side who have talked about hypotheticals. Let me allow my colleagues a little glimpse into a very personal story.

On November 22 of last year, my father collapsed and died at our family's home in Southeast Missouri. He was 68. On his first trip to Washington, D.C., he sat right up there in the gallery to watch his son take the first oath of office. He died without an estate plan. In fact, I wish my colleagues could have met my dad, because if they had shaken his hand, they would have immediately noticed the callouses from 4 decades of working our family's farm down in the district of the gentlewoman from Missouri (Mrs. Emerson).

One of the necessities, of course, of having that painful experience is that my mom and I, as the surviving members of the family, had to conduct an inventory. And I do not mind telling my colleagues, a 493- acre farm, a number of irrigation systems, farm equipment, grain trucks, the modest home where I grew up, modest savings and, thankfully, because of Congress's actions a number of years ago, my mom was not required to pay the tax. Yet, she has vowed to put together an estate plan in order to pass on the legacy that my father built.

So she has been forced to spend thousands of dollars to accountants, to lawyers to create these legal contortions that are required by the very existence of the estate tax. Can anybody give me a compelling reason why she should have to spend her limited resources in order to preserve my father's legacy? Can anyone?

As long as the estate tax laws remain on the books, surviving family members across this country will have to shell out hard-earned dollars to ensure that the long reach of the death tax does not force them to sell off assets in the family business.

The gentleman from North Dakota is my friend. I applaud his intent. One of the charts that he mentioned, at the bottom, it says only 400 farms would actually be subject to the estate tax. I think that is what it says on the bottom of it, and I will let my colleagues look at the exhibit; and yet what the chart does not say is that every farm or every family business has to file an estate tax form and a return, perhaps a simple exercise, but in every instance where a family business has been accumulating assets, a return has to be filed, which means again hours of meetings with accountants and lawyers and, again, a cost of compliance.

So it is not just the number of estates that would be subject to the tax. It is this huge cost that as long as the estate tax, the inheritance tax remains on the laws of our books there will be this cost of compliance to all family businesses across the country.

Simply, the death of a family member should never be a taxable event.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 287 I was inadvertently detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. Speaker, earlier this month, Moberly, Missouri celebrated its annual Omar Bradley Day. This day is an opportunity for area residents to remember a great hero and reflect on General Bradley's role in preserving the freedoms we hold dear.

As such, I wish to enter the following article, ``Who Is Omar Bradley and Why Should I Care?'' into the Congressional Record. Written by Moberly resident Sam Richardson, this item appeared in the Sunday, May 11, 2003 edition of the Moberly Monitor-Index. I believe the points it makes are a fitting tribute to General Bradley.

Who Is Omar Bradley and Why Should I Care?

Here's a good topic to toss around over your dinner

tonight:

``Who is Omar Bradley and why should I care?''

It's a fair question around these parts, what with the

annual General Omar Nelson Bradley Luncheon, Lecture and

Symposium coming up Monday, May 12, at the Municipal

Auditorium in Moberly.

``What did old Omar Bradley do to cause a whole lot of

people to come to his hometown 22 years after he died?''

Another more than fair question.

The stock answer is that he is Missouri's most famous

military figure, a member of the Missouri Hall of Fame, a guy

with a 34-cent stamp with his picture on it, the fellow

captured in bronze in the soaring statue in Rothwell Park,

the ``Bradley'' who is the namesake for the Bradley Fighting

Vehicle so prominent in last month's Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Moberly public schools, St. Pius X School, Moberly Area

Community College, the University of Missouri, Truman State

University and other educational institutions in Bradley's

home state may teach young Missourians why Omar Bradley is

important to them. And, indeed, he is important to them.

Of course, young and old alike should know Bradley went

from Moberly High School to the U.S. Military Academy at West

Point and eventually commanded the largest American fighting

force ever assembled, was our nation's last five-star

general officer and first Chairman of our Joint Chiefs of

Staff.

At the 2002 Bradley Symposium, LTC Jay Carafano, then

editor at the National Defense University at Fort McNair in

Washington, D.C., told the audience one of the key reasons

Bradley was not high on the public awareness screen was

because of his low profile on the silver screen. Hollywood's

big films about World War II didn't have much of a role for

Bradley. LTC Carafano noted Bradley was on screen in

``Patton,'' ``The Longest Day'' and ``Saving Private Ryan''

only briefly, hardly a leading character.

At this year's Bradley Symposium, two of the Truman

Presidential Library's leading historians will make the point

that Bradley was a pillar of leadership in his time.

Tom Heuertz, associate education coordinator, and Ray

Geselbracht, education and academic outreach coordinator, at

the great Independence museum will try to explain how highly

Bradley was esteemed by President Harry S. Truman. ``Truman

saw him as one of the world's greatest generals ever, in the

same class with Hannibal and Napoleon,'' Heuertz said

yesterday.

Because of the positions he held, Bradley clearly was a

favorite of at least three Presidents: Franklin Roosevelt,

Truman and Dwight Eisenhower.

On a recent edition of ``The Newshour with Jim Lehrer,''

Lucian Truscott IV, a noted military history author,

reflecting on American generals' leadership in Operation

Iraqi Freedom, suggested the U.S. Central Command's Gen.

Tommy Franks and others were nowhere near the class of

``great generals like Patton, Bradley and Eisenhower.''

Monday, Colonel Jon H. Moilanen, dean of students and

administration at the U.S. Army's Command and General Staff

College in Leavenworth, Kansas, will describe how Bradley's

military expertise still molds the careers of young officers

who serve throughout the world today.

This is pretty heady stuff for a chap from our town. In a

story about Bradley Day in The Washington Times recently,

Moberly was referred to as ``quaint'' and ``picturesque.''

For his part, Bradley was, indeed, quiet, modest and

unselfish, along with very smart, a natural leader and an

exceptional athlete. The kind of man you'd expect to come

from a quaint and picturesque town like ours.

In the 1915 West Point class yearbook, it is reported

Bradley was a sergeant, first sergeant and lieutenant; he was

a sharpshooter; he was a member of the football team and

track squad; and, perhaps most importantly to him at the

time, he was the star of the Army baseball team all four

years he was there.

The yearbook says, ``His greatest passion is baseball,

football and F Company. In baseball, many an opposing player

has trifled once with Brad's throwing arm, but never twice.

And a batting average of .383 is never to be sneezed at.''

``His most prominent characteristic is 'getting there,' and

if he keeps up the clip he's started, some of us will some

day be bragging to our grandchildren that, 'sure, General

Bradley was a classmate of mine,''' the yearbook says of our

favorite son.

And, in the style of the day, the yearbook assigned each

cadet a motto. Bradley's: ``True merit is like a river, the

deeper it is, the less noise it makes,'' attributed to

Anonymous.

How true that turned out.

Although his classmate Eisenhower became Supreme Allied

Commander in World War II, and then President, Bradley was

the first in his class to become a brigadier general.

One reporter wrote in May 1944, ``Endowed with the mind of

a mathematician and the body of an athlete, General Bradley

is essentially American in ancestry, training and experience;

he is slow spoken but sharp witted; he is polite and at times

even diffident, but immensely certain of his own skill--the

type of soldier who for 168 years has sustained the

republic.''

And finally, this former captain of the Moberly High School

baseball team, a boy worthy of his own shotgun at age 13, a

young man who graduated 44th in a class of 164 at West Point,

would tell a reporter about dinner at his humble home in

Randolph County:

``We'd sit down at the supper table, my mother, my dad and

I, and we'd talk things over. That's where I learned a lot

about love of country and right from wrong.''

From a dinner table in Randolph County to the greatness of

the world, that was the man who will be remembered Monday at

the 2003 General Omar Bradley Luncheon, Lecture and

Symposium.

I object.

I object.

Mr. Speaker, in the real world if a family's house's foundation begins to crumble and the family does not have savings enough to make the necessary repairs, they would take out a home equity loan, a short-term

loan, in order to rebuild the foundation of their family's home. It seems that the majority opinion on the minority side is to repudiate the economic policies of President John F. Kennedy, that a rising tide lifts all boats. The substitute that was offered last night says that in order to stimulate the economy we should spend more money. Were that the case, America would never experience a recession because Congress always spends more money.

The other side has said that the judgment of individual Members of Congress seems to be superior to the judgement of America's families as they sit around the kitchen table trying to pay the bills. We are trying to embrace consumer confidence and investor confidence.

Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 2. Our economy's foundation is crumbling and it is time that we repair it.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to me.

The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Doggett) who spoke last has regaled us on a number of occasions with some interesting and I would say provocative speeches over the last couple of years about the use and abuse of tax shelters. He has proclaimed himself, Mr. Speaker, the defender of the individual taxpayer against abusive corporate tax shelters. He has often cited Enron when that issue was before Congress. He has railed against the expansion of the business meal deduction, saying taxpayers would subsidize $400 bottles of wine, a thinly-veiled swipe at the former Speaker.

In the immediate aftermath of September 11, in the committee he went as far as to say that Republicans on the committee were looking for tax cuts for Osama bin Laden. Now he attempts to wrap himself into the fireman's coat and shield himself with the policeman's shield. It is just not so.

Section 418 of the Social Security Protection Act closes a loophole. The General Accounting Office says this about that loophole: ``4,819 individuals from Texas and Georgia have performed work in Social Security-covered positions for short periods, and in fact even for a day, in order to offset'' or get away from this government pension offset in this exemption.

This is a loophole, a loophole that is being exploited. In 2002, one- fourth of all the public education retirees in the State of Texas took advantage of this loophole.

Let me give an example of an egregious type of way that this is being exploited, and unfortunately, much to the chagrin of other hardworking Social Security payees across the country. School officials reported individuals were taking, or one individual traveled 800 miles one way, 800 miles, a two-day trip, to be employed for a single day, traveling back 800 miles back to that person's home in order to get away from this loophole.

As my friend, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Brady), noted, a lot of these school districts are seeing the money flow in because they are charging these retirees, these teachers, a processing fee for their school districts. Ultimately, what it means is that

these workers are seeing their annual pensions increased by the tune of about $5,000 a year to which they are not entitled.

So we can talk about the government pension offset all we would like, or the windfall elimination provision. Yet what we are trying to do is root out waste, fraud and abuse. The General Accounting Office has told us clearly and unequivocally this is a loophole that is being exploited, and it is time that this Congress acted to close this loophole, because other retirees are the ones that are losing the advantage of their social security.

Mr. Speaker, again I would say to the gentleman who just spoke, who has self-proclaimed his time here as far as trying to shut down these corporate abusive shelters, in existing law that the Social Security Protection Act attempts to protect is a loophole that is being exploited, a single-day exception where workers attempt to get around this law.

Perhaps if the gentleman's constituents had set up post office boxes in Bermuda, perhaps we would see some righteous indignation in favor of this legislation instead of opposed.

Mr. Speaker, I would say to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Turner), that tearful constituent of his is probably not scheming to game the system.

I would say to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards), I think it is a bit disingenuous to invoke our troops and our firefighters.

I would say to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green) who offers the amendment, the amendment would strip section 418 out of the underlying bill.

And I would again say to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sandlin) who just spoke, would the following hypothetical be considered a gimmick, trick or fraud: A university professor who works his entire life as a university professor, works a single day as a janitor making $6 an hour, an 8-hour day, $48, and out of that paycheck, there is a $3 FICA withholding, is it a gimmick, a trick or a fraud for that $3 FICA withholding to then translate into roughly $100,000; $5,000 a year for 20 years of retirement?

Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, that is not a gimmick, trick, or fraud. It is not even a hypothetical. It is a real-life example of something that has occurred that needs to be changed. A real janitor would not see that $100,000.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding me this time, and I rise in support of H.R. 743, the Social Security Protection Act.

There are a lot of issues that are addressed that are important to Americans with disabilities that depend upon Title II and Title XVI. Individuals facing the challenges of life with a disability need these protections that are proposed on the representative payee provisions.

There are about 6 million Americans that receive Social Security and supplemental security income. These beneficiaries often have family members or loved ones who act on their behalf, and yet there are some of those receiving these benefits that go to services, a fee for this service of being a representative payee. If someone receives a fee for this service, now they must be bonded and licensed. And if this representative payee chooses to pray on the disability or the elderly, society's most vulnerable, then tough civil monetary penalties will result. These changes are important and necessary.

Another provision deserving mention, Mr. Speaker, is contained within section 401 through 405. In 1999, this body enacted some breakthrough changes for individuals with disabilities, specifically the Ticket to Work and Work Incentive Improvement Act. The Ticket to Work rolled over barriers that prevented countless employable individuals with disabilities from rejoining the workforce.

Yet now we need to make some technical corrections. For instance, one of the things in the original Ticket to Work bill was a demonstration project which allowed the commissioners of Social Security to look at other ways to employ those that want to rejoin the workforce. One of the technical corrections is that we extend the 5-year limit on designing and implementing these worthy demonstration projects.

I am especially interested personally in abolishing this so-called ``income cliff.'' That is, if an individual is employable and works and achieves earnings up to a certain amount, if that individual makes $1 more than that, they fall off the cliff and lose all of their Social Security disability benefits. I encourage this sliding scale, for every $2 earned, maybe losing $1 of disability benefits. Yet we need to make those technical corrections to the bill so employer networks will accept these beneficiaries that are participating in this $1 for $2 offset demonstration project. So these are worthy changes.

Let me quickly address the issue of my colleagues from Texas. There was a recent study that the General Accounting Office came back to our committee in August of last year with, at the request of the chairman, and found this last-day exemption, this loophole, found that nearly 5,000 individuals in two States were taking advantage of this loophole in order to get around the requirements of law.

What we do is simply implement the changes of the GAO. What the General Accounting Office found was that we were allowing, current law was allowing a select group of individuals with really a small investment of work time and only minimal Social Security contributions to really gain access to potentially many years of full Social Security benefits. I recognize this is a tough situation for those Members from those particular States; but as the chairman alluded after the last speaker, this is something that brings those States in line with the other 48 States. Again a difficult but necessary, important change. These changes are overdue. I urge adoption of H.R. 743.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 150th anniversary of Culver-Stockton College, which is located in Canton, Missouri.

Culver-Stockton College was founded as Christian University by early leaders of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Canton, Missouri was chosen as the school's location based on the close proximity to the Mississippi River and the enthusiasm for higher education shared by the Lewis County Disciples. The State of Missouri issued the college's charter on January 28, 1853. In 1917, Christian University was renamed Culver-Stockton College to honor benefactors Mary Culver and Robert Stockton.

Culver-Stockton's visionary founders were clearly ahead of their time. The school was the first college chartered west of the Mississippi River to educate both men and women. As both Christian University and Culver-Stockton College, the school has compiled a proud record of accomplishment and has made a meaningful contribution to the community throughout its history.

The forward-thinking ideas that are the foundation for Culver- Stockton College still influence the school today. Culver-Stockton is a 4-year residential, coeducational college that asks its students to realize their full potential. The college's alumni are living proof of the professional, personal and social service development that is cultivated on Culver-Stockton's campus. The college's administration, faculty and staff are committed to educational excellence, character development, and the integration of liberal arts.

In recent years, Culver-Stockton has achieved distinctions that include being named one of America's Best Christian Colleges, inclusion in the Templeton Foundation's ``Colleges that Encourage Character Development'' and membership in the Lilly Fellows Program in Humanities and the Arts.

With its Sesquicentennial Gala Week, Culver-Stockton College launches a year-long celebration of its 150-year history. This provides the opportunity to not only reflect on the school's past contributions, but to appreciate the important role the college continues to play in educating our future leaders. I congratulate both Culver-Stockton's administration and student body on achieving this milestone in education history.