Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chair and ranking member for their great leadership.

Mr. Speaker, imagine a mother crying in despair while holding her child in her arms, a child who is gasping for his last breath, an innocent victim of a barrel bomb filled with sarin gas dropped on his school.

The situation in Syria is the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II. President Assad's brutal regime has killed half a million innocent victims and displaced 14 million more, with millions fleeing into Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and over Europe, straining their resources, threatening regional stability, weakening European institutions, and undermining United States economic and security interests.

We must hold Assad and his supporters responsible for their atrocities. American leadership is needed more now than ever. I urge my colleagues to support the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act.

Mr. Speaker, I fear that one day we will look back and we will ask: Why did we not do more?

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Charlotte Zimmerman, who turned 90 years young today. Charlotte is an active member of Hadassah in South Florida and a beloved mother of four, grandmother of six, and great-grandmother of four.

Throughout her life Charlotte is an example to us all, staying healthy and aging with grace. She is a patron of the arts, including ballet, drama, music, and opera. She grew up in Richmond Hill, New York and now lives in Boca Raton, Florida.

I join with Charlotte's friends and family in celebrating her birthday. I wish her good health and continued success in the coming year.

Mr. Speaker, on rollcall vote 257, I was not present because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Johnson for yielding, and I also want to thank Chairmen Shuster and Barletta and Ranking Members DeFazio and Johnson for their continued support.

I have had the honor of working on this legislation with my friends from Florida: Congressmen Dan Webster, Brian Mast, and Frederica Wilson.

I have said this before and I am going to say it again: Florida knows hurricanes. In 2004 and 2005, Charley, Frances, Jeanne, Wilma, and Katrina tore through our State, leaving families stranded and property damaged.

I was the mayor of the city of West Palm Beach when we saw trees crash to the ground, ripping power lines and blocking flooded streets. Water systems were compromised, and our local governments, around the clock, did a miraculous job cleaning debris, fixing broken infrastructure, and getting life back to normal. It takes a lot to get it done.

When hurricanes strike, communities are ravaged, and so are their budgets. So I want to first thank FEMA for the funding assistance it provided Florida in a great time of need. With that said, FEMA is now asking some of our cities and counties to pay back money that was given for disaster relief projects that were approved more than 10 years ago.

There is no question that FEMA should do a responsible audit and make sure that money is used properly. However, the process should not be an endless journey into the Federal bureaucracy. Our local governments cannot afford to wait an infinite number of years for FEMA to do its assessment, especially when millions of dollars are at stake.

The current practice stymies our local governments' ability to plan their future budgets, and, unlike the Federal Government, they can't run a deficit. So this bill would make sure that the process is more evenhanded, giving FEMA adequate time to review its grant payments while allowing for the financial security of our local governments.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this very good legislation, and I urge the Senate to take action.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from New York.

I just returned from a trip to South Korea and Japan, a bipartisan trip, where we focused on the dangers of North Korea. First, I want to just say what became very clear to us is how important our relationship is with South Korea and Japan, both economically and for our national security.

We sat in roundtable discussions with scholars, ambassadors, and military leaders from the United States, Japan, South Korea, and China; and I will tell you one thing was unanimous in the thinking: a preemptive military strike right now on our part would be catastrophic--catastrophic not only to our friends in South Korea, the millions who live there, our friends in Japan, but the hundreds of thousands of American citizens and our military personnel.

I thank our chairman and our ranking member for their good work, and I urge my colleagues to support this good bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to urge a ``no'' vote on this misleading name, Working Families Flexibility Act.

Quite simply, this is a bait-and-switch proposal. It awards employers flexibility, not the families who need it. It fails ordinary working men and women, like the mom who has no overtime stored up and must go into credit card debt after having a baby or the dad who has worked long, crushing overtime hours but can't afford to give up his pay in order to stay home with his ill son.

Mr. Speaker, Democrats have better solutions: 12 weeks of paid family leave, guaranteed paid sick days. These are proposals that will modernize our workplace. It will lead to better workers and stronger families.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of my Special Order.

Mr. Speaker, the women of the Democratic Women's Working Group are here today with other Members that we have invited to raise awareness about the offensive Marines United Facebook page and others like it.

On these pages, male marines posted nude or intimate photos of female servicemembers and veterans without their consent. This affected hundreds of women, with an audience of an estimated 30,000 marines with access to the Facebook page.

The Democratic women recently held a hearing on this alarming situation which, incidentally, began less than a month after the first Marine infantry unit was assigned women, and that was January 5.

At our hearing, we heard testimony from advocates for servicemembers, a former marine, and a journalist who

covered this issue extensively, and most importantly, we heard from Erika Butner and Marisa Woytek, two brave, resilient marines.

Marisa is a current lance corporal. She proudly followed in her father's footsteps, and she joined the Marines because, as she stated, she wanted to be part of something bigger than herself.

Erika enlisted in the Marines for many of the same reasons in 2011, fully aware that she could be deployed to a combat zone. A lifelong patriot, she was ready, and willing to take that chance. But in her own words--little did she know that the ``war she would fight would be among her very own brothers in arms.''

At our hearing, the women described harassment and exploitation at the hands of their Marine brothers, and, quite frankly, it made us feel sick to our stomachs.

Their male counterparts put up Erika's and Marisa's photographs and made lewd and derogatory comments--asking other men to vote on whether they would ``smash or pass'' on these women, meaning would they have sexual relations with them.

The women were threatened with rape and violence, with Facebook posts like: ``We should throw marines into a tub of acid and rip-off their eyelashes.''

Sadly and shockingly, Marisa and Erika were not alone. Thousands and thousands of photos of women were shared on these Facebook pages.

I want to say to Marisa and Erika and all of these women: We share your anger and your hurt, and we are so grateful to you for coming forward with your stories.

I am a mother of a United States Marine veteran who served in both Afghanistan and Iraq--a proud mother--and I understand the selfless sacrifice a marine makes when he or she puts on their uniform. So I am outraged, as are my colleagues whom you will hear from today, that so many brave marines were subjected to this kind of harassment and exploitation while willing to sacrifice for our country. It is not only personally degrading to courageous patriots, it hurts the effectiveness of our military and the ability to recruit women.

So today's Special Order is another opportunity to amplify the voices of Marisa and Erika and to send a message that we stand with them and we will fight for their honor.

I want to thank Congresswoman Jackie Speier and Congresswoman Martha McSally, who I hope will be here with us today. They are actually, very sadly, at another hearing where the topic is sexual harassment in our military academies.

After our hearing, they went on and they introduced a bill to make it illegal for military members to share photos without consent. This is a bipartisan effort. I am proud to be a cosponsor, as are many of my colleagues, again, whom you will hear from in a few minutes; and we owe it to Erika and Marisa and all of the other women that have been subjected to this abuse to pass this legislation and to work together to change the culture of disrespect that allowed it to happen.

Now, Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), a great leader in this Congress, a member of our Appropriations and Budget Committees and Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies.

Representative Lee, we are pleased that you are with us tonight.

Very well said, Representative Lee. Mr. Speaker, I thank Ms. Lee for her excellent service and advocacy.

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield the floor to the gentlewoman from the

State of Michigan (Mrs. Lawrence), my co-chair and our vice chair of the Women's Working Group, a very illustrious Member, and she serves on the Transportation and Oversight Committees.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Lawrence for her excellent advocacy today.

Mr. Speaker, I now want to yield the floor to the gentlewoman from New Hampshire (Ms. Kuster), my very good friend. She is the ranking member on the Veterans Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, and chair of the bipartisan Task Force to End Sexual Violence.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Kuster for that forceful advocacy.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee), one of our greatest fighters for human rights, for women's rights; the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations.

Mr. Speaker, I think we have made it clear that when a member of the military is unfairly abused, we are all abused, we are all dishonored.

This is not a Democratic issue. This is not a Republican issue. This is an American issue.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Bacon), one of our great Americans, an Air Force veteran who serves on our Armed Services Committee.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Bacon, first, for his service to our country and for speaking from the heart. We are very pleased to join him in this effort.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Torres), who serves on the Foreign Affairs and the Natural Resources Committees.

I want to say that Representative Torres is, like myself, the mother of a military veteran. Her son is a member of the Air Force. In bringing the gentlewoman up here, she probably experiences a lot of what I did. I think for parents whose children are in the military, man or a woman, there are so many of those times where you just dread that knock on the door.

You have seen your child put on uniform, and the pride that they feel. Now, could you imagine having gotten a call from your son that someone had posted a nude picture of him on a Facebook page and he was being humiliated? It is just hard to believe.

I know you are going to share some of your insight into all this. I am pleased to have you here.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Torres).

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her son's service and for her service, too. I know what it is like to be the mother of a military person.

Mr. Speaker, we are waiting for--Representative McSally is going to be with us in a few moments, and I thought, as we wait for her to join us--as I said, she is at a hearing now. Unfortunately, the hearing is on the topic of sexual harassment in the military academies.

I wanted to just state for the Record the folks who participated at our Democratic Working Women's Group hearing that we had a couple of weeks ago, we talked about Lance Corporal Marisa Woytek. We talked about Erika Butner, who is a Marine Corps veteran, and both, unfortunately, were victims of this Marines United scandal.

We also heard from James LaPorta, who is a journalist for The Daily Beast and a former U.S. Marine Corps sergeant who has covered Marines United extensively. His work has appeared in The Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune, among other national publications. During his 8 years on Active Duty, Mr. LaPorta served within the infantry and intelligence communities, deploying multiple times to the war in Afghanistan.

We also heard from Miranda Peterson. She is the executive director of Protect Our Defenders, which she joined in 2013. Protect Our Defenders' mission is to uplift and support survivors of military sexual assault, and to improve and reform the U.S. military's process for addressing rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment.

Prior to joining Protect Our Defenders, Mrs. Peterson worked on the historic lawsuits against the Department of Defense filed on behalf of military sexual assault survivors who experienced abuse and retaliation after reporting, and which were the subject of the Oscar-nominated documentary film, ``The Invisible War.''

We also heard from Elizabeth Hillman, and she is the president of Mills College. She was invited by Representative Barbara Lee. Elizabeth Hillman has conducted extensive research on the history of sexual violence in the military organization's culture. She is a director and past president of the National Institute of Military Justice, a nonprofit that promotes fairness in and public understanding of military justice worldwide.

She previously served on the Response Systems to the Adult Sexual Assault Crimes Panel, an independent panel chartered by Congress to study and make recommendations about sexual assault in the U.S. military.

And of course we heard from Gloria Allred, who is a nationally renowned women's and victims' rights attorney. She was the lawyer representing Marine Corps veteran Butner and Active-Duty Marine Lance Corporal Woytek.

What treasures these activists are. They are patriots in their own way because they are defending and standing up for our patriots; and how sad that they have to spend so much of their time to do that.

Now, since this scandal broke up, there have been numerous articles written. I want to share one as we wait for Representative McSally, who, herself, is a military veteran.

Thomas Brennan actually broke this story. He wrote that: ``The U.S. Department of Defense is investigating hundreds of marines who used social media to solicit and share hundreds, possibly thousands, of naked photographs of female servicemembers and veterans.'' That is just so shameful.

``Since January 30, more than two dozen women, many on Active Duty, including officers and enlisted servicemembers, have been identified by their full name, rank, and military duty station in photographs posted and linked to from a private Facebook page.'' Again, very shameful.

Mr. Speaker, I am now pleased to welcome Representative McSally. I would say to you that I have been talking about you in your absence. First of all, I told the Speaker that you were, unfortunately, at a hearing on sexual harassment in the military academies.

But we are so grateful for your--first of all, for your service to our country and for your advocacy in standing up for what is right for our military men and women. Ms. McSally is our lead sponsor on this PRIVATE Act, which we have had many speakers talk about.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Arizona (Ms. McSally).

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative McSally. We have come to, I think, a perfect ending here today--those of us who were here today. I know, on a bipartisan basis, we look forward to fighting for the gentlewoman for what is right and to get this bill passed.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor 67 high school seniors in Florida's 21st District who have decided to enlist in the United States Armed Forces.

Of the 67 from my district, 25 have joined the Army; their names are the following: Amon King, Anne Kwarteng, Ola Selwyn-Dudoit, Nicole Thornton, Alejandro Abrego, Jonathan Abresch, Jordan Amoedo, Lashawndra Bryant, Calvin Castro, Emilio Constante, Jordan Edwards, Kamron Flar, Jameal Hutchinson, Dexter Knowles, Jorge Lopez, Kamaal Matthews, Skyler Podhurst, Widmania Registre, Aaron Rodriguez, Andrea Santana, Sameh Sedrak, Matthews Silva, Sabrina Silver, Greggory Westpfahl, and Nicholas Whittington.

Twenty-seven have joined the Marines; their names are the following: Abbey Teitelbaum, Cherilyn Kranenberg, Kyran Russell, Erik Bruce, Daniel Mass, Cesar Bermudez, Ray Smith, Steele Holman, Ethan Brake, Climineda Charles, Clayton Shellard, Jake Sollecito, Michael Mero, Kaudriel Valce, Bernardo Rodriguez-Tomas, Manuel Reyes, Joel Pena, Raymond Findieson, Jaheym Hendrickson, Thai Tran, Jeremiah Brown, Lazaro Figuero, Kristiana Lombardi, Greson Ramos-Artiga, Ian Sorenson, Anthony Torres, and Jacob Smith-Mullaly.

Two have joined the National Guard; their names are the following: Shelby Cochrane and Emilie Ortiz.

Eight have joined the Navy; their names are the following: Jasmaine Oliver, Edwin Velazquez, Maxwell Mulford, Benjamin Johnson Jr., Myles Jackson, Kenny Zamor, Richneider Blaise, and Marjorie Galvez.

Five have joined the Air Force; their names are the following: Dylan Delmastro, Anthony Camposeco, Roland Kupoluyi, Eric Reid, and Brian Blickle.

It is in thanks to the dedication of patriots like these that we are able to meet here today, in the United States House of Representatives, and openly debate the best solutions to the diverse issues that confront our country. On behalf of myself and all of my constituents in Florida's 21st District, we thank them for their service, and wish them best of luck as they pursue this challenging endeavor.

Mr. Speaker, on roll call vote 222 and 223, I was not present because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``AYE.''

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to be with you today.

First of all, I want to celebrate Jeannette Rankin also as being the first woman in Congress.

Today I am going to talk about someone who was my role model, one of my favorites, Bella Abzug.

Bella Abzug was a leading liberal activist and politician. She lived from 1920 to 1998, and was especially known for her work with women's rights. After graduating from Columbia University Law School, she became involved in the antinuclear and peace movements. In the 1960s, she helped organize the Women Strike for Peace and the National Women's Political Caucus.

I just want to say that I feel like that is how I got my start in political activism, was in the antiwar marches in the 1960s at Boston University.

Mrs. Abzug won a seat in the United States House of Representatives, where she advocated for women's rights and withdrawal from the Vietnam war. And even after leaving office, she continued to work on many causes, including the establishment of the Women's Environment and Development Organization.

Incidentally, I know we have a lot of Harvard lawyers in this Congress, but she was rejected because of her gender. But kudos to Columbia because they got her.

She was known for her hats and her big voice, and she really left a mark for many of us.

Representative Brooks, I am happy to be with you here today. I think there are a lot of women today who are feeling nervous or anxious because of political situations, but someone like Bella Abzug gives us inspiration that you can have a big voice, you can be a community activist, and you can make a difference in life.

I am going to leave you with her quote. She said of herself:

``I've been described as a tough and noisy woman, a prizefighter, a man-hater, you name it. There are some who say I'm impatient, uppity, rude, profane, brash and overbearing''--oh, my goodness, I think I am talking about the whole Women's Caucus here--``but whatever I am--and this ought to be made very clear at the outset--I am a very serious woman.''

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank another very serious woman. It has been a pleasure to be with you and to honor the women who came before us and led the pathway.

Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 215.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to talk about the Republican's sick plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act and replace it with TrumpCare, where the wealthy will get huge tax cuts and the rest of America will pay more for less. Twenty-four million will be losing their doctors, their nurses, and their medicine, and my constituents are frightened.

Just ask Amy Bernard, whose mom, Francine, like 70 percent of Americans living in nursing homes, pays for it with Medicaid. Francine was a teacher. She planned for her retirement. She had savings, Social Security, and a pension. Then she was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease, and she spent all her savings on in-home care. And then one day after a near-fatal fall, her family realized she needed around-the- clock care.

TrumpCare means tax cuts for the very rich, less for the rest of Americans, gutting Medicaid, and sending folks like Francine to the curb.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the Asian Trade, Food Fair, and Cultural Show that will take place this weekend in West Palm Beach, Florida. The Asian Fair has brought our community together to celebrate Asian culture for 24 years now, and I look forward to seeing what this year has in store.

The Bangladesh Association of Florida organizes this annual event to celebrate the contributions of the Asian community in America. This year, 48 countries will be represented through live music, dance performances, and authentic cooking demonstrations.

I'd like to recognize the Bangladesh Association of Florida for their hard work on this event and for their dedication to promoting cultural diversity in our community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate Marjorie J. McConnell of Boca Raton, Florida who turns 100 years old today.

Marjorie J. McConnell was born just outside of St. Louis, Missouri on March 10, 1917 to Ethel Franklin and Benjamin Hughes Johnson. She was interested in art from an early age, and she obtained degrees in Art and Art Education at Washington University in St. Louis and later at Columbia Teacher's College in New York.

She dedicated herself to her students for over three decades in her career as an art teacher, which took her to Ossining, New York and Plainfield, New Jersey. Together with her husband, the late Robert K. McConnell, Jr., she raised a son and continued her creative pursuits through weaving, ceramics, and painting. Her work received recognition at art shows from New Jersey to Ohio. Marjorie has always been a staunch supporter of environmental initiatives and progressive causes and continues to create art in Boca Raton, Florida, where she resides today.

Mr. Speaker, on roll call votes 138 and 139, I was not present because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``Nay'' on both votes.