Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I imagine many of my colleagues have read The Washington Post report on ``Top Secret America,'' and I hope they are reacting as I am, with horror and outrage at the sprawling national security and intelligence bureaucracy that has grown like a weed in recent years. This series of articles should shock us into action, at the very least leading us to question the conventional wisdom about how best to keep America safe.

According to the Post, the counterterrorism and homeland security apparatus has ballooned to some 1,271 government organizations working in roughly 10,000 locations around the country. There are now so many agencies analyzing so much information and issuing so many reports that the whole thing has become redundant, unmanageable, and ineffective.

Actually, we can't measure its precise effectiveness because so much of it is shrouded in secrecy. Much of the information about these agencies is classified and therefore not subject to the scrutiny it so badly needs.

If this system, which is so big that the Post refers to it as a fourth branch of government, were a domestic social program, my friends on the other side of the aisle would call it out-of-control spending.

Yet somehow, when the antigovernment rhetoric starts flying, it is never the wasteful defense and intelligence programs that come in for the harshest criticism. I'd be curious to hear, for example, why we can afford this behemoth, but we can't afford to pass a comprehensive jobs package. The organizational chart for this system looks like an octopus family on steroids, Mr. Speaker, and there are so many tentacles that it makes the proper information sharing and dot connecting nearly impossible.

I couldn't help but note the irony. If memory serves me, 9/11 exposed the inability of our intelligence agencies to coordinate and communicate properly with one another. So what have we done in response to 9/11?

We've grown our intelligence infrastructure in a way that makes it even harder to coordinate and communicate.

Of course, we would tolerate a little bit of bloat if the evidence were clear that the system were working; but according to the Post's analysis, both the Fort Hood shooting and the Christmas Day bomber could have been intercepted early on if this bureaucracy hadn't been so unwieldy, so inefficient and unresponsive. The intelligence was there, but it never got into the right hands or it was lost in an avalanche of other data.

Mr. Speaker, when it comes to protecting America, we are thinking big instead of thinking smart. There has to be a better way. We can have the intelligence capabilities we need at a fraction of the current cost, and we can use much of the savings on initiatives that attack terrorism at its roots--in places where despair and hopelessness lead people to turn to terrorism in the first place. We need to dramatically increase our investment in everything from agriculture to education to democracy-building to conflict resolution in the trouble spots of the world.

Maybe if we increased our global humanitarian outreach, if we empowered nations instead of invading and occupying them, then top secret America wouldn't even be necessary.

I would like to thank Chairman Gordon and Chairman Baird, the chairman of the Energy Subcommittee, and Ranking Member Hall for leadership and for cooperation and for making a base bill even better.

Madam Speaker, in 2007, the container ship Cosco Busan collided with the San Francisco Bay Bridge, spilling 58,000 gallons of oil into the San Francisco Bay and causing great harm, great harm to the surrounding environment, great harm to the economy of my district, and great harm to the surrounding Bay Area.

Although this spill was minor compared to the current gulf coast catastrophe, the impact to the Bay Area was widespread. Thousands of birds, including 50 different species, were killed, coastal fisheries were impacted, and marine mammals died. All told, more than 200 miles of coastline was polluted by the Cosco Busan oil spill, costing more than $70 million in environmental cleanup costs.

What occurred to me throughout the ordeal was the question and the confusion regarding who was in charge and what technologies were available to assess and clean up the mess. That's why I introduced H.R. 2693 last year, before the catastrophe of the Gulf of Mexico, to strengthen coordination of Federal research and development of science and technologies that will prevent, combat, and clean up spills. And that is why Chairman Baird held a hearing on the very issue.

Madam Speaker, if we learned anything from the Cosco Busan spill, it was that we need to strengthen coordination and leadership of oil spill response, research and development. And everything that we learned from the BP Gulf of Mexico disaster magnifies my concerns.

Madam Speaker, following the Exxon Valdez oil spill, Congress passed the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which created an interagency coordinating committee to coordinate research and development of oil spill prevention and response among 14 Federal agencies. Not one, not two, not three, not four--14 Federal agencies. It was confusing during the Cosco Busan spill, but that was nothing compared to the confusion of the gulf disaster.

Chairman Gordon, I want to thank you. Chairman Baird, I want to thank you for helping to streamline the structure of the interagency coordinating committee in H.R. 2693. And Ranking Member Hall, I want to thank you for accepting the changes we've made and the improvements.

I also want to thank the members of the Science and Technology Committee and the staff who worked so hard to improve this legislation and ensure that it reflects recent developments in the gulf.

Madam Speaker, H.R. 2693 streamlines the interagency coordinating committee to include representatives from NOAA, the Coast Guard, EPA, and the Department of the Interior, while retaining the Coast Guard as the chair of the interagency committee. This ensures that the agencies with the most research expertise in oil spill prevention, detection, and recovery and mitigation are working together for common solutions in an effective and efficient way.

Additionally, the interagency committee is required to collaborate with the other Federal agencies listed in the Oil Pollution Act. And my bill now includes the National Science Foundation to this list.

My bill increases the authorized level of funding for Federal oil pollution research and development from $22 million to $48 million, all of which is drawn from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. This level of funding hasn't been changed since 1990.

H.R. 2693 also authorizes $12 million in funding for a regional research program to provide peer-reviewed competitive grants to institutes of higher learning and research facilities to improve technologies used to prevent and respond to oil spills.

Following the Cosco Busan oil leak, we heard time and again from people responding to the bill that the technology they were using was inadequate, and was, in fact, almost the same technology used to respond to Exxon Valdez decades earlier.

During the Science Committee markup of H.R. 2693, as the chairman mentioned, nearly 20 bipartisan amendments were adopted that strengthened this bill. With estimates putting the total amount of oil spilled in the gulf at nearly 200 million barrels, it's essential that we have the best science and technology possible to deal with a disaster of this magnitude.

As long as we extract, use, or transport oil in the United States, there will be some risks of oil spills along our shores. It is obvious that oil spills negatively affect our coastlines, our marine ecosystems, and our fishing and tourism industries. Madam Speaker, we must do our best to protect the public and the environment from future oil spills.

This bill brings us closer to that goal through targeted and coordinated research, development, and demonstration that will help us better prevent, better combat, and better mitigate future oil spills, no matter the size.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Madam Speaker, I rise today along with my colleague, Representative Mike Thompson, to honor and pay tribute to Frank Kappeler, one of eight surviving members of ``Doolittle's Raiders'' who passed away Wednesday, June 23, 2010 in Santa Rosa, California at the age of 96.

Lieutenant Colonel Kappeler was one of 79 U.S. Army Corps aviators who volunteered to fly the daring bombing mission over Japan for months after the surprise attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor.

Sixteen B-25 bombers and the men aboard launched from an aircraft carrier in the Pacific on April 18, 1942 and headed for Japan, knowing that they did not have enough fuel to return and even if they could get back, the large bombers were not able to land on the American carriers.

Lt. Col. Kappeler was the navigator on the No. 11 plane and was forced to bail out over China when the plane's engines stopped at 11,000 feet. Chinese partisans helped Lt. Col.

Kappeler and his crew mates escape capture by Japanese forces.

He eventually escaped from China and spent the rest of WWII in the European theater, where he flew 53 combat missions.

He retired from the Air Force in 1966 as a Lieutenant Colonel.

The Doolittle Raid was a significant episode in the war in the Pacific because it demonstrated to both the American and Japanese people that Japan was not invincible and that American forces could and would strike the Japanese homeland.

All of the planes participating in the raid were lost and 11 crewmen were killed or captured.

Lt. Col Kappeler is survived by his wife of 53 years, Betty Kappeler, his daughter, Francia Kappeler, and three grandchildren, all of Santa Rosa, California.

Madam Speaker, Lt. Col. Frank Kappeler is a true American hero who served his county with great distinction. It is therefore appropriate that we honor him today and send our condolences to his family.

Madam Speaker, on June 23, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for rollcall No. 384. Had I been present I would have voted: rollcall No. 384; ``yes,'' Supporting the goals and ideals of National Hurricane Preparedness Week.

Madam Speaker, on June 22, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for Rollcall Nos. 376-378. Had I been present I would have voted:

Rollcall No. 376: ``yes''--Supporting National Men's Health Week.

Rollcall No. 377: ``yes''--Recognizing the historical significance of Juneteenth Independence Day, and expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that history should be regarded as a means for understanding the past and more effectively facing the challenges of the future.

Rollcall No. 378: ``yes''--Supporting the goals and ideals of High- Performance Building Week.

Madam Speaker, after General Stanley McChrystal was relieved of his command last month and replaced by General David Petraeus, we read a lot of headlines that said things like this: ``Generals Change, But Afghan Doesn't.'' ``Afghan Policy Won't Change After Dismissal.''

But that is precisely, Madam Speaker, the problem. All the chatter about General McChrystal's indiscretion and firing obscured the critical point. The problem isn't with the personnel or the leadership, but with the strategy and the policy. The problem isn't with the generals, but with the war itself.

There's a bit of a rearranging-of-the-deck-chairs-on-the-Titanic quality to all of this. No matter what the captains say and no matter who captains the ship, as long as we continue to prosecute this failed war, as long as we keep sending Americans to die on a mission that's doing nothing to defeat terrorists or stabilize Afghanistan, then we are headed straight for that iceberg.

The more troops we deploy, the more violent Afghanistan becomes and the more Taliban grows its ranks. Unless General Petraeus is prepared to change that, then this change at the top doesn't amount to very much.

If General Petraeus' appointment leads to any change at all, it may not be the kind of change we should be enthusiastic about. In his confirmation hearing, General Petraeus refused to take ownership of the July 2011 troop withdrawal deadline, stating very clearly that he did not recommend such a date to the President, nor did anyone else in uniform. And he once again equivocated about July 2011, calling it the beginning of a process, which sounds an awful lot like a diplomatic way to say he doesn't believe in it and will ask the President to extend it.

He also added in his testimony, and I quote him, he said, ``The commitment to Afghanistan must be an enduring one.'' And on that point, Madam Speaker, I couldn't agree with the general more.

But an enduring commitment doesn't have to be a military commitment. We need an enduring civilian commitment, a smart security approach that invests in Afghanistan infrastructure, bolsters Afghan education, fights Afghan poverty, invigorates Afghan democracy, and much more. But we can do it without combat troops occupying the country, without the military footprint that has earned us more enemies than friends.

Madam Speaker, eight Americans were killed during a 24-hour period in Afghanistan early this week. We've had 35 fatalities already in July, putting it on track to be the deadliest month of the entire war. We are losing our people, we are losing our money, we are losing our credibility without advancing our goals. That has to end. It's time to bring our troops home.

Madam Speaker, after thirty-three years of dedicated service, Alan Reuther is retiring from his position as legislative director with the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, UAW. As legislative director, he has been responsible for supervising all aspects of the UAW's legislative program, including development of issues, presentation of testimony, lobbying Members of Congress, and grassroots organizing.

During his tenure at the UAW, Alan championed significant legislative accomplishments, including: saving civil legal services for the poor, which were slated for elimination under the Gingrich ``Contract for America''; the enactment of minimum wage increases in 1996 and again in 2007; halting efforts by the Bush Administration and Congressional Republicans to privatize Social Security; the enactment of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, SCHIP, in 1997 and its expansion in 2009; the enactment of compromise Corporate Average Fuel Economy legislation in 2007 that included the Section 136 program to fund investment in U.S. production of advanced technology vehicles; fending off repeated attempts by the Bush Administration to erode the protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act; the enactment of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 and hate crimes prevention legislation; the enactment of federal extended unemployment benefits in economic recessions; and finally, the enactment of both the stimulus provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and health care reform.

As chair of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, I know first-hand the significance of Alan's accomplishments on behalf of the American worker. Just to use one recent example, my Subcommittee held the legislative hearing on the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act. This was the first piece of legislation that President Obama signed into law after he took office, and it is a significant step in the fight to achieve equal pay between men and women. In addition, tireless work in the passage of health care reform cannot be understated. Congratulations, Alan, and thank you for your contributions to the public good. You will be missed--that's for sure.

Madam Speaker, on July 1, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for Rollcall No. 415-433. Had I been present I would have voted:

Rollcall No. 415: Yes--Honoring the veterans of Helicopter Attack Light Squadron Three and their families.

Rollcall No. 416: Yes--Salmon Lake Land Selection Resolution Act.

Rollcall No. 417: Yes--Recognizing the important role pollinators play in supporting the ecosystem and supporting the goals and ideals of National Pollinator Week.

Rollcall No. 418: Yes--Providing for consideration of the bill (H.R. 5618) to continue Federal unemployment programs, and waiving a requirement of clause 6(a) of rule XIII with respect to consideration of certain resolutions reported from the Committee on Rules.

Rollcall No. 419: Yes--Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the political situation in Thailand be solved peacefully and through democratic means.

Rollcall No. 420: Yes--Congratulating the people of the 17 African nations that in 2010 are marking the 50th year of their national independence.

Rollcall No. 421: Yes--Congratulating the Government of South Africa upon its first two successful convictions for human trafficking.

Rollcall No. 422: Yes--On Motion to Table the Appeal of the Ruling of the Chair.

Rollcall No. 423: Yes--Restoration of Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act.

Rollcall No. 424: Present--Quorum Call.

Rollcall No. 425: Yes--To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit any registered lobbyist whose clients include foreign governments which are found to be sponsors of international terrorism or include other foreign nationals from making contributions and other campaign-related disbursements in elections for public office.

Rollcall No. 426: Yes--Expressing support for designation of June 30 as ``National ESIGN Day''.

Rollcall No. 427: Present--Quorum Call.

Rollcall No. 428: Yes--Providing for consideration of the Senate amendments to the bill (H.R. 4899) making emergency supplemental appropriations for disaster relief and summer jobs for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010.

Rollcall No. 429: Yes--Expressing support for the people of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador as they persevere through the aftermath of Tropical Storm Agatha which swept across Central America causing deadly floods and mudslides.

Rollcall No. 430: Yes--Second Portion of the Divided Question [Amendment 2]--Obey.

Rollcall No. 431: Yes--Third Portion of the Divided Question [Amendment 3]--Strike military funding.

Rollcall No. 432: Yes--Fourth Portion of the Divided Question [Amendment 4]--Lee.

Rollcall No. 433: Yes--Fifth Portion of the Divided Question [Amendment 5]--McGovern/Obey/Jones.

Madam Speaker, on June 24, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for Rollcall No. 394. Had I been present I would have voted:

Rollcall No. 394: Yes--Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act.

Madam Speaker, on June 29, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for rollcall No. 395-401. Had I been present I would have voted: rollcall No. 395, ``yes''--On Approving the Journal; rollcall No. 396, ``yes''--Congratulating the Chicago Blackhawks on winning the 2010 Stanley Cup Championship; rollcall No. 397, ``no''--On Motion to Adjourn; rollcall No. 398, ``yes''--Restoration of Emergency Unemployment Compensation Act; rollcall No. 399, ``yes''--Recognizing the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition for its now five-year effort to promote cyber security curriculum in institutions of higher learning; rollcall No. 400, ``yes''--Firearms Excise Tax Improvement Act; and rollcall No. 401, ``yes''--Homebuyer Assistance and Improvement Act.

Madam Speaker, on June 30, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for rollcall Nos. 402-414. Had I been present I would have voted: rollcall No. 402, ``yes''-- Recognizing the work and importance of special education teachers; rollcall No. 403, ``yes''--To designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 151 North Maitland Avenue in Maitland, Florida, as the ``Paula Hawkins Post Office Building''; rollcall No. 404, ``yes''--Recognizing the residents of the City of Tracy, California, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the city's incorporation, for their century of dedicated service to the United States; rollcall No. 405, ``yes''--To name the Department of Veterans Affairs community-based outpatient clinic in Artesia, New Mexico, as the ``Alejandro Renteria Ruiz Department of Veterans Affairs Clinic''; rollcall No. 406, ``yes''--On Ordering the Previous Question; rollcall No. 407, ``yes''--Waiving a requirement of clause 6(a) of rule XIII with respect to consideration of certain resolutions reported from the Committee on Rules, and for other purposes; rollcall No. 408, ``yes''-- To enable State homes to furnish nursing home care to parents any of whose children died while serving in the Armed Forces; rollcall No. 409, ``yes''--Providing for an adjournment or recess of the two Houses; rollcall No. 410, ``yes''--Rule providing for the consideration of the conference report to accompany H.R. 4173, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act; rollcall No. 411, ``yes''-- Fountainhead Property Land Transfer Act; rollcall No. 412, ``no''--On Motion to Recommit the Conference Report with Instructions; rollcall No. 413, ``yes''--Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2009; rollcall No. 414, ``yes''--Indian Pueblo Cultural Center Clarification Act.

Mr. Speaker, a gentleman from my district, Will Bennett of Santa Rosa, recently wrote a letter to the editor of the Santa Rosa Press Democrat and made an excellent point. He noted that Afghan President Hamid Karzai had said of the Taliban, ``They are not the enemy. They are the sons of this land.'' As Mr. Bennett points out, then who is the enemy? ``Is this a pretend war,'' he asks.

How can we possibly win a war in which our chief ally doesn't share our vision of who is the enemy? But then you realize that maybe the U.S. approach to the Taliban is closer to Karzai's than we'd be comfortable admitting. Because in certain respects we're treating them more like a vendor than like an enemy. It turns out our own contracting practices in Afghanistan may actually be putting money in the hands of the very Taliban insurgents we're trying to drive from the country--the very people who are killing our troops, the very organization that provided safe haven for al Qaeda to plot 9/11.

My distinguished colleague from Massachusetts (Mr. Tierney) and his Government Oversight Subcommittee recently completed a shocking report based on a 6-month investigation, which provides the details. At a cost, Madam Speaker, of more than $2 billion, the Pentagon outsources the responsibility for shipping supplies to U.S. troops. And the contractor, unburdened by any meaningful government oversight, has been paying off a shadowy cabal of warlords, strongmen, and corrupt officials in order to guarantee security on Afghan roads.

The evidence is strong that the highway warlords are, in turn, paying protection money to the Taliban, who control many of the routes. Mr. Tierney

calls this, ``Warlord, Inc.: Extortion and Corruption Along the U.S. Supply Chain in Afghanistan.'' And perhaps most disturbing of all, Madam Speaker, is the Department of Defense apparently has long been aware of this and hasn't done a thing about it.

As Mr. Tierney points out, at a time when communities here at home are crying out for investment in schools, hospitals, and other infrastructure, it's galling to think that American taxpayer dollars are supporting the kind of thuggery in Afghanistan that is quite possibly endangering our troops. It's bad enough, Madam Speaker, that the American people are being asked to pay for our failed war. Now it appears that they're being asked to pay for the wrong side.

Madam Speaker, we simply cannot sustain a counterterrorism strategy that has us doing business, however indirectly, with the terrorists themselves. It's illogical and it's unconscionable. This is just one more piece of evidence that this war is failing the American people, undermining instead of advancing our national security objectives. It's time for a radical change in our policy. It's time to bring our troops home.

Mr. Speaker, Ron Gettelfinger, one of this nation's great labor leaders, retired this year as President of the United Auto Workers. We will sorely miss him.

Born in 1944, Ron has a long distinguished history with the United Auto Workers, starting when he went to work at Ford Motor's Louisville, Kentucky, assembly plant as a chassis line repairman. Because of his dedicated advocacy for the rights of his fellow workers, he quickly ascended the ranks of the UAW. In 1984, he was elected president of his local union, and, in 1987, he became a member of the Ford-UAW Bargaining Committee. He held several other positions before being elected the union's vice-president in 1998, and then of course its president.

Ron has been a leading advocate of single-payer health care, and was a key player in the health reform process. In addition, Ron has worked tirelessly for investment in American manufacturing and for fair-trade agreements with strong workers' rights provisions. Just last year, in Detroit, he received the Edward H. McNamara Goodfellow of the Year Award for his significant contributions to the community.

As Chair of the Workforce Protections Subcommittee, I know first-hand the significance of Ron's accomplishments on behalf of America's working families. Congratulations, Ron, we honor you, and thank you for your contributions.

Madam Speaker, on June 17, 2010, I was unavoidably detained and was unable to record my vote for Rollcall No. 372. Had I been present I would have voted: Rollcall No. 372: ``yes''--Cao of Louisiana Amendment.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Jose Tamayo, who passed away on June 10, 2010, in Santa Rosa, California. His legacy as a philanthropist and entrepreneur has enriched Sonoma County and the entire San Francisco Bay Area.

As a young immigrant from Mexico, Mr. Tamayo moved to this country with a bright vision for his family's future. He quickly recognized Sonoma County as uniquely endowed with a rich agricultural, culinary, and environmental tradition that lent itself well to the production of wholesome, handcrafted foods. After settling in Santa Rosa, Mr. Tamayo and his wife Mary opened their first ``Mexicantessen,'' bringing a taste of their heritage to Sonoma County customers.

The Tamayos built on their success, founding La Tortilla Factory in 1977 and branching out into new products and new ventures. From a tiny family business run entirely on Jose and Mary Tamayo's hard work and dedication, La Tortilla Factory grew into a nationally recognized leader with hundreds of local employees. It also continues to be an industry innovator. Over the several decades that La Tortilla Factory has been in operation, it has consistently been at the forefront of new, health-conscious, high-quality wraps, breads, and tortillas.

In spite of the demands of a growing business, Jose and Mary Tamayo remained committed to their family and community. They worked tirelessly to give their children the education and grounding they would need to succeed in their own right, and to create a family centered on the principles of hard work and service. In 1986, Jose and Mary Tamayo passed La Tortilla Factory on to their sons and rededicated themselves to contributing to the people of Sonoma County.

The Tamayos were particularly active in a number of community organizations, from food banks to local schools and youth-support organizations. The Mary and Jose Tamayo House, a residence for former foster children at Sonoma County's Social Advocates for Youth, is just one example of their efforts to provide all children the same opportunities they provided their own. This is a legacy of compassion and civic-mindedness that will live on in our region.

Jose Tamayo was predeceased by his wife Mary and his son Bernie Tamayo. He is survived by his sons Carlos, Jose, Mike, and Willie Tamayo, and by his eleven grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

Madam Speaker, I ask you to join in me in celebrating the life of a man who gave back more than he received, who measured his success in his service to others. Jose Tamayo's story reminds us of how much we can all achieve when we pursue our goals with passion and integrity.