Floor Statements

Offered By: Mr. Kennedy of Minnesota

Amendment No. 19: At the end of the bill (before the short

title), insert the following:

Sec. 948. None of the funds made available in this Act may

be used to enforce the judgment of the United States Supreme

Court in the case of Kelo v. New London, decided June 23,

2005.

Offered By: Mr. Kennedy of Minnesota

Amendment No. 20: Page 30, line 10, after the dollar amount

insert ``(reduced by $100,000,000)''.

Page 80, line 19, after the first dollar amount insert

``(increased by $100,000,000)'' and after the second dollar

amount insert ``(increased by $100,000,000)''.

Offered By: Mr. Kennedy of Minnesota

Amendment No. 19: At the end of the bill (before the short

title), insert the following:

Sec. 948. None of the funds made available in this Act may

be used to enforce the judgment of the United States Supreme

Court in the case of Kelo v. New London, decided June 23,

2005.

Offered By: Mr. Kennedy of Minnesota

Amendment No. 20: Page 30, line 10, after the dollar amount

insert ``(reduced by $100,000,000)''.

Page 80, line 19, after the first dollar amount insert

``(increased by $100,000,000)'' and after the second dollar

amount insert ``(increased by $100,000,000)''.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) for his leadership on this. I also want to thank the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman Wolf) for the great work he has done with the very difficult challenge of funding very important programs.

But I just cannot help but continue to think about a young girl named Megan in a beautiful town in Minnesota that started using meth in seventh grade at age 13, and when she first took it, which she got from a friend, she said, This is something I am going to do over and over again. She did. But when she could not afford it, her addiction, she, like too many other female addicts, was exploited into becoming a prostitute to pay for the meth she craved every day. After hitting bottom at age 18, she is now pulling her life back together. But she has too many in her company. One out of five people that are meth addicts in recovery are 17 years or younger in the State of Minnesota.

We need to make sure that we have the resources at the local level to address this. We need to send a signal that this is important to Congress, that we stand with our law enforcement agents as they are trying to rid this country of this scourge. We need to make sure that those that are trying to sell this poison know that we are out to stop them.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) for holding this Special Order. I thank the gentleman from Indiana (Chairman Souder) for his leadership on all of this.

It is going to take all of us together to make sure that we address this very important issue. We have concerns that we are not putting enough resources into funding to help out local law enforcement address the very challenging issues that are tearing up our communities with methamphetamine and drugs. And as the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) pointed out, this started out in just a few States, but it has really spread all way from San Diego to the Shenandoah Valley. That is why we have to support these good, working anti-drug programs.

One key, though, is that these drug task forces need to be supported. There are 800 around the country. If we go through with what the President proposed or even what the good work of the gentleman from Virginia (Chairman Wolf) and his committee have resulted in, we are going to be losing those drug task forces that have been doing such great work.

As we think about what this is all about, I am thinking about a tragic story of a young girl named Megan from a beautiful town in Minnesota. She started on meth when she was in seventh grade at the age of 13, when some of her friends offered her the drug. And in her words, she liked meth so much that she knew she would use it over and over again. But when she could not afford the addiction, she, like so many other female addicts, was exploited into becoming a prostitute to pay for the meth she craved every second of the day.

After hitting rock bottom at the age of 18, Megan is managing to pull her life back together now after 5 years have been stolen from her by meth. But she has too much company in the

treatment and addiction programs because about one in five of those treated for meth use in the State of Minnesota are 17 years old or younger. But just as Megan is finding a way out of this black hole, we are thinking about cutting the funding for Byrne grants that help local police address the meth issues.

These cuts are wrong. They will cut task forces in our State and across the country, and who will be there to protect the children from those making and pushing the poison if this House approves such a devastating cut in the Byrne-Justice Assistance Grant program?

Mr. Speaker, I say to my colleagues that there has to be a better way, and there is. We can help young people like Megan reject meth before they even try it by restoring Byrne grants to the fiscal year 2005 funded level. Doing so will send a strong signal that Congress is serious about fighting the scourge of the meth. We must send a signal that the Byrne grant program is important to Congress and that we do support the work of the local officials. We must send a signal to the pushers of this poison that they are not welcome in our communities. Most importantly, we must send a signal to our law enforcement officers who wake up every morning to protect our families that we stand with them in fighting against drugs and we will work with them to give them every tool they need to be successful.

I urge my colleagues to support the amendment that the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) and I have helped to put forth. Let us stand with law enforcement. Let us protect the Byrne grant program.

Madam Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Madam Chairman, as someone who enjoys recreational activities like fishing, boating and hunting and represents thousands of Minnesotans who do as well, I share a special responsibility to make sure that these opportunities are available for generations to come. Today, many of those activities are threatened by the spread of aquatic invasive species. We have seen a rapid growth of invasive species in recent years, from the Great Lakes, to our coastal waters, to local lakes and streams throughout the country.

In my home State of Minnesota, we have increasingly been challenged to find ways to prevent and control disruptive species like European and Asian carp. In many areas, invasive European carp have found their way into Minnesota's wetlands and lakes, while Asian carp has found its way into the Mississippi River as far north as Iowa. If not properly addressed, both of these species threaten to disrupt the ecosystem that many Minnesotans enjoy for fishing and boating.

One of the few ways in which Federal, State and local governments collectively combat the threat of aquatic invasive species is through the State Aquatic Nuisance Species Management plans. These plans identify activities to eliminate or reduce the environmental, public health and safety risks associated with aquatic invasive species. These activities are implemented by States through feasible, cost-effective management policies undertaken in an environmentally sound manner. These plans are available to both individual States and affected multi- State regions. In fact, currently 14 States have approved plans, and at least 11 other States have plans under development.

Unfortunately, the resources available to effectively implement these

plans fall well short of the mark. This is the third year in a row plans to attack invasive species are funded at slightly over $1 million. I very much appreciate the work of the chairman and the committee to try to address this very important issue but would suggest that these limited funds are not enough to counteract the billions of dollars in costs associated with invasive species habitat destruction and lost recreational opportunities.

Simply put, we must invest more in these plans if we hope to control the spread of these aquatic pests.

I appreciate the chairman's offering to work with me.

I yield to the gentleman from North Carolina.

Madam Chairman, reclaiming my time, I would like to thank the chairman for his commitment and look forward to working with him to have more resources for this vitally important need in the conference report.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Madam Chairman, I rise today to offer an amendment because I am deeply concerned that the Department is not paying sufficient attention to the northern border of the United States.

My amendment today is very simple, and I want to take this opportunity to thank the gentleman from California and his staff for their great work in helping me to draft this amendment.

Mr. Chairman, the National Intelligence Reform Act of 2004 contained important provisions dealing with improving border surveillance on the northern border.

Congress intended for the Secretary of Homeland Security to carry out a pilot program to test advanced technologies for border security along the northern border. Yet, to date, DHS has not carried out this program.

The intelligence reform bill also provided that the Secretary of Homeland

Security must develop and submit to Congress and to the President a comprehensive plan for systematic surveillance of the southwest border by remotely piloted aircraft.

As I mentioned yesterday when I spoke on this subject, many Members may not realize that the U.S.-Canadian border is over 4,000 miles long, and it consists of more than 430 official and nonofficial points of entry. That is double the length of the U.S.-Mexico border, and even with recent staffing moves, DHS has only 1,000 Border Patrol agents along the northern border, compared to over 10,000 along the smaller southern border.

Some might think the southern border is more dangerous, but I would remind my colleagues that terrorists and drug traffickers trying to bring in poison like methamphetamines will try to get to us at the path of least resistance.

The lack of substantial resource and staffing along the northern border poses a real security threat. In fact, due to the shortage, DHS has looked for new ways to monitor the Canadian border, such as a new proposed requirement for passports to get back and forth over the border. But for a border as long as ours with Canada, so many unmanned access points, it is simply impractical to think having Border Patrol agents check passports will stop determined terrorists.

Do we expect al Qaeda or drug dealers to wait an hour at the border for someone to show up to check their passport? Or will they cross at some unknown spot along this vast border?

We need to adopt a more rigorous standard of protecting our northern border that makes wise use of our manpower and employs the same sophisticated technology as we use on our southern border.

By requiring the Department to comprehensively study the use of remotely piloted aircraft, AKA unmanned aerial vehicles, on the northern border and by requiring the Secretary to actually perform the pilot program created in the National Intelligence Reform Act, my amendment makes a significant step forward to securing this vast border.

Madam Chairman, the time has come to make our northern border just as safe and secure as the southern border. I urge all our Members to support this important amendment.

Madam Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Chairman, I would just ask the Members to vote in favor of this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Offered By: Mr. Kennedy of Minnesota

Amendment No. 19: Page 2, line 15, after the dollar amount

insert ``(reduced by $1,075,000)''.

Page 3, line 7, after the dollar amount insert ``(reduced

by $1,075,000)''.

Page 10, line 25, after the dollar amount insert

``(increased by $1,075,000)''.

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

Mr. Chairman, I applaud the great work the chairman and the ranking member are doing on this bill, but also wish to express my deep concerns and ask for a colloquy with the chairman.

We are not paying enough attention to the northern border of the United States. Unless they represent the border States like Minnesota, some Members may not realize that the U.S.-Canada border is over 4,000 miles long and consists of over 430 official and unofficial ports of entry. However, even with recent staffing moves, moves that I commend, the Customs and Border Patrol has only 1,000 agents along the northern border. That compares to over 10,000 agents on the border which is half the length of the U.S.-Canada border.

This staffing shortage along the northern border poses a real security threat. In fact, due to the shortage, the Department of Homeland Security has looked for new ways to monitor the Canadian border, such as a new proposed requirement for passports to get back and forth across the border. Unfortunately, anyone who has spent time up north knows this will not accomplish much to deter or prevent illegal activities or to secure the border.

Simply put, the Canadian border is just too vast for such an approach to work with many unmanned check points in remote areas. I know from personal stories that at some of these unmanned crossings, people have to wait an hour or more before a border patrol agent can come to lift up the gate so they can cross.

Mr. Chairman, we do not expect al Qaeda and narcotics traffickers to wait an hour for the border patrol to show up at the check point. We have already recognized in numerous laws that high-tech border surveillance must be integrated into the manpower and resources we have up there to get real control over our borders.

In the prior year's Defense Authorization Act, in the prior year's Homeland Security Appropriations Act, and in this year's Intelligence Reform Act, Congress recognized the need to develop high-tech border surveillance. However, what little progress the Department of Homeland Security has made on this front has been entirely confined to the southern border even with the $10 million appropriated in this bill last year. Mr. Chairman, this is unacceptable. We simply are not paying enough attention to the northern border.

Some think the southern border is more dangerous, but I remind my colleagues that terrorists will attack us through the path of least resistance. I believe it is critical that the funds allocated to the Customs and Border Patrol accounts used to pay much-needed research and survey technology, including unmanned aerial vehicles, be not solely devoted to the southern border but also to the northern border to stretch the resources our Custom and Border Patrol manpower has.

Mr. Chairman, I ask that the gentleman from Kentucky work with me to ensure that there is sufficient resources in the bill and in the conference report to address these issues and that it be applied not just to the southern border but to the northern border as well.

I yield to the gentleman from Kentucky.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for that commitment and look forward to working with him on this through the conference report.

I yield to the gentleman from Minnesota.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the ranking member for his commitment on this issue and look forward to working on this supplemental and other issues to ensure that the northern border remains secure.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer condolences to the family and friends of Merlin Rosemeier, who passed away April 10, 2005. Merlin was a close family friend and served as best man in my father's wedding. He is survived by his wife, Ramona, nine children, 26 grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and one sister.

Merlin was born in Dublin Township in 1928. He attended school in Murdock and at the University of Minnesota. He married Ramona Traxler on August 29, 1953, and settled into the family farm. He was a hard working dairy farmer and in 2002, his family celebrated owning a century farm.

He was also a very faithful man. As a member of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, he served as the choir director and I fondly remember him using his deep, rich voice to sing ``Ave Maria,'' at church services. He said Grace before every meal and always added a Hail Mary for the crops.

Mr. Speaker, Merlin was a family man whose positive, friendly spirit resonated to those around him. Nothing ever broke his kind and gentle soul. He will be dearly missed by all those that knew and loved him and his memory will live on in their hearts.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Colleen Conway, of Woodbury, Minnesota, as a St. Paul Area Athena Award winner for 2005. She is one of 33 female athletes to receive this award, which stands for character, longevity and durability. It is given for outstanding athletic achievement.

Colleen is a three-sport standout at Hill-Murray, a Catholic school she has attended since 7th grade. She plays soccer, hockey and softball, earning 14 varsity letters in total. She was an all-state shortstop as a junior softball player, has been named all-conference twice in softball and led the hockey team in scoring this past year. In soccer, she has played every position and once even played them all in the same game. She has earned a softball scholarship to the University of Minnesota for the fall.

A typical summer day would find her playing all three sports, morning until night. Even with all this activity, she maintains a 3.8 grade point average in school. In her spare time, she also helps out at her family-owned bakery in Woodbury.

Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to represent such a motivated and talented young woman. I join with her family, teachers, coaches and teammates in celebrating Colleen's outstanding accomplishments.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join my colleagues from Minnesota in expressing my condolences, all of Minnesota's condolences, all of the country's condolences, to the families and loved ones of the victims of the tragic shooting at Red Lake High School. And I too would like to thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kline) and the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. McCollum) for bringing this to the floor, as well as the leadership, especially the leadership that the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Peterson) has had on this issue in his district.

I think all of us would have a difficult time imagining the profound sadness that the families are feeling. But beyond the immeasurable human tragedy of the lives lost that day, this incident has created fear in the minds of parents and teachers and, most importantly, kids, who may no longer view their school as a safe place. Schools must be a place of learning and a place that challenges young minds, not a place where students live in fear.

However, in this tragedy we found heroes. Heroes, as the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Kline) mentioned, like Derrick Brun, who bravely stood at the entrance to the school and confronted the shooter, giving his partner time to alert school officials. This courage and other courage we saw from others throughout this incident no doubt saved lives.

We all honor the memories of all of the victims whose lives were cut tragically short by the needless act of violence.

Mr. Speaker, we must all work together to make sure that events like this do not happen again. Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone who was touched by this tragedy. We are committed to work together, all of us, to find solutions so that no more young lives are cut short.

I thank the gentleman for yielding me the time.

Madam Chairman, I rise to support this amendment.

Since coming to Congress, I have been committed to the need to maximize our domestic energy resources. However, I firmly believe that we must pursue domestic energy independence in a manner that protects our natural resources like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Instead of opening up ANWR to oil drilling, I believe that we should look to new sources and new technologies to increase our energy independence.

I am proud to say that my State of Minnesota is a leader in the field of renewable energy such as ethanol, biodiesel, and wind energy. Minnesota companies offer innovative technologies to reduce our energy needs. These renewable energy sources and technologies offer a sensible alternative to help reduce our reliance on foreign sources of oil without endangering our environment. That is why I support the Markey- Johnson amendment and urge my colleagues to do the same.

Madam Speaker, this week is the 25th anniversary of National Crime Victims' Rights Week. When President Reagan first announced National Crime Victims' Rights Week, he said, ``For too long, the victims of crime have been the forgotten persons of our criminal justice system. Each new victim personally represents an instance in which the system has failed, and lack of concern for victims compounds that failure.''

The Crime Victims' Rights constitutional amendment is an important step forward that will empower crime victims by allowing them to confront their assailants in court and alerting them of prisoner releases and allowing victims to seek restitution from their attackers.

Last Congress, we passed the PROTECT Act, also known as the Amber Alert bill. The PROTECT Act stiffens penalties for sex offenders, eliminated the statute of limitations for these crimes, and created a national Amber Alert system. We passed the Debbie Smith Act, which funds expanding and improving the quality of crime labs to conduct DNA analyses to catch sex offenders and other criminals, ensuring that the right person is going to jail.

But there is more we can do. Last year, Minnesota suffered a great tragedy with Dru Sjodin being abducted. We need to pass Dru's Law this year.