Michael E. McMahon

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of this bill on behalf of the people of Staten Island and Brooklyn, New York, all of them, and in particular Trish and Marty Fullam.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor the memory of native Brooklynite, global connoisseur and dear friend, Congressman Stephen Solarz.

Congressman Solarz worked tirelessly on the House Foreign Affairs Committee as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific to address some of the most controversial topics and political figures of our time. Congressman Solarz combined American foreign policy with a Brooklyn twist, being both affable and austere when necessary. His work affected numerous corners of the world from North Korea to Israel to Turkey and beyond.

Furthermore, Congressman Solarz's legendary staff members, including Assemblyman Peter Abbate, have gone on to contribute greatly to New York City. I have had the pleasure of working with his colleagues and have seen the Congressman's great work live on through them.

Today, on the day of his funeral, my thoughts and prayers are with his family and his wife, Nina. It brings me great sadness to say goodbye to an American hero like Congressman Solarz. He will truly be missed across the globe.

I just want to be very clear that we all owe a great debt of gratitude to Congress Members Maloney and Nadler from New York for their leadership on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, my district of Staten Island was particularly hard hit from the 9/11 attacks. Nearly 300 of my constituents were murdered, including one-third of the firefighters killed on that day, and sick today are those uniformed and hard hat-wearing heroes--the operating engineers, the laborers, the steelworkers, ironworkers, and all the volunteers and residents.

When I think about why we need this law, I think about Marty Fullam, a 30-year veteran FDNY lieutenant from Staten Island, who spent weeks going through toxic debris in the wake of 9/11, and years later his doctors confirmed his illness related thereto. He was told he would die without a new lung. And while he ultimately received a new lung earlier this year, his health continues to suffer. The last time he was here in July to fight for this bill, he actually made his condition worse. And he continues to recover from that. Our thoughts go out to him and his wife, Trish, and their daughters.

Despite their deteriorating health, many first responders like Marty send this message. For that reason, Mr. Speaker, we must pass this bill. We must pass this bill.

Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore