Michael G. Grimm

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of this legislation.

But before I begin, I would like to say a very special thank you to Chairman Jeb Hensarling for his outstanding leadership on this bill, as well as Chairman Neugebauer and Ranking Member Waters.

I am proud to have worked so long and so hard in what I would say was truly a bipartisan manner, so let me also thank and acknowledge my senior Senator from New York, Chuck Schumer, for his tireless efforts and for making TRIA reauthorization one of his top priorities.

I also want to thank my good friend and colleague from New York, Peter King, for being such a champion on this issue.

As someone who witnessed the tragedy of 9/11 firsthand, and as a Member

whose district saw the greatest loss of life during the September 11 attacks, I know all too well the destruction and the suffering that is caused by terrorism. However, as a proud New Yorker, I have also seen the tremendous recovery, a recovery that has taken place since that fateful day. But in order to ensure that such a recovery would be possible in the face of, God forbid, a future attack on our country, as well as to ensure the further economic development across the United States, we must ensure the continuation of TRIA and the vitally important insurance coverage that it provides to projects and facilities that create so many American jobs, like the pending Hudson Yards project in Manhattan, or the Barclay's Center in Brooklyn, as well as our hospitals and universities, such as the Staten Island University Hospital and the College of Staten Island.

I would also like to add my strong support for the inclusion of my legislation, the Business Risk Mitigation and Price Stabilization Act, which passed, I believe, this House with 411 votes right here in this Chamber and does anything but undermine Dodd-Frank. In fact, what it does, it will actually ensure that commercial end users of derivatives contracts will not be subject to costly and unnecessary margin requirements that needlessly tie up capital and impede job creation.

With that, I strongly urge my colleagues to support this critical, commonsense legislation.

I thank the gentlewoman from New York. And I echo the sentiments of my colleagues with the need to reauthorize the Zadroga bill in a timely fashion.

Mr. Speaker, I rise alongside my colleagues in the New York delegation also to honor and commemorate the nearly 3,000 innocent Americans whose lives were cut short in the unspeakable attacks on our Nation 13 years ago. Like so many of my constituents in Staten Island and in Brooklyn, I have images of the most horrific sight that I have ever seen burned into my memory forever.

I will never forget what it was like searching for the survivors in the rubble after both towers of the World Trade Center disintegrated into ash. I will never forget the look in the eyes of the firemen, the police, the construction workers as we worked side-by-side. It was a look of overwhelming despair.

And though our hearts broke at the loss of those taken from us, I am very proud of the fact that Americans soon rallied together. We united around an unshakable truth that the servants of hatred and terror did not strike the greatest Nation on Earth at random but because we embodied the very freedom and liberty that they so despise.

As Senator McCain said on the floor of the Senate the day after the attacks, ``Those who unleashed these attacks and those who support them are not our enemies alone. They are the enemies of freedom and independence, of justice and peace. And they wage war on the United States because we are and will remain the principal guarantors of freedom.''

Mr. Speaker, in the Arrochar neighborhood of Staten Island lies a beautiful memorial dedicated to some of the 274 Staten Islanders murdered on 9/11, many of whom were first responders and fallen heroes of our beloved FDNY and NYPD, all of whom went above and beyond the call of duty to bring their fellow New Yorkers to safety.

Amidst the pictures and devotions to the fallen lies an inscription: ``On September 11, 2001, the World Trade Center was attacked by terrorists. From that hatred, a little piece of heaven evolved here called Angel's Circle.''

It reminds us, Mr. Speaker, that from the horror and despair our Nation endured on 9/11 and endures in all of our hearts until this day comes the constant reminder of strength, our pride, and the unwavering heroism at the heart of the American spirit.

May God eternally bless the victims of 9/11. May he bring peace to their loved ones. And may we never, ever forget the sacrifice they bore for our freedom.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate and recognize the 40th anniversary of the Turkish invasion and occupation of Cyprus on July 20th, 1974. As a proud representative of countless Greek and Cypriot American families in Brooklyn and Staten Island who have contributed immeasurably to New York's vibrant culture and economy, I have come to know the lasting impact that this heartbreaking saga of military occupation, forced eviction, seized property, and desecration of sacred religious sites has had on this wonderful community. As such, I am honored to join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle as a member of the Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Affairs, and to lend my unwavering support to Cyprus in its struggle for justice and restitution for these ongoing offenses.

It is with a heavy heart that I have listened to my constituents retell the tragic account of how family, friends, and sometimes they themselves were driven from their homeland and still yearn for peace and resolution after almost half a century of unjustified occupation. The Cypriot people's desire is for the same inalienable right to national sovereignty that the United States has championed at home and abroad. Recognizing this inescapable truth, I have been proud to cosponsor legislation urging Turkey to return confiscated churches and property, affirming our nation's commitment to the reunification of Cyprus, and strengthening our bilateral relationship with Greece. I call on all of my colleagues to support these efforts on behalf of our trusted ally as they work to overcome the political, cultural, and economic challenges wrought by four decades of illegal occupation.

Furthermore, the assault on Greek Orthodox culture and religious heritage is unfortunately not limited to Cyprus' struggle, as recent efforts by Islamist forces to convert the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul--one of the most sacred Greek Orthodox basilicas--into a mosque, make all too clear. Mr. Speaker, any efforts to stifle and diminish Orthodox Christian heritage in the region is the type of tyranny and intolerance that must be denounced by all free people across the globe.

I conclude Mr. Speaker, that if the United States is to truly honor its reputation as the world's brightest beacon of freedom and democracy, then our support for Cyprus must be clear and unwavering. I hope that on this somber occasion, we may unite in solidarity with our Cypriot allies, reassure them of our nation's ardent support, and look forward to replacing an annual observation of continued occupation with a joyous celebration of a re-unified Cyprus.