Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners, County Council, and all the other outstanding individuals in Adams County who rose to the occasion during these difficult times. This area suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Adams County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners, County Council, and all the other outstanding individuals in Wayne County who rose to the occasion during these difficult times. This area suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Wayne County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners, County Council, and all the other outstanding individuals in Madison County who rose to the occasion during these difficult times. This area suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Madison County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Johnson County:

Forrest Sutton, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Terry McLaughlin, Sheriff

Town Council, City of Edinburgh

Patrick Pankey, Chief of Police, City of Edinburgh

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Johnson County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as government officials and military leaders at Camp Atterbury Joint Forces Maneuver Training Center, an important Army National Guard training site in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor Governor Mitch Daniels and his administration, as well as these outstanding individuals in the Indiana National Guard for their yeoman's work on behalf of Camp Atterbury:

Major General R. Martin Umbarger, Adjutant General

Brigadier General Clif Tooley, Assistant Adjutant General

Colonel Barry Richmond, Post Commander

Lieutenant Colonel Ronald A. Morris, Deputy Post Commander

This area suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving lives and serving the personnel working at their post.

Madam Speaker, as Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the military and civilian personnel of Camp Atterbury will be well served by these leaders.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Henry County:

Ronald D. Huffman, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Bruce Baker, Sheriff

Jim Small, Mayor, City of New Castle

James E. Nicholson, Chief of Police, City of New Castle

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Henry County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Bartholomew County:

Dennis Moats, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Mark Gorbett, Sheriff

Jim Bickel, CEO, Columbus Regional Hospital

Fred Armstrong, Mayor, City of Columbus

Jim Worton, Chief of Police, City of Columbus

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Bartholomew County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Shelby County:

Mike Schantz, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Michael Bowlby, Sheriff

Scott Furgeson, Mayor, City of Shelbyville

Bill Elliott, Chief of Police, City of Shelbyville

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Shelby County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Randolph County:

Rick Brown, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Jay Harris, Sheriff

Steven Croyle, Mayor, City of Winchester

Michael Burke, Chief of Police, City of Winchester

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Randolph County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Decatur County:

Pam Blasdel, Director, Emergency Management Agency

Daryl Templeton, Sheriff

Gary Herbert, Mayor, City of Greensburg

Brian Heaton, Chief of Police, City of Greensburg

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Decatur County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to commend and recognize the extraordinary contributions of emergency management, disaster response, and recovery personnel as well as elected officials and community leaders in my district which was devastated by the recent severe weather in Indiana.

I wish particularly to honor the Board of Commissioners and County Council, as well as these outstanding individuals in Rush County:

Mike Ooley, Director, Emergency Management Agency.

Jeff Sherwood, Sheriff.

Merv Bostic, Mayor, City of Rushville.

Ron D. Cameron, Chief of Police, City of Rushville.

These areas suffered greatly from severe storms and weather, creating a catastrophe of nature that inflicted injuries, destroyed property, and displaced many of our citizens. In response, these officials went above and beyond the call of duty, showing great poise while saving many lives and serving the people of their communities.

Madam Speaker, I commend these fine men and women for their tremendous dedication to the Hoosier families, businesses, farmers and communities that they serve. As Hoosiers continue to recover from Mother Nature's fury, I feel confident that the people of Rush County will be well served by these officials.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a fallen hero who served his country bravely in Iraq and Afghanistan. I was deeply saddened to learn of the loss of Lance Corporal Andrew Whitacre of Bryant, Indiana, one of two Marines who perished while conducting combat operations in southwestern Afghanistan's Farah Province on Thursday, June 19, 2008.

Lance Cpl. Whitacre was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, based in Twentynine Palms, California. He was serving in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, where his unit was helping to train the Afghan national police.

The three Marine Corps values are honor, courage and commitment. They make up the bedrock of the character of each individual Marine. These values, handed down from generation to generation, have made the U.S. Marine Corps the most respected and revered fighting force on earth. Lance Cpl. Whitacre personified these values and continued that proud tradition as a Marine who served his country bravely in combat.

An Infantry Assaultman, part of a gun team attached to his infantry unit, Lance Cpl. Whitacre's stock and trade was demolitions, breaching, and firing shoulder-launched assault weapons. As I'm sure his fellow 2/ 7 Marines who trusted their lives to his special explosives training would tell you, Lance Cpl. Whitacre was an asset to the Marine Corps, the United States and the American way of life. He will be sorely missed by all.

In addition to any posthumous commendations that he might receive because he died in the line of duty, Lance Cpl. Whitacre was the recipient of six awards since he left for Marine Corps boot camp in July 2005. He earned ribbons for combat action and overseas service, including campaign medals for Iraq and Afghanistan.

Madam Speaker, I extend my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Lance Cpl. Whitacre. And I wish to express my profound sadness to the community of Bryant, especially his father and stepmother, Ernie and Norma Whitacre; his mother and her fiancee, Susan Nunly and Michael Perry of Dunkirk; his fiancee, Casey McGuire of Parker, Arizona; two brothers, Ryan Murphy of Lancaster, Indiana and Justin Miller of Huntington; one sister, Ashley Williams of Lancaster, Indiana; four grandmothers, Mildred Whitacre of Berne, Caroline Huffman of Kendallville, Beulah Murphy of Bluffton and Mary Scott of Portland; and, many nieces and nephews.

We are all struggling to cope with the tragic loss of this young man, no less because his death follows hard on the heels of another fallen Marine from the Sixth District who was lost less than a week before. Just as Lance Cpl. Whitacre embodied the Marine motto--Semper Fidelis, ``Always Faithful''--let us also be faithful to extend a helping hand to his family, friends and community, and remember them in our thoughts and prayers.

One year ago, over 300 Democrats and Republicans stood together to oppose efforts to restore the so-called Fairness Doctrine to the airwaves of this country for a single year. It was an encouraging vote. But, following that vote, I introduced the Broadcaster Freedom Act, which would permanently ban the Fairness Doctrine from ever coming back, and so far, not one single House Democrat has signed our position for an up-or-down vote on broadcast freedom. Now we know why.

Asked yesterday if she supported reviving the Fairness Doctrine, Speaker Nancy Pelosi replied, ``Yes.'' At a meeting at the Christian Science Monitor, she said that the Broadcaster Freedom Act would not receive a vote because ``the interest of my caucus is the reverse.''

I say to Speaker Pelosi, with respect, defending freedom is the paramount interest of every Member of the American Congress.

I urge my Democrat colleagues to take a stand for freedom. Oppose the Democrat leadership's plan to censure the airwaves of American talk radio and American Christian radio. Sign the discharge petition for broadcast freedom, and help us send the Fairness Doctrine to the ash heap of broadcast history where it belongs.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the long and distinguished career of Dr. Marlin B. Creasy.

Dr. Creasy has served as the superintendent of Muncie Community Schools since 1997, but he will long be remembered for a commitment to public education that goes back some 40 years. Ever a champion of the Muncie schools and community, Dr. Creasy was loved by students, parents, faculty, and staff alike.

Dr. Creasy spent countless evenings and weekends throughout his career attending school activities. It was this personal interaction and involvement that impacted students most and this was clearly Dr. Creasy's first love.

Next year, as students fill the halls of Muncie Community Schools, Dr. Creasy will be sorely missed, but his legacy will live on. The lives of the students that Dr. Creasy touched will lead them to experiences that will change the face of Muncie for years to come.

I'd like to thank Dr. Marlin B. Creasy for being a leader in the community and in the lives of the children for whom he opened the doors to a better education.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the 30th birthday of arguably America's favorite feline friend, Garfield. From a humble beginning in Muncie, Indiana on June 19, 1978, Garfield and his creator, Jim Davis, have combined to bring laughter and cheer to the lives of millions of Americans over the past three decades.

It would have been easy for the bright spotlight of fame to have drawn our good friend Garfield away from his humble Indiana roots. Yet as the Muncie Star Press writes in a June 19 editorial, ``Garfield is a hometown cat at heart.'' Remaining true to his roots, Muncie's favorite fat cat appears in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's most widely syndicated comic strip character, appearing in around 2,580 publications each day.

Madam Speaker, as we struggle with another Monday and find ourselves longing for a lasagna dinner, Americans have turned for thirty years to their friends Garfield, Jon, and Odie. Born at five pounds and six ounces, Garfield ate so much pasta that he threatened to put an Italian restaurant out of business, and was rescued to the relief of millions of Americans who have been touched through his inspiring blend of cynicism, complacency, and mediocrity.

As Americans have gone from typewriters to BlackBerry and hatchbacks to SUVs, Garfield has remained a symbol of stability in an ever- changing world. Despite the turbulence of the past 30 years, Americans can still open their local newspaper to be greeted by the smiling face of Garfield. Nine lives or not, Madam Speaker, Muncie's favorite cat continues to live beyond all expectations.