Floor Statements

Mr. Chair, I rise in support of this amendment.

I represent Ohio, and we have a number of VA clinics and facilities in rural areas across this country. One of ours is in Chillicothe, the Chillicothe VA Medical Center that this commission recommended for closure. They were saying it was not optimally located.

This is in the southern part of the State, by the Ohio River, serving all of the veterans in the southern part of Ohio. And 1,400 Ohioans are employed. The facility is over 100 years old. It serves 20,000 veterans in 17 counties.

This is insane that we think that that is a good idea; that of all the waste and abuse in the United States Government, we are going to target a rural VA facility in southern Ohio with a State that has 865,000 veterans.

I think this is a wise amendment. I support the McGovern amendment, and I urge my colleagues to support it as well.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I appreciate the opportunity to speak here.

I just want to say, I have been in Congress now 20 years, and I have known Mr. Larson for that long. He has been an absolute bulldog on this issue. I think he understands better than most the impact of this program, just consistently, year in and year out, getting this on the radar screen. Now, we are going to have a markup next week on this, really proposing this at a time of great need.

The pandemic that we all have experienced over the last few years, and the global economic collapse that we saw in the last couple of years, I think pulled the veil back on a lot of problems that we have had in this country. We could go through the entire list, but I think one of them that is most significant is how many people in this country, how many seniors in this country, struggle to make ends meet, in the wealthiest country on God's green Earth, the most significant, most dynamic economy.

We have a handful of people building their own space stations, going into space, and, God bless, that can only happen in America. But the reality is that the vast majority of people in this country are still struggling.

What we are talking about here is a group of people who did everything right, busted their rear ends their whole life--single moms taking care of a couple of kids, people working in factories, people waitressing, nurses, public servants, people who are out there every single day and have done everything right.

This is what the Social Security system is all about. I remember when my grandparents passed away. I remember going through their drawers at their house. You have to clean up everything, and it is really a heartbreaking experience.

I found this little black book that was my great-grandfather's, Dominic Guerra. He came over from Italy with 17 bucks in his pocket. It was his little black book. I opened it up, and on the left side, it had the names of the people who belonged to this group that was called the Valsinni Club. He came from a little village in Italy, Valsinni, in the southern part, in the Basilicata region. It was the Valsinni Club.

On the left-hand side were all the names of the Italians from Valsinni in Niles, Ohio. At the top of the book were the months of the year. So, it would say Dominic Guerra and all of these names--a lot of vowels in this book. It would say January, $1; February, $1; March, nothing; April, nothing; May, nothing; June, $1. It was the same for all the different names that were there.

It was a mutual aid book. It was insurance. It was just a group of people kind of putting their own insurance plan together because, one day, I am up and you are down, and the next day, I am down and you are up. That was before Social Security and before Medicare, people coming together, collectively, to help each other, which is a basic American value.

This system was put in place because that was probably happening all across the country with different ethnic groups. Franklin Roosevelt and others said, hey, we better do something about this and collectively come together. That is what this is about. This is an earned benefit.

I will tell you that the American value that undergirds this program is the same American value that has lit this country up since its inception. It is the idea and the value of freedom. Freedom has been the principle here in the United States.

We are talking about economic freedom here. We talk about it with the workforce. We talk about it with rebuilding the middle class. Why? So people can be free. Economic freedom--don't have to work 50 or 60 hours a week. You have time for the things that are important. You have a few extra bucks to take your kids to the college football game or, if you are into self-flagellation, a Cleveland Browns game, or go fishing, go hunting, or have a little boat. Economic freedom.

When we are talking about our seniors, we are talking about freedom, economic freedom for them to live independent lives. Seniors don't want to be a burden on their kids. They don't want to be a burden on their grandkids.

What Mr. Larson and what the Social Security 2100 Act are saying is, how do we lift everybody up, put a few more bucks in people's pockets who have done everything right, making sure people aren't living in poverty, making sure they are independent, that they can take care of themselves? That is what this bill does. It asks people making over $400,000 a year to help make that happen.

I think this is a significant piece of legislation. I think this program is the backbone of the working class.

I will tell you something else. This program is the backbone of rural America, where so many jobs have been lost. It is the backbone of these factory towns that have seen so much loss. You have issues around addiction, overdose, fentanyl. And grandparents raising grandkids, it couldn't happen without Social Security.

The one significant provision in here is to say if a husband and wife are both relying on Social Security and one dies, they are going to get at least 75 percent of the total of both recipients. That is a significant step because we hear so often of a spouse dying and then, all of a sudden, there isn't economic independence anymore, there isn't freedom anymore, there isn't the ability to take care of yourself.

I am here today to say this is a phenomenal thing. I think when most Americans--Democrat, Republican, and Independent--hear about this, there is going to be and continue to be significant support for these reforms.

I hope this bill gets marked up. I hope it comes to this floor for a vote. I hope the Senate agrees, and I hope we pass it and reform it. Then, we are going to lift up millions of people, millions of seniors, in this country. We have John Larson to thank for that.

Madam Speaker, I rise to acknowledge Colonel Rick Zampelli for his exemplary dedication to duty and service as the Division Chief of the Army House Liaison Division. Rick is transitioning from his current assignment to military retirement.

Colonel Zampelli was born in Akron, Ohio in 1972 and commissioned from the U.S. Military Academy as an Aviation Officer in 1994. Throughout his career, he has served in several command and staff assignments, including multiple operational deployments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Throughout his career, Rick has served in a variety of significant staff assignments to include Chief of Staff, U.S. Army Aviation and

Missile Command, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama; Director, Force 2025, Army Capabilities Integration Center, Fort Eustis, Virginia; J3 Air Operations Officer, Headquarters, U.S. Special Operations Command, Tampa, Florida; Battalion Operations Officer, 1st Battalion, 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, Fort Campbell, Kentucky; and Brigade Personnel Officer, 82d Aviation Brigade, Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

His military education includes the Aviation Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and U.S. Naval War College. Rick holds a Master of Arts Degree in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College and a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering from the U.S. Military Academy.

Rick's significant awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal and Air Medal with V Device. He is a Master Army Aviator and has completed Airborne School; Air Assault School; OH- 58 Instructor Pilot Course; Jumpmaster School; and Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape-C course.

The foundation of Rick's success is his family. His wife, Jayne, and his son, Tristan, are the light of his life. I thank Jayne and Tristan for their sacrifices made in Rick supporting our country.

Madam Speaker, it has been a genuine pleasure to highlight the life and service of a true American and Ohioan. Our country has benefited from his extraordinary leadership, judgment, and passion for the Army profession and for the State of Ohio. It is with great appreciation that I recognize and commend the life and service of Colonel Rick Zampelli.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of William Flynn, Jr, who passed away on Saturday, June 18, 2022, at the young age of 87.

Bill was born on December 10, 1934, in Philadelphia, PA, the son of William Flynn, Sr. and Rose Flynn (Rossillo). He was proud of his Irish-Italian upbringing in South Philadelphia. Bill's family moved to Natrona, Pennsylvania, after WWII. During the Korean war, while attending St. Vincent's College he had enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in Germany, while stationed there he got his first taste of life in Europe. When he returned to the states he would enroll at Youngstown College for engineering, he joined the fraternity Alpha Phi Delta. While attending college he married his high school sweetheart, Anne Sebak.

In 1963 he was hired by Packard Electric as an engineer, and the family moved to Warren, OH. Bill would work in many different capacities while there, and made many lifetime friends there as well. Bill and Anne and family were a staple of the Northeast Warren neighborhood, where neighborhood kids were welcomed as their own, which would be a theme throughout Bill's life. He had so many hobbies and things that he loved to do, and with each came along an entire group of good friends and he enjoyed all of their company. Hunting, sailing, wine making, tennis and his MG.

He was a gifted but humble artist. He spent many summers at Mosquito Lake sailing at the Cortland Conservation Club, and enjoyed the banter of the Panera crew. He could be seen cruising around in his MG with Elmo riding ``shotgun.'' Nothing meant more to him then spending time with friends and family. Sadly

Anne would pass in 1996, and Bill would later retire from Packard. A few years later, Bill would be reenergized when he remarried Arlene Boyle (McNicholas), and Bill would welcome her children as his own. The two would spend many summers enjoying the Poconos at her cottage on Long Lake.

To carry on Bill's memory he leaves behind his brother Robert Flynn of Centreville, VA, a son William Flynn, III (Mariella Fraijia) of Warren, OH, a daughter Tara Breuer (Herm) of Warren, OH, stepchildren Jennifer Beck (Frank) of Poland, OH, Jacqueline Boyle (Tim Lanza) of Columbus, OH, Terri Boyle of Calabash, NC, John Boyle (Patty) of Springfield, NJ, Arlene Ferraro (Todd) of Bradfordwoods, PA, granddaughters Bailey Breuer, Emily Breuer, stepgrandchildren Simone Boyle, Sophia Lanza, Lauren Hinkle, Tim Beck, Tom Beck, Elizabeth Criscione, Christopher Boyle, Tavish Boyle, Blair Boyle, Cagney Boyle, Dillon Grace Ferraro, Chase Ferraro and Jack Ferraro and three great grandchildren, many in-laws, nieces and nephews and cousins. Through research it was determined that Bill was the ``Greatest Grandpa Ever'' this was verified by a T-Shirt and a coffee mug.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a sister Geraldine Flynn, his wife Anne, and his second wife Arlene.

Madam Speaker, I thank the distinguished chair.

We shall pay any price, we shall bear any burden, we shall

support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival

and the success of liberty.

President Kennedy's inaugural address.

And here we stand in the most powerful country, in the most powerful legislative body, voting on an issue of freedom, of liberty, the basic foundation of this country. I am proud that this is a bipartisan effort to support the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian leadership because they have paid the ultimate sacrifice. They are bearing the ultimate burden.

So it is appropriate for us, as this monster, Vladimir Putin, invades a free country, blackmails the neighbors around energy issues, scares all of Eastern Europe and all of Europe, in conjunction with the support of China who looked the other way and said, Well, just wait until after the Olympics. There is a lot at stake here.

This is about much more than just Ukraine. This is about freedom around the world.

I agree with what the chairman and so many other speakers said. We cannot let Vladimir Putin gain one inch of soil in Ukraine. Not one inch. You can't reward bad behavior. You can't reward violence. And that is what we will be doing.

So I rise in support of this bill. I support the $33 billion that the President has proposed this morning.

Madam Speaker, we need to continue this process; not one inch of soil.

Like Mr. Pascrell said, there are States like New Jersey or Ohio, where we have people from Ukraine and from Poland and from Lithuania, and those ties run deep. Their family members, friends that they have lost, that have gotten killed, slaughtered by a monster.

So we need to keep going.

Planes: The $33 billion that the President wants, this process expedites all that.

We should look at what we need to do to China if they continue to support Russia in this effort.

I think, in a bipartisan way, we need to come together around a whole-of-government approach.

We need to get natural gas from eastern Ohio to Eastern Europe, from western Pennsylvania to Eastern Europe, from West Virginia and New York to Eastern Europe, and knock the legs out from under Vladimir Putin.

Whole-of-government approach. Be aggressive. Not one inch of territory. And make sure we ensure the survival and the success of liberty.

Madam Speaker, I have an amendment at the desk.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Takano for including in this bill the Heath Robinson Burn Pit Transparency Act as a part of this comprehensive bill to address toxic exposure in our veteran community. I rise today to discuss my amendment, the Heath Robinson Burn Pit Transparency Act, named for Heath Robinson whom I spoke about in this very Chamber just 4 months ago.

I stand here humbled to see it come to the floor in a bipartisan effort to finally address this dire problem.

Heath deployed to Kosovo in 2004 and Iraq in 2006 and was the Ohio National Guard NCO Soldier of the Year in 2012 and 2013.

Being a soldier was Heath's identity. He was proud of his service and humbled to serve overseas defending those he loved. While deployed, Heath was exposed to burn pits in Iraq, and those toxic wounds of war followed Heath home. He was a loving father, husband, and son who, unfortunately and tragically, lost his life on May 6, 2020, at the young age of 39. His story is a sobering one but reminds us why this amendment is needed.

In late 2016, Heath began noticing early symptoms starting with fatigue which worsened to chronic, gushing nosebleeds and bleeding from his ears. After a dozen doctors were unable to provide answers, it was finally determined that at the age of 35 he suffered from a rare autoimmune disease. After new symptoms presented and Heath's condition deteriorated, his family learned Heath was stricken with an extremely rare form of lung cancer that, according to 20 oncologists, could have only been caused by prolonged inhalation of concentrated toxic substances.

Heath was eventually forced into a medical separation with his lung cancer being deemed 100 percent service connected by the Veterans Administration. His retirement documents specify that Heath was a recently retired combat veteran. However, once he applied for comprehensive caregiver benefits, the VA denied him. They stated that although Heath Robinson's lung cancer was 100 percent service connected, there was no evidence that his cancer was caused by burn pits or combat related. His wife, a doctor of physical therapy, had to take an unpaid leave of absence from a full-time job to handle her husband's round-the-clock care. This service was paramount to this family, and the VA failed them.

The final year of Heath's life consisted of his wife and her mom watching helplessly as Heath suffered in pain, struggling to breathe daily, and coughing incessantly. Many days were spent holding a basin under his face to catch vomit and blood streaming from

his nose while they shoved the oxygen tube into his mouth intermittently so he wouldn't die. They lost count of the number of times he had to be rushed to the nearest emergency room only to be transferred to a trauma hospital because the doctors had no idea what to do with him. Doctors exclaimed that they had never seen a cancer like Heath had.

The VA decided this American soldier and war veteran didn't qualify for caregiver benefits because his exposure to inhaling toxic burn pit smoke did not cause his lung cancer. The Robinson family suffered tremendously while earned benefits were withheld by the VA.

The story of the Robinson family is one of many dating back years to the days of Agent Orange when other veterans suffered the same fate. When veterans seek treatment related to burn pit exposure, my amendment requires the VA to report it to Congress. It demands transparency and helps find policy solutions driven by large-scale data to get our veterans the care they need and that they have earned. We can do better to provide care for soldiers and family members, and we must provide safeguards and transparency to ensure that.

Madam Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on my amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 15 seconds to the gentleman from California (Mr. Takano), who is the chairman of the committee, for any comments.

Madam Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I am frustrated. We have heard a lot this week about cutting workers in on the deal and how we meet the challenges that this Nation is facing.

Every piece of the game plan--whether it is helping take on China; how do we bring jobs back to places like Ohio; how do we increase union membership by making it easier to join a union; how do we bring down costs; and how do we cut taxes for workers in the midst of all of this inflation--every one of those bills has gone to the Senate and either died or is on life support.

Here is one example of just how broken this is: Last year, we made history

when we passed the Women's Health Protection Act--and not a moment too soon as Roe v. Wade hangs in the balance and States like Ohio race to pass new laws to ban abortion. This is a basic right, a matter of settled law. But this week the Senate blocked the vote--blocked it--and we didn't even get a vote.

It is time to get rid of the filibuster and make sure that the bills we send here from the House actually get passed in the United States Senate.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Matthew Brady, who peacefully entered eternal life on Thursday, February 10, 2022. Nicknamed by family and friends as ``Fred, Brady, and Big Uncle,'' Matthew Brady was a larger-than-life figure that left a positive impact on the lives of those he met.

The son of Frank and Emma Brady, Matthew Brady was born on Monday, February 7, 1938, in Youngstown, Ohio. Matthew would graduate from South High School in 1956, where he was known as an all-around athlete and the community's star football player. He would opt out of a football scholarship and join the workforce at Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company until 1961, where he would enlist into our nation's army, where he would serve until he was honorably discharged in 1963 and returned to work as a steelworker. Matthew would eventually earn his stationary steam engineering license in 1978 and continue to work in the steel industry until 1981. He would transition over to a 35-year career as a stationary steam engineer until his retirement with the Trumbull Memorial Regional Hospital in 2013.

Outside of his professional life, Matthew was a linchpin of entertainment and gaining understanding with those close to him. He would entertain his seven children with several versions about how he and Laura Cooke, his wife of 57 years, met. Each tale would be funnier than the previous one. His love for reading books and newspapers helped his far-reaching knowledge continue to grow, possibly allowing him to be tricked into writing a few political science and history papers for college students.

In all, Matthew Brady was a quiet, humble, hardworking man who cared for those he loved since he was young. The epitome of selflessness, Matthew would become the caretaker of his mother, an older brother that was incapacitated by the war, and a niece while in high school. Matthew would continue to be their caretaker of his mother and brother until their passing 40 years later. That love and care will be what our community misses the most.

Matthew will be dearly missed by his wife Laura Thornton Brady and his children Tisha P. Brady; Pia N. Brady; Jada M. Brady; (Andre) Ian Brady; Avery (wife Patrice) Brady; Leah A. Brady; and Aaron A. Brady. He was also greatly loved by his four grandchildren Julien and Justin Aina, Hannah Brady, and Ava Brady, the niece he adored and reared (Lenore ``Buggs'' Brady of Bryans Road Maryland, his sister-in-law DeLois Grant Brady, brother-in-law Ronald Thornton and his many nieces and nephews. He is preceded in death by his parents; and siblings, Frank (June) Brady, Jr., Edward Brady, Norman (Bobby) Brady, Helen Brady Traylor, Herbert (Billy) Brady, Margaret Brady, Eleanor (Betty) Brady Owens; and most recently by his youngest brother Samuel (Dickie) Brady.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the COMPETES Act. And quite frankly, I am stunned to hear some of the rhetoric coming from the other side around a bill that finally, after decades, recognizes that we are in a very stiff competition with China, and for the longest time America didn't know it.

China was in this competition. China was doing everything they could to dump steel in our country. They spend 7 to 9 percent of their GDP on infrastructure every year. They got islands in the South China Sea. They told us they weren't going to militarize them; now they have.

They have bases in Africa, long-term raw material contracts in African countries to solidify their control of precious metals so that our phones, our weapons systems, our computers, they have a plan.

This is not complicated. But it is being seen through the prism of our current, broken, insane political system.

And so what we are trying to do here is recognize that they are winning. Seventy percent of chip manufacturing comes out of China. The cargo ships along the California ports, those aren't coming from Kansas. They are coming

from China. Over 50 percent of the electric vehicle market is dominated by China.

And so the thoughtful thing, the smart, strategic thing for us to do in the United States is one, recognize this, and two, make sure we reinvest back into the United States, which is what we did with the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

Twenty Republicans in the Senate, led by Senator Portman from Ohio-- who I commend for his leadership--said we have got to rebuild our country. Broadband, infrastructure, bridges are collapsing in Pittsburgh. We have got to fix this stuff.

Workforce development, we have got to plug these communities in, if we are going to win. And so that is what we did in a bipartisan way.

And so the next step is: How do we bring the chip manufacturing back? How do we rebuild the industrial base here in places like Ohio? That means we have to have a strategy that invests into the country. That is what the COMPETES Act does. $52 billion to move these chip manufacturers back.

And what is stunning to me about how radical the right wing has become in this country, is that this isn't: Oh, we are going to invest this money and maybe we will get a deal; maybe someone will locate in the industrial Midwest. Last week, Intel announced a $20 billion investment north of Columbus, Ohio, with over 100 suppliers in that State that will benefit from locating there: thousands of construction jobs.

And you know what they said? If we pass the COMPETES Act, if we pass this bill, it is going to become a $100 billion investment in the Midwest.

And all we are saying is: If there is nothing else we can agree on in the United States Congress, I hope that it is this bill. I hope it is infrastructure. But it is culture war du jour. I mean, what a joke.

China has a 10-year plan, 50-year plan, 100-year plan. We live in a 24-hour news cycle talking about Dr. Seuss, Big Bird, M&Ms, Sponge Bob, and we are getting our clock cleaned.

And this is an attempt, by us, hopefully, in a bipartisan way-- doesn't look that way, but hopefully, in a bipartisan way--to actually prepare America, post-pandemic, post-economic collapse, to bring back manufacturing. And it is already happening. This is already happening.

We saw all the leaders in Ohio: Democrat, Republican, Governor DeWine, Lieutenant Governor Husted, JobsOhio, under a Republican Governor, J.P. Nauseef, the Columbus Partnership, Kenny McDonald, the business leaders, everybody, the unions--and this bill creates 1 million union apprentices in the next 5 years to build this stuff.

Wake up. Wake up. We are losing. And this is a step forward for America to start leading the way and leading the country again.

Madam Speaker, payments in lieu of taxes, or PILTs, are Federal payments to local governments to help offset losses in property taxes due to the presence of nontaxable Federal lands within their boundaries.

Through my role on the Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee, I have gotten to know the good people of Pike County, Ohio, where the Department of Energy owns 3,700 acres of land where a uranium enrichment plant once operated. And wouldn't you know it, Pike County has one of the highest cancer rates in the State of Ohio.

Yet, their PILT payment is a paltry $47,000 a year. These are the people who enriched the uranium during the Cold War; they live in southern Ohio where corporations have gone in, extracted resources, and taken the profits out, and now we need to help this community get the kind of payment that they need. For all the radiation, all the sacrifice that they have made and endured over the years, it is long past time that the Federal Government increased the PILT payment for Pike County, Ohio.

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to come to the floor this afternoon about a topic I wish we didn't have to address. This is the plague in our country of fentanyl and fentanyl overdoses that so many families throughout this country have had to deal with.

Coming from Ohio, we have, unfortunately, been on the front-end of the opiate crisis. We have been on the front-end of the heroin crisis. And now we are on the front-end of the fentanyl crisis.

I have a picture here of Rachel, who is from Akron, Ohio, who died at 17

years old. Her life was tragically cut short because she took a fatal overdose of cocaine that was unknowingly laced with the synthetic opioid carfentanil.

Carfentanil, for those of you who haven't been paying close enough attention to all of these issues, is 100 times more potent than fentanyl and 10,000 times more potent than morphine.

So we have young, talented, beautiful people--in this case, a high school student--who had so much promise, so much life, so much personality. I speak with her mom often and listen to stories about and see pictures of this beautiful young woman.

Now, her mom, Cindy, carries on her daughter's legacy, providing peer-to-peer programming at local schools and in the local community.

We failed Rachel. This country failed Rachel and her mom and her family and all of the families across this country.

We thought we had at one point enough attention on the issue of opioids, on the issue of heroin, now on the issue of fentanyl. Then the pandemic came, and this issue has been on the back burner.

My remarks here today on the floor of the United States House of Representatives, one of the greatest deliberative bodies in the entire world, are to try to bring attention to this issue, to try to scream from the rafters so that we don't have any more Rachels, we don't have any more families that have to experience the heartache, the tragedy, the gut-wrenching experiences that so many families have had over the past few years.

This is something that we can do. Think about this: 80 percent of the overdoses in Ohio are from fentanyl.

The fentanyl starts in China, it goes to Mexico to get processed, and then it comes over the border. So as a country, we have to focus--and I will give the Biden administration a credit. We have seen progress in this regard. We have seen progress. We have seen an increase in people getting busted at the border, which is appropriate, but we have a long, long way to go.

We need an awareness campaign across the country so that young kids, who otherwise would make a simple mistake and now it ends their life, that they know, that their peers know, that their schools know. There is not a corner of Ohio, Madam Speaker, that I can go to that I won't meet families who have experienced this kind of tragedy.

It is incumbent upon us. As one of the co-chairs of the Addiction, Treatment and Recovery Caucus, we have been dealing with this in a bipartisan way. We passed the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act, the CARA Act, in a bipartisan way.

We know that there are so many issues we can fight about. There are so many issues we can argue about here in this body. But I hope and pray that one of them isn't this issue that we need to address collectively here in the United States Congress.

We need to, I think, begin by going back to the opiate issue, going back to the Sackler family, going back to all the profits that were made off of getting so many millions of Americans hooked on opiates, hooked on painkillers, and merge that in with a broken economy where there is so much hopelessness in so many quarters of the United States, where so many communities have been disinvested in, deindustrialized, left to rot. Then you have families that are knowingly increasing the amount of opiates, playing with the FDA, going through the loopholes, which is what the Sackler family has done. They need to be punished to the point where they don't get the right to the deal that they want, Madam Speaker; they don't get the right to the deal that they want, because that is how it has been in the United States.

If you are a wealthy corporation, you can get away with just about anything. If you are a rich person in the United States, it almost doesn't matter what crime you commit; you are going to get away with it.

But, meanwhile, in Youngstown, Ohio; Steubenville, Ohio; Portsmouth, Ohio; or Akron, Ohio, it trickles down. It has been those communities who have suffered greatly, including Dayton, Ohio, because of this epidemic.

Over the holidays, my wife and I were able to watch an amazing documentary on Hulu called ``Dopesick,'' with Michael Keaton, Rosario Dawson, and others, that went through the Sackler family approach to painkillers. It was set in Virginia. Michael Keaton is from western PA and a graduate of Kent State in Ohio. They were highlighting Virginia, but this is an issue everywhere, where these good and honest and decent people found themselves getting hooked because of the wealth and profits that one family wanted to earn on the backs of the American people.

So here we are today. We need to make sure that the Sackler families of the world are punished and put out of business, quite frankly, and we need to also make sure that we begin to take the bold steps we need to take to make sure that the Rachels and the other kids and the other people across this country, to the tune of a 100,000 deaths last year, because of fentanyl.

So I believe we need to take a firmer stance. While I support what the Biden administration has done, we need to go a hell of a lot further. I believe we need to start having a conversation in this country, knowing that China knows that they are sending fentanyl to Mexico that makes its way into the United States, that they need to be punished with tariffs. They need to be punished. They are killing our kids. This is killing our kids.

We can't just stand around. We need to take the money from the tariffs, support our border, support the cops who are on the beat in these different communities. We need to put that money towards addiction treatment, to make sure everybody can get better if they have got some issue, and we need to grow the economy in these communities.

But we can't just stand by and hope this problem goes away, because it is not. It will get worse, and there will be more families, more destruction, more hopelessness, more ruined lives.

As we are trying to compete against China economically, we need to make sure that Rachel and these other young, bright minds are on the economic field playing for the United States of America. That is what this is all about.

So we have to have a whole-of-government approach. We have a whole- of-government approach when it comes to the pandemic, right? The only way you can have any success is when you have a whole-of-government approach. This means Federal, State, and local coordination. This means coordination with nonprofits. This means coordination with law enforcement. This means coordination with the Border Patrol.

This is about us all coming together. You can't tell me we don't have the imagination in the United States to figure this out. This is about making it a priority.

What I am doing here tonight, and what many activists across the country are doing, is trying to get this back on the front burner because other than a few articles in the paper, it has been on the back burner.

We need to make sure we increase the resources necessary to keep this garbage out of our country or to know who has it the second they bring it in here. We have to make sure all of our kids are aware that this could be put in cocaine or meth or something else and that if you have an issue with drugs, you can actually get the treatment that you need and that no one is priced out of the market so that they can get better and get healthy and become self-sufficient and become good citizens and members of society and off to the races we go to try to outcompete China because we care about our citizens. That is what this is all about.

You are going to be hearing a lot from me in the coming weeks and months. We are building a coalition of the families around Ohio and across the country who want to begin to move this issue forward.

I do want to take a minute or two to talk about the power of fentanyl. I mentioned carfentanil. But 1 kilogram of fentanyl--1 kilogram; 1--has the potential to kill 500,000 people.

The money that is being made off of this substance will blow your mind, which is why it continues to come over the border from China, from Mexico. Much of the fentanyl comes through the southern border that is being looked at by the cartels. A lot of the China-sourced fentanyl comes through the international mail, and some comes from China through Canada.

As I said, fentanyl is responsible for 80 percent of Ohio's overdose deaths. Roughly 79 percent of meth, cocaine, psychostimulant overdose deaths in Ohio were from supplies contaminated with fentanyl. The pervasiveness of fentanyl contaminating other drugs has made overall fatality rates for all drugs much higher than before, and we are seeing it across the board.

We have the STOP Fentanyl Act. We have legislation with Annie Kuster and others. There is a Manchin-Portman bill in the Senate, which permanently makes fentanyl-related substances a schedule I controlled substance. This is something that we have to address, and we have to address it in a bipartisan manner.

I would just like to say, lastly, Madam Speaker, that these parents have been through the ultimate tragedy. Having to put one of your own kids to rest, there is no greater heartbreak. There is nothing worse that could happen to a parent.

So I am pledging, and I know other Members are pledging, to keep up the fight because, as some of these parents have told me, there is nothing left to lose for them. These parents have had their hearts ripped out of their bodies. They live with the pain every day. They wake up in the middle of the night and open their eyes and hope it was a nightmare, open their eyes in the morning and hope it didn't really happen, that they could walk down the hall and their kid would still be lying in their bed.

There is nothing more inspiring than seeing these giants, these parents who are taking their pain, taking their experience, taking their heartache and are saying: We have to fight. We can't let this happen to another parent, to another brother or sister, to another family member.

People like Cindy started Rachel's Angels, which is a group back in Akron, Ohio, and there are so many groups across the country that have sprung up because of these tragedies. We want to unite these groups. We want to take the fight to the American people, to Congress, here in the House and in the Senate, and get the resources we need to make sure that these overdose deaths stop, that the companies producing these kinds of drugs get punished, that the people peddling this stuff get punished, and that we get the resources we need to keep this garbage out of our country.

While this may be the first time this year that I stand up and speak on this topic, it will not be the last. We are encouraging everybody, Madam Speaker, to reach out to their Members of Congress, whether they are Democrats or Republicans, and let's get this issue of fentanyl deaths back on the front burner of the agenda here in the United States Congress.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor and pay tribute to Meredith Isaac Smith, 76, who passed on Friday, November 26, 2021.

He was born on July 28, 1942, in Cleveland, son of Osceola Smith and Consuela Evans. Meredith was a 1960 graduate of Sollers Point Junior/ Senior High School in Maryland and a 1964 alum of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, a historically black university, where he earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology.

Upon graduating, Meredith would return to academia, teaching physical education at Southern High School for 40 years. He would become the boys' basketball coach, holding the position for 21 years and finishing with a 398-144 record. Although he never personally played any sport in both high school and college, Meredith's passion for coaching would lead him to win a Maryland Scholastic Association A Conference title in 1990 and three Maryland Public Secondary Athletic Association state titles in 1993, 1994, and 1996. His success would lead him back to his alma mater, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, in 2004, serving as an assistant coach for three seasons before becoming the program's interim head coach during the 2007-2008 season.

While helping his athletes achieve athletic greatness, Meredith's compassion also included being a mentor to the youth. When he knew that coaching high school basketball was his calling, Coach Meredith gave his all to his athletes, treating them like his own children. While a coach at Southern, Meredith demanded academic excellence from his athletes and wanted his students to continue their education past high school. Several of his remarkable players were able to continue their careers in college, which was one of his major priorities.

Meredith is survived by his children Ali Smith, Darryl Smith, Atman Smith, Lydia Jackson, and Lisa Robinson; two brothers, James Smith, and Carlton Smith; two sisters, Mary Livingston, and Alexis Smith; 12 grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor and pay tribute to Raymond Vennitti, of Mineral Ridge, who passed away on Saturday, November 20th, 2021, at his residence surrounded by his loving family. He was 76 years old.

Ray was a great friend and supporter. He loved his wife, his daughter, his church, and his community. He was a quiet and strong man who was always behind the scenes to help and support others. He was humble, never looking for credit. He was prayerful, dedicated, and genuinely happy to be with people. He was old school in these ways, and it was always so refreshing to see.

He was born February 15th, 1945, in Youngstown, son of William and Mary Belcastro Vennitti.

Raymond was a 1963 graduate of Niles McKinley High School and a graduate of Allstate Barber College in Cleveland. He was a barber at Union Barber Shop in Niles from 1967 to 1972 and then went on to work at Delphi Packard Electric for 32 years, retiring in 2003.

Ray was a member of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Niles, where he served as a church usher and adult alter server. He was a member of St. Vincent DePaul Society, Mahoning Valley Olde Car Club, and enjoyed gardening, winemaking, and their '55 T-Bird.

Raymond was a sergeant in the U.S. Army, serving one year of active duty in Vietnam.

He will be missed by his wife, Laura Pajank Vennitti, whom he married on November 1st, 1975; a daughter, Clarise of Strongsville; and two sisters, Nancy DeGood of Howland and Angela Vandegrift and her husband, Richard, of Howland.

He was preceded in death by his parents and an infant brother, William Raymond Vennitti. Ray will be missed. And our community and church were much better because of his total commitment to serve others. God Bless Ray. I was honored to call you friend.

Madam Speaker, I rise to honor and pay tribute to Salvatore J. Ponzio III, 36, of Girard, who passed away peacefully on Sunday, December 12, 2021, at his home.

Sal was born August 8, 1985, in Youngstown, Ohio, the son of Salvatore J. and Judy (Demas) Ponzio.

Sal was a 2004 graduate of Girard High School, a graduate of Youngstown State University with his bachelor's degree, and a graduate of Kent State University with his MBA.

Sal had worked for Ernst & Young in Cleveland for six years and had previously lived in Rocky River, Ohio. He was a member of St. Rose Church.

Sal loved all kinds of sports, especially golf. He was a personal trainer and had even volunteered for coaching this year for the Girard High School football team. Sal was the author of ``F.I.T. Finance,'' a book which he wrote to help young adults manage their finances.

He leaves to cherish his memory, his parents; grandmother, Regina Demas; brother, Joe (Lucille) Ponzio of Lake Wylie, South Carolina; sister, Gina (Dave) Sherock of Columbus; nephew, Dominic Ponzio; nieces, Lucia and Viviana Ponzio and Carmella Sherock and his loving girlfriend, Alessandra LaMonica. He also leaves aunts, uncles, cousins, and many wonderful friends.

The Girard community is devastated by the loss of this amazing young man. We will all work to make sure he is never forgotten because he set a standard of kindness and compassion for which we all need to strive. God Bless Sal. He left our world a lot better than he found it.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Mrs. Linda B. Conlin on the occasion of her retirement.

Linda has served the people of the United States of America in her role as a Department of the Army Civilian for over 39 years. Her long and distinguished career of service began in 1973 as a Kindergarten teacher in a small DoD school in the East-West German border kaserne of Bad Hersfeld, Germany. She finishes her career with over 25 years in the Washington, D.C. area-serving in the Army's Office of the Chief of Legislative Liaison, and most recently for the last 17 years as the Support Division Chief in the National Guard Bureau's Office of Legislative Liaison. Linda has received a Commander's Award for Civilian Service and several Superior Civilian Service Awards.

As the Co-Chair of the National Guard and Reserve Caucus, I especially want to thank her for her service with the National Guard Bureau's Office of Legislative Liaison.

2021 will undoubtedly go down in history as, ``The Year of the National Guard.'' This year. the National Guard continued its mission to fight the scourge that is the COVID-19 pandemic, conducted a mobilization of 25,000 troops to defend our Capitol--the bastion of our Democracy, responded to countless natural disasters ranging from fires, to floods, to hurricanes, all while continuing to protect us from our adversaries abroad.

Throughout this tumultuous year, the National Guard Bureau's Office of Legislative Liaison supported my office, and all of Congress, in unprecedented ways. Linda was critical in providing this support and embodied the spirit of the Guard's motto: ``Always Ready, Always There.''

This country is losing a true patriot today, her loss will be noticed. As she begins her new adventures, I wish Linda and her family with nothing but health and happiness in her retirement.