Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, there is an ongoing joke here in Washington that the Democrats have no agenda. It is a joke, Mr. Speaker, and it would be very funny if it were not so true. There are ongoing press reports, just this week there is a press report that the Democrats planned to roll out their agenda this week. Well, it is funny because they decided not to. Well, it is also funny because this is a press report that goes back since November of last year. They keep having these press reports that say we are going to roll out our agenda next week. The next week comes and goes, and no Democrat agenda.

It is an amazing thing that such a formerly great party with such high ideals and strong agenda can't even get together an election-year agenda. It is an amazing thing to me as a conservative who has an agenda, who is a member of a party who has an agenda. It is a wonderful thing that the party leadership won't come together. The party leadership won't come together and issue an agenda.

Now I know there are some on the other side of the aisle that have high ideals and have an agenda, but the Democratic leadership in Washington won't come together and issue an agenda. I am hopeful they will because I think what their agenda will show, when they do issue their agenda, it will show two things: Waving the white flag on the war against Islamic extremists and raising taxes. It is a two-part agenda, and I am going to boil it down to those two things.

They are going to wave the white flag and say this war is not worth fighting, let's bring all of our servicemen home. Let's just work with terrorist attacks on our home soil rather than taking the fight to the enemy wherever they are.

The second part of that is big government. How do you have big government, Mr. Speaker? You have big government by having big taxes, by taking more out of the economy and bring it here to Washington, D.C., by taxing people more wherever they are in this Nation, Mr. Speaker, by taxing them more, and bringing that money here to Washington and running programs out of Washington.

Big government liberalism is still at the heart of the Democratic Party, and that is something that is very out of step with what the American people want.

Let's talk about what the Republicans have done and what our conservative leadership here in Washington has done. Just in the last 33 months, we have had wonderful job growth across this Nation. Within the last 3 years, we have had 5.3 million new jobs. Why? Because we have restrained spending in Washington. Well, not as much as I would like as a conservative, but we have been able to restrain spending here in Washington, and excessive growth of government. And we have been able to pass tax cuts that let Americans keep more of what they earn.

Those two things have led to this wonderful job creation, and that is why this House continued to pass tax cuts every year since we have taken the majority as Republicans. Every year we have passed tax cuts since 1995. And those results that we have shown the American people have led to the economy expanding.

Moreover, when the economy expands and people have jobs through these lower taxes, through conservative fiscal policy, you know what happens? As they make more money, they pay more taxes. The Federal Government gets more revenue when people are working, Mr. Speaker.

These things work, and the American people know it and they are benefiting from the prosperity that through conservative fiscal policy, we have helped lead the Nation in this right direction.

So, Mr. Speaker, there is a very severe contrast between the two ideologies that underpin the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. They are two disparate views of the world and how we defend our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, we should have this great debate, not just on the war, which we have had for the last 10 hours on the House floor, but we should also have a debate about fiscal policy.

As a conservative, I don't believe we have done enough in terms of fiscal policy, but we are making progress and that progress is getting real results. That is a wonderful agenda for a conservative party to stand for. Now we look forward to our opposition on the other side of the aisle to one day to come up with an agenda.

Mr. Speaker, the Washington Times reported last week that while firearms sales in the United States remained on the rise, gun-related crime and gun accidents are on the decline.

Figures released by the Treasury Department show that retail sales of firearms and ammunition rose by almost 3 percent in 2005. All told, 4.7 million new guns were sold during this past year. Yet government figures and independent statistics revealed that firearm crimes and accidental fatalities, including among youth, all trend downward.

A recent assault on the Mall, ironically involving one of the Capitol Police chief's children who was one of the victims, underscores the importance of making guns available to law-abiding citizens in Washington, DC.

Residents here deserve the same self-defense measures that we do in our individual States. The second amendment applies to all Americans, not just some. It does not take a constitutional scholar to figure that out.

Mr. Speaker, anti-gun activists attacking our second amendment rights are perpetuating a myth of more guns equals more violence. It is not true.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

My amendment is very simple. I certainly appreciate Chairman Knollenberg and his able staff working with me to craft this amendment and make this possible. I want to commend the chairman for his hard work and dedication each year on this House floor and in committee to pass a strong budget that restrains spending but funds our major priorities. Thank you and your staff.

My amendment is very simple. It prohibits funds from demolishing a current interchange on interstate I-40. This is something requested by local officials and by the North Carolina Department of Transportation. This buys us 1 year.

I yield to the gentleman from Michigan.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we do have an important debate coming before this House tomorrow discussing what we are doing to defend America through what the President calls the war on terror; what I refer to as the war against Islamic extremists.

I had a colleague earlier refer to the big lie. Well, there is a big lie propagated by the left in this country that we have no enemies abroad; and beyond that, we should not fight those enemies where they are.

We are making progress in this war against Islamic extremists. Make no mistake about it, this is a generational fight. While my grandparents fought the Nazis and my parents fought the Communists, very harsh ideologies that sought to destroy our way of life, that sought to destroy who we are as Americans, we too have a generational fight in this war against Islamic extremists.

And I will say in the last week we have seen some very positive prospects coming from Iraq. There are those who want to deny that we are making progress, and they have every right and ability to do that because we have freedom of speech here in the United States because of our constitutional freedoms. We are trying to bring that same level of freedom to those that are living in repressive regimes, which those repressive regimes are the ones that are propagating terror against us in the United States. So if we spread peace and freedom and democracy around the world, we will have fewer enemies that seek to destroy us and to kill Americans.

Now, in the last week we saw the destruction of Zarqawi, a militant extremist in Iraq, a terrorist mastermind, who was seeking to destroy our troops, to hurt our men and women in Iraq and to destroy the progress they are making for themselves in Iraq. But we did root him out. That was a wonderful, positive step. We should be proud of that action.

Beyond that, we saw progress with the government of Iraq taking shape and form with the security ministers being put into place and the final government being put into place. We are making progress there in Iraq and we should be proud of that.

Beyond that, there are extremists in Israel. There are extremists in Afghanistan and throughout the Middle East and some in this country that seek to destroy us. This is the reality of the day. Some would say we should deal with them with a legal strategy. Well, Mr. Speaker, I would say that is really removed from the realities of the war that we are fighting.

Our enemy hates our values. Our enemy hates our freedoms. Our enemy hates our capitalism that we embrace in this country. So we must fight them wherever they are and by any means possible.

But the left in this country, Mr. Speaker, don't want to fight this war. They know it is hard. They know it is difficult. But I would say to the left in this country, Mr. Speaker, that if we do not fight them, the values which they cherish, the freedom of speech and the freedom of dissent which we have in this country, the right to vote, the actual equality that we strive for in this country, although imperfect, the equality that we strive for, whether it be females having a place in society which we embrace here in this country, those extremists would not want that to happen. They want burqas worn by women. They don't want their participation. They don't want them to own property or have freedom of speech, wholly removed from what is our reality here in this country, although imperfect. But we strive for those values, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, our enemy will fight us in any way possible. We must have a

debate on this House floor on what means we are going to use, what direction we should take in this war on terror. This is a generational fight, and we as Americans must step up to the challenge and embrace the fight or they will destroy us.

Mr. Chairman, on rollcall No. 269 I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''

Amendment Offered by Ms. Harris

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Chairman, first of all I would like to commend Chairman Kolbe for his dedication and steadfast leadership here in the United States House of Representatives, and in particular his leadership on this very important appropriations subcommittee. Chairman, you are going to be sorely missed here in Congress, but we know that you are going to continue to fight the good fight for the right issues and the right values going forward. Thank you for your service to your constituents and your Nation.

Mr. Chairman, I rise to speak today and I offer an amendment to this end to speak to a growing problem in our Nation where criminals who commit violent crimes, including murdering law enforcement officers, these criminals are illegal immigrants, some of them. Some are immigrants. These folks sometimes flee the Nation and they flee to nations that refuse to extradite them back to the United States of America so they can be dealt with in our justice system, and those nations have been refusing to extradite these criminals because of our tough laws on criminals, including life imprisonment.

There is language in this bill that addresses these concerns, but there is one big problem: it gives the State Department the power to issue waivers to foreign countries which allow these countries to continue receiving taxpayer funding even if they refuse to extradite these criminals to the United States.

My amendment strikes the State Department's ability to issue waivers to foreign countries that refuse to extradite cop killers so they will stand trial here in the United States where their crime was committed or allegedly committed.

I offered the original amendment last year with Congressman Beauprez of Colorado without this waiver provision. It passed by a vote of 327- 98 on this House floor. The amendment would return section 581 to its original intent: no funds should go to a foreign country refusing to extradite to the United States any individual accused in the United States of killing a law enforcement officer.

In 2002, Mr. Chairman, a convicted felon who had been deported three times allegedly shot and killed a Los Angeles County sheriff following a routine traffic stop before fleeing to Mexico, where he remains today. That police officer was murdered, and that criminal, that man accused, is free today in Mexico.

The U.S. should not be forced to plea bargain with other countries in order to try criminals, especially cop killers, in our courts. As a good neighbor and a country built on respect for law, Mexico should fully understand and comply with their obligations to return cop killers to the United States to stand trial. Killing a police officer is one of the most egregious crimes, and we should have the right to seek justice for the families of the slain officers.

Mr. Chairman, when countries do not extradite violent criminals, it actually creates a perverse and twisted incentive to even commit greater violent crimes here and run back to their countries. The more violent the crime, the tougher the sentence here in the United States, which is right, that is good; and the tougher the sentence, the less likely they are going to be extradited. That is a very perverse and twisted incentive for violent crimes.

So the U.S. should not be obliged to give foreign aid to these countries refusing to extradite these violent criminals back to the United States where they justly should be given the trial they deserve, and foreign aid money should not go to these countries that will not abide by reasonable laws that we have on the books.

I ask my colleagues to vote for this amendment. It is a commonsense amendment that puts teeth back into the original legislation and will put pressure on countries who gladly take our money while protecting the most vile criminals from prosecution.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, sometimes a person's mere existence causes death and destruction in this world. Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al Qaeda's leader in Iraq who has led a bloody, bloody campaign of suicide bombings and kidnappings, was killed yesterday by our U.S. forces in an air raid north of Baghdad.

The death of this terrorist breathes new life into our efforts to implement democracy in a region desperate for freedom and hungry for peace.

Mr. Speaker, the Iraqi Parliament, as well, made a major breakthrough today by appointing officials to lead the country's top security ministries, giving Iraq a complete government for the first time since their elections in December of 2005.

Victory in Iraq is not only possible, Mr. Speaker, it is approaching. I want to tell my colleagues on the other side of the aisle, our troops are putting their lives on the line every day and making the sacrifices necessary to ensure safety, security, and a democratic Iraq, which will provide a model for a free and representative government in the Middle East.

Mr. Speaker, peace is a product of strength and democracy. We are showing strength by eliminating the terrorists and implementing democracy which will help root out Islamic extremists in the Middle East.

Tonight, Mr. Speaker, I think it is important that we address our agenda as Republicans, and what we have done as a majority in this House. We have controlled both the House, the Senate, and the White House.

Mr. Speaker, the American people and my constituents, in particular, have been asking, what have you done? What have you achieved for us? And I want to tell you tonight the center of what we have achieved as Republicans, Mr. Speaker, is an economic growth that has been unrivaled in our Nation's history, and at the center of that economic growth are tax cuts. Those tax cuts have fueled our economic recovery over the last 6 years.

Mr. Speaker, Republican tax cuts have made an enormous difference. And let us talk about this. One hundred eleven million American taxpayers have seen their taxes decline by an average of $1,877, and for the average family that is real money. Here in Washington, D.C. they spend that in a minute, but at home in my district, in Cherryville, North Carolina, that is real money. That is real money for an American family, a family in Cherryville or in Hickory or in Morrisville, to spend on textbooks, clothes, maybe even a vacation, Mr. Speaker. That has fueled our economic recovery, the fact that the American people have more in their own pocket now than they did 6 years ago.

I will also say that a family of four earning $40,000 received a tax relief because of President Bush's tax cuts and Republican leadership in the House, they have received a tax cut of $2,010 per year, Mr. Speaker. That is for a family of four making $40,000 a year. That is a wonderful, wonderful thing that we have allowed the American people to keep more of what they earned.

Well, what we are trying to do now, what this Republican Congress is trying to do with the help of our President is not only extend the tax cuts, which I am very proud that we were able to enact just a few weeks ago; we extended the President's tax cuts for 2 more years, but to make it permanent. And what would making those tax cuts permanent do for the American people? Well, in my State of North Carolina, between now and 2014 we would produce 22,000 new jobs because of extending and making permanent the President's tax cuts.

Our annual GDP would grow by over $111 billion higher, after inflation, if we make the President's tax cuts permanent. Personal savings will grow by $163 billion per year on average over the next decade if we make the President's tax cuts permanent. And personal income will grow in the State of North Carolina on average by $4,000 a year. Disposable income, that is, Mr. Speaker. And beyond that, we are going to see the economy continue to grow if we are able to extend these tax cuts, and a strong economy will spread prosperity more evenly throughout our economy, and that is very important. The American people having more money in their pocket is a very vital thing. That is a very vital thing.

Now, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been four square against this. Why? They think of government solutions as the only alternative, Mr. Speaker. And I would say that it is important that we come together as a body and say that reducing the size and scope of government is a good thing. Now, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle have stood in the way of progress in terms of tax cuts. Most of them, a majority, have opposed tax cuts here on this House floor, not just for the last 5 or 6 years during the President's term, but over the course of the Republican majority for the last 12 years. Why Mr. Speaker? Because they want more revenue for government. They want government to expand.

Beyond that, Republicans have worked very hard at growing this economy in other ways. Not only have we cut taxes which has led to greater economic growth, but we are trying to increase the supply of oil, gasoline, and natural gas for all Americans, and look at alternative energies. And the Democrats have stood in our way in terms of energy policies as well. And I would encourage them to join with the Republican majority and do what is right, expand our energy supply and continue to cut taxes.

Offered By: Mr. McHenry

Amendment No. 14: Page 137, line 11, strike ``, unless''

and all that follows through ``United States'' on line 15.

Mr. Speaker, last week North Carolina lost one of its leading citizens and I lost a treasured constituent. Hugh Morton was, in all senses of the term, the ``Keeper of the Mountain.'' As owner of Grandfather Mountain, he fought to protect and preserve its wildlife and scenic beauty for future generations.

Hugh Morton was also our State's leading and most acclaimed photographer, recording the history of the State of North Carolina for the past 70 years. Whether it was bald eagles soaring over his beloved Grandfather Mountain, or Michael Jordan soaring over the rim at Chapel Hill, Hugh Morton captured it all in breathtaking fashion.

He photographed a young aspiring actor in the 1950s named Andy Griffith and chronicled the legendary U.S. Senate race in 1984 between Senator Helms and Governor Hunt. From the mountains to the coast, Hugh Morton photographed all our State has to offer.

North Carolina lost one of its greatest promoters and advocates, Mr. Speaker, but fortunately his legacy lives on in more ways than we can imagine.

We will miss Hugh Morton.

Madam Speaker, Cox News Service reported last week that the Mexican government threatened to file lawsuits against the United States if the National Guard troops detain aliens at the border trying to cross illegally into this country.

Mexico's liberals, the liberal party, called President Bush's decision unjustified, unacceptable and implies a serious aggression toward a sovereign nation. That is simply because we are defending our borders.

Let's talk about Mexico. What is striking here is that foreign born Mexicans can't even hold office in either house of their congress. They are also banned from state legislatures, The supreme court and all governorships.

We don't do that here in America. We allow immigrants to participate in the process.

In fact, they are even encouraging a ban on firefighters, police and judges from being non-natives. It is amazing to me what Mexico is doing.

Madam Speaker, we are a Nation that respects immigrants and embraces them, unlike Mexico, and I just ask their respect of their immigrants as well.

Mr. Chairman, I certainly appreciate my colleague from Iowa (Mr. King) for offering this amendment, and I certainly appreciate his leadership and dedication to this issue.

I do want to commend Chairman Rogers on his dedicated leadership to putting together a strong homeland security bill which includes $30 million to complete the San Diego border infrastructure system, including a fence there, as well as $8 million with the cost associated with the Arizona Border Control Initiative. Those are good things.

What our amendment does is supplement that and adds $100 million by taking out money for bureaucrats sitting here in Washington that are not making this country safer by sitting in an office. We want to put fences out in the places that will be needed and necessary.

This $100 million will stop this mass flow of illegal immigrants across our southern border. The 12 million illegals, 10 to 20 million, in this country, in fact, can attest to the ease by which you can cross over the border.

I commend my colleague, Mr. King, for his dedicated leadership to this very important issue in stifling the flow of illegal immigrants across our southern border, and I urge my colleagues to support this initiative.

Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to talk about accomplishments of this House. When the American people are facing rising gas prices, this Republican controlled House of Representatives, this Republican majority, has stepped forward and said, yes, we must use our natural resources that are available here in this country today to provide for our energy needs. We said, yes, we should drill in a very barren part of Alaska that some call ANWR. We said yes, we must move forward with a bold initiative for hydrogen research.

Mr. Speaker, I am so proud that my colleague from South Carolina sponsored the H-Prize. The H-Prize puts out a motivation for market forces and market research to be done, privately funded, and move forward with a way to power our economy through the use of hydrogen energy. It is a bold initiative, and this House passed it in the last few weeks. It is the right move and the right step forward.

Beyond that, we are working to constrain Washington spending, out-of- control government spending. What we have done in this House is pass a budget bill. Now it does not come to balance as quickly or in a form that I would like in the amount of time I would like, but it does bring the budget closer to balance.

Beyond that, I was able to vote for an amendment that actually brings the budget to balance within 5 years, sponsored by the Republican Study Committee, called the Contract With America Renewed.

Now, we have done all this in the last few weeks in this House. Previously, and the American people need to know this, previously, this House acted on border security, which I am happy to see the Senate has actually come around to doing something on immigration. Unfortunately, I think it is a horrible, absolutely destructive plan for the United States.

But this House acted, this House has acted on border security by putting more Border Patrol officials on the southern border, by building a fence to protect our southern border, and doing what is right for our national security and our border security while at the same time providing for employers to verify whether or not those that come to be employed with their business, potential employees, are legal or not. It is the right move, Mr. Speaker, and I am very proud of this House of Representatives moving forward.

Additionally, what this House did, in closing, I would add, the House, this House, along with the Senate, and it was signed by the President just last week, we were able to extend the Bush tax cuts, $70 billion in tax cuts, in order to ensure that the American people don't pay more next year in Federal taxes than they did this year, and, in order to make sure the stock market continues to move forward and to move our economy forward in a general basis as well as affect every small business owner across this great country of ours. We have ignited this economic growth because of these tax cuts, and we, here, the Republican majority, we are moving forward and ensuring that that economy continues to grow across this great Nation of ours.

Mr. Speaker, I am very proud of the work of this Republican majority, led by our Speaker, Dennis Hastert, led by a conservative Republican majority willing to make the tough decisions to move America forward. We should be proud of our accomplishments. We should go home after Memorial Day, Mr. Speaker, we should go home and tout these accomplishments. Let the American people know that what we are doing is good for them. It is good to their pocketbooks. It is good for their family. It has the right values, and it constrains the government so that families can grow and prosper as well as business owners.

It is a good thing to do, and I am proud of our ability to act and move the agenda forward even when the other side of the aisle gets so mired in attacks and negative politics. I am so

proud of what we have started to do here to turn the tide in this country and to move things forward.

Mr. Chairman, I certainly appreciate your leadership and the hard work of your staff and the work they put into making this appropriations bill possible. I certainly appreciate that.

I would like to discuss an important issue in my district as well in western North Carolina. In recent years, my district has seen literally thousands of furniture and textile industry jobs leave due to unfair trade practices. Right now we have an industry interested in moving to our area, but the location they prefer will require some landscaping, including moving roughly 2,000 feet of a small unnamed stream. This will require approval of the Army Corps of Engineers.

As you are well aware, the corps approval process can take many months and experience significant delays. In

my opinion, projects that provide economic development and jobs to economically distressed areas should be expedited and take priority over other permits.

I thank the chairman and look forward to working with you and your staff as this project moves forward through the permitting process. And I appreciate your willingness to help and assist through this.

Mr. Speaker, it is our distinct honor to have had with us today Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, a valued friend and trusted ally in the war against Islamic extremism.

The Prime Minister's visit focused on three principal issues in the Middle East and around the world: The challenge posted by the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority; his plan to take steps to secure Israel if no peace-partner emerges from the Palestinian Authority; and the nuclear threat from Iran.

Our friend and ally in the Middle East, Israel, has elected a strong leader in Ehud Olmert, and it was clear today that he will have the strength and fortitude to carry forward his plan to have a safe and secure Israel. He gave a wonderful and strong speech.

Mr. Speaker, I am proud to be a supporter of Israel, proud to have had the opportunity to listen to the Prime Minister today, and I am pleased that the leadership of this House and this Congress decided to welcome such a valued friend to this distinguished body.