Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise to offer a personal explanation. On Monday, July 19th, I was unavoidably detained at Newark International Airport, due to both mechanical problems and bad weather, while traveling back for votes on Rollcall Votes 391-393. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on Rollcall Votes 391-393.

I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3574, the Stock Option Accounting Reform Act. This bill I believe is proworker and corporate accountability. It is a true compromise that will protect broad-based stock options for rank-and-file workers, while ensuring accountability and transparency of the top corporate executives.

This bill requires stock option expensing of the top five corporate executives, which ensures public disclosure of executive compensation packages. So there is full disclosure and full transparency for corporate executives. At the same time, the bill protects the stock options that rank-and-file workers currently receive.

More than 14 million U.S. workers receive stock options and 15 percent of union workers receive stock options. That means that rank- and-file workers, not just corporate executives, are sharing in the benefit of stock options. These options are crucial to the global competitiveness of high-growth industries in this country. Companies such as the high-tech industry have to rely on stock options to recruit and retain high-skilled workers, very often keeping these good-paying jobs in the United States, rather than sending them overseas.

Stock options also give employees a stake in their company, creating incentives for every employee to work hard and ensure that the company succeeds. That gives U.S. companies an additional competitive advantage over their foreign competitors.

Some have argued that this bill just benefits fat-cat executives, but I believe nothing could be further from the truth. No one should be fooled into thinking that this bill lets corporate executives off the hook, because it does not. It actually requires the expensing and full accounting of the top executives' stock options.

It is naive to think if we require the expensing of all stock options, that suddenly executive compensation packages are going to be reduced or eliminated. That simply is not going to happen. What will happen if this bill is not passed, however, is that the stock options of 14 million rank-and-file workers will be in jeopardy. I encourage my colleagues to support the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to offer a personal explanation. On Monday, July 12, I was unavoidably detained on Amtrak for over 7 hours, due to bad weather, while traveling back for votes on rollcall Nos. 359-362. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall vote 359, ``no'' on rollcall vote 360, and ``yea'' on rollcall votes 361 and 362.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira for its numerous contributions to the community, and its dedication to the City of Palmeira, Spain. On Wednesday, July 14, 2004, the members of La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira will celebrate the 75th anniversary by traveling to the City of Palmeira, Spain.

La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira was established in April 1929 by a group of immigrants from Palmeira, Spain. The original members of the organization were: D. Andres Paisal Ramos, President; Vicente Franco Paisal, Vice-President; Jesus Gonzalez, Secretary; Andres Santiago Gomez, Vice-Secretary; Antonio Rodriguez Martinez, Treasurer; and Pedro Gomez Pazos, Andres Santiago Rodriguez, Andres Gago Fernandez, and Francisco Blanco. La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira was founded to establish a support network for those who had made the journey from Palmeira, Spain to the United States, and also to preserve their culture and customs.

In its 75 years of existence, La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira has been a pillar of community service throughout Newark. As the city continues to diversify, La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira has served as a center for promoting Spanish culture, and has provided a place to keep Spanish cultural and traditions alive.

La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira has not only been active in the United States, but also in Palmeira, Spain. Through the hard work and dedication of the past and present members, La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira was able to establish a state of the art recreational center in their native city. This center has provided the City of Palmeira with resources that were previously not available to its residents.

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring La Sociedad Hijos de Palmeira for its distinguished public service, its dedication to promoting Spanish culture in the City of Newark, and its continued efforts to assist the people of Palmeira, Spain.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Virgil Blanco on being selected as a Fulbright Scholar for 2004. For his remarkable achievement, Mr. Blanco was honored by the Board of Chosen Freeholders on Thursday, May 20, 2004, at Middlesex County Administration Building in New Brunswick, NJ.

Mr. Blanco, a professor of modern languages and department chairman and director of the Center for International Education at Middlesex County Community College, has been selected as a 2004 Fulbright Scholar Program recipient. The Fulbright Scholar Program is an honor bestowed upon only 800 American faculty and professionals, by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs in the U.S. Department of State. Mr. Blanco recently spent 3 weeks visiting French and German post-secondary educational institutions, learning in-depth their educational system. He also lectured about community colleges and immigrant students in the United States.

Mr. Blanco has been an active member in his community. He was founder and chairman of the New Jersey Collegiate Consortium for International Education, and also served as chairman of the New Jersey World Trade Association, co-chairman of the New Jersey World Trade Conference, and member of the State Advisory Committee on Bilingual Education.

For his outstanding research and dedicated community service, Mr. Blanco has been the recipient of numerous awards and grants, such as the N.J. World Trade Council Education Award, the Above and Beyond Award for Teaching Excellence, and the N.J. Department of Labor and Industry Research Grant.

Mr. Blanco received his bachelor's degree from the University of Miami, a master's degree from Fairleigh Dickinson University, and his post-doctorate degree from the University of Madrid.

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Virgil Blanco for his continued pursuit of educational excellence, and for his dedicated service to the students of Middlesex County Community College.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

I appreciate the opportunity. I am concerned, and I had an amendment that I originally drafted to restore development assistance and child survival and health money for Latin America to fiscal year 2004 levels. I will not be offering that amendment, and I would appreciate this chance to engage with you and hopefully as well as the chairman to discuss the issue.

As the ranking member on the Committee on International Relations Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere and a member of the Hispanic Caucus, I was outraged that the President's budget proposal slashed development funding to Latin America by an average of 11 percent. Latin America is the only region in the world to be cut in both total economic development aid and total narcotic and military aid.

So to make these cuts real beyond those percentages, let me just say that, as a result of the overall cuts to Latin America, the President's proposed budget cut the child survival and health funding in Guatemala by almost 15 percent at a time when Guatemala's malnutrition rate for children is extremely high, one of the highest in the world.

As for the new Millennium Challenge Account, it does little for the over 40 percent of Latin Americans living in poverty who live in all of the Latin American countries; and, in fact, only three of those countries will actually benefit from MCA funding this fiscal year.

And the region is at a critical moment. Over just the past year, two democratically elected leaders were removed from office. The region is threatened by mob rule, from the lynching of a mayor in Peru to the ousting of a democratically elected president in Bolivia. These incidents only highlight the destabilizing impact of poverty, hunger and economic disenfranchisement.

Democracy means little if you cannot feed your family, your children, cannot get an education and you feel disenfranchised from your government. And in that regard, I think we are losing the battle for the hearts and minds of Latin American's democracy in that respect, losing the battle for the hearts and minds of Latin Americans, and that is why I asked the distinguished ranking member of this committee whether the gentlewoman can offer us any hope that we are going to get some relief from those cuts.

Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

I thank the distinguished gentleman both for yielding as

well as for his work and commitment to the hemisphere. And I want to thank the ranking Democrat as well for her response to our concerns. I certainly hope and certainly agree with the chairman's comments that we want to see this funding increase in the future, because when we take in the consequences of inflation, the 2004 level is not enough. It is actually a decrease. And it should be a floor, not a ceiling; but we certainly need a floor to start with so we can build upon it. I appreciate the efforts in the report language.

I would just close by saying I hope that the chairman and the ranking member who have put some pretty strong report language in here, that the USAID understands that the committee and many Members here are serious, and that it will be followed, and that we will see these monies going for Latin America. Otherwise, next year we intend to pursue vigorously with the Hispanic Caucus and interested Members on both sides of the aisle the funding that is necessary for one of the most important parts of the world in terms of U.S. national interest on a variety of issues.

I want to thank the distinguished chairman for his engagement, his support and the ranking Democrat as well.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time.

(Mr. MENENDEZ asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, back in 1990, Congress instituted the pay- as-you-go rules with bipartisan support, including the support of the first President Bush. However, those rules were based on the principle that if you are digging yourself deeper into a hole, the first thing you do is stop digging. And the 1990 rules which required that both mandatory spending increases and tax cuts be offset helped keep the deficit hole from getting deeper, and eventually helped produce record budget surpluses.

Unfortunately, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle evidently have completely forgotten this sound concept. The Republican bill we debate here today is a deeply flawed and ineffective version of the earlier pay-as-you-go requirements. Specifically, this legislation lets the Congress keep digging deeper to make the deficit bigger. By covering only mandatory spending, tax cuts would not have to be paid for, and entitlement increases would ultimately have to be paid for by cutting other entitlements. That is Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. In essence, this is the way in which they mask the dismantling of entitlement priorities.

In addition, the measured spending caps would be set at unrealistically low levels, which would lead either to devastating cuts in domestic spending, in education, in health care, in research, or, to the ignoring of the caps. Record deficits are not due to discretionary spending. If we eliminated all nondefense discretionary spending, we would not eliminate the anticipated fiscal year budget deficit of $478 billion, all nondefense discretionary spending. Forget about it. Eliminate it all. We still would not take care of the deficit.

So since most Federal benefits for low and middle class people are provided through entitlement programs, and most government subsidies for high-income individuals and corporations are in the Tax Code, this measure would then turn the policy practice on its head in favor of the affluent and against the low and middle income families of this country.

The bill was designed so that the new spending caps would be set at discretionary spending levels contained in the conference report on the budget resolution, which calls for cutting domestic discretionary programs outside of homeland security by $77 billion over the next 5 years.

Unlike the caps imposed in the 1990s, the new caps require much deeper cuts and would not be part of a balanced deficit reduction package that puts every part of the budget, every part of the budget on the table and calls for shared sacrifice.

Finally, on this rule, Republicans clearly are afraid of the views expressed on this side of the aisle that everything must be on the table when there are 19 amendments and 17 are Republican, and leading democratic voices who are known in this Congress are not given the opportunity to present on these issues. It is shameful. The rule needs to be voted down, as does the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I was absent from votes in the House on Friday, June 18th, and Monday, June 21st, due to an unavoidable commitment. Had I been present, I would have voted the following way:

On rollcall vote 267, the Jackson-Lee amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 268, the DeLauro amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 269, the Roybal-Allard amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 270, the Tancredo amendment to H.R. 4567, ``no'';

On rollcall vote 271, the Maloney amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 272, the Sabo amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 274, the Velazquez amendment to H.R. 4567, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 275, H.R. 4567, the FY05 Homeland Security Appropriations bill, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 276, H. Res. 591, expressing the gratitude of the House for the contributions made by America's community banks, ``aye'';

On rollcall vote 277, H.R. 4363, the Helping Hands for Homeownership Act, ``aye''; and

On rollcall vote 278, H. Res. 660, congratulating Randy Johnson, ``aye.''

Mr. Speaker, today I am proud to be joining Senators Bond and Mikulski, and my House colleagues, Representatives Chris Smith and Ed Markey, in introducing the Ronald Reagan Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act of 2004. This legislation will significantly increase our government's investment in Alzheimer's disease research and patient and caregiver support initiatives.

As a son whose mother suffers from Alzheimer's, I know personally the sacrifice--both financially and emotionally--of families caring for a parent with this horrific disease. It is the story of so many Hispanics in this nation--a story of so many Americans. My family fled Cuba to come to find freedom in the United States. My mother worked her entire life as a seamstress in the factories of New Jersey. She spends half of her Social Security check on prescription drugs. If it was not for my sister and me, she would not live with the dignity she deserves.

Because of my personal experience with Alzheimer's, I have always admired Nancy and Ronald Reagan's strength and perseverance throughout the President's battle with this heart-wrenching and devastating illness. By having gone public, Ronald Reagan increased awareness of this debilitating disease, providing hope, comfort, and companionship to 4.5 million Americans living with Alzheimer's today. We feel there is no more fitting tribute to honor President Reagan's memory than to join together in a bipartisan manner and support the Ronald Reagan Alzheimer's Breakthrough Act.

Today, Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia in older people. One in ten people over 65 and nearly half those over 85, suffer from Alzheimer's disease. And with the aging of our population, we can expect those numbers to increase. In fact, unless scientific research finds a way to prevent or cure the disease, it is estimated that between 11.3 and 16 million people in the U.S. will have Alzheimer's disease by the middle of the 21st century.

Just a few weeks ago, I, along with the Alzheimer's Association, released a report that focuses on the impact of Alzheimer's on Hispanics. The report predicts that, because Hispanics are the fastest growing population in the country and have the greatest life expectancy of any ethnic group, the community will experience a six-fold increase in the disease by 2050. In numbers, this means that 1.3 million Hispanics will have Alzheimer's disease by 2050, compared to fewer than 200,000 currently living with the disease.

The legislation introduced today will increase National Institute of Health funding to $1.4 billion a year so we can continue to advance our ability to one day prevent, treat, and ultimately cure this disease. This increase is necessary if we are going to be serious about reducing both the physical and economic costs of Alzheimer's. According to experts, delaying the onset and progression of Alzheimer's for even 5 years could save as much as $50 billion in annual health care costs. Alzheimer's costs American businesses more than $36.5 billion annually due to lost productivity of employees who are caregivers and the health care costs associated with the disease.

Alzheimer's is a far-reaching disease and a serious strain on families because it not only affects families' lives, jobs, and finances, but also their mental and physical well-being. In response, this legislation provides a tax credit of up to $3,000 to help pay the expenses of families who care for loved ones with long-term care needs.

In addition, this bill increases authorization levels for a series of programs to help families care for their loved ones; increases funding levels for research initiatives focused on prevention and care; and authorizes funding for a public education campaign to inform the public about prevention techniques.

Congress needs to make wise investments on behalf of the American people. Alzheimer's research is one of those important and critical investments we must make now, so that future generations of Americans will have the medical resources and knowledge to cope with the challenge of caring for a parent, family member, or friend living with this disease. By making this investment today, it is my hope that one day soon a cure will be found so Alzheimer's will be a part of medical history instead of a family's reality.

Mr. Chairman, as the late Ronald Reagan said, here we go again. The gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tancredo) offered this ill- conceived amendment last year, and it was soundly defeated by a vote of 322 to 102 with all Democrats who voted voting against and a majority of the Republican conference also voting against.

And if I were to listen to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tancredo), he says, well, this does not really do anything to the law. Then why do we need it? The reality is the words may be modified, but the purpose is the same.

Number one, this says none of the funds, no funds, will go to any municipality, any State entity, any governmental entity for any homeland security purpose if they have chosen in a totally legitimate way not to violate the privacy laws, not to give information about someone's citizenship, like mine, or anyone else's, because that is the way the gentleman's amendment originally read. He just scratched it out. And that is in essence what he is seeking to do, and it is in essence what it does.

We all know the gentleman from Colorado's (Mr. Tancredo) stated intention. He wants all of us who look a certain way, who have certain names and speak a certain way to have Big Brother filter us out.

Secondly, this is a coercive action against any State, municipality, or other entity to say to that State, municipality, or other entity they must do a series of things, including giving information on a person's citizenship status, like my citizenship, which I was born in this country, to the INS.

So much for State rights. So much for the local municipalities know best. So much for all I have listened to in the last decade from my Republican colleagues speaking of State rights, of local rules, of States knowing best. And imagine denying critical dollars to protect all citizens of a State, county, or local government of homeland security funds, funds for police, fire, emergency management and preparedness. Not only would that public entity be directly hurt, but the Nation itself might be hurt if that State, city, or country is a portal, a gateway, into America and having had the funds denied, not being able to protect itself and that portal into the rest of the country.

The gentleman from Colorado's (Mr. Tancredo) obsession could very well risk the national security of the United States, and this is an unfunded mandate on all of those government entities trying to be make it an extension of what is the INS. This is the real intent, to make every police department, every sheriff, and every law enforcement entity an arm of the INS. They have rejected those views. That is why we keep hearing this as Hispanic outreach. We do not need it. Reject the amendment.

Point of Order

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution (H. Res. 678) and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution (H. Res. 670) and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Thomas Penaskovic for years of dedicated public service to this nation and his community. Mr. Penaskovic was honored by the Marine Corps League, Bayonne Detachment on Monday, May 31, 2004, at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post in Bayonne, New Jersey.

Mr. Penaskovic was selected as the 2004 recipient of the Lance Corporal Stanley Kopcinski Award, which is named in honor of Stanley Kopcinski, a Marine from Bayonne who died in the Vietnam War. The award is given to an individual who has made significant contributions in the veteran community and to the City of Bayonne. This year, the Bayonne Detachment of the Marine Corps League unanimously selected Thomas Penaskovic as the 38th recipient, for his outstanding commitment to the community.

Mr. Penaskovic enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on June, 30, 1966. After completing basic training, he served one tour in the Republic of Vietnam, from January 1967 through February 1968, after which he was honorably discharged with the rank of Corporal.

After completing his military service, Mr. Penaskovic became a catalyst in assisting other veterans and the community as a whole. He served as Commandant of the Bayonne Detachment, Marine Corps League, is a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 226, and is a lifetime member of Disabled American Veterans, Chapter 5.

Mr. Penaskovic has been an integral part of the Annual Toy Drive by the Marine Corps League, volunteering for over twenty years, and providing underprivileged children gifts during the holidays. He has also tallied over one thousand hours of volunteer service at the Bayonne Medical Center.

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Thomas Penaskovic for his distinguished military service, his outstanding leadership and devotion to the veteran community, and his dedication to improving the quality of life for the residents of Bayonne.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mono Sen for his years of public service and promotion of social unity. Mr. Sen was honored by the Ram Mohan Mission at the Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Raja Rammohan Ceremony on Saturday, May 22, 2004, in Kolkata, India.

Mr. Sen was awarded the Rammohan Puraskar 2004 for his outstanding work in public affairs, his promotion of social unity, and his efforts on behalf of the community as a whole in the United States of America. Mr. Sen's involvement in the community is unparalleled, dedicating his life to helping those in need, and working tirelessly without discrimination. Mr. Sen has contributed greatly to helping immigrants with the many challenges they face when settling in America, thereby enriching their American experience.

Mr. Sen has been involved in many programs that help Asian-Americans and seniors. Before moving to New Jersey, he served as management consultant at the William Hudson Center in the South Bronx and as director of the Caring Community Center in New York City. In 1980, Mono Sen founded the United Ethnic Congress in America to promote the election and appointments of Asians to the U.S. government.

For his numerous contributions to the people of New Jersey and his many years of extraordinary leadership, Mr. Sen has received countless awards and citations. Most notably, on May 10, 2000, Jersey City, New Jersey honored Mr. Sen by renaming Liberty Avenue as Mono Sen Plaza.

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Mono Sen for his distinguished public service, his dedication to promoting social unity, and his outstanding leadership and devotion to his community.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor John ``Doc'' Fenick for his years of dedicated public service to his community. Dr. Fenick was honored by the City of Carteret with the naming of the city clock tower on Friday, May 28, 2004, in Carteret, New Jersey.

Dr. Fenick moved to the City of Carteret in 1958, after his service in the United States Air Force during World War II. He was honorably discharged with the rank of first lieutenant, and began his work as a family doctor in Carteret. Dedicated to helping those less fortunate and others within his community, Dr. Fenick provided free physicals for the American Legion and local youth for sports purposes as well as other programs. During his 35 years of practice, he worked closely with the First Aid Squad and Rahway Hospital, where he served as the chairman of the family practice and president of the hospital medical staff.

Dr. Fenick's passion to improve the quality of life for the people in Carteret led him to be elected Mayor. Under his leadership, he helped the City of Carteret obtain funding for the current Police and Fire Department station. He also implemented the Ethnic Day Celebration, which has become an annual event honoring the people in the county and borough.

Dr. Fenick has displayed his leadership skills, serving as the Democratic committeeman, president of the Rotary Club, president of the Honorary PBA, and vice commander of the Catholic War Veterans. He is also a lifelong member of the American Legion, Elks Club, and an honorary member of the Woodbridge Volunteer Fire Company #1.

For his outstanding work and dedication, Dr. Fenick has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Andrew J. Hila Community Service Award, the Rahway Hospital Humanitarian Award, and was honored with a Joint Legislative Resolution for his work with the American Legion, ``Remembering Pearl Harbor Day.''

Mr. Fenick received his bachelor's degree from Rutgers University and his degree in Medicine from George Washington University Medical School.

Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring John ``Doc'' Fenick for his distinguished public service, his dedication to promoting a better quality of life for the residents of Carteret, and his outstanding leadership and devotion to his community.