Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an amazing public servant who will be retiring shortly. For 11 years, Port Aransas City Manager Tom Brooks has served his community by showing how smart development, a park system, and eco-tourism can be forces for the local economy.

Tom Brooks is the force who--through his smile, friendliness and force of personality--negotiated his way through a host of operations that brought success to his city, Port A, as it is commonly called in South Texas. From the beginning of his service, Tom sought out elements of economic growth, showing his steady hand by holding firmly to goals outlined in Vision 2000, a city planning guide.

His service to Port A covers a 100% of park development in Port A including: a community park, paradise pond, birding facilities and Charlie's Pasture. Of all his accomplishments, the Charlie's Pasture project is a point of pride for Tom and the city he served so well. Charlie's Pasture will be situated upon 1,500 acres of tidal flats, but it includes uplands with trees and a beach area on the bayside.

Tom's vision for Charlie's Pasture includes all species: local residents, South Texas tourists and wildlife. Habitat for the endangered Piping Plover and threatened Snowy Plover birds will be protected here. The Pasture will be ideal for bird watching, fishing and hiking.

Beyond Port A, Tom's careful financial stewardship of the town leaves it in a fiscally advantageous place. At the state, federal and Coastal Bend level, Tom leaves Port A with a reputation for finding common ground with economic and environmental concerns.

At the federal level, Tom can take pride in helping shape the Coastal Management Plan and the Dune Protection Act, both important legislative components to barrier island development. His service will be marked by maintaining growth without sacrificing the environment.

His direct approach gets things done for his community. An open door office policy and quick thinking made him a great city manager and a unique public official. Through his hard work Tom has earned this retirement.

I ask my colleagues to join me today in commending Tom Brooks for his tremendous accomplishments during his service to Port A.

Mr. Speaker, three years ago, Mr. Chen Shui-bian was democratically elected President of the Republic of China on Taiwan. His election by the people of that island showed the world that democracy was alive and well and could easily thrive in a Chinese society like Taiwan.

During the last three years, President Chen and the people of Taiwan continue the practice of democracy in their country. Today Taiwan has free elections at every level, a free press, and the highest regard for human rights. Taiwan has set a good example for neighboring Asian nations, and other countries around the world, to follow.

President Chen has, on many occasions, stressed that Taiwan and neighboring countries must work together to discuss issues of mutual interests. Any progress toward improved relationships between nations along the Pacific Rim must ensure the interests of the 23 million people living in the Republic of China.

I have enjoyed working with Taiwan's Representative in Washington, Ambassador C.J. Chen. He and his aides do a good job of informing Congress of developments in Taiwan.

As the people of Taiwan prepare to celebrate their president's third anniversary in office, I hope Taiwan will find success in gaining observer status at the World Health Organization this May. As the outbreak of SARS threatens Asia and the world, Taiwan should be included in World Health Organization activities.

Secretary of State Colin Powell recently said, ``infectious disease . . . requires an effective and coordinated response at local, national and international levels.'' SARS is a harsh reminder to the world that diseases know no border, and we must have an effective international coalition to combat SARS, and other infectious diseases we have yet to discover.

Taiwan has been affected by SARS; it is only right to include them in the global campaign against it.

I ask my colleagues to join me in commending the people of Taiwan for their continuing experiment with democracy. As we have noted before: in a democracy, it is not the first election that defines a democracy . . . it is all those that follow.

Mr. Speaker, nearly all of our lives have been touched by suicide at some point, be it a family member, neighbor or friend. It represents the darkest moment in a life, and inevitably touches many other lives with sadness and curiosity.

Suicide is a mental health issue that crosses racial boundaries and deeply affects every community in the United States. The Hispanic community is no exception. As in most communities, Hispanics find suicide a difficult topic to broach. The stigma still attached to mental health issues makes asking for help difficult; but the most overwhelming problem for most Hispanics is access to care that will benefit them.

In 2000, 18% of Hispanic females aged 12-17 were considered at risk for suicide, compared to 16% of white females and 8% of Hispanic males. Only 32 percent of Hispanic female youths at risk for suicide receive mental health treatment, according to the 2000 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse.

In 1997, the Attorney General reported a national survey of high school students showed that Hispanic adolescents reported more suicide attempts proportionally than both whites and blacks.

Among Hispanic Americans with a mental disorder, fewer than 1 in 11 contact mental health specialists, while fewer than 1 in 5 contact general health care providers. The figure is even worse among Hispanic immigrants with mental disorders where fewer than 1 in 20 use services from mental health specialists, while fewer than 1 in 10 use services from general health care providers.

Many times access to mental health services can be difficult for individuals in Hispanic communities, due to language barriers, which keep them from accessing the critical assistance they need to cope with their illness.

Mr. Speaker, suicide is a serious problem among Hispanics, and other Americans. I want to thank Congresswoman Napolitano and Congressman Murphy for organizing the Mental Health Caucus to bring members together to shine light on the dark topic of suicide. I also thank the gentlewoman from Brownsville, Texas for organizing this special order to draw attention to this important subject.

Mr. Speaker, I rise with pride today to recognize an outstanding Navy Junior ROTC from Corpus Christi, Texas, in my congressional district.

The Flour Bluff High School's Navy Junior ROTC is easily the very best in the country, having won the national title among all Navy Junior ROTC programs in the country for the past seven years. So they are used to being known as the ``best of the best.''

This week, they made their domination of Junior ROTC competitions complete by winning competitions against units from every branch of the service. For the first time, both the armed and unarmed drill teams from Flour Bluff won the all-service competition against teams from all other military branches.

The 33 students from the Coastal Bend of Texas who won the competition of 4,000 students on 155 teams were simply spectacular at the All Service Grand National Championship competition in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Both young women and men have competed for the championship--and both have won. The young women of Junior ROTC won the national title in 2000. The following year, the young men took the championship. But this year, they accomplished a new goal by both taking home the championship.

They are judged on drills, precision marching, personal appearance and their knowledge regarding current events. While these are exceptional young people who are outstanding young leaders, they have a visionary example of leadership in their unit Commander, Armando Solis.

Commander Solis has nurtured these teenagers through seven consecutive titles for the Flour Bluff High School Navy Junior ROTC. It is largely through his dedicated guidance that Flour Bluff's Navy Junior ROTC has been extremely successful in their national competitions.

I am particularly proud of these young people under Commander Solis' guidance. ROTC is a feeder program for tomorrow's officer corps, and there are a number of people who are serving us in uniform today who came through this particular program, and from Junior ROTC programs across the nation.

I ask my colleagues to join me today in commending the Flour Bluff High School's Navy Junior ROTC for their excellence.

Mr. Speaker, in August 2001, this Government began a reckless rush towards higher deficits under the guise of ``tax cuts.'' Obviously the 2001 attacks and subsequent wars added to the deficit, but it was precisely the August 2001 tax cut that began this Government's return to deficit spending.

While ``tax cuts'' should mean the Government already has the money to ``return'' to taxpayers--in 21st Century politics, ``tax cuts'' are made without having the money to do it. They are billed as ``economic development'' but really mean: wealthier Americans get nearly all the tax breaks; the greater tax burden is moved to working Americans; and tax increases are now part of the equation among Republicans in order to stem the flow of red ink from this country.

Government should always pay its way and not run such enormous deficits. If we are returning taxpayers' money, it must already be in hand, not just hoped for. In a democracy, governments have an open debate about adding $549.5 billion to the Nation's already escalating debt. Today, in the House of Representatives, the leadership is ramming this bill through without allowing Democrats to offer an alternative out of fear that anything else offered on the floor would beat this awful bill

It might be another story if there were any evidence that tax cuts worked, in a healthy or unhealthy economy. We know from past painful, expensive, experience that tax cuts do not stimulate the economy, in fact: the weaker the economy, the more damage they do to the economy.

I oppose this bill with fuzzy Enron math that adds hundreds of billions of dollars to an already outrageous deficit.

Madam Speaker, I rise to thank Chairman Ney and Rep. Larson for their appreciation of need to help Americans understand their most basic rights under this government.

One of the most popular House publications among my constituents is the pocket-size Constitution of the United States. Nothing is more important to this nation than the fundamental ideas set forth in this grand document that lays out our government, our rights and our responsibilities. Yet, time and time again, it appears that the citizens of this great nation are fundamentally unaware of those rights and responsibilities as established in the Constitution.

For instance, in May 2002, a Columbia Law School nationwide survey found that a shocking number of voting age Americans have serious misconceptions about the Constitution. The survey included a question revealing that two-thirds of Americans did not know that Karl Marx' foundation of Communism (``From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.'') was NOT included in the United States Constitution.

This government has gone some distance in trying to teach young people the importance of education and civics as they relate to our history and our Constitution. Last year, President Bush launched ``We the People,'' an initiative to encourage the education of United States history. Last fall, the House of Representatives passed a resolution recognizing the importance of history and civics in a child's curriculum.

So far, however, the best instrument I have seen to teach children about the Constitution is a book called Constitution Translated for Kids. For those who want their children to understand our birthright as Americans--as laid out in the Constitution--this book is an excellent resource to see precisely what the Constitution says, at a fifth-grade level.

Constitution Translated for Kids features the actual 1787 text of the United States Constitution on the left-hand side of the page and the translation appears on the right side in the first ever side-by-side, simple translation of the short, yet most supreme, legal and political document of the United States. The book also offers historical context and student exercises that approximate the decisions made in the name of democracy.

Democracy demands that citizens be informed. Understanding our history will make tomorrow's citizens more aware of their government and their rights. I thank the House Administration Committee today for bringing this resolution to the floor; and I urge my colleagues to continue our outreach to young people in order to make them aware of what the Constitution says and what that means in our daily lives.

Mr. Speaker, due to business in my district, I was unable to vote during four rollcall votes. Had I been present I would have voted as follows: No. 155--``yes''; No. 156--``no''; No. 157--``yes''; and No. 185--``yes''.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a fallen soldier who grew up in San Benito, Texas: Marine PFC Juan Garza, who we learned yesterday was killed in action by sniper fire as his unit was taking and holding the Baghdad airport.

The price we are paying as a Nation is high in terms of loss of life in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Already, sons of South Texas have been killed and wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan, with another still unaccounted for in the Iraqi theatre. PFC Garza was the most recent loss for our community.

Garza, who served with the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines Regiment, was killed Monday evening by enemy sniper fire while patrolling the Baghdad airport just outside the Iraqi Capital. His mother said he was shot in the chest and died instantly. PFC Garza was based at Camp Pendleton, Calif., where he was an expert marksman and broke shooting range records there in boot camp.

PFC Garza was always a sportsman, competing in football and track. His friends and family remember him for his humor and his target practice. He always aspired to be in the military, and probably got the bug for service from watching the military movies he loved. He was also inspired to join the service by his grandfather, who served in the United States Army.

He grew up in San Benito, but moved to Michigan to live with his aunt and uncle. After graduating from Summerfield High School in Temperance, Mich., Garza enlisted in the Marines and was stationed at Camp Pendleton.

He loved his country and he loved the Marines. Like most people who join the service, he wanted to help people, to make the world a better place. The world is lonelier today without Juan in it, but the work he did will indeed make it a better place.

On the day after Christmas, 2002, he married his sweetheart, and was deployed to the Middle East the next day. This was a tragedy on so many levels. PFC Garza is survived by his young wife, Casey; his parents, Mary Ann and Juan Guadalupe Garza; his baby half-sister, Stephanie Rae Castillo; and his aunt, Jodi Bucher of Temperance, with whom he lived in Michigan.

I ask my colleagues to remember Juan Garza's family today, to pray for them as they absorb this enormous personal loss. I also ask that we all continue to pray for the safety of the men and women we have sent to do this dirty, difficult task of ridding Iraq of dangerous weapons of mass destruction.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Sgt. Edward J. Anguiano, a missing soldier from Los Fresnos, Texas. Sgt. Anguiano, assigned to the 3rd Combat Support Battalion out of Ft. Stewart, GA, is an Army mechanic who graduated from Hanna High School.

The 24-year-old serviceman has not been seen since his convoy was ambushed March 29 in Iraq. He remains one of the few U.S. soldiers whose status is unresolved.

His mother's anguish is evident in her question the day she was told Edward was missing: ``Does it mean that he is dead and they can't find him or that he is alive and they can't find him? What does that mean?'' That is a painful limbo for a parent and family.

There's a yellow ribbon tied to a tree in front of Edward's home on Melon Street for him. He is one of several soldiers believed captured by Iraqis in an ambush on their supply convoy at An Nasiriyah in southern Iraq.

Edward, like all the servicemen for our nation, is an outstanding and brave young man. This soft-spoken soldier is a survivor who is motivated, disciplined, and attentive--all traits his family is depending on to help him survive in captivity.

His family is clinging to the memory of the last time they saw him, at Christmas.

His family has said that Edward did not express fear of battle or doubts about serving in the military. He was doing what he wanted to be doing. They are finding strength in their faith and through prayer.

I ask my colleagues to remember Sgt. Edward J. Anguiano and continue to pray that he is found soon. Please pray, too, for his family: his mother, San Juanita Anguiano; his two sisters, Rebecca and Jennifer Garzoria; and his uncle, Vicente Anguiano Jr.--a veteran like so many other family members.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Army Staff Sergeant Jerry Cortinas, born in Brownsville, who was badly wounded in Afghanistan fighting for the cause of freedom from tyranny, and ridding that nation of the infestation of al Queda forces that hijacked it for their evil purposes.

His uncle, Santiago Torres of Brownsville, says Jerry always wanted to do something important in his life. Now he has. He was already in National Guard at age 19 when he wanted to join the Customs Bureau like his uncle, but he was too young. So he just went and volunteered for the Army.

Jerry is an excellent soldier, a fact apparent to those who fought with him and who have known him since he returned.

He joined the Army's elite Special Forces and made his mark on the first defining war of the 21st Century with the Special Forces. After extensive training in the United States, he departed for Afghanistan.

Jerry was in a terrible accident in Afghanistan. During a drill with RPGs, rocket propelled grenades, one of them exploded, killing one soldier and causing painful damage to Jerry's body. He lost one of his hands, and has had extensive facial damage.

Jerry was in Walter Reed Army Hospital from December until February. He has since been transferred back to Ft. Bragg for rehabilitation. Like the good soldier he is, he wants to recover and remain in military.

He is a good young man who cares for his country and believes his contribution is important to our Nation.

I ask my colleagues to remember Jerry as he continues with his difficult struggle with a long rehabilitation. Please also remember his wife, Celina, and their two-year-old daughter, Dion, who are in Fayetteville, NC.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the supplemental bill before the House today.

As a Member of the House Armed Services Committee, I have been anxiously awaiting this supplemental since current war operations are being funded out of this year's third and fourth quarter accounts. I thank the committee for your rapid action on this bill.

Our young men and women are performing magnificently right now in Iraq, as well as in Afghanistan. It doesn't matter if you agreed with the first strike policy, our troops are on the ground and operating with great professionalism. It falls to the Congress to make sure our troops have what they need to prosecute this war on all fronts.

I thank the appropriators for largely keeping the control over the spending in this bill with Congress, not giving away our Constitutional authority to the executive branch.

While I'm glad we are addressing some homeland security needs, what concerns me is a lack of proper funding for our nation's first responders, the first line of defense for us here in the United States. I was surprised the committee is recommending even less for homeland security than the president requested.

September 11--and the anthrax attack the following month--taught us that we are vulnerable here in the United States. We must employ the lessons we learned from those attacks and ensure these men and women are adequately funded.

We still have every reason to believe there will be a retaliatory attack here in the U.S., and we are still woefully unprepared. That does not need to be the case, but to date we have vastly under-funded our first responders. I am disappointed the committee did not adopt Mr. Obey's amendment that would have added in more funding for this priority.

I represent a border and coastal district, with needs related to border security, Coast Guard funding, port and container security, plus other priorities. The constant refrain is: we cannot afford it. Here's the reality: we can't afford not to fund these urgent needs.

I will continue to work with my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee to find the money new agencies of the Department of Homeland Security need to conduct the tracking of foreign nationals from countries suspected of supporting terrorist activities, something we need to be doing better.

Our border stations need more money for the infrastructure to accurately and completely use biometrics in the entry-exit system of our tracking programs . . . to follow both those who aren't citizens and cargo originating outside the country. All the money in the bill appears to be for the Canadian border. While it was the Canadian border that the Sept. 11 hijackers crossed, the cost of increased security level along the Mexican border is being ignored.

I'm pleased to see money for Coast Guard operations. But our Coast Guard needs more funding for both infrastructure and operations. They are living up to their missions heroically, but their mission to protect every single mile of shoreline in the nation.

We must provide complete containment security at every port in the nation. South Texas is home to 2 deep seaports--making us a vulnerable place for those who want to get weapons or people into the country.

I appreciate our directing the authority for rebuilding Iraq to the Secretary of State, not the Pentagon. The Pentagon runs wars . . . diplomats run peace.

This war will touch many more of us before it is over. Already, South Texans are bearing the painful price for the war in Iraq, including young Edward Anguiano from Los Fresnos, Texas, who was listed as missing just this past weekend.

Our community is praying for Edward, his family, and other children of Texas who are serving in this war. We pray for the troops' safety, and for a rapid conclusion to this war.

Mr. Speaker, the thing that we are trying to correct here today is we do not have a problem with the 50 school districts that pay Social Security, but we do have a problem with the 1,100 or more school districts where they are not allowed to pay Social Security. This is why the Green

amendment is a good amendment. We are trying to correct a deficiency that exists.

We have a lot of soldiers and sailors who are fighting this war. They do pay Social Security. When they come back and they decide to take up the profession of teaching, they are going to lose their benefits. This is a true fact. This is what we are trying to correct.

The teachers across the State of Texas are mostly women, and they are not wealthy people. If I had worked so many years and my spouse dies, I should be qualified to receive what my husband has paid into.

Mr. Speaker, I loved Floyd Spence like a brother and he would be honored by the fact the House is honoring him in Lexington, South Carolina, by naming a post office to commemorate his life and service to the United States. He was a dear friend, a colleague, and a stalwart for our nation's armed services and the country.

In addition to his zeal and dedication on behalf of his constituents in South Carolina, I admired his outlook on life. Floyd was determined to squeeze every drop of life he could from his time on this earth . . . and he succeeded.

He was supremely dedicated to his duty to South Carolina, to our armed services, and to the United States of America. I know this because I traveled with Floyd to places on every part of the planet to inspect our military bases. Wherever we went, he and I were the ones who insisted we talk to the enlisted men, not just the generals. Floyd served in the military; he and I were among the few Members of this House who served in uniform.

Floyd was a great hero, and a great friend to thousands of people here on Capitol Hill, in the Pentagon, throughout the services, and in his beloved South Carolina. I still miss that giant of a man with the funny laugh he was quick to share.

The camaraderie often noted as now missing in the House of Representatives has led our critics, and ourselves, to say that we lack either bi-partisanship or simple human trust. But because of my friendships with so many of my Republican colleagues, most notably my friend Floyd Spence, I know the trust we engender here is real and it works on behalf of the American people.

I thank the committee for honoring my friend, our colleague in this momentous way. Floyd would be so proud. I am proud for him and his family.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the resolution demanding Iraq abide by the Geneva Conventions in the treatment of prisoners of war. While war is hideous and deadly, civilized nations of the world over 50 years ago came together to make the situation of POWS less awkward and more humane.

Iraq is a signatory to the conventions. The Geneva convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War requires the humane treatment of prisoners of war, and that POWS be protected against acts of violence or intimidation, insults, and public curiosity. The convention also explicitly prohibits the infliction of physical or mental torture; provides that POWs may not be exposed to fire in a war zone; and requires that a government holding such prisoners grant representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross free access to all POWs.

Congress demands that Iraqi authorities abide by the principles and the obligations of the Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, and we condemn

the failure of Iraqi authorities to treat prisoners of war in strict conformity with the conventions. Congress also demands that Iraqi authorities permit the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit all U.S. prisoners of war and any other prisoner of war at the earliest possible time, in accordance with the requirements of the conventions.

The U.S. government has informed the Iraqi authorities that we will treat all captured Iraqi prisoners in accordance with the Geneva Convention. We are a peace-loving nation roused to war, but we are not inhumane; we will treat the prisoners of Iraq with respect and decency. We demand no less from the other signatories of the convention.

This resolution warns all Iraqi authorities that anyone mistreating any POW is in violation of the conventions and will be a war criminal this country will chase down and prosecute to the full extent of U.S. and international law.

I join my colleagues in commending the bravery and professionalism of the members of the U.S. armed forces and its coalition partners. My heart is heavy for the families and loved one of those who are killed, wounded, missing in action, or taken prisoner by Iraqi authorities.

Know that we do not leave our men and women on the battlefield, we will fight to find them and bring them all home.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 14. This bill reauthorizes several federal programs aimed at curtailing the prevalence of child abuse across this country. While each Congressional district in the nation is affected by atrocities against children, in our South Texas community, we were vividly reminded this month of the horrors people visit on children.

Recently, three young children, ages two months to three years old, were brutally murdered by their parents in Brownsville. These children were the latest innocent victims in society's ongoing struggle against child abuse.

There is nothing this House can do to change the sad, sick hearts of those who abuse our children. But we can offer local communities resources to combat this serious problem. This legislation will increase grant funding by 114 percent for child abuse prevention and will offer roughly $80 million for community-based grants to target and combat child abuse.

This bill will require the overburdened child welfare systems to ensure abused or neglected children under age 3 have access to early intervention programs. We know that without early intervention, children become harder and harder to reach. It is the child welfare programs that are our most effective anti-crime weapon. When we reach children early, we have a chance at preserving their morale and directing their emotions in a healthy way.

This bill incorporates private partnerships by improving the supervision of casework and promoting partnerships between state child protective service systems and private organizations.

Estimates are that child protective agencies receive 3 million reports of child abuse or neglect involving 5 million children in the United States. More than 1,200 children die each year as a direct result of this neglect. This abuse is most often associated with delinquency, drug abuse and other vices on part of the parents, which was the case of the young Brownsville victims. This cycle of violence evolves from abused children to troubled adults who then victimize their own children. Intervening in this cycle, as early as possible, is the best recourse we can offer.

I am also pleased that we are also considering today H. Res. 113, to provide Congressional recognition to Child Help USA for sponsoring a ``Day of Hope'' which will be observed on April 2, during Child Abuse Prevention Month. While Congress cannot change the dark hearts of those who abuse innocent children, we can at least focus public attention on this important subject and offer additional resources to those who fight this heartbreaking fight every day.