Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay a special tribute to my friend and longtime supporter Mark Flanagan, known in Memphis as the Mayor of Midtown, who passed last week. Mr. Flanagan contributed immeasurably to our community, founding the Irish Eyes of Memphis pub crawl from downtown to Overton Square that produced an annual bonanza for the bars and businesses along the route. He had the original idea to develop the Cooper-Young neighborhood that now thrives with businesses and nightlife. Born in Washington, D.C., on March 13, 1943, he was the second oldest of nine children. Growing up in the District, he developed a lifelong love of politics, and was dubbed the Mayor of Adams Morgan, a D.C. neighborhood. (When he returned to D.C. to care after aging relatives, he was the Prince of Cleveland Park.) His father, Frip Flanagan, was a close friend of House Speaker Thomas P. ``Tip'' O'Neill and the Kennedy family, especially Bobby Kennedy. He was proud of his Irish heritage and loved spending his summers in Lisdoonvarna, Ireland. He and the late Thomas ``Silky'' Sullivan started a barbecue contest in Fanore, Ireland, so the Irish would learn about Memphis barbecue. Mark attended East Carolina University and American University in D.C. His professional career included plywood retail sales, real estate, and restaurant investments as well as associations with the late restaurateurs Silky Sullivan, Bud Chittom and Thomas Boggs. He came to Memphis in 1968 and proceeded to have a positive impact on the city, and became a kind of Pied Piper to many D.C. fellas who were encouraged to move to Memphis, including Joe (``forehead'') Dougherty; the Boland twins, Jim and Chris; William ``Bill'' (Gringo) McGaughey; Bob ``Doctor'' Harper; the Juice, former Navy SEAL O.J. Mitchell, and his brother Mike (Marcel), and Mark's beloved brother Dennis. In 1973, he founded the Memphis St. Patrick's Day Parade and Pub Crawl, the forerunner of the Beale Street Saint Patrick's Day Parade. He served on the boards of the Hollywood Child Care Center and the ACLU, on the Shelby County and State Democratic Executive Committees, and was a 1980 delegate for Ted Kennedy at the Democratic National Convention. He ran for Congress on the Democratic ticket in the '70s and '80s. A founding member of the Irish Eyes of Memphis, he was also active in the Memphis Irish Society. He worked with the late Irvin Salky on the first Beale Street Music Festival. He was active in Saving Overton Park and worked with Dr. David and Yvonne Acey on Memphis Honors Africa in April. Flanagan worked closely with me early in my career when I was the Memphis Police legal advisor, and together we petitioned the city to establish a 20 mile an hour speed limit to make Overton Square safely walkable. Mark had a huge heart and a larger personality. I extend my sincere condolences to his children, his siblings and his many friends. His was a life well-lived, and he will be missed.

Madam Speaker, yesterday during the debate on guns, Representative Jordan and a few others on the Republican side said that the Second Amendment and the right to guns was a God-given right.

I don't know anything in the Old Testament where God spoke to guns. I do know He spoke to Moses and gave him the Ten Commandments and said nothing about AR-15s or guns. But He said: Thou shall not kill.

In the New Testament I don't think Jesus said anything about guns or AR-15s, but He did say: You shall beat your swords into plowshares.

We are all created in the image of God, and I am sure God would not like His powers, His name, and His authority used to endorse the killing of young people through weapons that he was allegedly giving, AR-15s. God would look askance at that type of logic.

God bless America.

Madam Speaker, since the massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, about 10 years ago, we have not enacted any substantive firearm restrictions to prevent children from being slaughtered in our schools.

In fact, not since the massacre of first graders and their educators at Sandy Hook, but in the 20 years since the shooting at Columbine, we have not enacted any new meaningful restrictions on firearms.

We have an obligation to protect our constituents, and we have a responsibility to keep the American people safe.

After each of these instances, we hear from our friends across the aisle that we must address mental health. I agree. But we must prevent those who are intent on harming themselves or others from having access to dangerous weapons and carrying out their intent.

That is why I support this thoughtful proposal balancing public safety and the individual's right to due process.

Let's just take the massacre in Uvalde. Should there have been a law in place in Texas, a red flag law, perhaps the gunman could have been stopped. There were plenty of warning signs, including the gunman with pictures of a cat he had killed and his frequent online threats to teen girls.

As chairman of the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties, I take the due process clause seriously. In this legislation, a court would need to make an individualized determination, looking at specific facts before issuing an order. A full hearing is required in 72 hours, where the party can have personal attendance and object.

This legislation is absolutely necessary, and I urge all my colleagues to support it. We have a moral obligation to act.

Yesterday, this body, with a bipartisan vote, adopted the Protecting Our Kids Act, which would make meaningful updates to our Nation's gun laws. We must go further, I believe, and reenact the assault weapons bans.

These bills would make a meaningful difference in gun violence in the United States and save American lives. God would not look kindly upon the use of weapons to kill his children, as happened in Uvalde, Texas.

Our votes are not political calculations; they are obligations. We have a duty to protect God's children.

Madam Speaker, I include in the Record the following letter to share additional information I recently learned about concerning the Drug Enforcement Agency's encounter with Daniel Kandalaft on or about January 24, 2016 at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France. At a July 8, 2017 Foreign Affairs Committee hearing entitled, ``Attacking Hezbollah's Financial Network: Policy Options,'' a witness referenced that Mr. Kandalaft was arrested by the DEA. As this recent letter from the Drug Enforcement Agency describes, the ``DEA does not have the authority to perform arrests or detainments in foreign countries.''

U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement

Administration, Office of Congressional and Public

Affairs,

Springfield, VA, April 18, 2022.

Hon. Steve Cohen,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC.

Dear Congressman Cohen: This responds to your letter to

Administrator Anne Milgram, dated October 8, 2021, regarding

a potential Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) encounter

with Daniel Kandalaft on or about January 24, 2016, at

Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France. We appreciate the

opportunity to address your inquiry, and we apologize for our

delay in responding to your letter.

DEA is aware that Mr. Kandalaft was detained by French

Authorities on January 24, 2016, at Charles de Gaulle Airport

in Paris, France. DEA does not have the authority to perform

arrests or detainments in foreign countries. For further

information, we recommend reaching out directly to the French

Authorities who have oversight of these actions. We apologize

that we are unable to provide more information.

Sincerely,

Jason M. Thurman,

Chief, Congressional Affairs Section.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill and would like to see a bill that is even stronger.

There is no question that children--and that is what they are--should not be buying AR-15s before they are 21. In fact, I don't think they should be buying them at all. But until they are 21, they shouldn't be buying them.

It has been proven scientifically that the male brain is not developed to a certain point to be trusted at that time with that type of weapon. Those are weapons of war. Those weapons tore apart those children, decapitated them, and made them unidentifiable. That was the purpose of those weapons, and that is what happened. There is no reason for that to occur.

The opinion in 2008 that gave the right to carry a gun was not unlimited. It said you can have reasonable restrictions. That is what Justice Scalia said. These are reasonable restrictions.

As far as my friend, Mr. Hudson, I have great respect for him. One of the teachers at Uvalde who was hit and lost all 11 children said: We trained. There is no training that can prepare you for this. There is nothing you can be prepared for.

If you get more school counselors, does that help people in the movie theaters and in Columbine? No. Movie theaters, churches, grocery stores all need to be protected. This country is wild with guns, and we need to restrict them.

Mr. Speaker, during the break, I had the opportunity to participate in the Transatlantic Dialogue. We had members of parliaments from maybe six or seven different nations: Ireland, Germany, Serbia, and Croatia--all over Europe.

I asked what the rate of inflation was, and in every country, it was 8, 9, and 10 percent. And I asked them if their parliaments didn't blame Biden for it? They laughed. Of course, they laughed.

Inflation is a worldwide problem. We are doing what we can. It is caused by the awful coronavirus and the effects it has had on production in China. And it has hurt our opportunities to continue our manufacturing as we saw it before.

Gasoline prices have increased the same amount in Europe as they have here.

And is it Joe Biden's fault?

No. It is OPEC, and it is Russia. Prices have gone up about 30 percent since they invaded Ukraine.

All Americans should want and should work together to reduce inflation and oil prices. But it is not Joe Biden's fault. It is a worldwide problem.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 104th anniversary of the Republic Day of Azerbaijan, and to extend my best wishes to all Azerbaijanis. May 28th marked the founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan, when the people of Azerbaijan first gained their independence from the Russian Empire in 1918. Although Soviet forces ended Azerbaijan's independence in 1920, the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan was the world's first secular parliamentary democratic republic in a predominantly Muslim nation--earning diplomatic recognition from the United States during the administration of President Woodrow Wilson. We also recall that the Democratic- Republic of Azerbaijan granted universal suffrage to its citizens in 1918, making it the first Muslim country to give women the right to vote.

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan restored its independence on October 18, 1991, when its Parliament adopted the Constitution Act on the Restoration of the State of Independence of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan has emerged as a key partner for enhancing global energy security, especially as the U.S. and European countries look for alternatives to Russian energy in the wake of Putin's unjustified war against Ukraine. Azerbaijan provides roughly 40 percent of Israel's oil consumption and enjoys friendly ties with Israel beyond oil sales. Jews have resided in Azerbaijan for 2,500 years without persecution and today, the Jewish community in Azerbaijan numbers over 12,000. Azerbaijan is also home to Christian communities and has been praised for its religious tolerance by the European Parliament.

It is also worth noting that Azerbaijan has provided significant humanitarian aid to Ukraine during this trying time, an exception among former Soviet non-NATO countries that led Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to publicly thank the President of Azerbaijan for this courageous step.

Azerbaijan is a key global security partner for the United States. As an active member of NATO's Partnership for Peace program, Azerbaijan cooperates with the United States in countering terrorism, nuclear proliferation, and narcotics trafficking. Azerbaijani troops were among the last partner militaries to leave Kabul airport, facilitating the evacuation until the very end.

As co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, I stand with the Azerbaijani people as they continue to work towards independence and security as well as to embrace human rights and democratic values. I congratulate the people of Azerbaijan on the centennial of their Republic Day. May the partnership between the United States and Azerbaijan progress and continue to benefit both of our nations.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in recognition of National Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month which runs from May 15 through June 15 each year. As a founder and Co-Chair of the Congressional Tourette Syndrome Caucus, I want to use this opportunity to address the need for additional research and, hopefully, clear up some common misconceptions about Tourette syndrome.

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a complex neurological disorder that involves tics, which are sudden movements and vocalizations or noises that people do repeatedly. It develops during childhood and changes over time. Symptoms can wax and wane across the lifespan of the individual. There is no cure for Tourette syndrome, and only three medications have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which each have significant side effects and contraindications. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), among children diagnosed with TS, 83 percent have at least one additional mental, behavioral, or developmental condition. These co-occurring conditions can include anxiety, Attention Deficit- Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), autism, Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD), depression, learning difficulties, and other conditions. These co-occurring conditions can significantly impact the lives of those affected by TS.

Data from the CDC suggests roughly 50 percent of children and teens with TS are not diagnosed. CDC studies including children with both diagnosed and undiagnosed TS have estimated that one out of every 162 children (0.6 percent) have TS. However, these numbers do not include children with Chronic or Provisional Tic Disorders. It is estimated that one out of 100 school-aged children have TS or another tic disorder.

Tourette Syndrome is often misconstrued by media and therefore misunderstood by the public. Many people believe TS involves obscene language. However, only 10 percent of those with TS have coprolalia, the form of TS with obscene language. Continued education and awareness can help to increase understanding and reduce stigma or bullying.

Neither the full public health impact nor the true cost of living with TS is known. Yet, individuals with TS and their families often face substantial costs due to healthcare visits, special educational services, medication, psychological and behavioral counseling, occupational therapy, missed school and work, and more.

It is for these reasons that the Tourette Syndrome Program at the National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities remains critically important. Research from this program seeks to better understand prevalence, co-occurring conditions, impact, and costs associated with TS. The Tourette Syndrome Program also educates doctors, teachers, allied professionals, parents and the public at large so that we can increase the diagnosis rate and improve the lives of those living with TS.

I would also like to recognize the Tourette Association of America (TAA) which was founded in 1972 and is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year. The TAA is the only national organization serving the TS community and works to raise awareness, advance research, and provide ongoing support to patients and families impacted by TS and Tic Disorders.

Madam Speaker, we must continue working to provide additional funding to increase the diagnosis rate and achieve a more inclusive and enlightened society with a better understanding of Tourette Syndrome. I urge my colleagues to join me in recognizing May 15 through June 15 as National Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month.

Mr. Speaker, parliamentary inquiry.

Mr. Speaker, what is the rule for having a vote not be done by voice vote but have to go to the floor for a recorded vote? Is it not a majority of the group necessary to have a hearing? The majority of a quorum, it is 20 percent of the quorum, I believe.

Mr. Speaker, my understanding is the rules require 20 percent of a quorum to be present to request and have a vote be done by the yeas and nays. Is that not accurate?

Mr. Speaker, on demand?

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2992), to direct the Attorney General to develop crisis intervention training tools for use by first responders related to interacting with persons who have a traumatic brain injury, another form of acquired brain injury, or post-traumatic stress disorder, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2992.

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

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2992, the TBI and PTSD Law Enforcement Training Act, is bipartisan legislation that would require the Department of Justice to develop crisis intervention training tools for law enforcement training agencies so that they can better equip officers to respond to individuals with traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress disorder.

This is important for the training of law enforcement officials. When I was out of law school, my first job as attorney for the police in Memphis, and for 3\1/2\ years I taught the police in the training academy. This was not part of our training, and it should have been. It was before we got woke, and now that we are woke, we should stay woke, and teach officers about this problem and have them be able to identify it.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 3.2 million and 5.3 million people live with a traumatic brain injury- related disability in the United States, and approximately 7 percent of Americans will experience such a disorder at some point in their lives. These illnesses are especially common among veterans and servicemembers.

Despite the prevalence of TBI and PTSD, many law enforcement officers, and other first responders, are still not adequately trained on how to identify these symptoms. Since many symptoms of traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder, such as confusion, impaired thinking, or irritability, can be mistaken for intoxication and aggression. Law enforcement can misinterpret the behavior of some people exhibiting those symptoms and deadly consequences could follow for first responders and the people they encounter.

This legislation would help ensure that officers are trained to identify those symptoms in order to respond appropriately to crisis calls and to divert individuals toward mental healthcare and treatment and away from the criminal justice system.

Through the Bureau of Justice Assistance, agencies have access to training and resources from the Police Mental Health Collaboration toolkit. H.R. 2992 would enhance the existing program to include crisis intervention training on recognizing the signs of these illnesses and responding to the individuals in crisis.

It requires the CDC to also study occurrences of concussion and TBI among law enforcement officers and first responders; many of whom suffer from this, and they need to be given treatment, if they are.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Pascrell, who is the leader of the Law Enforcement Caucus and a strong voice for law enforcement. I also thank Mr. Bacon and Mrs. Demings, a law enforcement chief, I believe, and Mr. Rutherford, a sheriff, for their dedication to law enforcement, first responders, and the citizens they serve.

This important bipartisan legislation is broadly supported by numerous law enforcement and mental health organizations and would help protect the lives of first responders and the people they encounter.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the honorable, distinguished, and learned gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell).

Mr. Speaker, in closing, I ask everybody to support this important legislation for law enforcement and for mental health. Vote ``aye''. No roll call.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1125), condemning rising antisemitism, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material H. Res. 1125.

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

Mr. Speaker, throughout the month of May, we recognize the struggles and triumphs of Jewish Americans, and we honor the indispensable contributions that the Jewish community has made to our Nation's civic life. Sadly, we also know that anti-Semitism continues to be a menace here at home and around the world. That is why I am pleased to support this important resolution condemning rising anti-Semitism.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, for being so vigilant over the years to recognize a particular month where we have particular appreciation of Jewish residents' contributions to our country, and for bringing this resolution to the floor to recognize this horrific rise in anti-Semitism.

Since our Nation's founding, Jewish Americans have served in elected office, from local school boards to this building's hallowed halls, the Supreme Court, and other prestigious positions. They have done so in magnificent manners. They have made crucial contributions to the arts, the sciences, and to our collective struggle for a more just America. They even had a baseball pitcher, Sandy Koufax, who was better than any.

Indeed, this resolution calls upon us to recognize the Jewish- American story, like the story of America itself, which is also marked by bigotry and hatred. Informed by this experience of prejudice, by the scourge of anti-Semitism, the Jewish Americans have worked so that the opportunities they have secured are extended to others. That is part of the Jewish religion. Part of what you do to have a good life is to help others have that good life, too. They have led movements for social justice, demanding civil rights, women's rights, and workers' rights.

This work is far from over. Anti-Semitism violence is on the rise. This past weekend, we saw a deranged individual in Buffalo kill 10 African Americans and injure others. He had a hate for African Americans, but he also said he was anti-Semitic. He learned all this over the internet, and he learned a lot of that from rhetoric that has sprung up in different places and political circles around this country. It has spread, and it has influenced people to commit acts of violence.

Mr. Speaker, for collegiality purposes, I ask to withdraw the motion.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6943) to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize public safety officer death benefits to officers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or acute stress disorder, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, the Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022 is another bipartisan bill that would expand eligibility for public safety officers' benefits to include stress and trauma-related injuries and death by suicide for law enforcement officers and their families.

According to research from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, public safety officers are 25 times more likely to develop acute stress disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or other mental health conditions than the general public. They have a tough job.

Studies have shown that law enforcement officers could experience more traumatic events in 6 months than the average person will experience in a lifetime.

The Public Safety Officers' Benefits Program, known as PSOB, provides death and education benefits to survivors of fallen law enforcement officers, firefighters, and other first responders, as well as disability benefits to officers catastrophically injured in the line of duty.

Currently, this law excludes from eligibility families of officers who die by suicide and does not deem PTSD and other trauma-related disorders to be line-of-duty injuries.

This limitation not only fails to recognize that mental health is physical health, but it also prevents the Federal Government from providing support to officers who put their safety and well-being on the line every day for the communities they serve.

Former Representative Patrick Kennedy passed a bill to make mental health and physical health parity. He worked with Senator Ted Kennedy to get that done. Why law enforcement wasn't included was a mistake. We are rectifying that mistake today.

The Public Safety Officer Support Act would right past wrongs and ensure that families of police officers and first responders receive critical financial assistance as they grieve the loss of their loved ones.

It would also ensure that officers who are disabled as a result of traumatic events receive the support and care that they need.

This legislation also brings this program into alignment with the provisions of Federal military death benefits for the families of military servicemembers who die by suicide.

The need for this worthy and overdue change is even more apparent as we continue to grieve the tragic loss of four police officers who died by suicide after responding to the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

They tried to defend us; they did defend us; and they, unfortunately, died by suicide as aftermath effects of January 6.

In addition to expanding eligibility for death and disability benefits to officers and their families, this bill will require the GAO to study benefits provided under the expansion.

This report will help us better understand the prevalence of traumatic events that law enforcement officers, first responders, and other public safety officers face and the need to further support their mental health needs.

I thank Representatives Trone and Reschenthaler for introducing this bipartisan legislation and for their continued support for public safety officers serving communities across the country.

This bill is broadly supported by both mental health and law enforcement groups, and I urge my colleagues to support it. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Trone), the sponsor of this legislation and a gentleman aware of law enforcement's importance.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. Craig), former ace Commercial Appeal reporter and now Congresswoman from the State of Minnesota.

Mr. Speaker, I want everyone to vote in favor of this legislation and not to go to the extraordinary efforts of having to have the yeas and nays, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 1125.

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

Mr. Speaker, Jewish Americans have contributed an immense amount to our country in politics, and in justice, and all fields of science, the arts, and the greatest left-handed pitcher of all time, Sandy Koufax. So much has been contributed by the Jewish community, yet there has been much anti-Semitism.

There has been anti-Semitism throughout history against Jewish people. It is sad. And it has been rising in America and continues to rise.

We saw the killings in Buffalo, New York, aimed at African Americans, but the killer, in his manifesto, said he not only wanted to get rid of and kill African Americans, but he also considered himself anti- Semitic, and indeed he was.

He fostered some crazy theory of replacement, some replacement theory that I had not really heard about, and he claimed that Jews were in favor of. Well, that is just malarkey.

We need to fight this anti-Semitism, and nobody more than Debbie Wasserman Schultz, our colleague from Florida, has done more to have folks reflect on the contributions of Jewish people during Jewish Heritage Month, which she sponsored and passed and keeps alive, and then the passage of this resolution to bring anti-Semitism to our attention.

It is important that we pass this, and that we understand Jewish American Heritage Month, which is this May, while we celebrate the contributions of Jewish Americans and we reject hate whenever and wherever it appears.

I thank Ms. Wasserman Schultz again--she has done so much, and she is a leader in this area and so many others as well--for bringing this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

House of Representatives,

Committee on Foreign Affairs,

Washington, DC, May 18, 2022.

Hon. Jerrold Nadler,

Chair, Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives,

Washington, DC.

Dear Chair Nadler: In an effort to work cooperatively and

to expedite consideration of H. Res. 1125, Condemning Rising

Antisemitism, the Committee on Foreign Affairs agrees to

waive formal consideration of the resolution as to the

provisions that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of the

Committee on Foreign Affairs.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs takes this action with the

mutual understanding that the Committee does not waive any

jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in H. Res.

1125 or similar legislation, and the Committee will be

appropriately consulted and involved as the resolution or

similar legislation moves forward.

Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter

confirming this understanding and ask that a copy of our

exchange of letters on this matter be included in the

Congressional Record during Floor consideration of H. Res.

1125.

Sincerely,

Gregory W. Meeks,

Chair.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Wasserman Schultz).

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the distinguished leader of the House of Representatives, a gentleman who continues to amaze me each and every day with his vast knowledge, and his big heart, and his love for justice.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2\1/4\ minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider), a great supporter of this resolution and the ideas contained therein.

Madam Speaker, I close and ask everybody to support this important resolution.

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

Madam Speaker, this is just one of the things that the Caucus and the Congress have been doing to help make the economy improve and help people deal with problems that COVID has caused us, supply chain and all, which has slowed down the opportunity to get products, and also causes inflation, but having the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to get people training, get them career services, get skills to perform jobs is so important.

I think it was Mr. Courtney who mentioned how many more openings we have than people to fill the jobs right now. I went to Walgreens the other day and thought I got there early to get the drive-in, and they said: ``We don't have enough employees to have the drive-in open this morning.''

Everywhere you go, there is need for work, so we need to train people so they can fill the jobs that are made available.

I am proud to vote for this bill, reauthorizing the program, which, unfortunately, expired in 2020. This would put us back on track and invest $78 billion over 6 years and retrain millions of workers per year by 2028.

Memphis is a proud working-class city, and we must prepare our workforce and our community for the 21st century and for the jobs right now. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act will ensure that critical resources are provided for essential institutions like our Benjamin L. Hooks Job Corps Center in Whitehaven.

This transformational work should involve all of our local leaders and resources to ensure our programs and solutions are relevant and useful to our community. I offered an amendment, which was accepted, and I appreciate that. It will help ensure the subject matter experts in local agencies, local educators, and community leaders can be included as part of the workforce development boards. We look out for each other in Memphis, and we want to see us move forward in the 21st century.

Madam Speaker, I encourage everybody to vote for this bill.

Madam Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding.

Madam Speaker, I rise to support this important legislation that Congressman Wilson and I have cosponsored. We have had bipartisan support on this legislation as well.

It is important that we support Ukraine in every way possible. America does not have to give up its blood from our soldiers in this war, we only have to give our treasure. What a bargain that is for America. We supply and help Ukrainians fight the Russians. Putin sees this as a war against America and the West. We are fortunate. Eventually, it would come to NATO lands, and it will be our blood, not just our treasure that we would have to give.

The Ukrainians are doing a great job, but they need our help and support. I hope they get airplanes, too. Every bomb that falls on the people in the hospitals and kills innocent lives could be prevented, and we should try to do all we can to prevent it.

Madam Speaker, I met today with the President of Georgia. I met with the President of Kosovo. They both are concerned that Putin's got his eyes on their countries as well. And he does. He is looking at the Balkans. He is looking at the Baltic, where I visited Lithuania. I have been to Estonia and Latvia; he desires those countries, too. He wants to put together a repeat of what they had as the great Russian empire. And he won't be stopped unless we do it. If we can do it with Ukrainian men and women fighting, we are lucky and we are fortunate, and we should do all we can to help them.

Putin is a bully, and you don't stop a bully with kindness and negotiations. You have to stand up to that person. Stand up to the bully. That is the only thing they understand and respect.

We need to continue our sanctions and sanction him into oblivion. We need to support Ukraine or else this war will go on and America will be at risk of being personally involved. Ukraine is the battleground now. America will be next through NATO and other efforts of Putin.

Glory to Ukraine. Glory to the United States of America.