Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Fred L. Davis on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As a businessman, public servant and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement, it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon Fred Davis in recognition of his accomplishments and contributions.

Fred Davis was born in Memphis, Tennessee on May 8, 1934, and graduated from Manassas High School in 1953 before graduating with a B.S. from Tennessee State University in 1957. Mr. Davis entered the Army after college and served two years in France. Soon after returning from the Army, he opened the Fred L. Davis Insurance Agency in 1967, becoming one of the first African-American insurance agencies in the South. He was the first African-American policy writing agent in six neighboring states and the first African-American member of the Independent Insurance Agents of America. In 1968, his insurance agency was appointed to represent the Hartford Group and has maintained the contract ever since.

In that same year, Fred Davis was one of three African-Americans elected to serve on the newly formed Memphis City Council. He was selected Chairman of the Public Works Committee and fought for sanitation workers during the Sanitation Strike of 1968. The strike, which brought Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to Memphis, afforded Davis the opportunity to march with and stand alongside Dr. King as he delivered his ``I've Been to the Mountaintop'' speech at Mason Temple Church of God In Christ in Memphis.

In 1972, Davis became the first African-American to chair the Memphis City Council and was judged by black and white Memphians alike as fair and honest in his dealings. Davis also served as president of the Liberty Bowl, a beacon of pride for Memphis sports, making him one of the few African-Americans to head a major bowl in the U.S. He holds certifications in many areas of the insurance industry, including licenses in property and causality coverage, the Life Underwriting Training Council (LUTC) Certificate and a securities registered series seven with the National Association of Security Dealers (NASD). Mr. Davis is also a founding director and past president of the Mid-South Minority Business Council and a Certified Minority Vendor. In addition, he is an active member of Beulah Baptist Church, serving as a senior deacon and trustee.

Fred Davis has always supported me in my State Senatorial and U.S. Congressional races, and I am honored to know him as a successful businessman, a leader in the community for over half a century and a friend. A civil rights activist and defender of democracy for all, he has shown his dedication to the people of Memphis no matter their race. There is no doubt that his work is worthy of this award named after Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in congratulating Fred L. Davis on being awarded the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Reverend Samuel Billy Kyles on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As a revered pastor and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement, it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon Rev. Kyles in recognition of his accomplishments and contributions.

Samuel Kyles was born in Shelby, Mississippi in 1934. At age 17, he moved to Memphis, Tennessee and in 1959, at age 25, he was installed as the first pastor of Monumental Baptist Church and to date, has served as its only pastor. Under his nearly 55 year leadership, Monumental has served the Memphis community well. The church strives to uplift young people and operates Monumental Pride Homes, which offers senior citizens affordable living. Rev. Kyles maintains his connection with the broader religious community through his membership with the World Baptist Alliance and his participation in the Progressive National Baptist Convention (PNBC). He is also a former instructor at the National Training Congress of the PNBC and previously served on the Board of Directors of the Morehouse School of Religion.

Rev. Kyles was an important leader during the Civil Rights Movement, helping to desegregate public institutions and businesses. As a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, in 1961, he enrolled his five-year old daughter in the all white public school system, thereby helping Memphis to become the first city in the South to integrate elementary schools. Rev. Kyles, along with other prominent Memphis fighters for racial justice and equality, worked to integrate the city buses and end segregation in restaurants, movie theaters, department stores and workplaces. Rev. Kyles once referred to his work as, ``an extension of my ministry.''

In the early 1970s, Rev. Kyles became a founding national board member of People United to Serve Humanity (PUSH). He was also the executive director of Rainbow/PUSH-Memphis and the executive producer of Rainbow/PUSH WLOK Radio for over 30 years. During the Clinton Administration, he served on the Advisory Committee on Religious Freedom Abroad, investigating religious persecution throughout the world, and as a panelist at the White House Conference on Hate Crimes. In 1994, he traveled to South Africa as an election monitor in its first multi-racial election, which saw Nelson Mandela elected as South Africa's first black President.

Reverend Kyles shares a unique connection with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as pastors, civil rights leaders and friends. He stood beside Dr. King while he delivered his famous ``Mountaintop'' speech at Mason Temple Church of God In Christ in Memphis. There is no doubt that Rev. Kyles' work is worthy of this award named after Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in congratulating Reverend Samuel Billy Kyles on being awarded the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Father Donald Mowery on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As an agent of change during the Civil Rights Movement, it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon Father Mowery in recognition of his accomplishments and contributions.

Donald Mowery was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee and was brought up in a funeral home, which he had intended to make his life's work before being called to ministry. He attended school in Chattanooga before finishing college then seminary school at Berkeley Divinity School at Yale. While studying at Yale, he worked with young people at St. Peter's Episcopal Church and upon completion, he was assigned to a parish in Nashville, Tennessee, where he continued this important work. In Nashville, he became involved with the police department, holding services for the officers during the shift changes on Saturdays. This garnered him recognition from his Bishop and the Mayor of Nashville.

In 1963, Father Mowery received an invitation from the Bishop to continue his work with young people and the police department at St. Mary's Cathedral in Memphis, Tennessee. He joined Youth Service and began working with kids from different social and economic backgrounds, taking them on camping, boating, fishing and basketball trips in parks around the city. In 1968, following the assassination of Dr. King, Father Mowery received a warning that the parks would not be safe to conduct his program out of fear that he or one of the kids could be hurt among the unrest. He was advised to end the program but for Father Mowery, this only underscored the importance of the youth program.

Determined to keep the program open, Father Mowery appealed to the Navy base in Millington, Tennessee to use its facilities. Although his proposal was initially turned down, over the course of a weekend, the Navy reversed its decision and became a large supporter of the program. The Navy provided food assistance, shirts for the kids and exposure to military training techniques, which would become the first military youth training program. The program was such a success that the Department of Defense invited Father Mowery to Washington, D.C. to discuss starting 125 similar programs on military bases across the country. This led to the establishment of the national Youth Service

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Beverly Robertson on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As the President of the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee for the past 17 years, it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon Beverly Robertson in recognition of her accomplishments and contributions.

Beverly Robertson attended Memphis State University where she earned her BA degree in 1973. While there, she was active in the student body and became a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, an organization well known for academic excellence, commitment to service, and providing assistance and support in local communities throughout the world. In 2013, the College of Education, Health and Human Services Alumni Chapter inducted her into its Hall of Fame.

For 19 years, Mrs. Robertson worked in corporate America before starting a successful business with her husband, Howard. In 1997, she was selected to be president of the National Civil Rights Museum, which is housed in the transformed Lorraine Motel--the location of Dr. King's tragic assassination. While she expressed concerns about her qualification for such a prestigious position, she pushed any doubts aside and said that she knows ``how to treat people'' and ``how to manage a business.'' With these and other skills will in hand, the museum, its visitors and the city of Memphis have been well-served under her leadership.

Under her 17-year tenure as president, from which she is now preparing for a much deserved retirement, Beverly was instrumental in elevating the museum to new heights. She oversaw two major renovation projects, which included a 12,800-square-foot addition dedicated to the examination of Dr. King's assassination and the continuing struggle for civil rights, and a $27 million renovation that is scheduled to open in March of 2014 and will add new exhibit space, more automation, state-of the art interactivity, an educational and cultural center, and a redesigned lobby. She has overseen 16 Freedom Awards programs honoring iconic leaders such as U.S. Presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter as well as other notable figures including Rosa Parks, the Dalai Lama, Oprah Winfrey, Elie Wiesel, and Nelson Mandela. As a result of her dedication, the museum is a strong, fiscally sound and national recognized organization.

Beverly Robertson has been a true visionary at the National Civil Rights Museum and while I congratulate her on her upcoming retirement, her presence at the museum will be missed. There is no doubt that her work is worthy of this award named after Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in congratulating Beverly Robertson on being awarded the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Dr. James L. Netters, Sr. on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As a pastor, a public official and a leader in the Civil Rights Movement,

it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon James Netters in recognition of his accomplishments and contributions.

James Netters was born in Aliceville, Alabama in 1927 and moved with his family to Memphis, Tennessee in 1942. He graduated from Booker T. Washington High School in 1946, and nine years later was ordained by Reverend L.O. Taylor at Olivet Baptist Church. In 1956, Mr. Netters was installed as pastor of Mt. Vernon Baptist Church-Westwood in Memphis. Under his leadership, Mt. Vernon has been active in the community, operating Mount Vernon Christian Academy, which provides education for infants, and Westwood Manor Elderly Cottages, which offers affordable housing for independent-living seniors. In 1963, James received his B.A. degree from Lemoyne-Owen College and later earned his Master of Divinity from Memphis Theological Seminary in 1987 and his Doctor of Ministry in 1994.

In 1963, as the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum throughout the country, Dr. Netters travelled to Washington, D.C. to participate in the March on Washington, standing on stage while Dr. King delivered his ``I Have a Dream'' speech. Invigorated and inspired by this experience, Dr. Netters returned to Memphis and was successful at working to integrate public buses. Dr. Netters later joined Reverend J.O. Patterson and Fred Davis to become the first African-Americans elected to the newly formed Memphis City Council. As a Councilman, James Netters worked to bring Dr. King and other national civil rights figures to Memphis to support the sanitation workers during the strike of 1968. He was also influential in working out an agreement to end the strike. In 1971, he stepped down from the City Council to serve as the Administrative Assistant to Mayor Wyeth Chandler from 1972 to 1975. Dr. Netters was the first African-American to serve in this position in Memphis.

Dr. Netters has received numerous awards and recognitions, and has served in various leadership positions including Chairman of the Board of Memphis Light, Gas and Water as well as its Interim President and CEO. He continues to pastor at Mt. Vernon Baptist Church and has grown its membership from 300 to over 4,000. Today, Reverend Netters is the most senior pastor in Memphis. There is no doubt that his work is worthy of this award named after Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in congratulating Dr. James L. Netters, Sr. on being awarded the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Jocelyn (Jocie) Wurzburg on receiving the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award. This special award is given to those individuals whose lives have ``embodied the spirit and legacy of service, sacrifice and hope'' that characterized the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. As a women's rights and civil rights activist, it is fitting that this award be bestowed upon Jocelyn Wurzburg in recognition of her accomplishments and contributions.

Jocelyn Wurzburg was born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1940, and received her B.A. in sociology and anthropology from Rhodes College in 1965. While she had always been keenly aware of injustices toward minority groups, it was not until the assassination of Dr. King in 1968 that Jocie became moved to take a stand. Later that year, she founded the Memphis Chapter of the Panel of American Women to ``discuss the nature of prejudice and the effects it has on our fellow citizens.'' Over the course of 10 years, the panel met with over 100,000 people and slowly changed attitudes on race in Memphis.

Jocie was also important in helping to prevent a second sanitation strike in Memphis. She and a group of women organized as the Concerned Women of Memphis and Shelby County (CWMSC) to encourage the City Council and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) to ``negotiate in good faith to avoid a strike.'' While city officials at the time denied CWMSC's role in preventing a strike, Rhodes College history professor Gail Murray says that the city negotiated on all the terms set forth by CWMSC. Then AFSCME national director, Jerry Wurf, confided in Jocelyn, saying that it was CWMSC that warded off a second strike.

In 1971, Jocelyn was appointed by Governor Winfield Dunn to the Tennessee Human Rights Commission (THRC) and immediately began working on language that became the Tennessee Human Rights Act, which passed the Tennessee General Assembly in 1978. This was the first anti- discrimination law in the state of Tennessee covering employment, housing and public accommodations, and it gave THRC the power to investigate, mediate and litigate claims of discrimination for the first time. She was reappointed to the commission in 2007 by Governor Phil Bredesen.

After Jocie successfully worked to avoid a second sanitation strike and pass the Tennessee Human Rights Act, she received her J.D. from the University of Memphis School of Law in 1979, and worked to negotiate marital dissolution agreements. Inspired by the belief that mediation was an effective way to avert crises, she gained over 600 hours of Mediation Training and opened Memphis' first mediation firm in 1984. She established the Mediation Association of Tennessee and it has since spread statewide. Her clients include the Shelby County Government, United States Postal Service, the EEOC Panel and the Department of Justice ADA Claims.

Jocelyn Wurburg has received numerous appointments and awards throughout her career, including an appointment to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and an appointment by President Gerald Ford to the U.S. Commission for the Observance of International Women's Year. There is no doubt that her work is worthy of this award named after Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Speaker, I ask all of my colleagues to join me in congratulating Jocelyn (Jocie) Wurzburg on being awarded the 2014 Be the Dream MLK Legacy Award.

Mr. Speaker, before I was elected to Congress I served 24 years in the Tennessee State Senate. For 20 of those years I worked hard to create a Tennessee education lottery, an opportunity for students to go to college and come out without a debt and without having to have a job when they were in college to succeed.

Next Monday will be the 10th anniversary of the Tennessee Education Lottery. It has raised over $2.8 billion for education, yet, with education costs rising, it is still not enough.

We, in Congress, need to work hard to make sure that Pell Grants increase and that Pell Grants go to students at not-for-profit schools and those for-profit schools that graduate students and get them gainful employment.

Ladders of opportunity for the middle class are paved through education. The Tennessee Education Lottery is one of those ways.

I continue my work in Congress working for Pell Grants and other opportunities to see that monies are efficiently channeled to students to give them an opportunity to improve their lives.

Mr. Speaker, there has been a lot of discussion recently about extending benefits to the unemployed, and it is critical we do that.

I would like to talk about 226 people who are in my district who have jobs but still can't come to work to perform those jobs and get paid. They worked at the Kellogg plant in Memphis, making cereal like Corn Flakes and Frosted Flakes, but they have been locked out by Kellogg since October 22 due to a national contract dispute.

The company, with sales of $14 billion at last estimate, hopes to bring in so-called ``casual'' employees who would be paid less and work fewer hours and get fewer benefits than the steady middle class jobs that the company offers now.

I am proud Kellogg is in my district, and I have toured their plant. When I am flying out of Memphis, I drive up and down Airways Boulevard. I go past the Kellogg plant, and I see those employees out each day, day and night, even in 10-degree weather earlier this week. Like the post office, they are out in rain, snow, or sleet. I see them on holidays, weekends, you name it, fighting for their rights, standing up for themselves.

It is time to end this lockout. Put those people back to work. Let's produce our cereal with good Memphis employees.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this Special Order.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the colleagues that have joined me today for our 30-minute Special Order, and this is a special Special Order.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the colleagues that have joined me today for our 30-minute Special Order, and this is a special Special Order.

This Special Order is particularly relevant because this is the third anniversary of the shooting in Tucson that took six lives and injured 13 people, including our colleague, Gabby Giffords. And when I say ``our colleague,'' it is our colleague of all of us here in the House of Representatives, but as a member of the class of '06 of which Representative Giffords is, we take special significance in this day because she was one of our prized Members. We all loved her, and we all miss her.

The class of '06 is a close class, and we are joined here by one of the presidents of the class of '06, Mr. Yarmuth, and Mr. Perlmutter, an active member of the class of '06, and there will be other members here, as well.

We want to express our remembrances of Gabby, and particularly the article that she wrote that is in today's New York Times, an op-ed called ``The Lessons of Physical Therapy.'' It is a very touching article that talks about her recovery and her indomitable spirit where she tells about her exercises every day to get back her strength and to be able to recover speech and physical mobility. Today, in fact, she skydived.

She is a great spirit who has not let the problems that she has experienced limit her in any ways more than they have, and she is trying to overcome these obstacles and teach people that they can overcome obstacles. She left the House after serving 5 years as a great colleague and coming back here on August the 1 of 2011 in what was a very memorable moment on this floor to vote on the debt ceiling, which was a close vote, and came back in case her vote was needed. And on that day, I was out at the airport greeting a very close person in my life and coincidentally was there when she came off the airplane. I saw Gabby and was able to see her for the first time since the January 8 incident.

Then she was on the floor and of course we all got to see her. But she came back and made that effort, and she thought about how can she contribute more. And after Newtown, she knew that she could contribute more by starting an organization with her great husband, Captain Mark Kelly, Responsible Solutions, on firearms and gun laws. She tried to really lead the effort and to make America's laws more sensible, to save other people from the tragedy that she experienced as did the six victims that day that died and the others that were injured, including Congressman Barber, who led us in a moment of silence earlier today on the floor with the members of the Arizona delegation.

So we wanted to remember that day which is significant. It is a significant day in congressional history and American history because that was an assault on Congresspeople meeting with their constituents, open government, democratic form of government and meeting and listening. Gabby was engaging in a Congress neighborhood meeting at the grocery there, which our Ed Perlmutter did a lot of those. I remember him talking about them in the Caucus.

I first would like to yield at this moment to the president of our class. Mr. Hodes isn't with us, but the others, the surviving member of our class, Mr. Yarmuth, from Louisville, Kentucky.

Thank you, Mr. Yarmuth.

Mr. Perlmutter, a member of our class, represents a district that has seen so much tragedy from firearms. I know he has been a leader on this effort in Colorado and in the country, and I appreciate him being here as one of the strong members of our class on this issue and other issues. I yield to Mr. Perlmutter.

I thank you, Mr. Perlmutter. I appreciate your remarks. You are a leader on this issue, and so is Mr. Courtney who is so intimately involved with Newtown, another area that suffered from gun violence. I yield to the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Courtney), another member of the class of '06.

Gabby was a member of the NRA; I don't know if she is now. I passed the right-to-carry bill in Tennessee because I think you can have reasonable laws that allow people to defend themselves, but there is reasonableness. And the problem we have had has been reasonableness, and Gabby's effort with her husband Mark is responsible solutions. It is not banning guns; it is responsible solutions.

Mental health is certainly one of those issues that has been raised, and yet we in our budgets have cut mental health with the budgets that we have had up here. Some have blamed and the response has been about violent games that children might play or be exposed to. Those weren't around when Charles Joseph Whitman went to the tower in Austin, Texas, and killed 17 people and wounded 32. That wasn't the cause of it. It is something, unfortunately, uniquely American. It is a uniquely American problem. Studies have shown that the U.S. homicide rates are 6.9 times greater than the rates in other high-income countries, and they are driven by firearm homicide rates that are 19.7 times higher.

In the 27 countries that were studied of higher industrialized countries, 80 percent of all firearm deaths occur in the United States, and 86 percent of women killed by firearms were United States women, and 87 percent of the children were United States children.

The gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch), a member of the class of '06 has joined us, and I know he has understandings of these issues, too, and is a responsible and reasonable voice. I yield to him for his comments and thoughts.

Mr. Speaker, how much time do we have remaining?

At this point, I would like to yield to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Perlmutter).

Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank all the Members. There were others that would have been here but had certain conflicts at this time.

We all loved Gabby. She was the star of our class. It was before 3 years ago on the 8th of January that she was the star of our class. We all knew it, and we all loved her.

I want to thank each of our colleagues for joining us. I want to thank Gabby for her service and her continued service. She is an American hero.

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

Mr. Speaker, I oppose this legislation because it is window dressing, and it is not the big picture.

Thirteen million dollars is less than 1 percent of the $1.5 billion sequester cut. It is less than 1 percent. The NIH is our research institution. It is our Department of Defense. It defends us from cancer and heart disease and Alzheimer's and AIDS and diabetes, but it is not being prioritized. It should be the number one priority of this House-- keeping Americans safe and alive. Now, the $13 million was picked because that is the amount of money we put into political conventions. It just so happened to fit. We could have picked the F-35 bomber and saved billions of dollars and taken that out, which we don't need, and put in that money, which would have made a real difference in research.

As for Kids First Research, I live in the city that has the best pediatric cancer facility in the world, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. It needs more than this. Kids later will get Alzheimer's and AIDS and heart disease and cancer, and they need to be protected. In the long run, they can only be protected with the full funding for the NIH. I urge the full funding for the NIH and not smoke and mirrors.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the achievements of long-time Memphian Phillip Coop, founder of EnSafe Inc. and a pioneer in the field of environmental remediation. Phillip Coop founded EnSafe Inc. in 1980, and began with only two people on board. Since then, EnSafe has expanded to employ over three hundred people, earned Memphis Business Journal's Small Business of the Year distinction and received many other distinguished awards. The success of EnSafe is a testament to Mr. Coop's entrepreneurial spirit and incredible ingenuity.

More than thirty years later, Mr. Coop is still leading efforts in environmental sustainability by combining business, science and policy to ensure continued improvement in how we conserve energy, establish meaningful and practical regulations, and accurately evaluate our environmental performance. Mr. Coop also serves on the Board of Advisors for both the Herff College of Engineering at the University of Memphis and the Engineering Department at Christian Brothers University. In addition, he received the inaugural Distinguished Leadership Award from the Environmental Financial Consulting Group in New York, and was honored with induction into the Society of Entrepreneurs in 2010.

Phillip Coop's achievements in environmental preservation and dedication to enriching programs in education have done great things for the city of Memphis and for people across the United States. His work serves as an example of how we all can contribute to making our community a better place to live. I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Phillip Coop on his achievements.

Mr. Speaker, today I would like to recognize the work of Memphis-based U.S. Biologic in their work to halt the spread of Lyme disease. U.S. Biologic was recently awarded a grant of $1 million from the Global Food and Health Innovation Challenge to expand their research on this important topic and I am proud to honor the hard work of their dedicated research team, especially Maria Gomes-Solecki.

I believe that our Nation's true department of defense is made up of the doctors and researchers who work hard to find cures and prevention methods for the diseases that threaten the lives and livelihoods of Americans every day. The research of people like Dr. Gomes-Solecki is integral in our mission to make the United States a safer place for the grandchildren of our generation, and I encourage more federal investment in the initiatives of the National Institutes of Health, as well as private funding like that provided through the Global Food and Health Innovation Challenge.

I congratulate U.S. Biologic and Dr. Gomes-Solecki on their achievement and I look forward to more developments from some of the Nation's most advanced researchers who are based in my district.

Mr. Speaker, this week I had the pleasure of attending a business meeting with a high level delegation from Morocco during His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco's visit to Washington. During this meeting, we discussed U.S.-Morocco trade and I am glad that FedEx, a major provider of high value-added logistics, transportation and other business services that is headquartered in my district, was also able to take part in this constructive meeting. As Morocco was the first country with whom the U.S. signed a treaty of commerce and friendship, I commend this week's meeting as symbolic of our long and trusted relationship.

The business delegation meeting was hosted by our former colleague, Toby Moffet, and the Mayer Brown law firm. The Moroccan delegation included: Mr. Abdessalam Ahizoune, CEO of Maroc Telecom; Mr. Mohamed El Kettani, CEO of Attijariwafa Bank; Mr. Karim Hajji, CEO of the Casablanca Stock Exchange; and Mr. Said Ibrahimi, CEO of the Moroccan Finance Board. In addition to FedEx, which is present in 55 African countries and growing, American companies represented at the meeting were JP Morgan Chase, BNY Mellon, Citi, Bank of America, Chevron and the Global Cold Chain Storage Alliance. We heard from Mr. Said Ibrahimi, who also serves as the head of the Casablanca Finance City project, on how the city of Casablanca is positioning itself as a location for U.S. multinational companies to consider for their African headquarters. This would significantly increase economic opportunities in the region and expand markets for U.S. companies.

In addition to our strong business ties, the U.S. and Morocco share similar democratic values and common foreign policy goals in North Africa and the Middle East. In August 2011, I spearheaded a letter to His Majesty King Mohammed VI recognizing Morocco's constitutional reforms that included protections for the rights of vulnerable groups and a national plan to promote human rights. His Majesty King Mohammed VI also established the Economic and Social Council to ensure that all Moroccans are afforded opportunities for economic independence. Since that time, His Majesty King Mohammed VI has shown great leadership in his dedication to his people and support for broader democratic reforms and decentralization of decision-making to the local level. Morocco has also lent its support to emerging democracies across the African continent as well as long-overdue peace agreements between Israelis and the Palestinians. It is indeed refreshing to see the enormously constructive role Morocco continues to play not only in its region but across the continent and beyond.

As we welcome His Majesty King Mohammed VI of Morocco and his delegation to Washington, let us remember that Morocco was the first country to recognize our independence and that today, we share commitments to peace, democracy, regional stability and economic stability. Through our continued cooperation and increased business relationships, we will continue to meet our common security and economic goals while strengthening our relationship for years to come.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today because tomorrow is the 50th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

President Kennedy inspired me to get into government. I was only 14 years old when he passed. His death left an indelible mark on me and everybody of my generation who experienced that national sharing of grief that went on that weekend.

President Kennedy was a person who said that politics is an honorable profession. I believe it is, and I believe people should get involved in politics and public service.

He founded the Peace Corps and asked people to ``ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country,'' which was a call for service.

It was a great loss to our Nation. He gave a great deal to our country. I would ask everybody to watch the TV specials, to read as much as they can, and to learn what they can about an honorable gentleman who tried to inspire people to get into government and do the right thing.

I thank his family for his coming along because it inspired me. I got to see him in Memphis when he campaigned. He is my hero.