Floor Statements

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Abraham ``Abe'' Thompson, who passed away on Wednesday, December 15, 2010, at the age of 94.

Abe served honorably during World War II as an officer of the United States Army Air Force in the 747th Squadron of the 456th Heavy Bombardment Group, stationed in Stornara, Italy. Abe flew 49 missions before being shot down on his 50th over Germany. The pilot managed to glide the plan into Switzerland, where the crew parachuted and were subsequently interned. Abe escaped into France after 73 days and made his way to American forces in Lyon.

After he was discharged, Abe raised his family in Yonkers, NY. He then moved to Huntington in the 1970s, after which he earned his law degree at the age of 73. He was an active member of the community, including serving as president of the local AARP chapter as well as a founding member and serving as Commander of the Nassau/Suffolk Long Island Chapter of the American Ex-Prisoners of War.

Abe was the loving husband of the late Bertha Gordon Thompson; devoted companion of Rita DeLuise and her family; adored father of Carole and Steven Roberts, Robert and Rosalie Thompson, and the late Phyllis Gordon; the cherished grandfather of Jennifer and Michael, Adam, Alison and Clark, and Jill and Jim; and the loving great- grandfather of Ned and Grace.

I am so proud that Abe was a member of the 2nd District of New York and I know that he will be missed by the many people whose lives he impacted.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of the National Alzheimer's Project Act--a bill whose passage will mark the first coordinated and concentrated effort by the Federal Government to meet the challenges posed by Alzheimer's disease.

And, those challenges are many. There's the toll it takes on the physical health of the 5.3 million Americans living with the disease, the toll it takes on the emotional well-being of the 11 million people caring for those with the disease, and the increasingly great toll it takes on the finances of the federal budget. The disease takes and takes. But, with the National Alzheimer's Project Act, we can finally fight back.

The need to do so could not be any clearer.

In 2010, Medicare and Medicaid spent $122 billion caring for people with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Without action, the annual cost to those two programs alone from Alzheimer's disease will reach $805 billion in 2050. But, we are not destined to increase the Medicare and Medicaid costs of this disease almost sevenfold.

In fact, we know that a therapeutic intervention that delays the onset of Alzheimer's by five years would cut nearly in half the projected Medicare cost of the disease over the same time period.

To reach that future where the number of Americans with the disease does not rise unabated and the costs spiral out of control we will need to marshal all of our resources. With this bill, we assign a field general.

The bill establishes the National Alzheimer's Project within the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services to improve the early diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease, to coordinate research across all Federal agencies, and to accelerate the development of treatments that would prevent, halt, or reverse the advancement of the disease.

The creation of a strategic plan not only provides a vision for fighting Alzheimer's, but also mandates the creation of benchmarks to measure our progress in that fight. Today, we have no way of evaluating outcomes, let alone a way to improve them.

I am pleased to support such a critical piece of legislation which will improve the lives of the millions of Americans living with the disease and the millions of Americans caring for them.

I thank my good friend and former Long Islander, now from Indiana, for his leadership and for recognizing me.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this resolution which I had the privilege of introducing and sponsoring. I want to thank the leaders, members and staff of the Armed Services Committee and the Veterans' Affairs Committee for their support and cooperation on this vitally important resolution.

Mr. Speaker, this resolution recognizes the efforts of Welcome Back Veterans in providing critically needed treatment for PTSD to veterans and active members of the Armed Forces. Welcome Back Veterans is a partnership with Major League Baseball Charities, the Entertainment Industry Foundation and the McCormick Foundation. They are creating a network of university hospitals to address the mental health needs of our servicemembers and their families.

To date, Welcome Back Veterans has raised over $12 million in private funding to support the treatment and research of PTSD through grants to other service organizations and has provided treatment to over 5,000 veterans and active duty servicemembers. They have a broad and integrated and innovative approach towards PTSD. And they should, because PTSD is known as a ``silent killer.'' One of out of every five veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq has been affected. It doesn't always have physical symptoms that are easily recognized. It impacts not just the servicemember but the family member, loved ones, children. Servicemembers and veterans with PTSD are at a higher risk for other challenges, such as depression; higher risk of alcohol and drug abuse; six times more likely to commit suicide than people without PTSD.

Mr. Speaker, this is a massive problem and it requires a massive response. It's not just the response from the VA and the Department of Defense. They are on the front lines of helping those who have been on the front lines with PTSD. But it's got to go even broader and deeper than that. We need partners. We need university hospitals. We need good philanthropic organizations like Major League Baseball Charities and the Entertainment Industry Foundation and the McCormick Foundation. They have assembled a team that is addressing this critical need, and this resolution encourages the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to not only support that team but continue to build and expand the public- private partnerships that will make sure that anybody that we send into combat or into the military theater or into the Department of Defense who comes back with PTSD has access to treatment and cures.

I want to thank the gentleman again for his leadership.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Elaine Roth, former District Manager of the Social Security Administration field office in Melville, NY, who will be retiring later this year. Her 42- year career with Social Security is a testament to Ms. Roth's dedication to public service.

Ms. Roth's career with Social Security began in 1968 when she was hired as a Claims Representative in Brooklyn, NY. Between then and 1980 she was promoted multiple times and served as Branch Manager of the field offices in Kings Plaza (Brooklyn), Riverhead (Long Island), and Flushing (Queens). She was then promoted to District Manager of the field office in Melville in 1998, a position she held until 2004 when she was asked to join Social Security's National Medicare Planning Task Force.

Throughout her four decades with Social Security, Ms. Roth's many accomplishments have been recognized with various awards. Most notably, she received a Deputy Commissioner's Citation (August 2007 and October 2005), a Component Head's Citation (August 2006), and the Commissioner's Citation--Social Security's highest honor--in September 2005 and three times previously.

Ms. Roth and her husband are long-time residents of Long Island and she will be entering her well-earned retirement as a loving mother of two and a devoted grandmother of one. I thank her for her service to the Second District of New York and wish her all the best in the future.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the Veterans of Office of Strategic Services, Detachment 101, for their service to our country during World War II and their post-war humanitarian work in service to their former allies in Burma. The Veterans recently held their annual reunion here in Washington, D.C. and I am honored to recognize them.

As the prototype for what would eventually become the Central Intelligence Agency, the Office of Strategic Services, OSS, was revolutionary in its operations during World War II. OSS Detachment 101 was created in 1942 and would be one of five such detachments created for field operations in support of the war.

Detachment 101 served in the China-Burma-India theater and in addition to gathering strategic and tactical intelligence, they were charged with the responsibility of planning, coordinating, and conducting guerrilla attacks against the occupying Japanese forces and recruited almost 11,000 indigenous Kachins for assistance. Their unorthodox methods laid the foundation not only for the modern-day intelligence community, but also for our Special Operations Forces. Because of their valor, courage, and heroic work, OSS Detachment 101 was awarded the Presidential Distinguished Unit Citation in 1946.

But their work in Burma did not stop with the end of the war. Veterans and their families have given back to the Kachins in Burma they recruited and relied upon. They founded and helped to finance Project Old Soldier, through which they have trained Kachin villagers in substituting poppy crops with corn, buckwheat, potatoes, and other vegetables since 1996.

Further, Detachment 101 Veterans were concerned over the quality of health of Kachin veterans, and so through private funds they set up a weekly visiting nurse service in Burma, which is normally a luxury. Additionally, Detachment 101 has started the 101 Schools program in 2004 and has opened seven schools in Burma to teach Kachin children mathematics and English language skills at no charge to the families. Detachment 101 Veterans have continued to oversee the funding and supervision of these schools. Finally, Detachment 101 Veterans have arranged for the translation and printing of village health care books into Jingpaw, the Kachin language, as well as the disbursement of textbooks to Kachin school children.

OSS Detachment 101 veterans have continued their service to our country off the battlefield and have upheld the American values for which they fought. It would have been easy to return to their normal lives; instead, they have kept their Kachin brothers in their hearts and have worked to share some of America's prosperity with those who have helped protect it.

I thank the gentleman.

Mr. Speaker, in the weeks after 9/11, I remember colleagues from throughout the Congress approaching those of us who suffered loss and who lost constituents saying, What can I do to help? What do you need? How can I assist? Today, we're taking you up on your offer.

A few weeks ago, we commemorated the ninth anniversary of 9/11 and many people said the right prayers and they gave the right speeches, but now it's time to do the right thing.

To the gentlemen and gentlewomen from Louisiana, when the hurricane swept through, New Yorkers paid to rebuild Louisiana.

To the gentlemen and the gentlewomen from California, when the fires burned, New Yorkers ponied up to help California.

To the gentleman from Texas who spoke earlier today, when Hurricane Alex ripped through Texas, New Yorkers helped pay the bill for recovery.

And I want to be able to say to those gentlemen and gentlewomen that, when the terrorists came to New York, you were there for us, and not just New Yorkers who happened to be there that day, but the 11,000 people who are suffering and ill today.

They're not just New Yorkers. They're Americans living in your districts.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Scott Hecht, a resident of Hauppauge, New York, for being awarded the Carnegie Medal by the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission. This prestigious award is given to civilians who risk their lives to save the lives of others. Scott Hecht saved a girl from drowning on July 30, 2009, in Mastic Beach, New York.

According to the Commission, ``A teenage girl struggled to stay afloat in the Atlantic Ocean after being swept away from the beach by a strong current. Beachgoers shouted for help, attracting the attention of Hecht, 45, a social worker, who was in a camping area nearby. Although he decided earlier not to swim that day because of rough surf conditions, Hecht entered the water with a short surfboard and, holding onto the board, swam out to the girl, reaching her at a point about 200 feet from shore. He grasped her by the wrists and held them over the board and then started toward shore. Waves overtook them as they proceeded, and a lateral current swept them along the shoreline. Others aided the girl when they reached wadable water, and Hecht also reached the beach safely. Hecht was very tired and sustained scratches to his legs, but he did not need medical treatment.''

I am proud to recognize Mr. Hecht for his bravery and selflessness and I thank him for helping make the 2nd District of New York a place in which citizens take care of their fellow citizens.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Marc Herbst, Executive Director of the Long Island Contractors' Association, who has been named the 2010 Construction Executive of the Year by the Long Island Chapter of the Construction Financial Management Association. No one deserves this recognition more than Marc.

Mr. Herbst is active in Long Island's business and labor organizations. He serves as Vice President of the New York Roadway Improvement Coalition and is a member of the Council of State Executives for the American Road and Transportation Builders Association. The Suffolk County Executive appointed him as vice-chair of the Suffolk County Wastewater Treatment Task Force, and he is an employer trustee for labor benefit funds. Previously, Mr. Herbst was a five-term member of the New York State Assembly, where he was ranking member of the Transportation Committee.

As you can tell, Marc has dedicated his life's work to making Long Island a better place for generations to come. We all know that infrastructure is essential for our safety and economic livelihood. Even throughout the economic downturn, Marc continued this fight and I am proud to have worked with him to move important infrastructure projects forward on Long Island.

Long Island is a better place because of people like Marc Herbst and for that I am grateful.

I am proud to recognize Marc Herbst for this honor and for the work he has done to strengthen Long Island's infrastructure and economy.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to welcome Reverend Roderick Pearson as guest chaplain. He is the founder and organizer of the St. Mark Remnant Ministries in Central Islip, Long Island.

On September 26, Reverend Pearson will celebrate 14 years of pastoral leadership. He is the President of the Islip branch of the NAACP. He received the NAACP National Thalheimer Award.

Reverend Pearson has devoted himself to fighting bigotry, to building bridges, and to lifting up communities. His presence, I hope, will inspire all of us on both sides of the aisle to do the same. It is with great pride that I welcome Reverend Roderick Pearson to the House this morning.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Monsignor T. Peter Ryan, who is retiring after 20 years of service to Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Parish in Centerport, New York.

Father Ryan has touched the lives of people all over Long Island and his dedication to our community will be remembered. His life has always been, and continues to be, marked by grace and humility. As a pastor, he has become a treasure to his parishioners and he has been a source of light to all who have come to know him. He is not only a gifted leader, but a confidant, a mentor, and a friend to so many.

After 20 years, Father Ryan's influence has reached far beyond the boundaries of our community. As a passionate advocate for education and human rights, he has raised funds, organized food drives and planned events to support so many worthy causes. He has touched lives from Centerport to Wyandanch to Nicaragua and I am sure he will continue to be a beacon of hope and love for many years to come.

On the occasion of his well deserved retirement, I would like to thank Father Ryan for his unwavering commitment to the people of Long Island.

Madam Speaker, today we consider the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

In my district, John Sferazo is counting on us to pass this bill. John was at Ground Zero clearing rubble and removing debris. Today his breathing is labored and his health is precarious.

There are tens of thousands of John Sferazos in this country: 13,000 who are ill; 53,000 whose health is being monitored; 71,000 who were exposed to poisonous toxins. This bill ensures a network of health care providers and monitoring.

Now some are saying, let's wait, let's debate more let's slow down. When the towers fell, John Sferazo did not say let's wait, let's debate, let's slow down. The responders put aside their lives and health for us, and we should put aside our politics for them.

We are bringing this bill to the floor under the same expedited consideration that we use to name post offices. Certainly John Sferazo and tens of thousands of 9/11 responders are worth at least as much expeditious consideration as we use to name post offices.

I thank the distinguished gentleman from Massachusetts for recognizing me.

Mr. Chair, I've listened to the points from the other side, and Mr. Chair, my friend from Indiana said the American people are tired of borrowing and spending. Yeah, they are tired of it. They had 8 years of it on the other side. The other side, when they took control, we had a $5.6 trillion surplus. They squandered that and left us $10 trillion in debt. So I think lectures need to be fact-based and not faith-based.

This bill addresses two of the great challenges we have in the United States. We have an aging, deficient infrastructure, and we have millions of people who still need jobs. And this bill addresses both.

Infrastructure: 153,000 bridges in the United States have been rated functionally obsolete or deficient; 162,000 miles of Federal highway have been rated unacceptable. Traffic delays are costing America's small businesses and the American people $78 billion every year. Just in New York City, aviation delays cost our local economy $1.8 billion.

The American Society of Civil Engineers does an annual report card on infrastructure and routinely gives grades of C, D, and F to transportation systems, broadband, and our ports.

Meanwhile, Mr. Chair, in China, they're going to build 97 new airports over the next 12 years; in Spain, they're going to make a $150 billion investment in high-speed rail; in India, 276 port projects, $12 billion investment to double port capacity.

This bill stops the surrender of infrastructure investments to China and to Spain and to India. This bill makes us more competitive in a global economy. This bill creates jobs. Every billion dollars that we invest in infrastructure creates 47,500 jobs and returns $6 billion to our economy.

Mr. Chair, Americans have always done best when we build America--the Erie Canal, the Transcontinental Railroad, the Federal Interstate Highway System.

We always do best when we are building with our hands, when we are standing and growing with this economy, putting people to work, manufacturing for a better economy. And this bill turns away 8 years of neglect on infrastructure and starts to rebuild America again and create jobs in the process.

This is a jobs bill. Vote ``no'' on this bill and you are killing jobs and surrendering to China and Spain and other countries. Vote ``yes'' and you are creating jobs, investing in this infrastructure, and strengthening America again.

I thank the gentleman.

Mr. Speaker, I spoke earlier today on this bill. I just want to make one final point.

The American people watching this debate are hearing finger pointing and blame laying, and you know what? All the finger pointing and all the blame laying isn't going to help a single 9/11 responder with his or her health care.

It is very simple: If you believe that these heroes deserve to be monitored for their medical conditions and deserve health care, vote ``yes''; if you don't believe that, vote ``no.'' But let's stop the partisan bickering and the posturing and get on to the business at hand, which is helping these people.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mr. Arthur Hug, Jr.

Mr. Hug, who passed away on June 12, 2010 at the age of 87, was a leader in the fields of business and journalism and made a strong impact on his community. Mr. Hug was a newspaper reporter for many years and in the 1950s launched the Long Island Commercial Review, which today is known as the Long Island Business News. As the newspaper's publisher, editor, and reporter, Mr. Hug made invaluable contributions to our community and to the public good.

Mr. Hug will be remembered by those that knew him for his deep commitment to his family and his friends, his love for politics and business, and for his strong principles.

Madam Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge Barbara Woods for her distinguished career with the Internal Revenue Service in Holtsville, New York, and to congratulate her on her retirement on Friday, July 2nd, 2010.

For the past ten years, Ms. Woods has served as a Case Advocate within the Taxpayer Advocate Service. In this capacity, she has devoted herself to helping citizens of Long Island navigate our nation's complex tax system. She has also shared her wealth of knowledge and experience with new Case Advocates undergoing training. Because of her, individuals on Long Island have been able to communicate successfully with the Internal Revenue Service, and will continue to do so well into the future.

I am proud to recognize Ms. Woods for her dedication and service.