Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pleasure to honor my dear friend of more than 25 years, New Jersey Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg, who has been named first runner-up for the prestigious 2005 Good Housekeeping Award for Women

and Government. The award will be presented tomorrow, June 15, 2005, at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. sponsored by the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP). Each year, Good Housekeeping magazine and the CAWP honor women, in government--elected or appointed officials, career civil servants, or members of the military--for their achievements in government that have improved people's lives. Assemblywoman Weinberg was selected from over 200 extraordinary women as first runner-up for this award because of her exemplary record of public service.

As one of only 13 women in the 80-member New Jersey General Assembly, Assemblywoman Weinberg serves as the Majority Conference Leader and represents New Jersey's Legislative District 37, which includes a number of towns we both have the privilege to represent, such as Englewood, Hackensack, and Teaneck. She has spent 13 years advocating on behalf of New Jersey's women and families and has spearheaded the passage of several pieces of landmark legislation. Two of her efforts have included passing a law, which mandates that new mothers must be allowed at least a 48-hour stay in the hospital after giving birth, as well as her law that established the first child-proof handgun law in the nation. Her leadership roles also include being the Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee and Vice-Chair of the Family, Women and Children's Services Committee. Aside from her professional work, Loretta is above all devoted to her children, grandchildren, her entire family, and her many, many friends.

Founded in 1971, the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) is a unit of the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey. The CAWP mission is to promote greater knowledge and understanding about women's participation in politics and government and to enhance women's influence and leadership in public life. This is the eighth year the CAWP has participated along with the Ford Foundation in administering the Good Housekeeping Award for Women and Government.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the outstanding contributions that New Jersey Assemblywoman Loretta Weinberg has made, that make the lives of all New Jerseyans so much better. I would like to acknowledge Loretta's lifetime of good works and dedication. I am proud to call her my friend.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pleasure to honor Norma and Bernie Koster, who will be jointly honored with the Torch of Liberty Award by the New Jersey Region of the Anti-Defamation League at the League's Bergen County Awards Reception on June 1, 2005. They are being recognized for their distinguished service on behalf of the ADL's vital mission of combating bigotry and anti-Semitism, their support for humanitarian values, dedication to nurturing their community, and working to secure its future.

Norma Wellington Koster began a career of activism as a B'Nai B'rith girl and a leader in her synagogue youth group. She subsequently became a staff producer for a local television station in the greater New York metropolitan region, where she volunteered for 19 hours on the ``Rheumatism and Arthritis Association Telethon.'' Because of her success on that production, she was named the producer of ``The World of Heart'' for the American Heart Association and of two telethons for ``The City of Hope'', where she instituted and volunteered for their newly formed Young Leadership Division.

Norma Koster has also been deeply involved in numerous Jewish causes and charitable organizations. She founded the Single Parent Seminar at the Jewish Community Center on the Palisades, where she is now an active member of the Cultural Arts, Art, Senior, and Alzheimer's Committees and currently serves as the Tree of Life Chairperson. A Member of the Board of Trustees of the United Jewish Appeal, she is a former co-chair

of the Business and Professional Women's Division of UJA of Northern New Jersey, and was instrumental in increasing its membership. Norma Koster also has devoted herself to committees for the Jewish Home and Rehabilitation Center, Jewish Family Services, and given programs for the National Council of Jewish Women. In addition to her professional work as a successful fine jewelry designer and goldsmith, Norma is above all devoted to her children and grandchildren, her husband, and her entire family.

Like Norma, his wife of seventeen years, Bernie Koster is well-known for his leadership and unwavering commitment to the people of New Jersey, the Jewish community, and the State of Israel. He is a leading philanthropist and is active on behalf of many charitable causes and organizations. He is also a Member of the Board of Trustees of twelve separate organizations, including the UJA Federation of North Jersey, the Jewish Home at Rockleigh, Temple Emanu-EI of Closter, Jewish Family Service, Gilda's Club of Northern New Jersey, the JCC of the Palisades, Englewood Hospital and Medical Center Foundation, the Bergen PAC, Israel Bonds, the Jewish Community Relations Council, the Jewish Theological Seminary, and the Anti-Defamation League itself.

Bernie Koster is also a past President of the Solomon Schechter Day School of Nassau County, New York, and co-chaired the capital campaign for his synagogue, Temple Emanu-EI of Closter, where he was honored with the prestigious Shem Tov Award in 1995 for his dedicated service to the community.

Bernie Koster is also unwavering in his dedication to the State of Israel. A strong supporter of Israel Bonds, he has been appointed to the New Jersey-Israel Commission for nine years. He has visited Israel seven times, and has demonstrated through his committed and passionate work on behalf of Israel Bonds his belief that the State of Israel is the lifeblood for the survival of the Jewish people.

A highly successful attorney and real estate consultant, Bernie shares his wife Norma's dedication to faith and family. He is devoted to his children and grandchildren, and both Bernie and Norma are true exemplars of family values.

Mr. Speaker, my distinguished colleagues, I ask that you join me in recognizing Norma and Bernie Koster for their civic activism and leadership in the fight against discrimination, hatred, and anti- Semitism.

I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time.

Mr. Chairman, as a member of the Committee on Appropriations, I rise in support of the Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill. I want to thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards) for their very hard work in drafting this well-balanced bill.

I also want to acknowledge the majority and minority staff for the diligence and dedication that they have demonstrated throughout this process. I can appreciate the tough choices that both the gentleman from New York and the gentleman from Texas had to make with this tight allocation. Admittedly, if there were a different majority in the House, there would have been more money allocated to these programs, but within the budget constraints imposed upon the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis), the gentleman from New York (Mr. Walsh) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Edwards), I believe they have done a fine job, and I urge all of my colleagues to support the bill.

Mr. Speaker, as a proud cosponsor of H.R. 32, the Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Good Act, I rise in support of this legislation. In a time when U.S. manufacturing has been tested again and again by foreign markets, we must do everything we can to ensure that this vital industry continues to grow stronger. The Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Goods Act will do just that.

With its two pronged approach to destroy equipment used to manufacture counterfeit goods and to prohibit the trafficking of such goods, this legislation will save American manufacturers billions of dollars every year. Furthermore, the Stop Counterfeiting in Manufactured Goods Act will provide the same type of protection under the law for manufacturers that we now grant to copyright owners. This legislation is a welcome addition to the numerous efforts this Congress has undertaken to preserve the manufacturing sector.

I commend Congressman Knollenberg for his interest in helping to protect manufacturing by granting law enforcement authorities the tools they need to put an end to counterfeiting practices. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation that will not only go a long to way in helping to preserve an American way of life, but it will also protect all Americans from the deception of counterfeit goods.

Mr. Chairman, as a member of the Appropriations Committee, I rise in support of the Fiscal Year 2006 Energy and Water Bill. I want to thank Chairman Hobson and Ranking Member Visclosky for their hard work in drafting this bill. I also want to acknowledge both the Majority and Minority staff for their dedication.

I can appreciate the tough choices that both Chairman Hobson and Ranking Member Visclosky had to make with the tight allocation for this bill. I believe they have made choices with the best interests of improving U.S. water infrastructure and advancing energy programs in mind. Those decisions were not easy, but this bill is the best we can do under the budget constraints. I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of the FY 2006 Energy and Water Appropriations Act.

Mr. Speaker, as a proud cosponsor of H.R. 810, the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005, I rise in support of this legislation. Those of us who have long supported the increased accessibility and possibilities of ethical stem cell research appreciate the opportunity the leadership has granted us by allowing a vote on this legislation today. I would also like to thank Representatives Castle and DeGette for their continued persistence to bring this bill to the floor.

We have all known someone who has suffered from Lou Gehrig's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Rett Syndrome, lupus, pulmonary fibrosis, juvenile diabetes, autism, cystic fibrosis, osteoporosis, spinal cord injuries, heart disease or cancer. By passing H.R. 810, we have the opportunity to help all of those individuals who are living with these and many other illnesses and injuries. Embryonic stem cell research holds the key to decreasing the pain and suffering of so many of our friends and family members. Furthermore, we have a moral obligation to do everything we can to help the millions of Americans, whose lives we hold in our hands, by allowing Federal funding to be used for this promising research.

The authors of H.R. 810 have gone to great lengths to guarantee that safeguards are in place to ensure the ethical use of embryonic stem cells. Embryos used for stem cell research under H.R. 810, will come from donor participation in in vitro fertilization, IVF, so embryos will not be created or cloned for research. This legislation also directs the experts at the National Institutes of Health to define the boundaries of this research. NIH has stated that they are prepared to institute these parameters. Such restrictions will ensure that rogue scientists are not performing dangerous and unethical experiments.

The United States has long been the leader of groundbreaking health research. Today we have the opportunity to ensure that the rest of the world does not continue to take the lead in health care advances. I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 810, not only because U.S. based researchers deserve to be at the forefront of the development of promising new treatments, but also for all of our constituents, friends, and family members who are counting on us to support the effort to find cures for so many different diseases and illnesses.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment introduced by my distinguished colleague from the great State of New Jersey, the Honorable Robert Menendez. This amendment will help keep Congress informed of the Department of Homeland Security's strategies to protect the people of New Jersey, our nation's most densely populated state--in particular, those who live and work in the high- risk, terrorist target-rich neighborhoods that lie between Port Elizabeth and Newark International Airport.

This is a matter of vital importance both for the people of New Jersey and for all Americans. The. threat of terrorist attacks against critical infrastructure in the United States has hardly subsided since September 11th, 2001. Northern New Jersey is an integral part of the largest metropolitan region in the nation, home to major rail networks; oil refineries, pipelines and fuel storage facilities; major airports; communicatidns hubs; and a highway system that includes I-95, the most heavily traveled traffic corridor on the East Coast. Indeed, this metropolitan region has already been the subject of the deadliest terrorist attack in American history, and the more than 12 million individuals who reside or work inside the 14-mile radius of this nerve center deserve assurances that their government is taking all appropriate measures to protect them from future terrorist incidents.

I support the amendment introduced by Mr. Menendez not out of parochial if entirely justifiable concern for the residents and workers of this sensitive area of northern New Jersey; I urge my colleagues to adopt this amendment because it truly addresses vital issues of national security. The Port of New York and New Jersey is the largest on the East Coast of the United States, with products and goods being funneled through its chokepoint to destinations all over the United States.

As my colleague Mr. Menendez has noted, th!e Federal Bureau of Investigation has dubbed the area between Port Newark and Newark International Airport the ``most dangerous two miles in the United States when it comes to terrorism.'' I rise in support of the amendment offered by Mr. Menendez and I urge all of my distinguished colleaues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pride in honoring an extraordinary individual, Marine Corps General Peter Pace, who was recently nominated to serve as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States Armed Forces. General Pace was raised in Teaneck, New Jersey, one of the largest municipalities in the Congressional District that I am privileged to represent. General Pace has risen to become the first Marine to lead the Joint Chiefs of Staff, an honor that he has earned through decades of hard work and determination. His story is a source of inspiration to every resident of the Garden State.

The son of an Italian immigrant, Peter Pace was born in Brooklyn, New York, and moved to Teaneck with his family the following year. After settling down in a home on Hillside Avenue, Peter quickly became involved in local youth athletics. While attending Teaneck High School, Peter worked hard and achieved academic excellence, which resulted in his acceptance to the United States Naval Academy in 1963.

Upon graduation from Annapolis and successful completion of The Basic School in Quantico, VA, Peter Pace was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, 1st Marine Division in the Republic of Vietnam and served as a Rifle Platoon Leader. After returning from his combat duty in Vietnam, Peter served in a number of different staff and command positions, including Head of the Infantry Writer Unit at the Marine Corps Institute, Security Detachment Commander at Camp David, White House Social Aide, and Leader of the Special Ceremonial Platoon.

In April of 1971, Peter was promoted to the rank of Captain, and was later assigned to a Security Detachment in Thailand. In the late 1970's, then-Captain Peter Pace held the position of Operations Officer and Division Staff Secretary at Camp Pendleton in Southern California, where he later served as Commanding Officer of the 2n Battalion, First Marines Division following his promotion to the rank of Major in June of 1980. After heading up a Marine Corps Recruitment Station in Buffalo, NY and attending the National War College, Major Pace was promoted to the rank of Colonel in October of 1988, and advanced to the rank of Brigadier General in April of 1992. He was then appointed as President of the Marine Corps University before assuming various other commands. In recent years, as Vice-chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Pace has been instrumental in shaping the Pentagon's efforts in the war on terrorism.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my distinguished colleagues to join me in giving our heartiest congratulations to General Peter Pace, the new Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States Armed Forces, and a proud example of the Teaneck Public School System. His remarkable achievements and tireless service to his country, the United States Marine Corps, and his fellow servicemen and women clearly are a tremendous source of pride for all Americans and especially all his friends and family from New Jersey.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Israel Independence Day, the anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel. Forged from the fire of conflict that raged through 3 continents in the mid-twentieth century, the State of Israel has survived and endured the cauldron of the Middle East to emerge as a strong and vibrant democracy--the only one of its kind in the region-- with the resilient strength of tempered steel.

Israel was indeed born in a turbulent time and place in world history. Fifty-seven years ago from Saturday, the great Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion, proclaimed the birth of the State of Israel. The very next day, a mere 11 minutes after the official expiration of the British Mandate in Palestine, President Harry S. Truman announced the official recognition by the United States of the State of Israel. The bonds between our nation and Israel have endured throughout the history of the Zionist state, and today are stronger than ever.

Nothing, however, has come easily for the State of Israel. On the very day that President Truman made his historic announcement, 5 Arab states attacked Israel. The initial public radio address by the first Israeli Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, was made from an air-raid shelter in Tel Aviv, whose skies were darkened that very day by bombs dropped from Egyptian aircraft.

Yet despite all the odds, despite a history of being outnumbered and surrounded by hostile nations, the people and the State of Israel-- which, geographically speaking, is slightly smaller than my own state of New Jersey--have endured, and thrived. Although Israel still faces tremendous challenges today to the security of its citizenry and its borders, the indomitable spirit that guided the pioneers of a new nation remains a source of powerful inspiration and an enduring legacy to the Israeli people.

My distinguished colleagues, I ask that you join me in recognizing the remarkable human achievement that is the State of Israel. As the representatives of a freedom-loving nation, we are proud to celebrate the anniversary of the birth of the State of Israel and its success as a beacon of democracy to all people.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Yom Hashoah, Holocaust Remembrance Day, the annual observance of the mass genocide perpetrated in the mid-twentieth century by Nazi Germany, the most evil tyranny in the annals of human history.

On Sunday, May 8th, we mark the sixtieth anniversary of V-E Day, when the combined might of the Allied Forces finally ended forever the murderous regime of Adolf Hitler and his brutal henchmen and brought the curtain down on the European theater of World War II. Nevertheless, the Nazi dictatorship already had succeeded in deliberately murdering more than six million Jews and countless other people, in particular gypsies, persons with mental or physical disabilities, and those perceived to have a different sexual orientation or set of political beliefs. They achieved this terrible end through a nefarious network of secret police, a perverted legal process, a barbarous system of concentration camps that doubled as human extermination factories--and the tacit and often active participation of many, many others from a wide variety of backgrounds and national origins.

We observe Holocaust Remembrance Day in part to honor the memory of those men, women, and children who perished in this tragedy unparalleled in the course of human events. We observe Holocaust Remembrance Day to pay tribute to the courage and suffering of so many who lost their lives. But we also observe Holocaust Remembrance Day for an all too practical, and unfortunately still necessary, purpose: because we must never forget.

The six decades that have intervened since the Nazi regime was forcibly ended may make the Holocaust seem like a chapter in history from a bygone era. Yet each succeeding generation has a moral obligation to remember the Holocaust and its lessons for humanity: that mankind has an enormous capacity for evil; that, if left unchecked, evil can and will prevail; and that in order to overcome a massive concentration of power in the hands of those who would achieve evil ends, we have a moral obligation to act and to intervene on behalf of those without the capacity to resist such evil. These lessons, we must never forget.

For the unfortunate truth is that each succeeding generation in the decades following the Holocaust has been obliged to grapple with mass murder on a geopolitical scale. From the tyranny of Josef Stalin's Gulag Archipelago; to the Cultural Revolution of Communist China; to the killing fields of Cambodia; to the ``ethnic cleansing'' in Bosnia and Kosovo; to the senseless slaughters in Rwanda, the Sudan, and Darfur; to the tumbling twin towers at Ground Zero; and in countless other corners of the earth, man's capacity to inflict grievous harm on his fellow man continues to rage on, all too often unchecked.

Mr. Speaker, my distinguished colleagues, that is why we must never forget. We must never forget the more than 6 million victims, their grievous suffering, and the tremendous loss experienced not only by their loved ones who survived them, but by all of mankind. We must never forget the names associated with that greatest of all human tragedies, names which still to this day all too readily roll off the tongue, drenched in a thousand tears: Auschwitz, Dachau, Treblinka, Babi Yar--the Shoah.

But above all, we must never forget, because we must continue to look forward, as well as behind us. Man must never again allow his fellow man to stand by while the wholesale extermination of entire peoples is attempted under our very noses. We must never forget the maxim offered by Edmund Burke centuries before the Holocaust: that the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pleasure to honor Mr. Richard H. Weiner, the incoming President of the Bergen County Bar Association in the great state of New Jersey. Mr. Weiner will be inaugurated as the Bergen County Bar Association's 107th President on the occasion of its Annual Dinner Dance on Friday, May 6th, and I ask that my esteemed colleagues join me in recognizing his outstanding achievements on behalf of the legal profession and on behalf of the communities of northern New Jersey.

A member of the Bergen County Bar Association since 1983 and a member of its Board of Trustees for the last dozen years, Richard H. Weiner has distinguished himself in the practice of law. His leadership has been recognized by his colleagues at Aronsohn, Weiner & Salerno, P.C. of Hackensack, New Jersey, a highly regarded law firm well-known for representing many prominent banking institutions and leasing companies in countless and often highly complicated litigation matters. The Managing Partner of his firm since 1985, he has demonstrated particular expertise in commercial litigation and family law for more than two decades. Because of his peers' acknowledgment of his professional abilities and his sharp legal intellect, Richard H. Wiener currently serves as Chairman of the Legal Committee for the Eastern Association of Equipment Lessors and as a prominent member of the National Legal Committee of the Equipment Leasing Association, and has lectured extensively around the nation on behalf of both organizations on various aspects of banking law and equipment leasing.

A graduate of the University of Maryland and the Hofstra University School of Law, Richard H. Wiener has also achieved professional recognition for his thorough and meticulous legal scholarship and his impeccable professional reputation. He served a Judicial Clerkship under the Honorable Edward J. Van Tassel JSC from 1983 to 1984, and has been named to numerous leadership positions by the Bergen County Bar Association. He currently serves as Chairman of the Bench Bar Liaison Committee, as an active member of both the Civil Practice and Family Law Committees, and is a longtime member of the Bergen County Judicial Selections Committee. Previously, Richard H. Wiener was appointed Chairman of the Bergen County Ethics Committee on Fee Arbitration by the Supreme Court of the State of New Jersey, and was one of two attorneys named by the State Supreme Court to serve on the Committee on Character from 1994 to 2002. One of his most enduring legacies to the legal profession is the purchase of the building housing the Bergen County Bar Foundation's headquarters, also home to the offices of the Bergen County Bar Association, which was made possible through the tireless fundraising efforts that he helped lead along with several other prominent members of the Bar Association.

Above all, Richard H. Wiener has distinguished himself as a man dedicated to his family and his community. He, his wife Bonnie, and their beloved daughter Danielle have lived in Wyckoff, New Jersey for eleven years. In that Borough, he has devoted his time and effort to innumerable good causes. A past President of the Wyckoff Public Library Board of Trustees, Richard H. Wiener currently serves the Borough as its Traveling Softball Coordinator, an active basketball and softball coach, and as Chairman of the Wyckoff Recreation Committee. These are but a few of his many volunteer activities over the years.

Mr. Speaker, my distinguished colleagues, I ask that you join me in recognizing the professional and civic contributions of the next President of the Bergen County Bar Association, Mr. Richard H. Wiener.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pride to honor a tremendous group of young people from the great state of New Jersey, the North Jersey Avalanche PeeWee AAA youth hockey team. The Avalanche recently won the 2005 USA Hockey Youth Tier I National Championship in the 12 & Under Division. The team skates out of the Ice House in Hackensack, NJ, which lies in the heart of my congressional district, and happens to be the largest ice-skating facility in the Garden State.

Led by head coach Glenn Carlough and assistant coach J.J. Picinic, the North Jersey Avalanche won the National Championship in very convincing fashion. After cruising through preliminary tournaments, the group of 17 youngsters, many of whom have been playing hockey since they were toddlers, made their way to the Youth Tier I, 12 & Under Division Championships in Fairbanks, Alaska. In six games of fierce competition, the Avalanche rose to the top, with an outstanding record of five wins and one loss, and scoring a total of 29 goals, while only allowing 11.

On April 13, 2005, over 1,000 people were in attendance for the Championship game, in which the North Jersey Avalanche took on the Los Angeles Hockey Club. The team hit the ice strongly, scoring two goals in just the first minute of the game. They maintained their intensity, as evidenced by the strong performances of players like Charles Orzetti, who scored two goals, including the game-winner. Anchoring the team's performance in the final game was goalie Jonathan Drago, who faced 27 shots and made 25 saves. The monumental effort put forth by all the team members led the Avalanche to a decisive 8-2 victory.

The North Jersey Avalanche Tier I champion team is one of the 21 traveling hockey teams based at the Ice House in Hackensack. Built in 1997, the Ice House is widely regarded as one of the premier ice- skating facilities in the Nation. In addition to the thousands of

young athletes who play in year-round leagues and train in a variety of clinics, several Olympic figure skaters practice at the Ice House routinely, including 2002 Gold Medalists Sarah Hughes, Elena Bereznaia and Anton Sikharulidze. The Ice House's athletic programs continue to train and accommodate Northern New Jersey's youth, teaching the importance of physical fitness and upholding the values of good sportsmanship--values that the national champion Northern New Jersey Avalanche proudly uphold.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my distinguished colleagues to join me in recognizing the tremendous achievements of the outstanding group of young athletes who comprise the National Champion Northern New Jersey Avalanche, and acknowledge the success they have achieved, and the pride that they bring to the people of the great state of New Jersey.

Mr. Speaker, this Sunday, April 24, 2005 is the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the systematic and planned extermination of an entire ethnic group by the Ottoman Empire, and the first act of genocide in the 20th Century. I join my colleagues and the Armenian-American community in my district, the 9th Congressional District of New Jersey, and with people of goodwill throughout the world, in solemn observance and acknowledgement of the deaths of 1.5 million Armenians during the years 1915-1923.

Countless Armenian families were torn apart forever by these gruesome acts of violence--acts that have been seared into the memories of the courageous individuals who survived. Survivors have vowed to never let their children, grand-children, and great-grandchildren, or others in the world, forget this past. Unfortunately, there is still a denial on the part of many people around the world about the actual occurrence of a genocide in Armenia. I stand steadfast with my Armenian friends in support of an acknowledgement of the horrors that were inflicted upon their families, and I continue to urge the recognition of the Armenian Genocide.

This year, the number ``ninety'' serves as a reminder that too many years have passed without proper recognition, and it serves as a motivational tool to continue to educate the world about the Armenian Genocide. In past years on the day of the anniversary, my Armenian- American constituents from St. Leon Armenian Apostolic Church in Fair Lawn, St. Vartanantz Armenian Apostolic Church in Ridgefield, and St. Thomas Armenian Apostolic Church in Tenafly would participate in solemn services held in memory of the martyrs of the Armenian Genocide at their individual churches. This year, however, the number ``ninety'' will unify Armenian-Americans as all members of the Armenian Apostolic churches on the East Coast will convene in Times Square in New York City to stand together and have their voices heard.

This anniversary also provides us with an opportunity to pledge that such a slaughter should never take place again. I am sickened and dismayed by the atrocities that we continue to see today in the Sudan, as well as others that we have seen in the 20th century, such as the Holocaust and the ethnic cleansing campaigns in Cambodia, Kosovo and Rwanda. All of these events should be recognized for what they are: Genocide.

As a Jewish-American, I stand united with Armenians who continue to fight for recognition of the Armenian Genocide so the world will never forget the first crime against humanity in the 20th Century. I am hopeful that this 90th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide will bring with it the recognition that is deserved, and help us in our obligations as global citizens to protect the basic human rights of all people. We owe it to our ancestors, our families, and humanity to be committed to preventing genocide in the future, no matter when, where, or to whom it occurs.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pleasure to honor representatives of two generations of an extraordinarily talented family from the great state of New Jersey, Mr. Stephen Adubato, Sr., and his son, Dr. Stephen Adubato, Jr. Both members of this truly remarkable father-and-son team are to be presented with the Tree of Life Award by the Jewish National Fund on June 1, 2005 in Livingston, New Jersey. The Adubatos, as well as the former Governor, the very Honorable Thomas Kean, Sr. and his distinguished son, New Jersey State Senator Thomas Kean, Jr., have been chosen to receive this prestigious honor for compiling such exemplary records of public service. Past recipients have included such outstanding public servants as United States Senator Jon Corzine, Representative Bill Pascrell, two former Governors of the State of New Jersey, and corporate leaders Ted Turner and Donald Trump.

Mr. Adubato, Sr., is the founder and Executive Director of the North Ward Center, Newark Business Training Institute, The Robert Treat Academy Charter School and Casa Israel. His life's work has demonstrated to the people of his native city, Newark, and the entire state of New Jersey, just what one dedicated, brilliant, and courageous man can accomplish to improve his community's educational, civic, and cultural life. Mr. Adubato, Sr., has also served as a teacher, supervisor, and counselor for the Newark Board of Education, an instructor and consultant at Rutgers University, a consultant to New Jersey's Chancellor of Higher Education, and Director of External Affairs at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

Like his father, Dr. Stephen Adubato, Jr., has also compiled a distinguished career as a four-time Emmy Award-winning broadcaster, best-selling author and motivational speaker. In the mid-1980s, at the age of 26, he served as New Jersey's youngest state legislator. Since then, he has been seen on-air as an expert commentator for MSNBC, the FOX News Channel, WABC-TV, and WNET, the leading public television station in the Greater New York City metropolitan area. In 1995, Dr. Adubato started a company called ``Stand and Deliver'' that is geared to helping people become better communicators. In 1999, he founded ``Stand and Deliver: Communication Tools for Tomorrow's Leaders,'' a non-profit program which provides many young people with the communications tools they need to become better citizens and to more effectively compete for and succeed in the growingly complex job market. He currently hosts two shows on public television, ``Caucus New Jersey,'' an Emmy Award-winning public affairs television series and ``Inside Trenton,'' an insightful and innovative news program that covers public affairs on a weekly basis.

Founded in 1901, the Jewish National Fund is one of the premier organizations in the world devoted to the welfare of the people and land of Israel. The Tree of Life Award is a humanitarian award that the Fund presents to individuals in appreciation of their outstanding community involvement, their dedication to the cause of American- Israeli friendship, and their devotion to peace and security. The award recognizes outstanding leaders for their achievements and innovations in industry, government and education.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the outstanding contributions to New Jersey's civic life made by Mr. Stephen Adubato, Sr., and Dr. Stephen Adubato, Jr., and to acknowledge their lifetime of good works, as well as those of former Governor Thomas Kean, Sr., and State Senator Thomas Kean, Jr. Individuals such as these make me proud to be a New Jerseyan and proud to call these wonderful people my friends.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the Board of Directors of the National High School Mock Trial Championship for their commitment to a competition that is all-inclusive and sensitive to religious minorities.

The National High School Mock Trial Championship is a prestigious event that requires a tremendous amount of preparation, skill, and dedication on behalf of those students who are competing, and is looked upon with distinction by institutions of higher learning. The Torah Academy from Teaneck, New Jersey, located in my Congressional District, won the New Jersey State Bar Foundation competition, and advanced to the national championship, which is to be held on May 4-7, 2005 in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The members of the mock trial team from Torah Academy observe the Sabbath, in accordance with their practice of Orthodox Judaism, and will therefore not be able to participate in any National High School Mock Trial Championship competition from sundown on Friday, May 6 through sundown on Saturday, May 7, 2005. After much discussion between the school, the national organizers, the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, and me, the Torah Academy will now be able to participate fully without being forced to violate its members' religious beliefs. The national organizers of the event have agreed to rearrange the schedule of the tournament to accommodate students of all religious faiths.

I thank the Board of Directors of the National High School Mock Trial Championship for their willingness to change the schedule to allow all students to fully compete in this competition. This is fundamentally a question of equal access and the right of religious minorities to participate in a competition open to students from every walk of American life, and I encourage the national organizers to restructure the schedule of competitions in future years with this in mind.