Floor Statements

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3658, introduced by my good friend from Puerto Rico (Mr. Fortuno).

This bill will make a long overdue clarification to the Foreign Service Act that will allow American foreign service officers to take rest and recuperation travel, commonly referred to as R&R, in American Samoa, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and, of course, the United States Virgin Islands.

American diplomatic personnel who serve at hardship posts overseas are allowed to take State Department-funded R&R travel either at locations abroad or locations in the United States. But the phrase ``locations in the United States'' has been interpreted by the State Department regulation to exclude U.S. territories for some reason. That interpretation has placed a distinctly unfair burden on foreign service officers from those territories who might wish to spend their R&R with families at home.

It also puts U.S. territories at a disadvantage compared to other destinations abroad or in the United States where our diplomatic personnel may want to travel to rest and recuperate.

I want to commend our colleagues who have sponsored this legislation to remove this inadvertent and unfair provision. H.R. 3658 is a worthy bill that deserves our unanimous support.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Puerto Rico (Mr. Fortuno), the author of this bill.

I would inquire of the gentlewoman if she has any other speakers.

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

Mr. Speaker, as Americans across this Nation celebrate Mother's Day this Sunday, there are five children in Crosby, Texas, who mourn the loss of theirs. Tina Davila was murdered as she gave her life to protect her youngest child.

On April 17, Tina left her 4-month-old in the back seat of her car as she quickly ran into a store to pay a bill. But as Tina approached the store, she saw a car pull up beside hers, and a bandit jumped out and tried to steal her vehicle. She fought the outlaw and screamed, ``My baby! My baby!'' But the carjacker stabbed her, murdering her in front of her child and fled with blood on his hands. All this was caught on video surveillance.

The killer is 22-year-old Timoteo Rios, an illegal trespasser from Mexico. In addition to murdering Tina, Rios and his fellow hijacker, Kennedy Escoto, carjacked four other people. Rios had spent time in jail last year but was never deported.

Rios remains at large. He's believed to be back in the safe sanctuary country for criminals, Mexico, basking in the sun and unaccountable for this murder, while Tina Davila's children are motherless this Mother's Day.

And that's just the way it is.

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

Mr. Speaker, I'm pleased to rise in support of H. Res. 1011, which calls on the United States and the international community to develop, fund, and implement a regional strategy which addresses the increasing intertwined security and humanitarian crisis in Chad, the Darfur region of the Sudan, and the northern region of the Central African Republic.

Borders in this region of the world are more of a concept than a reality. Ethnic groups straddle lines on a map, and conflict with each other or within one country inevitably spills over into the other countries. While this body has been seized by the horrific situation in Darfur, we have devoted far less attention to the broader regional crisis, particularly as it relates to Chad.

Chad has been plagued by intermittent conflict, both internally and with its neighbors since it gained independence in 1960. The current President of Chad, Idriss Deby, took power after launching a coup across the border in neighboring Darfur, Sudan, with the support of Libya and his fellow ethnic Zaghawas who straddle the border between Chad and Sudan. He has since faced at least five coup attempts, including one just this past February.

The Sudanese government's genocidal campaign in Darfur, which forced hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees across the border, has made the tensions within Chad, particularly among Deby's fellow Zaghawas, much worse. These tensions became further inflamed as the relationship between Chad and the Sudan deteriorated, with each government accusing the other of funding and supporting rebel movements within their respective borders, as well as in neighboring Central African Republic.

The spillover of conflict from Darfur into Chad and the Central African Republic, from Chad into Darfur, and from Central African Republic into Chad, has led to the displacement of more than 3.1 million people.

In Darfur, an upsurge in fighting among rebel groups, government forces, militias and armed ethnic groups has led to the displacement of more than 80,000 people since this past January.

In February of this year, 12,000 new refugees from Darfur arrived in Chad, bringing the total number of Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad to 250,000. Chad also is hosting an additional 152,000 refugees from Central African Republic.

At the same time, more than 180,000 people from Chad have been displaced by internal conflict, and in February, 30,000 people from Chad were forced to seek refuge in neighboring Cameroon after rebels, backed by the Sudanese government, attacked the capital.

As the wars in Chad, Sudan and Central African Republic become increasingly intertwined, and as the massive displacements take on a regional dimension, the United States and the international community must resist the urge to deal with each crisis in a vacuum. This resolution recognizes that reality and calls for a comprehensive strategy to protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian operations, contain and reduce violence, and contribute to conditions for sustainable peace and good governance throughout the region with all nations. This is not only a moral imperative, but also a significant strategy requirement.

I thank the sponsor of this resolution, Mr. Wolf, for introducing this important resolution, and I urge Members to support it.

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

Mr. Speaker, I believe that there was a time when we could honestly hope that Russia was playing a fair and supportive role with regard to the resolution of the separatist conflicts in the Republic of Georgia. Unfortunately, our optimism in that regard is almost exhausted. It now appears obvious that Russia seeks to play a destabilizing role in Georgia, with the goal of undermining Georgia's political and economic development and, ultimately, its own sovereignty.

Over several years Russia has reportedly supported the separatist forces

with arms and trained personnel. It has applied boycotts on Georgian goods and shut off energy supplies to Georgia. It has broadly granted Russian citizenship and issued Russian passports to people living in Georgia's separatist regions. It has provided economic subsidies to the separatist regions and granted residents of those regions the right to vote in Russian elections. Its so-called ``peacekeeping'' forces in the separatist regions appeared to have played a biased role in favor, of course, of the separatist regime. More recently, on April 16, the Kremlin issued a decree further expanding its ``official'' ties with the separatist regions.

Most objective observers would affirm that the Georgian Government has tried to be fair and open-minded in its efforts to negotiate a settlement in the separatist conflicts. One has to wonder, however, if sporadic and mysterious incidents involving small-scale attacks on Georgian territory and forces are meant to provoke the Georgian Government.

One such incident occurred on April 20. An unmanned and unarmed Georgian reconnaissance aircraft was shot down over Georgian territory, reportedly by a Russian MIG-29 fighter. Since neither Georgia nor the separatist regimes have MIG-29 jets among their forces, it seems difficult for Russia to deny its involvement.

Mr. Speaker, the Georgian people have made tremendous progress since the ``Rose Revolution'' of 2003. Georgia is not a perfect democracy, but it's heading in the right direction. It certainly compares very well with the trends in Russia, where a totalitarian regime is steadily being constructed once again.

Georgia deserves the support and encouragement of leading states of Europe and the support of the United States. Democracy and reform in Georgia will only succeed if the European Union, the leading states of Europe, and the United States remain engaged and strongly support it.

The resolution calls for the Kremlin to immediately revoke its decision to expand ``official ties'' with the separatist regions in Georgia. The resolution expresses strong support for the restoration of the territorial integrity of Georgia and for the peaceful resolution of conflicts within Georgia's borders. It also restates the declaration made by the NATO heads of state at the recent summit in Bucharest, Romania, in which they confidently stated their belief that the Republic of Georgia will become a member of NATO some day. And it urges NATO allies to favorably consider Georgia's application for admission in the Membership Action Plan, or MAP, during the NATO Ministers meeting this December, MAP being a program to simply help interested applicants for membership and prepare them to meet the standards required of all NATO allies.

Mr. Speaker, this resolution is intended to support the sovereignty of Georgia and support an end to any irresponsible actions by the Russian Government that undermine its sovereignty and the prospects for a peaceful resolution of the separatist conflicts in that country.

I note again as well that nothing stated in this resolution with regard to NATO and Georgia's interest in membership in that alliance is any different from what was stated at the recent NATO summit.

I support this resolution and urge all my colleagues to do the same as well.

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

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

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, which points out that the smoke screen of a sham constitution and a bogus referendum is not a path leading to free Burma.

It seems a particularly callous decision for the Burmese junta to go forward with its planned referendum on May 10, just 1 week after a tropical cyclone devastated the people of that nation. The generals, by ignoring the almost 4,000 dead and 100,000 homeless, are concerned only about their narrow political agenda.

We in Congress offer our heartfelt condolences to those in Burma who lost family and friends in this tragic natural disaster. We urge the junta to immediately lift its irrational restrictions on international humanitarian organizations operating inside Burma. Only then can they provide the emergency relief necessary for the suffering people of this country.

The generals in Rangoon, however, have cynically determined that time is on their side. They are convinced that, while the world's attention turns away from the bloody events of last fall to other crises in other parts of the world, they can carry on business as usual oppressing their people. That business includes implementing plans for the May 10 referendum on their undemocratic constitution. This constitution ignores the will of the people of Burma as expressed in the streets of Rangoon and other cities last fall. This one-sided constitution seeks to legitimize military dictatorship rule. The current junta seized power by crushing a mass democracy uprising over two decades ago. We and the people of Burma will commemorate the 20th anniversary of that uprising on August 8, the very date the Beijing Olympics begins. On that date, advocates of a free Burma will hold activities around the world to remind the Burmese generals and their Beijing allies that the torch of Miss Liberty shines brighter than any Olympic torch.

The generals have turned to a sham constitutional provision in an effort to ignore the international call for a genuine dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the opposition and minority groups. The goal of that dialogue is to achieve ``inclusive national reconciliation.'' This call for dialogue was contained in the statement released by the U.N. Security Council President on October 11, 2007, with the unanimous consent of all members of the council.

Instead of heeding the urgings of the international community, however, these generals have brazenly continued their roundup of those involved in the Saffron Revolution last fall, including Buddhist monks, and they have put them in jail. They have also refused to release Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.

The Burmese junta treated the U.N. special envoy to Burma with disdain during his last visit. They refused him access to the top leadership and flatly rejected his offer of independent monitoring of the referendum vote. The U.N. envoy himself has admitted the visit did not yield any tangible results.

The junta's attitude of brazen indifference following its bloody suppression of the Saffron Revolution cannot stand unchallenged by the world community.

This Congress must raise strong objection to the junta's cynical plan to try to maintain rule through a sham constitution.

I urge that my colleagues stand for a free Burma by voicing vigorous support of this resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, it should be well noted that China continues to support this military dictatorship in Burma. And as we approach the Chinese Olympics this year, we should remember that China does not burn the torch for liberty and freedom throughout the world, but they continue to support dictatorships like those in North Korea, Darfur and Burma.

I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution which serves as yet another reminder of the haunting words inscribed in the Holocaust Museum: ``Never again.''

The Khmer Rouge-led slaughter of over 1 million innocent people took place more than three decades after the Holocaust ended. Yet the world was again largely silent and indifferent to this tragedy. There was no one person who more embodied the tragic and horrific story of this genocide committed by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia than Dith Pran. His harrowing personal story of courage, abandonment, struggle, escape and ultimate survival was recorded for all time in the gripping Academy Award-winning film ``The Killing Fields.''

After escaping from the Khmer Rouge and making his way across a treacherous border laden with mines, Dith Pran reached a refugee camp in Thailand and ultimately came to the United States. Here while continuing his career as a photojournalist, Dith Pran was a firm and clear voice appealing to the world's conscience to remember the genocide which occurred in his homeland. He worked tirelessly to achieve the establishment of an Office of Cambodian Genocide. It was officially called the Office of Cambodian Genocide Investigation in the Department of State.

It is a note of some consolation that Dith Pran lived to see the start of the genocide trial last November of surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Sadly, it took almost 30 years to bring these architects of the killing fields to justice. There is thankfully no statute of limitations for those who carry out world genocide.

Without Dith Pran's steadfast determination, however, this aging Khmer Rouge cadre may have escaped their final hour of judgment. This trial now taking place in the Cambodian capital should give solace to Dith Pran's family and his friends at his passing. It also represents his greatest legacy as an advocate on human rights.

The current trial should also remind us to redouble our efforts to ensure that the words ``Never Again'' are finally realized. The best final tribute for Dith Pran would be for the world community to work together for a swift end to the current genocide in Darfur and the killing fields in North Korea.

I urge my colleagues to give their whole-hearted support to this resolution.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman yielding. And I want to thank Mr. Young from Alaska for offering this resolution. I'm certainly proud to support this resolution honoring Charlton Heston's iconic life.

Charlton Heston has done much for this country in many, many different areas of public involvement and public service. He appeared in over 100 films during 60 years, but he's best remembered by me as Moses. To many Americans, Moses died on April 5, 2008.

As a kid, I actually thought Heston was Moses. I can remember sitting in a Sunday school class as a young kid when the teacher asked me if I'd ever read about Moses and the 10 Commandments in the Bible. And I said no, but I saw the movie version.

Charlton Heston brought Moses to life in a way that no one else could. As Moses, Heston lifted his staff in the 10 Commandments to rally the Israelites. But in his personal life he lifted his musket to rally millions of Americans. The second amendment was his tablet of stone, proclaiming the right to bear arms.

Heston was quite the intense actor, and wonderful patriot. Heston once said, ``It's been quite a ride. I loved every minute of it.'' And his life was certainly extraordinary.

So, Mr. Speaker, I thank ``Moses Heston'' for bringing life to history and for being a great American during his life.

Madam Speaker, it is with great honor that I congratulate the members of Memorial Baptist Church in Baytown, Texas as they celebrate their 90th anniversary. This is a remarkable milestone for this community church that modestly began in 1918.

During the 1900s, it was common that church services took place in private homes. In 1918, the Alcorn Family invited John W. Anderson to preach at their home in Goose Creek. Later that year, John W. Anderson became the first pastor of First Baptist Church, Goose Creek known today as Memorial Baptist Church.

Blessed with outstanding leadership and unshakable faith, the congregation continues to be a treasure to the city of Baytown. Memorial Baptist Church is a good example of the positive role that churches play in our communities. Through their ministry and outreach efforts, lead by current pastor Brad Hoffman, they are making a difference in the lives of people.

Today, more than ever, our Nation needs the spiritual nourishment and support that our local churches can provide. It is for this reason that I congratulate the members of Memorial Baptist Church for their dedication and faith as they celebrate 90 years of serving our community.

Madam Speaker, today I come to recognize the many achievements of the man known as ``the wizard of trial law,'' John G. Tucker, who passed away at the age of 100 in January 2008. With his signature bow tie and flat top hair cut, Tucker was a fixture of the legal profession in Southeast Texas for over 75 years.

Tucker's father was an Army officer serving in Cuba as part of a peacekeeping force where officers were allowed to have their families live with them. His wife was 8 months pregnant when they found out that if born on Cuban soil, their son could never run for President of the United States. Knowing her son was destined for greatness, Tucker's mother set sail for New York City and eventually landed in Kansas City, Kansas, where John was born.

Though he never ascended to the highest office in the United States, Tucker was rather successful in all of his endeavors. He attended college in Pennsylvania and went on to graduate from Harvard Law School. John moved to Southeast Texas in the middle of the Great Depression of the 1930s, determined to take advantage of the boom created by the oil refineries. He joined the law firm created by William Orgain in 1933. The name was changed to Orgain, Bell, and Tucker in 1945 and continues to set the bar for legal excellence to this very day.

John Tucker tried over 90 cases in state and federal court and has argued cases before the Texas Supreme Court. He was deemed a Southeast Texas Legend by the Beaumont Foundation of America scholarship board in February 2007, becoming only the second person at the time to earn such honor.

On behalf of the Second Congressional District of Texas, I want to honor John G. Tucker for his lifetime of accomplishments. Through his diligent efforts and dedication he has made Southeast Texas a better place to live for generations to come.

Madam Speaker, today I am proud to pay tribute to Lisa Vander Laan, Plant Manager of ExxonMobil's Chemical Polyethylene Plant, in Beaumont, Texas.

Mrs. Vander Laan earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Louisiana State University, graduating summa cum laude and receiving the University Medal. She joined Exxon Corporation in 1989 as a process engineer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and spent her first decade in various manufacturing assignments in engineering and supervision before becoming intermediates technical manager.

Vander Laan spent the next 7 years at the corporation's Houston headquarters for chemicals in marketing and business planning, as global basic chemicals financial manager, americas low density polyethylene product manager; and ExxonMobil Chemicals global manufacturing planning manager. In February 2007, she took over at the polyethylene plant in Beaumont as plant manager.

Mrs. Vander Laan is seeing more women in leadership roles in the petrochemical industry. When she started in engineering, there were very few female supervisors and managers. She now believes there are significantly more women in the petrochemical industry jobs like chemical engineering. She says ExxonMobil encourages girls to get into math and science, and has an ``Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day'' in the spring.

Chemical Engineering seems to run in the family. Vander Laan's father is a chemical engineer as well as an older and younger sister, in addition, ``all the girls married ExxonMobil guys''. She is married to Jeffrey Dale Vander Laan and has two children, Cecilia and Abigail. She doesn't know if her daughters will show interest in chemical engineering like she and her sisters, who love math.

Mrs. Vander Laan is on the board of the Beaumont Area United Way and a member of the Southeast Texas Plant Manager's Forum, for which she serves as chairman of the environmental committee.

Madam speaker, Lisa Vander Laan is a success story in the male dominated petrochemical industry, and I am proud to celebrate her accomplishments.

Madam Speaker, San Francisco city officials are encouraging illegals to find their home in this California town. The city recently began an expensive public relations campaign reminding illegals that it is still a sanctuary city and that local law enforcement will not cooperate with Federal officials to enforce immigration laws.

This bold announcement comes at a good time. Many other American cities actually believe in enforcing the law and cooperating with the Feds to arrest international trespassers. This causes illegals that live in the shadows of those cities to be perplexed as to what to do. They certainly don't want to go home because they cannot receive free social services like health care, welfare, and education.

So to be completely compassionate and caring, San Francisco should expand its PR campaign to include those hardline, narrow-minded, nonsanctuary cities and encourage their illegals to go to San Francisco. The PR campaign should be ``The City by the Bay welcomes all, including those that violate the law.''

Meanwhile, Congress should prohibit all Federal money from going to sanctuary cities like San Francisco that laugh at the rule of law and pander to illegals.

And that's just the way it is.

Madam Speaker, Texas is known for its legendary Lawmen that bring criminals to justice. Today, I want to recognize the life of Assistant Chief Deputy Larry Shiflet. He is a lifetime member of what is referred to in my part of Texas as the Poe-leece. It is an informal organization made up of my long-time friends in the Texas law enforcement community. It is an honor to pay tribute to him today as he retires from public service.

Larry Eugene Shiflet was born in Houston on Sept. 2, 1940 and was destined to be a Texas Lawman. At the age of 17, he joined the U.S. Air Force. After serving his country for four years, a friend got him a job in the Union Pacific Railroad Police Department.

He got to do what most boys from Texas only dream about doing: being a real cowboy that protected railroad cars from bandits. He worked in the special investigative unit that tracked down thieves, drug smugglers and hobo stowaways. He later became the head of the investigative unit and had jurisdiction over four states. He worked for 20 years with the railroad before retiring for the first time.

After leaving the rail road police, he obtained additional police training and he was soon hired by the Harris County Precinct 4

Constable's Office in Houston, Texas. His attitude as a deputy was to enforce the spirit of the law rather than the letter of the law. Chief Shiflet's personality and professionalism earned him respect from both those he worked with and with those he arrested. He inspired many young deputies to strive for excellence and they credit his leadership as the reason for their professional success.

His boss and close friend, Constable Ron Hickman, described Chief Shiflet as being a part of the backbone of the organization. ``Chief Shiflet's keen sense of community involvement, understanding of law enforcement responsibility, leadership skills, wisdom and experience have made him an indispensable part of our organization,'' said Hickman. ``His fair, but firm hand has provided a stalwart position that many of us have looked to for resolution during difficult times. I have had the distinct pleasure of working alongside Larry for 25 years and count him among my best friends.''

Hickman also described Chief Shiflet as a man that is fully aware of the real dangers of police work, but at the same time is deathly afraid of snakes. Even after working for years along the Texas border for the railroad police, Hickman said that Chief Shiflet is still very likely to shoot somebody to get out of the way of a snake.

Along the way during his career in the Constable's office, Chief Shiflet met his wife Cynthia Calvert when he worked in Atascocita. She was the editor of a local newspaper at the time and called him to ask about the violent crime wave of bicycle thefts in Kingwood. Chief Shiflet suggested that it would be best to discuss the bike thefts over a cup of coffee. That face to face meeting request was the beginning of a relationship that later led to their marriage.

In addition to his law enforcement career, Chief Shiflet had a brief stint as an unofficial U.S. Ambassador to Ireland during a family vacation. At every pub his family stopped at for a meal and a drink, Chief Shiflet would have to defend America and President George W. Bush's foreign policies. As soon as the natives heard the warm, southern drawl in Chief Shiflet's voice, they knew he was from Texas and would launch into anti-American foreign policy tirades.

Chief Shiflet patiently, respectfully and eloquently explained that they were wrong and America was right. As only a true American patriot would, Chief Shiflet spent his entire family vacation defending America and our President from Irish criticism.

Ironically, even though he has spent 50 years in public service through the military and law enforcement, Chief Shiflet started his working career in the newspaper business and it looks like he will end it with newspapers. When he was 10 years old he delivered newspapers by hand from his bike for an old city paper called the Houston Press. In 2007, he and his wife started a community newspaper company called the Tribune newspapers. Instead of delivering papers on a bicycle, he will soon be delivering issues of the Tribune from his red Corvette.

As Chief Shiflet retires today from the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable's Office, I am honored to recognize his lifetime of law enforcement service. For 46 years, he has put on a badge and a gun to protect and serve the people and communities that he loves. As he hangs up his gun for the last time today and turns in his badge, he can ride off into the sunset in his Corvette knowing that he is loved, respected and appreciated by so many.

Happy Trails to you, Chief Shiflet. Thank you for a job well done and for all your hard work to make our Texas neighborhoods safer.

And that's just the way it is.

Mr. Speaker, the United States is intending to send $1.4 billion in taxpayer money to Mexico to fight the cartel drug criminals on the border. This may sound good on the surface, but there are problems with sending money south of the border. It's an unfortunate reality that border corruption exists between Mexican law enforcement and the drug cartels. America has no assurance that some of that money or equipment won't end up in the very hands of the people we're trying to stop.

This $1.4 billion would be better spent if it stayed in America. It should go to the Border Sheriffs Coalition. These are hard-nosed lawmen from Brownsville, Texas, to San Diego, California, that operate on a shoestring budget, and they know better how to stop the drug smugglers and coyotes from entering their counties. I have met with them numerous times along our southern border. These border lawmen are amazing crime fighters and protectors of America.

The 18 Texas border sheriffs unanimously believe that, ``the culture of corruption and smuggling both in narcotics and humans and the threat of terrorism on the border will increase'' if this money is sent to Mexico.

Mr. Speaker, let's help out our first responders and give them the tools to fight crime on the border and keep the money in America.

And that's just the way it is.

I thank the gentleman for yielding.

I am proud to have introduced this National Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month resolution with my friend, Congresswoman Baldwin from Wisconsin. I appreciate her leadership in bringing this issue to the national attention of all of us.

When I was an assistant district attorney back in Texas, I prosecuted rapists for 8 years, and then I sat on the bench as a judge in Houston for 22 years, hearing felony criminal cases.

During those 30 years, I learned a lot about sexual assault and the devastation it has on victims.

Probably one of the best statements ever made about a sexual assault and how it affects the victim was a sexual assault victim who was 90 years old and had been raped. She testified on the witness stand that what happened to her ``was a fate worse than death.'' And, yes, many times it is a fate worse than murder itself, the crime that occurs against these individuals throughout our country. It devastates the victim, and after the crime occurs the victim faces a lifetime of battle to recover. In many cases, sexual assault or rape is an attempt on the part of the offender to destroy the inner soul and being of the victim, and sometimes that actually occurs.

When I came to Congress, I founded the Victims' Rights Caucus to advocate on behalf of victims so that this caucus could be a voice for all crime victims. The gentlewoman from Wisconsin who introduced this resolution is a member of this caucus and continues to be a leader in public awareness.

With this resolution, I hope we can educate the public about this horrendous crime, but also thank the outstanding victim advocates who hold the victim's hand from the time the crime is committed and sometimes throughout the entire episode until the trial is over with.

Rape and sexual assault statistics are difficult to determine because many victims are ashamed and afraid to come forward and report these crimes. There are outstanding support services in this country, like the National Sexual Assault Hotline, and many, many hundreds of thousands of crisis centers throughout the country, but still sexual assault victims are reluctant to come forward. By drawing attention to sexual violence and speaking about it on the national level here in our Congress, we can encourage victims to report these crimes and get the help they need.

Predators intimidate and threaten victims with the hope that these victims will never tell anyone about it. Victims need to understand that American citizens support victims and are on their side. Of those reported sexual assaults, there are haunting statistics. Three out of four victims knew the perpetrator that committed the crime against them. The rapist is not a stranger.

I would like to relate one case that occurred many years ago when I was prosecuting these types of cases. I will call this young lady Lisa, to protect the privacy of her family. She was a student at one of our universities in Houston. She left the university one night and stopped at a service station for help, because her car was having difficulty in moving down the highway.

She came in contact with an individual that I will call Luke. He was not a service station attendant. He was just a criminal. He kidnapped Lisa. He sexually assaulted her. He pistol-whipped her. He beat her so bad that he thought he had killed her, and when he was arrested, he was mad that he hadn't killed her. He was captured and he was tried. A jury in Houston, Texas, convicted him and gave him 99 years in the Texas penitentiary, which he earned and deserved.

But Lisa's life fell apart. She never went back to school. She lost her job. Her husband, the kind of individual he was, sued her for divorce, got all the children and left the State. She started using drugs, first alcohol and then everything else. Not long after the trial, I received a phone call from Lisa's mother telling me that she had taken her own life, and she left a note that I still have today that says, ``I am tired of running from Luke Johnson in my nightmares.''

You see, crime occurs. Victims are victimized. But sometimes they live a short life thereafter because of the crime that has occurred. And no crime is more devastating to a victim than sexual assault.

So it is important that we designate April as National Sexual Assault and Awareness Month so we can educate our fellow citizens on these statistics and encourage rape and sexual assault victims to no longer be afraid. We need to promote justice for sexual assault victims, because justice is what we do in America.

And that's just the way it is.