Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

I appreciate the opportunity to address the Chair. I will resist the temptation to point out how my Tigers took two out of three from your Mets recently.

I, too, am Generation X and was interested in some of the remarks that were put forward on the floor. First, I do not know that the people who wrote the Federalist Papers and came up with the system of limited government would be rolling in their graves at any attempt that we engage in to stop the obfuscation of earmarks within a process that is less than transparent.

I would also like to note that it is my preference to refer to the bull in the china shop as the bull in the Communist China shop. And speaking of bull, let us not forget that for 4 days this Chamber dealt with little else than a nonbinding/impotent resolution on Iraq that resulted in absolutely nothing except the people's business being delayed for that period of time.

Today, we are here about earmarks and not in general, but in particular the process by which they are inserted into appropriation bills. It seems to me that one of the fundamental problems we have in addressing this is the lack of openness and transparency in the process and that is what this endeavor is about.

It would also strike me that in discussing this process, it is odd to hear the new majority using the President of the United States' budget requests as an absolute baseline of fiscal sanity when throughout the course of the last 4 years in which I have served in this body, they have decried this President of the United States as the epitome of fiscal insanity.

So a baseline request from the President is just that. It is a request.

Now, in many ways we are then bound as an institution to give deference to both the authorizing committees and then the appropriating committees. But we do not delegate carte blanche our individual power which is vested in us by our constituencies to then oversee the work product of both the authorizing committees and the appropriating committees.

Today we are engaged in trying to exercise and reaffirm the right of not only ourselves but of Members on the other side of the aisle to be able to exercise that power that has been temporarily vested in them by their constituents to fully and fairly vet these bills and to make sure that the appropriations are what they are claimed to be, and to make sure that they are put to the best, most efficient and effective purpose that they can be on behalf of the American people.

Part of the reason this is necessary is not everyone in this Chamber takes the same approach to earmarks as other Members might. Some Members do no earmarks at all. Some Members prefer to do many, many earmarks. And some Members, I cite myself, do earmarks at the request of their local municipalities so we can serve as conduits back to our States.

I come from Michigan. It is critical to us that we receive our fair share of Federal spending because we pay more than our fair share of Federal taxes. My State, Michigan, is a donor State. Michigan is currently in a one-state recession, and it is very important that our taxpayers receive their money back. But that is my individual approach. That approach has to be vetted by 434 of my colleagues here, and only an open and transparent process will ensure that if I have made a priority request through a earmark, it is in keeping with the best interest not only of my district but within the best interest of the entire American people.

It would seem to me this is a very reasonable approach, it is a very reasonable request, and it is a request that we are pressing today, as we did yesterday, and will continue to do so because it is part of our constitutional obligation we take as Members of this body.

Were we to do otherwise, it would be a dangerous precedent to set because in my mind we are tragically on the verge of coming up with a new kind of system which will allow very little transparency and openness and thus injure the ability of not only ourselves but the American people to know how their money is being spent.

In the past there was the old joke that in the Congress you had Republicans, Democrats and appropriators. If the process that we in the minority find so offensive is allowed to proceed, you will now have four distinct entities. You will have Republicans, you will have Democrats, you will have appropriators, and you will have super- appropriators.

I don't know if the new super-appropriators get to make these decisions in the dead of night, also get to wear a cape and cowl, if they come with a sporty car so they can chase down Federal earmarks, or if they have a cave or a pole to slide down at their leisure as they go off to work to spend other people's money.

I think, however, this would be a tragic development and would oppose it.

Finally, as a member of Generation X, I would like to ask the baby boomers who devised this process to do as you Age of Aquarians often do, let the sun shine in.

Mr. Speaker, yesterday was the unveiling of the dedication of the Victims of Communism Memorial here in Washington D.C. It is a replica statue of Lady Liberty, the Lady Liberty that inspired the Chinese students and their fellow people in Tiananmen Square.

It was this period of time in which there was great hope within the Chinese people that their desire to breathe free would finally be realized. Yet that hope, that inalienable right, which we all as human beings share, was crushed beneath the tyrant yoke of the Chinese communist party.

Yesterday, at the dedication of that memorial, to not only those students and those Chinese people, yesterday at that dedication, which commemorated all the tens of millions who have died beneath the inhuman atheistic ideology of communism, the President of the United States made his remarks.

I wish to say that I have an enormous amount of respect for the President. He has been a steadfast leader, and I believe he is a good man, but I am saddened by the fact that he missed the opportunity, not to simply and nobly and necessarily commemorate the victims of communism and the triumph of liberty in parts of the world over that invidious ideology, but he missed the opportunity to issue a clarion call for the American people and all free peoples in our world to summon the courage to call for the end of communist regimes that still exist in our midst, Communist regimes from North Korea, to Cuba and, obviously, to Communist China.

For it is easy for people to believe that we had reached the end of history, to view communism as an ideology that is no longer a threat to our freedoms, our way of life and to the way of life to all people, yet it is.

When the Cold War ended, we had won the European theater of the battle between freedom and communism, and, yet, hundreds of millions across the globe remained enslaved. It is too little to say to them, good luck finding your freedom. If, we as a free people, are a beacon of hope to all humanity, we must also accept the responsibility that we bear to do everything within our power to ensure that our fellow people have the opportunity to enjoy their freedom, for they are equally God's children, as are we.

So I would suggest to the President of the United States that he recall that the struggle, what John F. Kennedy called the bitter twilight struggle between freedom and communism is not over. It is not time for a victory lap. It is time for a rededication of ourselves as a free people of a Nation conceived in liberty to continue our historic and our moral mission to emancipate all humanity from this insidious ideology.

For we are a revolutionary country by birth, and we must remain a revolutionary country in present. If we fail that mission we lose part of ourselves, not only our legacy but the legacy we must leave to our children and to all humanity.

In conclusion, I would urge the President of the United States to realize that the victory over communism is not complete and that we as Americans must continue to be champions of human freedom in our world.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Novi Meadows Elementary School, in Novi, Michigan, for

earning the distinguished Michigan Blue Ribbon Exemplary School award.

Since its establishment, Novi Meadows Elementary School has represented a pillar of educational excellence in our community. Characterized by a rigorous academic curriculum and an effective partnership between parents and teachers, Novi Meadows Elementary School offers students a constructive learning environment, caring friendships, and innovative educational opportunities to prepare them for life's challenges. Thanks to the dedicated teachers and staff, each year Novi Meadows Elementary School students graduate prepared for a promising future.

In fact, following an extensive assessment of their academic performance, in February of 2007, the Michigan State Board of Education and the Blue Ribbon committee of educators awarded Novi Meadows Elementary School the distinguished Michigan Blue Ribbon Exemplary School award. Established in 1982, the award recognizes schools demonstrating a strong commitment to educational excellence and significant academic improvement over five years. This year, the selection of Novi Meadows Elementary School demonstrates how dedicated teachers, a stellar learning environment, and an exemplary community benefit students.

Madam Speaker, in honor of its recent selection to receive the 2007 Michigan Blue Ribbon Exemplary School award, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Novi Meadows Elementary School's exceptional efforts to educate students, and its diligent service to our community and country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Daniel Pfannes, Chief of Police at the Westland Police Department, upon his retirement from a distinguished law enforcement career in Westland, Michigan.

For nearly five decades, Chief Pfannes dedicated his life to protecting the citizens of Michigan. Upon graduation from Central Michigan University with a Bachelor of Arts in Industrial Supervision and Management, Chief Pfannes joined the Westland Police Department as a Police Officer in the Uniform Patrol Division. Over the next 25 years, Chief Pfannes ascended through the Department's ranks, eventually serving as an Evidence Technician, Patrol Sergeant, Detective Sergeant, Patrol Lieutenant, Special Investigations Lieutenant, SWAT Commander, and Deputy Chief of Police. In 1993, Chief Pfannes graduated from the Police School of Staff and Command at Eastern Michigan University and Northwestern University. One year later, in 1994, he earned a Master's degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Detroit. Then, in March of 2003 he was promoted to the Chief of Police of the City of Westland.

Today, Chief Pfannes is a leader in the city of Westland and Wayne County. He serves on the Executive Board of the Wayne County Chiefs of Police Association, the Wayne County Regional Police Academy Advisory Board, the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police Legislative Committee, and the Advisory Board of the Wayne County Representative to the Courts and Law Enforcement Management Information System (C.L.E.M.I.S.). He is also a Juvenile Justice instructor at Schoolcraft College and an assistant adjunct professor at Madonna University in Livonia where he teaches Criminal Justice.

For his tireless service to the community, Chief Pfannes has been recognized with the ``Most Influential Instructor Award'' by Schoolcraft Police Academy; and for his heroic efforts in combating crime, the Westland Police Department has honored him with numerous citations and commendations. The Wayne County Executive, Robert Ficano, also recognized Chief Pfannes for his efforts to secure $23 million in federal Urban Area Security Initiative funding for Wayne County and the City of Detroit.

Madam Speaker, for 25 years, Chief Daniel Pfannes has unwaveringly protected and defended the citizens of Michigan. His long established legacy of dedication, loyalty, and courage will never be forgotten. As he enters the next phase of his life, I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Chief Pfannes upon his retirement and in honoring his years of legendary service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge the Michigan Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America in partnering with Ford Motor Company to release ``The Ford Michigan Mobility Resource Guide'' during their Open House in Novi, Michigan, on April 12, 2007.

For nearly five decades, the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America have loyally served our community's veterans with spinal cord injury or disease. A congressionally chartered veteran's service organization, the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America have faithfully honored its commitment to advocate for improved health care access, research and development for spinal cord injury and spinal cord dysfunction, sports programs; and have enhanced the benefits and disability rights on behalf of all paralyzed veterans.

In honor of Michigan Paralyzed Veteran Awareness Week, April 8, 2007, through April 14, 2007, the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America have partnered with Ford Motor Company of Michigan's Mobility Motoring Division to introduce the ``Ford Michigan Mobility Resource Guide.'' On April 12, 2007, the 14-page guide for disabled drivers will debut at the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America's Open House and subsequently be available at Ford auto dealerships statewide.

Madam Speaker, this guide is key to helping the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America continue its noble mission to ensure all paralyzed veterans are empowered to lead healthy and fulfilling lives. Today, in honor of its legendary dedication to our disabled veterans and its tireless efforts to assist individuals with spinal cord injuries, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing the Michigan Paralyzed Veterans of America for its unwavering commitment to our veterans, our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Dr. Lynn Kleiman Malinoff, the recipient of the 2007 Women of Westland ATHENA Award.

Each year, the Women of Westland organization recognizes exemplary women in Wayne-Westland, Michigan, who have succeeded in reaching their full leadership potential. This year, Lynn is recognized for improving the lives of countless women in our community. In addition to being the Special Education Counselor at the Tinkham Center in the Wayne-Westland School District, she serves as a role model to female high school students through the Youth Mentorship Program, a program she initiated seventeen years ago to help children from disadvantaged homes. Lynn also assists women in families affected by alcoholism and volunteers at her Synagogue to mentor and work with adolescents and their parents.

For her legendary commitment to bettering our community, Lynn was recognized with the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention Award. The Institute for Museum & Library Services also recognized Lynn's Youth Mentorship Program at the White House. Her efforts have succeeded in promoting educated, strong, and independent families who can also achieve their full potential.

Madam Speaker, on February 10, 2007, Lynn's selfless dedication to the women, children, and families of Wayne-Westland will be duly recognized with the Women of Westland's highest commendation, the ATHENA Award. Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in applauding her work and in honoring her tireless service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Brenda J. Lussier, as she retires from a distinguished career at the Novi Public Library in Novi, Michigan.

For twenty seven years, Brenda has tirelessly worked to improve our community with enhanced library services. Prior to working at the Novi Public Library, she graduated from the University of Michigan where she earned a Bachelor's degree in English and a Master's Degree in Library Science. On September 24, 1979, Brenda began working at Novi Public Library as Head of Reference, and later ascended to Director on April 8, 1985. She is a member of the American Library Association and the Michigan Library Association, and participated in the Michigan Library Association Leadership Academy from 1989 to 1991.

Brenda is credited with enhancing the quality of life in Novi by expanding library services in innovative ways. During her tenure, she served on various committees of The Library Network, including the Steering Committee. She also served on various committees of the Michigan Library Association, such as Chairwoman of the Public Library Division and the Management and Administration Division. As a member of the Novi Rotary Club, Brenda compiled the club newsletter for several years and was presented with the Paul Harris Fellowship Award in 2003 for her distinguished service. She has also received a national award for Intellectual Freedom from the Public Library Association and Novi's People's Choice Award in 2002 as the ``best librarian for her grace, leadership, and commitment to public service under a barrage of demands from the information-hungry in Novi.''

Madam Speaker, Brenda is a compassionate leader and visionary who's passion for excellence and support for a robust library system has positively impacted our Novi Community. Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in thanking Brenda for twenty seven years of loyalty and dedication to the Novi Public Library, and in applauding her legendary service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Mr. Rhys Lewis upon his receipt of the Wayne 11th Congressional District Republican Committee's 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award.

Throughout nearly seven decades, Mr. Lewis has served our nation with distinction. As a United States Marine Corps Sergeant, he defended our liberty in the South Pacific during World War II before returning home and marrying Ruth M. Lewis in 1947. Then, in 1958, Rhys was elected a Republican precinct delegate and, ultimately, a Redford Charter Township Trustee. In addition to his loyal public service, Mr. Lewis has been Chairman of Redford Civil Affairs and of the Wayne 17th Congressional District Republicans.

Rhys is a pillar of the Michigan Republican party, who has served on the Michigan GOP State Committee for eight years and in the Redford Republican party as for a decade. As a result of his loyalty to liberty and courage of his convictions, Rhys has enriched the lives of others and established a honorable legacy of courage, leadership and service.

Madam Speaker, in recognition of his legendary contributions to the Michigan Republican party and of his lifetime of extraordinary achievements, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Mr. Rhys Lewis for his tireless service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, I am here today with my colleague Mike Rogers to extend our sincerest gratitude to Corporal Mark Kidd--a son, grandson, brother, Marine and American--for his service to our nation, and to extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends. As a friend of the family it is very difficult for us to try to serve the dual roles that, in many ways, you helped give us on this sorrowful day.

Mark, as we all know, grew up cradled in the arms of his loved ones and strengthened here in the cradle of liberty. When he was called to serve he served in the defense of his nation, not by oppressing his fellow human beings in foreign lands, but by bringing emancipation to them so that they, too, could yearn to breathe free. It is in such a way of service to our fellow human beings that we honor not only our nation, but more importantly, we honor the universal spirit of a loving God who created us all. Thus, it is important that we remember, even as we grieve today, how we are all frail ephemeral human beings, groping through this veil of tears toward the infinite eternal perfection of the loving God, who created and awaits us all. It is a daunting calling, then, that we must answer; to strive, suffer and serve on behalf of our fellow human beings.

But Mark was not daunted. Mark accepted this challenge and he devotedly, courageously, and honorably strove to help free an entire people. Now he is cradled in the arms of our loving God and, no doubt, having not slumbered through this earthly life he may truly say with joyous rapture; now God be thanked, who has matched us with his hour and caught our youth and wakened us from sleeping.

Thank you and may God continue to bless you, Corporal Mark Kidd-- beloved son, grandson, brother, Marine, American.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Mrs. Dorothy Gay, upon her retirement from the Highland Lakes Condominiums Board of Directors after thirty-six years of dedicated service.

Throughout her life, Dorothy has striven to better our community. Born and raised in Detroit, she wrote stories for the Northeastern High School newspaper and later graduated from Wayne State University with a Bachelors Degree in Political Science. As a secretary in the Veterans Office at Wayne State University, she met Alva Gay, an English professor specializing in Shakespeare and modern novels, who Dorothy married in 1948 for 48 years until his death. Following graduation, in 1947, she joined the Detroit Police Department where she served in the Woman's Division. During her 25-year career, she investigated sex offenses against delinquent, neglected, and abused females, and for her dedication she was promoted to Sergeant, then Lieutenant, and finally Inspector in charge of the Division.

Since then, Dorothy has proudly served as a leader in our community. Later, in 1973, she moved to Highland Lakes and joined the Condominiums Board of Directors. In the early 1980s, Dorothy was named to the Northville Township Planning Commission and she is a member of the Board of Directors for Heartline, a Detroit halfway house for female offenders on parole. Dorothy has also been a volunteer peer counselor at the Women's Resource Center at the Schoolcraft College for Women and has served as President, Vice President, Secretary and Editor and Board Liason for the Herald. For her dedication to our community, the 1960s Detroit Free Press named Dorothy ``Woman of the Year.''

Madam Speaker, after 36 tireless years, Dorothy will be retiring from the Highland Lakes Condominiums Board of Directors. In honor of her leadership and unwavering dedication to the citizens of Michigan, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mrs. Dorothy Gay for years of loyal service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and acknowledge Ms. Patricia ``Pattie'' Coughlan upon her receipt of the Wayne 11th Congressional District Republican Committee's 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award.

Throughout her career, Ms. Coughlan has dedicated herself to bettering our community. As an active member of the Suburban Republican Women's Club since 1985, she has assisted in the election of qualified and capable leaders--with perhaps one notable Congressional exception currently serving--to public office at the local, county, state, and federal levels. She is credited with the creation of the redoubtable and renowned Suburban Republican Women's Club newsletter, for which she is currently the Editor-in-Chief.

Ms. Coughlan has also served in various senior leadership positions of the Club, in which she has promoted the ideas and principles of fiscal responsibility, equal opportunity, and responsive governance. Through her devotion to Republican principles, Patti continues to ennoble and enlighten our world.

Madam Speaker, Ms. Coughlan's legendary dedication to the founding principles of our great democracy and her tireless efforts to perpetuate America's revolutionary experiment in human freedom are an inspiration to all. Today, I ask my colleagues to join me in honoring Ms. Patricia ``Pattie'' Coughlan upon her receipt of the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award and in recognizing her selfless service to our community and our country.

Madam Speaker, today I rise to honor and remember the life of Jamie Coe, the beloved Detroit area entertainer and musician, who passed away on January 27, 2007.

For over five decades, Jamie Coe inspired generations of Americans through music. Born by the name of George Colovas in Highland, Michigan, Jamie Coe's musical abilities were discovered by singer Bobby Darin during a performance at the Cavalcade of Stars show at the Michigan State Fair Coliseum in 1959. Darin named Colovas ``Jamie Coe'' after a song he wrote called ``Jamie Boy,'' and signed him to Addison Records label. Later, Jamie also recorded songs for Big Top and ABC Paramount labels

Since then, Jamie Coe led a successful rock and roll music career, during which his remarkable voice drew countless loyal fans. After forming the popular Detroit band ``Jamie Coe and the Gigolos,'' he performed nightly before packed crowds at local Detroit night clubs. While he was best known for his hit song ``The Fool'' and numerous appearances on Dick Clark's television broadcast ``American Bandstand,'' Jamie Coe also donated his time to numerous philanthropic causes. He performed regularly to raise money for charities like multiple sclerosis, leukemia, and for the Livonia Symphony Orchestra.

Madam Speaker, although the legendary Jamie Coe passed away on Saturday, January 27, 2007, his memory will live on in the hearts

of his loving wife Jamie, four children, two grandchildren, and scores of adoring fans. In honor of his enduring contributions to rock and roll music and to the people of our community, I ask my colleagues to join me in remembering the life of Jamie Coe and his selfless service to our community and our country.

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

I greatly appreciate the compassionate concern of the previous speaker for the well-being of the Grand Old Party. It seems that compassionate conservatism these days is far more contagious than many expected and even I would have hoped. I will also tell you that prolonged exposure to the speeches of Ronald Reagan will quickly cure you of that.

I would also like to point out to the gentleman, through the Chair, that he points out the rich Republican lobbyists that this town is so awash in. Well, I have good news for him and bad news for the rich Republican lobbyists that are more highly paid these days than the Democrats, as they are now in the majority, which is why you will see so many foreign cars driving around with Kerry-Edwards bumper stickers on them in our Nation's Capital, if not in the Motor City where the UAW might find them.

I was told that we are antilabor. As the grandson and son of union members, whose voting record was better on CAFTA than 13 Members of the new majority, I take umbrage at that statement. As the son of schoolteachers, who has a good voting record on education matters, I take umbrage at that. And in terms of voting to send our troops to war and then not voting to fund our veterans, I would point out that in the new majority there are those who voted to send our troops to war and then voted not to fund our soldiers. So let us be careful with our accusations and how we impugn one's motivations.

Interestingly, we are not content with the war overseas, and now we see a case where we are going to engage in class warfare over here at home at a very time when we should be united.

It is these types of situations that, when I try to explain government and what I do to my wife and I's 10-year-old daughter Amelia, that I spend a lot of time scratching my head, which would explain my balding pate, because I find this place very frustrating.

To the gentleman, I know the majority has tried very hard to work on this bill, and it has been called a ``delicate, well-thought-out document.'' If that were the case, how can $1.2 billion be accepted in such a facile fashion at the drop of a hat to simply pacify a minority and to get them to stop addressing this bill? $1.2 million remains a lot of money. And it would be, I would hope, wrong of people to perceive that $1.2 million could either be taken from or put into a bill simply for reasons of convenience and operations of the floor of the United States House of Representatives.

But these are the problems that tend to come with governing, as my own party found out. We got to sit in power for 12 years, some of us for far less than that, and we watched and we watched and we watched as the spending and the debt continued to mount and our Nation's taxpayers and families and our party was no longer entrusted by the American people to govern. But I remember at the time I would point out that a lot of those appropriation bills that so many people decried throughout that election were vastly bipartisan exercises in governance, and that there were many votes on this side of the aisle for the excessive spending, and many votes on the other side of the aisle for excessive spending.

The rub then came when the majority party at the time, our Republican Party, was accused of spending too much on too many things and for deficit spending.

Today we flash forward, and what do we find? We find a situation where we have just recently passed a budget. I didn't vote for it. None of my Republican colleagues voted for it. But it was duly passed.

What did that budget do? That budget promised billions in new spending in reserve accounts. Billions in new spending. What else did it promise? What else did it promise? It promised the largest tax increase in American history to pay for it.

Now, today, as we go through this appropriation process, we see that some of the promises they are attempting to keep in the new majority. That would be the billions and billions in new spending. Does one not believe that they are going to do everything they can to go through and have the largest tax increase in American history to pay for it, or, in the alternative, they will continue to see the deficit and the debt mount?

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Granted, I cannot bring you the histrionics and gesticulations because I am not from a big city like New York. I'm just a simple country lawyer from Detroit.

But I am reminded of a phrase that Ralph Waldo Emerson used in one of Robert Kennedy's favorite poems. It's called ``Fame.'' And he used the phrase ``Being for Seeming bravely barter.'' And that is what this has become an exercise in.

The reason that we are here is not because we want to rush this bill. I think you would be quite pleased if we were in a hurry to leave. I think, Mr. Chairman, that the majority would be very happy with us if we were willing simply to take whatever was offered and move on, as much of what happened during the first grand and glorious 6,000 minutes where if they had the votes, the minority services were not required.

The reason that we are here today is so that we can seem to be doing our work. If you pass an appropriation bill, your constituents are going to come back to you and say, Okay, tiger, what was in the appropriation bill? And we will then say, What? Well, I don't really know, but I did my work.

It is akin to being on an operating table where the doctor opens you up and knows he has to put something inside of you, and then shoves you off to outpatient therapy saying, Well, don't worry. We will figure that out later and don't think about it because we still haven't decided what is going to go back in you.

We are trying to bring transparency to a system that does not have it because it wants to put perception over policy. That is what we are fighting for. It is not our way. It is the American way. We are trying to make sure that we do our work in the sunlight, not in the dark of night, so that America knows we are appropriators, not vampires.

As a country lawyer from Detroit, I am reminded that this appropriation process is much like closing the barn door after the horse has left, and when you watch that fine steed leave, you know the rear view is not all that it is cracked up to be.

We have learned a painful lesson as a former majority. We did not realize, I think, the historic opportunity we had to lead this Nation to transformational times, but at least we tried to be honest about the process, certainly more honest than the new majority has portrayed themselves to the American people.

Mr. Chairman, ``Those who do not learn the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them.'' I sincerely hope so, because you are repeating so many of the mistakes we made, I can hardly get to sleep at night, I am so happy to see it. Except for one thing: The American people deserve better. Give them the process that allows them to weigh their determinations that we make here in a fair, full, and honest manner. Give them the government they need so that you do not become an empty majority as this new minority once was.

And I wish to close with this. Prove me wrong. Because as of today, as of tonight, I know two things: My party stalled moving America forward, but right now you have stalled moving America backward.

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

Motion to Rise Offered by Mr. McCotter

Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. Chairman, first, I wish to begin by commending the work of the chairman and the ranking member for bringing this bill to the floor.

Upon my first visit to Iraq in 2003, I was struck by the centralized reconstruction process. I believed it was a mistake, and I came back in November of that year and gave a speech on the floor of the House and I said that I thought that one of the things that we needed to do was to provide the Iraqi people a transactional benefit to undergird the transformational change to democracy. This lesson is equally applicable in Afghanistan, which is why this bill today is so welcomed, because it recognizes that the people of Afghanistan in the provinces, in the local levels are where the reconstruction money must really be targeted.

If you think about how the United States evolved into a democracy, we began with the family unit and went to the town halls and went to our county government level and eventually became States and eventually became a strong union. We can expect no more nor no less from the people of other nations who are yearning to breathe free and have been given the chance to seize the opportunity.

On a more personal note, having been on my first trip to Afghanistan with my colleagues, we had the opportunity to meet with some female parliamentarians, and I was struck by two things: The first, and I said this to them, was that I admired their courage and that there was a part of me that envied them. I envy them because here in the United States capital we see portraits and we see monuments and we continue to this day to hear testaments to the courage and perseverance of our Nation's founders.

And I said that I was so honored to be in the presence of these female parliamentarians for in Afghanistan, as they move towards democracy, one day there will be testaments and monuments and portraits of them hanging on the walls of their own chambers and in the homes of their fellow countrymen.

We promised that day not to forget or forsake them. And today, thanks to the leadership of the ranking member and the chairman, we can tell those female parliamentarians that we have not forgotten them and that we stand with them.

And, finally, let us not forget when we think about the role of the United States, which was conceived in liberty, those female parliamentarians were once considered property until they were emancipated by the United States of America and the coalition allies.