Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 4355, to designate the U.S. Post Office located at 201 B Street in Perryville, Arkansas, as the ``Harold George Bennett Post Office.''

Staff Sergeant Harold George Bennett is one of Arkansas' finest sons, and he dedicated his life to serving our country. Sergeant Bennett was born on October 16, 1940, in Thornburg, Arkansas, a small town near the outskirts of the Ouachita National Forest. A graduate of Perryville High School, he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1957.

Sergeant Bennett served as an airborne infantryman with the 82nd and 101st Airborne Divisions, where he earned his Master Parachute Wings and Expert Infantry Badge. He completed Special Forces training in 1963, and in 1964, volunteered to serve in South Vietnam as a Special Forces adviser with the Military Assistance Command.

On December 29, 1964, his unit was airlifted to a small village after it had been overrun by a division of Viet Cong. Immediately upon landing, Sergeant Bennett's unit was confronted by a well dug-in regiment of enemy forces, and despite fighting furiously and courageously throughout the afternoon, his unit was overrun. Concerned for the safety of his fellow servicemembers, he twice directed American helicopter pilots attempting to rescue him to stand down, and was captured by the Viet Cong.

Sergeant Bennett spent 179 days as a POW and attempted to escape three times. During his last attempt, he injured an enemy soldier, and his captors executed him on June 25, 1965. As a

prisoner of war, the only thing more remarkable than the courageous resistance he displayed throughout his captivity was his steadfast devotion to duty, honor, and country. His faith in God and the trust of his fellow prisoners was unshakeable. Only 24 years old, Sergeant Bennett was the first American POW killed in Vietnam, and, like many other U.S. servicemen who lost their lives there, his remains have never been returned home.

Nearly four decades later, in 2004, Sergeant Bennett was inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame at Fort Benning. In 2006, his family was presented with his Combat Infantryman's Badge, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Prisoner of War Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, and Purple Heart. And in 2010, Sergeant Bennett's family was presented with his Silver Star.

Mr. Speaker, Sergeant Bennett was a selfless young man who answered his Nation's call to service and placed duty and honor above all else. Although he may no longer be with us, the example and selflessness of this brave young Arkansan will forever live on in our hearts. While a grateful nation could never adequately express its indebtedness to men like Staff Sergeant Harold George Bennett, it should take every opportunity to honor them and their families for the sacrifice they have paid on our behalf.

Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. Chairman, I want to begin by thanking Chairman Latham.

I yield to the gentleman from Iowa.

I want to, again, thank Chairman Latham, who has made this possible, working with his staff. I want to thank all the bipartisan support for this amendment from Mr. Kind, Mr. Walz, and Mr. Terry, as well as my staff.

I want to acknowledge the success that this builds on from the omnibus bill passed earlier this year, which incorporated my amendment from the FY14 T-HUD bill to increase funding for DOT's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, or PHMSA, over lower priority programs.

Mr. Chairman, on March 29, 2014, the ExxonMobil Pegasus pipeline in Mayflower, Arkansas, the Second Congressional District, suffered a catastrophic accidental rupture.

It inundated nearby homes and businesses with thousands of gallons of spilled oil. I am committed to making things right for the people of Mayflower and ensuring that another spill never occurs again in Arkansas.

PHMSA is the Federal Government's primary agency for regulating and ensuring the safe and secure movement of oil and petroleum products to industry and consumers through America's interstate pipelines. As an interstate pipeline, the inspection of the Pegasus pipeline was and is PHMSA's responsibility.

Pipelines move nearly two-thirds of the oil and petroleum products transported annually. Interstate pipelines deliver over 11.3 billion barrels of petroleum each year. The cost to transport a barrel of petroleum products from Houston to the New York Harbor is about a dollar.

American pipelines are, without question, the safest way to move oil, and ensuring the safe operation of pipelines that move oil from one State to another is unquestionably a necessary function of the Federal Government.

Although the amount of oil spilled from these pipelines is a minimal fraction of what we safely transport every day throughout the country, there is more we can do to ensure they are operated safely.

My amendment would increase the budget for PHMSA's operational expenses by $500,000 to further ensure the safety of our Nation's pipeline, and it will be taking this money from another account.

This appropriation finances the operational support costs for PHMSA and will help keep these pipelines and the communities like Mayflower that surround them safe from other tragic but preventable accidents, without spending additional dollars.

I ask that the House support this amendment.

I thank the chairman for supporting this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, today I submit the homily of Theodosia Murphy Nolan, a legendary Arkansas businesswoman and philanthropist, delivered on May 28, 2014, and authored by her godson, the Reverend Doctor Christoph Keller III.

Theodosia; from theos (God) and dosis (gift). ``Gift of

God.''

As Jesus was passing through Samaria, he met a woman at a

well. Thirsty, he asked for water. ``Who are you,'' she said,

``a Jew, a man, asking me, a woman of Samaria, for water?''

That's when he said: ``If you knew the gift of God, and who

it is that asks you for a drink, he would give you living

water.'' If you knew the Gift of God. If you knew Theodosia.

If you knew Theodosia, then you know the story; that her

father was already forty-five, her mother thirty--old for

those days--when they married; that in the first two

pregnancies, they lost their baby. Now came a daughter,

beautiful and healthy. With thankful hearts, they named her

Theodosia.

You know that she grew up gentle, respectful and devoted to

her parents, but not meek; that at sixteen, she owned and

flew an airplane, setting a dangerous example for her sister,

in the opinion of my father; and that at eighteen, she

married William, over objections from her parents. She was

too young; about William, there were questions. As she stood

her ground opposite her parents, she was being every inch

their daughter. Firm and loving, they gave their children

rope to make and accept the consequences of their own

decisions. It was her life and she would get to live it as

she saw fit.

So how did she live it? As a firm and loving wife and

mother, devoted to her family--and with William, who was a

keeper.

If you knew Theodosia, you know Bubba. For our guests,

Bubba is our term of endearment for Bertie Wilson Murphy,

Theodosia's mother. I guess Charlie Nolan must have been the

first to call her that. Eventually, Bubba was her name to

everyone in El Dorado.

When Bubba died almost forty years ago, Theodosia--now

``Dosia,'' thanks to Diny--assumed the matriarchal mantle for

our wider family, including siblings Charles, Polly and

Bertie, plus all their progeny and in-laws. Ours has been a

fruitful, multiplying clan, now sprawled out across the

planet from Seattle to Beirut. The family center, though, is

here in El Dorado: 900 N. Madison, where you can dangle your

feet in the pool, sucking scuppernongs and muscadines.

If you've read King Lear, or Faulkner, or Genesis and 2nd

Samuel, or the Wall Street Journal, or watched Dallas, then

you should know that life in families isn't simple,

necessarily.

Theodosia, however, doesn't bring to mind the complexity

of family life. She represents its grace. It was Robert Frost

who said: ``Home is the place where, when you have to go

there, they have to take you in.'' True enough, I suppose,

but it doesn't capture Theodosia. With her, you wanted to go

there and she wanted to take you in. She wanted to feed you a

heart-healthy breakfast: quail and scrambled eggs, Talla Bena

sausage with a side order of bacon, pancakes with Ribbon Cane

syrup (maple syrup only if you begged, served with a slight

frown of disapproval). She wanted you to plop down beside her

on the couch, get comfortable, and tell her the latest

chapter of your story. She would know that you weren't

telling her the whole truth. You would know that, even if you

did, she would love you. There was nothing you could do or

say that would warrant expulsion. You were family, period.

A word to my younger Nolan cousins: I used the word

``grace.'' If you have heard that word and wondered what it

means, then think of where you stood with Dosia.

Remember your worst day. You know that on that day she

still loved you. That is grace. Jesus made that point through

parables, like the prodigal son returning to his father. You

can understand the father in that parable just by knowing

Dosia. Once you understand that father, you know God.

The force of Theodosia's presence and example on our

family history is impossible to calculate, but I am thinking

that her impact was enormous. After everything, and no small

thanks to her, we know our family as a blessing. We won't let

it be less.

If you knew Theodosia, you know that, not only was she

devoted to a family, she was devoted to a place: El Dorado,

Arkansas.

Let's think on this place. Growing up in Arkansas, we

learn early on of our three distinct geological regions:

mountains to the north and west, delta to the east and, in

between, spreading south from Little Rock, the gulf coastal

plane. Of the three regions, this is the one that seems to

have lacked a national identity: Hillbillies, they know,

delta planters, they know, but who are we?

Well, there is a lot of wood, so I will start with that.

Wood means deer, and I will mention that. Then came oil. My

wife Julie recently took on a project to salvage and restore

a Steinway piano at Central High School in Little Rock. This

instrument had been purchased for the school in 1927. Julie

tracked down the original Steinway distributor's ledger that

recorded the sale. That particular ledger page shows 73 sales

from throughout the Mid-South. Looking it over, Julie noticed

a sale, December 28, 1926, to Bertie Wilson Murphy. When

Julie showed me her find, I noticed that, of the entries on

that page, no fewer than twenty were to buyers in El Dorado,

Arkansas. It made perfect sense! The Busey-Armstrong well

came in 1921. Through the twenties, El Dorado was a boomtown.

What are you going to do with all that new money? The good

citizens of El Dorado were going to purchase Steinways, which

we now know is what people did with extra cash before the

invention of the bass boat. Just three weeks ago, Julie

brought that ledger down to 900 North Madison and showed it

to Theodosia. They sat down on the couch beside Bubba's

Steinway, and Julie caught Theodosia up on Keller family

stories.

El Dorado's early glory day was back before the great

depression. Even then, it would not have been the kind of

town that is full of its own importance. There are such

places. Great ladies in such places are not called Bubba. I

have lived in such places and I appreciated and enjoyed them.

But they don't care. They don't need our loyalty and love. If

we want the kind of instant self-esteem they offer, we can

have it just by living there. They give us that, needing

nothing in return. These places are in New York or

California. I am told there may be some in Texas. They are

not in Arkansas. They are not El Dorado.

The big oil play petered out and the economics of the

region began to favor dispersion: raise your kids and send

them off, pack up the Steinways and move on. But El Dorado

defied that fate with muscular determination, as well as

cultured sensibility and aesthetic flair. Does that sound

like anyone we know?

As much as Theodosia's love for family was unconditional,

so was her commitment to South Arkansas. The taxes are a

little higher here than Florida or Texas, the lights a little

brighter in New York, but she belonged to El Dorado, case

closed. She stayed put, as did her brother; and, as they

insisted, so did the companies they founded. So Madison

stayed too, with Suzanne; and Bill, with Deborah; and Bob

with Candi, and in came Claiborne with Elaine; now Raymond

with Liza; and back come Mike and Sydney. And now El Dorado

is recognized throughout the country as the town where anyone

and everyone can get a college education. There are no such

towns in Texas, New York or California. El Dorado has an

impressive new identity; and a remarkable town square; and

a beautiful new school; and a growing reputation for

commitment to the arts. Also, the Wildcats are doing well.

All this grew as much from heart as calculation. This is a

little bit like faith. It has to stand the tests of reason--

in this case, economic reason--and it does, but there are

other factors in the blend: appreciation for tradition;

memories of loved ones; love of neighbor. As Newman said of

faith, belief in El Dorado lives in the desire for that which

it confesses. There are things between earth and heaven, my

dear Horatio, undreamt of by Investor's Weekly. To Theodosia,

such things were real and exceedingly important--and in some

small part because she saw them as such, they took hold.

Through grace, grit and imagination, El Dorado perseveres

against the tide.

If you knew Theodosia, you know where else her love of

place and family coalesced: the Coast and Cherokee. When we

say ``coast'' we don't mean the Pacific Palisades, we mean

Pass Christian and the Mississippi Sound--waveless, brown and

shallow. We couldn't wait to get there: slathered up with Off

and Coppertone, fishing from the pier, catching crabs and

speckled trout and occasionally a stingray; swinging in a

hammock with a good or trashy book; zooming up and down the

Gulf Coast Highway; eating better than kings. All that, we

lost to Hurricane Katrina. Even the house that Bubba built

couldn't hold against that primal tide. Safely inland,

Cherokee endures.

If you knew Theodosia, you know that, as we reckon long,

she lived a long time: from Model T to Prius. Not that she

would drive a Prius: she belonged in Thunderbirds. She lived

through social revolutions. I always knew what Polly Keller

thought about those revolutions as they happened. I also had

a solid take on William Nolan's views, which reliably ran

opposite to Polly Keller's. Theodosia held her opinions

closer to the vest. She seemed neither restless with the way

things were, nor much disturbed by the thought that they were

changing. There would still be town and family to attend to,

come what may.

I do know that in 1966 she supported David Pryor's run for

Congress in the Fourth District, because I read that in his

book (actually, my son Christoph read the whole book and

showed this to me. I read only the two or three sentences

concerning Theodosia.) In the primary, Charles Murphy was

backing Richard Arnold. (Show me a congressional election

from New York to California that involved such commendable

opponents.) The battle went to Pryor and Theodosia over

Charles and Richard Arnold. As I said, meek she was not.

Watch over thy child Theodosia, O Lord, as her days

increase. Bless and guide her, wherever she may be.

If you know Theodosia, you know her faith: Methodist, with

the occasional Episcopal accoutrements; and you know that she

called her children, and their children, and theirs, on their

birthdays, to pray with them from the Book of Common Prayer.

Strengthen her when she stands, comfort her when

discouraged or sorrowful . . .

Well, certain aspects of that prayer are no more

applicable to Theodosia. She leaves sorrow and discouragement

behind. She leaves you, her beloved family, with that prayer,

to say for one another as you carry on. As you say that

prayer, as I know you'll do, you will think of her. As you

think of her, remember her in faith. The faith in that prayer

imbues our attitude towards place and family--actually, our

attitude towards everything, Theodosia's death included. At

least, it should; and for her, it did.

This place, First United Methodist, was the church through

which she lived that faith through all her many years. Here,

she commended the souls of Charles and Bertie her parents;

William her husband; Charles her brother; and Bill her son,

to the good Lord who was grace itself, incarnate.

If you know Theodosia, you know that, good Methodist that

she was, her faith in Christ was first and last a matter of

the heart.

She had a good one, didn't she. She was a gift.

Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, May 28, 2014, I missed two rollcall votes as I was home in Arkansas attending the funeral of Theodosia Murphy Nolan.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on rollcall vote 241 and ``aye'' on rollcall vote 242.

Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, May 6, 2014, and Wednesday, May 7, 2014, I missed eleven votes as I was home in Arkansas continuing my work in dealing with the aftermath of the devastating storm that hit my district, including a visit with the President of the affected area in Vilonia, Arkansas.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye'' on rollcall vote 194, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 195, ``no'' on rollcall vote 196, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 197, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 198, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 199, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 200, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 201, ``no'' on rollcall vote 202, ``aye'' on rollcall vote 203, and ``aye'' on rollcall vote 204.

Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, April 30, 2014, I missed four votes as I was returning home to Arkansas to continue my work in dealing with the aftermath of the devastating storm that hit my district over the weekend, including a scheduled tour of the affected areas in Mayflower and Vilonia with the United States Secretary of Homeland Security, who subsequently postponed his visit.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall vote No. 184, ``no'' on rollcall vote No. 185, ``no'' on rollcall vote No. 186, and ``yea'' on rollcall vote No. 187, for final passage of H.R. 4486, the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act.

Mr. Speaker, on Monday, April 28, 2014, and Tuesday, April 29, 2014, I missed six votes as I was home in Arkansas dealing with the aftermath of the devastating storm that hit my district over the weekend.

Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall vote 178, the passage of H.R. 4192, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 179, the passage of H.R. 4120, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 180, the Previous Question, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 181, the Adoption of the rule for Expatriate Health Coverage Clarification, ``yea'' on rollcall vote 182, the passage of H.R. 4414, and ``yea'' on rollcall vote 183, the passage of H.R. 627, of which I am a cosponsor.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Jimmy Joe Johnson, whose quick thinking, expertise, and determination helped save Lake Conway from free flowing crude oil on March 29, 2013, when the ExxonMobil Pegasus Pipeline ruptured.

Jimmy Joe has been the Mayflower Street Department Supervisor for 15 years. His swift plan of action helped protect a critical natural resource in central Arkansas. Along with a crew of city, county and local volunteers, he deployed every resource available, including dump trucks and backhoes to construct a barricade that isolated the surging oil.

Racing against time, they first plugged a pair of 48-inch metal pipes that isolated the oil to a 30-acre cove beside Lake Conway, a 6,700-acre body of water.

He then instructed his crew to create a dike the length of a football field with gravel and pipes, allowing the oil to pool where it could be removed with vacuums and skimmers. By the time rain began falling that evening, the Mayflower Street Department had exhausted a supply of 75 tons of gravel.

Lake Conway was created by an Arkansas conservation agency and is the largest man-made lake in the United States. It is renowned for its catfish, crappie, bluegill, and bass. The lake is approximately eight miles long with 52 miles of shoreline.

Jimmy Joe claims that he did what anyone else would have done during the oil spill, but his swift actions demonstrated a tremendous amount of excellence and leadership in the midst of a crisis.

On behalf of Arkansans and Americans everywhere, I honor Jimmy Joe Johnson and his entire crew for their heroic actions.

Mr. Speaker, on Monday, April 7, 2014 I missed two votes due to a family funeral. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no'' on rollcall vote 165, the Motion to Recommit and ``aye'' on rollcall vote 166, the passage of H.R. 1872, the Budget and Accounting Transparency Act.

Madam Speaker, at a time when our economy is sluggish and job creation is stagnant, the last thing American workers can afford are reduced hours. Yet, because of the redefined 30-hour full-time employee definition in ObamaCare, that is exactly what many Americans are facing.

In addition to higher premiums and canceled coverage, millions of Americans are at risk of losing hours. Many of them are women, young moms and dads, and those working hard to support their families and to make ends meet. Now they are paying the price for the President's broken health care law.

The Save American Workers Act will help them. It will restore the 40- hour workweek. It will help Americans bring home their paychecks, and it will provide relief to those who need it most.

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

I rise today in support of H.R. 2575, the Save American Workers Act. This Act would restore the traditional 40-hour definition of a full- time job.

Washington may think that it knows best, but that is simply not true. This provision in ObamaCare is a perfect example of how the law hurts the very people it was intended to help. In Arkansas, we try to apply a little common sense. We all know 30 hours isn't full time, but that is what ObamaCare says, and no one seems to know why. We had a hearing in the Ways and Means Committee, and many of those who testified were puzzled as to why 30 hours was chosen. Even in France, a full-time job is 35 hours a week. Because of ObamaCare's mandates and taxes, employers are cutting workers' hours and are replacing full-time folks with part-time folks. This is real. We have seen this in Arkansas.

Let me give you some examples:

Arkansas State University reduced some workers to a maximum of 29 hours per week. The Area Agency on Aging of Western Arkansas cut hours for hundreds of home health aides and drivers to 28 hours per week. Pulaski Technical College limited hours for adjunct faculty, directly impacting students' education choices.

Just yesterday, I received a letter from the Arkansas Hospitality Association. They say ObamaCare's 30-hour rule will hurt roughly 100,000 hospitality workers.

These are folks who are working hard, playing by the rules, and trying to make it. All they want is a fair shot at success. That is what they deserve, but ObamaCare has taken that away.

According to research by the Hoover Institution, this ObamaCare rule puts 2.6 million workers making under $30,000 a year at risk. Almost 90 percent of these workers do not have college degrees. Over 60 percent of them are women. These are good, hardworking Americans, but they may lose their hours or even their jobs thanks to ObamaCare.

Wasn't this law supposed to help people get health insurance? But what are they getting? They are getting no insurance and less pay. Incredible.

I want to thank my colleague and good friend, Mr. Young, for introducing this important bill, and I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan solution that will help people keep their jobs and higher wages.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Mullin).

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

Madam Speaker, I think it is instructive to think about what this bill does in the context of the ACA.

ObamaCare defines full time as 30 hours. That doesn't surprise me coming from this administration; but we all know that just because Washington says it is so, doesn't make it so.

Thirty hours isn't full time. When we asked some experts who testified in Ways and Means, they had no idea where the 30 hours came from. They surmised that people were sitting around at the White House and just said 30 is a good number. They could have said 20. How about 10? How about 1 hour a week is full time?

If we tried to change it, and it was 1 hour, of course people that had insurance would have their situation changed. But this is about what is full time and what isn't.

The French consider 35 hours full time. Can we not at least agree that in this country 40 hours used to be full time?

That is the issue.

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to my good friend from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. King).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schock).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Dent).

Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Hurt).

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlelady from Kansas (Ms. Jenkins), my friend, and I ask unanimous consent that she control the remainder of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my support once again for the immediate approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. I feel like I have been doing this year after year, calling for the President to move forward with the Keystone pipeline, and I realize I have been doing this year after year, pretty much since I got here in 2011.

And every day, as the gentleman from Nebraska mentioned, every day there is another name added to the list of folks who say: You know what, this does make sense.

When I look closely at the articles, I see that it is a former Obama administration official, and the next day, another former Obama administration official, and again and again and again. There was another one today, as the gentleman mentioned.

Just a few weeks ago, more than 2 years after President Obama first rejected the Keystone pipeline and more than 5 years after the application to build it was first submitted to the State Department, the government's latest environmental analysis of the Keystone pipeline project was released.

This analysis showed very clearly that this project will have little environmental impact, provide much-needed jobs, and contribute $3.4 billion to our economy.

What you have in this situation now is the President waiting for a report; the report comes out from his State Department. Waiting for another report, and then one comes out from the Academy of Sciences. If he keeps waiting, there are not going to be any reports left, and the only decision left will be his decision. That is really where we are.

Hardworking Americans are ready for a real, all-of-the-above energy strategy. The need for this is made more and more clear by what has been going on with Russia and Ukraine, but the Obama administration continues to block this critical infrastructure project and all the good-paying jobs it would create.

I believe they are doing it for one reason and one reason only-- politics--because they have some extreme supporters that they want to keep relatively happy in an election year. That is what this is all about.

Where I live in Little Rock, Arkansas, workers at a company called Welspun have manufactured hundreds of miles of pipe, but it is just sitting in a storage yard because the President refuses to let the Keystone XL pipeline be built.

In fact, I was wondering whether there was still some out there, and we confirmed today there is still about 350 miles of pipe sitting out there in the yard.

Last September, Dave Delie, the head of Welspun, testified to Congress that the Keystone XL project has so far employed more than 600 Arkansans for over 1\1/2\ years at Welspun alone.

Imagine how many other people could get paychecks, could have a job, for all the other work related to the pipeline, including construction work and operation of the pipeline. Americans are looking for work right now. They have waited long enough. It is time to build this pipeline.

I understand that folks--some folks--are worried about protecting the environment and making sure our families and children have clean water to drink. I am too, so let's not argue over settled science.

Research released last year from the National Academy of Sciences concludes that the oil sands crude Keystone will transport is no more corrosive than other crude oils and does not increase the risk of leaks.

We all saw what happened when a train carrying oil in Canada derailed last July. Most of an entire town was obliterated, and nearly 50 people were killed. That was tragic and devastating.

We know that pipelines are safer. We know this. The solution is clear. We need to improve and modernize our pipeline infrastructure, and the Keystone XL project will include over 50 additional safety measures.

President Obama and Secretary Kerry should do the right thing for our environment and the right thing for American workers. Let's create jobs. Let's build Keystone now.

Mr. Speaker, I was delayed and missed rollcall vote No. 40 on Wednesday, February 5, 2014.

If I had been present, I would have voted ``nay'' for the Motion to Recommit H.R. 3590, the Sportmen's Heritage and Recreational Enhancement (SHARE) Act of 2013.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great sadness to remember my good friend Chris Battle, who passed away on August 8, 2013, at the age of 45 after a four-year battle with kidney cancer.

Chris received both his bachelor's degree and his master's degree from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. After a short stint as a reporter for the Northwest Arkansas Times, he served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Communications Director for then-Representative Asa Hutchinson for nearly four years. He went on to manage the editorial page of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, our state's most-read newspaper. During the George W. Bush Administration, he held public affairs and management positions at the Drug Enforcement Administration and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He returned to Arkansas to manage a gubernatorial campaign, and then became a Partner at Adfero Group in Washington, DC, where he continued to work after being diagnosed with cancer.

I first met Chris and his wife, Dena, when I was working as staff on Capitol Hill. Chris was a funny, brilliant, thoughtful and caring friend who impacted the lives of many for the better.

I have fond memories of spending time with Chris and Dena in both Washington, DC, and Little Rock. Chris is missed. Rest in peace, Chris.

Along with Dena, Chris wrote about his struggle with cancer on a blog called ``The Kidney Cancer Chronicles.'' Chris was funny and reflective, and he wrote about his love for his family, Dena and daughters, Kate and Josie.

Those that knew Chris or read his blogs will tell you he was an intelligent and thoughtful human being. An incredible writer, he turned some of his darkest hours into encouragement for others also suffering from this deadly disease.

In February, Chris recounted how his situation had taken a turn for the better, all things considered, writing: ``Never give up, never lose faith. I can't know whether this reprieve will last, but, given this new life, I plan to embrace it while it does.''

Chris embraced life with vigor, even as his faded. As our thoughts and prayers remain with the loved ones he left behind, let us always remember the example that he set and keep his words close in our hearts.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the devastating disease pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatic cancer is the fourth largest cause of cancer deaths in the United States. With a five-year survival rate of just six percent, it is one of the scariest and most difficult cancer diagnoses a person can receive.

Hope is found in outstanding treatment and research facilities, such as the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute, located in Central Arkansas, which I represent.

It is also found in the work of scientists and advocates, such as the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, whose Arkansas chapter tirelessly advances awareness of the disease and supports the researchers seeking cures.

During the 112th Congress, the Recalcitrant Cancer Research Act, which I supported, was signed into law. Passing this bill was a huge step forward for cancer research.

Federal research grants provide the seed money pancreatic cancer researchers need to identify specific risk factors and develop early detection methods--all of which someday, hopefully, will lead to a cure.

Cancer research relies on the certainty that critical research funds will be available into the future.

But, we can make these investments only when our Nation's spending priorities are in order.

America has what I call a Pac-Man problem: autopilot spending is driving up our debt and swallowing up our ability to fund programs like medical research, transportation improvements, and health care for our veterans.

Nearly two-thirds of our Federal budget is auto-pilot, mandatory spending including Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and interest on our debt.

Unless we save and strengthen these programs for the future, Pac-Man will continue to swallow up the dollars we'd like to invest in research to fight deadly diseases including pancreatic cancer.

I have long supported critical funding for research and will continue to do so.

I will also continue to fight to reform the drivers of our debt because, unless we do, our Nation will have even fewer resources to direct toward the research and treatments that will save American lives.