along with what is going toagain france. that whole scenario should be talked about. right now, the united states is in the beginning of world war iii. we can see that. what we have to do as a nation is to come together. i spent 10 years in nato and two years in the middle east. this has to be united as a we've got to stop all the bickering between the so-called parties. and i justope the world understands america is lookedia. the republicans and democrats have got to stop it. we've got to get this country ed. thank you, sir. host: >> we are going to take you live to the house gaveling for

votes. an motion to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6983. the first electronic vote will be conducted ago a 15-minute vote. pursuant to clause 9 of rule torques receipt maining electronic vote will be conducted as a five-minute vote. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the unfinished business is the vote onrom the gentleman from ohio, mr. jordan, to suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 1215, as amended, on which t title. the clerk: house resolution elected officials in civil society leaderublic on the contributions of the jewish american community. the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and agree to the as ahadn'ted. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be a 15-minute vote.l3

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vote, the yeas are 371, the nays are zero. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, thend without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table■ f

the speaker: the house will come to before the house a communication. caller: the honorable the speaker, house oftives, sir, i e honor to transmit here with a

copy of a letter received from ms. janet lee, chief, elections division, california secretary of state, indicating that the unofficial results held may 21, 2024, the vince fong was elected to the 25th congressional district of california. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the recogniti? >> i ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from california, the honorable vince fong, be permitted to take the oath of office today. mr. calvert: his of election has not arrived but there's question about the elecon. the speaker: without objection. will representative-elect fong

and the members delegation prest themselves in the well. all members will rise and the representative-elect will please raise his right hand. do you solemnly swear or affirmd the constitution of the united states against all enemies foreign and domestic and will bear true faith allegiance to the same, that you take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and tha you will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which you're about to enter? mr. fong: ido. the speaker: congratulations, you're now a member of the 118th congress.without objection, then

from california, mr. calvert is recognized for one minute. mr. calvert: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to congratulate our newest member of the california delegation, vince fong. while he may have just arhode island, he's joining our delegation after serving in the california sta assembly since 2016. he's also armed with a knowledge and invalue queubl insights learned if his time serving as h legends like and kevin mccarthy. we have no doubt you'll be just as successful asour on behalf of the entire delegation let me again wife amanda and the entire fong family. i would now like to yield to the

newly minted congressman, vince fong. mr. fong: thank you. speaker, it privilege to stand beforhoif 20h district of the great state of california. i'm truly hon in order, humbled and grateful to be given this opportunity by the voters to serve and be a strong voice for it is truly more special to be the gallery.h my f i want to thank my wife ahman davment

amanda for her love and support. i want to thank my parent, my mother-in-law, my and all of our family for always being by my side. and a special acknowledgment to my niece, celebrating her ninth birthday with us today. thank my mentor and friend, speaker kevin mccarthy. tirelessly for decades on behalf of the constituents of the central valley of. in traveling the 20th congressional district, listening to m constituent, and friends throughout fresno, county, i knr concerns are very familiar with the concerns thatll of you have heard. we must do more to find solutions and to deliver results

we need to address the border crisis. stop the rising costs of everyday essentials that are squeezing family budgets. and work community swaism must strengthen our cruming infrastruck churk find long-term solutions to water and energy infrastructure especially ou educational opportunities. we must support our military installations. i want to thank the men and women of naval air weapons station china lake, naval air station l'amour, and the fresno air national guard for their service and sacrifice defen i passionate discourse. that is expected of us. there's certainly no shortage of challenges facing our nation,ita and my district. but this is also the moment where we together can makehemos. i was born and raised in the central value lea. the son o pharmacist

who moved his family to bakersel opportunity, never imagining that one kay he'd witness his son sneeng floor of the house of representatives. egion is known for its grit, perseverance and and driv, family and patriotism. i am blessed t cy home. in close, i look forward to serving and working alongside all of you to address our nation's challenges. and to ensure that the voice of the congressional district my neighbors have entrusted to me are heard every single day in these halls of congress. we can tackle these challenges head on and leave a better and stronger america for future generations. mr. speaker, i yield back.

fep the speaker: under clause 5-d of rule 20, the chair announces to the house that in light of the administration of the oath to the gentleman from california, the whole numbeof is now 431. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the unfinished business is the vote on the motion of the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. grothman, to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 6983 on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the tiet. caller: h.r. 6983, a bill to degn fa still of the united states postal service located at 15 south valdo strvetion a road in georgia as the mel patten wok wal post

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the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 369 and the nays are recorded as present. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended the bill is passed and the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina seek recognition mr. wilson: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent when the houso meet at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. wilson: thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from minnesota seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house out of order for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

ms. omar: i rise to honor the life of a 38-year-old minnea mitchell killed in the line of duty in minneapolis on thursday, may 30, 2024. officer mel 2022. those who knew officer mitchell saw him as a leader, a changemaker and a peacemaker. officer mitchell showed up to work every day to help keep our community safe. his courageous efforts were apparent early when he saved an elderly couple from a burning home. remembered for his compassion, bravery, and love of people. he was known to have a big heart and chose to use his love of people to help strengthen our communities and support young people. even as a police officer, officer mitchell found time to give back to the community by helping coach first and second grade boys basketball teams.

officer mitchell died as a hero and by those who knew him and loved him. he is survived by his partner, mother, stepfather, siblings, and children. i ask my colleagues to join me in a moment of silence. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. fo does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? without objectiminute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise wish mr. phil george,

a distinguished veteran and legendary coach from san angelo, texas, a happy 100th birthday today and he may be watching right now. phil george is a veteran of world war ii and vietnam where he spe y service as an incredibly talented pilot. mr. pfluger: when the nation called he answered multiple times. i can't overstate the sacrifices he made while putting his basketball career on hold and he answered therve in world war iid vietnam. his faith in god late wife and family is inspiring. in addition to his record of service to our nation, mr. george as an incredible record as a basketball coach and athletic director at san angelo state university. greatest generation, you think daymr. phil george. today. i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yield. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from alabama seek dress the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. - ms. sewell: i rognize bloy tuesday and to acknowledge and respect the tuscaloosa chapter for the upcoming commemoration event. on june 9, 1964, over 500 african-americans gathered at the first african baptist church to take a stand against racial segregation at the tuscaloosa county courthouse. before■y even five feet, their peaceful at the hands of police and a mob of white citizens. gassed, hosed, and beaten with billy clubs and baseball bats.

altogether, 33 marchers were hospitalized andea 100 were arrested. it was the largest assaultvasioy law enforcement. bloody tuesday set the stage for the bloody march from selma to montgomery. i commend the tuscaloosa aclc for their work to keep the memory of bloody tuesday alive. i ask my colleagues to join in commemorating the 60th anniversary of bloody tuesday. we must never, ever forget. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose ds the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? mr. thompson: i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. thompson:haeaker. official boating and fishing week. as an avid outdoorsman, i recognize the pastime of many,

fishing and boating. pennsylvanh district is blessed with hundreds of rivers andrni:■$ lad streams for any angler or boater to enjoy. whether you're casting a led hot or enjoying a boat cruise, the waterways have to much to -- so much to offer. let the younger generation recognize boating and let businy on them for their livelihoods. as the warm weather drives us to our waterways, it's important to remember the necessary safety tips when enjoying a dayn the water. always remember to wear your life jacket and monitor the weather and water conditions. enjoy all the waterways have to offer this national fishing and boating week. thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? ms. kaptur: i ask unanimous

consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. thspeakepro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman is than one year ago, the people of east palestine, ohio, faced a christ that shook their community to its core caused by a rail derailment, the train derailmentu■ unleashed a torrent of toxic checa clouds of environmental fear in its wake. today we stand here not just pat but to act for the future. alongside my colleague, david joyce, we recently introduced the. barry: east palestine health impact -- the east palestine health impact. it's important to make sure nc addressed, by authorizing funding for the comprehensive study of the impao

understand the full extent of the damagessary support for rec. i urge my colleagues to join us in this crucial bipartisan and bicameral endeavor. let us reaffirm our commitment to the well-being of all s and ensure no community is left behind. thank you, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. for what purpose does the gentlema from tennessee mr. burchett: i seek to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. burchett: thank you, madam speaker, i rise to honor laura who just retired after 43 years of teaching atrt school. she was born in cleveland, ohio, in 1949ut her family moved to tennessee after her 11th birthday and attende middle east tennessee university and after she graduated in 1971 startedching in troutsdale county and then her family moved to memphis where she went to grad school at the university of

memphis and shot at st. paul's and the shelby county school system until after 1981 and after tha moved to knoxville and started teaching first grade at sacred heart school. she's shown patience and dedication and love to the studen that come through her class. she played a role to her mentors and colleagues throughout the years. she has a servant's heart, madam speaker, and helped so many people at the school. she is surrounded by so many that■5 her, including friends and family and has four children. and they also have eight grandchildren. i wish laura the best of luck in a new chapter of retirement is d and i know the folks at sacred heart will miss her she rusch blessed to have you. i yield my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? >> i a unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recoized f one minute.

mr. davis: madam speaker, i rise to highlight the importance of ensuring that national leaders hear the voices and concerns of eastern north carolina to include the residence of tarol county which is near and dear to me. with the population ofw 235, the county is the smallest in our state. i'm deeply the interior secretary deb hollins' visit to our county in february. her presence and federal funds for the boardwa will make a significant difference. during my most recent the conces of columbia who shared their concerns about drainage, infrastructure, housing, and the need for more youth activities. i truly feel honored to the residents of this extraordinary community, dpite their small numbers, their impact is mighty. .

thank you, madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro does the gentlen seek recognition. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized one minute. mr. carter: i rise today honor lucille patton holloway for her dedicated service to the united states through her civilian work contributing during world war ii. mrs. holloway is part of a special group of women who answered the call of duty when the country needed their efforts. she worked assembling wings for the b-17, and she worked at the, manufacturing weaponry. she was working at this plant on the day the japanese surrendered on september 2, 1945. her actions, hard work, and we can do it attitude, in world

war ii and represent the highest ideals of service in the united states of america. i extend to you my personal thanks and our sincere appreciation of a grateful nation for your service to great nation. my best wishes to you and may godnd your family. thank you, madam speaker, and i yield back. the ke for what purpose does the gentleman from indiana seekgnit? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> madam speaker, it is with great respect i rise today to recognize month and celebrate all members of the lgbtq community in northwest indiana and across the nation. mr. mor■ mrvan: i'm proud fob of the committee prohibit discrimination based on sex or

gender identity. more must beon all lgbtq individuals are able to thri inur communities without fear of recrimination. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from sout recognition? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. willson: thank you, madam speaker. census bureau data shows trump has adheved highest take home pay increases of he raised the real-take home by $527. the policies of bide have cost negative $2,080 collars. judge merchan now9 continuc

troughs-elect donald trump with world record fundraising. the latt response to the -- by the mesh p■%is over $200 millioe trump campaign. deserves a trump inauguration invitation from me to sit with my grandson during the inrawingation. in conclusion, thank you to our troops who have protected our country as the global war terrorism moves from the middle east to our homeland.o not needw we need to enforce existing bolm innocent as repeatedly barehand the f.b.i. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without jection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute.

mr. nossise in solidarity with . this marks the anniversary of the attack on the holy shrine of sikhism in which many sikhs were kill. many sikhs have sought refuge in the united states including in south jersey. they built their live here's. made countless contrib to the educational, economic and cultural richness of our natio s of those who were killed in that 1948 -- in 1984 alive. today i join with the sikh community in remembering those lost in this horrific attack and to honor those who carry on their legacy today. with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address th and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute.

mr. lamalfa: thank you. if you oer ore fall months the w years, maybe longer than that, you would see that fire season is soon upon and it's had devastating effects. one example would be a one■s million acre fire, one fire, of a million acres, in my district, just three short years ago. so what are we doing as a federal government to cbat that? moving pretty slowly. the u.s. forest svi allowed, duo lack of ability to get access to the forest and get the type of board feet out that needs to happen, we've seen 50 individual saw mill closures since march of 20 -- up until march. so with all these closure, 1,500 saw mills have closed since the year 2000. where is the capacity going to be to process these logs and turn them into something useful

if the private sector isn't allowed to take enough harvest because the forest service lack of action? so million-acre fire, import, the u.s. is now number one in imported wood when we have all this wood standing out there. makes no sense. we've go-- to move much quicker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from indiana seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> madam speaker, i rise to celebrate the university of notre dame men's lacrosse team who one week ago today won their second straight national championship.■r mr. yakym: well know that the sequel is rarely better than the original but that wasn't the case last mday as we watch the fighting irish beat the maryland terrapins in dominating fashion in philly. the irish became the first d-1 men's lacrosse team to capture back-to-back titles since the

duke blue devils did so a decked aago. notre dame is renowned fir that are -- forn, play like a comp today. that's what the irishmen did all season long, going 16-1 overall and ending the year on an exhilarate 14-g-game win streak. so congratulations to head coach for bringing more championship hardware back to our region. thank you for making notre dame a national champion once again.. thank you, madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 9, 2023, the gentleman from alabama, mr. moore is recognized for 60 minutes as the dignee of the majority leader. mr. ort all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. moore: i rise today to honor the 80th anniver d-day where more than 2 cialgz 500 americans gav their lives on ber

free do. president roosevelt went on944, nation radio to address the about the normandy invasion. his speech took the form of a my fellow americans, last night when i spo to you about the fall of rome, i knew at that moment that the troopof the united states and our allies were crossing the channel in another and greater operation. it has come toh success thus far. so in this pointed hour, i ask . almighty god, our son, the pride of our nation, this day have set upon a mighty endeavor. a struggle to preserver religio. and our civilization. and to set free a suffering humanity. lead them straight and true. give the their arms, stoutness to their heart, and steadfast faith. they will needings.

their road will be long and hard. for the enemy is strong. back o. success may in the come with rushing speed. but we shall return again and again and we know that by thy grace and by thy righteousness our cause, our sons, williumph. they will be sore tired. fight big without rest until victory is den. the darkness will rent by noise and flame. these mm the wifes peace. they fight not for the lust of conquest. they fight to end conquest. they fight to liberate. they fight to■2 let justice ari. people.rance and goodwill among they yearn but for annd of battle. for their retn to their haven of home. some will never return. these, d receive them. thy■q heroic into thy

kingdom. for us at home, childrens wives, sisters and brothers of these b thoughts and prayers are ever with them, help us, almighty god, to rededicate ourselves into ren in this great hour of sacrifice. nation into a single day of special prayer but because the road is long angreat i ask thate devote themselves to continuous prayer as we rise each new day and begin when each night is spent, let words of be on our lip, invoking thy■wk$ to our efforts. give us strengthtoo to redouble our contributions we make inl se make of our armed forces. let our hearts be stout to wait outhe long travail, to bear the sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our sons wheresoever they may be.

and lord give us faith. faith in thee. faith in our sons. faith in each other. faith in our united csalet not r spirit ever be dusmed let not the impact temporary events or temporal matters of but fleelting■ not these deter us in our unconquerable purpose. with thy blessings we shall prevail over our enemy. help us conquer the apostles of greed and the racial air began sis. lead us to the saving of our countr and with our sister tion into a world of unity that will spell a sure peace, a peace invulnerable to all the schemings of unworthy men. and a peace that will let all fe just rewards of their honest toil. done, almighty god, amen. several of to read letters from american soldiers describing the events of d-day. first i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend from florida, congressman steube

mr. steube: thank you for yielding. soldiers, sailors and airmen of the allied expeditionary force you are about to embark upon the great crusade, toward these man. the dwhriefs wrorld are upon you. the hopes and prayers of liberty loving people march with you ine allies and brothers in arms on other front, we'll bring about theeinstruction of the german war machine, the end■ of nazi tyranny and security for ourselves and a free world. your task will not ease yes one. your enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. this is the year 1944. much has h the nazi's triumph of 1940 and 1941. we have inflicted on the germans great defeats in open battle, man-to-man. our air offensive has reduced their strength in t air and comn the ground.

our home fronts have given us sn weapons p of war and placed at our disposal great reserves of training, fighting men. the free men of the world are i have full confidence in your colonel, devotion to dutynd wiln full victory. go luck. let us all beseech the blessings of almighty god■ bn this -- upon this great and noble undertaking. general dwight eisenhower. mr. moore: i now recogni my good friend, representative aderholt of alabama, for three mines. speaker, in honor of the upcoming 80th anniversary of d-day i rise to share the words of mechanic mats of sheffield, alabama, in alabama's fourth congressional

district. he was onef first wave of soldiers that landed on omahae s wrote the following letter from. the first batch ofac are hit be. somewhere between zero six:30 and zero mostly planes overhead, headed fo france. granted at zero five hundred, destroyer ahead shot up three mines. ships everywhere to the right ls can be seen. must be in the thousands of small boats out in the water. the water was exceptionally rough for small boats. four small boats out of 900.

on l.s.t., landed ship tank, 511, pick up wounded. battleships and destroyers flying over our heads. i could s floating bodies on the water. some of the bodies in life jack. sunk along the beaches. all sorts of obstaes in the water. out to aut 500 yards. only four ofurre dispahed to th. another one sent to omaha beach to assist. madamak this letter that i just read serves as a powerfus allied forces were faced with and the bravery they exempted on drve exemplified on d-day. . iant to thank my colleague,

mr. moore, for us to remember thosently and give us an opportunity to continue to tell the stories of these great americans. may god bless each of those soldiers, their families, and may god bless america. and i yield back. mr. moore: thank you, mr. aderholt. at this recognize mr. westerman from arizona. ■sdç mr. westerman: i want to thank the gentleman from alabama for or tonight, mr. moore, and as we reflect on 80 years since the invasion of d-day, it's my honor to get to read an account from rert hear . what i'm about to share, it says, the following is my transcription of the d-day

related section of my■] father's flight officer harland orr's pilot log, i'm clarence c. burton, his only child. invasion started, over 80 holes in my glider. germans were shooting many tows. best pal buck jackson was killed after releasing over enemy territory. knocked down three times in landing, made it ok. could feel heat from those bullets. mighty lucky to come out alive. gave a morphine shot to ease the pain. stayed by him in the open field for an hour. made him as comfortable as possible until i could get german mortars and machine guns wereaking potshots at us. coness.urprised at my own i had tommy gunn ready for action. moved up with the 8 2nd division, expecting counterattack, dug in, plenty nervous. waited all night but nothing

happened. got o sniper. there were snipers all over the place. i learned mor■é/e than the army taught me in two years. d.f.c. they can have their mals as far as i'm concerned. thought of my wife all the time. had her picture with me. could hrse angels flapping their wings many times. kept m pocket bible with me all the time. god was with me out there, and i'm thankful for it. was it hell? i know because i went through the worst part of thought of mom and dad many times. ihought that dad could really have a p over here like g chucks, you hav to wait for them and pick them off. i didn't take any souvenirs, what's the use? i' no glory grabber. just end this war and let me come home. many times i prayed o there and i meant every word i said. things were plenty tough and i needed all the strength i cou f.

if i get decorated, his mother's got to move up now, so that's all for now i yield back. mr. moore: thank you, mr. westerman. i now recognize my friend from s, weber. mr. weber: i thank the gentlemar this special order commemorating the valor of the greatest generation. eight decades ago, brave men stormed normandy's beaches to confront tyranny to secure our freedoms. on this 80th■ó d-day anniversar, we honor their courage and resilience. their sacrifieminds us of humanity's resilience and adversity. a sergeant and lieutenant. from highlighting the

texas. the power which is now proudly stationed, mr. speaker, in texas 14 and highlighting the bravery of its soldiers, too. quote, a the sky lightened armada became visible, the smoking and bni french shoreline also became more defined. at 0600 the huge guns of the allied naviespened■n one of the greatest military ever. the diesels ooard our craft failed t muffle the tordic blasting. i could see the battleship texas firing broadside into the coastline. boom, bubba boom. within minutes, great giant swells from the recoil of these guns nearly swamped us and added to the sea sickness and misery, but one could actually also see

the 2,000 pound missiles tumbling on their targets, and one from sergeant bixler the 29th infantry division. thank you, sergeant bixler, author of our brave patriots, he said this, quote, immediately ae rockets fired. it was our hope and desire to run right up on the beach for a dry landing. not because we were afraid of getting wet but because if we were soaked it would be added weight to carry wle climbing. the british navyeno put us dry but suddenly ran aground with the ramp drop and the officer said, everybody out. looking ahead, i could see 15 or 20 feet of water, a muddy, dirty gray stretch. the entire area was marked by guns of texas and the bombers. then i quote from lieutenant

george kirshner. thank you. second ranger battalion, that was his quote. and i want to tell mr. speaker we should never forget the brary of the greatest generation. let usóh uphold us. let us teach our chiren the latest generation about the greatest generation. and about their legacy. they ce over from world war ii they came home and built the greatest country the world has ever known. i yield back.

mr. e: i represent mr. babin of texas, another friend of mine.■ from alabama, mr. moore, f thean special order and what a special time it is. as the son of ii vet myself who was in the pacific and as a former army enlisted troop and former army air force officer myself, stationed in germany, during the 1970's, it'e opportunity to read a letter writn by world war ii and army r elsworth hill, written to his family back home on june 14, 1944. as it goes, dear florence, nancy,his one letter to all three will he to suffice for the time being, for there is scaresly an idle

and when there is an idle moment, i usually amall asleep. today, however, i've had some time to myself, and ie been far enough away from activities to really enjoy myself. as you may surmise, i'm somewhere in france. as of where, it's n to be disclosed but as the papers have carried the story of d-day, you know it was on the coast of normandy. the going for the past week has been quite rugged, particularly for an old man like myself. but have fnd that i could keep up with the youngsters. you should have received a letter from me dated june 5, but nothing has been written in t meantime. all the things incident to t bee first few days here can bmunica. what can be said now would

hardly do justi to what happened. maybe as things develop, i can write you of my own experiences. it so happened that i w attacene advanced section. cause of that i have had a bird's eye view, or shouldxhole. the magnitude of it is beyond all com hennigs. for the past week, i've been pu, when we've had a chance to even pitch it. i sleep on the ground, and i mean sleep. to therring around with the pack,idearms and k rations throughhe country and up and downhill haseen pretty strenuous exercise. by way of diversion, there's an occasional air r artillery shelling of the roads that we are traveling on. fortunately, the weather has been marvelous. only one day of rain, and that wasn't t bad. when i stopped to think of feely

marvouy well, and i'm really in good physicalondition. the spot where our camp is located rig n is iny. i don't kno whether mummy hats been in this part of normand but if she has, she can tell you how pretty these french farms are. tonight i had the first cooked meal in er a wee i went up to a little french cafe in a small village, and believe it or not, had steak, french fried potatoes, strawberries bottle of wine all for 100d)rancs, $2. i'm a closing a five for nancy's colleion of whatnots. the people say is their liberation. as one drives through the villages, they chase and wave and every farmer wants to give you wine. but with it all, there's been

destruction. chateaus have just beenul devastated and whole families have been made homeless. because i can tell you so little about what is going on and beca i am sleepy, i will stop here. all i really wanted to say was that i am well and not to have any worries about me. with love to you all, and a word i will write as obvious as circumstances permit, the old man hill. what an eye opening letter. folks, no one but those who were there can only truly undstand what our d-day and world wari veterans went through, what they saw and what they felt..m i agree with major hill, without seeing it firsthand, it's nearly impossible to comprehend. however, what we can d is continue t honor the sacrifices and the memories ofse world war ii vets who went into europe to fight for our freoms a be

so to the d-d and world war wite may never be able but i pray thk you. i yield back. mr. moore: thank you, representative babin. 4i yield to my friend garrett grace from louisiana. >> i want to thank the gentleman from alabama for organizing. madam speaker, i'm going to read from the journal of sydney monts who served as a lieutenant in company d of the eighth regimenn of the united states army. five that struck aha beaches on d-day. he w born in louisiana in 1914 and svea;otc corporal at l.s.u. and enlisted in the army in august of 1942 and game a lieutenant. monts was 29 years old on d-day

which was his f#gst kept a diar, 1944 until jul 31, 1934. the diary was doned his son to the national world war ii museum in new orleans along with a trunk of personal belongings from his time in the european theater in world wari. madam speaker, before i start, i'm going to make note the diary makes mention of the lvcp which is the landing craft vehicle personnel, known as the higgins craft, tens of thousands of which were built in louisiana and often credited as being a game changer for the d-day landin i quote, may 1çj june 1, took things easy with equipment timeoff. took a few sho marchs to keep in shape, a few days before june 1 we were briefed, shown maps and everything in good shape. i was executive officer.

officers and company, buckles, bucka loo, executiveon c.o. sampson. june 2, left camp at 10/20 andh. on ship life was ok. june 4, tooo to church. making final preparation a making landi tomorrow- timing is called off. drank coffee and listening to radio. heard of t fall of rome. in bed. june 5, we sail at 13:00. and message heard over loudspeaker. d-day, we anchored. checked equipment, men in good she and ready to go.

told that 10,000 planes would be in operation 6,000 bombers. not know anything excee land on beach. with 12 paratroopers landing,■h h-4 inland. and killing each other. channel pretty rough. men will be fed at 22:00. june 6, d-day. eating a good meal, maybe the last boat team. went down to the come partment , starting ccling and other bos in. and flares dropping. beautiful sight. all h broke lost. and opened up on the boat on our some boats hit landmines and

luily we landed. jumped out and the longest i have seen in my lif m.g fire artillery. unable to run. had t miss obstacles picked up six rounds. it seemed as though we never reached theeawall. men being blow up. it was horrible. o stop. clear the beach or they would get killed. injured. lieutenants and killed corporals. time to move. general rooseve gave me courage and too far left and caug hell. every house and with men. they fired from allections.

and used smokeless pr. catch up. madam speaker, i just urg all americans who remember the sacrifice that allowed us to have this amazing nation. >> i5 thank my colleague for having this particular colleague to show our appreciation for d-day. for all who areot going to normdy, i would invite you to national d-day is holding this thursday june 6 at 11:00 a.m. why, would there be a memorial in bedford, bedfo.

per capta, bedford lost more men on d-day than any other community in the nation. as a result of this, bob slaughter from roanoke who was pa a was a major force to pusor this. loose's bogus lost two brothers and contributed a lot of time and■■% her children are continug the tradition of moving to mak sure people remember d-day. rginia delegate, the gentleman from bedford was■v$■ instrumentn making sure the funds were avaible to get the and on june 1 at the opening bedford, virginia, president george w. bush participated and gave the

key note. today i read a letter not from one of the soldiers but one of the wives. this is a tching letter t her husband john. reminder of how daily chores and daily despite the conflict that raged around husbands, sons, brothers, et cetera overseas. her letter. darling, it's 11:30 sunday night and connual activity, breakfast, church, p go to mothr scarchtion, dusted the beans to keep the and we had power corn and o many y down in theiting for the cooker and take out my pints of

tender corn. i have too many years. mom and i would see us canni at 1-g 1:00 on sunday. if the corn doesn't on a suay i said you were fighting on a sunday. god grant that it will n belong until you can be done with all that and come home to d calm. all mye is yours, lynn. john skancke never received his letter. she wrote it on july 1944, intending toail it the day, but on that monday she received a tall■ú gram informing her thater■ husbacend was killed on omaha beach, on monday, 6. bedford lost a total of that

day, 19 were from company a. and whatn on july 16 is still remembered in bedford the telegms were received at greens drug story. he liz beth was the operator at 8:30 that morning andotice in. somebody from bedford had died. they received nine of notice on that one day alone and coming ig store, tuesday, wednesday, thursday. today we have instant communications but back te men 6 families didn't find out for more than a month. today a bedford greens drug

storis the tribute center. the people will never to have ka number ofhese soldiers and to have known misbogus to me sure the national d-day memorial became a reality you to visit. god bless you and m bss the unid states of america. i yield back. >> i recognize mr. ldermilk from georgia. mr. loudermilk: thank you, madam speaker and i thanky good friend fro abama for participating in this moment.y e been to the beaches of normandy and stood on omaha beach on the

75th anniversary. i was one of those selected to represen the united states there. and i stood on the beach alonehinking of the sand and at that sand inding on, held the d.n.a. of americant dao preserve liberty for all of us and to stop oppression and aggressi. it wasspecially meaningful to me because my father, was oneosn d-day. medic in the united states army. no that day. no single service fough the navy of the shores of omaha bea my father was one of those that boarded an

craft that took him t the beach. i would to read letters were loa flood many years ago in a home in south carolina. i want to read the letter from tracy sugarman who was assigned to the one of those who along side his colleagues that served in the army landed on what's interesting about sugar man, he was one of those who was considered an old man, he was 23 year old and he was married and had a young wife and■6 the lettr i'm going to read to you is the letter he sent to wife. it reads, my darling june, hope this gets out to you.

it will be the last word from me for a long time, but don't worry, angel, i will get in touch with you the first chance i get. lieve me darling i'm feeling well and squared for anything that may come my way. for this wonderful piece have t. i'm intending to spend the rest of my life thankin you. please call folks and tell me i'm fine. hope to out. bye for a angel. keep that chin up and your head high and keep that gleam always. love you all. fortunately, tracy man was one of those who returned and is to the sacrifice of those w

gave the last full life of devotion on those sandyeaches in normandy. god bless this country and the i yield back.served that day. >> thank my friend from georgia and i recognize representative crenshaw. mr. crenshaw: i thank my friend from alabama. the 80th anniversary of d-day of our greatesteneration stormed normandy france and ushered in r courage and sack cry ties and we to lead. and to arms against

tyranny and against the spread of aggression. and tonight i have the honor to read account from private been gentman men alvarado and these are his words.arly in the mornif june, cold, dark and and water was choppy, we could not see land. the dro o■f the engines stopped and was quiet again. 5:30 a.m. all battle began firing and pnes filled the skynl headed in one direction. th was indlibbly deaf bombing the beaes never in all the training i went through was

i prepared for this. grab the rope net with my leg over the side and hang 60 pounds on m deck. the rope sngs in and and the ship and the higginswhen itn the ship and thens boat and the boat was full and the motor started and away we went up a down waves, no land in sight. and flashes of fire. under the swishg sound ofur bigun trumpeting cutting the air above u us off of the and my life out. it was horrifying. as we approached the beach, the gemple answer sprayed our boat our boat got as close as it dared. water up to my chest, and■uy7 ws

trying to kee my balance and numb with fear. . . it was foggy and rumbling explosions and bullets whizzing by. at the water's edge,■:pped over several dead g.i.'s, my hair stood on end. ian my legs could carry me through the smoke and gauntlet of enemy fire, running erratically, avoiding g.i.'s that had ran towards a bluff tta slight owere huddled, wet, sredd trapped over a state of shock. nothing was said. made room for each other, mirroring our fear, unable to encourage each other, pausing for a moment t■yo contempte, i realized the improbability agai. the invasion continued, barbed

wire and landines were everywhere, the water was pressd men and equipment. through haze and fog, bodies were everywhere and scattered across the beach. the indiscriminate slaughte continued and our men scrambled for safety and a lieutenant made his way running towards us looking as though we came over a storm in a sanctuary of protection. gasping for air he said, men, this is omaha beach, you're cats breath, he continued. for what you have just men desea purple heart. now we're ready t do what we are trained for. our group, the fir and second wave of the first army ready to move up. watch out for the land mines, someone exclaimed. we went through small opening that had been in thearbed path d the land top, i feltepped on

we had broken os from a trap, still quite apprehensive about the land mines, not looking germans had trenched themselves and now dead. the shooting ctinu and we scampered to places of otection, roadside, the germans were beginning to surrender as they saw us inching up to them crying out. the whiteiece of cloth would go out and scampered out with their hands up, sometimes leaving their dead and wounded behind and left their snipers behind to slow us down. we continued advancing and could still hear the ruming sounds of those big shells being fired from our ships deeper in e lines and an enormous extended hand of protection from us, a our trucks, tanks, artillery pieces and supplies were catching up to us. every time we would liberate a town, the people would run outo. church bells would ring for ho■q0ís, day or night. the old men and women offered us

wine and bread. orders we could not stop. i yield back. mr. moore: i thank my friend from texas and recognizeur guest fr mississippi. i yield. >> this week we remember the th anniversary of the d-day invasion known asperation mr. gues the d-day invasion began in the early morning hou of june 6, 1944 on the southern. landing at beaches named utah, gold, sword, juneau, and omaha. over 4400 allied solers lost their lives that day. the invasion of france allowed allied troops to establish a would g courseestern europe and of the second great war.

many of the courageous men who fought that day have since passed away. but we still have their recorded oral testimonies and letters to loved ey played. today i want toead a brief se fellow misssippian that landed at normandy shortly after the initial invasion. bilb rogers b■wh#orn in louisville, mississippi, said this about his service, i was unloading the ships,oading guns, food and medical supplies and all that in france after i got there. but we were still involved in battle bause the were shootingt us. i didn't pull my shoes off didnt allow you to pull them off. because you may have to run at any time. we hado sleep in our shoes and when we were in france we sle fn

the ground about four feet and we get down there, your partner. you've got one partner, two people in one hole, foxhos with dirt falling in your face and all that. bilbow rogers is one of the countless heroes that placed himself in the wrong way and they were there tms we enjoy to. may we always remember the of oe warriors. i yield back. mr. moore: i thank my friend from mississippi and yield to my good friend f mr. owens: thank you, my good friend from alabama. thank for yo reflect on the lasf

our courageous, their courage and sacrifice o the greatest generation, those who serve and died for the land that they loved. shortly before d-day, second lieutenant jack lindbergh from valverde, utah, wrote a letter to his parents. i'm actually he and see the chance of returning to all of you is write this letter now while i'm still able to. i want you to know how much i love each of you. you mean everything to me. the rlization of your love that gives me the courage to continue. i've requested that this letter be forwarded only in the event i do not retn. you've had many tes more than your illnesses as death in the■5 family and still you continue t exemplify what true parents should. i'm sorry to add to your brief but at all times realize you're helping to bring this wasteful

war to conclusion. we the united states have something to fight for, never more fully have i realized that. there's no other country that is comparable through wealth, advancement, or standard of living. the u.s.a. worth the sacrifice. remember always that i love youd of you. consider mary my wife take my place in the family circle and watch over each of you. love to my family, jack. 2/2 days after d-day, he was the lead navigator on the beach in france and was hit by german anti-aircraft fire, burst into fles and crashed. lindbergh was killed. second lieutenanjack lindbgh represents then and now the very st of utah great nation in his spit of sacrice and love of country, that continue

our minds, souls and heart to be e light of fed ad the world. i, too, was raised by veteran world war was blessed to see tho not only ran towards fear but came back to their homeland and built■8 the greates generation, the greatest middle class who broke the barriers w break. and went on to teach their generation to be patriotic and love our nation. we wil never forget america's greatest generation and their extraordinary sacrifices for freedom. thank you and may god bless new his eternal blessings. thank you and mr. or i thank my friend recogny friend from texas.ó: mr. self: i thank my friend and colleague from alabama for hostin this fellow texan,.■"

william nation was an army captain in the■e infantry regiment on june francisco.omewhere in san dearol, just a note tothing is still ok. weot our mail a few days ago, and i was glad to hear fm you again. we've been plenty busy here. last night i pulled off my boots for the fst time since d-day. i guess you kno by now what d-day is. we've had some real to go throuh again. i guess you know more than i writing the papers. we had two news writers drop with us. was writing all along. have t bt

and i'll write more this afternoon and let yay how thing. if you don't get a letter from me, don't be wored. we all feel rather immortal afterha first night. and most of us are living on borrowed time anyway. love bill. just a quick story. when i parachuted d-day celebrations in 1993, i went up to the superintendent of the cemetery that stands there above omaha beach. motioned to a d-day veteran saying goodbye. he said that man was a combat engineer on omaha beach, he led the first wave ashe. he was the only man of his unit that made it alive on to the shore and he comes back to visit his buddies every year. this yearachute into

d-day, friday, i will be carrying■ a portrait of glenn stevens, g company third battalion parachute infantry regiment who parachuted into d-day. he was a constituent all those years ago in texas. also, i'll be carrying a bronze star and purple belonged to staff sergeant was a veteran of d-day. it's my little way of honoring the men who risk everything on june 6, 1944. may we never forget. and i yield back. mr. moore: i thank my friend from texas and certainly all my colleagues. th's qte an amazing story to get it firsthand in letters. and i'm about to close an

excerpt from a newspaper describing the reaction t d-day at home in montgomery, alabama. dear gang, you're probably wondering what it was like at home on d-day. well, like everything else in the world, guess, montgomerieians were steeped in exciment wanting to say we're pulling for you, gang, but realizing there was an ocean in between, everyone was literally burning with pride as the news flashed throughout the day. radios were never turned off during that first 24 hours and there was one topic of conversation, and only one. all stores closed at 5:00 p.m. and at that same hour, two score buglers stationed throughout the tyion. all traffic stopped and a period of silent prayer was observed. at 8:00 p.m., prayer services were held in every■o almost witut exception, every pew wafilled. wsfa canceled all commercial programs and announcements, and

for more than 30 hours, onl broadcast invasion news or specially prepared programs in honor of the courageous men who sailed and flew across the channel. when prayers were being said over the air, it was not uncommon to see a sidewalk grouo lift their hats andas done. at 9:00 p.m., the whole town, along with the remainder of t nation lisne with bowed heads as president roosevelt offered his invasion day prayer. the fuy hours, montgomerieians closeder their eyes, eventual outcome. i want to thank all my colleagues again for who all participated and to congressman palmer and his help in coordinating this special order. with that, madampeaker, i'll yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlema yields back. under the speaker's annou■zed policy of january 9, 2023, the gentlewoman from florida, ms. cherfilus-mccormicki is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. ms.herfilus-mccormick: madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the subject of this special order hour. objection.r prteor whout ms. cherfilus-mccormick: it's with great honor i rise todayo r along with jonathanalso represe. for the next 60 minutes, members of the opportunity to discuss the importan of the foster care d outcomes among black families and children involved withhild welfare, an iss of great importance to the congressional black caucus, congress, the constituents we represent, and all of americansr

representive, gwen moore. ms much, headingp this special orderr ur. at this time, we have many members in the congressional black caucus who are concerned about issue and i am so happy this evening that we■r hae been joined by not onlyackson ba member of the ways and means committee, a mentor of mine, dr. danny davis who serveds a social worker, and has kept of those formal studies by engaging and is a passionate representative about black

youth. and i thank you tore issue. these are our children. there are about 400,000 children currently in foster care, n counting the ones who are informal arrangent foster care and they are our children. they are color, particularly black children disprortionately in t system. i live in wisconsin. is only 9% of the population. almost a quarter of the children in foster care are african-american children. and i can tell you, these are the most vulnerable kids in oure the mos, resilient children. but even the most resilient,

needs our help and our support.t em, because after all, theseyo k force, they are our wk and who will support us if we don't now we just left may and may, oe month. and this year's theme of national foster care month, this year's theme was endangering building support and i think that's air rlqeal. important theme as i want to announce properly that we are going to have another foster and i would invite all o my colleagues to engage in the

exaordinary experience of letting one of these youths shadow you, and you will be surprised while you think you are teaching about your craft as a ranking member, a chairma that you will learn so much for these youth and that

will be something that will carry through for the rest of your time serving. it is a blessing. now, june is family reunification month. and we have had foster care system in count for many years but one of the things we e ought to be the that if we sepate children from their families because out of necessity that we ought to do everything we to reunify them and learn what strategies work towardhat effort, we want to make sure we

wantvention to make surehat tha these children don't end up being separated from their families, but if ty do, we need to prioritize care. one of the co-chairs of this committee is a called don bacon and he is a mant kinsg conditionship groups together. that is one of hisassions and we need to support his legislation. we have another co-chair, a democrat from, representative dove succeeding the mayor of first on to this issue and passionate

supporter. representative scanlon, an attorney before she jned us, brought those skills and brother herwn experience doing a lot of pro bon work for children and families caught in the foster care system. the congressional. nancy mace, we all know, a person who has served in our armedrings her leadership to this task, another republican. and so, in a few days, we arech. going to have the congressional ■caucusn foster youth. we want members to sign up to pair for ourter youth.

i just can't explainowj( impactful it is for these formew beneficial it is to us as policy kers and gat rlfeminder that beyond these statistics, a real people. i have so much to say. but there are other here who want to say. i will be glad to a colloquy with you. and madam chair, i would yield back to you at thisherfilus-mcck you representative gwen moore. i would like to yield to davis.

mr. davis: thank you very much, madamhairman. d let me commend you and the congressional black caucus for hosting ts ening on what i consider to be one of the most imptant issues in our country, in our society, and that is taking a hard look at what is happening with our children, and especially tse who are in neef care. focusing on the addage that s bt is that an ounn is worth much more than a pound of cure. ando it reminds me of the many things that we have championed trying to makot only do ourhildren receive tnd y need once they are iso trying tm

havingt expience. so i was thinking o3 that illinois and the nation benefited from the re-authorization of the program which i was fortunate to lead. the program funds evidence-based education and servicen to improve mother ald health family safety and child development. ■ñi helped cree this program in 2010 and it haseen brought over 119 mlion to illinois and $5.2 billion to the country to help make familier and try and help them to be able to

retain the cldn. and also remind us that illinois and the nation benefited from the family first prevention services act that i helped enact that made historic improvement to child welfare, fly shifting policy from separato sm by addressing the key rsons that families struggle. illinois has recved over $66 million in prevention funding to strengthen families frohela nce its was enacted almost six years ago. and i'm reminded that unification month, what doe that rlly mean? i think it means trying to keep

families as connected as we possibly can. i want to thankhe illinois department ofcorrections for alwi our fatherhood initiative every year to taken l institutions to visir fathers. as a matter t now for about 10 s anre startling in terms how fathers and children and the children's grandparents, rate to this experience of en thoh their fathers are away, lettingw thats still have meaning and a great deal of meaning to their lives. and so as we meander our wayryiw

do we really makp6e old a better place in which to livo we young people, i think of the laws we tried to enact and made so■h as helping young people get drivers' licenses, foster youth get drivers' licenses shey can have transportation services and get fm one place to another. the thing i am vm close to is providing portunity for foster youth who have benefits due to them from social security ratherhan having these benefits go to their payees or go to states for

operational expenses. we are getting close to having these benefits come to foster youth themselves. t into a trust fund or something for them when they age out, helng older foster think of how meaningful it wod be for a young person aging out, reaching adulthood, who has never had any r to resources of their own having a few thousands of dollars in a trust fund or transition from adulthood sohay now can act like an adult and have thee, have their own resan apament, hn

resoce te resources before they get a job and not struggle during this period. so, again, i want to commend and thank my colleagues and the congressional black caucus for raising thi■ós issue, providing direction a gn opportuny to recognize that the neee want to make society a better world. i end by thinking of one of my favorite expressions that a blue singer just said and tt is that oldren are the future, teach them well. let them leathe way. shy they possess inside. give themif we can do that, them

confidenthat ari, our nation becomes a better place in which to live. so thank y both. and i yield back. mrs. cherfilus-mccormick: thank you, representative davis. i wouldike to now yield to myself. today, discuss the disparities that black children and families. sty after study that black chilen in the united states statistically mor time in foster carend snificantly less likely to be reunifi with their families. wee a moral obligation to address the glariat exist. nationwide, the average number of days for childret foster care is 633 days. for black children we have the average number of days which is g 743. .

. . . and exacerbate inequalitiet disproportionately communities of color. weo ignore these disparits. this is a child with hopes, dreams and a future that should not be denied because of the color of theirkin ohe shortcomings of the system. we must commit to addressing the issues that disproportionately

affect. toge■er we can build a child welfare supports that aes everym the foundation toucce. i yield to jonatha jackson. . . ..x■

this kind of conadiction cannot be allowed toersist and linger because whether some pele in this country are ndlling to admit it orot, sizes. family come in all configurations and come in various economic conditions and levels of education but all of them are still families and all deserve commitment. all of them are depending what we do in the chamber and they care about the families tt remind them of theno matter ther

configuration of a particular family we're there to serve every family in this country. whether we care about all american filies or in truth it's that we only care about some or mostly none. blacfamilies deserve all the rights and opportunities tended to every other family in this country. in fact, considering the historical assault o this country's institutions and this policies against black families, one might even suggest black families deserve to have more than most. we have been through a lot and i'm honored to be a mber of the first congressional district in the state of illinois. and when i tlife of a you childs kidnapped from west afric in the name of phyllis wheling in

1753 who was n a slave in 1773. we've come a long way. a child was kidnapped who was 8 years of age and approximate her ase of the size of her teeth and had to talk to john han a■ós and this to cite poetry we later came to find out were anograms, an the fir person of africanand was ancestry from 1619 to 13 to ha been manumitted from slavy. i want to acknowledge black families just don't have their value because they've been through so much. it because of t compassion they had to grow. not one family i mors. we all have different experiences and sometimes they've had long lasting and a

devastating legacy o■@f neglect that too oftenesulted in outright violee. we rise to reflen the role of this tragi system and how we might strengthen bonds and not just perpetuate historical problems and systemic norms in th child welfare system that has torn soany families apart. i am convinced now more than ever that we must do whatever we n to reduce the need for foster care and strengthen families in whichever configuration they are formed. unti the system of a child welfare cann keeping families together, we must hold the syste know to be . and what we do we also have to know is the right thing. we know tt every child should be protected and they still need their mothersnd fathers no

matter the frailtyr conditions they suffer from. yes, childn should he their grandmothers and grandfatherre d not separate chin. our child fostering system that's supposed to help feed and nourish children shod not operate children under any cas every child has a brother or sister, deserves to he a relationship with their brother or sister they possess. and as much as chiren should ■be protected from whatever -- from whoever seeks to thrir liv, s also the case that no child shod be erreously or permanently separated from le whoe em. we must change the economic conditions and polical factors that make it even posbln to endt being cared for by their relatives because of a lack of capacity and resources.

there'e likely to be investigated by child protective services and to have their children removed and placed in out move of-home care. there's a reason more than 50% of children in the u.s. wil experience a chi welfare investigatio bore their 18th birthday, and 10% of black che placed into foster care. these are not accidental occurrences but rather they are the manifestation of a deep and pervasive systemic bias. black children spend more time in foster care. black children have more placement. and yes, black children are less likely t■6o be reunied with their families when somody needs to stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. and since the children ommunitye floor of thiht we dare to speak for them.

tonight we pick up the standard for their cause and declare emphaticallyn their behalf, let these children return home to loving families. le them be treated with respect. les give them the presumption of innocence and virtue that they deserve, and let them be reunit that produced them and continues to love them in spite of the challenges that they face. this pattern of unjustifi investigations and prolonged separations must be brought to an end, not just f sake of the children but also for the sake of the nation's future. unless the children of our commity are returned to tilies, no child in this country is safeleep easily at night. but we will not rest until the circle is restored and until the

village can once again decide children.f what is best for our so as we work to keep them safe, let us live to make them free because the night shines light in the darkness and the darkness cannotvercome it alone. we thank god for the life, the living, and the legacy of honorable phyllis wheatling, a child that was separated and the first t?■e manumitted, a child that was kidnapped and god had born free to have to have her rights restored as a human being. honorable ms. and thank then cherfilus-mccormick from tgreatr ms. cheilus-mccormick: tha you for your psionat speech and being a great co-anchúdor.

madam speaker, today i rise to discuss how historical trauma anc racism have perpetuated cyclef enter generatial poverty and disproportionately affected the welfare of black children in america. we must acknowledge a painful truth. by the age of8, one of every 100 children in america wil court ordered