patrol, it is important to remember and honor the agents who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in defense of our country. lewis aguilar is the most recent. as the guards of our borders, the border patrols an important lair of security and often the last line of defense from keeping people and goods from entering the the united states. the border patrol cannot let down their guard as criminal organizations are continuously looking for vulnerabilities in our security to bring in contraband. the consequences of a drug load that slips through the layered defense are significant. according to the department of justice in 2007, almost 32% of high school seniors used marijuana in the past year and 5% had used cocaine. the vast majority of these drugs are smuggled across our borders. the reality post-september 11, 2001, is that terrorist organizations may also seek to exploit openings along our borders to smuggle operatives or potential weapons. in the week since their anniversary, just since may 28, the border patrol has

apprehended six alien gang members, seized three guns, six trailers carrying contraband, including one with 40 illegal aliens, seized thousands of pounds of marijuana and an ultralight aircraft. about 6:00 a.m. last sunday, there was an individual on a surf board paddling north to international border. the surfer was holding a blue duffel bag. he released it as agents approached. soon after the duffel bag was inspected by border patrol agents. it had five packages of marijuana, estimated street value at $75,000. they're creative and we have to be in response. i urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this resolution and to honor the border patrol, express support for their important mission and pledge support to enhance their capability to gain operational control over our border. thank you, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves.

ms. sanchez: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california. ms. sanchez: i yield two minutes to mr. reyes from the great state of texas who, by the way, has probably over 30 years of experience in the border patrol agency. mr. reyes. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas for three minutes. mr. reyes: thank you, mr. speaker, i thank the gentlewoman for yielding me time and i thank you for your support of the men and women of the united states border patrol and the work you do through your chairmanship of the subcommittee that deals with border issues. i rise today in strong support of house resolution 498 a bill that honors and dodge great -- congratulates the border patrol on its 85th anniversary. i also want to thank my good friend and neighbor harry teague from new mexico, a gentleman that has sponsored

this legislation, for his support of the united states border patrolmen and women. and the ranking member, thank you for your support. i think the men and women of the united states border patrol do incredible work. the united states border patrol has rh hist that began on may 28, 1924, when congress passed the bill that established the border patrol. the 450 patrol inspectors were not only charged with preventing the entry of undocumented immigrant into the united states but were also responsible for combating the entry of illicit liquor from canada. the border patrol has evolved to include almost 19,000 agents in 20 sectors and 164 stations

around our country. the brave men and women of the border patrol are currently responsible for securing 8,000 miles of our international borders, both with mexico and canada. and the coastal waters around florida and puerto rico. since 9/11, the border patrol has been on the frontlines in our national strategy to detect and apprehend terrorists and their weapons as they attempt to illegally entered intr the united states. before coming to congress, i served for 26 1/2 years in the u.s. border patrol. for half of that time, i was border patrol sector chief, first in mcallen, texas, then in el paso, texas. as the only member of congress with a background in border enforcement, i'm keenly aware of the invaluable work these brave men and women perform for our country each and every day. we have a lot to thank them for. in these times of heightened security, the u.s. border

patrol and those agents are not only vital in helping to protect our country from terror threats and illegal entry of drug, but they also apehend and deter human smugglers and bring them to justice. oftentimes, these agents are the first people to respond in humanitarian situations in the desert by providing first aid, food, water, and shelter to people who have goten in trouble because of the heat and the distance that they're forced to travel in remote areas. border patrol agents perform countless rescues every year and provide critical training to law enforcement both at home and abroad. mr. speaker, the u.s. border patrol is vital to our homeland security -- 30 seconds? ms. sanchez: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds. sproim the gentleman is recognized. -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 30 seconds. mr. reyes: the u.s. border

patrol has evolved into one of the country's finest law enforcement agencies. i'm a proud co-spon or of mr. teague's resolution in honor of their 85th anniversary. i urge my colleagues to support this bill and i thank the men and women of the united states border patrol for working each and every day to keep us safe. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from indiana. >> i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california. ms. sanchez: i yield two minutes to the gentleman from new mexico, mr. teague. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. teague: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 498, a resolution honoring and congratulations the u.s. border patrol on its 85th anniversary.

this bill show ours support for the men and women who have served and are currently serving in our nation's border patrol. i encourage my colleagues to vote with me in support of this resolution. the border patrol has undergone incredible change others the last 85 years. they have grown from an initial force of 450 to over 18,800 agent is -- agents today. they have learned to deal with new threats such as terrorists and weapons of mass destruction and have adapted ground breaking technology such as infrared cameras and unattended underground sensors to better face the challenges confronting them. despite the changes, their primary mission has stayed the same to detect and prevent illegal -- illegal entry of person into the united states. they must p patrol over 8,000 miles of international borders with mexico and canada. and the coastal waters around florida and puerto rico.

they are our first line of defense against many threats, including terrorists, illicit drugs, weapons, and criminals. they perform admirably at these tasks. since 1998, the border patrol has seized more than 15 million pounds of marijuana and 189,000 pounds of cocaine. most importantly, border agents have very dangerous jobs. they risk their well being every day on our behalf. in 85 years, 104 border patrol officers have lost their lives in the lirne of duty. in my district, the border patrol has an especially active presence. the el paso border patrol sector, which covers all of new mexico, covers 260 miles of border and employees over 2,600 agents. in fiscal year 2008 alone they made over 30,000 apprehensions and seized over 80,000 pounds of marijuana. also in my district, in the

town of artesia, we have the federal law enforcement training center. at this facility, which covers over 220 acres of space -- ms. sanchez: i yield the gentleman 30 seconds. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. teague: border patrol agents get the training they need to better perform their duties and adapt to new challenging facing them. the functions of the border patrol are more important today than ever. we have given them an incredibly difment task and the brave men and women of the border patrol deserve the full support of congress in achieving their goals. i would like to thank congresswoman sanchez, chairman reyes, chairman thompson, congressman mccall, and majority leader hoyer for their leadership in helping bring this resolution to the floor. again, i urge all my colleagues to join me in support of this resolution. i yield back my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from indiana. mr. souder: i yield myself the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. souder: i want to thank my friend and chairman of the subcommittee, ms. sanchez, who has been an excellent leader of the subcommittee, and we worked together closely on many things, not just noncontroversial bills like today. i thank mr. teague for his leadership and my long-time friend mr. reyes, also, chairman of the intelligence committee, not only for his work in congress but his work with the border patrol. again, most importantly, i want to thank every border patrol agent in america for protecting us, as well as chief david aguilar for his leadership and their service. it sometimes gets a tad boring, sometimes it gets a little hot. on the canadian border it gets a little cold. it isn't exactly the most exciting job in america at all

times but what each of these agents do is important to our nation. it may not be politically correct to talk about terrorism right now but it's a key part of our first line defense in the board -- and the border patrol are part of that we vvent had a terrorist attack on our soil since 9/11, partly because of our men and women in green. it may not be quite politically correct right now to talk about stepping illegal immigration. but quite frankly, the safety of our nation and the integrity of american citizenship requires legal, orderly entry. this isn't to say how many there should be, what type of immigration law we should have, but it requires an orderly legal process system of do many jobs require this. it may not be politically correct to talk about stopping illegal drugs. in doing sthork agents of the border patrol made our streets safer, helped prevent child and spouse abuse, lowered emergency room admissions, hipped people

make child support payments by helping them hold their jobs and because of illegal markets and other things causing them to lose their jobs, or by intercepting them or driving the prices up because of what they intercept. we're never going to stop all drug abuse and every border patrol agent know he is cant stop all drug abuse. but he know he is can intercept large numbers and that would have gone to the streets and homes of america and would have resulted in huge problems in crime and family safety in america. so maybe we don't want to call it the war on drugs anymore. instead we call it disease. for those who are addicted, it is a disease. in fact, unlike doctors and nurses who fight canence or -- cancer or researchers who fight cancer or lupus or diabetes, the border patrol agents are getting shot at and die. whether we want to call it a war or what we want to call it,

the individuals who use these individual markets do not wake up one morning and discover that a heroin needle got put in their arms or somehow they were snorting crack in their sleep or snorting cocaine in their sleep. in fact, it is somewhat different and i want to make sure that our men and women of the border patrol understand that there is bipartisan support to making sure that we keep our borders secure that we continue to block illegal markets, that we continue to block terrorists, and you are our first line on our huge borders and we cannot thank you enough for risking your lives for the rest of us. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. ms. sanchez: mr. speaker, i am prepared to close, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california. ms. sanchez: i thank the gentleman from indiana. my ranking member on the subcommittee that oversees all the border issues for america. he's been a strong advocate for

the border patrol, as well as for all the agencies really that sit within our jurisdiction. i thank him for taking the time tonight to be down here helping to work on this bill. you know, the border patrol just doesn't work at the southern and northern border as was mentioned, we'll see them in puerto rico and other areas. also, we send them to other countries to train people as to the whole issue of border patrol and how to take a look at what's coming in and in fact in iraq we sent several to help set up some border patrol issues out there in that country. so we have a large group of men and women who come to work every single day, love america and work very hard on behalf of the american people and for this reason, mr. speaker, i whole heartedly support house

resolution 498 honoring and congratulating the border patrol on its 85th anniversary and i urge the rest of my colleagues to do the same. mr. speaker, with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 498. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and any special orders heretofore entered into, the following members may be permitted to address this house, revise and extend their remarks and include therein extraneous material. myself, mr. poe, for june 16, mr. jones for june 16, mr. moran for june 16, mr. olson for today, mr. mcclintock for june 10 and mr. bishop for june 10. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california rise? ms. sanchez: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and any special orders heretofore entered into, the following members may be permitted to address the house for five minutes. to revise and extend their

remarks and include therein extraneous material. ms. woolsey of california for five minutes, ms. richardson of california for five minutes, ms. kaptur of ohio for five minutes and ms. lofgren of california for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the chair lays before the house the following message. the clerk: to the congress of the united states, today i am pleased to submit to the congress the enclosed legislative proposal, the statutory pay as you go d act of 2009, or pay-go, together with a sectional analysis. the deficits that my administration inherited reflect not only severe economic downturn, but also years of failing to pay for new policies, including large tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the affluent. this failure of fiscal discipline contributed to transforming surpluses projected at the beginning of this decade

into trillions of dollars in deficits. i am committed to returning our government to a path of fiscal discipline and pay-go represents a key step to the path of shared responsibility. pay-go would hold us to a simple but important principle, we should pay for new tax or entitlement legislation, creating a new nonemergency tax cut or entitlement expansion would require offsetting revenue increases or spending reductions. in the 1990's, statutory pay-go encouraged the tough choices that helped move the government from large deficits to surpluses and i believe it can do the same today. both houses of congress have already taken an important step toward righting our fiscal course by adopting rules incorporating the pay-go principle but we can strengthen enforcement and redouble our commitment by enacting pay-go into law. both the budget i have proposed and the budget resolution approved by the congress would cut the deficit in half by the

end of my first term. by laying a new foundcation -- foundation for economic growth for key investments in health, education and clean energy. an act -- enacting statutory pay-go would compliment these efforts and represent an important step toward streppingening our budget process, cutting deficits and reducing national debt. ultimately, however, we will have to do even more to restore fiscal sustainability. i urge the prompt and favorable contribution of this proposal, signed, barack obama, the white house, june 9, 2009. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the committee on the budget and ordered printed. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, and under a previous order of the house, the following members are recognized for five minutes. ms. woolsey of california.

mr. poe of texas. mr. poe of texas. mr. poe: mr. speaker, noble sacrifice dominates the character of a man so willing willly dedicated in his life for others. there are none who understand that any better today than the men and women in our u.s. military. they personify the very he essence of what it means to be an american. today under the morning sky at arlington cemetery, myself and other members of congress, rob witman from virginia, jo bonner from alabama and senator sessions from alabama, joined several other hundred members of family and friends as a 21-gun

salute and "taps" was played for the united states air force lieutenant clon, mark e. straten ii. the somber silence of the gravesites were broken with this tribute. colonel straten was trained as a navigator on an air force k.c. 135. in his honor, one of thighs massive aircraft flew low and slow over arlington cemetery, over the flag-draped coffin of one of air force's finest. i gave his life helping the afghan people to know dignity of a life lived in freedom. he was assigned to the joint staff at the pentagon here in washington, d.c., and he served as the commander of the pan share provincial reconstruction team in afghanistan. on may 26, 2009, mark died at bagram air field of wounds that he sustained from an improvised explosive device, what we call an i.e.d.

mark had strong texas ties. he graduated from texas a&m university in december of 1991 with a degree in political science. and while at texas a&m he was a member of squadron 1 of the corps of cadets. he has numerous air force commendations including the purple heart and the bronze star. he's remembered by friends as a man of unquestionable character and loyalty. he was a patriotic individual who exemplified the spirit of the american airmen. lieutenant colonel, mark's former roommate at texas a&m, described mark as a man who was passionately in love with his family. he enjoyed his friends and he loved his country. it showed in everything that mark did. through his heroic work in afghanistan, mark lived a life helping other people. his time was spent building roads and clinics, schools and

canals for the afghan people. he was an ambassador for the american spirit. he described the job to family and friends as the best he had ever had in his entire career. when he was killed, mr. speaker, the villagers in afghanistan had a memorial service in his honor. mark held a deep sense of tradition of the judgment a few weeks prior to his death, he made a special effort to share his texasing ay spirit with the afghan friends that he had met. mr. speaker, each april 21, the day texas gained independence, aggies from texas a&m observe what is called aggie mustard. it's where they all gather in all parts of the world to oner -- honor aggies who have died in the previous year. even though he was the only one in the base, he convinced the provincial governor to join him atop a nearby mountain to observe the very special occasion of aggie mustard.

one aggie air force colonel and afghan villagers paid tribute. that must have been a sight to see. texas aggies have a long history of service. texas a&m made more than -- mark was a proud texas aggie. mark is survived by his wife and three children, along with his mother, step-father and his brother, michael. mark's late father and namesake served as an army captain in the vietnam war. his step-mother lives in southwest houston, mark's brother, mike eam and step-brother steven, also live in the houston area. a great testament to mark's life is the lives he's changed throughout his work. every structure and canal and road well traveled, every school mark helped build will offer generations of afghan children the opportunity that comes from education.

every clinic he helped build will place -- be a place where sickness will be cured, where human suffering is relieved and where lives are being saved everyday. mark has left a noble legacy as he has come to the end of this earthly journey. it is for others now to pick up the torch he used to light a wave for the afghan people in the deserts of this remote nation. it has been said the legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example. next year on april 21, lieutenant colonel mark straten's name will be called. his name and life will be remembered by aggies and other grateful americans and by his air force buddies but no doubt the people of afghanistan will also remember the man from america, the air force colonel, who built their schools, their water wells and their villages and maybe those villagers will return once more to that mountain top and pay tribute to

this american hero, lieutenant colonel mark straten. and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes ms. richardson from california. ms. richardson: mr. speaker, i rise today to introduce h.r. 2744, the equal rights for health care act, title 42. the concept of equal rights is a pillar of our nation and the reason why so many immigrate here to the united states -- emigrate here to the united states. indeed the u.s. was founded on the principle that all americans should have inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. in order to enjoy this blessing of life and liberty, however, one must be healthy and that means they have the benefit of equal treatment and research. for example, men and women have different symptoms when it comes to heart disease. unlike men, most women do not experience chest pain.

instead, 71% of the women who report having flu-like symptoms report and go to their doctors, they may see various other researchers, physicians and so on, and we need to make sure that emergency attendance, test and prescription drugs are informed about the differences that we might have. h.r. 2744, the equal rights for health care act, title 42, will prohibit discrimination in health care services and research programs that receive federal funding based upon sex, race, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability status. civil rights laws have historically been a powerful mechanism for affecting necessary change in the united states. each law represents a national commitment to end discrimination and to establish a mandate to bring e excluded into the

mainstream. these equal rights laws ensure that the federal government delivers on the constitution promise of equal opportunities so that everyone, every individual, has the right to develop his or her talent. health care should be no exception. in 1971 only 18% of women compared to 26% of men had completed four years or more of college. in 1972 the title 9 amendment was introduced by representatives edith green of oregon and patsy mink of hawaii. in 1980, i attended the university of the california-santa barbara where i played on the women's basketball team and i witnessed there was a difference between playing on the women's team and the men's team. for example, for women, we had to travel in two or three advance to go to all of our away games where the men were allowed to fly on a plane. you might say, why is that something that was important? well, we lost instruction time, we had time in general lost, preparation was lost and recoup

ration was lost. that's why title 9 was so important. in 2007 we celebrated the 35th anniversary of title 9 which assured the women's right to education quality. and -- equality and the u.s. department of education showed that 56% of all women compared to 44% of men now have achieved four years or more of college. so title 9 has been working. federal laws prohibit description across a wide area of -- discrimination across a wide area of public policy arenas. no more than when you consider the difference between voting, public education and now what we should do in health care. h.r. 2744, the equal rights for health care act, title 42, seeks to have the same affect on the health care community -- affect on the health care community. patients are not always in a geographic proximate imity to madcal facilities that can provide the consistent care that's needed. according to thete