cannot understand that this thing started back in 2003 or 2004. where were you guys when we start a cd -- seeing these jobs go overseas? we were told we would be a service economy and the service jobs when away. we were told that we were going to be at a technology economy and those jobs went to india. where were you guys and how did we get into this? all the jobs melted away. guest: we have seen two unfortunate trends. we have a tendency to send jobs overseas. host: will lead to cut out and go to the house which is getting started. zachary goldfarb has been our guest. [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] me in prayer. all god of all nations. we look with favor upon this

esteemed congress. guard these important decisionmakers with your divine light. be their source of strength and comfort. enable them to serve you and glorify your names by serving the citizens of this great nation and the entire humanity regardless of their gender, ethnicity or religion. o god, make them your instruments to deliver your divine mercy and compassion. bless them with your openness and humility. fill their hearts and minds with passion and determination to improve the quality of life of all human beings. grant them success in the efforts to wipe out poverty, ignorance, racism and hate in this country and beyond. o god, make these women and men

peace makers, healers and bridge builders so urgently needed in our wounded and broken times. give them the strength that they need to keep what needs to be kept. give them the courage that they need to what needs to be changed. give them the wisdom that they need to distinguish the one from the other. o god, if we forget you, do not forget us. in your most holey and beautiful name we -- holy and beautiful name we pray. amen. the speaker pro tempore: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house her approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentlewoman from new york, congresswoman maloney. mrs. maloney: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the

united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house a communication. the clerk: the honorable the speaker, house of representatives, madam, i respectfully request a leave of absence from my duties and responsibilities as chairman of the committee of ways and means until such time as the committee on standards completes its findings on the review currently under way. signed, charles b. rangel. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the resignation is accepted. without objection, the gentleman from north carolina, congressman price, is recognized for one minute.

mr. price: thank you, madam speaker. i wish to recognize today's guest chaplain, iman abdullah antepli. and i want to say hello to the duke community, the touchish community. iman antepoli has a long record in countries ranging from his native turkey to the southeastern asian nations of burma and malaysia. since moving to the united states in 2003, he's been a true pioneer in the areas of muslim campus ministry. serving as first muslim minister at west lane university. he later served as hartford seminary where he completed his dock rate on the challenges facing the muslim community in the united states.

in july, 2008, he came to duke university to serve as the school's first-time muslim chaplain. although he's been on campus less than two years, he's made an enormous impact on the campus community. he's taken on much more. he counsels students of all faiths, fosters understanding of the muslim faith and is much in demand as a speaker and a participant in a variety of community events. this is a remarkable accomplishment. at a time when religious differences still threaten to divide us from one another and from other nations. i first met imam last september at a meeting of islamic studies scholars in which he participated. and i was immediately struck by his enthusiasm, his intellect and readiness to engage. throughout his career, he's truly exemplified the notion of faith in action and has made a

habit of practicing the values of tolerance, understanding and respectful dialogue which he preaches. so, madam speaker, i am pleased on behalf of all of our colleagues to introduce and welcome imam abdullah antepoli to the house here today. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain up to 15 further requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio rise? mr. kucinich: good morning, mr. speaker. i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. kucinich: thank you. i'm a proud member of this institution. i believe in this congress and i believe in the constitution of the united states. and i think moments arise in the history of this institution when we have to take a stand for the constitution. that's why this thursday i will introduce a privileged resolution that will call for congress to reclaim its power

under article 1, section 8 as to whether or not we stay in afghanistan. now, some people here may believe in that mission. i don't. some people here may believe in the surge. i don't. some people here may believe that we should stay there for as long as it takes to do whatever we want. i don't. i believe that congress needs to speak and to have a debate on afghanistan and to be able to decide in our wisdom if we so choose to get out of afghanistan which is what i hope that we do. but whether you're for it or against it, congress finally will have a chance to have that debate because the privileged resolution is being introduced on thursday. it will lay over the week and next week. we will have a debate whether we stay in afghanistan or leave. i hope we vote to leave. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from south carolina rise? mr. wilson: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered.

mr. wilson: mr. speaker, on monday i will participate in a ribbon cutting ceremony for home depot's rapid deployment center located in the middle of south carolina, this rapid deployment center will not only create new jobs for south carolinians but will give them more flexibility, keep the products on their shelves and keep these products in stock. the new rapid deployment center is a 465,000 square foot facility located in west columbia. it will provide 225 full-time jobs at startup and as more stores are added to the program, this will i crease to 400 jobs. i want to thank home depot for their economic contributions to our state and i welcome these in addition to the positions of the 2,660 home depot associates already in south carolina. in these tough times it's

important to create these jobs. in conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and our prayers are with the people of chile. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from north carolina rise? mrs. maloney: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mrs. maloney: one testified that c.b.o.'s latest assessment of the recovery act found that it had increased our real g.d.p. by as much as 3.5 percentage points, increased the number of people employed by between one million and 1.2 million people and lowered the unemployment rate by 1.1%. in short, the stimulus spending bill worked, but we need to do more to grow jobs now. he also testified that one of the most powerful generators of job growth would be an employer tax credit for businesses that

increase their fay rolls similar to one i -- payrolls similar to one i propose and the one that congress intends to send to the president. these historically difficult times and this growing but fragile economy cry out for us to take action, help create more private sector jobs and get our economy working again for everyone. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from utah rise? texas. i apologize. mr. poe: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. poe: mr. speaker, as the war against international terrorism continues in iraq and afghanistan, i bring you news from the third front, the u.s.-mexico border. the real inconvenient truth. recently the u.s. consulate office in mexico closed indefinitely. u.s. officials are barred from the area. the reason?

because there are kidnappings and orders and old west shootouts in the streets, all on the account of violent drug lords fighting for turf on the border. they are not doing enough to stop the international drug cartels and the human smugglers. the greatest nation on earth is failing the american people by not adequately protecting the border. drugs and people are going north and money are going south. the border has become a war zone that affects people on both sides of the border. we are sitting on a powder keg that we ignore at our own peril. while we have troops to protect foreign countries, we should be just as concerned about our own sovereign border, and that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new mexico rise? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> mr. speaker, i am proud to stand on the house floor today to congratulate our university

of new mexico lobo men's basketball team for winning the 2010 mountain west conference championship. in this truly remarkable season, the lobos tied the school record for consecutive conference wins. this is the second consecutive year that the lobos have won the conference championship. and the team recently cracked the nation's top 10 in both the a.p. and espn and "u.s.a. today polls. to all the team members and to the academic all-americans and senior ramon martinez and to all the u.m.n. students, faculty and staff, i want to congratulate you on a tremendous season. and i look forward to your continued success and the rest of march madness. finally, i want to wish the team good luck in their game against t.c.u., and i join the rest of the lobo nation in declaring everyone's a lobo, wolf, wolf, wolf.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from utah rise? mr. chaffetz: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. chaffetz: america lost one of its finest. carlos air gone, 19 years old -- aragon, 19 years old, was killed while serving as a marine. so sad when you hear these reports. your hearts and your thoughts and your prayers goes out to the family. but at the same time your heart is filled with pride that these young men tanned women will step up and -- and women will step up and fight to protect this country and fight and protect the good things of the united states of america. i hope we do more to recognize these young men and women. i thank that family. may god bless them and may god bless the united states of america.

the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. baca: the clock is ticking. too many american families still don't have access to health care. we're at the goal line. we need to take the ball across the line on behalf of the american people. a step-by-step approach is not the answer, especially when families in my district face 14% unemployment rate and many without health coverage. in my home state of california, anthem blue cross raised our premiums up to 39%. this must stop. we must pass health care reform that ends discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, that makes health insurance affordable, that creates greater accountability and cuts the deficit by $100 billion over the next 10 years, that allows doctors and patients, not insurance companies, to make important health care decisions, that does not break the banks for small businesses. i urge my colleagues to stop partisan politics and deliver

health care reform. we need it now and fore generations to come. i -- and for generations to come. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from montana rise? mr. rehberg: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. rehberg: first, we learn that the department of interior is providing -- planning a land grant that is so difficult to believe. the government is planning to lock up more than 14 million acres of lands in 11 western states, including 2.5 million in montana alone, much of which is privately loaned. and they can do it without so much as one single public hearing or a vote in congress. some of that land belongs to private citizens who have no idea that the federal government is planning to kick them off their ranches. if the government can do this to them, what can it do to you? when policies like cap and trade, government-run health care and establishment of new federal lands are unpopular, you don't merely bypass

congress or change the rule to ram it through. americans are sick of secret bureaucratic and washington, d.c., tricks. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. . ms. schakowsky: i'm honored to be a part of the largest number of women ever to serve in the house of representatives. it's 76, still too few. it is a testament to the women's rights movement that my female colleagues represent the full political spectrum bringing a diversity of ideas, thoughts, and opinions from the house. we have made great strides in the last decade. 50 years ago high school and college students across the country were not given support for their -- were not given

support for their sports activities, yet last week women of team u.s.a. brought home 13 medals from vancouver. it was not long ago that girls were discouraged from obtaining a degree in higher education. today 57% of graduating undergrads in this country are women and according to the center for american women in politics, the number of women serving in state legislatures has more than quintupled since 1971. and this is not just a trend in the united states. women across the globe are breaking barriers. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. ms. schakowsky: we have a long way to go but we need to celebrate how far we have come. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida rise? >> permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> mr. speaker, as most people know warren buffett was an early advisor to president obama. just this week buffet said the president should scrap the health care bill and start over. he noted the american people

are not behind this bill. he said the goal is to lower costs. i completely agree with mr. buffet. the american people don't want a trillion dollar government takeover of health care. also people don't want to raise taxes, cut medicare, and give aways to washington special interests. we need to reduce costs by taking a few simple steps. one, medical malpractice reform. two, increase competition. three, sell insurance across state line. four, expand health savings account. that's a prescription the american people will support. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the the gentlewoman from california rise? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> thank you, mr. speaker. my mother, nancy, was born in 1915 in fresno, california. the same year the ottoman empire began its systematic killing and deportation of millions of fellow armenians

and members of her own family. a year ago this week my mother passed away at the age of 93. and for her entire life on earth her country, the united states of america, refused to officially acknowledge what we know to be true. our own ambassador to armenia at the time, henry morganthau, informed the secretary of state, it appears that a campaign of race extermination is in progress. mr. speaker, the facts here are not in dispute. the one thing left to question is not whether the armenian genocide took place, but rather if we in this chamber have the moral and political backbone to stand for truth. the house foreign affairs committee will have the opportunity this week to pass h.res. 252 and stand up for truth. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana rise? mr. fleming: to address the

house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: -- mr. cao: i rise today in honor of black history month. known as the queen of creole cuisine, she's a chef, a television host, a cultural ambassador, and owner of the famous louisiana landmark restaurant. the restaurant is located in the historic nabet of new orleans and was immortalized in the television show "frank's place." it was established as a spiritual, cultural, and historical landmark long before television producers came knocking. during the 1960's, it was a meeting place for civil rights activist and naacp members coming around the region. and during segregation, noble african-american artists such as ella fitzgerald and lena horn dined there. when hurricane katrina flooded restaurants forcing it to close its doors for the first time since 1941, miss chase could

have left leaving behind all the history and prominence of this historic spot. but she returned, rebuilt, and reopened to serve, nourish, and inspire the bodies and souls of future generations. today i'm proud to recognize miss chase for her unwavering commitment to the recovery of orleans and justin parish. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> thank you, mr. speaker, this week i introduced the energy education loan forgiveness act, a bill to provide student loan forgiveness to skilled workers in advanced energy industries. the united states is already facing a critical shortage of trained workers for jobs that focus on energy efficiency. and studies show the demand for such workers will only grow. we have more workers but we have to educate them properly and the cost of such an education is an obstacle to

many. my legislation would help ease this burden by establishing a student loan forgiveness program for energy students who go to work in the advanced energy field. this program would start at $2,000 of forgiveness in the first year and go up to $5,000 in five years. if we want our country to lead the way, we have to be willing to invest in that work force through education. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to support this important legislation and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pitts: mr. speaker, today we will hear again from the president about health care reform. however moving forward on another version of these massive health care bills is not progress. raising hundreds of millions of dollars in new taxes is not progress. culting half a trillion dollars from medicare is not progress. putting the government in charge of health care in this country is not progress. we all know how flawed the

senate health care bill is. how it's full of backroom deals like the coshhusker -- cornhusker kickback. some people say the american people will appreciate the bill after it becomes law. let's not pretend the american people just don't know enough about the bill to make an informed decision. they are informed and they reject it. let's scrap this massive bill and start over just like the american people would like us to. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. sanchez: thank you, mr. speaker. today i rise to recognize women's history month. this month we will be celebrating not only the accomplishments of women but we'll also be raising the awareness of the various challenges that still exist and face women today. today women make up about 12% of our $1.2 million active u.s.

service members. today women like tran tui are sacrificing their rights to fight for democracy and freedom in vietnam. today the united states government is led by more women leaders than ever before. but unfortunately women today also continue to be challenged by discrimination, sexual assaults, and violence. despite all the progress we have made, women and girls continue to be trafficked across international borders on a daily basis. this month i encourage all my colleagues to not only recognize the progress women have made but also to take action to expand the rights of women today and for future generations. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia rise? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> recently during my district work period i met with

officials from matthews county public schools. matthews county is representative of many of the communities in my district and around the commonwealth that are dealing with difficult budget challenges. the matthew county school system is projected to lose $1.2 million in the 2010-2011 budget year. for a small school district this is a big number. unfortunately in these cases usually the own place left to trim the budget is personnel. this would mean less services and programs to children. over the years the federal government has expanded its involvement in funding and has added requirements on public education. in some cases, federal requirements leave school districts trapped for funding. the federal requirements and mandates are not joined with federal assistance. in my district i formed an education advisory council to look at these tough issues. congress should carefully review these important programs and implement commonsense reforms to ensure we are helping not hurting the education of our children. there are many counties like

matthews across virginia's first district. we must be mindful of the impacts we have on their budgets. with that i yield back, mr. speaker fpblgt 7. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida rise? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. wasserman schultz: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise this morning to share some success tore stories from 209th district in florida it -- 20th district in florida to show the evidence is clear that the recovery act is working to cushion the greatest economic crisis since the depression. in my state of florida we are creating jobs and investing the infrastructure of our community. indeed, in my district alone there have been 130 recovery act grants that have been awarded. even more importantly in my congressional district, 61 small business vs. received more than $21 million in loans. these loans to small businesses have allowed companies to stay open, keep people employed, and prevented an even deeper

economic downturn. experts agree the recovery act is already responsible for savings or creating two million jobs and we remain on track to create at least an additional $3.5 million. the recovery act was never meant to replace dollar for dollar or job for job what we lost. one year in experts ranging from governors on both sides of the aisle say the recovery act has helped pull us back from the brink of economic disaster and helped us lay a firm foundation for our economic recovery. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to speak to the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. fleming: mr. speaker, last year i introduced house resolution 615, a resolution that simply says if you vote for a government-run health care system, you should be willing to be subject to it. as of today over three million

americans have gone to fleming.house.gov in support of this resolution. this message continues to resonate across america for one simple reason. the people of this country are sick and tired of being the victims of bad laws while their elected representatives exempt themselves from the very same laws. if congress fails to increase taxes, higher premiums, and government-run health care are good enough for american families, it should be good enough for them as well. i urge the president and democrat leadership to listen to this overwhelming uproar from the american public. scrap the current legislation and go back to the drawing board to craft a true bipartisan bill that increases access and quality of health care while driving down costs for american families. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan rise? >> request unanimous consent to address the house for one

minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. walberg: i rise to announce new legislation i'm introducing to help small businesses grow and make it easier for them to put people to work. new jobs means less government spending on unemployment and health care. new employees spend much of what they earn, also boosting our local economies. in my bill tax credits are targeted for small business job creation. whale we are suffering from high national unemployment, states like michigan are being hit especially hard. that's why my bill gives bigger tax credits to employers that create jobs and high unemployment states like michigan. my bill goes to the heart of our economy. helping small businesses, the engine of job creation in america. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from virginia rise? >> request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore:

without objection. mr. moran: thank you. mr. speaker, i rise with great concern that the department of defense is considering awarding a billion dollar contract to blackwater, now known as x.e. services, to train the afghan national police. blackwater is synonymous with abuse, unprovoked violence, and shoot first attitude. their personnel are directly responsible for killing dozens of innocent men, women, and children in iraq. clearly they are not deserving of a u.s. contract to train the afghan police. hiring x.e. may irpreppably damage our efforts to work cooperatively with the afghan people and serve as a propaganda tool for our enemies. they will be seen as representing the american people, which they do not. given x.e. blackwater's past performance, our government should not be doing business with x.e. and i -- secretary gates should prehaven't this contract from going forward. thank you, mr. speaker.

. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule 20. record votes on postponed questions will be taken later. for what purpose does the gentleman from massachusetts seek recognition? lynch good morning, mr. speaker. -- mr. lynch: good morning, mr. speaker. i ask that the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 1096 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 1096, resolution encouraging individuals across the united states to participate in the 2010 census to ensure an accurate and complete count beginning april 1, 2010, and expressing support for designation of march, 2010, as census awareness month.

the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. lynch, and the gentleman from north carolina, mr. mchenry, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and add any extraneous materials. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. lynch: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. lynch: mr. speaker, on behalf of the committee on oversight and government reform, i'm proud to present house resolution 1096 for consideration. the resolution encourages individuals across the united states to participate in the 2010 sense us to ensure -- census to ensure and accurate complete count beginning april 1, 2010, and expresses support for designation of march, 2010, as census awareness month.

house resolution 1096 was introduced by my colleague, silvestre reyes, and enjoys the support of over 50 members of congress. mr. speaker, article 1, section 2 of the united states constitution requires an actual enumeration of the population of the united states every 10 years. the founding fathers deliberately placed this requirement in the constitution in order to ensure fair and accurate federal, state and local representation. and the census serves the same purpose today by steark the composition of voting districts of -- at every level of government. census data directly affects of how more than $400 billion in federal and state funding is allocated throughout our nation. the information obtained in the census assists planners in determining where schools and daycare centers and health centers and roads, public

transportation, hospital, housing and other essential infrastructure should be located. businesses in the united states use census data to support new investments, and census data determines how funds are distributed to the community for neighborhood improvements and public health education and transportation initiatives. it helps identify changes in community makeup and is essential for distribution of adequate services to our continually growing population. in fact, the census currently estimates that the u.s. population has increased by over 27 million people since the 2000 census. the 2010 census is extremely fast and safe to complete. it consists of just 10 questions and only requires about 10 minutes to fill out. 2010 census data is strictly confidential and federal data prohibits the personal information from being shared with any entity, individual

data obtained from the census is protected under united states privacy laws and cannot be disclosed for 72 years all used against by any person, government agency or court. given the years and safety of the 2010 census, every person in the united states, clubs individuals in puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands, the virgin islands and all other u.s. territories should also take time to out the firm and be count -- to fill out the form and be counted. people in rural areas should be counted in the census because they are at greater risk of being undercounted in the census. this is extremely troubling considering the fact that the census officials estimate that every individual who's not accounted for in the census loses about $1,500 per year in federal aid for their community. by taking just 10 minutes to complete the 2010 census form, we can help ensure that

everyone in america is properly served. house resolution 1096 expresses support for the designation of march as census awareness month, which will raise public awareness about the importance of completing the census. mr. speaker, as census bureau director robert m. groves has noted, taxpayers save $85 million for every one percentage point increase in the national mail-backed participation rate in the 2010 census. let me take this opportunity to express my strong support for house resolution 1096 which encourages individuals across the united states to participate in the 2010 census and expresses support for designation of march, 2010, as census awareness month. i urge passage of mr. reyes' resolution and i yield back the balance of my time. -- and i reserve the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina. mr. mchenry: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise to claim the time in opposition. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for 10 minutes. 20 minutes. mr. mchenry: thank you, mr. chairman. thank you, mr. speaker. and i concur with my colleague and fellow member of the oversight and government reform committee. and, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. mchenry: thank you. i rise today in support of h.r. 1096, and i'm proud to co-sponsor this resolution, encouraging full participation in the 2010 census and expressing support of the designation of march as census awareness month. our constitution requires that every 10 years the federal government count every person residing in the united states. once and only once and where they live. as a nation we've been doing this every decade since our very first census in 1790.

this is not new. this week the census bureau will begin the process of delivering the 2010 questionnaire from the census all across america. by mid month, the majority of the -- approximately 120 million households in the united states will receive their form by mail or by hand delivery from a census bureau employee. the 2010 questionnaire is the shortest and simplest one the bureau has ever sent out. there are only 10 easy questions that should take less than 10 minutes to fill out. and not only is it easy but it's confident too. the individual information that respondents provide is protected by federal law and cannot be shared by any other government agency, period. census data guides the distribution of $400 billion in federal faunds, as my colleague mention -- funds, as my colleague mentioned. and decides the makeup of representative districts from the united states congress on

down to the school board. decisions to build new infrastructure such as roads, schools and hospitals are dependent on population counts derived from the census. when people do not participate in the census, they only shortchange themselves and their communities. a poor response rate means people cannot be accurately represented in federal, state and local districts when they are drawn. it means that a community may lose its fair share of federal and state funding. it means a road that should be built won't. a 10-minute response can help avoid 10 years of underrepresentation and underfunding. mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to support this resolution, this very important resolution. the census only comes around every 10 years. we have an obligation as the people's representative to make sure that they know this is going to happen. census day this year is april 1. every american should get that form in the mail or hand delivered.

simply fill it out, mail it back in and you've done your patriotic duty. every individual in this country should respond. let me make this clear. every individual in this country should respond. it's a wonderful opportunity for you to simply do your patriotic duty. it's what the founders insisted on in order for us to have a representive democracy. we must know who we represent, how many people we represent, who's here, and that's our obligation to carry that message out. but it's the american people's obligation to share this message as well. and so with that i urge my colleagues to support this resolution, this very important resolution. and i retain the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: thank you, mr. speaker. i appreciate and thank the gentleman from north carolina for his thoughtful remarks and for his support. at this point i'd like to yield

to the lead sponsor of this resolution, the gentleman from texas, the chairman of our intelligence committee, mr. reyes, for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. reyes: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman for yielding time this morning. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.res. 1096, which designates march, 2010, as the census awareness month. and i want to thank subcommittee chair clay and ranking member mchenry for their leadership in getting this through committee. i also thank the 59 bipartisan members who co-sponsored this very important resolution. i introduced this bill to urge communities across the country to raise awareness about the upcoming census and to encourage individuals to fill out their census form, to ensure an accurate and complete count beginning april 1. passage of this resolution will

help raise awareness of the census and its significance to communities all across the united states. although the census only happens every 10 years, it is extremely important that we get an accurate count because the data derived from the census affect political representation and direct the allocation of billions of dollars in government funding. every year more than $400 billion in federal funds is awarded to states and communities based on census data. that is more than $4 trillion every a 10-year period. an accurate census and an accurate census count is vital to u.s. communities because it helps us to plan for new hospitals, new schools and new community projects. it is also used to determine which places receive atigsal social services, including --

receive additional social services, including grants. the goal of the census has remained unchanged, to count every person accurately and to collect information that will help us to better serve the needs of our people. the 2000 census counted more than 281 million people. the census only takes 10 minutes to fill out and is strictly confidential. unfortunate, despite these facts, hispanics, african-americans, asian americans and rural americans are among those groups most likely to be undercounted and, thereby, underrepresented. i call on our communities from churches, from schools, nonprofits, big and small businesses to local, state and tribal governments to please help us to promote the 2010 census and urge everyone to fill out their census form. together we can ensure a

complete and accurate count. with that in mind, mr. speaker, i urge all members to join me in voting in favor of h.res. 1096, and at this point yield back the balance of my time. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina. mr. mchenry: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. mchenry: this is not about a -- this is not about partisanship. the census is important for every community across this country, for every state in this nation, and every individual group within this country has something to gain or lose in this census. it's not simply about how districts are drawn. it's about how federal and state and local money is allocated. if you don't respond, if you don't mail your form back in, if you don't answer the door when somebody knocks to collect your census data, which is very basic information, by the way,

you are doing a disservice to yourself, your family, your community, your state and your nation by saying i don't exist. and so it's very important for individuals in this country to respond to the census. moreover, it's helpful to see that the president has recorded a p.s.a. encouraging folks to respond to the census. it shows the importance from the white house on down for everyone else for us to respond to the census. finally, i hope that the 2010 census is the most successful census we've ever had in our nation's history. the bureau's done a solid task of putting together the logistics for getting millions of folks in this country to respond to the census. it's a costly endeavor, but it's the one the founders insisted on for us to have a

functioning democracy, especially when the house of representatives is based on population, they wanted to make sure that population count was correct and accurate. i think the bureau, all the folks that are working all across this country in every community in this country, those folks working for the bureau are wonderful, patriotic people. we want to say thank you for your service to your country. with that if the gentleman is going to close -- if the gentleman from massachusetts is going to close -- mr. lynch: i don't believe we have any more speakers. i just have a few brief remarks and then i'll yield back. mr. mchenry: with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from massachusetts. mr. lynch: i thank the gentleman from north carolina for his courtesy and for his support. i do have a copy of the census form here. .

it's mostly check the box answers. i commend the bureau for simply filing this. as the gentleman from north carolina has stated, it is probably the simplest version of the form that we have had in our history. i also want to express the concern that we get about 80%, 90% of the forms back in the mail. and this is the most efficient way and cheapest way to conduct the census. the costly part of the census count is actually in going out and knocking on doors and trying to get people to respond who have not responded through the mail. that's the costly part. so to the degree that people can cooperate and help us out and mail these back, it's a good use of the taxpayer money. it's much cheaper. so there's a dual purpose.

as the gentleman from north carolina mentioned, the allocation of resources and representation aspect of this is very important as well. we have no further speakers, so i would just in closing ask members on both sides to support mr. reyes and his resolution in supporting the census and designating march as the official month of the census. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: all time has expired. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 1096, as amnded. so many as are 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 -- mr. lynch: i object to the vote on the grounds a quorum is not present and i make a point of order a quorum is not present. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 and the chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 1-a of rule 1, the house will stand in recess subject to the call of recess subject to the call of the chair.

>> this is the memorial service getting underway in just a few minutes here in the u.s. capitol in the stat warry hall area

outside the house chambers. the house is in recess for this memorial service, congressman murtha died in february.

>> members of congress gathering and others as well for the start of the service for congressman john murtha who passed away last month after surgery. bart stupak of michigan there in the center left of your screen. congressman murtha was the first vietnam veteran elected to the u.s. congress. and he was elected in 1974. the congressman served in vietnam in the marines and we expect to hear from the marine band string quartet as part of the service today. also comments from vice president biden and speaker of the house, nancy pelosi.

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>> ike skelton of missouri, the left of your screen standing

there, the chairman of the armed services committee. congressman murtha was chairman of the appropriations subcommittee on defense. one of 60 members of that appropriations committee. congressman murtha died in february after gallbladder surgery. here in the staff wear hall area of the u.s. capitol, members gathering for his memorial service. statutory hall is where each state is allowed to contribute to staff use to the u.s. capitol. so 100 staff use total throughout the staff wear hall. -- staff wear hall. -- statuary hall.

>> please welcome members of the united states house of representatives, secretary robert gates, speaker of the house, vice president joseph biden and honored guests.

>> today we come together in statuary hall to welcome the family of jack murtha, his wife, his children and grandchildren. his brothers, robert and james. and his other family members and many friends who are here to honor his life and his legacy. please remain standing for the invocation. which will be delivered by father coughlin.

>> my brothers and sisters, we believe that all the ties of friendship and collaboration and affection which is with us throughout our lifetime do not unravel at the time of death. confident that god remembers the good retried to accomplish, the love we have shown. let us together remember john murtha and offer to god prayers of thanksgiving and petition for those who grieve. let us pray. lord, jesus, our redeemer, you willingly gave yourself up to death so that all might be saved and pass from death to

new life. we humbly ask you to comfort those in grief, the loss of john, and to receive him into your ever-lasting merciful arms. you alone are the holy one. we are your instruments to accomplish goodness, peace and security here in this world for those we love. you are full of mercy. by dying you unlocked the gates of life to those who believe in you. forgive john his shortcomings and sins and grant him now a lace of happiness, -- place of happiness, light and peace in your kingdom of glory forever and ever. amen. >> please be seated.

ladies and gentlemen, the honorable paul kanjorski. >> madam speaker, mr. vice president, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, we come together today not really to have a ceremony of jack's passing but really a celebration of his life. there aren't many folks in this room or in the congress of the united states that doesn't have a personal story about jack that if related would cause us to smile, chuckle, but also to cause us to recall some seriousness in our lives and in the lives of this nation. even today as i enter the floor of the chamber and i can't help but the first place i look to is jack's chair always

expecting him to be there, even today. he'll never be there again. but he's there in spirit, and i thought, who is jack to us? to me and i think many of my colleagues here today and throughout the house and the senate, he's a validator. we wanted to check whether we were doing the right thing by him and we have the right thoughts and had we analyzed something properly. and then i thought to myself, because you see that i spent more than 5,000 days with jack murtha, about three to four hours every day. so probably more time than i spent with any other human being on earth, because i used to -- he allowed me to have a little standing room next to his chair. and when there weren't other 30's or 40's around, we talked about other issues, some

passing time and having humorous thoughts. but he was also a father confessor. i used to listen to those confessions from many of the members and it was saving. i see some smiles of recognizing and missing that confession. well, we've lost our father confessor. we've lost our validator. but in his passing we haven't lost the treasure that jack murtha gave to the house, gave to the congress, gave to the constitution. that will always hold in our hearts and in our minds. and to joyce and the family, we say thank you for the tremendous contribution you all have made to the united states of america. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable michael doyle.

>> so how do we pay tribute to our friend, jack murtha, in two minutes? it's simply not possible, although jack, i know you appreciate short speeches. [laughter] let me say four things about jack. number one, he loved his family. joyce, he talked about you all the time, and his children. he was very, very proud. he loved his country, and he especially loved the men and women who served this country. he was their champion. jack murtha loved this institution. you know, a lot of members get here by running against this institution. jack murtha taught us to respect this institution. so when i think of my friend, jack murtha, this was my mentor, this was my friend, this was someone who made me a much better person than i would have been without him. jack, i'll miss you every day

for all the days that i'm here. pennsylvania will dearly miss jack murtha, as will this country. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable tim holden. >> today we pay tribute to our departed friend and colleague, jack murtha. over 17 years ago i heard jack say that his great grandmother said to him, you were put on this earth to make a difference. and, boy, did he make a difference. he loved his country and he served it with distinction at many levels. he served stateside during the korean war. when the vietnam war broke out, he volunteered again for the united states marine corps, serving a tour, receiving a purple heart, received accommodation from the commandant of the united states marine corps upon his retirement from the marine corps reserves in 1990.

he was the first vietnam veteran elected to the congress. he was the longest serving member from pennsylvania ever to serve in the house of representatives. he never forgot those brave men and women in uniform and made sure that they had the resources and tools to do the job they do so well. he made sure our veterans had the care that they deserved and visit them so many times in our military hospitals. and he helped so many of us in this house. not one of us can say that we had not gone to jack during our career for help. he will surely be missed by the country, but most notably by pennsylvania. so, joyce, to you and your family, our thoughts and prayers continue to go out to you. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable robert brady.

>> good morning. first, i'd like to advise mrs. murtha that i'm your adopted son. i don't know whether or not jack ever told you. good morning, mom. [laughter] i was under jack's wing. it was warm in the wintertime and cool in the summer. he showed me to be courteous to everyone. he made everyone feel special. when we'd visit the troops, he would rather be with the enlisted troops. you knew that because you couldn't find him half the time. he was compassionate. he had a brave heart. he enjoyed a good joke and had a great sense of humor. some of us didn't know that side of him, especially the press. [laughter] with the exception of his

family, i was most fortunate than any of you in this room. before we broke any thursday or friday i would help him down because, as you know, he had a knee operation. would shake his hand and i would give him a kiss. probably a sight to see a guy like me kissing a guy like him. but we didn't care. [laughter] unfortunately, last january -- this january 27, not knowing it that was going to be the last time i saw him and was going to be the last time i gave him a kiss. so i thank the murtha family. thank you so much for sharing him with us. probably a lot too much. we know what that's like in our lives how we sacrifice our families for this institution. he will -- he will be deeply missed. there will never ever, ever be

another jack murtha. so we had this flag flown over the capitol, and we put it on his seat, the only seat that is reserved in congress, and we had it there all week. on behalf of the pennsylvania delegation, it will be my honor and pleasure to present this to you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable bill young. >> jack and i had a very special friendship and partnership. based on mutual respect for each other and based on a strong commitment on both of our parts to make sure that the united states had whatever it needed to stay strong.

and that our troops who kept our america strong and whatever they need to accomplish their mission and protect themselves while they were doing it. despite that great friendship, jack and i ever socialized. i can't remember if we ever had lunch together. but we worked together every day. in his corner or in my corner or in the well of the house or in the speaker's lobby or walking back between the rayburn building and in the capitol, we talked, we visited, we checked with each other on what we thought were the important issues of the day. we traveled together. we went to far-flung places like the d.m.z. and korea, like to kuwait, like to bahrain, like to bosnia, kosovo. really exciting places like that. but jack's question was, is there anything you need that you don't have, that we can

provide for you? the well-being of the troops were primary in his mind. i know there's a great envious in the murtha family. when i walk those same halls today, i walk in the committee room that he and i shared, we took turns prosiding, i have a tremendous emptyiness in my heart because here was a big man in my life, a big man in the life of the congress. and so i know the envyness that joyce and the family experience is nothing that can be described. and i know that my emptyiness is nothing compared to their envyness, but just remember, joyce, as tim holden said, jack murtha made a really big difference. god bless you and your family.

[applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable stanford bishop jr. >> vivian and i thank you, joyce, and the murtha family for allowing me the time this morning. shakespeare wrote all the world is a stage and all men and women is the players. one man in this time may play many parts. so it was with john p. murtha. he was son, brother, husband to you, joyce, father, uncle, grandfather. a strong family man, the ultimate example to and of the murtha clan. he was a student, soldier, marine, officer and a

gentleman. a patriot warrior, the likes of which our nation has seen far too few. a leader, mentor, counselor, encourager, advocate, helper, feared adversary, trusted ally, loyal friend who always literally and figuratively stood taller than his peers in courage, honor, dignity and service to others. though i could speak and master english, french, spanish, russian, chinese, vietnamese, farse and any of the other languages spoken by mankind, i would not have enough words combined to adequately express the positive impact that jack murtha's life and service had on his family, friends, his congressional district, congress as an institution, the

men and women of our military and indeed the world. he truly made a difference. though we continue to grief his loss and know that murtha's corner on the floor of the house will never ever be the same, the pain we share must melt into joy for we have all been truly blessed to know, love and benefit from having shared the stage of life with this very exceptional man. all the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players. each has his entrance and exit. one man in his time may play many parts, but thank you, jack, for playing so many roles in so many of our lives. [applause]

>> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable james moran. >> leadership is about character. jack had it. he led with it. he led us in putting our families first with his devotion to joyce, his love for his children. he led us in respecting this institution, the people in it, the people who lead it, madam speaker. and he led us in recognizing that the strength of our military comes not so much from the weapons we equip our men and women to kill with, as the values we equip them to live with. jack lived by those values. courage, discipline, compassion

. but he was a man of few words who didn't men's his words. and so -- didn't mix his words. and so to sum up, jack murtha, you were a great man. we can't afford to forget you and we can't help but love you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable jerry lewis. >> madam speaker, mr. vice president, friends of jack, joyce, we are very proud to have this moment to express our love and appreciation to you and your family. jack was an amazing experience for me over the some three decades that we worked together on the appropriations committee

. i'll never forget a very special moment. it was the earmark of earmarks. we found a program in the intelligence committee. that program involved a new asset known as the u.a.v.'s. jack immediately, even though the air force could not imagine our ever wanting an asset where somebody wasn't sitting in a seat, jack recognized the potential of that future asset. and if it were not for his work and for his support for our effort, that $40 million earmark would never have gone forward and predator would have never been in bosnia. another occasion, a demonstration of incredible foresight and leadership. jack murtha joined me in the committee taking a look at tactical aircraft. we decided that we could not go

forward with the f-22, and we pulled the procurement for the first seven of those aircraft. you would have thought we blew the top off the pentagon. and to say the least, lots of consternation out there, but jack fore saw that unless we tested the software in the wings before we started to fly this baby it never would fly. always willing to lead. charlie wilson's war would not have been charlie wilson's war had it not been for jack murtha. it was his effort that helped and allowed us to foresee russians out of afghanistan, laying the foundation for the future for freedom in that entire region. all of us know that jack was there to make a difference. but indeed he couldn't stand those who wouldn't get to the point. he always said, let's get it done. any general, admiral, secretary

or otherwise who decided that they wanted to have a powerpoint in the committee might as well take their charts and go home. [laughter] indeed, few people will have ever impacted the house of representatives and our country's freedom as jack murtha has. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the honorable marcy kaptur. >> madam speaker, mr. vice president, what a privilege to be here this morning to pay tribute to a great man. from his days as a marine drill instructor at paris island, john p. murtha knew how to lead. he formed a league of his own.

husband, father, family man, man of the house, congressman, colonel, chairman, cardinal, dean, beloved. by townspeople, comrades, colleague and staff, man of his word, trusted, expeditionary son of john's town. from korea to havings, from hard-scrabble america in dear hunter country, brave, bold, direct, ready, bipartisan, volunteer for korea and vietnam , intelligence officer, two purple hearts, bronze star, vietnamese cross of gallantry. irish eyes always smiling unless fixed on the enemy.

he taught us, observation did he teach us -- oh, did he teach us. pay attention to details. consult the ranks. get to the front. work the troops. he muse to charlie wilson, you don't say. is that so. achieve both career goals. marine colonel and member of congress who won his first race by 122 votes. his beautiful wife, joyce, where's a gold medallion today presented by her husband from that race. no one could have done more. lasting friends, enduring lessons, a giant oak. a lion now rests in the allegeny foothills. america's defense is the best in the world because john

murtha lived to leave that legacy. at tip o'neill's memorial, jack gave an irish blessing from which we quote with love to his strong wife, joyce, children, donald, john and patrick, and their beautiful family, with the full heart of this house led by his speaker, nancy pelosi. may the sunshine warm upon your face and until we meet again may god keep you in the hollow of his hand. we know when love is real. it endures and grows stronger even beyond time. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, united states marine band vocalist, gunnery surge, kevin benear.

>> ♪ god bless america land that i love stand beside her and guide her through the night with the light from above from the mountains to the prairies to the oceans light would form god bless america my home sweet home god bless america my home sweet home ♪ ♪ from the mountains to the prairies to the oceans light would form god bless america my home

sweet home god bless america my home sweet home ♪ [applause] >> united states, national security advisor, general james jones. >> madam speaker, mr. vice president, joyce, members of the murtha family. >> when i think of jack murtha, i think of leadership, i think of a life-long commitment to this nation and all that it holds dear. on leadership, there's no question about his

qualifications for high office. he achieved the rank of eagle scout when he was a young man. left college in 1952 to join the marine corps. and he came as was mentioned a drill instructor at paris island, south carolina, the marine corps recruit depot where he developed the finer aspects of his sense of humor. [laughter] his leadership was recognized early on and from there he went to officer kennedy school, was selected to compete for commission as second lieutenant which he achieved. and then left active duty in 1955. stayed in the marine corps reserve. always faithful to the corps. always serving whatever called for. 1966, he volunteered for duty in the republic of vietnam where he served with great distinction as a battalion intelligence officer on the

front lines for which he was recognized with some of our nation's highest awards for valor. the bronze star with a combat v for valor, two purple hearts, the vietnamese cross of gallantry. he retired as a full colonel in 1990. those of us who have been privileged to serve with congressman murtha over the years in uniform and out of uniform will always remember his concept of the citizen soldier. in his elected capacity, he always went to the dangerous spots where men and women were serving their country. i accompanied him to sare yea vow -- sarajevo in 2003 which is not a good time to be in sarajevo. s a we were getting off a c-130, a piece of sharp nell flew past us and impacted on some sandbags about 20 or 30

feet in front of us. he turned and looked at me and said, i guess they know we're here. [laughter] but he did -- he did this time and again. he did it quietly. did he it modestly. wherever the danger was he went there to see how the men tanned women were, to see how our nation's interests were being protected. and he devoted countless hours to studying and learning about the situation that he was concerned with. he worked tirelessly for the needs of women and men in uniform. he was at the forefront of the all-volunteer force in its establishment for which those of us who spent our careers in uniform will be eternally grateful. as counselor of presidents and -- an advisor to senior military officers, he will inspire him for many years ago. life towards his family, towards his country and towards

humanity we will never forget. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the united states secretary of defense, the honorable robert m. gates. >> madam speaker, mr. vice president, joyce, members of our family. like general jones, i had a slightly different perspective than today's speakers since i was not one of jack's colleagues on the hill. but for nearly a quarter of a century i worked with him from the executive branch focusing on the great national security challenges our country faced. from our earliest contacts, i will always remember and be grateful for jack's personal efforts on behalf of the afghan resistance fighting the soviets, as jerry lewis talked about. efforts to help bring about the collapse of an evil empire and bring about the end of the cold war. over the last three or so

years, i had the opportunity to work with jack on defense department appropriations. we met privately on a regular basis and had more laughs than you might have thought. one of his great qualities was that he was always candid about where he stood and what he thought, and you could always tell when he was getting ready to cut a deal because his eyes would begin to twinkle. [laughter] in october, 2008, about a month before the election, jack and i were meeting alone and he showed me a press article he had marked up. it was a piece speculating about whether senator obama, if he won would ask me to stay at defense and if he did whether i'd agree. in his way jack put his hand on his arm and said if he asks you have to do it. i say i want you to stay. now, coming from jack, that had a real impact on me even though i have somewhat edited his language for this occasion. [laughter]

in all of our dealings and over his entire time in congress, it was always clear that jack's first priority and his loyalty belonged to the men and women serving our country in the intelligence community and especially in the military. he would do anything to make sure that troops had what they needed. i will greatly miss jack just as this congress and the country will miss an uncommon patriot and one of the truest and most steadfast friends of america's men and women in uniform. thank you. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the speaker of the united states house of representatives, the honorable nancy pelosi. >> mr. vice president, members of the president's cabinet, members of the united states

senate visiting to our side, especially the two senators from pennsylvania, senator specter and senator casey, we're honored by your presence, to all the many friends and colleagues of jack murtha, but especially to his family, to joyce and the family, thank you, joyce, for sharing jack murtha with us. mr. young said he knew jack very well and they worked together for a long time but they never socialized together. jack never socialized. he went home to joyce every night. many of us who are gathered here have had the privilege of calling jack murtha colleague. many also had a privilege of calling him friend. and so we gather today to mourn a loss of a friend, a dear friend and celebrate the life,

a person who was a great legislator, a courageous soldier and a public servant to the end. a couple weeks ago a couple of planes full of members of congress, family and staff went to johnstown to pay our respects to jack murtha. we went there to console and we were consoled. we saw the tremendous outpouring of love and respect for jack murtha. thousands of people stood in the snow in line to wait their turn to say goodbye. again, members of the president's cabinet came to the service. and the president of the united states, william jefferson clinton, was there.

i hope it was a comfort to the family that so many people at every level of our society appreciated jack's contribution, mourn your loss and are praying for you at this sad time. i had the privilege of speaking at jack's service, and i told people of johnstown about the pennsylvania corner. important to note that there are no other named locations in the house chamber. [laughter] pennsylvania corner was a place where jack held court. he was flanked by his two lieutenants. on the west mike doyle, on the east bob brady. senior member, mr. kanjorski, and then all of his pals around. members came from across the country and across the aisle to pay their respects, to get jack's blessing and what they were up to. he always gave them friendship, he always gave them advice. sometimes he gave them support.

[laughter] for two weeks since he left us this flag that bob brady gave to joyce and the family has been sitting there in memory of jack, his leadership, especially of his patriotism. seeing the outpouring support in pennsylvania and seeing it here today recalls to mind a passage from the book of ecleezeast cuss that i mentioned in johns town. now let us praise great men, the heros of our nation. led people by their counsel and their knowledge of the laugs -- laws. from their fund of wisdom they gave instruction. their bodies are buried in peace and their names will live forever. the people will tell of their

wisdom and the congregation will continue to sing their praise. wouldn't jack murtha's grandmother, tim, wouldn't she be proud of the difference that jack murtha made, that he would meet that standard? make it -- on this earth to make a difference. others have referenced that. when we traveled with him, whether it was to the theaters of war or to bethesda naval medical center or to walter reed -- as mr. young has referenced -- he was so interested in these soldiers. he could identify to them and speak to them as one who had served in the military. but also his affection for them was as a father. my favorite time was when they knew he was coming they would be excited and this and that.

one day the door was closed and me said, patient is not ready yet. and we waited a moment. then the door opened -- they opened the door and there was the patient standing in full salute of jack murtha wearing a steeler's jersey. [laughter] jack loved that. jack loved that. jack was a man of great courage, recognized so by receiving the prestigious john f. kennedy profiles in courage award. he won that for the courage it took for him, a person committed to our national security, a person who loved every one of our men and women in uniform, the courage it took for him to speak out against the war in iraq. and in doing so he taught us very clearly to make the distinction between the war and the warrior. jack believed that our national strength certainly was measured

in our military might and the morale and well-being of our troops but also that it was measured in the well-being of the american people. and so while others have acknowledged as many how well decorated he was, a war hero, a serviceman, he was also well recognized and decorated and received many awards for measuring the strength of our country again in the well-being of our country by people, by his leadership on investments in breast cancer, prostrate cancer, diabetes, hiv-aids, you name it. jack recognized the role that research played in making america healthier and stronger. jack's model -- the model of marines, which he was very pride -- right, brian? we visited brian in iraq and

how proud he was seeing you there. semper fi, that was not only the model of the ma -- motto of the marines which he was so proud of, it was the motto of his life. always faithful. always faithful to his family. his love of joyce was so palpable. it was so wonderful. it was such a joy to be behold. that's why he was going home every night not socializing with billy young or the rest of us for that matter. i feel quite certain that the caliber of person that he was, the specialness of his personality, the obedience to his grandmother to make a difference, his patriotism to his country, his love of his family, his mastery of the legislative process made jack

murtha very special. i am quite certain that we will never see his like again. i also mention in pennsylvania about jack those of us knew him here knew it was important. he loved this institution. and he loved it as others have acknowledged -- acknowledged. i think that love was inkindled -- is that the word? kindled by his friendship with tipo neil. he loved tip o'neill. tip was his mentor. tip was his friend. tip loved this institution. and together they made progress for our country. they made friends with each other. and it's a special part of who jack murtha was. i, too, have a flag. this flag was flown over the

capitol, joyce, the minute that we heard that jack had left us. on behalf of the congress of the united states, i want to present it to you in recognition of jack's leadership and patriotism. every day that he was here he honored the pledge we took in the morning. with liberty and justice for all. how appropriate that god bless america is the song that was sung today. god truly blessed america with the leadership and the life of jack murtha. thank you. [applause] ded ecleezeasties. [applause] >> ladies and gentlemen, the

vice president of the united states, the honorable joseph biden jr. >> joyce, thank you for allowing me to be here. to the murtha clan, your dad was one hell of a guy. i had a strange way of committing the cardinal sin of going to the united states senate when i was 29 years old, not serving in the house, don't have the day-to-day connection with jack that all these guys had. but i was there at the beginning and at the end. i was a 31-year-old kid, and i was a sitting united states

senator for about one year and i got a phone call. i got a phone call from a guy named murtha. well, i didn't know. never heard of him. and he told me that he was running this special election in johnstown. and he said he knew i was from scranton, thought i understood the ethic of his district a little bit, will i campaign for him. and i did. there may have been others that campaigned but i don't recall. i remember when i went in he was ahead by about five points and won by 122 votes. [laughter] so i know i can't hurt him now. reason i came safely this time i knew there's nothing i could do to hurt him now. my son, hunter's, with me and tells war stories about jack. and the first guy i asked to visit me in the residence i now have, vice president's

residence, to talk about iraq and afghanistan was jack. jack came over and spent about two hours sitting on the porch because i wanted his advice. but my son hunts with me. and, hunt, look around at the congressmen that are here. there's a lot of congressmen here. but every one of the folks that i know whose reputation unwritten, not formal representation is on their gut, their gumption, their ethic. the fact that they're fighters, their sense of personal commitment. you know, it goes from bobby brady. you know, bobby, one of the regrets i had, i used to kid, growing up in casey, hunter, up in scranton, i tell you what, would have been a hell of a neighborhood to grow up in if you and jack lived in the

neighborhood because you both could have -- he could have lived in your neighborhood in philly and he could have lived in his. it's the same ethic. it's about an ethic, chris. the ethic you have. it's more than about character. a lot of people have character. not enough. but few people have that intangible thing. my mom calls it the sixth sense. there's something about some people who just know that will get your back. tell' get your back. i know i'm not supposed to be this informal as vice president , but the jack that i knew, the jack that i love, the jack that i respected, all the things that was said about jack today are all true. and i recognize them. but the part i liked about him the best, the part i liked

about him the best is a stand up son of a gun. he knew what it meant to give it at the office. he was a guy, paul, when he made a deal and his circumstances changed at home and it would hurt him to keep it, like the guys here in this front row, he'd say, i get it, i made a deal. a deal's a deal. it hurts me. i'm keeping the deal. it's a scranton ethic, it's a johnstown ethic. you know, it's the ethic of a lot of you sitting out here. danny, i don't know anybody with more personal courage that you. but jack was kind of like you. jack could stand up when it wasn't popular. he'd stand up and defend individuals when it wasn't popular.

you know, you talk about how jack was a great soldier, and he was. and i could remember -- i remember going out to campaign for him, general, and i did a little bio. i wanted to know about this guy that was running this special election. who had been running the johnstown car wash before this time. what was the deal about this guy? and i learned this guy when he was playing football at washington-jefferson college he got his start the berth because he realized the guy was going to korea and that was the reason he would get the start, he left and enlisted and wanted to go to korea. it's sort of the ethic that, you know, if i'm getting this job because someone else is making the sacrifice, i sure as hell shouldn't benefit from his sacrifice. kind of basic stuff.

kind of basic stuff that we don't talk about very much. but it's that special stuff. it's the stuff that makes so many of you so different from other people. then he didn't get to go to fight in korea. became a drill sergeant and experience served him very well in the house. [laughter] but here he was, comes along later and he decides he, vietnam war, still wants to fight for his country. now, guessing i don't know for a fact, joyce, but guessing i could picture a conversation going like, well, so-and-so's gone and so-and-so's gone and so-and-so's gone and mary lost her husband and mrs. smith lost

her son and i'm sitting here. you know, that's the stuff the fables about how people we like to think of our country, made up of men and women like that, but that was jack. that was jack. i was graduating into vietnam in 196. there weren't a whole lot of people ready to go, and here jack, he decided he wants to go. well, you know, he had to file a petition. he got the petition. and he showed his medal. he's a man that always was fighting but fighting for opportunity. he fought for his country but he never stopped fighting. when he got back here. but it wasn't a fight out of anger and resentfulness.

it was a fight about this is just right. wasn't complicated, in my experience of jack, it wasn't complicated stuff. it's right or it's wrong. if it's right you got to do something about it. i also remember thinking that when i was out there in 1974, if any man reflected his district it was jack. marcy talked about, you all remember the movie diagnosis dear hunter." -- remember the movie "dear hunter." that was jack. he reflected the ethic of his district. like so many of your districts, the people here. i -- he was made of the same stuff of the people he served with and actually grew up with. throughout his career he -- people tried to pigeon hole

him. i remember people would say because i have different views of things as chairman of the foreign relations committee, i served longer than jack, probably most of you here in the united states congress. and they said, how can you be such good friends with jack? this guy's a hawk. this guy's a hawk. remember i almost lost your election for you first time, i was the first guy to campaign. no wonder they're so resilient. they made it through my campaign formula the first time. but all kidding aside. you know, the thing that always struck me about jack is people didn't understand -- it wasn't as nancy said, the speaker said, it was about the warrior, not the war. it's about his country, not the warrior. and what did jack do? jack came out against the war in iraq. people were surprised when jack

called for the marines to investigate what happened because he was such a defender of the marines. i think what people didn't get about jack, it was all about honor and duty and about protecting his marines, not just protecting them physically, protecting their honor. to jack it was about honor. .

there was one kid, both legs gone, part of one arm, and he had one of those triangles above his bed, and i walked in and he was asleep. so i said to the nurse -- she said no, he wants to see you. he really wants to see you. and the kid pulled himself up on this triangle and said, sir, i'm sorry i can't stand. and then he said to me, do you know congressman murtha? let me tell you something, i

think that the ethic of jack murtha exemplified here is the stuff that is most admired by the american people. and the stuff of which we sort of sing songs about. jack, talk about jack's corner, pennsylvania's corner. like i said i never served here, but the way i kind of looked at it without knowing him except on two occasions being able to come to the corner when i came over here to do some business when you allowed those of us from the upper chamber to traverse into god's country, i always thought about it was not so much who was in jack's corner but whose corner jack was in.

you know, 1977, the johnstown flood, i was head of the used to be called public works committee, chris, before it was the environmental public works. i was in the disaster subcommittee. i flew to johnstown. there was only one man in america who could have gotten any notice, chairman obey, other than dan flood, at that moment, and it was jack murtha. and everybody else was talking about what they were going to do. i was holding hearings there about disaster relief and getting money. and i asked where was congressman murtha? privately. and i was told that he had just commandeered a military helicopter and because he was told he could no longer wade through the water in places he wanted to go, and he was going out spot to spot giving direct

aid and trying to pull people out of trouble. the bethlehem steel plant closed , he was the first guy to convince bethlehem steel to keep the plant opened for another year. fought like the devil to find places for those 10,000 folks who lost their job. because to jack it was more than a steel plant closing. it was a way of life shutting down. it was a ethic that was being lost. it was about dignity. it was about respect. ladies and gentlemen, you-all know and you can tell 1,000 stories about jack more than i could tell, but i didn't have to be around him as much as you were to know the man that he was. i didn't have to be around him as much as you were to know that as nancy said, we are not going to see his like again.

i think of jack, there's a civil war poet, guy named richard watson guilder who like jack's great grandfather fought in the civil war. he wrote something that could have been put on jack's tombstone. he said better than honor and glory than history's iron pen was the thought of duty done and love of his fellow man. i don't know anybody who did his duty better than jack. i don't know anybody who cared about his neighborhood more than jack. because at the end of the day when i needed jack, i think of neighborhood. i think of neighborhood ethic. i think of a guy who asked no quarter, gives none of people's interest to his stake. stood tall.

throughout his whole career. my dad were alive, guys, and to you, you beautiful child, he would look at all three of you and say you got good blood, kid. you got good blood. >> before we adjourn, i hope that we could all join in expressing our gratitude, love, respect, and appreciation to joyce murtha and their family for sharing jack with us.

>> ladies and gentlemen, reverend daniel coughlin will now deliver the benediction. >> please remain standing. trusting in god, we have shared stories and memories of john. now we come to a final moment. parting always moves the heart. the mind travels everywhere. the heart moves slowly.

this assembly will disburse with some sorrow and some regret, but also with deeper commitments and deeper belief because of jack murtha. god of mercy who gathered us together today will again gather us in the joy of his kingdom. therefore as we go forward let us walk with a commitment of peace. let us console one another with faith. and let our charity, our love for one another be known around this world. into your hands, father of mercies, we commend our brother in a sure and certain hope that together with all who have died, he will rise again on the last

day. we give you thanks for the blessings that you have bestowed upon him, his family. , his corps, faithful. and this body in which he took such great pride. they are signs to us all of your goodness and continued care for us. lord, turn toward us now, listen to our prayers, open the gates of paradise to your servant, and help us who remain to comfort one another with assurances of faith, deeper dedication, and service of others, and our faith, trust that you will join us all together once again in your holy spirit. we know the anguish of the sorrowful, but you are ever attentive, most of all, to the

brokenhearted. hear your people who cry to you in their needs and strengthen us and strengthen this nation in the hope of your lasting goodness. eternal rest grant unto him, o lord, and let the perpetual light shine upon him. may he rest in peace. amen. peace to you all. >> ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us today. please remain at your seats for the departure of the official party.

[captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010]

>> the house has been in recess so members could attend the memorial service for congressman john murtha. pennsylvania democrat died in february due to surgery complications. when the house returns, more legislative work including a bill restraining students at school. we expect them back fairly shortly. live coverage here when the gavel comes down on c-span. plito's reporting this afternoon that senator tom harkin has told them senate democratic leaders have decided to go the reconciliation route. the house, he said, will first pass the senate bill after senate leaders demonstrate to house leaders that they have the votes to pass reconciliation in the u.s. senate. meanwhile, on the u.s. house side, congressman charlie rangel announced today that he's asked for leave of absence from his post as chairman of the house

ways and means committee until the ethics committee has finished their investigation. we spoke to a capitol hill reporter for some background. greg hit of the was "wall street journal." charlie rangel said you bet your life he would stay on as chairman. what changed last night and the announcement this morning? >> i think political reality set in. it was obvious i think for those who were willing to look out across the landscape in the house that the political support for the chairman was eroding within his own caucus. >> any indication there was a final straw, a final member that said you got to step aside here? >> i don't know if it was a final member. i do know there was a lot of concern among supporters of rangel yesterday when

congressman artur davis raised concerns about him continuing as chairman. he's a member of the committee and a member of the black caucus and that, i think, was a bad moment for mr. rangel. >> why was this representative rangel's chairmanship, continued chairmanship a potential problem for democrats? >> this is obviously about election year. the voters are up in arms about washington and about politicians in general. the democratic majority came to power in 2006 promising to clean up the institution of the house and to -- and to the extent that rangel was holding a prominent committee post and was under investigation and had been found as we now know last friday from last week to have violated the

rules of the house, that was a problem. it was an image problem, political problem, and would expose rank-and-file democrats in vulnerable districts to questions about whether or not they supported the guy. it was just i think for many members, an untenable situation given the political environment they are operating in. >> what's next for his committee? the ways and means committee? there is no clear successor there in the committee as least temporarily. >> i think there's -- that's sort of one of the things we are going to try to figure out here today. if you go down the list of potential folks who would be in line for the gavel, pete stark, sandy levin, they have been around a long time. and i don't know that it is clear that either one of those guys yet has broad support within the caucus and leadership

has to try to figure out who they want in that job, which is obviously high profile and is one of the image making chairmanships in the house. >> is it likely congressman rangel will be on this leave of absence from the committee for quite some time? >> yes. i think he's on leave of absence from the chairmanship. i don't know if he's resigned fully from the committee, but i think that he will be certainly on leave through the election. and beyond perhaps. >> greg hitt of the "wall street journal." thank you for the update. >> thank you so much. >> also on capitol hill today, a hearing looking at the "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays and lesbians serving in the military. house armed services subcommittee on military personnel holding that hearing. that's at 2:30 eastern. we'll have it live on c-span3. over 1,000 middle and high

school students entered this year's c-span student cam documentary competition with a short video on one of our country's greatest strength or a challenge the country is facing. we'll announce the 75 winners on march 10 and he show you their winning videos at studentcam.org. >> c-span, our public affairs content is available on television, radio, and online. you can also connect with us on twitter, facebook, and youtube and sign up for our schedule alert emails at c-span.org. >> u.s. house should be back in 10 or 15 minutes or so. we'll have it live once they gavel back in. until then a conversation with jeb hensarling and mike pence from this morning's washington journal. s representative hensarling, and congressman mike pence. you are here to talk about the spending limit amendment to the u.s. constitution. tell us, where did the idea come

from? guest: there is a spending crisis. every day we come to washington -- but this time you better believe it. people should not take our word for it. listen to what the director of the congressional budget office, but eleanor says. "in sum, the outlook for the federal government is bleak. u.s. fiscal policy to -- in unsustainable path to the extent it cannot be solved with minor tinkering." our former comptroller general, david walker, said the rising cost of our government entitlement spending is a "fiscal cancer close " that threatens "catastrophic consequences for our economy." economist robert samuelson stated spending could lead to " and economic and political death spiral." we know recently moody's said the american people, that our debt offerings are in peril of losing the aaa rating. now we have a president of the

united to submitted a 10-year federal budget that we know gives us the largest deficit in the history of america, $1.60 trillion, doubles the national debt in five years, tripled it 10 years from when he was first elected. america is on the road to bankruptcy. we believe if you look at the post world war ii era, spending has averaged 20% of the economy. spending is due under the current plan to rise to 40% of our economy in the lifetimes of my children. that is not right. that is not fair. so, myself, mike pence, john campbell from california are introducing an amendment to the constitution to cap a limit of the federal budget to the growth of the family budget and tie it to the economy before we literally bankrupt the nation and put the next generation on the path of having less opportunity and lower standard of living.

host: why constitutional amendment? guest: that think that is a great question. -- i think that is a great question. i want to agree very strongly first with jeb. we are facing a fiscal crisis and the american people know it. we know it in our gut. we brought some of the charts we put together here that demonstrate, since world war ii, this federal government has managed to get by on about 20 cents on the dollar in this economy. but we are on a pathway and a trajectory that, by the middle of the century, we will more than double the percentage of this economy that just the federal government consumes by itself. that will make the american people less free, less prosperous, and less secure. we need to know that, first and foremost. jeb references the current director of the cbo, former

comptroller general. we hear these warnings a margin but i think the reason why you see hundreds of thousands of people on the national on september 12, the reason why you see the tea party is, is the american bible know you cannot borrow and spend -- you see the tea parties, is the american people know you cannot borrow and spend. it asked the question, why constitutional amendment? i am in my fifth term. it seems longer. but i am pushing my 10th year on capitol hill. i have fought against runaway federal spending under a democrat congress and a democrat administration, and as my record will reflect and so will jeb's, we fought against runaway spending under republican controlled congress and republican administrations. and the one thing i know for sure is that everything we tried up to this point has not worked, and frankly, it won't work.

if senator bunning's experience in the last 24 hours is any teacher, paygo survived three weeks? the very first bill after the president signed an executive order under pay-as-you-go rules, they waived the rules. we saw gramm-rudman go the way of the dodo bird. we have seen pronouncements by republicans about fiscal discipline we were in charge and yet the government continues to expand the size and scope. debt doubled under the last administration and getting to triple under this administration dared what we have come to the conclusion of is that there has to be some outside force large enough and powerful enough to advocate for the american people in this process. and we believe -- and not little bipartisan commissions that have no force of law or authority -- but rather of the constitution of the united states of america,

that will say to congress this far and no farther. we carved out in our proposal, if there is a declaration of war, i think we went to 50% of the economy in federal spending to defeat nazi germany and imperial japan, but absent declaration of war or two-thirds vote in congress, the american people have the opportunity with this amendment to say, you can have 20 cents out of the dollar that i earn, and that is it, and anyone who thinks that is unreasonable, all we are talking bob is getting by in the next century with what the federal government has gotten by the last 60 years. 20% has been the historic average since world war ii. if memory serves, we were under 20% way back in 2007. this is not radical. we will have to make some choices, we will have to pursue reforms seriously, but we really believe -- my decade and capitol hill, and jeb is about a year

behind me -- has convinced me we have to employ that power that is the constitution of the united states, that charter with the american people and enact the bill in congress and send it to the states and let the american people say to their congress, this far and no farther and federal spending. host: what do you make of senator bunning's stand over the weekend? he did not want to move forward on what was a pretty pop the bill because he was concerned about paying for it. guest: what a radical notion inside the beltway that you should actually pay for something? we are not oblivious to the fact that we, unfortunately under the policies of this president and this democratic congress, we are still mired in roughly double digit unemployment. so many members of congress clearly want to continue to extend forms of unemployment insurance. but at the same time, one of the things hindering job growth today is a there is no path to

fiscal sustainability. one of the reasons -- and i talked to small business people all over the fifth district of texas that i have the honor of representing -- and they have anxiety and uncertainty about how will this spending be paid for. are there going to be massive tax increases on my small business? are we going to have massive inflation, to where we look longingly and nostalgically on the carter era with double-digit interest rates and inflation? that is keeping them from expanding jobs today. you can hear chairman ben bernanke say roughly the same thing. i did not speak to senator bunning about this, but the idea that if you will spend over here you ought to save over there is not foreign to any family or small business in america. it is simply a foreign concept inside the beltway. and if we would do what senator bunning suggested, we would hasten the day where jobs are

actually created in this economy. host: of is that a tough message back home when you are talking about unemployment benefits, money for doctors, reimbursement for medicare, highway money -- all things people back home may be in favor of. caller: the idea is that you don't take money away from children and grandchildren to do something that necessarily benefit us today. for decades and decades, the american ethic has been worked hard today so your children can have a better tomorrow. and washington is turning back on its head. saying washington has it easy today so children have to work harder tomorrow. that is not the vision of founding fathers, not the america you grew up here -- grew up in and not that we want to leave our children and grandchildren. host: you have an op-ed piece in "the wall street journal."

why is now the time to do this? people talk about that the economy is very fragile. there are so many people believe stimulus should continue and more money should be injected and later work on deficit reduction. why now? guest: well, i really do believe that the american people know that the strength of this nation is not derived from the size of our treasury or the size of our federal budget. the strength is found in the ingenuity, resources, creativity, courage and sacrifice of the american people. our founders knew that. the constitution of the united states is a document of limited government. but we are on the pathway to peace and chile transform the size and scope of government -- pathway to transform the size and scope of government to the

socialist governments of europe in its magnitude and size. and i don't think the american people have any confusion about what that means. people in this country understands that as government expands, freedom contracts. so, if we are going to double the size of the american government as a percentage of our economy we will be less free. i think most americans know that -- in our enterprises, personal lives. we know there would be less prosperous. there are statistics and a piece we will pose online, along perversion, forever percentage increase in the federal government's expenditure as a portion of gdp you actually see unemployment go up by a fraction of a percent. this means as government grows, it takes away opportunities for americans. the other piece of this is -- to look, the bible says that the bar were becomes the slave of

>> we'll leave this now to return to live coverage of the house who just gaveled back in for more legislative work including a bill on restraining students at school. live coverage of the house now on c-span. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> thank you, madam speaker. by direction of the committee on rules, i call up house resolution 1126 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house calendar 168, house resolution 1126, resolved that upon adoption of this resolution, it shall be in order to consider in the house the bill h.r. 4247 to prevent and reduce the use of physical restraint in schools and for other purposes. all points of order against consideration of the bill are waived, except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule 1. the amendment in the nature of a substitute now printed in the bill shall be considered as adopted.

the bill as amended shall be considered as read. all points of order against the provisions of the bill as amended are waived. the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill as amended and on any amendment thereto to final passage without intervening motion except, one, one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on education and labor, two, the report accompanying this resolution if offered by representative george miller of california or his designee, which shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable for 10 minutes equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question. three, the amendment printed in part b of the report of the committee on rules if offered by representative flake of arizona or his designee, which shall be considered as read, shall be separately debatable

as read equally divided and voled by the proponent and opponent and shall not be subject to demand for the division of the question. four, one motion to recommit with or without instruction. section two, all points of order against those printed in the house report are waived except those arising under clause 9 or 10 of rule 1. section three, in consideration of an amendment accompanying this resolution, the chair may postpone the question of adoption as though under clause 8 of rule 20678 section four, it shall be in torder at any time through the legislative day of march 4, 2010, for the speaker to entertain motions that the house suspend the rules. the speaker or her designee shall consult with the minority leader or his designee on the designation of any matter for consideration pursuant to this section. section 5. requirement of legal cause 6a of rule 13 for a 2/3 vote to consider a report from the

committee on rules on the same day it is presented to the house is waived with respect to any resolution reported through the legislative day of march 4, 2010. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for one hour. mr. miller: for purposes of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx. all time yielded in consideration of the rule is for debate only. i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on house resolution 1126. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. so ordered. >> thank you, madam chair. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. >> madam speaker, the house resolution 1126 provides for consideration of h.r. 4247 the preventing harmful restraint and seclusion in schools act, under a structured rule.

4 the rule provides for one hour of general debate, equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking member of the committee on education and labor. the rule makes in order two amendments that -- makes in order the two amendments that were submitted for consideration and are printed in the rules committee report, a manager's amendment by chairman miller and an amendment by representative flake. the rule lays all points of order against considering of the bill except for clause 9 and 10 of rule 21 and provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions. the rule authorizes the speaker to entertain motions that the house suspend the rules through the legislative day of thursday, march 4, 2010. the speaker shall consult with the minority lead thorne designation of any matter for consideration pursuant to this rule. the rule also provides for same-day consideration of any resolution reported from the rules committee through the legislative day of thursday, march 4, 2010.

madam speaker, the bill before us today, the preventing harmful restraint and seclusion in schools act, responds to a shocking and urgent need to protect our children in their schools. last year, the committee on education and labor held a hearing where they were told horrifying accounts of young, innocent children who are subjected to abusive use of restraint and seclusion in their classrooms and some who died as a result of this abuse. these were unfortunately not isolated instances. the committee also heard from the government accountability office, managing director of forensic audits and special investigations, who testified that the g.a.o. found hundreds of cases of alleged abuse and death related to the use of methods -- these methods on schoolchildren. in texas and california alone, the fwmplet a.o. found there were over 33,000 reported instances of restraint or

seclusion in the school year of 2007-2008. madam speaker, this is deplorable and inexcusable and it is simply not humane. even worse, parents may have no idea what's taking place in their children's classrooms. sometimes the only sign of a parent -- sometimes the only sign a parent may ever see are slow but stark behavioral changes in their child at which point the child has been afflicted with deep psychological issues and damages. i shudder at the thought that while innocent children are supposed to be learning about reading, writing, and arithmetic, they may subjected to unspeakable abuse that will affect their lives forever. our nation's youth already has to overcome many obstacles in their lives and should not be subjected to such scars that may never heal. if that's not bad enough, consider the children with disabilities or special needs

who are disproportionately restrained or secluded at school at far greater rates. further, many have no means whatsoever of communicating with their parents. no child should ever be subjected to abuse or neglect, especially within the care of those we are supposed to trust the most. despite what you may have heard on the other side of the aisle, the bill before us today isn't about federal control or about setting up a one-size-fits-all federal mandate. it's about establishing flexible guidelines for states to help them raise the bar and solve a problem they simply have failed to adequately address on their own. 19 states currently don't have any laws addressing seclusion or restraint in schools. no laws at all. and 31 states that do, their laws are all over the map. in fact, some of them have got to have set guidelines so low they might as well not have any

rules at all. madam speaker, this bill, h.r. 4247, will remedy that problem once and for all. it will require states to meet minimum safety standards to prevent abuse in restraint and seclusion across the country similar to rules already in place in medical and community-based facilities. h.r. 4247 prohibits the use of mechanical, chemical or physical restraints or any restraint that restricts breathing and abusive -- excuse me, breathing and abusive behavioral intervention that compromise the health and safety of the children. the bill does, however, allow for temporary restraint or solution of a child under certain circumstances if the child possesses -- is an imminent danger to himself or others in the classroom. the secretary of education will issue regulations establishing the standards and the states will have two years to have

their own policies in place to meet or exceed the regulations we're providing. in closing, i'd like to commend the committee on education and labor for its continued efforts on behalf of the nation's children. i strongly urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this common sense legislation. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i thank the gentleman from california for yielding time and i will urge my colleagues to vote no on this rule for many reasons, which i will outline in my comments, but i certainly want to share with the gentleman from california and the sponsors of this bill the feeling that all of us want

to see that our children are protected, that all children are protected, particularly when they are in state-sponsored institutions such as public schools or other such institutions. no one wants children to be at any risk and we want to make sure that the people who are looking after them take the proper precautions when they are dealing with them, not just -- especially in a physical way. we're here today to debate the rule on h.r. 4247, preventing harmful restraint and seclusion in schools act. our founding fathers knew what they were doing when they assembled the u.s. constitution and the protections it guarantees, specifically in the 10th amendment. the authors of this amendment ratified -- authors of this amendment, ratified in 1791,

remembered what it was like to be under the thumb of a distant, all-powerful government and thaund a one size fits all approach does not work. since the u.s. constitution was first ratified, the federal government has slowly, steadily and corrosively eroded the notion of states' rights and our individual liberties no where in the constitution does it empower the federal government to override states' rights. when it comes to the education of our nation's children, we can all agree, again that students should be able to learn in a safe, productive, and positive environment. teachers, principals and other school personnel have a responsibility to ensure the environment is maintained at all times. in many cases, it's vitally important that teachers and classroom aides use interventions and supports that are both physically and emotionally safe for the

children. what the bill before us fails to recognize is that 31 states currently have laws and regulations in place that govern the use of seclusion and restraints in schools. an additional 11 have policies and guidelines in case and in some cases, school districts may also have their own guidelines governing the use of such practices in the classroom. furthermore, the federal government has no reliable data on the prevalent use of harmful seclusion and restraint techniques in public and private schools and whether they result in child abuse, no matter the hyperbole used by people on the other side. last year, the u.s. department of education recognized this fact and through the office of civil rights issued a draft regulation requiring state and local educational agencies to collect data on the use of seclusion and restraint in schools. moreover, last august,

secretary of education arne duncan sent a letter to each chief state school officer urging that officer to review the current policies and guidelines regarding the use of restraints and seclusion in schools to ensure that every student is safe and plo tected. -- and protected. however, instead of waiting until the department of education completes its review to see how widespread the problem of harmful seclusion and restraint techniques are, the bill establishes a federal one-size-fits-all mandate to a problem that there's not yet a thorough understanding and that would otherwise be handled at the state level. we know increased increased federal regulation do not equal results, especially then it comes to education. despite washington spending hundreds of billions of federal dollars since 1965 in public education, test scores have not

improved. instead, we should be focusing on enforcement of current state procedures adressing seclusion and restraint of students. it's my belief that state and local governments can identify student needs and determine the most appropriate regulations better and more efficiently than the federal government. at the beginning of the 110th congress, the new majority came to power full of promises for bipartisan working relationship and a landmark pledge to create the, quote, most honest, most open, and most ethical congress in history. on page 24 of speaker pelosi's new direction for america tumet, issued in the 109th congress she calls for regular order for legislation. bills should be developed following full hearings and open subcommittee and committee markups with appropriate referrals to other committees. members should have at least 24 hours to examine a bill prior to consideration at the subcommittee level. .

members should have at least 24 hours to examine a bill and conference report text prior to floor consideration. bills governing floor debate must be reported before 10:00 p.m. for a bill to be considered the following day. floor votes should be completed within 15 minutes with the customary two-minute extension to accommodate members' ability to reach the house chamber to cast their votes. no vote should be held open in order to manipulate the outcome. house-senate conference committee should hold regular meetings, at least weekly, of all conference committee members. all duly appointed confundraisees should be informed of the schedule of conference committee activities in a timely manner and given ample opportunity for input and debate as decisions are made

toward the final bill language. the suspension calendar should be restricted to noncontroversial legislation with minority authored legislation scheduled in relation to the party ratio in the house. those were all the things that the majority promised us before taking over in the 111th congress. and what do we get? we get this rule which provides blanket martial law through thursday. this practice diminishes democracy. when major legislation is being considered that would add hundreds of billions of dollars to the debt or affect americans in other ways, members of congress should have the opportunity to study the legislation for more than a couple hours and know what they are voting on. this rule is a structured rule and made in order two amendments, one from chairman miller and one from representative flake of arizona. chairman miller's amendment among other things would change the title of the bill from,

quote, preventing harmful restraint and seclusion in schools act to the keeping all students safe act. that's a promise that no congress can fulfill. madam speaker, we have a lot of problems with this bill. we have a lot of problems with this rule. and again i will urge my colleagues to vote no on the rule and no on the bill. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves her time. the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. cardoza: thank you, madam speaker. the gentlelady from north carolina states we have no statistics to back up the point of why we are bringing this bill to the floor today. in just texas and california, there were 33,000 cases reported to the committee in one year. if that's not a statistic but can make your hair curl, i

don't know what is. even ranking member kline said we are in further need of statistics because he does believe this is a serious question. but just to make the point, make the case even stronger, the gentlelady's state, north carolina, the reason why we need this bill, she says some states have rules that already deal with this problem. let me read you a little bit about what north carolina's law says. it says it allows for a seclusion and restraint to maintain order or calm or comfort in the classroom. and does not require that there be imminent danger or an emergency, and people can use it for discipline and to write it into i.e.p. or individualized education programs. that's exactly why we need this because some states like her home state don't understand this shouldn't be the way we deal with children with special needs or other challenges.

it shouldn't be standard operating procedure in our schools. madam speaker, i now lied to yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. miller. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for two minutes. mr. miller: i want to thank my colleague from california and the rules committee for reporting this rule that will allow us for the first time to have federal guidelines for the protection of children while they are in school. it is important that we strive to keep all children safer while they are in school. i'm honored to have worked with and thank her so much for her cooperation, congresswoman kathy mcmorris rogers, who was so instrumental in bringing this bill together and bringing all the various parts of the discussion on this legislation together to help us draft the legislation. not everybody agrees with it, but we have had wonderful cooperation and support from very many parts of the

educational community. recognizing that for this -- for the actions to continue that have put so many children in danger and have harmed so many children without having an accurate reporting system, without having the proper training of teachers, teachers very often are put in a very, very difficult position with respect to what to do, but we cannot have the children being taped to their chairs. children having duct tape put around their mouth. children being locked in dark closets or small spaces for multiple hours of the day or week so they can establish the comfort in the classroom? that's not the right treatment of that child. if you're doing it over and over and over again, and you're not changing the behavior, you are not getting the outcomes, you might want to rethink that policy. but that tragically that's not happening in too many areas. yes, there are some state

regulations in this area, but they are very incomplete. they are spotty. some only address one school population, one particular disability maybe, or particular age group, but not others. we cannot have, and it is the g.a.o. tragically made so graphic to our committee, you cannot have very young children treated in this way. we were presented with the most graphic case of students who died while they were placed in seclusion. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. miller: and improper uses of restraint. if i could ask the gentleman for two additional minutes. mr. cardoza: i yield the gentleman from california two additional minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california has two additional minutes. mr. miller: we met with the parents and the caregivers of those children. here's the final touch. that in many instances these children were treated this way over and over again and their parents, guardians were never

notified. in many instances the first time they realized what was going on is when the child in a very traumatic way refused to go back to school. was frightened to go back to school. some of these children have never really been able to return to a regular school setting. they have lost the trust in people in those settings. or a teacher might venture out and quietly tell a parent that something is wrong in your child's classroom or the way your child's being behaviored. that is not the kind of notification that parents are entitled to. and it's not the kind of notification that people believe gives them the authority to engage in this abusive behavior. also we know that in the number of instances medications were used without the involvement of a doctor, without the ok of the parent, without checking with the authorities prior to that. we do recognize that in particular cases a child may be

a threat to him or herself. may be a threat to another student or to a teacher or to other school personnel. and we do allow them to take action in that particular case, but the idea that this ad hoc theory of locking kids in closets while they are denied food and water, let's look what this bill does. this bill says you can't deny water. you can't deny food. you can't deny them access to bathroom facilities. that's kind of basic, isn't it? the treatment of a child. and think of what happens to a child when that is done. we are not always talking somehow about a teenager here. we are talking many instances very young children. children in many, many instances with disabilities who may not be able to communicate clearly and we cannot allow us to proceed against those children without a policy being in place that protection the children and notifies --

mr. cardoza: i yield 30 seconds. mr. miller: i want to thank the gentleman and rules committee for reporting this rule. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from north carolina is recognized. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i yield such time as he may consume to the distinguished ranking member of the rules committee, mr. dreier. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. dreier: madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. dreier: madam speaker, the american people get it. last june 24 we at 3:00 in the morning up in the rules committee had dropped into our lap a 300-page amendment that no one had read just as the motion was being offered to move that so-called cap and trade legislation to the floor of the house. up until that time being on the rules committee as i am, whenever i would talk about

process in this institution, people's -- members' eyes would glaze over and i know that the american people would have their eyes glaze over and i even had colleagues of mine from both sides of the aisle say, why do you talk about process? madam speaker, one of the things i have learned from having been on the rules committee for more than a couple years is that process is substance. the utilization of process plays a very critical role in determining the outcome of legislation. the american people concluded after june 24 when the next day our distinguished republican leader, the gentleman from ohio, mr. boehner, stood here taking his one-minute and went for an hour going through that 300-page amendment. the american people got the message and they said, you guys don't even take time to look at the legislation before you vote on it?

again this happened at 3:00 in the morning and within a matter of hours we had that measure on the house floor. madam speaker, why am i going through this? because in the rule, and i understand that my friend from grandfather community has talked about this, but the fact is in this rule we have what is described affectionately from members of both sides of the aisle is martial law rule. what it means is, in this rule, any member who votes for this rule, is voting to give the majority authority to, without any kind of consideration, move directly to the floor of the house with legislation -- we don't know what that consists of. a colloquy i had with the distinguished chair of the committee on rules last night, she said it was going to be focusing on the jobs issue, but guess what, madam speaker, in this rule there is no clear

definition as to what legislation is going to be considered. now, this is a structure that is utilized by both sides of the aisle. i will plead guilty. we have used this kind of expedited procedure in the past when we were in the majority. madam speaker, it is almost always done only at the end of a session when there are very, very important time constraints that need to be addressed. members on both sides of the aisle usually end up agreeing to it. madam speaker, i know that i speak for not only my republican colleagues but the american people, democrat, republican, independent, when i say that the notion of imposing martial law rule in what is now the third month of the second session of the 111th congress

is a nonstarter. we should not be utilizing this kind of procedure at this point. so, madam speaker, i am going to urge my colleagues to vote against this rule and bring back a structure that does, in fact, strike martial law, which is not what americans, regardless of political party, want us to be utilizing in dealing with this very important issue. there is bipartisan support for the underlying legislation, but there is very, very strong opposition. i hope from both democrats as well as republicans, because of the fact that the american people do not want us, especially at this time, when we are focusing on very, very important legislation to deal with job creation and economic growth, utilizing martial law rule.