pallone, congressman shimkus and my good friend and colleague, chris smith, who for so many years joined me as we tried to work on behalf of families who are dealing where this every day of their lives. you know, as many of you know, autism has been a primary focu autism has been the primary focus of my time in congress. even though there is still much we don't know. in just the time i have been here, we have seen light years' worth of understanding of the condition. one of the most important things we have learned is that early intervention works. that's why i have always appreciated that chairman waxman and chairman pallone worked with me during health care reform making sure plans in the exchange included needed behavioral health benefits. among the many items that the house passed in our relate reform bill that the senate did not was the services training and research initiative for children and adults with autism. so we decided to introduce it as

a stand-loan bill the training and research for ought tism improvements nationwide and i'm glad it's on the house floor today. individuals on the autism spectrum need assistance in the areas of comprehensive early intervention, health, recreation, job training, employment, housing, transportation and early primary, secondary and post-secondary education. with access to and assistance with, these types of services and support, individuals on the autism spectrum can live rich, full and productive lives. we know for services for youth transitioninging to adulthood is a pressing need. we also know that there is a critical shortage of appropriately trained personnel across numerous and important disciplines who can provide

services and support that children and adults with related developmental disabilities and their families. the bill, the train act, will help this. this bill will help practicing professionals as well as those in training get the most up-to-date practices by the most current research findings and there is an urgent need to trans lailt results into effective practices to support children and adults with ausism spectrum disorders and related disabilities including early intervention and pre-school program, child care, community schools, health providers, employment sites, community living and first responders. this bill will do that, too. it is important to note and i want them to know we aren't recreating the wheel. the bill will expand the network

the network. and i think my colleagues should know that the bill helps minority-serving institutions gain the skill sets and resources to work with and to serve currently underserved populations. people like rodney pete's wife have helped others understand that autism doesn't know race and can affect any family. you should also know that this bill is supported by groups like autism speaks, the autism society of america, self-advocates and many, many other organizations. for those reasons, i ask my colleagues to vote yes on this bill. and before i forget, i would like to thank ann morris and emily gibbons and kenneth degraff for their hard work on this bill. thank you, chairman. i hope we can continue to work on other items in the autism agenda and reauthorization of

the c.a.a. law and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey yields back. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i would like to reiterate what the gentleman has said, early detection can make the difference in the world and this legislation goes a long way in providing assistance in finding early detection. and i urge members to support this legislation. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from he kentucky yields back. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i would also yield back and urge that the bill pass. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the plules and pass h.r. 5746 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed. the gentleman from georgia. >> i ask for the yeas and nays.

the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing. a sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules and agree to h.r. 2923 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 2923, a bill to enhance the ability to combat methamphetamine. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: i rise today in strong support of h.r. 2923, the combat methamphetamine act of 2010. h.r. 2923 is designed to respond to problems that the drug enforcement agency has identified in the implementation of the combat methamphetamine epidemic act of 2006. that 2006 law required retail sellers of products to file a self-certification attesting they have trained their personnel about the law and its requirements. according to d.e.a., thousands of sellers have not self-certified and this legislation is designed to improve compliance of the 2006 law and will provide d.e.a. with enforcement tools like civil fines. i want to commend representative gordon as well as senator feinstein for their leadership on this legislation and i thank my ranking members in moving this bill forward so quickly. i urge my colleagues to support

the bill and i resevere the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey reserves. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i also want to thank congressman pallone and shimkus in bringing this important legislation to the floor. we all recognize the devastating effects of methamphetamine. i would like to yield five minutes to the gentleman from tennessee, mr. wamp, who has been a true leader in combating methamphetamine. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee is recognized for five minutes. mr. wamp: thanks to the committees of jurisdiction and leadership on the majority side and minority side. this is a bill that effectively gives our drug enforcement leadership the tools that they need to continue this fight. 12 years ago, much like mr. doyle was talking about his tenure here in the house being defined by his extraordinary work in the area of autism, in many ways, mine is defined over

the last 12 years fighting methamphetamine production in the southeast, particularly in east tennessee where it surfaced in the late 1990's, after coming to this country really in terms of production in about 1993, surfacing first in california. and then it came to the mountains of east tennessee, much like moonshine did, it was a clandestine process where citizens would put together the chemicals to make it. it stunk really bad, so they would do it out in the middle of the mountains and hills and get away from urban centers and because the drug is so deadly and addicttive, it encroached on other areas. and we saw the states that took the leadership of taking behind the counter drugs, made it harder to get and enforced rules at the state level and not backed the production of methamphetamine. we still have a huge problem of

methamphetamine coming in across the border through the transit country of mexico, but frankly, this has helped us a lot combat the production. we formed in east tennessee, what was the southeast tennessee meth task force which was a local, state and federal partnership because methamphetamine production can't be combat the exclusively at the state and local level. they just simply can't. they didn't have the resources to surveil it. it becomes a toxic site where it is made, so they didn't have the resources to clean it up. and it grew to be the east tennessee meth task force and now it is a statewide task force. we have had tremendous success. but we have to continue to modernize the laws, including federal component in order for drug professionals to be able to keep it out of the hands of

people who are addicted, because they produce this, most of the time, for use. and as a result, this is just a deadly, deadly disease out in the hinterland of america and we have to fight it. this bill is another step in the right direction. congressman gordon and i worked together and congressman cooper passed a bill a few years ago to create federal grant support of the children who are taken out of meth homes because when a meth home is infected by this plague, many times the children become wards of the state tan there is little help there at the state level. if this plague of methamphetamine has not come to your hometown, it will soon and it require a federal component. this is a good bill and i urge the house to pass this piece of legislation and thank the committees of jurisdiction and original sponsor, mr. bart

gordon of ten son -- tennessee. and i yield back. mr. pallone: i have no speakers and i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. mr. whitfield: when you talk to law enforcement officers anywhere in america, they will tell you 80% of the crimes committed in america are the direct result of some type of drug. methamphetamine is certainly one of those. and in kentucky, we have the drug task force and when i think about the passage of this legislation, i think of a gentleman who started the task force, who is a true leader in combating methamphetamine, who unfortunately died a couple of weeks ago. but i know he would be very proud of this act and i would urge that this legislation be adopted. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the

balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i would also yield back the balance of my time and ask that the bill pass. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey yields back. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 2923 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended and the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i move the house suspend the rules and agree to h.r. 1745 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 352, h.r. 1745, a bill to amend the public health service act to provide liability protections for volunteer practitioners at health centers under section 330 of such act. the speaker pro tempore:

pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i rise today in strong support of h.r. 1745, the family health accessibility act. the bill is authored by my colleagues on the energy and commerce committee, mr. murphy, of pennsylvania, and mr. green of texas and enjoys strong bipartisan support. the bill would provide liability protections for health care workers who volunteer to work at community health centers. very similar protections are already provided for the employees and contractors of such centers. the bill introduced would provide such protection to only physicians and psychologists but the committee adopted an

amendment to expand health coverage to all workers who are volunteering so long as they are working within the appropriate scope of practice and license and performing work that is appropriate to the center. the c.b.o. has estimated that the bill would not affect mandatory spending or revenue and not subject to the pay-go rules. versions of this has passed in the house in previous years. i hope this bill will become law. i thank mr. murphy and mr. green for their hard work on this legislation. i express my appreciation to our minority leaders on health legislation in the committee, mr. shimkus and mr. barton, for their support and commitment in getting this bill to the floor. i urge my colleagues to support the bill. and i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i thank mr.

murphy. all of us recognize the importance of community health centers. they are spreading throughout the country and provide primary health care for the american people. and at this time, one of the real leaders in this area, mr. murphy of pennsylvania, i would like to yield five minutes to him. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for five minutes. mr. murphy: thank you. community health centers provide high quality and low cost. they're more than just a doctor's office. a child can see a pediatrician, an adult can see an internist, you can go there if you're getting a cold instead of running up an emergency room bill. the doctors are under one room and coordinate your care working as a team in a one-stop wellness center. the costs for patients are far, far below the cost one would

pay if you went to a hospital or private practice that coordinated effort saves a lot of money through providing quality medical intervention when you need it. for one of these 250,000 nonprofit health centers. in our nation's health system, the community health centers are credited with saving nearly $25 billion each year. families save money and medicaid saves money. on average, a person using a community health center saves $1,100 per year on health care costs according to a study by george washington university. that's the good news. the sad news is that there's a serious shortage of health care providers at these centers and no matter how great the center, then health care delayed is health care denied. health centers located in medically underserved rural areas report a 20% shortage of dentists a 26% shortage of

ob/gyns to provide prenatal care and a shortage of family physicians. they don't have the money to hire additional staff. but there's an answer. many health professionals, especially part-time workers are highly qualified, -- or highly qualified semiretired workers are willing and able but aren't allowed to do so. that's right, they want to volunteer but cannot. they cannot because the centers cannot cover the cost for insurance. medical liability insurance can cost well over $100,000 per year per doctor. the clinics simply cannot cover that expense. here's why. practitioners employed by the community health centers are covered by the claims act, which provides coverage to the doctors. the opposite applied at free clinics, where doctors are covered while those employed are not covered.

the medical liability insurance costs pose a, quote, significant barrier, unquote, for many providers who otherwise would be eegier volunteer at health cent irs this bill, h.r. 1745 fixes a disparity and opens the door for clinics all over america this bill which i represented -- i introduced with representative gene green will allow thousands of practitioners to volunteer their expertise for high quality, low cost patient care. the congressional budget office estimates the cost of this bill would be as little as $5 million a year for five years and in return, the clinics receive hundreds of millions of dollars of health care for those in underserved communities. because -- and this funding is not scored cost. it means the slight additional cost the program will require no new appropriations. the slight additional cost will require no knew annual appropriations.

i'm grateful for the support of my colleagues, representative gene green, frank pallone, phil gingrey, ranking members joe barton and chairman henry waxman for working with me on this legislation and also my staff. we are in congress and we have a chance to do something to expand care to millions of americans with this act without raising the health care bill for families. s than example of real bipartisan reform that helps people get the health care they need when they need it, close to home, at an affordable cost. sthant what we all want? let's say yes to community health care, yes to doctors who want to volunteer their care, yes to affordable care for millions of families and please say yes to the family health care accessibility act. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i yield such time as he may consume to my

colleague from texas, representative green. before i do, let me say he's been an outstanding leader on community health center, he authorized -- or sponsored a bill to authorize community health centers and he's looking out for ways to improve what goes on here. i yield to the gentleman at this time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. green: i thank the chairman for those kinds words -- kind words and his support of this legislation. i'd also like to thank our ranking member joe barton and congressman shimkus of illinois for the support of this bill and all the members on the energy and commerce committee. i rise in strong support of h.r. 1745, the family health care accessibility act. h.r. 1745 will extend federal tort claims coverage, to licensed volunteer practitioners for section 330 services provided under the public health service act.

it will allow practicers to volunteer and provide them with tort claims coverage. a study in the journal of the american medical association found that community health centers had vacancies of 20% for ob/gyns and 8% vacancy rates for podiatrist and 22% vacancy rate for strists and 18% vacancy rate for dentists. if we rely on community health centers as medical home we need to increase the number of health care providers, including volunteer practitioners. so many qualified individuals want to volunteer but don't because they don't have federal tort claims protection and the government accountability has found they choose not to volunteer because medical liability insurance is too costly for individuals to purchase on their own. we can address the work force

shortage by clarifying medical malpractice scoverpblg provided to clinicians who wish to volunteer their time working at the community health center. i want to thank congressman murphy for sponsoring the legislation. this will mark the third time we've worked together to pass this legislation in the house. it was in the health care reform bill but the senate did not include it in their version and again, mr. speaker, i want to thank the house and hopefully we'll pass this bill today again and give the senate another opportunity and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. >> mr. speaker, i -- mr. whitfield: i think all our members have explained clearly why we should support this legislation. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i also yield back the balance of my time and urge

passage of of the bill. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 1745 as amended? those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair -- mr. whitfield: i ask for the yeas and nays. -- mr. murphy: i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of taking the vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman seek recognition? mr. pallone: i move to suspend the rules and agree to h.r. 5710 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar, h.r.

5710, to a bill to amend the re-authorization. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey, mr. 35 loan and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whit neeled, each will control 20 minutes. mr. pallone: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. pallone: i rise in strong support of h.r. 5710, the national all scheduled prescription electronic reporting re-authorization act. this tracks prescriptions so law enforcement officials can protect and prevent diversion and so they can respond to the potentially devastating effects

of prescription drug abuse. the program as it was first authorized in 2005 allows the secretary to make grants to support this program and sets standards for privacy and interoperability. this resolution enhances the bill and makes other changes. we change the authorization period from five to three years so the next re-authorization can take into account the results of an agency evaluation of the program scheduled to be completed in 2012. the amendment also clarified language regarding granting preference to states that have prescription drug monitoring programs. i'd like to thank mr. whitfield for his leadership on this issue, as well as mr. stupak. both of them have been involved with the bill for some time, including the original authorization and also our ranking member, shimkus and barton. i urge my colleagues to join me

in supporting h.r. 5710 and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. whitfield: h.r. 571 would re-authorize the all schedules prescription reporting act. i also want to thank congressman stupak for his tremendous leadership, without him he wouldn't have this bill on the floor. chairman pallone has been helpful, ranking member barton and shimkus and i would also like to thank our late friend charlie norwood of georgia whombings very much interested in this legislation. the bill was designed to reduce prescription drug abuse by providing physicians with the tools to stop the abuse before

it starts. the law allows physicians to provide proper medication therapy to patients while also cracking down on the interstate diversion of prescription medication. importantly, the law contains safeguards to ensure this sensitive information is protected and accessed appropriately. this is an important piece of legislation, i urge all of our members to support it and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from michigan, who, as i said, has been involved with this legislation from the beginning, mr. stupak. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized. mr. stupak: thank you. i thank the gentleman for yielding me time. i rise in support of this legislation.

five years ago, congress passed the national all schedules prescription electronic reporting act into law, making it the only statutory program to assist states in combating prescription drug abuse through prescription drug monitoring programs. congress realized more needed to be done to aid states and improve systems that enable authorities to identify prescription drug abusers as well as problem doctors who betray the high ethical standards of their profession by over or incorrectly prescribing prescription drugs. it was passed after hard work by many members of our committee and members on both sides of the aisle. today, i'm honored to again work with mr. whitfield, mr. pallone, mr. shimkus to re-authorize this program. minor but important changes have been made to the program, including allowing the use of grants to help states maintain existing programs. this will allow cash-strapped

states to continue operating their my -- their program under difficult economic times. it will also allow territories to be eligible for grants. i urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this legislation and i yield back the balance of my time to mr. pallone. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan reserves. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i yield back the balance of my time and urge passage. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i also yield back the balance of my time and urge passage of the bill. i'm sorry, mr. speaker, can i take that back? the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. pallone: i would like to yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from texas, ms. sheila jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized for as much time as she may consume. ms. jackson lee: thank you very much. i want to thank the manager of the bill, chairman pallone and

thank the author and if you will, visionary of the bill, mr. stupak and mr. whitfield for their leadership. i are rise today because this is interesting and important bit of legislation as it relates to physicians under the injureed -- under commerce and h.h.s. it helps determine who might be an addict and helps engage the medical profession to end or stem the tide of prescription drug abuse. drug abuse. interestingly enough, in this legislation, there are privacy provisions, which i want to applaud and to say to all those who may be listening, this is a lifeline to stop the prescription drug abuse through legitimate medical resources and professionals and as well for those who are legitimately ill,

prescription drugs are prescribed and they find themselves addicted. when i left texas in the last 24 hours, interestingly, there was another effort going forward, mr. pallone, that had to do with our drug enforcement agency, where about 10 or so sites were being set up to encourage people to give back old or aged drugs in their drug cabinets, if you will, or prescription cabinets or in their medical cabinets at home. and these sites were in schools and community buildings. and as i read this project, which obviously this was a proud effort, and i want to congratulate law enforcement, had a concern. the concern was privacy. whether or not this was coordinated to ensure that if you gave a bolt of prescription drugs that was still filled,

whether or not there was a privacy procedure of either removing those labels or maybe they expected you to remove those labels and also what would be the ultimate result. if they saw someone returning five bottles of such and such that happened to be an addictive drug and their names were on it, what kind of protection, or what kind of treatment or referral would these individuals receive. i think that's an important point. i rise today on this legislation or i look forward to reviewing this legislation, even as it passes, to assess whether or not our friends in the legal end of it, d.e.a. in particular, and i would hope that the representatives with the d.e.a. would meet with me about their approach to ensure that it has the requirements and the restraints we see in this present legislation. i congratulate the oughtors of this legislation. i would -- authors of this legislation. i would like to add one other

point. have not been here for the legislation dealing with h.r. 5494, which is mrs. norton's legislation, which talks about the national park service and secretary of the interior transferring certain properties to the district of columbia, it may not be equal, but i do want to make note that the g.a.o. is holding property that the texas military history museum has been paying rent on or paying taxes on because their belief it be longed to them and because the g.a.o. had -- the general services administration had basically lost the property or had forgotten it had existed. and i look forward to them following at least the per emters of this legislation where they can transfer those assets to very important and distinctive group, the texas military museum association that has now made this a military

museum for the people of texas and for america. this was appropriate to do so. i want to make sure i add my support to legislation, if it's coming to the floor dealing with rosa's law, which is a senate bill and i will add supporting statements to the record. in conclusion, i think that this legislation, 5710, is a model for what can be an important life saver in america, and that is to get people to be weaned off addictive drugs and have a way of determining whether there is an addictive person and whether they can secure care. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 5710 and i look forward to the drug enforcement agency working with my office on the kind of restraints that is hopefully helpful when they have these mass campaigns for people to drop off old prescriptions and make sure they follow suit

and do the right thing for the people of this country. i yield back. and i ask for a vote. thank you very much, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas yields back. the gentleman from new jersey is recognized. mr. pallone: i would yield back the balance of my time and urge passage of the bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey yields back the balance of his time. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5710 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended -- the gentleman from georgia. mr. broun: request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking the vote by a vote will rise and remain standing. a sufficient number having arisen, yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i move that the house suspend the rules

and agree to s. 2781. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: senate 2781, an act to change references in federal law to mental retardation to references to intellectual disability and change references to a men tallly retarded individual to references to individual with an intellectual disability. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield will each control 20 minutes. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i would like to yield now to the the gentleman from new york, representative many man who is the sponsor of the legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman from new york is recognized. mr. mcmahon: it is my honor to champion h.r. 4544, so i rise today in strong support of s. 2781. i thank mr. pallone for his leadership and mr. chairman, i thank you for your leadership and chairman on the disabilities caucus and work you do there. this bill will replace the term mental retardation with the term intellectual disability throughout the united states code. in july of this year, new york governor paterson signed similar legislation joining 48 other states that have dropped the r word. democrats and republicans have co-sponsored and agreed that the time has come to end discrimination against individuals with intellectual disabilities. every day, millions of children

and adults have difficulty with tasks such as problem solving, decision making and communications because of intellectual disabilities. these americans are often ridiculed, ignored or abused by their peers. sometimes they are referred to publicly by insulting terms and treated as second class citizens. in particular, the term mental retardation has acquired a negative meaning and is used intentionally and unintentionally to deride and humiliate many of our citizens. h.r. 4544 is aptly named for a great woman from my home state, elizabeth a. connelly. she was elected to the assembly as the first woman from my district to be elected to public office. when she retired in 2000, she became new york's longest serving female legislator. she was a staunch advocate and

champion for individuals with intellectual and other developmental disabilities. she was instrumental in securing funds for mental health programs and creating the new york state commission on quality of care for the mentally disabled, led the charge to close the state school and led this nation from warehousing individuals into providing group home settings. she was known throughout the community for working with parents, advocates and government officials to make new york a leader in providing high quality services and programs for individuals with intellectual disabilities. she's known as the guardian angel of the mentally disabled and was not only a pioneer of her time, but she was my mentor. i was privileged to work as her staff member and counsel for many years and her personal commitment and leadership that has inspired me to become an advocate for these important issues. sadly, we lost her all too prematurely a few years ago, but

we honor her and her husband robert and family with this bill. so, mr. speaker, i cast my vote and urge my colleagues to do so as well in honor of assembly woman connelly and she would be proud seeing the united states ing s. 2781. i urge my colleagues to pass this bill and send it to the president's desk for signature. i thank our chairman of the subcommittee and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. whitfield: i rise in support of s. 2781 and i thank the majority and all of those involved in this important legislation for bringing it to the floor for final passage. this legislation is really very simple, but very important.

it simply modifies specific terms used in federal law and instead of referring to people as mentally retarded individuals, but refers to them as individuals with developmental disabilities and will affect the social security act, the public health services act and a lot of other federal laws. it is certainly a step in the right direction. and i would urge passage of this legislation. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time and i urge passage of the bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from yields back. the question is, will the house assist pend the rules and -- suspend the rules and pass s. 2781. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table.

for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: i move that the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 1433, expressing support for designation of september, 2010 as blood cancer awareness month, as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the resolution. the clerk: house resolution 1433, resolution expressing support for designation of september, 2010, as blood cancer awareness month. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey, mr. pallone, and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: mr. speaker, at this time i would yield such time as she may consume to the lead democratic sponsor of the bill, the gentlewoman from

colorado, ms. markey. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for as much time as she may consume. ms. markey: i rise in support of this resolution raising awareness of blood cancer. i thank representative from north carolina for his work to bring this important resolution to the house. nearly one million people are afflicted with blood cancer and 150,000 are newly diagnosed. with these numbers we all know someone whose life will be affected. i have personal experiences with leukemia and other blood cancers. there is increasing awareness such as my staff member, who dedicated her free time in honor of her friend's mother and ran a half marathon. raising awareness of blood cancers through the designation of september as blood cancer awareness month will ensure that

we keep in mind the widespread impact and the importance of a.m.le federal research for funding, education and research. i encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this important resolution. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from colorado yields back. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as many time as he may consume. mr. whitfield: i rise in support of house resolution 1433 expressing support for designation of september, 2010, as blood cancer awareness month. at this time, i would like to yield as much time to the the gentleman from north carolina, mr. jones, who is the primary sponsor of this legislation and has been a real leader in cancer awareness in the u.s. congress. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized for as much time as he may consume. mr. jones: thank you, mr.

speaker and i thank the gentleman for yielding time to me. i want to thank betsy markey, who just spoke. she has worked with me hand in in glove. and we were able to get over 130 co-sponsors. as she said, more than 50,000 people will die from blood-related disorder. this legislation asks the house to support this designation of september as blood cancer awareness month. this will enhance the understanding after -- of blood cancers. these diseases need more fund regular sources. this legislation was requested by the american society of hematology, the national my luoma foundation, the hematoma

found they leukemia and lymphoma society. mr. speaker, before i close, i want to thank the committee of jurisdiction, the chairman on the floor today, for getting this legislation to the floor, the end of september i will be in raleigh, north carolina, for an event called walk the night, there will be those who have been cured of cancer blood diseases that will be walking, there will be those who lost loved ones because of blood cancer diseases that will also be walking and so, for this congress to do this, i will be indebted and grateful to and again, i want to thank congresswoman betsy markey for being a co-sponsor and i thank the committees and thank the congress and the leadership of the house, both democrat and republican, for get this to the floor. 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 new jersey. mr. pallone: i also yield back

the balance of my time and urge passage of the bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky. mr. whitfield: i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky yields back the balance of his time. the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 1433 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? mr. pallone: i move that the house suspend the rules and agree to h.r. 5809 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 360, h.r. 5809 a bill to amend the controlled substances act to provide for takeback disposal of controlled

substances in certain instances and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from new jersey mr. pallone and the gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield each will control 20 minutes. mr. pallone: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pallone: i'd like to yield to one of the sponsors of the legislation, the gentleman from washington, mr. inslee. such time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he they may consume. mr. inslee: we have a good bill here to reduce the rate of abuse of prescription drugs. three years ago, local agencies and community leaders came to my office and told us we had this problem because prescription drug overdoses are rising rapidly.

there is really no way to dispose of legitimate prescription drugs in a legal, easy to use fashion under our current laws system of for three years now we've been working in a bipartisan fashion to come up with a solution and i'm very happy to say with the strong support of 55 national and regional organizations and the leadership of chairman waxman and representative stupak, moran, and smith, we have found a solution that does protect the public and the environment from harmful drugs. you know, prescription drug abuse is a growing epidemic. back home in my state of washington, prescription drug overdoses have surpassed car accidents as the leading cause of accidental death for people ages 35 to 54. washington has the sixth highest rate in the nation of prescription drug abuse among 12 to 17-year-olds. unfortunately today's medicine

cabinets have become tomorrow's drug dealers' storage sites. kids are abusing leftover prescription drugs and getting addicted or in worse cases dying. just yesterday, nine middle schoolchildren in bremerton, washington, were hospitalized after popping prescription pills that one student brought to school from home. in washington state, local agencies and community groups have tackled this problem head on and have developed successful pilot safe drug disposal programs. these brick and mortar dropoff locations give communities of all sizes an easily disposeable system to dispose of unneeded drugs. but these programs have gone as far as they can and right now they -- the legal walls to grow these programs to make them more effective and easier for

our communities to use. so we now have a common sense solution which is this bill and we need to make sure these programs are put in place for all prescription drugs to keep these powerful substances off the streets and out of our drinking water this legislation will solve those problems. i want to know one success of this bill. bart stupak and others have been great leaders in designing a program that would be flexible and easy for communities to use. we wanted to make sure we got communities to design their programs so that they would have a suite of different systems to use on how to run the programs. i want to congratulate bart and others on helping us fashion this. with that, i urge our support for h.r. 5809. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from washington

yields back, the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for such time as he may consume. mr. whitfield: i rise also in support of the safe drug disposal act, i want to thank mr. inslee, mr. moran, mr. pallone and many others for their support. i was invited by sheriff carter of allen county, kentucky to a meeting of concerned citizens in that community. what they wanted to talk about was prescription drug abuse. and not only is it a problem in washington state, it's a problem in kentucky, and it's a problem throughout this entire country. we're fortunate that many pharmacies, states, and localities have established prescription drug takeback programs but unfortunately, they are unable to take back controlled substances due to a technical reading of the controlled substances act. this legislation will correct

that, will allow a takeback program to also apply to controlled substances and by passing this legislation these programs will help further reduce the likelihood of prescription drugs being diverted to those to whom they were not prescribed. i'm delighted that we're bringing this legislation to the floor and i look forward to its passage and would urge all our members to vote for it. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i yield to my friend from virginia, mr. moran, for as much time as he may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. moran: i thank my good friend from new jersey for yielding me the time as well as his friendship as well as the distinguished gentleman from kentucky, mr. whitfield. and i want to recognize mr.

inslee for introducing this legislation. we share a deep concern about the use of medications which are not being safely returned to drugstores because of the regulatory difficulties and in many cases you have to have a police officer there overseeing the return of the drugs this will get over those restrictions and allow a process to happen which is terribly important because we should all know that drug abuse is not limited to street corner illegal drug purchases. that, in fact, the abuse of prescription drugs is a large part of america's drug problem. particularly among young people. one study has shown that in the last decade, nonmedical use of

prescription drugs increased by almost 100%. among adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17, it increased by more than 200%. too many of our young people are raiding the family medicine cabinet to obtain prescription drugs like oxycontin, ritalin, valium, and of course it doesn't just affect those individuals and it's not harmless. it clearly is leading to an increase in criminal behavior. we find that about 600,000 emergency department visits over a year involve the nonmedical use of prescription or over the counter drugs or dietary supplements, that's a substantial increase year after year, about a third of the visits result in hospital admissions and 1,365 of those emergency visits have resulted

in the death of the patient, oftentimes young people. that's where we see the biggest problem, fatalities in children 13 to 19. so this will allow local communities to create drug disposal programs, as mr. inslee and mr. whitfield have mentioned, it gives consumers a safe way to dispose of farm suit cams, including controlled substances. a number of the most responsible pharmacies have asked for that. pharmacists say they want to be constructive in this process and prevent these -- these illegal and oftentimes fatal use of prescription drugs on the part of young children. so this is a very important piece of legislation, it will save lives. it's the right thing to do. i want to mention one other thing that involves our

environmental appropriations subcommittee, we are finding one thing that's leading to a serious problem with water quality is the fact that prescription medications are winding up in our water supply because our sewage treatment centers don't have the ability to screen them out. so they go right into the water supply, that leads to drinking water and we think that that's a source of some of the problems we find with endocrine disrupting chemicals that block or mimic natural hormones and we see that in a number of fish , particularly the fish in the potomac river. this is one of the problems. and so we are addressing a number of issues with this legislation. i trust it will be passed unanimously and maybe even by the senate which would be phenomenal. so mr. speaker, thank you again

and we thank all those who co-sponsored this and let's hope it becomes law very quickly. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from kentucky is recognized. mr. whitfield: i urge passage and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from new jersey. mr. pallone: i also yield back the balance of my time and urge passage. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5809 as amended? those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and without objection the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, proceedings will resume on

motions to suspend the rules previously postponed, votes will be taken in the following order. h.r. 5131, by the yeas and nays, and h.r. 3470 by the yeas and nays. the first electronic vote will be conducted as a 15-minute vote. remaining electronic votes will be conducted as five-minute votes. the unfinished business is the vote on the motion of the gentlewoman from the u.s. virgin islands, mrs. christensen, to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 5131 as amended on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: union calendar number 341, h. r56r789131. a bill to establish coltsville national park in the state of connecticut and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill as amended?

members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by

bill is passed and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado rise? mr. perlmutter: madam speaker, i send to the desk a privileged report from the committee on rules for filing under the rule. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title. the clerk: report to accompany house resolution 1640, resolution providing for consideration of the senate amendment to the bill h.r. 5297, to create the small business lending fund program, to direct the secretary of the treasury to make capital investments and

eligible executions in order to increase the availability of credit for small businesses, to amend the internal revenue code of 1986 to provide tax incentives for small business, job creation and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed. the house will be in order. the chair will entertain requests for one-minute speeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: i ask unanimous consent to remove my name as a co-sponsor of h.r. 43413.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the chair will now entertain requests for one-minutes. the gentleman from texas rise? >> address the house for one minute, revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. smith: the immigration tide has turned against the administration. a recent poll found that 60% of voters disapprove of the way president obama is handling illegal immigration. 50% of democrats and 87% of republicans now agree that immigration reform should, quote, move in the direction of stricter enforcement of laws against illegal immigration, end quote. while the obama administration seems to stop arizona's immigration enforcement law, a poll shows 73% of americans now say the law is just right or doesn't go far enough.

across the country, candidates are running on no amnesty platforms. while the obama administration is moving in one direction, the american people are moving in the other. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the house will be in order. will members please remove your conversations from the house floor. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas rise? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. jackson lee: madam speaker, the house is not in order. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is correct. the house will be in order. all members are requested to remove their conversations from the house floor. ms. jackson lee: madam speaker, i heard quite the contrary from my good friend on the other side of the aisle. in fact, i listened to a very

eloquent comment being made in the other body as they discussed the dream act. many americans understand and appreciate the value of legislation that will allow young people who have lived here and graduated with honors and high marks to be able to go to college, even if they came with their parents, undocumented. to allow them to access citizenship to pay back their dues to the american people to give of their talents to make this economic engine run and to serve their country. it was an amazing story recounted of a young man who tried over and over again to be able to join the united states military and was rejected over and over again because of his undocumented status. by some manner he managed to go on to school and become, or enter into law school. now, even as a person that is still seeking the appropriate status, he still wants to join

the marine corps. the dream act is the right kind of comprehensive immigration reform and it's time to move forward, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the house will be in order. all members are asked to remove your conversations from the house floor. for what purpose does the gentlelady from florida rise? ms. ros-lehtinen: to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. ros-lehtinen: i'm proud to rise to recognize south florida's own joseph pepe barilla, the president of barilla spices, who will be honored the 10th annual bubbles and bones gala. his story is the classic story of a refugee in the united states. he came as a lone 14-year-old

hispanic immigrant who through hard work and determination has become the leader of one of the largest and fastest growing spice companies in the united states. his accomplishments will be highlighted at an event in south florida by john cross, known as footie, and will benefit a nonprofit substance abuse treatment facility which assists over 300 inner city youth. congratulations. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota rise? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. paulsen: i rise to recognize september as p.a.d. awareness month. only 25% of people are even

aware of its existence. that's why i've introduced house resolution 1438 which aims to promote increased awareness and diagnosis of peripheral arterial disease to reduce the mortality rate of this disease. p.a.d. occurs when arteries in the legs become restricked or clogs with fatty disde-pozz sits. it can result in muscle pain, disability, amputation and death. it is also a warning sign that other arteries, including those in the heart and brain, may be blocked increasingly with the risk of heart attack or stroke. we must take the proper steps to curb this increasingly dangerous and deadly disease and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. for what purpose does the gentleman from the northern mariana islands rise? mr. faleomavaega: to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore:

without objection. mr. faleomavaega: our local women began to train as nurses in world war ii. but the real re-ality meant that only those whose hearts, minds, and bodies were strong could succeed. world war ii opened the doors wider. forces had to recrulet nurses from the local population. after the war, the navy and the civil administration set up hospitals and clinics and these facilities demanded nursing staff. schools were created in and out micronearbya. we the people of the northern mariana islands salute the nurses and thank them for their professionalism, courage, and service. i yield back the balance of my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. are there any furr requests for one minutes? for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and any special orders heretofore entered into, the following members may be permitted to address the house, revise and extend their remarks and include therein extraneous material. mr. burton, today and september 23 and 24, five minutes each. mr. poe, september 28 and 29, five minutes each. mr. jones, september 28, 29, five minutes each. mr. westmoreland, today, five minutes. ms. ros-lehtinen, today, september 23, and september 23, five minutes. mr. thompson, september 23 for five minutes. mr. kauffman september 23 for five minute, ms. foxx today for five minutes, mr. tiahrt today for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. for what purpose does the gentleman from alabama rise?

>> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and following any special orders heretofore entered into the following members may be allowed to address the house for five minutes and revise and extend their remarks, br bright five minutes, ms. woolsey of california for five minutes, mr. defazio of oregon for five minutes and ms. kaptur of ohio for five minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. leaves -- the clerk: leaves of absence requested for ms. bordallo of guam for today and the balance of the week. mr. jackson of illinois for today, ms. kilpatrick of michigan for today. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the requests are granted. under the speaker's announced spoifl january 6, 2009, under a previous order of the house, the following members are recognized for five minutes

each. mr. jones of north carolina. the gentleman from georgia is recognized for five minutes. mr. westmoreland spst it is with honor and great store roe i rise on this occasion tonight to pay tribute and tell everyone about private first class chad coleman who heeded his nation's call of duty by joining the army in october of 2008 after attending high school in my home state of georgia. on august 27, 2010, he made the ultimate sacrifice, proudly serving his country in afghanistan as a member of the 101st airborne division. growing up in wisconsin, chad moved to morland, georgia, with his parents, brian and shannon coleman. when he was 16, after high school, -- when he was 16, he

moved to noonan. after high school, chad entered basic training at fort knox and completed advanced training at fort campbell, becoming a cavalry scout. he was defloyd afghanistan as part of the 33rd cavalry regiment of the 101st airborne division. for anyone who knew chad as a young boy, it came as no surprise to them he would grow up into a fine soldier. as a boy he was compassionate and caring and showed interest in serving his country at an early age. his grandmother recalls him building large forts out of lincoln logs and how he would maneuver the plastic army soldier he is he bought at the dollar store in and out of the forts he had built. as a teenager, he spent time at the local v.f.w. hall, playing cards with the veterans and listening to their stories. most of all, he was a friend to the distinguished men and women who served their couldn't arery

so bravely before him. the only thing that came close to chad lease love for his country was his love for family and friends he never failed to say i love you, his grandmother said. hugs and kisses were his trademark. while his family will continue to miss him every day, they know he was fulfilling a lifelong dream. private first class coleman was always known to say he loved the uniform and was so proud to be serving his country. a few weeks ago this country lost a true hero. i know that his fellow soldier, his country and especially his family will miss him greatly. i am proud to pay tribute to such a fine grandson, son, patriot, and soldier. madam speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. mr. bright of alabama is recognized for five minutes. mr. bright: madam speaker, earlier this week, hyundai

motors anounsed it would move production of its sedan from south korea to its flagship factory in montfwomry alabama. it was a welcome announcement in montgomery and the surrounding area, which i'm proud to represent. since 2005, our factory has produced the increasingly popular sonata. despite the slumping economy, the production of the sonata continues and recently, another vehicle was moved to the factly. what struck me is hyundai is embracing the global nature of the auto industry. instead of moving all of it to the united states, it will split its work between montgomery, alabama, and south korea. a spokesman said, hyundai's

goal is to keep the car close to where it will be sold. hyundai has been a wonderful partner with alabama. in addition to the 2,700 direct jobs created from the 1.-- from the $1.2 billion facility, they've brought in 172 suppliers throughout north america, creating an additional 55,500 jobs. this despite the fact that needless trade barriers that exist between the united states and korea. i e-- i recently joined with a bipartisan group with the south

korea working group. this group represents districts from across the country and want to see the agreement ratified. despite being signed by president bush over three years ago, congress has yet to pass the agreement. president obama cites the u.s.-south korea trade agreement as one of the biggest trade priorities and would like to see disagreements worked out by the next g-20 meeting in november. it's already late september and very little progress has been made to get this agreement passed. the benefits to the united states are obvious. passing a free trade agreement with south korea is already over our -- who is our seventh largest trading partner would add an estimated $10 billion to $12 billion to our gross domestic product. what we have already seen in alabama could be expanded across the great country of ours. madam speaker, our number one priority must be getting americans back to work. we have already seen the benefits of a close partnership

with south korea. let's expand on that relationship. i can think of no beater way to create jobs for americans at virtually no cost than to pass the u.s.-south korea trade agreement. without question, there are many questions we must tackle in this difficult economic time but trade, especially an agreement that enjoys bipartisan support such as the one with south korea, can and should be an issue in which we work together. let's not let partisan politics get in the way of this agreement. thank you, madam speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. mr. burton of indiana. the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. ros-lehtinen: madam speaker, i rise to remember the life and legacy of a great south floridian and fellow cuban american, ricardo alvarez. ricardo was an irreplaceable member of the cuban american community.

having fled cuba's communist regime, ricardo continued to fight for a free cuba in south florida. ricardo became a successful entrepreneur and started a chain of pharmacies in south florida. he generously gave of his time to serve his community and was a constant fix tour in the civic and cultural fabric of south florida. although he was deeply committed to the struggle for a free cuba, i know that the role he cherished the most was that of a devoted husband, along with a devoted father and grandfather. ricardo leaves behind his beloved wife and partner and his children, jorge, al nirvings a and ricky, as long with his grandchildren. ricardo, we will never forget you nor yourselfless legacy. rest in peace, my friend. madam speaker, i'm proud to praise the citizens crime watch of miami-dade county and its

executive director, carmen caldwell, who has served our area in so many ways over the years. neighborhood volunteers are truly the backbone of our communities. volunteers have done so much to reduce crime and to help keep our south florida neighborhoods safe. citizens crime watch of miami-dade county will be celebrating its 35th anniversary at the double tree miami mart airport hotel on october 1 and will be honoring the leaders of south florida's war on crime. it is my honor and privilege to recognize the many dedicated and hardworking members of citizens crime watch of miami-dade county and to thank each of them for what they do to help keep us safe. madam speaker, i would like to congratulate the international ballet festival of miami for another spectacular year of

performanceness. since 1995, this yearly celebration of the arts has brought some of the world's leading ballet companies to our area of south florida. in addition to being known as the hub for international commerce, south florida has a thriving and diverse arts community. through the dedication of pedro pablo penia, the festival has become a yearly staple on the south florida calendar with five spectacular performances at four theaters. ballet companies from as far away as hungary, australia and italy have participated in this festival. i congratulate pedro pablo pena and everyone who made this year's international ballet festival of miami a resounding success. your efforts have enriched south florida and we are all the better for it. thank you, madam speaker. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. ms. woolsey from california. ms. woolsey: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, the bad news in afghanistan just continues to pile up. this week a helicopter crash in the south part of the country brought the number of 2010 coalition fatalities to 529. that makes in the deadliest of the nine years we have been mired in this war. and of course we still have more than two months remaining before the calendar turns. meanwhile these deaths appear to be in vain. while afghan citizens who turned out to vote this weekend must be absoluted for their courage, well, the fact that courage was required to exercise a basic democratic right is rather telling in and of itself. but the parliamentary elections were marred by violence, not to mention all kinds of fraud and

irregularities. "time" magazine quotes one candidate as saying, and i quote him, he said, it was complete anarchy. everyone was trying to manipulate this election. mr. speaker, afghanistan's financial infrastructure is crumbling almost as badly as is its democratic infrastructure. one of the nation's most prominent banks is teetering on the brink of collapse. at the same time that cronies and relatives of president karzai appear to have used the bank to line their own pockets. and in yesterday's "the new york times" there was a long story about how families are dressing their little girls as boys, just so they can get a job and an education and even so they can preserve the family's honor to have more boys than girls. steven of harvard university, a

member of the afghanistan study group, summerizes the bleakness of the situation. in the last few years, he says, and i'm quoting him, he said, we've had a fraudulent presidential election, an incon cluesive offensive in marja, a delayed and downgraded operation in kandahar and a run on the corrupt bank of kabul. casualty levels are up and aid groups in afghanistan now report that the security situation is worse than ever, despite a heightened u.s. presence. and, mr. speaker, other than that, mrs. lincoln, how was the play? seriously, there's little to be encouraged about in afghanistan. in the situation that it is in now. and now a new book that is coming out this week by bob woodward reveals that even top

white house officials are deeply skeptical about escalating the war. the especially envoy to afghanistan and pakistan is quoted as saying of our strategy, point blank, it can't work. he's right. but what can work is a smart security approach. one that replaces the military surge with a civilian surge. at this point, a military occupation can't cure what als afghanistan. it can -- ails afghanistan. it can only spread the disease. but an influx of humanitarian aid can deliver a brighter, peaceful future for afghanistan. elections that are free and fair, government leaders with legitimacy and integrity, schools that educate all children, even the afghan girls. or especially the afghan girls. and an economy that creates opportunity and list -- lifts

people out of poverty. the current problem is not redeemble. it will continue to engender death, destruction, instability and chaos. there is only one answer, mr. speaker. bring our troops home. i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. ms. foxx from north carolina. mr. defazio from oregon. mr. tiahrt from kansas. ms. kaptur from ohio. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, the gentleman from iowa, mr. king, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. mr. king: thank you, madam speaker. it's a presk and honor to have

the opportunity to -- privilege and an honor to have the opportunity to address you here on the house of the united states house of representatives. and to do so on such a significant day. this is a day of events, i believe, that will be marked for a long time in at least political history and hopefully it will be marked in the hearts and minds of the american people as well. i can think of a couple of events today, one that's unfolding as we speak. and another that unfolded earlier when the united states senate had a cloture vote and didn't have the votes to force harry reid's version of the department of defense authorization bill to comfor -- actually come up for a vote before the united states senate. and the cloture vote failed because he attached two unrelated issues or unessential issues to that bill. and the politics of it are such that, pick your side of the argument, my side of the argument, madam speaker, is that they were unnecessary pieces of

legislation that were attached to experiment socially with the military, not essential legislation and the objection on the part of even the republicans that supported each piece of that legislation was that procedurally the majority leader of the united states senate had crossed the line. so the department of defense authorization bill is now frozen in place. i think it must come forward at some time. the indications that we're getting is that that won't happen until a lame duck session. that means after the election and after a new united states senate is elected, after united states house of representatives is elected. then the people that no longer represent the will of the american people come back here after november and come here to do the essential business of the united states of america but they don't have the support any longer of the voters who have chosen some different people. but the two pieces of legislation i'm talking about that were attached to the d.o.d. authorization bill are the don't

ask, don't tell policy, which is something that was implemented under president clinton back in the era when he wanted to put gays in the military, found that he ran into a political buzz saw and settled for a compromise that turns out in retrospect, and i didn't support it at the time, madam speaker, to be straight about that, but in retrospect, it was a pretty good policy. essentially it was, we have people with different inclinations and those that come to serve america can do so without announcing their sexual preferences and as long as they keep that to themselves they can serve in the united states military. that policy has served our military well for these last 15er so years that it's been in place. i expect it's been longer than that. don't ask, don't tell. bill clinton's policy. and now because of the activism of the homosexual community, they've pushed an effort and

apparently the president has made a campaign promise that he will repeal don't ask, don't tell, and recruit into the military openly gay people. that is a social experiment with our military, madam speaker. and it's not a place to conduct social experiments. one would think that our military personnel would have a say on this. one should do a study and there's been a request for that study through the department of defense and you get the results of what our soldiers say, sailors, airmen and marines think of this, and then make a determination on whether to go forward with a different policy. i'm hearing continually, don't ask, don't tell works, opening that thing up undermines the effectiveness of our military and it breaks down their readiness and it's bad for america's national security. that seems to be the tone that comes from the enlisted personnel. it comes from some of the officer personnel. but we know that when you are,

let's see, at one of the joint chief, for example, or if you're the secretary of defense and the president of the united states is your commander in chief and if he should tell you in a cabinet meeting, for example, that you're going to either support don't -- the repeal of don't ask, don't tell, or you're going to be mum on your opinion and keep it to yourself so that this repeal of don't skrks don't tell -- don't ask, don't tell that opens up the access to the military for gays, so that that comes about and that happens, that's -- that is what takes place. our officers in uniform take that their orders from, on up through the ranks, the commander in chief at the top. they get the message from the top. so you don't hear the straight answer from them that we like to think that we're getting from our military personnel. and i believe that if could you hear that straight answer would you hear a far different tone coming out of our joint chiefs, for example. but the study should be done and it should not be an experiment

to play with and what has happened over in the senate is they refuse to invoke cloture because it's an inappropriate and improper to stick that in this d.o.d. authorization bill. if harry reid and others believe that it should be repealed and we should open up the military to openly gay people then they should put it up as a stand-alone piece of legislation, they should debate it and allow for a recorded vote. and why not do it right now snrks, harry reid? why not bring that up right now as a stand-alone piece of legislation? why not roll it out on the floor of the united states senate right now? if you can pass it over there send it over here to the house. and i hope nancy pelosi picks that up. i hope speaker pelosi picks that up and runs it out here for a debate and stand-alone vote, so the american people can see where these members of congress stand. you roll it into and you hide it into a d.o.d. authorization bill, then you're trying to push

a social activist policy without the accountability of a recorded vote and that's what the senators objected to and that's why they voted no on cloture and that's why don't ask, don't tell will not be repealed, at least in this period of time between now and the november elections. and if there is a pledge over there to bring it up in a lame duck session, we know how those pledges work. if they do so, a policy of that magnitude in a lame duck session, after watching the dynamics in the united states senate change because of the elections that will take place election night in novemberen, and after watching a change that will take place here in the house of representatives, to come forward with a bunch of lame ducks and try to pass legislation that's rejected by the american people would be another insult, it would be another affront to the american voters, the american taxpayers, the american citizens. .1 don't-ask, don't-tell needs to

stand. that's what the american people want. that's what the military wants, and there's a study out there that needs to be completed. and i want to look at the results of that and i want to look at the methodology of it. i am not endorsing the results. i have not seen the methodology, madam speaker. i believe that the military personnel that put their lives on the line every day and strap on that vest and that helmet and that uniform and face the heat and the cold and the bullets and the shrapnel and the i.e.d.'s and all of the things that put them at peril deserve better than a social experiment taken place right here in the halls of congress just to play a political constituency group before an election. that's what offended the senators over there today that voted know on cloture. the other thing in that legislation was brought up for the same reason. it's called the dream act.

it's one of these things that happens. we come up with bad ideas for legislation here in this congress and we try to put nice-sounding titles on them so that somehow or another if it's got a good name it's got a better chance of becoming law. well, if we had named it the selective amnesty for certain class of illegals act, then i think it wouldn't have much chance of getting it to the point that it has but it's called the dream act. i'd like to be able to say you're dreaming if you think you can impose amnesty on two million or more people that came here illegally and set it up as an award. the people that support the dream act are the people that are looking at this thing in the same way that they're supporting the broader overall amnesty policy. what's the bottom line motivation? we'd like to think that we're all looking at this policy from a constitutional perspective and a rule of law perspective and setting up statutes so that

there is a framework that strengthens america and that it respects the rule of law. but instead we've seen the immigration law in america has simply been pushed off on the edge and hijacked towards the line of opening up our borders for the cynical political purposes of wanting to provide for people to come here and vote that will vote for a certain party. madam speaker, i heard this about three years ago, and i heard it right outside this house of representatives out here on the west lawn when there were about 150,000 people that came to protest they wanted their amnesty. and many of them, presumably were illegal, but senator ted kennedy, alive and relatively well at the time, went out and spoke to that group of roughly 150,000 people and he said to them, some say report to be defor thed.

then he waited for the interpreter. and then he said, i say report to become an american citizen. and then he waited for it to be interpreted. and then there was a cheer and applause that went up out of the 150,000, the multitude that came to the capitol to demand that they receive amnesty and exemption from america's immigration laws. but i report this to you, madam speaker, because i heard clearly that day the clarion call that came from senator teddy kennedy that said we're going to give you all amnesty and we're going to give you all citizenship and we are going to plet you vote to redirect the direction of america and i represent the democrats and remember we're the ones that we gave you amnesty on the path to citizenship. so report to become an american citizen. remember who said so, teddy kennedy. vote for his party. now, there's some people on my

side who got this wrong. i said for a long time that the driving force on immigration here in the united states is this. on the one side, it's kind of like a set of barbells. over here on one side we have business that thinks they've got somehow a right to cheap labor. and among these businesses there are -- there are democrats and republicans. increasingly number of democrats in the big business side of this that wants all of the work. and then you have the bar through the middle. on the other side of the barbells are those that want to open borders and amnesty for the sake of all the political power that it brings them. now, madam speaker, that may be something that doesn't exactly resonate when i say that. illegal immigration gives people political power in america. i know i have to explain that. and it's such as this. we got -- we've already completed the census. we've counted everybody in the

united states. i hope we've had. now redistricting is beginning all the way across america. and according to a c.i.s. report of a couple three years ago there are between nine and 11 congressional seats in america that would shift from the states they are in because we count people rather than citizens for the purposes of reapportionment in america. so if you go across the south, states like florida, texas, california, perhaps arizona, but florida, texas and california, my recollection, would be states that would lose a seat. because if you counted citizens rather than just people. and those seats, those nine and 11 would be scattered back around america and reapportioned to the states that are a little bit short right now like utah, for example, is on the cusp of picking up a seat. well, if we counted citizens instead of people, people is

the class that includes illegals, the people that shouldn't be here. then, there would be states like utah and indiana would pick up a seat. iowa is the state that would keep the number of seats that it has. but the seats that would be scattered across the united states would be a nine to 11 congressional seats that would shift and they would shift from the hands, according to that analysis, from democrats into the hands of republicans. so what do we know about this? each congressional district is roughly 700,000 people. and if you had, let's just say if you had 600,000 illegals in your 700,000 congressional district, you only have a universe to draw from to get from votes. if you see some of us get elected with 30,000 or 40,000 votes and others like me require about 120,000 votes to win an election, you begin to understand that the high population with illegals within some of these congressional

districts have a voice. they have a voice here in this congress even though they are supposedly -- they supposedly can vote, they have a voice in congress, they have a leverage because they create congressional seats in places where there's sympathy for illegal immigrants. that's how the political power comes. that's one of the ways that it comes. and then you have also the businesses that depend on the illegal labor and that's just those that use the labor. they are the businesses, then, that market to the illegal labor and they begin to see they are dependent on that flow of cash that goes on in that fashion. now you have a constituency group that advocates for open borders. it's their self-interest but they advocate for open borders for their self-interest purposes. whether it's for the political power that teddy kennedy clearly laid out the clarion call for, or whether it's that side of the bar bell or if it's this weights on this side, the business interest that they believe they have a right to cheap labor.

and by the way, that labor is subsidized by the taxpayer because cheap labor can't sustain itself in this society any longer. this society has become a welfare state. but i mentioned the barbells. cheap flabe advocating for amnesty. and -- labor advocating for amnesty. and then this side because they have a massive political power. and then the bar bell. the bar for the bar bell and it gets squeezed. that bar is the middle class in america, the people, the blue-collar people, the middle-income people, the people that just want to buy a modest home and raise their family and give them a chance to go off to college and go to work every day and church on sunday and live life as the american dream, they're being squeezed. the middle class is being crushed in the middle of this because the people that -- let's say emerge from high school, whether they be americans that drop out or

those that finish and don't go on to higher education, there was a time -- oh, there was a happier time when that person that decided they just didn't want to stay in the educational system any longer but they were a hard and smart worker they could walk from that school over and get a job at a factory or processing plant and punch that time clock and go to work eight hours a day and do that for 40 or more hours a week and make a respectable living and take care of their family and maybe they pinched their pennies. but pay for their house eventually and drive a respectable car and live life. those times, they're not entirely gone but they're din minutished dramatically -- diminished dramatically first because we've expanded the professional class in america, the professional class that believes they have a right to live in a gated community and hire cheap labor to take care of their lawns. we have that class of people that's expanded. and then over on the other side we've got the illegals and the

low-skilled people that are more mobile than the american population. they can travel to the job more quickly because they're not tied to any hard assets like real estate, for example. so they can get in their van or mini bus and go to washington and pick apples if they decide to do that. and their wage scale is about half of what it would be if we had a tighter labor supply. illegals are undercutting the lower skilled labor in america and taking away the opportunities for those americans that don't want to go on to a higher education and take on a more professional job. there used to be and in my mind there always will be a great pride in those working men and women that put their hands to the task. a little dirt under their fingernails and some calluses on your hands is an honorable thing. all productive work is honorable. but this society is now morphed into a welfare state. i want to come back on the welfare state part, but when i

crossed over to this side and mentioned the gated communities and you think what's happened to an elitist attitude, the elitist attitude that stays, well, i don't have to worry about the security for america, i don't have to worry about walking down the streets in america and being mugged or having illegal drugs pushed in on my children because i will live in this protected environment in a gated community with a fence around the house and maybe steel iron bars with spikes on them on top of the fence. that's out there. and then they raise their children to go off to an ivy league school and they live in an isolated america. upper class people, professional class people living in isolated america. but you know what, they open the gate for somebody that's illegal to come in and fix their roof or trim their lawn or work in their garden. or clean their mansion, take care of their laundry and run

errands. we heard colin powell just the other day say that first of all he supports the dream act and then he also said we need these illegals to take care of our -- he needs the illegals to take care of his place. what's he thinking? this is a man i thought could have been and perhaps at one time should have been president of the united states. and now he's advocating that we grant amnesty to the people that are here illegally and he's openly stating that he needs illegals to take care of his home. madam speaker, i would suggest that if you get to the point of desperation where your house is so big and your home is such an expansive mansion that you can't go out and cut your own grass or trim around your own flowers or paint the trim around the windows, do the things that you do, you must have service to take care of that place, and if you cannot afford to hire legal workers to take care of that place, i suggest you put it up for sale and go get an apartment somewhere where you can manage

the maintenance of it. if you need to cross the line and break the law to do the maintenance on your home, i'm shocked that a man of that stature would make a statement like that. and furthermore, i put a little reminder out there for the general powells and others in the world, think about the dream act, what the dream act really means. it means this -- that if you're under the age of 35 and you were brought into this country before you were 16 illegally then you're not at fault and no longer accountable and as long as you would agree to go into the military for two years or go off to college for a couple years. and if you would do that, then we'll give you that path to citizenship because after all you really were nurtured in this country, lyle or illegal. you have to agree -- legal or illegal. you have to agree to go on to

college or go off to the military a couple of years. i don't know how you sign up for a couple years to do that. i'm trustful there is a special program that way and we'll chase you down with your citizenship papers and get you to become a complete citizen. and if you're a resident of a state, then you get to -- you get to enjoy the in-state tuition discounts. we know this has happened around the country. california is one of those places. iowa tried to pass the dream act. i heard about what was going on there. they would have granted an -- the dream act started, the foundation of it was and i still believe in-state tuition discounts for kids that are in the united states illegally and then suspends the enforcement of the law against them so that they can't be deported as long as they're going to college or now we expand it to the military. . the thing about this an in-state tuition discount for someone who is in the united states illegally.

that's the equivalent of a scholarship, they're not a lawful resident of the respective state, so you can't give them in-state tuition discounts without a statutory change, without changing the law. so they want to change the law. so let's just say the to youish -- the tuition to go to, who shall i pick on? i'm reluctant to pick on anybody, actually. but let's just saw tuition to go to the university of iowa as out of state tuition, $25,000, in-state tuition, $10,000. and we have someone who is in the country illegally, who was brought here the day before their 16th birthday and they had been in america for three years, i think that's another one of the equal fires. so we'll say to them, well, -- qualifiers. so we'll say to them, well, you wanted to be a good citizenso, we're going to give you this in-state tuition discount to go to the university of iowa and it's going to save you $10,000 a year. that's an equivalent of a $10,000 a year scholarship fund for someone whom is not in the

united states legally. now, think, to the general powells of the world and others, who think that the dream act is anything other than some form of a class amnesty, think what that is like then to have -- what if we had ice come up and -- i.c.e. come up and deliver that de facto scholarship? we just put them on the road in their humvee and they can drive up there, we're going to hand these out to the people who came here the day before their 16th birthday, it was their parents' decision, not theirs, and we'll give them the de facto scholarship of $10,000 a year. that's a great deal, right? and then they go off to college and sit down in a classroom and we feel so good about ourselves. we should keep in mind that somebody wanted to go across the river, across the state border and go to the university of iowa and take classes at that university but they were not a resident of iowa, any more than the illegal that's the beneficiary of the dream act is a resident of iowa.

so they have to pay the out of state tuition at $20,000 a year. paying twice the tuition, they're paying for the course of a four-year education, a $40,000 premium to go to a school out of state like, from, let's just say illinois to iowa, a $40,000 premium, while at the same time this other student that sits in the desk next to them has been delivered a scholarship that's ads 40,000 discount, i -- that's a $40,000 discount, and if i.c.e. would have driven up with the humvee to deliver the de facto vl scholarship, they would have had to deport that student because they would have been in violation of america's immigration law, unlawfully present in the united states. now, that should be enough to bring a pause to someone who has worn as many stars at general powell does and deserves to wear, but let me take it another step for those general powells

and others in the world, madam speaker. let's set that illegal student down in the classroom with their de facto scholarship of $10,000 a year, sitting in a classroom, now let's just say it's not a regular student that came across the river from illinois. let's instead think about what will inevitably happen. inevitably it will be the widow or widower of someone who has given their life in a place like iraq or afghanistan to protect our freedom and liberty and this widow or widower wants to go off to college to sit in this classroom to upgrade their education so they can take care of their family, take care of those children that have perhaps lost a father or a mother and they're paying the premium of out of state tuition, $40,000 more for a four-year education

and they're sitting next to a student that was an illegal student gets a tuition discount. how do you reconcile that scenario with the warrior's widow sitting in a desk paying a premium of $40,000 and the illegal that's eligible for deportation by every standard accept the dream act getting a -- except the dream act getting a $40,000 discount on that tuition, madam speaker? that's an outrage. that's an outrage to do that to those americans that want to go to school out of state, they want to go to school out of state, it's an outrage to do that to the families of our veterans. it's an outrage to do that to the rule of law. and i will submit that the people that are for the dream act haven't thought about this on a rational basis. they've simply thought about it from whatever their particular

sympathy basis is. this class of people that are here illegally are here because most of them, the class that is part of the dream act, most of them their parents brought them here against their will, yes, i can see that -- concede that point. but where do you enforce the law if you don't enforce it against someone who is 35 years old and was brought here to the united states the day before their 16th birthday? do you enforce it the day after? or you can take it back the other way and say, if somebody was brought to the united states the day after they were born, should they be deported? yes. because that's the line. we drew that line and that's the law. and we can't grant am nesty. we set the standards. and because we haven't enforced the law we've set up instead the effective magnet that brings illegal people into the united states of america and it's essentially a magnet that turns out to be a reward for breaking the law.

so if you knew, if the dream act passed and you're pregnant and outside the united states of america and you can't quite get here in time to have the baby, don't you know that you can just sneak in and keep that child, raise him here, nurture him here, maybe you only get them in when they're 14 years old and they go to a school in america for three years, they qualify for the dream act. presto. they get in-state tuition discount, a college education, they can go into the military and get their citizenship. and then what? then they can start under the family reunification plan going back and pulling their whole extended family into the united states under the family reunification and that's out of our control. madam speaker, when you look at the numbers, america's legal immigration standards only have between 7% and 11% of the people that come into the united states illegally -- or that come into the united states, excuse me, legally, only 7% to 11% of them

are based on merit. the balance of that is based on some other connection. either the visa lottery or the family e-- reunification plan or some other category but not paced on the skill sets and merit. if we look at some of the other countries and the policies that they have, excuse me. you can look at canada, united kingdom, australia, for example. they set up a scoring point system that reward people for being able to contribute to the host country. now, i have long said that the immigration policy in the united states of america should be designed to enhance the economic, social and cultural well-being of the united states. that should be actually the policy of any sovereign nation in the world, should establish an immigration policy for the purposes of enhancing the economic, social and cultural well-being that have particular

sovereign state. in this case, it's the united states of america. we should also understand that one of the essential pillars of american exceptionalism is the rule of law. if we have contempt for the rule of law, if we have some of the highest profile people in america openly speak about hiring illegals to take care of their home and at the same time advocate for the dream act which is amnesty for a specific class of people, we regard -- reward for illegal behavior, a magnet for bringing more children into the united states that are here illegally, that would be here illegally, and getting them to qualify under the dream act so they can go off and be funded partly by the taxpayers and go off to college. or the argument that comes from the department of defense which is that we can't -- it's good for our military readiness to have the dream act. that's another colin powell argue. and it does come out of the pentagon to some degree. how could it be that a nation of

306 million people can't field an army without granting citizenship to people that are here illegally? i mean, i could not have pitched such an idea, madam speaker. i can't with a straight face make such a proposal. this military is working with a social experimentation agenda and who's to think that the military, the pentagon and the united states is for the dream act when they have a commander in chief that tells them what they think. they're for the dream act because it's important for military readiness. i don't take them that seriously anymore. i don't think they are able to deliver their own objective opinions into the media without having to pay a consequence to the commander in chief or whatever kind of retribution would come out of the white house. don't ask, don't tell. again, experiment in the military. you can get a straight answer out of the pentagon anymore? with a chicago-style politics of

the commander in chief. i say not. and now maybe this look like it's just a coincidence that we come across the dream act and the repeal of don't ask, don't tell, both of those social experiments wrapped up under the department of defense authorization bill and rejected by the majority, i believe it was the majority, at least, excuse me, it was rejected at least on a cloture vote in the united states senate. and you think that those two, madam speaker, might be anomalies. i'll make another point to tell you, it's a pattern. it's a pattern. and here's the thing that supports my conclusion. there has been an effort to take calories out of the diet of our young people. an effort to reduce the calories accessible to our young people by, let's see, 1.5 trillion calories, i think that's a year, but i don't know. take a couple of dritows out of the dritow bag. thinking those kids are going to go for one bag, not two.

reduce the calories in a power bar, thinking that that overweight feeder that you that's 16 years old isn't going to go for a second power bar. if the kids want the calories they're going to find them, they're going to eat them. reducing the size of the servings will just mean they'll open up more packages. but the military stepped in and support -- stepped in in support of this effort. data that has been reported at least says that america's kids are 30% -- 30% of them are overweight. and the pentagon has said that it affects our national readiness. that we can't recruit young people to come into the military , can't recruit enough of them because too many of them are overweight and can't meet the physical standards. madam speaker, i'll submit that you can take an overweight 16-year-old, 17-year-old, 18-year-old or 20-year-old and they're still a pretty good physical specimen even though

they have a little bit of weight hanging over their belt and it's not a security risk for the united states of america. we can can solve that problem. if it came down to not having enough people to put on the uniform because some of them were too fat, let's just get some basic training uniforms for some -- that are a little bit bigger and put them on those young people and put them out there in basic training a little while longer. once they're on the military diet and the military exercise plan, we've seen millions of them come back home squared away upright, gut gone, toned up, in shape, proud with a look in their eye that they're another noble soldier and patriot. this is not a national security risk because 30% of our kids are overweight. this is an indication what have goes on when the white house starts to pour down in a cascade through the executive branch of government an ideology that's inconsistent with the military. it's inconsistent to force openly gay policy on our department of defense.

and there isn't any pattern out there that could show us that that would be a successful result. it's inconsistent with the rule of law to propose the idea that for national security purposes we should pass the dream act and put these people that came here illegally into the military and give them citizenship along the way. that undermines the american dream. it's inconsistent to think that a general that has worn four stars honorably would think that the rule of law doesn't apply when it's time to hire somebody to cut your grass. it's got apply every time. equal justice under the law. lady justice is blind folded. she stands there with the scale, she's blindfolded. and it must be that way or america's undermined. and this broader philosophy of illegal immigration and how to deal with it is something that i'm invested in pretty deeply and i want to roll over, if i

can, madam speaker, into what's going on right now downstairs in the basement of this capitol. there is a pledge to america that's being rolled out and it's being discussed by the republicans here in the united states congress. it's something that brings back memories of the contract with america that was rolled out here in 1994 about this same time in september. . and this is, i understand after doing a quick web search, named pledge to america. and now i don't know all that's in that. that's being unfolded right now. i'm hopeful that the document is a clear document, a document that says we have made these promises, we're going to keep these promises. and i expect that there is going to be language in there that says that we are going to

support a 100% repeal of obamacare, all of it, pull it out root and branch, lock, stock and barrel so there's not one vestige of obamacare d.n.a. left behind because this toxic stew of obamacare has become a malignant tumor in our land. and it threatens to metastasize. it's affecting us already. it's driving up premiums for health insurance, especially for young people who can't afford it. it's got to go. it's gotting to pulled out by the roots. it's got to be eradicated. and that's going to be step one, plank one. it's got to be our promise, our pledge to america that we will repeal obamacare in its entirety. not the most egregious aspects of it, not a component here or a component there, not chipping away at it and leaving other pieces there, because if that should happen, that foundation of obamacare then, as i said,

it's a malignant tumor, it's a tumor, then it metastasizes, is swallows up and consumes and chokes off our liberty and freedom and takes away our personal choices. and already under the statute that exists today, shrinks down our health savings accounts and cuts our ability to contribute to them by more than half. and almost eliminates catastrophic insurance and takes away personal choices one after another after another. i'm hopeful that repeal of obamacare as a stand-alone, rip it out by the roots, follow through on discharge at the anything number 11, which is here, madam speaker, at the desk and any member of congress that wants to establish that they are opposed to obamacare and they want to see it repealed can come down here to the well and ask the clerk of the house for discharge petition number 11. that's legislation that i introduced to repeal obamacare. and sign that discharge

petition, there are at least 173 signatures on discharge petition number 11 which repeals obamacare. and the last language of the bill -- it's only 40 words. it says, as if it had never been enacted. that's the quote. so approximate pulls it all out by the root. it's what americans want -- so it puts it all out by the root. that's what americans want. at least 60% of americans that want repeal of obamacare. i see numbers of at least 73% that wants to repeal obamacare. if it's 73% that wants a repeal, it doesn't mean that 27% wants to keep it. it means that some of those 27% want to keep it and some of them are undecided. but if a member voted for the speaker of the house, speaker pelosi, and the san francisco agenda, obamacare, cap and tax and others, put that vote up, the most important vote that

any member of congress ever makes is their vote for speaker. their vote for their leader, their speaker. and if that vote went up for speaker pelosi, it enables the san francisco obama agenda to be forced to the floor of this house against the will of the american people who let everyone here know their objections in a constitutional and peaceful and litter-freeway but still their hearts were hardened and that he imposed boismcare on us even though the bill itself could not have passed that night except that the president promised he would write an executive order that would amend the language that would come to the floor. that was part of the deal. and part of the deal was that there would be a reconciliation package that would be passed in the senate that would circumvent the filibuster that would come to the house that would seek to fix more of the problems. oh, a bill didn't come that

supported the majority of the members. it was conditioned upon an executive order by the president and another bill that came from the united states senate that -- it didn't satisfy many republicans. it dissatisfied 34 democrats. 34 democrats voted no on obamacare. all of those 34 democrats voted for nancy pelosi for speaker. many of them told their constituents in the 2008 election that they wouldn't commit to voting for speaker pelosi, that they were an independent voice. we even have one at least that's running television ads that says he's an independent voice that's willing to challenge to stand up to president obama and stand up to nancy pelosi and vote against obamacare but at the same time vote for nancy pelosi. now, when you do something like enable speaker pelosi's agenda by voting her into that position and then when you see cap and tax come down on top of

us that penalizes coal country in a big way, west virginia, pennsylvania comes to mind, wyoming, you see that agenda being driven out of the speaker of the house, when you put up the votes, stood up here and said pelosi for speaker, that's the most important vote that gets cast in any individual congress, in any two-year period. and it enables the agenda of the leader, speaker pelosi, and then when that same individual votes no on obamacare and postures himself, postures himself to say he's an independent, willing to stand up to the president and the speaker of the house because here's the signal, voted against obamacare, that's no sign of independence. that's the sign of being let off the hook by the speaker. that's a sign of permission slip so you can go back and tell your constituents that

you're an independent voice. the distinction here is we have a discharge petition and the signature on the discharge petition means you mean it. it says you want to see the bill come to the floor unamended with an up or down vote to repeal obamacare. 172 republicans signed the discharge petition number 11. one democrat has signed discharge petition number 11 so far. there are others out there. they are going to need to say to their constituents, listen, i really do stand up to speaker pelosi. watch me. i will go down and ask the clerk of the house for discharge petition number 11 and get my pen out and sign my name on that. that means if it comes to the floor that i'll vote -- i'll vote to repeal obamacare. that's what sits out there, madam speaker, and that's the distinction. but i believe that we will move forward with a pledge to america that repeals obamacare, rips it out by the roots in its

entirety without equivocation. and i trust that's what's being discussed downstairs as we have this discussion up here. i hope and expect. that's one of my request. one is that we have english as the official language of the united states. that's an issue that has somewhere between 83% and 87% support all across this country. we haven't discussed it very much in this congress because we know who holds the gavel. but americans want to have an official language, an official language of the united states needs to be english. and there are at least 28 states that have established english as the official language. and it's no longer possible to drive from mexico to canada without driving through a state that has english as the official language. that's how the map looks when you happen to look at the map. english as official language of the state of iowa. it's official language of nebraska. it has the official language of 28 other states. it's because of the simplicity

that every other country in the world understands you have to do business in a language. and that if you encourage a multitude of languages and require the interpretation in those languages it costs a lot of money and causes a lot of confusion. for a long time, people who watch and study humanity understand that a common language is the most powerful unifying force known to man. i mean, when they were working on the tower of babble, god understood it. he looked down as they were trying to build that tower into the heavens to try to achieve heaven without going through god and it was a blasphemy towards him and god looked down at the tower of babel and he said, behold. they are one people. they speak all one language. and nothing that they proposed to do will now be impossible for them.

that's how powerful one language was. and so to break up the tower of babel god gave them -- caused them to babble and scattereded them to the four winds. and there's at least a biblical belief that that's where the different languages came from that have been located around the world. we know that we come together as americans and we speak all one language. we can communicate quickly. we can understand each other. we don't need to go through expensive interpretations. we are also listening to the advertisement for different means of learning foreign languages under the immergs process. that's the best way -- emergs process. that's the best -- immersion process. that's the best way. excuse me. i encourage the studying and learning of languages. i ask that americans take that upon them self. it's important for foreign travel and state department.

it's important for international relations. but a nation should have a language where you can go from corner to corner in that nation and expect that you can communicate in one language. if it had been swahili then so be it. swahili should be our official language. it's not. it's english. but speaking of swahili, it happens that in some places like kenya, for example, they do speak some swahili but the official language of kenya is english. and they're grateful for it. it's brought so much along. so i'm hopeful that this very simple, commonsense, powerful, unifying force of language, official english which has a massive number of co-sponsors on it and a vast support of the american people, even though we haven't debated it during the time that nancy pelosi's been the speaker of the house in a real legitimate way, there's a lot of things we haven't

debated, i hope our pledge to america has official english in it. i believe that we should have a house rule that gives the priority that we fuelly first pass a budget resolution -- fully first pass a budget resolution but gives priority to the balanced budget that is offered and can be debated here on the floor and brought to a recorded vote so the american people can see how hard it is to balance a budget. it's hard, madam speaker. it's going to be really painful to bring this thing to a balanced budget. if we do this at once, there will be serious whiplash in this country. i asked for one to come to the floor. we brought one under the republican study committee. it first started balancing in 10 years and nen nine years. it wasn't aggressive enough to suit -- and then nine years. it wasn't aggressive enough to suit me.

we started to debate what it takes to a balance a budget. if you don't do that you never get there. if you don't define your goal and your target you never get there. so i would want to see a rule come here to the floor that we can support in a bipartisan way that would give precedence towards a balanced budget to be voted first and if the other party offers a balanced budget, then that budget would take precedence over the budget that's offered, let's say, the chosen budget from the majority of the budget committee. so that we have a record on what it takes to balance a budget and who's willing to vote for a balanced budget. i would think we could get together on that in a bipartisan way. and then we need to work to pay down the national debt. and i want to see the day that we have a balanced budget and we start to pay down this national debt. that's the third thing i'd like to see in the pledge to america. fourth thing is i want to put an end to federal funding of abortions. and i would paraphrase it this

way. i want to statutorily prohibit all federal funds from going to any entity that provides abortion services or counseling. that simple. and that should have, i think, strong bipartisan support, and that's been demonstrated in some votes here in this congress. and it would enshrine the hyde amendment, it would -- we are going to repeal obamacare so we don't have to go after that specific component of abortions. i call that the ben nelson portion. and then the pledge to america that's being unfolded, madam speaker, i'd like to pass legislation that modernizes everify. everify, you're limited. you can only use everify with a new hire. so when you look at someone's application ant you can't verify whether they can work in the united states legally, then you have to give them the job you have to give them the job and then once you give them the