guest: that of course is the slave trade, which was put on -- the political compromise that have to be made. one of the deals was the slave trade would not be abolished before june reversed from 18 08. it was abolished on january 1 from 18 a week. the government was allowed to collect at $10 tax on each imported slaves. -- it was abolished on january 1, 1808. slave trade is not exactly our finest moment. host: thank you for talking to our viewers about the history of the income tax. that doesn't for today's " washington journal." the chair will alternate recognition between the parties with each party limited to limited to one hour and each member other than the majority and minority leaders and minority whip limited to five

minutes each when in no event shall debate continue beyond 11:50 a.m. the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina, mr. jones, for five minutes. mr. jones: mr. speaker, thank you very much. i would like to thank president obama for bringing all of our troops home from iraq by the end of this year. this war was unnecessary. a war that cost over $850 billion. brought over 4,400 americans were killed. and over 33,000 wounded. it is my hope that future congresses will not accept misinformation from an administration as justification for sending our troops overseas to engage in combat. i am reminded of a quote from rue yard kipling, "epitaphs of war" i quote, if they ask you why we died, tell them because our fathers lied.

i hope this lesson stays with the future leaders of this country and they do everything they can to keep our young men and women from going to war unless it is absolutely justified. before the district work period, i went to the new walter reed facility at bethesda. i saw five marines, four of whom have lost both legs. a young lance corporal looked at me and asked, why are we still in afghanistan? i had to stand there with his mother in the hospital room and say, i don't know. my hope now is that the administration will bring our troops home before 2015. that is the timetable that mr. obama has agreed to. just this weekend president karzai said, and i quote, if fighting starts between pakistan and the united states, we are he beside pakistan. if pakistan is attacked and the people of pakistan need afghan

help, afghanistan will be there with their friends in pakistan. i don't know how much more america has to take from a corrupt leader like karzai. bin laden is dead. that was the whole purpose in going to afghanistan. al qaeda has disbursed all around the world. and we are spending $10 billion a month in afghanistan to prop up a corrupt leader. $10 billion that we could be spending here in america to help our children and our senior citizens. i hope that this congress will come together and join those of us in both parties who say that victory should be declared because bin laden in dead. mr. speaker, i bring with me on the floor a triple amputee, a young soldier and his lovely wife, looking in an apartment as to how they are going to adjust their life.

both legs are am pew tated and arms amputated. it is time for the american people to speak out to congress and say bring our troops home. because they have done everything that they could do and they have done it so very well. so, mr. speaker, i will close by asking god to please bless our men and women in uniform. ask god to please bless the families of our men and women in uniform. i ask god in his loving arms to hold their families who give a child dying for freedom in afghanistan and iraq. i will ask god to bless the house and senate that we will do what is right in the eyes of god for his people here in america. and i will ask god to give wisdom, strength, and courage to president obama that he will do what is right in the eyes of god for god's people here in america. i will close three times by saying, god please, god please, god please continue to bless america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon, mr. blumenauer, --

the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. ellison, for five minutes. mr. ellisonson -- mr. ellison: mr. speaker, the changes in the arab speaking countries over the last year have been astonishing. this region, which is home to over 300 million people, has been making unmistakable drives towards democracy, but those strives have not always been linear and smooth. there have been setbacks and advances, but as this region changes, the united states must also adjust to those changes as well. first i want to congratulate the people of tunisia on their historic election on sunday. it was tunisia's first free and fair election since gaining independence in 1956. two nearbyians create add new paradigm for governance in the middle east. and i hope this is replicated throughout the region. tunisia, by the way, was the

first country to begin its dramatic social change against historic dictator. last december, two nearbyians said enough, they took to the streets to demand their rights and they out ofed a dictator and went to the polls just a few days ago to elect new leaders. more than 90% of registered voters turned out to vote. that's 90%. long lines snaked sideways and around street corners people waited for hours to exercise their right to vote that had been denied to them for more than 50 years. it was also a well deserved victory for a country that gave birth to the arab spring. two nearbyians started a democratic movement that is slowly transforming dictatorships into democracies. the changes that have taken place in libya are also irreversible. i don't celebrate the death of anyone, even a person as bad as gaddafi, but libya is certainly better off without him. i am glad that the transitional

coup sill will investigate the circumstances of his death, but the fact that he is off the scene gives libya a new chance and a new lease on life. for 42 years gaddafi ruled libya with brutal force and criminal negligent. the country cannot -- neglect. the country cannot afford more conflict. it should embark on a reconciliation process. that's not easy for a country that has endured so much blood shed, but libyans now have the opportunity to lay down arms and come together. libyans will decide for themselves what kind of country they want to build. the libyan people must decide what kind of example they will set for other countries in the region. i'd also like to turn atngs to iraq. i offer my congratulations to president obama for keeping his promise to exit iraq. no yellow cake uranium, no link between saddam hussein and al qaeda, no w.m.d., and yet thirl -- weapons of mass destruction,

literally thousands of americans loss, iraqis lost, perhaps one trillion dollars lost it's time to go. i congratulate president obama in his decision to leave. syria's path toward changes are uncertain. the government has now killed over 3,000 people. countless others have been raped and tortured. this is not the model that will characterize the region's future. people like car mine of yemen. referred to the as the mother of revolution in yemen she won the nobel prize for her activism and i congratulate her. as people across the middle east and north africa struggle for democracy, the united states should do all that it can to help them reach that democratic condition that we take for granted. as americans, we will remember our own long struggle for freedom and should be at the waning to help others secure their democratic future.

i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. kinzinger, for five minutes. mr. kinzinger: thank you, mr. speaker. it's very interesting. i agree with my colleague that spoke previously. america needs to be a voice for freedom in the world. america is a great nation. i find it interesting that we talk about the need to be engaged, which i agree, but then we talk about the need to leave iraq before we can -- before we know for a fact that we are leaving a very stable country. i find it interesting people are rushing to the exits in afghanistan and i understand that's a tough and difficult war, but in the process we have brought people, millions of people freedom. we brought woman the ability to go to school. we have brought people the ability to live their lives in freedom and not under an oppressed regime. you know america's a great country. we are an amazing country that is a force for freedom in this

world. and it's a country i'm very proud of and having served in the military and continuing to serve as a pilot in the air national guard, i understand that the people that i serve with are part of that great country. one of the concerns in our country, though, right now is in order to back up and to support a great military and to support a great force for freedom, you have to have a great economy. what bothers me is that in 2009 in this chamber a stimulus was passed which cost in just a few minutes of debate as much as the war in iraq has cost in eight years. in just a few minutes we were promised that unemployment would not go above 8% and in fact unemployment has never gone below 8% since the passage of the stimulus. you know what has gone up? not employment, debt. and deficit. more and more burden that we are piling on to our children. now the president's coming out with a plan that says we can't

wait. we can't wait to pass stimulus version two. if you look in the depths of what this jobs plan is, it's stimulus two. it's in essence a carbon copy of stimulus one but smaller. i have heard people in this chamber argue actually the problem with the first stimulus is it wasn't large enough. now, i disagree. i think that's the wrong answer, but let's say for a moment that that's right. let's say the problem is it wasn't large enough. why would you introduce a second stimulus that's even smaller and say this is the miracle bullet right here? this is how we are going to pull ourselves out. i don't know how many times we have to do the same thing over and over and over again until we realize it doesn't work. american people are hurting. you know the definition of insanity, by the way, is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. house republicans have a plan for america's job creators.

we have had a plan for america and america's job creators in our economy for many, many months. now, despite the people can get on television and say republicans have no plan doesn't make it true. you are entitled to your own opinion but you are not entitled to your own set of facts. the facts are at jobs.gov.we have a plan. that plans is reducing -- not what others say on the other side of the aisle. but what we want to do is find that balance between allowing the free market to breathe. allowing people to come in and say, i need -- i want to hire people. i want to create more jobs. i don't need the heavy hand of government to come in and give me the permission to do what i'm doing. we do have to fix the tax code. i think both sides of the aisle agree that there has to be tax

code reparations to go on to make it better and easier to do business. we have to boost competitiveness for american manufacturers. look, american manufacturers aren't leaving because it's nicer in china and the weather's better. they are leaving because they simply can't afford to access the 95% of consummers that live outside of our country and do it competitively. but i think with all these things, again with the america -- with the republican plan for america's job creators, i think we have to acknowledge areas where we found success and bipartisanship. and one of those happened just a week ago when we passed the free trade agreements with colombia, panama, and south korea. we have shown that this chamber has the ability to work together. so, yeah, we can't wait. we can't wait until the end of the election for the president to come with a real plan and to work with republicans. we want to stand together. i get it.

an election is coming up next november. we all understand it. you are going to see about it on television. let's not miss the next 14 months. let's not miss this opportunity to really stand up and govern and get the american people back to work. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon, mr. blumenauer, for five minutes. mr. blumenauer: thank you, mr. speaker. today's "washington post" has an interesting article about the possibility of congress will jettison the transportation enhancement funding. best known as providing resources for bike and pedestrian activities, they open the door to a wide range of important benefits. sadly the language in the article betrays a lack of understanding on the part of those who would eliminate these important programs. for instance, they single out somehow this was forcing the creation of wildlife corridors, turtle tunnels.

passages that don't just rely -- comply with our environmental responsibilities, these aren't something to trivialize. more americans die in collisions with moose, with deer, or for that matter swerving to avoid a turtle in the roadway than die in our airplanes and buses in a given year. . these are not trivial issues. these are issues to give choices to be able to deal with meaningful transportation problems. right now as i speak there are millions of americans stuck in traffic, burning fuel, wasting time, raising their blood pressure. the investment in complete transportation systems which include bike and pedestrian activities, means there are hundreds of thousands of cars who aren't in front of these people on the roadway because they're able to walk or bike to work. they're not fighting these

commuters for a parking space. these programs are about safety. in the communities that enhance bike and pedestrian activity, everyone is safer. look at the numbers in new york city or my hometown of portland, oregon. it isn't just the pedestrian and the cyclists who are safer, but it's also the individual motorist. traffic accident rates for everybody have declined. it gives people transportation choices. more people can let their children walk or bike to school safely on their own because of the safe routes to school program. rather than producing another bulge in the early morning commute. choice also means healthier communities and the people who live in them. it's easier to get general

exercise, cleaner air, less energy wasted. the costs associated with pollution and obesity are astronomical. this gives values to families. communities that have balanced transportation programs actually spend less on transportation. the figures for my hometown of portland, oregon, is that the average family saves $2,500 a year not being stuck in traffic in a commuting mess. money they can spend on health care or books, restaurants or housing. and it's not just pedestrians and cyclists who would be shortchanged if we jettison these programs. the same adjustments that make it safer to walk or bike also have a profound impact for

people who rely on walkers, baby strollers, motorized scooters. these enhancements have enhanced the community for the elderly, the disabled and the young. we also frankly have a current debate that shows exactly why we need a national policy. it's easy for people to get confused or misled. nobody is forced to build a specific project. it forces state transportation officials to work harder and think differently, but it gives people more choices, more value, better health, stronger communities. it means that all our communities are more livable and our families are more safer, more economically secure. the 20-year legacy of the transportation enhancement program is strong.

that's why they are the most requested transportation -- most requested transportation projects that congress has entertained for the last 20 years. i do hope that we debate it fully and fairly, but in the end if we do, i'm confident we will retain these important programs, and if anything, we will strengthen them. thank you, mr. speaker. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. meehan, for five minutes. mr. meehan: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to acknowledge the springfield literacy center which is an innovative districtwide initiative in springfield township delaware county school system in the seventh district of pennsylvania which i have the privilege to represent. like so many of my colleagues, when we have our district workweek it gives us the chance

to go back and really spend some quality time engaging with a number of the groups and while the principal focus of my workweeks is to go back and work on the creation of opportunities, particularly with small businesses, one of the issues that many of them will talk to me about is the unpreparedness of many of our graduates to be able to take on the jobs, particularly the jobs in the expanding global economy which we face. one of the issues is the ability to do fundamental things. i visited this literacy center last week because it's setting the standard for educational excellence in the 21st century. it's a communitywide focus on the issue of the fundamental of reading. and it started with the superintendent on down and every teacher in the school district focused on having the ability for every child being

able to read. this particular literacy center brings their entire second grade class from the full district together to learn while it's an architecturally impressive area, it's really the individualized attention that's given to each and every opportunity identifying where they are in the process and if necessary going down to an individual basis to help them staying current with their class. literacy foundation is the -- aims to ensure that every elementary child leaves reading at grade level. the center accomplishes this by designing an individual literacy curriculum for every student, using creative

techniques and the settings were tailored to individual student's learning styles. the key thing here is that students do not fall behind, and they are prepared as they move into later education to stay with the rest of their class. with these innovative techniques and to the hard work literacy centers, teachers, students and families, after over five years of operation have 99% of its students reading at grade level. let me repeat that again. 99% of its students reading at grade level. mr. speaker, i commend the springfield literacy center and its staff for all that they do in making a difference of the lives of their students and their communities, but i suggest to you that this is the kind of a model that we should be replicating so that all american students will be prepared to have the fundamental of reading be

essential part of their ability to be prepared to compete in the global economy. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from florida, ms. wasserman schultz, for five minutes. ms. wasserman schultz: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i rise today to honor october as national breast cancer awareness month. for nearly 30 years the month of october has brought a sea of pink ribbons to our shopping centers, sports games and lapels as we commemorate national breast cancer awareness month. each ribbon symbolizes our nation's commitment to promote breast cancer awareness, sharing information about breast health, providing access to screening services and ultimately finding a cure. our mothers, sisters, daughters, spouses dress in pink to support women through education and empowerment. though we love the color, we know october is about so much more than walk-a-thons and

accessories. i'm one of 2 1/2 million breast cancer survivors living in this country. just weeks after a clean mammogram myself and my 41st birthday i felt a lump in my breast. as a young and otherwise healthy mother of three, i heard the words all women may never hear, you have breast cancer. getting that news felt like an anvil crashing down on me. with confirmation of a hereditary form of the disease, i underwent seven different surgeries but not radiation and chemotherapy to make sure it never comes back. as a breast cancer survivor, i understand intimately how women have every cancer fighting tool at their disposal. our nation has been the leader in discovering techniques and treatment. it is no longer the death sentence it once was, and the statistics are only getting

better. but our health care system is still rite with disparities, particularly with education. here in the united states more than 200,000 people will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year alone. around the world that number sky rockets to an unbelievable 1.6 million new breast cancer cases annually. tragically, almost half a million of these breast cancer patients will die. that means every 74 seconds a woman somewhere in the world dies of breast cancer. these are our mothers, daughters, grandmothers, aunts, sisters and friends, women we all have known, love and lost. mortality from breast cancer has been steadily decreasing over the last 25 years in north america and throughout europe. much of this progress is attributed to the widespread use of mammography and improved techniques and treatments. we know they have led to increase survival and early

detection has the power to save lives but we must make sure that is the norm in communities all over the world and not only the privilege of the fortunate few. cost and geography should never place the limit on your ability to get screened and knowledge should never be a health disparity. for all the progress that we made over the last 25 years, we must work together to ensure that we beat this disease for good over the next 25 years. looking to the future, i'm committed to finding those areas of breast cancer treatment and breast health awareness that still has a long way to go and look for legislative solutions to fill those voids. women in their 20's, 30's and 40's have a different thing -- we must honor those differences. for young women, we in congress must help preserve fertility that often results of breast cancer treatment. it is enough to be told you have breast cancer at a young

age, but treating the disease should not prevent women from having children down the road. we should make sure that they have treatment options. older women have difficult treatment options. we have made progress but there is definitely a long way to go. we know early detection improves your chance for diagnosis, treatment and survival. yet, there are so many women who still face barriers to treatment and access to care. the biggest tragedy is so many millions of women around the world will still lose their battle to breast cancer. we cannot forget their struggles and we must continue our mission in honor of their memory. working together, we must keep up our dedication and vigilance to help women know their risks, discover cancer early, access the best treatment possible and work toward eliminating this disease. this october there is more hope for survival as we increase access to early detection and

affordable quality care. let us commemorate breast cancer awareness month with a renewed dedication to support our mothers, sisters, our daughters and sister friends and eradicate breast cancer once and for all. thank you. i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from alabama, mr. brooks, for five minutes. mr. brooks: thank you, mr. speaker. i have read president obama's american jobs act. it is 155 pages in single space. i encourage the american people to read it too. unfortunately, president obama's american jobs act does not address the underlying structural issues with the american economy. in fact, in my judgment, it destroys more long-term jobs than it claims to create. some history is in order. in november, 2006, america's unemployment rate was 4.5%. that's right.

4.5%. less than half today's rate. in november, 2006, democrats captured congress and gave us house speaker nancy pelosi and senate majority leader hairy reid. in november -- harry reid. in november, 2008, president obama was elected. for two years democrats completely controlled america's economic policy. the result, between november, 2006 and november, 2010, seven million american jobs were lost. america's excellent november, 2006, 4.5% unemployment rate deteriorated to 6.8% by november of 2008 and degenerated further to 9.8% by november, 2010. for almost five years, america's job creators have been hammered by job-killing policies. america's job creators are reeling from obamacare costs. america's job creators are shell shocked by job-killing national labor relations board

that sues to kill south carolina jobs because south carolina dares to be a right to work state in which workers cannot be forced to join a union. obama's job-killing 10% tax increase awaits job creators in 2013. obama's e.p.a. imposes costly regulations that risk plant closings and kill jobs. obama's three consecutive trillion-dollar deficits threaten america with insolvency and bankruptcy and frightens job creators into inaction. in five short years, president obama and his congressional alliesed have replaced a pro-free enterprise that created six million jobs between 2003 and 2006 with class warfare, demon stpwhration of job creators, socialist feel-good policies that don't work and seven million lost jobs between 2006 and 2010. mr. speaker, obama's so-called jobs bill creates one and done short-term jobs that will

evaporate the moment obama has blown through another $750 billion in borrowed money. obama kills real jobs. first, obama raises taxes on america's domestic oil industry which increases production costs, drives up domestic oil prices, reduces demand for domestically produced oil, thereby destroying domestic oil industry jobs. . it forces price increases for heating oil and plastics. these higher prices in turn driving drive up manufacturing costs in america, make america less competitive and kill jobs across our entire economy. second, and incredibly, obama gives civil rights status to unemployed people, empowering them to file federal lawsuits against employers for discrimination any time an employer does not hire an unemployed person. millions of frivolous lawsuits will drive up the cost of doing business in america which in

turn kills business and destroys american jobs. third, obama raises taxes on charitable contributions through churches, synagogues, mosques, the red cross, united way, and other institutions, higher taxes mean fewer charitable institutions which kills religious an charitable institution jobs. obama does not have a jobs bill. obama has a kill jobs bill that encourages jobs to relocate overseas. mr. speaker, america's economy has serious structural issues that presidential band-aid and makeup won't fix and can't hide. president obama's kill jobs bill must be defeated because it is poorly thought out, bad economic policy, and costs american jobs. president obama's kill jobs bill is a political document not an economic document. it gets an a for class warfare politics and an f for job creation. mr. speaker, i urge defeat of president obama's kill jobs

bill. it must be killed before even more damage is done to america's economy. mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. woolsey, for five minutes. miss joolsy: -- forbes force miss woolsey: 8 1/2 years ago without provocation or just cause, and based on distortions and deceptions, our country launched a bloody and immoral war in iraq. almost nine years. a long time a war whose mission was pronounced accomplished by then president bush in may of 2003. the iraq war which has cost our nation so very much in blood and treasure, in moral authority, and global

credibility, is finally ending. thank you, president obama. when i heard the president's announcement that our troops would be home from iraq by the end of the year, i had one thought. it's about damn time. and my second thought was, oh, well, we have to stay vigilant, especially with negotiations still to come about the possibility of military trainers or advisors remaining in iraq. as we move forward with a constructive bilateral partnership, let's make sure we don't backslide into a renewed military occupation under a different cloak. to me, however, friday's news was greeted not so much with celebration but with relief. and also with reflection about the senseless sacrifice endured by so very many people. nearly 4,500 courageous american service members gave

their life for this war. more than 30,000 have returned home with searing wounds to their bodies and their minds. if not missing limbs, then too often posttraumatic stress that can make every day a living nightmare. and let's not overlook the 100,000-plus innocent iraqi civilians, many of them children, who were killed because the united states of america chose to liberate them. when i think about the humanitarian atrocities of this war, it's most off the faces of those children that i see. then there is the fiscal carnage, the $800 billion appropriated to prrkt -- prosecute the war doesn't even scratch the surface of the total cost. there's the rise in oil prices. the interest on the debt we have accumulated. and of course the veterans health obligations, a promise

we must and will keep. a promise that will still be with us at least 50 years from now. president obama's announcement is welcomed. but long overdue. i have been an outspoken opponent of the war since before it started, and i introduced the first legislation to bring our troops home in 2005. more than 400 times i have stood in this very place in this chamber to call for an end to the iraq and afghanistan military entanglement. in the beginning at the same time of a smart security approach that emphasizes humanitarian and peaceful conflict resolution in place of military might, i was proud to work with my good friends, congresswoman waters and lee, to establish the out-of-iraq caucus. their leadership, their support, plus our many other colleagues on both sides of the

aisle who lent their voices to the cause made the difference because back in 2004 and 2005 ours was not the majority positions. because we broke the silence, because we acted on principal and refused to stand down, the american people came around to the out-of-iraq perspective because we stood on the right side of history, we found ourselves with the majority of americans on the right side of public opinion. wanting, no, demanding an end to the iraq and afghanistan war. our work isn't done, of course. the war in afghanistan rages on. it's destructive, it's foolish, and about 100,000 troops are still in harm's way there on a futile and extensive mission that is not making it safe but

undermining our national security. mr. speaker, again, i give president obama credit for his decision to bring our troops home from iraq by the end of the year. and at the same time i will continue to speak out until americans get the peace that they want and deserve. and all of our troops are home from afghanistan as well. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, for five minutes. mr. poe: thank you, mr. speaker. there's been a lot of talk about immigration, border security, and all the problems in between. but let's talk about one part of the immigration issue that has maybe slipped through the cracks and we don't hear much about it. there are some illegals in the united states that are just criminals. they have been convicted of crimes from everything to stealing to killing including rape, robbery, and murder. the bureau of prisons says that

27% of all the prisoners in federal prisons are foreign nationals that are illegally in the united states. that's astonishing that over 25% of our federal prisons houses illegals. all at the expense of americans. these criminals serve their sentence in one of our state or federal prisons. then after they served that sentence and they are ordered deported, here's what happens. many of their native countries refuse to take back their deported criminals. why would they take them back? they got enough criminals of their own. since they won't take back all of their own citizens that are convicted criminals, after they serve their sentence, that nation tries to pawn off the remainder on the united states. these thugs get a get out of jail free card in the united states because we do not permanently detain them in jail after they have been ordered deported an their country of origin refuses to take them. that means that they are released on the american

streets. they are criminals without a country. so how many people are we talking about? well, according to an i.c.e. report earlier this year, we are talking about 138,000 illegal aliens who are pending deportation either in jail or out on the streets. some of these are never taken back to their home countries. now, who are these offending nations? cuba, iran, pakistan, and, yes, china. our good buddies, the chinese, are second worst offenders with 35,000 convicted criminals pending deportation. imagine that. chinese crime that is in the united states. who would have thought? we already have enough law on the books that says that the department of homeland security is supposed to report to the secretary of state any countries that do not accept or unreasonably delay taking their citizens back. then the secretary of state is supposed to discontinue granting visas to citizens of

that country. that sounds good, but the problem is homeland security doesn't always enforce the rule of law. homeland security has the obligation to follow the law and ship these criminals back to where they belong. it's simple. if you come to the united states illegally and commit a felony, you go home after you are lawfully deported. it's time we offer a proper smeff for these uncooperate -- incentive for these uncooperative nations, like china, who freely take money from us, like our debt, and turn around and disrespect our laws. there needs to be a punishment for any nation that refuses to take back lawfully deported criminal aliens. we should not be issuing visas to diplomats of other nations that refuse to cooperate with our government. there should be consequences for countries whose citizens illegally enter the united states, harm our citizens, go to prison, and the hothse country disrespects the law --

host country disrespects the law of the united states and doesn't take back their malcontent citizens. how do we make sure these foreign governments take back their citizens? today i introduced the deport criminal -- convicted foreign criminals act. this bill is simple. first, if a country does not take back their criminal aliens after 90 days of being given proper legal notice, diplomatic visas will be withheld. then if the country still refuses to take back their criminals, these sanctions will be expanded to include other types of visas. our government needs to be more concerned about the rule of law, the security of our nation, and the cost to the american taxpayer than it is about hurting the feelings of some foreign country. immigration's a complicated issue but this part is simple, foreign convicted criminals need to go back home. their homeland should take them whether they want them or not. the united states cannot be a halfway house for foreign criminals. that's just the way it is.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from wisconsin -- the gentlewoman from california, ms. speier, for five minutes. ms. speier: mr. speaker, i rise today as i have risen nine times before to speak about the unspeakable. rape in the military. 19,000 soldiers, women and men, each year, are raped in the military. and what is congress doing about it? what is the department of defense doing about it? not much. this the 10th time i'm standing on this floor to share the story of a victim. each of these soldiers proudly served their country. each was raped. and each was subjected to a system of justice that protects the perpetrator not the victim. this is a problem we can fix.

we just have to want to. i will to share these stories until something changes. so email me at stopmilitaryrape at mail.house.gov if they would like to speak up. today i want to share the story of sergeant mayla haider. sergeant haider served in the army from 1994 to 1999 and again there november, 2000, until october, 2005. when sergeant haider entered the army, she planned on being a career service member. in 2002 she was raped. while she was working at this c.i.v. the criminal investigative division. ironically it is the c.i.d. that is charged with investigating crimes, including rape and sexual assault, in the military.

on this occasion after socializing with a group of c.i.d. colleagues, the rapist, a senior agent in c.i.d., isolated sergeant haider from the group and raped her. . like the overwhelming majority of service members raped in the military, did not record the crime. she did not report the rape because she witnessed firsthand the negative attitude that the c.i.d. had towards rape victims and didn't believe she would be able to obtain justice if she had reported being raped. she did, however, confide in two friends, both other division agents at c.i.d. they both promised her that they would not report the rape because they agreed with her assessment that reporting the rape would not lead to justice. two years later in november, 2004, sergeant haider was contacted by a c.i.d. agent who had learned from one of sergeant haider's friends that

she had been raped two years earlier by a senior c.i.d. agent. the c.i.d. agent informed her that the assailant was being investigated for raping several other women and indecently assaulting others. a serial rapist in the military. in 2005 sergeant haider testified at her rapist's court marshall. however, the agent that -- court martial. however, the agent testified for the rapist. sergeant haider learned from the agent that they had been threatened by command if they didn't testify on behalf of the accused. so in order to preserve their careers at c.i.d., they followed orders. in describing her decision to speak out she said this -- i knew my career was over because our soldiers cannot report a rape in the military and expect

to have it -- a successful military career. see, only 13% of those that are raped in the military actually report it and of those 13%, 90% of them are involuntarily honorably discharged from the military. so i become painfully aware that the rape that this rape, department of defense is working to address this issue, the epidemic of military sexual assault will never end. it is long past time for congress to act. the real question is, when will we start protecting those that defend us? i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from wisconsin, ms. moore, for five minutes. ms. moore: thank you, mr.

speaker. i'm here today to join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to recognize domestic violence awareness month. i wear my purple and my purple ribbon because i'm incredibly supportive of the goals of this commemorative month and yet painfully, painfully aware that domestic violence does not confide itself to one singular month. and therefore, mr. speaker, i rise today to encourage all of us to keep our focus on this pernicious issue year round. it's not an exaggeration to say that domestic violence is an epidemic in this country. it affects nearly one in four women.

this violence has far-reaching effects, not just for women and sometimes men who experience it, but for their families, including their children, as well as their employer, their communities for generation after generation. the statistics and stories from my home state of wisconsin provide a small snapshot of the impact of this violence. the wisconsin department of children and families reports that between october 1, 2009, and september 30, 2010, nearly 41,000 women, children and men received services from domestic violence victims service providers in wisconsin. and over 6,600 people sought refuge in a domestic violence shelter. the wisconsin coalition against domestic violence publishes an

annual homicide report detailing domestic violence-related homicide. they've done this since 2000. and in this time span at least 532 people have lost their lives in incidents related to domestic violence. last year in 2010 there were 39 domestic violence homicide incidents resulting in 58 deaths. 51 homicide and seven perpetrator sue sides. these deaths represent nearly a third of all homicides in 2010 in wisconsin. victims in these inns departments come from 17 counties across the state, and include both the young and the old. the youngest, less than a 1 -year-old, and the oldest, 80 years old. at least 12 children were left orphaned or without a mother.

in milwaukee county where the fourth congressional district is located, there were 21 domestic violence-related homicides last year. and they include mae helm, 58, brutally stabbed by her boyfriend in her own apartment. shannon dorothy, 44, strangled with a belt by her boyfriend, age 46. and sabrina junior, 43 years old, who was stabbed to death by her partner while the couple's 11-year-old daughter cowhered in a closet with her young -- cowered in a closet with her two younger sisters. children are too often left with neither parents nor appropriate treatment from the collateral damage of domestic violence. as co-chair of the congressional caucus for women's issues and a longtime

supporter of domestic violence-related legislation and as a survivor of domestic violence, i want to take this opportunity to reiterate my pledge to work towards greater, stronger and more public policy initiatives to meet the overwhelming need that remains for victim services and a range of domestic violence programs. i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to do the same. we simply cannot continue to stand by and tolerate the ongoing funding gap for victim services while lives are at risk. three women a day die as a result of domestic violence. we must continue to maximize our opportunities for intervening in ways that fit individual victim's needs. we need services for children, and we must take the most of

every opportunity for education and advocacy and prevention services. i sure hope my colleagues will join me this month and every month in the fight to support victims of domestic violence through funding more programming. and with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. lee, for five minutes. ms. lee: mr. speaker, i rise to talk about the millions of americans who woke up this morning facing a separate and unequal america. a separate and unequal america marked not by the american dream and limitless opportunities but an america of the unemployed and poverty stricken, an america marked by struggle and fear of the future. the struggle just to find a

job. the struggle to keep their home. to struggle to put enough food on the table. americans all across the country are struggling and believe that their government is not looking out for their best interests and instead is working just for rich bankers and massive corporations. people across the nation are losing faith in our democratic process and thank goodness are taking to the streets to tell their friends, neighbors and their government that much more must be done for the american people and not just for the superrich. they are saying very loudly that the obstacles to achieving the american dream must be removed. too many families across our great nation are wondering for the first time if our children's generation will be left worse off than the generation before it. i urge the republican leadership of the house to quickly pass the president's american jobs act to restore

the american economy and bring some relief to the millions of americans who are struggling every day just to get by. mr. speaker, more than 46 million americans will apply for food stamps this month. the sublamental nutrition assistance program, or snap, -- supplemental nutrition assistance program, or snap, provides the average benefit of $133 a month, that's $1.50 a meal. there is a member of the senate, however, who seems to believe there might be millions of americans who are getting rich by applying for food stamps. let me assure the good senator from alabama that it is not fraud that is causing the rising demand for nutrition assistance in america, but the years of failed economic policies that have lined the pockets of corporate billionaires and left average americans behind. a program with one of the lowest fraud rates of any program in our entire

government is not out of control. but let me say this clearly as i can. having to apply for food stamps to put food on the table to keep your children from going hungry is not like winning the lottery. one in seven americans receive food stamps but millions more are eligible and don't apply. i'm certain that each and every family will be willing to trade in their book of food stamps for a decent job with livable wages and benefits. mr. speaker, i'm taking part in the fourth annual food stamp challenge, along with several other members on this side of the aisle. congressman tim ryan of ohio, congressman joe courtney of connecticut, chairman congressman emanuel cleaver of missouri, and congresswoman marcia fudge of ohio, congresswoman debbie wasserman schultz of florida, congresswoman jan schakowsky of illinois, congresswoman gwen moore of wisconsin.

i invite every member of congress to join us in living for a few days or a week on what a family on food stamps will face every day of the year. i hope that the challenges will open our eyes to the challenges and the struggles of the millions of americans who face hunger each and every day. living in poverty and facing food insecurity means missed meals, poor health and loss productivity. even if you choose not to join the food stamp challenge, i encourage you all to stop and consider what it means to have $31.50 to spend on food for the entire week. stop for a moment and consider there are over 46 million americans that have to swallow their pride and ask for help just to put food on the table. as a former recipient of food stamps myself, as a single young mom, i know how difficult this is. i did it because i had to do it just to get over some very difficult times.

46 million americans who reached out to their fellow americans during their time of need, and i thank the american people during my time of need, they were glad to be there to lend a helping hand. we cannot make cuts to snap or medicaid or social security right when children and senior citizens need them the most. so i hope that my colleagues take up the food stamp challenge. i also encourage each member to join me and the 43 other members of the congressional out-of-poverty caucus and ending poverty in america to ensure that no family in our country needs to ever face hunger again. the out-of-poverty caucus is working to reignite the american dream so that every man, woman and child are provided the opportunities to achieve the american dream. but right now these 47 million people living in poverty and on food stamps need to protect the safety net and the individuals and persons of faith, we have to remember that this is a moral issue also. i want to remind you of the

scripture, to whom much is given, much is expected. it's also an economic issue, though. for every $1 spent on food stamps, $1.79 is placed into the economy. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from illinois, ms. schakowsky, for five minutes. ms. schakowsky: i thank the speaker for recognition. on thursday, i will join my colleague, representative barbara lee, and catholic charities u.s.a. and the jewish council for public affairs, the national council of churches and several other congresspeople that my colleague mentioned to participate in the food stamp challenge, an effort to draw attention to the crisis of hunger in america. as part of the challenge, participants will eat on the average snap allotment. that's what we call it now. there's no more food stamps. now people get a card that they

can actually use to charge the food. but will eat on the average snap allotment of $1.50 per meal for a week. having participated in this event in the past, i know it is extremely difficult to eat a healthy diet under such strict budgetary guidelines. nevertheless, snap is the difference between chronic hunger and a basic meal for 45 million americans. now, obviously that means i'm going to give up any starbucks coffee but even the dollar coffee i was able to buy in the cloakroom just before i came out here is something that will be just too precious to spend, that's almost a whole meal's worth just to buy that cup of coffee. . in 2010, 14.5% of american households were food insecure. meaning they lacked the capacity to put enough food on

their tables. they relied on nutrition programs like snap to make ends meet. in this wealthiest country in the world, one out of four american children is now food insecure. meaning there are nights that they go to sleep hungry. it really is a moral issue as my colleague pointed out. the supplemental nutrition assistance program, that's snap, provides an essential safety net for american families. more than half of snap recipients are children. the republican budget passed in the house will no democratic support, i might add, would cut $127 billion from snap over the next decade. a 20% cut. the house agricultural appropriations bill passed again with no democratic support would also cut snap program. these may be just numbers, $127 billion here and several

billion there, but there are effects that are very real for people across the country. i recently received dozens of messages on paper plates from ezra multiservice center in chicago. they rely on snap to make ends meet. they fear the repercussions of further cuts. the plates answered the question, what would happen to you if snap benefits are cut? heather c. in chicago said, that it's already hard not to feed her children as it is. and cutting snap would mean her kids would suffer. quote, she says, my food stamps stretch out for about two weeks out of the month. if i didn't have them, it would cost me an extra $250 a month to feed my children. food these days is so expensive and the more help we can get to feed our kids, the better, unquote. by the way, most of the people on the snap program are on just for a temporary amount of time. just like the congresswoman said, to bridge a gap when they

are really in need. jack kay worked for decades as a taxicab driver but retired with very little wealth. he says now, i now live in subsidized housing and depend on soup kitchens and food pantries for food, unquote. an anonymous client from chicago writes if snap benefits are cut, quote, it would be impossible for me to feed my four children every day. it's bad enough because of this recession there is a lack of jobs. that alone makes it difficult to provide for them. these programs give people the temporary help they need to be ok until a job is obtained. please take into consideration the children who depend on their children for survival, unquote. one commenter said she needs the program because she lost her life savings to cover medical costs which continue to this day. quote, instead of being middle class, i am now living below the poverty level, she says. without assistance, i would be back in a homeless shelter. as it is now i'm unable to afford utilities between my rent and medical expenses,

unquote. and robert b. in chicago said, the bad economy has left him in long-term unemployment. quote, i lost everything. if my benefits were cut, i wouldn't eat for a while, unnote. we have options in this wealthiest country in the world. for example, i have introduced h.r. 1124, the fairness in taxation act, which would raise revenues by increasing tax rates on the 1% richest americans. income over $1 million a year would be taxed at 45%, mogg moving up to 49% for income over $1 billion. that's lower than during the reagan years. i invite my colleagues to join me in the food stamp challenge and learn just even for a week what it's like to live on $1.50 a meal. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will receive a message. the messenger: mr. speaker, a message from the president of the united states. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: mr. secretary.

the secretary: i'm directed by the president of the united states to deliver to the house of representatives a message in writing. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, for five minutes. ms. jackson lee: good morning, mr. speaker. it's really a pleasure to have the opportunity to speak this morning and to congratulate president obama for keeping his promise and keeping his prom mission to the american people. i have had the privilege of traveling to iraq on many occasions. privilege of greeting our soldiers coming from texas, houston, and all over america. i have had the sadness of attending the memorial and

funeral services of fallen soldiers. the sadness of talking to parents and relatives asking the question, why? i have even gone and mourned with mothers around the issue of convincing presidents, in this instance, president bush, to end the war. i have been amidst tiny white crosses that have symbolized the numbers of those who died in iraq. and in my office for a period of time we accounted for the numbers of individuals who died in iraq, in particular, from the state of texas. i co-chair the afghan caucus. in times i have gone to iraq in the green zone that is familiar to many, i have even taken enemy fire. that is of course, enemy fire attempting to hit those in the green zone.

nothing in comparison to our soldiers and certainly never experienced a heinous act of an i.e.d. it is time to bring those warriors home and to say thank you. spending almost $900 billion, close to $1 trillion. and i'd like to see the amendment that i passed in the defense authorization bill utilized. it was a national proclamation day to welcome home all of our combat veterans. it would include those who have fought wars in iraq and afghanistan and other wars in times past and other incidences around the world. it's time to have a celebration and a response to our soldiers like we never had before. it's time to place ribbons. it's time to stand in streets. it's time to sole brown-waite through parades. -- celebrate through parades. and i commend those who serve and continue to serve our veterans. it seems that is the appropriate response and how silly it seems that in the

state of texas we have to be fighting the potential implementation of a confederate flag. we had a press conference in my district with persons from around the state and around the county standing up against the state issued confederate flag. in fact, we announced for the state of texas, why couldn't we put the american flag on our flates, our license flates, to symbolize our commitment to our soldiers and respect for the unity of this nation? yet under governor perry we are fooling around with the idea, with his appointees, of a confederate flag license plate. one that does not honor the confederate soldier which we, for those who wish to honor them, there are places and museums in our home, but to symbol, to put on the state license plate, a flag that symbolized fear, intimidation, oppressive actions, rue talt, slavery, and the death of

slaves, some 20 million that came over, million million gone overboard and the brew tality jim crowism is an outrage. while there are continued growth of millions of millionaires and the average salary in the united states is $26,000. it seems that we should stay focused on job creation and not be distracted in the state as large as texas with the largest majority, minority community of latinos and african-americans and the largest number of uninsured that the government of the state of texas would take time to fool around with a confederate flag, a hostile symbol, that is so egregious to many in this country. and so, mr. speaker, i hope that congress will focus on passing the jobs bill. recognizing the need of the american people. i hope my colleagues will look toward states that would create a hostile atmosphere such as a confederate license plate in a way that would show that many

times they are not worthy of being -- receiving federal funds. they want to spend their time spending money on something as dastardly as that. and i come from the state, because there are so many needs such as was mentioned earlier by me colleague, the limitations in the snap and food stamps where children are starving. why don't we focus on the good necessary of bringing us together such as my earlier comment of welcoming home our troops with a national proclamation pursuant to the amendment i passed on the floor of this house, 419-0. why don't we get rid of things like confederate flag symbols that represent oppression, and why don't we come together in this congress and pass the president american jobs act so that salaries are not going down? and why don't we hold states accountable when they get federal dollars in they don't hire small businesses and those who are working, mr. speaker -- those who are unemployed, mr. speaker, that we cut their federal funds. and i truly mean that. i thank you, mr. speaker, for your indulgence, and again

let's get rid of the bad things in the united states such as symbols of confederate flags insulting much of the american people. let's spror snap. let's support people going to work. and let's make sure that there are people earning more than $26,000 by getting them back to work. mr. speaker, i thank you. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until 12:00 noon

live coverage on the set on c- span 2. right now to capitol hill for house energy and commerce subcommittee hearing, looking into internet gambling. this hearing focuses on legal restrictions of the internet gambling and the impact on consumers whose basic restrictions are lifted. this started about 40 minutes ago. >> gambling will likely never be eliminated, but we can have better efforts to protect consumers, prevent addiction, and mitigate the damage. this is inconceivable that internet gambling delegalized without dedicating a portion of the revenue to address the social cost of gambling and addiction. madam chairman said in opening statement that 85% of adults

have gambled once in the past year and 15% of them for at least once in the past week. $6 billion per year on legalized gambling winnings. unlike the federal excise tax saw to tackle in alcohol, not a penny of the federal tax revenue from legalized gambling if it is returned back to prevent and treat the social cost of a gambling addiction, 500,000 adolescents meet criteria for gambling addiction in a single year. high risk groups include members of minority groups, young males, and veterans. it has a social cost to families, businesses, and communities, the cost is $7 billion per year, from addiction, a bankruptcy, and crime.

it is an important national health concern. gambling problems are significantly correlated with other substance abuse problems that are extremely costly to state governments and families and individuals. gambling problems are significantly correlated with higher rates of on employment, a bankruptcy, rest, incarceration, and poor physical health. millions of spouses and children and families and parents and employers are significantly impacted by gambling addiction. it's not clear what impact of legalization will be on problem gambling. the available research consistently shows that internet gambling has the lowest participation rates of any form of gambling regardless of legality of gambling in that jurisdiction. the rate to participation do not seem to vary significantly whether it is legal or illegal. there are massive numbers of americans gambling online currently. studies throughout the world find relatively high rates of gambling problems among those

who do gamble on line. those who gamble on line are also very likely to gamble in traditional forms to the extent that internet gambling seems to be an attempt to people who are already gambling on line. and already gambling in traditional forms. it is possible people who gamble on line may be exacerbating the problem due to the unlimited access, the high speed of play, use of credit non-cash instruments. since online gamblers are known to have high rates of problems, it is important to have extensive gaming policies. these programs provide an opportunity to create informed consumers with -- to provide consumers with information designed to discourage unsafe behavior. the technology exists to allow players to set limits on the amount of money gambled, they gamble, and the deposits they may.

i am pleased the doctor will speak a little on some of the consumer protection policies. strong regulation is important, but it cannot be effective alone. it must be accompanied by equally robust prevention, education, treatment, and research services. a portion of gambling revenues that's not less than $50 million annually, must be set aside for such programs. this is magnified by the disparity of services among states. one-third of the state's provide absolutely no public funds whatsoever to prevent or treat gambling problems. this is neither cost-effective nor ethical means of responding to a non public health concern. the important and cost-free first cup is to designate a federal agency on problem gambling. gambling has been around, but there is no single federal agency that coordinates efforts

on this issue. i call your attention to the comprehensive problem gambling act which has introduced -- has been introduced for the fourth time in the house. i thank presented spartan, pitts, would yield, campbell, and many other current and former sponsors of the legislation -- representative barton. millions of americans experiencing gambling problems today. my friend mike gambled away $250,000 in the past three years on the internet. he lost his job, his house, and his family. he sat in a grocery store parking lot in northern virginia contemplating suicide. he was able to get treatment. today he works to ensure that help and hope are available for

problem gamblers and their families. simply put, a treatment works. the investments that works for itself time and again. people who profit from gambling have an ethical responsibility and to provide help for problem gamblers. >> you are recognized for five minutes. >> good morning, madam chair. thank you to the ranking member as well. i appreciate you inviting me to talk about this important issue. i come at this from a different angle than most, from a consumer protection ankle where i worked most of my career. i was an adviser to the federal reserve board on consumer financial issues on the consumer advisory council. you can imagine what fun that was during recent years. so, and i think about gambling, the question i have is what consumer protection should be in place? i am very happy to hear many of

you talk about the importance of consumer protection in gambling, because is a crucial issue. downer's used to be looked on, and now they are just consumers. it is just another industry. so we should treat them as consumers, as we would others and think about what consumer protection is important in this industry. the purpose of consumer protection is to make consumers good shoppers, to give them the tools they need to make smart decisions when they purchase, when they go to a casino, when they gamble on line, whatever they do, we want to make them good shoppers and protect them from practices. the engine of the consumer economy is that the consumers drive it. as long as they're giving information they need to make good decisions, then companies will have to compete based on

quality of products and price, which is what makes car economy run. now, in the gambling industry they often talk about consumer protection is honesty, fairness, and making sure the gambler get paid. those are all very important, but equally important is that the gambling industry provides an accurate price disclosure to consumers who are gambling. the price upper a game in the gambling industry is an interesting the. if you play $100 slot machine, you put $100 in, but on average you get money back. otherwise, why do it? the real average price of a slot machine is the amount that the casino retains from the gambler suspects. if you back $1,000 and you get $970 back, then the price of that gambling was $30.

for a slot machines, casinos know exactly what the average whole percentage of the slot machine is. they can order a slot machine with a 10% hold percentage or 5% or so and they know on average with that machine will cost. the problem is that information is not as close to campus. they may be sitting at a to% old machine table or 15% gold machine table and not know the difference. they could be sitting at one much more expensive or much cheaper and cannot be given that information. it is crucial that gamblers have this information so they can make smart decisions and so that they can shop based on price. an internet gambling should include that. any legislation for internet gambling should require disclosure of the whole

percentage of every slot machine on the system. for internet poker, it is a different proposition because the price paid by the bar work is based more on competition against other plaers that it is -- other players that it is by the web site. professional players have new tools that far exceed anything they could do in the casino poker table. there are computer booths that they have and computer boxes that are getting effective. recreational gamblers may find themselves playing against professionals who far exceed their ability to play. the recreational gambler may have no idea what they're getting into. there is even computer tracking software using data mining that telxon gamblers identified who

the weak gamblers are so they can follow them to tables. this is a real problem for the internet poker industry because the industry does not want all the recreational gamblers money to be drained out by professionals using boxes or other tools. any legislation has to pick about how to --has to think about how to have a level playing field in internet poker. i appreciate any questions later on. >> thank you, professor. dr. romer, you are recognized. >> thank you, madam chair, and thank you to the ranking members for inviting me. it's interesting to hear all the different points of view about this difficult issue for you to deal with. i have been doing research on gambling, adolescents gambling,

since 2002 at the public policy center and try to understand the prevalence and arms that might occur to young people as a result of all kinds of gambling, not test on the internet. -- harms that might occur. the encounter with recertify and people at a very early age are starting to gamble. this puts them at risk potential for gambling dependency as they get older. it is very important for the committee and the congress to pick about what impact will be on young people and their families as a result of any actions that are taken with regard to online gambling. one of the kings we have done over the last three dixons 2002 is conduct a national survey of youth, studies and people over the ages of 14 through 22. what we have found from the survey of its most of the attempts to restrict online gambling have not been particularly effective, as we have heard. in our last survey in 2010 we found that more than 400,000 males in the college age range

campbell once final week -- are gambling once a week. a lot of people are on line. the central high school kids, very high rates. but not so much on a regular basis. we think that age restrictions and laws that would encourage age restrict? that's responsible gambling, to be seen in some other countries that have allowed on-line gambling, may be an approach that would work, but we are still very much in the early stages of understanding how on- line gambling will work. i think we need research to try to understand it better. if we have legislation that can provide safeguards, that could potentially restrict underage gamblers and also to the extent they do go online, make it harder for them to lose control while they're on-line, would be excellent safeguards to include

in any legislation. i think the principle i see when i look at what is going on in europe is the idea of responsible gambling. and so, one idea that i think was particularly helpful, is gambling operators should not receive disproportionate income from users who are unable to control their habits. i think the bill that has been put forth might have a mechanism and in it for the public to observe how funds are being made on internet gambling so that you can see if certain gamblers spared disproportionately contributing to profits. some of the other ideas we have heard about, age restrictions and so faorth are important. the method of pavement is important. we need research on how this works. this country is way behind the u.k. and countries in europe on understanding what happens when young people go online and

gamble. we really need to find that out. we need the money is dedicated to that question. we also need to consider, the law should consider money and time limits. we have already heard this is a good idea. there should be running clock on line. there should be a win lost total on line so that the young person knows how much they are wagering -- win-loss total. this should be whether they are 18 or 51. we don't know how many of these kinds of restrictions would work. we also need prevention messages on line. it is much easier to put these on line than it is at a casino. and we need to regulate or monitor the advertising that is done to attract people. we don't want the advertising to target young people disproportionately or addictive gamblers disproportionately. i think the challenge will be if

you do legalize this, will be to put in place in terms of treatment but also a program of research to figure out are restrictions that you put in place working, and what mix of restrictions work best, and what can we do in the future to maximize the chance that this kind of activity will not produce hard for young people and their families. i have included a bunch of other ideas in my testimony. activity that will not produce harm for young people. >> thank you, doctor. i will recognize myself for five minutes for questions. mr. white, i would like to begin with you. the doctor spoke about this as well, but you state that problem gamblers could exacerbate their problems by gambling on my because of the use of credit and 24 our availability. good restrictions on those factors reduce the problem, for

example limited time on credit? the other countries have that? if so, can you talk about the results? >> there's some evidence from canada and europe in response to restrictions that have been put in place, to generally include limits on the use of certain types of data processing, limits on the time and money spent gambling, don't seem to soon affect pathological gamblers. they seem rather to be better targeted at those people that are moderate problem gamblers. these restrictions, properly tailored, have shown to be effective in some studies at really helping people stopping them from stepping over the edge and developing severe gambling problems. we are not entirely sure

exactly what works best, but we believe there's enough evidence to show some of these interventions can be effective. some of them can be much more successfully implemented on the internet with account-based wagering than in traditional gambling form. >> thank you. mr. stevens, you suggest that any legislation authorizing online gambling should allow tribal governments early entrant. can you explain the rationale? >> yes, it is important to understand and appreciate that what the tribes have been through in the history of the united states government. i would be quickly about my grandmother. she is 101 years old. she lives in her own apartment independently in an apartment that is assisted, but not a nursing home. she lives in that apartment at 101 independently. she started out her life going

to boarding schools and working and wearing a uniform and disciplined for being left- handed like my friend next to me. and for speaking her language. and leaving her family -- her family would go by the boarding school and not even wave or visit or look at their children. and it's a little emotional to bring this up. even though my grandmother is doing fine and if you called to her apartment on the reservation in wisconsin, you'll probably find seats not home, so she is involved in activities. she is a retired schoolteacher. spent her whole life teaching language. her grandfather was a civil war veteran. the use/the boarding school --

he used to ride by the boarding school. that is just one story of what our people have been through. millions and millions of indians struggled. despite the challenges we have been through, we have been able to persevere, survive, and fight back. if anyone deserves to be at the front line in this industry is native american people. at the very least, equal footing, madam chair. >> you also -- why is it important that legislation permit tribes to operate internet gaming without renegotiating their tribal state compacts? what is the concern? >> i believe that is a new industry. i believe that it should not our attempt to amend the current law in order to accomplish that. >> can you clarify your principle regarding regulation

of tribal regulatory authority? should we legalize online gaming? and how do you see that authority affected? >> i misunderstood. >> i think i missed spoke. should federal legislation legalizes online gaming, what is your opinion? >> i think and spoke briefly to that in my testimony extensively in my written testimony. the regulators in indian country have analyzed this. they are the ones responsible, the national indian gaming commission is the only federal authority that has experience in gaming. so we feel that in order to oversee this element of it, we should utilize the experience of

experienced folks. just by coincidence, it is the nicest one i have, but the national tribal gaming commission, the regulators, this is the national association of independent tribes that have worked to analyze the expertise and the important aspects of tribal regulation to make us stronger and have been able to adhere to the responsibilities to our constituents. >> i hate to cut you off, but my time is up. if you could wrap up in five seconds. >> by bottom line is that we have asked these regulators nationwide if they are prepared to regulate this industry? they have assured us they have strong preparation to do so. >> thank you. if my time has expired. pleased to recognize mr. butterfield for five minutes. >> thank you, chairman. madam chairman, i am among those who is beginning to understand

online gambling. i am beginning to understand that it could provide a great boost to our national economy and could provide a boost for federal lands state's coffers. so i'm beginning to connect the dots and understand what this is about. -- for federal and state coffers. as the chair pointed out, online gambling is a very complicated issue. i am beginning to see that. other issues still barred discussion. for example, if the great state of california, with 53 representatives and the district of columbia with a non-voting representative, are already moving forward with online gaming. even though it's legal status is unclear. given that the u.s. justice department believes the wire act and in colorado online gambling.

i have to wonder, therefore, under the current state of play, is just this going to shut these operations down once they are up and running? there are other critical questions the need to be answered. we need to hear from california and d.c. we need to hear from the justice department. we need to hear from other states and federal regulators who would be tasked with implementing and enforcing regulatory framework regarding on-line gambling. this is an issue that warrants further review before the subcommittee. we have jurisdiction and we need to certainly inquire into that. in his testimony, mr. white notes that among the groups at high risk for a gambling addiction are racial and ethnic minorities. i want to talk about that. he specifically identified african-americans among others as being at high risk. earlier this month the subcommittee held a hearing over

revisions to the children's online privacy protection act rule. the testimony of one of the witnesses for that hearing contained references to a study by the sesame workshop that included interesting insights into the on-line habits of minority children. according to that study, african-americans and hispanic children have less home internet access. those that have access use the internet more than white children. african american children between ages of five and nine spent 41 minutes online procession. white children in contrast spent 27 minutes online procession. hispanic children between ages 8 and 14 spent almost two hours on line each day. 40 minutes more than white children. the study also pointed out that children from low-income and ethnic minority homes were less likely to have adult guidance when accessing the internet. as a result, they were spending

more time on a lower quality web sites or on activities that would not help them develop school-based skills. doctor, let me try you. your work has focused on the prevalence of gambling among high school and college and people. i don't the it would be a leap to assume the tendency by younger children to use the internet more and spend more time on low-quality web sites persists into high school and college. given all this, i wonder whether you could speak to whether you have seen differences along racial and ethnic lines? >> there are racial and ethnic differences in gambling. we have not seen it in terms of internet use. partly because it's still been kind of small in our survey. so i cannot really talk to it. from what you've said, if there are these disparities that occur for kids on line, i would fully

expect those kids -- collect the data seems to suggest that. >> the data seems to suggest that. anything in particular we could write into the law that would try to safeguard against this? >> i don't notice provided a lot that the safeguard against particular people other than people who are prone to a lack of control. so i think the thing you want to prevent its people from using on-line gambling sites who cannot control their gambling. anything you can do to warn them, to remind them, to keep them aware of the fact that they may be spending more than they have would be valuable. and people need to know what

they're going to win on a web site. that is a valuable going to tell people at any age. but we don't want kids on there at all. that is the goal. >> another important aspect is to make sure that there are health services available if kids do get into trouble. i think that is where the impact on the minority community is disproportionate. access toless ou health services and less aspects in the spanish language and other forms of help for native americans. regulation alone cannot adequately protect people from addiction, as we know regarding drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. we must have dedicated, culturally specific services available for young people and adults to prevent, educate country, and research. that's the way we will make progress. >> thank you. >> the chair would remind people that you have a five-minute questioning and answering if we

can stick close to it. we will have a second round of questions. the chair is happy to recognize mr. bass for five minutes. >> i thank the chair and i thank my friend from texas for his courtesy. i have to preside at noon and the house is not in session now. when you don't show up at noon, people get uptight very quickly. i am also quite perplexed by some of the discussion about all this money that is being greeted could be lost in the internet poker. i know quite a few people who play into a poker and i've not many that have admitted to losing anything. [laughter] new hampshire is first in the nation presidential primary and will remain so. it also happens to be the first state to adopt a statewide lottery in 1964 that's raised over $4 billion and provided about $1.3 billion for public education in the state. my only question is for my former colleague from new york.

representing the poker players, in your organization's opinion, what impact with the passage of legislation permitting it track gambling have on state lotteries? second, with your organization have any objection to allowing or giving the state lotteries the opportunity to also compete in the internet poker business? >> congressman, let me answer the second question because that one is easier. we would have no objection whatsoever. as it relates to whether or not there has been an impact, we believe the people who buy lottery tickets are generally not the same people. we don't believe they really competes. we believe that many will

continue, if you look at the lottery tickets and their purchasers, you will find that play athe internet does pay role, most of it is commercial establishments. we don't see a conflict and we certainly have no reduction the lottery tickets and scratched off tickets that the states put out there, having that ability. i would also note, in new york you presently have a situation where the revenues from the lotteries play a very substantial part in our state's economy in the budget. we want to protect that. i am not advocating that and cut into that. i make one other point. the ranking member brought up

the fat that -- fact that there's a disparate impact and it would seem that the young minority children to a greater extent to the internet and to programs which are not those kind that you would generally want to encourage them that would help them in school. i hope i am paraphrasing your sentiments correctly. more reason to see to it that there is good, tight regulation as it relates to using the internet and poker in particular. ] there's no regulation now. there's nothing to stop these kids from getting on. if we want to eliminate those who are unfortunately becoming involved in gambling and a young age, there's no verification required bikeshare website groups. there's no way to stop or prevent them. i think it makes abundant since,

if we want to do something to curtail this among youngsters, we need strong regulations protecting consumers and protecting young people. i would like to hear from -- because we're not opposed. how to give information so that players have a better playing field. all those reasons it is important that we move forward with this kind of legislation. >> thank you very much, senator. i appreciate you addressing my question as well as mr. butterfield's. i yield back to the chair later. >> bank. --thank you. five minutes. >> thank you to the chair and the ranking members. the question before this committee is, what if any forms

of online gaming should congress consider? over the course of the next several weeks congress will decide on how our nation will begin to put its fiscal house in order. this seems to be a way to get revenue. one of the many proposals that congress will consider is easing the current restrictions of online gaming. currently under the wire act, online gaming is illegal. however, that has not stopped offshore gaming. those web sites profiting off the united states. beginning industry experts have estimated that the united states spent over $16 billion in 2010 on my poker alone. some experts also suggest that revenues generated by online gaming would bring in

significant tax revenues to the federal, but that currently are toto non-u.s. gaming companies. this additional revenue could be used to help balance are growing federal deficit without causing drastic cuts to entitlements programs that so many americans rely on. while i am sympathetic to the view that more revenue is needed to help balance the federal budget, i am concerned with the unintended consequences of this proposal. first, i want to begin by asking mr. stevens, i am not sure, in terms of your real reason for opposing any kind of changed, what are your real reasons? could you be very specific? , not sure i understood your question. >> you are in opposition to this, i understand.

you mention the fact certain agencies were not involved in the deal. what are other reasons? >> representative,, we have had as much as 12 + meetings on this issue and the tribes are opposed to the discussions based on 6 items. indian tribes are sovereign governments with a right to operate, regulate, tax, and license internet gaming and those rights must not be supported to any non-federal authority. internet gaming is authorized by indian tribes and must be available to customers in any locale where internet gaming is not permitted. persistent with long-held federal policy, they must not be subject to tax. rights must be respected. legislation must not open up the regulatory act.

and the revenue must provide benefits for indian country. >> this committee must insure that all the stakeholders involved are able to benefit any legislation that may not take shape over the months ahead. but my concern would be that -- a fact that the oversight and the fact that we make certain that it's being done fairly. and of course that would be a real concern, because i think we have to look at ways to be able to deal with the deficit. based on what everybody is saying, this is a way to attract revenue. i am also concerned about young people and all of that, but based on programs that are in place, that we could sort of

look at that and be able to make certain that they are safe and that they're not involved in any way. anytime you have something, some folks will always take it to the extreme. what we need to do is make certain if they do, but there is something in place for them. you can name almost anything and i can tell you how someone has gone and taken it to the extreme. you name it. the main thing is to try to put safeguards in place. that is an issue that we need to talk about, safeguards we can put in place, programs we can put in place that will make it possible people continue to function without destroying families. thank you all for your testimony and i will respect the five minutes. thank you very much, madam chair. >> thank you. i will remember you at christmas. pleased to recognize the best

poker player in congress, mr. barton for 5 minutes. [laughter] >> i don't know about that. i've not gotten some bills passed through the senate yet. that is where you play real poker, when you play with the senate at the end of the year on getting your bills through. first of all, madam chairman, i would ask unanimous consent to put into the record a letter to you from the president of the american gaming association the written testimony that he was prepared to giv in written -- and he was prepared to give. >> no objection. so ordered. >> my first question to the distinguished panel, is there anyone of you who believes that millions of americans are not playing poker for money on the internet right now?

let the record show that -- is there any of you that i believe it would be possible to prevent american citizens who wish to play poker for money on the internet from doing so? the gentlelady with fair play. >> underage gamblers, we would be able to deal with, that was part of the harvard center age verification group, internet safety technology task force. although you cannot prove who is under the age of 13, you can prove who is over the age of 21. so we would be able to -- >> whatever we can do, if the bill moves, to prevent underage poker players, you tell me how to do it and we will put it in the bill. >> we have a study that was done pakistan and the school at harvard/

-- a study that was done at harvard. >> aimak cpac sponsor of the bill. i assure you i don't want underage poker players. so we will work with you on that. the gentleman representing the indian tribes, under the proposed legislation that i have introduced, a state which does not allow its citizens to play poker for money on the internet simply opts out, we give that same option to the tribes, why would that not protect your sovereignty? want your citizens in the indian nations to play, all you have to do is send a letter to the secretary of commerce that you don't want them to play. sorry, could you restate the question, sir? >> we respect sovereignty.

we respect state sovereignty and we respect in the nation's sovereignty. the bill i have introduced gives the governor of a state and i would assume it would give the chief for the tribal council the same rights that we give a governor. if you don't want to let your citizens within your boundaries play poker for money on the internet, is simply opt out so they cannot play. so we treat the indian tribes the same as we treat the states. that seems pretty fair to me. on the other hand, if you think it's ok for them to play, then you play by the same rules that everybody else plays by in terms of regulating poker players for money on the internet. that seems to me to being a very fair position. we're not anti-india, not a pro- indian -- not anti-indian.

>> on behalf of the tribes, we want to be recognized as a tribal governments. >> that is beyond the scope of the poker bill. i think. i played poker at the indian casino in oklahoma, so i am am with.-- i i am one 32nd cherokee. [laughter] >> i am full blooded oneida from wisconsin. we used to engage in new york state. under the country, we are encouraged to do commerce not only with indian tribes, but to other regions and other countries including canada. >> we are not trying to treat

indian tribes for poker playing any differently than anybody else. senator, do you think there are any technical issues in terms of addressing problem poker players and underage poker players that could not be addressed in this legislation? >> we definitely have the technology now, congressman, to deal sternly with underage, certainly with problem gamblers. there is nothing now restraining them. there's no impact. there's no one out there looking. we can build into the system a kind of program that can identify and they can be placed on the list, where they would not be allowed that if they go over a certain amount of money to participate. is this: does all of the problems -- is this going to solve all the problems? no, but it's better than what we have now which is no protection for the kids.

>> my time has expired. let me first say, this issue of this box for mechanical -- or mechanical instruments for our players, if you have proposed language, if you would give back to the committee staff. we do not want to set up a system where somebody in this audience can play poker on line for money if there governor says it's ok and play against a computer. that is not what we are trying to do. if you have a program that can prevent it or language to prohibit this, we will certainly look at it. with that i yield back. >> the chair recognizes you for five minutes. >> thank you, madam chair. thank you all. this is a subject that interests me greatly. that was last term on the financial services committee and now this time on the energy and commerce committee.

louis free could not be here today. he has a statement the states in part, the "addressing a growing threat that can irritate as rapidly as illegal internet- based gambling operated outside the country is challenging in and of itself for federal law- enforcement. online poker stands apart because it is a game that millions of americans plan home with friends or family and even at charity fund-raisers. unlike most games played against other players rather than against the house, it relies on practice skills and is not defined as illegal in other statutes. clarifying which on-line games are legal creates an opportunity to establish a strict and transparent regulatory regime for online poker that allows adult consumers to play safely and while ensuring accountability and to law and tax enforcement."

i would request unanimous consent to introduce his statement into the record. >> without objection, it is so ordered. >> there was a wonderful study from malcolm's sparrow at the kennedy school of government at harvard. "can internet gambling be effectively regulated, managing the risk." i wouldn't read a pertinent part. "millions of u.s. presidents gamble on line through offshore gambling sites. the establishment of a well- regulated industry under u.s. jurisdiction would offer far better protection against online gambling poses potential social harms banned outright prohibition. that is my considered view.

anyone interested can contact my office. >> this year and continues on line at c-span.org. the house will gavel in momentarily to begin legislative work. the house will consider a bill swaping federal land for private land in arizona. a mining company gets 2,400 acres of federal land for copper mining and the government gets the indy 300 acres of the land from the mining company. and the bill toward the congressional gold medal to the first black marine recruits if in the second world war and creates a commemorative coin to honor the national baseball hall of fame. another bill today and call on the creation of a business travel cards allow quicker processing of those traveling frequently if between the u.s. and asia-pacific countries. now live to the house.

the speaker: the house will be in order. the prayer will be led today by our guest chaplain, reverend morris ma thus, christ united methodist church in sugar land, texas. the chaplain: may we pray. almighty god, who is the giver of every good and perfect gift, and who has blessed us with this good land, and fashioned us into one united people, grant wisdom to those who in your name we entrust the authority of government. guide them, o god, in their deliberations and decisionmaking. grant them the grace to see themselves as leaders who stand in the shadow of history. bless them with the humility and insight of abraham lincoln who said, i have been driven many times to my knees with the overwhelming conviction that i had nowhere else to go. give them the assurance that when the hour is desperate and the way unclear there is one to whom they can go and then, o

god, in your mercy help them to go there. in the name of the one who is the hope of the world, amen. the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1, the journal stands approved. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentleman from texas, mr. olson. mr. olson: please join me in the pledge of allegiance. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: without objection, the gentleman from texas, mr. olson, is recognized for one minute. mr. olson: mr. speaker, one of the privileges we have as members of congress is to have

a member from church back home deliver the opening prayer at the united states house of representatives. today i'm proud to introduce america to my home pastor, morris mathis. morris has had a tremendous spiritual influence on my family and me. when we moved back to texas, my wife and i worried about uprooting our two children from the only home they had ever known. but we shouldn't have worried. we found morris. and the amazing people at christ united methodist church in sugar land, texas. they welcomed us with open arms , and have loved us ever since. during his tenure at christ united methodist, morris and his team, his wife, his son, and his daughter have made sure

that every single man, every single woman, and every single child who walked through our church's doors felt the peace, the love, and the faith that embraced my family. whatever i do in congress, however long i'm here, i'll have no fonder memory than my pastor, morris mathis, standing before the american people in prayer for our great nation. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair will general tain up -- entertain up to 15 further one minutes from each side of the aisle. the chair recognizes the gentleman from yinch. -- indiana.

mr. pence: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman -- without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. pence: thank you, mr. speaker. later today the house will consider h.r. 2447, a bill awarding the congressional medal to the montford point marines, the first african-americans to serve in the united states marine corps. the united states of america owes these heroes a debt of honor that we will endeavor to pay in part today. and i rise in strong support of this measure. it was president franklin roosevelt to issued an executive order in june of 1941 that opened the doors for african-americans to enlist in the united states marine corps. between 1942 and 1949 approximately 20,000 african-americans earned the eagle globe and anchor at camp montford point in jacksonville, north carolina. and we'll honor them today.

i especially want to commend the montford point marine indianapolis chapter's surviving members. since there are no former marines, allow me to commend marine corpsly, johnny washington, and lancaster price, along with the late walter edsel and every wet -- every yet sweat who have done yeoman's work in keeping the marines alive in the hoosier state. the congressional gold medal is a fitting tribute to the montford point marines, it marks the service and sacrifice of these trail blazering heroes but it also marks our nation's march toward a more perfect union and i hartley endorse it. -- heartily endorse it. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from new york. without objection. >> mr. speaker, i rise to express my strong opposition to cuts in the home energy assistance program, or heap, as it is known in new york. with snow in buffalo forecast this week, it seems

unconsiderableable to slash this essential aid that helps seniors aboard their heating bills. however, the house labor h.h.s. bill would do just that. it cuts heat and changes the formula in the way that penalizing new york and other cold weather states. new york's allocation would be cut by $179 million, or 34% from its current levels. mr. higgins: as a result, heap assistance will be smaller, later, and benefit fewer new yorkers. at a time when western new york heating oil prices are expected to increase, these cuts would force seniors and families to choose between heating their homes, putting food on the table, or purchasing prescription drugs. i urge congress to reject these cuts which threaten to leave many of the 235,000 heap recipients in erie out in the cold. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from illinois. >> request unanimous consent to

address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, yesterday we learned that by the end of this year another ratings agency may downgrade our nation's sovereign debt. why? because they don't believe that there's a plan to return our nation to fiscal health. they are not entirely right. in july we passed the cut, catch, and balance. it was a commonsense solution that would have maintained our nation's strong credit rating. the bill went to the cul de sac called the senate where as so many things, it died. mr. hultgren: maybe that's not surprising. cut, cap, and balance would not only have cut spending, it would have changed the way washington works. it would have made structural change. for a do-nothing senate that has not bothered to pass a budget in over 900 days, the idea of spending cuts and fiscal accountability must be utterly foreign. once again we see the high costs much their inaction. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from virginia. mr. connolly: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. connolly: mr. speaker, 54 years ago this month sputnik knocked the united states into second place in the space race. america responded with a tremendous investment in the sciences which produced the apollo program, the personal computer, the internet, g.p.s., and numerous other technologies. sadly that may be ending. last december in an early c.d. ranking, the united states rated on average in education. other nations are outinvesting and outeducating us. and the republicans slash and burn agenda is making it worse. america is now losing education jobs every month and disinvesting in r&d and critical infrastructure. the president laid out a plan to invest in our educators, innovators, and job creators, priorities that used to have bipartisan support.

we cannot continue to let american performance slide. we are jeopardizing our future. mr. speaker, last century america fell behind and the soviet sputnik was the result. it took a decade to catch up. how long will we fall behind today before we realize those investments are critical and support the president's job program? i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from ohio. >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, it's time for the president to get a grip on reality. he obviously doesn't understand the unemployment crisis that's crippling america. mr. johnson: the president says that he hasn't seen the house republican jobs plan. here it is. it's been out since may and it's available at jobs.gop.gov. maybe the white house is having an internet problem. i'm proud to join natural resources committee chairman doc hastings in recommending plans to the supercommittee

that create jobs right here in america while at the same time reducing the deficit. ideas like increasing on shore and offshore energy production. increasing offshore energy production will create over one million new jobs alone. and would generate billions in new federal revenue. while president obama would rather make bad debts on green companies like solyndra, wasting hard-earned taxpayer dollars. house republicans have passed jobs bill after jobs bill. they are stacked up like cord wood on the senate floor, but senator reid and president obama refuse to consider them. the american people deserve better. president obama's -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from california. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

ms. hahn: mr. speaker, i rise today because i'm concerned about education. the most powerful tool we have to build our economy i think is being ignored. yesterday was my granddaughter's 7th birthday. a few months ago her parents asked her if she could have her birthday anywhere she wanted to where would it be? and to her parents' surprise she said she wanted to celebrate right here in the capital, so last night we celebrated brooklyn's birthday right here in the capitol building. i'd like to think she chose the capitol because it represents the opportunity each of us has to make people's lives better. unfortunately we are failing to uphold the obligation we have to brooklyn and millions of american children. senate republicans have blocked just a vote on the president's american jobs act. it would have provided $60 billion tomorrow save the job of teachers. put americans to work rebuilding schools. help community colleges. nearly 300,000 teachers have already lost their jobs since

2008. another 280,000 more may be out of the classroom if we don't do something now. now is not the time to be laying off teachers. it's not the time to surrender the leadership in math and science to other countries. mr. speaker, americans can't wait. we should put people to work rebuilding our crumbling schools. we should be working to transform the prestige of teachers in our culture so that this high-paid profession can be for the best and brightest. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentlelady has expired. the gentleman from michigan. >> ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, last week instead of making campaign bus stops and toting more stimulus spending, president obama may have been better served coming to ryelander, wisconsin, for a conference on jobs in the timber industry. at the conference

representative cravat, duffy, ribble, and myself, along with chief tidwell of the u.s. forest service met with loggers, mill operators, and forestry experts and the consensus was clear. bureaucratic roadblocks and lack of correction are preventing the responsible harvest of federal timberlands and killing jobs. mr. benishek: this is not about killing our nation's forest, responsible timber har vest make for healthier forests. they also create real jobs and grow the economy. at it stands, timber in the forest of the great lakes and across america is literally rotting on the stump. and the federal government's bureaucratic snares are allowing it to happen. this cannot continue. it is time president obama and congress recognize that the simplest and quickest way to create jobs is to release the handcuffs of overregulation and red tape. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from california.

without objection. . ms. chu: did you know that small businesses create two out of every three jobs. that's why we need a plan to invest in them and that's why i support the president's america's jobs act. it supports businesses that hires workers who have been unemployed for six months or more gets $4,000 off their tax bill. those that invest in machinery or equipment get to write off the whole expense. and the payroll tax cut will save a small business with 50 workers approximately $50,000 a year, putting money in the bank for every mom and pop shop. the american jobs act will help small businesses do what they do best, create good jobs, drive innovation and strengthen the middle class. for small businesses, the economy and americans everywhere, let's pass the american jobs act now.

the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentlelady has expired. the gentleman from mississippi. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, back home in south mississippi the coast chamber is hosting a salute to the military. i deeply regret not being able to attend tonight to recognize our nation's finest. as a member of the house armed services committee, a marine veteran and only member of congress who still actively serves as a noncommissioned officer in the mississippi national guard, i know firsthand how vital their work is to our nation's defense. as i serve i am always mindful of their service and sacrifice as well as their families. nowhere is so few is asked to sacrifice so many. so i ask this congress and the american people to share in their sacrifice and say no to more defense spending cuts. mr. palazzo: it is morally irresponsible to continue trying to balance the budget on the backs of our men and women

in uniform. as a nation, our economic and personal security depends on a strong, capable, well equipped and well trained military. so i want to salute all those who have served and all those who are currently serving. thank you for making america safe and exceptional. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has expired. the gentleman from illinois. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to give the voiceless victims of domestic violence. i want to tell the story of one woman from my state of illinois who endeared years of abuse and called our state's domestic violence help line for help. in quigley: in her call the woman explained over the years she suffered black eyes, broken and knocked out teeth and broken bones. she said she couldn't take it any more but she couldn't leave because she feared her abuser would find her and kill her. she was so suicidal and said she needed to end it with the pills she had been collecting. luckily this woman reached out for help. 911 was called and the help line staff stayed on line with

her until the paramedics arrived. sadly, most women never report their abuse. even those who do find the strength to report, many are denied services such as shelter due to scarce resources. i speak today for those who cannot speak for themselves to say we can end domestic violence. all we need is the will to do so. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> thank you, mr. speaker. as we approach the end of breast cancer awareness month, i want to draw an often overlooked but important part of breast cancer awareness. 1% of all cancer patients are men. in 2010, almost 1,970 new male breast cancer patients were recorded. mr. nugent: although female dropped 87%, men dropped 77%. most men don't think breast

cancer can affect them. they are diagnosed after the cancer has developed in more advanced stages. one of my constituents in florida's fifth district, herb wagner, is a six-year breast cancer survivor. after diagnosed in 2005, herb and his family founded men's pink. men need to be reminded that breast cancer does not just affect women. for more information on male breast cancer, i ask people to learn about a man's pink. everyone should contact their doctor. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from california. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. baca: mr. speaker, it's been 29 4 days since the republicans took control of the house. the party of no still refuses to put forward a clear jobs plan they have put politics

ahead on what is right for the american people. unemployment is near 17% in my district and one of the highest rates of foreclosure in the country. the american people in my district are hurting. and throughout the country. yet, instead of acting on a bold plan to create new jobs, republicans have decided to protect tax cuts for millionaires and companies that ship jobs overseas. now the republicans in the senate have said no to the american jobs act. they even thought it includes the same proposals that have supported in the past, and the republican leaders in the senate just call the proposal to help teachers, firefighters, police officers stay on the job a "bailout." these public servants educate, and i state, educate our children and keep our streets say they deserve our support. they don't need to deserve more gridlock in congress. we can't wait. let's pass the american jobs act now. the speaker pro tempore: the time of the gentleman has

expired. the gentleman from texas. >> request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, as part of the house republicans plan for america's job creators, we are working hard every day to fix the obama economy. last week the senate stopped a bipartisan bill to per nantly repeal the withholding requirement for federal payments to government contractors. mr. flores: this week, we will remove barriers to eliminate excessive burdens on small businesses. these main street businesses are the back bones of our economy and american job creation. as a former job creator, i know firsthand about the negative impact of burdensome taxes and overreaching regulations. although this republican requirement is not scheduled to go in effect for another 15 months, it is already causing uncertainty for small businesses' operations and hiring plans.

for these reasons congress must act now. permanently repealing this withholding provision is another real world, main street solution to provide more certainty for small businesses to grow and to create jobs again. i ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support h.r. 674. thank you. and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from rhode island. mr. cicilline: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. cicilline: my state of rhode island is facing a jobs crisis. the president future forward a comprehensive jobs bill that puts teachers, first responders back to work and puts money back to workers. it also creates jobs by investing in america's schools. on a recent visit to the henry j. woodward job in pawtucket i saw firsthand what this jobs bill could do. i saw a leaking roof, broken windows in a kindergarten classroom and, posed wires. this act, like the president's

jobs bill, will provide critical funding for vital repairs and renovations to this elementary school and schools across rhode island and across the country. they received more than $98 million to invest in modernizing existing k-12 public school buildings and public community colleges. putting hundreds of rhode islanders back to work now. it will put money in the pockets of workers now. it will give small businesses tax credits now. that's why we need to take action now. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california. >> thank you very much, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> mr. speaker, as i listen to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle talk about the imperative of job creation and economic growth, i'd like to recognize a job well done. mr. dreier: 44 years, seven months and five days is a long period of time, but that's the tenure of public service provided by our friend, the now

chief journal clerk, trish madson. she's worked for voice of america, departments of agriculture and transportation. she worked in the minority counsel office under our former minority leader, bob michael. she is someone i got to know because her mother was one of my constituents. and i'd like to ask all of our colleagues to join in giving a round of applause and ovation to trish madson who after 44 years, seven months and five days will be retiring today. trish. and, mr. speaker, i think we've consumed the entire one minute just applauding trish, as it should be. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired.

the gentleman from pennsylvania. >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, america was founded on the principle that everyone should get a shot at the american dream. but with so much unemployment, so many mortgages underwater, so many people struggling just to get by, it's not surprising that half of all americans think the american dream is dead. mr. doyle: this congress should be making job creation our top priority. but what is the majority in the house done to create jobs? nothing. what's even worse, every job proposal that president obama has sent to this house has been met with a resounding no. and what's their alternative? to do nothing. democrats have been working to pass legislation to grow this economy and create new jobs. after 42 weeks of doing nothing, it's time for the republican majority to join us in giving the american people

the jobs they need and deserve. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from -- the gentlelady from north carolina. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. our colleagues on the other side of the aisle are welcomed to their own opinions but not welcomed to create the facts. when the democrats took over the congress four years ago, almost five years ago now, unemployment rate was 4.5%. it's been over 9% since they were in control, went to over 9%. the reason the president's so-called jobs bill has not been passed in this house is because the democrats did not support it. it was introduced by request. what republicans have done, though, is focus on the task of creating jobs since day one of this session, and i'm glad that president obama's talking about it too. we will work with the president

when he comes up with ideas that work, but so far his proposals have not worked. notice the stimulus bill he asked us to pass that would not raise unemployment above 8%. he wants to raise taxes on job creators and all it will do is destroy private sector jobs. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentlelady from new york. without objection. ms. -- mrs. maloney: mr. speaker, i'd like to introduce a plan that is as simple as one, two, three. number one is getting back to basics and helping to create badly needed jobs. this economy will not grow unless we stimulate private sector job growth. it's time to drop the partisan bickering and focus on creating jobs and creating them now. pass the president's jobs bill. number two is building up our

infrastructure, work on our roads and trains is desperately needed to help america compete. and this badly needed repair work creates jobs that cannot be outsourced. we need to pass the transportation bill now. number three is embracing a bold and balanced vision and crafting a true bipartisan agreement in the supercommittee, one that cuts our deficits by trillions, invests and raises revenue and creates jobs. no one is pretending it will be easy but if we get back to basics it could be as easy as one, two, three. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from texas. mr. poe: i ask permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: mr. speaker, last week i met with over a dozen community bankers in my congressional district. they are concerned for, quote, the tsunami of regulations

coming out of washington, d.c. now, these are not wall street bankers. these are small town bankers. they told me, quote, washington regulators have their feet on the throats of small community banks who did not cause this economic downturn. the real-life consequences of dodd-frank on our community banks impact our local small businesses, our communities job creators. the reason is simple. pay more money to comply with complicated, cost low, meaningless regulations means fewer loans out the doors for small businesses. higher costs for compliance is why main street bank in kingwood, texas, will close three branches this week. it simply costs too much money to stay in the community banking business these days. when community banks close there are fewer opportunities for small business owners to access capital. i often hear small business owners say they can't get loans. this is why. these are the real consequences of burdensome, costly, ineffective federal regulations

and that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from texas. without objection. miss johnson: -- ms. johnson: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today because it has been nearly 11 months that this republican-led house of representatives has pursued no jobs agenda simply complaining about the protections that the american citizens receive. the american jobs act will put teachers, firefighters, police officers, and construction workers back on the job. it will create job opportunities for returning american veterans. it will cut taxes and create financial growth incentives for american businesses. as well as provide much needed job training and hiring programs for the americans that are currently looking for work. many provisions of the american jobs act have been strongly supported by republicans in the

past. but now suddenly they are against these ideas because they are being proposed by a democratic president. this is the opposite of negotiation and compromise and the american people do not have the patience for these antics instead of action. i urge both parties of this house to work together and pass the american jobs act for the american people. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from kansas. >> request permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, i rise today again in support of small business owners and builders all across the united states who will be harmed by new -- a new tax requirement by the federal government. with unemployment at 9.1% and holding, we desperately need to come together to do all we can to get our economy growing, but our economic recovery will not come from government growth. it will come from entrepreneurs, innovators, and small business owners who take risk, expand, hire new workers, and create economic growth the old-fashioned way, in the

private sector through hard work and free enterprise. mr. yoder: the imposition of 3% holding tax increases the cost of doing business and therefore hurts job growth anti-economic recovery. we cannot create jobs while punishing job creators. i urge my colleagues to support h.r. 674, legislation that will remove this burdensome new tax requirement on our small businesses. mr. speaker, we must come together as a congress and do all we can to promote legislation like this that will remove barriers to economic growth and get america back to work again. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from tennessee. without objection. >> thank you, mr. speaker. just this past week the country of turkey an ally of ours experienced the devastating earthquake. mr. cohen: nearly 400 people have died and great damage to the countryside. we have seen these disasters in japan and south america and other places. we have seen them in our country, too. we had problems last year. who comes to the aid of the people in turkey who we look

out for as well and are concerned about? first responders. policemen and fire people. my city of memphis, tennessee, lies on a fault. most likely place in our country to have a major earthquake. when that event occurs i want to have adequate policemen and fire m.e.p. there to help our citizens. we can have them with the jobs act, have them this year. first responders are so important to the future of america and passing the jobs act will guarantee we'll have security when a natural disaster occurs. we need to keep policemen and firemen employed. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from washington. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i request one minute and address the house for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mrs. mcmorris rodgers: i rise today to let my clogs know october is down's syndrome awareness month. there are 400,000 americans living with extra 21st chromosome, my life has been blessed by one of them, our son, cole, as co-chair of the

congressional down syndrome caucus, every day is a good day to raise awareness about this condition. helping them to live the american dream. today the bipartisan down syndrome caucus is hosting a special briefing on capitol hill. we are bringing in over a dozen, half a dozen experts on how we can work together to improve medical research, break down barriers, and expand opportunities for those who have down syndrome and many others who could be positively impacted. i'd also like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the countless individuals in the disabilities community who have reached out to me and my family. i'm forever grateful for your work to make america a better place for my family and all americans. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from connecticut. without objection. >> mr. speaker, several weeks ago a railroad bridge over the norwalk river in my district seized causing delay and economic damage along the new

york-boston corridor, an artery for jobs, for economic prosperity, for growth. mr. himes: turns out this is true across the country. the american society of engineers grade our infrastructure a d. make no mistakes. we are going to fix this because the american people are not going to tolerate bridges that fall down, roads that crumble. meanwhile, thousands of engineers, electricians, and carpenters are out of work. do you see the connection? out of work construction people and desperate need to rebuild our infrastructure. all that is missing is for the republican majority to pass a jobs bill which funds the investment in our infrastructure that will lead to economic prosperity and to jobs now. every day that goes by in this chamber without a infrastructure bill is a vote against safety and against jobs for people who desperately need them. with that i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from hawaii. >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore:

without objection. ms. hanabusa: we take this time this month to recognize the contributions the filipino americans to the growth of our nation. the first recent wave of migrants came from the philippines to hawaii when we were still a territory. today they number the largest ethnic group in the state and they total almost 1.5 million in the state of california. now, mr. speaker, we have not kept our promises to the filipino americans. in world war ii we drafted about 200,000 of them. with the promise, the promise that they will have citizenship and benefits. and in 1946 the congress rescinded that promise. today with the stimulus package in 2009 we finally authorize the payment of some of the benefits to 30,000 who are remaining, 30,000. but we have still failed to do what they wanted the most, which is the reunification of

their families. this story and others we'll hear through this month. mr. speaker, please join with me in saying to them, thank you for what you have done to this nation. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the gentleman from new jersey. without objection. mr. payne: our national unemployment rate is 9.1%, yet for 42 weeks the republican leadership has ignored the need for a strong jobs agenda. to reduce the workplace protections and they have gone to weaken our economy. unfortunately the only jobs that will result from the republican agenda are those vacated by victims of workplace injuries and possible deaths due to watterereddown regulations. this is not responsible -- watered-down regulations. this is not responsible. only hampers our economic

growth. democrats acknowledge that small businesses are responsible for nearly 70% of job creation. as a result we have proposed the american jobs act and the make it in america act to support small businesses, create jobs, and strengthen our economy. the american jobs proposal would create nearly 300,000 education jobs, keeping thousands of police and firemen on the job. cut the payroll tax in half, put more money in the pocket of americans immediately without adding a dime to the deficit. the make it in america proposal would close tax loopholes that encourage outsourcing of u.s. jobs overseas. establish incentives for creating american clean energy jobs. i ask my colleagues to abandon their misguided agenda and support those measures that will strengthen our country. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from ohio. without objection. mr. ryan: thank you, mr. speaker. last year we passed a bill in

this house with 350 votes, 99 republicans, to address the issue of currency manipulation around the world, primarily china. and unfair trade practices in china have cost america 2.8 million jobs in the last 10 years, 1.9 million of those manufacturing. if we have the strength in this body, in the house of representatives, to take on the chinese, we can have a major job package right here in the united states. and put small and medium-sized manufacturers on the level playing field. put average workers back to work. reclaim the mantle of manufacturing in the united states. but this house has denied us the opportunity to take on the chinese. the senate passed it with over 60 votes just week or two ago. last year we passed it in this house 350 votes, 99 republicans. we cannot be appeasers to the chinese.

we need to take them on and drive that investment back in the united states and reclaim the mantle of manufacturing around the world. search the gentleman's time has expired. the chair lays before the house a communication. the chair: the honorable the speaker, house of representatives. sir, today i hereby resign my position with the house committee on natural resources. it has been an honor to serve as a member of the committee on natural resources and i have been proud to work with my colleagues to find solutions to our nation's energy crisis. i look forward to continuing to represent the people of the third congressional district of tennessee. i appreciate the opportunity to have served on the house committee on natural resources and i look forward to working with all of you in the future. signed, sincerely, chuck fleischmann, member of congress. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the resignation is accepted. the chair lays before the house a message from the president.

the chair: to the congress of the united states, section 202-d of the national emergencies act provides for the automatic termination of a national emergency unless prior to the anniversary date of its declaration the president publishes in the federal register and transmits to the congress a notice stating that the emergency is to continue in effect beyond the anniversary date. in accordance with this provision, i have sent to the federal register for publication the enclosed notice stating that the national emergency with respect to the situation in or in relation to the democratic republic of the congo and the related measures blocking the property of certain persons contributing to the conflict in that country are to continue in effect beyond october 27, 2011. the situation in or in relation to the democratic republic. congo which has been marked by widespread violence and atrocities that continue to threaten regional stability,

continues to pose an unusual and extraordinary threat to the foreign policy of the united states. for this reason i have determined that it is necessary to continue the national emergency to deal with that threat and the related measures blocking the property of certain persons contributing to the conflict in that country. signed, barack obama, the white house. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the committee on foreign affairs and ordered printed. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 , the chair will post opponent further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule. recorded votes on postponed questions will be taken later. for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition. >> mr. speaker, i move to suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 2447. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the tile of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 2447, a bill to grant the congressional gold medal to the montford point

marines. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from north carolina, mr. squones, and the gentleman from missouri, mr. clay, will each control 20 minutes much the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina. mr. jones: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and add extraneous material on this bill. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. jones: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. jones: mr. speaker, this is a very important legislation. i want to thank the gentlelady from florida, congresswoman corrine brown, for bringing this forward. and i want to at this time say that the chairman of the financial services committee and the ranking member, mr. frank, they saw the importance of this legislation and wanted to bring it to the floor as quickly as possible. mr. bachus, chairman of the

committee, has a son, warren, in the united states marine corps. mr. speaker, with that i would like to ask unanimous consent that i might submit remarks for the record by mr. bachus and also legislation from david camp, very supportive of ms. brown's legislation. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. jones: mr. speaker i'd like to make a few comments then i reserve the balance of my time. i have the privilege to serve camp lejeune marine base, which is in the third district of north carolina, and in 1994 as a candidate for this office, i heard about the very special marines who trained at montford point, which is on the base at camp lejeune. i did not know the history at that time. but as we all know during that period of time that we had segregation in this country, which was wrong, but president

franklin roosevelt made a decision and issued a directive that the marine corps would accept these fine americans who wanted to be marines so therefore they were segregated but they were marines who gave their very best for our country. . montford point is located in my district at camp lejeune base which is in my sdelict. at this time, mr. speaker, i will verve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina reserves the balance of his time. mr. clay: i am the co-sponsor along with 305 of my colleagues of h.r. 2447 to grant the

congressional gold medal to the montford point marines. in 1941 president roosevelt issued a presidential directive giving african-americans an opportunity to serve in the marine corps. these recruits from all states were not sent to paris island or -- ellis island or san diego. instead, african-americans were segregated. they received recruit training at montford point, a facility on camp lejeune, north carolina. approximately 20,000 african-american marines received basic training at montford point during world war ii, 75% served overseas. the initial intent of the corps was to discharge these marines after the war and return them to civilian life. this would have left the corps

an all-white service. as world war ii progressed, attitudes changed and reality took hold. once given the chance to prove themselves, it became impossible to deny that these marines were just as capable as any other marine. regardless of race or color, creed or national origin, according to general jay amos -- jamente f. amos, the -- james f. amos, the commandant of the marine corps, and i quote, montford point marines serve with distinction. in three of the bloodiest battles in the pacific. saipan, iwo jima and oak that roy. the month -- okinawa. the montford point marines fought with such tenacity, valor and distinction that the commandant at that time was moved to declare the negro marines are no longer on trial.

they are marines, period. their actions reflected the finest atributes of the leather neck fighting spirit and blazed the trail for generations of african-americans in the marine corps. the special recognition that congress has already afforded to first african-american servicemen of the navy, army and air force is long overdue the montford point marines. the distinguished record of these african-americans advanced the cause of civil rights and contributed to president truman's decision to order the desegregation of the armed forces in 1948. mr. speaker, the montford point marines service and sacrifice reflects great credit upon themselves and upholds the highest traditions of the marine corps. i urge all of my colleagues to

honor the montford point marines by voting for this bill, and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. jones: mr. speaker, in addition to what mr. clay was saying, i want the house to know that the montford point marines are revered by the citizens of jacksonville and camp lejeune. their history speaks for itself. they gave their blood, their life in the south pacific with their fellow marines as they fought for this country during world war ii and, again, i think that congresswoman brown deserves so much credit in bringing this forward. and the memory of franklin delano rose velled for seeing the value of create -- roosevelt for seeing the value of creating this opportunity for african-americans. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri.

mr. clay: mr. speaker, at this time i'd like to yield five minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from florida and the original sponsor of this legislation, the gentlewoman from florida, ms. brown. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from florida is recognized for five minutes. ms. brown: thank you, mr. speaker. as i begin my remarks, i'd like to acknowledge that many of the montford point marines are here visiting us today in the capitol. this is a picture of the montford point marines. mr. speaker, i rise today on this great day for the montford point marines. today, the house of representatives will pass a resolution giving these marines their long overdue recognition.

i am pleased to join with so many of my colleagues, now 308, to support a resolution to grant the montford point marines a congressional gold medal. the highest civilian honor that can be restored for outstanding deeds of acts of service to the security, prosperity and national interest of the united states. since 1775, the united states marine corps have served our country in peace and war. today, the marine corps still serves the nation as a force of readiness, prepared to serve whenever the nation calls. it is befitting that we celebrate on november 10 the 236th birthday of the marine corps that we highlight the honor of the montford point

marines. on june 25, 1941, president franklin delano roosevelt issued executive order number 8802, opening the doors for the very first african-americans to enlist in the united states marines, from 1942 to 1949, 20,000 african-americans enlisted in the marine corps in a time of war when the military was resistance to integration. these african-americans from all states were not sent to the traditional boot camps in paris island, south carolina, and san diego, california. instead, african-american marines were segregated, experienced training camp in montford point, camp lejeune, north carolina. decades before rosa parks and

martin luther king jr., these heroes joined the marines to defend this country and do their jobs. one specific marine is worth singling out. gilbert johnson was one of the first african-americans -- african-american marines drill instructor sergeants in montford point in 1943. he exemplified the work ethic it took to be a montford point marine. born in rural alabama, johnson attended stillman college in 1922, but enlisted in the army after one year at school. after six years in the army, he tried civilian life for four years, but enlisted in the navy in 1933. when he heard about the executive order 8802, he immediately request transfer from the navy to the marines. when this occurred, his nickname of hash mark was secured having more service strikes and rank in strikes. after serving as sergeant major

at montford point, hash mark went on to serve as sergeant major of the 52nd defense battalion in gaun. while serving in world war ii, he found black marines being assigned to labor detail rather than combat patrols which they were exempted. once he got the commanding officers to reverse this decision, he personally 25 separate excursions into the jungle. hash mark went on to serve in korea and eventually retired in 1959 with 32 years of service, 17 with the marines. after his death in 1972, the marine corps paid tribute to this great warrior and leader by renaming the camp in his honor, camp gilbert h. johnson. in july of 1948, president harry s. truman ended

segregation in the military. and in september of 1949, montford marine camp was deactivated in its years of segregation. general james f. amos, commander of the marine corps, said it's the responsibility of the marine corps and this congress to honor these men who suffered through racism and segregation here in this country. i am honored to offer this resolution to recognize their service and sacrifice and acknowledge today united states marine corps is an excellent opportunity for advancement for all races -- may i have an additional minute? mr. clay: mr. speaker, i yield an additional minute to the gentlelady. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. brown: due to the example of these montford point marines. i want to submit the letter from general james f. amos,

commander of the marine corps, in support of this resolution. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. brown: i want to thank the many members who helped to bring this resolution to the floor, the financial services chairman, spencer bachus, his son served in the marine, in addition, so many members. over 308 sponsors. the leadership on both parties. this is an example of what we can do when we work together. and i am just very excited about what we're doing here today. i want to end by -- i'm not very good at this -- what is it -- hurrah. honoring these men of montford point and putting in the record the letter from general amos. thank you very much. and this is like i said, a great day and a wonderful bipartisan example of what we can do when we work together. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the chair will remind all persons in the gallery that

they are here as guests of the house and any manifestation of approval or disapproval of the proceedings is in violation of the rules of the house. the gentleman from north carolina. mr. jones: mr. speaker, at this time i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from arizona, -- new mexico, mr. pearce from new mexico. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. pearce: mr. speaker, i'm pleased to rise in support of h.r. 2447, introduced by the gentlelady from florida, corrine brown, which would right a wrong the segregation era by submitting gold medals to montford point marines, the first african-americans marines. we honored dr. martin luther king jr. for his leadership in the civil rights movement. many fought for civil rights and equality even as they fought for peace and freedom in world war ii.

it was unfair for them to have to wage the first battle of our waging the second to defend us all. while it is interesting that these brave men were the first black marines. at least a dozen served with honor foughting alongside white marines during the revolutionary war. one was recruited without permission of the slave owner. both the marines and the navy were disbanded. when the marines were reformed in 1798, the right was take from the black americans. service by blacks was barred supposedly based on british naval tradition. nearly 200,000 black americans fought in the civil war and black soldiers served in the army during the spanish-american war and world war i. but the navy at the time had a policy of not using blacks in combat roles. although plenty served in support roles. in recognition of the heroism of the men who took up boot

camp at montford point, we should immediately pass this legislation. marine commandant general james f. amos urged congress to recognize the montford point marines with the congressional gold medal as they did a half decade ago similar trail breaking tuskegee airmen. this bill has more than 300 co-sponsors of which i am one. it is a fitting recognition. i urge passage. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from missouri. mr. clay: mr. speaker, i want to first thank my friend from new mexico for his comments on the historic service of african-americans throughout our history, and at this time would like to yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from north carolina. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized for two minutes. >> mr. speaker, we have honored the army buffalo soldiers and the army buffalo soldiers and the air force tuskegee airme