l allow them to get around. in terms of how it will impact them, they say they will try to preserve security and cut around to see where we can find savings. it will have some impact on security and also the economy. >> what impact will host: what impact you think it will have on the border security? >> it is hard to say. they're saying they will have to cut back by 2500. that is a significant number, given that congress has about 21,000 in both of those categories. you talk about border security between ports where you have a lot of drug trafficking and illegal immigration trafficking. it is hard to say there would not be some kind of impact when

you are looking at that kind of hit. host: you also mention a broader impact economically overall. the what are you looking at? caller: the aviation industry is very nervous about this. there are many different groups. the travel industry is very nervous about this. they rightly point out that when air traffic slows down, they become a target for this. they are afraid they could become the face of sequestration for the average person. when it comes to a cat within a government, the average citizen -- a cut within the government, the average citizen may not feel the impact, but when they go to the airport and have to wait an extra hour, they will feel that. also, the southern border issues, many people look at that and look at that as just a security issue, illegal immigration, that kind of thing. that is an area where trillions of dollars in commerce floats

over every year. and every minute of slowdown is millions of dollars worth of trade. >> at age 25, she was one of the wealthiest widows in the colonies, and during the revolution in her mid 40's she was considered by the british and an enemy, who threatened to take her hostage. later, she would become our nation's first lady. tonight, meet martha washington we will visit some of the places that influenced her life, including colonial williamsburg, mount vernon, valley forge, and philadelphia, and be part of the conversation about mouth -- martha washington with your phone calls, a tweet, and facebook coats. this is live at 9:00 p.m. eastern on c-span, c-span radio, and act c-span.org. >> foreign companies like our

secrets. now they are also seeking the ability to sabotage our power grid, our financial institutions, our air for a dirt -- air-traffic control systems. we cannot look back and wonder why we did nothing in the face of real threats to our security and our economy. >> interestingly enough, i think one of the concerns that we hear and you see it reflected its volume, quality, and timeliness. great, you share information with us about something that happened three months ago. what about now? we're trying to increase our time is so that we are out ahead of the issues. we're making progress there.

over the past year in particular we have improved our ability to share information set -- faster with the private sector. i also hear concerns from different sectors about insuring that the other sectors that they rely on also increased their cyber security. if you are a bank, you are reliant on power and water and transportation to conduct your business. what i frequently hear is, all of the companies want to make sure that all of the critical

infrastructure sectors are moving together to increase cyber security because everything is so independent -- interdependent. >> tonight on the communicators at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2. we are expecting the house to come back involuntarily to work on a bill that remains a california -- that renames a california flight center after neil armstrong. and then tonight, members of the congressional black caucus plan to topple -- talk on the floor for an hour. and then a discussion on the bill that reauthorize is the violence against women act. by tomorrow, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke delivers the monetary policy report to the senate banking committee. you can see that at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span3. that all of the critical infrastructure sectors are moving together to increase cyber security because everything is so independent -- interdependent. >> tonight on the communicators at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2. we are expecting the house to come back involuntarily to work on a bill that remains a california -- that renames a california flight center after neil armstrong. and then tonight, members of the congressional black caucus plan to topple -- talk on the floor for an hour. and then a discussion on the bill that reauthorize is the violence against women act. by tomorrow, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke delivers the monetary policy report to the senate banking committee. you can see that at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span3. that all of the critical infrastructure sectors are moving together to increase cyber security because

everything is so independent -- interdependent. >> tonight on the communicators at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2. we are expecting the house to come back involuntarily to work on a bill that remains a california -- that renames a california flight center after neil armstrong. and then tonight, members of the congressional black caucus plan to topple -- talk on the floor for an hour. and then a discussion on the bill that reauthorize is the violence against women act. by tomorrow, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke delivers the monetary policy report to the senate banking committee. you can see that at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span3. that all of the critical infrastructure sectors are moving together to increase cyber security because everything is so independent -- interdependent. >> tonight on the communicators at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2. we are expecting the house to come back involuntarily to work on a bill that remains a california -- that renames a california flight center after neil armstrong. and then tonight, members of the congressional black caucus plan to topple -- talk on the floor for an hour. and then a discussion on the bill that reauthorize is the violence against women act. by tomorrow, federal reserve chairman ben bernanke delivers the monetary policy report to the senate banking committee. you can see that at 10:00 a.m. eastern on c-span3. his honor, the neil a. armstrong research center. and would recognize dr. hugh dryden's contribution to made many of neil armstrong's career

possible. it is the much more complex centers that is still ongoing at the edwards air force place and china lake naval air space station in my district. he enabled many scientific breakthroughs. when nasa was created in 1968, dr. dryden was chosen to be the first deputy administrator, focusing on the programs that sent our astronauts to the moon. h.r. 667 would memorialize both men by redesignating the dryden flight research center as the neil armstrong flight research center and naming the center test range as the hugh l. dryden aeronautic test range. china lake and nasa flight research center in eastern kern county remain a hub in space exploration. i look forward to many

groundbreaking achievements of the men and women who were inspired by dr. hugh dryden. this is a fitting tribute to armstrong and dryden and i urge my colleagues to celebrate the remarkable lives of both men. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlewoman from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. mr. speaker, h.r. 667 has been offered to redesignate the national aeronautics and space administration's dryden flight research center as the neil a. armstrong flight research center. the bill would also rename the western aeronautic test range as the hugh dryden aeronautic test range. while i plan to support this bill, it is a bit unfortunate since it honors one aerospace pioneer by stripping away the honor previously extended to

another worthy pioneer, hugh l. dryden. he was director of the national advisory committee for aeronautics, naca, from 1947 until the creation of the national aeronautics and space administration where he was named deputy administrator. president johnson said of his passing that it was, quote, a reason for national sorrow. no solder ever performed his duty with more bravery and no statesman ever charted more courses with more dedication than hugh dryden. whenever the first american spaceman step foot on the moon or finds a new trail to a new star, president johnson continued, he will know that hugh dryden was one of those who gave him knowledge and illumination. nasa's dryden flight research center in edwards, california, was named in his honor in 1976. the center is nasa's premiere site for aeronautic research.

then nasa administrator, james fletcher, stated it is most fitting that this flight research center, with its unique and highly specialized capability for solving aerospace problems, should memorialize the genius as hugh dryden. neil armstrong joined naca in 1965 following his services as naval aviator. he was an engineer test pilot, astronaut and administrator for naca and its successor agency, nasa. as a research pilot, he flew over 200 different models of aircraft, such as the storied x-15. he transferred to astronaut status in 1962 and was command pilot for the gemini eight mission on which he performed the first successful docking of two vehicles in space. as spacecraft commander for apollo 11, neil armstrong successfully led the first man lunar landing.

his service and his famous words, that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind, inspired millions around the world, including this congresswoman sitting in front of a black and white television. mr. speaker, it's clear that mr. armstrong never sought the honor of having a nasa center named after him while alive. in truth, his name will live on throughout history whether or not we name anything for him. i doubt in this era of declining funding for nasa that either neil armstrong or hugh dryden would want a single precious dollar to be spent on a cosmetic facility name change when they could reach for the stars. in fact, when neil armstrong appeared before our science committee, he almost said exactly that. while i expect we will approve this legislation today, i hope that all the members who vote to honor neil armstrong today

will remember his testimony before the house science, space and technology committee during which he said, the key to success of american investment in space exploration is a clearly articulated plan and strategy supported by the administration and the congress and implemented with all the consistency that the vagaries of the budget will allow. such a program will motivate the young toward excellence, support a vital industry and earn the respect of the world. i hope we can honor his words. but his words were foreshadowed by hugh dryden in a letter he wrote to senator robert kerr, chairman of the senate committee on aeronautic and space sciences in 1961. the development of space science and technologies strengthen our whole industrial base and serves as insurance against technological

obsoleces. the great national effort may well be the instrument of social gain. if the same members who vote to rename these two nasa facilities today will commit to work in the coming months and years for those exploration goals to which both men devoted their lives, then we will have truly honored both of their legacies in an enduring and meaningful way. and i reserve the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from texas. mr. smith: i yield myself as much time as i may consume. mr. speaker, i wanted to thank the gentleman from california, majority whip kevin mccarthy, for honoring both neil armstrong and nasa deputy administrator with this bill. not many people know the relationship between these two men. hugh dried be was -- dryden was the visionary behind the rocket plane and the apollo program. neil armstrong was the one who flew the spacecraft that briden envisioned -- dryden

envisioned. the rocket plane set many records in the early 1960's. drind was the engineer and program manager for that spacecraft which neil armstrong flew seven times. while everyone knows that neil armstrong was the first man to set foot on the moon, not many people know hugh dryden's role. the soviets had launched the first satellite in 1957. president john f. kennedy wanted to demonstrate american ingenuity and technical superiority over the soviet union so he convened a national space council. president kennedy asked for their advice on the best way for america to respond to the soviet's string of firsts into space exploration. in that meeting, hugh dryden recommended to the president that the goal of putting a man on the moon within 10 years was achievable and something the american people could rally behind.

the rest is history. president kennedy grabbed hugh dryden's idea and addressed a joint session of congress the very next month. the apollo program was the brain child of hugh dryden, neil armstrong turned that dream into relate by making that -- reality by making that one small step for man, one giant leap nor man kind on another world, almost 240,000 miles away. hugh dryden was not able to see his dream become reality as he died in 1965. and unfortunately neil armstrong passed away last august. it is important for us to honor both men's legacies by naming the flight research center after neil armstrong and the surrounding test range after hugh dryden. with this bill we reaffirm that america is filled with dreamers like hugh dryden and doers like neil armstrong who, working together, can shoot for the moon.

thanks to mr. mccarthy we honor their legacy and that reminds us that america always needs to think about new frontiers. i encourage my colleagues to support this bill and i'll reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentlelady from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: i'll reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. smith: mr. chairman, i yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from texas, mr. hall, former chairman of this committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. hall: mr. speaker, i thank you for the time and i want to thank mr. mccarthy for reintroducing the bill to redessnaret nasa's -- redesignate nasa's dryden flight research center co-located with edwards air force base in california as the neil a. armstrong flight research center. this bill, h.r. 667, would also rename the western air nautical test range as the hugh l.

drydenary astronautics test range. neil armstrong, everybody will say, and it's so true, he needs absolutely no introduction. people know who neil armstrong is. he's covered the country. he's given of his time. he's an american hero and he's one who never took personal credit for his accomplishments. any time he was speaking about the success of the apollo 11 mission he always gave recognition to the teams of engineers and the scientists of nasa and the industry. he was quiet, thoughtful, deliberate rit, choosing his words carefully -- deliberate, choosing his words carefully. whether testifying before a congressional committee, giving a speech or sharing a moment with a friend. last may of this year i was honored to have neil along with general tom stafford and gene surnen visit rockwall, texas, my hometown in texas. and address graduating high

school seniors from the area's public schools and private schools. neil spoke to a packed auditorium of seniors and their families and then generously took time, photos, with all of the graduating classes. this was such a magnanimous gesture on his side and yet typical of his commitment to inspiring other generations of students to pursue fields in science, space and in technology. these rockwall county students and their families will remember his visit forever and this was made even more meaningful when neil passed away just a few months later. i received a letter from him just a couple or three days after he died. naming the dryden flight center after neil is very appropriate. after graduating from college he joined nasa's predecessor agency, the national advisory council on you are aow astronautics, and soon found himself ases in a's high-speed flight station located at edwards which would become in time the dryden flight space center.

they were both great friends. he spent seven years there flying a variety of new designs and high-performance aircraft, including the seven flights at the control of the x-15. naming the western aeronautical test screens after hugh dried season also appropriate. he's a close friend of neil's, held a close position on the council from 1947 until it was renamed nasa in 1958, then served as deputy director of nasa until his death in 1965. he pioneered research of air force near the speed of sound and the problems of airflow and turbulence. he was -- he greatly contributed to the designs of wings for aircraft including the p-51 mustang and other world war ii aircraft. h.r. 667 honors the life and legacy of two great americans, neil armstrong and dr. hugh dryden, i urge members to support this bill and i thank this chairman for having this hearing. i yield back the balance of my

time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentlelady from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: i'll reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from texas. mr. smith: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. calvert, who has long been an able spokesman on the issues related to space. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized for three minutes. mr. calvert: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. speaker, i proudly stand with my good friend and fellow california majority whip kevin mccarthy in strong support of this legislation we have both championed, h.r. 667 which will redesignate nasa's dryden flight research center as the neil a. armstrong research center and the western air nautical test range --ary nautical test range as the hugh dryden test range. the people you meet in all walks of life. i had the honor and the high honor and privilege of meeting mr. armstrong on several occasions.

before he passed away on august 25, 2012. given his place as the revered global icon, neil never sought the lime light, as mr. hall has said. he never lost his unassuming manner, his nature as a midwesterner, values of his ohio roots that instilled in him. he was just a wonderful person. those of us who were old enough to witness firsthand when he took his first step on the surface of the moon will never forget the great sense of pride in our country and the inspiration in the ability that he placed in man kind. there are few events in history that have had such profound and positive impact, transcending generations across the globe. h.r. 667 is just one way we can pay tribute to this great american hero. this bill will accomplish three

important goals. one, to honor neil a. armstrong who served as an experimental research test pilot at the center from 1955 to 1962. to emphasize the contributions of the center to nasa's current space exploration mission and to memorialize extraordinary career of dr. hugh l. dryden. by naming the air nautical test range -- air nautical -- aeron autical test range in his name. one giant leap for man kind. this is a small step to recognize both neil armstrong and hugh dryden. i urge my house colleagues to support passage of h.r. 667. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentlelady from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: i inquire if the gentleman has additional speakers. mr. smith: mr. speaker, we have one more additional speaker, i believe.

ms. edwards: i'll reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. smith: mr. speaker, i'll recognize the gentleman from california, mr. rohrabacher, for as much time as he may consume and also note that he is the vice chairman of the science, space and technology committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. rohrabacher: thank you very much. i rise in support of h.r. 667 as a way for us to honor the memories of neil armstrong and dr. hugh dryden. these two men, these visionaries, these two men who led us and thus led our country into a new era of human history, the era of aerospace, when the technology of mankind, youp lifted mankind into the air and then into the heavens. this is an era that we are just now seeing the very first steps

and these were the men who pushed the frontier and made those first steps. neil armstrong's name will be one of the few iconic names from our era that are found in riftry -- history books 1,000 years from now. most people know him as a brave astronaut who commanded apollo 11. but before those days, neil armstrong was an outstanding aeronautical engineer and a great pilot for the u.s. navy and for the national advisory committee on aeronautics, the naca, a precursor to nasa. neil flew over 900 missions at the naca, high-speed air station, and that very center is what we seek to name in his honor today. at the same time we wish to continue to recognize the major and significant contributions

of dr. hugh dryden, one of the world's greatest aeronautical scientists who provided critical leadership to the naca and is reported to be the man who gave president din the idea that a moon land -- president kennedy the idea that a moon landing was the right benchmark for america to set as we worked to catch up with the soviet union in space. today we honor these great men and by supporting this legislation we will continue to support them in every way and continue to support nasa in its test flight mission. let us not forget so many people just associate nasa with space and neil armstrong is one of those people that as i've just pointed the -- pointed out, their work in developing new technology for aerospace and for jet engines and the designs airplanes has had a tremendous impact on our way of

life and made america the great aerospace power in the world and so as we honor them today we reconfirm our commitment to being the number one space power and the number one aerospace power on the planet. thank you very much and thank you, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back fpblgt -- back. the gentlelady from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: i'd inquire if the gentleman is prepared to close as well. mr. smith: mr. speaker, we are prepared to close. we have no other speakers and i'm prepared to yield back the balance of my time after the gentlewoman from maryland. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from maryland is recognized. ms. edwards: thank you, mr. speaker. i am pleased today that we've been able to bring forward h.r. 667 and our former chairman hall was here today, we had an opportunity to do this in the last congress and so hopefully in honor of these two gentlemen, real tremendous

patriots and heroes and pioneers, that we'll be able to bring forward h.r. 667 and rename the dryden center and the neil armstrong. and so -- and i'm grateful to be here to do that with our colleagues. it is sad, however, that here we are on a monday prepared to honor these two great patriots of nasa, of this nation, and at the same time by the close of the week on march 1, enable a sequester to take effect which could result in the loss of 894 -- $894 million from nasa's budget. a budget that would include science, technology, engineering, investigation of climate change, all of the things that we need to prepare this next generation to be as inspired as our generation was

with the exploits and exploration of hugh dryden and of neil armstrong. and yet here we are. and so i'm pleased to go forward supporting this legislation today, making sure that on a monday we're able to take a vote to rename these two centers and to honor these two pioneers but i am sad that here in this congress we're also prepared to cut millions of dollars in a budget that should be spent op the kind of science and exploration that both of these two gentlemen pioneered. . when we think of what the next generation needs, those who work in technology, our engineers, our math students, we regret that they will see that same kind of inspiration

because of the irresponsibility of this congress. and i want to say how pleased i am to be able to look forward to working with chairman smith, because i know of his commitment to science and technology. i noffnow of his commitment to nasa, a nation that will propel us in 21st century space science and in aeronautics. but this is not the way to do it. and so while we will do our renaming today in honor of hugh dryden and in honor of neil armstrong, we will take an ax hammer to nasa's budget on march 1, at the end of this week, taking out $894 million from an already-strapped budget. i dare say that future generations will not be inspired by what this congress will do, will not be inspired by what the majority is doing by not allowing us and enabling

us to sit down and actually negotiate in a way that will result in us making the kind of investments in the 21st century that our young people deserve. and so with that, mr. speaker, i'm pleased, again, to be able to redesignate the national aeronautics and space administration dryden flight research center as the neil a. armstrong flight research center and to rename the western aeronautic test range as the hugh l. dryden aeronautic test range. renaming but slashing a budget. with that i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from texas. mr. smith: i want to thank the gentlelady from maryland who is the ranking member of the space committee. i share her concerns about the severe cuts that nasa and our space exploration programs might take if the sequestration goes into effect.

i also feel compelled to point out that there is a way to avoid that sequestration. the house of representatives, under the republican leadership, has already passed two bills that would take the place of the sequestration. the senate has yet to act. and after all the sequestration was the president's idea to start with. so i hope we'll hear from the president and the senate and various suggestions as to how the sequestration will be avoided. the house has certainly done its job to avoid the heavy-handed cuts. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, h.r. 667. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- mr. smith: mr. speaker, i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having

arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until approximately 6:30 p.m. t >> at age 25, she was one of the wealthiest widows in the colonies. and during the revolution, while in her mid-40s, she was considered an enemy by the british, who threatened to take her hostage. later, she would become our nation's first first lady at age

57. need martha washington tonight in the first program of c-span's new weekly series, first ladies, influence and image. we will visit colonial williamsburg, mount vernon, valley forge, and philadelphia. and be part of the conversation about martha washington with your phone calls, a tweet, and facebook posts, live tonight at 9:00 p.m. eastern on c-span, c- span radio, and c-span.org. >> president obama met with u.s. governors earlier today at the white house. he called on congressional republicans to compromise to avoid across-the-board sequester cut scheduled to go no effect on friday. this is 20 minutes. [applause] >> thank you. thank you. i tell you what, i did not know

jack was as good as he is. until i heard that rym last night. jack, if you had done that -- jack, if you had done that, i would be introducing you hear. thank you but all, very, very much. you are all much more disciplined than the place that i lived for 36 years up on the hill. you run ahead of schedule. the president is with me. thank you for being here. we have a lot to work on, from fixing a broken immigration system to rebuilding our nation's infrastructure to this new word everyone in america is learning about, "sequester." this town, unlike maybe your capitols, is i hope temporarily frozen and not stopped in intense partisanship, the likes of which i have only seen the

last couple of years in my career. but you know, the american people move in different ways. and thank you to my wife last night. we disagree on some things. all kidding aside, i thinkthe american people have been moved. they know the possibilities for this country are immense. the are no longer traumatized by what was it traumatizing event, the great collapse of 2008. there are no longer worried about our economy being overwhelmed by europe at large or china somehow swallowing up every bit of innovation that exists in the world. there are no longer worried about our economy being overwhelmed beyond our shores. there is very little doubt in ability to be in a position to

-- there's very little doubt in any circles out there about america's ability to be in a position to lead the world in the 21st century. the american people are ready to get up as a civil-rights leader. the american people are tired of being tired. they're ready to get up and move. we are in a good position to lead the world. that is why i think they're so frustrated by what they see and what they don't see here in washington. their frustration is turning into anger. i doubt an interesting dynamic. -- found an interesting dynamic without ruining any reputations

and picking out any one of you, butwhether it was a democrat for governor republican -- governor i heard from several of you how do you deal with this? how do you deal with the congress. no distinguished about how you deal with this. you deal with legislatures that are split. you represent a minority party. you get on very well. the accomplish things and are state. that is the way it used to work. there are a number of things we have to do immediately. we may disagree on how to dress them but not the need for them to be addressed. each of you are making different decisions you are grappling with it.

i do not think there is much different. i'm not mad a governor from the time of implementing the recovery act and on now who does not think we have to do something about our infrastructure. there is very little disagreement to build an education that has such immense possibilities for our people. most of these issues were united by more than what divides us. these all intersect at a place where both the state and federal governments engage.

we are going to have to work together. they overlap in many cases. we will have our differences. we should all agree that the united states has to have the highest percentage of college world. you governors have led the way an early education and the consequences for the prospect of success. you have all led in knowing that we have to have a reform of our high school system so we end not only finding it that way for people that will go to four year colleges, a but there is so much agreement that we ought to be able to get a fair amount done. we should all agree that to grow our economy we have to invest in manufacturing, infrastructure, how much. there's not much disagreement

about the need. i've never met a democrat or a republican u.s. been a governor who does not think the american people should have a sense that hard work will be read -- rewarded. the work party have an opportunity. i do not know of any men and women that are a better living example of that and all be sitting in front of me. we all use the phrase move forward in a balanced way. another man's a balance is another is in balance. that is what we have got to talk about. the one thing i do not think any of the lack is a vision about how great this country can be. we ought to be able to reassert ourselves in a way that we own the 21st century. i know the guy i am about to introduce believes that but you do. let me introduce you to the

president was back with the pastry chef. my friend, barack obama. [applause] >> thank you. have a seat. thank you. welcome. thank you for being here. we all have a lot on our plate. everything from our immigration system our education system our goal is to make sure that we can be an effective partner with you. i want to thank the members of my cabinet q. are here and members of the administration. i want to thank jack and mary for their leadership. i want to say thank you for being on their best behavior last night.

i was told nothing was broken and no silverware was missing. i did not get any calls from neighbors about the noise. i cannot speak for joe's after party. i heard that was wild. i always enjoy this weekend. as leaders we share responsibility to do whatever we can to help grow our economy entry good middle-class jobs and open up new doors of opportunity for our people. that is our true north. it will guide every decision we make every level. we should be asking ourselves three questions every day. how do we make america a magnet for good jobs, how do we equip our people with the skills to get those jobs and how we make sure if they get those jobs that their hard work actually pays off.

you are the ones who are on the ground, seeing firsthand every single day what works and what does that work. that is what makes you so indispensable. what ever you party ran for office, it is one thing that unites all of you. that is the last thing you want to see is washington get in the way of progress. in just four days congress is poised to allow a series of arbitrary budget cuts ticket then that will slow our economy, -- to keep and that will slow our economy, eliminate good jobs and leave a lot of folks who are thinly stretched scrambling to figure out what to do. this morning he received a this morning he received a report outlining exactly how these cuts will harm middle- class families in your state. thousands will be laid off. tens of thousands of parents

will have to deal with finding child care for their children. access to primary care and preventive care like flu vaccinations. tomorrow i will be in the tidewater region of virginia where workers will sit idle when they ought to be repairing ships. the uncertainty is already having an effect. companies are preparing layoff notices. families are preparing to cut back on expenses. what you are in town, i hope that you speak with your congressional delegation and remind them exactly what is at stake and exactly who is at risk.

here is the thing. these cuts do not have to happen. congress can turn them off any time which is a little bit of a compromise. democrats need to acknowledge that we will make modest reforms in medicare if we want the program there for future generations and if we hope to maintain our ability. i have made this commitment. it is reflected in proposals i made last year. and make those remarks for smart spending cuts. we need republicans to adopt the same approach to tax reform that speaker john boehner champion two months ago. under our concept of tax reform and nobody's rates would go up. we would be able to reduce the

deficit by making some tough, smart spending cuts in getting rid of tax loopholes that benefit the well off and the well-connected. sometimes folks in congress think that compromise is a bad word. they figure they will pay a higher price at the polls to working on the other side. as governors, some of you know that compromise is essential to getting things done. making smart choices, that is how gov. o'malley put it on track to all but eliminate the deficit while keeping tuition down and making the public schools among the best in america five years running. that is how the governor balance his budget last year was still investing in key areas like education for tennessee's

children. they know we cannot just cut our way to prosperity. alone is not an economic prosperity. you have to make the tough choices to cut what we do not need so we can invest in the things we do need. the first is infrastructure. this should be a no-brainer. the schools are falling apart. it is what i have to do the best with transportation and communications networks to their businesses and customers. of the union address. to the people to work right now

like the structurally deficient bridges across the country. it attract private capital to upgrade what our businesses need most. modern ports to move our goods. modern schools that are worthy of our children. i know some people oppose any idea i put forward. rebuilding infrastructure is not my idea. it is everybody's idea. it is what built this country. this makes clean energy structure a top priority. folks who think spending really is the biggest problem should be more concerned than anybody about improving our

infrastructure right now. we're talking about deferred maintenance. we know we will have to spend the money. matt meade, roads is not a plan for being fiscally conservative. it is true all across the united states. we could be putting folks back to work right now. we know contractors are begging for work. they will come on time and under budget which never happened. we could make a whole lot of practice right now on things we at some point. it is like fixing a row for a broiler that is broken. one of the biggest hurdles that you face when it comes to fixing infrastructure is red tape. oftentimes that comes out to washington.

sometime we shave the timeline. we're setting up regional teams that will focus on some of the unique needs each of you have in various parts of the country. we're going to help the pacific northwest to a faster and renewable energy projects. we will help the northeast corridor faster on high-speed rail service. we will help the midwest and other states move faster on projects that help farmers deal with worsening drought. we will help states like north and south dakota move faster on oil and gas production. all of these projects will get more americans back to work faster. we can do even more if we can get congress to act. the second prayer someone to talk about his education. particular education the start of the earlier stage. i want to partner with each of

you to make high-quality preschool available to every child in america. this is an area where we have already seen great bipartisan work at the state level. how vicious in a state to highlight this issue because georgia has made it a frigid i was just in georgia to highlight this -- i was just in georgia because they are making it a priority to fix this. kids that are poor are leveling up. everybody is seeing a real improvement because it is high- quality, early childhood education. studies showed the sooner children begin to learn in these settings the better he or she does down the road. we all end of saving money. fewer than 3 in san for your old are enrolled in a high-quality preschool programs. most middle-class parents cannot afford a few hundred dollars a week in additional income for these kinds of

preschool programs. poor kids who need it most black access. that lacks access. more later on. this is a priority in alabama. gov. schneider's making it a priority in michigan. tomlin has made it in west virginia. even in a tight budget, republicans and democrats are focused on high-quality, early childhood education. we want to make sure we can be an effective partner. we should be able to do that for every child everywhere, democrat, republican, blue state, red state. all of us want our kids to do

that. state. it will be better for this country. that is what high-quality early trotted education can deliver. i hope you are willing to part with us to make that happen. let me close with this. there are always going to be areas where we have some genuine disagreement. here in washington and in your respective states. there are more areas where we can do a lot more cooperating then i think we have seen over the last several years. to do that this town has to get past its obsession with focusing on the next election in some of the next generation. all of us are concerned about our politics both in our own parties as well as the other

parties. at some point we have to do some governing. certainly what we cannot do is keep careening from a manufacturing price crisis to crisis. the american people have dug long and hard to get out of one crisis. they are meeting their response abilities. -- the their responsibilities. they are giving it their all. a lot of you are doing the same things in your respective states. we have the same kind of attitude here in washington. the american people have a right to expect that. it is not just to shrink in our economy for the short-term but to reignite what has always been the central premise of america's economic engine. that is that we build a stronger thriving middle-class

where if you work hard in this country, no matter who you are or what you look like, you can make it. you can succeed. that is our goal. i know that is the goal of all of you as well. i look forward to our partnering. what i want to do is clear out the press so we can take some questions. thank you. >> after that meeting, several governors spoke to reporters about the impact of sequestration on their states. we will hear remarks from jack markell, the governor of delaware. been out ok. i am governor jack markell, of delaware. i serve as the chair of the national governors' association, joined by other

governors. we had what i believe that a productive conversation with the president. he heard from governors of both parties about their concerns about the sequester, and about their concerns about the effect on the economies in our states. he shares those concerns. we talked about other issues related, largely, about the economy. his belief that continuing investments in infrastructure, are incredibly important, something that each of us in our own states can very much right to, because we know we cannot have a strong economy going forward if we do not have a strong infrastructure. we talked about everything from marketplace fairness as a tax issue to work force the element funds, where so many of us find we are spending so much time to put people to work in our states, it is one of the most

frustrating conversations we have with the businesses and our states who say they have vacancies, but not people with the right skills. we are determined to make sure we have not only the stores as kamala -- not only resources, but flexibility to put people back to work. there was conversation about offshore oil exploration, offshore wind development, conversations about health care and medicaid waivers. the governor talked about some of the interesting work going on in oregon as well. also, a part of the conversation, the president talked about what he can do to speed up permits and the like an indication on the part of governors to work with him to make sure the federal and state governments are working together to compress time frames, because as long as businesses are

waiting in line, we are not putting people to work. just a general frustration that a number of governors expressed about the states being heard, by some of the in action in washington. governor herbert of the utah talked about reduction that he had been making in terms of his own economic growth projections as a result of inaction here in washington. it was a productive conversation. the president talked for 10 minutes at the beginning, it took about an hour of questions from the governors of both parties. as always, these are helpful conversations and a commitment on the part of the government -- governors and president alike to keep working on the behalf of the people of our states and our country. i will turn this over to governor fallon and then take questions, and maybe some other governors will step in and

answer questions as well. i will introduce the governors who are here. vdot we appreciate the president, a vice president, and his administration giving us time to talk about important issues facing our nation. we think it is important governors have a seat at the table, because we are home dealing with our local economies, budgets, unique challenges as circumstances that each of our states face, and it is important governors get input as to how we can solve some of the problems facing our nation. frankly, we believe we are great laboratories for the mockeries -- for democracies and inefficiencies these -- and if it sees. >> we have had to close budget gaps. also balance our budget spirit we understand that there are going to be cuts to get our

deficit under control, which we think is in an important issue, not only for national security, but economic security, but how do we get to that point? that is why we're here in washington this week in a bipartisan way, and we are here to make the point that the sequester is a very serious issue for our nation. it has a tremendous effect upon our ability as governors to talk about our important priorities and budgets. i have introduced by budget for our state. we have started on our legislative session. as he put decisions off, with sequester, whether the debt ceiling, whether the continuing resolution on our budget and converts itself, those decisions and beat our decisions to be able to decide about important programming, and it creates so much uncertainty in our businesses in our workplace that it affects our job

creation, economic recovery. we are hoping we can find common ground on issues that we can work on together. we have asked the president for flexibility, not to shift those costs down to the states, and if there are cost savings on the federal side, give us cost savings on the stateside, and help us with the unfunded mandates. , to other points. on the sequester, while it is clear there are lots of specific programs which will be impacted as a result, and constituencies in our states, whether special and or people getting substitutes -- substance abuse treatment, many fall verbal populations, a significant focus in the conversation. the impact on the overall economy, what it could mean an terms of joblessness and the like. i want to make that point. . fallin joined the issue of

flexibility, and the president was very clear. what he said was he is in to bucs ability, but also committed to making sure some of the goals for these programs are still achieved. as a example of the flexibility, to stop providing care to people, something that he philosophical cannot accept and also oftentimes not in compliance with the law, and to the extent that different states can come up with different ways of doing things, it is something he is interested in. before we take questions, we have governor jindall, governor nixon, governor o'malley from maryland, we have governor malloy, governor walker from wisconsin. as well as governor fallin and

myself. >> i want to ask you about how bad you think the sequester will be, is the white house exaggerating its impact, and a specific question to governor fallin, the white house has put out a statement that in the state of oklahoma they say that 1490 fewer children's will receive vaccinations, and i'm wondering if that is a part of a cut of $102,000. would you be able to find somewhere else in your budget to make sure those children will get vaccinated? >> i have not had a chance to get a copy of the report. i'm anxious to see the report. there will be an effect by sequester if it goes to the way it is written for the state of oklahoma. i have included $40 million more into my health care of party and put a huge emphasis on infant mortality and how we can

prevent infant mortality in our state. also $60 million more for crisis intervention for our families and systems to care for our family for help. i have a big push for health and a proven of health and our state. i call it an oklahoma plan to address the needs of our citizens. that is something that is important us, taking care of the health of our citizens. as far as the sequester, we predict in oklahoma if it goes through the way it is written, because we have five military installations, we could see up to 8000 jobs cut in military and defense-related jobs and spending, and that would have a trickle-down effect throughout our economy, that would make the cost us 20,000 jobs. there will be an effect in oklahoma. >> would not let a cut of $102,000 keep kids from getting vaccinated? >> i have not seen the report,

but what i am telling you i have already put in extra money into my state to make sure we take care of the health of our children and health of our citizens. >> it is important to point out these facts and figures, this is not editorialized, and if you are a kid the who is not want to be a head start, somebody who is getting substance abuse treatment and is not getting it any longer, that is not an exaggeration. but the administration has done is to put out just the numbers, but to put a face on the potential impacts. i know you wanted to hear from a couple of other governors. >> we just visit washington, we do not live by these rules. we try to find solutions. we are not in complete agreement exactly how the congress of the united states should resolve this problem, but we understand they have got to resolve this problem. putting 750,000 people out of

work does not make a lot of sense when our states are making comebacks and starting to add people. the idea that oklahoma would lose 8000 jobs if we have a multiple effect is playing itself out in all art jurisdictions. what we have said and some people say maybe to be more cuts or all cuts, but really what we're saying is let's get the job done. work with the president, but with to get it done, or turn it over to us governors and we will negotiate it. >> with jobs, are you seeing a different set of spending cuts? >> that is a fair question you're asking. the accumulated deficit has decreased at a more rapid rate than the last three years than at any time in our history. we're starting to see jobs created in this nation on a state-by-state basis.

i will ask a different question. is our job to kill the economy or build on the future? if we get this economy going, the deficits will go down and lot more rapidly than if we play these games and cause the economy to lose 750,000 jobs. this is what they need to do, to get out of that box that sits under the dome and understand this has real applications and people's lives. they should stop playing around with it and get the job done. they should compromise to get the job done. [indiscernible] but estimates it is half a point to a point of gdp. you have seen it, i have seen it. 750,000 jobs, many of those in the defense industry, where it is already dropping. you saw what the impact was on the last quarter of last year. you hit that industry again this rapidly, 750,000 jobs is an understatement. walker, how will

your state whether this is about -- this if it goes through? >> the one thing that is, is something the president mentioned in his comments to the public or the media when he was with us, and that is the concern we have about the arbitrary nature of the cuts. that is probably why would the president proposed and congress approved the sequester concept back in 2011 their hope was that ultimately these cuts would be so bad that the president, congress would ultimately find some way to find an alternative. that day as the purchase, and that more than anything is the one concern among democrats and republicans. there is some of us who think there are alternative cuts to the ones being pompanos that are better, others that it is better to balance cuts along with tax increases, but in either case, those who say that taking more money out of the economy in terms of government spending

also -- and eyes is that raising taxes along with government spending cuts would have an equally if not greater impact on the economy, and an example of that is where have already started to see in our sixth impact consumers having less money because of the payroll tax having gone up. a typical family in our state making $50,000 now has $1,000 or they pay in taxes. that has an impact, we knew that going in. the federal reserve in new york that that was $710 less in spending. most people have tapped into their savings, and the last thing we want to do is take our heads out of the american consumers. it is a series of difficult choices. i hope is we see something better than the arbitrary cuts that are being proposed, and it's up and that does not cripple the economy at such a critical time. >> it is important to point out that the president's proposal is not about increasing rates, it is about closing loopholes.

governor o'malley and governor general want to say something. >> i want to disagree with my colleague's statements. i want to echo what scott has said. it is possible to cut less than 3% of the budget without causing a devastating consequence. you can achieve these reductions without jeopardizing children's access the vaccinations. you can achieve these kinds of reductions. the spending in the federal budget, it will be larger after these reductions than it was last year. there is an irresponsible way to cut less than 3% of the federal budget. it is time for the president to show leadership. but it is time to send to progress and prioritized list of reductions that preserves critical services. every family out there has to balance their budget. every business has had to become more efficient, and the reality is it can be done. this administration has an

insatiable appetite for new revenue. almost $6 trillion of new debt. almost $600 billion in new taxes in the most recent deal. it can be done without jeopardize the economy and critical services. the president needs to stop campaigning, stop trying to scare states. every american knows they believe there is a least 3% of the government spending that is wasteful, and they will tell you there is a a way to cut the waste without cutting critical services. i make a suggestion that the president did not agree with. we considered to lengthen the new spending instead of cutting existing program, for example, the medicaid programs. if these cuts are so important, why are we spending new dollars? i respectfully disagree. my sense was that he felt the

election has consequences, and he felt that the majority, he was not open to having that conversation again. bottom line is you will hear a diversity of views. is protective -- my perspective is you can cut 3% without consequences. the president needs to show leadership. >> we have a couple other governors. >> he has more than enough revenues. >> of the remarkable things we heard today was a broad-based agreement by all governors that we should not allow this arbitrary jobs-killing sequester to go through. we would not allow that to happen in our states, and we did not believe congress to allow that to happen here. compromise is something that allows us to make progress as a people, and all of the

governor's, of both partners, agreed that congress cannot allow these arbitrary sequester cuts to go through and hurt our economy, slow recovery. there has got to be a better way. we have already found a way to reduce the deficit by $2.40 trillion, and the president has shown the path forward on alternative ways to do that, including reducing and eliminating a lot of these loopholes, which the vast majority of americans believe are not as important as getting people back to work at keeping our economy recovering. over the life of the last four years of the obama administration, we have seen the smallest average annual percentage increases in spending of any president in modern times. we need a balanced approach. that is what makes our state's move forward and create jobs, and that is what we need to do here. the other issue we agree on is

without jobs there is no progress. i think all of us are calling on congress to come together to solve this problem and do it not in an arbitrary way, but in a way where we can compromise and save jobs and keep our economy moving foulard. >> hold on. [indiscernible] by march 1? >> the president is very focused on doing everything we can so we can get past it, but there were no assurances that this would not take effect. >> governor -- >> is there any reason to be optimistic that these cuts could be avoided? >> our perspective is more clearly that folks in washington understand the implications on their constituents in their states. that will hopefully lead to the

proper action, which is one reason what was shared with the governors today. another thing that is important is the likely economic impact beyond some of the specifics these constituents and these constituents, what is gone-but in terms of jobs. that cbo projected 750,000 fewer jobs. thank you very much. >> the house will be coming back in in about 50 minutes from now for a couple of roll-call votes and in general speeches. at 8:00 tonight, the congressional black caucus will talk on the house floor for about an hour, protecting the voting rights act. as we wait, we will speak about the across-the-board spending cuts. host: we will talk with more about the sequester. back us up to the beginning of all this.

what is a sequester? guest: an across-the-board cut in federal agency spending, so it is little flexibility for agencies and essentially says it takes a defined percentage on activities that they must be cut by the same amount. you have to go back to the budget control act to does 11, which mandated $1.50 trillion in cuts to federal spending, and then get congress until the end of the year, created a supercommittee to come up with an additional $1.20 trillion cuts. they have until the end of the year to do that, and if that did not happen, then a sequester would come into effect at the beginning of 2013. host: the supercommittee did not get its job done. then in the fiscal cliff negotiations, congress can up with a short-term fix, extended it until february, and that is

where we stand now. how do the cuts take place? guest: it is a certain percentage over the fiscal year. it is not like a shot down situation where things stopped abruptly. they take place over the course of several months and a lot of the impact will not be felt right away. host: complex in about a month from now. put the two together. guest: that is another hard deadline. that is when congress meets to decide with what will happen with the fiscal year, and it is lagging about a month behind a sequester deadline, so it could go into effect while congress

continues to negotiate what the final budget will look like. host: our guest is tom shoup. he will be with us until about 9:00 eastern time to take your calls. in addition to our regular phone numbers, we have a separate line to talk about the sequester, for federal employees, they are affected in washington, d.c. and around the country. we want to hear what you are bracing for. tom shoup, explain how the government prepares for something like a sequester. guest: it takes place over an extended period of time. there are a bunch of different things that get done. they look at contract spending. agencies look at hiring freezes. for the past months, it is clear that agencies have been slowing down their spending, particularly in the defense

department. if it does go into effect, they will do things like furlough employees. there is a 30 day warning. they have to give employees before that can take effect. that is when they negotiate with labor unions. it is usually written communication. host: we're hoping to learn about non-defense areas of the government as well. what should we think of as a non-defense areas? who is going to get cut? guest: pretty much everybody, with certain exceptions. the big exception is the veterans affairs department, which is carved out in the legislation. they are not subject to cuts. there are also other areas that are not subject to cuts, like social security and medicaid. medicare is subject to separate out of about two%. -- 2%.

other than that, it pretty much affects everybody across the board. host: some of the facts and figures, from "the wall street journal" -- host: anything you want to add to those numbers? guest: the only thing i would add is that it is not clear entirely what the effects will be in terms of employees. they have not said things specifically. there could be a fairly wide range. it is not guaranteed that every agency will furlough its employees. some have already said they would, such as the defense department. last week, ray lahood, the transportation secretary, said that employees would be subject to flood. -- to furlough. the government accountability

office says that there will not be for lows. -- furloughs. some agencies can get it done through hiring freezes. host: explain the role of the office of management and budget. guest: they provide overall direction to agencies as to what their budgets are, how much is subject to sequester, and how it will go into effect. host: let's hear from frank, from pennsylvania, a democrat. caller: good morning. i'm finding out -- i'm calling to find out why it is taking so long to get this through and stop trying to block the president. when the banks were bailout, calling it was a three page bill for $700 billion. here all they want to do is cut $85 billion from the budget. i think all of these republicans do not want to do anything that is beneficial to the average person. thank you. guest: that is a good question.

part of the reason is that congress tends to wait until the last minute to do things if they can. it is possible we can see action this week. the other thing is, with the sequester, it is a little bit different from other situations, in that it will not be immediate. in some cases, there is a school thought that says, agencies can manage this, at least four months, while congress works. there is less incentive for them to get this job done. the bottom line is, there are substantial differences between the two sides on exactly the mix between revenues and cut. host: we have a group of students this morning who had some questions for you about the sequester. the cspan bus is finishing up a two week tour through ohio and virginia. today, the final stop is mount vernon high school in fairfax county, virginia.

over this period, we are going to talk to a group of students from the bus mount vernon high school was founded in 1939 and is located about 50 miles south of washington, d.c.. more than 1900 students in grades 9-12 attend the school. we want to thank cox communications for sponsoring today's visit. gabrielle is on the line, she is a student at mount vernon high school. go ahead. caller: how will sequestration affect the military's ability is to meet its commitments around the world? guest: military leaders have indicated that this will have a success -- a substantial impact on their ability to conduct operations. the navy has already stated that it has pulled an aircraft carrier that was headed for the

persian gulf record tippled that back. the navy -- they pulled that back. the army says there will cut back severely on training. according to military leaders, this could have a big impact on them, partly because they are already under situation under the budget control act where they are making a fairly steep cuts in operations. they are trying to deal with the situation overseas in places like afghanistan. host: if congress does nothing, is there a chance that they could pass something in the defense area? guest: it is always possible. that is something house republicans have wanted for some time, to put cuts on domestic spending and protect the defense department. it is also possible that congress could move simply to give agencies more discretion in implementing the cuts and eliminate this aspect where it is across the board,, what the

president characterized as a meat cleaver approach. host: more students are coming up. they are with the c-span.org bus. a federal worker is online. -- on the line. where do you work? caller: and airforce base. compared to last year, aren't we spending the same amount of money as we did last year? this is just a cut in the rate of growth? isn't that right? guest: that is correct. i am not entirely certain whether at the end the day there is more spending this year than last year, but under the budget control act, spending caps are supposed to go down a year after year. there are supposed to the overall cuts in federal spending. it is important to remember that it is true, that these are

measured against an overall increase in the rate of spending. host: thomas is with us by phone, he is a student. caller: hall sequestration affect students that need financial aid to attend college in the fall? guest: it could have an impact on the education department. i'm not sure that it will mean cutbacks in student loans themselves. it could affect housing. employees could be subject to furlough. there could be other cuts to the education budget. there could be a variety of effects on students if sequestration goes into effect. host: will states be in a position to help out? guest: it depends on individual state budget situations, which until recently, have not been great. they are beginning to recover from the effects of the recession. a lot of governors are seeing that this could have an adverse

impact on them. host: how is it decided to get furloughed at a particular agency? can you explain that? guest: generally, it is across the board. it is little bit of untrained territory because furloughs have not been attempted on the scale in a long time. there are some things that remain to be worked out, including whether there is a security exemption or protection of life and property, certain people not being furloughed, but in most cases, it will take all civilian employees. uniformed military is exempt from a furlough. it will not affect every agency equally. some agencies could have up to 22 days of furloughs. some will have less. host: how about benefits for federal employes?

guest: in general, federal employee benefits are protected. there are some areas that could be affected. if you're not getting paid, that could affect on employees' contribution to a 401k. it could also affect leave accrual. host: james is on the line from arizona, a republican caller. caller: how're you doing today? thank you for taking my call. my question is, i have a couple -- one of them is, we live in a very dangerous world. all we have to do is pick up a newspaper and understand that it gets more dangerous every day. >> "washington journal" airs live each day at 7:00 a.m.

we now go to the house. yeas and nays and suspending the rules and passing h.r. 667, by the yeas and nays. the first electronic vote will be conducted as a 15-minute vote. remaining electronic votes will be five-minute votes. pursuant to clause 8, rule 20, unfinished business is the question on agreeing to the speaker's journal on which yeas and nays are ordered. the question is on agreeing to the speaker's journal. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: this vote, 303 yeas, 91 nays, one present, the motion passed, the journal stands aprove. the unfinished business is the vote on the motion of the gentleman from texas, mr. smith, to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 667 on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h r. 667, a bill to redesignate the dryden flight research center as the neil a. armstrong fright research center and the test range as the hew l. dryden test range.

the speaker pro tempore: the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill? members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote, the yeas are 394, the nays are zero. one recorded as present. 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed. without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table.

the speaker pro tempore: the house will come to order. members are advised to clear the well and take your conversations off the floor.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair will entertain requests for one-minute speeches. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm so pleased to recognize women of tomorrow, a community organization that encourages and empowers at-risk high school girls to develop to their fullest potential. this south florida-based organization was founded in 1997 by jennifer vellope is in florida and michigan helping girls in over 100 high schools. women of tomorrow has a bright future and will expand and connect girls across the country to mentoring and scholarship opportunities. it is celebrating 16 years of

teaching professional and personal skills. over 90% of the young ladies metropolitanored by women of tomorrow, improve their grade point average, graduate high school, improve their self-esteem immensely. the supporters of women of tomorrow work to help teens and i congratulate them on their sweet 16. thank you, mr. speaker, for the time. the speaker pro tempore: the house will come to order. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? mr. thompson: request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. mr. thompson: we hear a lot about sequestration on the news and i want to run down sequestration by the numbers. it has been 290 days since i and

my republican colleagues voted for the first of two bills to replace the president's sequestration with smarter, more responsible spending cuts that total $1 trillion over 10 years. why is that needed? mr. speaker, the official debt today is $15.5 trillion. $50,000 for every man, woman and child this this country. that's not the real debt. and when you look at every living individual today with medicare and social security that is between $72 trial con. economists estimated by the year 2020, interest alone, interest alone on an annual basis will be $1 trillion. sequestration, we are looking at $85 billion out of a $3 trillion budget. we call on the senate democrats and president obama for smarter, more bipartisan ways to replace

the obama sequester and to address things and don't leave a legacy of debt for our children and grandchildren and future generations. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. . >> i rise today because i hear from folks who work hard that are struggling to make ends meet. families across southern illinois are frustrated with washington. unless we act, nearly 1.2 trillion will be cut from defense and domestic programs. scott air base, a major economic hub and major employer in my district and vital component of our national security would be hard hit as would important programs that keep our children and our nation safe. if sequestration goes into effect, one mill on-- one

million jobs could be in jeopardy. this could cost our workers, our veterans and men and women in uniform, our seniors, our mall businesses their livelihood and risk our fragile economy. it's time for congress to set aside partisanship and work together to address the deficit but doesn't cost jobs. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from minnesota rise? >> permission to address the house for one minute and revise and stepped my remarks. mr. olson: i congratulate the northwardic champions this tear. the eagles boys team claimed the title after an excellent performance in the northwardic competition earlier this month. they had an outstanding season. seniors tom bye and ryan stewart

finished in the top 10 and two others attained all-state honors and deserving of praise are the coaches. whose leadership and support helped motivate these student athletes. congratulations to the students, parents, coaching staff and everybody who helped contribute to the success of the eagles team. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new hampshire rise? >> permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> if congress fails to act, the sequester is going to trigger mindless across-the-board cuts that will hurt new hampshire families and undermine our economy. there is no question that we do need to reduce the deficit, but we have to do it in a balanced

way that zwishes between wasteful spending that we cannot afford to keep and critical investments we cannot afford to cut. we cannot afford to cut investments in research and colleges like dartmouth and u.n.h. and investment in programs that prepare our students for the 21st century. we cannot afford to cut investments in companies that protect our troops and create good jobs. the only way to protect these priorities while avoiding the sequester is for both parties to pass a balanced, bipartisan plan that will responsibly reduce the deficit, grow our economy and protect middle-class families. now is the time for congress to step up and do its job. thank you, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> address the house for one

minute. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. >> i salute the yellow jackets for winning the fifth state championship in football. texas football has been written about in tv shows, movies and books, but hollywood's version isn't nearly as exciting as the real thing. during the 2012 football season, stevenville lost one game as it prepared to enter the plaintiffs. tyler jones, five touchdowns and 442 yards and rushed for another 126. what makes this team is remarkable is not only that it won but worthy of winning. these are good kids who do credit to their town. stevenville, texas is the cowboy capital of the world who take care of business and their neighbors. and they are winners at everything they do. i am proud to represent stevenville, text -- texas in the united states congress and i

congratulate the yellowjackets in their title. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: flop the gentleman from california rise? >> address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. the house will be in order. >> today i'm here to urge congress to work together to find a bipartisan solution to sequestration. the port of san diego is our window to national and international commerce as well as the main driver of our economy. the port of san diego is the fourth largest port in california and one of 17 commercial strategic ports in america overseeing two maritime cargoo terminals, two cruise ship terminals and hundreds of leases to small businesses. the port has received $22 million in federal funding for

critical infrastructure projects which has allowed the port to boost san diego's economy. the american society of engineers found that with an additional investment of $15.8 billion between now and 2020, our national system of ports could provide $270 billion in u.s. exports and $697 billion in g.d.p. now is not the time to be cutting critical investments in our infrastructure. let's work together to find a solution. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from for what purpose does the gentleman rise? >> i rise to address the house for one minute an revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognize. >> i rise to commemorate james t. walker, he was born april, 1912 in mississippi. after graduating from high school, he ginned the marine

corps and served from 1942 to 1945. upon returning home he earned a degree in engineering and became the engineering supervisor at the v.a. in biloxi, retiring after 35 years. he was the loving husband of helen peterson, walk -- helen peterson walker. they married exactly 67 years to the day before his passing. i stand before you today and declare without a shadow of a doubt that he was the epitome of what we consider a member of the greatest generation. mr. walker you will be missed not only by your family but also by the country you so faithfully served in the marine corps. semper fidelis. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas rise? so ordered.

ms. jackson lee: a group that we don't hear a lot about because they have no voting rights are children. on friday, march 1, our children will be in the eye of the storm for a sequester that will occur, will impact children, particularly head start. so many of my head start on the nations have cried out for the leaf, title 1 funding. i say to them, we are going to come together. it may not be on friday. but we know we're going to look forward to overturn what has been a process that was put in place because president obama and the democrats were ready to make sure the government was going to run and others were not. now we have a crisis. but that crisis will not last long because we democrats will put children first and find a solution to ensure that the american people have the

resources that are necessary to provide services to ensure the quality of life that their tax dollars pay for. we must have revenue and yes, we must have spending responsibility but we cannot undermine the american people. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to express my strong disappointment in the house republican leadership. they committed such legislative malpractice by failing to do anything about automatic spending cuts that happen this friday. here we are on the bring of economic disaster manufactured again by washington. just as before this crisis will have real consequences to real people. in my district alone, schools will lose millions of dollars in funding. fewer students will be learning, more teachers will be out of

work. there's a rational way to approach balancing the people's budget and this is not it. we can cut fool herb spending without foolishly cutting spening. h.r. 699 of which a am a co-sponsor would replace this meet cleaver method of budgeting with a smarter approach. it would reduce unnecessary spending. we may not agree what the right way to cut spending is, but we should all agree that using broad, indiscriminate cuts is wrong. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from massachusetts rise? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: so ordered. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize dr. irving franken of mall river, massachusetts. a finalist for the national service award. his story of service began in

the 1950's. as optometrist opening a new practice in a struggling mill city he was strung by how few of his young patients had plans to go to college. mr. kennedy: when he asked why, the response was a simple answer, my pearnts condition afford it. a at the time the average cost of tuition was a couple hundred dollars a year. dr. franken did the math he figured if each of the 30,000 town's household gave $1 they could send every single senior in the city to college. is dollars for scholars was born. he began collecting as little as $1 from neighbors to provide scholarships. four decades later, what began as a card table operation became scholarship america which has awarded $3 billion in scholarships across 38 states. at 92 years old, dr. franken

continues to fight for the city he loves and the students he made his life work. i recognize him and his wife charlotte -- i congratulate him and his wife charlotte on recognition they deserve. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman rise? >> address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> when the republicans refer to president obama's sequestration, they must think no one in the country reb -- remembers the events of the last two years. remember two years ago, the republicans black mailed the entire country saying they would not permit the debt ceiling to be increasened and would force the country to default on its debts and destroy the economy. unless we cut the budgetedly bi$2.4 billion. mr. nadler: we cut it by $1.2 billion. but we couldn't figure out how to cut it by another $1.2

trillion. that's why we're here now, facing economic catastrophe because of the blackmail of an even worse catastrophe of failing to pay our bills, of calling into question the full faith and credit of the united states. that's what got us to this point. the only way to get us out is to repeal the entire sequester entirely because we made enough budget cuts or to say all right, we'll do half the budget, half the additional $1. trillion in cuts and half by adopting loophole closing measures that the republicans themselves supported last year. i thank you and i yield back. sfroip for what purpose does the gentleman from texas -- the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? >> to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection is ordered. >> i was sitting in the back of the house listening to my colleagues and i had to rise to answer some of what they just said. the gentlewoman from texas talk about sequester and the effect it has the children.

i would like to remind the gentlewoman from texas that the effect of the millions and billions and trillions of debt wehrliing on the backs of our children is going to have an equally negative effect. this sequester we are accused of not doing anything on this item. we have passed two bills out of this house, doing away with the sequester but they have not been acted on by the president or the senate. we have done our job. the president asked for a balanced approach. he got his increase in revenue. it's time to come up with cuts. sequester isn't the way to do it but we cannot give up oen getting rid of wasteful spening here in washington. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: are there further one-minute requests? hearing none, the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leave of absence requested for mr. bishop of georgia for today and mr. culberson of texas for today. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the requests are granted. under the speaker's announced

policy of january 3, 2013, the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. and under the speaker's announced -- thank you. mr. poe: i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the topic of the special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: mr. speaker, i want to talk about a remarkable vedge that serves with us in the house of representatives. we are really -- we are surrounded by remarkable people, 435 individuals who came from other walks of life, most of them had other careers before they came to the house of representatives. tonight i want to talk about the anniversary of one individual. because you see, 40 years ago, 40 years ago, colonel sam johnson was released as a prisoner of war in vietnam.

he had spent seven years as a prisoner of war in vietnam. and ital started when he was flying one of his -- it all started when he was flying one of his f-4's, being a pilot, this was not a new experience. he had served in korea, flew 62 combat missions in an f-86 saber. called shirley's texas tornado, after his wife. shirley. so he flew 62 in korean war, vietnam he's on his 25th. flying an f-4 phantom he left lay ocean air space, came into -- left laotian air space, came into north vietnam, shot down by ground fire. this wasn't his first duty of -- tour of duty in vietnam, he was advertise second. sam johnson was an american warrior. after heffs shot down in 1966,

his life took a turn. a different turn. when he parachuted out of his plane, his shoulder was injured, of course the vietnamese didn't do anything to help his injuries, he still carries some of those wounds from his prisoner days and from when he crashed, or when he came back down to earth in that parachute. he was captured by the north vietnamese army and put in a prisoner of war camp. the north vietnamese probably developed prisoner of war camps better than any place on earth. they were hard. they were tough. they were mean. and not everybody survived those camps. so he spent seven years as a prisoner of war and they interrogated him every day. but sam never gave in. in fact, the vietnamese called him die hard. he was the first person that i know of that was called die hard.

he would never die. no matter how hard they beat him. and so he was so obstinate, mr. speaker, that they sent him to the infamous hanoi hilton, satire, of course, it was everything but a hotel, around put him in a section called alcatraz where he and 11 obstinate prisoners of war were put together. sam johnson was so tough, would never break, would never give information, that they finally put him in a solitary confinement. i want to describe the cell to you he spent four years of his life in. solitary confinement. it was three foot by nine foot, it's about the size of this table, three foot, over to about that podium, nine foot. that was his cell. that's where he was for four years. left the light on constantly at night they'd come in and put him in leg irons. four years.

solitary confinement. but he never gave up he learned how to communicate with other prisoners by tapping on the wall, he learned the names of the other 374 members, memorized their names so that when he got out, because he expected to get out, that he could tell their families that they were there but he never broke. he was never broken. and he continued to do what he was supposed to do and honor america and represent america but he never gave information to america's enemies. so tonight, we commemorate his 40th anniversary from being released from that prisoner of war camp when the war was over. seven years of his life he gave to this country. in a camp that most of us would never survive. at this time, i'd like to yield time to the majority leader, eric cantor, of virginia, for as much time as he wishes to use.

mr. cantor: mr. speaker, i thank the gentleman from texas. mr. speaker, we are here tonight to honor and celebrate our friend, sam johnson. the gentleman from texas that we all know as a friend and colleague but that i think america knows as a hero. sam, as the gentleman from texas points out, was awarded two silver stars and two purple hearts among his many other decorations for fighting bravely for freedom and for seven years, sam johnson was held as a prisoner of war by the north vietnamese. the horror of which none of us will ever know but lies deep within the soul of this great american patriot. indeed, mr. speaker, the 40th anniversary of his release is

reason for celebration and is the reason we're gathered here tonight. sam's heroism and bravery are acts for which all americans owe him a debt of gratitude. i'd also like to talk about our friend, sam. mr. speaker, it's no exaggeration when i say that i believe sam johnson is the moral compass of our conference. he considers every issue fairly. and he's never afraid to reach across the aisle and work with members there or on our side of the aisle or with freshman members as he did with me when i first came to congress in 2001. . sam and shirley johnson recently lost their son bob. we extend our deepest sympathy to the johnsons and over the past weeks, we saw anew the

great humility that sam carries with him every day. mr. speaker, that's sam. america and his beloved texas are better places because of his decades-long service. and my life has been enriched by our friendship. and i yield back. mr. poe: thank the majority leader for his important words. i yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. pete sessions. mr. sessions: thank you very much. and i appreciate the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, for leading the discussion tonight in honor of the great member of congress from the 3rd congressional district, sam johnson. i want to take a few minutes tonight to not just acknowledge how great sam johnson is to the texas delegation, but really to

highlight what he means to this body. sam johnson has been a member of this body since 1991. he came in a special election as a result of a hard-fought race in dallas, texas, when congressman steve bartlett stepped down. and sam johnson came to the united states congress, not just with a background of 29 years of serving in the united states air force, as being a top gun pilot and a man who served his country in war and in the that know hilton and came with thoughts and ideas. and it's not just a high honor for us to have sam as a member of congress at that time and currently, but sam came to this body with ideas that he felt like it would make our country stronger and better, more than

just respect for the flag, respect for the men and women that serve in our military, but really respect for human life and individuals. believed that individuals make our country stronger and better and has devoted our life, the times we fly back and forth, sam talks about how important peopler people's dreams for people back at home. i -- i remember the stories not just about individuals, but he idolizes hard work and the sacrifice. sam is known in this body for several years now as the most admired member of congress and he is not the most admired member of congress for not just being a nice man, but he really is, but for standing up and talking about the values of this country. the values of this country, what

we stand for and how he wants it to be even better. he and shirley have stood up and talked about how important we are if we sacrifice to make others lives better and leave our country better than the way we found it. so tonight, on behalf of the people of the 32nd congressional district, which is dallas, which is right next to congressman sam johnson, i stand up and applaud the life of jam johnson, the service to our country and also the man that calls home plano, texas, our great friend and colleague. sam, congratulations. congratulations for not just a job well done but for the 40 years that you have been back home and what you have done to your life as a result of the

service for what you believe is the right thing to do. i thank the gentleman from texas, judge poe, for the time. and i yield back. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman. mr. sessions points out a little known fact that after colonel sam johnson got out of the prisoner of war camp and served for 29 years and served in the fame thunderbirds and has a remarkable air force career. i yield two minutes to mr. ralph hall, the senior member of the texas delegation and house of representatives. mr. hall: i thank my colleague. i do rise as others today for a great american and a very dear friend, sam johnson. it's been said over and over again about operation homecoming, but that is one of the great days that i remember. and i'm sure it's in sam's mind

and heart, he appreciates all of us here getting to say a few words about him. he served for 29 years in the united states air force flying combat missions in korea and vietnam. captured by enemy forces and seffvens yeareys as a prisoner of war and 32 months in solitary confinement. sam never lo his faith in god and continue todd show leadership and courage teaching other prisoners how to survive. through those seven years sam remained committed to staying strong and helping other soldiers to do the same thing. on february 12, 1973, he returned to u.s. soil in what was known as operation homecoming. he was reunited with his wife shirley. fact about sam's fighting for our country, he suffered for our country. this isn't the prime reason that

the constituents continually vote for him, but sam is aware of the rules of the house of representatives and one of the speakers leading whips was sam's speech we listened. they suffered the loss of a sun the last week of february. we know that grief is addressed in the bible. love spawns grief and without grief -- seven years and the others suffered in hanoi hilton, a four-letter word was on their mind, home. sam continues to fight on behalf of our veterans and members of the servicemen and women. he demonstrated resolve. and i'm truly to have the opportunity to serve with a great american and call him a friend. sam's commitment to his country, faith and family are values that every american should live by

and i ask my colleagues to vote aye and ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman. i now yield to the gentlelady from fort worth, texas, representative granger. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. granger: we are here to honor our friend and colleague, sam johnson. a man of service, a man of failingt and a man of tremendous courage. sam was released from captivity 40 years ago as part of operation homecoming, a plan to bring home p.o.w.'s. 591 p.o.w.'s were brought home as part of that operation and our dear friend sam was one of those. sometimes there are people that do great things, but very few

people know about it. only their family and close friends, sam johnson's life has not been that way, because it has been recognized because his achievements are so outstanding and he has been such a leader. i think those recognitions deserve to be repeated tonight. two silver stars, two legions of merit, distinguished flying cross, a bronze star with valor, two purple hearts, four air medals, three outstanding unit awards and congressional medal of honor society gave johnson their highest civilian accolade, the patriot award. sam, it's an honor for all of us to serve in this house. be a friend of yours and learn from you. thank you for all your service. i yield back my time. mr. poe: i yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. michael conaway, two minutes.

mr. conaway: i thank the gentleman from from texas to honor our friend and colleague sam johnson. sam's career and exploits have been talked about several times now and i won't repeat those but there are a couple of things i would like to highlight. not only was he a participant and air force pilot but elite thunderbirds, a demonstration that goes across this country representing the air force and representing our country. the other thing about sam, he had the good fortune of marrying shirley. if you read his book "captive warrior," one of the most poignant parts of that book is his wife's unwavering steadfast believe that sam was still alive. there was a long time that -- sam was in captivity we didn't have proof of life and shirley was being told that sam had

perished and she refused to believe that. throughout the evidence. for a number of years, she was held at vigil and it was rewarded of course by sam's coming home 40 years ago this week. i don't have a lot of heroes on this earth. sam johnson is one of them. if i ever get around to writing memoirs and what i'm most proud of, one of those things is i'm among those select and privileged group to have served with sam johnson. he is a warrior of the best order and it is most heartfelt emotions that i can muster and i thank him for his service. if i count the years, 29 years in the air force, 10 years in the texas legislature and 22 years here.

that is 61 years now. i don't know household sam is, but -- how old sam is, but that is great. i thank him for his long service to our country. mr. poe: thank the gentleman from texas. i now yield to the gentleman from texas, judge john carter. mr. carter: i thank the gentleman for yielding. sam johnson is an american hero and everybody knows that. he is an american hero for all kinds of ways that he served his country and many of the people who are going to talk are going to talk about those ways and every one of them are important. but i read sam's book. it's an awesome book. it makes you cry. makes you struggle.

but it also expresses the kind of a man and quite frankly the kind of family man. sam was the guy with broken leg, dislocated shoulders. and he suffered for it. but he never gave in to the enemy. he always stood his ground to his detriment and harmed him in so many physical ways. and yet, the thing that makes me always tear up, you read the part of the book when sam steps off that plane where we repatrioted our prisoners and saluted and said, sam johnson, reporting to duty, sir. and sam reports for duty.

you know, people say who do you want to have your back in a fox hole and who do you want to have your back in congress? and i want sam johnson to have my back in congress. he's a friend. he is one of my best friends in this congress. i have gotten to know him very well. he and i go to a christian retreat together almost every year. that's one of the things you notice from the book. sam didn't talk about himself. he talked about -- they took him out and he thought, this time they're going to shoot me. and he prayed to god that he could stand there and be a man and they went ready, aim, fire, click. one more time, they didn't shoot him. and at that time, he thanked god and he saved him because he knew he had witnessed a miracle.

meanwhile, his sweet wife was praying and fighting on the home front because she didn't know she got very little news about what was going on in sam's life, but she never gave up because her faith strengthened her and that's part of the theme of that book that she needed to pick up and read, that their faith strengthened them in trials that none of us can ever imagine. . . sam johnson is a hero not just because of what he did in vietnam, what happened to him, but because he comes here every day and fights for the people of his district and for the people of this country. he's willing to take a risk even now, after all the years of service both legislatively and in the congress, sam johnson is within that is willing to step

out and take the shot. i was once asked by 60 minutes to find what -- to define what a leader is. i said, well, i'm just a history guy who reads history. i always thought in the first world war, how hard it would have been to come out of those tremples an charge those machine guns with a bolt action rifle and that the officers who climbed out in front and cede, let's go, boys, let's go get 'em, were the heroes and the guys who stayed in the bottom and said, you go et 'em, boys, they were not heroes. and a special hero is one who says, i'm going first and i'll take the shot. there's plenty of shots to be had in this chamber. and those are political shots. i'm proud to say that the same hero that spit in the enemy's face, sam johnson, is still willing to stand up and take the shots in congress. for that reason, i today honor

my good friend sam johnson and tell him i want him to keep taking care of my back because i need it real bad god bless you, sam, you're my friend. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman. mr. carter points out something that happened to sam johnson in those seven years, when he was in that little cell, three foot by nine foot, he was so obstinate, they would take him out of the cell, beat him up, he would never break, they'd get so mad at that, that he wouldn't break, that they'd line him up against a wall and tell him they're going to shoot him. they blindfold him they would get their ak-47's ready, and as judge carter mentioned, they'd pull the trigger, check, click, click. then they would laugh at him. sam johnson would say, is that

the best you got? is that the best you got? he didn't take anything from the vietnamese, even though they treed to do everything they could to break him down. and that's what makes him so remarkable. you may notice, mr. speaker, he is sitting back here on our scriptural row, all the texans sit in the same row. he sits in the middle. one reason we sit back there is because that's the row he pecks. you'll see every day when the house is in session, the texans, we're all together, sitting around sam johnson and we kind of stick together for a lot of reasons. i'm going to yield to the gentleman from texas, dr. michael burgess. >> the gentleman is recognized. mr. burgess: we are here tonight to honor congressman sam johnson. it's also appropriate to take a moment and send our thoughts and prayers to congressman johnson's family in the difficult time they're going through right now.

as we've heard tonight, congressman johnson is a decorated war hero, 29 years' service in the united states air force, 6 combat missions in the korean war, he endured almost seven years as a prisoner of war in hanoi, the majority in solitary confinement after being captured by the north vote ma these he persveersed through this experience, returned to the united states and was reunited with his wife and children on february 12, 1973. this week marks the 40th anniversary of his relief and -- release and we celebrate aze act fices for this country. 10 years ago, i gave my first speech on the house floor. when sam came home, he undertook a duty to continuously support every man and woman who risked their lives fighting for the

united states of america. this was motivation for his decision to run for office and a true statement to the character and virtues he had gained from service to this country. thinking about shirley, every summer, she does a fashion show in frisco, texas, same as my neighbor to the east, from the congressional district i represent. shirley does a fashion show and proceeds go to provide scholarships for kids in the area. true dedication to community service and we're all so honored to have sam and shirley in our lives. thank you, congressman johnson. thank you for being my friend, my mentor, poviding me expertise when i ran for the house and when i arrived in the house and you continue to proid provide mentorship to me today. i yield back the balance of my time. mr. poe: i ask unanimous consent, mr. speaker, to place in the record a statement by

congressman jeb hensarling. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's request is covered by general leave. mr. poe: i yield to the gentleman from tyler, texas, judge gohmert. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gohmert: thank you, mr. speaker, and i thank my friend, the former judge, as well. it is an honor to be here, to be part of this special order to honor our friend sam johnson. sam and shirley are public servants in every sense of the word. through his 29 years in the air force, united states service, that's what he was, what he did. seven years in the hanoi hilton, one they have worst prisons ever concocted, an imagination of sick minds, 42 months of that in solitary confinement. there are people running around the world saying you can't put people in solitary confinement but they were not around to help sam johnson during that horrible time. in hanoi.

this is the 40th anniversary of his release and america has been better for sam johnson living and serving and shirley being his partner even though seven years they were apart. i know the first day i was sworn in, i was sitting right over here on the aisle, talking to another republican, and sam came down the aisle, his body still shows the torture and broken bones that never healed properly and the bones that grew around nerves that were never -- they were never able to fix and when he got even with me, i stood up and shook his hand and said, sam, it is such an honor to serve with you in this body. and sam has always been a man of honesty and integrity a man whose judgment i could trust and he said, well, it's an honor serving with you, which was a

stretch, but then he said, but don't trust that fellow next to you. i found out after that, that sam johnson's advice was always good and always advice that could be well taken. after some of the revelations in the middle east of a u.s. prison camp, i said, sam, did you hear about the torture of making people strip down and put panties on their heads? and he said, yeah, he said -- i said, was that ever a choice that you were given? he said if it had been i'd be naked wearing panties still today. it was nothing exeared to the hell that that man was put through in hanoi. when i found out that in our u.s. prisons, it's open information, we provide not only a koran that's never been touched by american hands but also an arrow on the floor

pointing the direction that islamic prisoner would want to pray and give them a prayer rug. and i asked sam, when you were in hanoi, did you have a prayer rug and a bible? was that part of your faith -- if that was part of your faith? he said, what we had was a tiny rod placed on the floor, our feet in shackles, we would be beat on the back until we dropped and our knees -- my knees would hit that tiny rod. doesn't sound like much but when you spend our -- hours or days with your knees and all your weight on a tiny rod on the floor, it gets pretty unbearable. and that was some of the less torturous stuff this man went through on our behalf. part of his service to this country is -- are his children and grarne. it is with great sadness i know sam and shirley and this country lost bob johnson.

plano high school, texas a&m, his children and grandchildren. sam, our hearts are with you, you have sacrificed smrn -- more than anybody i know on behalf of this country. and it is an honor to serve with you. i yield back. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman from tyler, texas. i now yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. lamar smith. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. smith: i want to thank the secret from texas, mr. poe, for organizing this special order tonight. mr. speaker, today's special order is to honor our friend and colleague and true american patriot, congressman sam johnson and his 40th anniversary of freedom. congressman johnson has a long history of serbing our country. he spent 29 years in the united states air force and flew 87 combat missions during the korean and vietnam wars.

he was awarded two silver stars, distinguished flying cross, a bronze star with valor and received many other recognitions. today we celebrate operation homecoming, and observe the 40th anniversary of his release from a vietnamese prisoner of war camp. congressman sam johnson was captured and held for seven years in a p.o.w. camp in vietnam. he spent 42 months in solitary confinement and unfortunately -- an unfortunate record. though tested both physically and mentally almost beyond comprehension, his unwavering love of god and country remained steadfast. a firsthand account of congressman johnson's experience in the vietnamese p.o.w. camp can be found in his riveting and inspiring book, "captive

warrior," which will cause you to weep. his commitment to his country was matched only business hi wife shirley's commitment to him. friends say she set a seat at the table for him every night he was gone with the hope and expectation he would come home. after his release, congressman johnson started a home building business from the ground up. then he was elected to the texas house of representatives for zen years. he has now represented texas' third congressional district since 1991. as a -- it's a professional honor and personal privilege to serve with congressman sam johnson. today we thank him for his service to our country and to the american people. i yield back. mr. poe: i thank the gentleman. mr. speaker, i'd like to yield to another aviator, although he wasn't in the air force. he was in the navy, that still counts. he served our country as a naval aviator before mr. pete olson

came to the house of representatives, pete olson of sugarland, i yield to him such time heas wishes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman -- such time as he wishes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. olson: i want to thank my friend and fellow texan, judge ted poe, for he's this special order celebrate -- for hosting this special order celebrating the greatest texan in congress, counselor sam johnson, on the 40th anniversary of his return home after seven years as a prisoner of war in vietnam. we have heard the stories of sam's service and sacrifice for our nation. they are the stuff of legend. the best of the best. sam was shot down on his 25th mission over vietnam. captured and imprisoned by the enemy. he was put in a special prison known as alcatraz, his two years

in alcatraz were described by sam as, quote, hell on earth. end yote. -- end quote. 20 years after sam left alcatraz, i began my training to become a naval aviator. part of that training included prisoner of war school, also known as fear school -- sere school. for survive, evade, resist, escape. in sere school we were locked in a box, deprived of sleep, and exposed to interrogation techniques depicted in the move "zero dark thirty." the main lesson i learned in sere school was because of