employee 10 years ago, but now you work for a contractor or subcontractor, where do you get your benefits? that's a big concern. i don't think we really have a good answer. there was a good article in "democracy magazine," that lays out a plan for how to do that. host: we have to leave it there. the house is about to gavel in. harold meyerson, thank you for your time. host: live coverage of the house begins now. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

the chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon mr. blumenauer, for five minutes. mr. blumenauer: congress is side stepping the transportation funding issue for the 45th time for the short-term extension, this one until the end of october. no nation has become great building its infrastructure three months, eight months 10 months at a time. this is a symbol of the failure of congress to deal

meaningfully with a need to rebuild and renew america. our country is falling apart when we're falling behind. the united states had the finest infrastructure in the world. well those days have long since passed. by any objective measure, we're now down about 25th in the world. and we continue to follow further. this damage has consequences for americans every single day. the average damage to a car is over $500 a year in maintenance due to poor road conditions. more than $125 billion a year to the economy with congestion being stuck in traffic. because of poor road conditions, infrastructure failures and an inability to keep pace with growth, there are people being killed and injured every day across america. it doesn't have to be this way.

the failure to get a six-year re-authorization, which we haven't had since 1998, is due to one simple fact. congress is still trying to pay for 2015 infrastructure with 1993 dollars. the solution is simple. over three dozen members of congress have co-sponsored legislation to raise the gas tax for the first time in 22 years. legislation that is supported by the u.s. chamber of commerce, afl-cio, local government transit, environmentalists, contractors. the largest collection of groups supporting any major issue before congress. it's a solution that was advocated by president ronald reagan when he led the effort in his administration to raise the gas tax 125%. it's a solution thates that been embraced by six red

republican -- that has been embraced by six red republican states already this year. the latest failure to slide into the end of october is our salvation. i lobbied president obama to call for an end to this charade. every year the president has offered and approach from his perspective. i would urge the congress and all of us to draw one final red line. this october 31 deadline ought to be it. let congress stew, let things grind to a halt if we don't do our job. the gas tax legislation's already written and can be approved if the ways and means committee and the senate finance committee would deal with it for a week. it's a simple one-page bill. it is not necessary to tie ourselves in knots, and then if we give a number to the authorizing committee, in a

matter of weeks they can develop that six-year bill that would make such a difference. we could meet the president's deadline, have this done once and for all put hundreds of thousands of people to work at family wage jobs all across the country, improving the quality of life, making our communities more livable our families safer, healthier and more economically secure and stop playing with gimmicks that highlight our dysfunction. let's prove to the american public and more important to us that we can actually function the way things were designed using a user fee perfectly atuned to road needs that have served us well for over half a century. please, mr. president, why don't you call an end to this charade? give congress three more months to do our job. it doesn't need any more. we operate from cliff to crisis. deadlines are simply in our

alarm clock to get started. well, this particular alarm clock could start ticking time if you're calling a halt to our continued irresponsibility. the speaker pro tempore: members are reminded to direct their remarks to the chair. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen, for five minutes. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you mr. speaker. a bad deal is a bad deal under a republican president or a democratic president, and this iran nuclear deal is a bad deal because we have seen this movie before. we know how it ends. i have repeatedly stated that iran has been following the north korean playbook on exactly how to extract concessions from the united states and the international community while simultaneously continuing to improve its nuclear program expand its infrastructure and support its illicit activities.

many analysts have made the same observations including allen in a jerusalem post article last week. it's not just how the process unfolded and how the international community fell for the tricks of the roads of the regime that is so scary because iran saw north korea as having been the victors in the battle over its nuclear program so naturally it would want to replicate that. but it is alarming and striking just how similar the rhetoric is between president clinton's announcement of a nuclear agreement with north korea and president obama's announcement of a nuclear agreement with iran. let's look at the similarities that he noted between president clinton's remarks in 1994 and president obama's from earlier this month. then mr. speaker, it will be easy to understand why so many of us oppose this nuclear deal. in 1994, president clinton said that the north korea agreement will make the u.s., the korean

peninsula and the world safer. earlier this month, president obama said that this deal will bring about change that makes the u.s. and the world safer and more secure. in 1994, president clinton assured the world that the north korea deal, quote, does not rely on trust, compliance will be certified by the international atomic energy agency end quote. last week, president obama proclaimed, quote, this deal is not built on trust. it's built on verification end quote. president clinton predicted, as now we are painfully aware inaccurately, that the north korea agreement would be, quote, a crucial step toward drawing north korea into the global community, end quote. and predicted the end of the rogue regime's isolation. similarly, last week's statements poses that the iran deal quote, offers an opportunity to move in a new direction, end quote because we have taken a different path

that quote leads to more integration into the global economy, more engagement with the international community and the ability of the iranian people to prosper and thrive, end quote. hmm. and of course, there was the spurious promise to an ally to as you wage them that we didn't -- assuage them that we wouldn't put them in jeopardy. first, we were told we would protect south korea. now, president obama knowing that israel vehemently objects to this deal and feels this gives iran an threat to its existence and a regime that has promised to wipe the jewish state off the map, the ultimate weapon to achieve its goals promises to, quote, continue our effort to strengthen israel's security efforts that go beyond what any american administration has done before end quote. not only are they empty words

mr. speaker, they are not to boot. one of the most significant flaws is it failed to dismantle any of north korea's nuclear infrastructure. the deal, as was designed merely to delay the north korean bomb, not prevent it, and that is what this nuclear deal with iran is designed to do. we saw what happened with north korea and we can be sure that iran plans to follow suit. the totality of this deal hinges on a bet by the administration and the rest of the p-5 plus one that the iranian regime will see the error of its ways and wants to be part of the global community and fore sake its support for terror and -- forsake its support for terror and other illicit behavior. that's a gamble to play with national security and it's not a gamble that i or anyone should be willing to take and that's why mr. speaker, we should reject this deal and demand a better deal or else reimpose the sanctions and use

the only thing, the only tactic that iran understands, strength to force it to abandon its nuclear ambitions. thank you, mr. speaker, for the time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. gutierrez for five minutes. mr. gutierrez: yesterday, i spoke about puerto rico's debt crisis and how there must be a sense of urgency because without action bondholders will be pay but teachers, cops and nurses won't. i want to continue today make two points. let's not let the bondholders bleed puerto rico at a discount. number two, let's work together what unites us not what divides us. because the only way we will make any progress is if the people of puerto rico will come together and make a plan and demand that the united states will work with puerto rico on puerto rico's plan. without consistent pressure from puerto rico, washington will do nothing, as both the administration and the congress are content to let the

bondholders on wall street call the tune. we all know washington should start with h.r. 870, the bankruptcy bill. it is simply a bill that will allow puerto rico to declare bankruptcy and restructure its debt within the u.s. legal system. this would allow an orderly and fair restructure of the debt in a court of law. it is an important step but will not solve all of puerto rico's problems. what puerto rico should do right now is demand to know what wall street vullchur capitalists are reporting for bonds. we're told they're selling 15 cents to 20 cents on the dollar yet the bondholders want a full dollar on the interest. they need to pay for the price and should disclose this amount. just as a congressman does in this congress every time we make an investment. then, puerto rico can service its debt based on what was paid to buy the debt. i came here to protect people, not the profits of billionaires

on wall street. secondly and most importantly for the time being we must set aside politics and get away from the smokescreen of the status issue in puerto rico. whether puerto rico should be a state, an independent nation or remain a commonwealth cannot be the priority right now before this congress. if everyone leaves puerto rico, and they're leaving by 5,000 a month, it will not matter what kind of government is left behind. mr. speaker, nobody should use the current debt crisis as an opportunity to score political points for their party. at a time when the people of puerto rico must be clear, precise and unified the status issue divides puerto ricans. i read in "the new york times" the argument of the resident commissioner of the statehood party that the only solution to puerto rico's problems is to make it a state. really? that is going to solve the debt crisis? the power crisis? the public employees pension

gap crisis? the medicare advantage budget crisis? we should be working together to figure out how puerto rico is going to pay teachers and honor their pensions. how we will make sure health care is delivered to all and bridges do not collapse. a statehood bill is not going to create housing, create jobs or heal a sick child. when members of congress ask me about puerto rico, they ask me which is it is it statehood, do you want a bankruptcy bill, do you want more medicaid? we have to prioritize. we have to be clear and put aside the status issue. please, we need to work together. and i'd like to use my remaining minute to restate my call to action in spanish. [speaking spanish]

thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will provide a translation of his remarks. the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from north carolina mr. holding, for five minutes. mr. holding: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to recognize an outstanding family business in my home state of north carolina. when southern piping company opened in 1965, it had two

employees and a loan from the small business administration. the two employees were peggy and her husband. who was one of the first licensed mechanical contractors in north carolina. s.p.c., a classic family business with all three of peggy and buren's sons, continue to lead the company. since 1965 the s.p.c. family have weathered recessions, hard times, and over the years through good old-fashioned hard work, they have grown. starting with one office in wilson, s.p.c. has expanded their plumbing heating, and air conditioning business to four offices statewide, and their trucks are a familiar sight on the roads across north carolina. the biggest story is the family they built through s.p.c. today providing jobs to 450 people. when it came to building the company buren always had a

commonsense philosophy. he said, successful companies look for like-minded people to do business with. and today southern piping company is adopting a new name, s.p.c. mechanical. to more accurately describe its growth and success. the family still practices the old-fashioned principles of integrity safety, and giving back to their community. for example, by offering young employees scholarships to attend nearby -- to attend a nearby college. they have now been in business for 50 years. it is my pleasure today to recognize the accomplishments of peggy and buren. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. hinojosa, for five minutes. mr. hinojosa: mr. speaker, i'd like to address the house for five minutes. request unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks in the congressional record.

the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. hinojosa: mr. speaker, i am proud to rise -- to recognize my long time chief of staff, connie jane humphrey, who is retiring after a long and distinguished career on capitol hill. it is an honor and a privilege to mr. speaker, recognize connie's many years of service and achievements. she has proven herself as a talented and dedicated public servant who has made innumerable contributions in the service of my constituents, residing in texas' 15th congressional district along the rio grande valley. connie has compiled a long list of accomplishments throughout her career and as a senior member of my staff. she has earned an impeccable

reputation on capitol hill among her peers and my colleagues in the texas congressional delegation with whom she has worked very closely in support of our mutual objectives for our great state of texas. connie brought an array of talents and experience as my chief of staff. she has a thorough understanding of federal policy, particularly in the areas of health care education transportation, the environment, and on women's issues. she is fluent in many other policy areas important to mire -- my constituents in the valley as she has been an invaluable source of guidance and counsel during my appointments on the house education and work force as well as on the financial services committees. connie approaches her position as the leader of my office with a training and detail oriented

scruteniff an attorney who graduated from the university of maryland. and with the policy expertise of a constituent -- congressional aide who served a staff leadership positions for nearly three decades. she was instrumental in helping me lead the work force innovation and opportunity act of 2010 which is aiding organizations like work force solutions based in mcallen, texas, and is committed to the success of the employers and work force of the rio grande valley. by matching them with skilled productive employees and upgrading the skills of their current work force. connie has been particularly effective in helping me address urgent needs in deep south texas. latino students aspiring to attain the dream of a college education are that much closer to realizing their hopes.

thanks to connie's involvement resulting in passage of the higher education opportunity act and the student loan and health care wreck sellation bill of 2010. -- health care and reconciliation bill of 2010. particularly for latino and minority serving higher education institutions in our contry. this crew -- country. this crucial legislation also created an unprecedented health care system that complements the patient protection and affordable care act of 2010 that connie also played a major role in helping shepherd through the education and work force committee, and that is now providing millions of americans with affordable health care who previously had no coverage. mr. speaker, it's -- it is with much more than coincidence that

the high school graduation rate in my congressional district has accelerated from 55% to 85% during connie's tenure as my chief of staff. this sharp increase has lifted up a generation of young latinos who are making significant contributions to our communities and regional economy, and it's a direct result of connie's advocacy and leadership contributing to the passage of each of these four aforeaforementioned bills. she's public laws constitute my collection of legislation in my congressional office that i was very proud to pass as either chairman or ranking member of the higher education and work force training subcommittee with connie at the helm of my office. i thank connie for her tireless efforts to take two new land international bridges design to

stimulate commercial activity, economic growth and in the rio grande vally. her intimate knowledge of the transportation policy was a key element in the process culminating in the approval of presidential permits that paved the way to open the donna rio bravo and saduas international bridges. similarly she was instrumental in securing $300 million in federal investments for flood relief levee improvements along the texas and mexican borders. we still remember the impact of hurricane dolly in 2008 that brought between a foot and 15 inches of rain to the valley. hurricane ike followed shortly thereafter with storm surges as high as 20 feet and cost almost $20 billion in -- caused almost $20 billion in damages. my district would have been more

highly susceptible to damage and our residents even more imperiled if the levees were breached by a hurricane or heavy rains without her assistance. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. mr. hinojosa: property was spared during the landful in 2010 when the rio grande river crested to a record of 59 feet and in the wake of economic crisis connie led my team in preparing our communities to apply for assistance that ultimately received over half a billion dollars for the county alone under the arra. mr. speaker i am saddened to lose connie as a trusted and beloved member of my staff but i am happy for her as she embarks upon a new endeavor as the senior vice president of public and community relations and special counsel of the doctors hospital at renaissance where she will continue to serve my constituents in the unique

position to help the hospital deliver and expand the ridge of health care to underserved communities and economically disadvantaged families. i wish to again thank connie for all of her hard work, steadfast commitment to the people of south texas, and for her skillful management of my staff and congressional offices on behalf of the 15th congressional district of texas, i congratulate connie for her excellent service and for a job very well-done. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. costello for five minutes. mr. costello: mr. speaker, this past sunday was a special and historic day. it marked 25 years since the americans with disabilities act was signed into law. the a.d.a. has had a profound impact on our country and its citizens. it speaks to the best about our country. forming a more perfect union it aims to provide equal

opportunity for those who have a disability. this anniversary, i feel, allows us to reflect on something that unites us. that is, it's estimated that one in five americans is living with a disability. disabilities affect individuals in every congressional district in this country in every state in every neighborhood. it touches the lives of everyone. race, gender, income no demographic is exempt from disability. this law provides hope for those who have a disability and offers promise that opportunities exist for self-fulfillment. on both a philosophical and practical level, it stands for the proposition that providing reasonable accommodation to those with a disability is how a civil society addresses an imbalance born through no fault of the individual. the law and its legislative

regulatory and judicial progeny enables us to address issues such as public transportation, housing, education, social services in a more thoughtful proactive, effective, and humane way. and while there is no doubt that substantial progress has been made, i am not here on the house floor to say that our work is done. because it isn't. but thanks to the law, about 50 million americans have been helped. and that doesn't include their families and loved one who is can point to how laws do matter and can make a positive impact. so let's focus on the challenges that we still confront that relate to access and opportunity. on holding up the standard of self-sufficiency for individuals with a disability and looking at how public policy can be shaped to help achieve this standard for disabled americans. and the crux is often that time

between ending in the classroom and looking for employment opportunity. just yesterday i met with abilities in motion, an organization in my district that provides outstanding services to individuals and families in burks county. during our discussion, i heard from individuals and parents through grit and determination were able and are able to navigate the complex maze of programs and services and funding streams to coordinate caregivers, transportation, and employment in the post academic world. let's focus on streamlining and better integrating these programs and funding streams. and let's focus on encouraging job opportunities for disabled individuals who want to work and build a meaningful career. let's also focus on improving transportation options so that individuals who want to work are able to get to work without difficulty.

let's continue to set forth and advance good policy like the able act from last congress which will encourage individuals and families to save tax-free dollars to help finance the cost associated with disabilities. i'm grateful for the tireless work of abilities in motion and other organizations that serve families and individuals in my district such as the national federation of the blind, the arc alliance, the disability rights network, and pennsylvania statewide independent living council. these organizations, their employees and volunteers workday in and day out to improve everyday lives. . let's also thank the families who sacrificed for their loved ones who have a disability. and let's recognize the courage and the hard work that those who have a disability endure every day to become

self-sufficient. it really speaks to what's great about this country. everyone out there who suffers from a disability and wakes up every day with optimism and purpose, you are to be commended. you are the american success story. mr. speaker, over the past 25 years, the a.d.a. has increased accessibility and empowered millions of americans with disabilities. it's important to acknowledge the progress, but it's also important to recognize that there are still challenges that we should address from a public policy perspective. we must continue our efforts in a bipartisan manner to advance policy that keeps us a step ahead, that meets the needs of disability americans today and tomorrow. i yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the district of columbia, ms. norton, for five minutes. ms. norton: mr. speaker, work on the nation's bridges, highways and transit has all

but stopped because of 34 patch extensions that keep everything except patchwork on hold. today, the house is rushing out of town early, leaving a new three-month patch. this time, though, the republican house is scrambling out of the capitol literally getting away from the republican senate which had been trying for a six-year bill. the republican house my way or the highway was addressed to the republican senate and the public itself be damned and it worked. the republican senate has given up on the nation's infrastructure too. the republican senate announced this morning they will accept the house's three-month patch.

six months of control of the house and senate by the republicans has made congress even more dysfunctional. the house -- the new house's three-month patch has nothing to do with roads and bridges. who knows what will get done? house republicans see political goals at the end of their three-month road when the must-pass highway bill can serve purposes such as the usual dangerous dispute over extension of the debt ceiling. yet republican and democratic states alike keep continuing to -- keep continuing their part of the state-federal partnership. 18 states and the district of

columbia have raised their gas user fee going as high as 10 cents increase in iowa and in wyoming but the roads bridges and transit remains stalled because the federal partner keeps dropping out. more than half of funds for a nationwide system that connects states with one another comes from the federal trust fund. during the 34 patched delays, not a lick of work on a final bill has been done except the senate's current try at a six-year bill. no serious talks here on alternatives to the gas user fee although it long ago was swallowed by fuel efficiency that leaves the transit trust fund thirsty for refill after a

year and a half or so. democrats have offered four alternatives to the current user fee that is the legacy of the eisenhower years. the republicans have offered none. congress has refused to raise the federal user fee since 1992, adding to the woes of the 1950 method we use to pay for our roads. the republican house runs out of town today to hide from the republican senate. as they run home, i can only hope they run into the arms of their own angry constituents on their own rickety roads. house republicans can run but they can't hide from their own broken down bridges, roads and transit back home. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back.

the chair recognizes the gentleman from nevada, mr. hardy, for five minutes. mr. hardy: mr. speaker, i rise today in order to address a concern that anyone who has ever owned or run a business truly understands the negative effects on unchecked government regulations in our american economy. no matter how large or small the federal regulations are being added each day into law by hundreds and even sometimes by thousands. most of which are not directly approved by congress. by allowing washington bureaucrats to continue to stuff the overwhelming amount of regulations into the connolly passed legislation we are essentially handing over the authority to the federal agencies to legislate as they please. it is our -- into the congressly passed legislation, we are essentially handing over the authority to the federal agencies to legislate as they

please. we need to tell our constituents they are not left behind. during this congress, we made great stride in reforming a regulation process in order to help the economy grow. a great example of that occurred yesterday with the passage of the reins act. there should be no question that any regulation that makes an annual impact of $100 million on the economy should require congressional approval before it could become law. as my colleagues are aware, a copy of the day's federal register is delivered to each of our offices daily. this book provides a hard copy of every new regulation that ranges from environmental protection to labor standards to health guidelines to restrictions on financial institutions. last year the federal register contained over 77,000 pages with 3,554 new regulations.

even though this large number of pages is absurd, it's only the sixth highest page count in the federal register's history. as of this morning, the 2015 federal register sits at over 45,000 pages. it is unthinkable to me that the most important document, the constitution can fit in 39 pages in this little book. in comparison to the july 13th edings of the federal register -- edition of the federal register, that's 627 pages, and only one of three editions from that day alone. mr. speaker when is enough enough? and when does it become too much? the continual expans of our government, though a vast amount of regulations causes our economy to be shaky and unstable as the stacks of the federal registers stacked in my

office from this year, which is unacceptable and very concerning. and even larger issue comes from how the general public is made aware of these proposed rules and the opportunity to voice their concerns on the rules. while we are provided with a daily index of rules and new regulations through the federal register, the american taxpayer whom we work for, are left in the dark. these regulations do not take into account the economic impact that is placed on the american businesses and the families. each new regulation can lead to higher prices for goods, lower wages and job losses. in 2014, the federal regulations cost the american family an estimated $1.88 trillion in the yearly financial burden, representing roughly $15,000 per household. this cost is larger than the

economy of canada, larger than the economy of mexico, larger than the economies of australia russia, spain and south korea just to name a few. in fact, the economy of nine nations in this world are larger than the cost of our regulations. although all size businesses in the industry feel the effects of regulations, it is small businesses that feel this due to the cost to comply. limited comment periods and the lack of information pertaining to how they make their opinions heard, business owners are usually those left out in the cold. i ask my colleagues to join me in demanding more transparency in the regulatory and rulemaking process because it is our duty to our constituents and with that mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from florida, mr.

grayson, for five minutes. mr. grayson: thank you. 50 years ago this week president lyndon johnson signed a law that created medicare and medicaid, the most important health care programs in our country's history prior to the affordable care act. with one stroke of his pen president johnson guaranteed both poor americans and older americans the right to high-quality affordable medical treatment. thanks to medicare, for 50 years now our seniors received the health care they needed to stay healthy and to live a full life. but despite the success, there are gaps in medicare coverage that need to be closed. the most glaring gap is the fact that medicare does not provide basic medical coverage for seniors' eyes, ears and teeth. it's as though medicare assumes that seniors don't need to see or to hear or to chew.

we're not talking about exotic high-tech treatments. we mean no medicare coverage for eyeglasses, eye examines, cavity fillings or dentures. we're talking about no procedures that leads to lost teeth, gum disease which is strongly linked to heart disease. it's unthinkable we deny our seniors this elementary level of care. there are 2.7 million seniors in america who are blind. how many of them would be able to see today if they'd receive a simple annual eye exam as part of their medicare coverage? medicare is a promise that we make to ourselves, the young the old one generation to the next. the promise is after you reach your 65th birthday your medical needs will be met.

to keep that promise, our seniors have paid into the system for half a century, in some cases, before they receive a single earned benefit. they deserve the best care we can provide to them. this week to honor the 50th anniversary of this life-saving program we call medicare, i'm introducing the seniors have eyes ears and teeth act. this bill will amend title 18 the medicare provision of the social security act, to repeal the arbitrary exclusion from medicare coverage of eyeglasses, eye exams hearing aids, dental care. two short lines in the u.s. code have barred that coverage for 50 years. i simply delete those lines. i urge my congressional colleagues to enact this quick, easy and necessary reform. medicare should provide health coverage for every part of your body, including eyes, ears and

teeth. over 50 million americans enjoy medicare coverage. to celebrate the 50th anniversary of medicare, let's guarantee to 50 million americans the health care that they need to look into the eyes of the ones they love to see our fourth of july fireworks each year and to hear it when freedom rings. thank you. i yield. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. paulsen, for five minutes. mr. paulsen: thank you mr. speaker. earlier this summer, democrats and republicans came together to pass a trade authorization bill that set the standards for any trade deal that the united states negotiates with other countries. it guarantees oversight by congress. it guarantees transparency for the public, and it guarantees that our negotiators have the opportunity to get the best deal for our workers, our farmers, our ranchers and our

employers. this week trade negotiators from 12 different countries around the pacific rim are meeting in hawaii for negotiations for the trans-pacific partnership. it's a deal that will open doors for american businesses to sell their products overseas and create jobs right here at home. the fact of the matter is this. 95% of the world's consumers live outside of the united states. 80% of the world's purchasing power is outside of the united states. we need to allow our american companies to compete and to be able to sell their products and goods and services or we will fall behind. . this will acts a counter weight to china. if the united states doesn't write the rules for the global economy china will write them and it won't be to the been fit of american workers and businesses. mr. speaker, while congress and the americans, people should and will vet any deal that results from the current transpacific

partnership negotiations, it is important to understand what a successful agreement will mean here at home. for starters, it means boosting pay and higher wages. that's because jobs that rely on trade pay 18% higher than those jobs that don't. it also means boosting job growth right here in america. that's because one in five jobs are tied to trade. in minnesota 775000 jobs are currently supported by trade and new trade with asia will enhance and support that opportunity to build on new success. it also means boosting our country's small, medium sized businesses. in minnesota, 90% of these small businesses are the companies that export goods and services. that being said, there's still work that needs to be done by our negotiators to make sure they reach an agreement that is the best for the american people. we need cooperation from the other countries that are involved in these negotiations. canada needs to step up to put -- to the plate on tariff and quota issues dealing with their dairy and egg industries.

japan needs to step up on agriculture issues. progress still needs to be made to ensure the american intellectual property is protected. however, with commitment from our trading partners, i am confident that we can overcome these remaining hurdles. mr. speaker, we need trade deals where everyone benefits and everyone follows the rules. we live in an interconnected world we should be embracing opportunities that open more markets for american goods and services. it's time to show the world that america will continue to lead the way in the 21st century global economy. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the the gentlewoman from florida ms. wilson, for five minutes. ms. wilson: mr. chair i rise today with a heavy heart and i'm

deeply saddened by the death of norme miami-dade county police director, robert parker. i extend my sincerees sympathies to his family at this -- sincerest sympathies to his family at this difficult time. he was a friend and true humanitarianian. throughout his career in law enforcement with the miami-dade county police department he was committed to making south florida a safe place to work, live, and to visit. he was well respected and celebrated. and he fought to create opportunities for men and women of color. as a long time mentor and leader of the 5,000 low models of excellence project, he worked closely with me to save at-risk minority boys and young men. his impact is evidenced by the thousands of success stories of role model boys who under his mentorship have gone on to

college and thriving careers. the 5,000 role models of excellence project in south florida owe to director parker a huge debt of gratitude. director parker testified before congress on behalf of violence in black communities. he testified before congress about the tragic death of trayvon martin. he went on to be featured on cnn, msnbc, and all of our local tv shows. because of his knowledge, he went on to serve as a consultant for cities all over this country. our boys in our community were so very, very proud of this wonderful role model. director parker adored his family his sweet, sweet grandchildren, his daughter his son, his son and devoted wife, the love of his life. our great nation has lost a patriot who lived to embody the

principles of equality, justice, and freedom upon which america is founded. to fully understand our loss, you must first understand the treasure that we all shared in director parker. director parker showed that by the caring nature growing up as a child in the rural community of monticello, florida. he bravely served in the united states army. he joined the miami police department in 1976 and it was still known as the dade county police safety department. he was a bright and egger young officer who wanted to make his community safer. director parker was an officer's officer. he worked hard, he made great sacrifices for his career throughout the love and support of his family. he enjoyed a storied rise up the ladder of police leadership baufs his determination to solve crimes. he was affectionately called

bobby by his friends and colleagues but he was also nicknamed marathon man. he nameously earned that name by giving a foot chase to catch one of the most notorious deeds in miami-dade county history. the suspect had consistently eluded capture of -- because he was too crafty and fast for most officers but not too fast for robert parker. his determination is what set him apart from others. he did not view his responsibility to his community as an adjective, something that was hard or tedious. however he saw it as a verb. it was something that he had to do. he was never concerned about the spotlight or awards, but his dutiful and bravey it almost impossible to deny him wreck nation. his service to south florida and our nation had an underlying theme that permanent nated

everything -- permeated everything he did his love of his community. he understood the best police officers are not the police that wore the badges but the people who paid the mortgages who sent their children to school, and who worked hard to build their community. residents were always quick to admire the notion of no snitching and gave director parker information that solved crimes. his sense of community and respect eventually led to his promotion to director of the miami-dade department in 2004. his appointment was historic. by his being the very first african-american to hold that post and he opened the door for many others to follow. dade county has the largest police force in the southeast united states, leading over 4 ,700 sworn and civilian employees. as director, he worked to create a more diverse agency and create

opportunities for minorities and women. he was an exemplary leader and even earned the respect of the police union. he retired in 2009 after 33 years. his absence will create a huge void. mr. speaker, america has lost an iconic law enforcement, his legacy will live in the hearts of all of us forever. i ask that these remarks be entered into the official congressional record. they will then be permanently placed in the library of congress. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. the chair will receive a message. the messenger: mr. speaker, a message from the senate. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: madam secretary. the secretary: i have been directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate has passed s. 614, cited as the federal proper payments coordination act of 2015, in

which the concurrence of the house is requested. some the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, responsible use and recycle of coal ash has the ability to reduce waste, provide construction materials and keep utility costs low. this past april the e.p.a. released yet another rule aimed at coal by mandating new standards for the disposal of storage of coal combustion residuals. as a result of this proposal, the house considered and passed h.r. 1734, the improving coal combustion residuals regulation act of 2015. this legislation codifies the final proposal rule while giving flexibility to the states to implement. specifically, h.r. 1734 will allow states to create and

enforce their own coal ash recycling permit programs. it also sets up enforceable state permit programs while utilizing the e.p.a.'s minimum requirements that will protect jobs. states also have the option to make their requirements more stringent than the e.p.a.'s final rule if they choose. i strongly support and was happy to vote for h.r. 1734 and the responsible use of coal and coal ash. mr. speaker, recently i visited the research natural area of the allegheny national forest. this old growth area is home to many 600-year-old hem lock trees. -- hemlock trees. during this visit i spoke with forestry individuals to combat the invasive insect to one of these trees. mr. speaker, many states are involved in the efforts to fight

this bug which originated in japan. it can kill hemlocks within a few years after they become infested. 2012, i teamed with federal researchers and those from my alma mater, penn state university, in a forum i hosted to discuss efforts to save our state tree, the eastern hemlock. as chairman of the conservation forestry subcommittee i'm proud pennsylvania is among those leading the way in fighting this disease and protecting our forests and the economic stimulus these forests provide both through timber and tourism. making sure that these magnificent trees have stood for centuries will stand tall for future generations. mr. speaker, on sunday, july 26 we marked the 25th anniversary of the americans with disabilities act. the passage of this landmark legislation signified a commitment to eliminating barriers faced by millions of individuals with differing levels of disability. it required businesses,

buildings, transportation, and other services to accommodate those living with disabilities and guaranteed equal opportunities for workers with disabilities. 25 years later, as a parent, we have made tremendous strides in upholding the intent of this vastly important civil rights law. today countless americans are empowered to shape their own lives and plan their own futures as they experience their daily obstacles decreasing over time. now while we have so much to celebrate, there's always more progress to be made. this congress i introduced the special needs trust fairness act with the goal of eliminating a current prohibition on a person with a disability to create his or own special needs trust. this long overdue legislative fix was recently passed by the senate finance committee, and i'm committed to working with my colleagues to guide this and similar measures through the legislative processes here in the house. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, ms. sanchez, for five minutes. ms. sanchez: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, we are on a dangerous path. first, my republican colleagues pulled two critical appropriation bills from the floor simply because their party cannot come to an agreement on a flag that represents a very dark time in our nation's history. second, my colleagues across the aisle rather than focusing their energy on passing comprehensive immigration reform passed a poisonous anti-immigrant bill in response to an isolated incident in the city of san francisco. pulling money away from our law enforcement funding for public safety. then they refused to authorize the export-import bank which helps ensure that americans' businesses can compete with

their global competitors. and now the house republicans refuse to come to the table yet again to provide a robust, long-term funding bill for our decaying infrastructure system in america. why do we continue to refuse and cut services that our communities need? the american people need good paying jobs. safe and modern infrastructure and efficient transportation in order to provide a better life for themselves and their families. we need to stop these stopgap extensions. how do we fix a broken bridge or broken highway? two months of highway funding will not do that. in my home state of california 60% of our roads are in poor or mediocre condition. and moreover, almost 30% of

california's bridges have been recognized by the department of transportation as structurally deficient. and just a little bit over a week ago california residents experienced the real life consequences of this statistic when the interstate 10, which connects california and arizona, collapsed. . jurring a resident and shut -- injuring a resident and shutting down the highway. this is critical for the southwest which is suffering from deficiencies from the drought we have going on. with more than 60,000 bridges throughout the united states in need of drastic repairs failing to provide americans with a long-term highway bill, we're putting jobs at risk and we're putting our lives at risk. which is why my fellow house democrats have come together to

provide a six-year -- a six-year funding bill known as the grow america act. the bill will provide $478 billion over six years so that states and local municipalities can address critical infrastructure needs. this commonsense legislation would help pay for the investments by ending an unfair tax loophole and limiting corporate inversions, meaning that big corporations, when they're renouncing their united states citizenship they do that in order to avoid paying taxes. let's use that money for transportation investments here in america. investing in local public transportation projects not only helps to improve our traffic flow but it also helps

create good jobs. as we look for ways to put our economy back on track, we must be mindful of the services that we provide to the american people. we need to stop slashing and we need to start providing. we need to get away from sequestration and patchwork funding mentality to actually fulfill our duty as public servants in and to the american people. our families and our roads and our economy deserve a highway funding bill that will invest in america's future. it will invest in better infrastructure. it will invest in bigger paychecks for our hardworking families who are trying to make it in america. i yield the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the chair recognizes the

gentleman from florida, mr. posey, for five minutes. mr. posey: thank you mr. speaker. i rise today on matters of research and scientific integrity. to begin with, i am absolutely resolutey pro-vaccine. advancements in medical immunization have saved countless lives and greatly benefited public health. that being said, it's troubling to me that in a recent designate hearing on childhood vaccinations it was never mentioned that our government has paid out over $3 billion through a vaccine injury compensation program for children who have been injured by vaccinations. regardless of the subject matter, parents making decisions about their children's health deserve to have the best information available to them. they should be able to count on federal agencies to tell them the truth.

for these reasons, i bring the following matter to the house floor. in august 2014, dr. william thompson a senior scientists at the centers for disease control and prevention, worked with a whistleblower attorney to provide my office with documents related to a 2004 c.d.c. study that examined the possibility of a relationships between mumps, measles, rubella and autism. in a statement released in august 2014, dr. thompson stated, i regret that my co-authors and i omitted statistically significant information in our 2004 article published in the journal of pediatrics, end quote. mr. speaker, i respectfully request the following excerpts from the statement written by dr. thompson be entered into the record. now quoting dr. thompson. my primary job duties while working in the immunization safety branch from 2000 to 2006 were to lead or co-lead three major vaccine safety studies.

the maddsp m.m.r., autism cases controlled studies were being carried out in response to the wakefield lancity study that suggested an autism-like health outcome. there were several major concerns between consumer advocates outside the c.d.c. following the execution of the study. one of the important goals that was determined upfront in the spring of 2001 before any of these studies started was to have all three protocols vetted outside the c.d.c. prior to the start of the analyses so that consumer advocates could not claim that we were presenting analyses that suited our own goals and biases. we hypothesized if we found statistically effects at either 18 or 36-month thresholds, we concluded that vaccines could

lead to autism characteristics or liked features. we -- the goal was to not deviate from the analysis plan to avoid the debacle that occurred with the study published in the pediatrics in 2003. at the september 5 meeting we discussed in detail how to code race for both a sample and the birth certificate sample. at the bottom of table 7, it also shows that for the nonbirth certificate sample, the adjusted race effect statistical significance was huge. all the authors and i met and decided somewhere between august and september 2002 not to report any race effects for the paper. sometime soon after the meeting we decided to exclude reporting any race effects, the co-authors scheduled a meeting to destroy documents related to the study. the remaining four co-authors

all met and brought a big garbage can into the meeting room and revuned went through all the hard copy documents that we thought we should discard and put them in a huge garbage can. however, because i assumed it was illegal and would violate both foia and d.o.j. requests, i kept hard copies of my office and i retained all associated computer files. i believe we intentionally withheld controversial findings from the final draft of the pediatrics paper, end of quote of the doctor. mr. speaker, i believe it's our duty to ensure that the documents dr. thompson provided are not ignored. therefore, i will provide them to members of congress and the house committees upon request. considering the nature of the whistleblower's documents as well as the involvement of the c.d.c., a hearing and a thorough investigation is warranted. so i ask mr. speaker, i beg i implore my colleagues on the

appropriations committees to please please take such action. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california mr. lamalfa, for five minutes. mr. lamalfa: thank you mr. speaker. mr. speaker, yesterday the house passed a measure i co-sponsored, h.r. 427, known as the reins act to end this administration's disregard for the separation of powers. the bill rightly reasserts congress' proper role in writing our nation's laws but requiring that any regulation written with accumulative impact of over $100 million be reviewed and approved by congress before going into effect. instead of the stifling innovation that we've seen the effects of this. too often we've seen this administration attempt to use creative interpretation of the law or aggressive rulemaking that have had a massive negative impact on our states'

economy, resulting in higher prices, thousands of dollars per cost additionally per family per year, lower wages, less working hours or complete loss of job opportunities altogether. for example the proposed waters of the united states regulation would insert the environmental protection agency in local land use planning areas across the nation. do we really need the federal government telling us how to landscape our own back yards? is that even proper? i think not. do we really think the federal government should be regulating man-made ditches along country roads or fields or dry stream beds and puddles which hold water during and immediately after rain storms? or irrigation and draining ditches which wouldn't even exist if not created by water districts and the people involved? what a giant leap of grab of power by the federal government in asserting itself over these private properties via these regulations written by bureaucracies and not overseen

by congress directly. in my district, federal bureaucrats are unilaterally decided with no evidence or science that small depressions in fields, placing vast areas of land out of production. despite bipartisan congressional opposition, the administration's moving -- attempting to move forward with this aggressive regulation, waterways of the united states. mr. speaker, the examples this administration's careless decisions, eliminating jobs are almost too numerous to counsel. in 2014 federal regulations cost our economy $1.88 trillion in higher prices for food, energy and goods, averaging about $14,000 per u.s. household. this price tag is spiked thanks to president obama administration which add nearly 500 new regulations, 184 of those which combined to raise cost to americans about $80 billion.

81 new major regulations per year is the result. mr. speaker unelected bureaucrats shouldn't be imposing their will on the american people at a cost of billions of dollars each year. this is not the way to stop the difficult head winds our economy faces. indeed, this is causing more economic problems for us to recover from in this nation. it's time for the senate to join the house and send h.r. 427, the reins act, and help with our jobs economy, the boost we all need, that we needed for so long during this last six years. the reins act is needed to rein in out-of-control governments. even the president himself said in his state of the union address january 2011, he said that to reduce barriers to growth and investment when we find rules that put unnecessary burden on businesses, we need to fix them. the reins act is that fix.

let's get it done. let's get the senate to get it done. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee for five minutes. ms. jackson lee: i thank the speaker and ask to address the house and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, thank you very much. it gives me great privilege, first of all, to speak about the first item of interest to america and to many of us, certainly when the president represents the united states of america overseas. i had the privilege of traveling with the president for a most dynamic unique and historic mission and that was the kenya and ethiopia. let me congratulate him for his stupendous diplomatic success and interaction with a continent that will be the largest populated land area in the 21st century. what an amazing experience to be able to engage with

businesses and see the opportunity for economic empowerment and cooperation between the united states and the many nation states of the continent of africa. exciting to see new young business persons seeking an opportunity to work in their countries but work with the united states. eager to work with u.s. businesses, welcoming u.s. investment, creating jobs in africa, creating jobs in america. in particular, an energy or a broadcasting company that had been there for 50 years, creating jobs in the united states, creating jobs in kenya. so let me indicate what a success this story was, along with the regional security issues, a commitment with the african union to stand against boko haram and a commitment to establish civility and peace in south sudan by demanding there be a resolution of this by august 17. not the president standing alone but working with the african union, representing the

tens upon tens of african nations. it was a resounding success, and i congratulate the president. as i come home and a member of the judiciary committee, i'm reminded of the tragedy of a young woman who had all of her life before her and that was sandra bland. my commitment still is to offer my appreciation to the law enforcement officers across america, and as we all do respect law and order. but in the instance where there is a tragic result, the death of this young woman, 28 with two undergraduate degrees and a masters degree, her death with the result of malfeasance. and so we must walk together in a respectful manner with law enforcement and civilian. we have done it before. we must do it again. and i believe that it is crucial for the department of justice to take over this investigation on a number of aspects. dealing with law enforcement in the county and certainly the question of this young lady's civil rights. so i ask they look seriously

because even though there are alleged good intentions by the local authorities with establishing committees to review this this is not a regular order. this is not a procedure that works. no one understands how the district attorney, unless he yields to an independent prosecutor, which this district attorney is not, to have a committee of individuals with no authority whatsoever to review this matter, people are in pain, families are in pain and certainly we can do better as law enforcement and civilians working together. . i recognize this is the 50th year of the voting rights act and i join my leadership in celebrating and acknowledging this exciting time when it opened the doors of voting for everyone. one vote, one person. on august 6 i call upon my community in the 18th congressional district in houston to have a voting day. registering people to vote in a nonpartisan manner. bringing them out, celebrating the right to vote where many

countries do not have t let's make the voting right authorization, re-authorization the cause of this congress. let's have americans celebrate voting rights. finally, mr. speaker let me say this, i was in africa and one of the headlines was the killing of cecil. this beautiful lion that the country was -- nation i was in were falling to their knees because they believe in wildlife preservation. we enjoy it here in the nation's zoos. we haven't had the privilege of these wonderful animals of giraffes and lions and tigers and a whole array, and to think it was an american who killed this lionly lion, what a disgrace. this individual is a disgrace. this individual had the responsibility for knowing in his guide and procedures of doing this kill for sport. and he lured this animal out of his preservation. america must stand with kenya

and ethiopia and other african-americans in -- african nations in showing the outrage and sadly it was a citizen of the united states who was more interested in personal privilege and pleasure than he was in understanding this iconic lion, the last male species of this kind with a black main -- maine and a giant of a personality -- mane and giant of a personality. yet we couldn't find any other joy than killing cecil. i'm saddened by this and america should be saddened as well. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from georgia, mr. price, for five minutes. mr. price: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker sometimes the

terrorism that we witness in this day and age is a world away. sometimes it occurs very close to home. two weeks ago terror visited chattanooga, tennessee. in so doing hit home for us in georgia. one of the five service men murdered on july 16 in chattanooga grew up in the sixth district of georgia, graduated from high school in 2012. skip wells was a marine. was a proud marine. a proud american. he was a hero. last week in georgia thousands gathered to honor the life of this patriot, skip wells who lost his life in the terrorist attack in chattanooga. nothing we say will replace the loss, the heartbreak, the pain and family and friends, those who knew him best, but we can

say how much heroes enlighten us and inspire us and strengthen the faith in our nation and in our own lives. skip wells is a hero. it's been said that a hero is someone who has given his life to something bigger than one's self. that's precisely what skip did. his closest friends said that skip wells felt called to serve, to protect. when asked why skip joined the marines, a friend of skip's told folks simply that skip just loved his country. he knew that freedom isn't free. he knew that liberty requires sacrifice. and what an inspiration his dedication and his heroism is for all of us. chesterton said that the true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him

but because he loves what is behind him. skip wells loved his family, he loved his friends, he loved the marines, oh how he loved the marines. he loved his country. his death in the service of this great nation places him in the ranks of those with the greatest of valor. so on behalf of all who represent this nation, we send our deepest and heartfelt thanks and sympathy to skip's family and his friends on their tragic loss. and we all every single american, mourn for those who make the ultimate sacrifice for this great land. the bible says, blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. and in its broadest sense this verse is so very very true. in the book of john, we read that greater love at-no one than

this than -- hath no one than this than lay down his life for his friends. to his mom, his freands family, you may be very, very proud of skip and his ultimate sacrifice that he gave to our contry. may god's grace comfort you in this difficult time. please know that a grateful nation loves you and mourns with you and may we never ever, ever forget skip wells and the great men and women who stand in harm's way every single day and protect this, the greatest nation on earth. may god bless us all and may he continue to bless the united states of america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from florida, mr. curbelo, for foof minutes. -- five minutes. mr. curbelo: mr. speaker, i rise today with a heavy heart to

recognize the 24th of august as the 23rd anniversary of hurricane andrew. on this date in 1992, the category five storm made landfall on elliott key and homestead, florida, killing 26 immediately with dozens more fatalities from injuries stemming from the storm's aftermath. we continue to mourn this loss of life. the winds of hurricane andrew were calculated at 164 miles per hour and completely wiped out homestead air force base. until hurricane katrina in 2005 andrew was the costliest storm in u.s. history totaling $had 3.7 billion when -- totaling $ 23.7 billion when adjusted for inflation. they noticed much of the destruction was due to substandard construction

standards. florida now has the strongest build building codes in the nation. furthermore, homes are now required to have storm shutters or impact resistant glass. while we will never be able to fully prevent damage from a serious storm, we can mitigate the damage caused and thus reduce the costs of rebuilding our neighborhoods. the national hurricane center located at florida international university in my congressional district provides important research on the effects these storms have on our coast canline and maintains a -- coastline and maintains a continuous watch on developing weather patterns that could become a tropical storm. i was able to tour this center earlier in the year and commend their efforts. the memory of andrew forces us to remain cautious and vigilant so our communities and homes are protected. in the midst of this hurricane season, i strongly encourage all those in the potential path of these storms to have a plan

already in place to secure property and protect loved ones. by taking the appropriate preventive measures, we can ensure that our families and neighborhoods remain safe. storms have mr. speaker, i rise to offer my sincere gratitude to the brave law enforcement officials who prevented a terrorist plot from unfolding in key west. on july 28, it was announced that a key west man was arrested and charged with attempting to use a weapons of mass destruction. key west is the southern most point of not only my district but the entire united states. anyone who has visited the keys knows how truly special this part of our country is. not just for its natural beauty, but for the welcoming and creative people who call the keys home. a terrorist attack occurring

anywhere in the united states is a cause for serious alarm and i'm glad the efforts of one lone wolf were thwarted. it's important to recognize the f.b.i., the u.s. attorney's office, the south florida joint terrorism task force, the key west police department, the monroe county sheriff's office, and other law enforcement agencies for working together to neutralize this threat to key west and to our country. because of their efforts, an untold number of lives were saved. unfortunately this incident reminds us that we continue to be targeted by those who wish to do us harm. we must remain vigilant against these ongoing threats and ensure our law enforcement agencies continue to have the necessary resources to execute their critical mission.

mr. speaker, i rise to thank all those who attended the job fair in my district office hosted last month for employers and workers in the kendall area of south florida. we were able to connect over 1,000 of our friends and neighbors who are looking for work with hundreds of businesses, agencies, and nonprofit organizations. the feedback was positive from countless participants who said they were able to collect resumes from well qualified potential candidates for job opportunities. one of my main priorities here in congress is helping those who are most in need. at events like this job fair are an excellent way for communities to come together and find opportunities for people with all sorts of different skill sets. i'd also like to give special thanks to miami-dade college for hosting this terrific event. they provide excellent opportunities to south florida residents who are looking to further their education and learn new skills to enhance

their job credentials. i'm also very proud to note that miami-dade college was recently named a great college to work for the 7th consecutive year by the chronicle of higher education. south florida's fortunate to have a strong network of business leaders who work closely with educational institutions to help people find work. every job is an opportunity and today we celebrate the constituents in my district who have found gainful new employment as a result of the job fair at miami-dade college. with that mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from indiana, mrs. walorski, for five minutes. mrs. walorski: thank you mr. speaker. i rise today to recognize jenna of south wood junior senior high school for being selected to participate in the library of congress teaching with pry rarery sources summer teacher institute. her he dedication to providing

the highest quality of education to young hoosiers is nothing short of remarkable. educators participate in and develop primary source based teaching strategies they can take back to their school districts apply in the classroom, and share with their colleagues. this is an opportunity reserved for only the finest teachers in the country and a testament to her success as an educator. it is the work of passionate teachers like her that make me so grateful to represent indiana's second congressional district. the future of indiana's children lies in the hands of our educators. because of that, they deserve our support and recognition. today i congratulate her and thank her for her dedication to educating young hoosiers. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields bafpblgt the chair recognize the the -- the gentleman from south carolina for five minutes. mr. wilson. mr. wilson: thank you mr. speaker. i'm grateful to co-sponsor the

employee rights act introduced by chairman tom price. which establishes protection for american workers. not to join a union, to have a secret ballot, and to choose to have a union if they would know how their dues were being spent. this legislation is critical to empowering american workers and shielding them from unfair treatment in the workplace. south carolina is a staunch defender of the right to work protections even when threatened by the national labor relations board. for years, the nlrb has threatened to destroy jobs, particularly in the charleston community. it's incaded the employee privacy, encroached bonn their rights. i'm grateful to senator lindsey graham, senator tim scott governor haley, and attorney general allen wilson for their leadership in protecting our state's rights to work laws. right to work states like south carolina have seen firsthand that job creation and economic growth come from expanded freedoms. we need to expand commonsense reforms like those of the employee rights act to protect american workers and create

jobs. in conclusion god bless our troops, may the president by his actions never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the

further the political and financial interests of them all. quote-unquote, that's according to the u.s. attorney's office. you can read more about this again at the department of justice website. doj.gov, which we are showing you right there. and we could also see action on the house floor today regarding an effort that started yesterday by north carolina congressman mark meadows to oust house speaker john boehner apparently over the way he conducts business in the house. this "politico" article says meadows offered a motion to vacate the chair which is an extraordinarily rare procedure move that represents the most serious expression of opposition to boehner's speakership. if that motion passed, boehner would be stripped of the speaker's gavel, plunging the house of representatives into chaos. congressman meadows had this to say in part yesterday. this is more about having an inclusive process where you have debate on a regular basis where you have open dialogue

and an exchange of ideas. that's what this is all about. house minority leader nancy pelosi spokesman drew hammel had this statement this morning regarding the move. as the american people look to congress for solutions of the challenges they face they increasingly see a republican congress dominated by obstruction, distraction and dysfunction. for more than 200 days this republican congress has failed to advance any measure to create jobs and growth in our country and leaves for august early with the prospect of only more shutdowns and manufactured crises in store this fall. the american people deserve better. and we will be watching for more on this when the house returns live in about half an hour here on c-span. and a live picture from capitol hill now for another hearing on the iran nuclear agreement. this one with senate armed services committee. secretaries kerry moniz, who you see there on your screen, and treasury secretary jacob lew will be testifying. this is at least the third time

the three appeared together to push the agreement. we'll listen for just a moment. >> i'm informed that senator ernst is required to preside over the vital proceedings on the floor of the united states senate, which is critical to her presence. so i would ask the indulgence of my colleagues to allow her to proceed. senator ernst: thank you, mr. chair. thank you, colleagues. gentlemen, thank you for being here today. this will be one of the most significant votes that we take as members of congress moving forward. so i believe it is imperative that we get this right. not long ago the united states discovered that we had a data breach at o.p.m. >> again, that hearing going on right now on our companion network, c-span3. defense secretary ashton carter and outgoing chief -- joint chief chair, general martin dempsey also taking part in the hearing. again, we're covering it live

in our companion network c-span3. once again, the u.s. house will be gaveling in at noon eastern. we'll have live coverage when members return. right now we'll take you to a discussion on the nuclear agreement with iran and a number of other congressional items. we talked with a member of congress on this morning's "washington journal." tinues. host: we are back, joined now by representative ted yoho. congressman, you heard from secretary of state yesterday in a public hearing, along with energy secretary jack lew. what did you hear? guest: we were hearing how good this deal was. the stipulation was that if we walk away of the congress -- if we walk away as a country, there is a lot more to be found out about that. we found out about a secret deal worked out between the iaea and iran. we questioned a lot about that find out what is in that.

the negotiating team has put america, the representatives of the people, and a situation where we are having to vote against something without seeing all the facts. if there is a back deal made by the iaea and iran, for us to vote on it without seeing it would be disingenuous. host: john secretary -- john responded to the allegations of the secret deal. http://twitter.com/cspanwj[video clip] >> the secret deal. are you going to present this? >> there is no secret deal. the iaea negotiates a secret agreement, as they do with all countries between them and the country. that exists. we are briefed on it. we don't have it.

we have been briefed on it. i don't personally have it. host: congressman? guest: like he said, we are going to be briefed on it. but being briefed and seeing it are different things. iran -- a supposedly nuclear detonation device was detonated in 2003. the report was backed up by over a thousand pages of documents from iran, pretty much with conclusive evidence that they had detonated that. iran would be the one doing the environmental trampling of the soil. i don't know if you read mr. menendez comments, it's like letting lance armstrong take his own blood sample. this is not the way we move down the path, especially when we're talking about profit -- verification. host: what's the alternative? guest: the alternative is we go

back to the negotiating table and negotiate stronger. iran came to the negotiating deal to be relieved of economic sanctions. we still have four hostages over there. do you think we would have started out -- you would think we would've started out on a stronger footing. iran will end up getting a nuclear weapon. we could have delayed it longer, we could have put forth stronger efforts to negotiate iran removing all of their nuclear capabilities like south africa did, like costa rica did, to where they are not even producing the nuclear material. we did not do that. we wound up giving all that away. it's like that song, she got the gold mine, i got the shaft. they are taking a road to a nuclear weapon. they have economic development

going on. we could import persian rugs grapes, and that's. i think we could've done a lot better. i think the biggest thing is they went to u.n.. they went to the u.n. to get approval and said they come back to us. they put the onus on congress and say if you turn this deal down, you are walking away. that put america in a very tough situation. host: you have a vote potential emits a cover when you get back. is it realistic to think that you will go back to the negotiating table? guest: it's better to go early that it is later. you start getting the european union in there. france, china, russia starting to economic development, you are going to have these snapback options. it is better to do the earlier than later. host: you also said the president could have negotiated a better deal to keep iran from a nuclear weapon for longer. this deal is 10 years.

how much longer? guest: let's not concentrate so much on the nuclear weapon. look who you are negotiating with. the leading sponsor of state terrorism. you've got a country that since 1979 has a lot of american blood on its hands. the american soldiers that were killed in iraq and afghanistan they were either killed or wounded by ied's. 90% of those were produced by iran. iran has a foothold in south america and central america. building mosques. radical islam is developing there. you have a country like this. a country that has been saying death to america, death to israel. they are promoting all this. they did this under the. of time when there were economic sanctions on them. if they were suffering so bad why would they be spreading terrorism around the world.

they have helped hamas, they have helped hezbollah. they have a hegemony they are building right now in the middle east. by releasing the sanctions it will end both of them. this is a country that is state-sponsored terror. this is an enemy of the united states and we are saying, let's give you more power. i think it is a misstep in our negotiations. as mr. netanyahu says, this is a historic mistake. host: one issue i want to get to, that is an emotional performance by your colleagues representative mark meadows. a motion to remove the speaker of the house. do you support that? guest: we will see how it goes down the road. we have talked about it since then, we will see how it plays out. this is like any family, they have internal conflicts. i think we will handle this internally, and see how it turns out. host: it sounds it is going to be made public. guest: it is. i'm sure there'll be a lot of

talk about it. host: will you get a vote on this before you leave? what is the plan? guest: the way i understand it he has not filed yet. i have heard reports he has, i have heard reports he hasn't. there is a lot of speculation of there. host: what are you waiting for to decide? guest: to see if it goes forward. host: do you agree with the way the speaker of the house has run things? guest: i think it could be better. so many times things are run on power or money instead of principle, we needed to run on principle and vote for the will of the american people. the people is that the sum. if you do chastise promoting your conscience, on the way to people who said you appear that's wrong. you are squelching the voice of that segment of the population. host: have you voted for the speaker in the past? guest: no i haven't. host: why not then support mark meadows? guest: i probably would support

it. host: what would be your hesitance to vote no? what would make you say, i'm not going to vote? guest: i'll go with it. host: you will. what do you think happens from there? guest: we will see what happens. i'm here every day, and a lot of people say why are they doing that? why his leadership not doing this? this is what you will see on the hill. host: why -- is the speaker doing anything different than past speakers have? guest: i don't know. this is the only speaker i have had. host: tell us, for those of us who are not familiar how capitol hill works, what is it like? guest: how capitol hill or government works? we've got the debt ceiling coming up. we have tried to repeal obamacare 47 times. things like that.

immigration, you want to know how it doesn't work. why is immigration not dealt with? why have we not dealt with immigration, and system that has failed over 30 years. then that you get into century cities. people getting murdered by people who should have been deported. when we talk about why this is not working, i think you need to look at how things are brought up. before they are brought up even, chairman mccall has a border security bill that was brought up at the beginning of the year. these are contentious issues but if we don't fix these issues who is going to fix them? we need to have this debate. i have a letter going to mr. boehner requesting that we, the legislators, address immigration. i know the feeling of. we don't want to make things to contentious -- too contentious before the presidential primary. so making -- so many times

things get punted. let's stop and have the debate. that letter will be going out to mr. weiner so that we, representatives of the people, we want to have that debate. if we don't, what happens? you get another executive order. i don't want to wait until another one of our citizens gets killed by somebody who shouldn't be in this country. why are we not dealing with that? you talk about the debt ceiling. we have not had a discussion in our conference on how we are going to deal with the debt ceiling when it comes up. and you know what happened in september of 2013, the government shutdown. we do want to do that. but shouldn't we be talking about those strategies today or, in all, six months to a year down the road, i don't see that. host: let's get our viewers involved. , a democrat. -- bob, a democrat.

caller: high, thank you for taking -- hi thank you for taking my call. as the representative said, iran was on the road to get a bomb anyway. whether we relieved sanctions or not. this deal will essentially give them a bomb with sanctions relieved and about $100 billion, which to me seems ridiculous. it is utterly feckless. so, i mean, you know, i cannot understand it. the word leaders -- our enemies in the world must laugh at us because this administration is utterly feckless when it comes to china, iran russia. so that is about all i have to say. guest: bob, i appreciate that and i agree with you. i have sat on that foreign affairs committee are over to a half years, and every meeting we have, we talk about iran. not every meeting, but we have

had several. all the experts have told us that iran has enough physical material to have five or six weapons within six months to a year. if that was true two years ago we can only assume the have enough material. john kerry yesterday said they have enough material for 10 weapons. and if you go back to the original agreement, president obama says iran will not be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. and john kerry and the president also said there would be anywhere anywhere, -- anytime, anyplace access. that is not true. we are starting to negotiate on something -- trying to prevent something that we can't instead of preparing for something that will be. we should prepare for the day that iran has a nuclear weapon. but more importantly we should be talking about the responsibility that comes with that. host: roy is next in sun city california. a democrat. caller: good morning.

thank you for taking my call. i support the agreement. i would like to ask the congressman -- what is your alternative? what you think you can do now without the assistance of the other five or six countries? are we going to go to war? and if we do go to war, are we going to raise taxes on the citizens of this country? are we going to start a draft? it is always people like you -- i don't think you have ever served in the military. i'm a 20 year veteran. the world is not the way it was 50 years ago. where we can just to go out and start wars. and i think the agreement is a good one. host: we will have the congressman respond. guest: i appreciate your service to our country, and you are right, i have never served our country.

i have a lot of respect for our military. i don't want to go to war and we're not advocating work. like i said, iran is going to have a nuclear weapon whether we do this or not. you asked what is our alternative. unfortunately, the with this deal was negotiated, our negotiating team and this administration worked out a deal -- and remember what they said, no deal is better than a bad deal. this is not a good deal. i don't care what color you paint it, what assess recent you put on it, this is not a good deal. if you go back to north korea we had south korea and

again, i'm not advocating war. i don't want stoned our young men and women in harm's way again. we got too many coming back and i thank him for their service. we have the freedoms and liberties we have. this team deal if we had negotiated from a position of strength, have iran come to the table in earnest, and if you look over the history of the last 30 years with their reputation with the u.n. on resolutions, they are break those. if you look at the iaea inspections on their nuclear sites, they are lied, cheating and deceiving. what do you think if we give them more money they will be nicer? i think scott perry said something apropos. it's like giving an alligator more teeth and say, ok, be nicer. i think we needed to negotiate stronger. this team put us in position after they went to the u.n., they said, all right, if you guys walk away we're walking

away alone. i think that's long to put the legislators of this country in that position to make us look like the bad guys instead of coming to us and saying, you know what, this is the deal what do you guys think? and then go back to negotiations with the p-5 and put more pressure on iran and tell them we expect you to operate in a certain way. thank you for the call. melissa is in kansas, a republican. caller: hi, good morning. host: good morning. caller: mr. yoho, holly libya take you for your service. guest: thank you. caller: this iran deal absolutely shouldn't even be on the table. we should have never negotiated with the terrorists. obama is going to give money to a terrorist country and i think if he -- a dime goes to iran,

obama should be put in jail. it is a crime. you don't negotiate with terrorists. you eight and obeyed -- i think he takes an oath and says, i'm going to protect america. guest: melissa, i appreciate the question. we had that for a question yesterday. all of us serving appear take that oath to a pull the constitution of the united states against all enemies foreign and domestic. with iran being the number one state sponsor of terror, and we know how much blood they have on their hands, i have heard people say the same thing as you have. and it does make you wonder, if we are the superpower, we should be negotiating from the position of strength. and have iran come to the table, say they are going to denounce terrorism, say they are going to

stop funding hamas and hezbollah. they have propped up the assad regime. and that was with the interim deal. they are supposed to get about $6 billion to $8 billion, which has two new do over $14 billion. with that money, instead of building infrastructure, they helped prop up the assad regime and they already have plans to retrofit over 100,000 missiles that hezbollah has with pinpoint accuracy technology. this is not the -- the actions of the country that wants to be peaceful. again, history will play this out. and my feeling is they are going to have a bomb either way. we should prepare for this, but history will play this out and this negotiating team ob remembered as the next chamberlain or as the next reagan. host: i want to show our viewers

and have you react to the exchange yesterday in the hearing between your colleagues scott perry and the secretary of state about who he was representing, the secretary state, in these negotiations. [video clip] >> do you care more about this deal or the un's approval or american sovereignty and the approve at the -- approval of the american people through their duly elected representatives? secretary kerry: congressman, i don't need any lessons from you on who i represent. >>. bless you for your service sir. secretary kerry: don't give me any lessons on that, ok? this is america's interest because america is the principal guarantee of security in the region. and particularly with respect to some of our closest friends. we believe that iran was marching towards a weapon or the capacity to have a weapon and we have role that back. that is indisputable. >> let me ask you this -- host: congressman?

guest: that was a heated debate. the passion from mr. perry, i mean, you know he stands with his love for his country. and i'm not saying kerry doesn't, he does too. i mean, the death to israel, death to america, the same thing and they are burning american flags and israeli flags. to negotiate, to allow them to go down this path without getting them to denounce some of these other things, i think we could have done a lot better and we should have. and i think the bad thing is like i brought up before, is they negotiated the deal and then comes congress and wants us to approve this. and if we don't, they said that iran -- if we don't approve this, iran has the right to walk away from this deal and start enrichment tomorrow. that is the kind of negotiation that this team did. and if you are negotiating for

your site, i think you do a little bit better than that. host: birmingham, alabama an independent caller. caller: good morning. congressman, as an 18 euros, i joined the military and learned a few things about nuclear power. and the knowledge is still with me. you can destroy their facilities, but what about the knowledge? so yes, they're probably on a path to a nuclear weapon, but this agreement shuts down some of the paths they could take such as a heavy water plant which could produce plutonium which is more useful than a bomb. so my question is, please explant to the people those two things. and my other question to you is, who is going to fight this war? if there is no agreement. and the partners decided to forgo sanctions. and to let iran have that money that they have held in banks for

them under the sanctions agreement. how many people are going to join to volunteer to go fight this war? guest: i appreciate your service to our country and getting in at 18, i commend you. you say you can't bomb away knowledge, and i agree with that. dr. james walsh yesterday said that in another meeting. you cannot bomb that away. it is going to be on a data file somewhere. but you know it you can do is you can bomb away or take away the want of a country that wants to continue terrorism against america. i don't want a war. i do want anybody to fight this war. i do want our young men and women going to another foreign country that is not a direct threat to this country. and if iran gets a nuclear weapon, which they are either way, the way you prevent that war is through tough negotiations and to get the p5

nations to go along with us after all that economic development has happened in iran . i think it is a fallacy to think we will have the snapback provisions. one of the provisions that is needed to be in place is the iran sanctions act, which is going to expire december 31 of 2016. that has to be in place for the snapback to happen and that expires. are we going to reenact this and will the president sign that? and they wouldn't answer that question. but you try to do snapback's after france or the united kingdom or china or russia have economic development in there and try to get them to come to that table if iran breaks one of their conditions of this agreement. and iran has got a terrible record of standing up and withholding the promises that they make. i can, moving down this path, it is -- it will play out. i mean, i have a big -- host: we are going to move on. sorry about that.

florida, a republican. caller: hi, hi. i appreciate all of the wonderful calls you have addressed this morning. i'm a little nervous and will just take a second here. guest: i know how you feel. [laughter] caller: i have been following c-span for about a week now regarding this issue. and i wanted to tell you that i want to thank you for your service and the think you are taking it slow and you are being very careful. guest: thank you. caller: so here is my question. nuclear proliferation in this deal -- and atomic proliferation in the steel seem to be two separate issues. guest: correct. caller: some of us will probably never know all the details about that, but the economic seems even more interesting to me. and the reason that i say that is because time here seems to be so pressing to decide this issue

on the side of the administration, concerning the president and when he gets out of office. and i'm wondering if we can't delay some of the negotiations or slow them down like i hope we could. the question about hillary clinton and some of the investments in terms of the uranium mines and how that works, this all seems so convoluted and very complicated. can you help us with the econ >> ale we leave this journal -- we'll leave this "washington journal" segment here. you can see it in its entirety. go to c-span.org. in a moment we'll go live to the floor of the u.s. where on the agenda today members will debate legislation that would make it easier for the veterans affairs department to fire or discipline employees. also, members will look at a three-month extension of highway and mass transit funding and a $3.3 billion transfer to make up for the veterans department's budget shortfall. we can also see more action on

north carolina congressman mark meadows' efforts to have house speaker john boehner replaced. that effort began yesterday. could come to the floor today. in a moment live coverage of the u.s. house here on c-span. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2015] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the prayer will be offered by our chaplain father conroy. chaplain conroy: let us pray. god of our ancestors, thank you for giving us another day. we pray you to be with the members of this house today and as they return to their home districts during the august recess. give them sound judgment and make them as practical as the american people who sent them here as their representatives. help them to withstand to open criticism when they know what