h.r. 2954 offered by mr. ellison of minnesota. the speaker pro tempore: members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the

united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

. the yeas are 191 and the nays are 236. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no.

in thepinion of the chair the ays have it. >> i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. hensarling: i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. those in favor of the vote will rise. members will record their votes by electronic device. members, this is a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this this 24 3rks the nays are 183. the bill -- 243, the nays are 183. the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 243, the nays are 184. the bill is passed. without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. the unfinished business is the question on agreeing to the motion to concur on the senate amendment of h.r. 195 with the gentleman from -- an amendment offered by the gentleman from new jersey. the clerk will redesignate the motion. the clerk: motion offered by mr. frelinghuysen of new jersey.

the speaker pro tempore: the question on agreeing to the motion to concur. members will record their votes by electronic device. members, this is a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expr

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 230, the nays are 197. the motion is adopted. without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. the unfinished business is the request for a recorded vote on the motion of the gentleman from california to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 1660 on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 1660, a bill to

address the administrator of the united states agency for international development to submit to congress a report on the development and use of global health innovations in the program's projects and activities of the agency. the speaker pro tempore: the questions will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill. members will record their votes by electronic device. this is a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this ote the yeas are 422 -- the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 423, the nays are three. 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, a motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the ton finished business ithe question on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the url whicthe chair will put

de novo. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have, it the journal stands approved -- have it, the journal ands approved.

the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. members will take their conversations off the floor. he house will be in order. members, take your conversations off the floor. the chair will entertain requests for one-minute peeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, the house is not in order. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is correct. the house is not in order. members shall take their conversations off the floor. the house shall be in order.

. gentleman may proceed. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, earlier today i had the hosh of being in pittsburgh with president trump to how we are putting america back to work at a rate of 50% higher than last year. they credit the tax cuts and jobs act with providing them with the ability to expense 100% of the investments they make in new investments. that is tax reform right at work. this is in addition to state college ack cue weather and increasing the minimum widge justes, 15 to bone allen town's giving them bonuses d giving $1,000 to 4,000 500

of its nationwide employees while increasing contributions and its charitable giffings. these are a few stories. tax reform is working. fair and simple. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? >> permission to address the ouse for one minute. without objection. the gentlewoman from ohio is recognized. ms. kaptur: i pay tribute to the precious life of american oy al of edward l. ro nmp he passed away at the age of 100. attained a century of life in

the polish tradition. he served our nation under five presidents of both parties and served under the command of general mcarthur and was a brave guardian of liberty through his expertise and wisdom. 1917 andrn on april 3, west point graduate and led a batallion with the army infantry division. to mained an ally and and poland in the 1992 after the fall of the berlin wall. scholarshipnded the fund to study american democracy and continued to raise funds for it. he lifted his solidarity to

bring freedom to poland. neral ronny was an adviser from richard knicks orn to president bush. after being a chief negotiator with the former soviet union he was awarded the sit sense' medal. his life was embued with ighting for fighting and helping free to his land. his accomplishments will not be forgotten. you have been one of a kind and your utter dedication and speaking foreign language] the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection.

mr. poe: peace corps volunteers represent what is best about america. they are our angels and help other people that help build goodwill. but many volunteers don't receive the care that they need in country and when they get home. they struggle to access quality medical treatment when they are in remote areas of the world and when they return to america, they face a bureaucratic nightmare. congressn kennedy have sponsored a bill. this will act will improve the health and returning of peace corps volunteers and they have access to a qualified peace corps medical officer overseas and extends their medical coverage when they return home.

america must protect our ambassadors. they are some of america's best. and that's just the way it is. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from texas seek recognition? without objection. the gentlewoman from is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: thank you, mr. speaker. let me tell you what we did not do today for the america people's enhancement. what we did not do today is provide for enlisted men and women and increst compensation who did nothing for them. we did nothing for roses cow bar d her husband who has been deported, her husband was sent out, two children here in houston, texas, we have been

pleading for his case to be resued. he is a dreama her and managing a paint store. he was buying a house. we did nothing for him today. what else did we not do anything for, the million of people whose funding will expire, central care, that is a facility for 25 ears that has served american- americans. we dl absolutely nothing for them. we should not be afraid of stopping this government if we have to do it because we need to do something for the dreamers. we need to do something for people who have no health care and use health centers and for the men and women whose families are on food stamps and whose salaries are not commensurate.

i'm standing with each and every one of them. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from gay seek recognition? mr. carter: permsion to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. carter: i rise today to recognize the immediate benefits that the tax cuts and jobs act is already delivering for american families. on january 11, the treasury department released its withholding tables for 2018 and they work to implement the jobs act and signed into law by president trump. with the implementations of these withholding tables, 90% of wage earners will experience an increase. a married couple making $75,000 would seen a wage increase. i'm thrilled to see what closing

unfair loopholes, simplifying the tax code boosts the financial stability of american families. thank you, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. members will take their conversations off the floor, please. members to the back of the room, take your conversations off the floor. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> permission to address the house for one minute and revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today in the midst of yet another looming government shutdown and impending nightmare for dreamers created by those who run washington. republicans control the house, control the senate and elected the great negotiator in the white house. it is time they come to the

table in good faith to provide our nation's fiscal certainty. those who were brought here as hildren and live as upstanding members. our priority should be strengthening american families, not ripping them apart. but just this week, as we have deported e news, ayes a 39-year-old man from michigan. e made an honest living. hardly a parking ticket on his record. i call on the president and my republican colleagues to work across the aisle in good faith and lead rather than their political base. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> permission to address the

house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. rothfus: last summer, the house passed all 12 appropriation bills before october 1. we appropriated $650 billion to provide for our service members with the resources they need to defend this country against threats of north korea and iran. the house funded other programs. for the past 3 1/2 mons our military members have been operating up under continuing resolution, which means they are stuck at the funding levels of last year. senate democrats are holding back the funding so they can add more. in defense of this country is not a barring imagining chip, especially after we have seen deaths due to lack of train

inning is unconscionable. they impact the readiness of our forces and the longer the c.r., the greater the consequences. it is way past time that th they start to hlp our service members in harm's way. i tharning the speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from nevada seek recognition? >> permission to address the house. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, i remember the as, of denise bo rmp di dmp she was looking forward to the birth of her firget grandchild. she left her job after 30 years of working at a bank to spend

more time with her grandchildren. and ent to the route 1 husband of 32 years. denise is remembered by her friends and family for being full of life for being positive and for her devotion to her family. i like to stepped my condolences to her family and friends and the city of las vegas and the tate of nevada grief with you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recogni? >> i ask animous conse to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. >> mr. speaker, it is with great respect that i recognize and celebrate the career of mrs. kathleen gimmino. she has retired after 16 years

of dedicated service. throughout her tenure as county executive, she was a driving force for economic growth and actively responding to the needs of her constituency. in addition to the time as county executive, i'm grateful for the years she served the people of new york state and the city of troy. kathy has been anes teamed leader of the community and i thank her. i wish kathy and her husband vince as they embark on their new chapter in their limbs. . the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, my grandfather spent four years in jail during

gandhi's independence movement standing for human rights. one of his crimes was expressing unpopular views in a political newspaper. similar human rights abuses are occurring today in vietnam. i seek out -- i speak out today for those who have been silenced. in many cases the victims are the brothers, the sisters, the friends, or acquaintances of someone living in my district. over 100 activists and religious leaders in im-- are imprisoned in vietnam for expressing their opinions and beliefs. one social blogger was snrnsed to 10 years in prison for highlighting social injustices on her blog. in the 17th district i'm proud of organizations like the goodwill brothers and sisters group who stand in solidarity for their oppressed family and friends of vietnam. the vietnamese government must release every political prisoner, stop harassing real

jus groups and have the confidence in allowing a free press. until they do that we must do no business deals with vietnam and make it clear that we expect them to honor human rights. i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to honor the life of a legend who represented the people of the reat state of georgia for 15 years in the united states house of representatives. last week, congressman doug bernard jr. pass aid what in his beloved hometown. though he served in a very different time in our nation's history, many of the issues discussed then are the same that we are talking about today, like tax reform, immigration reform, and financial regulatory reform.

a world war ii veteran, lawyer, and banker , he made his mark as a well-respected leader othey have house banking committee. he was willing to work across the aisle to do what was best for the people of augusta and all americans. i was pleased that doug introduced and offered his support to me when i made my announcement to run for congress. other the years, i have sought his advice and have always cherished his mentorship. doug bernard was a great man of faith a friend, and a statesman. he will always be remembered and will be sorely missed not only by me, but the entire augusta community. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. thank you, mr. speaker. as many of you know, we have had

a russian narrative that's been going on because of an infamous dossier. and while there's been much reported on it, i can tell you that the intel committee has been fast at work and chairman nunes has been doing outstanding work to get to the truth for the american people. today, i had the opportunity to go into a confidential setting to to -- to make sure that what we can do is understand better what actually took place. and i'm here to tell all of america tonight that i am shocked to read exactly what has taken place. i would think it would never happen. in a country that loves freedom. and democracy. like this country. this is time -- it is time we become transparent in all of this and i am calling on our leadership to make this available so that all americans can judge for themselves.

and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: are there further requests for one-minute speeches? under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2017, the gentleman from florida, mr. yoho is recognized for 57 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. mr. yoho: thank you, mr. speaker. before i begin i ask unanimous condition sent that all members have five legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the topic of my special order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. yoho: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i chair the asia pacific subcommittee on foreign affairs, i've been in congress for five years. what i have noticed over the last probably 30 years is a growing china. china is a culture that's been around for thousands of years.

and what we've seen is a growing china, but more recently in the last 25 years, a more aggressive china policy the different things they do around the world. deng chao peng announced china's growing power would be to bide one's strength and bide one's time. it's clear that china is done biding its time. i remember seing a documentary several years ago from 1986 where that leader talked about he could not compete with the u.s. or the japanese in the intellectual property or computer manufacturing or i.t., so what he said at the time was we will compete by taking over the rare earth metals that are required in all of that. so from that point forward, they

led that charge to strategically , set out a 100-year plan. t china's 19th communist party congress, they announced a new era in which china has started to overcome the humiliations of colonialism and has stood up, grown rich and become strong. we talk about this. it came out in a meeting. somebody brought up that through their whole adult life china was this big, stumbling child but they had reached a point and grown through puberty where the hormones have kicked in and they find out how strong they were and then they discovered how rich they were and they started to flex both of those. the ex--- he explicitly offered the chinese model as an alternative to liberal democracy. liberal democracy. that's what the western world and the united states rests on.

allowing people to be self-determining, allowing people to be free-thinking. allowing people to be empowered. and this is something that the antithesis of the chinese doctrine. stating that the banner of socialism with chinese characteristics is now flying high and proud for all to see, offering a new option for other countries and nations, mr. speaker, as the new year begin well, must decide how we went to craft policy and legislation that will address not just the so-called new era in china, i say that we should welcome china's effort to assume its rightful place on the world stage but we must also reject china's effort to undermine the values, institutions, and the rules that generations of americans have died for along with other countries to establish and uphold. we must never allow a socialist authoritarian model of government to supplant the

primacy of democracy new york matter how rich and how strong the authoritarians become. bu china is not choosingo rise through the global order this united states and our lies have built with our blood, and our sweat. a global order made up of international institutions that have held the peace since world war ii. of the competitive and rule he was based economic playing field in a free marketplace ideas where people, where people, not governments, decide what they will think, instead, china has grown to become a revisionist power, not rising within the current order but seeking to hange, coerce to to the suit china's end, not playing by the rule bus rewriting the rules. china's policy is rewriting the rules in three key areas. first, china is replacing traditional power which is based on a nation's attractiveness

with sharp power which leverages coerciveness. the scale is astounding. china has used sharp power to buy political influence in australia, academic influence on american campuses and even bought off panama's diplomatic alliance with taiwan. the national endowment for democracy which coined the term sharp power has exhaustively documented china's effort to turn latin american elite into de facto ambassadors to the chinese cause, right in our own back yard. the world will not stoll rate these coercive machinations. turnbull summed this up, the people stand up, congress must

likewise ensure the american people stand up to co-erlings in our politic, act deem yarks and culture. second, china is rewriting the rules of engagement by using gray zone tactics that erode the fief and between conflict. china has -- in the south china sea choork i in a use what had it referred to as salami slicing to get its territory out provoking confrontation, undermining the mechanisms that are supposed to decide territorial pursuit. it goes back to that saying, hide one strength and bid one's time. -- hide one's strength and bide one's time. i chair the subcommittee on asia pacific and one of our hearings last year, one witness testified by slowly changing the situation on the ground, china hopes to transform asia's mediterranean

into a chinese lake. we can't keep standing idly by while china does things. a chinese leader stood at the white house and said he would not militarize the south china sea. i was at a hear, we were there with one of the representatives of the chinese government, they were talking about how everything they've done in the south china sea was peaceful -- was far peaceful navigational purps. i brought up that i wish i could feel the love or feel the sincerity of that because our military satellite show 10,000-foot runway. our military satellites show military bare racks. our satellite showed offensive and defensive weapons, radar systems. yes, there was a lighthouse but i didn't see a resort on there that showed peaceful navigational purposes. then he built a network of air bases, missile replacements and radars in the ports that we've seen. 4,000 acres of the south china

sea that were dredged, destroying the environment, coral reefs, and they put in this today which is militarized and they don't hide it. we should look to india's example rather than accept further lies. a little resistance to china's encroachment along their disputed border presented the same salami slicing from happening on land. thirdly, china is rewriting the rules of trade and economics. at a hearing before my subcommittee last year, one witness warned that china has -- on its en its unfair marcan tilist strategies and is seeking dominance in a wide array of advanced industries that are key to u.s. economic and national security interests. the zero sum policy benefit china's domestic champions a the expense of fairness and competition in global trade. at home, china wields its

massive market as a blunt instrument, forcing foreign companies to divulge what it wants without give theaming chance to compete. abroad china is acquiring or stealing the industries of tomorrow. unfairly boosting its domestic innovation and hollowing out ou. throuout the developing world, china hasnderken a massive infrastructure program that imports surplus industrial capacity and aligns closely with military interests. in 2018, the united states must stand up to china's revisionism in three key areas. number one, sharp power. influence operation. number two, gray zones, warfare and marcan tilist economics. some important policy steps have already begun. for example, congressman pittenger has introduced legislation in the house to improve siffa, a review in the treasure -- treasury department has undertaken number 301

investigation into china's innovation of mercantilism. this will help protect the future of the u.s. economy. this is a warning sign we have seen we must rise up to and counteract but more must be done. we have to blunt china's sharp power in the united states by countering confucius institutes at schools and propaganda outlets in our cities that spread chinese propaganda. we have to respond to the malicious state sponsored activity. and we have to modernize our international development work to compete with china in the developing world. this year i'll be introducing legislation to accomplish these goals and i hope my colleagues will join me in this important work. we must remember that standing up for american interests means standing up for our values. leadership has turned to creeping totalitarianism. he's building an unprecedented surveillance state, increasing

the communist party's ideological control of society party's ciliation of authority over every aspect of life. . human rights are worsening and he must be held accountable. . . i hope my colleagues will stand up for america's values. after the 19th coming, the mmunist congress, they stood up ap said no long irchina will be made to stand up. to take they aribed center stage. it sound like it is a warning and throw us off the age. talking to people in the strigs

and the rest of the wolvedi think we would be willing to share the staming. within with that, i would like to turn to mr. chabot who was the scommare and brought up important legislation on this topic we are talk understanding about tonight. mr. chabot: i thank the gentleman and as the gentleman mentioned i used to be the chay of the committee he now chairs, .he foreign affairs we do a lot of important things on that and our view of china has evolved. o we want to have good

relationships? it is in the world's best called most passed favored nation and norm 58 trade relations and many would argue hat many jobs have gone to china and they have a whole range of or things. and benefited a great deal. p.r.c., china has been bullying for years. taiwan out of organizations. they have done a whole range of things. mifflings everal00

1,600 missilesow and we continue to have a strong relations with taiwan, legislation that i proposed and passed here before in our committee and pass in the house as well, and we hope the senate wrill take it up as well and come here to the united states and particularly to washington to meet with our officials. that makes sense and we will do it in the very near future. china has been uncooperative with respect to taiwan. and they have been cooperative to onef our greatest threats and that is north korea. we get a lot of lip service.

north korea is a threat. for a long time, they were a threat to the region. we worked with ourial i don't think so and now a threat to washington, d.c.,, seattle and my home city, cincinnati and we believe they could now reach the united states with nuclear weapons. that's the first time. a lot of this, we were concerned about that day coming. and previous administrations tried to get china to lean on north korea because they they have the greatest clout and provides most of their fuel, 890% of their fuel is with china. and china acts like they are going to be helpful and they are not.

and so, the last thing we want to see is military confrontation and that -- we don't want any confrontation but will be satisfied to have north korea have nuclear weapons. kimwe can't have someone as jong un, people like that to have nuclear weapons and most countries around the world. but the world looks to us. we really do need china to step up and do the right thing. they have not been willing to do that. the question is how do we get china to do that. in the past. a number of us thought to get china's attention toss discuss with our allies in the region,

outh korea, taiwan to consider having nuclear programs themselves and would be enough to be put issuing off to back off their program. the p.r. -- excuse me, north korea has a nuclear program but could hit the continental united states. the only thick that works is only leverage we have with china it self. if they don't act, they could trade with north korea or trade with us. that ought to be a pretty deal. people are starvinging and people are repressed. it's not a great import to china. and in fact, their relationship

with north korea, it keeps us off balance. they could trade with us and trade with the united states is significant. jobs.ns millions of i think we should be when you are considering war which is the alternative to actually getting north korea to back off their program. we ought to make it to china we are serious whether it is the financial system, we ought to fully cut that off with north korea. but china has ways of getting around that and proposing their ally. this is the time. soon. going to happen we have 20 nuclear devices. they are going to have dozens

and dozens and not only is that dangerous because they have they will but they will sell those nuclear devices to organizations, al qaeda, perhaps even isis and other organizations that would love to smuggle those things and use them in a heartbeat. things we talked about in previous administrations and administrations would negotiate, we have six-party agreements and we would get together, for food for fuel, we will end our program and on the books, it was ended, in the under ground it was continuing and essentially, let that happen. and it was bad, but couldn't reach the united states. now they could reach the united

states. years ago, we warned about, we are there now. i would strongly encourage this administration to take this seriouslydo this as possible short of war to make sure that china leans on north korea to back doub and i tharning mr. and who is doing a fine job i want to thark him for the pportunity and i yield back. mr. yoho: i want want to give a shouts out in the first version six assurances. you introduced to congress on ctober 28, 015, the ashurnings ances.

but at this time, i would like o yield some time to judge poe sotch time as he cares to talk and he has been a strong supporter of the region. and he has some wise words. judge, go ahead and glad to have you back. >> i appreciate the time. mr. poe: it's important that americans know who the chinese are and what they are up to and what their plans are up to. no questionbout it. them. they don't want to, that's why he is a men ace to that region of the world. but they could rein in, billions of dollars of assets and freeze

those assets and cut off assets. china must understand that it is in their interest that north weapons. get nuclear which i think it is in their interests to make sure they don't continue to weapons against their neighbors, then, rth korea will cease its activities. the key lives with beijing and make that decision. the world and by jing will not be safer either. i want to point out kind of their philosophy, why they act the way they do. beijing has little regard for

the lives of the millions of chinese citizens. shares more values with the communist north korea than it goes the u.s. it has been among the worst in he whole world and per cuted millions of people on who are imor llowers ever commune maoism. ina is a communist nation, they are a communist nation in a teaches against god and their god is the state and tells the people you have to worship the state. when you have a regime in charge, they persecute their own

people and tort turehristians and muslim and other people who don't agree with their philosophy. we need to be sure as a country built on real or gouse freedom at we call china out for persecution of its own people. we aid trade with the chinaes. it ought to get in the way of calling china out or abusing the people in china and abusing their rights of religious freedom. we can't turn a blind eye. we have learned through history that regimes that oppress their own people have ambitions their even boards. most uth china see rnings

people don't see where it is. it is a trading lane. navigation lane. >> the judge is going to yield back right now, i appreciate it. the whole purpose of this ecial order to is -- is to

say, we're not against china, it's the practices they're doing, we need to make sure the american people know what's going on. the amount of theft we see, intellectual property that cost the american taxpayers between $ 3 billion and $600 billion. aye been at exposes from the department of homeland security where they have products from american manufacturers that are in china on good will, good faith efforts to create a good product, create jobs in china, but that product winds up being counterfeited by chinese companies that we think the chinese government and we have evidence that they're complicit in it that are selling products against our own manufacturers in this country and it's eroding the american economy and china gains from this. mr. yoho: this is a practice that has to be stopped and we have to stop allowing this to happen.

onof the other things, if we look back over history in the 1840's, there was the opium wars between the united kingdom and china. and a lot of opium and drugs flowed into china. and it hurt the chinese population. at one point, 90% of the males in china were hooked on opium. but yet today, in the 21st century, we're seing the reverse of that and we're seeing narcotics flow from china, or precursors of synthetic opioid, flow into central america, to mexico, to come into our borders. there is no medicinal use for fentanyl other than pain control or heroin. heroin has no medicinal use, very limited. so i want to yield a couple of minutes to mr. dan donovan who in the last congress introduced the comp he rens -- comprehensive fentanyl control act to combat illegal fentanyl,

a synthetic opioid, coming from china. not only do they send the precursor they send the presses to create the pill into these other countries. it does not serve us or the american people or our economy at all. if you're a trading partner and want to go by the rule of law and you want to hopefully in trade do what's best for your country, but you also want to have a benefit for your trading partner, this is a one-way street. it's going to have to end. i'd like to turn over to mr. dan donovan for a few minutes, go ahead. mr. dan van: mr. chairman, mr. speaker, i rise today to demand action from our chinese counterparts in targeting fentanyl traffickers. this poison is 50 time more powerful than heroin and is responsible for thousands of american deaths. street dealers import fentanyl from china and then mix it with

heroin and deal it to unsuspected users in packages stamped with names such as pray for death. that product was confiscated in my home ton yesterday in staten island. these mixes are deadly substances is why as my chairman mentioned, i introduced a comprehensive fentanyact. and asking our country to rohibit the online sale of presses in which fentanyl is pressed into imitation tablets that unsuspecting users will take, not knowing that fentanyl is part of that pill. fentanyl is dangerous even to our authorities. police officers, firefighters, first responders have overdosed from contact with fentanyl during drug busts.

i have spoken to far too many family who was lost sons an daughters, first as the district attorney of staten island and now as a congressman. the chinese government, as my colleagues have said, trying to control their own citizens, well now, it's about time they control the fentanyl coming out of their country. this past fall, president trump extracted promises that the chinese would curb their export of fentanyl. now it's time for the chinese to take action. i thank the chairman for his leadership in this area. i thank him for yielding time to me to discuss this important matter to every part of our country. no one is immune here. mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. mr. yoho: mr. donovan, i appreciate the work you've done with the fentanyl control act. i thank you for doing that, i thank you for your participation and being on the committee and your passion for what you're doing. at this time, mr. speaker, i'd like to yield a couple of minutes to my a good friend of

mine a good member of congress, randy hultgren, to add to this discussion. mr. hultgren: thank you. i want to thank my good friend from florida, chairman yoho, i appreciate my work -- your work on this and call this special order tonight. once again it's the time of year where i have the somber privilege to come to the floor and wish happy birthday wishes to chinese prisoner of conscience julia fu. on february 15 he will spend his 56th birthday in chinese prison, marking his seventh consecutive birthday behind bars. another birthday separated from his family and children. though isolateding he's not forgotten. he's been a fervent champion for human rights in china for decades he gives voice to a fundamental and foundational principle, all people,

evere,ywhhould have the basic freedomo determine t course of their lives and express themselves according to their conviction without fear of government repression. for living out that conviction, he languishes in a chinese prison, in poor health and with irregular access to medical care. stifling voices like his does not silence their cry, nor weaken their cause. on the contrary, it shines a light on their plight and renews and strengthens the effort to end repression and injustice in china as well as in other places around the world. as long as he remains incarcerated i'll continue to call upon the chinese government to provide him with sufficient food, care, and medical attention and i will continue to call on the chinese government to release him from prison. in honor of him, i would like to read a short poem he wrote. it was this poem that led to his arrest and imprisonment. i quote from his poem.

it's time people of china, it's time. the square belongs to everyone. with our own two feet it's time to head to the square and make your choice. it's time, people of china. it's time. it belongs to -- our song belongs to everyone. from your own throat it's time to voice the song in your heart. it's time, people of china. china longs to everyone. of yr o will it's time to choose what china shall be. you are not forgeten. happy birthday and may god grant you the strength in his presence in the hope that you'll celebrate your next birthday free. again, i thank my friend and yield back. mr. yoho: mr. hultgren, i appreciate it, and we hope that guy gets released. you prouth up a -- brought up a good point. this is something i noticed, i'm so blessed, we are so blessed to live in this greatly of our a country that our right, our

founders got it right. i don't know how they did other than divine intervention, rights come from a creator, not government. government is instituted by we the people to protect our god-given rights and ker values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. our government is a government that empowers the people. empowered people do great things. and in the 19th congress, it was said, and the chinese government has set up a chinese united front, which is to show soft power in the world instead of doing the things they've done where they go into a country, put up infrastructure, suck out the resources, leave and don't care. so they changed their tactics. they've gotten smart. they started the chinese united front. but in that communique that they said, it said the role of the citizens of china are to serve the government of china and it's the antithesis of what we stand for. that's why i feel confident in

our form of government because we believe in the people. we believe in the greatness of people. the greatest resource the country has is not their gold, their timber, any of that other stuff. it's the people. and our country values that. at this time, mr. speaker, i'd like to yield as much time as she gentleman needs from virginia, a good friend of ours, passionate speaker on china, and he sits on the foreign affairs committee, mr. tom garrett. mr. garrett: thank you, mr. chairman. thank you, mr. speaker. it's humbling to have the opportunity to stand in this -- on and speak on a such an important subject as china's role in the world in 2018. having had the live pledge of leading american soldiers on foreign soil, i understand the last resort in any circumstance should be military action so i wish to make clear that the

strong words that will follow are t aeat to the people's republic of china but instead should be encouragement to the people thereof. we want peace and to work alongside all nations in a community of nations, but it is our duty as free people to express the basic rights inherent to our very existence in this world. mr. speaker, i would thank the chinese people today that we still hold these truths to be self-evident that all people are created equal and all people are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable right arkse among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. this message directed toward the people of china. the regime seems hell-bent on denying these rights, not to nations across the world aside from china but to the people they purport to serve. in so doing they not only oppress those people but also

perpetrate schemes that lead to a lower quality of life and enhanced threats to people across the globe. industrial espionage costs the very livelihoods and well being of workers in every continent of the world. intellectual property theft isn't about the hundreds of billions of dollars stolen from those who had the wherewithal, energy, and vision to create, but about the child that won't have an opportunity to attend college because the job her parent might have had is quite literally stole bin chinese malfeasance. propping up a regime in north korea that literally engages in the year 2018 in the enslavement of their own citizens. and turning a blind eye on these practices which, mr. speaker, i suppose shouldn't be a surprise when you look at the human

rights record of the people's republic of china itself. i don't have time, nor do my creags, though i commend congressman yoho for this hour, to recount the number of victims of human rights violations, prisoners of conscience, of victims of state oppression, of those who had the temerity to stand up and suggest that individuals have certain basic, fundamental human rights only to wreak horrific consequences under the totalitarian regime. , t in the limited time i have forced abortion of human life. to the tune of tens and tens and tens of millions. mr. speaker, child labor laws drafted by e people's republic of china that that look wonderful on the global stage recent tices that one

survey indicated would have the entire population of the united states of ohio worth of 10 to 14-year-olds working what one recent news story characterized as 16 hours a day, 28 days a month. in 2018. their laws indicate they've ended the practice of organ harvesting yet mathematical data indicates that in china, if you're part of the ruling class, it's not hard to find that kidney. that bone marrow. that heart. this sort of oppression foisted upon the people of china, while all too often the united states and other nations of the world turn a blind eye, not in the interest of respecting cultural differences but in the interest of our pocketbooks. we still hold these truths to be

self-evident. if i can do nothing else while i'm here, mr. speaker, but speak and encourage nations of the world but more importantly the people repressed by regimes such as the dictatorial chinese communist state and tell them we understand, we have eir backs, they have our support, then i will have accomplished something. i'm after on age, mr. speaker, when one of the images permanently seared in my memory is of a lone man standing in tiananmen square facing down a battle tank. nd when i think of that i think of patrick henry when someone yelled from the back of the room, if this be treason, make the most of it. a 16-year-old, barbara johns who

had to move after discussing the declaration ever independence to question while there was a school that only white kids could attend. we are not there yet. ut to be a more perfect union. and stand te my body up for human beings across the demroshe and china. we still hold these truths to be self-evident, we will not turn a blind eye to forced abortions at lead to child labor policies of a umh number of kids that mirrors the population of the state of ohio. we will not turn a pliped eye

and all data indicates that you have and we will not turp a blind eye to the oppression of real depouse minorities whether there are muslims in the west of china. i know this age in the worldwide web, that the people of china flow, you are to my brothers and sisters and you are human beings and you will not be given these rights but by creator and if you have the courage to stand up, understand this, we will support you. thank you, mr. speaker. mr. yoho: i would like tohank the gentleman from from virginia, we have a few more minutes. and we need to draw on it again.

when i buy something that says made in china. i want you to understand what is happening. china has gone from where they were in the 19 0's and 1960's. and we had a relationship with taiwan prior to that. i don't want to go boo the war 190's, therein the is a relationship we had with taiwan and relationship with great britain. things have changed. north korea is on the stage. it's a different world than what it was. e had some long standing traditions. and people respected that. there's a country that nixon and

kissinger opened up the trade that we have today. and china has done great. they have raised a lot of people out of pover but at what extent? wt is goi on in the sth china sea taking islands, it was coral rofse, right under the top of the sea and reclaimed 4,000 acres, probably the largest being kling call disaster that the woled has are seen. the world stood buy. and in the tribunals. they ruled against china ap the world did nothing. the previous administration had and that's strategic

where you have a disease that is not life threatening. but what was going on in the south china sea couldn't be happened. what happened is china militarized the islands they built, even though they say they would hquoo and china has the biggest influence with north korea. 90% of the trade depose through china. china says they are there with us. trading with them ap complicit in allowing other companies to sl shell companies that keep kim jong-un regime. they have a hand of prig this to a close. and the trade deficit we have with china, over $350 billion

and add to that the intellectual property theft. and china says we will get it under control. they had a trade deficit of over $650 billion. do you want a trading partner that is doing these things and flood our borders with illegal drugs and kill our citizens and break down our culture, do you want a trading partner at the johns? americans do you want partner that does not honor their word? you talk to other countries and they say they like doing business with america. china does not.

they have har hardly to help us with north korea. when you go swoo into the department store and buy cheap and says made in china, i wrant people to think, what are you selling, what are you buying and what of uying and the prosperity this nation. i would lying to get mr. garrett's response and anything else he would like to add. mr. garrett: i would commend the member from congressman yoho. i think it's important to remember whether it was the civil rights movement, they paid the price for the baveng human rights that we enjoy here and i ould ask you to consider the eality of child labor, ash

policies that defy or did he prive americans of livelihoods perpttrailted pi the chinese. with that in mind, until we see puttingorm, iave be any force or it's money. but i believe there is power in the people of the united states. but i would encourage to shop beyond an regime but allowing the perpetration of the horrific circumstances at home and private. mr. yoho: i need to make a correction. it was the phillipines. but along thinks lines and look at the word of the nation, i or great ong kong

britain and china came to an agreement that hong kong would revert back to china. there was a 50-year agreement that they would have self-determining, their own government. 20 years into this. china has a strong influence. if we look at the people of tibet. they are the most peaceful populations on earth but i can't travel there. they can't come here. gets mad. almy they have the tibet tan people to pass onto the next generation. china kidnapped and says we'll replace it and somebody they are

going to groom. and i look at our continue try being a christian and one of the kings of the old test ta metropolitan going in and stealing the baby jesus and put our leader. it is lewd russ of what is going on. taiwan is our 10th largest trading partner. and during nixon's time there are talks about how we are going to deal with taiwan and reiterate the six assuranceances and they are number one, we did certain.o set a date robert gates talked about this in his book "duty." . our 12, we were having armed sales agreement and taiwan

and our negotiators said we have been doing this. china's response what this and back then, we were weak, we are strong now. and that speaks loudly. number two. we see no mediation role of the united states between united states and p.r.c. pertr three, not exert, ex pressure. here has been no change in our number five. we have no plans to seek revision of the taiwan relellings act and number six, it should not be zpwreed to ngage in prior consultations and we tend to stay with that. with that, does the gentleman any closingryfrom

marks? mr. garrett: when you sigh something made in tchine, how is that faketting the future of america. if they play fair and play pi the rules, we wish them the pest of luck, pu which will not be supplanted from our role. i feel confident. because we believe in our people. we empower our people and a government that will stand and proith our sconstutional rights. yield pack and i thank you. the speaker pro tempore: under the speaker's announced poll i si you of sue of jadge 3, 2017 nings the gentleman from recognizes mr. lamalfa for five

minutes. mr. lamalfa: thank you to the gentleman from from florida for yielding me time as well. i appreciate it. mr. speaker, tonight, it's with to sadness that i rise honor a tribute to a man who passed rtsly in the north state rments morris taylor. passed last week at th age of 93. e and local legend. house rules require that you wear a jacket and wear a tie and not allowed to wear hats on the floor ap i respect that but i will wear the type of clollingting you would see on his show. is was much fans fansier and known in nashville as the nudey

jacket style where it's very ell decorated with shiny objects. how can you not like that and feel at home. he was born in miami, oklahoma age 14 and settled in california. his show, from 1956 stoo 1995 on incredible 39-year run of entertaining folks. it was a country-western music performed by himself and his guess. many of these membersf his bapped were people you would see

around northern california. and work during the week and patronize.d likely i have seen his fans and many others like that. many other folks that were blending their talents and other venues around northern california. . we kids used to watch the show on the weekends. some of the country staples. as well as the jokes. some might say they're corny jokes, but they were also clean jokesment and something you can just have a little -- jokes. and something you can just have a little chuckle over and enjoy. they indeed were a staple. along with that country music in their own right. so, for example, i got to share a couple of them. one of his jokes would be, they say dogs make great chiropractors because they know whe