on the lease after the fact and they have since said they did not have a full information when they did so. there are questions about that. host: we will have to end it there. we appreciate your time this morning. we now take viewers live to the floor of the house of representatives. today's business ready to start right now. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2018] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] 26,. he houf ned,a. ryan, speak reprentative tpeak pro tempo suant he oer of the mrsrom lists suitd by e mority andinity lders foornig hour bat thr will alternat pai.ioneeeth tim shl be equay

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ck. it's the most important environmental bill in terms of carbon emission, water quality, and it makes a big difference for the men and women who are in the agriculture sector. there are long-term challenges that we face beginning farmers and ranchers, what happens in terms of transition, the average farmer's 58.2 years of age. what are we going to do to provide the work force for the it's the most important future, to transition lands, to be able to get the most out of the investment in the lands? the bill that is awaiting house action, and i hope it awaits house action a long time he -- because there are many things we could do to make it better, would cut environmental funding, even though only one out of four applications for environmental programs ever get funded. the environmental programs are not performance based to make sure we get the most benefit for those dollars.

he bill does not rein in unnecessary subsidies. it broadens loopholes and coverage to have subsidies go to more people who are only tangentially related to operating the farm and people who don't necessarily need it. but the thing that i find most provision the known as the king amendment. this bill -- this provision in the farm bill would prohibit state and local governments from being able to set their own protections for agriculture, for food, and the environment. every state has agriculture and fishing industries that have their own special needs. pest, disease, protections for consumers. the interest of various industries are widely different across the country. the needs of the fisheries of

the great lakes are different from those in the gulf coast, new england, and pacific northwest. the king amendment would prevent states from being able to tailor protections to their own industry and their own consumers. i strongly urge my colleagues to investigate what this provision would mean. there is a great study from the harvard law school about an analysis of h.r. 4879 and the king amendment. preempting state laws, for instance, on sell by or best used -- -- best used date for shellfish, meat, and eggs t would prevent states from stopping the import of pests that kill fruit in lumber trees. it would allow fishing vessels to fish waters of the various states without complying with the rules of those states. if their states have different

provisions. it would even prohibit pet being utor licenses from denied animal abusers. these are the sorts of things that when public looks at it they are shaking their head in wonder, why would congress have a race to the bottom for protections for the environment, for consumer, for animal protections. it's interesting there was a provision voted on by people in oklahoma in the fall of 2016, the initiative so-called freedom to farm, has many of these same provisions. and when the voters in oklahoma did a deep dive, they rejected e farm bureaus -- farm bureau's initiative by a 60-40 margin. that's in a state that gave donald trump his largest margin for victory than any state other than west virginia.

i hope congress as did oklahoma look at the details. understand what it would do. reject unnecessary restrictions on the ability of your state and local government to tailor protections for the people who fish, farm, and shop. we can do better. i hope that we're going to be of the enlist support vast majority of congress to a moment, pause, look at a a m farm bill that is worthy of this body. the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from nebraska, mr. bacon, for five minutes. mr. bacon: thank you, mr. speaker. rise to recognize three amazing kids who join me today on the floor. all three are taking part in take our children to workday, hosted by tuesday's children. this is my second year participating in this wonderful

event and it's brightened my day both times. tuesday's children provides support to children whose parents passed away in the military or due to terrorism. more than 15,000 individuals directly impacted by the events of september 11 have been supported by tuesday's children and more than 6,000 individuals are currently served by tuesday's children's first responder alliance program today. in my 30 years in the air force, i was able to meet with the families of loved ones who passed. i know how important organizations like tuesday's children are for our nation's youth. today is about kids like arianna, julius, and caden. they are shadowing me this morning and seeing what life is like in congress. julius is nine from maryland and enjoys robotics and legos. caden is 10 and is a big new york giant fan. finally, arianna, she's from maryland. she's 7 and loves to play

tennis. i hope they enjoy their time in washington and remember this day is a very special one because you are special. i look forward to spending more time with them this afternoon. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from illle now, mr. gutierrez, for five minutes. mr. gutierrez: bipartisanship is often applauded in congress but seldom rewarded. me repeat that. bipartisan is often applauded but seldom rewarded. which is an important part why we have been unable to pass any meaningful me immigration refor in this body for years. i have worked with good men and women on the other side of the many occasions to advance immigration reform, but none of those efforts forced the speaker of the house, whether he or she was at the except allow a vote, many occo for the time the house passed the dream act in 2010. i continue to work with partners on the other side because i know if a vote is allowed those who see immigrants and immigration as important assets to this country will prevail and it will take democrats and republicans working together to

enact commonsense immigration reform. except for the time the house just this week the gentleman from colorado, republican, worked together to demand statistics from the department of homeland security to determine if the trump administration is complying with federal court orders on the renewal of daca applications and to get more information on the daca processing backlogs. working with republicans doesn't win me many friends among democrats who spend their days trying to defeat people like mr. coffman. they would probably prefer i stop working with him. as i said, bipartisanship is often praised but seldom rewarded. secondly, bipartisanship is more than just signing your name. jeff dunham of california and some other republicans are promoting an idea that has great deal of merit, the so-called, queen of the hill rule. which has almost 50 republican co-sponsors and all the democrats, myself included. this rule calls for the debate and votes in the house on a series of immigration reform bills. some of qui would address the vulnerability of dreamers and

their families to deportation. it's an unprecedented bipartisanship action to demand an immigration vote. and i support it wholeheartedly. so far all the republicans have had to do is sign their names as co-sponsors. the next step should be that we demand that speaker ryan bring the rule and related bills to the floor for a vote through a discharge petition. you see, working with people from the other side of the aisle is just one aspect of bipartisanship. when the rubber meets the road is when you take on the leaders of your own party in order to achieve a bipartisan goal. when i got arrested protesting president obama's treatment of dreamers and migrants, i didn't win any popularity contests within the democratic caucus. my colleagues were quick to defend the president and the democratic speaker at the time. i was shunned and passed over many times by my own team. and later when i and other democrats worked with judge carter and sam johnson to find

bipartisan immigration solutions in the 113th congress, members of my own party told me, stay away. right here on this floor they told me, don't help republicans solve their immigration problem. but i didn't stay away and i kept working with republicans until they walked away. they were unwilling to take on their own party in the end. speaker boehner backed away when the chips were down. speaker ryan came to my district in chicago and talked about moving forward on immigration with me standing by his side. we're still waiting for him to put skin in the game. and that is what it will take, taking a courageous position, even in the face of opposition from your own party. so, the 48 republicans who joined denham's queen of the hill rule calling for immigration vote should not declare mission accomplished just yet. your country needs you. right now today we need your courage in addition to your signature. sign a discharge petition to bring about the vote on

immigration solution for dreamers. puts your skin in the game. you may not get i vited to the next state dinner or -- invited to the next state dinner or fly on air force one, but you will have done a service to your nation. a discharge petition on the denham bill says you are willing to spend your personal reputation and political capital to do what is right and of great of great hatred and divisiveness at the highest levels over immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. will you be praised for your bipartisan courage? i hope so. will you be rewarded by other politicians or activists in your own party or voters in mine? probably not. which section actly my point. it's hard. it's thankless, but your country needs help that only republicans in congress can provide to put pressure on your own republican leadership. i and a lot of my colleagues will work with you, stand by you, support you, but we need

you to lead the way. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will remind all members to refrain from references to guests on the floor. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. enham, for five minutes. mr. denham: thank you, mr. speaker. i sadly rise today with fellow colleagues because we lost a friend way too soon. rick was an mr. denham: thank visionary, community leader, family ags ma nd to my wife and i a mentor and friend. his passion and dedication made him not only a leader in california but the entire ag industry nationwide. he he age of 26 he became t president and c.e.o. of one of the largest ag companies in the entire country. he would grow this to become

the largest levy greenshe president and c.e.o. of and vegetable producer in the set up an esoc making this an employee owned business. this is now a fourth generation now farms over p an 35,000 acres distributing to north america, europe, and asia. he worked right alongside with his sons, brian and jeffrey. rick constantly pushed different innovation, even ideas that were against now far conventional practice, things that were sometimes mocked or said this they would never work but are now the important innovations that lead the rest of the industry. he emphasized the importance of supporting and investing in employees and always thought they were the backbone of his company. -person ny's 800 housing complex has said to become a blueprint for other house projects across the country. on a personal note, i would sonia and tonya,

as they were known to most of the industry, worked side by side, and rick and i worked side by side as well. not only is tonya a mentor to sonia, rick was a mentor to me. i learned a lot about business. i learned a lot about friendship. i saw the pride in his generational family. missed by many here in washington, d.c., in the salinas valley, around the country, and certainly as a family man, brian and jeffrey, i know that they are going through tremendous pain as are anthony and natalie. he thought the world of his

family and employees. i now yield to mr. kosta for any remarks he may have. mr. costa: i thank the gentleman for yielding. i join with congressman jeff denham and congressman yimmy panetta -- jimmy panetta to celebrate a life well lived. rick was truly an icon in not only californiaonly caornia he was a leader. rick and tonya always put their family first and what a family it was. to be a part with them, with their children and with his father, bob. i have fond, fond memories. over the years working together on public policy affecting california agriculture. they farmed not just in the salad bowl but in the san joaquin valley. their efforts to bring value added and innovation is legendary in terms of the incredible food products that we enjoy today at home. his efforts with his employees set the gold standard, creating

housing initiatives so the 800 employees would have the kind of housing that farm workers deserve to have. and the list goes on and on and on. but i just wanted to join today and pay my respects to my -- our friend, rick, his family. tonya, we know this is a very difficult time for all of you, but we just want you to know that our thoughts and prayers are with you and we thank you for all of the contributions you made over the years. a leader in california agriculture and i just personally want to say thank you for all the good advice you've given me over the years. we will miss rick. i yield back the balance of my time to congressman denham. mr. denham: i yield to mr. panetta. mr. panetta: thank you, mr. denham. mr. speaker, i rise today along with my good friends and colleagues, mr. denham, mr. costa, to recognize somebody you can tell clearly impacted

not just the lives of the three of us but the lives of many people on the central coast of california and central valley of california and across this nation. today we obviously commemorate, we celebrate rick antol and what he's done for the salinas valley agriculture industry and what he and his family at t&a did to claim that area as the salad bowl of the world. let me tell you he did it through innovation and he did it through ingenuity. in dealing with the specialty crops and the technology and the practices that are needed in order to grow those types of crops. i mean, he was on the forefront of innovation when it came to precision farming. from growing hydrouponic lettuce to a robovator, they used less water, less pesticide and that led to less harm. they continued to grow a vast amount of vegetables.

in wasn't his innovation that set rick apart, it was his ingenuity and foresight that allowed him to implement standards, to protect our community, to make his employee's lives better and to this strive, to impact policies that would improve the agriculture industry. rick clearly was a steward of our environment. from t&a's packaging and energy use, water use, they were dedicated to ensure long-term sustainability to benefit our community, our planet and, yes, our next generation. rick was committed to making his employee's lives better, from providing that state-of-the-art housing that my colleagues mentioned, to offering employees stock options to his plans so they could be a part of that company, they could have a stake in that company. and, yes, rick was always a tireless advocate for the agriculture industry. we definitely valued his voice and his advice. and i can tell you, like i said, it wasn't just us but

clearly his family that he influenced. i'll never forget his son, brian, talking about the best piece of advice that he got from rick was when he was in high school and rick was getting him out in the field and rick's advice to brian was, look, the best fertilizer a farmer can have is his farmer's own shadow. being there, showing up. that's what rick did. as you can see, mr. speaker, rick is -- he was and he is a legend, not just on the central coast, not just in the central valley but in the agricultural community. carrie and i will miss him and we know that his spirit will continue to be felt, not just in the salad bowl of the world, but in all of our worlds. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. thank you, mr. denham. mr. denham: thank you. mr. speaker, let me just in closing say my wife and i extend our condolences and prayers for rick's loving wife,

his mother, their children and grandchildren. on behalf of all who knew him and benefited from his tireless efforts, we thank them for graciously giving us some of their time to spend with rick and the many things that we all learned from him. just say special prayers and condolences. thank you. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. mcgovern, for five minutes. mr. speaker, last week after turning their backs on bipartisanship, republicans on the agriculture committee advanced a highly partisan farm bill that hurts our most vulnerable constituents. the farm bill cuts the supplemental nutrition assistance program, known as snap, by over $23 billion. it eliminates state flexibility. it erects new barriers to assessing the program and creates a massive new untested

and underfunded bureaucracy. most troubling, the bill reduces or eliminates benefits for nearly two million kids, veterans, working families, and other vulnerable adults. the bill was drafted in secret and is not reflective of the 23 leargs our committee held on snap over -- hearings our committee held on snap over the past few years. i'm wondering where some of these proposal provisions originated. were they cooked out by some think tank? creation of speaker ryan who is desperate to pass his extreme welfare agenda before he retires at the end of this congress? this secretive closed process has left me with more questions than i have answers, mr. speaker. it's awful, and it's not the way the people's house should operate. it's not fair to our constituents. mr. speaker, last week i came to the house floor and outlined some of the most troubling provisions chairman conway and

house republicans insist -- conaway and house republicans insisted on including in this bill. today i'd like to take a few minutes to share with my colleagues who will be harmed if this reckless proposal is announced to advance. provisions in the farm bill specifically target millions of older adults over the age of 50 who we lie on snap to put -- rely on snap to put food on the table when times are tough. while snap requires strict work requirements, republicans are seeking to cut off assistance for people who are unable to find work or a suitable job training program. and they are doing this without a serious plan that would actually help them find work. it's a rotten thing to do. to make matters worse, republicans are extending these mandatory work requirements to people up to the age of 60. aarp, our country's leading voice for those over 50, has cautioned chairman conaway and republicans in congress that it is particularly difficult for individuals over 50 to find

consistent work. in a letter to our committee, aarp senior vice president for government affairs, joyce rogers, said this bill, and i quote, increase food insecurity and likely have negative consequences on health, end quote. mr. speaker, this is damage -- this damaging mandatory work proposal doesn't just impact older americans, it extends to other groups as well. for example, under this bill thousands of veterans will lose access to snap benefits if they can't find work or job training program. veterans, mr. speaker, men and women who have put their lives on the line for us. the least we can do, the very least is ensure that they have access to modest food benefits when they fall upon hard times. among the other vulnerable adults who will be subjected to mandatory work requirements are teenagers just aging out of foster care. people with underlying mental health issues. chronically homeless individuals. and ex-offenders with nowhere else to turn.

are these the people we want to be turning our backs on, mr. speaker? their lives are already challenging. this republican congress should not be making it more difficult for them to survive. other provisions in this terrible bill target working families with kids. the bill eliminates an important provision that provides states with the flexibility to raise income cutoffs and ease limits -- and ease asset limits. taking away this stop option cuts 900,000 adults and kids off of snap and takes free 265,000 ls away from kids. sadly, this bill limits access for people with disabilities. it imposes new work requirements for snap recipients with out-of-pocket utility costs, placing more burdens on those living with disabilities. while there appear to be some exceptions to the burdensome work requirements, i noted earlier for people with disabilities, many others who may not meet the statutory

definition, who have not yet been identified, would be cut off of assistance. that's why the consortium with citizens with disabilities sent our committee a letter strongly opposing this bill. i ask unanimous consent to insert the letters from aarp and the consortium of citizens with disabilities to be entered in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. mcgovern: i'll close by once again urging this republican leadership to stop their attacks on those living in poverty. pull this bill. pull this awful bill. let's work together to craft a bipartisan farm bill that supports our farmers and our nutrition programs. let's advance a bill that we can all be proud of. negotiate a bipartisan bill. stop insisting on this $23 billion cut to snap benefits. let's pass a good farm bill, not this partisan nightmare. i urge the republican leadership in this congress to join with us to end hunger now. stop trying to make hunger worse. let's join together and end hunger now. it's our moral imperative. i yield back.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. mcclintock, for five minutes. mr. mcclintock: thank you, mr. speaker. in december, we adopted one of the most important tax reform laws in our nation's history. it's producing higher wages, better job opportunities, and greater economic expansion than we've seen in a decade. but having cut taxes, we assumed an urgent responsibility to restrain spending. taxes and debt are two sides of the same coin. a debt is simply a future tax. once we've spent a dollar we've already decided to tax it either now or in the future. it's the spending that's the problem. three numbers -- 26, 29, and 46 -- tell the whole story over the last 10 years, population and inflation have increased a combined 26%. our revenues have more than kept pace, increasing 29%. the problem is that third

number. our spending has grown 46%. we're now approaching $1 trillion annual deficit with $21 trillion of total debt. this not only crowds out capital that would otherwise be used for economic expansion, it also produces staggering interest costs on that debt ich today amount to $475 billion a year. our total defense spending this year is roughly $675 billion. every 1% increase in interest rates adds roughly $200 billion to our annual interest costs. if capital markets believe we have no plan and no inclination to control our spending, they can soon begin demanding higher rates to compensate their higher risks. that's a debt spiral. it leads to a debt crisis. pension systems comblode, basic services falter, the population

flees. puerto rico's debt crisis has left its government completely helpless to respond to last year's hurricanes. the instrument required to prevent this from happening is the federal budget. it is supposed to set limits on discretionary and mandatory spending and to provide a streamline process to a adjust statutes to meet those levels. the deadline for congress to pass such a budget was april 15. to date, the house budget committee has done precisely nothing to fulfill this statutory requirement and this fiscal imperative. nothing. the constitution gives to the house the power of the purse. a dollar is not spent by this government unless the house says it gets spent. two months ago, having cut taxes, the house has approved a 20% increase in discretionary spending, placing us on a path that will lead to a sovereign debt crisis. and the house budget committee, over the objections of myself and others, has done nothing to

produce a plan to get us off that path. fortunately, the republican study committee, the largest caucus in the congress, has stepped forward to offer a comprehensive budget for fiscal year 2019. i chair the budget task force of the r.s.c., and i want to thank the many members and staff who provided countless hours to produce it. the r.s.c. budget at present is the only credible and comprehensive plan in congress to turn us back toward fiscal solvency before it's too late, getting us back to balance by 2026. it combines the fiscal reforms proposed by the members of the r.s.c. over the last several sessions along with innovations and service delivery proposed by the c.b.o., the g.a.o., the administration, and by think tanks by heritage and ricadis. it shows program by program how we can reform them in a manner that produces more effective service delivery at much lower cost, save medicare and social security from impending collapse, and fully fund our

nation's defense. es, it gores every sacred cows and we will here howls from the status quo. we are running out of time and we are running out of options. they have placed on a collision course of bankruptcy and countries that bankrupt themselves are not around for very long. a sovereign debt crisis is coming to america and at our current rate of spending and borrowing it could be coming very soon. i implore the house leadership to allow this budget to be brought at once to the floor and at least give the house the fleeting and perhaps final chance to avert the fiscal crisis that looms before us. . given the fact there is no credible plan to avert this crisis, the r.s.c. budget may represent the last best hope of restoring our government to sol van hollenry and ensuring we can continue to provide for the common defense and promote the general welfare for ourselves and posterity.

i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. kennedy, for five minutes. r. kennedy: mr. speaker, earlier this year i stood in massachusetts and told our country the story of that proud and resilient city. today for nearly 200 working families, that resilience is being tested. ecause this week after celebrate $342 million in profit, phillips lighting announced they will be closing their factory in fall river and moving those jobs to mexico. almost 200 loyal, lifelong employees are left behind.

careers upended, savings lost, mortgages, health care bills, tie wigs payments will be missed. -- tuition payments will be missed. for the 61-year-old worker nearing retirement, and paying off his daughter's student loans, a meager investment in work force retraining is not worth all that much. for the countless workers who sit around dining room tables in southeastern massachusetts tonight and try to figure out how their family budget can absorb impossible cuts, land lip service given by this white house yesterday means nothing. that's not even the whole story. phillips lighting shareholders are being showered with $187.4

million in stock buybacks because of donald trump's tax plan. make no mistake, that is the legacy of this tax bill. working families that are left sorting through the wreckage while c.e.o.'s bask in windfalls. lights turned off on empty , while factory floors shareholders grin around boardroom tables. success somehow defined and dividends and return on investment rather than in jobs, n paychecks, in family supported, retirements earned, and dreams realized. supported, yes, fall river is a unique city. but across this country, other families and communities find themselves in the same economic place as

afterthoughts and a republican economy increasingly tilted towards the privileged and powerful, but the economic gove who refuses to hear their voices. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to congratulate a constituent from warren county who has a truly remarkable story. an american story. salsa grew up in rural indonesia on the central island of java. she was raised by her grandmother and uncle and lived in a house without electricity, where water came from an underground spring. she left home at age 1620 go -- 16 to go to work for sony tv in malaysia. money she made was

sent home to help her family. she moved to hong kong at the families. o with money she made she helped raise children, it cooking, and general housekeeping. again, most of the money she made was sent back to indonesia to help her family survive. it was in hong kong she taught herself how to speak english. today she not only speaks english fluently, but also fluent in more than six language, all self-taught. it was in hong kong that she met her future husband, lingom, who was there on -- lincoln, who was there on business. the pair dated long distance for five years and in 2010 salsa came to the united states on a fiance visa. they were married in warren on july 10, 2010 on the beautiful grounds of the parry museum. her first job was as a volunteer at the warren county ymca. she helped greet guests and performed other customer service responsibilities. a year later, she had done

something she had never done before. she learned to drive. she obtained her driver's license and started working at blair in the packaging area and she had never driven a car prior to moving to the united states. she was soon taking a job at whirly drink works in the office performing administrative functions, communications, and human resources. in her more than five years there, she has become a highly valued and respected teammate. salsa was also recognized for her team work, positive attitude, and always coming to work with the highest integrity and loyalty to the company. in 2013, salsa graduated from the year-long leadership warren county program. which is designed to educate future leaders on how to work with nonprofit organizations and help them achieve sustained success. one key project her team took on was to help teach disadvantaged children how to read. salsa and lincoln are very active in giving back to the community with their time, leadership, and personal

resources to help make warren county a better place to live and work. among the organizations they have worked with include the warren ymca, united fund of warren county, warren general hospital, salvation army, and numerous others. mr. speaker, salsa's story doesn't end there. on february 2, 2018, she achieved one of her greatest accomplishments. something she considers to be her highest honor. she became as you us citizen. mr. speaker, i want to remark on what an incredible person salsa is from working hard to take care of her family to teaching herself more than six languages and giving back to her community. salsa truly is impressive. mr. speaker, i congratulate salsa on achieving her american citizenship. i'm proud to call her a fellow american. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. schiff, for five minutes.

mr. speaker, on tuesday, the world marked the 10 rd anniversary of the armenian genocide. the murder of 1.5 million mr. s armenians and displacement of millions more in the ottoman empire from 1915 to 1923. in my district in los angeles i joined tens of thousands of descendents of genocide survivors and others to march through the streets. a living testament to the resilience of the armenian people. in our nation's capital, the white house and congress will once again sadly silent, failing to properly recognize the genocide. more than a century after the armenian genocide it is our solemn responsibility to remember those who were lost torques seek justice and restitution, and to educate americans and the world about the crime of genocide. a recent poll of americans found that the details of the holocaust are increasingly fading from memory. particularly among younger generations. 2/3 of millennials do not know

what auschwitz is or what happened there. and many others of all ages couldn't answer basic questions about the holocaust. as someone who lost family members in the holocaust, i find these results horrifying. there is no doubt that public understanding of the armenian genocide is far lower and that's due in part to the silence of those who should be leading the conversation about it. and to turkey's nefarious campaign of denial. how many americans know of red sunday, the day in 1915 in which armenian leaders and intellectuals in konstantin nopele were rounded up to be sent to camps which many would never return. how many know of the concentration camps where armenians were tortured, raped, and starved. how many americans know that in the years after the genocide through the near east relief effort, the again rossity of the american people, saved the lives of thousands of survivors and helped secure the future of the armenian people.

final lirks how many americans know that the -- finally, how many americans know that the congress and president have refused to acknowledge the genocide, intimidated into silence by turkey? turkey has invested heavily in the cause of denial and to our shame the u.s. government has been intimidated into silence. though turkey remains a member nato under the autogratic rule -- ought contractic rule of the president, they have become the leading jailer of journalists in the world. u.s. citizens have also been the victims of the crackdown on free expression. last year a security detail brutally assaulted peaceful protestors in washington, d.c. charges against 11 of 15 turkish nationals charged have been dropped and little indication that turkey will pay any diplomatic price for this attack. northern syria where the

united states has worked closely with partners to devastate isis, turkey has chosen to place its paramount n focus on fighting the kurds, even launching a military offensive into syria that threatens our own soldiers and those of our allies. they have even gone so far as to threaten the united states with an ottoman slap. these are not the actions of an ally. they are the actions of a nation that feels emboldened to it act with indifference to the united states. and who can blame them? for over a quarter century and congresses of both parties have been bullied into genocide denial for fear turkey will and congresses with fleeting cooperation. it has never been in our national security interests to be complicit in another countries' denial of human rights, let alone denial of genocide. it is time for america to speak plainly about the american sen gwenside in violation of human rights anywhere in the world. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back.

the chair recognizes the gentleman from arkansas, mr. hill, for five minutes. mr. hill: thank you, mr. speaker. let me say i thank my colleague, mr. schiff, for his remarks on genocide and turning our back on the facts that we find around the world. i appreciate his thoughts. i want to rise today and talk to my colleagues and the american people about the atrocities in syria. and call on my colleagues in the senate to complirble vote a bill -- complirble -- expeditiously vote on a bill written by eliot engel, h.r. poses -- legislation imposes new sanctions on human rights abusers in the sad state of affairs in syria. and those who facilitate the asawed regime's atrocities and encouraging negotiations to bring about a lasting political

solution there. it also authorizes the state department to support entities that are collecting and preserving the chain of evidence for the eventual prosecution of those who have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in syria since march of 2011. the world has witnessed many generational examples of butchery and genocide by menaces including hitler, stalin, and pol pot. in the last seven years the world has allowed us to recognize a new fame for -- new name for evil and cruelty, al assad and his henchman. for the past seven years the world has expressed outrage yet twiddled their thumbs while this modern day hitler anigh lights the civilian population of syria. leader assad has after savagely directed the bombing,

electrocution, and torture of his people. saddam hussein's use of chemical weapons in the 1980's against iran appears tame in comparison to the calculated bombing of weaponized chlorine and sarin dropped into children's hospitals, medical facilities, and villages across syria. . i'm grateful after a little thumb twiddling of the last administration our current administration has taken action to stop the use of chemical weapons against the syrian people. i call on the senate to act with expedition and pass the caesar syrian civilian protection act and finally help obtain the kind of documentation that we need, mr. speaker, to end this step back into darkness and convict assad and his co-conspirators and enablers of war crimes. mr. speaker, i rise today to

recognize a group of students in arkansas who are collecting personal items lost after the devastating tornado that hit their town four years ago. aaron rappaport, the teacher who created this project, was inspired after finding a baby picture in the debris. over the last four years, the students have collected 90,000 items and only have about 2,000 left to be claimed. they launched their own website to help people reunite with their photos, their birth certificates, and education diplomas. a memorial dedication planned by those students will be held friday at 10:00 a.m. to remember the victims of the 2011 and 2014 tornados. in the face of tragedy, these students have furnished us with an inspirational model for solidarity and hope. i applaud mr. rappaport and

these courageous students for these efforts and dedication to the valonia community. 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 wisconsin, ms. moore, for five minutes. ms. moore: good morning, mr. speaker. i rise again today to decry the majority's war on the poor, especially those women who get up every single day and struggle as mothers and often are caretakers for elderly parents and who are juggling two and three minimum wage jobs $7.25 an hour to -- hour to take care of their family and then told they are welfare cheats because they need assistance from programs like the supplemental nutrition assistance program in order to meet basic food needs. last time i checked, mr. speaker, food was not a luxury

but a basic life necessity. in a few weeks, this house will take up a bill which has been designated h.r. 2, an enumeration which reflects the majority's priorities. now, as you recall, mr. speaker, h.r. 1 was reserved for the over $1 trillion tax giveaway to corporations and to the wealthy. as been noted earlier in our morning hour, we are facing a sovereign debt crisis because that bill will thrust us into trillions of dollars of debt in the future. so what does h.r. 2 do? h.r. 2 makes very harmful changes to the supplemental nutrition assistance program, cutting $23 billion, reduces funding, , to cut

and also to generate resentment against the poor so that these draconian cuts will be tolerated by the public. after all, we got to pay for h.r. 1 some kind of way, so h.r. 2 is the solution. these numerous ideological and unproven policy that simply stigmatize and punish the poor are what constitutes h.r. 2, along with the $23 billion cut. now, just let me say, mr. speaker, i want to remind you that the majority of snap participants are children, seniors, people with disabilities. these are individuals who will not be part of any work force no matter how mean-spirited you decide to be, mr. speaker, and

no matter how many of these ill-advised work policies you put in place. a 7-year-old cannot work. someone disabled cannot work. someone 68, 69 years old may not be able to find a job that an employer will provide for them. and of the rest of those who receive snap, let's talk about the facts. more than half of snap households have at least one working age disabled adult in it while receiving snap. more than 80% work in the year before or after receiving snap. work rates are even higher for families with children where ore than 60% work, work, work, mr. speaker, while receiving snap. yet, we have h.r. 2, which requires work requirements, and

yet, we talk about how to extend and make the safety net better for farmers in our farm bill. but here comes more proposals to restrict eligibility, reduce benefits, cap or reduce funding snap's core he purpose -- to help the struggling americans when tough times hit, and tough times are right now, mr. speaker. the fact is that for low-income families, every single dollar counts. no matter where these family lives, they're urban families, rural families, tens of millions of americans who are old and young. hunger sees no gender, race, religion, culture, and, mr. speaker, there are hungry republicans as well. i just want to send a reality check to our colleagues who are

running around the country praising their tax cuts for the wealthy. poverty and joblessness remains a stark reality in our country, and the populations that have the highest levels of poverty and unemployment, including older americans, are the ones most affected. punishing disadvantaged families will not break the grip of poverty. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. ms. moore: i want to thank you, mr. speaker, and i urge us to reject these cuts. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentleman from nevada, mr. amodei, for five minutes. mr. amodei: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to celebrate the birthday of a nevada icon. i'm sure you all recall that the state of nevada turned 150 a few years ago and that the biggest little city in the . rld, reno, is turned 150

well, bob, former university of nevada regent, former nevada lieutenant governor, former mayor of the city of reno, has passed the halfway point in catching the state of nevada and the city of reno at 150. he's 80. four score. a native of the lone star state, like many nevadans, bob got to nevada as fast as he could. a leader in nevada's gaming resort industry, an a-list philanthropist, he's done some great work as a nevadan. of course, he owes all of his success and his defiance of the actuarial tables to his wife, nancy, who has performed miracles during their life-long partnership of transforming this pilgrim from texas into a special part of nevada's fabric. thank you, nancy. and happy birthday to you, mr.

mayor for life. bob is 80. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman rom texas, mr. green, for five minutes. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, once again i rise because i love my country. r. speaker, i rise because i want to thank the president and compliment the president. i thank the president for indicating this morning that he not not, n-o-t, will interfere with the mueller investigation. he said as much on national tv. i compliment him for this saying this, mr. speaker, because if he does so in controvention of article 2, section 4 of the constitution,

it will be tantamount to impeachment. so i compliment you, mr. president, for being fort right, and i assume you meant what you said. , i er, you went on to say may change my mind. trust that the president meant what he said initially and that he will not change his mind. because, again, to do so in controvention of article 2, section 4 of the constitution, will be tantamount to impeachment. he only body in this country that can litigate impeachment is the congress of the united states of america. as a result, mr. speaker, i want to assure all, especially

the president, if you do this, mr. president, i assure you there will be articles of impeachment brought before the congress of the united states of america. now, mr. president, i am in no rush to do this. as a matter of fact, i don't enjoy using the personal pronoun when it comes to this kind of dialogue, monologue, in this case, as i'm talking directly to you. but, mr. president, if no one else does, i will. i will not allow the constitution to be ignored and a certain extent trampled upon. i'll bring the articles of impeachment. as a matter of fact, i have instructed my staff to draft them. they will be ready to go. i also have instructed my staff to tweet this message that if you do so, mr. president, if you interfere in controvention

of article 2, section 4, i will bring the articles of impeachment. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president. members are reminded to address their remarks to the chair. the chair recognizes the gentleman from colorado, mr. buck, for five minutes. mr. buck: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to honor colonel stan cass, united states army, retired. colonel cass passed away on april 14 at the age of 84. born in well county, colorado, to a family of farmers, colonel graduated from high school and attended west point. after brief stints in germany and france, he went to vietnam as a helicopter pilot, dangerously traversing the skies to support infantry

troops. he briefly came back to the states to complete a masters degree before returning to vietnam to command 300 helicopters in an air calvary fleet. after his valiant efforts in vietnam, colonel cass worked in the pentagon on the hell fire missile system and then returned to well county to take over the family farm. he wasn't finishing serving in 2008, he launched honor flight, a nationwide nonprofit that transports america's veterans for visits to our war memorials in washington, d.c. stan helped transport over 2,500 veterans to washington over the past decade, giving our heroes a chance to reflect on and find closure in their wartime experiences. like so many other families in northern colorado, colonel cass very personally impacted my family. my wife, perry, has volunteered for the organization, and my father-in-law, bill, has gone on one of those flights as a veteran.

they've both been alongside colonel cass, meeting some of the amazing veterans living in our community. their humility, endurance and wisdom have taught us so much. colonel cass dedicated his life to this country and the men and women who serve it. i offer my condolences to his wife sicily, the rest of his family, everyone in our community who had a chance to know this humble, incredible human being. i know there are many. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize randy, editor of the tribune newspaper. on april 14, the colorado press association inducted him into the hall of fame, honoring his incredible 45-year career with the paper of note in weld county. just three years ago, he earned the newspaper person of the year award from the same association. the paper conducted itself with dignity, like randy.

he wanted to make sure citizens make things right in their community. randy never shies awray from telling the truth. if he disagrees with one of my positions, he lets me know it and he lets everyone else know it too in his editorial that day. but randy's critiques are always fair and respectful. he wants to build consensus to make our community, state, and country a better place. we need more people who believe in civility in our public discourse, like randy. randy also cares deeply about his community. i know in because i see him everywhere around town. this is what makes him a good editor. he knows who he works for, the people, and listens to them. last year he received bad news. feaises the toughest battle so far in his life, cancer. the thing about randy is we know how he's fighting it. the same way he ran the newspaper. he's feisty, passionate, caring, and optimistic. i pray for randy and his family in this challenging time and i

pray for our community and others step up in the big shoes they must now fill as randy transitions to the editor emeritus role. he's induction into the colorado hall of fame is important. i congratulate him on this incredible honor. what seems more important is the impact he's had on our community. i thank him today for the way he's shaped greelly and weld county. that impact will never be forgotten. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from movement, mr. cleaver, for five minutes. mr. cleaver: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i want to begin by saying that there are a lot of things in this farm bill that i actually agree with and i would ike to be supportive of such components of this bill. i agree with and would like to be a partner in getting this bill passed. however, there are some things i need to mention.

for the last 50 years, democrats and republicans have worked together to combine food and farming programs in a bipartisan effort. however, when discussing the 2018 farm bill, which we will come up for a vote very soon, i want to shed some light on some things that don't quite add up. some things that aren't what i would call common sense. in essence, this bill aims to it restrict eligibility and reduce benefits of the nation's most effective anti-hunger programs, snap, formerly known as food stamps. moreover, this proposed bill dumps a massive burden on state governments. therefore, although i intend to be an active partner in the final passage of this legislation, i cannot and will not support the 2018 farm bill until the necessary changes are made. if enacted, this bill as it

currently designed will deal damaging blows to the very heart of america by cutting nearly $20 billion from snap, resulting in higher levels of hunger, poverty, and critical health problems. i want to take just a minute to remind my colleagues and those watching at home who the snap recipients are. in my home state of missouri, snap reached 759,000 residents, more than 10% of the population. that's one in every 10 missourians. snap kept 221,000 people out of poverty in missouri, including 109,000 children. which reminds me, this is a painful part of being in a body that has now become tribal in the way we conduct business. it is so sad that we have come into this situation. over and over and over there is this theory that is floated out

in america that people are stealing food stamps and living in luxury homes and all this. it's just so sad because when you hear someone like this for decades, people actually believe it. and there is no proof to what they -- they say when they make these allegations. it may be important to know that 82% of the places where food stamps or snap is edeemed, there is .5% fraud. .5% fraud. but if you listen to people, they are not going to say it on the floor, they go and say it in the world, they won't say it on the floor because they know that it's inaccurate. but you would come to believe boy, these people are

ripping us hardworking americans off. oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive. that's from "macbeth." it is exactly what's happening. we're deceiving the american public. i read somewhere that says the generous will themselves be for the food they share with the poor. that is something that we should remember, particularly to e of us who are inclined foe read the book from which that quote came. as representatives of the united states of america, it is our responsibility to pass legislation that is proactive, not reactive. it is our responsibility to understand the very real and human consequences that could take place if this legislation is passed as it currently stands. once again, let me remind you

of the fact that the snap program is the most effective way to combat food insecurity. i know, i grew up poor. i grew up in public housing. i saw my father working three jobs, three jobs to get us out of public housing. we lived there five years. he would not even take food stamps because he didn't want anybody to think that he was not working hard enough. can i get a little frustrated when i hear people lying about people who receive snap. the fact in the year 2018 there are children and adults in america that go hungry and it is adid -- appalling. note over ant to 70% of the people who receive snap are children, the disabled, and the poor. i yield back. note over 70% thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. arrington, for five minutes. mr. arrington: thank you, mr.

speaker. i appreciate the gentleman, my colleague, democratic colleague, for his comments and his personal testimony. and i respect his dad and the heritage of work that he left for his son. i'm on the agriculture committee and i got to say i'm confused and perplexed and quite frankly i'm outraged in many ways with some of my about es' comments work. and the work requirements that we're putting in the food stamp program. this doesn't have about to do anything about children, about disabled people, about elderly. this is about requiring people who are able-bodied to work who aren't working. we're long overdue for reforms in this country. to do we're long overdue to have policies in place that encourage work. we want people to have the blessing and dignity of work. we want people to fulfill their

god-given potential. we want them to contribute to society. we have six million jobs, surplus jobs. we want folks to it make the best out of the life that god has given them for our communities, for their families, for themselves. this is unbelievable. in the united states of america. we're asking that if you receive assistance from hardworking, tax-paying americans, that you would just work 20 hours a week or volunteer or be trained to work. that's all we're asking. i see hardworking people throughout the gallery and i bet you they feel the same way. i have seen the polls, over 80% of the people in this country say more people need to work and pay taxes and contribute to this great country. i believe in the safety net. i believe in compassion. i believe that's the heart of god and i think it should be reflected in our policies.

but god also expects personal responsibility. and he expects us to have responsible policies that pull people up and out of a cycle of dependency and poverty. that's not compassion. hat's not decency. that's not common sense. i support this farm bill. and i appreciate the tone, i really do, of my colleague. he's a gentleman. i don't even know him, but i can tell he's a gentleman and statesman. but i can't -- i cannot listen to folks who, in my opinion, are scaring folks and the public and 3450eu colleagues -- my colleagues who are on the agriculture committee and here in the house from not voting to make responsible, reasonable, compassionate and commonsense reforms to food stamps. we need to do that in every

government assistance program. to pull people out of the welfare trap. to pull peopl the welfare trap. we need to equip them and encourage them and support them to be the best that they can be. i don't know how much time i have left, mr. speaker, but i want to also comment on some fellow west texans who are here in town to compete for the 2018 national science bowl. this week lubbock high school will join select schools across the country who earned the opportunity to compete at the national finals. i want to thank the department texan, and my fellow secretary rick perry, for sponsoring this important competition. the students from lubbock competing in this tournament are part of a national effort to ensure america continues to lead the way in science and remains the laboratory of innovation in this entire world. that's the greatness of american innovation. we want this generation to

discover the cure to cancer, to solve the challenges of cyber security, push the boundaries of outer space. these students' commitment to science is impressive and i'm confident that their generation willpropel us to new heights of discovery that will improve the uality of life for all humanity. congratulations again to lubbock high school and all the schools competing in this tournament. go westerners. humanity. congratulations again mr. speaker, i'm going to go ahead and yield back the remainer -- remainder of my time. as i conclude i thank chairman conaway and the leadership of the ag committee for providing the safety net so that we can feed and clothe the american people, so that we can make important investment in rural infrastructure, for sustainable small towns, the heart pete of this country --heartbeat of this country, so woo can continue to be the leader in

agriculture, innovation, and technology development, and so e can make the compassionate reforms to food stamps. god bless america. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: members are me inded -- reminded to pretrain to references to occupants in the gallery. the chair reforms to food stamps. god bless america. i yield back. recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. jefferies, for five minutes. mr. jefferies: mr. speaker, the american people face a clear choice about the way forward. the republican raw deal or the democratic better deal. take epublicans want to away health care for more than 23 million americans. raw deal. take away we want to strengthen the affordable care act and dramatically lower the costs of prescription drugs. better deal. house republicans have a fake infrastructure plan that will do nothing to repair our

nation's crumbling bridges, roads, and tunnels. raw deal. democrats have a real infrastructure plan that with would invest $1 trillion and create 16 million good-paying jobs. better deal. house republicans passed a tax scam where 83% of the benefits went to the wealthiest 1% in america simply to subsidize the lifestyles of the rich and shameless. raw deal. democrats want a permanent tax cut for working families so we the ut more money into pockets of everyday the pockets of everyday americans. better deal. house republicans want to cut $2 trillion from

social security, medicare, and medicaid. raw deal. democrats want to strengthen social security, medicare, and medicaid so that senior citizens from throughout the land can live out their golden years with grace and dignity. that's a better deal. house republicans are all about chaos, crisis, and confusion. democrats are working to deliver better jobs, better ges, and a better future the american people deserve. a better deal. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, mr. massie, for ive minutes. mr. massie: mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize outstanding udents in my district from

fort nds high school in thomas. these exceptional students competed in the we the people state level competition, and they'll represent our state at the national competition here in d.c. this weekend. this is their 15th state championship win. the we the people program is directed by the center for civic fort thomas. these exceptional students education. the we . i think some of my colleagues could stand to participate in this program. and prepares them for future leadership roles. the program sponsors student debates and hearings. this year some of the national hearing questions for discussion include -- what are classical republicanism and natural rights philosophy? and how did they influence the declaration of independence, the constitution, and the bill of rights? how has the relationship among the three branches of government changed in the course of the history of our country?

it's changed quite a bit. 'm proud of my constituents, -- students hard work and congratulate them for their outstanding work representing the state of kentucky. mr. speaker, i would be remiss if i let the statements and the speech of our guest yesterday go unanswered. the president of france was here, right at this microphone, delivering his own brand of socialism. it's new and improved. we've all seen the inefficiencies of socialism play out in europe over the decades and the horrors of national socialism. but the french president has a new brand of socialism that we're all supposed to be enamored with. i would call it global socialism. maybe even global corporate socialism. i hope none of my colleagues were seduced by his ideas. ironically, they're motivated

by fear and irrational fear of the carbon dioxide molecule. carbon dioxide is a necessary ingredient for all life on this planet. for instance, let me give you the equation for photosynthesis. sically plants take six co-2 molecules and react them with six air moll cutes in sunlight molecules.ix sugar take co-2 off this planet nearly everything dies and we die. so i think it's very interesting that this new socialism has a twist to it. this global socialism. and that it's motivated by an irrational fear of one of the two chemical compounds that form the basis of our food chain. very ironic. it's also motivated by something else the europeans have had a pension for for

centuries. the bankrupted nearly every country over there. and that's a penchant for war, for interventionism. they've all -- nearly all of them at one point or time has sought to build an empire. and so the president of france was over here saying that we should also be interventionists, that he we need to get involved in the middle east more, that we need to be involved in all of the countries. i reject this. i would urge my colleagues to stick with the plan we got, stick with the policies, stick -- that we've had since the beginning of this country. stick with the constitution. stick with capitalism. stick with the idea if you build something you own it, and reject european socialism. thank you. and i yield back the balance of my time. are are the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. rothfus, for five minutes. mr. rothfus: mr. speaker, as someone who went to grade and high school in the 1970's, i learned about countries,

particularly the soviet union and its eastern european satellites that severely limited the right of their people to travel. in effect, they were prisoners in their own country. indeed, in post-war germany, the communists even built a wall through berlin. they did so not to keep people from west berlin traveling to east berlin, they did to prevent the captives of east berlin from running to freedom in the west. there is a tragic story unfolds in britain this week of a new virtual berlin wall that british and european authorities have erected on little 2-year-old elfie evans who lives in britain. they have eliminated this child's right to travel and they are holding him prisoner. elfie is severely handicapped. british officials have made the decision over the objection of

elfie's young parents that elfie would be better off dead. as such, they are prohibiting elfie's parents from taking him to bambino jesuit hospital in rome, which has offered to care for the bill. elfie is not suffering, but british officials appear to be projecting their own subjective views on elfie's quality of life and are deeming his life not worthy of living. among my most heartwarming experiences, my work in my district, are visits to the severely handicapped. i visited with individuals who will never walk and who never communicate verbally. but they can and do love and they are loved. for some folks in life, their calling is that simple -- to love and be loved. and their presence makes us better persons. calling, at's elfie's

to love and be loved. maybe those in britain responsible for elfie's fate should consider that. to be clear, elfie's right to life does not come from parliament. it doesn't come from the crown. it doesn't come from any british court. it comes from god. mr. speaker, the british authorities should back down. they should allow his parents to take him to bambino jesuit hospital in rome. the british should tear down the virtual wall they put up around him and let him be free so he continue to love and be loved. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until noon today.