mr. o'rourke: thank you, mrs.davis, i appreciate hearing more facts from my colleague about the border. i place that in congress to, again the anxiety and fear that is surrounding much of the border policy that we're hearing from the senate and in some circles here in the house. and the reason that we are so sensitive to that here on the u.s. side of the u.s.-mexico porder is we bear the brunt of those poll -- border is we bear the brunt of those policies. the enforcement of the cost to our economies, to our way of life, falls to those communities that fall on the u.s. side of the u.s.-mexico border. but what is the source of that anxiety and fear? where does it come from? if i had to characterize it bluntly, i'd say it comes from those who feel that mexican nationals are coming to our country to steal our jobs, take our resources, consume or benefits, and put our country at an economic disadvantage. but fen, if -- but again if we take that and look at the underlying fact well, see a far different picture. the con

mr. o'rourke. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. o'rourke: i thank the gentleman for yielding time. rise today in support of the mcgovern-smith-lee-jones-garame ndi amendment to end the war in afghanistan. i am happy to represent fort bliss in el paso, texas. since the start of this war in afghanistan, 41 yoldiers from fort -- soldiers from fort bliss lost their lives in congress. all five had already been awarded both a bronze star and a purple heart that died this year. just this last month, three fort bliss soldiers were killed in a single attack. more than 100 have been injured in combat and awarded the purple heart. countless soldiers are coming back to our community with unseen mental injuries, including posttraumatic stress disorder and already this year three soldiers at fort bliss have committed suicide. this terrible loss of life should focus us on our solemn responsibility to know when to bring our soldiers home to their families. we are grateful for their service and for their achievements. because of them osama bin laden

mr. o'rourke: to my colleagues who value our civil liberties and constitutional rights, can you live with a $50 billion militarized buildup within the united states where more than six million of your fellow citizens live? and to my colleagues who care about human rights and the sanctity of human life, more than 5,000 people have died crossing the border into the united states over the last 15 years. let's not perpetuate this problem. let's solve it. we need comprehensive immigration reform but we need comprehensive immigration reform that's rational, that's humane, and that's fiscally responsible. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from illinois seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized. >> mr. speaker, i rise today to thank carl myer for his years of service to parkland college and the champaign county community. carl originally moved there in 1971 when he came to the university