mr. cicilline. mr. cicilline: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: the chair will receive a message. the messenger: mr. speaker, a message from the president of the united states. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker: mr. secretary. the secretary: i am directed by the president of the united states to deliver to the house of representatives a message in writing. the speaker: the chair will entertain up to five requests for one-minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. lance: mr. speaker, this week in washington we welcomed representatives from across the country attending the american-israel public affairs committee policy conference, the largest gath

mr. cicilline: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. cicilline: mr. speaker, i rise today to pay tribute to master sergeant david pourier of rhode island who served in the new hampshire national guard. on february 28, master sergeant pourier died in a noncombat related incident while serving in the united states air force in qatar in support of operation enduring freedom. he was laid to rest on march 10 with military honors. master sergeant pourier was from north smithfield, rhode island. after serving in the united states air force, he joined the rhode island national guard where he was trained as a life support journeyman. in 1999 he transferred to the new hampshire air national guard and continued his service as a member of the 157th operation support squadron for over 19 years. our nation calls upon our brave men and women in uniform to protect our great democracy. there ar

mr. cicilline: thank you, mr. chairman. clearly, as my colleagues have noted, the enforce act is a deeply flawed piece of legislation. it would give any legislative majority a blank check to challenge in court by filing a lawsuit any decision of the executive branch that it disagrees with. instead of considering legislation to create jobs, to fix our broken immigration system, repair our crumbling infrastructure or raise the minimum wage, today the majority has brought to this floor a partisan measure to increase only one thing -- congressional litigation. the bill raises serious constitutional questions and fails to put into place responsible safeguards to prevent abuse. this, i believe, mr. chairman, is a dangerous attack that threatens the careful balance of power developed by our founding fathers. and at a time when the american people have lost so much confidence in congress, my republican colleagues are offering yet another bill that will do nothing to improve the lives of americans. instead, this bill will only add t

mr. cicilline, for five minutes. i cicilline: madam speaker, rise today to recognizing building futures, a providence-based work force program that provides rhode islanders a way in the construction industry. places them in registered apprenticeships. this success is due in large part to its dedicated and talented staff led by director and founder, andrew cortez. i was pleased to stand with andrew as the mayor of providence in 2007 to help launch building futures which has become a national model of work force programs and to celebrate their success of work force futures and to hear directly from those who benefited from this program that are holding good-paying jobs in my state. addressing the skills gap someone of rhode island's and our nation's most pressing challenges. we know that too many people are searching for good-paying jobs, but too often even though they're hard working, they lack the particular skills they need for the jobs that are available. building futures is helping to restore opportunity by bridgi

mr. cicilline of rhode island. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thank you for convening this hearing.nk you to our witnesses. i think we all understand the urgency of the moment and the necessity of joining our international -- joining in an international response to the clear act of russian aggression. and i presume that many standard reviews and procedures are likely to be expedited or maybe even waived. so i'd like to just ask you to speak to the long-term obligations of the united states that we're contemplating. typically, the united states requires that u.s. credits in volatile countries are administered by an independent facility, administered under u.s. supervision. will that be the case here? who will administer ukraine's payment of interest on the bonds and repayment of principal? will the u.s. have effective oversight? how will that occur? and what do you assess the prospects for successful repayment, and what happens if that does not occur? and finally, in in addition to the loan guarantee, what sorts of aid is the administration considering for the ukraine? gu sorts of ai

mr. cicilline yield me some time? i understand the gentleman's point. i would point out if we're looking at 1868 and 1872 elections, i'm not sure if you follow this logic that would be borne out because confederate soldiers were not allowed to vote in these elections. indeed, indeed the distance between the north and the south would be far greater if they had been given the franchise to vote. this is different than in the ukraine because in the ukraine after the collapse of the soviet union, those who had been on the side of the soviet union were allowed to franchise, were allowed to right to vote. would make that as an example of the fact that we in the united states have gone through something as wrenching, perhaps more wrenching with respect to the civil war and eventually come closer together. i think the point you make, mr. grayson, which is the most concerning one is about the fact that the difference with respect to language itself creates probably more of a impediment than anything else. and that is an area where we can weigh in. where we can as