bost: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. bost: thank you. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of h.r. 2704, the improved v.a. accountability to prevent sexual harassment and discrimination act of 2021. it is with a terrible reality that according to the recent study, roughly 26% of female employees and 14% of male employees at v.a. have reported experiencing sexual harassment over a two-year period. sadly, an even higher percentage of employees reported some type of discrimination such as reprisal or racial discrimination. though these problems are large, i applaud the work that the v.a. office of resolution management, diversity, and inclusion and what they do. they are taking these issues on headfirst. but there is still a long way to go. that is why i am proud to support h.r. 2704 which would eliminate the potential conflict of interest in v.a.'s chain of demand. require stricter reporting of allegations of s

bost: thank you. madam speaker, i rise in support of h.r. 1448, as amended, the puppies assisting wounded servicemembers, or the paws for veterans therapy act. this bill will help connect veterans with ptsd with service dogs by establishing a service dog training pilot program, supporting service dog training organizations, and authorizing the v.a. to provide veterans with ptsd service dogs and veterinarian assistance for those service dogs. the paws for veterans therapy act is sponsored by congressman steve stivers from ohio, representative stivers is an army veteran. he's spent much of his congressional career advocating for his brothers and sisters in arms and has been a champion of this bill for many years. i'm grateful for his leadership and commitment. the paws for veterans therapy act will further the lifesaving bond between dogs and veterans in need. it will promote creative ways to promote veterans who are struggling. i'm proud to be one of the 313 co-sponsors of the paws for veterans therapy

bost: mr. speaker, i'm a small businessman. we own a small business, my wife and i. and i know many small business owners across america are struggling to reopen and rebuild after covid-19 shutdowns. they simply can't find the workers to fill the job openings. why? because the federal government is disincentivizing people from working. many people are making more money off unemployment insurance than they would if they were back at work. and that is having a crippling impact on main streets across america, including in my district. people in washington need to hear these stories. southern illinois is home to belleville boot company, a military boot manufacturer founded in 1904. a year ago they employed nearly 240 workers in belleville. but after each round of stimulus checks, as good as they may be, they had fewer and fewer workers showing up. now their work force has dropped to 26% and they can't find enough workers to fill the openings. in alton, the creative kids learning center has helped e

every year workers from thailand travel 8000 kilometers to scandinavians bost barb's opinion and that is unique. sweden's lucrative very trite depends on the meal but all conic beef point fed from being to appear to be good but burdened by heavy loans there's no guarantee their risk will be matched by reward points for fun fun fun playing with meat on animal me via the lao full life after my one i went to east follows 'd thailand's barry pic is across the globe as they seek fortune in sweden's farce. highly and a husband who don't live in a small village in northeast and milan but they're about to make a trip far away they're heading to the wall forests of sweden home to the surprise memento the atlas of the now 45 year old has been flying to sweden for 20 years today he's preparing to leave again to pass on to them and i get my i phone. back alive. i'm land. i'm calm when i am a man and i and my you my. on been cast on and danny. his wife ply lien is at a neighbor's house she'll be traveling with a husband and he's getting ahead before they gun she wants to look her best for the trip

borders for travel is fully inoculated with an approved fax anation the aim is to kickstart tourism bost all $27.00 e.u. member states must 1st approve the plan while dressing variants after months of gloomy pun demick news and brussels finally some calls for optimism on an e.u. press conference the commission is proposing to ease restrictions on nonessential travel to the e.u. to take into account the progress of the extension campaigns and developments in the epidemiological situation worldwide. europe's attractions beckon but potential visitors are likely to encounter different rules in different countries after months of lockdown france will begin relaxing its nightly curfews this month reopen cultural sites and allow cafes bars and restaurants to offer outdoor service in germany overnight hotel stays for tourists are currently forbidden and no date has been set for reopening in person dining in many places a nighttime curfew remains in effect and some destinations are even off limits for nonresidents some countries that depend heavily on tourism are pushing for a full reopening in t

here are his thoughts, congressman mike bost on memorial day. >> it's so much more than just a threet have fallen, who have given the ultimate sacrifice, that's what this weekend is about and that's what we need to remember. >> mike: mollie, your thoughts on the president's speech today and the contrast there with the republican congressman. >> actually think president biden's speech did deal with some of that. when he talked about the importance of living up to the sacrifice the people have made in talking even about democracy being in peril. i thought it was interesting. it's true that it's in peril both here and abroad and i think it's really incumbent upon people to think through why that is. we have a real crisis of institutions globally and in this country or people who were charged with handling a lot of really important, serious issues mismanaged those and it has led to a breakdown in trust with the people and that's not a good situation, weather was about to big to fail and the financial crisis, you know, years ago, the situation at the border, which biden right now is misma