ms. jackson lee, for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized. ms. jackson lee: i thank the distinguished manager and i really applaud congressman kucinich for allowing us to come to the floor today and discuss a crucial aspect of america's foreign policy. frankly, i believe it is time for us to come home from afghanistan having just returned just over two weeks ago in the early part of july when i was able to see the enormity of corruption and the lack of standing up by the afghan government. but i saw the resilience of the united states military and the willingness of the people in afghanistan to be able to desire a better quality of life. i think that we are now poised to build the afghan national security forces and to remove our forces from the dangers of the taliban neighbors who live in afghanistan who are not leaving who have a difference of opinion. in the instance of pakistan, i think it is key that we recognize that there are some troubling circumstances. and, yes, we do have some questions as it relates to the people of pakistan unders

ms. jackson lee: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. ms. jackson lee: thank you very much, madam speaker, and thank you for your leadership, and as well i appreciate very much the debate that this house had just a few minutes ago with h.r. 5114, the flood insurance priorities act of 2010. i rise to support that legislation and to specifically discuss an issue that really impacts all americans and an amendment that i crafted very effective amendment would have prohibited states and local governments from misusing new federal flood insurance program requirements to disadvantaged businesses and homeowners in any way. meaning, to take your property away because they have misinterpreted the federal laws as to whether or not your home is in a flood plane or in a floodway. those of us from the gulf understand this very well. unfortunately, under federal law, it's often misinterpreted by state and local officials resulted in an unintended consequence in many communities across this country.

ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: i thank the speaker very much and i hope that we will have an opportunity to do something we have not been able to do and that is to debate the afghan war and the direction that this war is taking and the impact on our men and women on the front lines. i particularly want to say to the families how much we appreciate the sacrifice that you've made as these men and women stand on the front lines of afghanistan. but i think we're long overdue for a major debate that has to do with that direction. i support this underlying rule for the purpose of allowing us to have this debate, but also that it provides on the domestic spending crucial issues, pell grants will be provided for, border security that impacts the northern and southern border so that we can stand as we do comprehensive immigration reform and ensure the american people that we will secure our borders. in the most catastrophic oil spill from a region think a come from, the tsunami of oil spills, we are taking care

ms. jackson lee: i ask to address the house. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. jackson lee: mr. cardoza, i thank you for sharing with us what is not a funny anecdotal story or cartoon. i think from your words you are saying to the american people that their predicament is not a cartoon. and it is interesting when one of my colleagues comes to the floor of the house and poses the question -- what do we say to the unemployed mother or what do we say to the person who is trying to manage themselves and pay their mortgage? or what do you say to the caller that calls in, i believe from florida, this morning on c-span and said he's laid off from a furniture store that closed and he is looking for work? and if i might paraphrase him. he said something about getting off our rears here in congress and helping him. why are we blocking his unemployment insurance? . i can quote a lot of statistics and somebody said something about a number of individuals who are unemployed, there are double-digit communities, 13%, 15%, 16%, high numbers in our youth, in their 20's, recent co

ms. jackson lee, for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized. ms. jackson lee: i thank the distinguished manager and i really applaud congressman kucinich for allowing us to come to the floor today and discuss a crucial aspect of america's foreign policy. frankly, i believe it is time for us to come home from afghanistan having just returned just over two weeks ago in the early part of july when i was able to see the enormity of corruption and the lack of standing up by the afghan government. but i saw the resilience of the united states military and the willingness of the people in afghanistan to be able to desire a better quality of life. i think that we are now poised to build the afghan national security forces and to remove our forces from the dangers of the taliban neighbors who live in afghanistan who are not leaving who have a difference of opinion. in the instance of pakistan, i think it is key that we recognize that there are some troubling circumstances. and, yes, we do have some questions as it relates to the people of pakistan unders

ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: gentlelady for two minutes. -- the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: i thank the gentlelady. i congratulate them for this innovative division that will help move these technologies moved. i hope that small businesses are listening. they now have a rapid ear under science and technology to listen to them in the department of homeland security. i'm very excited about hand-held detectors for the department of homeland security to do rapid detection of biological threats at ports and airports and the duo use terrorist risks of synthetic genomes. and the unmanned surveillance technology for safe and effective deployment for maritime. we had a hearing on this recently. many of us questioned the safety of those unmanned ariel surveillance being used at the border. dirial surveillance being used at the border. so this is a great step forward. in addition to the authorization of $20 million for securing the cities program for fiscal year 2011 an

ms. jackson lee: thank you, mr. speaker. among the many challenges of this nation is the ongoing oil spillage in the gulf a region that i come from. i also happen to come from the city of houston and represent a numb of our large energy companies along with wind and solar and natural gas. we truly need a seamless energy policy, but our consuming responsible is -- responsibility is to stop the oil spillage and stop it now. i believe it is important that we do it with an understanding of a long range strategy to address this crisis. right now, as i speak, hurricane alex has made its way along the gulf and during this hurricane season, we don't know how many other hurricanes will come and disrupt the cleanup actions going on. so today, i have introduced 5676, the right to equitable means of ensuring damages for, the remedies act. i rise today to introduce this to address the many issues created by the recent disaster in the gulf of mexico. for over two month the blown out wellhead beneath the deepwater horizon platform has spew

oil spill, congresswoman sheila jackson lee. ms. jackson lee: i'm proud to join multiple friends from a number of states in america but more importantly i'm glad pob tart of the team working with the congresswoman, our leadership and the president that focuses on creating jobs for americans. that's an exciting message for all of us. i'm delighted to sort of dash the misstatement that was been going on about what we have accomplished here and if i might just be redundant and cite the fact that the private sector has created 83,000 jobs in june but i'd like to add something else, congresswoman. i think you've seen this number as well, that this has been one of the best quarter for corporations in terms of profit. it is well known and of course many of us encourage individuals to save money and to invest, but i think it's particularly important for the american public to know that our corporations have money. we've created the right economic atmosphere for them to grow. they decided to not create all of the jobs they could. i would like

ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, it is simply the morally right thing to do. as i listened to the battering and chattering and the constant obstructionist policies of my friends, republicans and this body and the other body, i am amazed there is no moral compass that say that millions of americans, those who have worked, are simply asking that they be able to survive. this is not a handout. this is a trust. a contract that when you work you invest in unemployment insurance to a certain extent, first given by the state and now because of states that run out of money this government, their government is extending those dollars and we know that it's the right thing to do because those people on the other side of the aisle have allowed this obstructionist to go forward, but they couldn't fight it anymore. they couldn't fight 62% of the american public. who says this is the right thing to do. they couldn't fight the congressional budget office who said this is the most cost-effective and fast acti

ms. sheila jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for two minutes. ms. jackson lee: i want to thank the gentleman from virginia for being a champion of this issue of eliminating the disparities that have so long plagued so many communities. i thank the chairman, john conyers, for being persistent over the years on the criminal justice issues, even coming to houston, texas, and listening to a teeming room of individuals who came to tell him how they had been discriminated against by this overwhelming inequitable law dealing with crack cocaine. thank you. today we are doing something that is not going to be soft on crime. but let me see if you understand this. it takes 500 grams of powder cocaine to trig they are five-year mandatory minimum. it takes just five grams of crack cocaine. it takes five kilogramms of crack cocaine but 50 grams of crack cocaine. it's important that this one to 18 be put many place. in response to the 1980's and we thought the devastating act of using drugs was the underpinnings of crime but what we have seen is that we are creatin

ms. -- congresswoman sheila jackson lee. ms. jackson lee: madam speaker, i ask to address the house. let me thank the gentlelady from ohio and i'm very glad to follow on the theme that congresswoman kaptur of ohio spoke to and the note that she ended on, recognizing that we have to do more. there is pain out there, but to actually say to the american public that our president, president obama, and this administration with this democratic caucus, has created more jobs in the last 18 months than were created in the tenure of the last administration, i don't know how many times we have to say that, but allow me to say it one more time. this administration, president obama's administration work this democratic caucus, has create more jobs than the last administration in their entire tenure and that was eight years. let me also cite for my colleague and let me as well express my appreciation in joining the congressional black caucus, the special hour we have participated in and educated really the american public. i thank you for your leadership. chairman bernanke spoke last week at a num

ms. jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from texas is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: i thank the distinguished chairman. having recently returned from afghanistan i can say to you that our soldiers are resilient and the people of afghanistan are looking for their government to provide them with the leadership and resources to improve their quality of life. but our plan is not working. and now that we have two of our trusted and wonderful naval personnel missing and we realize that this is a place that needs a plan, we cannot continue to support this war when the government of afghanistan will not stand up. they will have the necessary security forces, they need to be in front of the line. we need to provide money for pell grants, teachers, firefighters and police officers, for the settlement for black farmers, 100,000 of them and for youth jobsed on summer jobs and people in america who are unemployed and those families who need support as a bridge to carry them over. i believe in this nation and i believe in our soldier, i salute them and i believe it is

ms. jackson lee: the american with disabilities act was designed in 1990 with a bipartisan approach to implement laws that would provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities. why did we wait so long? and how grand it is to be able to respond to those disabled, who are challenged, physically challenged and who are experiencing difficulties that they should not as a full american citizen. and so this law provides them with the armor to -- arm our to prevent against discrimination. i was in houston today celebrating at the west end center on gray straight. i can assure you that this evidence of serving people was a grand celebration. so many were there celebrating at the west gray multiservice center in houston, texas and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas rise? mr. boozman: permission to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. boozman: i rise today to honor and celebrate the life of mr. n

ms. lee: i yield one minute to the the gentlewoman from texas, sheila jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: i rise strongly to support the barbara lee amendment which i'm a co-sponsor. and this is about the orderly withdrawal of our troops. we lost 58,000 men and women in vietnam, now today we have the opportunity to do what congress should do, not to give an unending mandate or a war, which is this is not. if we are looking after the terrorists, al qaeda is not there. our intelligence authorities, general petraeus has indicated there are less than 100 al qaeda terrorists there. there are snurts and the taliban. it is well known if you give to the taliban the mountains and valleys that have been given by general mcchrystal, you still will lose this war. $37 billion is in this bill. we must do what were did in see vietnam and not cry after the fact. yes, we salute the young men and women and thank them for their service. i have been to afghanistan many times. now it's time to invest in the afghan people and

who brings a wealth of information to this body, the honorable sheila jackson lee from the state of texas, the gentlewoman from texas. ms jackson lee: mr. speaker, it's a pleasure to be with you this morning and i thank you for your leadership this evening as we discuss with our colleagues a very important crisis that is now approaching that i hope our message tonight really provides the stop gap, the finger in the dike, if you will, that is about to overrun itself and that is the numbers of americans who are crying out to this congress to do the right thing. i thank the gentlelady from ohio for her persistent leadership and her timeliness, because this is a very, very important need that needs action and it needs action now. and i guess i would like to add to this definition of what unemployment benefits are and what it means to extends them and the numbers of -- extends them and the numbers of -- extends them and the number of americans who are waiting for those benefits to be extended and the extension is simply adding to the 26 weeks that are now expiring and you mentioned that it was not a gift and i'd like to sugg

ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, i want to congratulate the naacp which is holding their 101st convention or celebrating 101 years, a century of service. i also want to affirm their first amendment rights to make statements on the policies of groups who advocate for causes that sometimes are colored in race. the naacp is a fighter for justice of all people and i was glad to be speaking about issues dealing with the environment, civil justice and the economy. it is also important to note, mr. speaker, that corporations are now showing one of the best quarterly returns that they've ever had. businesses create jobs. and we are creating an economic opportunity to do so. but all the economists are saying they are sitting on their money and the house will be in order.ing their money. we have to stand up as america and work together to create jobs just as this government has provided stimulus dollars to create thousands and thousands of jobs. work together, not divide, that's how well's move this economy forward. i

jackson lee, senior of the judiciary committee, 2 1/2 minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for 2 1/2 minutes. ms. jackson lee: thank you very much, chairman conyers, and we owe you debt of gratitude, and we are very pleased that we have answered the call of the pain of people like michelle, who, if you could read this language, that when michelle tells her boys about their dad, she will not show them a pay stub. she will tell them how much their father loved them. and that means, of course, that we are stranded on an island with laws that do not understand the crisis that these families are facing. these are the pictures of families who have lost loved ones and pictures of their loved ones who we are now standing on the floor of the house to say that any horrific tragedy, such as the b.p. oil spill on april 20, 2010, will not go unanswered and these families will not remain and be alone. this bill is assuring these families that they will not be alone, that the person or the entity that harm them will not be able to escape the full extent of the cost of their actions that are inflicted on the peop

ms. lee: i yield o minute to the the gentlewoman from texas, sheila jackson lee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlela is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: i rise strongly to support the barbara lee amendment which i'm a co-sponsor. and this is about the orderly withdrawal of our troops. we lost 58,000 men and women in vietnam, now today we have the opportunity to do what congress should do, not to g+ive an unending mandate or a war, which is this is not. if we are looking after the terrorists, al qaeda is not there. our intelligence authorities, general petraeus has indicated there are less than 100 al qaeda terrorists there. there are snurts and the taliban. it is well known if you give to the taliban the mountains and valleys that have been given by general mcchrystal, you still will lose this war. $37 billion is in this bill. we must do what were did in see vietnam and not cry after the fact. yes, we salute the young men and women and thank them for their service. i have been afghanistan many times. now it's time to invest in the afghan people and the

ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, the supplemental that this leadership passed was to create jobs and i hope that the bill that comes from the senate will embrace the need for american jobs. in ohio the home of our minority leader there is a 10.5% unemployment. can anyone explain to me why the republicans continue to obstruct the extension of unemployment benefits? benefits that will benefit those who work but who have worked and who need to pay their mortgages and provide food on the table. again we have another story. here is the story of privatizing social security or extending the age. i remember the fight. i was here on the floor of the house when seniors were calling our phone lines and saying, don't privatize social security. thank goodness for the wisdom of our seniors if we had privatized social security, they would have collapsed in this abysmal disgrace of wall street. no money. but social security has been paying on a faithful basis for now for decades. we know that 72% of the american public don'