Sussessionist flag used in battle against the United States . Think im done with my comment. Thank you for your attention. Host thank you. Thats it for our program. In, we go ouse comes to the house. We take you there now. The speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The chair lays before the house a communication from the speaker. The clerk the speakers room, washington, d. C. , september 26, 2017. I hereby appoint the honorable david brat to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. Signed, paul d. Ryan, speaker of the house of representatives. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the order of the ouse of january 3, 2017, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour debate. The chair will alternate recognition between the parties. All time shall be equally allocated between the parties and in no event shall debate continue beyond 11 50 a. M. Each member other than the majority and minority leaders and majority whip shall be limited to five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from oregon, mr. Defazio, for five minutes. Mr. Defazio well, yesterday a temporary extension of the absolutely crucial federal aviation administration, which runs our air Traffic Control system in the United States of america, the largest, most complex and safest system in the world, failed. They actually will expire on october 1. That means that the source of funding for air traffic goes away and air Traffic Controllers may be working without salaries. Now, why are we here . Were here because the chairman of the committee insists that we must privatize the air Traffic Control of the United States, the largest, most complex, safest, most advanced system in the world, to make it even better. Unfortunately, he does not enjoy support adequate to get this bill through. He delayed the bill in the last congress because he didnt have the votes and the bill has been multiple times delayed in this congress. It has bipartisan on opposition and the senate isnt even thinking about this. Why are we here . They have this fake group. Citizens for ontime flights and they say we have to fly old zigzag patterns across the United States with world war ii radar. Well, that would be really bad if it was true. Unfortunately its a lie, and in fact we have direct routes performancebased navigation. Actually, the government has built and deployed a functional system where we can fly every plane in america by g. P. S. , but the airlines havent wanted to make the investment in their planes. So actually theyre making a case against themselves. Why arent we using the system more efficiently . Because they have failed to purchase the equipment to fly planes closer together. If every plane doesnt have g. P. S. , we cant fly them closer together because the air Traffic Controllers wont know exactly where they are. Now, they say if we get to run the system it will be more efficient. Its a. T. C. Thats the problem. Well, heres june. In june actually Airline Operation overscheduling, crew dismatch, mechanicals, the host of things that they have caused 46 of the delays. And they go on to say, this is horrible, these delays. It cost americans 20 billion a year. Well, if thats true, then the airlines are costing American Consumers 11. 5 billion a year because they themselves wont clean up their act. Again, they go on about a. T. O. How many times have their dismatch and reservation systems crashed in the last five years . Dozens of times. Stranding millions of people. How many times has the entire a. T. C. In the United States of america gone down . Zero. Zero times. So we should let them run it . Theyll run it better just like their computer reservation and their dispatch systems . Come on. You know, theres really just a very simple agenda here. We finance the current air Traffic Organization with a 7. 5 tax on every ticket, progressive ticket. More expensive the ticket the more you pay. That pays about 75 of the system today. The bill that the chairman wants to push will repeal the ticket tax. The airlines will raise prices 7. 5 so everybody will still pay the same amount for the tickets. How do i know . This tax temporarily lapsed five years ago and every airline in america, except for spirit and alaska, raised ticket prices 7. 5 . So how are we going to pay for the system . Actually theyll impose a new head tax. Thats right. You get on the plane, you will have a head tax to use the airspace of the United States of america. That of course is a flat fee, so if you have 100 ticket, 25 tax. 25 to sit in that seat. You have a 3,000 ticket, you will pay a tiny fraction. It wont bother you very much at all. Well go from a pair, progressive tax to finance the system to a flat head tax. The airlines get a 10 billion wind fall, and guess what, your elected representative will have nothing to say about it. The people on the ways and means committee, the republicans here, have decided that the airlines will have a vote on the new user fee. Yes, they will. They have a designated seat on the board of the new private corporation, so they will vote on the user fee. Your elected representative does not have a vote, does not have rebuke capability. Its entirely removed from the jurisdiction of the United States congress. This is absolutely outrageous. A Campaign Based in lies, and we have a report from the Government Accountability office saying in fact if we privatize, it will delay things in terms of implementing the ew system and make it more expensive. I dont have the draft report. It was censored. They watered down the conclusions. Im happy to make the draft report available to anybody who wants to know honestly whats going on around here. This place is not straight up. With that i yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. Thompson, for five minutes. Mr. Thompson thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise today in support of reauthorizing the in the micvu which the house is expected to consider later today. The commonwealth of pennsylvania has utilized the program to aid more than 4,000 families statewide. They support Home Visiting programs are widely embraced on both sides of the aisle. The programs have a proven record of success and support the nations most vulnerable critical ring a time. Parents are the childrens first teachers and the results speak for themselves. It helps support maternal and Newborn Health it reduces child injuries, abuse and neglect. It improves School Readiness and achievement. Improves family economic selfsufficient if i. Mr. Speaker, during the Home Visiting processes, nurses, educators, they form relationships with the expected parents and visit with them until their child has completed his or her first year of school. This model of care empowers parents to make positive decisions while learning development. In pennsylvania, miechv funds supports four evidencebased home models. These include early head start, Healthy Families america, nursefamily partnersships and parents as teachers. It plays a Critical Role in helping increase the availability of these services to more and more families across the commonwealth of pennsylvania. Scientific research has supported claims that these services positively impact health, education and Employment Outcomes for children while reducing criminal justice costs, instances of child abuse and dependence on public assistance. These services can also play a key role in helping to support infants and mothers struggling with addiction. Pennsylvania has a long history of investing in evidencebased Home Visiting programs because they are proven way to strengthen families and improve the lives of children. For these reasons i look forward to supporting h. R. 2824, the increasing opportunity and success for children and parents through evidencebased Home Visiting act. When it comes to the house floor this afternoon. I urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my ime. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. Pocan, for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Speaker. Our nation has a lot of issues on its plate. We have to stabilize health care. We need an infrastructure plan that creates millions of goodpaying jobs. We need to deal with the hurricane in the aftermath, not just texas and florida but also puerto rico and the Virgin Islands, and we have a huge problem with north korea and Nuclear Weapons. And thats just for starters. So what did President Trump spend his weekend doing . Fixing health care for tens of millions of people . No. Lobbying for robust jobcreating infrastructure plan . Uhuh. Sending aid to puerto rico . Not that either. Deescalate the situation in north korea . Well, actually quite the opposite. No, President Trump spent his weekend doing one of his favorite things attacking americans and various groups on his favorite medium, twitter. His most recent attack, nfl players who use their constitutional right to freedom of speech to protest. But theyre not the only ones and the only group being attacked. Back in july, the New York Times found that President Trump was on track to insult 650 people, places and things on twitter by the end of his first term. Well, two months later hes certainly still at it. Instead of attacking our nations problems, hes attacking us. Lets take a quick look at some of the people and groups hes attacked, both as a candidate and president. On this board we have just a handful of the people, places and things President Trump has insulted and if were going to list them all we will probably have dozens of poster board. Heres a sampling. John mccain and jeff flake. Barack obama. Hillary clinton, even though the election happened a year ago. The media, from the failing New York Times and the amazon, Washington Post and individual reporters. Obamacare. Hamilton, the broadway musical. Jeff sessions, his own attorney general. The emmys. Nordstroms. The russia investigation. Rosie odonnell, the paris climate agreement, meryl streep, mexicans, protesters, fake news, john oliver, mark cuban, snoop dogg and this weekend, the nfl and its players. And the list goes on and on. Well, its actually easier to name the people and things that President Trump has not attacked than all the ones that he has. So i came up with a very small list of people or groups that hes not attacked after several expensive google searches. First, i dont think the president has attacked the barber shop quartet singing organization, the society for e preservation barber shop quartets. To the best of my knowledge hes never attacked them. Although its very recent, Pumpkin Spice lattes. I know they just came out. Its a sign of fall. Theres no sign of trump tackling these tasting streets. Finally, these very fine people. President trump hasnt attacked nearly enough. The klan, neonazis and other White Supremacists. Look, instead of beinging attacker in chief, donald trump is supposed to unify the nation but his job is to work for the American People to deliver on the promises and actually help americans. Here are the issues we need help with. Stabilize the Affordable Care act to ensure tens of millions of people keep their coverage and dont just sabotage the marketplace. We need goodpaying jobs and better wages for the American People. We need a job and infrastructure plan like the president promised but weve yet to see. We need trade agreements that work for american workers. Again, another promise we had with no tangible results. And we need aid for puerto rico and the Virgin Islands after last weeks devastating hurricanes, much of what has yet to materialize. Mr. President , while you tweet, youre so busy tweeting about the nfl, you attack a black man for nonviolence more severely than White Supremacists for violence. Look, taking a knee may have started as a protest about racial inequality, about behavior by some in Law Enforcement discriminating against others in our country but unarmed people of color being killed simply for the color of their skin. I think today taking a knee is becoming a broader sign of patriotism and respect for our country. For a country that can be even greater for every one of its citizens. It respects the lives lost for those in this country to fight for its ideals which includes nonviolent protests. Its a sign of love of country, a country with a promise that has to be for everyone regardless of the color of their skin. So i join so many now in the nfl and elsewhere in taking a knee for the america that we all aspire it to be. The speaker pro tempore the time has expired. Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president and to direct their remarks to the chair. The chair recognizes the gentleman from West Virginia, mr. Mooney, for five minutes. Mr. Mooney thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to applaud President Trump for his comments last week which criticized the few nfl players who have chosen to kneel in protest. During our National Anthem. The president is right to publicly object to this disrespect to our flag and nation. While we can disagree on politics and policies, we should not denigrate our flag and our National Anthem. Players ntion most nfl stood in respect for the flag. Its just a few who didnt who gave them a bad name and the sport a bad name. In response to President Trumps criticism, nfl crigser commissioner Roger Goodell called his remarks divisive. I would respond to him that its you and your players to disrespect our flag and National Anthem who are being divisive. The president defending our flag not divisive. Father and thousands fought under our flag in the jungles of vietnam. Young men and women have died recently in service to our flag in iraq and afghanistan. In my house, we under our flag in the jungles of vietnam. Young men honored our flag not only because of my fathers service, but because of the deep sense of patriotism my parents instilled in me. My mother was born and raised in Fidel Castros cuba where she and other members of her family were thrown in jail for opposing castros communist regime. When she was 20 my mother escaped cuba and fled to america with barely a penny to her name. My mom and millions of immigrants leave the flags of these other countries, brutal dictatorships, communist regimes, and other regimes to come to america to live under our flag. And all americans, whether you came as an immigrant or born here, you stayed to live under this flag. If you dont like t. You can go. No ones making you stay. We love this flag. Listening to my parents inspiring stories, i knew from yawning young age i believed in the ideals of liberty set forth by our founding fathers. It is the same sense of honor and patriotism that i support President Trump in calling for all nfl players to honor our flag and remember what has made our country great. For a few hours, many sundays, i usually enjoy time with my sun watching our favorite football teams on the gridiron. We root for different teefments as a nation, we forget about our political and other differences and come together to enjoy the sport of football. But these few players wrongly decided to turn the game into a political statement. We lose that in a moment of National Unity and respect for our country. Sports have always been a unifying factor. The chance for a nation to come together. Nfl commissioner Roger Goodell, some owners, coaches, and few players are showing a lack of respect for our nation and her military who gives them the freedom to play football. As the men and women of our Armed Services face challenges at home or abroad, we should put our differences aside and unite around our flag as a beacon of hope and understanding. I certainly respect anyones ight to protest. And the right of an nfl team owntory discipline Disorderly Conduct or rude behavior. Sadly, three nfl teams did not ght of an nfl team even leave the locker room to hear the playing of our National Anthem. Just one person on those three did not tsburgh steeler even leave villanueva came out villanueva came out of the tunnel of the locker room, you can see the other people standing back there, he came out of the tunnel to honor our country. Hes a west point graduate, former army ranger, and bronze star recipient. He knows the value of our flag. Sadly instead of receiving the praise he deserved, many in the media attacked him. Even his coach said when he came out of the tunnel, it was, quote, not respectful of our football team. Not respectful of the team . Really, coach . How about respect for the flag . How about our country which soldiers die for. The flag that allows you to play that football game. Unbelievable. I hope all the young people out there look at villanueva as a beacon of honor and beauty to his country above himself. Professional athletes in this nation, whether they like it or not, are an example to our young people. Ey should stop injecting antiamerican politics into sports. I applaud, again, President Trump for standing up for our flag and National Anthem. All nfl athletes should stand together and do the same. Thank you, mr. Speaker. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. Gutierrez, for five minutes. No, mr. Rez president. Puerto rico is not doing well. We dont need to be reminded of the debt. We should remind ourselves of our responsibility to the 3. 4 Million People of the island nation of puerto rico. They are suffering greatly. Mr. Speaker, the people of puerto rico need our immediate and sustained help. We all know that flooding destruction and complete elimination of the power grid for the whole identify lap are among the consequences of hurricane maria, but this is no ordinary hurricane. And it hit at no ordinary time. Mr. Speaker, we need all hands on deck to make sure rescuing puerto rico becomes our number one priority. Immediate needs must be met, fresh water, food, medicine, shelter, and fuel, but we need sustained investment and cooperation with the islands government and its people to make puerto rico livable again. Like a lot of americans, i have watched with increasing horror and panic as the governor of puerto rico and ordinary Puerto Ricans have need pleaded for more help. The work of First Responders and our military has been heroic, but the island needs more. One third of the doctors, over 5,000, have left the island of puerto rico in the last 10 years. Hospitals have no doctors in some cases, nurses, and fuel and medicine is running out at the hospitals that remain open. This is a Public Health crisis and should be declared a Health Emergency by the federal government. Conomicrico has been an e crisis for years. Flee puerto rico every month before two hurricanes hit, leaving behind many old, many young, the very poor, the very sick, and the very vulnerable. There is no food in supermarkets. We need an airlift. We need an effort the scale of dunn kirk. Dunkirk. We know the us us is capable. We can invade Foreign Countries with hundreds of thousands of troops, communications, food, and security, we need the same effort now. We need the federal government to go all in to rescue puerto rico from a humanitarian crisis which is developing. Welcome other nations if they want to help, mr. President , like cuba that has offered doctors and other emergency assistance. But what i fear is that the federal government is not stepping up as fully and as quickly as we must. I remember in this body when the legislation to take over the puerto rican government and put in place a junta or control board was working its way through congress. Bill, what was the main selling point . It will not cost us a penny. So that is where this congress and this federal government start from, not wanting to spend what needs to be spent or do what needs to be done. We bill, what was the main need that could charge, would charge puerto rico for a percentage of the relief and rescue help they are receiving today. Puerto rico is broke and they cannot borrow because the government, our federal government has said it cannot. This congress has said it cannot. So they can set their own budget Spending Priorities which have all been taken away from them. So the u. S. Government should start by waiving those cost sharing requirements and suspend the jones act permanently or for a substantial period, at least a decade, to help in the recovery. Since it was imposed on puerto the jones act has cost the important importantian consumers more than all the money puerto rican consumers all the money more than wall street and the debt. Yet the president reminds us of the debt. Let the ships flow as quickly and cheaply from the jones act e important importantian consumers more wherever they kay may come from because this is an emergency. Wherever they may come from because this is an emergency. The electrical grid, roads, ports, Public Safety and Public Health system are close to collapsing. So this emergency could just not be treated by congress, the president , fema, and other agencies as just another storm. Mr. Speaker, i have asked the speaker of the house and the democratic leader to form a delegation and send members to puerto rico so they can see for. Emselves how dire things are im leaving on friday to go there. Im hoping other members will join me. I have family who need help so im headed there to do what i can do, but most importantly, i am committed to shining a spotlight on the people of puerto rico so that they are neither out of sight nor out of our minds. We need to make them the priority in this moment of great need, in this moment of national isaster. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. Erm, for five minutes. Mr. Emmer, for five minutes. Mr. Emmer i rise today to recognize the city of st. Cloud for taking care of our communitys Drinking Water. Drinking water comes Drinking Water comes from the Mighty Mississippi in its pure form is thanks to projects like the northwest regional treatment system, as well as the northeast st. Cloud Water Quality project, the citys newest Water Purification project. To put the effectiveness of these projects in perspective, the northeast st. Cloud Water Quality project stops 10,200 pounds of sediment and 20 pounds of phosphorous from entering the mississippi every year. Because of the commitment to health and safety of the citys water supply, last month st. Cloud was awarded the source Water Protection award. Its an honor to represent a city that takes the health of its citizens so seriously. Congratulations to the city of st. Cloud and everyone responsible for the citys water supply. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to congratulate st. Cloud metro bus driver todd for his first place finish at the 2017 National Community transit rodeo, which was recently held in detroit, michigan. This competition gives drivers from all over the nation the chance to take part in a little healthy competition and exhibit their talent by driving through a timed Obstacle Course that imitates real life situations and difficult scenarios that can occur on the road. Todd has participated in this competition before, taking third place last year and second place in 2012. This year was todds years took first place against 82 other drivers. Congratulations, todd, im glad to know we have skilled drivers like you on our roads safely transporting the members of our community. Eep up the great work. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to recognize one of minnesotas finest military families who fought during our nations darkest hour. I would especially like to remember one Family Member who made the ultimate sacrifice and who after more than a half century will finally be returned and laid to rest in his beloved state. Quentin earl and harold give forth all bravely served our nation during world war ii. While earl and harold made stat quentin earl and harold give it home safely, quentin who served on the u. S. S. Oklahoma died in the attack on pearl harbor. For 75 years quentin remained in the National Memorial cemetery of the pacific until this years when his remains were finally identified. The identification has brought relief and closure to his family who never forgot the brother they lost. The giffordses are happy to give him the memorial he deserves. I speak for all minnesotans when we say were happy to finally welcome home a hero like quentin. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to celebrate the hardworking folks from my district who have been selected as this years minnesota farm families. The minnesota farm Families Program is a longstanding tradition in our state, having taken place for the past 30 years. This Program Honors the families who have dedicated their lives to agriculture. They are chosen because of their exceptional contribution to advance minnesotas agricultural industry. This year five families from my district were selected for their agricultural contributions to our state. They include jim and sally, rick and marlene, curt and joni, the stock farm in washington, county, and the creek low and ford family from wright county. Farming is not just a profession for these families. Its way of life. Their hard work antihard work of families like them make agriculture one of the primary drivers of minnesotas economy. Congratulations to the 2017 minnesota farm families and thank you so much for everything you do. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. Green, for five minutes. Mr. Green mr. Speaker, i rise podium d stand at the designated for republicans but i rise not as a democrat or a republican, i rise today, mr. Or er, not as a liberal conservative. Mr. Speaker, i rise today as a proud american, a person who believes in his country, who salutes the flag and says the pledge of allegiance and sings the National Anthem. I rise today, mr. Speaker, to make comments that i never thought id have to make in the well of the house of congress. Rise today to defend the nounced and denounced. Mr. Speaker, i rise to defend any mother who has been called a dog because her son engaged in peaceful protest. I rise, mr. Speaker, i rise today, mr. Speaker, to defend ny son who is called the son of a dog because he gauged had peaceful protest. I rised, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise to denounce these comments that have been made because they have brought discourse to a new low. Mr. Speaker, this is a level of indecency that is unbecoming the presidency. Mr. Speaker, i rise to say to the world that this is not what america is all about. Calling people s. O. B. , and we know what a b is. Its a dog. Mr. Speaker, i rise because my heart tells me that i must do something. So mr. Speaker, i denounce the comments that were made, and i rise to announce that on next week, mr. Speaker, i will bring a privileged resolution before the congress of the United States of america. I will stand here in the well of the congress and i will call for the impeachment of the president of the United States of america. Yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore members are reminded from engaging in personalities toward the president. The chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, mr. Comer, for five minutes. Mr. Comer mr. Speaker, i rise today to speak about an issue that my constituents in the First District of kentucky are following closely. The escalating threat from north korea. The world has watched as north korean dictator kim jong un has built up his countrys Nuclear Weapons and Ballistic Missile programs other the past several years. Just this month, north korea conducted its sixth nuclear test, the largest one yet. This followed a series of missile tests that led u. S. Intelligence analysts to conclude that the kim regime is on the verge of developing a reliable Intercontinental Missile capable of carrying a nuclear weapon. A feat that officials previously did not expect would be possible for several more years. Clearly this rogue state is moving full steam ahead toward its goal of becoming a Nuclear Power that cannot only threaten our allies and territories in the region but also the american mainland. I have the utmost confidence in our military leaders, and i trust secretary mattis when he says our existing Missile Defense systems has what it takes to keep our country safe from the north korean threat. The American People can feel safe and secure knowing that our military is protecting them and that their representatives in congress, like myself, are ready to provide whatever funding is needed to support the development and deployment of Missile Defense technology, both now and in the future. That being said, it is simply unacceptable to allow a leader, like kim jong un, who shows no regard for International Norms or human rights, to gain valuable leverage and deterrent capability as a nuclear arms state. I was encouraged to hear our commander in chief speak out forcefully against the forces of destruction that are gathering power in our world in his address to the United Nations last week. President trump has made it clear to north korea that denuclearization is the only path forward and hes successfully mobilized the interNational Community to impose strong sanctions that will help redrive the kim regime for the resources it needs to continue its rush to Nuclear Weapons. This is a critical step forward, but make no mistake, the nuclear advancements that north korea has been allowed to achieve in recent years pose a very serious threat to our nation, our allies and the interNational Community overall. That is why we Must Stand Firm now and be prepared to do whatever is necessary to protect our National Security and that of our allies, including military action. I am proud that congress is doing its part to support the trump administrations efforts to counter the north korean threat, including passing sanctions legislation that was enacted into law in august and the north korean human rights reauthorization act which passed the house yesterday. We must continue to stand united, both as a country and with our international partners, to send a clear message to north korea that its hostile behavior must end and that it will never be allowed to threaten the world with Nuclear Weapons. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from massachusetts, mr. Kennedy, for five minutes. Mr. Kennedy thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in this country we do not retreat. We may stumble and we may struggle but we press on. Because time and again our greatest challenges have delivered our crowning achievements. The new deal, 19th amendment, the g. I. Bill, the civil rights act, marriage equality. The tougher the moment the more we demand from ourselves, the bigger and bolder we demand to dream. For a fairer, more just nation, for an america where every person counts, where every voice matters, where we are all treated with the decency and dignity that we deserve. Where every American Family has access to quality, affordable, Accessible Health care. And right now this week we must fight harder than before to say that not this bill, not this time, not this copout, not this retreat, not this white flag. The latest version of trumpcare is an admission that the wealthiest nation on earth will not, by choice, will not care for all its citizens. That a child in texas or massachusetts with pediatric cancer deserves treatment, but not both. That a grandmother in maine or oklahoma deserves longterm care but not both. That a young man in georgia or West Virginia suffering with Substance Abuse disorder can be treated but not both. This version of trumpcare, worse than those before it, ts state against state, pits american against american, and its up to every single one of us here today to say not this, not in my country, not on our watch. In our nation every person counts. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from tennessee, mr. Kustoff, for five minutes. Mr. Kustoff thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to honor a very good friend of mine, louis donaldson, of memphis, tennessee. This october louie, as most call him, is turning 100 years old, and i cannot be more proud to celebrate with him. Louie is a brilliant lawyer who has practiced law for almost 70 years. He founded one of our nations largest law firms with senator howard baker, now called baker donaldson. But louies impact extends far beyond his legal accomplishments. Louie was one of the founders of the Shelby County republican party, and he was instrumental in building the party throughout the entire state of tennessee. In 1968, louie helped establish the very first Memphis City Council at the height of the civil rights movement, and he played a significant role in resolving the sanitation strike, led by dr. Martin luther king jr. He led the charge for peaceful integration in legal equality in memphis. Louie served as tennessees commission of finance for then governor lamar alexander. He was chairman of the board of the med in memphis, and he served on the board on st. Jude childrens research hospital, also in memphis. Amazingly through all this, louie taught a sunday school class for more than 60 years. Louie is a visionary and a leader. He is bold and not afraid to do the right thing. Robota and i are proud to claw roberta and i are proud to call louie our friend. Hank you, mr. Speaker. The speaker pro tempore chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. Ruiz, for five minutes. Mr. Ruiz thank you, mr. Speaker. The grahamcassidy bill is the worst version of trumpcare yet. By block granting health care, this bill puts health care on the chopping block. You see, states, in order to make ends meet, will have to change their eligibility criteria, meaning millions more uninsured. They will have to cut certain benefits and expensive coverage like perhaps Cancer Treatment or that extra stay in the hospital. And they will have to reduce recommend bursments for hospitals, clinics and doctors, and thats a big disproportionate cut to those health care providers, especially in rural and underserved communities. So this means that millions more will be uninsured, and hardworking families will be forced to pay more out of pocket for health care. This means that patients with preexisting conditions will be priced out of the health care and pay more out of pocket for higher premiums, higher deductibles, and they will have to pay for needed care that will no longer be guaranteed coverage under the essential health care benefits. Furthermore, Older Americans will be faced to pay higher premiums under the bills age tax. So we cannot let this bill become law. We cannot allow patients, families, seniors and those who have diabetes and chronic illnesses like asthma and copd or obesity, illnesses to be left to fend for themselves. You see, thats not the america that we know. Thats not the values that we share. We dont believe that health care is a commodity only for those that can afford it so that cant afford health care will have to fend for themselves simply because they cant afford it. We believe that we all have a responsibility for health as a common good with social responsibility to make sure that our neighbors and our communities are well, that our neighbors kids are free from infections that can spread to other kids. Thats why we have strong vaccination programs. Because health is fundamentally a human right. The rest of the world sees it that way. So why not america . Leaders in our globe . So we must, we can do better. So to my republican colleagues, i know that passing a bill is important politically because you campaigned on this for the past eight years. I understand that you have a lot of pressure from donors. But just think about patients. Lets do the right thing. Put politics aside. Lets heed the words of senator mccain. Lets come back to regular order. Lets figure out what we can do together to fix, improve on the Affordable Care act, to bring down premiums, to bring down the cost of health care, of medicines, to make sure that we expand coverage to more people and not take away coverage for millions of people. Lets put people above partisanships. Lets put solutions above ideology. Lets do the right thing. Lets come together and lets help pragmatically improve health care for millions of americans. I yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman faso, for k, mr. Five minutes. Mr. Faso thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today i rise to recognize the commitment and dedication of Wayne Marshfield who has just recently retired after 50 years of hard work with the Delaware County new York Electric faso, for cooperative. Over the course of his career, wayne has supported the cooperatives Central Mission of providing reliable and Affordable Energy services to families throughout its entire service area. Waynes leadership and penchant for innovation has significantly enhanced the cooperatives operations in our upstate communities. For example, wayne developed the Service Location system which greatly improved his companys service mapping, allowing us to greater respond to emergencies and needs of the community. In addition, he implemented the smart meter to modernize the areas outage alerts. E thank Wayne Marshfield for his indispensable 50 years of service at the Delaware County electric cooperative and also his 20 yearsplus service his indispensable 50 years as hm done town supervisor. Hes always gone above and beyond to ensure affordable and reliable power to our local homes and businesses. Mr. Speaker, i salute wayne. Mr. Speaker, i also rise today to congratulate the Northern Columbia Lions Club which will soon celebrate its 70th anniversary on september 30 of this year. Based in new york this International Post has a long history of extending a helping hand to neighbors in need. Its members practice charitable leadership, living out the lions club motto, where theres a need theres a lion. This year alone the Northern Columbia Lions Club has hosted vision screening tests for preschoolers, held a successful eyeglass drive for people in underdeveloped countries, refurbishes benches in chatams Memorial Park and awarded scholarships to local College Bound students. I thank our past and present members of the lions club for their 70 years of dedication to a better Columbia County and a better world. Mr. Speaker, i yield back the alance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from texas, ms. Jackson lee, for five minutes. Ms. Jackson lee thank you very much, mr. Speaker. Ast evening i took to kneeling on this floor in recognition, first of all, of the glory of this nation, the pride that i have in representing the nation in far away places as a member of congress and visiting heads of states. And visiting with the people of other countries who have such an admiration for the purity of our freedom. Pride in texasat being a state that will is home to any number of pride in milit and reservists and active duty and veterans. We interact all the time. Our military liaison in my ffice is a veteran of the iraq and afghan wars. So there is no lacking in sense of pride and not one of us remembers missing the National Anthem and the pledge of allegiance as children growing up. In our daily activities as we went to school. But i also have come to understand what those symbols mean. They are not just cloth or music. They represent ideals and values and many people interpret them in different ways. I abhor destroying, burning, spitting on the flag. I have not done niff those. But Colin Kaepernicks kneeling in the early months past was no disrespect of his love of this country but a recognition that people were hurting, people were losing their lives, and we needed to reform systems of justice to be able to respond to the grieving mothers who lost children in many instances i would say all the instances that we can recall of the recent two years, unnecessarily. Did not mean we did not have, again, the greatest respect for our men and women in blue. I take no back seat to my honoring them, fighting for them, working alongside of them during Hurricane Harvey, thanking them for the First Responders and enormous work they did. Working alongside them as we rescued a group of individuals in a church that had fled for their lives during Hurricane Harvey. But we must understand each others people and it is unfortunate that the commander in chief has taken to a distraction that wants to peel away our unity and report in the news they like it, dont they . Hes really working for his base. I dont know anything about a base. I know about americans. I see them all the time, and theydont look like me and disagree with me. They have different opinions. I till respect that opinion. But i do believe that we can all come together. So that knee was in respect of poland, the young men who have now successfully taken to their knee, the owners. Yes, i know what they have done does not feed people, does not work on your retirement, does not get us Something Better than the grahamcassidy bill which will destroyed health care for llions of americans, those with preexisting diseases and those who suffer from the lack of income. Health care. The very promise made by the president and all of us as members of congress that this should be some structure. There is no structure than grahamkennedy cassidy bill. Is over it it gives tax cuts to the is over i. I look forward to working with sports as well the explain these young men are vital parts of the community. Thank you to j. J. Watts and the texans and all those who have contributed. Now what is the most Important Message . My people are suffering and my constituents still in texas. They are suffering in florida. They are suffering now extraordinarily in the u. S. Virgin islands and puerto rico. Your eyes should burn, your heart should be struck by the absolute humanitarian crisis in puerto rico. As i listen to my colleagues this morning, as i was coming to this floor already on these issues, they pierce my heart even more. Because puerto rico is under water. The disease is rising. People with medicine are losing it because they do not have refrigeration. And yet the idle talk and idle hands of the administration are, fact, not doing anything sufficient enough to save those lives. Nd i, too, have people in my f, district who are unhoused, but im here because were unified and we must be able to speak about the whole of america. I have been to puerto rico on a number of issues. I in the leadership, former congressperson, and i believe that it is high time if district who are this is water that Hurricane Harvey was, imagine the disease of being hit by 155 miles per hour. It is now time to put a military czar in puerto rico. Send the c130s. Send the ships. Help these people be rescued. This is a disgrace. Stop talking about foolishness. Be a leader and be the commander in chief and stop all of this. When are we going to get the leadership thats deserving the American People . The speaker pro tempore the gentleladys time has expired. Ms. Jackson lee i am sick and tired of t i want a president. I do not want a person the speaker pro tempore the gentlelady is no longer recognized. Dont talk to my constituents because im calling on you. Because they need help. The speaker pro tempore members are reminded to refrain from engaging in perments toward the president. The chair now recognizes the gentleman from florida, mr. Gaetz, for five minutes. Mr. Gaetz thank you, mr. Speaker. I cannot believe what i just heard on this floor. Kneeling as a sign of respect . I dont recall my democratic colleagues kneeling when former president obama would come to address this body. They stood as a sign of respect. Thats what we do in this country. Republicans and democrats, for our flag, for our anthem. Thats why i join so Many Americans in anger and disgust when i saw nfl players, multimillionaires, kneeling during the National Anthem. Its such an over generalized indictment. If people have a problem with Police Brutality or criminal justice system, there are venues for discussion, even for highlight and isolate those issues for an adult in responsible discussion. But when people kneel during our National Anthem, they dont simply indict the issue which they take some particular grievance. They indict our contry, service members, our First Responders, our founding fathers, and the principles that made this country great. But see this freedom that we enjoy, it also includes the freedom of highlight and solate speech, the right of our citizens to express themselves even when we find that expression offensive, is a fundamental constitutional right. Yet nowhere in the constitution does it say that hardworking americans have to subsidize or create special carve outs and exemptions for conduct that they ind unpatriotic. Unfortunately, today unfortunately, today the tax code gives special breaks to sports lesion. Some swamp creature of yet leagues. Some swamp creatures ofester year called them tax exempt trade organizations. He public pays 70 of the cost of nfl stadiums. They generate nearly 2 billion in ref nue. Yet the tax code gives them special treatment, gives them a special break that Small Businesses in my district dont get. Thats unfair. Its outrageous that we take money away from hardworking americans to subsidize professional sports at all. Investment is negative. Heard these arguments in my home state of florida. Oh, these sports clubs create jobs and revenue and economic activity. Look, every Economic Analysis showed that this is a negative return on investment, a heard t my home state of florida. Oh, these sports loser for taxpayers, earn corporate welfare at its worst. The Internal Revenue code must be amended to remove the tax exempt status for professional sports leagues permanently. Im glad the nfl voluntarily gave up their status, but we should make this change permanent and the law. In the coming days and weeks we will be discussing tax relief to lift up the middle class. I support whole scale, bold conservative tax reform. We have an opportunity in this tax bill to send an even more profound message. That in america if you want to play sports you are free to do so. You are also free to protest. You are welcomed to do both. But you should do it on your own time and on your own dime. Yield back. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. Costa, for ive minutes. Without objection. Mr. Costa mr. Speaker, i rise today to speak about three issues that are very important to my distract and the nation. First i want to talk about the immigration policy or the lack of an immigration policy that we have in this country. In essence a broken immigration system. For years i have been saying we need to fix it. And we need to do that in a bipartisan way because its the only way were going to be successful. Efforts d bipartisan in 2013, the legislation that came out of the senate, by a vote of 6813. Rior to that i supported president bushs efforts, and more recently president obamas efforts. Unfortunately we have not been successful through these efforts. And that is why efforts in today i think we need to be focusing on at least one segment that would have been addressed if in fact we fix this broken immigration system. Thats those dreamers. Those young people covered under the deferred action for Children Program that was initiated by president obama. That is now going to expire. These people came here on the average age of 6 years. Most of them dont know the country they came from. Most of them consider themselves in essence, americans. They are going to school. They are in our military service. They are serving in many different ways. They have jobs. In they are part of families which some are in which some are here legally and some are not. You talk about breaking up families. Yesterday i signed a discharge petition to bring to the house floor the bipartisan, bicameral dream act. Which will permanently protect these dreamers by offering them a path to earn, earn citizenship, not am necessary tifment i will continue to do everything in my power to bring the dream act to the house floor for a vote, to work then after that for comprehensive Immigration Reform which is what e really need to do. So that we dont keep up ending back here like a continued broken record. I want our dreamers to know that many of us in washington and across the nation stand with you. E overwhelming majority of americans believe that we ought to fix this, and i hope before the end of this year in a bipartisan fashion we will do just that. In americans believe that we ought to fix this, and i hope before e end addition, about a montho we had the United States tennis championship. I would be remiss if i didnt congratulate Sloan Stevens stephens on her winning the u. S. Open in tennis earlier. Many of you may not realize but shes came from the san joaquin valley, the area i represent in california. Were proud of her. She did, after all, Start Playing her tennis in fresno where she lived until she was 10. But her win makes many of us in america proud as she showed a level of hard work, determination, and grit rarely seen on the tennis court. Miss stephens had to fight her way back to the court after a stress fracture and surgery in january that took her out of training and completely off her feet and the tennis court. And then she came back and wow did she come back. To beat the worlds best, including one of her heroins, become the ms, to womens singles u. S. Open championship. Were so proud of you. I also want to thank become the stephens for all shes done in the valley, because shes never forgot where she came from where her mother raised herzegovina, contributing to the tennis programs at Charter Academy in fresno which introduces Young Children to the sport of dennis. Real shoutout for sloan stephens. Incredible accomplishment as this years United States tennis championship for the United States open. Congratulations. Lastly, id like to turn to something thats been important not only in california but across the country and around the world and it also puts smiles on peoples faces. For over 250 years, california has been producing the wine, i think, in the world. Californias the fourth largest producer of wine and is in large part due to hard work, innovation, craftsmanship, over almost 6,000 growers. They make a difference every day. And they do it not before its time. Roughly 24 Million People visit californias wine region each year making our state the most visited state for food and winerelated activities. We are after all the number one agricultural state in the nation. Not only in Wine Production but half the nations fruits and vegetables. Number one in citrus production. Number one in milk production. Number one in almond and pistachios, the list goes on and on. So as we near the end of California Wine month, this year id like to take the moment to celebrate our growers, our farm workers. Without the farm workers we couldnt make this wine possible. And all those who contribute to this industry that provides healthy food as a part of a healthy diet that we all deserve and enjoy. I yield back the balance of my ime. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from indiana, mr. Hollingsworth, for five minutes. Mr. Hollingsworth mr. Speaker, i rise today in support of legislation that an overwhelming number of americans, 74 in fact, not only support but demand of this body. The issue is term limits. The time is now. It has become more and more transparent to hoosiers back home that this city and even sometimes this building no longer reflects the ideals, the morals and the values that they share in their communities. The people demanded representation that truly represents their interests. They are tired of elected officials being seduced by the trappings of their office, forgetting the reason they were sent to this hallowed chamber. Ultimately, the American People have seen that many members vote in consideration of sometimes interests that are divergent from theirs back home. Sips i first entered public life, i have been a vocal proponent of term limits. I believe in order for this body to truly serve the people back home, the hardworking hoosiers every try trying to make ends every day trying to make ends meet, they need to listen to those people and ultimately they need to relate to those people. Still yet, the American People are not the only ones calling for term limits. As we all can , President Trump crisscrossed this great nation, sharings this vision on how he could sharing his vision on how he could make great again. He agreed calling for term limit legislation for the United States congress and i support President Trumps agenda in term limits. Mr. Speaker, i heard the voices of hoosiers back home who desperately wish to see this legislation passed, who desperately want see their representatives representing their interests, their values. That is why as one of my first actions as a member of this body, i wrote legislation that would sponsor a constitutional amendment, leftying term limits on members of congress. Additionally, i cosponsored every piece of term limit legislation that reflects actual term limits thats available in this body. Furthermore, i so strongly believe in this issue that i went doortodoor during the course of my campaign handing out term limit pledges, that i would sign personally. At the over 15,000 doors that ive knocked on during the course of my elected official office, i have continued to sign those term limits, talking to each one about how we can ensure that their interests and their values are fully represented here. Now, the positions that we hold here in this chamber are not bequeathed to us by status, by lineage or heritage but rather the positions we hold, every single one of us are based on the ideas we presented to the American Public, based on the values that the American Public said they wanted represented. And i want to make sure we continue year in and year out to be responsive to those ideas, to be responsive to those values because too frequently i hear in district they feel like washington, d. C. Has values that are inconsistent with theirs, that the toxic environment they sometimes believe that exists in washington, d. C. , hasnt gotten in the results they demanded election after election. Now, im an old business guy. A manufacturing guy by trade. And so i always think about how the process of creating policy could be better. Not just fixing the policies at the end of the line because no one would run a Manufacturing Business where you have a process and then you just fix the widgets at the end of the line. But instead they would focus on how we Manufacturing Policy in a better way. And the American People and hoosiers back home have said how we think we could man mfer policy in beater way. They want to see term limits legislation passed so the manufacturers of policy will reflect their values, will reflect their concerns, will reflect what they live, breathe and feel every single day. What i hear when i go back home and travel the district every single weekend is that washington, d. C. , has become flooded with selfinterests, selfinterests that drive the boat forward instead of american interests propelling us forward into better and better policy. And i think the quickest way to correct that failure here in d. C. Is to consider and pass term limits. When 74 of americans agree thats not 74 of one side of the aisle or 74 of the other side of the aisle, but thats 74 of americans agree on something, then i think in a democracy thats something should that should get done. The framers of our constitution did not intend for members of this body to remain seated for 20, 30, 40 or even 50 years. But rather they fundamentally believed they government should be designed one of the people and for the people to experience regular turnover. Because ultimately the greatness of this country has always rooted in the American People themselves. And i want to get more of those American People up here serving in elected office. And with that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore thank you. Pursuant to clause 12a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until noon today. House republicans will be meeting tomorrow about a tax reform plan that will be unveiled this week. So tomorrow the house wont be session until 4 00 iron time. They may take up a bill to reauthorize the Childrens Health insurance program. Which expires at the end of the month as well. While the house is out we take you live to the Senate JudiciaryCommittee Hearing on special counsel and the ability of the president to fire a special counsel. Vermont senator Patrick Leahy is speaking now and doing the questioning. This has been under way for about an hour or so. Should wrap up in another hour and a half. You can find it in its entirety in our video library. Cspan. Org. The president or any high level executive branch official not being investigated because of basically a problem of selfdealing in the executive branch thats inherent in our system to some extent