Speaker of the house of representatives. The speaker pro tempore the prayer today will be offered our chaplain, father conroy. Chaplain conroy let us pray. God of the universe, thank you for giving us another day. Quicken our spirits so that we will know the blessings of living together in unity and peace. We have our personal aspirations and ideas of what is best. Grant that we might know the satisfaction of sharing our Common Concerns and experiencing the joy of mutual accomplishment. Bless the members of the peoples house with success in bringing fruition to all efforts, to work toward Common Solutions to the issues facing our nation, solutions which seems so distant in these days. During the days of the coming week, may the American People be able to communicate their hopes for the efforts of their congress men and women. May they understand, as well, that a unified nation is equally the work of each of us where we live. May all that is done this day be for your greater honor and glory. Amen. The speaker pro tempore the chair has examined the journal of the last days proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. Pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. The pledge of allegiance this morning will be led by the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. Cartwright. Mr. Cartwright 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 pro tempore the chair will entertain up to five requests for oneminute speeches on each side of the aisle. For what purpose does the gentleman from colorado rise . Mr. Speaker, i rise to request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Speaker, i had a career in the military with a combined 21 years between the United States army, the army reserve, the United States marine corps and the marine corps reserve. Mr. Coffman i met so many extraordinary young men and women who served our country in uniform, who made tremendous sacrifices in defense of our freedom. I strongly believe that the highest expression of citizenship in america is exemplified by those who serve in our armed forces. In my hometown of aurora, colorado, i recently met young people who grew up in aurora, went to school in our community and know of no other country than america. Some of them want to join the military, but because of their immigration status they cannot. Mr. Speaker, i believe that they should be allowed to join and be given an opportunity to earn citizenship by serving our country, their country in the military. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania rise . Mr. Cartwright i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore no objection, the gentleman is recognized. Mr. Cartwright thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today in advance of the forward on climate rally this sunday here in washington, d. C. To support the thousands of people en route to this town right now and to urge this congress to keep Environmental Issues among our Top Priorities. As president obama stressed in his state of the Union Address earlier this week, there is an undeniable trend of warmer climates and a rise in the frequency of Natural Disasters which cause devastation across this nation. We are headed in the wrong direction, and we need serious action to protect our planet. We can fight Global Warming while still growing our economy. We can do it by investing in clean Renewable Resources like wind and solar with equipment produced right here in the United States of america. By dealing seriously with Environmental Issues, we can boost our economy, decrease our reliance on foreign oil and leave a better world for our children. These should be our Top Priorities as members of congress, as citizens and as parents and it is time these issues receive the attention that they deserve. I yield the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. For what purpose does the gentleman from utah rise . Mr. Speaker, i rise to address the house for one minute. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized. Today i rise in defense of the people of the utah. As i introduce the utah land and sovereignty act, a bill that will prohibit the establishment of monuments in utah except by the expressed authorization of congress. Mr. Stewart mere than 60 of my state is controlled by the federal government. This is not uncommon in western states. And now we know that president obama intends to use the Antiquities Act to further extend these federal land grants. The former secretary of the interior suggested and encouraged him to do this. This is another example of the arrogance of the federal government and their attitude towards those of us in western states. Its time for the president to realize that federal land grabs have real consequences for real people. And i yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from georgia rise . Mr. Barrow i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Barrow thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise to honor the 50 years that terrell w. Benton jr. Has served at the state barf georgia. As one colleague put it, is the very model of what a lawyer should be. Terrell benton believes that all deserve effective representation in our courts. That may be common today, but in 1964, my daddys first year on the bench, not everybody felt that way. In that year terrell defended a black man the state was trying to put to death for killing a white man. He was convicted of a crime he was committed but he was spared the death penalty, thanks to terrell. That would have been no small feat for the most accomplished in that time and place, but considering that terrell was one year out of law school made it all the more remarkable. Today terrell is general counsel of the three School Districts and serves on a host of civic boards. I know i speak for others when i thank him for his 50 years of service to our profession. With that, mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from South Carolina rise . Mr. Wilson mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Wilson mr. Speaker, during tuesday nights state of the Union Address, the president spoke to the American People, and michael garcon in todays Washington Post said, quote, it was a pervasive lack of substance, end of quote. Four years ago this month the president said the deficit was unsustainable but then proceeded to triple the deficit, putting American Families at risk. Sadly, his words do not reflect his actions. House republicans recognize the urgency in putting our fiscal house back to order. Over 16 trillion in National Debt is irresponsible. Not only does it threaten Senior Citizens with the value of the dollar but places burden on future generations and destroys job creation due to economic uncertainty. The path to prosperity is still achievable. Now is the time for the president to change course and work with congress to secure solutions, enabling Small Businesses to create jobs. In conclusion, god bless our troops and we will never forget september 11 and the global war on terrorism. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from maryland 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, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, we are on the brink of achieving the republican policy of sequester. Why do i say its the republican policy . Because on july 19 of 2011, 229 republicans voted for their cut, cap and balance bill which said that the alternative to cutting spending in a rational way would be the irrational imposition of sequester which cuts across the board irrespective of priorities. Its the wrong thing to do. It will hurt america. It will hurt our economy. It will hurt the growth in jobs, and i am here to tell you if democrats were in charge of the house of representatives, that sequester would not happen. Weve been here six weeks and not a single piece of legislation has been brought to this floor by the majority to stop sequestration from happening. To substitute a rational fiscal policy for an irrational one. So when sequester hits, as unfortunately it may, as tragically it may, as unacceptably it may, the American People need to know this is republican policy included in legislation for which the 98 of them voted for in july of 2011. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentlemans time has expired. For what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas rise . Mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. North Koreas Nuclear tests earlier this week signals an increasingly dangerous and defiant stance the United States and our allies must confront and defeat. A resolution before the house today condemns the North Koreans government flagrant and repeated violations of multiple United NationsSecurity Council resolutions and for its repeated provocations that threatens International Peace and stability. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and i must add, the constraints we face in countering a Nuclear North Korea highlight the urgent need to prevent iran from obtaining Nuclear Weapons capabilities. Mr. Cotton iran already exports murder around the world, props up regimes in syria and supports and sponsors terrorist organizations like hezbollah and hamas. Imagine what iran would do when acting under the umbrella of a nuclear deterrent. The United States already faces one outlaw regime with Nuclear Weapons. We cannot allow a second outlaw regime to join them. Thank you. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition . Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. The gentlelady is recognized for one minute. Today i rise in support of a resolution authored by mr. Lipinski of illinois honoring National Engineering week. In his state of the Union Address, the president announced of educating students in the sciences, technology, engineering and math fields so they are prepared for hightech and highpaying jobs for the future. Stem education is vital for the Economic Growth of my district and for the nation. Just atlanta month a new report found that in the past 11 years hightech jobs in my district and the surrounding areas have grown by 18. 6 , many of these jobs requiring engineers and students to pursue Stem Education. Yet, while most parents of schoolage students believe that Stem Education should be a priority in the United States, only half agree it is actually a top priority. Mrs. Negrete mcleod thats why i ask my colleagues to support National Engineers week to raise awareness of Stem Education and its importance to our countrys economic future. I yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentlelady yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from kansas rise . Mr. Speaker, i rise today to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Thank you, mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize the 150th anniversary of the founding of impouria State University in impouria, kansas. Emporia State University in emporia, kansas. Emporia state is much recognized today for its outstanding teachers college. One third of the degrees earned each year at emporia state are graduate degrees, the highest rate of any university in kansas. Mr. Huelskamp today i join more than 5,900 current students and 75,000 alumni in congratulating emporia State University on its first 150 years and wish them the very best in the next 150 years. Mr. Speaker, i yield back. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back. For what purpose does the gentleman from virginia rise . Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. Mr. Scott thank you, mr. Speaker. Our right to vote is the very foundation of our democracy. In passing the Voting Rights act, congress relied on an extensive record on discrimination in voting. Section 5 requires jurisdictions to submit changes in election laws to judges for prior approval. The areas covered by section 5 were covered the oldfashioned way. They earned it by implementing poll taxes, lit rass see taxes and other schemes. If the Supreme Court invalidate section 5 in Shelby County v. Holder it would essentially allow jurisdictions with a history of discrimination to implement any discriminatory voter scheme and meanwhile suffer under the discriminatory scheme until the court ruled. And then without section 5, those same jurisdictions could create another scheme and repeat the whole process. Mr. Speaker, at a time when america stakes its need to spread democracy around the world, we must ensure its vitality here at home and ensure section 5 of the Voting Rights act. I yield back the balance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on the motion to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule 20. Any recorded vote on the postponed question will be taken later. For what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition . Mr. Speaker, i mover that the house suspend the rules and pass House Resolution 65, as amended. The speaker pro tempore the clerk will report the title of the resolution. The clerk House Resolution 65. Resolution condemning the government of north korea for its flagrant and repeated violations of multiple United NationsSecurity Council resolutions for its repeated provocation that is threaten International Peace and stability, and for its february 12, 2013 test of a nuclear device. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. Royce, and the gentleman from new york, mr. Engel, each will control 20 minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from california. Mr. Royce mr. Speaker, im going to ask unanimous consent if i could that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on this resolution. The speaker pro tempore without objection, so ordered. Million royce thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Royce thank you, mr. Speaker. I yield myself such time as i may consume. What i want to share with the body is that on february 12 of to 13 north korea successfully carried out a nuclear test, a test in flagrant violation of Numerous International sanctions and of numerous agreements that north koreas paid in the past. This test, which is the third time that north korea has exploded a nuclear device, is a stark reminder that kim junguning is determined to develop his Nuclear Arsenal while depriving North Koreans of their most basic human rights. When i say their most basic human rights, we had the opportunity to speak with the former propaganda minister of north korea who told us that 1. 9 million North Koreans starved while this regime violating every agreement it had made with the International Community plowed forward with a plan to develop Nuclear Weapons. North korea has literally spent millions on its nuclear and its threestage icbm program and that is all money that could have provided enough food to feed this country for years. If you h