they're going to receive briefings and updates with respect to what's going on in the ground, our military involvement there. and our efforts to defeat isis. jared's going to specifically express the commitment of the united states to the government of iraq. meet with u.s. personnel engaged in the campaign, and mr. bossert will participate in meetings and briefings to reinforce the strong u.s.-iraqi partnership to defeat isis. but it's not like this is a one-shot deal. in the course of conversation, in extensive meetings, that was extended and he took it out. reporter: his portfolio is jam packed and has grown in recent inrequiring issuers

to provide certain disclosures relating to compensatory benefit plans. report to accompany house resolution 241, resolution providing for consideration of the bill h.r. 1304, amend the employee entitlement security act of 1974, the public security act and the internal revenue code of 1976 to exclude from the definition of health insurance coverage certain medical stop-loss insurance obtained by certain plan sponsors of group health plans. report to accompany house resolution 242, resolution providing for consideration of the bill h.r. 1219, to amend the investment company act of 1940 to expand the investor limitation for qualifying venture capital funds under an exemption from the definition of an investment company and providing for proceedings during 2017 riod from april 7,

through april 24, 2017. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, proceedings will resume on motions to suspend the rulesed on items previously postponed. votes will be taken in the ollowing order, h.r. 92 by the yeas and nays. h.r. 479 by the yeas and nays. the first vote will be a 15-minute vote, the remaining votes will be five-minute votes. the question is on the motion by the gentleman, mr. royce, to suspend the rules and agree to h.res. 92. the clerk: house resolution 92, resolution condemning north korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: the quell is will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill as amended? members will record their votes

by electronic device. this will be a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: the eas are 397 -- the speaker pro tempore: the yeas are 398 and the nays are 3, 2/3 being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, and the resolution is agreed to and the the motion to reconsider is laid upon the table. the house will be in order. the chair would ask all members

to please take their onversations from the floor. he house will come to order. the chair would ask all members and staff to take their onversations from the floor. the chair would ask all members to please take their onversations from the floor. the chair would ask all members to please take their conversations from the floor. my friends on the right side of

the chamber, my friends on the left side of the chamber, please take their conversations from the floor. for what purpose does the gentleman from new york seek recognition? 9 pursuant to clause 2-a rule i raise a question of the privileges of the house. the form of the resolution is as follows. mr. jeffries: a resolution expressing the sense of the ouse of representatives -- the speaker pro tempore: my house is s a -- the not in order. members, please take your conversations from the floor. please remove your conversations from the floor and i ask all members to take their seats.

mr. jeffries: a resolution expressing -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will suspend. the chair would ask all members and staff to take their conversations from the floor and ask all members to take their seats. the gentleman from new york. mr. jeffries: thank you, mr. speaker. a resolution expressing the sense of the house of representatives that president donald trump shall publicly disclose his tax information which shall conform with an important tradition to occupy and si of the white house and uphold his promise that he would release his tax returns, whereas every president since president ford has disclosed their information to the american

people. whereas in may of 2014 -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is correct. the house is not in order. the chair would ask all members to please take their seats. the gentleman from new york. mr. jeffries: thank you, mr. speaker. whereas every president has disclosed his tax return information to the american people, whereas in may of 2014, donald trump stated during a television interview if i decide to run for office, i'll produce my tax returns absolutely. i would love to do that. whereas in february of 2015, donald trump stated during a radio interview, i have no objection to certainly showing tax returns. whereas in february, 2016,

nald trump stated during a televised republican presidential debate, i will absolutely give my returns so i can't do it until the audit is finished. whereas in may of 2016, donald trump stated during a television interview, i really gladly give them when the audit ends, i will present them. that should be before the election. whereas the i.r.s. has made clear that any taxpayer may release his tax returns at any time while under audit. whereas the house of representatives, by constitutional design is the institution closest to the american people and overwhelming majority of the american people think that donald trump should release his tax returns

immediately. whereas -- the speaker pro tempore: the .ouse is not in order the gentleman from new york. mr. jeffries: whereas 17 different intelligence geags in the united states have concluded that vladimir putin and his russian regime interfered with our elections with the purpose of helping donald trump. high-level associates with were in contact with tgs agents during the same time that russia was hacking into our democracy and high level trump associates have financial ties to the russian regime and paul mana for the, donald trump's former campaign chairman initiated a change in the republican platform in july of 2016 and has

received millions of dollars from pro-russian oligarches to agenda. utin's d flynn resigned in disgrace misleading about phone calls and failed to disclose financial compensation from a russian propaganda media outlet. . whereas carter page, a close advisor to the trump campaign, acknowledges visiting the kremlin in the midst of the 2016 presidential election. the speaker pro tempore: the chair would ask all members to please take their conversations from the floor. the gentleman from new york. mr. jeffries: thank you, mr. speaker. whereas jeff sessions, donnell

trump's attorney general, misled the senate under oath by failing to disclose his meetings with the russian ambassador that took place in july of 2016 at the republican national convention and again in september of 2016, whereas michael cohen, donald trump's personal attorney, now acknowledges being in contact with russian operatives at the same time the attacks on our democracy were taking place, whereas jared kushner, a senior white house advisor and donald trump's son-in-law now acknowledges previously undisclosed meet wgs the russian ambassador, whereas roger stone, a self-described political trickster and donald trump's consigliare now admits guccifer 2 e with

and predicted during the campaign that john podesta's emails would soon be exposed. whereas ian fleming has observed, once is happenstance, twice is coincidence, three times is enemy action. whereas donald trump has shown an untremendous re-strained willingness to criticize and insult allies of the united states of america. whereas donald trump wrongly accused great britain, our closest ally, of wiretapping trump tower in new york city. whereas donald trump declined to shake german chance ler angela merkel's hand while seated together during their recent joint appearance at the white house, whereas donald trump stated, in a recent cpac speech that paris is no longer paris, whereas donald trump threatened to cancel -- the speaker pro tempore: the chair would ask all members to take their conversations to the

cloakroom. mr. jeffries spks whereas donald trump threatened to cancel a refugee transfer agreement with our ally, australia, and reportedly hung up on the prime minister. whereas donald trump told the president of mexico that america would deploy military personnel to that sovereign nation if our southern neighbor does not deal with its bat hombres. whereas donald trump has repeatedly criticized our strategic and military alliance with western european allies and called nato obsolete. whereas donald trump refuses to say a negative word about vladimir putin or his corrupt russian regime. whereas bill o'reilly interviewed donald trump on super bowl sunday and asked

about putin's brutal and murderous regime. whereas donald trump responded -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york will suspend. the gentleman from georgia is correct. the house is not in order. the chair would again ask members to please take their conversations from the floor. the gentleman deserves to be heard. mr. jeffries: whereas donald trump responded, there are a lot of killers. you think our countries -- our country's so innocent? suggesting a moral equivalence between the united states and russia. whereas yogi berra, the great yankee catcher and philosopher king, once observed -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york will suspend. the house is not in order.

the house will not continue until we have order. the chair would ask all members on both sides of the aisle to please remove their onversations from the floor. mr. jeffries: whereas donald trump responded, there are a lot of killers, you think our country is so innocent, suggesting a moral equivalence between the united states and russia. whereas yogi berra, the great yankee catcher and philosopher king once observed that's too coincidental to be a coincidence. whereas donald trump tweet on january 11, i have nothing to do with russia, no deals new york loans, no nothing. whereas donald trump jr. once stated, russians make up a

pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets. we see a lot of money pouring in from russia. whereas disclosure of donald trump's tax returns will help the american people and their elected representatives in this house better understand trump's financial ties, if any, putin's russia. whereas the american people have a right to know whether financial conflicts of interest exist between the president of the united states and a hostile foreign power. whereas the chairman of the ways and means committee, joint committee on taxation, and senate finance committee have the authority to request donald trump's tax returns under section 6103 of the tax code and whereas the f.b.i. is conducting a criminal and counterintelligence investigation into russian

interference with the recent presidential election, including possible collusion between the trump campaign and the kremlin, now therefore, bit resolved that the house of representatives shall, one, immediately request tax return information of donald j. trump for tax years 2007 through 2016 for review and close -- in closed executive session by the committee on ways and means as provided under section 6103 of the internal revenue code and vote to report the information therein to the full house of representatives and two, postpone consideration of comprehensive tax reform legislation until after the elected representatives of the american people in this house have been able to review trump's tax returns and ascertain how any changes to the tax code

might financially benefit the president of the united states f america. the speaker pro tempore: under rule 9 a resolution offered from the floor by a member other than the majority leader or minority leader as a question of the privilege os the house has immediate precedence only at a time designated by the chair within two days after the resolution is properly noticed. pending that designation, the notice from the gentleman of new york will appear in the record at this point. the chair will not determine at this point if it constitutes a question of privilege. that determination will be made at the time designated for consideration of the resolution. without objection, five-minute voting will continue. the unfinished business is the

vote on the motion of the gentleman from california, mr. royce, to suspend the rules and pass h.r. 479 as amended, on which the yeas and nays are ordered. the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 479 a bill to equire a report on the democratic republic of korea as a state sponsor of terror. the speaker pro tempore: members will record their votes by electronic device, this will be a five-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]

the speaker pro tempore: on this vote the yeas are 394, the nays are one.

2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the house will come to order. members, please take your conversations from the aisles. from the back of the room. from the well.

the chair will now entertain requests for one-minute peeches. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? mr. thompson: mr. speaker, request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for one minute. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. yesterday the world celebrated autism awareness day. each year autism speaks asks people across the nation and around the comblobe to light it up blue -- globe to light it up blue in an effort to increase understanding and acceptance. last night here in our nation's capital, we illuminated ther

exterior blue. individuals wore blue clothing or turned their online photo profiles blue. autism spectrum disorder affects an estimated one out of 68 children in the united states. these families face enormous challenges? assisting their loved ones over the course of their lifetimes. each year an estimated 50,000 youth will turn 18 in the united states. and many face a services cliff when school-based programs end. men and women living on the autism spectrum have made incredible contributions to our society and we must continue to research the cause of autism and work to strengthen opportunities for individuals with autism to live full lives. together we can increase understanding and acceptance as we celebrate and support so many americans who live with autism. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new jersey seek recognition -- seek recognition? without objection, the

gentlewoman is recognized for ne minute. mrs. watson coleman: judge neil gorsuch's life-long appointment to the supreme court would have serious consequences for all americans. but especially the health healt and well-being of after -- health and well-being of african-american women. in 2013 by ruling that corporations had the right to deny access to contraceptives on employer-sponsored health insurance plans, judge gorsuch proved that he believes reproductive decisions of women nationwide can and should impact their livelihood. this is problematic and troubling. for black women and so many women across the world, birth control is a matter of health and life. we rely on contraception to treat diseases, manage fibroids, unplanned pregnancies and p.m.s. symptoms. judge neil gorsuch made the decision that his overarching commitments to religious freedom as a constitutional and statutory right is more important than life-saving

reproductive care. in 2013 he proved he should not be confirmed to the united states supreme court. for this reason and a host of others, i implore my colleagues in the senate to take available steps to oppose judge gorsuch in his nomination. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise tonight to pay tribute to the city of west miami in recognition of its 70th anniversary. what began as a small town of 700 residents has flourished into a haven for nearly 7,000 south floridians, including my constituent, senator marco rubio, and miami-dade county commissioner and former west miami mayor, who are proud to

call west miami home. while the city itself is less than one square mile, through tremendous growth that has graced west miami in the past 70 years has led to the creation of some of the finest public parks and summer camps in our state. to celebrate its founding, local officials, businesses, residents and their families will gather together on saturday, april 8, at cooper park in celebration of this incredible milestone. i am honored to represent the city of west miami and i thank all who have dedicated countless hours to making this corner of south florida special for all of us to enjoy. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from illinois seek recognition? the gentleman from illinois, i'm so sorry, sir. without objection, the gentleman the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker.

i rise to speak in honor of equal payday, which is tomorrow. women in our country earn on average 78 cents for every dollar that a man makes. for women of color, that gap is larger and even in my own district, the eighth congressional district of illinois, where the overall disparity is smaller, women still only earn 83 cents on the dollar. the pay gap is not simply a women's issue, but a challenge for all americans. gender wage disparities are a fundamental obstacle to millions of families trying to make ends meet. mr. krishnamoorthi: at a time when nearly 2/3 of mothers are primary, sole or co-bread winners for their families, the pay gap makes it that much harder to pay for groceries, housing, child care and all the other necessities of daily life. i'm proud to be an original co-sponsor of the paycheck fairness act, and hope all of my colleagues will join me in supporting this bill to address

pay discrimination. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one inute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to shed light on the religious persecution of christians by the chinese government. on march 5 of this year, a reverend known as pastor john was arrested and is still behind bars in southwest china. i believe his arrest and detention was for inflated charges leveled against him simply because he's a christian. pastor john has been a permanent resident of the united states since 1990, where he attended seminary, became a pastor in north carolina. he's married with two children, is kind and humble. even though he's living a comfortable life in the united states, he kept his chinese citizenship so he could continue to travel there and spread the good word of jesus

christ. he's been ministering to the impoverished people of china for over a decade. in these last three years, he helped build and staff 16 schools. for years he regularly crossed the border on his small motorcycle loaded with food and medicine without incident. mr. conaway: for some reason this time he was arrested and charged as a smuggler. since his arrest, chinese officials have raided and reber of christian churches in several provinces. i urge the state department to seek pastor john's immediate release from chinese custody and to stop further raids before other innocent visit vids become -- innocent individuals become casualties of this aggressive religious prosecution. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman rom maryland seek recognition? without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one inute.

>> mr. speaker, i rise to congratulate the hornets for winning their first state basketball championship in 36 years. after trailing by as much as nine points, the hornets under the leadership of coach chuck henry won the 1-a boys state title by a score of 65-52. mr. brown: the team of young scholars was resilient, played hard and never panicked. credit is due to coach henry, who has taken his team to the state championship after only two years on the job. he's a role model, had high expectations of his students and constantly push them to play better on court and achieve more in the classroom. throughout the season, coach henry never lost faith in his young team. mr. speaker, the students on the winning team may not go on to play in the ncaa or the nba. but the memories of this moment, the bonds they have built and lessons they have developed will stay with them for a lifetime. they have a proud legacy. when it opened its doors in 1950, it was one of only two high schools in the state of maryland for

african-americansle. and now nearly 70 years later the school has made history again. this team has made the entire fourth congressional district very proud. go hornets. thank you, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. the past several days i had my first ever tour of our southwest border. during my visit, i met with border patrol agents in arizona, new mexico and texas, as well as ranchers and business leaders on the border. border security was a significant issue in the last election. as americans are concerned about the flow of illegal narcotics and aliens across the border. although gaps in security remain, i saw an impressive array of assets, including drones and manned aircraft, walls, cameras and other material. mr. rothfus: more impressive, however, are the men and women who work for customs and border

protection who are at no small risk to themselves as they work to keep america secure. they are very encouraged lately as they see policy changes coming that will allow them to enforce our laws. mr. speaker, these individuals are literally on the line -- front lines defending our nation and communities. and i thank them for their service. i understand that there are job opportunities with border patrol. for those seeking a public service career doing something bigger than themselves, that's something to consider. i thank the speaker and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. mrs. beatty: mr. speaker, over 50 years ago president john f. kennedy signed into law the equal pay act. landmark legislation which requires that men and women in

the same workplace be given equal pay for equal work. unfortunately equal pay for equal work has not become a reality. in fact, women are paid between 79 cents and 80 cents for every dollar that men are paid for doing the exact same job. in fact, it takes women until tomorrow, april 4, for them to earn what men were paid in the previous year. and for women of color, the gap is even wider. in 2015 african-american women made 65 cents to every dollar earned by their white male counterparts. for hispanic women, it's even worse. they earn 58 cents to every dollar earned by their white male counterparts. women pay a huge price because of the wage gap. today families rely increasingly on women's wages to make ends meet. and with less take-home pay,

women have less money to cover the everyday needs of their families. mr. speaker, it's time for congress to right the wrong. let's pass the paycheck fairness act and send it to the president's desk for signature. thank you, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, our great ally, australia, has long been the leading voice in the world to end commercial whaling. i rise to let them know that they're not alone and to announce the filing of bipartisan legislation to support an end to commercial whaling. another of our valued allies, japan, unfortunately continues this depraved practice. in fact, the japanese whaling fleet has just returned home, aving killed 333 whales. mr. gaetz: despite the global

ban on commercial whaling, japan continues the slaughters on the seas under a thinly veiled claim of research. research into whales is important, but all available science shows that this research can be conducted with nonlethal testing and biopsies. the japan whale hunt isn't about research. it's about whale meat. in 2012 a japanese minister even commented that the whale offers great flavor and aroma. i think that's disgusting. the japanese whalers shoot the world's majestic mammals with exploding harpoons and electric lances. death can often take hours. commercial and fake research hunting of whales must end. i thank australia for its leadership. i ask japan to be honest with the world and end this barbaric practice. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from new york seek recognition? without objection, the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. mrs. maloney: mr. speaker, the

consensus for this friday's bureau of labor statistics jobs report is that it will show the economy added about 178,000 new private sector jobs in march. that's a good number. though not as good as the march numbers in recent years. and as "the new york times" put it, and i quote, growth in the first three months of the trump administration is looking about the way it did under the growth under president obama. but because of the current administration's inaction on vital economic issues like infrastructure spending, right now, about one in three market experts now think that a near-term stock market correction may be in the cards. instead of doing the things we need to do to rev up the economy, this body has been spending time trying to make it harder for women to access contraceptives, gutting our right to privacy on the

internet, and prying to take health care away from millions of americans. that's no way, mr. speaker, to create jobs. how about we do what the president said he wanted to do? let's make the investments that we need now that will stimulate the creation of good jobs, good paying jobs for americans. that should be job number one for this congress. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? without objection the gentleman s recognized for one minute. >> mr. speakering 100 years is -- mr. speaker, 100 years is a century it's a really, really long time, and 10 years of life

is a blessing. mr. olson: a young lady i work for in texas 22 lives in hi hometown of sugarland is such a blessing. ename is mary coffey and she celebrated her 108th birthday on march 20. recent articles mary described her keys to being blessed. number one, trust jesus. several bible -- lead several b bible studies with your friends. number two, get plenty of exercise. and number three, eat healthy. and number four is about personal hygiene. have jar after jar after jar of ponds cold cream available when

you need it most. for 100 -- for 108 years, mary . s inspired all of us happy 108th birthday, mary. let's go out, maybe go out dancing, if you promise not to wear me out when i get back home. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentlewoman from ohio seek recognition? without objection the gentlewoman is recognized for one minute. ms. kaptur: thank you. mr. speaker, today "the washington post" reported that the united arab emirates arranged a secret meeting in january between blackwater founder and major trump contributor eric prince and a russian close to president vladimir putin. the meeting was an apparent effort to establish a back channel line of communication

between moscow an president-elect donald trump, according to u.s., european, and arab officials. u.a.e.'s incentive to broke they are meeting comes from the detieror ating relationship between them and iran. they want to drive a wedge between iran and syria. it would need a handsome reward. blackwater is the private security firm that became infamous for u.s. abuses in iraq after a series of incidents including one in 2007 in which guards were accused and criminally convicted of killing civilians. coordinated they the meeting with russian government officials with the goal of establishing unofficial back channels between trump and putin. the u.a.e. at one point paid eric prince's firm a reported half a billion dollar to consult on defensive security, an

independent bipartisan commission to investigate trump officials and russian connections is long overdue. i yield back my remaining time. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? without objection the gentleman s recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, early this morning -- mr. poe: mr. speaker, early this morning, precinct three assistant chief clint greenwood put on his uniform, secured his badge over his heart and headed to work. as he arrived at the courthouse at 7:00 a.m. shots rang out. after the smoke cleared, chief greenwood was shot in the neck. his fellow officers rushed to his aid and he was airlifted to a nearby houston hospital. but it was too late. texas lost another one of its finest men in blue. the suspect is still at large but not for long.

as the investigation develops, it's still unclear if deputy chief greenwood was specifically targetted or if he was ambushed because he wore the uniform. law enforcement will do everything in their power to find and apprehend the murderous outlaw. chief greenwood dedicated 0 years of his life to the law. i knew clint when he was -- when i worked as a judge in houston, texas. he was a prosecutor. he was a defense lawyer. he worked for the sheriff's department. and now more recently as a member of the constable's office. he was a strong character and a proud texas lawman. for chief greenwood -- texas prays for chief green wd's family. our men and women who wear the badge are the best we have. chief greenwood's life may be gone but his memory serves as a reminder of all those who give

their lives for the thin blue line. back the blue, mr. speaker. back the blue. and that's just the way it is. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? without objection the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. tonight i'm pleased to announce the electric reliability and forest protection act of 201, co-sponsored by my colleague, mr. schrader, of washington. mr. lamalfa: thousands of miles of electricity lines run through our national forests. unfortunately, existing forest service rules hinder effective removal of hazardous trees and safe management of transmission right of way. in too many cases the inability to address hazards in a timely fashion results in blackouts, damaged infrastructure and even

forest fires, something we have too much of in the west as you know. this call can be prevented if electric withdrew fillities were allowed to remove the dangers in a timely fashion. this bill will reform the broken system by streamlining the process for utilities to receive forest service approval for long-term maintenance plans, allowing them to take immediate action to remove hazardous trees as soon as they're identified, before they cause a fear. this is a widely supported bill by rural communities, rural electric cooperatives and many others. this is a good bill, let's get it den, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leave of absense requested for mr. bishop of georgia today. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the request is granted. under the speaker's announced the y of january 3 , 2017,

gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, last month i had the privilege of meeting lisa and chad smith and their charming sonja meal during a visit to newland, north carolina, in the fifth district. the smiths are the proprietors of forage soaps which began in 2014 with a $50 purchase of supplies and a trip to the avery county farmer's market to sell their first batch of wild crafted soaps made in their kitchen. wild crafted refers to plants collected from their natural or indigenous habitat.

the smiths hand pick these botanicals fresh from the trail with minimal environmental impact to ensure long-term sustainability. well that first batch turned into a second batch and a third batch and so on. as they continued to make soap, they bought better equipment and invested in larger orders of supplies. word spread about their soap and before they knew it, the smiths were receiving invitations to attend craft and artisan shows. they were invited to put their soap in several local galleries an it wasn't long before they were filling their first wholesale order. today, their business includes a retail location that also functions as their studio, as well as several small satellite locations and an online store. chad works for mountain electric cooperative full time an lisa

has a master's degree in organic chemistry and biology. she's been making soap for more than 20 years. the smiths adopted jameel when he was 18 months old. they were told he would never be able to speak and may never be able to walk. today, he does both and is attending school and thriving with their loving care. he even helps out with the business where he loves to mix oils and wild craft herbs. their older children help with deliveries and during special events, while their grandchildren like to come on weekends to help stock shelves and run the cash register. it's truly a family affair. lisa likes to say she and chad built their business one bar of soap at a time. they didn't take out business loans or expect to be an

overnight success. instead, they started small and grew a little bit at a time. working long, hard hours and eventually reinvesting in their business. the smiths are living proof that one can achieve the american dream through hard work. it's an honor to represent them in congress. mr. speaker, i yield to the gentleman from florida. >> thank you, mr. speaker, i thank the gentlelady for yielding. i rise to speak on an issue important to so many floridians that is the florida everglades. the everglades are florida. they're as iconic as the plu angel the space shuttle and even the orange no one in florida is unaffected by the fate of the everglades. this is why i join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in encouraging president trump to

remain focused on overglades restoration. mr. geats: congress has invested in these -- mr. gaetz: congress has invested in these things before and the ecosystem is improving as a result. there is debate about how to proceed. the question is should the government buy more everglades land? i say no. 42% of the land in south florida is already owned by the government. we should get the government out of the land business rather than deeper into it. we must finish the comprehensive everglades restoration plan. it's enjoyed bipartisan support, taxpayer dollars go toward important environmental work. it respects private property rights, doesn't harm communities who play a critical role in florida's economy and advances the cause of restlation ration. florida's everglades are a national treasure, we can't afford to lose them. finishing the comprehensive plan will ensure our river of glass rb around for yen races to --

yen rations to come. i take particular pride in thanking both congressmen rooneys from my state for their outstanding leader shep. i thank the gentlelady from yielding and i yield back. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker, with that, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 3, 2017, the gentlewoman from the district of columbia, ms. norton is recognized for 60 minutes as the esignee of the minority leader. ms. norton: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased to come to the floor this evening and to -anchor this congressional ack caucus' hour about the present nominee to the supreme court, neil gorsuch. i'm very pleased that my good

iend from texas, representative sheila jackson lee, the distinguished member of the judiciary committee, has agreed to co-anchor this hour with me. mr. speaker, i am chair of the working group for the congressional black caucus that looks at nominees for federal courts. and so i have buried myself in the record of neil gorsuch and wrote the testimony that we submitted to the senate. i want to begin, and what i'll do, mr. speaker, for a few minutes, generally about the nominee, and then i'll go to my good friend from texas. and i'm very pleased that another good friend, mr. don

payne jr., is here, from the state of new jersey. and we will hear from him as well. now, just as the congress has been polarized, so has the court been polarized. if you look at the liberal-conservative block in that way. but of course since the death supreme court justice antonin scalia, it's been a 4-4 split. but justice anthony -- justice scalia is not a predictable conservative, though he tends to vote with the conservatives. what is happening in the senate was entirely predictable. t least today. in an unprecedented move, the

even refused to hear, meet the nominee of president obama. so you had almost a full hour -- sorry, a full year and yet they refused to take up that nominee. what happened today was really not payback. and if you listened to the testimony, you will see that there are good reasons that the senate, which today decided to , had ster judge gorsuch reason enough to do so. i simply want to begin, because i'm speaking for the congressional black caucus, by aying a word about his views as they affect african-americans, and by

definition, almost, others who depend upon the anti-discrimination laws and the constitution of the united states. there's more than enough record from judge gorsuch's 10th circuit service to oppose. but let me focus for a moment on his pre-court service, which seems to have predicted what he would do in the court. he was a principled deputy to the principal who had jurisdiction over the civil rights division. we have to pay attention to the fact that the inspector general, during judge gorsuch's time in the justice department, found that the civil rights division, where he had some

oversight, had been politicized in order to stifle civil rights. as you might imagine, the congressional black caucus had to pay attention to that finding but a neutral investigation. a concerned that -- about georgia election law. as we know, election laws in the south -- of course there's been a historic decision that has made the voting rights act far less effective than it was. but certainly during most of the time of the act, you had to go through the justice department to see if the act in southern states, because these are the states that kept african-americans from voting for reasons of race, to see if

laws affecting voting rights in fact discriminate against african-americans and others or not. a georgia election law was found by the civil rights division to be discriminatory. judge gorsuch was part of the team that overturned the civil rights division. that was, of course, challenged in the courts. and the ruling of the justice department that precleared the law, said it was already to go along with this law that the civil rights division had found scrimmed against blacks -- discriminated against blacks, the court overturned that finding of the justice department the and it used quite pregnant language. it said that -- department. and it used quite pregnant language it. said that the georgia election law was -- language. it said that the georgia

election law was reminiscent of jim crow laws. those words have special meaning in our history. for those, and i speak not here about african-americans alone, but if you have found yourself in the minority on any issue, it could be a first amendment issue, it could be a criminal justice issue, you want a court that will protect your rights, not only the rights of the . jority a this nominee has shown hostility to litigation in the courts themselves that have been the primary ways in which we have vindicated constitutional rights and the rights of minorities of every kind. , this ling op-ed nominee, mr. gorsuch, said american liberals have become

addicted to the courtroom, relying on judges and lawyers rather than elected leaders and the ballot box as the primary means of affecting their social agenda. what? what else was there? the gentleman mortgage had enforced -- the majority had enforced laws against the minority in this case -- minority, in this case african-americans. he conceded that brown vs. board of education was a decision that may have needed to be passed. but he went on to say that liberals should kick their addiction to constitutional litigation. this is a man who wants to go on the court, chose wheef mission is -- whose chief mission is constitutional litigation. i submit to you that even the justice who epitomized conservativism, justice scalia,

never showed hostility to coming to court in the first place, to vindicate the rights of people who felt themselves to be offended because they had not themselves adhered to what the majority desired. so in that respect, i think it is clear that, and this is a very important respect, that judge gorsuch is more conservative than justice scalia was on the court. nothing could be more justice who an a says, look, the preferred way to vindicate your rights is a political process. who would disagree with that? it is the failure of the

political process that sends eople to the courts. it shows, it seems to me, little appreciation for the bill of rights itself. the entire bill of rights is about the rights of the minority and, again, the word minority means any of us could be in that minority at any given point. you could be in that minority when it comes to religious rights. you could be in that minority because a search and seizure case. you could be in that minority because of a free speech case. and yet -- and, yes, you could be in that minority because you were a classic minority group. that's why the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments were added to the bill of rights. the framers of course shared gorsuch's preference for the political process. a constitution is a small-d

democratic document. but they created a separation of powers government knowing ll well that ma -- majoritarian democracy sometimes treads on the rights of minorities. that's why we have the supreme court of the united states. that mr. gorsuch wants to become a member of. before i go on to discuss some ases, i'm going to ask my good friend, donald payne jr., representative donald payne jr. from new jersey's 10th district, if he would say a few words at this time. mr. payne: thank you, mr. speaker. and to my colleague, the gentlelady from the district of

columbia, we appreciate her leadership throughout the years , on many of these issues around the judicial and the law. . speaker, confirmation of judge gorsuch to the supreme court would be detrimental to the interests of working americans, particularly african-americans and other vulnerable communities. just as president trump's agenda prioritizes special interests, judge gorsuch's record shows that he favors the interests of business and the powerful over regular people. his hostility to class action lawsuits would threaten protections for workers, especially african-americans

nd other minorities. what is particularly of concern to me is gorsuch's opinion in what is known as the frozen trucker case. gorsuch ruled against an african-american truck driver who, after breaking down in freezing weather, ignored his supervisor by unhitching the broken trailer from his truck and driving away in the search of assistance. freezing cold weather, the truck driver is nearly freezing to death. he has a truck that won't work, frozen brakes, so he if -- so if he tries to use the truck, they're telling him to move and use the truck and drive away, and if he takes his truck with

the harm kes, potentially to other citizens s great. an 18-wheeler truck with no brakes -- that doesn't seem logical. gorsuch believed that the employee should have followed the orders, even though the driver's life was at risk. gorsuch was the sole vote against the driver who was put in the position of having to freezing een death, to death, driving an unsafe vehicle, and endangering the lives of others, or hitching his trailer -- unhitching his

railer and seeking help. judge gorsuch's record is also troubling when it comes to issues around police accountability. gorsuch believes in granting police qualified immunity, which protects law enforcement from being held liable for any excessive use of force. this is deeply concerning because of the increasing number of police shooting deaths of unarmed african-americans. this is particularly concerning to me. i come from newark, new jersey, and the police department is being overseen by a federal monitor following a 2014 review that determined officers

repeatedly violated citizens' civil rights. and as we speak, gorsuch's record on civil rights is troubling. the national bar association, r nation's oldest and of predominantly african-american lawyers and judges that gorsuch has shown a strong tendenciesy to be incorporate interests and bias against workers and victims of civil and human rights violations. the confirmation of gorsuch would threaten the probings and he rights of african-america cans. gorsuch is in lock-step with the president favoring the wealthy

over ordinary americans. is is why i i oppose his confirmation. even those who disagree that gorsuch would bring a bias view to the court, to see the necessity in delaying the confirmation of gorsuch given of the ng controversy trump cover si. it is made by the president who is under investigation by the scandal.d trap and the senate should delay consideration of gorsuch until an independent commission investigates russia's election interference and any ties etween trump and russia. and let me just say that are

judge gorsuch has put on a very good show in front of the senate, seeming to be very confident and thoughtful. but never answering the questions that were asked of him. should that this jurist not sit on the highest court in the land because of the bias that he has shown against rking people and regular citizens in this country. justices are supposed to be blind, but it seems that this jurist has a bias against the erican working class person,

the normal joe, the minority looking for an equal break. and to have him sit on the highest court in the land would be a grave, grave mistake. and with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my ime. >> i'm pleased to recognize the gentlelady from texas, ms. jackson lee. ms. jackson lee: let me thank the gentleman from new jersey for his very careful scrutiny of judge gorsuch and for participating with us tonight. and gives me great privilege to join with the distinguished

congresswoman from the district columbia, to be able to what is at late for judge a potential gorsuch to become the ninth member of the united states supreme court. s i do that, allow me to offer a personal note of sympathy to my hometown, to the constable's office of the shooting death of chief clinton greenwood and his family for his tragic death and to acknowledge his service that he has given in many, many ways as a law enforcement officer and attorney committed to the

implementation of the law. our sympathy goes to his family and to his colleagues. i also want to acknowledge the tragedy in russia and the loss of life which indicates how close all of us are around the world and that we should be committed to the fight against terrorism wherever it may be. i think that lead me to my appreciation, if i might, applaud the senators, democratic senators in this instance, the other body, to express my appreciation for taking a fight that many would be critical of. and that fight, i don't put in the context of politics or partisanship.

i have not heard one senator, at least i have not heard them who is opposing judge gorsuch and is not supporting or participating in the filibuster, mentioned one word about the or the elections process that occurred in 2016. i have heard truly deliberative analysis that i think is important to recount congresswoman norton and i'm delighted with your expertise and the leadership you give us as our chair of the congressional black caucus, a position you have served for years and resulted in some outstanding injuryists. and because of your leadership,

has been able to advocate for. during the tenure of president obama, as you worked closely on his nominees, distinguished jurists have been placed on the federal bench and federal court, to no one's complaint. president obama followed protocol and consulted with members of the other party in the united states senate. unfortunately, we start this process now or we're now ending this process of the nomination of judge gorsuch by the president of the united states, this president, who announced it a a campaign trick by issuing list of individuals that he had not vetted, but had been given y those who voted for.

this is the list and you have our support in the election. my fear is, that is not the distinguished jurists should be appointed to the supreme court. this was based -- bait for voters to be able to fall into the column of this particular individual who now hoileds the office. o no criticism should go to my colleagues who realize this is about life or death matters. this is about the millions of americans who will suffer at the hand of judge gorsuch. i'm more convinced now and i'm grateful for their debate because they have debated in a very detailed, passionate matter

and i hope they have been able to provide light to americans and trying to understand that a no vote and yes vote and ilibuster that is no any way political desire to not have the supreme court working on behalf of the american people adhering to the high calling and ultimate judgment of the supreme court which is to recognize federal law and to be able to respect the rights of all americans and not skew this court to the point that some americans will be left out in the hall of justice. why should my friend in the other body, who have taken this courageous stand yield to false criticism and pontificating and grandstanding and saying they

have never seen this before. this is outrageous, a qualified individual. i have no angst against the person. he has asended to the 10th circuit and has colleagues who respect him. e showed him self respectful and some called him charming and engaging. but again, i make mention of the fact this is about life and death. let me put it in the context a atement by the "national law journal," judge gorsuch" and pro defense, according to a careful review, this is quoting, gorsuch decision, more than ideology is a theme on class action,

arbitration and mass force, leaving out people toll find justice and yet, those some of those decisions favored plaintiffs, his reasoninging has led him to side with the defense leaving most others out in the cold. gorsuch has audge disdain for those who seek to redress their civil rights, another violation of law. a 2005 article published in "conservative national reque," these are his words. america caps are relying on judges and lawyers rather than those in the ballot box. s the primary means of

effecting their social agenda and gay marriage to assisted icide and vouchers, this overwheening addiction of social policy is bad for the country and bad for the judiciary. well, judge gorsuch, let me tell you a thing or two. i grew up in a segregated america. at my birth, african-americans were treated unequally in terms f education as well as accommodations, as well as the right to vote, we couldn't even march in some places in the deep south without being shot at, being hosed at and dogs making sure that our young kids were intimidated and even bitten. maybe he fails to remember the

four little girls in the church in birmingham, called the bombing in birmingham in 1965. maybe he fails to remember the tragedy of the edmund pet is bridge or jackson shot in the streets of selma or maybe he doesn't understand brown versus board of education, roe v. wade, "new york times" versus sullivan and shelby versus holer. these cases deal with issues such as the right to vote, the right to an equal education, the 4th amendment interpretation, the right to be protected from unreasonable search and seizure, the first amendment right to freedom of the press. maybe he doesn't understand that

these cases have brought to america the image and the recognition of justice. it doesn't seem that he has that interpretation. so i just want to read another interpretation of his record by the leadership conference on civil and human rights. judge gorsuch decades' long record on the federal bench as well as his writing, speeches, demonstrates he is a judge with an agenda. hat a frightening proposition. he is just an open book, again inly concerned. frequent dissents shows he is out of the mainstream and unwilling to accept the and when he being a

dictates. is something we learn in law school, but that is an important basis of decision. . judge gorsuch would tip the balance in a direction that would undermine many of our core rights and legal protections. he lacks the impartiality and independence the american people expect and deserve on the federal bench. let me make one or two of the points that i think is so very important. and i hope to put my entire statement into the record and we'll be engaging, and know that my colleague will have further comments. that we t to make sure point back to those who are criticizing a very courageous stance, because they're taking the stance, my friends in the other body, in the back drop of all these accolades and how genuine and charming he is,

i've said that before. but he's going against the back drop of protocol, no engagement with the democratic senators. no adherence to the president when he was president-elect, who pledged to the nation that he would be the president of all americans. because it rings hollow to tens of millions of americans. my colleague from new jersey mentioned the truck driver story. it was a 2-1 decision. he was a dissenting. no person with common sense and knowledge of the law would reject the understanding that this individual acted not against the instructions of his employer in leaving a truck that by the way the cargo area of the truck, nothing was violated, no product was taken. and this was bad brakes. in jeopardy of his life, if he had left the cargo portion of

the truck and tried to drive away on this frozen night, after waiting three hours in a cabin where he was freezing to death, he would have died. yet judge gorsuch did not think that was important enough to rule in favor of this african-american who had a 2-1 decision. he thought that the employer could fire him. and there was no factual basis for that, that he did something when it was a balmy day and he just went off recklessly, because he didn't want to be bothered. or he was tired. or or he was hungry -- or he was hungry. that was not the case. that is cruel. judge gorsuch. your conservative ideology and philosophy of original intent has harmed many. and he's not an unbiased judge.

at best he's a younger, more charming version of judge robert bjork, who was rejecteded 58-42 by the senate in 1987. so he has what history of ruling against people who have used the legal system to hold government officials accountable. the gentleman who was fired was fired i think seven years ago and has not been able to find a job yet. by the way, the truck heater didn't work. his words were, judge gorsuchdy sented and said the employee should have followed orders -- gorsuch dissented and said the employee should have followed orders, even at the risk of severe injury. he again dissented from a majority opinion found in favor of employees where a hospital was required to award back pay to 13 employees whose hours had been reduced in violation of the national labor relations act. the ranking member on the criminal justice committee, we are trying to find the right kind of balance between police

and community. dge gorsuch has ruled that there is no reason to give .olice any punishment such as the case when an individual used a stun gun and the victim died. judge gorsuch's judicial record on police accountability minimized the warrantless search and seizure protections. so i will continue my discussions of judge gorsuch. i will in a moment, after elding, -- after yielding to the gentlelady, come back again and finish my comments on issues dealing with, again, civil rights and the rights of women. i'm delighted to co-host and dealing this hour

with the nomination of judge gorsuch. i yield to the gentlelady. ms. norton: i thank my friend or her comments. mr. speaker, i chair -- i was a chair before i came to congress in another life of the equal employment opportunity commission. dealing with job discrimination in our country. i was interested in my own research, to find out that written more as discrimination cases than other cases. now, the rocky mountain state of the 10th circuit do not have large number of african-americans. but the way in which the interpreted has

anti-discrimination laws doesn't in fact differ from . ce, from sex the e.o.c. also has jurisdiction over disability discrimination. e court has always indicated that these laws should be read broadly in order to capture discrimination. whether we're talking about the anti-discrimination laws as they effect women or racial or ethnic minorities or religious inorities, the supreme court imply will not read these laws narrowly. but that is not how judge gorsuch has operated on the 10th circuit.

he has given cramped interpretations of the anti-discrimination laws. and yet it's interesting to note that when there is a claim of discrimination based on religion, he gives a very broad interpretation. e's perhaps best known for his opinion in the so-called hobby lobby case. thanks case in which he found corporation y held when it its rights, affordable dopt the health care act's mandate that

women and men be granted contraceptive protection. judge gorsuch found that that was a violation of the is rights of the closely held corporation, the first time there's been such a holding. it's very interesting to note that right after that, there was a case called little sisters of the poor. the little sisters of the poor, unlike the closely held corporation, is in fact a religious organization. and they too said they do not have contraception to be a part of any of the institutions that they govern.

now, it's interesting to note that in -- and remember, we have a religious organization there, not a closely held corporation. to court found that commodate both women and the religious scruples of the little sisters, the little sisters had to only acknowledge that they did not desire to enforce the contraceptive mandate, and then it would be taken away from them and would be done by a third party, by the government. that was allowed, as a way to accommodate the little sisters. judge gorsuch opposed that and wrote an opposing opinion. to see this difference, in the , y he treats discrimination

reading anti-discrimination statutes affecting minorities of every kind in a cramped fashion, when he finds religious discrimination by a statute he reads those statite uths very broadly -- statutes very broadly. are very al rulings disturbing of statutes that the supreme court has broadly interpreted. or else those statutes would have been worthless. ou simply cannot enforce anti-discrimination statutes by treating them as though they statutes that, for example, govern financial dealings. and yet this nominee has

brought that kind of interpretation to anti-discrimination statutes in he 10th circuit. in s shocked at his holding a case which illustrates what i am speaking of. there, a professor -- there a professor brought a case because her university had refused to follow the guidance of the equal employment pportunity commission. t is true that she was entitled to a six-month leave to accommodate her. this is a statute involving disability rights. he took that six-month leave

nd asked to have it extended until a day certain, not indefinitely, following a agnosis of cancer and bone marrow transplant. now, the e.o.c. guidance said that an additional -- said that additionally beyond six months was possible, as an alternative accommodation to an employee. unless there was an undue hardship. there was no undue hardship. , judge gorsuch found that the six months was more than enough to comply with the law in nearly every case. yes, in nearly every case. but the e.o.c. guidance said

that there obviously could be exceptions. i can think of no case that would call for more of an exception than a professor who said, i will come back on a date certain, but i have a cancer diagnosis and i just had or have had a bone marrow transplant. i hope that that kind of a holding would give some pause hears about it. the nominee has been quite consistent in how he has ruled in the 10th circuit. which gives every reason to believe that he's going to carry that consistency to the supreme court.

i was very interested to see how he ruled on a planned parenthood case where the governor of utah had seen these notorious false videos that purported to show the sale of fetal tissue. now, those videos -- every court that has considered those has found that they had nothing to do with planned parenthood and what it actually did. . this has been litigated in a number of circuits. it was litigated in the 10th circuit called planned parenthood association of utah versus herbert and the 10th circuit found that these videos were not, in fact, associated

, the anned parenthood alse videos that surfaced. interestingly, the court, on rehearinging, which judge -- ch sat, said characteristicized his dissenting opinion as miss character isization and the panel opinion had several terms. here again we see judge gorsuch going out of his way to rule in a fashion that he sees as indeed necessary tore sustain his broad views of religious claims.

i'm trying to give an overview of judge gorsuch's opinions in a .umber of different areas nd i'm mystified of how he would reach the conclusions he's reached when we are talking about discrimination laws. here's one that is very revealing. espinola public school, where a student was found not to be able to sue for violation of the americans with disabilities act because she had rlier settled a suit for

violations of another act. the so-called idea act. well, she has a right under both laws, she would have obviously raised different claims and his view was that she should not be in court. this closing of the courts is ry -- it must be taken seriously, because if you can't get into court in the first place, if you are a minority group or for the moment find yourself in the minority on a particular issue, then you are out of court before you are in court. you have lost before you cross the threshold. i can't imgrip what judge

gorsuch was saying when he didn't allow a student to had, in when she frustration, left her school because of violations of her rights -- disability rights. that frustration as far as he was concerned closed the courthouse door to her. why would he want to interpret discrimination laws in a fashion that you can't even get into court to make your case? -- a icularly cruel anotherarly cruel case, ase involved a holding where

there was an opinion, as i believe -- i'm sorry, he wrote the dissent, involved a worker electrocuted and died as a result. the corporation had trained its workers. this worker happened to come to work to be hired after the training had taken place. therefore, was not aware of all of the safeguards. the occupational safety and health review commission found that the electrocution of this rker could have been avoided if the corporation compass environmental, had provided the

necessary training. its ited compass and finding, compass. gorsuch dissented. he found that the company had . t violated the law he company hadn't provided the requisite training. the man was electroki cuted. he said administrative agencies njoy order and ferm they control even when congress meant something else. he didn't like the administrative ruling and so, he dissented and would have ruled against the family of the man who was electrocuted, that is not a man i want on the supreme

court. that is not a man who does not how to interpret discrimination statutes that have been interpreted broadly by the federal courts. that is not a man who should sit on the supreme court of the united states. my good friend, representative jackson lee, who is co-anchoring this hour, would like to say a few words. ms. jackson lee: i thank the entlelady for articulating aally griegeous, opinions and judicial approach and temper meant of judge gorsuch and i will conclude my remarks on the focus of women's rights and as with me cases dealing immigration, immigration, mr.

speaker, is a crucial issue that we are addressing now. i will cite an incident that happened in our district or my district, or my community just a few days ago, which means as we proceed, there's maybe a number of cases coming to the federal courts and the district court, because i think as my colleague has indicated, both of us have indicated that the courts are for petitioning. that is what the courts are for. and seems that judge gorsuch wants to slam the door and this is, how should i say it a meta phor, but annoyed that will people have to come and use the courts as he has indicated, minorities and women and others want to use the courts for their

social agenda. and judge gorsuch, have you walked in my shoes as a women and as a minority? have you walked in the shoes of the little children who made the plaintiffs of broken versus toe peeka. were you discriminated against with respect to jags? have you ever been a victim of stop and frisk. have you ever been incarcerated for something you did not do? have you ever been a woman who sexuality ted to harassment or discrimination? do you understand the purpose of title 7? do you understand the value of affirmative action both in policy and law. and just a few weeks ago, we got

and important decision on affirmative action out of this supreme court in a 4-4, in a court that is 4-4. i don't think that's the case. take just, again, want to this, as i cite these cases, i nt to again cite amanned ave standt. gorsuch's parsing of language sided with the defense. that is not the role of a supreme court justice and not to side with anyone. t is to have the view on the basis of the appeal within the

context of precedents and others how a decision should be rendered. so, these are judge judge gorsuch's decision. in strickland versus u.p.s. he dissented from giving a driver to prove sex discrimination arguing that she was treated less favorably than her male colleagues, even though in the documents submitted in he lower court, her co-workers testified and gave written testimony. they witnessed she was receiving u.p.s.mployed by and wang versus kansas state university, a professor employed

by kansas state university diagnosed with kansas and a uested a transfer due to flu outbreak that could compromise her health and judge orsuch talked about showing up as an essential job function. and that the rehabilitation act should not be used as a safety net for employees who cannot work. i think her request was an extension, not a forever. wo women among others, that he found no reason to be supportive of. he could find no legal precedent, no, nothing, that would give him the ability to make the decision that was within the law and humane, even hough he was in the dissent.

and then in planned parenthood association of utah versus hebert, the governor of that state again he dissented against the court's majority impacting women's health to decline a full review of the case. in which the governor stripped funding. ither party and he deficient yated from court practices and governor hebert's decision. other women, he continued to show hostility towards women's rights and institutions that discriminate against women. his record indicates that. let me finish with this comment on immigration. and if i might, mr. per, how much time remaining?

the speaker pro tempore: two minutes remaining. ms. jackson lee: let me finish quickly and yield to my colleague to the district of columbia. let me indicate that an migration case and he vetoed would block a title 7 national origin national discrimination case going to trial despite and must and documented abuse by the employer. so i close, there is so much to say about judge gorsuch and so much to say about the stance by colleagues who are not talking about the 2016 election and talking about the courthouse door being slammed in the face amongst the most vulnerable. i believe this judge should not ascend to the ubse supreme court. i yield back.

ms. norton: i thank my good friend. why we believe this is not the time for this justice to be on the supreme court. we recognize that it is not the house of representatives that decides this matter, but the congressional black caucus represents 17 million americans that will be deeply affected by who sits on this court. i appreciate we had this full hour to express our views. and i move that the house do now adjourn. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. accordingly the house is adjourned until 10:00