president. we look like a joke to the rest of the country. do you think they would tolerate people not supporting their. second a business person doesn't know how to run does does know how to run the government. he doesn't know how to have the etiquette because he does not aroundl of these people him supporting him like obama and everyone else did. everyone should gather around him and help support him. host: we will leave it there, because the house of representatives is coming in. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the chair lays before the house a communication from the speaker. the clerk: the speaker's rooms, washington, d.c. december 12, 2018. i hereby appoint the honorable kevin yoder 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 house of january 8, 2018, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour debate. the chair will alternate redskin nation 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 minority whip shall be limited to five minutes. the chair now recognizes thea. california, mr. royce, for five minutes. . royce: mr. speaker, i rise to recognize the outstanding service of amy porter, my chief of staff, for 17 years, including the last six years on the foreign affairs committee. amy is a skillful manager and leader who has been central to everything i have accomplished in congress. amy has been a tremendous asset

to my office, in no small part because she the heart for tackling some of the toughest issues and drive to see them through. she ensured that issues like combating human trafficking and protecting children in adversity were front and center to our agenda. when i became chair of the foreign affairs committee, she encouraged us to use this platform to call attention to the plight of disadvantaged groups around the world, particularly women and girls. his this included holding a series of hearings on ways the united states could support women's empowerment around the globe from promoting girls' education to women's inclusion in peace processes. but of course amy made sure we didn't stop there. she pressed us to develop solutions that would make a difference. so as a result the committee has passed many pieces of

legislation. the read act, the women peace and security act, the women's entrepreneurship and economic empowerment act that will give more women and girls a voice in decisions affecting their lives. amy traveled on a personal time to cambodia and to india to work in orphanages and shelters helping young girls subjected to human trafficking. she was relentless in helping me press governments on human rights from the discriminating treatment toward those some still call the untouchables, to the genocide of the rohingya in myanmar. to female victims of trafficking and abuse worldwide. from day one, amy has understood how to reach out and connect with my constituents. when she announced over a decade ago that i should hold an annual event for women in my district to network and learn

more about what i was doing in washington, others were quickly dismissive. they questioned whether women who weren't already involved in politics would be interested in attending lectures or various policy issues or foreign affairs. however, a thousand women in my district came to our seventh annual women's conference to hear former secretary of state condo lisa rice discuss lessons -- condoleezza rice discuss lessons from her career. that's the amazing thing about amy. for her it's never enough to point out a problem. she possesses an unshakable drive to make this world a better place. and the vision and leadership to realize even the most lofty ambitions. it's thanks to her dedication that we were able to bring hundreds of adopted children home from the congo to their legal parents in the united states after their exit visas

were suspended. children stuck in filthy and underfunded orphanages were dying. amy heard about it and traveled to them on their behalf. when she landed she ran into a protest against the government. she continued on, made her case, and was rebuffed. she vowed to return. she returned with a congressional delegation which i led. and thanks to her effort, hundreds of american families now have new members whose ives are better beyond comprehension. these families thank amy. my constituents thank amy. thank you, amy porter, for your 24 years of service to this country. i know when your daughter is old enough, that she will thank you for what you have done for the empowerment of women. for what you have done for her.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from maryland, mr. cummings, for five minutes. mr. cummings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i rise today to remind everyone that the enrollment period to sign up for 2019 health plans .gov and in h care many states like my home state of maryland ends in just three days, that's saturday, december 15. i often said that voting for the affordable care act was the most important vote of my career. when congress passed the affordable care act in 2010, we enshrined into law the promise that all americans have a right to accessible and affordable health insurance coverage in this great country. by strengthening the individual health insurance market,

protecting people with pre-existing conditions and xpanding medicaid, we have come closer to reality. we promised individuals would not have to worry about affording health insurance or paying outrageous rates because of pre-existing conditions. we safeguarded access to care for people that need it by preventing insurance providers from placing limits on their coverage. and because of the a.c.a., individuals and families across this country do not have to live with the daily fear of financial disaster they could face if they got sick while they were uninsured. in total, approximately 20 million americans gained health insurance coverage as a result of the a.c.a. during the november election,

the american people reminded us that they want their elected officials to protect their access to affordable health care. in my home state of maryland, the uninsured population is at an all-time low of 6.1%. as more people have gotten verage, the costs of uncompensated care in maryland hospitals has gone down by $400 million from 2013 to 2017. the open enrollment period that is quickly coming to a close in many states is the only time during which people can act to protect themselves and their families by purchasing coverage through health care.gov. or their state health insurance marketplace. quality health plans for 2019

are more affordable than many people may realize. eight in 10 people using healthcare.gov qualify for financial assistance, meaning that most people can find a health plan with a premium of less than $75 per month. according to data released by the centers for medicare and medicaid services through december 1, enrollment is down 11% on the federal exchange compared to last year. i'm proud that maryland has embraced the a.c.a. to help people in our state secure coverage they need to keep their families healthy and safe. and i'm proud of all the hard work of maryland health connection continues to do to make it easier for people to get enrolled. the trump administration has focused their efforts on sabotaging the a.c.a. by making

it harder for americans to sign up for coverage through actions such as shortening the enrollment period. slashing funding for marketing and outreach programs. and lowering spending by more than 80% on local in-person assistance through the navigator program. because of these efforts, there's fear about the future of a.c.a. i want to make one thing very clear. the a.c.a. is not going anywhere. despite the efforts of the trump administration to sabotage this law. please know that i intend to do everything in my power to keep the a.c.a. intact and to make sure that people have health coverage that is meaningful, affordable, and accessible. so i urge everyone in the next three days to discuss their options and find out how to get the best plan for your

individual -- for you as an individual and for you, your family. everyone deserves access to health care that will improve their lives. health care is a right not a privilege. i pledge to do my part to protect that right. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. mcclintock. mr. speaker, every nation has a natural right and fundamental responsibility to determine who is admitted within its borders. this is what defines a country and ultimately determines whether it's culture, customs, and institutions will endure. the unique qualities that develop within each country's borders naturally makes some countries more desirable places to live than others. the differences drive immigration patterns. the more successful a nation,

the greater is the demand to immigrate to it, and ours is the most successful in human history. most of the world 7.5 billion people live in violent and impoverished conditions and it's no wonder they find the united states an attractive alternative. yet uncontrolled and indiscriminate immigration from those countries to ours risks importing the same undesirable conditions that encouraged their immigration in the first place. history offers us many examples of great civilizations that have succumb canned to this paradox. and the current crisis on our southern border poses a fundamental test of whether ours may join them. america has traditionally welcomed the truly persecuted who escaped to our shores. what is unfolding today makes a mockery of our asylum laws. this was not peaceful caravan of asylum seekers as many have attempted to portray. a caravan is a group of people traveling legally and

peacefully through a foreign land. an invasion is a group of people attempting to violate a nation's border by force, whether by military or mob action. the vast majority camped in our southern border are military-aged males. authorities have already identified roughly 00 as known criminals and mexican law enforcement has reportedly arrested roughly 100 for crimes committed in their country. the fact that this force has attacked both mexican and u.s. law enforcement with several injuries reported contradicts any claims that as a group they come with peaceful intent. nor are they asylum seekers in any conventional sense. no doubt many are nonviolent and simply caught up in the group dynamic of a mob. but poverty and violence in a country does not entitle every person in it to enter ours. asylum is reserved for those who have been specifically targeted for harm by their own government based on their you

race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or social group and who have entered directly into our country from their own. in these instances asylum is reached by crossing a border and accomplishing separation from that government. a central american arriving in mexico has already achieved this and therefore has no call on asylum in any other country. the appropriate request to make is to the government of mexico, a request some have already made and mexico has granted. nothing succeeds like success. if this group is allowed to muscle its way into the united states, we can expect many and still larger groups to follow. if anything, this crisis should emphasize the importance of completing the border wall that congress first authorized in 1996 and president trump is desperately trying to construct. a forceful incursion of our border can can only be repelled by applying equal or greater force. that's a recipe for violence and blood shed. the physical separation

provided by a wall can prevent that. it not only protects the officers who place their lives on the line in defense of our law, it also protects the lawbreakers themselves from the violent conflict that their behavior otherwise would make inevitable. orderly immigration regulated by law and protected by secure borders is a prerequisite to a civilized and prosperous nation. . if our immigration laws are not enforced, then our borders become meaningless and united states will be a vast territory between canada and mexico, susceptible to every economic, social disorder brought to it. we are fortunate in this crisis to have a president obedient to his constitutional command to take care the laws be faithfully executed. in the remaining days of this session, congress has a responsibility to give him the tools to do so.

remains the great remaining task of the 115th congress. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from texas, ms. jackson lee, for five minutes. ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, oday i remind my colleagues of a president who reminded us of shining city on the hill. i remind our colleagues on a president who led us to a . nder and gentler society d so i'm stunned to hear a resident speak of claiming and asking for the government to be

shut down. this is a season that many in our nation draw together with families and worship and celebrate a very honored time. people of the christian faith are engaged in the recognition and acknowledgment of the birth of baby jesus. it is a holy time. it's a time when families need resources. government workers need to ensure their families are provided for but also we must ensure that our government is provided for. i thank the speaker-elect and e democratic leader in the senate, the other body, for recognizing that we do not want a shutdown. and to those who speak of the

necessity of a wall, let me speak as a representative of a border state who's been to the border so many times i cannot count. i count those on the border among many of the states as friends having been to every border state, and i will say to the american people, there is no foreign war or tact at the southern border. we have a northern border as well, and i've been there. there is no wall there. the only thing that is at the southern border are mothers and children living in desperate and devastating and disgusting conditions. unaccompanied children fleeing from the decapitation of their brother or their father. fleeing politically because they disagree with the viciousness of cartels and refuse to accept their membership. that is where america's best angels come when we rise to the higher occasion of giving

refuge and opportunity to those who are fleeing political persecution. here's how we do it. we process asylum seekers. we do not undermine their process. they are fleeing for their life. juxtpose a t -- wall is untenable. it is crucial that we design a comprehensive immigration reform policy. it is crucial that the acknowledgment that barriers of certain kinds, technology and personnel can be a successful formula to ensure the safety and security of the american people. but at the same time i insist that we regulate or bring into regular order dreamers who are firefighters, soldiers,

lawyers, doctors, and family members throughout the nation. where is the call for that? it is important that we remain the nation that people flee to because of the wonderful values of democracy. the underpinnings of the dignity of all people. it is sad in this time that we have not come to that conclusion in a bipartisan manner. so i extend the olive branch -- what are we doing for the dreamers? why's it not reasonable to process or unding scheme or formula that ensures that kind of bipartisanship and security? let me also encourage my colleagues to join me in working in a bipartisan way to pass the violence against women act. we are reaching out. it is a crucial initiative.

right now there are family members dying at the hands of domestic violence. there are law enforcement officers, including my own chief, who ask me about the funding of the stop grants, that are utilized for organizations that will protect these families, subjected to the violence. native americans. health care for vawa victims. ensuring that the person who has already been convicted of abuse does not have random access to a weapon, which is the weapon of choice that kills a family member. finally, let me say, i hope that we can bring, mr. speaker, conclusion to a sentencing and prison reform bill that i worked very hard on. why not give a gift to the american people, not a shutdown, but a bipartisan step one by one to make america the greatest country that it already is? i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlelady's time has expired. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from arizona, ms. mcsally, for five minutes. mr. csally: thank you, speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to give my final speech in the united states house of representatives to express my gratitude for the opportunity to serve the people of arizona's second congressional district. it's been a tremendous honor to deploy here, to the people's house, over the past four years as an advocate and champion of tucson, sierra vista, douglas, all the other amazing communities in southeastern arizona. i am grateful to my dedicated staff in arizona who were omnipresent in our community and fought for constituents who needed help with federal bureaucracies. they were able to solve nearly 6,000 cases, returning nearly $2.5 million to seniors, veterans, and others, money that was rightfully theirs in the first place. this is one of the most meaningful and impactful parts of our job. my d.c. staff tirelessly helped push our legislative initiatives forward. ecause of them, we saved the

warthog. kept the cherry bell postal processing open. opened arlington again to our world war ii female pilot heroes. improve mental health access. stopped the harmful tax increases on seniors and the middle class. break the gridlock on border security, immigration, so much more. our heart-felt thanks to all my staff. but especially those with me all four years. my chief, justin. my district director, c.j. l.d. mcmullen. and my deputy district director. as i reflect on my two terms in house, i was honored to have a front row seat to history here in our nation's capital. i'll never forget sitting next to an american hero o, sam johnson, on the day i was sworn in. or to be on this floor as two presidents delivered their state of the union speeches. or world leaders like israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu. or the pope, pope francis,

addressed a joint session of congress. i was blessed to pay final respects to american icons like senator john mccain, reverend billy graham and president george h.w. bush under the sacred grounds -- on the sacred grounds of the capitol rotunda. those that will be here for a while and those that will be sworn here soon, i say never forget why you are here. membership in this body is a precious opportunity. don't take it lightly and don't squander it. it's not about us. as soon as we leave here, this institution will move on and candidly few will remember us. use the timewisely. we've been entrusted to solve our nation's problems and chart its course for a better future. do the right thing. do it for the right reasons. and get things done. this is why we're here. the people of our great country, the people each of us represent, often have very different views on how to solve our challenges, the proper role of our government and

reconciling these differences requires rigorous and robust rigorous and robust debate, both in this chamber and outside it. disagreements are inevitable but we can and should set the example to disagree without being disagreeable. our challenge is then to find that sometimes very tiny sliver of common ground. where we can agree and govern. i am particularly proud of the fact that every one of the five bills i introduced were signed into law had bipartisan support. and lastly, and most importantly, to my constituents. in my time as your representative, i deeply valued meeting with you all over our incredible district at schools, senior centers, small businesses, nonprofits, military bases, medical facilities, farms, ranches, other places to hear about the challenges that you have along with the opportunities to make an impact with your lives that only come in america. you inspired me and fueled my purpose here. i represent a diverse and amazing district.

these are americans with real issues, real problems and real dreams who are not concerned with what party we belong to or what ads we run every two years. they care that we care. they -- that we are here to serve, not ourselves, but our country and them. our democracy requires that our time here be spent in humility, dedication, and pride. pride to fight for those who can't. pride to work for those who are unable. pride to push back against the bureaucracy that frequently stands in the way and hampers their ability to conduct their business and live their lives. i stand here today proud of the work we did in these four short years, but more proud of the people who sent me here, the citizens of arizona's second congressional district. thank you for the opportunity and the honor to serve you. to my successor ann kirkpatrick, i wish you all the best as you are sworn in to serve our amazing and inspiring

community. god bless you and god bless you all and god bless america and for the final time, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen, for five minutes. ms. ros-lehtinen: mr. speaker, on december 1, we commemorated world aids day, celebrating our many accomplishments in the fight against hiv-aids around the globe. and one important program which we are also celebrating 15 years of success this year is pepfar. mr. speaker, before congress enacted pepfar, the h.i.v. rates were skyrocketing, especially across the developing world. new cases of h.i.v. infection were outstripping aids deaths by more than 60%. serving in the house committee on foreign affairs, we followed this issue closely, hearing from advocates and administration officials on

what to do. there was an almost unchallenged notion that we were about to lose a whole generation in sub-saharan africa. it seems to be an utterly hopeless situation but in 2003, our tremendous leader, president george w. bush, called on us to take action in responding to this global crisis and i'm proud we swiftly answered the president's call. today, there are over 14 million people receiving h.i.v. treatment globally and over two million babies born h.i.v.-free to h.i.v.-positive women. simply astounding. pepfar morphed from an emergency plan to a sustainable program, and i'm so glad that usaid, a stellar u.s. agency, is at the helm of this lifesaving program. since his time to ambassador to tanzania, usaid administrator

mark green has addressed the challenges posed by hiv-aids epidemic. and what he has done has been to reinvigorate this program. we are so proud as americans of what pepfar has achieved. it's something that we need in order to continue to be a global leader against the h.i.v. pandemic, and i'll never forget standing in the oval office as president george w. bush signed this essential program, pepfar, into law and i hope that my colleagues to continue to protect and strengthen this vital program and i'm also proud of the many organizations like the one campaign that day in and day out are working to get us closer to our goal of an aids-free generation. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize the simon family of key biscayne for their exemplary work on the yet to be named park located in my congressional district at 401 hampton lane in key biscayne. the first neighborhood park for their community.

i'd like to thank ariel simon, the horticulture advisor, brett simon, the architectural designer and their father, steven simon, the project coordinator, who worked tirelessly as volunteers to see this vision into fruition. and it's not just any park. it's just not any effort. in an editorial the community newspaper, the islander news, wrote, the park, put simply, is beautiful but the story behind it is even more so. from the beginning, steven, who has a history of effective community leadership, saw an opportunity to work with local elected officials to tackle a problem which they inherited. steven brought in his father, ariel, who worked at miami's renowned botanical garden, and became a certified horticulturist and his son, brett, who has a masters degree in architecture and craftsmanship education in furniture design, and other volunteers and seasoned professionals, together they all worked as a team drafting

proposals and securing the necessary funds to see this project through. . here's how the family included south florida limestone in their proposal. they said we incorporated that natural material in our park design so that metaphorically we bring the bedrock upon which this island community of shifting sands was founded to the surface. functionally and aesthetically, limestone is an integral part of our creation of a gathering place in our first neighborhood park. the story which is well documented in key biscayne's islander news over the past three years truly shows what is possible when people come together with the desire and a drive to do something positive for the betterment of their community. i invite all of my congressional colleagues to come to key biscayne and visit that island paradise and especially to see this park for yourself. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the

chair now recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. faso, for five minutes. mr. faso: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to give my thanks to the people of the 19th congressional district for giving me the honor of serving them in the house over these past two years. i ran for congress focused on how i could make a difference for people of my district. it is no secret that upstate new york has been in a long protracted period of economic decline with many families and businesses choosing to leave due to high taxes and few employment opportunities. as such, my focus upon taking office was how we can can make upstate more economically competitive while at the same time making sure that our citizens, businesses, and local governments have an active voice representing their interests before the federal government. i listened to the people across the district. firefighters and emergency responders, law enforcement, educators, business owners, and average working families who told me of the issues that we face, the opioid crisis, the

highest property taxes in the nation, the exodus of people and jobs from upstate new york. a primary focus of mine was the opioid crisis. this issue has devastatinged and detroit countless -- devastated and detroit countless lives. i became the primary sponsor of legislation in the house and working with my colleague from michigan we successfully enacted major opioid legislation which included the stop act. this legislation will crack down on the flow of illegal drugs such as fentanyl coming to the u.s. from places like china through the u.s. postal service. the stop act is now law and i'm proud to have had a role in its passage. agriculture is another major concern in the 19th district. serving on the house agriculture committee, we have lowered the cost and increased the flexibility of dairy risk management programs, fought for better documentation to protect the sanctity of organic agriculture, and made it easier

for veterans to transition into agriculture and supported increased broadband and cell service which is critically important in our rural areas. i have also led on two initiatives which are critical to the economic health of upstate new york. my legislation offered with other members of the new york delegation would finally have ended our state's policy of imposing a share of medicaid costs from albany on to local property taxpayers. this mandate is so significant that just the county government taxpayers in new york state pay more in state mandated medicaid costs than local taxpayers in the 49 other states combined. people are fleeing upstate new york because of high property taxes and new york's medicaid mandate is one of the reasons for that exodus. the second initiative which i advanced was to preempt the absolute liability standard for gravity related construct site accidents on federally funded projects.

again, new york stands alone among the 50 states in its absolute liability standard. this fact, the fact that this standard doesn't protect workers and adds approximately 7% to the cost of every building project in our state, with multibillion dollar projects like gateway needing federal support, it is critical that we use the preemption power to finally end this waste of taxpayer dollars and use those savings to rebuild and repair more infrastructure. finally, mr. speaker, i must comment on the state of our political discourse in the united states. we all need to renew our efforts to conduct our debates on public issues in a civil and respectful fashion. there is no doubt that the fragmented media and general decline of standards has coursened our public debate. there is meant of blame to go around. i encourage all those who hold elective office to recognize we have a sacred trust from the american people. we should uphold this responsibility in an honorable and dignified fashion and renew

our efforts to improve the quality of public debate in the united states. in doing so, we will renew our commitment to make a more perfect union. moreover, we will give honor to those who sacrifice to win and maintain these freedoms which we cherish. the constitution is forever our guide and we should always remain true to it. we must also continue to promote individual liberty, the rule of law, and the dignity of all of our citizens. these are the characteristics of america that make ours a truly great nation. may god continue to bless the united states of america. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. kinzinger, for five minutes. mr. kinzinger: thank you, mr. speaker. we have a lot of really important issues we talk about every day out here. i want to talk about something

that's happening a few thousand miles away but affects us all. i want to talk about what's going on in syria. mr. speaker, i remember back in 2011 being in israel and standing in the golan heights and looking over tortsdz syria and our guide at the time made the comment that there is a little disturbance over there. there was some concern about where that was going to lead. we all know what's happened since. a lot of attention focused on yemen right now, but in syria there is 500,000 syrian civilians that have been killed by a brutal dictator, al assad, 50,000 of which are children. some of those children in spectacular displays were murdered by the use of chemical weapons. i give great considered as read to the our president and this administration for responding as america that believes in morals and strength should by bombing and destroying some of the facilities that did that and holding to our red line.

the war hasn't stopped and the egregious war continues and i actually believe that the nature of that war is creating another generation of terrorists, people that feel that they don't have hope. people that feel they don't have tufpblete when hope and opportunity don't exist, people turn to extremes. and this is one case. i want to talk specifically about a really sad situation, a lady from chicago, an american citizen, who was murdered by the assad regime. she was chicago born. after a few years ago, basically made the decision that she had a passion for the people of syria and decided to go and be an aide worker. two years ago she disappeared. we know that she was put into assad's prison camps and tortured for 10 months. an american, by the way.

before being transferred to a military court. unfortunately, a few weeks ago our worst fears were confirmed. miss lay la was tortured to death and executed on december 28, 2016. the first american we know that was tortured and killed by al assad. we know there are other americans in captivity. we know this is something that needs to be addressed. mr. speaker, there is some in our government on this chamber and other chamber that express sympathy to al assad and believe the antiquated theory that oppression of civilians is the only way to prevent terrorism, and i would argue that in the age of information and age of knowledge, oppression only leads to more terrorists. oppression leads to hopelessness. to a lack of opportunity. and to turning the only option they know at that time may be

isis or al qaeda because they don't see any other opportunity or hope. mr. speaker, these people that express sympathy in our government, while i believe that's something they have to answer with their creator ultimately someday, i'm curious now what the response of everybody is when we find out that an american woman was tortured and killed in the prison camps of assad. we have a bill called the caesar civilian protection act. caesar was a brave hero from syria that took tens of thousands of pictures of victims of assad, brought them, smuggled them to the united states, in front of my committee and foreign affairs, showed some of these pictures. and there was an act that would sanction many members of the regime that was passed unanimously out of foreign affairs, passed out of the house. largely supported in the senate as being held up by a junior senator from kentucky. i call on the other side of this blessed capitol to pass

the syrian caesar protection act. i call on the administration as they have said, they said they support this, to sign this, put this on the resolute desk. we talk a lot about the importance of women and equality and i couldn't agree more. but in that debate i think it's important to remember that in syria an american civilian woman was tortured to death. we look in places like afghanistan and know the oppression of women that occurred there. and we know that america stands for something greater and it's not just through the use of military but through what we believe and stand for and the light that we shine. mr. speaker, this is a terrible situation miss layla's death. but let us learn from it and go forward and let the people of syria be free. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the

gentleman from texas, mr. green, for five minutes. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, once again i rise and still i rise. a proud american, always proud to have the preemnept privilege of standing in the well -- pre-eminent privilege of standing in the well of the congress of the united states of america. r. speaker, i rise today reflecting upon the words, the lyrics, if you will, of a song hat many of us have heard. the lyricss i paraphrase them re, one day at time. one day at a time. weet jesus, one day at a time.

just help me to make, just help .e to take, one day at a time many of us who are sons of the gregated south survived to a certain extent, understanding he lyrics of one day at a time . knowing that if you just take one day at a time, it can become a lifetime. sons of the segregated south learned early that they had to compromise. i saw something on television yesterday that caused me to flect on all these things, mr. speaker. was saw a president who born into plenty, not poverty,

a president who s born with a t hand. a president who was born into a of unlike that of the sons the segregated south who are african-american. who understand how to negotiate and what negotiation is about, of necessity they do. not all. but generally speaking they do. i saw a president yesterday, mr. speaker, who proclaims himself to be a great negotiator. mr. speaker, yesterday it was evealed to many of us that what he sees as negotiation is dictation. a president who sees compromise as capitulation for the other

side. who has always walked into his opportunities, if you will, knowing that the other side would have to give in or he would muscle his way over them. . two members of the house and senate, two members stood their ground. speaker pelosi -- and i say speaker pelosi because once you are a speaker you are always a speaker. the minority leader schumer, they did not allow themselves to be dictated to. they understand that compromise is the methodology by which we can realize significant change. so i'm proud of the two of them and i'm proud to say to you

that as a son of the segregated south, i saw hope when i saw them take a stand for the american people, take a stand for justice, take a stand for the great ideals that we all stand upon. one day at a time, mr. president, one day at a time. and we will have dealt with all of the great issues of our time, but i'm proud to know that you will find, mr. president, that negotiation is more than your being a dictator , that you're going to have to compromise if you want to realize some of the great things that we have to accomplish. mr. speaker, i thank you for the time, and i thank the

creator of all of creation for giving me this one more day and i pray that i will do better today than i did yesterday because i still see life as one day at a time. i yield back the balance of this time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president. the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. rothfus, for five minutes. mr. rothfus: mr. speaker, i rise today to honor air force staff sergeant dillon james elgin who gave his life for our country on november 27, 2018, while serving in afghanistan. dillon was born in 1993 and raised in western pennsylvania, graduating from hopewell high school in 2012. military service was already calling him at a young age as

he read of special operations when he was 14 years old. he enlisted upon graduating from high school. the commanding officer of dillon's 26 special tactic squadron said dillon had -on-unusual drive to the team. he was always level headed no matter the situation. dillon leaves behind a grieving fiancee and family, and we as a nation, more than 300 million strong, must now stand behind them and all who have fallen for our country. may dillon rest in the peace of god and may his fiancee and amily know his tender mercies. mr. speaker, i rise today to jason rmy sergeant

mitchell mccrery, a western pennsylvania native, who gave the ultimate sacrifice while serving the line of duty. sergeant mccrery grew up in export, pennsylvania. he and his wife graduated from kiskee high school. he dreamed of serving his country. in january, 2014, he achieved his dream and enlisted in the army. jason went on to serve in iraq and afghanistan, earning two purple hearts and three army commendation medals, including one for valor and one for combat. tragically this courageous soldier was taken from us too soon. on november 27, 2018, jason was injured from an i.e.d. explosion and died five days later. leaving behind two little sons, a heart broken wife, and a grieving community of family and friends. jason is fondly remembered as a loving father, devoted husband, and hardworking soldier. may the good lord welcome home

this son of western pennsylvania with open arms, and may he bless jason's family with peace and consolation. i thank the speaker and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair now recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. mr. ompson: thank you, speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize my colleague and friend, chairman gregg harper, for his service to mississippi's third congressional district in the house of representatives. gregg and i were elected to congress in the same year, 2008, and we were friends from the start. and while he will retire at the end of this year, his contributions will be long remembered. at the beginning of the 115th congress, gregg was selected as speaker of the house to serve as chair of the house administration committee. he has -- he's had vast oversight and administrative responsibilities in the house and other institutions. perhaps most notably, gregg

worked to completely overhaul house policies and implement mandatory sexual harassment training for everyone from members to interns. he worked to change the culture and said, i quote, it has to be understood that taxpayers are not going to be responsible for someone's bad behavior. end of quote. and that's gregg harper, a man of high character, always working to dot right thing. gregg has also dedicated much of his congressional life advocating for those with intellectual disabilities. eight years ago he founded the internship program with individuals with intellectual disabilities. this program partners with the george mason university's life program to connect students with disabilities to congressional offices for a semester-long internship. students get to help office staff with administrative tasks, special projects and they truly become part of the team. when gregg started the program,

just five congressional offices participated. today, there are nearly 200 house and senate offices that host student interns. gregg, whose son, livingston, is special needs, designed this program to not only give students exposure to capitol hill offices but also give members and staffers the experience of working with individuals who are living with various types of disabilities. my office continues to participate in this program and we've hosted many students from george mason university. it's been a wonderful experience for me and my staff and i encourage all of my colleagues to join the program next congress. mr. speaker, it will be bittersweet for me to say goodbye to my friend, gregg harper, but he's left his mark on this institution and his contributions will be remembered for generations to come. gregg will return to mississippi to spend more time with his wife, sidney, their children, and his first grand baby, a little boy named lee. chairman harper is being

promoted to grandpa harper, and i know this will be his greatest role yet. i wish him the best in his next chapter of life. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from new york, mr. zeldin, for five minutes. mr. ldin: thank you, speaker. i rise today on behalf of our 9/11 first responders and their families, urging all members of congress to support passage of the never forget the heroes act, h.r. 7062, which would permanently fund the 9/11 victims compensation fund, extend its authorization to 2090. regardless of party affiliation, regardless of which district or state you come from, it is imperative that right out of the gate of the next congress, starting next month, that this legislation is immediately passed and sent to the president to become law. first responders, who worked on

the pile day and night, aiding in the search, rescue, and cleanup efforts were breathing in toxic debris and ash that are now known to have caused over 50 different types of cancer. james was one of those fearless leaders and was the first nypd officer whose death in 2006 was connected to toxic exposure at the world trade center site. the 9/11 health and compensation act was later signed into law in 2011 to help our 9/11 first responders. five years later the zadroga act was permanently re-authorized and included $4.6 billion for the 9/11 victims compensation fund over five years which was established to provide compensation for the victims of 9/11 and their families. however, we're hearing that this funding, quote, may be insufficient to compensate all claims. representing a district just over 50 miles from ground zero, fighting for the americans

affected on september 11 isn't just my job, it's personal. whether it's losing a loved one or knowing someone who volunteered on the pile, each and every one of my constituents, including myself, has been affected. before congress passed the permanent re-authorization of the zadroga act, i vividly recall so many first responders who had fallen ill were forced to come to our nation's capital and beg for the benefits they rightfully earned. these 9/11 first responders live not only in new york but 433 of the 435 congressional districts across this country. this isn't just a new york issue. this isn't a democratic or republican part platform or political football. this is a responsibility we all shoulder as americans, first and foremost, it's the spirit of our nation and it is who we are as a people. these were the very men and women who, in the face of evil, were willing to put it all on the line to help save their fellow americans, who ran into the towers while everyone else

was running out. it is unconscionable that time and again they have been forced to come crawling to washington, d.c. to plead their case as to why they're worthy of our support. it was heartbreaking and sickening and i hope we have learned our lesson. we must pass this legislation at the beginning of the 116th congress so these first responders don't have to go through all of this all again, so they can focus on their health and not be forced to travel to washington, d.c., on their own dime dozens of times for the benefits they have more than earned. this past september 11, 17 years since the attacks, we came together as we always do to remember those who were taken from us on that day. but this year marked an especially harrowing occasion. by the end of this year, it's anticipated that more people will have died from 9/11-related illnesses than were killed on 9/11. and over 175 of those deaths occurred just this year. jimmy martinez was one of those 175.

diagnosed with bone marrow cancer, he went into remission in 2016, a year after the zadroga act's permanent re-authorization. he responded to the 1993 attack on the world trade center, again on 9/11, and came to the aid of so many in the aftermath of superstorm sandy. this august, he died a 26-year veteran of the fdny. just as so many fought for the zadroga act that were not here to fight for its re-authorization in 2015, jimmy is just one of the so many that is unable to continue this fight today. that's why it's up to us to fight for others like jimmy, for those who risk so much for us but they need our help. congress must take action to ensure every family receives the compensation they are entitled to as soon as possible. they have earned nothing less. on that horrific day in the face of the worst of humanity, these men and women were the best of it. in honor of them and the families who carry on their memory, congress must do its job and permanently fund the 9/11 victims compensation fund. in the aftermath of 9/11, we

vowed we'll never forget and i'm going to make sure of it. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, mr. comer, for five minutes. mr. omer: thank you, speaker. i rise today to recognize my good friend, mayor keith riddle, of burksville, kentucky, on his retirement from public service after 22 years. his years as a city councilmember, in addition to his years spent as mayor, have had a profound impact on his fellow citizens. by dedicating his time to taking on countless projects to improve the city and the well-being of community members, mayor riddle has made a great stride towards the citizens of burksville. most notably, during mayor riddle's tenure, he was instrumental in the construction of a new water treatment plant which produces two million gallons of clean water to the city and

surrounding area. another massive water line improvement project was completed under the watchful eye of mayor riddle. this project replaced nearly 100-year-old lines and addressed waste water overflow to provide improved protection of property, rivers, and streams in the community. mayor riddle has truly dicated his time and talents helping burksville grow and develop. he's help set the stage for continued success in burksville. on behalf of the first district of kentucky, i thank mayor keith riddle for his decades of public service and wish him continued success in his retirement. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize my friend, darren cleary, of thomp kinsville, kentucky, for all the great philanthropy that he's given to my home county of monroe.

darren is the epitome of a successful business person who truly gives back to his community. darren sponsors many activities and events throughout the year in thompkinsville, including our annual july fourth fireworks event. he's donated countless dollars for the school system including a new practice field for the varsity football team. along with his wife, dawn, he's the reason monroe county now has a swim team. his main companies are two of the biggest private employers in monroe county. tomorrowp conditionsville, kentucky, is fortunate to have darren as its citizen. mr. speaker, i rise today to congratulate ton row county -- monroe county magistrate karen gordon from my hometown in the first district of kentucky on

her retirement from public service. since taking office in a 2011 special election to fill the unexpired term of her late husband, karen has steadfastly erved her fellow monroe county and continue usely sought opportunities to improve the lives of those around her. her service as monroe county's fourth district magistrate and crucial member of the heart of tomorrowp kins -- tomorrowp conditions -- tompkinsville board -- join with her daughters as well as her extended family, friends, and all those who have been fitted from her efforts to recognize her distinguished record of public service and dedication to serving others. mr. speaker, i would like to recognize my friend, alonzo ford, from my hometown in monroe county, kentucky,

specifically gimelia, kentucky. for nearly three decades his fellow citizens have re-elected him to serve as the first district magistrate in monroe county. he is widely respected as a public servant and leadership on several boards, including the farmers market board and wellness certainty board are a testament to his outstanding record of diligent public service in all facets of life. i am deeply thankful for his friendship and admire his tireless lifelong devotion to working for the benefit of others. join with his family and friends as well as those he has impacted during his career to express our dedication and gratitude for his contributions to our hometown. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky yields back the balance of his time of the the chair now recognizes the gentleman from south carolina, mr. norman, for five minutes. mr. norman: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to honor the life

of gale smith cobb who is a woman who touched the lives and hearts of so many in south carolina for 84 years. gale's life was dedicated to ensuring union county was a great place to live, work, worship, and go to school. she started serving her community when she was secretary of the union county recreational commission and then became the program director of the commission where she started multiple programs and events for residents. from there she became the director of the union county recreation department, overseeing the hiring of employees, maintenance and programming. more importantly, she worked for the county council in maintaining effective budgets and funding for the recreational department. on top of her work within the local government, gail also served on the board of directors for the salvation army for over five years and sat on the union county fair board for 10 years. as an active member of the community and important leader

in the union county high school athletic booster club for over 30 years, she made her community a better place for everyone. gail volunteered and gave most of her time and effort to support all of the athletic teams and cheerleaders within the union county athletic program. and she spent tireless hours distributing tickets and collecting money to ensure the program's success. recent playoff game between chester and union, she was recognized for her efforts. the game was dedicated on her behalf. in life she was a shining example of a tireless servant. she was a woman of faith and service. she will be greatly missed by the opportunity. in resume she find peace. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: -- in resume she find peace. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from south carolina yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, mr. massie, for five minutes. mr. massie: thank you. mr. speaker, last night the

rules committee came out with a procedural resolution for the farm bill that violates both the constitution and the war powers act of 1973. just when you thought congress couldn't get any swampier, we continue to exceed even the lowest expectations. section 2 of house resolution 1176, the rule for the farm bill, says that the provisions of section 7 of the war powers resolution shall not apply during the remainder of the 115th congress to any concurrent resolution introduced pursuant to the war powers resolution. what this means is that our leadership has decided that the house just doesn't need to vote on whether u.s. soldiers, personnel weapons, and taxpayer dollars should go towards assisting saudi arabia with its brutal war on civilians in yemen, a war that has caused the world's worst famine in over 100 years. this isn't the first time that our leadership using the rules committee has swept under the rug the war powers act. they did it last month.

and what they did they hid the vote inside of another resolution, a procedural resolution, for a bill called manage our wolves act. so many members of congress swept under the rug the war powers act without even knowing it because it was in a procedural resolution. think about what they are doing this time. instead of specifying a certain resolution that they are going to suspend the war powers act for, they are saying any resolution for all of congress. in my opinion, this violates both the u.s. constitution and statutory law. but apparently this doesn't matter to our leadership and the majority of the rules committee. just as a reminder article 1, section 8 of the united states constitution says congress, congress alone, not the executive branch, possesses the power to declare war. although the constitution's language unequivocally gives this power solely to congress, presidents nevertheless continue to launch military action abroad prior to

receiving congressional approval. this is why congress passed the war powers act of 1973. section 5-c of the act requires the president to remove united states forces at any time if congress so directs by concurrent resolution. and section 7 establishes priority procedures for consideration of such removal resolution. it requires the committee on foreign affairs to report out that resolution within 15 days. you can't let this thing die in committee. it's got to come back to the floor within 15 days. according to the law. since 1973. and then it directs the house must vote on the resolution within three calendar days t can't die on the floor. there has to be a vote within three days. but instead of following the law, instead of following the constitution, the rules committee last night snuck language into the rule for the farm bill. and this should make farmers

upset depending on the farm bill. they snuck into the rule for the farm bill a resolution that deprives the entire house of representatives of its constitutional right to decide when and where our soldiers should be sent in harm's way. let me sum this up. even if you think we should be involved in yemen, even if you think soldiers should go there, even if you think we should give the bombs to saudi arabia to drop on civilians, you shouldn't want to sneak that into an unrelated bill. you shouldn't want to hide that in a farm bill. what good could you be up to by hiding that in another bill? let's say you are ok in hiding it in another bill because you don't want your constituents to find out where you stand on this issue or had to vote for the farm bill, sorry. even if you're ok with hiding it in another bill, this is the wrong way to do it. last time when they snuck it, swept it under the rug, last month, they specified that the

resolution wouldn't have the powers of the war powers act. wouldn't have the privileges of the war powers act. this time not only are they sweeping it under the rug, they are preemively sweeping all of the power of -- pre-emively sweeping all of the powers for the entire remainder of this congressional session. it sets a horrible precedent. it's a dangerous precedent. the speaker's grabbing more power using the speaker's committee, the rules committee, and he's doing so and jeopardizing the power of the house of representatives. because for him to grab more power requires us to give more power to the executive branch. to abdicate our constitutional responsibility to decide when and where our military should go. so i urge my colleagues to owe ose this illegal and unconstitutional -- oppose this illegal and unconstitutional action today by voting no on the rule for the farm bill. that's house resolution 1176.

thank you. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kentucky yields back. the chair now recognizes the gentlewoman from puerto rico, miss gonzalez colon, for five minutes. miss colon: i express my disappointment with the extending of the provision of the cockfighting in the territories in the farm bill before us today. while there are a lot of good provision that is will benefit, the largest constituents of any house member for over three million american citizens living in puerto rico, the inclusion of this amendment will detract from the other high points of this bill. this bill will have -- will improve grant programs on the island for that i'm extremely grateful and confident this will help my constituents, but on the other hand, since 2002 farm bill has been included, the very same wording about the animal welfare act.

it will allow the states to manage and regulate this practice 2349 territories. for the case of puerto rico, we have been regulating the industry of cockfighting since 1933. this is an industry that represent more than $18 million in our economy. and also more than 27,000 direct and indirect jobs on the island. we're talking about how this will affect the economic situation in the island. we're approving another federal regulation without even consulting the people of the puerto rico or even the territories. in our case, we were not even allowed to vote for that amendment here in the floor. never in the senate. territories have not -- will never have a world if we can vote if we're not represented, but also limiting this activity will also provide a lot of these industries to go underground. and that will hurt the economy of the island. for that reason i invite any

member who wishes to come to puerto rico and see how regulated the cockfighting industry is to come and visit. i fear that the language that turn d will overburdensome loss and regulation on the island, as they always do, and we will see a black market pop up and come to more harm than good. just on the verge of those who participate, but also for the industry itself. for me it's troubling the territories were not given a proper chance to debate this issue. wee we were not consulted in the drafting of this a or any committee markup or congressional courtesy. i represent 3.2 million american citizens on the island, but i can't vote on the floor. i don't have representation in the senate side. then we have another regulation coming to the island when even giving us an opportunity to debate it or vote against it.

i think even the constitution of the united states allow states to regulate and reserve those powers to the states. we can't even challenge or sue the federal government with this because the constitutional amendment provided that the territories are just a possession of the u.s. congress and congress can do whatever they want with us. that will affect directly the industry of the island. we're talking about not just the rules of construction of venues, penalties for event, behavior at cockfights. the rules have a have been engaged since 1933. this is an industry as i said that the government of puerto rico, senate and governor oppose to have this ban in cockfighting. i think this should be an issue reserved for the states. at least happening right now in the current farm bill. and i hope we can have the opportunity to discuss this in

any other opportunity, even having a hearing on this issue. my constituents are concerned on how this prohibition will hurt them and their families. and it's my responsibility to advocate for them. same as the territories of the united states. we all -- we're all against this. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from puerto rico yields back. the gentleman from illinois, mr. shimkus, is recognized for 1 and a half minutes. mr. shimkus: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. shimkus: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, before i begin i want to express my sincere thanks to general vincent brooks, my classmate from west point, upon his retirement today after 38 years of active military service. mr. speaker, i came down to the floor to read a facebook post from another west pointer

honoring his close friend who died on november 27 of this year in afghanistan. time will not permit me to go through the -- his entire post, of us who for many served in the conflicts we have today, it underlines the sacrifice our men and women pay to the service of our country. . i'll end with this. it was captain andrew ross died on november 27, 2018. and the last verse of our alma mater, which was sung at the second singing of alma maters at the army-navy game it ends with this and i think it's appropriate. and when our work is done our course on earth is run, may it be said well done, be thou at peace, err may that line of gray increase from day-to-day,

live, serve, and die we pray, west point for thee. god bless the family of captain ross and all the men and women who serve overseas in dangerous locations. mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until noon today. is

matter, and to make these decisions that i want to see progress made. >> order. questions for the prime minister? terry mccarthy. >> question one, mister speaker. >> the prime minister. >> mister speaker, mister speaker, i know the thoughts of the whole house will be with those caught up in the horrific incident in strasburg last