representatives today, other than noon as an shift, will not pontificate -- schiffthan nunes and will not pontificate. we need to watch this with an open mind, both democrats and republicans. that is why we have these hearings. for representatives to get up and give a speech, i am not interested. i am interested in what the witness has to say and hope everyone will listen. host: live coverage starting at 10:00 on c-span3. you can see that uninterrupted. you can also download our c-span radio app and also the website. we now take you to the house of representatives.

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. november 13, 2019. i hereby appoint the honorable henry cuellar to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. signed, nancy pelosi, speaker of the house of representatives. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the order of the house of january 3, 2019, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour debate. the chair will alternate recognition between the parties. all time shall be equally allocated between the parties and in no event shall debate continue beyond 11:50 a.m. each member other than the majority and minority leaders

and minority whip shall be limited to five minutes. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from texas, mr. green, for five minutes. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, it and still i rise. and still i rise because i love my country. and today i rise to defend those who are recipients of the daca program. i rise to defend these young unfortunately bigotry is being weaponized against them. i rise because the chief executive officer has indicated that there are hardened

criminals among them, but he does it in such a way as to demean and defame all of them. he does it on the day that the supreme court of the united states of america is considering a case with reference to daca recipients. i rise to defend them. these are young people who came to this country at a very early age. they did not come of their own volition. these are young people who have been screened and vetted. these are young people who have gone on to get good educations. these are young people who are contributing to our society. i rise to defend the daca rerecipients. i rise because i understand what's going on. this chief executive officer is not going to stop. this is just another phase of his attempts to weaponize bigotry, hatred, racism.

, did it with the muslim ban weaponizing religion. he did it with the s-hole countries, weaponizing race. he did it with some nice people, fine people among those in charlottesville where a woman lost her life. weaponizing anti-semitism. and he has done it repeatedly and will not stop. he went on to do it with the ban on transgender persons in the military, weaponizing homophobea. this is not going to stop. we must move to impeach this president. and i'm proud to say that history now is going to record that on this day witnesses appeared to give testimony with reference to why the president should be impeached. that's how the testimony is going to be presented. i'm not crowd that this is happening. i love my country.

i don't want this to happen in my country. didn't come to congress to be a part of an impeachment effort against the president, but when a president attempts to weaponize race, bigotry, xenophobia, islamophobea, homephobia, that president ought to be impeached and he will be. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: members are reminded to refrain from engaging in personalities toward the president. the chair now recognizes the gentleman from michigan, mr. itchell, for five minutes. mr. mitchell: thank you, mr. speaker. the house of representatives most certainly faces a vote to impeach the president before the end of this year. i urge my colleagues to carefully and deliberately contemplate this next step in their votes. the constitution provides great latitude to this body in impeaching a president. it is up to us, all 435 of us

in this chamber, to determine what constitutes a high crime and misdemeanor. and those determinations clearly vary greatly amongst us. as we cast those votes, we must consider our place in history and the implications of those votes in the future of this republic. alexander hamilton warned of the risks of impeachment becoming a partisan act. in federalist number 65 he wrote of his fear during impeachment there will always be the greatest danger that the decision will be regulated more by comparative strength of parties than by real guilt demonstrations of incense or guilt. i fear the proceedings have not heeded this washing. impeachment was never designed to be a supplemental process but a safety valve to be used on the rare yeasest occasions when an eelected official acts in a manner to threaten the basis of our republic. i urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to remember that this as they assess the interviews, deposition, and

hearings unfolding today and their impeendpending vote on impeachment. impeachment must not become weaponized. it cannot simply be another election tool. the question before this body is not whether a member is comfortable with the rhetoric of the president, his political tactics, his twitter, his policy choices, or political rallies, the question is have high crimes and misdemeanors been committed and if so they must be prepared to demonstrate that specifically. i urge the speaker of the house to ensure that each member should they desire be afforded time, five minutes per member, during debate of impeachment to explain his or her view and impending vote. it is critical the american people who will be watching closely be afforded an opportunity to see and hear those views. impeachment must not be based upon polling data, election advantages, social media commentary, it must be based upon clear an compelling facts. to do anything else threatens our republic. i intend to approach this matter in just that way.

i will uphold my oath and vote as the circumstances require. but this judgment also must not be preordained by political political party, political maneuvering by anyone serving in this chamber. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from north carolina, ms. foxx, for five minutes. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. this week we celebrate the fifth year of national apprenticeship week. a week dedicated to showcasing the impact that apprenticeship programs have on preparing americans for the jobs of today and tomorrow. our nation has seven million unfilled jobs. a 2018 survey of u.s. employers showed that nearly half of all job creators struggle to hire employees with the right skills for the job.

apprenticeships offer one of the strongest solutions to closing the skills gap and strengthening the american work force. that is why republicans on the education and labor committee are committed to expanding apprenticeship opportunities nationwide. according to the department of labor, 94% of apprentices retain employment after completing an apprenticeship program and the average starting salary after completion is 70,000. a -- $70,000. apprenticeships help integrate the education system with the work force development system which allows all students to be better prepared to compete successfully in the 21st century economy. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from alabama, mr. brooks, for

five minutes. r. brooks: mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize the 50th anniversary of alabama agricultural and mechanical university. the school was originally established not long after the civil war in 1873 by the legislature of the state of alabama. through the tireless efforts of the first principal and president, william hooper council, the huntsville normal school opened on may 1, 1875, with an appropriation of $1,000 per year. it had 61 students and two instructors. in 1885 because of its success with industrial education, the alabama legislature changed its name to the state normal and industrial school in huntsville. in 1891 the name was again changed to the state agricultural and industrial institute for negros. a new location was provided at

normal alabama. in 1969, the school became a fully accredited member of the southern association of colleges and schools and its name was changed to, quote alabama agricultural and mechanical university." the name it has today. in the 50 years since its university designation and establishment of the foundation, alabama agricultural and mechanical university has grown to encompass widely respected programs in engineering, computer science, business, food sciences, agricultural, and animal sciences. and education, as well as ph.d. programs in plant and soil science, food science, physics, and reading. today alabama a&m university is comprised of over 70 buildings of 1,000 acres. home to more than 6,000 students. is a designated gold military

friendly institution, and serves as a regional, state, national, and international resource while maintaining its mission of educating the underserved and uplifting the people of alabama, the nation, and the world through its excellence in education. on a more personal note, my mother, betty brooks, is a proud graduate of alabama a&m university having received her master's degree there. i thank alabama a&m for helping her to successfully serve for a quarter century as a lehigh school government and economics teacher. in sum, i am and all of the state of alabama is proud of alabama a&m university's accomplishments and wish alabama a&m a happy 50th anniversary as a fully accredited university. go, bulldogs. may your future success in helping prepare, train, and

educate our youth be as great and productive as your past. mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from minnesota, mr. emmer, for five minutes. mr. speaker, i rise today to congratulate colonel anthony on his retirement from the u.s. air force after 32 years of service. he dwrad waited from cole college in cedar rapids, iowa and officer training school before commissions to the air force. during his career his employments -- deployments included operations desert shield and desert tropical storm and operation iraqi freedom and enduring freefment by the end of his distinguished career he logged more than 5800 flight hours as a command pilot and more than 500 of which were in combat. since 2016, he has served as commander of the 934th airlift

wing located at minneapolis-st. paul international airport air reserve station overseeing 12 squad rons with more than 1400 airmen. minnesota has been fortunate to have such an accomplished member of our nation's armed forces lead the charge and train our air men and women of tomorrow. colonel, again congratulations on your retirement and we wish you the best as you move to your next chapter. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize the small business administration's minnesota district director, nancy laburski on her retirement. she's served our great state of minnesota for 28 years. she will be missed. nancy's time at the s.b.a. in minnesota began in 1994 as the regional manager for s.b.a.'s twin cities international trade programs. in this capacity nancy helped hundreds of minnesota businesses compete in the global marketplace. at the same time, nancy was also served as the adjunct

instructor at st. paul college and appointed by the u.s. secretary of commerce to sit on the minnesota district export council. we thank you for almost three decades of service to small business in minnesota and we wish you the wes in -- best in your retirement. mr. speaker, i rise today to congratulate the wall family of highland bank in st. michael, minnesota, for receiving the 2019 minnesota family business award. they have proudly owned and operated the bank for more than four decades serving as a lifeline for their customers and community. as a small financial institution, the financial crisis took its toll on highland and families in and around st. michael. nevertheless, the wall family persevered and led their bank and community through a very difficult economic time. the resiliency and community focused nature of banks like highland are essential to helping minnesotans and americans pursue and achieve their american dream. family owned institutions like the highland bank understand the needs of their neighbors and business owners and -- of

their neighbors and business owners and in turn empower families and local economies on main streets across our country. congratulations to the highland bank and wall family on your recognition and thank you for all you do for st. michael and minnesota's sixth congressional district. to wish theay farm bureau federation a happy 100th birthday. it has been an ally for growers and producers. even after a century of work, the minnesota farm bureau remains the leading voice for farmers and the agricultural community at large. i give a special thanks to the president and the vice president, both of whom go above and beyond to advocate for their members. and i recognize the burro director of public policy who keeps our office apprised of the challenges. it has been an honor to work

with everyone at minnesota farm bureau and i wish you all a happy 100th birthday. i rise today to honor the life of stacy manning. stacy tragically passed away leaving behind a legacy of compassion and support for minnesota families working through the process of adoption. she and her husband had three children of their own when they adopted three more. while working to meet the challenges that adoption can bring, stacy realized that other adoptive parents were experiencing many of the same challenges. she wanted to help. and established hope connections, a support network to connect families. stacy's work touched the lives of thousands of families across this country. this week, stacy's family is in washington to receive the angels in in adoption award for the work she earned. stacy may no longer be with us,

but her spirit and hope connections mission lives on through her son andrew and assisting those. stacy, your impact on so many people will never be forgotten. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the the will recognize, the gentleman from texas, mr. veasey, for five minutes. mr. veasey: mr. speaker, today or tomorrow is national women in apprenticeship day and i celebrate the accomplishments of all women working in the technical and manufacturing field. during world war ii, women flocked to factories to fill manufacturing jobs that were vacated by men leaving to fight for our country. we saw it at the lockheed-martin plant. and the nearly 70 years later,

we are struggling to give women equal representation in these fields . that is why my fellow co-chair, brend and boyle and i introduce women in apprenticeship in nontraditional occupation act that will break barriers for women who are entering into these occupations. the best way we can celebrate is by taking action to ensure that all americans have a fair shot entering our work force and achieving the american dream. i want to thank my colleague, jackie speier on her work on legislation that we will vote on, the rosie the riveter act which will horny female who supported war efforts during the world war ii time period. thank you, mr. speaker, and i w yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman

from kentucky, mr. comer, for five minutes. mr. comer: mr. speaker, i rise foster recognize necco care of kentucky. it works tirelessly to place thousands of children to supportive and caring families. with foster parents from all walks of life and variety of ckgrounds, the organization backgrounds, the organization ensures that each child is matched with a loving, stable and comfortable home. the organization was recently recognized as 2019 angels in adoption honorey. it offers supported community living for adults and home-based treatment for families. through programs like these, it shows to be a diligent, compassionate guiding hand to society's most vulnerable. the staff help children in urban and rural settings as well as those in juvenile justice

population. by providing these services, it is improving the libes of those most in need while setting the foundation for a brighter future for coming generations. constituents, i congratulate its staff to make the dream of a family a reality for many children in need. mr. speaker, i rise to applaud my friend, mr. dean owens, for being awarded and recognized last week by the department of labor's hire vets medallion awards program. this program focuses on bringing our nation's veterans back to the work force and equipping them with the skills they need to excel at home after serving our country across the world. as a resident and business owner in the 1st congressional district in kentucky. he has invested, recruiting and employing and retaining our

nation's finest at his accounting firm. the rigorous criteria by which a hire medallion vets earn speaks to the dedication he displays in his mission to advance veteran careers. i want to thank dean, once again, for being a valuable, caring and ambitious figure in my district. with constituents like dean, there is no question i am proud to stand here and represent the 1st congressional district of kentucky. mr. speaker, this must be a proud day for many washington democrats, the beginning of heir quest to impeach our dual elected president of the united states. with wall to wall coverage from of the major media networks this circus of an event.

but i again rise today to implore the speaker of the house, nancy pelosi, to conduct the business of the people, the people of america elected all 435 of us to do the things that they expect congress to do, real business, not theater. and the business that the people expect us to do of the utmost importance today would be to ratify the usmca and to take up the demand to try to have some type of prescription drug reform legislation passed before the end of the year. two stead of doing these most important acts that congress should be taking up to represent the people of america,

we have instead the majority party conducting baseless impeachment hearings. i conclude again by calling on nancy pelosi and the majority party to do the things the american people actually want congress to do. with that, mr. speaker, i yield ack. the speaker pro tempore: the chair will remind all persons in the gallery they are here as guests of the house and my manifestation of approval or disapproval of proceedings is in violation of the rules of the house. the chair recognizes the gentleman from wisconsin for ive minutes. steel steel there are eight days until our military funding runs out. the house is kicking the can the

can down the road. house democratic leadership is focused on a partisanship impeachment process. our men and women in uniform deserve better than this, they deserve to have mission, training, weapons and equipment properly funded. mr. steil: next week, when we reach the funding deadline, we will likely vote on a continuing resolution, a c.r. it is not a thoughtful approach to support our service members. a c.r. maintains current spending levels for the military and continues this cycle of uncertainty. while better than a shutdown, there are real world consequences to simply passing a c.r. the air thors is short 201 pilots. the c.r. does not provide the air force with new funding to train new pilots to fill these positions. a c.r. prevents the army from

building 4,000 housing units for its members. a c.r. forces the navy to cancel undermine critical programs. this is a dangerous funding cycle that jeopardizes our service members safety and ability to protect our country. once again our federal process is broken and has gotten us into this mess. let's stop the partisan politics and focus on supporting our military and let's work to work the broken spending process here in washington. mr. speaker, we must never allow our service members and their mission to be part at risk again. mr. speaker, i rise to recognize 100 years of the wisconsin farm bureau for a century, the wisconsin farm bureau has supported farmers in wisconsin.

agriculture is a wisconsin tradition. generations of the people of wisconsin have dedicated their life to farming and feeding our state and the world. from milk to cheese, from sweet corn to soy beans to cranberries to wey, our proud farmers are there. thank you to the wisconsin farm bureau for helping wisconsin become and remain wisconsin's dairyland. happy 100 years. mr. speaker, i rise today to congratulate the university of wisconsin women's hockey team on winning their fifth national championship in program history. they beat the minnesota govers 2-0 to win the first national championship in eight years. kristen campo did not give up a

goal and 11th shutout of the season. to make the victory better, we beat our rival, minnesota. the badgers' women's hockey team is visiting my office and the white house to celebrate this success. congratulations for their hard-earned victory. the badger state is proud of you. on wisconsin. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman wright for five minutes. mr. wright: one of the best things in american can do for his or her country, public service, military service, community service. what is a true public servant look like? someone who poses exemplary character and integrity and inspires confidence, someone who has the network of relationships

on both sides to be both respected and effective. how do you honor a man who gave corps , the marine infantry and brought democrats and republicans together in the fame of charity? ryan thompson, my trusted chief of staff who sits here with me and a dear friend, joined us on the house floor for the final time today. he has accompanied me and the former boss to the floor countless times and look and do our best. today's different, though, because this is his moment. mr. speaker, there are proud members of the united states marine corps and there are proud graduates of texas a&m university. texas aggies. occasionally god blesses both of

those things in one person, such is the case with ryan thompson. he is a proud sixth generation text a l texan who serves as a past president of the texas state society, a true fill and pivot, he has dedicated to organize the bipartisan bicameral congressional baseball game, which raises millions of dollars for local charities each year. furthermore, ryan founded and leaves the congressional sports for charity foundation, which was created to ensure that the congressional baseball game and other congressional charity events live on for decades to come. ryan wisely understands that the game is not only essential to the many charities it helps but serves another need, the congress itself.

today on behalf of the boys and girls club of washington, d.c.,, the washington nationals dream foundation and the washington literacy counsel which honored him with the lit rear area award, thank you and happy trails to ryan scott thompson. he is strong from the roots up. and i yield back. . the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. thompson, for five minutes. mr. thompson: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize national friendship week. -- apprenticeship week. this year is the 50th anniversary celebration that games to connect job seekers with businesses and educators in our communities. to highlight the wealth of apprenticeship opportunities available. for too long it's been implied

that the only respectable or worthwhile option achievable -- available to achieve a successful career is spending four or more years on a campus to earn a college degree. yet the more than seven million unfilled jobs in america today suggests workers doesn't have the necessary skills to fill these jobs. we need to defy this misconception, and fix our nation's growing skills gap by providing students and job seekers with the skills and hands on experience they need to improve their own lives. as co-chair of the bipartisan career and technical education caucus, i'm proud to push for accessible career and technical education alongside my good friend and colleague, congressman jim langevin. career and technical education or c.t.e. goes hand in hand with apprenticeships. eequipping learners of all ages with real world experiences and feels like stem, nursing, information technology, cyber

technology, agriculture, and more can bring us one step closer to closing our nation's skills gap. in the past several years we have been seeing a rapid expansion in skills based education like the on the job learning, programs and apprenticeships. work force development programs are successful only if they are adaptable to the changing needs of employers. and the notice of proposed rule making by the department of labor issued this past june recognizes this through the proposed establishment of industry recognized apprenticeship programs or iraps. they cut through the bureaucratic red tape to put businesses and employees at the center of the conversation. the proposed flexibility and notice of proposed rule making will allow businesses the ability to quickly meet labor market needs. these changes will help foster continued innovation that recognizes the dignity of all

work and provides another tool for apprentices to move into meaning full work and rapidly evolving 21st crepetry economy. we can ensure iraps wreat create as many opportunities possible by encouraging employer innovation, allowing students of families the freedom to choose the path that is best for them. that is the power of work. that is the power of c.t.e. and that is the power of apprenticeships. putting employers and students in the driver's seat of their own professional futures. thank you, mr. speaker. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the chair recognizes the gentleman from indiana, mr. pence, for five minutes. you, mr. thank chair. i rise today to congratulate my friend, steve johnson, for receiving the prestigious indiana motor truck association founders award. er imta's award is an honor

give to those who embody the spirit of the association's founders and made outstanding contributions to the association and the indiana trucking industry. steve is only the ninth individual to have received this award in the past 14 years. always wanting to give back, steve proudly serves his nation in uniform and remains involved in his local church, charitable foundations, and children's hospitals in indiana. i congratulate my good friend, steve johnson. mr. chair, i rise to congratulate three high schools located in indiana's sixth district on their achievement of becoming a national banner unified champion school. columbus east high school, muncy central high school, and south rippley high school were recognized by the special olympics for their servant hearts and commitments to inclusion. these three high schools achieved a status of the unified champion school after meeting 10 national standards

of excellence set by the special olympics. as the institution's dedicated to inclusion, collaboration, and engagement, we are proud of columbus east, muncie central and south rippley and congratulate the students and faculty for this significant achievement. mr. chair, i rise to recognize baitsville high school for their tremendous achievement of having won half of the 2020 graduating class earned college credits. through their innovation programs with i.b. tech community college, baitsville will see 50% of their graduating seniors walk across this stage with an entire year's worth of college credits. the program gives hoosiers the opportunity to take 16 college courses at no cost. enabling them to obtain a bachelor's degree in just three years after they go to college.

i want to thank baitsville high school faculty and staff for continuing to provide innovative educational programs that set our students up for success. mr. chair, i rise to recognize rushville future farmers of america chapter for being one of six chapters across the country to participate in the turn the bag blue and gold program. the turn the bag blue and gold program is a partnership between f.f.a. and mycogen seeds that gives students the visit with farmers and polish their professional skills while raising money for their communities. this program will allow students to sell directly to local farmers, providing industry experience and a wonderful educational opportunity. a percentage of these sales will go directly to the rushville f.f.a. chapter. congratulations to rushville f.f.a.

mr. chair, i would like to congratulate the indiana national guard for the stationing of the 127th cyber protection battalion. as the seventh largest army national guard contingent in the nation, the indiana national guard continues to make our nation's defenses better. the hoosier state is proud to be home to cyber force structures such as the urban training complex, the defense's cyber operations element, and cyber protection team 127. we are honored to have such a distictive battalion. indiana's sixth district boasts the department of defense's only live full scale sishe range and i join the army national guard in congratulating our distinguished hoosiers in uniform on this outstanding achievement. mr. chair, i rise to

congratulate beth curtis of shelbyville, indiana. beth was awarded the 2019 crossroads of america silver beaver award in association with the boy scouts of america. this award is the highest honor the crossroads of america council may bestow on a volunteer. beth has volunteered with the boy scouts of america for over 15 years. this is the fifth time beth has been recognized for her outstanding service. i am pleased to congratulate beth and thank her for investing in our communities. thank you, mr. chair. i yield the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair declares the house in recess until noon today.