macleginn/stanford_congress_record_longer_speeches huggingface dataset:
Date: 2014-12-10
Speaker: HERRERA BEUTLER (republican)
Chamber: H

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in great admiration and a little bit of humility because I get to honor the life of a tremendous woman. a friend from southwest Washington who has made a lasting impact on our region. She passed away this week at the age of 97. A lifelong resident of Clark County. Margaret Colf Hepola could recount the history of southwest Washington in a way that was more complete and exponentially more colorful than any history book. Her great grandparents moved to the Lewis River Valley before Washington had even claimed statehood. and more than 140 years later. Margarets family still calls our region home. There are people who live in a community. and then there are people who define what "community" means. Margaret was the latter. She made it one of her life ambitions to share the history of the community she loved and to preserve the memories of those who came before her. Through the Colf familys generous philanthropy. Margaret saved historical landmarks. supported museums. and founded the La Center Library. Margarets wit. her grit. and her compassion made her one of the most celebrated women in our entire region. Twicewidowed and a mother of five. Margaret did not let tragedy or the responsibilities of motherhood deter her from giving back to the community that she cared about so deeply. By the time she had reached the ninth decade of her life. Margaret Colf Hepola had become a household name in southwest Washington. I will conclude today by honoring her legacy. one of a passionate historical preservationist who herself has earned a place in southwest Washingtons history books.
Date: 2014-12-11
Speaker: HERRERA BEUTLER (republican)
Chamber: H

Madam Speaker. for over 100 years. the Federal Government has made a promise to our rural schools and counties to actively manage our forests. However. due to Federal regulations and litigation. forest management has been dramatically reduced. and our communities have sufferedthousands of people have lost jobs. counties lack the resources to pay for basic services whether it is school or fire or police. and our forest has become increasingly susceptible to forest fires. disease. and devastation. This situation is a crisis. and we in Congress must address it.
Date: 2014-12-11
Speaker: HERRERA BEUTLER (republican)
Chamber: H

Oh. yes. I have heard from many of my local districts already. and layoff notices are being prepared because of the uncertainty and the status of the funding of Secure Rural Schools. Congress must make getting this legislation through both Houses and signed into law by the President a priority in the next year. I would. actually. like to ask the gentleman from California . the majority leader. if he can give me any assurances that extending the Secure Rural Schools program will be one of his priorities early in the next Congress. I yield to the leader.
Date: 2014-12-16
Speaker: JOHN CORNYN (republican)
Chamber: S

the senior Senator from Texas. felt strongly enough about her qualifications that he was good enough to come and introduce Ms. Saldana at her confirmation hearing before the committee I chair and the Presiding Officer serves on. the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Senator CORNYN told us that day that she was highly qualified. fiercely independent. and had served her State with honor. This is what he said: If respect for the rule of law is our standard. and I think it should be. we would be hard pressed to find a person more qualified to enforce the law than Ms. Saldana. His comments. That is high praise. and I could not agree more. Nevertheless. Senator CORNYN and some of his colleagues now oppose Sarah Saldanas nominationnot because she is unqualified. not because she does not work hard. not because she does not have good values. but because she will have to carry out the Presidents recent Executive order on immigration. That may be understandable. I think it is also unfortunate. It does not punish the President to leave this position unfilled. It does not just punish the employees to leave this position unfilled. In the end. it punishes the citizens of this country. It makes it harder for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to accomplish its critical mission of helping to secure our borders. It makes it harder for them to do their job in terms of taking dangerous criminals off of our streets. And it hurts the men and women at ICE who deserve a leader to ensure this important agency runs as effectively as possible. I believe the President acted within the boundsI know not everyone agrees with me on this. but I believe the President acted within the bounds of the law in announcing his Executive action. While I may quarrel with the timing of it. I also feel very deeply if wenot in this body but in the other body on the other side of the Capitolhad done our job with respect to immigration reform. we would not have this dustup today over this nomination. But whether or not you agree with me. opposing Ms. Saldanas nomination will do nothing to change what the President has donenothing. I said it before. I will say it again. It is irresponsible for us to leave a critical agency such as this without a proven leader. It has been more than 16 months. It should not be another month or two or three. So I hope Ms. Saldanathe first Hispanic person and the second woman ever to be nominated to run Immigration and Customs Enforcementdoes not fall victim to politics here in the Senate. By all accounts. she is exactly what this critical agency needs: a proven leader. a respected member of the law enforcement community. I urge all of my colleaguesDemocratic and Republican and even the two Independents who are here with us serving their StatesI urge you to support her. I am proud to do that today. Thank you. Madam President.
Date: 2005-01-04
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time. I rise in strong support of the rules package this afternoon. The different aspects that compose it are very important. and they will contribute to this Houses being able to function in a more efficient and effective manner in the next 2 years. The dueprocessforMembers aspect of this rules package is extremely important precisely because of the integrity of the House. The integrity of the House includes the integrity of Members whose reputation may be impugned or unfairly attacked. and thus all Members that make up this House deserve due process. And that is what we are trying to achieve today. I have worked long and hard in the last 2 years. along with the distinguished chairman of the Committee on Rules. the Speaker. and their staffs. to try to formulate a most difficult proposal for something that is. despite its difficulty. very necessary. and that is a standing Select Committee on Homeland Security. Due to the leadership of the Speaker of this House. that is becoming a reality today. We are doing it in this rules package. The provisional quorum safeguard is historic in nature. and it is constitutional. It is a constitutional means to prevent the possibility that terrorists could paralyze our representative government. Mr. Speaker. I rise in strong support and urge the adoption of this rules package.
Date: 2005-01-25
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. I rise today to speak about the upcoming Iraqi national elections on Saturday. January 30. and to congratulate the millions of brave Iraqi citizens who plan on voting in their first free election. After suffering for decades under Saddam Husseins brutal regime. the Iraqi people finally have an opportunity to form a representative government that truly reflects the will of the Iraqi nation. Despite ongoing pockets of violence in a few Iraqi cities. it is clear that millions of Iraqis will finally be able to shape their own futures by expressing and exercising their right to vote. Mr. Speaker. this will truly be a national election that Iraq and the rest of the Middle East can and should be proud of. More than 14.3 million Iraqi citizens have registered to vote. More than 190 political parties will be on the ballot. encompassing almost 19.000 Iraqi citizens standing for election. Finally and most importantly. nearly 80 percent of Iraqis say that they will vote. even in the face of threatened violence from the terrorist insurgency. Mr. Speaker. these are fantastic statistics.
Date: 2005-01-25
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Madam Speaker. I rise today to join my colleagues in marking the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz. The acts performed at Auschwitz 60 years ago represent the darkest chapter of human history. I am often struck by the stark contrast the concentration camps provide juxtaposed with the enlightenment. scientific advancement and progress made by mankind in the 20th century. They serve as a chilling reminder of the evil man is capable of. especially toward those perceived to be different or apart. Kosovo. Rwanda and the Sudan unfortunately highlight the fact that genocide is an issue that still troubles our world. It is therefore all the more important to remember Auschwitz and reaffirm our global commitment to forever end such wicked practices. I was very pleased to hear on Monday. January 24. 2005. that the United Nations General Assembly convened in a special session to mark the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the death camps. This was the first time the UN General Assembly has ever met to commemorate the Holocaust. and the first time that the General Assembly convened a special session at Israels request. Madam Speaker. in closing I would like to commend the -sponsors and leadership for bringing this important resolution to the floor and I urge an "aye" vote.
Date: 2005-02-01
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. in the next few days I will introduce the boldest Social Security plan. one that will provide people with security. control and choice. There will be absolutely no change for current or near retirees. We need to strengthen Social Security now by allowing younger generations to invest all of the Social Security tax they pay. or 6.2 percent. in a personal retirement account. The employers share of the tax would stay in the system to fund retiree. nearretiree benefits and transition costs. These accounts would give all involved control of their personal retirement dollars. Congress cannot take this money away. Personal retirement accounts will help people build a nest egg to pass on to their loved ones. This solution is about the future. We need to strengthen Social Security with big personal retirement accounts now.
Date: 2005-02-02
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

Mr. Speaker. the attempts to delay and derail the confirmation of Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General of the United States are wrong and objectionable. This is the fifth time that President Bush has asked Alberto Gonzales to serve his country. As counsel to the President. as chief advisor to then Governor Bush. as a Texas Supreme Court justice. as Texas Secretary of State. Alberto Gonzales has always served his Governor. his President and his country with honor. integrity and distinction. This man of humble beginnings who has achieved so much personifies the American dream. Hispanics throughout America are proud of him. as all Americans will be of our next Attorney General. Enough obstruction rooted in petty partisanship. It is time for the Senate to confirm Alberto Gonzales as United States Attorney General.
Date: 2005-02-02
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr.Speaker. I rise today to join my colleagues in offering my warm congratulations to the Iraqi people for the successful elections they held on January 30. 2005. It is truly amazing to see the Iraqi people take their first steps toward democracy. To see a people who were once slaughtered and tormented under a brutal dictatorship take a stand and declare that enough is enough. shows their unwavering determination in deciding their own fate by the ballot instead of the bullet. Despite the predictions of widespread terrorist attacks on election day in Iraq. 60 percent of the registered voters turned out. Moreover. the physical courage of the Iraqi people to leave their houses. walk to the polls and cast ballots under this specter of violence speaks to the power of democracy and their passion for freedom. Sometimes in America. we take the right to vote for granted. No one who watched the moving images of Iraqi men and women proudly showing their purplestained fingers will ever make that mistake again. It is also important to pay homage to the thousands of brave American soldiers. some of who lost their lives. who held the line. Let us not forget the bold sacrifices these courageous men and women made to liberate the Iraqi people. It is all of our hopes that this election marks the beginning of a new chapter for the Iraqi people. one in which they enjoy the sweet taste of the fruits of freedom. democracy and sovereignty. Mr. Speaker. in closing I would like to commend the sponsors and leadership for bringing this important resolution to the floor and I urge an "aye" vote.
Date: 2005-02-02
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Speaker. I have repeatedly stated I will oppose any. cut in Social Security benefits to retirees or near retirees. However. many groups are using this debate to once again bully Americans. The most recent examples are the telephone scare calls that were made anonymously throughout Florida that began actually in my congressional district. Why my district? Because I have the highest number of people on Social Security. These people who hide behind anonymity have no courage. It reminds me of the Wizard of Oz and hiding behind the great curtain. The bottom line is. under the bill that I introduced. H.R. 266. it will stop any proposal to reduce benefits dead in its track. I recommit my promise in that bill that I introduced. H.R. 266. the Social Security Protection Act. Congress would not even be able to consider a bill that reduces benefits to retirees.
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: DANIEL E. LUNGREN (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Cali

fornia. Mr. Chairman. I rise in support of H.R. 418. Twentysix years ago. when I first came to this Chamber. we were speaking about border security. Sixteen years ago. when I left this Chamber. we were speaking about border security. and here we are again. A fundamental aspect of national sovereignty is that a nation is able to control its own borders. The nature of this requirement is of particular importance in the post9/ll environment in which we must all live. In years past. when those of us on the Subcommittee onImmigration confronted this challenge. there were traffickers and human cargo and narcotics and the increasing problem of criminal gangs who profit from such enterprises. Today. however. we must deal with the additional worry that these channels of illicit commerce may also include those who enter our country to kill innocent Americans and the related concerns of weapons of mass destruction. The Real ID Act. introduced by the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman SENSENBRENNER). is an important step in meeting this challenge. In conjunction with the additional border patrol positions authorized by this body at the close of the last Congress. H.R. 418 will remove the impediments to completing the fence along the San Diego corridor of our southern border. I want to commend my predecessor in the Third Congressional District in California. Mr. Doug Ose. who worked hard to remove the regulatory obstacles to completion of the fence. In todays post9/ll environment. it is one component in an integrated U.S. border security system. There is simply no excuse for the failure to complete the remaining 3/2 miles of the security fence. The language offered by our colleague from Wisconsin would allow us to do so. In our system of governance. the United States Government -and specifically the Congress have given us what is tantamount to plenary jurisdiction over immigration law. As a former attorney general in my State. I can make the observation that in most areas of the law enforcement. the States and local governments have primary jurisdiction. That is not the case with immigration enforcement. As a former President of the other party put it in a different context. "The buck stops here." Although I am a committed believer in federalism. the nature of the task and the language of Article I. section 8. are clear. While this bill in no way preempts State law with respect to the issuance of drivers licenses. it does entail a modest notion that the immigration laws enacted by this body ought to mean something.
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from Michigan . a former Secretary of State of the State of Michigan. which issues drivers licenses in Michigan. and someone who has been very helpful in crafting this bill.
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Before I recognize the nextchairman. I wish to respond to the gentlewomans question of why are we doing this. We are doing this because the 9/11 Commission Report asked that we do it. They made it a priority. We are doing it because our committee. the committee the gentlewoman sits on. the one I chair. authorized this last year and the House overwhelmingly passed this last year. The 9/11 victims families have a letter that also requests this. And we are doing it because when I get on an airplane and somebody shows an ID to get on the airplane. I would like to know they are who they say they are. I think every other .American would like to have that assurance in safety as well. And by the way. we do not tell the States what to do. They can issue a license to whoever they want to issue a license to. But if they want to use that State license for Federal purposes. like getting on an airplane. they are going to have to be able to show that the people are who they said they were. Also. Mr. Chairman. we worked with the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators in crafting this legislation. and 3 years is ample time. Mr. Chairman. I submit for the RECORD. the letter of the victims families. which I just referred to:
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I note on page 390 of the 9/11 Commission Report. it recommends secure identification should* begin in the United States. The Federal Government should set standards for the issuance of birth certificates and sources of identification such as drivers licenses. Mr. Chairman. I yield 12 minutes to the gentlewoman from Tennessee
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I look forward to working with the gentleman from Virginia on this issue as we move forward. Mr. Chairman. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Connecticut . the chairman of the Subcommittee on National Security.
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I am happy to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Ohio . the former mayor of Dayton and chairman of our Subcommittee on Technology. Information Policy. Intergovernmental Relations and the Census.
Date: 2005-02-09
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Chairman. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Let me just sum up and say this does not require anything from the States as far as drivers licenses go. States do not have to do anything under this for their drivers licenses. They can issue drivers licenses to whomever they want. But if they intend to use those licenses for Federal purposes. we have a right to say what the criteria should be and under those circumstances. they are going to have to show legal presence. It is not antiimmigrant. In fact. this allows the States to issue two different sets: one for illegal immigrants. one for everyone else. It takes the national security issue away from the argument there. Finally. the optout provisions in the current legislation that was passed just a few months ago are disastrous. We were worse with the 9/11 response that passed this Congress than we were without it. This rectifies that. It closes that loophole. Out of respect for the victims. the families. the work of the 9/11 Commission. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. Mr. Chairman. I yield back the balance of my time.
Date: 2005-02-10
Speaker: GINNY BROWN-WAITE (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Flor

ida. Mr. Chairman. I rise today in very strong support of the bill. H.R. 418. and also the very fine amendment of the gentleman from Texas . I spoke on the floor last December in opposition to the conference report on the intelligence bill because it lacked the provisions that we are actually debating here today. I commend the leadership of. certainly. the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman SENSENBRENNER) and the gentleman from Texas . for bringing this amendment to our attention and adding it to the bill. I am very pleased that they made good on their promise that we would be here today providing for the provisions that the gentleman from Wisconsin had. No issue is more important to this Congress than securing our borders and protecting our homeland. and I guarantee it is very important to our constituents. When I was in the Florida senate. I headed up the Homeland Security Committee shortly after 9/11. and many of the provisions that are in this bill we actually included when we took on the drivers license issue. making the drivers licenses only last as long as the person was legally in the country. I applaud the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman SENSENBRENNER) and the House leadership for making good on their promise and enacting the recommendations made by the 9/11 Commission. I urge my colleagues to vote for the bill and certainly for the amendment of the gentleman from Texas . which just quite honestly makes common sense in that Members constituents back home will very easily understand and say. Why was this not done a long time ago?
Date: 2005-02-15
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. I rise today in support of H. Res. 80. which recognizes the Virginia Fire Chiefs Association on the occasion of its 75th anniversary and commends the Virginia Fire Chiefs Association for being an annual sponsor of the MidAtlantic Expo and Symposium. Fire chiefs throughout the Nation provide decisive leadership that is key to the success of Americas firefighters and first responders. The fire chiefs associations in each State play a critical role in coordinating this important effort. Their members are literally on the front lines of the homeland security effort. ready to respond in a moments notice to crisis situations anywhere in America. I have been able to witness the firm dedication and guidance the fire chiefs in my congressional district have provided. Unfortunately. their selfless efforts largely go unnoticed. which is why I am pleased the House is taking this opportunity to recognize the Virginia Fire Chiefs Association for their great achievements today. Mr. Speaker. I applaud Congressman VIRGIL GOODE ef my home State of Virginia for introducing this important resolution and urge an "aye" vote.
Date: 2005-02-15
Speaker: TOM DAVIS (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Virginia

Mr. Speaker. pursuant to clause 2(a)2 of Rule Xl of the Rules of the House of Representatives. I hereby submit the rules of the Committee on Government Reform for the 109th Congress for These rules were adopted by voice vote on February 9. 2005 at an open meeting of the Committee.