Date: 2011-10-25
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Good morning. Mr. Speaker. Its really a pleasure to have the opportunity to speak this morning and to congratulate President Obama for keeping his promise and keeping his promise to the American people. Ive had the privilege of traveling to Iraq on many occasions. the privilege of greeting our soldiers coming from Texas. Houston. and all over America. Ive had the sadness of attending the memorials and funeral services of fallen soldiers. the sadness of talking to parents and relatives asking the question: "Why?" Ive even gone and mourned with mothers around the issue of convincing Presidents. in this instance. President Bush. to end the war. Ive been amidst tiny white crosses that have symbolized the numbers of those who died in Iraq. and in my office. for a period of time. we accounted for the numbers of individuals who died in Iraq. in particular. from the State of Texas. I cochair the Afghan Caucus. In times that I have gone to Iraq in the Green Zone that is familiar to many. Ive even taken enemy fire. and that is. of course. enemy fire attempting to hit those in the Green Zone. nothing in comparison to our soldiers and certainly never experienced the heinous act of an IED. It is time to bring those warriors home and to say thank you. spending almost $900 billion. close to $1 trillion. And Id like to see the amendment that I passed in the Defense authorization bill utilized. It was a national proclamation. a day to welcome home all of our combat veterans. It would include those who have fought wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other wars in times past and other incidents around the world. Its time to have a celebration and a response to our soldiers like weve never had before. Its time to place ribbons. its time to stand in streets. its time to celebrate through parades. And I would commend those who have served and continue to serve and our veterans. It seems that that is the appropriate response. And how silly it seems that in the State of Texas we have to be fighting the potential implementation of a Confederate flag. We had a press conference in my district with persons from around the State and around the county standing up against the Stateissued Confederate flag. In fact. we announced for the State of Texas: Why couldnt we put the American flag on our plates. our license plates. to symbolize our commitment to our soldiers and our respect for the unity of this Nation? But yet. under Governor Perry. we are fooling around with the idea. with his appointees. of a Confederate flag license plate. one that does not honor the Confederate soldier. For those who wish to honor them. there are places and museums in your home. But to put on the State license plate a flag that symbolized fear. intimidation. oppressive actions. brutality. slavery. and the death of slaves. some 20 million that came over. many that were thrown overboard. and the brutality of Jim Crowism is an outrage and will not be tolerated. While there is continued growth of millions of millionaires and the average salary in the United States is $26.000. it seems that we should stay focused on job creation and not be distracted in a State as large as Texas. with the largest majority minority community of Latinos and African Americans and the largest number of uninsured. that the government of the State of Texas would take time to fool around with a Confederate flag. a hostile symbol that is so egregious to many in this country. And so. Mr. Speaker. I hope that Congress will focus on passing the jobs bill. recognizing the need of the American people. I hope my colleagues will look toward States that would create a hostile atmosphere such as a Confederate license plate in a way that would show that many times theyre not worthy of receiving Federal funds if they want to spend their time spending money on something as dastardly as thatand I come from the Statebecause there are so many needs. such as was mentioned earlier by my colleagues. in the limitations in the SNAP and food stamps where children are starving. Why dont we focus on the goodness of bringing us together such as my earlier comment of welcoming home our troops with a national proclamation pursuant to the amendment that I passed on this floor of the House 4190? Why dont we get rid of things like Confederate flag symbols that represent oppression? And why dont we come together in this Congress to pass the Presidents American Jobs Act so salaries are not going down? And why dont we hold States accountable when they get Federal dollars that if they dont hire small businesses and those who are unemployed. Mr. Speaker. that we cut their Federal funds? And I truly mean that. I thank you. Mr. Speaker. for your indulgence. Again. lets get rid of the bad things in the United States. such as symbols of Confederate flags insulting much of the American people. lets support SNAP. lets support people going to work. and lets make sure that there are people earning more than $26.000 by getting them back to work.