Gary Ackerman

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, we are trying to work together to remedy some inequities in the system. I think that the frustration of the American people, as has been expressed here, goes to the point that so many technicalities are raised wherein guilty people are extended indefinitely on death row. And that has caused a major frustration, which many of us can understand; that is, guilty people who are finding technicalities. What is happening here, in trying to remedy that, we have an amendment that goes to a court issue. What happens when it is an innocent person? What we are doing here is not addressing that problem.

Mr. ACKERMAN. If the person is still alive, living, breathing, innocent human being and you would look at the evidence, and you and I and a thousand judges unanimously would say, ``My God, look what happened here, this man is innocent,'' and he was condemned to death. And he was condemned to death. How would you propose that he get back before the court? That is really the question. The gentleman put closure to nothing but executing an innocent person.

Mr. ACKERMAN. The gentleman from Illinois is no doubt among the fairest Members that I have ever seen in this House, and certainly one of the most compassionate. It seems to me we are talking sort of at different levels over and each other on different issues here. Whether one is for or against the death penalty, I think most people would agree that this is not a debate on whether or not there are endless appeals and there should be limits for the kinds of the appeals that are going on and things of that nature. I think you could find some general agreement on all sides here. The question really is this: Supposing somebody has been found guilty and is on death row, who has been convicted and suddenly some evidence does appear that did not exist; there are all sorts of scientific things now, and suppose you and I and somebody with the wisdom of Solomon, maybe even Jerry Solomon----

Mr. ACKERMAN. The question, if I can phrase it, is: Why are we looking to put technicalities in the way of an innocent person coming before the court? That is just as wrong. That is even worse because you are taking away a life.

Mr. ACKERMAN. If the gentleman would make a leap of faith and say that we have one innocent person, how does that one innocent person present his case that you and I might agree and everybody might agree is innocent? You are going to kill somebody because we are dealing with other cases that say this is not expedient now----

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask you and my colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in congratulating Lorraine Pace on the occasion of her induction into the Suffolk County Women's Hall of Fame. Mrs. Pace's induction is the culmination of her public and private dedication to the survivors of breast cancer. Her tireless activism has made her a role model and an inspiration for all women. A Long Islander who is all too aware of the high incidence of breast cancer on Long Island, Lorraine continues to be at the forefront of the fight against breast cancer in Suffolk County. As the breast cancer education specialist at the Stony Brook University Medical Center, Mrs. Pace is uniquely qualified to lead this fight that all too many women on Long Island and throughout this Nation must face in their lifetime. The American Cancer Society estimates that 182,000 women were diagnosed with breast cancer last year alone. Approximately 46,500 women died from the disease in 1994. As the fight to prevent, and find a cure for breast cancer goes forward, Lorraine Pace takes an honored place in the Suffolk County Women's Hall of Fame. I ask all my colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in congratulating Lorraine Pace on her induction and lauding her for many years of work on behalf of the women of Suffolk County.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great pride to share with my colleagues in the House of Representatives the inspiring story of a man who has proven to be an extremely courageous citizen. Mr. Bennett Fischthal, a graduate of Brooklyn Law School, was returning from a bar review course when he encountered a large fire in the subway station. Bennett did what he does naturally: he came to the assistance of people in crisis. Bennett did not run for safety or worry about his own physical well-being, he stopped and helped the passengers in the subway get to safety. Bennett responded valiantly to this emergency and has won the praise and the respect of his community. For these actions we cannot express sufficient gratitude to Bennett, an individual who recognizes that the preservation of life and property is a massive responsibility. He made that responsibility his own by coming to the aid of the subway passengers in peril. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join with me now to salute Bennett Fischthal because he has exhibited the ultimate commitment by caring and working so diligently for the safety of others.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I wish to pay special tribute to Alfred and Genessa Bertel of East Hills, NY, an absolutely remarkable and special couple, on the occasion of their 50th wedding anniversary. This auspicious occasion was joyously celebrated this past Sunday at a surprise party at Papagallo's in Glen Head, NY, with over 100 loving close friends and family. The party was, according to one account one of the funnest celebrations ever. Al and Nessa have both touched the lives of many people indeed. The mark of a successful life is the positive influence on other people, and by that measure, the Bertels are a resounding success. In addition, they have achieved great successes in other areas of their lives. Al founded one of the first supermarket chains in New York City, and to this day runs a very successful wholesale produce business in the Bronx. He served in the U.S. Army during World War II, and fought in the Pacific. His deep and sincere generosity and largeness of spirit have endeared him beyond description to family, friends, business associates, and employees. Nessa, as past president of the Roslyn Chapter of Hadassah, and as a continuing active member of Hadassah, has long been devoted to the cause of Israel, and other worthy causes. She is, for good reason, a popular and very beloved figure in the community. Her love and devotion is a source of strength not only for her children, Sharon, Aaron, and Mindy, but for many other family and friends. Al and Nessa, who are in remarkably good physical shape, and have somehow managed to barely change their appearance over the past 50 years, deserve the highest accolades and congratulations over this unique and happy milestone. I ask all my colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me now in congratulating Alfred and Genessa Bertel on their 50th wedding anniversary, in lauding them for their many years of good works to the community and to the Nation, and in wishing them many more years of health and happiness.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join with the constituents of my district in honoring Mr. Cal Kleinman, president of Bennett X-Ray Technologies, for his exceptional show of kindness and generosity. Showing a remarkable combination of spiritual and physical sensitivity, Cal Kleinman traded an $85,000 cutting-edge mammography machine for a priceless, 300-year-old Torah--a prayer scroll containing the first five books of the Old Testament--that for 50 years had been lying in the basement of a drug-store in a small town less than a mile from the Auschwitz concentration camp. The town desperately needed the medical equipment, but had no way to pay for it. The only thing it had to offer were 18 Torah scrolls that had lain unnoticed since the defeat of Nazi Germany at the end of World War II. Mr. Kleinman jumped at the opportunity to help the developing country and to gain the Torah for his temple. Through a complex network of deals and negotiations that brought the scroll to New York via Rome, Chicago, and Cincinnati, the first Torah scroll arrived in New York on January 30, 1995. Its permanent home will be Temple Beth Torah in Melville. Mr. Speaker, I ask all my colleagues in the House of Representatives to join me in honoring Mr. Cal Kleinman for his incredible act of benevolence.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my congratulations to Miles B. Borden on being named the Kings Park Chamber of Commerce 1994 Man of the Year. Miles Borden, whose family settled in the community in the 1890's is a lifelong resident of Kings Park. His family was among the founding members of the Lucien Memorial United Methodist Church of Kings Park, where he is an active member of the board of trustees. He has been a member of the Kings Park Fire Department for 40 years and served as president of the department for 6 years. In 1956 he chaired the committee which established the ambulance squad. On December 31, 1994, he retired after serving 20 years as a volunteer trustee of the Smithtown Library boards of trustees. He is retired from a career as an assistant superintendent of the Amityville School District after 34 years in public education. An accomplished author and historian, he has researched and published two histories of Kings Park, ``The History of the Kings Park Fire Department'' and ``The First 100 Years--1892-1992: Lucien Memorial United Methodist Church.'' He is currently writing a history of Kings Park. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in saluting Miles Borden for his outstanding and selfless dedication and commitment to enriching the lives of the folks in the Kings Park community. And to extend our best wishes and congratulations for being named the 1994 Man of the Year.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week Parliamentarians for Global Action unanimously elected Murli Deora as its international president. Parliamentarians for Global Action is an association of more than 1,000 legislators from more than 80 countries who are committed to solving global problems in a spirit of cooperation that transcends national and ideological boundaries. Murli Deora's election to this position marks the first time a parliamentarian from Asia has been voted to head this prestigious organization. It also is a recognition of Murli's many years as a staunch advocate of a strong relationship between the United States and India. Murli has been a key leader in promoting United States-Indo ties while he served as a Member of Parliament representing the financial center of Bombay. Murli has worked diligently both in his capacity as a Member of Parliament and as the chairman of the Congress Party in Bombay to make certain that the economic bonds between the United States and India grow stronger every year. He has offered invaluable advice and assistance to me and many other Members of Congress who share his vision of a vibrant Indo-United States relationship. Mr. Speaker, India is the world's largest democracy. The United States is not only India's friend and ally, but also its largest trading partner. Therefore, I believe it is entirely appropriate for my colleagues and I to join together in congratulating Murli on this high honor which he so richly deserves. As we move toward the beginning of the 21st century I am certain that the Congress can continue to look to Murli for guidance and leadership as the relationship between the United States and India grows even stronger. He will be a dynamic president of Parliamentarians for Global Action at a time when his creative leadership and expansive vision will be utilized to the fullest. I know every member of this body joins me in wishing him continued success as he undertakes this important new responsibility.

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. I am sure that there is an error in here. It could not have been----

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I would like to yield half my time to the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Clinger].

Mr. ACKERMAN. In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, I just ask that we please observe some sense of civility in this House. We understand the mathematics. We understand that they have a majority. It may be very wide, but it is very narrow, but they have a majority, and under the old math or new math we understand what the vote is going to be. I say to my colleagues, ``Will you let me just offer this to you? With the majority, please, don't be afraid to debate your ideas, please don't be afraid to allow us our say, and don't be afraid to allow us to record the votes.''

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I remind my colleagues who were here at the time and the many of us that are also new, just picking a date from the Journal of September 21, and my colleagues could pick any page almost at random; at 12:45 the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Sensenbrenner] asked for a vote, a recorded vote. It was 390 to 1. The gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] at 5:21; the vote was 425 to 1. The gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] at 5:41; the vote was 426 to 1. The gentleman from New York [Mr. Solomon] at 5:50; the vote was 423 to 2. The gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Burton] at 6:07; the vote was 422 to 4. It goes on and on. Nobody sought----

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, I would just like to ask that we return to some civility and comity, and I would like to remind----

Mr. ACKERMAN. I yield to the gentleman from Maryland.

Mr. ACKERMAN. I yield to the gentleman from West Virginia. York [Mr. Ackerman] for yielding because I think the gentleman raises a good point as we can sit around, and the interesting thing which the gentleman from Indiana has done is he has now gotten us fighting over what we were fighting over. But the interesting thing on this is that we were not permitted to have full discussion of the amendment, we were not permitted to have full discussion of the amendment that the gentleman from Pennsylvania offered in the committee. We were warned that this would be the problem. Second is I understand the gentleman from Indiana's concern. Some of our side might have said in the last session of Congress that the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Burton] sometimes might have been--I would never have done that of course--might have been involved in some delaying tactics. It seemed to me that we were voting unnecessarily from time to time when the Republican, then the minority, wanted to make a point. The fact is we want to move ahead as well. We are concerned about what happens tomorrow. We are concerned about what happens if we are being asked to sit, for instance, in the Committee on House Oversight on a line item veto at the same time we have the balanced budget amendment on the floor or if we are being asked to sit in a Committee on Banking and Financial Services hearing on the Mexican loan guarantees at the time that we have the balanced budget amendment on the floor. So there are legitimate concerns, and perhaps we are going to have to discuss about ways we express those concerns. And finally, as I recall, it was the fact that we could not get a vote from the other side that forced us to go to a quorum call that then forced us to go on a vote. We could have shortcut this procedure if a few more on the other side would have been willing to rise.

Mr. ACKERMAN. I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.

Mr. ACKERMAN. I yield to the gentleman from Hawaii.

Mr. ACKERMAN. I yield to the gentleman from Hawaii.

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 of my 2 minutes to the gentleman from California [Mr. Thomas].

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. Mr. Chairman, it seems to me that on the first day that we convened this year we met until 2 o'clock in the morning and only had two votes. It seems to me that last night the majority party sought to limit the right of the minority to debate. Is the gentleman now trying to limit our rights to vote?

Mr. ACKERMAN

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I request that the gentleman's words be taken down.

Mr. ACKERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.