Andy Barr

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in recognition of National Child Abuse Prevention Month and to highlight the work of Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky. This organization is on the front lines to make sure Kentucky's children are raised in safe, loving homes and are not abused, mistreated, or neglected. It develops and promotes effective strategies and programs through community involvement, public education, and advocacy. Efforts are centered on recognizing the inherent potential and goodness of children, on strengthening families, and on empowering the community to become involved with this important mission. This cause is personal to me. As the father of two girls and as the former president of the board of directors of Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky, I am incredibly proud of the good work this group does every single day for Kentucky's children and all year long. I hope all of my colleagues will join me in thanking Prevent Child Abuse Kentucky and similar organizations around the country as we recognize National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Honoring Dinny Phipps

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of Mr. Ogden ``Dinny'' Phipps for his contributions to the American thoroughbred horse-racing industry and in remembrance of a legend in the sport of kings. Mr. Phipps leaves a proud legacy in his having made a profound and positive impact on the game for many decades. As an owner and breeder, Mr. Phipps owned and reared numerous champions, including the 1993 Kentucky Oaks winner Dispute, the 2005 Breeders' Cup Distaff winner Pleasant Home, and, most recently, the 2013 winner of the Kentucky Derby, Orb. However, one could argue that Mr. Phipps' greatest impact was felt beyond the racetrack, as he was a steadfast advocate for the industry and served the racing community as an industry executive. From 1983 until his recent retirement in 2015, Mr. Phipps served as chairman of The Jockey Club, the official breed registry of the thoroughbred industry. He also served as a longtime member of the New York Racing Association, serving as the Association's chairman from 1976 to 1983. Mr. Phipps' love of this great American pastime will leave an enduring mark on the thoroughbred industry. Mr. Phipps is survived by his wife, Andrea, and his children, Kayce, Kelley, Lilly, Daisy, Samantha, and Ogden. I extend my deepest sympathy to the Phipps' family, and I join my fellow Americans in honoring the life, contributions, and service of Ogden ``Dinny'' Phipps.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special individual, Pastor Jeffery J. Fugate, on the twenty fifth anniversary of his ministry at Clays Mill Road Baptist Church in Lexington, Kentucky. Pastor Fugate was saved at the age of five. When he was seven years old, Fugate's father started the Bible Baptist Church in Hazard, Kentucky. His father passed away when Fugate was twenty one, and Fugate became the church's new pastor. Pastor Fugate was called to Clays Mill Road Baptist Church in May of 1991. There were eighteen people in attendance at his first service. The church has grown to an average attendance of over 2,200 during the fall of 2013. Clays Mill Road Baptist Church has undergone many building and expansion projects to accommodate the growth, including the purchase and remodeling of an old motel on a beautiful 23 acre site. The church runs a very successful youth camp ministry and an extensive bus ministry. Fugate is the author of five books. He appears on the ``Voice of the Appalachians'' radio broadcast and travels often to preach at conferences, rallies, and revival meetings. Fugate holds two honorary doctorate degrees; a Doctorate of Divinity and a Doctor of Humanities. Dr. Fugate is married to the former Michelle Cornett. They have five children. Pastor Fugate has dedicated his life to serving God and to saving souls for Christ. He has touched many lives during his ministry and I wish him all the best on his twenty fifth anniversary at Clays Mill Road Baptist Church. I am proud to recognize and honor him before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special church in the Central Kentucky Area. Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, located in Keene, Kentucky, was organized in February of 1867. This year they will celebrate their sesquicentennial with one hundred and fifty years of ministry. The original members of this church first worshipped as a part of a white congregation at Mount Pleasant Church. As they desired to form a church of their own, a committee of black members was formed. The church held its first services in a one room log cabin which also served as a school. The present building was constructed in 1874. Over the last one hundred and fifty years, the church has grown physically with additions and upgrades of the buildings. Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church has been pastored by many fine ministers, starting with Rev. Peter Johnson in 1867 and leading to today's pastor, Rev. Reginald C. Davis. Many lives have been changed by the ministry of the pastors and the members of this church. Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church has been called one of the best rural churches in Kentucky. As they celebrate this historic one hundred and fifty year anniversary, they continue their ministry to worship and serve God through Jesus Christ. I am proud to have visited the church and I am honored to recognize the historic Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special organization from Kentucky's Sixth Congressional District. The Wolfe County Health and Rehabilitation Center recently received the 2015 Facility of the Year Award from the Kentucky Association of Health Care Facilities. The Wolfe County facility is located in beautiful Campton, Kentucky. They are owned by First Corbin Long Term Care, Inc., a part of Forcht Group of Kentucky. The 100 bed facility offers high quality long term care and short term rehabilitation to its residents. Administrator Amy Prater and all the staff are to be commended for the wonderful job they do in caring for their residents. The award recognizes service of the highest excellence among the many long term care facilities in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Caring for the elderly population in our country is a very special and important calling. The Wolfe County Health and Rehabilitation Center offers excellent skilled care in a loving and compassionate environment. Their award was well deserved and serves as the standard for other facilities to emulate. I am proud to recognize and honor the Wolfe County Health and Rehabilitation Center before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, thank you to my colleagues, Congressman Roe and Congressman Cooper, for joining me in remembering our constituents, Stephanie and Justin Shults, two promising young lives tragically cut short in the barbaric terrorist attacks on March 22 in Brussels, Belgium. Stephanie Moore Shults was born and raised in Lexington, Kentucky. She was a graduate of Bryan Station High School and of Transylvania University in Lexington. We will never forget this daughter of Kentucky, her love of her family and her husband, and her sense of adventure, as she lived and worked in Europe. We will never forget the anguish felt by Stephanie and Justin's families as they searched for their children in the aftermath of the attack; we will never forget their grief when they learned what happened; and we will never forget the ideology of evil and religious intolerance that is responsible for taking these two innocent Americans from us. If the terrorists' objective was to undermine our country's will to fight extremism or to compel us to surrender our liberty to their oppressive, totalitarian vision of the world, then it has failed. The terrorists' cowardly act only invigorates our Nation's resolve to overcome and defeat this evil. As we continue to pray for these families, I would like to ask Congressman Roe and Congressman Cooper to join me and for all of my colleagues to stand and please join us in a moment of silence and prayer to honor these young American people.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special group of young people. The Paul Laurence Dunbar High School boys' basketball team recently won the Kentucky High School Athletic Association state championship, better known in Kentucky as the ``Sweet Sixteen''. This event is very competitive and involves talented young athletes from across the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Like any successful endeavor, the victory was won by dedication, hours of practice, determination, and teamwork. The young men worked very hard for this accomplishment and they learned many lessons that will benefit them throughout their lives. I want to give special recognition to head coach Scott Chalk and the entire coaching staff and to thank them for the time and dedication they provided these young athletes. Paul Laurence Dunbar High School is located in Lexington, Kentucky. This is the school's first ever state championship in boys' basketball. In the first three games of the tournament the Bulldogs posted come- from-behind wins. However, in the final game they led wire to wire, winning 61-52. I congratulate the students and their coaches on the state championship and I am proud to honor them before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 109, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.''

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special individual, John D. Price of Lexington, Kentucky. Mr. Price lived an exemplary life of service to others and passed away on February 23, 2016. Mr. Price was a dedicated leader in education in Fayette County. He was appointed to the school board in 2003 and was elected four times. He served as board chairman since 2010. Mr. Price's involvement began over 30 years ago as a mentor with the Experience Based Career Education program. He went on to serve as a homeroom parent, a school volunteer, and a member of site based councils at Julia R. Ewan Elementary and Bryan Station High School. He was a PTA leader, serving as President of the 16th District PTA. He served on the Equity Council for Fayette County Public Schools. Mr. Price was a strong advocate for all students and was deeply concerned with every student having the opportunity for a great education. His commitment to students was unwavering. Professionally, Mr. Price was a CPA and President of Price, Stagner, and Company. He was an active member of St. Peter Catholic Church. Mr. Price was a founding board member of Housing Equality for All Lexington (HEAL) and remained active with HEAL for thirty eight years. John Price is survived by his daughter Allison Courtney Crosby and her husband Anthony Crosby, his mother Janella Wathen Price, and his sisters Jalenna Price and Margaret Griffin. Mr. Price was a humble leader. Former superintendent Tom Shelton says of John Price, ``He had exemplary character, strong personal integrity, and was a strong man of faith, and it was exhibited in everything he did and every decision he was involved in.'' He made a significant impact on the lives of all people he touched. He was an outstanding public servant, and I am honored to memorialize him before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special group of young people. Members of the Estill County High School Marching Engineers won the Class AA Kentucky Music Educators Association state competition. The band is directed by Jason Bowles. This event is very competitive and involves young men and women from across Kentucky. Like any successful endeavor, the victory was won by dedication, hours of practice, determination, and teamwork. The young people worked very hard for this accomplishment and they learned many lessons that will benefit them as they become adults. Estill County High School is a small but proud high school in Irvine, Kentucky. The community was very supportive of this group of students. The young people represented themselves and their county very well at the state competition. I congratulate the students and their director on the Class AA KMEA state championship and I am proud to honor them before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a very special group of young people. The Nicholas County High School Cheerleaders, coached by Jessica Letcher Hamilton, recently won the Universal Cheerleaders Association's National High School Cheerleading Competition. This event is very competitive and involves young women from across the nation. Like any successful endeavor, the victory was won by dedication, hours of practice, determination, and teamwork. The young women worked very hard for this accomplishment and they learned lessons that will benefit them as they become adults. Nicholas County High School is a small but proud high school in Carlisle, Kentucky. The community was very supportive of this group of young women. The girls represented themselves and their county very well at the national competition in Orlando, Florida. I congratulate the students and their coaches on the national championship and I am proud to honor them before the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize a heroic individual, Mr. Paul Tranbarger, of Flemingsburg, Kentucky. Mr. Tranbarger served in World War II as part of what we consider the Greatest Generation in our nation's history. Please join me today in honoring a man who has displayed selflessness, courage, commitment, and dedication to our beautiful country. Paul Tranbarger was born in Bristol, Virginia in 1926. He left home at the early age of 17 when he enlisted in the United States Navy. As a Seaman First Class aboard the aircraft carrier USS Shamrock Bay, he participated in the Philippines Campaign: Phase 2, the Battle of Iwo Jima, and the Okinawa Campaign. He was part of a crew that earned the USS Shamrock three battle stars. As if the military battles were not enough, he and his crew endured a typhoon while onboard the ship. After his military service, Paul returned home in 1946 to Virginia where he began working for Crosley Refrigeration. It was there he met and married his first and only love, Sadie. The two moved to Kentucky in 1952. Determined to live the American dream, Mr. Tranbarger fell in love with farming and owned and operated his own service station. Paul and his late wife Sadie have three children. He is an elder at the Mt. Pisgah Christian Church and is still very active in his community. He attributes his faith in God and love of family as the reason for his existence at age 90. Words can never express our gratitude or convey the honor so richly deserved. His service and sacrifice will be remembered and honored for generations to come.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. I thank the chairman. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 3700, which is a modest but important first step to improving Federal housing policy through several commonsense reforms. For the first time in HUD's 50-year history, there will now be a flexible formula directing over-income families to pay greater shares of their subsidized rents or to move out of public housing. Incomes and assets will be reevaluated to target assistance to those who are truly in need. There are wait lists across the country for scarce public housing resources and Section 8 vouchers. I have listened to homeless advocates and to my constituents at the Lexington Housing Authority in Kentucky about the waiting lists that exist in my own district. A 2015 HUD audit found that 25,000 families had incomes too high to qualify for assistance; yet the families remained in taxpayer subsidized housing. Some of those families actually derived income from renting other residential properties that they, themselves, owned. One family highlighted in the report had a combined income of $498,000. Policy failures such as these not only waste taxpayer dollars, but, more importantly, they hurt those in need who might otherwise have roofs over their heads. I hope this bipartisan initiative is a down payment on the further reform of Federal housing programs. Several of my colleagues and I are developing an empowerment agenda to holistically reform Federal assistance programs from housing to nutrition to workforce development. We start with the recognition that the Federal Government now runs more than 80 different antipoverty programs at an annual cost of nearly $1 trillion; yet, after 50 years of this strategy, the poverty rate has barely budged from where it was in 1965. The goal is to assist Americans to achieve their God-given potential and to restore the American Dream to where the condition of one's birth does not determine the outcome of one's life. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and with members of this subcommittee in leveraging the empowerment agenda to craft additional reforms to Federal housing policies, which will improve outcomes by recognizing that poor Americans are not liabilities to be managed by some remote bureaucracy in Washington but who are untapped assets who can achieve the American Dream. I congratulate Chairman Luetkemeyer and Ranking Member Cleaver for their work on this bill. I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 3700, and I invite my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join in additional efforts to reform HUD and to more effectively combat poverty.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, being uninsured in the era of ObamaCare is about to get a lot more expensive. The penalty for individuals and families who cannot afford ObamaCare-approved plans will double next year. Congress will soon finalize a reconciliation bill that will repeal this punitive individual mandate tax. We urge the President to sign this bill for the sake of American families who can't afford this penalty. Rather than punish Americans who can't afford to buy ObamaCare's expensive insurance with an equally unaffordable tax, here is a better idea: Let's give uninsured Americans the freedom to purchase high- quality private insurance on a more affordable basis. House Republicans have and will continue to offer the American people an alternative to ObamaCare. We call it the American Health Care Reform Act. This legislation, which I helped draft and which I cosponsored, will actually decrease the cost of health care without growing government. Mr. Speaker, it is time to end this costly experiment called ObamaCare and to actually focus on solutions that will lower costs and make life easier for the American people.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, Kentucky is famous for horses, bourbon, college basketball, and hospitality. And now we can add to that list the fact that the Commonwealth is home to Toyota's largest manufacturing plant in the world. With production of the 2016 Lexus ES fully up and running, the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky plant now ranks as the company's largest by production volume. That is right; Toyota now has its largest manufacturing plant in Georgetown, Kentucky. The addition of the Lexus production line brought with it 750 new jobs to my district. This continued investment in Kentucky is a testament to the skill, perseverance, and dedication of the American workforce. Mr. Speaker, we must continue to foster the manufacturing renaissance in America by enacting comprehensive tax reform; reining in burdensome regulations; fixing Dodd-Frank and other financial rules that impede access to capital; ending the EPA's destructive war on abundant, affordable energy; and promoting free trade so that American exporters are competitive around the world. When we are able to manufacture in America, companies like Toyota can fulfill the promise of good-paying jobs and secure the American Dream.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 682, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.'' Stated against:

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the life and note the ``End of Watch'' for Officer Daniel Ellis, originally of Campbellsville, Kentucky, and more recently of Richmond, Kentucky. On November 6, Officer Ellis was suddenly and tragically killed while on duty as an officer with the Richmond Police Department. As a father of a young family, my heart breaks for his wife, Katie, and their 3-year-old son, Luke. Officer Ellis was known by his friends and family to have a gentle spirit and a servant's heart. His death, while tragic, has united Kentuckians in honoring his service in Richmond. My wife, Carol, and I were privileged to attend the memorial service for Officer Ellis on the campus of Eastern Kentucky University. Thousands of people lined the streets to show their support during his funeral procession. Blue ribbons and wreaths adorned the windows of local businesses, and 7,000 mourners packed Eastern Kentucky University's Alumni Coliseum, including law enforcement officers from around the Commonwealth and the Nation, to honor the life of Officer Ellis, a life, as was noted during the service, that was devoted to justice, kindness, and service to others. His death is a tragic reminder of the dangerous, selfless, and heroic work done by law enforcement officers and first responders each and every day. I thank Officer Ellis for his service and devotion to our community. We celebrate and honor his life.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Just to conclude, instead, the most effective way to ensure that a borrower has the ability to repay is to restore the traditional relationship banking that ensures that financial institutions bear the downside risks associated with their business decisions. H.R. 1210 has the support of the American Bankers Association, the Independent Community Bankers of America, the Credit Union National Association, the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, the National Association of Home Builders, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The housing sector represents a third of the economy, and the lack of available mortgage credit is impacting our recovery. I encourage my colleagues to join me to expand access to mortgage financing and support economic growth.

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, it is important to respond to the rhetoric from the other side because I don't think they are really understanding what we are trying to do here. What we are not talking about are the predatory, abusive, and risky loans that they are referring to. That is not what we are talking about here. We are not talking about opaque subprime securitizations. We are not talking about the GSE exemption to the qualified mortgage rule. By the way, Mr. Speaker, where is the outrage with the FHFA, the regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, for not prohibiting Fannie Mae, Freddy Mac, and the GSEs from buying these non-QM mortgages that they are complaining about? What we are talking about are portfolio loans where the risk is on the shareholder, not on the taxpayer.

Mr. BARR. I thank the gentleman from Texas, the chairman of our committee, for his leadership and support of this legislation. Mr. Speaker, the best policies serve both the interests of the individual and the broader national interests. In this case, it is in the interest of the borrower to have an affordable, right-sized mortgage. It is also in the interest of the Nation to have a sound financial system safe from the excesses that led to the crisis in 2008. It is possible to satisfy both objectives, but it will require the Federal Government to acknowledge that changes must be made to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's interpretation of the Dodd-Frank law. The ability to repay requirements in Dodd-Frank are designed to ensure that a lender takes into account the borrower's ability to repay a loan. Simple enough. But the CFPB has implemented the ability to pay rule provision by promulgating a one-size-fits-all, top-down, Washington-directed qualified mortgage rule. Under the CFPB's approach, mortgages have been made safer by effectively making them unavailable to a substantial number of would-be home buyers. According to the Federal Reserve, 22 percent of those who borrowed to buy a home in 2010--one out of every five borrowers--would not have met the underwriting requirements for a qualified mortgage. There is no debating that for the benefit of a mortgage borrower or his or her lender and the financial system, a borrower should have a demonstrable ability to repay that loan. The only question is who is in the better position to determine whether that borrower is able to repay the loan. Is it a Washington bureaucrat without any relationship with the borrower, or is it a lender with a full view of the customer's finances and a bank or credit union that must bear 100 percent of the downside risk of default? Dodd-Frank answered that question by taking sides with the Washington bureaucrats. The result has been a housing market struggling to recover as a result of scarce mortgage credit, impacting job creation and affordable housing, and the loss of the consolidation of community banks and credit unions. It is time to try something different. H.R. 1210, the Portfolio Lending and Mortgage Access Act, is the solution. This legislation would treat mortgages held on the balance sheets of financial institutions as qualified mortgages for purposes of the Bureau's mortgage lending rules. Because mortgage lenders retain all of the risk of the loans held on portfolio, they have a strong incentive to ensure that the loan is repaid. Such a policy would drive private sector risk retention--a goal of the Dodd-Frank Act itself--and mark a return to relationship lending where a bank or credit union can tailor products to a customer's needs and credit risk without running afoul of the one-size-fits-all government requirements. Small banks and credit unions have been disproportionately impacted by these rules. It is no coincidence that Harvard researchers have found that, since Dodd-Frank's passage, community banks have lost market share at a rate double that experienced prior to Dodd-Frank's passage in 2006 to 2010, a period including the entirety of the financial crisis. By bearing the risk, financial institutions have every incentive to make sure that the borrower can afford to repay that loan. And no less than Chairman Barney Frank endorsed this concept at a hearing before the Financial Services Committee last year, saying he would like the main safeguard against bad loans to be risk retention because that leaves the decision in the hands of whoever is making the loan. The Bureau, itself, made this key point in its own rulemaking where it recognized that portfolio lenders have a strong incentive to carefully consider whether a consumer will be able to repay a portfolio loan, at least, in part, because the small creditor retains the risk of default. This bill also importantly provides a viable alternative to the originate-to-distribute mortgage lending model that contributed to the bubble in residential real estate and massive taxpayer bailouts. Indeed, this legislation embraces an approach that more effectively ensures that borrowers have the ability to repay than the CFPB's restrictive rule. The result will be expanded access to mortgage credit without additional risk to the financial system or the taxpayer. I would just note that the ranking member talks about putting taxpayers at risk again. But the cause of the financial crisis was not portfolio lending by community banks and credit unions; it was government policy: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac buying billions of subprime, improperly underwritten mortgages. This policy, the GSE exemption to the qualified mortgage rule, continues to do this day. My bill offers an alternative to this risky practice of incentivizing origination without underwriting and distribution to taxpayer-backed GSEs. This is particularly important because the commonsense bill that is before the Congress recognizes that the most effective way to ensure that a borrower has an ability to repay is not one-size-fits-all Washington mandates.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of our allies, the people of France, and in strong condemnation of the terrorist attacks in Paris, France, carried out by the Islamic State this past Friday. The people of France have been our allies since the American Revolution, and having traveled to Normandy and seeing the American flag over Omaha Beach, it underscores the important alliance that we have had with the people of France throughout our history. Ever since the founding of our country, we have been united with the people of France by our shared values of freedom and civil society and democracy. The attack on Friday was an attack on these values by barbaric terrorists who want to impose their brutal and twisted version of Islam and authoritarian rule across the world. We grieve for the massive loss of life, not just for the French people, but also for the victims and their families around the globe, including Nohemi Gonzalez, an American student from El Monte, California. We join the voices from around the world to condemn these attacks, but condemnation is not enough. As I saw firsthand while visiting Iraq and Afghanistan last month, the President's strategy of withdrawal and containment is clearly not working. By underestimating the threat, referring to ISIL as the JV team, declaring that ISIL has been contained just hours before the brutal attacks in Paris, President Obama has allowed this radical Islamic cancer on humanity to fester and grow. Indeed, the key lesson of my trip to the Middle East is that American retreat has made the world a much less stable and a much more dangerous place. The weakness of the President's foreign policy and U.S. withdrawal from the Middle East has allowed our adversaries, ISIL, Russia, Iran, the Taliban, al Qaeda, Jabhat Al-Nusra, to fill the vacuum, to grow stronger and become a much greater threat to our homeland and our interests. In contrast, our allies, Israel, the Jordanians, the government of Iraq, the Kurdish regional government, the unity government in Afghanistan, they have all become more threatened and more vulnerable. There is not a single place in the world which is safer or more stable today or where our adversaries are weaker or where our allies are stronger than on the day President Obama took office. The President has, in recent days, lectured his critics to come up with their own plan and regurgitated his tired old attacks on his predecessor's successful national security policy. But if there is any lesson to be learned from the Obama policy in Iraq, as contrasted with U.S. policy after World War II in Japan and Germany, it is that once you win a war, do not leave. A residual security force and continued diplomatic engagement to prevent sectarian divisions would have reassured moderate Sunnis and prevented the rise of ISIL. The President implies that his critics would lead us into another unpopular ground war in the Middle East, but we do not need to fight the Iraq war again. We have already won that war. But we do need to do more to combat ISIL. What about authorizing use of military force that doesn't constrain the Commander in Chief, which is what the President sent us? Why don't we do what our ally, Prime Minister al-Abadi, in Baghdad, wants and has asked us for, which is more U.S. air power, more U.S. special operators on the ground for better coordination of the air campaign, more funding for the Iraqi train and equip fund? We must do more to help the moderate forces, the indigenous forces on the ground, such as the Kurdish Peshmerga, to take back territory controlled by ISIL. We must address the surge of refugees pouring out of Syria and other war-torn countries across the Middle East. These people are in desperate need of help, but the answer is not to resettle them halfway around the world here in the United States. An open-ended resettlement program is, in fact, an admission of defeat, that their homes will never be safe for them to return to, so we had better assimilate them to new lands with new languages and new cultures. That is not the best solution for these refugees. And because we know that at least one of these terrorists involved in the Paris attacks entered Europe by blending in with those trying to flee ISIL, it could pose a national security risk to the United States. We shouldn't take the indigenous fighters away from the anti-ISIL campaign through an open-ended refugee program. Instead, let's actively protect them in their home country by helping them defeat ISIL and win the war. The best thing we can do for these people is to defeat the enemy and to end their reign of terror, rape and oppression. We need a new strategy, not to contain ISIL, but to eliminate them. The refugee issue is a simple matter of common sense, but the problem is larger than the refugees. As we were reminded so tragically on Friday in Paris, failure to confront terrorists and radical ideologies abroad gives them an opportunity to grow and spread and attack us here at home. So let's grieve and pray for the people of France, but let's do more. Let's rise up with them, with new resolve, to defend our shared commitment to liberty, security, and freedom.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the service of a very distinguished Kentuckian, Major General Edward Tonini. He currently serves the Commonwealth as the 51st Adjutant General and retires in 2015. General Tonini's career began as an enlisted member of the 123rd Tactical Reconnaissance Wing of the Kentucky Air National Guard. He received a direct commission as a Second Lieutenant in the Guard in 1970. He earned many awards and decorations for his service in the Air National Guard, including the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal (with 1 Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster), and an Air Force Commendation Medal. He rose through the ranks to become Chief of Staff of the Kentucky Air National Guard. In 2001, he went on to serve as Director of Your Guardians of Freedom at the Pentagon and later served at the Air Force Personnel Center in Denver, Colorado. Tonini was appointed by Governor Steve Beshear as Adjutant General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky on December 11, 2007. As the Adjutant General, he serves as the Commanding General of both the Kentucky Army and Air National Guard and as the Executive Director of the Department of Military Affairs. He is responsible for Federal and State missions, including responding in times of emergency. He serves on the Governor's cabinet and is the Governor's advisor on all military matters. General Tonini has served the Commonwealth of Kentucky and this nation with honor. He is to be commended on his long and distinguished military career and his life of service and sacrifice. Major General Edward Tonini is an outstanding American, a true patriot, and a hero to us all. Along with a grateful nation, I honor him for his service.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Retail Investor Protection Act, legislation that will ensure investor access to personalized and cost-effective investment advice. The Department of Labor's proposed fiduciary rule will make it more difficult for hard-working Americans to access financial advice and to save for retirement. Time and again, I have heard from constituents throughout my central Kentucky district of how this massive, 1,000-page rule will negatively affect them: Private employers and not-for-profit organizations will no longer be able to bring in financial advisers to provide educational information about retirement plans to their employees. Investors with small accounts will no longer be able to receive advice for their 401(k) plans. Middle class investors will lose access to professional advice, and financial products like annuities will no longer be available. More and more Americans will be forced to seek information on the Internet or from robo-advisers. Let's get this straight, Mr. Speaker. This rule will replace flesh and blood professional advisers with a computer. As one of my constituents said to me, if you think professional advice is expensive, wait until you see the cost of amateur advice. In short, the Department of Labor's rule will hurt the very people it is supposed to protect. On July 29, Representatives Wagner, Scott, Clay, and I sent a bipartisan letter, signed by 21 Members, to Secretary Perez, asking for the DOL to stop these disruptive changes and repropose the rule in light of the many negative comments. Secretary Perez replied that the DOL would not entertain the request. That is why it is necessary for Congress to take action and pass this legislation. Look, we all agree that financial advisers should act in the best interests of their clients, but heightened consumer protections in the investment space should apply broadly and should not create two classes of investors. It should not bifurcate the industry to those who can afford advisers and those who cannot. The result will be less choice for consumers and a lack of access for retail investors to sound financial advice. The best consumer protection is not central planning from Washington. It is choice and competition. I thank Representative Wagner for her leadership on this issue, and I encourage my colleagues to vote for competition and choice, to vote for access to professional financial advice, and to defeat this rule.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a special man, David Downey, of Bourbon County, Kentucky. Mr. Downey, a part of the Greatest Generation, answered the call to serve during World War II and had a long military career. Today it is my honor to recognize him before the United States House of Representatives. Mr. Downey was born in Bourbon County and graduated from Western High School. He was drafted into the United States Navy in 1944 and began his career in boot camp at Great Lakes, Illinois. He left the Navy after a year and a half of service, and quickly decided to return in 1946. He remained in the Navy until 1968. Mr. Downey served on a transport ship during World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. He also served on destroyers and served as a cook. During his service in Vietnam, he was honored to meet Roger Staubach, a Naval Academy graduate and Heisman trophy winner. Following his retirement from the Navy in 1968, he returned home to Kentucky. He worked various jobs before taking a position as a bus driver for the Paris Independent School system. He spent the next twenty two years driving schoolchildren in Bourbon County. Mr. Downey is an active member of the Seventh Street Christian Church where he serves as a deacon and sings in the Chariots of Fire choir. He loves to bowl and is an active member of a league. Downey and his late wife Nannette, were married for fifty three years. He has two girls and a boy. The bravery of Mr. Downey and his fellow men and women of the United States Navy is heroic. Because of his courage and the courage of individuals from all across Kentucky and our great nation, our freedoms have been preserved for our generation and for future generations. He is truly an outstanding American, a patriot, and a hero to us all.

Mr. BARR

Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life of a very special man, John M. Famularo of Lexington, Kentucky. Famularo spent most of his life in the legal profession and over the years earned a stellar reputation among his fellow attorneys and all that knew him. Famularo was raised in Mt. Olivet, Kentucky. He came from a family of legal minds, with his father serving as county attorney, district judge, and circuit judge and his brother serving as U.S. Attorney. Famularo graduated from Loyola University and the University of Kentucky College of Law. Two years after graduation from law school, he successfully argued a boundary dispute case before the U.S. Supreme Court. He began serving as an assistant commonwealth attorney for Fayette County in the 1970s. Much of his career was spent as a partner with the Stites and Harbison law firm in Lexington, where his practice focused on product liability, class-action defense, and medical malpractice defense. He also served as Chief Judge of the 22nd Judicial District in Fayette County. Famularo was well respected for his great legal mind. Mr. Famularo was special to me personally. As a young lawyer, he was my first mentor. Many attorneys, including me, owe our success to the selfless interest he took in our professional development. He was a great lawyer, a fierce advocate for his clients, a dedicated officer of the court, and the best litigator I have ever seen. Mr. Famularo became a regent and state chairman of the American College of Trial Lawyers, served on the board of governors of the Kentucky Bar Association, and was inducted into the University of Kentucky College of Law Hall of Fame. He passed away on October 23, 2015. He is survived by his wife Karen, three children, and three grandchildren. The legal community and all those associated with John M. Famularo mourn his passing and honor his legacy.