Donald Beyer

Mr. BEYER

Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to an extraordinary woman and admired constituent, Carol Glover, who passed away on Monday, January 12, as a result of the tragic incident aboard Metro train 302. Carol was a devoted mother who raised her two sons in Alexandria, Virginia. Many of her friends and family describe her as ``the ultimate sports mom cheerleader'' because she could often be found cheering on the sidelines of her sons' football, soccer, and basketball games. Carol was also the den mother for her sons' Cub Scouts troop and was said to treat all like her own children. Carol had a successful 20-year career as a contractor for the Federal Government. She studied computer programming at Drexel University, where she graduated with honors, and she recently received the Employee of the Year honor. It is clear she was as diligent in her work as she was in raising her children. Carol will be remembered as a woman of strong faith with a gentle demeanor and warm heart. At her funeral her mother said: ``In life we all have a dark tunnel to go through. Stay on track, and you will see the light at the end of the tunnel.'' Her mother believed that Carol had found that light. Carol leaves behind sons Anthony, who served in the Marines for 13 years, and Marcus, who works for a Christian nonprofit here in Washington, D.C. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Carol's family, friends, and to all those whose lives were touched by this amazing woman.

Mr. BEYER

Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to raise my concerns about the upcoming Homeland Security funding bill. The tragedies in Paris reinforce how critical it is that we keep DHS strong and appropriately financed. Unfortunately, the majority leadership has decided to play politics with our national security. The appropriations package is littered with amendments which would undermine what little progress we have made to our broken immigration system. Our family business just lost one of our most valuable employees, Cesar Arias. He may have originally come to Virginia without proper papers, but in the Reagan years, he found a way to stay here, raise his family, and open and close our store 6 days a week for more than 20 years. Cesar is one small, powerful example among millions of new Americans who have helped our economy grow and kept our democracy strong. He believed it was long past time for comprehensive immigration reform. Mr. Speaker, I urge the Republicans to bring a clean bill to the floor without the anti-immigrant amendments. We need to invest in homeland security, and we need a real conversation about immigration reform.

Mr. BEYER

Mr. BEYER. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in opposition to the rule. With my brother, I have owned and managed a small business for 40 years, and I know well that the most important asset of any business is its workers. H.R. 30 creates perverse incentives to cut employee hours and to eliminate the health care benefits entitled to full-time workers. It would allow employers like me to easily cut back full-time employees from the usual 40 hours to 39 hours, just so we don't have to offer health care coverage. Work 12 minutes fewer a day and have no health insurance coverage. This bill is a wolf in sheep's clothing. It doesn't save American workers. It does just the opposite. Forty-four percent of all American workers will be at risk of losing their health care benefits, and at least a half a million will be forced onto public welfare rolls. According to the CBO, we hear it will increase the budget deficit by $53.2 billion over the next 10 years. You don't have to have a background in business to know that doesn't make good business sense. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule. This is not a job- creating bill--it is a job-destroying bill--and that is not why we are here.