Elijah Cummings

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, in listening to the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Burr), and I want to thank him for sponsoring the legislation, but he talked about Mr. Broyhill not engaging in negative campaigning. I think it was Mother Teresa who said something so profound, she said always be for something, not against things. I think that that says a lot for him. He was for himself and for making sure that his community was well represented and well served, and is still doing it. So I think it is quite appropriate that we take this action today, and again I want to thank the gentleman.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I did not have the opportunity to serve with Congressman Broomfield, but the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Dingell), who wanted to be here today but is tied up in a conference committee, told me that Mr. Broomfield is probably one of the greatest public servants he served with. One of the things that he said is that no matter how difficult the arguments became, no matter how heated, he always knew that he was speaking from his heart and synchronizing his conscience with his conduct, and perhaps that is the type of example that we here now serving should follow. So it is indeed my honor to salute him. And I can say this for all of our honorees today, the people that we will be honoring, Madam Speaker, when I asked a fellow Marylander how it felt to have a post office named after him, and his name is Sam Lacey, one of the great sports writers, he broke out into tears, and he said just the idea that children yet unborn will walk past that post office and see my name and they simply will ask the question, who was he? And if someone can simply answer with a smile that he was a great man and that he touched this earth and made it better, then that makes me happy. I am sure Congressman Broomfield can say the same thing, and so we take this moment to honor him and honor the people of Michigan. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Traficant).

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Knollenberg) for sponsoring this legislation. The thought came to my mind of something that Voltaire said. He said, ``He who give not thanks to man give not thanks to God.'' And so it is quite appropriate that we do this this afternoon. Madam Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Levin).

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, as a member of the House Committee on Government Reform, I am pleased to join my friend and fellow committee member, the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella), in the consideration of these postal-naming bills. We seek to pass bills which name eight post offices after a number of distinguished Americans. Collectively, we will honor two former Members of Congress, a pastor, the first African American chaplain, a POW, an assemblyman, and the first African American municipal court judge and a fine university educator and administrator. I look forward to the swift passage of these measures, as H.R. 4884. This bill, which redesignates a post office after William S. Broomfield, was introduced by the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Knollenberg) on July 19, 2000. Mr. Broomfield was born in Royal Oak, Michigan, and graduated from high school and attended Michigan State College. He served in the United States Army Air Corps and was a member of the Michigan State House and Senate. He was elected to the 85th Congress in 1956 and represented the 18th Congressional District until his retirement in 1992. Former Congressman Broomfield was a member of the Committee on International Relations and widely recognized as a consensus builder. He represented his constituents for well over 40 years and is still involved in local charity work. I urge the swift adoption of this measure. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I also applaud the gentleman from New York (Mr. Hinchey) for this bill and for introducing it. I think he has said it quite eloquently as to why we are honoring this wonderful gentleman, James W. McCabe, in naming a post office after him. The fact is, as I have said about some of our other honorees earlier today, they have come upon the Earth, they have seen it, they saw they could make a difference and made that difference. With that, I would associate myself with the statement that the gentleman from New York just made and would urge our colleagues to vote in favor of this very important legislation based upon that. I also want to thank the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella) also for all her assistance. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Hinchey), the author of the legislation.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella), the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh), and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah) the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Postal Service, for their support in bringing this bill to the floor. I believe that persons who have made meaningful contributions to society should be recognized. The naming of a postal building in one's honor is truly a salute to the accomplishments and public service of an individual. H.R. 4448 designates the United States Postal Building located at 3500 Dolfield Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland, as the ``Judge Robert Bernard Watts, Sr. Post Office Building.'' I am pleased to be able to speak today about Judge Robert Bernard Watts, Sr. Judge Watts was born in west Baltimore, was at the center of the civil rights movement in the State of Maryland. He began his civil rights work as chairman of the NAACP Youth Chapter at Morgan State University. His chapter, with 200 members, was the largest in the country at that time. Because of his outstanding work, the NAACP sent him to his first national convention in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1942, where he met the late Justice Thurgood Marshall with whom he worked for 15 years on various civil rights cases. He was the first African American to be appointed full time to the bench of the Municipal Court of Baltimore City. He then served in the Army until 1945. He earned a law degree from the University of Maryland, my alma mater, in 1949, where he was the editor of the Maryland Law Review, which is a very high honor. Also in 1949, he formed the first major African American law firm in Baltimore. He was the first African American appointed to the Municipal Court in Maryland. In 1968 he was appointed by Governor Spiro Agnew to the Supreme Bench of Baltimore City. As a judge, Watts was instrumental in desegregating numerous theaters, restaurants, department stores, hotels, and the Gwynn Oak Amusement Park. He was the first judge in Maryland to open hundreds of adoption records, reuniting numerous families. Judge Watts was one of the few judges who volunteered to be a part of our family court, the court that dealt with various disputes with regard to family matters, divorces, adoptions, and child support. I had an opportunity, many opportunities, to go before him. And quite often he would tell us that the reason why he liked doing this kind of work was because he wanted to bring families together and have them see the bigger picture. He cared so much about children he wanted to make sure that fathers understood that they needed to be a part of their children's lives. Moreover, Judge Robert Watts not only served justly and fairly in the courtroom but served in numerous organizations in the community. At one point in his career he served on 14 boards at the same time, among them Bon Secours Hospital, which is located in the seventh Congressional District. He chaired three gubernatorial task forces regarding family law, AIDS, and prison overcrowding and served the community as a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. He died October 8, 1998. He was such a wonderful, wonderful husband to his wife Jacqueline. He was married to her for over 50 years. And so we take this moment to salute him for all that he has done to make life better for so many people. One great author said that, when speaking of a great person, he said he brought life to life. It is clear that Judge Watts did that. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 5 minutes to my distinguished colleague, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cardin).

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cardin) for his comments. As he was speaking, I could not help but remember the many times that Judge Watts sat in the meetings of blacks and Jews, we called them Blews, and tried to make sure that African-Americans and Jewish people worked together to resolve problems. He was a man who constantly looked for what people had in common, as opposed to their differences; and he fully understood that if we concentrated on the things we have in common, we can accomplish so very, very much. So we take this moment not only to salute Judge Watts, but we also salute Mrs. Watts, Jacqueline Watts; his five children Robert, Rodney, Jacqueline, Janelle, and Bobbett; and we take this moment to name this post office after him so that, as I have said so many, many times, so that when children look at the post office and look at the name up there, they can say, Well, who was Judge Watts? And it may be many, many years from now and somebody will be able to say, Well, he was a great jurist, he was a great great humanitarian and, in the words of the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cardin), he was a consensus builder and one who brought people together. I do not think we can give any greater tribute to any person greater than the one we have given here today. I urge passage of this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I was very pleased to hear the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Terry) reiterate the concern that Reverend J.C. Wade had for the education of young people. If we were to honor him, I am sure he would want to be honored for his pastoral duties and his efforts, but I am sure he would also want to be honored for looking towards the future so that he could make sure that young children could rise up to be the very best they could be. When we are talking about establishing the first Head Start center in Omaha, I think that says a lot, because he clearly had a vision of the future. As I often say, he cared about somebody other than himself. He wanted to make sure that those children were able to rise up. I am sure that as they pass the post office, a lot of those children who benefited from his efforts, they can only stop to salute and say, thank you. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, Dr. Flossie McClain Dedmond earned a bachelor's degree in English from Fisk University, received a master's degree from Columbia University, and pursued postgraduate studies at Ohio State University and Catholic University of America. She served in teaching and administrative positions at Allen University, Benedict College, Knoxville College, Morgan State University, and Coppin State College. Dr. Dedmond spent 31 years working at Coppin State College where she served in numerous roles. Upon her retirement, the honor of Dean Emeritus was bestowed upon her. In 1993, Coppin's first residence hall was named after her and is called the Flossie M. Dedmond Center for Living and Learning. A talented musician, Dr. Dedmond composed the alma mater for Allen University, and the song is still in use today. Along with her other many talents and honors, Dr. Dedmond was a prize winning poet. For over 6 years, she served as the Governor's appointee on a 13-member appellate judicial nominating commission. She is the former national vice president of the National Council of Negro Women. Dr. Dedmond was also a 52-year member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, a service sorority. In her many years of service to this organization, she was a former national public relations director of the sorority and was one of the organization's incorporators of the Cleveland Job Corps. She died on September 11, 1998. Dr. Burnett, the President of Coppin State University, tells a very interesting story about how, when she was dean, she had a major trip that she was supposed to take to Austria to deliver a paper and it was probably the most important trip of her life as a college educator. He said that she was prepared to go but they had some problems at the university and so he thought that she had flown off to deliver her paper in Austria. So he walks in early that Monday morning to try to address the problems, and she is sitting there in his office. He said, ``Why are you still here?'' She says, ``I'm here because I didn't want to leave you here to drown. I wanted to stay here to make sure that the students who come through the doors of this university have an opportunity to move forward and become the great people that I know that they can be.'' That was what Dr. Dedmond was all about, touching the lives of college students, making sure that they were prepared to go out of the doors of Coppin State University and other historically black colleges and universities so that they could touch others to make their lives better. She would often talk about breaking the cycle of poverty and breaking the cycle of illiteracy and breaking the cycle of alcoholism and health problems and she wanted to do her part; and she did, staying so long at Coppin State University, touching the young people's lives, making it so that they could break the cycles in their own families. And so today we salute her. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of this very important legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, in listening to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Chambliss), I could not help but think about the fact that, when he talked about how Henry McNeal Turner worked hard many, many years ago for equal rights, for African Americans, and women, it is so interesting, Madam Speaker, that the denomination in which he was a bishop, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, just named one of our neighbors, one of my neighbors in Baltimore, Bishop Vashti McKenzie. I cannot help but think that it was people like Henry McNeal Turner who laid the foundation for such a wonderful opportunity for women and in particular for Bishop Vashti McKenzie. So today we salute him, and I urge all of our Members to vote in favor of this very, very important piece of legislation. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, today is a cause for celebration. H.R. 4040 is a testament to how good process can lead to good results for the people we serve. Commitment, bipartisanship and hard work on the part of the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Scarborough), the gentleman from California (Mr. Waxman), the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Allen) and the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella), our congressional staff, the Office of Personnel Management, and the long-term care industry culminated in H.R. 4040, the Long-term Care Security Act. I am pleased that the framework proposed in H.R. 110, my long-term care proposal, allowing OPM to contract with a single carrier or consortia to provide long-term care insurance to Federal employees in permitting OPM to negotiate premiums and benefits on behalf of Federal employees is adopted in H.R. 4040. This employer group model will allow Federal employees to realize from 15 percent to 20 percent in premium savings. In addition to establishing a program to provide long-term care insurance to Federal employees and military personnel, the Senate amended H.R. 4044 with the text of S. 2420, which included the Federal Erroneous Retirement Coverage Corrections Act. S. 2420 provides relief to those Federal employees who were placed in the wrong retirement system during transition to the Federal employment retirement system from the civil service retirement system during the 1980s. Under current law, Federal agencies are required to correct a retirement coverage error by forcing the affected employers into FERS. The Federal Erroneous Coverage Corrections Act will permit the employees who had been victims of an enrollment error to remain in the retirement system they were erroneously placed in. CSRS ought to be covered by the system they should have been in, in most cases FERS. Unlike the House retirement corrections bill, if the employee chooses to be placed in FERS, he or she will be responsible for the lost contributions to his or her thrift savings account. The House bill sought to achieve accountability by holding those agencies guilty of making enrollment errors responsible for the lost contributions to the employee's TSP account. Mr. Speaker, though we would have preferred the House bill, we worked with the Senate to reach consensus on a bill that would result in some, if not optimal relief for employees placed in the wrong retirement system. H.R. 4040 is a lesson in how the legislative process through bipartisanship and compromise can work to better the lives of the American people. I enthusiastically support this legislation and urge my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Istook) for yielding the time to me and to say to the last speaker, the gentleman from California (Mr. Cunningham), one of the interesting things is about the needle exchange program in Baltimore, there are people who actually want the needle exchange program in certain areas, because they have discovered that it cleans up the needles. It gets rid of the problem. I think that one should take a look at that, and that is something very important. The other thing that I find so interesting is how the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Davis) and now the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Cunningham) have talked about the wonderful job that the mayor is doing. He is doing an outstanding job and a wonderful job. I would also say that the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) is doing a wonderful job. At some point in time, folks ought to be able to control D.C. themselves. We do not have to have Big Brother hanging around forever and forever. I think that it has been clear and it has been said here over and over again by both sides that they are doing an outstanding job. The motto for the District of Columbia is justice to all. Justice in the form of the ability of District of Columbia residents to use their own funds to operate needle exchange programs in areas they deem appropriate. Justice in allowing D.C. to determine appropriate laws to address the issue of tobacco use among minors. Justice in the right of District of Columbia residents and the city council to approve and enact legislation that will permit city employees to receive health insurance benefits for their long-term partners, regardless of gender, and to require insurers and employers to cover contraceptive if other prescription drugs are covered. Justice in increased funding for Metrorail construction at New York and Florida Avenues, Northeast, an area ripe for economic development. Justice in increased funding for tuition assistance for District of Columbia college-bound students, helping to offset out-of-State tuition costs at colleges and universities across the country. As a result of this program, numerous D.C. students applied to Maryland colleges and universities, including 10 at Coppin State University and Morgan State University in my district. Justice in the right of the District to use funds to petition for or file a civil action intended to obtain District voting representation in Congress. Unfortunately, if this bill is passed in its current form, justice to all will not prevail. Instead, this body will send a message to District residents that they are not to be afforded justice, but are to be burdened with requirements that Congress imposes on no other local jurisdiction and stripped of their right to make local decisions. I submit that it is our duty as lawmakers to ensure that justice is applied impartially and equally to all of our Nation's citizens. Therefore, I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill and support District residents and the principle of justice for all.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to discuss one of the most challenging and life-threatening public health issues facing the global community, HIV infection and AIDS. I will also highlight significant actions our government and fellow Americans have taken to combat this threat. HIV/AIDS is now the world's deadliest disease with more than 40 million persons infected worldwide. Not surprisingly, the pandemic affects the most vulnerable citizens of our global community. In fact, nearly 95 percent of infected persons live in the developing countries, with sub-Saharan Africa being the hardest hit of any other region in the world. The statistics are startling. New HIV infections in Africa have numbered more than 1.4 million each year since 1991. That is an average of more than 3,800 new HIV/AIDS infections per day. Nearly 6,000 will die within this same time frame. Mr. Speaker, 23.3 million adults and children are infected with the HIV virus in the region, which has about 10 percent of the world's population, but nearly 70 percent of the worldwide total of infected people. Life expectancy in these nations has been reduced by the disease to between 22 and 40 years. Some sub-Saharan African countries could lose as much as a third of their adult population by 2010, and 16 African countries have an HIV infection rate of more than 10 percent. South Africa is 20 percent, Zimbabwe and Swaziland are at 25 percent; and in Botswana, which has the highest infection rate in the region, 36 percent of adults are HIV infected. When I hear these daunting statistics, I am reminded of a quote by John F. Kennedy. He said, ``Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind.'' HIV/AIDS and its death toll have declared war on our humanity. We must fight back. All sectors and all spheres of society have to be involved as equal partners in fighting this assault. The health sector cannot meet this challenge on its own, nor can one government or nation. It is imperative that we have a collective global effort. Although I do believe we can do more, I am proud to say that the executive and legislative branches of our government, as well as the private sector, have taken significant steps in that direction. Earlier this month, the U.S. Export-Import Bank extended up to $1 billion in financing to 24 sub-Saharan African countries to buy anti-AIDS drugs. The financing will be combined with a $500 million commitment from the World Bank to help these countries purchase reduced-priced drugs, buy medical equipment, and develop specialized health services. More recently, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee), along with the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters), the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Jackson), and the Congressional Black Caucus successfully offered an amendment adding $42 million to the Infectious Disease Account for international HIV/AIDS funding in the House-passed version of the fiscal year 2001 Foreign Operations Appropriations Act. The amendment increased this important funding for HIV/AIDS to the President's original budget request of $244 million, which is $190 million over current-year funding. Additionally, during the 13th International Annual AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa this month, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation announced a round of grants amounting to $100 million to prevent AIDS in mothers and children, assist AIDS orphans, and relieve suffering in dying patients. Of this funding, a $50 million grant will go to Botswana, the country in sub-Sahara with the highest HIV infection rate. That will be matched mostly through drug donations by the U.S. Merck Pharmaceutical Corporation. When the history of this war is written, it will record the collective efforts of societies. Future generations will judge us on the adequacy of our response. I commend the Ex-Im Bank, my colleagues in this House, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for their compassion and foresight in addressing this issue.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to salute and congratulate a real American heroine, Lieutenant Colonel Karen Dixon, who hails from the Seventh Congressional District of Maryland. I was honored to attend a pinning and promotion ceremony for Lieutenant Colonel Dixon last Friday at the Women's Military Service Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington Virginia. During this ceremony, Lieutenant Colonel Dixon was promoted from the rank of Major to Lieutenant Colonel. Lieutenant Colonel Dixon is the ninth child of 11 children born to Alice and James Dixon. Of those 11 children, four have served in the military. She is an honors graduate of Catonsville High School and received several awards and served as a member of the All-State cross country team. She received a bachelor of arts degree in social work from Bennett College, where she was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Signal Corps upon selection as a distinguished military graduate. In 1995, she received a master's of arts degree in management from Webster University. Mr. Speaker, during her tenure in the Army, she has served in many capacities. She currently is assigned as a Department of the Army Systems Acquisition Management Coordinator, assigned to the Secretary of the Army's staff. Her next assignment is Chief of the Headquarters Branch, Joint Headquarters Regional Subcommand, NATO in Greece. Lieutenant Colonel Dixon is an American soldier, a person of capability and ideals. She has dedicated her life to an American Army that always must remain true to its principles, an Army that must always conduct itself with fairness. She understands that our commitment to fairness and merit is our strength. She has served this Nation well. And in the process, she has learned that no one gives us our freedom; it must be earned. No one guarantees fairness that we ourselves are not willing to affirm, even if that requires some personal risk on our part. Lieutenant Colonel Dixon understands that life is a struggle, but she is an American. She believes that when we persevere, fairness will ultimately prevail. The United States military is remarkable among the great fighting forces of the modern world. More often than not, the young people who have defended us and, all too often, have made the ultimate sacrifice have done so as volunteers. Last March, President Clinton applauded the service and achievements of all the women who have put on the uniform of the United States and fought for their country. As the President also recognized, however, obstacles to hard-earned recognition all too often remain, in the military and in civilian life. Mr. Speaker, we must continue to build a military which is as diverse as this wonderful Nation. Never again should gender predetermine a person's opportunity to serve. The ideals of American women and men, our commitment to freedom, to equality and fairness, have made this country the strongest in the world. We must never forget that. Fairness is the foundation of our freedom. Today, we acknowledge Lieutenant Colonel Karen Dixon for her competence and her commitment to American ideals and for her tremendous service. Lieutenant Colonel Dixon has demonstrated that merit will be recognized and fairness will prevail if we persevere. By her actions, she has shown that a commitment to fairness remains the foundation of America's strength. That is why I am so honored to represent Lieutenant Colonel Dixon in the Congress of the United States of America.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentlewoman for yielding me this time. I stand today, Mr. Chairman, to support this amendment to require OPM to conduct a study on alternative means to provide Federal employees with at least 6 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth or adoption of a child. I am an original cosponsor of H.R. 4567, which would provide that at least half of any leave taken by a Federal employee for the birth, adoption, or placement of a child be paid leave. Parenting is a key component to a child's development and eventual success in and contribution to a society. In 1993, the President signed the Family Medical Leave Act providing Federal workers with up to 12 weeks of unpaid job-protected leave for childbirth or adoption, which has benefited more than 20 million Americans. However, parents need more support to help balance their family and work responsibilities. A recent poll released by the National Parenting Association found that low-income parents and parents of very young children are the least likely to be able to take family leave due to the loss of income. Therefore, Mr. Chairman, I support this amendment.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, tonight I rise to salute and pay tribute to a friend, Bishop Vashti McKenzie, who was just elevated to be a bishop in the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Cincinnati just a few days ago. She is the first woman to achieve this high goal, and she is certainly very deserving. Bishop Vashti McKenzie, whose church is within one block of my house in the 7th Congressional District of Maryland, for many, many years has labored in the vineyards of lifting up people, pastoring the Payne Memorial A.M.E. Church and being a wonderful, wonderful pastor, a wonderful wife, and one who has constantly been about the business of empowering not only her church members but her community. Bishop McKenzie is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority, and she has been a very active member and she has constantly done things within the 7th Congressional District to address the question of how to empower people. She recently spent a tremendous amount of time working with the banks in Baltimore trying to make sure that they were not redlining. She spent a tremendous amount of effort pulling together banks and making sure that their lending practices were consistent throughout the entire Baltimore metropolitan area. But more important than that, even when she was not even considering running for the position of bishop, she constantly worked in the vineyards. I have often said that when one is unknown, unseen, unappreciated and unapplauded, it is what they do in those moments that really count. So I take a moment not only to salute Bishop Vashti McKenzie, but I also take a moment to salute the African Methodist Episcopal Church. There are so many churches that do not even want women to be pastors, and here is a church that not only have many pastors throughout these United States but has decided to elevate one of its daughters to be a bishop. It is with great honor that I recognize and thank Bishop Vashti McKenzie for all of her work; and, Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to congratulate her for her accomplishments.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. I thank the gentleman for yielding. I was just thinking about what you were saying. It is important that we do pay our teachers wages that are reasonable and that they can live off of. There was just an article in the paper in Baltimore that stated that as we move towards September, the September opening of school, we have a teacher shortage and we are doing everything in our power to find teachers. But one of the things that is for sure, we have got to pay them. We have got to pay them well. I want to go back to something you said about conditions of teaching. I was talking to some friends of mine who teach in private school. The interesting thing to note is that these folks were actually making a little less than they would make in public school. I said to them, why did you make that change? They said, because of the conditions. They were able to teach smaller classes. Their hearts are into making sure that every child succeeds, that no child is left behind, and they felt that the conditions, if it got to 34 or 35 kids in a class that trying to teach it was very, very difficult, not that they did not want to do a good job but it was very hard to be effective. I agree with you. One of the things that I was thinking about, too, as you were talking is that in Baltimore, one of our first high schools to get blue ribbon status was a school that I graduated from in high school that just got this national blue ribbon status, Baltimore City College High School. One of the things you were talking about a little earlier was the advanced courses, college courses. What that goes to is high standards, high standards and high expectations. I did not want to let that go by.

Mr. CUMMINGS. I know I would not either.

Mr. CUMMINGS. Someone once said that children are the living messages we send to a future we will never see. Children are the living messages we send to a future we will never see. As I listened, I could not help but think about the other day when I was jogging in a park near my home. As I was jogging, I literally ran past my eighth grade civics teacher. She waved. I did not realize it was her. Then I thought about it, I thought, she looks so familiar. I turned around and I said, Ms. Wilder, thank you for all that you have done for me. Thank you for all that you have done for me. Because I realized that here was someone who impacted my life back in the eighth grade, a son of two parents who never got past the first grade, but I knew that that teacher had impacted my life tremendously and taught me civics, some of which I use in this Chamber today, some 40 years later. And so all I am saying to you is that I agree with you, and there is something else that I just want to add, a footnote to what you just said. The American people want our children to be all that they were meant to be. I think one of the saddest things is for someone to have the potential and not be given the opportunity to be all that they can be. What does that deprive this wonderful society of? Of doctors, of heart surgeons. We have a gentleman in Baltimore, Dr. Benjamin Carson at Johns Hopkins Hospital who was almost a dropout from school. Now he is one of the most renowned neurosurgeons in the world. All I am saying to you, when we think about what we are trying to do here and talking about our schools and lifting up our children, I just believe in my heart that every child when they are born, there are certain things that are in that child that an education brings out. When we do the things that we are doing, that is, give them fertile ground in which to grow, then they can become all that they can be. But if we do not give them those opportunities, the things you just talked about, giving them classes that are small enough so that they can learn, giving them teachers that are skilled, giving them computers so that they can learn the best technology, giving them the tools to allow them to grow, then they are not only deprived for a few years, they are deprived for a lifetime.

Mr. CUMMINGS. For all children. I think what happens so often is that if you have low expectations, then children do not even know the standard to even reach for the high expectations. But one of the things that I have noticed, you and I had a discussion not long ago about when we go into our schools and what makes a good school, what do you see in a school, what do you experience in a school when you are visiting that tells you without anybody showing you any scores that it is a great school? One of the things that we talked about was that you had a strong principal. You had excitement. You could just see it on all the walls, the bulletin boards, that things were happening. But there was also an air of high expectations. I think that that is one of the things that we have got to get back to, that high expectation. When you talk about the schools that you have just talked about doing better, that sends a message to other schools and it says, if they can do it 20 miles down the road, we can do it, too. When Baltimore City College High School in Baltimore became one of the few predominantly African American schools in the country to become a national blue ribbon school, not only did it mean a lot to the students at that school but it meant a lot to the entire community. There were other students who were at other schools similar to Baltimore City College High School saying, we can do it, too. We have got to get back to that, to that positive role model stuff. A lot of times we hear about negative role models. I think years ago you had a lot of positive role models. There are a lot of positive role models today, in students, in schools, in neighbors. I think the things that we are talking about today are the good things about our schools. You are right. We hear so much negative, negative, negative but there are so many wonderful things happening since the last time you and I discussed this, because we have seen some smaller class sizes, we have seen our children in like the first, second and third grade, we have seen their scores going up in Baltimore, too, substantially.

Mr. CUMMINGS

Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Chairman, I was unavoidably detained by official business and was not present to vote on three amendments: Rollcall vote No. 396, on the Greenwood-Lowey amendment to H.R. 4811, had I been present I would have voted ``yea.'' Rollcall vote No. 397, on the Waters amendment to H.R. 4811, had I been present I would have voted ``yea.'' Rollcall vote No. 398, on the Lee amendment to H.R. 4811, had I been present I would have voted ``yea.''