Kathy Castor

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I anticipate on the floor of the House today we will hear some debate over the role of faith-based organizations in Head Start. Republicans would like language that would repeal existing civil rights protections in this Head Start law that ensure the program's Federal funds discriminate, and we are opposed to that. No citizen should have to pass a religious test to qualify for a publicly funded job. That is exactly what some on the other side of the aisle will attempt to do today. Religious organizations who run Head Start programs are not asking for this change. They have written us to oppose it. Head Start teachers and staff should be chosen because they are qualified and they are effective teachers who will help children succeed and thrive. Hiring and firing decisions should not be made because of a teacher's religion. This is part of an ongoing attempt, I am afraid, by some on the other side of the aisle to make religion a wedge issue. Democrats strongly support faith-based organizations running Head Start programs, and H.R. 1429 on the floor today specifically reaffirms that faith-based organizations may run Head Start programs. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Vermont (Mr. Welch), my colleague from the Rules Committee.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 348 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Ms. CASTOR. For the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart). All time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only. General Leave

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous materials into the Record.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 348 provides for consideration of H.R. 1429, the Improving Head Start Act of 2007, under a structured rule. The rule provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chairman and the ranking minority member of the Committee on Education and Labor. The rules waive all points of order against the bill except those arising under clauses 9 or 10 of rule XXI. The rule makes in order and provides appropriate waivers for 12 amendments, all contained in the committee report. Mr. Speaker, for more than 40 years Head Start has served as the premier educational and developmental program for more than 20 million American children and families. Head Start works. It works because it is a well-researched, comprehensive initiative that combines children's educational needs with health care and parent outreach. This comprehensive approach to child health, nutrition and learning is one of our best tools to tackle the achievement gap in education for children living in poverty across our Nation. The achievement gap begins far before children enter elementary school. Head Start tackles the achievement gap through cognitive, social and emotional child development, each of which is a key contributor to entering elementary school prepared to succeed. Today 20 percent of America's 12 million children under age 6 live in poverty. We know that a family's income level greatly affects their children's access to educational opportunities. The reality of poverty for so many children, unfortunately, is tied to low success rates in our classrooms. This is true in my home State of Florida. In my community in the Tampa Bay area, over 5,300 children currently are served by Head Start, but many thousands more are on waiting lists and are eligible. They are on waiting lists because for so many years previous Congresses have failed to reenact Head Start, and the White House has proposed flat-line budgets, so our kids merely have been treading water. With no improvements or increases in funding since 2003, and inflation going up, it has become more difficult to maintain the well- known, high-quality elements in Head Start. The good news is that this new Congress will change that today and make the smartest investment for our country's future workforce. We are going to put more kids on the path to success when we pass this bill and rule today. This bill will improve teacher and classroom quality, strengthen the focus on school readiness, expand access to thousands more children across America, strengthen comprehensive services, increase the number of children in early Head Start, because we are a lot smarter these days based upon the research that has been done on early child development and the development of the brain. We are going to allow homeless children to enroll, and we are going to do a better job, my colleague from Florida, for children who are just learning English. On Monday, I paid a visit to the West Tampa Head Start Center and delivered books to the kids and teachers to mark the four decades of smashing success of this holistic, wraparound initiative that empowers all of us. These children are eager and ready to learn if we give them the tools. We need to raise strong and healthy children. Head Start prepares children to succeed in school and in life. The administration's slow- motion cuts of Head Start over past years will now be reversed. The American people stood up in November and asked for change, and today we are going to stand up for them. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Sutton), my colleague from the Rules Committee.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I would inquire of the gentleman from Florida if he has any remaining speakers.

Ms. CASTOR. Our side has no remaining speakers, except for my closing. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, we do have one final speaker before my closing remarks. I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Kind).

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the Improving Head Start Act of 2007 and this rule so that we infuse Head Start with the necessary investments and program enhancements that will sustain Head Start for years to come. We will chart a new course in the right direction by ensuring family incomes do not impede a child's access to educational opportunities. The fact that the administration and the past few Congresses did not keep the promise to America's children is unfortunate. We have lost ground. But the good news is that this new Democratic Congress is charting a new direction. This includes wise investments in the education and health of our kids, which are certain to pay dividends for years to come. Mr. Speaker, this is an important day for America. The Congress is going to keep the promise made 4 decades ago to children who are born with the same potential but, because of their life circumstances, are in need of a little extra attention, health care, nutrition, the guiding hand of a knowledgeable, talented, devoted teacher, and a true head start. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the previous question and on the rule. The material previously referred to by Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart of Florida is as follows: Amendment to H. RES. 348 Offered by Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart of Florida At the end of the resolution, add the following: Sec. 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of this resolution, the amendment printed in section 4 shall be in order as though printed as the last amendment in the report of the Committee on Rules if offered by Representative Price of Georgia or a designee. That amendment shall be debatable for 30 minutes equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent. Sec. 4. The amendment referred to in section 3 is as follows: Page 36, after line 12, insert the following (and make such technical and conforming changes as may be appropriate): ``(3) Emergency exit doors.-- ``(A) Effective date.--Section 1310.12(a) of title 45, Code of Federal Regulations, shall become effective on the effective date of this paragraph. ``(B) Covered vehicles.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any vehicle used to transport children for a Head Start program after effective date of this paragraph, shall be subject to a requirement under such section (including a requirement based on the definitions set forth or referenced in section 1310.3 or any other provision set forth or referenced in part 1310 of such title, or any corresponding similar regulation or ruling) concerning rear exit doors.''.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Madam Speaker, today the House will vote on and hopefully pass the emergency supplemental bill. To the individuals who disagree with this new direction and our demand for accountability, I ask, how much longer will you continue to sanction the undermining of our national security under the Bush-Cheney policy? As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I ask this because this bill states that ``no units may be deployed to Iraq unless they are fully mission capable.'' What are you saying if you vote against this measure? In the Armed Services Committee, the Army Chief of Staff testified that the Bush- Cheney strategy is outstripping the means to execute it. Our ground forces in the U.S. are short of training, personnel and equipment. This is very serious, and I ask how anyone can vote against this bill and sanction the unwise Bush-Cheney course. The risk to our Nation is serious and deepening. We must change direction, make more strategic decisions and bring our diplomatic, economic and moral forces to bear to protect our national security.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. I thank my distinguished colleague from the Rules Committee for yielding time. Mr. Speaker, I urge support of H.R. 1257 to provide a reality check to the skyrocketing compensation of CEOs of corporations across America. From 1995 to 2005, average CEO pay increased five times faster than that of the average worker. The American people understand the growing disparities in earnings in our country. The average CEO makes more money before lunch than the average worker earns all year. So today I urge my colleagues to bring a measure of accountability to the boardroom by allowing shareholders to voice their opinions in a meaningful way about the multimillion-dollar paydays of their CEOs. Last week, one of my hometown newspapers, the St. Petersburg Times, reported on ``Corporate Paydays That Boggle the Mind.'' They reported that in one of the richest corporate paydays ever, the CEO of oil company Occidental Petroleum Corporation received a total compensation package last year of $416 million. These record profits and paydays at a time when my neighbors and the American people are paying record prices at the gas pump highlights the need for a new direction in this country for energy policy. Similarly, record profits and paydays at HMO and pharmaceutical companies raise red flags at a time when patients and doctors and hospitals have lost control to many of the Bush privatization schemes in our health care system. The new Democratic Congress passed legislation fortunately during the first 100 hours to require the negotiation of the Medicare part D drug price benefit. This is very important. It's un-American to block the negotiation of fair prices under Medicare part D. What I hear from my seniors back home is that they want Medicare part D to be simpler so that it works for them, so that it works for our seniors and it works for our taxpayers and not simply benefit the HMOs, the big drug companies and their CEOs for these large corporate paydays. So, Mr. Speaker, I urge support of this rule and this bill to allow shareholders to send a message about corporate paydays that boggle the mind and bring a measure of accountability to our American boardrooms.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I thank my distinguished colleague from the Rules Committee. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the RECOVER Act and this rule which charts a new direction for emergency and hurricane planning, because the Federal Government simply must be ready to respond in a crisis. Small Business Committee Chair Nydia Velazquez and her committee deserve credit for understanding the expectations of the American people, who have insisted upon better disaster relief planning. My colleagues from Florida, and indeed, our neighbors and citizens across the gulf coast, begin to feel a bit apprehensive this time of year because hurricane season is only a few weeks away. Yes, we are all worried about the potential landfall of a hurricane, but we are also just as concerned about the administration's ability to deal with the aftermath. Following the Bush administration's poor response to the 2005 gulf coast hurricanes, the new Congress has pledged to strengthen disaster planning and response, and we are following through here today. The RECOVER Act will improve the Small Business Administration's disaster response plans and assess its technology, telecommunications and personnel in advance. In the event of another hurricane or natural disaster, small business owners will face costs of starting up again, so this act increases the funds available for disaster loans from $1.5 to $3 million. And importantly for the hardworking folks like those in my district in the Tampa Bay area, small business owners will no longer be required to pledge their homes as collateral for business loans less than $100,000. The act also requires the SBA to improve coordination with State and local authorities and establishes a disaster relief corps of 1,000 trained individuals. So, Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge approval of this rule and the RECOVER Act so that our country is better prepared for hurricane season and the swift recovery of our communities and small businesses.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished chair of the terrorism subcommittee, Mr. Smith. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the commitment, dedication and sacrifice of the men, women and extended family of Special Operations Command. Special Operations Command is located in Tampa, Florida, at MacDill Air Force Base in my district, and I am very proud to use this week, the 20th anniversary of the command's founding, to salute their service. There is little doubt that a need still exists for the well- coordinated special forces. There are just some things that conventional forces are not set up to do. Special forces have been around for centuries. But SOCOM can directly trace its roots to the Office of Strategic Services, the OSS, the intelligence agency that was formed during World War II. Tampa resident Art Frizzell, who is 87, served as an OSS agent. He parachuted behind German lines in France and worked with French partisans to blow up bridges and help organize the resistance during World War II. In many ways, Frizzell said, special operations were as much about brains and unconventional warfare in the 1940s as they are today. We recognized, Frizzell said, that we had to be flexible. We did the job that nobody else could do. So at this 20th anniversary, we salute the brave men and women who have served our country in the special operations, much of which you will never understand or know. But the American people trust in their service. So on this day, on behalf of the Florida's 11th District, proud home of Special Operations Command, we salute your service and thank you.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 274 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Ohio and distinguished member of the Rules Committee, Ms. Sutton.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Mitchell).

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from New York (Mr. Arcuri), a member of the Rules Committee.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, 4 years after the start of the war in Iraq, and less than 100 days since the swearing in of this new Congress, this Congress will act today. I urge my colleagues to support this rule and this legislation so we can pass the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act of 2007. Let's send a message, let's stand up for our brave troops in the field, not just when they are serving on the battlefield, but when they return home. Let's give the families the respect they deserve and make sure that we are providing superior health care whether it's a physical injury or a mental scar. Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``yes'' vote on the previous question and on the rule. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 274 provides for consideration of H.R. 1538, the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act of 2007, under a structured rule. The rule provides 1 hour and 20 minutes of general debate with 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Armed Services, and 20 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. The rule waives all points of orders against consideration of the bill except clauses 9 and 10 of rule XXI. The rule provides that the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the Committee on Armed Services shall be considered as an original bill for the purpose of amendment and shall be considered as read. The rule waives all points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended. The rule makes in order only those further amendments printed in the Rules Committee report accompanying the resolution; in this case, eight Democratic amendments and four Republican amendments. The amendments may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report, equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. All points of order against the amendment except for clauses 9 and 10 of rule XXI are waived. The rule provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Finally, the rule permits the Chair, during consideration of H.R. 1538, to postpone further consideration to a time designated by the Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the American people and this new Congress demand, through this rule and this legislation, that the executive branch move beyond the rhetoric of ``support our troops'' to concrete actions that sustain our brave men and women in uniform and their families by providing the quality health care they deserve when they return from the battlefield. Supporting our troops does not mean that you simply salute as you send them off to war, ask them to serve in sacrifice for our great country, but it also means that they are supported when they come home, their families are respected, and our wounded warriors receive superior health care for their physical injuries and mental scars. This might sound familiar from the Washington Post: ``The conflict in Iraq has hatched a town of desperation and dysfunction, clinging to the pilings of Walter Reed. The wounded are socked away for months and years in random buildings and barracks in and around the military post. Mostly what the soldiers do together is wait: for appointments, evaluation, signatures and lost paperwork to be found. `It's like,' one military wife said, `if Iraq don't kill you, Walter Reed will.' While a part of Walter Reed has a full bar, there is not one counselor or psychologist assigned there to assist soldiers and families in crisis-- an idea proposed by Walter Reed social workers but rejected by the military command that runs the post.'' To the other end of Pennsylvania Avenue, I say what a shame that the American people had to have their eyes opened by two dedicated Washington Post reporters as to the treatment of our veterans, the incompetence and the profound disrespect. These reporters spent hundreds of hours documenting the intimate struggles of the wounded warriors who live at Walter Reed. Their stories triggered others from across the country, like in my hometown paper, the Tampa Tribune. The Tampa Tribune last week told the story of soldier John Barnes who was injured by a mortar in Iraq just last year. Barnes was fortunate, he had a mother who was a dedicated nurse who stood by him during his days at Walter Reed. Barnes, now 23, was frequently left unattended, his mother, Valerie Wallace said, even though he had a severe brain injury. He fell repeatedly. Orderlies failed to arrive on time to wheel him to appointments. Medicines were given in the wrong doses; paperwork was lost or never filed. `` `I don't think anybody planned this war far out,' said Wallace, an energetic woman who looks younger than her 45 years. `If you are going to invade a country and you are expecting to be there for years, you've got to know there are going to be thousands of casualties,' she said. `How are you going to take care of them? Where are you going to put them?' ``Wallace is a registered nurse who has worked for more than a decade at Tampa General Hospital. She wasn't intimidated by the staff at Walter Reed, and she knew what questions to ask. Still, the layers of bureaucracy were overwhelming. The need to remain constantly vigilant was exhausting. Trust quickly evaporated. `` `Nobody tells you anything,' Wallace said. 'Nobody prepares you for anything. You're very much on your own in a world you don't know or understand, and you are so overcome with grief and worry that you can't think straight anyway.' '' Well, these and other stories emboldened military families across the country and all Americans to stand up and demand better treatment for our troops and families who have sacrificed so much. As Speaker Pelosi reminds us often, the support provided to our troops by the Bush administration has not matched their sacrifice, and, Mr. Speaker, we will rectify that today. I wish, back in late 2003, when an Army specialist from Tampa named Corey Magee contacted my office, because I was a county commissioner before I was elected to Congress. His family contacted me and said Corey has been shot in the fire fight in Fallujah after an IED blew up his tank. He was shot in the neck and paralyzed and eventually flown to Walter Reed. In some God-given circumstance, I happened to be traveling to Washington that weekend and was able to assemble a care package from his family to deliver to Corey. But they couldn't find out what his situation was. We called and called. We enlisted the help of a United States Senator at the time who was on the Veterans' Committee. We still couldn't get through the bureaucracy. I had to travel with the Senator's staff to Walter Reed Hospital, and track down the doctor to find out what brave Corey Magee's prognosis was. He was a brave young guy, and really in his condition couldn't ask for help on his own. And do you know, after that he thanked us profusely for contacting his family and filling them in. He said, ``I am sure we won't have to call you again. They are going to take good care of me.'' He returned to Tampa, and I was surprised a few weeks later to get a phone call from this brave Army specialist because he was having trouble getting his physical therapy appointments at the Veterans Hospital. So this bill, though it is a step in the right direction today, comes a bit too late. I wish this bill and I wish the attention had been focused earlier and the respect paid to these families by the Bush administration. As I visited the Bay Pines VA Medical Center in St. Petersburg just a few weeks ago, you see there are a few brave soldiers there who are very symbolic of soldiers across the country that are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. One of the soldiers was in his early 20s, had served in Iraq, come back, trying to get his life together, but it was too much. The mental scars were too much. The post-traumatic stress set in. His young marriage faltered. He lost his job, meaning he eventually lost his home, and ended up as an alcoholic, a homeless alcoholic in his early 20s because of post-traumatic stress disorder. What he explained to me was what he needed when he came out of the service was a helping hand. He needed someone proactively to say, are you all right, son, rather than to give him a checklist to check off to make sure he was okay. These are tough guys. They are not going to own up oftentimes to the fact that they cannot sleep at night and they want to drink their sorrows and memories away. Fortunately, I think the American people can be very heartened today to know that this is a bipartisan effort. Under the leadership of our Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, I am very fortunate to serve on the Armed Services Committee under the leadership of Chairman Ike Skelton, and I salute him and the ranking member for moving this legislation quickly. We salute the Veterans' Affairs Committee and Chairman Bob Filner but, mostly, the leadership of the American people who have cried out for change. Through this rule and this bill, we are going to improve the health care and mental health for our wounded warriors. We are going to tackle the bureaucracy on their behalf. We are going to establish a toll-free hotline so that families and soldiers and anyone who cares about them can report deficiencies in our system. We are going to require expedited action. Thanks to the leadership of subcommittee Chair Vic Snyder, now Members of Congress that have desired information about the soldiers returning to their districts are going to be notified. Members of Congress oftentimes can be the best advocates for these returning soldiers, and now it will be a requirement in the law. We are going to provide medical advocates to these soldiers. We are going to improve support services to families; and, rather than mismanage resources, we are going to turn the White House's privatization initiative around and require accountability. Coming from Tampa, the home of the Haley VA Center and one of the four polytrauma centers in the country, I am especially heartened by the provisions in this bill that improve veterans health care by providing more physician residents in those polytrauma centers. ABC's News anchor, Bob Woodruff, brought this to life in his hour-long expose a few weeks ago. He visited the Haley Polytrauma Center in Tampa. These are where the most critically injured soldiers are sent for their health care, the brain injuries, the spinal cord injuries. What Dr. Robert Scott, the medical director at that medical facility, told me a few weeks ago is, even though the polytrauma center is directly across the street from the University of South Florida College of Medicine, they cannot get the physician residents in training. The Feds are not providing enough. We need these doctors in training to learn and train about these critical war injuries and the physical therapy that our soldiers need. So, Mr. Speaker, I urge this new Congress to chart a new direction today and to erase the moral stain on our Nation's conscience. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Hastings). All time yielded during consideration of the rule is for debate only. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Ms. CASTOR asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished Rules Committee Chair. Mr. Speaker, the Iraq Accountability Act under this rule is the most responsible way to chart a new direction to the Bush-Cheney stay-the- course policy in Iraq, to bring our troops home and to protect our national security. The American people are way beyond the politicians at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. Nevertheless, our government is at a crossroads. On the one hand, some want to continue to endorse the Bush-Cheney war without end, a war that the administration sought because they were blinded by the prospects of oil profits. They want to continue a blank- check, rubber-stamp, diplomatically impotent position. On the other hand, I urge my colleagues to patriotically stand up for a greater Nation, be strategically smarter and support our brave men and women in uniform. That is the responsible course of action. Ensuring that our troops in the field have all of the resources they require is the responsible thing to do. Focusing again in a meaningful way on al Qaeda and the Taliban is the responsible thing to do. Improving health care for injured soldiers and veterans is the responsible thing to do. And oversight of the misspending and waste by the executive branch is the responsible thing to do. Requiring the Iraqi Government to provide for its own defense is the right and responsible thing to do, so that we can take our brave men and women in uniform out of the middle of the Iraqi civil war and bring our troops home. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I am particularly concerned that the reckless Bush escalation will continue to undermine our country's readiness and ability to address other threats to our national security. Indeed, in recent testimony before our committee, the Army Chief of Staff testified that America will run a strategic risk by implementing the escalation and staying on the same course in Iraq. The American people are demanding a new direction from the White House. This includes one of my neighbors in Tampa, Armando B. Arias. Mr. Arias would meet anyone's definition of ``patriot.'' He loves his country and has served in two separate wars--World War II and Korea. When I asked him a few months back when I knocked on his door in West Tampa what he most wanted his new Congresswoman to work on, he replied immediately, ``get out of the war and ring our kids home.'' I am proud to be here today to keep that commitment to Armando Arias and Americans everywhere who are demanding fundamental change. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this rule and the Iraq Accountability Act.

Ms. CASTOR

Ms. CASTOR. Madam Speaker, to correct the record, the cost that the gentleman from Texas referred to was in section 203 of the bill. That section was deleted in the Armed Services Committee markup and is not in the base text. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the distinguished gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Sutton).