James Comer

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise today in support of H.R. 1242, the 400 Years of African- American History Commission Act, introduced by Congressman Bobby Scott of Virginia. H.R. 1242 establishes a historical commission commemorating the 400th anniversary of the arrival of Africans in Virginia in 1619. The bill creates a commission to plan programs and activities in 2019 to recognize the arrival, influence, and historical importance of Africans in America. Congress has previously established similar commissions to celebrate historical anniversaries. For example, there was a commission on the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown, Virginia, and the 450th anniversary of the founding of St. Augustine, Florida. As we reach the 400th anniversary of the arrival of Africans in Virginia, establishing this commission allows for the opportunity to acknowledge the horrible impact slavery has had in America. This is an opportunity to commemorate the resilience and contributions of African Americans in our country. While that chapter in our history is a painful one, this is a story that must be told to acknowledge how profoundly unrecognizable our Nation would be without the contribution of African Americans. The commission will work with State and local groups to coordinate the commemoration and public education. The commission will be funded by private donations, not taxpayer dollars, and will terminate shortly after the anniversary activities conclude. The bill authorizes the commission to provide grants to further the historical and cultural activities carried out in commemoration of the anniversary. The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform approved this bill on March 28, 2017. I thank Congressman Scott for his leadership on this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Grothman).

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring awareness to April being National Donate Life Month. There are currently 117,992 people who need lifesaving organ transplants. Of those, there are nearly 1,000 Kentuckians on that list. To put it in perspective, every 10 minutes, someone is added to that list. Despite advances in medicine, there continues to be a gap between supply and demand. On average, 22 people die each day while waiting for a transplant. Kentucky legislation passed in 2006 enabling its residents to have their wishes documented through the Kentucky Organ Donor Registry. By joining the registry, an individual's wishes are documented electronically in a safe and secure database. Several States have also created their own registry. Ninety-five of Americans are in favor of being a donor, but only 54 percent are registered. This is why registering to be an organ donor is so important. Mr. Speaker, I would also like to recognize my field representative, Amelia Wilson, who received a liver transplant in 2005, and is currently awaiting a second transplant. Amelia, my longtime friend and a fellow Monroe County native, resides in Livingston County with her husband, Allen Wilson. After courageously undergoing her first transplant, Amelia has dedicated herself to advocating for organ donation. We are lucky to have her serving the First District as our field representative. Beyond her service to Kentucky, her activism for this noble cause is what truly elevates her as an advocate, friend, and servant of the First District. During National Donate Life Month, I encourage everyone to remember the bravery and diligence of people like Amelia. This April, please consider the importance of donating life.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to recognize Mr. Elbert Bennett for his service as president of the Kentucky Magistrates and Commissioners Association board of directors. Elbert, one of nine children, was born in Princeton, Kentucky. After graduating Caldwell County High School in 1967, he began working at The Times Leader newspaper in Caldwell County. He has accomplished much since starting at that newspaper. Elbert held office in the Kentucky Young Farmers Association and was elected magistrate in 2002. Prior to this election, Elbert served 20 years on the Fredonia City Council. Elbert has been a lifelong cattle farmer, is the former president of the Fredonia Lions Club, and is an active member of the Cattlemen's Association. Most recently, Elbert has given his time to the Wounded Warrior Project, cooking barbecue and hosting veterans on his farms. Elbert is widely known and respected as a barbecue cook, cooking for thousands at church events, Lions Club events and children's events. In 2008, Elbert Bennett's peers elected him to the Kentucky Magistrates and Commissioners Association board of directors. He has held every office inside the State association, including sergeant-at- arms, secretary, treasurer, vice president, and president. While president of KMCA, the association has had many legislative victories, including stabilizing essential 911 resources for cities and counties in Kentucky. One of Elbert's most notable accomplishments as president of KMCA is the association's annual children's shoe drive, which donates over 600 pairs of shoes annually to needy schoolchildren all across the Commonwealth of Kentucky. He was recently elected to the Kentucky Association of Counties executive board as second vice president, where he represents the magistrates and commissioners. I cannot speak highly enough about Elbert Bennett and how his service has positively influenced the First District and the Commonwealth of Kentucky as a whole. I am honored to recognize Elbert Bennett today and the great work he does for the people of our State.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay special recognition to the Campbellsville University Lady Tigers women's basketball team upon making the entire Commonwealth of Kentucky proud with another successful college basketball season. The Lady Tigers finished with a 28-7 record and appeared in their second NAIA Fab Four round in 3 years. In their final four game in Billings, Montana, against Oklahoma City, two girls from my home county of Monroe had career highlights. Madison Clements hit six 3-pointers and Lauren Turner had nine assists. The Campbellsville University Lady Tigers are also coached by a Monroe County girl, Ginger High Colvin. The Campbellsville University Lady Tigers have been one of the most dominant college girls basketball programs in the NAIA over the past 20 years. Campbellsville University is one of Kentucky's finest educational institutions, and I am very proud that Campbellsville is in the First Congressional District of Kentucky.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, on March 20, 2017, I was unavoidably detained during Roll Call vote numbers 173, 174 and 175. Had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 173, YEA on Roll Call No. 174, and YEA on Roll Call No. 175.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I will be brief. Mr. Speaker, I am so glad to join with 55 other of my freshman colleagues to pledge the commitment to civility. We all took different paths to get here. We are all from different parts of the United States. We all have different backgrounds and different stories. But one thing we all did to get here in this freshman class is we campaigned hard, and we listened to our constituents. Whether our constituents were conservative or liberal, whether they lived in the city or in small towns, they all shared a frustration about Congress. They shared the frustration that Congress was at gridlock and both parties fought. Many times, people filed bills, knowing they would fail, just so they could get before a TV camera and grandstand and blame the other party. When I got to Congress, I didn't know what to expect. The first thing that we did was attend a retreat. We got to know each other. I left that retreat inspired because, Mr. Speaker, I believe that this freshman class is committed to trying to work together to accomplish things that we agree on. There are issues that we will never agree on, but there are issues we do agree on. We do agree that we need to create an environment where every American has access to a good-paying job. We do agree that we need to have a military that protects its citizens. There are so many issues that we agree on. I pledge to work with this freshman class in the future to try to create a working environment in which we can put every American first and try to accomplish things to work together.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor the life and legacy of Thomas Jefferson Barlow, III--a former Member of this honorable body--who passed away on Tuesday, January 31, at the age of 76. Mr. Barlow, a Democrat, represented the citizens of Kentucky's First Congressional District from January 3, 1993, until January 3, 1995. Mr. Barlow was a tremendous public servant who had a positive impact on thousands of people. He was dedicated to making lives better, but he never sought fame or glory. He got satisfaction in having his voice heard and in influencing public policy. He was born in Washington, D.C., but his family roots ran deep in Ballard County, Kentucky, where his ancestor and namesake, Thomas Jefferson Barlow, was an original settler in the town of Barlow. He grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and graduated from Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. In his political career and private life, he worked tirelessly to help the less fortunate, to create jobs, to improve the environment, and to improve education. His professional career included work in State government and as a business executive. Although he lost his reelection bid in 1994, he was not discouraged and continued to make his voice heard by running for additional races for the House and the U.S. Senate. In fact, he used the same vehicle in all of his campaigns, and its odometer topped 400,000 miles when it finally wore out after 13 years. He was always outspoken and stood up for what he felt was right even if it was in opposition to his own political party's views. He lived with his wife of 28 years, Shirley Pippin Barlow, in Paducah, Kentucky, where he was a former director of the River City Mission, which helped homeless people get on their feet, and the Lone Oak Kiwanis Club. He was also an active member of the Grace United Methodist Church in La Center, Kentucky. I ask my colleagues to join me in sending condolences to the Barlow family.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life and legacy of Thomas Jefferson Barlow III, a former member of this honorable body, who died Tuesday January 31, 2017, at the age of 76. Mr. Barlow, a Democrat, represented the citizens of Kentucky's 1st Congressional District from January 3, 1993, until January 3, 1995. He was not a typical politician. In 1992, he defeated a nine-term incumbent in what was one of the country's biggest upsets of that political cycle. He was outspent in that campaign by more than 4 to 1 and won because of his hard work and downhome, face-to-face campaign style. He narrowly lost his reelection bid in the Republican wave of 1994. Mr. Barlow was a tremendous public servant who had a positive impact on thousands of people. He was dedicated to making lives better but never sought fame or glory. He got satisfaction out of having his voice heard and influencing public policy. He was born in Washington, D.C., but his family roots ran deep in Ballard County, Ky., where his ancestor and name sake, Thomas Jefferson Barlow, was an original settler in the town of Barlow. He grew up in Chevy Chase, Maryland and graduated from Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. He received a degree in history from Haverford College near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In his political career and private life, he worked tirelessly to help the less fortunate, create jobs, improve the environment and improve education. His professional career included work in state government, as a business executive, a banker and as a consultant for the Natural Resources Council from 1972 until 1983 when he returned to his family roots in western Kentucky. Although he lost his reelection bid in 1994, he was not discouraged and continued to make his voice heard by running additional races for the House and the U.S. Senate. In fact, Mr. Speaker, he used the same vehicle in all of his campaigns and its speedometer topped 400,000 miles when it finally wore out after 13 years. He was always outspoken and stood up for that he felt was right, even if it was in opposition to the views of his political party. He lived with his wife of 28 years, Shirley Pippin Barlow, in Paducah, Kentucky, where he was a former director of the River City Mission, which helped homeless get on their feet, and the Lone Oak Kiwanis Club. He also was an active member of Grace United Methodist Church in La Center, Kentucky. In addition to his wife, he is survived by a daughter, Allison Barlow Ochshorn of New York; a son, Thomas J. Barlow IV of Michigan; grandchildren, Nora Barlow and Rose Barlow who live in England, Tessa Ochshorn and Sarah Ochshorn both of New York; a sister, Henrietta Friedholm of Michigan; a brother, William Barlow of Colorado; step- children, Gerri Clark of Paducah, Elaine Duke of Tennessee, Edward Yancy of Kentucky; step-grandchildren, Chad Clark of Kentucky, Brandon Duke of Tennessee, Eliza Clark of Kentucky, and Wesley Duke of Tennessee. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Milner & Orr Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Paducah, Kentucky, with Rev. Jamie Curtis and Pastor Charles Moore officiating. Burial will follow at Woodlawn Memorial Gardens. Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday at the funeral home.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in favor of repealing the stream protection rule. I represent a coal-producing district whose economy has been devastated by the former President's and his renegade of unelected bureaucrats' war on coal. Last year, a Presidential candidate boasted among a liberal political crowd that she would put a bunch of coal miners out of work. She went on to say that the government would then essentially come in and put those hardworking, out-of-work coal miners on welfare. Well, Mr. Speaker, my coal miners don't want to be on government welfare. They want the government to get out of their way and let them work. Because of senseless, onerous regulations like the stream protection rule, the liberals in Washington have succeeded in putting most coal miners out of work. I believe that with the passage of H.J. Res. 38 and a sensible energy policy created and implemented by businesspeople instead of bureaucrats, we can begin to bring coal jobs back to Kentucky and help provide the struggling economies in Kentucky's coal counties.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Georgia for yielding. It is indeed an honor to be a Member of this great body. I ran a 14-month campaign for Congress not simply to have a prestigious title ahead of my name or to simply come to Washington to point fingers at the other political party and blame everybody else for our Nation's many problems. Rather, I ran for Congress so I could come here and work to solve our Nation's many challenges. The First Congressional District of Kentucky stretches from the foothills of Appalachia all the way to the western most counties along the Mississippi River. It is a conservative, rural district comprised of 35 unique counties with the main industries being agriculture, coal, and manufacturing. My constituents feel like Washington has forgotten them. Unfair trade agreements have cost us good-paying manufacturing jobs. The EPA's war on coal has devastated the coal economy and its massive economic spin- off. Overburdensome regulations like waters of the U.S. threaten the viability of our family farmers, and an unsustainable government takeover of our healthcare system, better known as ObamaCare, has significantly increased healthcare premiums on my small businesses and working middle-class families. Mr. Speaker, as I stand here today, there is a great sense of hope in Kentucky. My district voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump and voted out of office six incumbent Democrat State representatives. My people expressed their displeasure at the polls, and for once they feel like their voices were heard and their votes mattered. I have heard my people's cries. As a farmer, small-business owner, and parent of three small children, I have also felt their pain. Mr. Speaker, I pledge here today to work with my fellow freshmen colleagues, the incoming Trump administration, and the leadership in Congress to make America great again. I am proud that in the first 2 weeks of this Congress we have passed bills to undo the regulatory damage that the Obama administration has done to our businesses. In the coming weeks, I look forward to repealing the failing ObamaCare healthcare system and replacing it with a market-driven healthcare fix. I am confident that I can play a role in working with the new administration to renegotiate our main trade deals to ensure that American workers are on a level playing field. There is a better way to run America. The assault on the private sector must end. The disregard and disrespect for conservative, pro- family values must end. The bloated Federal Government must shrink and Congress must regain control of our Federal Government away from unelected bureaucrats. That is the will of the people of Kentucky One. The voters spoke loudly on November 8. I look forward to working with my fellow freshmen colleagues to ensure that we improve our economy, abide by the Constitution, and restore the confidence of the American people.

Mr. COMER

Mr. COMER. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the dean of the majority party, the minority party, and the great State of Kentucky. I want to begin by recognizing my guests from Kentucky. They are on each side of the gallery here today. I thank them for their support and friendship over the years and for making the long drive to D.C. tonight. Next, I want to recognize my lovely wife, T.J., in the gallery and my daughter, Aniston. I am also blessed to have my two oldest children, Reagan and Harlan, here today. It is the honor of a lifetime to join membership in this great legislative body, the greatest in the history of the world. Yet, at this particular time that I speak to this historic body, our Nation is deeply divided. We need statesmen. I pledge to be a statesman who wants to get things done. I will work with any Member of this body to try to accomplish things, especially to create an environment where every American can have access to a good-paying job. I pledge to be a strong voice for rural Kentucky, rural America, and family farmers. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I thank the people of the great State of Kentucky. And I believe with all my heart that we can work together and make America great again. Thank you all very much.