Nathan Deal

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, this is an amendment that provides as follows: that none of the funds made available in this act may be used to provide assistance to the government of any country with which the United States has an extradition treaty and which has failed to permit the extradition to the United States for trial or sentencing in the United States of individuals accused of committing criminal offenses for which the maximum penalty is life imprisonment without the possibility of parole or a lesser term of imprisonment. This is foreign operations appropriations. Normally, most of the discussions that we have relate to activities that occur in other countries and the amount of money that we are going to send from taxpayers in this country to another country. The heart of this amendment, however, relates to things that are happening here in our own country. The classic example that I would cite to this body to illustrate the magnitude of this problem occurred a little over 2 years ago when Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy David March pulled over a Mexican national named Armando Garcia, a twice-deported illegal alien who had been convicted of drug activities and who had currently two outstanding warrants for attempted murder. Garcia knew that if he were arrested, he would probably be deported for a third time and perhaps go to prison. As Officer March approached the automobile, Garcia pulled a handgun and shot Officer March; and as he lay on the ground, Garcia exited his vehicle and shot Officer March again to make sure that he was dead. Garcia then immediately fled to Mexico where he apparently remains free today. Several months after this incident occurred, the Supreme Court of Mexico ruled that they would not allow extradition for anyone who faced imprisonment of life without the possibility of parole. Most extradition treaties that we have around the world already exclude the extradition of individuals who would face capital punishment. In the State of California in this case, the mandatory or optional sentence would be life without parole or the death penalty for the killing of a police officer in the line of duty. So what we have is a police officer who has been executed by a foreign national in our country who has now fled back to his home country, who cannot be brought back to trial in this country for that murder and who will not be tried in his own country for that murder. That is an outrage. It is an outrage for this Congress to continue to send the tax dollars of Deputy David March's widow to a country that refuses to bring her husband's murderer to justice. This is an example that has occurred in our relationship with Mexico, but there are numerous similar examples with other countries around the world. I think it is time that this Congress faced up to this ever-growing problem, because I am told that there are hundreds of other families in this country whose loved ones have been murdered and who likewise cannot have those murderers brought to justice. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Norwood).

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. As we celebrate the 10th anniversary this week of the National Men's Health Week, few topics are more germane than prostate cancer. This year, 2004, the American Cancer Society estimates that approximately 230,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in our country and that nearly 30,000 men in this country will die from prostate cancer. It is, in fact, the second leading cause of cancer death in men in the United States. About 16 percent of American men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime, 8 percent will develop significant symptoms, and 3 percent will die of the disease. Over $4.7 billion is spent annually in the United States in direct treatment costs for prostate cancer. African American men are diagnosed with and die from prostate cancer more frequently than men of other ethnic backgrounds. Increased education among health care providers and patients regarding the need for prostate cancer screening tests has resulted in the diagnosis of approximately 86 percent of prostate cancer patients before the cancerous cells have spread appreciably beyond the prostrate gland, thereby enhancing the odds of successful treatment. The potential complication rates for significant side effects vary among the most common form of treatment for prostate cancer, however. It is a disease that strikes elderly people in the United States, which also highlights the importance of balancing the potential benefits and risks of various treatments on an individual basis. Congress as a whole, and Members of Congress as individuals, are in unique positions to support the fight against prostate cancer to help raise public awareness about the need to make screening tests available to all people at risk and to provide prostate cancer patients with adequate information to assess the relative benefits and risks of their treatment options. This resolution does several things. First of all, it recognizes that national and community organizations and health care providers have played a commendable role in supplying information concerning the importance of screening prostate cancer and the treatment options for patients with prostate cancer; and the Federal Government and States should ensure that health care providers supply prostate cancer patients with appropriate information and any other tools necessary for them to receive readily understandable descriptions of the advantages, disadvantages, benefits, and risks of all medically efficacious treatments for prostate cancer, including brachytherapy, hormonal treatments, external beam radiation, chemotherapy, surgery and, in some cases, simply watchful waiting. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Burns), my colleague.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. There are many who have played an important role in making the public aware of the ability to treat and to deal with prostate cancer. One of those is a constituent of mine, Theragenix, that is located in my district, manufacturer of a seed that is used in brachytherapy. They, along with many other organizations who provide other treatments, have been very instrumental in passing this resolution to the floor today to get it available to the public for information and also to ensure that adequate reimbursements are made to the providers so that when a treatment is selected by a patient and by a physician that adequate reimbursement will be made to make that treatment available. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 669) expressing the sense of Congress with respect to the need to provide prostate cancer patients with meaningful access to information on treatment options, and for other purposes.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 669.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time. Mr. Chairman, for almost the past 3 years, this Congress and this Nation have been intent on what do we do to protect our homeland. In that same period of time, we have sent military forces to protect the boarders of Kuwait, Afghanistan, Iraq, the Balkans and you name it. And the great irony that persists in the minds of the American people is, why can we not secure our own borders? I have been to JADF-6 with the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Reyes), and what the military told me there was that some of the most valuable training that the helicopter pilots and others had was when they worked in cooperation at JADF-6, because the terrain and the training they received in trying to patrol the borders, in cooperation with the Border Patrol and other civilian police, was the most valuable training they had. Right now, when we train our military forces, we divide them up into those who are going to be the aggressors to see if they can penetrate the lines in a training exercise. Every day we have thousands of aggressors who penetrate our border. Every year we have hundreds of thousands who penetrate our border. The American people want to know why are we allowing that to happen. The greatest training we could give to our Reserve and National Guard, and even our active duty forces in some instances, would be to work in cooperation with our civilian law enforcement to try to make sure that our borders are secure. Now, what is wrong with that? That is the question the American people are asking. We have a chance to answer it by saying we are going to do something about it by passing this amendment.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the House to honor a pioneer and friend within the higher education arena of Georgia. It is with immense pride and a great honor that I pay tribute to a man that has made similar contributions to our region, but in the higher education arena. Please join me recognizing a friend and a community servant, Dr. John S. Burd, as he retires as president of Brenau University in Gainesville, GA. Since donning the mantle of president of what was then known as Brenau College in 1985, it could be argued that Dr. Burd has accomplished more in under twenty years than all previous presidents did in the first 107 years of this fine institution's history. Since he first assumed office, his vision of private liberal arts higher education, his dedication, hard work, personal sacrifice, and love of the arts have transformed the college into a nationally recognized university and enhanced the lives of thousands of children and adults of all ages. This multifaceted institution has flourished academically, by student enrollment, by improved facilities, and economically. In one of his first acts as college president, Jack Burd created the State's very first weekend college in 1986, enabling thousands of returning adult students an opportunity to advance their education and their career potential at Brenau. Just about every college and university in Georgia now emulates this educational model. In 1993, under Dr. Burd's leadership, Brenau College became Brenau University to more accurately reflect the comprehensive nature of the institution. Now graduate programs serve educators and business leaders in management, accounting, and healthcare, continuing education programs engage retired adults, and traditional and non-traditional scheduling formats serve a local, regional, and worldwide student population. And to even further extend the university's outreach, Dr. Burd created the Online College in 2001. This unique institution now includes the Women's College, the Evening and Weekend College, the Online College and Brenau Academy. Jack Burd's greatest accomplishment may be that he was able to preserve the 125-year-old heritage and legacy of Brenau's original mission, which is the Women's College. At one time there were two- hundred plus women's colleges across the United States. Today there are only sixty-eight. According to the Women's College Coalition, the decline is despite evidence that proves going to a women's college greatly increases the chances that a woman will become a leader, that she will become a scientist or elected official and that she will keep her sights high. Brenau women are leaders in their chosen professions and in their communities. Under Jack Burd's leadership, the arts assumed center stage at Brenau. The Permanent Art Collection, now one of the fastest growing collections of any college in the United States, boasts more than 1,200 pieces with such names as Renoir and Lichtenstein. Nationally and internationally acclaimed artists exhibit regularly at Brenau with works seldom seen outside New York or Los Angeles. School children by the thousands come to view exhibits and experience hands-on workshops hosted by the art & design department. The performing arts have also flourished under Burd's direction. He negotiated one of the first ever collaborations in higher education between a public institution, Gainesville College, and a private institution, Brenau. The merger, called the Gainesville Theatre Alliance, has brought accolades and honors, regionally and nationally, to all involved. During Jack Burd's tenure the campus, located in downtown Gainesville, Georgia, has enlarged to include a new library, a new business and communication arts building, performing arts center, fitness center, tennis center, several student houses and apartment buildings. There has been extensive renovation of buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places--upgrading 19th century buildings for 21st century use. By preserving the university's heritage, Jack Burd brought stability to a neighborhood of Gainesville that is but two blocks from the center of town. Once a declining area with many structures in need of repair, Burd's endeavors and fundraising increased property values and the safety and security of the area, and revitalized what is now a vibrant, desirable area. Spare time is hard to come by for a president of a busy college. But, Jack found time to lend his considerable talents for leadership and organizational planning to myriad community service groups such as Northeast Georgia Medical Center Advisory Board, First United Methodist Church, the Women's College Coalition, the Gainesville/Hall County Chamber of Commerce, Crawford W. Long Museum, Gainesville Symphony and the Georgia Association of Colleges. In conclusion, to list all of the Brenau's accomplishments under Dr. Burd's leadership would be laborious and impossible. But a few notable ones that occurred over the past nineteen years include; increasing enrollment by more than 60 percent to 2,300 students; adding 7 graduate level degrees; renovating, constructing, and acquiring 19 campus buildings; obtaining national accreditation; and improving the university's financial situation dramatically from a meager endowment of $2.5 million in 1985 to more than $50 million today. There is no operational deficit and the university's economic contribution to the region is estimated to be $38 million. How can one exaggerate the importance of what this man has given to northeast Georgia? He leads a private college that manages its finances wisely, contributes to the economic welfare of all, returns highly qualified people to the workforce, and augments our quality of life with cultural events that feed the soul. Thank you Dr. John S. Burd for all you have given the citizens of northeast Georgia. Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride and a distinguished privilege for me today to address the colleagues of the House to honor a man who has accomplished more for northeast Georgia over the past 40 years than most people will do in an entire lifetime. Health care is more accessible and a higher quality exists and surpasses that of many metropolitan areas. Our economy has expanded exponentially for decades. Thousands of jobs have been created, and hundreds of thousands of lives have been improved because of the efforts of this one man. I would like my colleagues to join me in honoring my friend and a community service leader, Mr. John A. Ferguson, Jr., as he retires as president and CEO of Northeast Georgia Medical Center and Health System in Gainesville, Georgia. In 1964, at the age of 23, John came to the Northeast Georgia Medical Center as the first hospital engineer in the State of Georgia. And although he currently held a master's degree in engineering from Georgia Tech, he was determined to continue his education and work to obtain an additional master's degree in health care administration from Georgia State University. At that time, Northeast Georgia Medical Center was known as Hall County Hospital and was a single-entity acute care hospital with only 147 beds and 430 employees. Within 1 year of being on the staff, John was named assistant administrator, and at the age of 28 he became the youngest hospital administrator and CEO in the State in 1968. Within 10 years of his promotion to CEO, the hospital's acute care bed size had almost doubled, a dedicated 10-bed ICU and 10-bed CCU had been added, as well as a 20-bed mental health unit. From there, northeast Georgia's health care system and quality of life continued under John's leadership. It continued to grow and to improve on an annual basis. In 1986, he lead NGMC through corporate reorganization, which enabled the organization to expand health care services across county lines and improve access to health care for citizens throughout northeast Georgia who previously had to drive to Gainesville for most of their primary health care services. Today, Northeast Georgia Health System is a major provider of health care services for 20 counties in northeast Georgia. It has over 3,500 employees and one of the largest and most active volunteer programs in the State. The system now includes a freestanding mental health, alcohol, and drug abuse treatment facility, two long-term care facilities, a satellite cancer center in Stephens County, a hospice service and two hospital campuses with a total of 418 acute inpatient beds. Other major services that have been added under John's leadership include the Ronnie Green Heart Center and Stribling Heart Clinic for advanced heart care, the only comprehensive cancer care service in the region; a strong network over 14 primary care centers located in eight counties; a neonatal intensive care service; and a comprehensive physical rehabilitation institute. Fortunately for northeast Georgia, John has always understood that to truly impact the health of the community, services cannot be contained within the walls of the hospital. His vision for a healthier community coupled with a heart for people who depend on NGMC for health care services paved the way for a strong relationship with the Hall County Health Department. In the late 1970s, working with the health department, NGMC implemented a midwifery program to extend prenatal care to indigent patients who did not have resources to access private providers of services. John's vision for a healthier community has resulted in numerous other innovative outreach initiatives. In the early 1990s, NGMC lead a collaborative community effort with local schools, the health department, the Junior League, and other service organizations to generate funds for a mobile health unit to provide basic health care screenings and services to people who had limited resources to access other traditional health care services. NGMC has continued to fund and help staff this service since its inception. Through the Medical Center Foundation, health initiatives operated by other community service organizations have been supported. More than $300,000 was raised to help fund construction of a free medical and dental clinic for persons who have no resources for care. Since completion of the clinic, the medical center has continued to help fund clinical supplies through the indigent care trust fund for volunteer physicians, dentists, and nurses who staff the clinic. Funds have also been raised for numerous other health-related community benefits, such as the Meals on Wheels program for provision of meals to homebound seniors, the SafeKids Playground at Fair Street Elementary School in Gainesville, automatic external defibrillators for emergency response vehicles in Hall County, and the Challenged Child Organization. Northeast Georgia Health System is the lead agency for SafeKids since 1997 and currently works with 21 community agencies to develop and fund initiatives to decrease the rate of accidental injuries to children. The SafeKids Coalition has received numerous State and national awards and was recently recognized as National Coalition of the Year. John's vision for high-quality health care services and his heart for the people who depend on Northeast Georgia Health System have unquestionably made an impact on the community and the health and quality of life in Hall and surrounding counties. I commend Mr. John A. Ferguson as a man who has served our community well and commend him to his retirement.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to a great American, Frederick (Fred) W. Rosen. Mr. Rosen was a Naval Officer, a businessman, a hometown hero, and above all, a patriot. He was a friend to a President and national leaders and a witness to history. For his contributions to Dalton, Georgia and indeed the history of this great nation, I pay honor to him posthumously; Mr. Rosen died peacefully on July 14, 2003. Fred Rosen was born in 1917 in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Eastern European Jewish immigrants. In the 1930s, as the Depression consumed the nation, Mr. Rosen's brother Ira moved to Dalton, Georgia seeking opportunity in the textile industry by opening the La Rose Bedspread Company. Mr. Rosen was a loyal Bulldog, attending the University of Georgia and playing football there. His brother Ira ran the business with Mr. Rosen, while brother Eli became a physician who practiced in Dalton. Mr. Rosen's sister, Helene, who survives him, today resides near Hartford, Connecticut. In 1941, Fred Rosen answered Lt. Commander John D. Bulkeley's call for the ``toughest, hard-boiled men who can take all the punishment in the world'' and joined the Navy. Arriving in Charleston, S.C., Mr. Rosen met a young man from Boston named John F. Kennedy. The two trained alongside one another to serve on the Navy's newest vessel--the PT Boat, a vessel designed for stealth in the darkness. Rosen achieved the rank of Lt. Commander, becoming the skipper of his own ship, PT 207 of the squadron MTB Ron 15. During WWII, the squadron engaged in 73 actions and 55 OSS missions with 30 enemy vessels destroyed. From 1941-1944, Mr. Rosen served in the Mediterranean and received ribbons for more than half a dozen missions and a Purple Heart, awarded in 1943, for a burned hand which resulted from the only time his boat was shelled by the Germans. Later in the war, PT 207 under Mr. Rosen's command sank a German naval ship. From 1944 until the end of the war, he served aboard an aircraft carrier in the Pacific theater. In August of 1943, Herbert L Matthews of The New York Times, climbed aboard Mr. Rosen's PT Boat, bringing Americans their first glimpse of the Navy's newest naval creation. Matthews' account of traveling aboard the small ship through unfortunate weather brought Americans closer to the plight of their fighting forces abroad. Matthews wrote: ``I have never seen men more tired than the officers who barely managed to stand up in the gray light of dawn, still streaked with lightening from a heavy rainstorm that we had run into during the night.'' Mr. Rosen was a witness to history, as he remained friendly after leaving military service with Kennedy and also future Undersecretary of the Navy Paul B. Fay. When Kennedy married Jacqueline Bouvier, he was the only PT boat commander in attendance. Mr. Rosen was on the board of PT Boat Men for Kennedy, which campaigned for the candidate during his presidential campaign in 1960. In 1961, Mr. Rosen was invited to witness his dear friend being sworn in as President of the United States. In March of 1962, Mr. Rosen and his fellow PT Boat Men presented Kennedy with a Steuben Glass replica of the famed Boat, which sat on his desk in the Oval Office as long as he was President. Just after Kennedy's assassination, Mr. Rosen said to a local paper: "I hope we pull through this crisis and don't lose our sense of morality." Fred Rosen was a model citizen in Dalton, Georgia. After the war, he and his brother Ira opened Enduro Mills, one of the many factories that made Dalton the Carpet Capital of America. He was married to Anita James Rosen. Although the couple never had children, Mr. Rosen was a family man, maintaining long distance relationships with his cousins, his siblings and their children and grandchildren. Fred Rosen will be sorely missed by the people of Dalton, Georgia and the Rosen family scattered throughout the nation. His Navy service helped bring freedom to Europe and the United States, his local successes in Dalton brought jobs to our community, and his personal charisma brought a whole family together. Mr. Speaker, it is my honor to recognize Mr. Frederick W. Rosen.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, we have just concluded a three-year project funded by HRSA (93-912A). This program was implemented under the umbrella of Project Partnership, the community outreach arm of the Graduate Program in Physical Therapy at North Georgia College and State University. The project was directed by Ms. Charlene L. Hudson and Dr. Lynda D. Woodruff. Our local, state and federal legislators supported this competitive grant. The purpose of this grant was to bring a variety of services, adaptive equipment and healthcare resources to the population of rural elderly in three contiguous counties: Lumpkin, Hall and Dawson. Healthcare services for the vast majority of these citizens are severely challenged, poorly funded, and extraordinarily inaccessible. The physical therapy faculty, the nurse practitioner faculty, and more than 100 graduate students in these two programs joined forces to provide in excess of 5,000 formal visits/interactions to rural citizens whose quality of health and quality of life have been compromised. The project was able to supercede its initial goals, standards for operations, and complete programmatic activities fluidly. However, the majority of our requests forwarded to us were far beyond the scope of our project. We somewhat anticipated this phenomenon as a result of our community needs assessment which occurred during the planning phase for the grant application. What we did not anticipate was a decline in the sparse services available. For example, our three counties have lost home modification resources, rural transportation, and a large number of Medicaid friendly clinical services. This simply means that there is still a severe level of unmet need in our rural region. We have found a few sources to minimally sustain this project. The network which we initiated in 1995 has matured today to include the State Office of Rural Health, federally funded community health center, State Area Agency on Aging, 9th District Social Services and our University. We are confident that this model is unique and we will strive to share our findings through HRSA publications.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me the time. As this greatest of all deliberative bodies debates this resolution tonight, we are confronted with the same questions that every nation, every family, and every individual must answer when deciding matters of monumental proportions. The first question embodies many avenues of inquiry, and that question is, simply, why? After all, Iraq is half a world away and lacks long-range missile capability. Under normal circumstances that would be a valid reason to withhold action. But we all know that chemical, biological, and even nuclear weapons can be delivered through unconventional methods such as suitcases, trucks and cargo containers. Secondly, the question, why now? Why authorize force before all diplomatic approaches have been exhausted? Unfortunately, for those who expect the United Nations to resolve this issue, thus far the U.N. has failed miserably. If the U.N. expects to maintain the respect of the United States or any other member nation, it must show that its resolutions mean something. Why did the U.N. not take action when the weapons inspectors were kicked out of the country? Why has the U.N. not responded to the attacks on our aircraft as they patrol the no-fly zones in Iraq? If the U.N. wants to maintain its relevance and prove that it is more than an international social club, now is the time and this resolution gives it that opportunity. Some have also insisted that any action on our part must occur only if our allies are with us. That would be nice, but I do not think it is essential. If we are in the right, we should act whether others choose to join us or not. Throughout this debate both sides have drawn conclusions from the lessons of history. As we attempt to probe the fog of the future, certainly the established facts of the past are relevant; and some of those facts are as follows: Saddam Hussein has refused to abide by the peace agreement that ended the Gulf war. Instead of eliminating weapons, he has continued to build and buy more sophisticated and dangerous ones. Iraq has aided, abetted, and harbored terrorists that intend to harm us or our allies. How can our future be bright when it is polluted with these alarming facts of history that are consistently being transformed into the realities of the present? The fruit our actions on this resolution may require that they be harvested by our men and women in uniform. That is the reality of a world where old men give speeches while young men wage wars. All of us sincerely pray that force will not be necessary, but those who fail to do what righteousness requires for fear of resistance have sounded the call of retreat before the enemy is engaged. Mr. Speaker, I support this resolution, for there is another lesson of history that we cannot avoid, and that is that every generation must engage the forces of evil that confront it. We cannot defeat evil by displaying the medals of valor that have been won by our forefathers, nor can we appease evil in the hope that it will behave until our time has passed. So the answers to the questions of why and why not are simple. It is our time and our obligation to make our down payment on our heritage of freedom.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. I yield to the gentleman from Georgia.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. Mr. Chairman, I would like to also engage in a colloquy with the subcommittee chairman or his representative. First of all, I would like to extend my congratulations too for the hard work that the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Skeen), the chairman of the subcommittee, has given to us, not only this year, but in many past years. We are going to miss him in the next Congress. Mr. Chairman, I would like to call to the attention of the Congress and this subcommittee an issue that is of serious concern to my constituents in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests area in the State of Georgia. Additional funding is needed to correct a shortfall in law enforcement funding for these forests that are at the doorstep of the metropolitan area in Atlanta, Georgia. Additional law enforcement personnel are needed to provide adequate protection for visitors, adequate protection of the forests' natural resources, and to increase efforts to combat illegal drug production and trafficking. Viable options include hiring additional personnel or increasing cooperative law enforcement agreements with State and county law enforcement agencies. I realize that tough decisions will be made in this year's budget, but I believe that safety of the users of public lands rises to a high priority level. I am encouraged by the chairman's efforts to work with me, and I expect that he will be able to address this request as he moves this bill through conference. Mr. Chairman, I yield to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Norwood).

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. I thank both gentlemen for their cooperation. I do look forward to working with them in conference.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his leadership, as the gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) has already expressed, for leadership on the Immigration Reform Caucus. I would like to take a few minutes to share more information. I think the information just brought forward by the gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) is certainly pertinent to the issue of the 245(i) matter that is still pending before this Congress. Mr. Speaker, we should learn some things when we have studies and censuses and other reports made, because we spend a lot of money doing this. If we will just look at a few statistics. For example, the latest census of 2000 tells us that approximately 8.7 million people are undocumented illegal aliens living in this country. That is about 1 million more than most people estimated was going to show up in the report. According to those figures, we are having about 700,000 a year illegal immigrants entering this country. If that translates down to 1,918 per day, 80 per hour, and approximately one per minute, in other words, since 9-11, we are approaching a half a million illegal immigrants who have entered this country and virtually nothing is being done about it. Let me share some other things. As the gentleman has already alluded to, the 19 terrorists in the 9-11 attack all had Social Security cards, all had Social Security numbers. In fact, 13 of them obtained Social Security cards legally. In that regard, a recent report was issued by the Inspector General of the Social Security Administration in which he said that one in every 12 foreigners receiving new Social Security numbers have done so using false documents. He indicated in his report that preliminary results show that some 100,000 Social Security numbers were wrongly issued to noncitizens in the year 2000. He goes on to say that even before 9-11, that he had been recommending that the Social Security agency check its records with the INS before issuing Social Security cards, and had received no support and cooperation from Social Security. Since that time, Social Security has agreed with that recommendation, but still is having difficulty coordinating records. We, of course, have tried to pass legislation previously to deal with that issue. Let me deal with another subject. Speaking of ironic situations, I have discovered in my research and in my talking with local INS agents that one of the reasons we are having difficulty deporting illegals is that a lot of times we do not have any detention facilities to keep them until we can process them for deportation. One of the major reasons is we cannot use many of our jails where we are housing American citizens for criminal activity. They do not comply with the INS detention standards. The INS has adopted detention standards that do not correspond with the American Correctional Association standards. Now, these are the standards that are used in over 21,000 detention facilities all across our country, but the INS says they are not good enough. Let me give the gentleman just a few examples. Non-English speaking detainees must be provided with more than just simple access to a set of English language law books. They must also be allowed to have presentations made by outside groups informing them of U.S. immigration laws and procedures, and the INS encourages these presentations. What about meals? Detainees under the INS standards must be served at least two hot meals a day. Any sack meal shall contain at least two sandwiches per meal, which at least one must be nonmeat and one must be meat, and that must be nonpork, and they must also include one piece of fresh fruit and a dessert item. I was recently told that in my hometown in Hall County, Georgia, we could not use the local detention facility which houses all other detainees simply because that facility serves a cold breakfast and a balogna sandwich for lunch, and that was just not good enough for the housing of people who are illegally in this country. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman tells me that it is all right to detain our neighbor who has a traffic violation or a bad-check charge, or even our children in the school lunch program who do eat balogna sandwiches and are sometimes served cold breakfasts, and it is not good enough for those who are illegally in this country, but it is good enough for American citizens, let us get real about this. What about telephone access? We have all heard the proverbial, I am entitled to my telephone call. If one is an illegal alien in this country, let me tell the gentleman what they are entitled to about telephone calls. They cannot, first of all, be placed in a detention facility unless they have unlimited access to telephones; and they cannot be limited, except if they do attempt to limit the time, it can be no less than 20 minutes. They have also required, the INS has required, their telephone service provider to program the telephone system to permit detainee calls to numbers on the pro bono legal representation list, and permits them to use debit cards to make the calls. Now, that is not the same privileges that are entitled to Americans who are detained in our detention facilities. They also say that if one is a normal detainee, one has to make all long distance calls, and they have to be collect. Not so if one is an illegal alien. They are entitled to use a debit card. I am told by one that even the detention facility may have to have international telephone access to meet the requirements. I know that we all recall some of the debates that surrounded the 1996 Immigration Reform Act. We are in the process of looking at that act again, trying to clarify some things. One of the issues was what is a deportable offense. Generally, it was considered to be certain felonies that are of an aggravated nature. For example, just to have a DUI is not enough to get one deported. Let me read from a letter from a local judge in my hometown. This is what he said: ``Last week I sentenced a gentleman on his fourth DUI committed in the last 2 years. This gentleman is an illegal immigrant. I directed the probation department to contact INS in an attempt to prevent further violations in Hall County.'' He goes on to say that that was not enough to get him deported. He also makes reference to local gang activity. I might just say within the last months we have had two drive-by murders and gang- related activity in my community. He goes on and summarizes. He says that people who repeatedly drive drunk and are known to be involved in gang activity are allowed to basically run free, with no fear of prosecution, because of the current INS policies. That is a real tragedy and a real shame. It needs to be corrected. How many DUIs does the gentleman think a person should have who is, first of all, illegally in the country to begin with? One is not enough to get them deported, two is not enough, three is not enough, and in this case he cites an actual case where four DUIs is not enough to get him sent out of this country. I ask, where is MADD on this issue? Where are those who say that we ought to get tough on drunk driving and the other things that disrupt communities and endanger the safety and lives of our local citizens? I commend the gentleman, and I will conclude with this comment. It is a comment that was presented to our reform caucus by a senior INS special agent. I think he says it very well when he says this: ``The first laws that aliens entering the United States encounter are those laws that the INS is supposed to enforce. When the INS fails to effectively, consistently, and fairly enforce these laws, we are sending a very dangerous message to aliens seeking to enter the United States. In effect, we are telling them that not only can they expect to get away with violating our laws, they can anticipate being rewarded for violating our laws.'' I think he says it very well.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise to convey my deep sympathy and condolences to the family of Frances Jenkins Meadows, a distinguished public servant who passed from this life on April 21. Ms. Meadows was a remarkable pioneer and role model to many. As a single mother of three, she was working at a local production plant when she developed the notion to return to school at night. She enrolled at Lanier Tech to study data processing. While there, she began working part-time at neighboring Gainesville College in records administration, using her freshly learned skills in the pre-computer era. Impressing the college officials, she accepted full-time employment in the Registrar's Office at the college, thus beginning a thirty-year career there. She retired in 1999 as Assistant Director of the Office of Financial Aid. Ms. Meadows' pioneering was not limited to her chosen profession. In 1992, she became the first African-American to ever be elected to the Hall County Board of Commissioners. She was re-elected, without opposition, in 1996 and 2000. She was concurrently elected vice-president of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia and appointed to the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority. Long a mainstay in her beloved St. John Baptist Church where she taught Sunday school, she was a member of the senior choir and singles ministry. Community honors included Drum Major of the Year, Rotary's Jean Harris award and the Distinguished Alumni Award of Gainesville College. Mr. Speaker, Frances Meadows will long be remembered for her warm smile, her friendly hug, her unabashed devotion to her family and her church and, in her public life, her high integrity and love of public service. One song from a memorial service, ``Go Rest High Upon That Mountain,'' speaks volumes for many of us who knew her well; we know she is resting high on that mountain as we toil to carry forward her ideals and all the goodness in her life that we admired. It is well remembered that, as her cortege proceeded through the bustling streets of Gainesville, Georgia, on the day of her burial, the community stilled. Legions of admirers, and many who did not know her personally, stopped their lives to pay their final respects to this fine woman. Frances Jenkins Meadows, a pioneer and proud servant of the Lord and His people.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on June 4, 2002, I was unable to record my vote for both H.R. 4823 and H.R. 4800. Had I been here to record my vote, I would have voted in the affirmative for both bills by voting ``yea.''

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, many of us have lived through some very interesting times in the international political atmosphere. I think all of us were very pleased, of course, years ago when we saw the Berlin Wall collapse and when we saw the Soviet Union literally dissolve. And over the years that have passed, one of the things that many of us have been encouraged about is the fact that Russia has become a new partner with the United States. I know personally I was very pleased with the past visit with President Putin with our own President Bush and the relationship that they developed. I think that is certainly an encouraging sign, certainly something that our two nations will benefit from in the short term as well as the long term. But I am here tonight to talk about a subject that I believe the Russian Government must address if they are to lay a foundation for a continued good working relationship with our country; and that is a result of a ban that was placed by the Russian Government on March 10 of this year on the import of all American poultry. Poultry is somewhat unique in the agricultural scheme of things. It is totally unsubsidized. We have debated a farm bill, and it was a controversial bill in many respects in which we were attempting to do what we could to support production agriculture in this country. Much of it did involve subsidies; it involved quotas and allocations of production capacity. But the poultry industry stands on its own. It is a very successful industry, and it has proven that it can compete all around the world. What has happened, though, is that Russia with this import ban has placed a tremendous burden on American poultry companies. In fact, it is estimated that they are currently losing in the neighborhood of $25 million a week. Now, even though the ban has been supposedly lifted, as the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Kingston) referred to, there have been all sorts of artificial barriers that have been placed that as a practical matter have made it impossible for us to be able to ship any poultry. In fact, the indications are from the United States Poultry and Ag Export Council that no United States poultry export shipments have been moved since this ban was supposedly lifted. And, further, due to the Russian paperwork impediments, at least 20,000 metric tons of United States poultry that was shipped prior to the ban on March 10 are still sitting in Russian ports awaiting being unloaded or disbursed. And it is costing approximately $10,000 a day for those shipments to remain there in the Russian ports. There is a serious problem. It is one that the United States Poultry Industry needs the assistance of the President and his visit to Russia to talk with President Putin to stress on him the importance of taking affirmative action to remove these impediments. Currently there are still bans on some States in the United States, namely, North Carolina, Virginia, Maine, and Pennsylvania; and that is because of an avian influenza outbreak and they are on the restricted list. My State of Georgia, which currently is the largest poultry producer in the United States, supplying somewhere in the neighborhood of 42 percent of all poultry produced in the United States and the exports from my State of Georgia alone are about $300 million a year. It is a tremendous issue economically and one that impacts not only poultry but it has a spillover effect because as poultry prices continue to decline and supplies continue to build up domestically, it begins to affect the beef industry, the pork industry, the turkey industry, and, likewise, the grain producers who supply the feed that goes into feeding the poultry flocks. So it does have a very detrimental effect overall unless Russia is willing to make some changes and to live up to their trade agreements. They have done that before. I believe it was in 1998 that Russia first imposed an embargo on American poultry. And as a result of that, it had tremendous economic impacts on the poultry industry in the United States. And the industry, even though it is heavily located in my State and in other southern States, it is an industry that employs people in 38 of our States. And half of the poultry exports of the United States are actually going to Russia. So when we see this import ban being placed by Russia, we know that it has long-term consequences. Now, we also know that Russia wants some things from the international community. From the United States they want the repeal of the Jackson-Vanick statute. They also want admission into the World Trade Organization. All of these are issues that I think we are all willing to consider. But we expect them to do so as they approach international trade with a fair and even hand, and that is what we are asking.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, on March 10 of this year, Russia imposed an export and import ban on United States poultry. Even though an agreement was reached with Russia supposedly on March 30 and they announced that the embargo had been lifted on April 15, the truth is that no American poultry has been shipped into Russia. In fact, over 20,000 metric tons that had been shipped prior to the embargo are still sitting in Russian ports waiting to be unloaded. In my State of Georgia poultry has a significant impact of some $10 billion a year, the largest segment of our agricultural economy. Over $300 million a year are exported. Mr. Speaker, I think we should understand that the Russian embargo is costing American poultry companies $25 million a day. It is time that this Congress send a message to our trading partners that we expect them to be fair. Mr. President, as you go to visit with President Putin, I hope you will take the message that this Congress is paying attention and that if Russia wants the lifting of the Jackson-Vanik rules, and if they want admission into the World Trade Organization, it is time to stop playing games with the poultry issue and end the embargo.

Mr. DEAL of Georgia

Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I offer a resolution (H. Res. 349) and I ask unanimous consent for its immediate consideration.