Val Demings

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the accomplishments and life of Ella Augusta Johnson Dinkins, as she celebrates her 100th birthday this year. Mrs. Dinkins was born on April 20, 1918 in Orlando, Florida. She is the first child of Addie Mae Gramling Johnson, a school teacher, and Augustus Newsome Johnson, an architect and builder. When the onset of the Great Depression destroyed her family's financial security, she moved with her parents to Eatonville, the first black incorporated municipality in the United States of America. There, she attended and graduated from the Historic Hungerford School. Mrs. Dinkins worked hard to support her family--as a domestic servant, truck farmer, insurance agent, hair dresser, and chicken farmer. During certain periods of her life, she worked three jobs at once. She retired in 1984 from her position with the United Telephone Company. Mrs. Dinkins quickly built a reputation in Eatonville as a civic and faith leader. She is a member of Eatonville's oldest congregation--St. Lawrence African Methodist Episcopal Church--where she has served on countless committees and as Chair of the Board of Trustees. In segregated Orlando, black women were forced to deliver babies in the basement of Orange Memorial Hospital. No incubators were available for children who needed them. Mrs. Dinkins helped to found Eatonville's Mothers' Club, which raised funds to buy incubators, saving the lives of vulnerable children in her community. During the 1950s, Mrs. Dinkins joined Eatonville's Volunteer Fire Department Auxiliary. In the 1960s, she worked to elect representatives who would work for equality, fairness, and progress. In the 1980s, she became a Founding Member of the Association to Preserve the Eatonville Community, Inc. (PEC), and has spent thousands of hours organizing programs, volunteering at the Zora Neale Hurston National Museum of Fine Arts, and representing her community at historical preservation conferences nationwide. When Eatonville was designated the Historic Town of Eatonville, Mrs. Dinkins served on the first Historic Preservation Board. PEC continues to organize the ZORA Festival, STEM Initiative, and other community programs. Today, Mrs. Dinkins is widely known as a volunteer, civic leader, and community voice, who attends every Town Council meeting and other official community gathering. Mr. Speaker, the Historic Town of Eatonville is blessed to count Mrs. Dinkins as a resident. I am honored to represent her, and I congratulate her on her 100th birthday.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the career of Vice Mayor Billie Dean, who will retire this month after serving the city of Apopka, Florida, for over twenty years. Mr. Dean was born and raised in Clermont, Florida, across the lake from his current home. He attended Jones High School and Eustis Vocational High School, and earned a Bachelor's and Master's degree from Florida A&M University. Mr. Dean also served our nation with honor and courage in the United States Army. A Korean War veteran, he received a Bronze Star for valor. After settling in Apopka--where he has lived for over 35 years--Mr. Dean became a teacher and activist. He has served as a member of the Florida League of Cities, a Board Member of the Lake Apopka Natural Gas Board, a CARET Representative for Land Grant Colleges and Universities on behalf of Florida A&M University. He has been a role model in his community, both through his example, and as a member of the 100 Black Men of Orlando, Inc., a long-term mentoring group for black children. An active member and trustee of Mt. Pleasant Missionary Baptist Church in Orlando, he has put his faith into practice in his community. In 1994, Mr. Dean was elected to the Apopka City Commission. In 2014, he became Vice Mayor--the honor bestowed upon the city's longest- serving Commissioner. Mr. Dean was an educator. He knew that education is the key to success, and worked throughout his life to ready the next generation to thrive. He married Isadora Moye Dean, and together they have five children and three grandchildren. In Mr. Dean, our children see a model for public, civic, and community service. While Apopka will miss him as a Commissioner, I am certain that his positive influence on our community will be evident for years to come. Mr. Speaker, I offer my heartiest congratulations to Mr. Dean upon his retirement.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, 1 month ago today, a man brutally murdered 17 children and educators in Parkland, Florida. He killed these innocent people using a semiautomatic, assault-style weapon. These weapons, designed for the battlefield, are easily available across this country. It has been 19 years since the Columbine school shooting. That massacre shocked America. Our country debated that shooting and the causes for months, for years. But in what has become an all-too- familiar pattern, Congress did nothing to address the factor that makes these massacres so deadly, the easy access to guns. You see, after Columbine, the gun lobby knew that they were in trouble, so they put a whole lot of time and a whole lot of money into confusing the issue. They said: ``It's not guns. It's bullying. It's not guns. It's the lack of school security. It's not guns. It's our violent culture, music, and video games.'' Well, other countries have all of these things, but other countries do not have mass shootings like ours because other countries have responsible gun safety laws. Today, 1 month after the Parkland shooting, we are, once again, discussing guns. Today, as after Columbine, the gun lobby knows that they are in trouble because this time these children who survived the Parkland shooting are not trying to return to the way life was before the shooting. They are taking a stand. And, yes, we do stand with them. See, these children believe that they can change the world. They should, and they are. I mean, after all, isn't that what we taught them: that when they see something wrong, they do something about it? So the gun lobby is going back to their same old tactics: It is not guns; it is the fact that the teachers don't have guns. How surprising that the gun lobby solution to school shootings is to buy more guns. But as a former law enforcement officer who has been trained in active shooter situations, I can tell you that arming teachers is a dangerous and disturbing idea. We should prevent mass shootings and not complicate them. I can tell you that having multiple armed individuals present in an active shooter situation only complicates the response. Arming teachers would lead to taxpayer-sponsored shootouts, endangering outscaled and outgunned teachers, putting our children at risk. We already ask our overworked and underpaid teachers to do too much. A national survey of teachers found that, if offered the choice to carry a firearm, most would refuse. Many have said they would quit. The solution to gun violence is not shootouts between teachers and school shooters. Instead, we can finally take serious but real measures addressing gun safety. We should stop this absurd idea before it becomes reality. Congress should move swiftly to prevent the administration from shifting tax dollars meant for antiterrorism programs to buying guns for teachers. I had hoped to incorporate this commonsense idea in a bill scheduled to come before the Homeland Security Committee last week, but I was blocked for doing so, and that is why, last night, I introduced a new bill to put the idea into law. Money for fighting terrorism should stay where it is, and our teachers should be allowed to teach. We saw that in my own congressional district in Orlando, Florida, the result of lack of action where 49 people were killed and 58 still suffer life-changing injuries when they were gunned down in a nightclub. See, everybody, living in a country that we say is the greatest country in the world should have the right to go to church, to go to school, to go to a mall, to go to a movie theater without being gunned down. Mr. Speaker, we should take action after this shooting and do our jobs to protect our children and serve our communities.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Pennsylvania for yielding to me. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about an all-too-familiar topic, and that is gun violence in America, mass shootings in the United States of America. A few days ago, I purchased a card of sympathy for the family of a young man who died way too soon. The card that I finally chose read: ``I hardly know what to say.'' When I think about yet another mass shooting in a country where, through ingenuity and determination, we have solved some of the world's toughest problems and challenges but yet we have chosen to do nothing about mass shootings, I hardly know what to say. Mr. Speaker, you know last week a man used a semiautomatic rifle to brutally murder 17 children and educators in Parkland, Florida. Unlike past shootings, we have not just moved on. This is because of the survivors--not our generation doing something, but the children. It is because of them. You see, this generation believes that they can change the world. I mean, isn't that exactly what we as parents taught them, that they can change the world? They believe in what President Obama called the audacity of hope. Not our generation, but the generation of our children and grandchildren. And they have stood up to declare what should be obvious to all of us: that every American should have the right to go to school, to go to church, to go to a mall, to go to a movie theater or a nightclub without being brutally murdered by someone with a gun, no less an assault rifle, which greatly diminishes their chances of survival. Sure, high school is tough for some children, but the worst our children should have to fear is whether they can make a friend in a new school or whether they will make the track team or whether the boy or girl they like will notice them in the hallway or in class. 150,000 American children have experienced a school shooting. That is not something a great society tolerates. That is something we change. Mr. Speaker, I am proud of the strength, the courage, and the passion of these young people in Florida. Not our generation, but the teenagers. And I am also proud of previous survivors and activists who laid the groundwork for the movement that is growing across America. Survivors of the Pulse nightclub shooting have joined Parkland survivors to work for change. That shooting, which took place in my congressional district, was the second worst mass shooting in U.S. history, after Las Vegas. That is not the only mass shooting to torment Florida. In 2017, a man shot and killed five people at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. In 2013, a man shot and killed six people at an apartment complex in Miami-Dade County. In 1990, a man shot and killed nine people in Jacksonville. According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been at least 113 mass shootings, defined as four or more persons injured or killed, in Florida since 2013. Instead of simply waiting and responding to mass shootings, we should work to prevent them. We should work to prevent them. We should work to prevent them. As Orlando, Florida's, former chief of police, my goal was to not merely save lives of those who experienced violence, but we tried to stop the violence from occurring in the first place. When we know better, we are supposed to do better. Some proposals may need more debate, some less, but let us have that debate. As a former law enforcement officer, our job was to enforce the laws and to protect the innocent. As a Member of Congress, our job is to create laws that protect the innocent. Well, Congress is failing at that job. The best gift, Mr. Speaker, we can give to our teachers and our students and to every American is to pass legislation that keeps deadly guns out of the hands of bad people. Thoughts and prayers are good. God will order our steps, but we have to move our feet.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, one of my biggest fears as a 27-year law enforcement officer was that my officers, the officers who worked for me, the officers who swore that they would protect and serve, would find themselves in an active shooter situation where they would be outgunned. As I indicated earlier, the AR-15 and other weapons like it, if you are shot with one, your chances of survival are greatly diminished. As my colleague from Mississippi indicated earlier, the weapon is designed to create mass devastation. It was designed for the battlefield. And you are right; on the battlefield, we want our soldiers to take the enemy down as quickly as possible. But those weapons were not designed for our streets, for our neighborhoods where our children play, for our schools. If we are a great society, if we want to be the great Nation that we always talk about, then let's do what is within our power as one of the most powerful bodies in the world. My 5-year-old granddaughter's kindergarten class had a moment of silence. I believe, as Members of Congress, we can do better than that.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, on the evening of Wednesday, February 7, 2018, I had the honor and privilege of addressing the Southeast Regional Welcome Dinner in connection with this year's National Prayer Breakfast. My arrival at that event was prior to the issuance of notice that votes were about to be held, and I was unfortunately unable to return to the House Chamber before they concluded. Had I been present, I would have voted yea on Roll Call votes 61, 62, and 63.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Mayor Bruce Mount, Sr. of the Historic Town of Eatonville, who passed away on Monday, January 29, 2018. As we honor the life of Bruce Mount, Sr., we celebrate in particular the outstanding work he accomplished in the Town of Eatonville. We all know Mayor Mount loved God, his family, and the citizens of Eatonville, Florida. Mayor Mount consistently put people first, believing that his service to humankind was an expression of his service to God. Mayor Mount's accomplishments made a real difference in the lives of Eatonville's residents, and gained him much-deserved local, state and national recognition. He believed in empowering the Town of Eatonville through economic development and housing rehabilitation. We are all proud of the Eatonville ``Rebuilding Together'' project, which restored dozens of unsafe homes for low-income families. Under Mayor Mount's leadership, four million dollars was awarded for Phase II of the Kennedy Boulevard Streetscape project. This iconic Gateway was designed as a powerful symbol of the residents' compassion and determination through the years. Mayor Mount was a public servant who loved children and invested in their well-being and future opportunities by leading the effort to bring the Boys & Girls Club and community gym to the Town of Eatonville. Mayor Mount put people first, evidenced by his unwavering commitment to improving the lives of his constituents. He expanded access to diabetes treatment for senior citizens, and was a founder of the Historic Black Towns and Settlements Alliance. Mayor Mount worked to keep residents and business owners safe by securing much-needed equipment for Eatonville's first responders. Mayor Bruce Mount, Sr. will be missed, but his positive contributions to Central Florida, the nation, and especially the Town of Eatonville will never leave us. He will always serve as an inspiration.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Georgia (Mr. David Scott) for his leadership on this very critical issue. Mr. Speaker, America is a great nation, and tonight we continue to celebrate that fact. But we do know that great things don't just happen on their own. If we take a serious look through the pages of history, we will see the blood, the sweat, and the tears of many people. Some of those people came on cruise ships, and some came on slave ships. But regardless of the foundation on which our journey in America began, many were there helping to build what we now know as a great nation. Mr. Speaker, the American worker is intertwined in the moral fabric of our great society. As America began to grow as an industrialized society, so did its workforce and the need to develop fair and equitable workplace standards. I joined the Orlando Police Department in 1984, and on my first day of orientation, I joined the union. I joined a great department, and I wanted to do my part to keep it a great department. I proudly joined the union, and I clearly understood--and it appeared at that time that those in management also understood--that the union was working hard to ensure that employees, both sworn and civilian, worked in a safe work environment, were paid fair wages, and were fairly compensated in the event of death on the job. I was an active member of the union, and when I moved to the management ranks, I met regularly with union leadership to ensure we continued to have a healthy work environment, fair wages, meaningful benefits, and safe working conditions. That has been and continues to be the work of American unions.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, as a former police chief, I have seen the effects of good government and I have seen the effects of bad government, and what we have seen over the last few days is bad government. As the party in charge of the Senate, the House, and the White House, the Republican majority has a responsibility to pass a budget that sustains critical services for the American people. Instead, they passed a $1.5 trillion tax giveaway, chose to ignore critical concerns, and push an anti-immigrant agenda. I have seen the horrible outcomes of trying to make one group of people afraid of another. I have seen the results of ignoring the real dangers to America, like racism, gun violence, poverty, and lack of opportunity. We are a nation of immigrants. As leaders of a pluralistic society, we have a responsibility to build a nation with compassion for people. But this shutdown was about more than immigration. It was about our military, our veterans, our seniors, our children, and adequate disaster relief. Mr. Speaker, I will not support a complete absence of leadership. I will continue to fight for real solutions.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the lives of Lieutenant Debra Clayton of the Orlando Police Department and Deputy Norm Lewis of the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Lieutenant Clayton was an outstanding officer, a loving wife, mother, and friend. One year ago today, she was shot and killed while attempting to apprehend a murder suspect. Deputy Lewis was killed the same day while searching for Lieutenant Clayton's killer. Deputy Lewis was deeply admired by all of his colleagues: a man described as a ``gentle giant,'' who played for the UCF Knights and went on to be a true public servant. Mr. Speaker, it has been said that when a law enforcement officer falls, a part of America dies. Today we recognize these two public servants and pay tribute to them for paying the ultimate sacrifice. Today we also take a moment on Law Enforcement Appreciation Day to thank law enforcement officers throughout our Nation who serve and protect us and our families.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Maryland. I thank him for his leadership on this issue and shining a light on this very important issue tonight. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to speak about the promise of America: that every person living in this country, a country that we say is the greatest country in the world, where every person can have an opportunity, where every person can have a right to life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and the pursuit of justice. The promise of America, though, relies on the police officer who walks his beat, come rain or shine. Mr. Speaker, either we enforce our laws, or, if we do not, they are just words on a piece of paper. The promise of America is fulfilled every time a person receives a fair trial. For you see, without a fair-minded search for the truth, we have no society. Or, Mr. Speaker, put it another way, the truth will, indeed, set us free. The special counsel is a decorated veteran. You have heard my colleague say it, a registered Republican appointed by a Republican President, President Bush. I have personally met Mr. Mueller. After serving 27 years in law enforcement, working very closely with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, I know him to be a person of honor and integrity. Mr. Mueller has been praised for his integrity by every Republican leader. You see, he is, Mr. Speaker, a man searching for the truth, and the truth does matter. Without truth, life becomes death, liberty becomes slavery, and the pursuit of happiness becomes impossible. If a President can shut down an investigation into his activities and deny our right to the truth, then the promise of the America that we love to celebrate is broken. Over the past year, our institutions--law enforcement, the judiciary--have come under daily assault, so persistent, so relentless, that we, on occasion, have tuned it out or brushed it aside. But these assaults, Mr. Speaker, undermine what is essential to our country and our society. If President Trump chooses to fire the special counsel or otherwise interfere with the legal and appropriate investigation into himself and his staff, it would be a deliberate act to dismantle the fundamental institutions that preserve American democracy and liberty. Mr. Speaker, we cannot allow that, and I hope that my Republican colleagues will remember why they came to Congress in the first place. You see, Mr. Speaker, as Members of Congress, we are truth seekers, and we know that the special counsel will go only where the evidence leads him. That is the man President Bush appointed, and that is the same person leading this investigation at this very time. Mr. Speaker, we must let the special counsel finish his work. Failure to do so leaves us with only one question: What is the administration afraid of?

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the congressman.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Representative Gianforte and Representative Connolly for their work on this bipartisan bill to extend the authority for agencies to conduct telework pilot programs for travel expenses. The current authority for this program expired on December 9 of this year, so passage of this bill is urgently needed. The bill extends the program until December 13 of 2020. In February of 2012, the United States Patent and Trademark Office used this authority to initiate the Telework Enhancement Act Pilot Program. This program allows USPTO employees to work throughout the country and waives the requirement that the agency pay their travel costs for mandatory trips back to its headquarters. According to the USPTO, the program significantly expanded the agency's teleworking workforce and allowed it to hire and retain a highly skilled workforce. The USPTO also estimates that this program has saved the agency more than $77 million in fiscal year 2016, including $17 million in avoided real estate costs and nearly $32 million in reduced recruitment expenses. The agency also cites increased productivity, work hours, employee morale, and decreased environmental impacts as benefits of the pilot. Given its benefits, it makes sense to authorize an extension of this pilot program. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a letter that the Oversight Committee received from The National Treasury Employees Union yesterday supporting the bill. The National Treasury Employees Union, December 11, 2017. Dear Representative: As National President of the National Treasury Employees Union, representing over 150,000 federal employees in 31 different agencies, I am writing to express NTEU's views on HR 4171, a bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to extend the authority to conduct telework travel expenses test programs, which is scheduled to be considered by the House tomorrow. NTEU represents the trademark attorneys at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO). The enhanced telework program has allowed employees to work and live in various communities across the nation, saving PTO office property costs and reducing employee turnover. We support the bipartisan legislation for a short-term extension of the pilot, which we believe has been a success for both the PTO and employees. We believe, with the expiration of this new extension, that the agency will have the experience to be able to allow national telework while covering employee travel costs. Sincerely, Anthony M. Reardon, National President.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Soto).

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues, particularly my colleague from central Florida, in consideration of H.R. 4042, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Post Office located in Kissimmee, Florida, as the Borinqueneers Post Office Building. Originating in 1899, as part of the Puerto Rican Regiment of the Volunteer Army, the 65th Regiment became a part of the U.S. Army in 1908. The unit distinguished itself throughout Europe in World War II. The 65th Regiment rapidly gained a reputation as one of the bravest and most reliable regiments and, by November 1950, had become the leading regiment by the 3rd Infantry Division. In June of 2014, the Borinqueneers became just the second Hispanic Americans to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, as they were honored for the bravery and distinguished service for which they broke down racial barriers in defense of our Nation. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to cosponsor this bill, and I look forward to passing this legislation in honor of the 65th Regiment for their service, their sacrifice, and lasting contributions to our country. Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 4042, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues in consideration of H.R. 1208, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Post Office located at 9155 Schaefer Road in Converse, Texas, as the Converse Veterans Post Office Building. Every day, brave men and women in our military make great sacrifices to defend this Nation and protect our freedom. While we can never repay them for their service, naming the Converse Post Office in their honor is the least we can do. Mr. Speaker, we should pass this bill and name this post office so that we might recognize the selfless service of our veterans and honor the sacrifices they have made for this Nation. Mr. Speaker, I, too, urge the passage of H.R. 1208, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Cuellar).

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to join my colleagues in consideration of H.R. 2815, a bill to designate the facility of the United States Post Office located at 30 East Somerset Street in Raritan, New Jersey, as the Sergeant Basilone Post Office. We have already heard he was born in 1916 and enlisted in the United States Army at the young age of 18. While serving in the Philippines, Sergeant Basilone developed a reputation as a championship boxer. He returned to the United States in 1937 to begin work as a truck driver, but we have heard that that was not enough. He reenlisted in the Marines in 1940. Sergeant Basilone earned the reputation as the marine who proved that the opposition was not invincible. Sergeant Basilone was a hero. As stated, upon his death, he was awarded a Navy Cross, the Navy's highest decoration. Mr. Speaker, we must pass this bill to name the post office in Raritan, New Jersey, after their hometown hero so that future generations might continue to be inspired by his selfless and heroic service. Mr. Speaker, I urge the passage of H.R. 2815, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pascrell), my colleague.

Mrs. DEMINGS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.