Eliot Engel

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, an Olympic Gold Medal; groundbreaking international conferences on religious cooperation intolerance; membership in the World Bank, the IMF, and other international bodies; and recognition by more than 110 countries--these are only some of the accomplishments of the young nation of Kosovo. The United States was among the first to recognize Kosovo, and today we are its strongest backer, and rightfully so. First recognized by President Bush, relations only deepened under President Obama. For that, Kosovo proudly has become the strongest supporter of the United States and Europe, sitting at an 85 percent approval rating. This is not to say that Kosovo is a perfect country. We are not a perfect country. Corruption needs to be attacked in Kosovo. Judicial reform is progressing far too slowly. And official unemployment hovers at just above 30 percent. So there is hard work to be done. There is obviously a lot of work to do. But I have visited this country again and again and again and again; and every time, I see progress, and I know there is a bright future. I have often said that, as an American, I can go all around the world, but I will never get greeted with more love and friendship than I will in Kosovo. People there truly love Americans and all things American. The best way to help Kosovo is through continued, strong support, as the United States has done for many years. But too many impediments stand in the way, many of them coming from outside of Kosovo's borders. For example, Kosovo wants what most countries across the region want, to become part of a secure and integrated Europe, membership in the European Union and in NATO. Yet, just five European holdouts stand in the way of this progress for Kosovo. When it comes to United Nations membership, Kosovo's way forward is blocked by Serbia and its ally, Russia. In fact, Serbia seeks to block Kosovo at almost every turn, and lately has been escalating tensions. Both Serbia and Kosovo want to go to the European Union, and I support both of them getting into the European Union. But one of those countries shouldn't try to block another one, and Serbia has repeatedly tried to make it difficult for Kosovo to get into the EU and to get other things as well. Serbia recently sent into Kosovo's north a propaganda train emblazoned with the words, Serbia is Kosovo, written in 21 languages to foment discord among Kosovo's small Serbian population. It pushed the building of a wall in Metrovica, a tiny city straddling the cleavages of Kosovo's interethnic divide. While that wall has now come down, the scars remain. Serbia has continued to deny justice to the loved ones of hundreds of victims of its campaign of ethnic cleansing, including three American citizens, the Bytyqi brothers. And there are all kinds of insults, from a train and other things, giving propaganda against Kosovo by Serbia pushed to the Serbian-Kosovo border that helps to escalate tensions rather than bring them down. As a result of a Serbian INTERPOL arrest warrant, French authorities recently detained former Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, who has already been acquitted twice by an international tribunal. We in the United States have this wonderful thing of no double jeopardy. If you go to trial and you are acquitted, you cannot be tried on the same thing again. That isn't true of many countries. So Ramush Haradinaj was accused of war crimes, went to The Hague, spent many weeks and months there, was acquitted, and then was recharged again, and had to go back to The Hague to have another trial on which he was again acquitted. Now, Serbia has manipulated INTERPOL to try to get a third trial on essentially the same matter for Ramush Haradinaj again. This, to me, is unconscionable and shows tremendous bad faith on the part of the Serbian Government. Serbia also fought Kosovo's membership in UNESCO, ultimately a self- defeating act, because among Kosovo's most cherished historical cultural institutions are its 13th century Serbian Orthodox churches. Kosovo did not get into UNESCO. It failed by three votes, and again the Serbian interruption played a major role in preventing them from getting into UNESCO. The United States fought to have Kosovo into UNESCO, but ultimately lost by three votes. Kosovo and Serbia have sat down across the negotiating table in talks facilitated by the European Union. Those talks showed some progress that resulted in an agreement calling for normalization. I even nominated, at that time, the Prime Ministers of Kosovo and Serbia, along with the EU's former policy head, Baroness Catherine Ashton, for the Nobel Peace Prize. Unfortunately, today, I question these successes. What kind of normalization involves stoking tensions among a neighbor's minority population and standing in the way of international integration? That is what Serbia is doing to Kosovo, and it should be stopped. In terms of Ramush Haradinaj, trying to try him again, I don't know why the Government of Serbia seems intent on rekindling 20- and 30- year-old Balkan wars. They were terrible things that happened in war and terrible things that happened on both sides, but the man was found innocent twice. This is nothing more than bad faith on the part of the Serbian Government and harassment. It might come as a surprise to you, Mr. Speaker, but 9 years on, as a free and independent country, Kosovo still has no army. That is right. A sovereign nation-state without an army. It has a small, lightly armed security force, but nothing resembling the large Russian-equipped Serbian military just next door. Earlier this month, Kosovo took a small step toward establishing its army. Legislation was submitted to parliament. Like the legislative process here in the United States, the introduction of a bill is only the opening note on a much larger and longer sheet of music, a score which involves consultation with regional partners, the international community, domestic minorities, and NGOs. We all know how this process works. There is back and forth, there is give and take. Supporters and opponents alike are welcome into the arena and all positions are heard. The process accounts for everybody's concerns in some way or another. So what is in this proposal? What would Kosovo's army look like? It would be multiethnic, just as the Kosovo security force and the Kosovo police are now. It would partner with Western countries and hopefully NATO in pursuit of greater regional and international stability. It would be defensive and nonthreatening to Kosovo's neighbors. Mr. Speaker, it would be exactly what the United States wants to see in a partner. Yet, while Kosovo slowly moves to set up its small defensive force, Serbia is beefing up its military with full Russian backing. It is taking deliveries of T-72 tanks, MiG-29 fighters, and S-300 antiaircraft missile systems, courtesy of Moscow and Vladimir Putin. So I am a little confused, Mr. Speaker. Kosovo, a country we support and which supports us, wants what every other country in the world has: a basic army in which its citizens can serve their nation, and probably serve alongside our own military if given the chance. What do we do? We offer rebukes and diplomatic threats, and we make it clear that we don't support Kosovo having an army at this time. That is absolutely absurd and is a position that we ought to change, and change quickly. Yet Russian weapons and materiel are pouring into Serbia, courtesy of Vladimir Putin; and as far as I can tell, the United States has stood in silence. Regardless, Mr. Speaker, America's relation with Kosovo is strong and the future is bright. We need to stay on that course. Kosovo is a young country. I have been there many, many times. It is not even 10 years old. We know better than anyone that building a democracy is hard work. Sometimes you will face setbacks. Sometimes you need a helping hand. That is why American support is more important than ever. That is why the United States should work to deepen our ties, enrich our mutual understanding, and continue to bring stability to the entire Balkan region. That is the way to a more prosperous, democratic, and multiethnic Kosovo; and that is the way for the United States to see a Balkan region free, at peace, and part of the whole of Europe. Meanwhile, France should send Ramush Haradinaj home. Enough is enough already. We cannot stand for any more of this nonsense. The United States should stand by Kosovo. Kosovo is a free and independent country. For many years, they were fed all kinds of lies about the United States during the old Communist regime in the fifties, sixties, and seventies. You know what? The people of Kosovo didn't believe a word of it. So I would say to my colleagues and to my friends and to all of our American citizens: When you visit Kosovo, you will know and you will be proud to be an American because people come up to you in the street and want to touch you, want to talk to you, want to do everything and be everything American. Those are the kinds of friends that we need. America does much for many, many people around the world, many, many nations, and sometimes we feel it is not appreciated--but not in Kosovo. Everything the United States has helped that country with is appreciated from everyone, from the Prime Minister to the President, to people in government, to the average people in the street. I very often have people coming up to me in the street wanting to talk to me. They recognize me. They say: Thank you. Thank you to America for standing by us in our independence. Thank you to America for being strong and keeping us strong. So those are the kinds of friends I want to have. Those are the kind of people I want to have. So I would say to the people of Kosovo and the Government of Kosovo: The United States stands by you and always will stand by you. I would say to the Government of Serbia: We support the aspirations of the Serbian people to enter the European Union, but Serbia ought to stop doing what it is doing to block Kosovo. Serbia ought to stop its belligerent moves against Kosovo. Both countries should go into the European Union--and eventually, NATO--and each one should not stop each other. They should help each other. Health Care

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I want to spend the next couple of moments talking about a subject that is very near and dear to everyone's heart, and that is health care. I want to do it because tomorrow we have a big healthcare vote here in the Congress, and I think it is very important that we all very clearly lay out what we really feel should happen. Last week, as part of the Energy and Commerce Committee, I was up for about 28 hours in a row marking up a bill that was done all night long. At the time when we marked it up, we thought it was a bit silly because the bill hadn't been scored by the Congressional Budget Office, so we had no idea what it cost. It was like buying a pig in a poke. How could you decide whether something is good or not when you don't even know what the cost is? Since we obviously don't have unlimited funds, if something costs more money, we have to pull it out of someplace else. So we voted on a bill. Unfortunately, it was a strict party-line vote, and the bill passed. Shortly thereafter, a few days later, the Congressional Budget Office scored it; and I think it was, frankly, from my vantage point, a disaster for the bill. Now, what I think that this Congress should be doing is I think that we should make tweaks and fix the Affordable Care Act, or ObamaCare. There are many, many good things in ObamaCare, in the healthcare bill, in the healthcare act, that has now been here for many, many years. But there are also some problems with it. You know, every major bill that has been passed by this Congress and signed into law needed some tweaks, needed some changes, because you pass a law with good intention, but sometimes it doesn't work out exactly as you wanted it to work out. So you need to change things, you need to make improvements. When you see what is working, what is not working, that is what you do. That is what this Congress should do with ObamaCare. We should say where premiums are going up or where certain jurisdictions only have one insurance company and, therefore, there is no competition, we can figure out ways to fix it. We can figure out ways to tweak it. That is what the American people would want us to do. The American people would want us to work together and would want us to work in a bipartisan fashion to try to fix what was wrong with ObamaCare. Now, there are many wonderful things about ObamaCare. First of all, everyone knows it eliminated the so-called preexisting condition problem, where before, when you changed jobs and you went to a new insurance company, the insurance company said, ``Sorry, you have had cancer for 3 years and you have been treated; we are not going to treat you for cancer because it is a preexisting condition,'' or a heart attack or whatever it is. That was basically unconscionable. And millions of people couldn't get help because they changed a job and, therefore, changed a healthcare plan. That was changed in ObamaCare. And that was a very, very important thing because an insurance company can now no longer deny you coverage because of a preexisting condition. Also, as everybody knows, children up to 26 years old can now stay and be insured under their parents' insurance plans. That was a very good plus of ObamaCare, or of the Affordable Care Act. And there were other very, very important, good things. We had more people being covered than ever before. People who had never had health coverage got it now because of the Affordable Care Act. So what do we see now? We see, instead of trying to put it together in a bipartisan fashion, trying to fix it, we have this bill which passed the Energy and Commerce Committee and passed the Ways and Means Committee and supposedly is going to be on the floor tomorrow if they can round up the votes. They are having difficulty rounding up the votes. And what do we see when we look at this new bill that they are asking us to vote for? Let me tell you what we see. If this bill would ever come into law, we would have much less coverage than ever before. Many people would lose their healthcare coverage, and we would have a smaller population actually being covered for health care. We call it TrumpCare, and TrumpCare will take away health care from 24 million hardworking Americans. That is not acceptable. Why shouldn't we be working together to improve ObamaCare? Why do we need a new plan that will insure 24 million less people than we insure now? It is bizarre. It makes no sense whatsoever. We also feel, when we analyze it--and this is, again, what the Congressional Budget Office tells us--there are higher costs. TrumpCare forces families to pay increased out-of-pocket costs and higher deductibles. So what does that all mean? It means you pay more and you get less. That is a pretty bad deal. I don't think anybody wants that deal. I think Democrats and Republicans, alike, don't want that deal. I think Americans don't want that deal. We want it the opposite way. We would like to pay less and get coverage. But what TrumpCare does to the Affordable Care Act, you pay more and you get less. If that weren't bad enough, an analysis of it finds that there is a crushing age tax. TrumpCare forces Americans between the ages of 50 and 64 to pay premiums which are five times higher than what others pay for health coverage, no matter how healthy they are. Talk about discrimination. If you are a 50-year-old that is in good health, why should you have to pay five times more premium than what others pay for health coverage? Doesn't sound like a very good idea to me. And then you say: How do they get the money to pay for whatever? Well, it steals from Medicaid and Medicare. TrumpCare ransacks the Medicaid funds that allow seniors to get the long-term care they need and shortens the life of the Medicare trust fund by 3 years. Again, pretty bad deal for me. And you say: Well, who benefits from this? If this is something that people are going to have to pay more and get less coverage, it is discriminatory for people ages 50 to 64. It hurts middle class people making $30,000, $40,000, $50,000, $60,000 a year, hurts them and hurts seniors, knocks seniors out. Well, who does it help? Well, guess what? TrumpCare ransacks the Medicaid funds that allow seniors to get the long-term care they need. I said that before. But what does it do? It lowers tax cuts for the rich. So the rich get more tax cuts--I am sorry. It doesn't lower it. It gives the rich more tax cuts. So it is really kind of nice, I suppose, when you have a billionaire President, it is nice to help the rich--but not at the expense of middle class America. So when you look at this plan, it is a pretty bad plan for the middle class, pretty bad. So if you didn't like ObamaCare, you are going to dislike TrumpCare even more. If it is passed, once it is passed, we are going to see, again, premiums rise, millions of people thrown out of insurance, and less coverage, but the very wealthy will get a nice, juicy tax break. So, you know who used to steal from the rich and give to the poor? This is stealing from the poor and giving to the rich. It is really disgraceful. So I call on my colleagues on both sides of the aisle. Let's defeat TrumpCare because it doesn't help anybody, and let's put our heads together. We have enough talent in this place on both sides of the aisle, and that is what the American people want us to do. They want us to put our heads together. They want us to work together and come up with a plan that aids the largest amount of people at the lowest possible cost. It won't be easy. It will be very difficult. But we should do it together, not jam TrumpCare down our throat, not tell people about false promises when you know people are going to be thrown off. If you say: Well, you know what? It is going to be cheaper. Well, it is cheaper if you throw off all the sick people and you don't give them insurance, and you throw off all the seniors and you don't help them. Well, of course it is cheaper because all the people that are sick and really need the help won't get it. And after all, what is insurance about? Insurance is there just in case you get sick. So I am very chagrined about this new bill. I hope it gets defeated tomorrow. I hope that we then go back to the drawing board and come up with a program that will help the American people, not a program that helps Democrats or a program that helps Republicans, but a program that helps Americans, because we are all in this together. The bill proposed by my Republican colleagues called TrumpCare is not a bill for Americans that will aid them with help when they get sick. As Americans, I do believe that health care should be a right, not a luxury. I believe that the richest country that the world has ever known can give its citizens health care. I believe in the single-payer health care. But even if it is not single-payer, let's take the original Affordable Care Act, keep what is good, enhance what is good and what needs to be corrected and changed. Let's do it. That is what the American people want. That is what the American people demand, and we should do nothing less. This bill ought to be defeated tomorrow. Let's go back to the drawing board and come up with something we can be proud of. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 171.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I have long prided myself on working across the aisle to get things done for my constituents and all the American people. That is what the American people want: a government that grapples with tough issues in a constructive way. Unfortunately, since January 20, the new administration has shown no interest in working with the Congress on both sides to tackle problems, including Russia's unlawful interference in last year's election. That is why I decided not to stand on the aisle in the House Chamber to shake the President's hand during the joint session of Congress, as I have done in the past through Democratic and Republican administrations alike. This will be the first time during my 29 years in this House I have made this decision. I have deep respect for the Presidency, and I will attend the joint session, but that respect between the branches must be mutual. The President has attacked the free press by calling it the enemy of the people. He has rejected America's traditional role welcoming refugees who have helped to make our country great. He has cozied up to Vladimir Putin, the strongman who attacks our democracy. He has moved to gut the Affordable Care Act. He has looked the other way when threats against the Jewish community have increased in the recent year. This isn't part of our normal political discourse. This goes beyond ideological and political differences. The President needs to work with all people. Therefore, I will listen to what he has to say today, but I will not greet him and shake his hand.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, communities thrive when hard work, dedication, and sacrifice are set by voluntary example. Katherine (Kitty) Mary Geissler has served her community with honor, and it's a pleasure to wish her well on her 104th birthday year. Kitty was born in County Limerick, Ireland. She immigrated to the United States in 1930, where she met and married her husband George R. Geissler on October 7, 1942. Kitty joined the LAOH, Division 9 in Portchester, and transferred to the Tarrytown Division in 1951 when she and her family moved. The division was renamed The Kitty Geissler Division 11 following her tenure, a testament to her work there. Kitty served at every level of leadership, including ten consecutive terms as President. She held several offices on the County level, and has been a delegate to many of the New York State and National Conventions. In addition, Kitty has been a delegate to the New York City St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee, while also being an active member of the American Irish Association of Westchester, the Catholic Daughters of America, The Ladies of Charity, The Ladies Auxiliary of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, and the Tarrytown Senior Citizens. In 1979 Kitty was honored by the American Irish Association and became the First A.I.A. Irish Woman of the Year. In 1986, Kitty was Aide to Grand Marshall Patrick Grimes in the Yonkers St. Patrick's Day Parade to Grand Marshall Bill Burke in the New York City St. Patricks Day Parade. Kitty was the first Grand Marshall of the Sleepy Hollow St. Patrick's Day Parade, served again in honor of her 100th birthday. Kitty's dedication was recognized by the New York State LAOH after she was awarded the Mother Teresa Medal. Kitty's real love though is family. She is the proud Grandmother of eight and great Grandmother of nine. Kitty's life is a true inspiration, and it is an honor to celebrate her incredible 104th birthday in Congress. I am honored to represent such a special constituent, and I am thankful for all she has done in the community.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, this is not a women's issue or a men's issue. It is an issue for what is right. People have a right to make health choices. If someone doesn't believe in abortion, then make that choice for yourself. If someone believes in something else, then they have the right to make that choice. So eligibility for title X funding should be based on a provider's ability to provide family planning services, period. Whether a provider offers safe and legal abortions with private funds should not be used to prevent women and men from getting preventive care like cancer screenings or HIV tests. That is all the rule requires. It should not be controversial. Yet, here we are. What effect would this Congressional Review Act have? Well, Kansas has given us an ominous preview. When Kansas defunded providers that offered abortion services, the number of Kansans accessing cancer screenings, STI tests, and other care through the title X program plummeted by thousands. A vote for this CRA is a vote to multiply that number. The Americans who will be affected by this CRA will lose the opportunity to see the provider of their choice, sometimes the only viable provider. Why would we want to put women--why would we want to put anybody in that category, where they cannot see the only viable provider because someone else doesn't like what the doctor can do? I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.'' My Republican friends always talk about individual freedom and how important it is. This is an individual freedom of a woman's right to control her own body and to make personal choices on health care. We should not interfere with that. We should allow the most and the best health care to be available to all people. I urge a ``no'' vote.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, as a former school teacher, I am intimately aware of the amazing impact educators can have on young minds. At SAR High School in my district, one such educator, Dr. Mark Shinar, has been changing the lives of his students in just such a profound way. Abraham Joshua Heschel said that ``It is the personality of the teacher which is the text that pupils read; the text they will never forget.'' As Director of General Studies at SAR High School, Dr. Mark Shinar embodies this quote. He has proven to be a mentor and champion to his students both in and out of the classroom. He is deeply invested in their academic and long term personal growth which continues even after they leave SAR. His is the voice in their ear, the text they will not forget as they make key decisions in the future. Mark brings an infectious energy and enthusiasm to the classroom that energizes both students and faculty. He leads by example and listens to concerns of colleagues, peers and students always trying to improve the learning process. This is the true definition of a teacher. ``The classroom is air to me and the students are part of my family. It's a joy and remarkable privilege to teach at SAR.'' When not changing lives in the classroom, Mark enjoys spending his time just being a husband and dad. He and his wife, Lauren, are parents to four wonderful children, Aiden, Joseph, Samuel, and Ilan. The Shinar family are members of YIOZ in Riverdale, and will be making aliya at the end of the current academic year. This year, SAR. is honoring Mark at the organization's 48th Anniversary Dinner with the Audrey Schurgin Memorial Faculty Award. They could not have picked a more deserving honoree. Congratulations again to Mark on receiving this well-deserved recognition, and thank you for all of your amazing work in the community.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a member of the SAR team who has utilized her time and talents to transform the academy through the arts, Ms. Donna Salamon. Donna is a uniquely talented artist who has spent countless hours over the last 12 years transforming the Academy's open spaces into gallery walls and museum-worthy displays. She has a passion to elevate Jewish education. With her strong connection to Eretz Israel, she has created projects that incorporate science, literature, history, and most importantly, Jewish values, through art. Her portfolio includes the design and production of a 720-square-foot mosaic mural, ``Do What is Right and Good,'' depicting the core elements of the SAR experience on the Academy field wall. The mural was a 10-month project featuring 75,000 tiles, 12 iconic images, signatures from every child (804) in the Academy, and the work of more than 1,000 volunteers. Donna makes SAR celebrations come alive--life-size educational games based on history curricula for Yom Yerushalayim, a year-long ``Science is the Story,'' science, history and art program, including life-size dioramas and culminating in a Riverdale restaurant gallery showing. She also makes props for the Celebrate Israel Parade, banners for `theme of the year,' stunning alphabet/middot paintings for the graduation ceremony produced by art elective students she leads, backdrops for such milestone events as the Siddur and Chumash plays, and sets for drama productions. When not working to improve SAR, Donna loves spending time with her family. She and her husband, David, live in Riverdale with their three beautiful children, Yedidya, Yonatan, and Yaakov. Congratulations to Donna on being this year's SAR Michael Schreck Memorial Community Service Award honoree.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, the strength of our Westchester community lies with those who are engaged and working to better it day by day. One of those engaged individuals is a constituent of mine, Paul Warhit, who has given his time and talent to a whole host of active civic groups in the region. Born in Yonkers, Paul is a loyal son of Westchester. He had his bar- mitzvah at Mid-Chester Jewish Center and later graduated from Eastchester High School. He went on to attend Boston University and after completing college returned to New York to oversee the family business. Paul's active involvement in Jewish communal life began in 1996, when llissa joined Temple Israel of New Rochelle. Less than a decade later, he became the synagogue's president. He has also served as president of the Board of American Jewish History Society, the New Rochelle Public Library Foundation, in addition to treasurer of the Jewish Deaf (and Hard-of-Hearing) Resource Center. Thanks to his prolific involvement across a range of organizations, Paul's work caught the eye of the Westchester Jewish Council (WJC) who asked him to join their board. As is often the case with Paul, once he's on the board it's only a matter of time before he becomes the board's president, and Paul was elected to that post for WJC in 2013. When not serving his community, Paul enjoys spending his down time reading and traveling the country to visit different Major League Baseball parks. He also serves as an umpire for Westchester High School baseball leagues. This year, WJC is honoring Paul Warhit at the organization's 41st Anniversary Gala for all he has done to better our community. I want to congratulate Paul on this wonderful honor, and thank him for all the years of amazing service to Westchester.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor two community leaders, Deborah Shapira and Barry L. Stern, who are being recognized as the Guests of Honor at this year's 48th Annual SAR Anniversary Dinner. Deborah and Barry have been intimately involved in SAR's outreach and operations, and are integral to the organization's success. They are most deserving of this wonderful recognition. Ask anyone and they'll tell you, Deborah and Barry are among SAR's most thoughtful, humble and gracious members. Deborah serves on the SAR Board of Trustees, and is Chair of the SAR Academy Board of Education. Together, they served as Regional Vice Chairs for the 2014 Dinner, where Barry was involved in strategy and outreach. Deborah is a most active volunteer, working as a grade representative, class parent, Learning to Look volunteer, and committee member for the Academy's Chanukat Habayit, and regularly offering her wisdom on an array of academic issues. They have opened their home for parlor meetings and `meet and greets' to introduce and mentor SAR's new families. Deborah, a graduate of the HaSha'ar teacher training program at the Drisha Institute, taught at Beit Rabban Day School in Manhattan. She currently serves as Board Chair for the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies, North America. Barry is Associate Clinical Professor of Medical Psychology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. He also has a private psychotherapy practice in midtown Manhattan. But for Deborah and Barry, their true passion and love is first for family. They have three beautiful children, Pearl, Kayla, and Matan, and they are their pride and joy. Congratulations again to Deborah and Barry on receiving this wonderful recognition, and thank you for all you've done in the community.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor an active member of the Westchester community, Mr. Jeff Kohn, who is being honored this year by the Westchester Jewish Council (WJC) at the organization's 41st Annual Anniversary Gala. Jeff has been an active member in the Westchester Jewish community for a long time. He and Martha are members of Temple Shaaray Tefila Bedford Corners, where he currently serves as President. Prior to that, he was a board member at the Temple for more than a decade, and Martha has also served actively as co-chairperson of the Caring Community committee. Outside of the Temple, Jeff is also quite active. He currently serves as an officer of the Westchester Jewish Council and serves on a whole host of other non-profit boards focused on education. He serves on the advisory board at NYU Law School; Cornell University's School of Industrial & Labor Relations; and the George Washington University Law School, from which he graduated in 1984. Jeff has since been honored by the school with their Distinguished Alumni Award. A lawyer by trade, Jeff is Managing Partner of O'Melveny & Myers LLP's New York office, where he practices labor and employment law. In 2011, he received his first Warren Christopher Values Award, in recognition of individuals who epitomize the values that guide the firm. Jeff currently Chairs the firm's Values Award Committee and works on the firm's scholarship program, which provides financial support to deserving students from five New York City public high schools. In both a personal and professional capacity, Jeff Kohn has always worked to improve his community. The WJC couldn't have picked a more deserving honoree for their annual Gala, and I want to congratulate Jeff and thank him for all of his amazing work.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and welcome a new leader in the community, Rabbi Adam Baldachin, who on February 5, 2017 will be installed as the new Rabbi of Shaarei Tikvah in Scarsdale. Rabbi Baldachin joined Shaarei Tikvah in July 2016, drawn by the community's energy and warmth. He previously served as the Rabbi of Montebello Jewish Center in Rockland County. There, he founded the Rockland Clergy for Social Justice, a group of Jewish, Christian and Muslim clerics advocating for fair and equitable education for the public school students of East Ramapo, a district controlled by an ultra-Orthodox school board. Rabbi Baldachin has also served communities as close as Riverdale, which is also a part of my district, and as far as Israel and Uganda. In Uganda he worked with the Abayudaya, the local Jewish Community, teaching Hebrew, leading services, and helping to build sustainable businesses. A native of New Providence, NJ, Rabbi Baldachin earned his undergraduate degree from the Joint Program of Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary. He then completed his Rabbinical Degree with an M.A. in Midrash at the Seminary, where he received the prestigious Gladstein Fellowship in Entrepreneurial Rabbinic Leadership. He also completed extensive training in community organizing with JOIN for Justice and in pastoral care, interning as a chaplain at Self Help with Holocaust survivors. When not serving his congregation, Rabbi Baldachin loves spending time with his beautiful family. He and his wife, Maitel, have three wonderful children and they are his pride and joy. I know that Shaarei Tikvah is in very good hands with Rabbi Baldachin, and I know his presence will only strengthen our community further. Congratulations to him on this day.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I was unavoidably detained and unable to attend session on Friday, February 3, due to personal reasons. Had I been present, I would have voted no on H.J. Res. 36, roll call No. 78, which provided for congressional disapproval of President Obama's Methane Waste Prevention Rule. I am outraged by House Republican efforts to overturn substantial environmental policies of the Obama Administration, including and especially the Methane Waste Prevention Rule. This rule caps, for the first time, the amount of methane that oil and gas producers operating under federal leases are allowed to ``flare,'' or burn as waste. It also prohibits operators from releasing or ``venting'' natural gas into the atmosphere, and requires them to replace equipment that allows large amounts of methane to ``bleed'' into the air. This rule would result in 175,000 to 180,000 fewer tons of methane emissions each year, which is equivalent to removing nearly 1 million vehicles from our roads. As a leading member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, I have long been a champion for a cleaner, healthier environment for all New Yorkers and the American people. I have relentlessly fought to close Indian Point, oppose the Spectra Algonquin Pipeline, and resist the plan to anchor barges carrying crude oil along the Hudson River. I will continue fighting to stop Republicans in Congress from undermining our environmental regulations and turning back the clock to a time when corporations could pollute unchecked.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Bass).

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of this bill. I want to thank Chairman Ed Royce, and I am pleased to cosponsor this bill that he has introduced to make it easier for people around the world to harness the power of the Internet. This bill passed in the last Congress but didn't make it through the Senate, so I am glad we are taking it up again. Mr. Speaker, we know the way this incredible tool has shaped the world in the last generation. The Internet can instantaneously connect people across the world from each other who a few years ago would never cross paths in a lifetime. It allows citizens and journalists living under oppressive regimes or in war zones to get information out to the world. It allows entrepreneurs in emerging markets to sell their products in global markets. To be sure, the power of the Internet can cut both way. ISIS has proved all too adept at using social media to recruit fighters and spread its hateful message. But put to its highest purpose, the Internet can help drive economic growth and spread stability and prosperity. Unfortunately, too few people around the world have access to this tool. Roughly 60 percent of the world's population is not online, and the growth rate of Internet access is slowing. If you live in a poor community or a rural area, sometimes just because you are a woman, it is harder to take advantage of the Internet. We know where that lack of access is holding populations back. Three- quarters of those who are offline live in just 20 countries. If we could close that gap, think of what it might mean for all of those people struggling to make ends meet, and that is exactly what this bill aims to do. Chairman Royce's legislation calls on the administration to ramp up efforts around the world to expand access to the Internet. It encourages the State Department, USAID, and the Peace Corps to focus on Internet access as a diplomatic and development priority. And it states clearly that expanding Internet access, especially in the developing world, is an American foreign policy priority. So I am glad to support this measure. I thank the chairman for all his hard work. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. In closing, when we talk about the world becoming more interconnected, one of the main drivers of that trend is the Internet. Our enemies have taken advantage of this tool for destructive purposes. As we push back against that threat, our foreign policy should also help as many people as possible to use this tool in a positive way. So this bill, again, helps move us in the right direction. I want to, again, say I am grateful to Chairman Royce for bringing it forward. I am glad to support this bill, and I urge my colleagues to do the same. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation. Again, I thank our chairman, Ed Royce, for his leadership and working together. I want to acknowledge my good friend from New York (Mrs. Lowey), who authored this bill. For years and years, she has been a champion for access to education here in the United States and around the world. Like the other bills before us today, we passed this legislation in the last Congress. I am glad we are taking it up so early this year so that, hopefully, the Senate can act. Mr. Speaker, research tells us that more than a quarter billion young people around the world are not in school. For millions more, the educational opportunities are substandard. This lack of access puts so many young people at a tremendous disadvantage. Children should be in classrooms. They should be aspiring to their highest potential, thinking about what they want to be when they grow up. The payoff of a few years of quality education is huge. Every year of primary school increases an individual's earning potential by 5 to 15 percent. It is not just those students who reap the benefits, it is really all of us. Consider public health and economics. More educated populations are healthier and more productive. Consider threats to our security. In places like Afghanistan and South Sudan, where roughly half of children are not in school, we know that violent extremists and others are ready to fill the vacuum, leading these vulnerable young people down a dark, dark path. Research has also told us that in high-risk places like Somalia, where young people can learn about certain issues like nonviolent civic engagement, participation in violence drops by 14 percent and support for violence drops by 20 percent. That is why education needs to be a foreign policy priority and why we need to be very careful as a new administration urges to make major changes in America's foreign assistance. This legislation calls for a 5-year strategy for expanding opportunities for kids to go to school all over the world, especially where children are most vulnerable. It would put a new point person in charge of making sure that our efforts across government are coordinated and effective, and it would place a special emphasis on monitoring and evaluation so that we know we are getting the best bang for the buck when it comes to our investments in basic education. This bill would help to put children in classrooms around the world. It would give more young people a better shot at a full and successful life. I am proud to support it. I commend Mrs. Lowey. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. Lowey), the author of this bill.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. In closing, I read a few weeks ago that the new administration was planning to retool the State Department to focus more on terrorism. The article suggested that the State Department might do away with some of our smart power efforts. That would be a mistake. I look at an effort like this one, expanding access to education, and I know that it isn't taking away from our ability to combat terrorism. In fact, it is critical to that fight. When we help more young people get access to a good education, we are giving them the tools to think critically and resist those who mean us harm. We are helping give people an alternative, a path forward for their lives. When kids don't have these skills, who do you think shows up? When children are told from a young age, with no competing message, that America is their enemy, how does that shape their lives? So I hope that this bill gets to the new President's desk and that he sees the value not just in expanding access to education, but in the wide range of foreign policy priorities that help to project stability and make communities stronger, that show the world that the United States is a friend and a partner, and not an enemy. Again, I thank Congresswoman Lowey for her hard work. I thank Chairman Royce for his hard work and collegiality, as always. I support this bill. I urge all Members to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, the Affordable Care Act has improved the health care and financial security of every American, regardless of where he or she gets health insurance. Healthcare costs have been growing at the slowest rate in more than 50 years. Seniors in the so-called Medicare doughnut hole have saved more than $23 billion on their prescription drugs. Every American woman can rest easier knowing that women are no longer charged more than men for the same coverage. And 137 million Americans with private insurance now receive free preventive services. Despite this remarkable progress, the majority has made it their mission to destroy the Affordable Care Act, no matter the cost, and those costs would extend far beyond the healthcare system. A recent report found that repeal would cause just New York to lose more than 130,000 jobs in 2019 alone. The Affordable Care Act has reduced the burden of healthcare costs for hardworking families not only in New York, but across the Nation; and it is those Americans for whom repeal would be so devastating. We are making a mistake if we repeal ObamaCare.

Mr. ENGEL

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer), the Democratic whip.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Schneider). We are pleased that he is back.

Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 15 seconds to the gentleman from Maryland.