Rahm Emanuel

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Salme Harju Steinberg, President of Northeastern Illinois University. President Steinberg recently announced that she will retire from the University in 2007, ending over thirty years of distinguished service to the university. President Steinberg began at Northeastern Illinois University as a professor of history in 1975. She went on to serve as both Department Chair and Administrator. For the past eleven years, she served as President of NEIU. Under President Steinberg's leadership, NEIU experienced an increase in enrollment and marked improvements in the academic and cultural opportunities available to its students. President Steinberg's intelligent stewardship and forward thinking have resulted in increased funding for academic programs and improved financial assistance for students. President Steinberg has also demonstrated a commitment to assist first generation college students. Today, Northeastern University can boast a minority enrollment of over 60 percent, with as many as forty- seven languages spoken across the campus. In addition to the breadth of diversity President Steinberg has worked to introduce, she also developed heritage programming to deepen the cultural education and appreciation of NEIU students, including an innovative study abroad program. Mr. Speaker, President Salme Harju Steinberg's many contributions to Northeastern Illinois University will always be remembered, and her dedication will continue to benefit NEIU students long after her retirement. I wish her the best in all of her future endeavors.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the long and distinguished career of my friend, Mr. Dick Kay, political editor, and host of the news show ``City Desk.'' Mr. Kay wil retire in June, 2006, with the honor of having been the longest-serving reporter in the history of Chicago's WMAQ-Channel 5 TV. With 46 years in the business, Dick Kay has unparalleled political experience, knowledge and perspective. He arrived at WMAQ-Channel 5 in 1968, initially working as a writer/producer but soon switching to reporting. He later became their political editor as well as the host of ``City Desk,'' the Sunday morning public service program. Over the years, Dick Kay has interviewed mayors, governors, Congressmen, Senators, and countless other public leaders. Viewers have come to rely on his thoughtful yet fearless approach to covering politics and public policy. Dick Kay's hard work and insightful reporting have been recognized by numerous awards over the years. Among others, Dick has received a Peabody Award--the highest honor in TV broadcasting--as well as 11 Emmys, a National Headliner award, and a Jacob Scher award for investigative reporting. In 2001, he was inducted into the Television Academy's Silver Circle Hall of Fame, which honors those who have made major contributions to Chicago broadcasting for 25 years or more. In addition to his work as a reporter and editor, Dick was the long- time president of the local unit of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. In this capacity, Dick successfully persuaded Illinois legislators to ensure that on-air employees had the freedom to move to competing stations. I am sure Dick's wife, children and grandchildren will be glad to enjoy more time with him. The rest of us will miss his hard-hitting investigative work, insightful commentary, and engaging Sunday morning discussions. Mr. Speaker, I wish Dick and his family the best of luck during his retirement and throughout his future endeavors. Political reporting in Chicago will not be the same without Dick Kay, dean of Chicago political reporters.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, in order to solve the problem, you have to recognize that you have a problem in the first place. For 3 years, the President and his administration contended that everything was going fine in Iraq, that we were winning, and they openly questioned the motivations and the patriotism of anyone who questioned or disagreed with them. Now we are finally getting some straight talk from people who have been in the administration since the very beginning. The U.S. Ambassador to Iraq says the country is nearing a civil war and we have opened ``Pandora's box'' by toppling Saddam Hussein. Director of National Intelligence, John Negroponte said, ``Even if a broad, inclusive national government emerges, there will almost certainly be a lag time before we see a dampening effect on the insurgency.'' And today, General Peter Pace, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, ``The Iraqi people themselves are standing at a crossroads, and they are making critical decisions for their country right now about which road they want to take,'' whether it is going to be a civil war or the road to democracy. These are sobering assessments, but they were a welcome change from the standard White House line of everything is fine, everything is hunky-dory, we are winning in Iraq, the road to victory is in Iraq. In fact, we are at the precipice of a civil war. We are on the doorstep of a civil war. Now that we have this honest talk finally, we are finding from people who are telling us what the beginnings were because we did not get here by accident. We got here by people not listening to the people on the ground. Our first ambassador, Paul Bremer, writes in a recent book, even on page 10, you don't even have to finish the book, he had asked for more troops. The President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense for years maintained nobody had asked for more troops. We had enough troops, if the generals needed more troops, they would have told us. Now the lead ambassador, the point man for the President of the United States, in fact, asked for more troops. One of the big problems we had, we had 500,000 troops to get Iraq out of Kuwait, but somehow some genius over at the Department of Defense, that is the Secretary of Defense, thought you could do it for less than 100,000, both occupy Iraq, win a war in Iraq, and do it for less than 100,000 when we needed 500,000 just to get them out of Kuwait. In fact, somebody did ask for more troops, and the President of the United States and the Secretary of Defense refused to listen to the ambassador, their point person. That is not the only mistake they made. In fact, today, going back to one of the early days of the insurgency, we now realize from the last 2 days of The New York Times, generals were saying we had to not try to topple Iraq, we had to deal with the Feyhadeen. Otherwise, we are going to have the beginnings of an insurgency. The generals on the ground were overruled. Again, contrary to the line, which is, we are going to listen to the generals and whatever they need, we did not listen to the generals. When we finally get to Baghdad and did finally topple the government, and there was all this chaos going on, the Secretary of Defense once again used his famous line which is ``Freedom is messy. Sometimes it is followed by chaos,'' after a country has been headed by an authoritarian dictatorship for so long. Every problem we are facing today, too few troops, not listening to the generals to literally suppress and put down the insurgency early on, not having a plan for the occupation, is what has gotten us to this point today, where we are on the precipice of a civil war. And all is not hindsight, Monday morning quarterbacking. At the very time these problems were emerging, people said you are doing the wrong thing. And the Secretary of Defense and the President of the United States and others around his administration refused to listen. And this Congress has acted like the ``hear no evil, see no evil'' Congress. We have $10 billion on Iraq reconstruction that nobody can account for, and there have been no hearings and no accountability by the administration. Paul Bremer has not asked to come up and tell us what happened when he said he needed more troops. What happened to the generals when they said we have to put down the insurrection? Yet, this Republican Congress refuses to hold anybody's feet to the fire, refuses to ask any question, ask the questions and get the answers for the people that we represent want to know. On page 10 of ``My Year in Iraq,'' Bremer writes that he was alarmed by a RAND Corporation report stating we did not have enough troops on the ground to stabilize the country. Bremer continues, ``I found the conclusions persuasive. And troubling. That afternoon, I had a summary of the draft copied and sent down the corridor to Don Rumsfeld. `I think you should consider this,' I said in my cover memo. I never heard back from him about the report.'' Troop levels were not increased. The Feyhadeen were never put down. We have lost $10 billion, never to be accounted for, and we never had a plan for the occupation we have today. And now we are the precipice of a civil war. Mr. Speaker, we can do better than this. These problems that are repeating in Iraq where nobody is held accountable and nobody is asked questions are not isolated to the problems of Iraq. Look at Hurricane Katrina and all of the trailers down there and the money wasted. Again, nobody was in charge. Nobody listened, and American taxpayers' hard- earned dollars are seen wasted away.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, while Republicans are doing their best to distance themselves from their lobbying scandal, they just cannot seem to shake off Jack Abramoff. Jack Abramoff recently told Vanity Fair: ``Any important Republican who comes out and says they didn't know me is certainly lying.'' While President Bush denies knowing him, Jack Abramoff says he knew President Bush well enough to joke with him about weight lifting. Former Speaker Gingrich said he didn't know Jack Abramoff well; yet Jack Abramoff said, ``I have more pictures of Newt Gingrich than I do of my wife.'' Senator Conrad Burns, Jack Abramoff says: ``Every appropriation we wanted we got. Our staffs were as close as they could be. They practically used Signatures as their cafeteria.'' And to add insult to injury, in January, Senator Santorum, the architect of the K Street Project and a Republican point person on lobbying reform, vowed to stop his weekly lobbyist meetings; yet we now find he continues to do them. It is just business as usual here in Washington. Mr. Speaker, the Republicans may be lip-syncing reform, but clearly the ``for sale'' sign is still up on the West Lawn. It is time for a change. It is time to change the culture of corruption in Washington, a culture that has real costs for the American people. We can do better. We need to do better.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Madam Speaker, since last month's bombing of the holiest Shiite shrine, the sectarian violence we all feared has begun to engulf Iraq. But while Iraq is on the brink of civil war, all the administration gives us are mixed messages and finger-pointing. The U.S. Ambassador to Iraq says the country is nearing civil war and that we have opened a Pandora's box by toppling Saddam Hussein. Yet General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has a totally different view. Over the weekend he said, ``I wouldn't put a great big smiley face on it, but I would say that things are going very, very well from everything you look at.'' Meanwhile, Secretary Rumsfeld puts the blame squarely on the press: ``From what I've seen thus far, much of the reporting in the U.S. and abroad has exaggerated the situation.'' Which is it? A Pandora's box? The brink of war? Or an exaggerated news story only to sell papers and boost ratings? Yet instead of demanding answers from the administration, this Congress has turned a blind eye. It is time for this hear-no-evil, see-no-evil Congress to open its eyes and ears. Americans want more than mixed metaphors and finger pointing. They want a policy. They deserve real answers, and it is our job to find them. We need new priorities for America rather than the same old policies that have gotten us here.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, last week, a number of Americans were able to see the President on the videotape on Katrina and see also what has happened down in New Orleans since that time, or the lack of action there. We also witness every day the civil war that is engulfing Iraq and a policy of failure to bring stability to Iraq, the chaos that has engulfed our Medicare prescription drug plan, and also the flare-up over our port security and selling major assets of America's infrastructure to foreign countries. In 2000, President Bush ran as a compassionate conservative. At this point, I would settle for a competent conservative. From Iraq to Medicare to port security to the deficit to Katrina, this administration has mismanaged the situation to the point where even diehard supporters are acknowledging their incompetence. And this Congress has been a rubber stamp to the administration's policies and has refused to do its job, which is oversight, on every one of these issues. On Iraq, we have $10 billion out of $480 billion totally missing. Not one hearing about what happened to the $10 billion. Nobody has asked a single question. Nobody can account for it. We have soldiers over there without KEVLAR vests, where parents are left to literally do bake sales to raise the money for their children so they can have the protection that their government and their taxpayers expect and are responsible for, yet nothing. We have literally members of the armed services running around like scrap metal collectors trying to solder their Humvees, yet nobody has asked a single question as to how that happened; why is that happening. We have Paul Bremer, the President's ambassador, who now writes a book and says that he had asked for 500,000, or doubling the size of the troop level; yet for 3 years the President of the United States said nobody ever asked for more troops. If they want more troops, we will send more troops. General Abizaid and Paul Bremer, the President's ambassador, have said that he had asked for more troops, and neither the Secretary of Defense nor the President of the United States acknowledged that memo. Yet what do we have? Nobody is holding them accountable. Nobody is holding anyone accountable in the administration. We have a great deal of incompetence. We are at $480 billion in Iraq, with 2,300 Americans, our fellow citizens, having lost their lives. Well over 15,000 are wounded, permanently many of them, yet not a single question of what happened here. What is the competency here? Now, take a look at this on Medicare. It is not just isolated to Iraq. We have now had that policy, and that policy has run its course. We now have a civil war that the American people find themselves in the middle of, between the Sunnis, the Shiites and the Kurds all fighting each other, and nobody has asked the questions of what happened to the troops, the amount of troops, what happened to the KEVLAR vests, the Humvees; how come there are not enough men and women that the ambassador and the general had asked for. Not a question. Nobody is responsible. Nobody ever got fired, let alone the questions about the intelligence going into it. Take Medicare. We debated here on this floor, and I voted against that bill and said it was going to lead to great confusion to seniors. Rather than a simple plan, letting negotiations happen, letting reimportation happen, and letting generics hit the market, which all would drive the price down of prescription drugs and save money, Members here said and the administration said it will only cost $390 billion over 10 years. Before the ink was dry, it rose to $790 billion. So all the taxpayers are going to have to pay double what they were told and everybody in the administration knew. One person who said, here is what the report said, was under threat of being fired if they let that information out. Yet now, with 2 years to prepare, 2 years to get ready, the Web site, run by HHS, had the information wrong. The catalogue they sent out to every senior had it wrong. It has led to massive confusion where seniors now are sometimes double enrolled, cannot get enrolled, and where States are having to step in for the poorest of the poor because they cannot get their plan. It is run like, as some people say, they couldn't run a one-car parade if they tried. Again, that massive incompetency and the inability of this Congress to have oversight and keep people's feet to the fire and hold them accountable, to ask the questions and get the answers the American people want are not being done today. And the incompetency is not isolated to Medicare or Iraq. Take the response to Hurricane Katrina: when we saw that tape, we now learn that, in fact, Mr. Brown, or known to the rest of us as Brownie, was doing a heck of a job, and he gets fired, and yet it is Chertoff who is still head of the Homeland Security Department, had no idea what was going on, no line authority, never involved himself, and we had a massive disaster. When you run through the economy, Iraq and the deficit, what this President has done, I would settle, and I think the rest of the country would be quite happy if we had a competent conservative rather than the compassionate conservative that we were promised. The American people are not looking for a compassionate conservative, a fiscal conservative, or a social conservative. A competent conservative would do America well.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, by now we have all seen the Katrina tape of the President being briefed on the magnitude of the upcoming hurricane disaster. The tape clearly shows that the President and his administration knew about Katrina's magnitude, regardless of their after-action denial. All I can say is forget the compassionate conservative that we were promised in 2000. At this point I would settle for a competent conservative. Remember, this administration repeatedly maintained that if American leaders in Iraq needed more troops all they needed to do was ask. But now we know that the President's top man in Iraq, Paul Bremer, asked for more troops right after the invasion and the President and the Secretary of Defense failed to respond. This administration said that the intelligence it used as a case for the war was flawed. But Paul Pillar, a high-ranking CIA official, recently revealed that the administration intentionally distorted and cherry-picked the intelligence in order to justify the prescribed decision. Today, we are seeing the failure of those decisions. This administration said that the Medicare prescription drug benefit would cost no more than $400 billion. The real cost of the benefit, nearly $800 billion, and the administration knew all along the true cost. The President's people say people do not need to worry about security, and then we found out that neither the President nor the Secretary of Defense knew that the United Arab Emirates was about to take over the six major American ports. We do not need a compassionate conservative, a fiscal conservative. We need a competent conservative.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, March 18 will mark the 3-year anniversary of America's involvement in Iraq. Two thousand two hundred ninety-six American military personnel have now given their lives fighting in Iraq. Two hundred seventy-seven Americans have also fallen in the line of duty in Afghanistan. We owe these great men and women and their families a debt of gratitude that can never be fully repaid. Last year I led a bipartisan group of 21 Members of Congress in reading the names of the fallen into the Congressional Record. We made a commitment to continue to read the names of our fellow citizens as long as the fighting continues. In the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, each of those heroes stands on the unbroken line of patriots who have dared to die that freedom might live and grow and increase in its blessings. God bless and keep each of the brave Americans whose memory we honor today: 1st Lieutenant Robert C. Oneto-Sikorski Private 1st Class David J. Martin Sergeant 1st Class Jonathan Tessar Petty Officer 2nd Class Allan M. Espiritu Sergeant Daniel A. Tsue Private 1st Class Tyler R. MacKenzie Specialist Benjamin A. Smith Specialist Joshua J. Munger 2nd Lieutenant Mark J. Procopio Specialist Dennis J. Ferderer Jr. Captain Michael D. Martino Major Gerald M. Bloomfield II Major Jeffrey P. Toczylowski Specialist Darren D. Howe Sergeant 1st Class Daniel J. Pratt Staff Sergeant Kyle B. Wehrly Gunnery Sergeant Darrell W. Boatman Private 1st Class Dustin A. Yancey Captain James M. Gurbisz Specialist Timothy D. Brown Staff Sergeant Jason A. Fegler Lieutenant Colonel Thomas A. Wren Sergeant 1st Class James F. Hayes Captain Joel E. Cahill Lance Corporal Ryan J. Sorensen Private 1st Class Mario A. Reyes Specialist Robert C. Pope II Staff Sergeant Brian L. Freeman 1st Lieutenant Justin S. Smith Sergeant 1st Class Alwyn C. ``Al'' Cashe Lance Corporal Jeremy P. Tamburello Lance Corporal Daniel Freeman Swaim Sergeant Joshua A. Terando Staff Sergeant Michael C. Parrott Sergeant Tyrone L. Chisholm Private 1st Class Antonio Mendez Sanchez Corporal Donald E. Fisher II Staff Sergeant Stephen J. Sutherland Lance Corporal David A. Mendez Ruiz Lance Corporal Scott A. Zubowski Corporal John M. Longoria Lance Corporal Christopher M. McCrackin Major Ramon J. Mendoza Jr. Lance Corporal Nickolas David Schiavoni Private 1st Class Travis J. Grigg Specialist Matthew J. Holley Staff Sergeant James E. Estep Private Dylan R. Paytas Sergeant Jeremy E. Murray Specialist Alexis Roman-Cruz Corporal Joshua J. Ware Corporal Jeffry A. Rogers Lance Corporal Roger W. Deeds Lance Corporal John A. ``JT'' Lucente 2nd Lieutenant Donald R. McGlothin Specialist Vernon R. Widner Staff Sergeant Ivan Vargas Alarcon Sergeant Luis R. Reyes Private 1st Class Anthony Gaunky Private Christopher M. Alcozer Lance Corporal Tyler J. Troyer Lance Corporal Miguel Terrazas Specialist Michael J. Idanan Specialist Dominic Joseph Hinton Corporal Jonathan F. Blair Staff Sergeant Edward Karolasz 1st Lieutenant Dennis W. Zilinski Master Sergeant Anthony R. C. Yost Sergeant Dominic J. Sacco Private 1st Class John Wilson Dearing Sergeant Denis J. Gallardo Specialist Allen J. Knop Sergeant William B. Meeuwsen Staff Sergeant Aram J. Bass Private 1st Class Ryan D. Christensen. Mr. Speaker, President Abraham Lincoln once wrote to the mother of five fallen soldiers, ``I pray that our heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement, and leave you only the cherished memory of the loved and lost, and the solemn pride that must be yours to have laid so costly a sacrifice upon the altar of freedom.'' I would also like to thank the brave men and women who continue to serve our Nation in Iraq, Afghanistan, and throughout the world and serve with distinction. Our thoughts, prayers and gratitude are with you and your families at this time until they return home.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, today marks the 2-month anniversary of the Medicare prescription drug benefit, and it would not be too much of an exaggeration to say that, so far, the Part D, D stands for disaster. The benefit is so complicated and convoluted that even beneficiaries with Ph.D.s have said they could not figure it out. Why is this program so flawed? Because it was designed, or we like to say in the private sector, the first operation is take care of the customer first. I have yet to find a single pharmaceutical executive or an HMO executive who is complaining about this program, but I have found a heck of a lot of senior citizens who are complaining about this program. This program was never designed with our senior citizens in mind. If it was, you would not have the complexities that are happening for our senior citizens. The executives of the drug companies will earn $139 billion of additional profits that they would not have earned any other way; insurance companies, $130 billion of additional profits over the next 10 years. The complexity of the benefit shows, in my view, what was wrong and what we should have done right. Three simple steps: One, with the May 15 penalty that will kick in, the tax, the senior Medicare tax, postpone that until HHS and CMS figure out what they should be doing, rather than what they should not be doing. No senior should be forced into a program where even the people running it do not know what they are doing. Second, directly negotiate for prices. That is what the Veterans' Administration does. That is what Sam's Club does. That is what Target does. That is what Costco does. Anybody in the private sector, literally, bulk purchases get a better price than anybody buying individually. And third, allow people competitive choices by reimportation, allowing them to buy drugs in Canada, England, France, where they can get competitive pricing which is 50 percent cheaper. I have a Costco in Chicago. There is also a Costco in Toronto. We have up on our Web site the two Costcos, one in Toronto, one in Chicago. Same 10 drugs, same milligram, same dosage; and the Costco in Toronto is constantly $1,000 cheaper for the same drugs over the same period of time than the one in Chicago. And yet both of them are stores that are supposed to be discount. And lastly, allow generics to market quicker. If you had direct negotiations, reimportation, generics to market quicker, three free market principles where competition and choice rule, we would actually have cheaper pharmaceutical prices, things that seniors can afford, and save money for taxpayers as well. And yet what we do not have are those programs. And we are forcing in the middle of May, May 15, senior citizens will literally pay a Medicare privatization tax. On April 15, all Americans will pay a tax. On May 15, because of the complexity of this program, seniors will begin to pay a tax for the complexities. Seniors that do not want to join this program, that are confused because of the way that they have been forced into plans, had plans drop their drugs, not offer all the drugs they need at a better price than they can get otherwise, will literally start to be taxed by the Federal Government. Tens of thousands of beneficiaries, today in the New York Times an article highlighted that the beneficiaries are automatically assigned to plans and deciding to switch plans are finding that they are actively enrolled in two drug plans at the same time. When you read a report on what is going on, you would think you were reading an after-action report on Katrina. What has happened over at HHS and Health and Human Services on Medicare is literally one more example of the disaster the Federal Government has had in running this plan. The situation leaves patients at risk, being charged two premiums or incorrect copayments. In my hometown of Chicago, seniors have 62 separate drug plans to pick from. And I hear constantly from my constituents every day that the choices are causing confusion and problems. Pharmacists are not sure what is happening. The people administering the plans are not sure what is happening, and it is leaving seniors absolutely in total confusion. Seniors need clearly more time to figure this out. They should not be penalized with a complexity tax, a privatization tax for taking the time to get the facts. Facts, I remind you, that even HHS and Medicare are not sure of what the facts are as it relates to what is the best plan. Just to give you an idea of the tax we are talking about, if a senior decided to wait for 2 years before enrolling, there will be a 24 percent higher premium to pay. That is an additional $7.73 per month on top of the monthly premium. If a senior waits longer, it can go as high as $456 a year. For seniors on a fixed income, this is a tremendous financial burden. Even before the drug benefit went into effect on January 1, there were problems. And the Republican colleagues who wrote the plan know what the problems are. In fact, the drug manufacturers, again, I would like to repeat and I will be done: $139 billion in profits over the next 8 years and insurers, $130 million.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of my dear friend Eli Segal. I offer my sincerest condolences to his wife of 40 years, Phyllis, his brother, Alan, and his children, Mora and Jonathan. We have lost a tremendous political mind, tireless social advocate, a loving husband and father, and a selfless friend who, as President and Senator Clinton said, ``lived his life as a man for others.'' Eli was born in Brooklyn in 1942, headed to Massachusetts for undergraduate work at Brandeis University, and graduated from the University of Michigan's law school in 1967, making an impact at each stop along the way. Washington, DC, though, is where Eli's footprint is most clearly visible. Eli's work as a campaign strategist is well documented, from his time on the late Eugene McCarthy's staff in 1968 through his work for General Wesley Clark during the 2004 election. It was during George McGovern's campaign, though, that Eli hired a young man named William Clinton to run the campaign's Texas operations, and I am extraordinarily thankful that Eli made that decision. If not for that particular hire, I probably would not have had the chance to work so closely with Eli during the Clinton administration, and I would not be fortunate enough to count myself as one of the thousands of people whose lives were touched by Eli. Then again, if President Clinton had not hired Eli to help run his campaign in 1992, it is entirely possible that none of us would have worked in the White House anyway. Following his work on the campaign trail for President Clinton, Eli became an incredible asset to the administration, creating the AmeriCorps program and heading the Welfare to Work Partnership. These and other accomplishments are why he received the Presidential Citizens Medal for service to the Nation in 2000 and the respect of his peers long before then. It was during this time that I came to know Eli well. The common bond of working together in the White House was obviously a contributing factor, but Eli and I became friends not because of circumstances, but because of character. He truly was an incredible person, and I consider myself to be privileged to have worked with him in the Clinton Administration. I consider it to be an even greater honor that we continued to be friends after our time in the White House. Mr. Speaker, all of us who knew Eli Segal will always remember his warmth, compassion, and insight. Eli was taken from us too early, and we surely will miss him, but we were fortunate to have him in our lives while we did. Neither he nor his impact will be forgotten.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the exceptional craftsmanship of R.S. Owens & Company, the manufacturers of the Academy Awards for over 20 years. I am proud to have ``Oscar'' as a constituent, and I hope my colleagues will join me in watching the work of R.S. Owens & Company arrive in Hollywood from Chicago. With the Oscars soon approaching, television sets around the Nation will be tuned in to watch movie stars as they stroll down the red carpet, hoping to receive the Academy Award, an internationally recognized symbol of excellence in film. While the main attraction of the night may be the directors, actors, and film makers receiving the awards, the 13\1/2\ inch, gold-plated statuettes hold an important place in the night's event and traditions. R.S. Owens is the Chicago-based award-manufacturing company responsible for producing the world-renowned Academy Award. Since they were recommended for the manufacturing of the award in 1983, the academy has selected R.S. Owens to produce the statuettes year after year, in recognition of their fine work in the field of award design and production and of their exemplary dedication to the craft. R.S. Owens has been involved in awards manufacturing since 1938. It began, as many great things do, as a small idea from an enterprising man, Owen Siegel. His idea has grown from a small dream into one of the most successful award manufacturing companies in the United States. While so many companies in the manufacturing field have turned to automated machine work, R.S. Owens has remained grounded primarily in handwork. The company employs workers who are masters in their craft, and take great pride in their work--pride that is evident in the quality of award they continually produce in a field where the product is so closely scrutinized as to allow no errors in workmanship. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I recognize the excellent craftsmanship of R.S. Owens & Company in their production of the Academy Award. The company's fine work and dedication make it an excellent example of flourishing businesses throughout Chicago. It is an honor to know that such an innovative and responsible company calls Chicago its home. On behalf of the Fifth District of Illinois and the city of Chicago, I congratulate R.S. Owens on their continued excellence in their field, and look forward to the showcase of this year's batch of awards at the ceremony this March.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to speak out of order.

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, March 19 will mark the 3-year anniversary of the Iraq war. For 3 years, we have heard the President respond to questions about his handling of the war in Iraq with, ``Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes?'' Kind of like what Groucho Marx used to say. For 3 years, we have seen the President and his supporters celebrate milestones in Iraq as an indication that the insurgency was ``in its last throes,'' while the insurgency actually continues to grow and persist. While the administration keeps trying to spin its way out of Iraq, we keep witnessing the truth. Today, for instance, John Negroponte told the Senate Armed Services Committee, ``Even if a broad and inclusive national government emerges, there will almost certainly be a lag time before we see any dampening effect on the insurgency.'' In other words, even if we establish a functioning government and democracy, the insurgency in Iraq will persist, just the opposite of what the administration has been telling us. Mr. Speaker, it is time that the President acknowledge what we can all see with our own eyes every night, that the administration's failure to secure the peace early in Iraq has led Iraq to the brink it is in today. Had we secured not just the war, but the first days of the occupation with a plan for that occupation and actually secured the country and had not allowed the first levels of insurgency to grow, to metastasize to what we have today, we would never have what we have now. But we went in with a plan for the war with not a single idea, not an iota of anything to do on the occupation. Three years ago, brave men and women of the American Armed Forces fought brilliantly until defeating Saddam Hussein and his army. But the President failed to plan for the peace, and he failed to work quickly to establish order in Iraq and left it leaderless. In fact, many of our troops were on the sidelines as looting went rampant throughout Iraq, leading in that stage every way sequentially to what we have today. And why did it fail? Because he didn't listen to what we knew we had to do. For the past 3 years, the President has maintained that if the American leaders in Iraq needed more troops, all they had to do was ask. Just last week the President said, ``I will determine the troop levels in Iraq based on the recommendations of our commanders, not based only the politics of Washington, D.C.'' Paul Bremer, the Ambassador to Iraq, the President's top man in Iraq, called for more boots on the ground in the days following the invasion and was ignored. On page 10 of Paul Bremer's book, ``My Year in Iraq,'' Paul Bremer writes that he was alarmed by a report stating that we did not have enough troops on the ground to stabilize the country. The report said: ``The population of Iraq today is nearly 25 million. The population would require 500,000 troops on the ground to meet a standard of 20 troops per 1,000. This number is more than three times the number of foreign troops now deployed in Iraq.'' Paul Bremer writes: ``I found the conclusions persuasive and troubling. That afternoon, I had a summary of the draft copied and sent down the corridor to Don Rumsfeld. `I think you should consider this,' I said in my cover memo. I have never heard back from him about the report.'' Now, I am not here to help sell books for Paul Bremer, but the President's top man asked for more troops to succeed in Iraq and never got an answer from either the President of the United States or from the Secretary of Defense. When Secretary Don Rumsfeld completely ignores the man who is in charge of America's most important policy mission, we have a problem. A few days later, Paul Bremer got a chance to air his concerns to the President: ``There is one other important issue, Mr. President. Troop levels.'' Troop levels never increased. The troop level never got up. In Iraq, Bremer's worst fears were realized, and he writes: ``According to CENTCOM briefings in Qatar, we didn't yet have enough troops in Baghdad to secure key tactical objectives, traffic circles, bridges, power plants, banks and munition dumps, and also patrol the streets.'' We will never know for sure if more troops would have secured Baghdad in time to prevent the insurgency we see today, but we do know that the President's top man had asked for help and the President failed to respond, and the Secretary of Defense failed to respond; and today we are seeing the results of that failure. And we do know that 136,000 men and women who are there now do not have the support that they need. If you look today in the New York Times in a poll done by Mr. Zogby, the American troops don't think we have enough troops. They also don't think we should continue to stay there at the level that we are there. Retired Army Lieutenant General Bill Odom, former head of the National Security Agency, said that the invasion of Iraq ``will turn out to be the greatest single strategic disaster in U.S. foreign policy.'' Lawrence Wilkerson, former Secretary of State Colin Powell's chief of staff at the State Department, said President Bush's foreign policy was ``ruinous'' and said that ``we have courted disaster in Iraq, North Korea, and in Iran.'' Mr. Speaker, it is time for a change in policy.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, the special interests may have gained access to the Capitol, but the American people are paying for it. My colleague from Oregon talked about the prescription drug bill. It is a classic example when you see what happens to seniors across all of our districts who are not more than confused but have to fill out more than 30 pages of forms to get a single drug, where the drug companies or HMOs or insurance companies that are providing the plan can switch drugs like that at any moment, but they cannot switch out. The basic tenet of business is to take care of the customer first. If this was designed with the customer in mind, it really does come as a surprise. But I will tell you what is happening in the industry of healthcare specifically as we talk about the pharmaceutical industry and the prescription drug bill is happening in the energy area. The energy industry last year spent $87 million to lobby the United States Congress. Now what did they get for that $87 million? They got $14.5 billion in taxpayer support to drill for oil. We are paying ExxonMobil, Texaco $14.5 billion to drill for oil when energy is at a little over 60 bucks a barrel. For their $87 million of investment, they got taxpayers to fork over $14.5 billion. And we pay at the pump nearly 3 bucks a gallon, the highest price in a long time, and yet we also pay on April 15 with tax breaks for big oil, Texaco, ExxonMobil, Chevron, and all the other big oil companies, BP Amoco. They also got a waiver in the lost revenue from royalties, that they are supposed to pay about $7 billion in royalties for drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. We also support them with another $2 billion for deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. So $87 million has gotten big oil companies $14.5 billion in taxpayer support, passed on $7 billion in royalties that they own, and another $2 billion on top of that for deepwater drilling, a little north of $20 billion. You cannot get a return on your investment like that even on Wall Street, but that is just one area where the American people are paying for the type of access that the special interests have. There is a for sale sign here on the People's House, and for the last 5 years that for sale sign has allowed any special interest access and the American people are paying for it. When the Speaker's gavel comes down, it is intended to open the People's House, not the auction house; and for the last 5 years it has been nothing but an auction house here. My colleague talked about the prescription drug companies. They are going to get, over the next 8 years, an additional $139 billion in profits that they would not get, a 25 percent, 28 percent increase in their profit margin. They spent about $173 million lobbying the United States Congress. They got $139 billion in additional profits. The HMOs and the private insurers got an additional $130 million they would not have seen any other way if it was not for the prescription drug bill. And what did our seniors get? Plans in which none of them can figure it out, total confusion, drugs that are being dropped, some drugs that are skyrocketing. When they used to pay 4 and 5 bucks, they are now $150, and other drugs have dropped. Absolute confusion and plans that are locked in for 1 year. All the while, what else do they get? We cannot negotiate prices just like Sam's Club does when they do bulk purchasing. We cannot allow our seniors access to Canadian and British drugs and drugs from Ireland and France and Germany so they can get competition from free trade and choice, and we cannot allow generics on the market quicker so that they can compete with name brand drugs. In every step of the way, that prescription drug bill avoided and outlawed the very principles of a free market, all in favor of creating a captive market for the prescription drug companies; and, once again, the taxpayers and the seniors are supporting and literally backstopping the prescription drug companies and HMOs and insurance companies. We taxpayers are paying for it. As my colleague said, the bill was sold here on the floor for $394 billion. Before the ink was dry, it was reported to cost $790 billion, twice the actual cost. There are some in government that knew that was what it was going to cost. So all of the taxpayers now are going to have to pay $800 billion over 10 years; and the pharmaceutical companies, HMO companies, and private insurance companies are going to walk off with huge profits. And all the while what has happened to the American people? Energy is up, in the last 2 years, 78 percent. Gasoline. Health care costs are up 58 percent. On average for a family of four, $3,600 over the last 5 years. College costs are up 38 percent; yet we may end up cutting college aid. Mr. Speaker, I would like to note that we have a for sale sign on the front of the lawn here at the people's Capitol, and this November this election should be to return that gavel to its rightful owner, the American people.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, yesterday Press Secretary Scott McClellan said, ``We are moving on to the priorities of the American people. That is our focus.'' Well, Scott, here are the headlines my constituents care about: ``Ex-CIA Official Says Iraq Data Was Distorted; White House Knew of Levee Failure; Brown Faults White House and Agency for Poor Response; Doctors, Pharmacists Say Medicare Benefit Limits Drugs For Seniors; Government Will Forgo $7 Billion in Oil, Gas Royalties; Bush Budget Would Kill Popular Health Projects; Government Was Underpaid $345 Billion; American Bar Association Says Bush Exceeded Constitutional Powers in Surveillance Program; Washington Lobbyists Spent $1.6 Billion in First Half of 2005 Lobbying Congress; Photograph Shows Abramoff with Bush in May 2001; Iran Restarts Uranium Program.'' Scott, if you are listening, the American people are ready and waiting. As they say in the news industry, good night and good luck.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and honor the Chicago area athletes competing this month in the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The Olympic Games bring the world together in celebration of the best that every nation has to offer. I am proud that five Chicagoans are joining the world's best at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Chris Chelios is serving as the captain of the men's hockey team for the third consecutive Olympics. At 44 years old, Chelios is the oldest Olympic hockey player since 1928, but is still expected to be a driving force for the Americans. After attending Mount Carmel High School, Chelios represented his hometown as a blueliner for the Blackhawks throughout most of the 1990s. Nineteen-year-old Northwestern University student Margaret Crowley has several opportunities to represent her country in speed skating, competing in the 3,000 meter and Team Pursuit events. She was the U.S. junior champion in 2004 and the runner-up in 2005. In addition to her extensive training schedule, Crowley has found the time to study economics, French and literature. Shani Davis is the first African-American to qualify for the U.S. Olympic speed skating team. Shani grew up on Chicago's South Side and was inspired by fellow Illinois native Bonnie Blair. Davis also competed in the 2002 Salt Lake City Games and was the 2005 World All- Around Speedskating Champion. Ben Agosto is a native Chicagoan who has paired with Tanith Belbin to compete in ice dancing in Turin. They are favored to win a medal, which would be only the second ever for an American team, and the first in 30 years. The pair combines salsa, rhumba and cha cha as part of their original dance routines on the ice. Chicago native Evan Lysacek is competing in his first Games as a figure skater. After graduating from Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, he overcame a serious hip injury to land a spot on the U.S. team headed to Turin. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I honor these five Olympians that are representing the U.S. in Turin. On behalf of my fellow Chicagoans and Americans, I wish these elite athletes and all of their teammates the best of luck in their respective events, and I thank them for representing the United States at the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, the real estate bubble may be bursting in some markets around America, but here in Washington, D.C., real estate is still a great investment. You may have missed the listing, but it appears that the U.S. Capitol, the People's House, was bought with a down payment of a mere $1.6 billion, $1.16 billion from lobbyists here in town. Or at least that is what the special interests spent on lobbying the Republican Congress in the first 6 months of 2005. And what exactly does about $1 billion from lobbyists get you these days in a home like the People's House? If you are an oil and gas company, you have done $87 million in lobbying expenses. What does it buy you? $14.5 billion in subsidies from taxpayers. $14.5 billion from taxpayers in subsidies so you can just do your business plan. They spent $87 million and got a $14.5 billion gift from the taxpayers. $87 million will also allow to you pump about $65 billion worth of oil and gas from the Gulf of Mexico, and you do not pay a single royalty, costing the taxpayers $7 billion. That is $7 billion that could pay for child support collections, $7 billion that could pay for college education, $7 billion that can create new broadband expansion, everything that we would be doing. $7 billion could pay down the deficit. No, taxpayers have been asked to forgo all the royalty that is owed to them, and the oil and gas companies walked away with it, $14.5 billion in taxpayers subsidies. All the while, while energy is about little north of 60 bucks a barrel. That is right, 60 bucks a barrel. We are subsidizing big oil and big energy companies who also have made record profits. Now, I think that is great. I think Exxon Mobil should make all the money they want to make. But why are subsidizing them when they are making record profits to do nothing but their business plan? I don't know of another family that has their family budget subsidized by the rest of the taxpayers to this level. $87 million investment and contributions got them $14.5 billion in taxpayer subsidies and basically a pass on $7 billion they owe the taxpayers for having drilled in the Gulf of Mexico. But that is not just alone in the energy sector. Let us talk a look at the health care sector. They have given about $173 million in contributions, lobbying activities, all types of expenses. Drug manufacturers saw an extra $139 billion in profits over the next 8 years from the prescription drug bill. HMOs, $130 billion in additional profits through Medicare overpayments. There is actually a section in the prescription drug bill called the HMO slush fund for $10 billion. Where else can you get an investment like that? You cannot get an investment that gives you 100 percent return on your money on Wall Street. My grandmother used to say, with a deal like this, where you basically give $173 million and you get $132 billion profit, such a deal is what my grandmother used to say. Nowhere except in Washington, D.C., in a Republican Congress can you give $87 million and get $14 billion in return. Give $173 million and get $132 billion in return. That is close to a hundred percent return on your money. So what do the American people get out of this blue-light special and how do we get out of this? We have created a structural deficit to the system and a system that works against the American people and the taxpayers, whether you are a senior citizen who is struggling with this prescription drug bill which is total chaos but has guaranteed and locked in profits for HMOs and pharmaceutical companies, or whether you are a consumer going to pump paying close to three bucks a gallon, and yet we are also paying on April 15 subsidizing the big companies. Yes, there are 30 different insurance forms for a senior citizen to try to figure out which drug they can get matched with. Now do you think the oil and gas companies fill out 30 different forms for oil and gas leasing or for their $14.5 billion in taxpayer subsidies? No, they do not. Now there are over 100 questions for a kid who is just trying to apply for a student loan for about $2,000, yet we do not force oil and gas companies, pharmaceutical companies, HMO companies to fill out forms like that when it comes to the subsidies we are providing these companies. It is time to end corporate welfare as we know it. The People's House and the Speaker's gavel when it comes down it is intended to open up the People's House, not the auction house. In the last 5 years, this place has looked like an auction house, whether it is oil and gas companies, whether it is HMO companies, whether it is pharmaceutical companies. In fact, last year, we had a corporate tax bill on the floor. It was supposed to solve a $5 billion problem. By the time the Republican Congress was done with it, $150 billion it cost the taxpayers. Time and again, we are paying for the types of wheeling and dealing and what goes as business as usual. If you go out to the north side of the lawn here at the People's House you will see the for sale sign, and the lobbyists have paid a little over a billion dollars and gotten everything money can buy. So it is time in this election that we turn the People's House back and that gavel back to its rightful owner, the American people.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the achievements of the Korea Town area of Chicago's 5th Congressional District. Chicago is home to many culturally and ethnically based communities, and Korea Town is one of the most thriving and influential areas in our city. Anchored on Lawrence Avenue, local businesses both serve and showcase the Korean community and its heritage. The residents of this neighborhood have played a large role in its recent revitalization, boosting civic pride as the neighborhood has flourished. Korea Town is home to many Korean restaurants, merchants, and bars popular among both residents of and visitors to Chicago. The area also serves as the hub for Chicago's communication among the Korean-American community, as it boasts Korean television and radio stations, newspaper and magazine headquarters, and other businesses that cater to the growing number of Koreans and Korean-Americans in Chicago. Recently, the Illinois Department of Transportation put up a designation marker on Chicago's John F. Kennedy Expressway to show the way to Korea Town. This sign will lead visitors to a symbol of over 40 years of hard work of the Korean American community, as well as the many successes of immigrant communities in Chicago and across the country. Korea Town is one of the neighborhoods that make Chicago great, boasting some of the city's wonderful opportunities for dining, shopping and family-friendly recreation. Last year, both the Chicago City Council and the Illinois General Assembly passed resolutions honoring the cultural heritage of Korea Town and the contributions of Chicago's Korean community, and I am proud to represent Korea Town and many Korean-Americans in the U.S. House of Representatives. Mr. Speaker, I ask you to join me in recognition of the rich cultural heritage of Chicago's Korea Town, and honor the many contributions of Chicago's Korean-American community.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the memory of the four chaplains who gave their lives in service of our nation while serving on the U.S.S. Dorchester during the Second World War. The Dorchester, known as the `Grey Ghost' by U-boat crews, carried nearly 1 million U.S. troops to Europe during her tenure, which came to a tragic end 63 years ago today. At 12:55 a.m. February 3, 1943, a German U-boat launched a torpedo that struck the Dorchester, killing many of the 902 aboard instantly, injuring hundreds of others, and creating chaos as the ship took on water. Captain Hans J. Danielsen gave the order to abandon ship. As men struggled amid the turmoil to board life boats, the ship's four chaplains, Lt. George L. Fox, Methodist; Lt. Alexander D. Goode, Jewish; Lt. John P. Washington, Roman Catholic; and Lt. Clark V. Poling, Dutch Reformed, offered solace and counseled courage. As the supply of life vests dwindled, each chaplain removed his own life vest and handed it to a soldier. ``It was the finest thing I have seen or hope to see this side of heaven,'' said John Ladd, one of the 230 survivors. Survivors recount their last glimpse of the U.S.S. Dorchester in the icy waters off the Newfoundland coast: The four chaplains linked arms in prayer and went down with the ship. We mark their heroism today, February 3, as ``Four Chaplains Day.'' I want to thank Commander of the Combined Veterans Association of Illinois Victor Cibelli and event chairman John Bigwood for arranging a tribute to the four chaplains at the Northwest Suburban Jewish Congregation in Morton Grove, Illinois. Mr. Speaker, this tribute provides us with an opportunity to reflect on the spiritual strength, patriotism, and dedication to their fellow sailors exhibited by these four chaplains as they made ultimate sacrifice. I ask my colleagues to join me today in honoring the memory of the four chaplains of the U.S.S. Dorchester.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to extend my deepest condolences to the people of Poland in their time of national mourning following the building collapse disaster in Katowice on Saturday, January 28, 2006. I sympathize with those families who have lost loved ones as a result of this catastrophe and join the world in prayer for a swift recovery for those who were injured. I would also like to offer my appreciation to the brave men and women who selflessly rushed in to the building to conduct the search and rescue operations in freezing temperatures and saved so many lives. Mr. Speaker, I join with the residents of the 5th district indeed all of Chicago in offering our thoughts and prayers to the Polish people.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of Coretta Scott King, and I offer my condolences to her family after she passed away in her sleep early this morning. She was a remarkable human rights advocate who was a living symbol of the struggles and successes of the civil rights movement. Mrs. King was best known as the loving wife and widow of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She provided invaluable support to the man who became the Nation's leading civil rights advocate and an international icon. She stood by him as he was harrassed, intimidated and eventually assassinated for fighting for equality. Her grace and dignity after her husband's death showed the country that she was more than just a strong wife. Alone with four children, she did not retreat but instead insisted on continuing the mission that her late husband had started. She continued the march in Memphis before his funeral. As time progressed, she spearheaded the effort to create a federal holiday to honor her husband. Her strong insistence on furthering Dr. King's ideals led to the creation of the holiday in 1983. Mrs. King quickly became an internationally known figure who embodied the spirit of non-violent resistance and human rights advocacy. Her work was not limited solely to civil rights; She worked tirelessly for other noble causes, becoming a leader in the women's liberation movement and vocally opposing apartheid in South Africa. Mrs. King's life is an inspiration to millions of people worldwide who struggle to overcome human rights issues. She overcame her own personal tragedy to keep her family together and further the causes of the civil rights movement. Mr. Speaker, Coretta Scott King has been a role model for those seeking to overcome tragedy and discrimination with grace and determination. I rise today to honor her life and her legacy.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, last night the President said that in order to keep America competitive, we need to invest in America. So what is the first thing the Republican Congress does? It cuts $12.5 billion from college assistance for kids who are trying to go to college. It is a fascinating way to invest in America's competitiveness and the future. I wonder why nobody else has thought of that. This is the Republican Congress where the rhetoric of the President last night meets the Republican reality. We kept $14.5 billion in subsidies to big oil and big gas companies, $22 billion in subsidies to the HMO slush fund, and $49 billion for the pharmaceutical industry, all the while we cut $12.5 billion from children trying to go to college, $8 billion from child support collection, and $16 billion from Medicaid. We increased copayments and premiums leaving thousands of children without children's health care; but we kept in place the subsidies to big oil, big energy companies and big health care interests. What has happened in America? We have seen a 38 percent increase in college costs in the last 5 years under the Republican watch, and you guys cut $12.7 billion from kids going to college in assistance. We have seen a 78 percent increase in the cost of energy; yet you subsidize Big Oil with $14 billion in taxpayer subsidies. We have seen a 58 percent increase in health care premiums, $3,600 to the average family in America. So what do you do? You cut 6 million children from health care and give the HMOs a $22 billion additional hit for their slush fund and give pharmaceutical companies everything they need. This budget maintains the status quo. It says of the last 6 years, if you like the economy you have, if you like the investments you have, we will give you two more years to sign on for that. It is time for a change. It is time for a new direction. It is time to put the American people first by investing in their education, their health care, and child support collection. It is not just the poor that are being affected. This budget and these cuts affect the middle class. As my colleague from Alabama said, we have heard the word toughness, but we have not heard the word fairness from you. It is not every American in the boat. This is a narrow budget that divides America, rather than unites America. While Americans are struggling with wages and incomes that have been stagnant for 5 years, with rising health care costs, rising college costs, and rising energy costs, you guys cut children on college assistance, nutrition, health care, and child support. When it comes to women and children, you give a whole new meaning to women and children first. It is time to put the American people first and to set new priorities and change the direction.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I was not present in the Chamber on Thursday, December 15, to cast my votes on rollcalls 636 through 641. Had I been present I would have voted in the following ways: Rollcall 636--Nay; Rollcall 637--Yea; Rollcall 638--Yea; Rollcall 639--Yea; Rollcall 640--Nay; and Rollcall 641--Yea.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Sherman Dickholtz, a World War II hero, beloved husband and father, and valued member of the Illinois legal community. Mr. Dickholtz passed away on Saturday, December 3, 2005 at the age of 80. As a member of the 17th Airbone Division, Sgt. Dickholtz distinguished himself as an infantryman, paratrooper and parachute rigger. He participated in campaigns in France and Germany including Operation Varsity, the last full-scale airborne drop of the World War II. On March 24, 1945, he and the other members of the 17th parachuted behind enemy lines east of the Rhine River, and capture key points in order to assist the advance of ground troops. Sgt. Dickholtz was awarded the Bronze Star for gallantry and meritorious service. Upon his discharge from military service, Mr. Dickholtz went on to graduate from John Marshall Law School, working his way through school by driving a taxi for the Vets Cab Company. At that time, veterans were not able to obtain taxi medallions, and Mr. Dickholtz participated in a protest ``cabalcade'' of taxis from Chicago to Washington, DC to protest. Mr. Dickholtz gained national recognition for his participation when his picture was published in newspapers across the country. Mr. Dickholtz had a successful career as an attorney, and in October of 2005 was conferred the title of Senior Counselor by the Illinois Bar Association. He was also a member of and proctor for the American MENSA Society. Mr. Dickholtz's wife Darlene was not only legal secretary and office manager for her husband, but also his best friend. Together they raised seven children in a very busy and loving home. Mr. Dickholtz was the proud grandfather of 10 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. His family has continued his legacy of service and success in both the public and private sectors. Mr. Dickholtz will be dearly missed by his family and community. I am privileged to pay tribute to this great American.

Mr. EMANUEL

Mr. EMANUEL. Mr. Speaker, this legislation is a missed opportunity. As my colleague from Maryland just noted, I have sponsored legislation on the automatic enrollment and 401(k) plans, direct deposit of tax savings into a savings plan, and the savers credit for people with moderate income, to start saving. Why? Because basically almost 80 percent of small business employees have no retirement plan outside of Social Security. For approximately 38 percent of the households in America, the only savings plan they have is Social Security. By doing what is right, by helping people start up their personal savings through 401(k)s and other types of personal savings, we would actually encourage people to save for their retirement. So this legislation on the defined contribution level takes the right step. And it is so unfortunate because we can get an overwhelming vote for those provisions to help Americans save outside of Social Security. And I am glad we took this year to stop the privatization of Social Security. But in doing that, they have added the provisions on the defined benefit plans. On a stand-alone, none of that would pass. So what they are trying to do is get the goods through Customs using the defined contributions to get through what I think are some very dangerous provisions as it relates to the defined benefit plans for millions of workers who have basically negotiated a deal with their employers. Because what does this legislation do? It makes a bad situation worse. The PBGC and the Congressional Budget Office have estimated that in fact $9 billion in defaulted plans would be left on the taxpayers. We started 3 years ago with the PBGC, which guarantees all retirement plans in this country, with a surplus. Today, we are running a deficit, and this legislation would make that situation worse. As the old saying goes, when you are in a hole stop digging. This legislation would dig even faster. Companies, and we know them all, we have seen the stories, are using our bankruptcy laws to literally dump their pension systems, and it is a backdoor to walk out of their obligation. This legislation does nothing to stop companies from dumping their plans, and it does not ensure fairness between workers and executives. So while there are good provisions that relate to the defined contributions, it makes the defined benefit plans much worse.