Bob Filner

Mr. FILNER

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

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I understand the gentleman's concerns. In California we have the same ones. Litigation is not the route that we wouldfavor. We would like a commonsense, as the gentleman from Texas kept saying, a commonsense law. But dirt, siltation, is in fact the second leading polluting problem in our Nation's rivers and streams. It suffocates fish and eggs and bottom-dwelling organisms. It alters aquatic habitat, and interferes with drinking water and the recreational process of the river. So siltation is a real problem. In conclusion, our country needs energy. We support its development, but clean water is as important as energy. It is vital for our economy and for our life itself. And the lands where the wells are drilled are the same lands that provide water for our ranchers and our city dwellers, as well as our fish and wildlife population. The oil and gas industry say, and I have seen TV advertisements and full-page ads in magazines, that we can develop energy and protect the environment at the same time, and we agree with them. So why should Congress weaken environmental protection by writing a special exemption for one industry alone? I ask for approval of the motion to instruct.

Mr. FILNER. I yield to the gentleman from Texas.

Mr. FILNER. Yes.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would say that the gentleman from Abilene, Texas (Mr. Stenholm) did such a good job for the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Barton) that they should have treated him better in the Texas redistricting law. We have been told we ought to cry for some of these gas and oil producers and developers, and that these poor folks, we have to let them produce. I am told that the permit that would be needed for such a situation only takes 7 days. That is the law. I do not know what Members are talking about--6 months, or we will never be allowed to prepare the site. It is 7 days for the permit. In an arid area such as the gentleman's, the law specifically waives the requirement for a permit. If there is no corrosive rain, there is no permit required. I would be tempted to say the gentleman is throwing red herrings across the debate, but with the gentleman's policies, the red herrings might all be killed so I will not. Let me get to dirt.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to rule XXII, clause 7(c), I hereby announce my intention to offer a motion to instruct conferees on H.R. 6, the Energy Policy Act. The form of the motion is as follows: I move that the managers on the part of the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the Senate amendment to the bill, H.R. 6, be instructed to reject section 12403 of the House bill, relating to the definition of oil and gas exploration and production in the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the chairman of our subcommittee, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. LoBiondo); the ranking member of our committee, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar); and the chairman, the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young), for bringing us this legislation--and that I was proud to work on it with them. It is a culmination of our work this session examining the Coast Guard mission, with particular emphasis on the funding for the Maritime Transportation Security Act of 2002. This bill, H.R. 2443, authorizes $7.1 billion, and we hope that this will be sufficient funding for the Coast Guard to carry out the many missions that Congress has given the Coast Guard, including homeland security, search and rescue, marine safety, drug and migrant interdiction and law enforcement. H.R. 2443 authorizes $39 million for a squadron of what are called HITRON armed helicopters for the west coast. The gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar) talked about return of investment on this bill. Well, that is true, certainly, of this HITRON helicopter. Since their establishment, the Jacksonville, Florida, HITRON squadron has stopped over $1.5 billion in illegal drugs from entering the United States. Deployment of the HITRON squadron on the west coast will help stem the flow of illegal narcotics through the eastern Pacific Ocean. If one were to look at this using a cost-benefit analysis, $39 million is spent for the armored HITRON squadron on the west coast, but drugs that are stopped and interdicted are worth more than 20 times that amount. It is my strong view that the Coast Guard must increase Airborne Use of Forces assets for port security and drug interdiction. The lease option for these aircraft is already in place. The lease provides antiterrorist and antidrug coverage for the next 3 to 5 years while providing flexibility for the Coast Guard to engage in competition to select a permanent multimission cutter helicopter to meet our challenges post-9/11. When these multimission helicopters are deployed, the HITRON helicopters can be returned to their manufacturer at the option of the Coast Guard. There are a number of changes to existing law which the previous speakers have spoken to. I would again like to thank the members of the committee for their bipartisan effort to put this bill together and look forward to working with them as we work with the Senate to reach an agreement on the authorizing legislation. Mr. Chairman, I urge my colleagues to support passage of the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Act.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H. Res. 425, a resolution honoring and commemorating the heroic efforts of the firefighters who fought to save lives and property. These firefighters exhibited resilience and courage, continuing to stay on the lines, often in back-to-back shifts and, in some instances, knowing that their own families were in danger or that their personal homes had been lost. The fires that swept across Southern California tested our resolve. All of us in the fire's path were forced to wrestle with the magnitude of the destructive force bearing down on our neighborhoods. Clearly, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to the brave firefighters who met this huge obstacle head on, and I think all of us were impressed by the outpouring of compassion in our communities as neighbors helped neighbors, and strangers came to the aid of those they had never met. I have made a commitment to my constituents to fight for our neighbors as we begin the difficult process of rebuilding. I will be a vocal advocate in Washington for the necessary federal assistance being made available so our neighbors can begin to put their lives back together. Just yesterday, I took part in meetings with the President of the United States when he visited San Diego to tour the fire damage, telling him that our people need all the resources of the federal government marshaled for their support over the upcoming weeks and months. There will be questions that need to be answered about what preparations were made to combat a fire of this magnitude in our region, and I will not pull punches in getting to the bottom of any culpability that could have hampered our ability to stop this fire. In addition to co-sponsoring this important legislation, I have co- sponsored two other important fire related bills. H.R. 3407, the California FIRE Act, to provide $500 million in immediate disaster relief to the victims of the California fires, and H.R. 3431, the Firefighters Medical Monitoring Act, to keep track of the health of the California firefighters after the fires are extinguished. We must ensure that the firefighters who put their lives at risk do not become ill following the fires. I recently voted in favor of the Supplemental Appropriations bill because of the terrible suffering and devastation endured by the citizens of San Diego County as a result of the firestorm, $500 million was added for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster assistance in California. Last week, I contacted FEMA Director Michael Brown and President Bush, urging them to make a FEMA center operational immediately in San Diego, to help my constituents in processing the necessary paperwork to begin the process of rebuilding their lives. This important funding will allow FEMA to open one-stop clearinghouses for information and assistance in expediting the huge volume of disaster claims that will result from this tragedy. I know, in a very personal way, the suffering of San Diegans in the recent firestorm and because I want to say ``thank you'' to the thousands of professional firefighters who exhibited so much bravery and courage in recent days, I support this important bill.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Warren Heyer, one of my district's most persistent and effective community advocates. As a young man, Heyer served in World War II, where he saw combat in General George S. Patton's 3rd Army and took part in the liberation of a Nazi concentration camp. After witnessing the horror of war and genocide, he became an ardent anti-war activist. And in the mid-1960s, his activism focused on his community. After Heyer graduated from San Diego State College in 1950, he taught in a local elementary school--where he met his first wife, Roberta Calvert, who passed away in 1996. He continued his education, receiving a Master's degree in librarianship, and worked as a librarian at both San Diego High School and San Diego City College. In 1964, he was a founding faculty member of Mesa College, where he was instrumental in developing numerous important school policies. He was the elected chairman of the Library Department, a position he held until 1979, when he retired. Retirement did not stop his service to the college: he continued to serve as an adjunct librarian, training and assisting new employees and students. He was also a central figure in the efforts to re-zone his community of Encanto. If it were not for Warren Heyer, the quiet and inviting character of Encanto would have been lost. He served as vice-chairman of the Southeast San Diego Development Committee and went door-to-door to gain support for his efforts, without which, I am convinced, the planning measure would not have passed. Heyer suffered a stroke in Chichicastenango, Guatemala, where he was building a church on behalf of a humanitarian organization. He died as he lived: putting others before himself and working for the betterment of society. My deepest condolences go to Heyer's family; his wife Patricia and his three children: Kathryn, Robin, and Andrew. William Heyer was a model constituent and his legacy will continue to benefit my district for years and years to come.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Madam Speaker, I missed rollcall vote No. 602, because I was touring the wildfire damage in my district with the President of the United States. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, I rise today to report on the progress we are making towards the passage of benefits for Filipino World War II veterans. My colleagues know of the extreme sacrifices made by Filipino soldiers during World War II in the battles of Bataan and Corrigidor. They know that Filipino soldiers were instrumental in the successful outcome of this war in the Pacific. And they know, too well, that many of these soldiers were denied their benefits by a law passed by the 1946 Congress. Today, I am happy to report that the House of Representatives and the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee have passed legislation to restore health care services, improved disability compensation, and burial benefits to many Filipino World War II veterans living in the United States. We are working to get this legislation passed by the Senate and forwarded to the President to sign into law. In addition, the President announced during his recent visit to the Philippines that we will be doubling, from $500,000 to $1 million in FY2004, the amount of medical supplies and equipment that the United States is sending to the veterans' hospital in Manila. These are important steps in restoring benefits to the brave Filipino World War II soldiers who have been waiting for sixty years for equity.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, since the President first proposed his $87 billion supplemental appropriations package last month, I have worried that the President's plan for bringing stability to Iraq lacks fiscal accountability and a clear plan for bringing our troops home, and has relied on U.S. troops taking almost all the risks, and American taxpayers paying virtually all the bills. I have been angered by the repeated stories of our troops in Iraq not being outfitted with state-of-the-art Kevler bulletproof vests and armored HMMVVs. Equally troubling is the lack of parity for important funding at home. This bill sends direct aid to Iraq for infrastructure improvements that dwarf investments in our own country. The bill spends nearly twice as much per capita for border protection and public safety services in Iraq as we spend at home, and 10 times more per capita in Iraq for new hospital facilities than we spend in the United States. In addition, this bill spends 11 times more per capita for sewer and water services than we invest in our own cities, and 350 times more per capita on rehabilitating Iraq's electric power infrastructure than we are spending on fixing similar problems here at home. During the House's debate on this bill 2 weeks ago, I offered an amendment to add emergency funding for eliminating the ``disabled veterans tax,'' toppling an unfair law that prevents service disabled veterans from receiving their full military retired pay and VA disability compensation. This amendment, ruled out of order by the Republican majority, drew attention to just one of the many infrastructure and social service spending shortfalls at home that are ignored in this emergency appropriations bill. Two weeks ago, I voted ``no'' to giving the President a blank check for Iraq while falling behind in investing in our infrastructure and social service needs at home. Today, I will vote ``yes'' because of the terrible suffering and devastation endured by the citizens of San Diego County as a result of the firestorm still raging today; $500 million has been added for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster assistance in California. Earlier this week, I contacted FEMA Director Michael Brown and President Bush, urging them to make a FEMA center operational immediately in San Diego, to help my constituents in processing the necessary paperwork to begin the process of rebuilding their lives. This important funding will allow FEMA to open one-stop clearinghouses for information and assistance in expediting the huge volume of disaster claims that will result from this tragedy. In addition, this bill increases funds to purchase body armor Special Armor Plate Inserts, and to increase production of armored HMMVVs, which will give our soldiers the protections they should have had all along. I have joined a number of my colleagues in calling for a full congressional hearing to investigate the many reports of American men and women fighting in Iraq without adequate lifesaving body armor--an indication that our preparation for this war was inadequate. Today, I vote ``yes'' because our soldiers serving in harm's way deserve the best protection and resources our Nation can provide. And because I know, in a very personal way, the suffering of San Diegans in the current firestorm and because I want to say ``thank you'' to the thousands of professional firefighters who exhibited so much bravery and courage in recent days.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to rule XXII, clause 7(c), I hereby announce my intention to offer a motion to instruct on H.R. 6, the Energy Policy Act. The form of the motion is as follows: I move that the managers on the part of the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the Senate amendment to the bill H.R. 6 be instructed to reject section 12403 of the House bill, relating to the definition of oil and gas exploration and production in the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman, sometimes not so gentle, for yielding me time. In fact, I thank the not-so-gentle woman for fighting for these facilities in her district. She has fought long and hard, and this is just one of the fruits. She has done a tremendous job. I want to thank the chairman of the full committee and chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) for creating the environment on our committee that we could talk about these issues and work towards solving them without partisan rancor. I sincerely appreciate the efforts by the majority side on these bills. I too rise in support of H.R. 1720, the Veterans Health Care Facilities Capital Improvement Act. I think it goes without saying that if the VA is to provide excellent health care, it must have excellent health facilities. We simply cannot allow our veterans and our VA employees to work and be treated in buildings that are unsafe. Another such building on the list that you have heard is the Medical Center Building Number 1 in the VA health care system in San Diego, the medical facility used by veterans in all of San Diego and in my congressional district. This building is in desperate need of seismic corrections, including new exterior bracing enhancements to the existing seismic structures, with an estimated cost of almost $50 million. Not an insignificant sum--but the cost of not doing this project would be much higher in real human lives. The VA has identified more than 60 projects that require seismic fortification. We cannot continue to turn our heads away while VA patients and employees are in harm's way. So I compliment all of those who have worked on this, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1720.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a resolution, H. Con. Res. 305, ``If You Build It They Will Come'' Baseball Friendship Act, expressing the sense of Congress that Major League Baseball should select Monterrey, Mexico, as a host for a quarter of the Montreal Expos games next season as a show of goodwill between the United States and Mexico. In recent weeks, the United States Ambassador to Mexico Tony Garza has written to the Commissioner of Major League Baseball Bud Selig urging the League to play a quarter of their home games in Mexico. The Montreal Expos were bought by the other 29 Major League Baseball franchises before the 2002 season, and to increase revenue, Major League Baseball relocated 22 Expos home games to San Juan, Puerto Rico, for the 2003 season. Under this proposal, the people of Puerto Rico can continue to enjoy Major League Baseball. Major League Baseball officials have spent many months discussing a permanent move of the Montreal Expos franchise, despite baseball's intention to decide by the end of the regular season, it appears no long-term site will be selected for the 2004 season. Monterrey, Mexico, is a metropolitan area of about 3 million people 130 miles south of Laredo, TX, and is one of the safest cities in Latin America. Monterrey has played host to a number of successful major league baseball games over the last few years, and is the longtime home to the Sultans of the Mexican League, and the Sultans ballpark that could be expanded to more than 30,000 seats. I believe a commitment from Major League Baseball to play a quarter of the Montreal Expos' home games in Mexico would be a strong statement of friendship and goodwill between our countries and cultures, as we have shared with our other neighbor, Canada, for nearly 30 years. It's time that we include Mexico and make baseball the North American pastime. For the good of baseball, for the good of the people of these two great nations, if we build it, they will come.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Tonight, Mr. Chairman, we have talked about the lack of accountability of this administration, the poor wisdom of unilateral action, and the lack of a plan on the part of this administration, but I want to spend the few minutes that is allotted to me on priorities. Looking at this chart, we have requested $87 billion this evening for Iraq for a total of $201 billion. What we spend on veterans benefits this year is less than $62 billion; on food and nutrition 46; on education 34; on the environment 30; on housing 30. Where are our priorities? We are spending an obscene amount of money on an unwise action. But what about the troops that are coming home after they have been in Iraq? Are we going to provide for them? We have not provided sufficient money for their health care as veterans. We have not provided money for what we call concurrent receipt. My amendment says that there shall be full funding for those military retirees, for their pension and for their disability if they are so disabled. It provides the money for full funding of concurrent receipt. Why must we do this? Why must we work for our veterans? Why must we make sure that when our young men and women come home, they are provided for? In our budget resolution of this House, we make sure that over 150,000 veterans are still waiting 6 months for their first appointment. Thousands, tens of thousands of veterans are waiting for their disability claims to be adjudicated. We have not provided enough money for their care. And we have levied a tax on our military retirees for their disability. Yes, we have a disability, a veterans disability tax on those retirees. On the one hand, they earned their pension through their service to our Nation. And we have talked a lot about support of our troops tonight, but we are not supporting them when they come home because they have to choose between getting their pension and, if they are disabled, getting their disability. They are actually having to pay for their own disability. We are making them pay for their food in the hospitals right now, except for an amendment by the chair of the Committee on Appropriations, so we are taxing them on their disability. Mr. Chairman, this is not the priorities for this Nation. This is not the way a grateful Nation treats its young men and women who are so brave in their service whether to our Nation in Korea or Vietnam or in the Persian Gulf. Mr. Chairman, there is rumor today that the Republicans will say they have taken care of concurrent receipt. They have made a deal to cover this. What the Republicans have done, and which I urge all veterans groups to oppose, is to say those veterans with over 50 percent disability, only those will get some money, and we will phase that in over 10 years. So in the first year, they will get one-tenth of one- half of what they deserve. That is not a way to treat the folks who we are supposed to be supporting with our supplemental today. Let me tell you under the Republican proposal for concurrent receipt what occurs. A Vietnam retiree who is disabled by an amputation below the knee is not covered by the Republican plan for concurrent receipt. He gets no disability. He continues to pay his veterans disability tax. The Korean vet who has numbness and tissue loss in both feet because he had a cold weather injury in Korea, he gets zero disability under the Republican plan. This is not a way to treat our troops. And if you were in the Persian Gulf and have Persian Gulf War illness, and you can work with less than 50 percent of the efficiency you had before you went to war, you get no disability. The Republican plan gives very little support to those retirees who are on disability. My amendment gives full funding for disability of the retirees. Let us fund concurrent receipt. Let us vote for the Filner amendment.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. FILNER. * * *

Mr. FILNER. * * *

Mr. FILNER. * * *

Mr. FILNER. Let the Nation know that on a technicality, the Republicans refused to fund concurrent receipt for our veterans.

Mr. FILNER. I would, Mr. Chairman. We have just heard some very arcane rules that are never followed by the other side. They make waivers to legislation on an appropriations bill every day. There must be dozens in this bill today. Yet, you do not want to make the exception for a bill for our military retirees for their disability, their disability payments.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this time. Mr. Chairman, I represent San Diego, California, a place from which thousands and thousands of our troops have been sent to the war in Iraq. My constituents' families are personally involved in this effort every day, and I say to them that those who are going to vote against this blank check for the President are thinking about their brave sons and daughters. It is we who are thinking about their safety. This administration, with $79 billion that we gave them, cannot equip our troops with the body armor they need to survive. We have killed dozens of soldiers. We have maimed dozens of them because they did not have that body armor. What kind of an administration would do that and then say they support the troops? We have no accountability for what they did before. We have no accountability for this $87 billion that they are asking us to give them now. This is not what a legislative branch's duty is. A legislative branch is to exert co-equal control, co-equal influence with the executive branch; and the only way we can do that is through the purse strings. The gentleman before me said we have to keep going with what we are doing. Even if it is wrong, even if we have thrown in so much money, even if we have no plan to get out, let us keep going. I heard those arguments with Vietnam, and we were in a quagmire then. We are in an ``Iraqmire'' now. And we need to turn those troops' responsibilities over to an international body. We need to make sure that our troops come home alive. We are going to have the accountability that this body deserves only if we vote ``no'' on this matter. And I say to my friends, to my families in San Diego, it is time to turn this matter over to the United Nations. It is time that we internationalize this force. It is time that we bring our troops home; and we can spend that $87 billion on education, on health, on our veterans here at home. Vote ``no'' on the supplemental.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2297, the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003. This bill contains many improvements in the benefits for our Nation's veterans and for their survivors and dependents. One important provision of this legislation that I would like to highlight will positively affect many Filipino veterans of World War II who are living in the United States, as well as their survivors. Many of my colleagues know that in 1946, Congress unfairly rescinded the benefits of many Filipino veterans and cut in half the benefits of many others--those who were service-connected disabled veterans. This limitation on compensation benefits was intended to reflect the difference in the cost of living between the Philippines and the United States. But in the 60 years since World War II, a large number of Filipino veterans and their dependents have immigrated to our country. As citizens or permanent residents, these disabled Filipino veterans face living expenses comparable to those of United States veterans. Limiting their benefits has caused hardships for these disabled veterans and for their survivors who are receiving DIC (disability indemnity compensation). To fix this inequity, this bill eliminates the ``50 cents on the dollar amount'' that they are currently receiving and restores full payment of their compensation benefits. In addition, it extends burial benefits in national cemeteries for the Filipino World War II veterans living in the United States who, to this date, did not have these benefits--namely, the New Philippine Scouts. And the bill provides other in-kind and monetary burial benefits to these deserving veterans. I am elated that, with this legislation, my colleagues are addressing the 60-year-long injustice to Filipino soldiers who lived in a territory of the United States and fought side-by-side with our soldiers from the mainland during World War II. Without their vital participation in this war, the outcome might have been entirely different! Combined with H.R. 2357, which has passed the House and which improves access to VA medical facilities for Filipino World War II veterans who live in the United States, we are clearly making progress. I sincerely thank the Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee (Mr. Smith) and the Chairmen and Ranking Members of the House VA Benefits and Health Subcommittees (Mr. Simmons, Mr. Brown, Mr. Rodriguez, and Mr. Michaud) for their assistance in putting these bills forward. And a special thank you to my colleague, VA Committee Ranking Member Lane Evans who, with me, at a Veterans Town Hall Meeting in San Diego County ten years ago, heard first-hand the moving story of the injustices affecting Filipino World War II veterans, voted into law by the 1946 Congress. We heard this story from one veteran who had survived the Bataan Death March. From that moment, he has been my ally in this fight to restore justice and equity. I thank him for his unfailing support. My colleagues, please join me in voting for H.R. 2297. Ms. CORRINE BR0WN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2297, the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003, would expand the Montgomery GI Bill program to provide veterans considering self-employment with improved access to training benefits, including training related to franchises. Allowing veterans to use their MGIB benefit in this manner gives the flexibility necessary so that veterans can pursue an educational path that best suits their talents and interests. Additionally, this legislation would allow a surviving spouse of a veteran to be eligible for burial in a VA national cemetery regardless of the status of a subsequent marriage. In many cases, the veteran's children and grandchildren, and often the most recent spouse of the veteran, support this burial eligibility. This legislation also makes important strides in including more disabilities as service-connected. The VA Advisory Committee on Former Prisoners of War recommended that the original 30-day requirement for service-connection be eliminated for all psychiatric conditions, cold weather related injuries and post traumatic arthritis. No durational criteria exist for post-traumatic stress syndrome or frostbite. PTSD is common in former prisoners of war. And frostbite can occur within hours if the temperature is low enough. Post-traumatic arthritis is a condition that comes from trauma--which can occur in seconds. Removing the 30-day requirement is the right thing to do in order to make these disabilities presumptive. H.R. 2297 also expands benefits eligibility to children with spina bifida who were born to veterans who served in an area of Korea near the demilitarized zone between October 1, 1967 and May 7, 1975. The Department of Defense estimates that approximately 12,056 service members were potentially exposed to Agent Orange and other herbicides while serving in the Republic of Korea between 1968 and 1969. This legislation is similar to other legislation that covers the children of members of the Armed Forces that serve in Vietnam. This legislation also provides for uniformity of home loan guaranty fees between reserve and active duty members of the Armed Forces. Reservists have traditionally been paying a funding fee that is 75 percent higher than active duty members, although reservists have a lower foreclosure rate than other loan guaranty beneficiaries. H.R. 2297 includes many other benefits that will help us to meet our veterans' needs. This is a step in the right direction. However, time and time again, our veterans' needs are being ignored. Not only do America's veterans face issues with concurrent receipt, but they also face long waiting periods to see a VA doctor and prescription drug copayments. Also, VA still needs $1.8 billion to bring the fiscal year 2004 appropriation to the level set forth by the Budget Resolution. Where are our priorities? On average, 14,000 veterans have been waiting more than 15 months for their disability claims to be finalized. And 200,000 veterans wait for six months or more for an appointment at VA hospitals. This shabby treatment of our veterans is intolerable. If we can come up with an $87 billion supplemental appropriation for the war in Iraq, in addition to the $63 billion already provided by Congress, then surely we can give VA the $1.8 billion that is necessary to minimally provide for our veterans. We should be ashamed of ourselves. At this time, more than every, we need to show our veterans that we appreciate them. We first need to pass H.R. 2297, the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003; then we need to give VA the $1.8 billion it still needs to bring the fiscal year 2004 appropriation to the level set forth by the Budget Resolution. Our veterans should not have to come begging at our doors.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, when I was a college student over 40 years ago, I was one of the first Freedom Riders in Mississippi. With fellow students, we went to jail to spotlight for Americans the injustice and inhumanity of racial segregation. Last week as a Congressman, I was able to meet and make personal the historical connection with the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride. Tens of thousands of immigrants rode across our great Nation to spotlight for Americans the injustices and inhumanity of our current immigration laws. The Freedom Rides in the early 1960s did lead to the elimination of the laws of segregation. Let us work today to protect the rights of immigrants in the workplace, to ensure their civil liberties and civil rights, to reunite immigrant workers with their families, and to create a path to citizenship for those who work hard every day, pay their taxes, and support their families. Let us truly salute the Immigrant Workers Freedom Ride with real congressional action.