J. Forbes

Mr. FORBES

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Hulshof). (Mr. HULSHOF asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, it is both humbling and an honor to speak on this bill after the distinguished gentleman, Congressman Lewis, has just spoken. And I join my colleagues in strong support of H.R. 923, the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act OF 2007, and also compliment Chairman Conyers for his leadership and work on bringing this bill forward. It is important that Congress adopt this legislation as quickly as possible; 30 to 40 years have passed since many of these murders were committed. Under normal circumstances, trying a murder case is difficult and costly. Add to that the loss or destruction of evidence, witnesses who have died or are unavailable, and numerous procedural hurdles, it only increases the difficulty and cost of prosecuting these crimes. But law enforcement officers and prosecutors are continuing to pursue these cases, and we applaud their efforts. In 2006, the FBI directed all 56 of its field offices to comb through their own cold case files and assess how many could be prosecuted. The FBI identified roughly 100 such cases. Many cases are confined to a handful of field offices that must complete rigorous in-depth investigations before it's too late. H.R. 923 directs the Attorney General to designate a deputy chief within the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice to coordinate the investigation and prosecution of unsolved civil rights- era murders. The bill also directs the Attorney General to designate a supervisory special agent within the Civil Rights Unit of the FBI to investigate these outstanding cases. Mr. Speaker, most of these cases, if viable, will lack the requisite Federal nexus for prosecution by the Department of Justice. Yet, the Department and the FBI are able to provide valuable assistance to State prosecutors in their investigations. The Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act provides additional resources to fully assess these cases and bring the offenders to justice. I urge my colleagues to support this bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Daniel E. Lungren). (Mr. DANIEL E. LUNGREN of California asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, the chairman should have the last word on this, and so he has. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself the remaining time. Mr. Chairman, the gentleman stated that this would perhaps be the meanest and most misguided amendment of the night, but I would suggest that the gentleman look in the eyes of the father who had his deaf daughter raped and assaulted by individuals who were here illegally, protected only because we shielded them with temporary protected status, where they could have literally been standing on the street and have said, I'm a member of a violent criminal gang, I was here illegally, and there would have been nothing law enforcement could have done to have gotten rid of those individuals until they'd actually raped that little girl. One of those individuals was here protected by temporary protected status. The other one had applied for it and was in the process of getting it. The second thing, Mr. Chairman, we heard it mentioned that these individuals are here and we're protecting them on a temporary basis. It's mighty hard to look into the eyes of the American people, and say that when we have extended something for 10 years, that that is a temporary situation. And Mr. Chairman, I would just suggest to you when we talk about they're here legally, it is true they're here legally because we've put this shield of protection around them. If we're going to truly deal with the law and be honest with the American people and what this law says, we need to either take the word ``temporary'' out and just tell them it's protected status, or we need to let the law do what it's intended to do, which is to truly be temporary by being an 18-month period of time, not a 10-year period of time. Mr. Chairman, once again, I hope that it will be the pleasure of my colleagues to support this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

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

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, as you know, Congress has granted the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to grant temporary refuge to aliens, usually illegal immigrants, from particular countries under temporary protected status. Congress intended this provision to live up to its name and be temporary. Unfortunately, a pattern of abuse has emerged in the temporary protected status, or TPS, program. DHS can grant TPS status to the nationals of a country for as long as 18 months and can later extend the TPS period indefinitely by adding extensions up to 18 months each. The administration has begun to utilize TPS as a de facto amnesty for illegal immigrants from certain Central American countries. TPS status was granted to Honduran and Nicaraguan nationals at the end of 1998 following Hurricane Mitch. The administration has extended TPS for these individuals multiple times, the latest extension lasting until January 2009, more than 10 years after the hurricane. TPS status for Salvadoran nationals was granted early in 2001 as a result of earthquakes hitting the region. The latest TPS extension for Salvadoran nationals lasts until September 2007, again, long after temporary dislocations caused by the earthquakes. There are currently some 248,000 Salvadorans, 81,000 Hondurans and 4,000 Nicaraguans, mostly aliens who came illegally to the United States, benefiting from TPS status. Our Nation currently has a growing gang problem, and we have had testimony in the Judiciary Committee that 60 to 85 percent of some of the most violent gang members in the United States are here illegally. Of 5,000 gang members in a database that ICE compiled for Operation Community Shield, 291 El Salvadoran nationals, 43 Hondurans, and 1 Nicaraguan had been granted temporary protected status, 6.7 percent of the total. At least one of the suspected MS-13 members accused in the 2002 rape of two deaf girls in Massachusetts had been in our country protected by TPS. In fact, currently, a criminal gang member could literally stand on a street corner and announce that they were a member of a violent criminal gang and that they came here illegally, and if protected under TPS, no law enforcement officer could touch them until they had actually committed a crime. TPS is being used to grant long-time residence, a perpetual amnesty, to illegal immigrants of certain favored nationalities. This amendment will return TPS to its original intent of providing temporary refuge during temporary periods of crisis. It would bar any funds made available in this Act from being used to extend TPS for nationals of a country beyond the original period of not more than 18 months. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, could you tell me how much time I have remaining?

Mr. FORBES

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today as a member of the Congressional Prayer Caucus to formally acknowledge the importance of prayer in American life and history. Today, I remind my colleagues, constituents and country of our need for prayer by reading a portion of the words offered on the floor of the United States Senate on June 13, 1947, by Peter Marshall. Mr. Marshall prayed: ``God of our fathers, in whose name this Republic was born, we pray that by Thy help we may be worthy to receive Thy blessings upon our labors. ``In this world where men have made deceit a habit, lying an art, and cruelty a science, help us to show the moral superiority of the way of life we cherish. Here may men see truth upheld, honesty loved and kindness practiced. ``We do not pray that other Nations may love us, but that they may know that we stand for what is right, unafraid, with the courage of our convictions. ``May our private lives and our public actions be consistent with our prayers. ``Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.''

Mr. FORBES

Mr. FORBES. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 916, the John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2007, establishes a loan forgiveness program within the Department of Justice for State and local prosecutors and for Federal, State and local public defenders. However, the bill, as introduced, raised several concerns regarding the breadth and cost of the loan forgiveness program. I am pleased that the majority listened to our concerns, and at the Judiciary Committee markup we were able to reach a bipartisan compromise that ensures fiscal responsibility while encouraging young attorneys to join the criminal justice system and preventing attrition. Many law school graduates carry a large amount of student loan debt, on average between $50,000 and $80,000. More than 80 percent of law students borrow to pay for their law degree, and the amount borrowed by many students exceeds $100,000. At the same time, the median entry level salary for State prosecuting attorneys is $46,000, and the median entry level salary for public defenders is $43,000. Several States and prosecuting agencies currently offer loan repayment programs. Yet, H.R. 916, as introduced, made no provisions for whether participation in existing State and local loan repayment programs would offset repayment from this program. This substitute amends the bill to direct the Department of Justice to consider applicants' participation in other loan repayment programs when determining their ability to pay their loans. The bill, as introduced, would have resulted in a very costly program. Although the bill caps repayment at $60,000 per applicant, as few as 25,000 applicants would have cost $1.5 billion over the life of the program, even with the cap in place. The bill also authorized the program at $25 million for the first year and such sums as are necessary for each additional year. The bipartisan compromise authorizes $25 million a year for 6 years. This fiscally responsible limit on the authorization provides Congress the opportunity to review the cost effectiveness of the program. The bipartisan compromise directs the Inspector General of the Department of Justice to review the costs of the program and determine whether the program positively impacts the hiring and retention of prosecutors and public defenders. The compromise also directs the Department of Justice to administer this program subject only to the availability of appropriations, ensuring that the Department's criminal justice responsibilities remain a priority. H.R. 916, as amended, directs the Attorney General to give priority to those applicants with the least ability to repay their loans. This provision guarantees that funds will be made available under this program to those prosecutors or public defenders suffering the greatest burden. I thank Chairman Conyers and Crime Subcommittee Chairman Scott for their cooperation on this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Gingrey).

Mr. FORBES

Mr. FORBES. Madam Speaker, once again I urge passage of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 692 authorizes State Governors to fly the American flag at half- staff upon the death of a member of the Armed Forces who dies while serving on active duty. We all honor the service of the brave men and women who defend our Nation. When they make the ultimate sacrifice, Governors of the State should be allowed to recognize and pay tribute to them by lowering the flag. I am also pleased the majority included a Republican proposal to add a simple congressional finding to this legislation that states the following: ``Congress finds that members of the Armed Forces of the United States defend the freedom and security of our Nation.'' It is fitting to include this finding to recognize not just the loss of a member of our Armed Forces, but also to honor the reasons they serve. Madam Speaker, members of our Armed Forces deserve our deepest respect. They put their lives between us and hostile enemies around the world; they sacrifice stability with their own families so ours may sleep easier. They persevere in the most extreme conditions so we can lead ordinary lives. The flag code is designed to honor public service. When we lower the flag to half-staff, we remind ourselves that the United States is not merely preserved by lofty ideals, but by the service and sacrifice of a great many men and women. I support this legislation and encourage all of my colleagues to do so as well. Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES

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

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, as I rise to close, I just want to say that I don't think the American people much care whether it is Republicans in charge or Democrats in charge. I think what they really care about is whether or not we are reaching across and trying to forge solutions to the problems they face. That is why I want to compliment the chairman for his bipartisan manner in which he has not only handled working on this bill, but has handled this debate on the floor today. Mr. Speaker, this bill was never put on the sidelines. As I have mentioned before, the facts show in 2005 we reauthorized it through 2009 for $1.047 billion. The key was the DOJ Office of the Inspector General and GAO reports note that thousands of hires funded by COPS never materialized as law enforcement agencies used COPS funding to cover their own budget shortfalls. In fact, they showed that $277 million were misspent funds. Mr. Speaker, by working together in a bipartisan manner, I think we have crafted a bill that will help in a comprehensive manner continue to put police officers on the streets and continue to allow our local and State enforcement agencies to be able to use technology and smart policing to do what they want us to do, and that is to reach out to form practical solutions of how they deal with crime and the crime that is plaguing their communities. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this piece of legislation.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, once again I want to emphasize my support of this legislation and my support of additional police officers, but it is important that we continue to make sure we are separating the facts from some statements that are being made. Testimony that we have received before the committee strikes a great contrast between different areas in our country. Sending money alone, even putting cops on the streets alone, will not solve our crime problem. As we mentioned earlier, in New Orleans we had testimony that only 7 percent of the individuals arrested, and this is pre-Katrina, only 7 percent of the individuals arrested ever end up in jail, and the police officers themselves, the police chief, testified how demoralizing that was to crime fighting and police officers there. That is why a comprehensive approach, looking at more police officers, but also such things as abolishing parole, mandatory sentencing and three-strikes legislation work to help cut down on the crime that we have. We have also heard testimony from both sides of the aisle about the importance of technology. Many police departments are recognizing across the country that it is not just the quantity of police officers, but it is how they use them. New York came in and testified that what they have done is actually decreased the number of police officers they have, but they have used technology to do it in a smarter way, which has reduced overall crime. Mr. Speaker, we support this legislation, but let's make sure we are not using the hyperbole, that we are using the facts. It is important to have police. It is important to have them used in a smart, effective and comprehensive manner if we are going to deal with the crime that our communities are so concerned about. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price).

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette). (Mr. LaTOURETTE asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, I now yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Keller).

Mr. FORBES. Mr. Chairman, we certainly thank you for your cooperativeness and support in reaching what we think is a much better bill by the time that it reached the floor than when it started.