Stephanie Jones

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, because of some misunderstanding, I would make a point of order and ask unanimous consent to have the time extended to allow the people who I have remaining to speak. Can I do that?

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on the subject of this special order today.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Waters).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Michigan (Ms. Kilpatrick).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson), the chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. May I inquire of the Speaker why?

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Payne).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield to my colleague the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I thank the Speaker for the additional 1 minute. In light of our discussion, very quickly, the relief for the minorities over the years have come through the courts. This year, we were let down by the United States Supreme Court in their decision that ultimately decided the election that allowed President Bush to become President. We were then let down by the executive, the President, by nominating John Ashcroft to be Attorney General. We need the legislature, even though we cannot urge them to vote in any way; the Senate, the only remaining branch of government who has not yet acted, to stand up for Americans, stand up for minorities, stand up for women, stand up for gays and lesbians, and stand up for all Americans, and not confirm the nomination of John Ashcroft.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, it gives me, I want to say great pleasure; but I do not know if it is great pleasure that I have as I stand here this afternoon. I stand here and hope to be joined by a number of my colleagues in opposition to the confirmation of Senator John Ashcroft for Attorney General. This special order today will be dedicated to opposing that confirmation. In the wake of the election calamity in Florida, we find ourselves forced into yet another battle to defend the tenets of our Constitution, equal protection and fairness for all. This unfortunate situation arises only a few weeks after the President-elect promised to be a uniter, not a divider; to be the President of all Americans, not just the minority who voted for him. Sadly, the nomination of John Ashcroft to be this Nation's Attorney General makes those words ring hollow. If President Bush truly wishes to unite this country, his selection of John Ashcroft is a puzzling one. If, on the other hand, his goal is to appease a small minority of Americans who view the principles of equal protection and fairness for all Americans with disdain, he could find no better candidate for Attorney General than John Ashcroft. The Ashcroft nomination does nothing to move this country towards much-needed healing. In fact, Senator Ashcroft has openly rejected those members of his own party who speak of conciliation and compromise and has fanatically urged the encroachment of conservatism. Senator Ashcroft's public record exhibits an open hostility to the very laws and policies that protect the civil rights of all individuals in our society. More importantly, Senator Ashcroft has revealed a troubling lack of integrity in his attempts to use the power entrusted to him by Missouri voters to force his personal agenda into public policy and law by whatever means necessary, including personal attacks and distortions of truth. Sadly, he has extended his proclivity for mischaracterization into his Senate confirmation hearings, where he blatantly distorted his own record and history in hopes of convincing this Senate that the partisan zealot we have come to know has become a rational, fair, public servant. We should not be fooled. There are a number of reasons to oppose Senator Ashcroft, but his appalling record on civil rights alone makes him unqualified for this job. No one would entrust their home to a caretaker who has made repeated attempts to burn it to the ground. Similarly, it makes no sense to place our civil rights laws in the hands of a man who has shown an outright hostility to the very notion of civil rights for all. For example, Senator Ashcroft voted against the Hate Crimes Prevention Act and opposes any form of affirmative action. He eagerly accepted an honorary degree from Bob Jones University, vigorously opposed the gathering of racial profiling statistics, and aggressively fought school desegregation ordered by the Federal courts in Missouri. Senator Ashcroft also praised Southern Partisan Magazine, which has been called neosegregationist, and called Confederate soldiers patriots. Many of Senator Ashcroft's supporters, in an attempt to sweep this abysmal record under the rug, insist that he should be judged not on his veracity and record but solely on his character. However, even if we were to disregard this other extensive evidence of his unfitness and limit our decision to his character, he badly fails the test as well. For example, in the Senate Committee on the Judiciary earlier this month, Mr. Ashcroft repeatedly and blatantly misrepresented or evaded the facts of his own record. He wants this job so badly that he is willing to misstate the truth in order to obtain it. Senator Ashcroft's willingness to jettison honesty and integrity to achieve his political ends is nothing new. As a member of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, he was well known for viciously attacking candidates whose political views did not agree with his extremist ideas. He opposed the confirmation of two highly qualified attorneys, Marsha Berzon and Richard Paez to the Federal Courts of Appeals. The most recent offense was his dishonest and cynical campaign against a Federal judicial nomination of a highly qualified African-American Supreme Court Judge, Ronnie White. He demonstrated a disturbing lack of integrity by distorting the truth and misleading the press and his colleagues in the Senate in order to sabotage White's nomination to a Federal District Court. His history and past behavior of twisting facts and law to conform to his own narrow political views further reveals his unfitness to serve as this country's top law enforcement official. My legal experience as a judge and prosecutor taught me that the law is often not clearly defined and in such cases must be interpreted by the person enforcing it. That is why I am so concerned about Senator Ashcroft's nomination. He said over and over again, in the Senate confirmation hearings, that he would be willing to enforce the law when the law was clear and convincing. What I am worried about is what happens when the law is not clear and convincing. As the Attorney General, Senator Ashcroft would be vested with significant discretion, having oversight over U.S. attorneys throughout these United States. And throughout these United States, they are required to follow the policy of the Attorney General. Let me just give an example. When Janet Reno served as Attorney General, one of the programs she had in place was Trigger Lock. The purpose of Trigger Lock was to enforce certain penalties against those who carried guns. This was a policy that passed throughout the United States. What I worry about is, should Senator Ashcroft become the Attorney General, what policies he will put in place that will pass throughout the country. What policies will he put in place that might inhibit someone because of their sexual preference; that might inhibit someone because of their religion; that might inhibit someone because of their race; that might inhibit someone as a result of their choice to speak on a particular issue. Now, when the law is clear, perhaps he will follow the law because he knows a billion people will be watching him. But all prosecutors, all attorneys general are permitted to make decisions that will never see the light of day, and those decisions are the ones we are concerned about, where he is vested with discretion, based on his past experience and his past service as not only a governor, as an Attorney General, but also as a Senator. That is why we are worried. Based on his extensive record, I have no confidence that Mr. Ashcroft is capable of interpreting our Nation's laws in a way that furthers the best interests of the American people rather than his own ideology. The Attorney General must have the trust of the American people. Clearly, he does not. Recently, an unprecedented nationwide campaign of coalitions, representing over 200 national organizations, launched the Stop Ashcroft Crusade. Not surprisingly, many of Mr. Ashcroft's supporters have attempted to vilify this coalition by incorrectly characterizing it as an assembly of marginal left-leaning interest groups. However, this coalition represents a broad base of American citizens and wide-ranging mainstream issues, including civil and human rights, the environment, women's rights and choice, gun control, workplace concerns and religious freedom, and cannot be dismissed so cavalierly. The depth and breadth of opposition to Mr. Ashcroft is best exemplified by those who know him best, his own constituency in his home State of Missouri, who overwhelmingly voted for a deceased candidate rather than endure another 6 years with him as senator. The grim truth is that the record of Senator Ashcroft is not only anti-ethical to the necessary virtues of an effective U.S. Attorney General, it also demonstrates values and belief in direct conflict with the purported philosophy of President Bush. Mr. Ashcroft is a divider, not a uniter, and by President Bush's own definition, is unqualified to serve as this Nation's Attorney General. For this reason, I pray that my colleagues in the Senate will show a commitment to true bipartisanship and show a commitment to the people of these United States and politely and firmly show Mr. Ashcroft the door. Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. This is a point of order. I hope I am not using up my time. Up until one speaker, before this speaker, the speaker was acting on the time; and it was my thought that that was how the time operated, sir; and so I wanted to be able to get some additional time to allow the rest of the people I have here to speak, especially on an issue as important as this confirmation.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Would the Speaker repeat that for me, please.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, how much time do I have remaining?

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield to my colleague, the gentlewoman from the great State of Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Lee).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, at this time I yield 5 minutes to my colleague, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay).

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I would just state to the gentleman that I thank him for his leadership on the Committee on the Judiciary and trust that our work together will not allow this confirmation to proceed.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Madam Speaker, I want to thank my colleague from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) and my colleague from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) for yielding me this time. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation. Having worked over the years with a number of firefighter organizations in Cleveland out of Ohio, particularly one year, on September 10, which is my birthday, my house caught on fire, and I was so pleased with the work and the level of experience of the officers that came to assist me. They did not know it was me at the time that they came, but they are really wonderful firefighter folks, and I am standing here to say if they want to work longer, we ought to let them work longer, in terms of providing experienced service as firefighters. I thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette) for the opportunity to be heard on this legislation, and I ask all of my colleagues to join us as we give firefighters a new opportunity, just an opportunity to work on behalf of the people.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I rise with my colleagues this morning to mourn the loss of Julian Dixon. I have the pleasure of succeeding Congressman Louis Stokes, who I called this morning. He was just in shock, as we all are, about that friendship. He said to me, ``Do you remember when I introduced you to Julian Dixon?'' I said, ``I can never forget it.'' And I can never forget that the first check I got for my campaign came from Julian Dixon. I was trying to think what else I could say very quickly, and I went back to a speech by Martin Luther King where he was talking about a drum major's instinct, and I will paraphrase this for Julian Dixon. If any of you are around when I have to meet my day, I don't want a long funeral. And if you get somebody to deliver the eulogy, tell them not to talk too long. And tell them not to mention that I was a Member of Congress. That wasn't important. Tell them not to mention that I have 300 or 400 other awards. That is not important. Tell them not to mention where I went to school. I'd like somebody to mention on that day that Julian Dixon tried to give his life serving others. I'd like somebody to say that on that day Julian Dixon tried to love somebody. I want you to say on that day that Julian Dixon tried to be right on the war question. I want you to be able to say that he tried to feed the hungry. I want you to be able to say on that day that I did try in my life to clothe those who were naked; that I did try in my life to visit those who were in prison, and I tried to love and serve humanity. I want you to say that I was a drum major; that I was a drum major for justice; that I was a drum major for peace; a drum major for righteousness, and all of the other shallow things will not matter. I won't have any money to leave behind; I won't have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave; I just want to leave behind that I committed my life to do for others. A drum major for success: Julian Dixon.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Leach), the chairman of the Committee on Banking and Financial Services, and the gentleman from New York (Mr. LaFalce), my ranking member on the Committee on Banking and Financial Services, and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Frank), the ranking member on the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity, for all the work that they do in this particular area. In my first term of Congress, serving on the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity has been one of the most exciting opportunities that I have had. I am glad to serve as the chair of the Housing committee for the Congressional Black Caucus. This piece of legislation will provide a number of incentives for housing ownership in my congressional district. On December 1, I had the pleasure to have an opportunity to celebrate World AIDS Day and went to a facility in my congressional district funded as a result of some of the work that we have been doing on the Subcommittee on Housing and Community Opportunity to visit a home, a facility, where there are 14 apartments for people who are living with AIDS just to see in place some legislation that was proposed and passed. And actually seeing it in place was an exciting thing for me. Let me point out two or three things that I think are particularly significant about this piece of legislation. One of those is wherein people can use section 8 dollars for down payment on a home. I believe that if we can have families who have wonderful homes or have comfortable homes where they can raise their families and live together and enjoy one another, we can deal with many of the issues that we address in our particular country. One section, section 904, provides for section 8 housing assistance for grand-families, meaning grandparents or great grandparents who are raising their grandchildren. In my congressional district, that is a significant issue; and I am constantly confronted by grandparents and great grandparents saying ``I need help.'' So I am so happy to see this in the legislation as well. With regard to pilot programs for homeownership for disabled families, that is an important issue as well. So I just come here to say I am pleased that we in this Congress on this date, December 5, are able to pass a significant piece of legislation that is bipartisan so that the public can see we are moving forward with the issues of the day and representing the American people.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Wu), my freshman colleague. It has been a great first term for us, and I have had a great time working with him. Mr. Speaker, to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Isakson), my good friend, the only thing I can say to the gentleman is that consider this: a less qualified teacher with a smaller class is better than a less qualified teacher with too many children. That is just basic mathematics. But the gentleman was being revealing in his statements and enlightening. I am fortunate to have a brand-new young staff member on my staff, and she just completed a year of teaching in elementary school, and she wrote this statement for me. Her name is Beverly Smith, and she said, a teacher told this story: imagine throwing a birthday party for your child and 25 of his or her 7-year-old classmates decided to come. You have hats, a full-service amusement center, and the parents will pick the children up in just 2 hours. Now, imagine those same kids, for 7 hours in a classroom with one teacher. Let us face it. It is difficult to learn to be an innovative and inquisitive thinker in a class of 25 or more students. In fact, with 25 students, the teacher may never even get the chance to ask every student a question. We need smaller class sizes. This is what Beverly Smith says. Otherwise, the students shut down, the teachers burn out, and we find ourselves back at square one. We want to provide quality education for each and every student, not just the chosen ones, not just the privileged ones. We want every student to get quality attention in education every day. See, that is what class size reduction is all about. It is about giving students the opportunity to practice the skills they need to succeed, not only today but also in the future. I am thankful for Beverly Smith, and I am thankful for the dedication of her and all the other teachers who work in classrooms. Let us give them some support. Reduce the class size. Help them to get better qualified and help our Nation.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the gentleman from New Jersey, for yielding time to me and for the opportunity to address this body. Mr. Speaker, I wish, as the gentleman is seated there, that he would tell me how much money is allocated for Ohio schools in the proposal that he says is about to come to the floor. I will walk over and get that information from the gentleman when we get done. But I was a prosecutor and I was a judge. I saw what poor education can do for children. I saw more money allocated to build prisons in Ohio and across this country than to build schools. If we are serious about school construction, why do we not take that $4 billion that we gave the Defense Department that they did not need and build some more schools in this country? Overcrowding, aging, is a significant issue for schools in our country. I have a specific example. In the city of Cleveland, just less than a month ago a high school roof fell in on the public school. To fix that roof, it cost $2 million. We need money in our systems to fix schools, modernize all these aging buildings where we are sending our children. We work on modernizing our cars for emissions standards. We deal with issues of smoke detectors, checking toys for children, all kinds of other things. We know our schools are in a hazardous condition. We have children who are suffering from asthma from problems within those schools. We need to fix it. Right now we are in one of the best economic times we have ever been in, and our children ought to reap the benefit. They should not have to wait until they are adults and seniors to reap the benefit, they should reap it now, because we will reap the benefit. Having smart children who grow into smart adults who grow into smart grandparents will make a difference in our country. I say, Mr. Speaker, let us get the money on the table. Fund our schools, stop funding prisons. Fund our schools, stop funding the defense at the level it is. I want to support the defense and I want the military to be ready, but give me that $4 billion and put it in public schools.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure that I stand here this evening to acknowledge the accomplishments of one, United States Representative William Clay, my friend and colleague. William Clay, United States Representative from the 1st Congressional District of Missouri, was first elected to Congress in 1968. He has served in these hallowed chambers for 15 succeeding Congresses from 1969 through January 2001. His commitment to public service has been lifelong. His work includes serving as Alderman in St. Louis and serving as Education Coordinator, Steamfitters Local No. 562. Mr. Clay, throughout his business and professional life, has always been a people's fighter, championing the cause for those left out, the voiceless and the poor. Representative Clay, senior member, Missouri congressional delegation, currently serves as Ranking Member, House Education and Workforce Committee. He also served as Chairman, Committee on the Post Office and Civil Service in the 102d and 103d Congresses. Representative Clay was the chief architect of H.R. 1, the Family and Medical Leave Act, a major piece of legislation. In addition, it was Representative Clay who worked tirelessly to have the Hatch Act reform bill signed into law. Representative Clay's work in the areas of education, labor and workforce will stand long after he leaves Congress. His work to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence are testaments to his belief in providing opportunities for all Americans. In addition,Clay has boldly stood, where many others would not, to ensure fair wages as well as safe, healthy working conditions for American workers. In 1969, Representative Clay and twelve other African American representatives of the 77th Congress joined together to form the ``Democratic Select Committee.'' This committee was later renamed the Congressional Black Caucus. Founding members included Representatives William Clay, Shirley Chisholm, George Collins, John Conyers, Ronald Dellums, Charles Diggs, Augustus Hawkins, Ralph Metcalfe, Parren Mitchell, Robert Nix, Charles Rangel, Louis Stokes and Walter Fauntroy. Representative Clay, through the Congressional Black Caucus, worked and dedicated himself to removing barriers and helped to mold a Nation to its higher calling for a government ``of the people, for the people and by the people.'' Representative Clay has authored two books, To Kill or Not To Kill (published in 1990) and Just Permanent Interests (published in 1992). Moreover, Mr. Speaker, Representative Clay has also founded the William L. Clay Scholarship Fund, a fund that presently enrolls fifty-six students in twenty-one different schools. Today, Mr. Speaker, I recognize a Statesman, an educator, businessman, author, and more importantly, a father and husband to Carol Clay for 43 years. I stand today to personally thank him for his friendship, guidance, love and his long-time friendship with my predecessor, Congressman Louis Stokes. Congressman Stokes gave me the opportunity that I possess today and now I am able to bask in the sunshine too! Mr. Speaker, I stand to recognize and to say thanks to the outstanding Representative from the 1st Congressional District of Missouri, my friend, Representative William Lacy Clay, Sr. Mr. Speaker, America is better off . . ., this Congress is better off, . . ., the Congressional Black Caucus is better off . . . because of Representative William Lacy Clay, Sr. I salute you and America salutes you.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, just 2 weeks ago, in the City of Cleveland, at a high school called East High School, the roof fell in. I called the Department of Education and said, ``Is there emergency money at the Federal level to assist my public school in a situation like this?'' Sadly, it was reported that there was none. In Ohio, the Supreme Court has determined that the way in which schools are funded throughout Ohio is unconstitutional. It is done by way of property tax. So that means that in one city in Ohio $2,000 is spent on education per capita, but in another city in Ohio $15,000 is spent on each child per capita. I ask my colleagues to vote for this motion to instruct because our schools need funding and assistance.

Mrs. JONES of Ohio

Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, the time is short so I wish to focus my remarks particularly with regard to the small business section of the bill and encourage my colleagues to vote against it, even though I wanted to commend the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez) for all the work she has done in this effort.