Hank Johnson

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of the FAA Authorization Act of 2009, which deals with international airline alliances, which under current law, are eligible for antitrust immunity. I want to focus on section 425 in my limited time. It directs a study on the procedure by which these airline alliances are approved and given antitrust immunity. It would also sunset all such antitrust immunity in 3 years. After that time, the airlines would have to reapply under whatever new standards the Secretary of Transportation adopts as a result of the study. Mr. Chairman, sound antitrust policy is a critical part of ensuring that customers receive the full benefits of a competitive marketplace. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee's Courts and Competition Policy Subcommittee, I'm committed to ensuring that international air transportation policy is properly reconciled with sound antitrust policy. I appreciate the Transportation Committee's commitment to this, and I also appreciate the Judiciary Committee for allowing us to share in this. I thank you very much.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Thank you. I couldn't help but overhear some of the comments that have been made here. And I am compelled to respond in support of the strength that we must continue to have in the air, on the ground, our ground troops, our naval, our cyberspace efforts, which have, by the way, not been as--we continue to have our systems penetrated by folks who are not authorized to do so. And so that is going to be a fight that we have to continue. And lastly, but not least, the Star Wars issue, missile defense. I hear folks often mention that there is no need for certain things because the Cold War is over. A lot of folks really want that to be the case, but unfortunately in the annals of human history thus far, we have always had to prepare for Attila the Hun or someone who wants to take over the whole world and do it by force. America cannot assume that there will never be another Cold War or another situation like December 7, 1941, sneak attack that we weren't quite ready for. And so I fully support our efforts to continue to engage in research and development because we have got to continue to be, for our freedom, as a Nation--we would be shirking our responsibilities.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Would the gentleman yield?

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Good morning, everybody; good morning, America. How are you? I am showing my age a little bit. Ladies and gentlemen, it is always great to be an American, and it is always a great time in America because we have hope and vision for the future, and I am happy to report to you that Congress and the Obama administration have departed on a new course of action--no more voodoo economics, no more trickle-down economics. These are failed policies, and it is time for something new. Whenever something new is on the table, there are always those who, instead of appreciating being Americans, they complain and don't add anything positive to the discussion. But despite the obstacles that we confront, we will continue down this road. And, indeed, America will continue to experience morning in America.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, first I would like to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) for his leadership on this bill. It has been his bill for four sessions of Congress. That tells you how much we need to do in order to do something we should have done a while ago. So I'm glad to support you on this, Mr. Issa. Also I thank the ranking member of the Judiciary Committee, Mr. Lamont Smith of Texas, for his work in bringing this bill to the floor in the 111th Congress. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the honorable gentleman from California, Adam Schiff.

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

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I am prepared to close if you are.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, may I inquire as to how many more speakers the gentleman from California has?

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this bill will create a pilot program to help enhance district court expertise in patent cases. The United States patent system leads the world in its strength and effectiveness. For over two centuries, the incentives for innovation it supports have helped create the world's strongest economy. But to ensure that it continues to play this role, we must be mindful of whether it is working as efficiently as it could be and whether we can improve it. In recent years, concern has arisen over the expense and duration of patent litigation, as well as the lack of consistency in the patent decisions that are handed down by district courts. This bill should help address both of those concerns. It is widely believed that the lack of experience and expertise that most district court judges have with respect to patent and plant variety protection cases is responsible for the wide divergence in their decisions in these cases and their high rate of reversal on appeal. This bill establishes a pilot program to enable interested judges in certain district courts to gain increased expertise in adjudicating complex and technical patent and plant variety protection cases. This will create a cadre of judges who gain advanced knowledge of patent and plant variety protection through more intensified experience in handling the cases, along with special education and career development opportunities. This should bring greater predictability in patent and plant variety protection decisions, as well as greater efficiency in the processing of all cases. The bill also sets forth reporting requirements to Congress, which will help us guide our future efforts to further improve the patent system. H.R. 628 has bipartisan support in the Judiciary Committee and broad support from the patent bar and affected industry and trade groups. In 2006 a nearly identical bill, H.R. 5418, was reported by the Judiciary Committee and passed the House under suspension. The legislation passed the House again under suspension in the last Congress. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it now. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 628) to establish a pilot program in certain United States district courts to encourage enhancement of expertise in patent cases among district judges.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Would the gentleman yield?

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I think it needs to be adjudicated in court. This legislation is conducive to that, provides for that, and the fact that we are doing something that would cause us to have to go to court and defend our powers is no reason to not pass the legislation.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I appreciate the gentleman yielding. I would say that the voting rights bill that Congresswoman Norton has introduced and which has already been passed by the House in the 110th Congress, that act provides for an expedited judicial review as to the constitutionality of these actions that Congress would take by passing this legislation. There is also a difference of opinion among constitutional scholars about whether or not the Congress has the authority under the constitution to actually do what this legislation proposes. There are those on both sides of the fence on that.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, this is so very gracious of you. I do appreciate it. This is such an important issue. Home rule is a concept that we take for granted, those who live in cities around this great Nation, those who live in counties, those who live in States as we all do. But all of those levels of government afford to their citizens home rule, which is basically the right to have some self- determination of your governmental affairs. Unfortunately, however, the citizens of Washington, D.C. have not enjoyed that same liberty. And it was only back in I think 1973 that home rule was conferred by this body, the United States Congress, to the citizens of Washington, D.C., and since that time, they have been able to, as a city council, and as a mayor, school system, they have been able to have control over their governmental issues on the local level. And that was certainly something that was prudent for this body to do. However, the ability of those same citizens to actually vote for President and Vice President of this great Nation still had not been authorized. And it was 1961 when that occurred. So in other words, citizens of D.C. first were given the right to actually vote for President and Vice President, and then they were given the right to govern themselves. Now, it is important that we logically extend those rights to the citizens of Washington, D.C. to have a Congressperson who has a vote in this great body. We have our illustrious delegate, as she is technically called, but I refer to her always as Congresswoman, a very effective voice in this Congress. And she, on behalf of the citizens of the District of Columbia, deserves to have a vote in this great body. And I'm here in support of that. I will say that with this fundamental liberty that we are talking about, the right to be represented in this great body, that is a very awesome and fundamental right that should not be bogged down by extraneous matters, particularly when those extraneous matters have to do with tying the hands of this local government that has been granted home rule. It is just totally different. And it is an insult to link a gun control measure to a people's right to have a representative who can vote in this Congress. So, let's not compound the tragedy and the injustice any further. I'm asking the public to understand that let's not play politics with the people of Washington, D.C.'s ability to be adequately represented. And certainly they are adequately represented. Congresswoman Norton deserves a right to cast a vote here to have total equality as all of the rest of us have. And so I don't think that is too much to ask.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Ladies and gentlemen of America, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act provides $20 billion to accelerate the adoption of health information systems by doctors and hospitals; these are electronic medical records. This will modernize health care in this country, it will save billions of dollars by reducing the need for duplicate diagnostic procedures, it will reduce medical errors and improve the quality of services. This will create or save hundreds of thousands of jobs, many in the high-tech sectors, tens of billions of dollars in system-wide savings, including a net reduction in private health insurance premiums for families. I want the public to know that it's time for change. Our health care system should have been addressed many, many years ago, but under this new administration and under this Democratic leadership of this fine body, we are doing what needs to be done in order to put this country in a posture it needs to be in for the new millennium.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 632) to encourage, enhance, and integrate Silver Alert plans throughout the United States, to authorize grants for the assistance of organizations to find missing adults, and for other purposes.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I, too, would like to commend Congressman Green for his efforts in introducing this legislation, and I look forward to its passage.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 35) honoring and praising the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, NAACP, on the occasion of its 100th anniversary.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, today we honor the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the Nation's oldest and largest civil rights organization, on the occasion of its 100th anniversary, for a century of unwavering commitment to justice and equality for all. The NAACP, founded on February 12, 1909, by Ida Wells-Barnett, W.E.B. DuBois, Henry Moscowitz, Mary White Ovington, Oswald Garrison Villiard and William English Walling was indeed a labor of diversity. Since its inception, the NAACP has united students, laborers, professionals, scholars, officials and others of all races to advance its vision of a society in which all individuals have equal rights and there is no racial hatred or racial discrimination. Historically, the NAACP may be best known for Thurgood Marshall's successful advocacy leading to the watershed 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, in which the Supreme Court held that separate educational facilities are inherently unequal. The NAACP is also known for the work of its chief advocate for more than 30 years, Clarence Mitchell, who worked to secure the 1957, 1960 and 1964 Civil Rights Acts, as well as the 1965 Voting Rights Act and the 1968 Fair Housing Act. But we salute the NAACP not only for these better-known accomplishments, but for all of its efforts to promote justice and equality for every American, throughout the past 100 years. And the NAACP spoke out against lynching, challenged racially biased Supreme Court justice nominees as early as 1930, and pursued nondiscrimination policies in the military, in war-related industries, and the rest of the Federal Government during the world wars. At the height of the Civil Rights era, NAACP fought battles everywhere, on the ground, in the courtroom, and in the United States Congress. Finally, in commemorating the 100th anniversary of the NAACP, we draw inspiration as we look to the continued work that lies ahead. From Dr. King and Coretta Scott King, from Rosa Parks, from Medgar Evers and Merlie Evers-Williams, from Julian Bond, from Kweisi Mfume and from so many others who have gone before, and from the current leadership of President Benjamin Todd Jealous, Washington Bureau Directory, Hilary Shelton, and Legal Defense Fund President John Payton, through whom the NAACP has been promoting African American graduation and college readiness, protecting and advancing voting rights and identifying solutions to our current fiscal crisis. As we celebrate the NAACP's centennial anniversary, I am confident that the organization will remain an integral part of our Nation's efforts to protect and promote civil rights for all Americans. I urge my colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 35. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I would yield 1 minute at this time to the honorable gentleman from the State of Virginia, Mr. Tom Perriello.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Tennessee--the Chair of the Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee, my good friend, Mr. Steve Cohen.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas, Congressman Al Green.

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia

Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. I yield back the balance of my time.