Jim Jordan

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, John Koskinen should no longer hold office. John Koskinen should no longer be the Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. Tonight I am joined by some of my colleagues to talk about why that should happen, why he should be removed from office. If you remember what took place here, the Internal Revenue Service targeted our fellow citizens for their political beliefs. They did it, and they got caught. Maybe most importantly tonight, thinking about the current Commissioner, the targeting continues. Now, you don't have to take my word for it. You can take what the United States Appellate Court for the District of Columbia stated. This is a decision from August 5, 2016, last month, from the opinion. The IRS has admitted to the inspector general, to the District Court, and to us--the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia--that applications for exemption by some of the plaintiffs have never to this day been processed. They are still targeting conservative groups. They say it again right here: It is absurd to suggest that the effect of the IRS' unlawful conduct, which delayed the processing of plaintiffs' applications, has been eradicated when two of the plaintiffs' applications remain pending. So here is the takeaway: they are still doing it. Here is the standard for removing someone from office: gross negligence, breach of public trust, dereliction of duty. Mr. Koskinen has certainly had those things take place under his tenure at the Internal Revenue Service. Here are the facts. February 2014, John Koskinen's chief counsel is on notice that there are problems with Lois Lerner's hard drive and missing emails from during the time of the initial targeting. They wait 4 months before they tell Congress and, therefore, the American people. During that 4 months, they learn in February: Oh, we have got missing emails, problems with Lois Lerner's hard drive, an essential figure in this scandal. They wait until June before they tell Congress and the American people. During that 4-month timeframe, 422 backup tapes are destroyed. Most importantly, they are destroyed with three orders to preserve all documents, and two subpoenas to get those documents are in place. Now, think about that. You have got missing emails, the backup tapes that contain those missing emails are destroyed during the 4 months you are trying to figure out and 4 months before you tell Congress, and those 422 backup tapes contain potentially 24,000 emails. That is why he should no longer hold office. That is why it is important that we take this vote at some point and remove him from office. So you have got the standard, which he certainly meets based on that fact pattern; and you have got the court, which just told us last month the targeting continues. The last thing I will say before turning to my colleagues: No private citizen could get away with that same scenario. If any one of us, any one of the three-quarters of a million people we all get to represent, any of those folks back in the Fourth District of Ohio, which I have the privilege of serving, if any one of those folks are audited by the IRS and they discover that they are missing documents that are critical to that audit and critical to what the IRS is looking for and they wait 4 months to tell the IRS that they are missing those documents, and during that time the backup disk or the backup tape that contains those missing documents somehow gets destroyed, what is going to happen to them? Well, they are definitely getting fined and they are probably going to jail. But somehow when it happens to John Koskinen, the Commissioner of the IRS, it is okay. It is not okay. It is not okay in this country. This is what frosts so many Americans today. There are now two standards in this country. One for we, the people, and a different one for the politically connected. One for us regular folks and a different one if your name is Lerner, Koskinen or Clinton. That is not supposed to be how it works in this country, not in the greatest Nation ever, where we are all supposed to be treated equally under the law. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Fleming), my good friend.

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

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman. He is right on target. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the fine gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Davidson).

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman for his good remarks. I yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Perry.)

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Franks).

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his hard work on this issue and for bringing the motion forward to get this issue in front of Congress. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Gosar).

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for organizing this Special Order, but more importantly, for the fight that he has waged in holding the IRS accountable and for saying to the American taxpayer, the American people, when you have individuals running an agency with the power of the Internal Revenue Service, doing what was done under Commissioner Koskinen's watch, he, in fact, should be impeached. Let's just walk back through the story. Remember how this started. We had conservative groups around the country saying, hey, we are being harassed by the IRS for filing to get tax-exempt status, something that used to be kind of a matter-of-fact thing; we are being harassed for doing so. So the Congress of the United States called for the inspector general to do an investigation. The inspector general does his investigation. It takes a long time. It takes about a year. They do an investigation and they find, you know what, our very own tax collection agency is, in fact, targeting citizens for their political beliefs. They find it. They find targeting took place. The inspector general of Treasury tells the Treasury officials and tells the IRS what they have discovered, and they are going to file their report the following week. In an unprecedented move, Lois Lerner, the Friday before the report is supposed to be made public the following week, Friday, May 10, 2013, Lois Lerner does what all kinds of people do when they get caught with their hand in the cookie jar. She wants to get ahead of this story, so at a staged event, bar association event, staged question, planted question from a friend, she gets asked about the targeting and the inspector general's investigation, and she does what all kinds of people do when they get caught. She lies. She flat out lies. She tries to blame good public servants in Cincinnati. She said this was all about Cincinnati. We all know what the evidence pointed to. It was about Washington. It was about the folks right here in the Internal Revenue Service. The report comes out the following week. On the following Monday, 2 days later, the President of the United States and the Attorney General say this is inexcusable, and they call for a criminal investigation. In fact, it is so bad, the President fires the then-Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service. They bring in an interim Commissioner. For a long time, we have hearings and a bunch of things happen. And, of course, one of the most noteworthy things is the very lady who was at the center of the storm, who lied when she first made this public, gets brought in front of the Congress. And what did she do? She takes the Fifth. So when you have the central figure exercising their Fifth Amendment right, not willing to testify in public and answer the people's representatives' questions, it sort of puts a premium on getting the documents and the communications that the IRS had relative to this issue. And so a long investigation ensues. Both a criminal investigation and a congressional investigation. Mr. Koskinen is then brought in as the Commissioner who is going to clean it all up, clean up this agency with so much power over American people's lives. He is brought in. And guess what happens? Everything Congressman DeSantis just described. There are 422 backup tapes destroyed containing potentially 24,000 emails. Many of those emails most likely were Lois Lerner's emails that the American people and the Congress will never get a chance to see. They were destroyed, as Congressman DeSantis pointed out, with three preservation orders in place. One from the IRS and the Treasury themselves. Another preservation order by the Justice Department saying preserve all documents, preserve everything. So three preservation orders, two subpoenas in place, and the Commissioner, under his watch, 422 backup tapes are destroyed containing 24,000 emails. What does Mr. Koskinen do when he learns about problems with these tapes and problems with Ms. Lerner's hard drive? He waits 4 months--4 months--before he tells Congress. Again, raising the obvious question--if you are a taxpayer being audited and you realize, oops, I lost some documents or I destroyed something, and you wait 4 months to tell the IRS what you did, oh, my goodness, you are in huge trouble. But Mr. Koskinen, he is the cleanup guy, he is the President's hand- picked person, he is brought in. He thinks it is just fine that there are all these problems that he knows about. Now, he didn't just wait 4 months and then tell us. In that time, when he first learned there were problems, he testified in front of Congress several times and didn't tell us. And then the worst thing is he provided false testimony, which, again, my colleague from Florida has pointed out. He said: Look, everything is fine. And then finally, think about all the duties this guy, the guy brought in to clean up the mess, think about all the duties he had. A duty to preserve all the documents, particularly in light of the fact the central figure has taken the Fifth. A duty to produce them when they are asked for by the Congress. A duty to disclose to us if he couldn't preserve and produce them. A duty to testify accurately. And then, finally, a duty to correct the record if, in fact, he testified and said something that wasn't accurate. Every single duty he had, he breached. Every single one. Here is the final point I will make. And this is why--what Congressman DeSantis, what Congressman Hice, and what Congressman Lamborn are going to talk about is why this is so important, why this is so critical that this individual be brought in front of Congress. And, actually, we go through the articles of impeachment, and we exercise the right that the Constitution requires us to do of a situation of this magnitude. Why it is so important is, remember the underlying offense. This is an agency with the power and influence that the IRS has systematically and for a sustained period of time targeting Americans' most cherished rights. You think about your First Amendment liberties: freedom of the press, freedom to petition your government, freedom to assemble, freedom to practice your faith, freedom of religion, practice your faith the way you think the good Lord wants you to. But under the First Amendment, your most fundamental liberty is your right to speak. When the Founders put together the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and that First Amendment, when they were talking about your free speech rights, what they were mostly focused on was not just any old speech, any old talk, they were mostly focused on doing what we are doing right now, political speech, talking about politics, talking about government. You have the right as an American citizen to speak out against your government and not be harassed for doing so. And yet, the IRS did just that. And that is why, Mr. Koskinen, that is why we filed these articles of impeachment and that is why we are asking that they move forward in the Committee on the Judiciary and we do what the American people sent us here to do. I thank the gentleman from Florida who has done so much good work on this issue and a host of others.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Normally, I don't have prepared remarks when I come to the floor, but I thought when you are honoring someone like former Congressman Oxley, it is best to have them in written form. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues from Ohio and across the Nation in paying tribute to former Congressman Michael G. Oxley, who passed away at the beginning of the year after a battle with lung cancer. I thank my colleague from Cincinnati, Mr. Chabot, for putting together this Special Order on what would have been his 72nd birthday. Mike was one of the finest and most respected public servants Ohio has ever known. He was tireless in his promotion of his hometown of Findlay and all of Ohio's Fourth Congressional District: its people, businesses, and institutions. His work on behalf of Lima's Joint Systems Manufacturing Center, commonly known as the Tank Plant, helped preserve that vital facility and its skilled workforce for a long, long time, ensuring that it remains open today to make the armaments that our Armed Forces need to keep our great country safe. I am grateful to my colleagues who have already spoken about some of Mike's many accomplishments. I want to share something perhaps lesser known about this individual: his longtime connection to Buckeye Boys State, a week-long educational exercise for high school boys hosted by the American Legion of Ohio. Mike attended this program as a young man, and always said that it helped prepare him for a career in public service. From 1978 through 2006, he was the keynote speaker at the graduation ceremony--an event that he often said was one of his favorites of the year. In these speeches, he encouraged Boys Staters to develop a clear vision, set high goals, work hard, and act with integrity at all times. These life lessons, no doubt, inspired the many thousands of young men who have had the privilege of attending Boys State during that timeframe. Mike took great pride in being inducted into the Buckeye Boys State Hall of Fame, an honor shared by a select few, among them being Neil Armstrong. Of course, the titles Mike held most dear were of husband, father, and grandfather. Our prayers continue to go out to his family. I know they are joining us here today. We offer them our sincerest condolences at this difficult time. Mr. Speaker, we remain grateful that decent men like Mike Oxley are willing to commit their lives to public service and to inspire others to do the same.

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I join my colleagues from Ohio and across the nation in paying tribute to former Congressman Michael G. Oxley, who passed away at the beginning of the year after a long battle against lung cancer. I thank my colleague from Cincinnati, Mr. Chabot, for putting together this special order in Mike's honor on what would have been his 72nd birthday. Mike was a friend, mentor, and one of the finest and most respected public servants Ohio has ever known. He was tireless in his promotion of his hometown of Findlay and all of Ohio's Fourth Congressional Districts--its people, businesses, and institutions. His work on behalf of Lima's Joint Systems Manufacturing Center (commonly known as the Lima Army Tank Plant during most of Mike's time in office) helped preserve that vital facility and its skilled workforce throughout the 1980s and 1990s, ensuring that it remains open today to make the armaments that our armed forces need to keep our nation safe. I am grateful to my colleagues who have already spoken about some of Mike's many accomplishments. I want to share something perhaps lesser known about him: his longtime connection to Buckeye Boys State, a weeklong educational exercise for high school boys hosted by the American Legion Department of Ohio. Mike attended this program as a young man and always said that it helped prepare him for a career in public service. From 1986 through 2006, he was the keynote speaker at the annual Boys State graduation ceremony--an event that he often said was one of his favorites of the year. In these speeches, he encouraged Boys Staters to develop a clear vision, set high goals, work hard, and act with integrity at all times. These life lessons no doubt inspired the many thousands of young men who attended Boys State during that time. Mike took great pride in being inducted into the Buckeye Boys State Hall of Fame--an honor shared by a select few, among them Neil Armstrong. Of course, the titles he held most dear were those of husband, father, and grandfather. Our continued prayers go out to Mike's wife, Pat; their son, Chadd; daughter-in-law, Jennifer; and grandson, Max. We offer them our sincerest condolences at this difficult time. Mr. Speaker, we remain grateful that decent men like Mike Oxley are willing to commit their lives to public service and to inspire others to do so.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, the Congressman from South Carolina (Mr. Mulvaney) is exactly right. There is all kinds of misinformation about this Planned Parenthood debate. The biggest line is this: We are headed to a government shutdown. Are you kidding me? We are going to fund the government at the levels the Democrats agreed to, Republicans agreed to, the levels outlined in the Ryan- Murray plan. We are going to fund it. We are going to do one change, though, one simple, but important, change: Take the money from the organization engaged in the gruesome, horrific things that Planned Parenthood was caught doing and give it to organizations that weren't doing that and still meet women's health needs. That simple fact. The same levels, but move it from the bad organization to good organizations. It is that basic. That is what this debate is about, and that is what the American people want us to do.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman for this Special Order on an important subject, the Export-Import Bank. I was just going to start with retelling a story I told at an event not too long ago that I think is important. The scenario that is going to play out, I think, all across the country later this afternoon, there is going to be a guy who works second shift at the local manufacturing facility. He is going to go out, get in his truck to drive to work. Now, remember, he is working second shift, which means he has got to miss some of his kids' Little League games, miss some of his children's afterschool activities. He goes out to get in his truck to go to work, and he looks a couple of houses down, and he sees a guy sitting on the front porch, drinking a cup of coffee, reading the newspaper. He knows the guy can work, but won't work, and is getting his tax dollars. He gets in his truck to drive to work, and he happens to turn the radio on. It happens to be the news hour. A reporter comes on and talks about the Federal Government's got an $18 trillion national debt. They have got this program that gives money to favored and connected corporations. One of these companies went bankrupt and cost the taxpayers a ton of money. He hears all that, and he remembers what he saw on the front porch of his neighbor's house. Guess what, this guy is ticked off, and he has every right to be. At the same time he is driving to work, there is a lady driving home from work. She teaches second grade at the local elementary school, and she has busted her tail all day long helping her students. She views her job as a teacher as a mission field, trying to help her students get the skill set they need to start on their path to achieving the American Dream. She has worked hard all day long. She is driving home, happens to have her radio on, happens to be tuned in to the same station where the same reporter comes on and talks about the Federal Government with an $18 trillion national debt, this program that gives money to favored corporations, connected corporations. This one company went bankrupt, cost the taxpayers millions of dollars. She hears all that as she pulls into her driveway on the same street, sees the same guy sitting on his front porch, drinking coffee, reading the paper. She knows he can work but won't work, and he is getting her tax dollars. Guess what, she is just as mad as the second-shift worker, and she has every right to be. Now, our job, as Members of Congress, is to remember people like the second-grade teacher and the second-shift worker and fight for things they care about. Here is one: they care about this concept that goes on in this town, where connected companies get special deals with their tax money, and they want that to stop. We now have a chance to do that, to start the process of stopping the corporate welfare, and that is what Mr. Buck's Special Order hour is all about, stopping the Export-Import Bank from continuing the corporate connectedness, the corporate cronyism, and the corporate welfare. Our job is real simple. All we have to do is nothing, something Congress is usually pretty good at doing. All we have to do is not reauthorize this Bank, which loans out billions of taxpayer dollars, puts billions of taxpayer dollars at risk, and helps connected corporate entities who got every lobbyist in this town hired to fight for their cause, at the expense of second-grade teachers and second- shift workers. Let's not reauthorize this thing. Let's show those people we are actually fighting for them. Then once we do that, then we can actually also get into the social safety net, reform that, require work for able-bodied adults, treat taxpayers with respect, help people trapped in our social safety net system get to a better life. We can reform it all, but let's start with those connected companies with the high-paid lobbyists getting the special deals. One other thing I will add before turning it back over to the gentleman from Colorado, who is doing such a great job on this issue, and my good friend from Virginia, who is going to speak as well on this issue and doing a great job, this thing is not only bad because it loans out money, puts taxpayer money at risk, it is corrupt. Just last week, Mr. Gutierrez, a long-term employee at the Ex-Im Bank, was indicted on bribery and fraud charges, bribery and fraud charges that go clear back to 2006. For 7 years, he was scamming people, taking taxpayer money, helping himself, taking bribes from companies benefiting from the Export-Import Bank. Last week, at the first hearing we have had on this issue this Congress, we had the inspector general at the Export-Import Bank say this--and I will close here. He said there may be more indictments in the Gutierrez case. More importantly, he said there may be indictments in the 31--that is right--31 open fraud investigations that the Ex-Im Bank and the Department of Justice are currently investigating. Now, if that is not enough reason to get rid of this thing, I don't know what is. It puts taxpayer money at risk--corruption, fraud, 31 open fraud investigation cases. Everyone knows it is bad. All Congress has to do to end it is not a darn thing. For goodness sake, maybe even Congress can accomplish that.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, remember why we are here: 22 times the President said he couldn't do what he turned around and did, something legal scholars have said is unconstitutional; more importantly, something a Federal judge has said is wrong. Six weeks ago, we sent a bill to the United States Senate to fund DHS at the levels the Democrats agreed to. We just said, don't have any money be used for something unconstitutional and that the Federal judge ruled was wrong. For 6 weeks, they said, we can't bring the bill up. We can't debate it, amend it, pass it. And then at the last hour, at the eleventh hour on the last day, they bring it up, debate it, amend it, and send it back--without the language stopping the unconstitutional activity and something the only court to rule on it has said is wrong. This is unconstitutional. We all know it. This is the wrong way to go. Fund DHS. Don't let this wrong action the President took in November--something he said he couldn't do--don't let it stand. But more importantly, or as importantly as, the unconstitutional nature is the unfair nature of the action. It is unfair to taxpayers that illegal, noncitizens are going to be able to get tax refunds. It is unfair to seniors that illegal noncitizens are going to be able to participate in our Social Security system. It is unfair to voters, as our Secretary of State testified, that now they will have the documents that will potentially make it much easier for 4 to 5 million people to participate in our election process. And most importantly, Mr. Speaker, it is unfair to legal immigrants who did it the right way, who followed the law, who came here and want to be a part of this great country, the greatest Nation of the world, as we just heard Prime Minister Netanyahu talking about how great this country is--it is unfair to legal immigrants. Mr. Speaker, this is unconstitutionally wrong. Most importantly, it is unfair.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to commend to the House the outstanding service of Keith H. Deters, who is retiring from the Joint Systems Manufacturing Center in Lima, Ohio, after a distinguished 32- year career. Keith began his time at JSMC as a quality engineer in 1982. For the last 12 years, he has served as plant manager--the longest tenured manager in the modern history of that facility, which is the only remaining heavy combat vehicle production plant on the continent. A hands-on manager, he noted that there has rarely been a day that he did not walk the production floor to interact with the plant's highly skilled workforce, to which he has always paid great tribute for the facility's success. In the face of challenges to JSMC's future, Keith has been a tireless advocate of the plant and the vital role it plays in our nation's defense industrial base. Under his leadership, JSMC has diversified beyond its traditional Abrams tank refurbishment work for the Army, providing high-quality combat vehicles and other products to other branches of the military and to our international allies. Keith has been instrumental in the success of Task Force LIMA (Linked in Mutual Alliance), established more than a decade ago to support and promote JSMC and Ohio's other defense facilities. He is well respected throughout our congressional delegation as a man of vision and an industry expert. Mr. Speaker, the Lima community will gather at Lima's City Club on December 17 to celebrate Keith's many contributions and distinguished record of service. On behalf of the people of Ohio's Fourth Congressional District, I am proud to join in the accolades to him and offer my warmest congratulations on his retirement. He and his wife, Donna, have my best wishes as they enter a new chapter in their lives.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I thank the gentleman from Michigan for his bill. Mr. Speaker, this bill is about accountability, accountability for Senior Executive Service people, people like Lois Lerner. The ranking member of the committee who I have a great deal of respect for stated in his opening comments that he is nervous about this legislation because it might ``politicize senior government officials.'' Well, that is what we have now. I mean, what could be more political than a high-ranking official at the Internal Revenue Service targeting people who disagreed with her political views? This is all about holding people accountable who do the very things the ranking member talked about. We need this legislation because, Lord knows, the Justice Department is not doing their job. They are not holding anyone accountable. I mean, think about this fact pattern: you have got the FBI leaking to The Wall Street Journal in January of this year that no one is going to be prosecuted in the IRS scandal. You have got the President's now famous remark on Super Bowl Sunday, on national television, where he says: There is no corruption here, not even a smidgen. Talk about prejudging the outcome of a case when you have the highest-ranking official in the executive branch, and, of course, we have now--we have known about for several months--the lead attorney at the Justice Department on this case, Barbara Bosserman, who gave $6,750 to the President's reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee; so, of course, we need something like this because the Justice Department isn't going to hold anyone to account. Now, there is one bright spot, Mr. Speaker. This House in a bipartisan fashion told the Attorney General that we need a special prosecutor. Every single Republican voted for that measure. More importantly, 26 Democrats said, This is so egregious; this is so wrong. We not only need Mr. Walberg's legislation, but we need a special prosecutor in the Justice Department to hold people to account. When I talk with folks back home--every single day I am out and about, they walk up to me. ``Someone needs to be held to account for systematically targeting our most fundamental right, our First Amendment right to speak out in a political fashion against our government. That was targeted, and people need to be held to account for it.'' That is why I applaud the gentleman from North Carolina for his work on the committee and the gentleman from Michigan for sponsoring this great piece of legislation.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, on Sunday we marked the 45th anniversary of Ohio's native son Neil Armstrong taking what he famously called ``one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.'' Neil Armstrong was born in 1930 on a farm near Wapakoneta. He earned his student's pilot license at age 16, reached the rank of Eagle Scout, and graduated from Blume High School before enrolling at Purdue University on a Navy scholarship. He was called to active duty by the Navy in 1949, serving as a naval aviator until 1952. He later served 17 years as an engineer, test pilot, astronaut, and administrator for NASA and its predecessor agency. Despite his lifetime of service, he is best remembered for one day: July 20, 1969, when he capped a 240,000-mile journey through space, stepped off the ``Eagle,'' and became the first human to walk on the surface of the moon. Neil Armstrong died in 2012 at the age of 82, but the impact of his journey is still felt today--in rural Auglaize County, Ohio, and throughout the world. Mr. Speaker, we honor Neil Armstrong for his service and sacrifice-- this day and always.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, my scheduled flight into Washington yesterday was delayed significantly by bad weather. As a result, I was absent from the House floor during Wednesday's two rollcall votes. Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of both H. Res. 599 and H.R. 503.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. I thank the chairman of the Judiciary Committee for yielding and for all of his good work. Mr. Speaker, the gentlelady from Texas said in her opening statement that there has been no conclusion to the investigation. Yes, there has, and Ms. Lerner knows it. Why do you think Ms. Lerner is willing to sit down with the Justice Department and answer their questions? She knows the fix is in. She knows it has already been prejudged and decided. When the Department of Justice leaks to The Wall Street Journal that no one is going to be referred for prosecution, she knows she is just fine. The investigation is over. They are not doing it. When the President, who is the highest elected official in this land, goes on national television and says there is nothing there, not even a smidgen, Ms. Lerner knows the fix is in. Let's review the facts with a quick timeline. On May 10 of last year, Ms. Lerner goes in front of a bar association group here in town and, with a planted question, tells that group and tells the whole country that conservative groups were targeted for exercising their First Amendment free speech rights. She did that before the inspector general's report was made public. It is unprecedented what she did, not only in her actions, but in her spilling the beans before the report was issued. On May 13, we get the report from the inspector general that says, in fact, the targeting of conservative groups did take place at the IRS. On May 14 of last year, the Attorney General launches a criminal investigation and says that what took place was outrageous and unacceptable, and the President of the United States says that what took place was inexcusable. In June of last year, in the Judiciary Committee, we had then-FBI Director Mueller in front of the committee, and we asked him three simple questions: Who is the lead agent? How many agents have you assigned to the case? Have you talked to any of the victims? This was a month into this. This was the biggest story in the country at the time, and the FBI Director's response was: I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. There were seven written inquiries to Justice, asking: Can you tell us some basics about the investigation? Who is, in fact, leading it? Is it truly Barbara Bosserman, as we believe? Everyone tells us--the witnesses we have interviewed: she is leading the investigation. How many agents have you assigned? There were seven different inquiries with no responses from the Department of Justice. On January 13 of this year, as I said earlier, the FBI leaks to The Wall Street Journal that no one is going to be referred for prosecution. In February, the President says no corruption, not even a smidgen; then we learned Barbara Bosserman, a maxed-out contributor to the President's campaign, was leading the investigation. Now, take that fact pattern, and apply it to the elements that the Attorney General looks at when you are deciding if you are going to have a special prosecutor. The chairman pointed out, in his opening statement, three elements the Code of Federal Regulations requires for the AG to appoint a special counsel. It is when he determines these three things: One, that a criminal investigation of a person or of a matter is warranted; of course, it is warranted. The AG already said it was. This is a big matter. This is a violation of people's First Amendment rights, and the Ways and Means Committee has already said Ms. Bosserman should be referred for prosecution. The second element, that the investigation by the United States Attorneys' Office or by the litigating division of the Department of Justice would present a conflict of interest for the Department; if we don't have a conflict of interest here, I don't know where we do. The President has prejudged the outcome, the FBI has leaked to The Wall Street Journal that no one is going to be prosecuted, prejudging the outcome, and the lead investigator is a maxed-out contributor to the DNC and to the President's campaign. Finally, the third element, that it would be in the public interest to appoint an outside special counsel; frankly, I would think the Attorney General would want this. There are all kinds of Americans who think this thing is not being done in an impartial and fair manner. I would think the Attorney General would want to pick someone who is above reproach, that he would want to pick someone whom everyone agrees is going to do a fair job. Why have this cloud hanging over the investigation that the person leading it gave $6,750 to the President's campaign? That is all this asks. This should be something that the administration should want to do because it clears up, in people's minds all across this country, that we are going to get to the truth and that we are going to have a real investigation. Never forget what took place here. This is so important. People's most fundamental right--your right to speak out and the First Amendment right to speak out against your government--was targeted. That is why we need to get to the truth, and that is why we need a special counsel who will do a real investigation.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding. Let me just, in response to the ranking member, it is not 39 interviews; it is 40. We just did another one yesterday, and that is going to lead to another one because we learned information in that interview yesterday. The minority staff has released parts of every single one of those depositions. We will release them all when we hear from Lois Lerner. We want to get to the truth. That is what this resolution is all about. Here is what we did learn yesterday. In the 40th, Richard Pilger, from the Department of Justice said this: In the fall of 2010, at the direction of the chief of the Public Integrity Section, Jack Smith, I contacted Lois Lerner at the IRS. So we know now Justice and the IRS were working together back in 2010, all the more reason why we need to hear from Lois Lerner; and the only way to make that happen, the only way to get to the truth is through the House of Representatives using every tool we have to compel Ms. Lerner to come talk to us because we know the fix is in with the Justice Department's investigation. The fix is in. We all know that. The only route to the truth on something as fundamental as your free speech rights--First Amendment rights to exercise speech in a political fashion--is through the House of Representatives.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding. Look, here is what we know: Lois Lerner was at the center of this scandal right from the get-go. We know that she waived her Fifth Amendment rights on two separate occasions. She came in front of the committee, as the chairman pointed out, and made multiple factual statements. When you do that, when you make all kinds of assertions, you then don't get a chance to say: oh, now, I invoke my Fifth Amendment privileges. She waived it a second time when she agreed to be interviewed by the Department of Justice. Think about that. She is willing to sit down with the people who can put her in jail, but she is not willing to answer our questions. When you waive it in one proceeding, you can't exercise it somewhere else, according to the case law here in the District of Columbia. Here is what we also know: John Koskinen, the new IRS Commissioner, says it may take as many as 2 years for him to get us all Lois Lerner's emails. Most importantly, we know Lois Lerner and the Internal Revenue Service systematically targeted American citizens, systematically targeted groups for exercising their First Amendment rights. Think about that for a second, Mr. Chairman. Think about your First Amendment rights, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, freedom of association, freedom of assembly, freedom of speech--and speech, in particular--that is political. To speak out against your government, your most fundamental right, that is what they targeted. So to get to the truth, we need to use every tool we can to compel Ms. Lerner, the lady at the center of the scandal, to come forward and answer our questions so the American people can understand why their First Amendment rights were targeted because we know--we know the criminal investigation at the Department of Justice is a sham. They have already leaked to The Wall Street Journal. No one is going to be prosecuted. They already had the head of the Executive Branch, the President of the United States, go on national television and say no corruption, not even a smidgeon; and the person leading the investigation is a maxed- out contributor to the President's campaign. We know that is not going to work The only route to the truth is through the House of Representatives and compelling Ms. Lerner to answer our questions. That is why this resolution is so important. That is why I am supporting it. That is why I hope my colleagues on the other side will support it as well. It is about this most fundamental right, and Ms. Lerner is at the center of the storm. We want her simply--simply--to answer the questions.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman for yielding. I would just say: When do you stop blaming the former President? For goodness' sake, we are in the fifth year of the Obama Presidency. Here is the problem. The first year of Ronald Reagan's second term, the growth rate, the economic growth rate, was 7\1/2\ percent. For goodness' sake. Ronald Reagan was able to turn things around that quickly. We are meandering along, bouncing along at a pathetic 2 percent growth rate. We could be so much better if we had the right policies in place and pass the right kind of budget and the right kind of vision for the country. That is the point the gentleman is making. Quit blaming George Bush. We are in the fifth year of the Obama Presidency. If you want to look to a comparison: the fifth year of Ronald Reagan's Presidency, a 7\1/2\ percent growth rate.

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition, like I assume everyone who speaks on this amendment is going to do today. It is amazing the other party--everyone is opposed to it. Here is what it does simply: you cut to the chase, it hollows out national defense, it raises trillions in new taxes over the next 10 years, add about $8 trillion to the national debt--from $17 trillion to approximately $25 trillion--it does all that, never, ever, ever getting to balance. Sometimes, we talk about numbers. Here is why it matters. In the end, you think about what makes the country special, moms and dads making sacrifices, so their kids can have a life better than they did, that they can get to their goals. With this kind of vision and this kind of budget, this kind of plan for where we are going to go, it will make it that much tougher for young people to get the opportunities they need to experience the American Dream. That is why it is so important. All those policies that the ranking member mentioned in his opening statement, they are in this budget. This is not a political stunt. This is just putting up what the President says is actually going to make the country better. We know it is going to make the country worse. We are offering a chance for the Democrats to stand up and defend this, and they won't. So I would urge a ``no'' vote on this. It is same old, same old; cut national defense, raise taxes, add to the debt, never ever balance, and continue to create this environment that is not conducive to economic growth. Again, as I said to the minority whip in an earlier debate, in the fifth year of Ronald Reagan's Presidency, we were growing at 7\1/2\ percent. Here, we are in the fifth year of the Obama Presidency, meandering along, bumping along at 2 percent growth rate, that is the problem. This budget will continue that same poor economic performance, and that is why we should vote against it. I thank the gentleman for bringing it to the floor.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, I join my friend and colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Brady) in drawing attention to an event that is set to unfold on April 17 at USA Wrestling's National Open in Las Vegas, where Mr. Peter J. Wirs is set to become what I am told is the oldest person ever to step onto an international freestyle wrestling mat for his very first competitive match. I was fortunate to be involved in the sport of wrestling from an early age. I know from personal experience just how much dedication and discipline the sport requires. When my teammates and I wrestled, we faced certain challenges, but the challenges Pete Wirs faces next month are far different: He is 59 years old, has suffered a heart attack and two strokes, and has diabetes. While my colleague from Pennsylvania spoke about the importance of Mr. Wirs overcoming diabetes to wrestle, I would also note the corollary: He chose wrestling as the sport to overcome diabetes. Wrestling is demanding. Who wins and who loses is decided solely by the two individuals squaring off on the mat. People have different opinions about what percent of training is physical and what percent is mental, but everyone agrees that wrestling is an incredibly demanding sport, both physically and emotionally. Former Speaker Dennis Hastert, a former wrestling coach, often commented on the courage, discipline, and perseverance that wrestling demands. Paraphrasing the old introduction to ABC's Wide World of Sports, wrestling demonstrates the ``thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.'' That will be very important to remember on April 17, when Pete Wirs steps onto the mat. From one wrestler to another and one public official to another, I wish him the best of luck. Mr. Speaker, you may remember that the International Olympic Committee's executive board voted last year to expel wrestling from the Summer Games. Thanks to the outcry from ordinary citizens from across America and around the world, the IOC General Assembly ultimately reversed the board's decision and reinstated the sport. But this decision gives wrestling only a temporary reprieve. It is still on probation, with its status in the future facing further challenges. Our country should celebrate the thousands of amateur athletes who train for and compete in the sport of wrestling. Today, I am honored to commend Pete Wirs and all who rise to the challenge.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, the independent contractor said they were unable to adequately test the confidentiality and integrity of the system. They said no complete end-to-end testing was done. The chief information security officer recommended not launching it, her boss refused to sign the authority to operate, and they launched it anyway. They knew, the administration knew this Web site wasn't ready; they launched it anyway. The whole country now knows it wasn't ready. They launched it anyway, put millions of people's personal information at risk, and they did it for political reasons. Now all we are asking--all we are asking--is when there is a breach, when there is a problem, at least tell the American citizens. You already launched a Web site for political reasons that you knew wasn't ready, put millions of Americans' personal information at risk. You already did that. Now we are saying, if there is a problem, at least tell them. That is all this bill does. And what does the administration say? We are going to veto that bill if it happens. You have got to be kidding me. You have got to be kidding me. That is all this is about. So I want to commend Mr. Pitts, the committee, and those individuals who put work into this. It is a good piece of legislation, and I would urge a ``yes'' vote.

Mr. JORDAN

Mr. JORDAN. Mr. Speaker, the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame will hold a ceremony in Columbus next week to mark the induction of its 2013 class. I am honored to commend to the House one of these inductees: the late John F. ``Jack'' Kuffner of St. Marys, who served as an aerographer in the United States Navy from 1946 to 1948. An attorney for more than a half century, Mr. Kuffner served the people of Auglaize County as assistant prosecuting attorney and later as prosecuting attorney. He was subsequently elected to the Auglaize County Common Pleas Court, receiving the Ohio Supreme Court's Award for Superior Judicial Service. Judge Kuffner was past president of the Auglaize County Bar Association, an honorary lifetime member of the Ohio State Bar Association, and a 50-year member of the American Bar Association. Judge Kuffner's devotion to community service provides us with an outstanding model of civic participation. President of the local Jaycees and member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles Lodge 767, he was a charter member of the St. Marys Kiwanis Club, founded in 1956. He received Mason of the Year honors in 2008 and was a 50-year member of Mercer Lodge No. 121. A life member of VFW Post 9289 and American Legion Post 323, he also held numerous offices through the years at Zion Lutheran Church in St. Marys. Mr. Speaker, selection for the Hall of Fame is a high honor accorded to no more than 20 Ohioans each year. To be considered for induction, individuals must not only serve the nation honorably in the military, but also reflect the high value of service to others in their post- military careers. I am pleased to join in the accolades for Judge Jack Kuffner and his inestimable record of service as he is inducted posthumously into the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame.