Marcy Kaptur

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to praise this House for its swift passage of H.J. Res 46, a bipartisan bill to terminate President Trump's declaration of a Fake National Emergency. The President's declaration is not only an unconstitutional attempt to circumvent Congress and the will of the people. It also shows an unprecedented disregard for precedent, as well as the values and institutions enshrined in our Constitution. To pay for his wall, President Trump will not get the funds from Mexico as he promised but from our troops, robbing $3.5 billion from the Department of Defense, funds which were passed to improve military family housing, training facilities, security of overseas bases, and much more. Just in Ohio, over $90 million in military construction investment is being placed at risk, including $61,000,000 for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base's Intelligence Production Complex and $7,400,000 for Camp Ravenna's Automated Multipurpose Machine Gun Range. Mr. Speaker, this declaration was not founded in the security of our nation, but in delivering on an ill-advised campaign promise. We cannot allow the President to ask those who have sacrificed already to sacrifice even more--especially for an expensive border wall few think will even work. Now, it's on the Senate to take up and pass this resolution without delay.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise to pay tribute to the life of Edmund Jefferson Danziger, Jr. of Sylvania Township, Ohio. Professor Danziger passed from this life at the age of eighty years on January 8, 2019. He was memorialized at Epworth United Methodist Church in Toledo on February 16, 2019. Edmund Danziger was born in Newark, New Jersey and spent his childhood with brother Doug tramping through the outdoors near their Hillside home. After graduating from high school in 1956, he felt a call to ministry. However, he found a different call to history and research while a student at the College of Wooster, graduating in 1960. He went on to receive his doctorate from the University of Illinois. Along the way he married his wife, Margaret, and together they raised two children, John and Anne. They moved to Bowling Green Ohio, where he began his 46 year teaching career at Bowling Green State University. A noted researcher and expert on Ohio and Native American history, Professor Danziger's work led to the publication of books including Indians and Bureaucrats: Administering the Reservation Policy during the Civil War and Regeneration: Detroit's American Indian Community along with many scholarly articles. He became chair of the BGSU History Department, receiving teaching and faculty excellence awards and a special university achievement award for excellence. In 1995, BGSU Trustees named him ``distinguished teaching professor,'' only the seventh in the school's history. Admired and respected by colleagues and students, Edmund Danziger explained, ``A master teacher will ignite a flame with his or her students--a flame which will guide them in further academic studies and more generally along life's challenging path.'' This philosophy sums up Professor Danziger's career. He took students on field trips to Fort Meigs, Walpole Island First Nation, and hiking the Appalachian Trail. He guided graduate students through theses and dissertations. A former student now an assistant professor of history himself said, ``He was the kind of person who elevated everybody he was around. He genuinely cared about humanity. He cared about students.'' What better reflection of a life well lived? We send our heartfelt sympathy to the Danziger family. We hope they find some comfort in the gift of his life, those he touched and those who were made better by knowing Edmund Jefferson Danziger. Godspeed.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise to honor the legacy of Mayor Pawel Adamowicz of Gdansk, Poland, who was tragically murdered just a few weeks ago. Mayor Adamowicz was a powerful voice for liberty in Poland, and always acted with the best interests of his people at heart. A resurgent Russia seeks to undermine transatlantic solidarity and Western resolve. In the face of transatlantic challenges, we must strengthen U.S.-Polish relations. That is why we must extend a hand of friendship to the next generation of democratic, transatlantic leaders. These shared democratic values go back to our nations' founding, and are critical to liberty in Europe today. I am honored to introduce legislation to establish the ``Pawel Adamowicz Democratic Leadership Exchange Act.'' This program would equip the next generation of leaders with the skills and networks needed to strengthen transatlantic relationships. In honor of Mayor Adamowicz's legacy, I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation. I ask that it be brought to the floor for a vote without delay.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, last week I received a peculiar invitation from the Kuwaiti Government to celebrate Kuwait's independence at the Trump Hotel. While Kuwait is a close ally of the United States, I feel compelled to decline the invitation. We must reject the culture of corruption that surrounds President Trump and his family. President Trump promised he would drain the swamp. He promised to put the interests of the American people before his own. Yet he has used his office to enrich himself further. According to USA Today, the President earned--get ready for this--$40 million from his Washington hotel just in 2017. This includes $350,000 in campaign funds and events hosted by the Republican National Committee. As we press foreign nations to better their own governments, it is clear that President Trump has reduced America's moral authority. I remind the President of Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, which prohibits the President from receiving gifts from a foreign power without the consent of Congress. We must restore America's faith in our democracy. That is why I look forward to working with my colleagues to hold the Trump administration fully accountable for their misdeeds.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to introduce today a resolution honoring the 100th anniversary of the Easterseals. On April 22, 2019, the Easterseals will celebrate 100 years as America's first non-profit organization to serve individuals with disabilities and other special needs. Once only focused on serving children with special needs, Easterseals expanded its mission in the 1940s to serve children and adults. For decades now, their innovative services opened the doors to assist seniors, veterans and individuals with autism. The Easterseals had a tragic beginning. In 1907, a streetcar accident in Elyria, Ohio, took the lives of eight people because there was no local hospital to treat their injuries. One of the deceased was the 18- year-old son of Edgar F. Allen, who in his sorrow was inspired to raise the funds necessary to build a local hospital. 18 months later, the Elyria Memorial Hospital was built and opened with 32 beds. Eight years after that, another Elyria hospital opened for ``crippled children.'' On April 22, 1919, Mr. Allen organized with civic leaders from Elyria, Cleveland, Sandusky, and Toledo, Ohio and Detroit, Michigan to form the Ohio Society for Crippled Children, the original name of the Easterseals. May the festivities of this 100th anniversary year bring renewed faith and opportunity to those aided by Easterseal services. Through rehabilitation services, new and fulfilling life opportunities become possible. Let us all take inspiration in the words of founder, Edgar F. Allen: ``Your life and mine shall be valued not by what we take . . . but by what we give.'' Congratulations to all associated with such an important organization.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, this week, I introduced three pieces of landmark campaign finance reform legislation. Out-of-control campaign spending has reached a dangerous level in this country and we must reform our campaign finance system if we are to restore voting power back to the American people. First, I have introduced a Constitutional Amendment granting Congress and the States the power to establish limits on contributions and expenditures in elections for public office. This amendment nullifies Citizens United v. FEC. Additionally, the amendment concludes that First Amendment protections do not apply to the political speech of corporations and other business organizations with respect to the disbursement of funds in connection with public elections. Second, I have introduced a resolution expressing the sense of Congress that the U.S. Supreme Court misinterpreted the First Amendment in the case of Buckley v. Valeo when it equated campaign spending with free speech. It is clear that Buckley v. Valeo failed to recognize that unlimited spending of money on elections has a corrosive effect on the electoral process. In order to secure free speech as a right of `we the people,' this misinterpretation must be reversed. Last, the Fairness in Political Advertising Act would require television broadcasting stations to make available 2 hours of free advertising broadcast time in each even-numbered year to each qualified political candidate in a statewide or national election. This would help level the playing field for viable candidates running against campaigns bankrolled by special interests. My entire career in Congress, I have served in the People's House. We, the elected members of the House of Representatives, must stand with the people, not major corporations or wealthy donors who give millions to super PACs. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and return the power over our Democracy back to the American people.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of the Federal Civilian Workforce Pay Raise Fairness Act. Our federal public servants dedicate their lives to serving their fellow Americans. Today, let's thank them for their dedicated service to our country by providing them and their families an overdue pay raise that they have earned. The Trump shutdown exposed the all-too-real economic reality for many Americans. Millions live paycheck-to-paycheck, including many of our public servants. They did not choose a life of public service to make it rich, but rather to serve and improve the lives of their fellow citizens. The shutdown also crystalized the daily impact federal workers have on all our lives. 85 percent of all federal workers live outside of Washington, and their paychecks drive the economies of communities across the U.S. This increase of 2.6 percent will help federal workers, 1 in 8 of whom make less than $40,000 a year, make ends meet while stimulating local small businesses across the nation when federal employees spend their earnings. Mr. Chair, it is unacceptable that their pay has not reflected the increased demands of cost of living for years. It's time we give our hardworking federal employees the pay raise they deserve and earn every day.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise this evening to join my remarks along with those of Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee to reach our beloved colleague, Walter Jones of the Third District of North Carolina, and his family as they walk through these difficult days. I wish to say thank you to the people of North Carolina for sending such an honorable and dignified gentleman to this House to serve for over two decades, 12 terms. I can remember how hard Walter worked when Hurricane Florence hit-- his district includes the Outer Banks of North Carolina--and spending his time with the citizens of his district. I can't count the number of times he talked about Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, and I can't think of anyone who fought harder for veterans or those in our military than Walter Jones. He is such a man of conscience and such a moral man. I know that the weight of this country's concerns fell on him very heavily. Walter, if you are listening to our words this evening, know that we walk with you in spirit. We know you are a man of deep faith, and we know that that faith will carry you through all of the most difficult shoals of life. We miss you very much on this floor, but we can see your presence and feel your presence. It lingers and lasts among us. Know that we walk with you. We hope you can hear our words, and we ask God to bless you, to bless your family, and to give you His everlasting strength.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the consolidated package of six appropriations bills and reopen the federal government. This unprecedented shutdown has ground our country to a halt. Every day this shutdown continues, families in my district suffer a cruel fate. From missed paychecks, uncertainty in food benefits, to delays in critical efforts that protect the health and safety of our country. The shutdown impacts Universities conducting critical research, in my region, at the University of Toledo. Twenty-five percent of the University of Toledo's research awards are from agencies affected by the shutdown. Anticipated grants are now delayed. This week, nine of UT's researchers on aerospace projects for NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland will be placed on leave without pay. Aquatic ecologists fighting invasive Asian carp in the Great Lakes have been put on hold. The health of the Great Lakes is in danger. This is not the time to risk the vitality of our region on partisan bickering. I would like to include in the Record the following article about the impacts of the shutdown on EPA inspectors unable to protect our water. I call on all my colleagues to support this effort and reopen government. [From the New York Times, Jan. 9, 2019] Shutdown Means E.P.A. Pollution Inspectors Aren't on the Job (By Coral Davenport) Washington.--The two-week-old shutdown has halted one of the federal government's most important public health activities, the inspections of chemical factories, power plants, oil refineries, water treatment plants, and thousands of other industrial sites for pollution violations. The Environmental Protection Agency has furloughed most of its roughly 600 pollution inspectors and other workers who monitor compliance with environmental laws. Those scientists, engineers and analysts are responsible for detecting violations that endanger human health, as they did, for example during an August 2018 airborne inspection that found that oil and gas fields in Karnes County, Tex., were leaking illegal levels of chemicals into the atmosphere, in violation of the Clean Air Act. While the inspection personnel represent a relatively small proportion of the E.P.A.'s total of about 15,000 workers, their absence increases the chances that, either by design or by accident, companies might emit illegal levels of contaminants into the air or water without detection, for weeks on end, according to people familiar with the E.P.A. inspections. ``There are plants that discharge wastewater into streams and rivers, places that store hazardous chemicals in containers that could leak--we show up and test these places to see if they're meeting pollution laws,'' said Garth Connor, a furloughed E.P.A. inspector based in Philadelphia who has been off the job since Monday. ``Now there's nobody out there to check if they're complying.'' Mr. Connor inspects for air and water pollution and hazardous waste disposal at sites throughout the Mid- Atlantic. The inspectors ``are the cops on the beat,'' Cynthia Giles, who headed the E.P.A. enforcement division during the Obama administration, wrote in an email. She noted that, in 2017, E.P.A. workers performed about 11,700 such inspections, averaging to about 225 inspections per week, according to the agency's records. The numbers suggest that hundreds of such inspections may have already been canceled this year, with the potential for hundreds more to not take place should the shutdown continue for days or weeks more. ``Those weeks can never be made up,'' Ms. Giles wrote. ``In addition to the violations not found and the inspections not done, there is also the impact of no inspectors in the field doing unannounced inspections,'' she added, asking: ``Will that result in more violations because companies know E.P.A. isn't watching?'' Andrew Wheeler, the acting administrator of the E.P.A., did not respond to an email requesting comment. On Wednesday, President Trump formally nominated Mr. Wheeler, who was confirmed last year as the deputy chief of the agency, to formally take over as the agency head. When on the job, E.P.A. inspectors regularly cite companies for violations that endanger human health. For example, during an April 2016 inspection at a Firestone rubber plant in Sulphur, La., E.P.A. inspectors discovered that the plant was emitting illegal levels of butadiene, a carcinogen, into the community. A telephone message left at the plant was not returned. Some E.P.A. inspections are unannounced. Others take the form of two- and three-week on-site visits. Still other examinations don't happen on-site: E.P.A. experts sitting in labs or at computers will review documents detailing a plant's own reported emissions of pollution or wastewater, checking whether legal limits were met or violated. These activities, too, are on pause during the shutdown. Inspectors need to read those reports ``and say, `no, you can't do that,' '' said Eric Schaeffer, who worked at the E.P.A. on enforcement from 1990 to 2002 and now runs the Environmental Integrity Project, an advocacy group. ``Then they follow up and go on-site. But none of that is happening.'' Unlike other federal agencies affected by the government shutdown, the E.P.A. continued to operate through the week of Dec. 24, but pollution inspections, along with most of the rest of the work of the agency, had ceased by New Year's Eve. Mr. Schaeffer recalled the effect on pollution enforcement of the longest government shutdown in history, which ran from Dec. 16, 1995, to Jan. 6, 1996. ``That was one of the worst years ever at the E.P.A. in terms of numbers of inspections and enforcement,'' he said. He added that the damage to the work of pollution inspections didn't end completely once the government reopened. ``Everything was ground to a halt, bogged down. You can't just restart at 100 miles per hour. You have to reschedule everything.'' Another former E.P.A. official who now lobbies on behalf of industry offered a different view, saying that a shutdown of even a few weeks was unlikely to make much difference in the amount of illegal pollution emitted or detected. ``What you have is a delay,'' said the former official, Jeffrey Holmstead, who served in the E.P.A. during both Bush administrations and now works for some of the largest coal companies and electric utilities in the country. ``I don't think it's true that all of a sudden, because E.P.A.'s inspectors are not there, that most people will take advantage of that,'' he said. ``There may be a few folks who believe they can get away with more, but I don't think that's the biggest issue.'' Among Mr. Holmstead's clients are several companies that have been cited for violations by the E.P.A., including the electric utility Southern Company, which has had 52 sites with violations over the past five years, including 23 sites with current violations, according to E.P.A.'s enforcement database. An email sent to a Southern Company spokesman requesting comment on the violations was not answered. Another of Mr. Holmstead's clients, the electric utility, Ameren, owns 23 sites that have been cited for pollution violations over the past five years. A telephone message left with an Ameren spokeswoman was not returned. In many years, about 10 to 20 percent of the E.P.A.'s pollution inspections turn up significant violations, according to the agency's data. Most operators ``really are doing a good job,'' said Adam Kushner, a former top legal official at the E.P.A. ``But there's a 1 percent that are bad actors, who will continue to do what they're going to do, unless inspectors find them. And then there are sites where the operator just may not have identified the problem, and they're putting bad stuff out into the air without knowing it.'' Angela McFadden, a furloughed E.P.A. environmental engineer who oversees state permits for pollution discharge and has worked as an on-site inspector dealing with clean water violations, said she ``always'' found violations during her time as an inspector. For example, she said, in inspecting municipal water systems in rural areas she frequently found that cities and towns over-chlorinated or under-chlorinated their water--not a legal violation, but a potentially harmful situation that is easily corrected when identified by an inspector. Ms. McFadden recalled a more frightening inspection she once performed in Pennsylvania that found excessive nitrate levels in a municipal water supply. Nitrates can sap oxygen from the blood and, when found in high levels in drinking water, are linked to ``blue baby syndrome,'' in which infants struggle to deliver enough oxygen to their bodies. ``Right now, E.P.A. is not monitoring any of that,'' Ms. McFadden said. ``Things are falling through the cracks.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, by now, you have seen the images of furloughed public servants lined up at food banks across our beloved country. This is a sight seen in communities everywhere, including throughout northern Ohio. I rise today to call attention to the misery the Trump shutdown is creating for millions of hardworking Americans who now have to rely on food assistance to get by: working people who have to be degraded in this way. Federal workers, who rely on SNAP food assistance through the U.S. Department of Agriculture, face daily uncertainty from the Trump shutdown. The early distribution of benefits received last week represents the February SNAP allocation, a sum that they will be asked to stretch to a date not yet determined. Mr. Speaker, this is unacceptable. President Trump should immediately act to protect SNAP benefits, reopen the Federal Government, and bring Federal workers back to work with paychecks they have earned. If you are a furloughed Federal worker and face hunger issues, please do not hesitate to reach out to your local food bank. You can locate your local food bank through ``Feeding America'' to plan for the uncertain.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Chair, I thank my dear friend, the chair of the Appropriations Committee, for yielding me this time. Madam Chair, I rise in support of H.R. 268, the emergency disaster recovery package. National disasters across our Nation devastated the lives of millions of Americans this past year. A few ranked as the worst and most severe incidents around the world. It is the top responsibility of Congress to provide these hard-hit communities with the strength, hope, and support to recover. This supplemental will provide necessary aid to these ailing communities. This Nation needs a better strategy to mitigate damage in future disasters, especially as year after year we see accelerating numbers and severity of national disasters due to climate change. This bill also includes funds for future mitigation. From our subcommittee's energy and water accounts, we have seen recent hurricanes and storms devastate existing infrastructure. Included in this supplemental is $470 million to repair damages at Army Corps of Engineer projects across our Nation. Given the Corps' important role to help protect communities nationwide and in the territories against national disasters, we also included $750 million for the Army Corps to accelerate construction on flood risk mitigation projects. Americans should not have to worry whether their community can provide adequate power to our homes and businesses, but across our Nation, fire- and flood-ravaged communities need funds to repair extensive damage and to strengthen electric grids. This bill ensures the Department of the Interior and Department of Energy have the resources needed for this assistance. Now, let me be clear. This administration has considered reprogramming funds appropriated for disaster recovery projects. These funds are appropriated to rebuild and strengthen America's resiliency against future disasters. They are intended to protect American families and communities from natural disasters. I am actually appalled that this administration would raid money for communities broken from actual disasters.

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Chair, in conclusion, this nation must confront, head-on, the reality of strengthening storms. We must help all communities recover from disasters, as we never know when it will hit our own backyard. Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to support the disaster package.

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Chair, I thank Congresswoman Velazquez for her daunting and unparalleled leadership in trying to help the people of Puerto Rico. And I thank our very distinguished ranking member for his interest in helping to solve the real challenge of Cano Martin Pena. I have to say to the people of Puerto Rico and our fellow citizens, those who reside in Puerto Rico and those who reside stateside here: We are very aware, from Congresswoman Velazquez's work, how devastated Puerto Rico is. She has spent so much of her substance in trying to educate the membership here. We are very fortunate for her abiding leadership. We all need to stand up for the residents of Puerto Rico. I appreciate her work, and all of our colleagues' efforts, to do just that. I am committed to working with her to address any issues with this amendment as we move forward. Its intent is absolutely on point. I think that, working together on a bipartisan basis, we can find a way to help heal our fellow citizens in Puerto Rico and bring a better way of life there in the future.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize the life of Stephen Stranahan, an outstanding, accomplished, and uniquely generous lifelong citizen of the Toledo area. A veteran, civic leader, and philanthropist who never forgot his roots. He persevered in uplifting the economic, civic, and cultural life of our region. Steve was born on May 3, 1934 to Virginia Secor Stranahan and Duane Stranahan, Sr. His father was the only child of Frank D. Stranahan, who with his brother R.A. Stranahan, Sr., formed the Champion Spark Plug Co. The product was regarded as the finest in the world during its time, and its dependability contributed to U.S. victory in World War II. Steve's mother grew up in the Old West End, her father a Toledo resident since the 1850s and a prominent banker. She helped found the Junior League of Toledo and the League of Women Voters in Perrysburg. Steve attended Maumee Valley Country Day School, Brooks School in North Andover, and Dartmouth College, where he majored in music. He served as a specialist in the 107th Armored Cavalry Regiment of the Ohio Army National Guard. Steve's first job was in the marketing department of the legendary Champion Spark Plug and where he worked his way up to serve as the director of the company. An entrepreneurial, creative business leader, he found an opportunity to buy a small airport at Telegraph and Alexis roads, National Airport, and operated National Flight Services, which later moved to Toledo Express Airport as a fixed-base operator. He became a dealer of Beechcraft airplanes, tracing his affinity for flight back to his father, who was a pioneer of Champion's spark plugs for aircraft. Throughout the 1960s, Steve took the mantra of community wide leadership and became a rising civic leader, serving as president of Downtown Toledo Associates, the Toledo Area Chamber of Commerce, and Civic Pride Inc., which owned the Toledo Blades hockey team. In 1964, he, along with Ned Skeldon, Willard I. Webb III, and Henry Morse, arranged for the return of the minor league baseball team--the Mud Hens--to Toledo. Steve joined Paul Block, Jr., Ned Skeldon, and Thomas Anderson to form Clear Water Inc. to campaign for cleaning up the Lake Erie watershed. His firm, Riverview One, erected Fiberglas Tower in downtown Toledo and he was a leader in Arrowhead Park, a Maumee business development. A pianist himself, he took his love of music and applied it to the Toledo Symphony, an institution his paternal grandmother, Marie Celeste Stranahan, helped to found. Having served as a long-time board member and board president of the Toledo Symphony, he stressed financial prudence and Steve and his wife were recognized in 2015 by the Toledo Symphony for their stewardship of the institution. Steve's overarching influence was most impactful on the University of Toledo, having served as chairman of the Board of Trustees and as chairman of the University of Toledo Foundation trustees. His insistence on having an endowment fund set up for the University and his leadership through much of the institutional growth helped transform the University of Toledo from a municipal school to a state university. Toledo has been blessed with his life as a rare leader. Though an ``Ivy League'' success story, he dedicated his substance to the advancement of life for all in the Toledo area. Steve will ultimately be remembered for his dedication not only to his family, but the family of greater Toledo. On behalf of a grateful community, please let me offer his wife Ann Anderson Stranahan, his children Frances Parry, Abbot Stranahan Ward, Stephen ``Josh'' Stranahan and Daniel Stranahan, his eight grandchildren and great- grandson, his sister Mary Stranahan and brothers Michael, George, and Duane ``Pat'' Stranahan, Jr., and his many friends and associates our prayers and hope that they find comfort in the wonderful memories and lasting accomplishments of Steve, and of his inspirational role in bettering our way of life. His legacy lives on.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, as co-chair of the bipartisan Congressional Caucus on Poland, it is with a truly heavy heart that I rise this morning to express deepest sympathy to our NATO ally, Poland, and its countrymen and women on the brutal slaying of visionary Gdansk Mayor Pawel Adamowicz. Mayor Adamowicz had served his city since 1998 as it championed the values of liberty, equality, and democracy. I hold profound respect for his enduring dedication, perseverance, and honorable service to his community and nation. He loved Gdansk as a beacon for a free Poland and gave his life to it. What a deep tragedy this is for his grieving family, his wife, his children, his associates, for the Polish nation, and for freedom-loving people everywhere. Far too much blood has been shed on Polish soil for the world to ignore such a heinous crime that took his life. I visited Gdansk in both 2009 and 2013, and through these visits, I gained an even deeper respect for its noble history and its place on Earth, including the location where Nazi shelling at Westerplatte began the cataclysmic invasion of Poland starting World War II. This year, we will commemorate the 80th anniversary of that moment. Then more recently, Gdansk's redemptive transformative role in world history with the courageous Solidarnosc worker strikes that trip-wired the collapse of tyranny across Central Europe, imposed by the Soviet Union, ushering in the possibility of freedom for the millions who suffered under dehumanizing repression for over half a century. In our modern era, Gdansk became that symbol of liberty. It formally partnered with the city of Cleveland, Ohio, which I am privileged to represent, along with Congresswoman Marcia Fudge, in a sister-cities relationship. As part of my own congressional district, I am deeply honored and proud of this relationship. In Mayor Adamowicz's memory, I and this Congress must stand ready to strengthen this alliance of liberty, certainly at this moment in history. In his memory, our Poland Caucus must pursue an annual liberty exchange in his name to nurture aspiring young Polish leaders who follow in his footsteps in pursuit of liberty and security for Poland. Let his death serve as a constant reminder of how precious freedom remains. I am certain Polish law enforcement officials will examine the circumstances surrounding the perpetrator's actions with a diligent eye. They must ascertain whether there are any linkages that exist with outside influence or propaganda that might have catalyzed this heinous crime. I know I speak on behalf of all Americans and of millions of Polish Americans across our country, including in Ohio, to remind all freedom- loving people that the United States stands with Poland now at this hour of mourning. During these uncertain times, we must work to strengthen our transatlantic and NATO alliances through increased diplomatic, cultural, and military exchanges. May the soul of Mayor Pawel Adamowicz rest in peace, and may the worth of his noble life inspire the young leaders of Poland to pursue his visionary leadership.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Lowey for the recognition and the opportunity to speak. Madam Speaker, this vote is a tribute to the thousands of Federal patriots who have shown up to work for the past 25 days, working with no pay. This must end today. I call on my colleagues in this body to vote to support our hardworking public servants. This bill is a clean continuing resolution. It comprises short-term funding through February 1 for all the agencies and departments currently shuttered for no good reason. Those include the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the State Department, the Interior Department, the Agriculture Department, the Department of Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Transportation, and many more agencies. The President is not serving this Nation; he is not serving it well as he uses his authority to harm our Republic. Civil service workers are the bonds that hold our country together. The Commander in Chief is hurting our Nation and holds our entire government hostage to his harebrained notion that you can stop drug trafficking and migration with a wall. The drug traffickers must be laughing up a storm. They already ship it here hidden in legal cargo. They dug tunnels under the 650 miles of border that already exists. They figured that out. And they have been flying contraband material over our border. They boat illegal contraband in here from our coastal ports, and they ship it from China through even the Postal Service, and we don't have a mechanism to detect fentanyl in the mails. To secure our Nation and our border, our Nation first needs to open all our government agencies for the American people who are paying the bills, open those departments and pay the men and women who dedicate their lives to protecting our borders and protecting us. Once the government is open, we can spend the next weeks discussing how best to fund mechanisms that will truly improve our security. This could include thorough inspection of all cargo.

Ms. KAPTUR. This could include enhanced electronic surveillance between ports of entry. This could include additional personnel at all ports of entry to increase checks. And, frankly, in communities like I represent, it should involve increasing DEA agents to take care of the gangs that are trafficking in these illegal materials. But most importantly, we need a President who understands you don't stop the drug trade or undocumented migration of individuals by shuttering the entire Department of Homeland Security or furloughing the border agents or making them go to work with no pay. He has got the wrong answer for what America needs to address in border security.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, I rise today to highlight yet another grim economic headline, another broken promise on jobs and trade from President Trump to the people of northern Ohio, and more pink slips by another factory shuttered. Keystone Tailored Manufacturing will close by March. Approximately 150 employees will lose their jobs. Keystone has made men's suits at the site since 2015. Before that, it was a Hugo Boss men's suit plant. Since 2010, workers fought to keep the facility from closing twice. There won't be a third time. As Mark Milko, the area director for the Workers United union put it: ``It doesn't look like there is anything to fight to save.'' Madam Speaker, this company plans to shift these jobs to Canada. There they can save $15 a suit on imported buttons, zippers, shoulder supports, and tariffs--because Canada isn't involved in a trade war with China that the President has started. Under NAFTA, they can then turn those suits right back around to sell here in America for nothing. This President's trade strategy is a disaster. American workers suffer the ultimate sacrifice. Our Nation must put someone in charge who knows what they are doing.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, let's pay tribute to the thousands of America's patriots going to work with no pay. It is wrong for the President to use his authority to harm our Republic. Public service employees hold our country together. Take this story shared by Micah Maziar, an air traffic controller from Toledo, Ohio, who told his account of a new trainee struggling to make ends meet. He is not being paid. After a full day's work, a full shift in a very stress-filled job, the trainee reports to his apartment complex to pick up trash as part of a deal with his landlord to offset rent during this Trump shutdown. This is unacceptable. The Commander in Chief holds our entire government hostage to his harebrained notion that you can stop drug trafficking with a wall. The drug traffickers must be laughing up a storm. They already dig tunnels under the existing walls and fly over them, too. To secure the border, our Nation needs thorough inspection of cargo. We need enhanced electronic surveillance through drones. Most of all, we need a President who understands you don't stop the drug trade by furloughing border agents without pay. For the hundreds of thousands of America's hardworking Federal patriots and for the American people whom they serve, we must reopen the government immediately.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, a wall is not remotely capable of dealing with the magnitude of our continental challenge to civil order. The forces of commerce, greed, addiction, and lawless cartels and gangs are too insidious. They will surmount any wall. They already have. The President's demand for $5 billion for a wall, whether concrete or steel, simply won't work. Why? Because most illegal narcotics are already shipped here hidden in cross-border commercial cargoes fueled by the flawed and underfunded NAFTA and CAFTA continental trade deals. Millions of trucks, autos, ships, railcars, and planes carry massive and increasing shipments of cargo traversing over our borders as continental trade increases exponentially. Recall that NAFTA and CAFTA sucked out millions of living-wage jobs from our country, depositing them in Mexico and Central America to exploit penny-wage labor south of our border. Finished goods were then U-turned back north. NAFTA and CAFTA negotiators promised higher wages for all. Nothing could be further from the truth. Even laborers south of our border earn less now than before NAFTA passed. There is more poverty here and there as the transnationals shipped our jobs out to earn higher profits by gutting our workforce and while exploiting workers in Mexico and Central America. On both sides of the border, workers lose and investors win. This is a map of the Laredo checkpoint. There are 16 lanes of traffic just at that one point on our border. The problem is the drugs are often hidden in those commercial cargoes. We need more agents to check cargo, but we also need technology to find the hidden narcotics that are there. In addition to that, we see China shipping fentanyl and carfentanil into our country, including through the U.S. mails. We have no scientific way of detecting those killer drugs. So, if you really want to look at solving the problem, it is important for the President to know that legal ports of entry are the primary route through which illicit drugs arrive here in our country. There are 48 such crossing points, plus 330 points of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border, the most frequently crossed border in the world. Approximately 350 million documented crossings occur there annually. We need to regularize that entry into the United States. We need more manpower and technology. There is no way we can solve this problem with a wall.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, 19 days into the Trump shutdown, there is no end in sight. Real Americans are taking his blows. Take Ms. J's story. She is a constituent of mine who is a contractor for NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio. With the Trump shutdown now into the third week, she faces unnecessary anxiety and uncertainty on whether she will be paid. Yes, President Trump is making America's workers bear the brunt of his shutdown. Ms. J must weigh which bills to pay if her paycheck doesn't come. As the mother of four, she fears the loss of health insurance coverage if she can't cover her monthly premium. She describes herself as lucky to be in a two-income household with the education necessary to seek employment elsewhere if it comes to the worst. Others are not so fortunate. One of her colleagues is an 81-year-old custodial worker who has dedicated more than 30 years doing the toilsome work required of her profession. Ms. J asks: ``Who will look out for her?'' It is over time to end the Trump shutdown, and the taxpaying public at large expects the Government of the United States to do the work they pay for.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Madam Speaker, the President's demand for $5 billion for a wall won't stop the drug trade, and here is why: The drugs will keep flowing in here, due to NAFTA and CAFTA's exploding continental trade resulting from U.S. jobs being shipped south of our border and the goods they produce down there being transshipped back here with an endless flow of trucks, planes, ships, and railcars. Colombian drug cartels figured this out when NAFTA came along. Madam Speaker, I have a story from last Friday's Wall Street Journal, entitled: `` `El Chapo' Jury Told of Cartel's Tricks, From Submarines to Laundry Carts.'' Two characters among the most significant drug traffickers ever extradited to our country are undergoing trial. They explain how massive amounts of cocaine and methamphetamines were ferried from Colombia through Mexico into major U.S. cities and how the cartel hired families from the United States to drive down through El Paso into Mexico and bring back contraband material hidden in compartments in their cars. This is a shot of Laredo, Texas, just one of hundreds of portals into our country. Madam Speaker, the trucks go for miles from the control point all the way back. This is how the majority of contraband material comes into this country, through those portals of entry. A wall will not solve the major reason these materials end up in this country.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member, Mrs. Lowey from New York, for yielding. And here we are, again, and again, and again-- in fact, that is the ninth continuing resolution that the Republicans have punted in this Congress rather than getting the job done. This President claims to be a great dealmaker, but what kind of a deal does he even want? He keeps switching the goal posts again and again. It reminds me of a child who flips over a Monopoly board when he realizes he is about to lose. The President's nonsense is compounded by the dysfunction, sadly, of the House Republicans. They are about to vote on funding a bill that has no chance of becoming law, zero chance of becoming law. All of this because they want to waste money on a border wall that Mexico was supposed to pay for and won't work anyway because it is 13th century technology. Imagine billions of dollars being able to pay some of the student loan debt around this country, or help our teachers earn better salaries, or pave the roads and bridges around this country that need repair, or invest in good clean-air energy jobs. Take your pick, Mr. President, but $5.7 billion for a wall that won't even work? No thanks. The American people expect so much more of us in this Congress. Sadly, the Republican leadership and this President are attempting eleventh-hour shenanigans to get a wall that voters across this country, clearly, definitely rejected when they sent a new majority to Congress. And, frankly, they can't get here fast enough. The American people deserve better. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to include in the Record my speech at yesterday's event, ``Human Rights without Borders,'' organized by the Wei Jingsheng Foundation and the European Union Parliamentary Liaison Office. It was my privilege to receive the ``Human Rights and Freedom Defender'' award. We must continue to shine a light on human rights abuses in China. I look forward to working with my colleagues on a bipartisan bases to continue to carry the torch for liberty in China and globally. Thank you all so much for the invitation to this very poignant exhibit, ``Human Rights without Borders.'' Thank you to Wei Jingsheng as well as Antoine Ripoll of the European Parliament Liaison Office for so graciously hosting this very special event. Wei, what a pleasure to see you again. I had the honor of hosting him in my district 16 years ago at the Toledo Labor Day Parade, as well as an event at the University of Toledo. And thank you all for continuing to carry forward the flame of human rights in China, and across the world. What an honor to receive this reward. I am truly humbled. I would like to dedicate it to all the freedom fighters in China and across the world that are being detained, tortured, or persecuted due to their pursuit of liberty. As you all know, human rights and democratic principles are not just for wishful thinking. These principles are central to our nation's security because we know a more democratic world is a more secure world. We know that countries with strong human rights records are more prosperous, stable, and reliable partners to build world peace. Tragically, the Chinese regime has a deeply troubling human rights record. As we speak, up to one million Uyghur Muslims are languishing in concentration camps in North West China. At least 321 Tibetans have been detained since 2012, yet heroically continue their struggle for self-determination. Meanwhile, millions of Chinese workers toil away at penny- wages in slave conditions to benefit the Chinese regime and transnational corporations. There is no freedom of association to form trade unions, leaving the level of occupational disease and injuries alarmingly high. And also prevents oversight of child labor and severe abuse of migrant and ethnic minority workers. During peak production season, workers are forced to cover 80-175 overtime hours per month with little to no protections, exposed to hazardous chemicals and deadly working conditions. More than 480 million people in China--one third of its population--live on less than $2 a day. The lack of an independent judiciary, independent press, rule of law, and due process raise serious concerns of core principals of fundamental human rights. With such an ancient and rich culture, the Chinese people deserve better than this brutish and crude oppression. As Congress debated allowing China into the World Trade Organization, many argued that welcoming China into the world fold would lead to democratization. They said that a middle class would demand their rights. Instead, we've seen more oppression and a more aggressive Chinese foreign policy that can use its new-found riches to challenge American influence abroad. China has yet to open its markets to American goods. Our trade deficits have soared, clocking in at over $375 billion in 2017 alone and despite promises from the Trump Administration to correct this gaping imbalance. As a result, American workers in Ohio and across the Midwest have lost thousands of jobs to corporate greed and offshoring. Free trade with China has surely been a one-sided deal. Just as China shows a blatant disdain for human rights and rule of law in their own country, she tramples upon international law and seeks to overturn the global rules- based order. As a strategic competitor, she seeks to spread its propaganda and tear down the virtues of democracy. She would seek to replace the blessings of liberty and replace it with its oppressive and dark ideology. China provides diplomatic cover and assistance to the pariah-state North Korea that threatens global security with nuclear weapons and intercontinental missiles. China fails to control illicit flows of fentanyl into the United States killing so many unsuspecting victims in my District, Northern Ohio, and across America. While the United States takes a step back in global leadership and diplomacy, China is too eager to fill the void. We see China investing millions in developing nations in South American and Africa, spreading its undemocratic and tyrannical influence. We watch as Chinese foreign aid and influence pays dividends in nations as they shift to recognize mainland China over a free and democratic Taiwan. China seeks to illegally take control of international waters in the South China seaway and undertakes aggressive naval maneuvers to challenge stability in the region provided by our naval fleet. China's global strategy and dominance is that of a sleeping dragon. But with its aggressive state-driven Belt and Road Initiative, which will invest $1 trillion on development projects globally, America can no longer tip-toe around the dragon. As a Member of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, I join my colleagues in the commitment to work to hold China accountable on its deeply disturbing human rights record. We need to take China's failure to live up to its commitment much more seriously. We need a trade policy that creates jobs in the U.S. And we must continue to check China's revisionist and aggressive foreign policy. Thank you all again for this great honor, and I look forward to working with you and my colleagues on a bipartisan basis to continue carrying the torch for human rights in China and globally.

Ms. KAPTUR

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, following the gruesome murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi ordered by the Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the world raised its voice in condemnation. Noticeably quiet was the leader of the free world, our own President. A closer look at President Trump's deeply troubling financial connections and conflicts of interest likely explain why. In August 2015, the President himself said on the campaign trail: ``Saudi Arabia, I get along with all of them. They buy apartments from me. They spend $40 million, $50 million. . . . I like them very much.'' That same month, The Trump Organization registered eight separate companies to do business in Saudi Arabia. Indeed, The Hill newspaper reported that a 5-day stay from the Saudi crown prince at the Trump Hotel caused a 13 percent surge in revenue in the first quarter of this year. How about that? Mr. President, the American people wonder, is it America first, or is America for sale to foreign interests? Given the President's clear conflicting interests, Congress must assert its power to limit the ability of corrupt regimes to influence our politics. Our colleagues on both sides of the aisle must reaffirm America's values of liberty, justice, and equality, and restore America's faith in our politics.