Ron Kind

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the distinguished service of Colonel David J. Pinter, Sr. whose tenure as Garrison Commander at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, concludes May 19, 2018. Colonel Pinter assumed duties as Garrison Commander at Fort McCoy on March 11, 2016. Colonel Pinter's 29 years of dedicated service in the U.S. Army is noteworthy in every respect. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa; a master's degree in Business and Policy Studies from Empire State College, Saratoga Springs, N.Y.; and a master's degree in National Security Strategy from the National War College, Washington, D.C. His military education includes the Combined Arms and Service Staff School, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, and the National War College. Colonel Pinter received his Army commission in 1989 from the University of Iowa Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He entered active duty and attended the Army Aviation School for flight training and then was assigned as a Platoon Leader with the 1st Battalion, 501st Aviation Regiment in Korea. He next served with the 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, N.Y., as a Platoon Leader and Battalion Flight Operations Officer. He then was assigned as Aviation Company Commander and 12th Aviation Brigade Operations Planner with support to V Corps in Germany. Pinter returned to the 10th Mountain Division and began training for certification in the Army Acquisition Corps. He deployed to Kosovo in support of the Joint Contracting Cell and continued his Acquisition career as an Aviation Material Development Branch Chief with the Aviation Combat Development Directorate. His follow-on assignment was as the Project Manager and Operations Officer to the Soldier, Biological, Chemical Command, and he then worked with the Office of the Surgeon General to field Chem-bio Protective Systems to Combat Support Hospitals and Forward Surgical Teams in the Iraq theater prior to and during the onset of the war. Colonel Pinter entered the Active Guard Reserve program in 2003 with duty at the University of Iowa as the Senior Assistant Military Professor. He then served as the Logistics Officer with the newly formed 11th Aviation Command leading efforts to establish logistical support for the Army Reserve Aviation Operations of 17 units in 14 states, followed by Aviation Battalion Command in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Then, he served as a force management staff member in the Office of the Chief of the Army Reserve, as well as in the Office of the Assistants to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff for National Guard and Reserve Matters. Immediately prior to his assignment at Fort McCoy, he served as Division Chief for the Homeland Defense Division of the Joint Staff J3 Operations Directorate, Washington, D.C. Colonel Pinter's deployments include Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Kosovo, and Iraq. Colonel Pinter has committed his life to serving our country and has received many deserving awards and decorations, including the Defense Superior Service Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with seven Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Commendation Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters, Army Achievement Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with three Bronze Service Stars, Humanitarian Service Medal with two Bronze Service Stars, NATO medal with two Bronze Service Stars, United Nations Medal with two Bronze Service Stars, Joint Staff Identification Badge, Army Staff Identification Badge, Airborne Badge, Air Assault Badge, Combat Patch, Senior Aviator Badge, Ranger Tab, and Combat Action Badge. Under Colonel Pinter's effective leadership, which has fostered the success of ``Team McCoy,'' Fort McCoy has received heightened awareness by senior leaders that have led to an increase in the transit training population, mobilization, medical and mission readiness of the U.S. military. Fort McCoy is one of six major Army Reserve garrisons, within the seventy-five Army installation command garrisons, and under Colonel Pinter's guidance, it is the only one to receive the Army Community of Excellence Award two years in a row. Additionally, during his tenure, Colonel Pinter transitioned Fort McCoy's business model into a four- seasons, cold-weather focused training model. Thanks to Colonel Pinter, Fort McCoy is well positioned for the future. It has been an honor for me to serve as U.S. Representative for Wisconsin's Third Congressional District during Colonel Pinter's tenure at Fort McCoy. I know Colonel Pinter's leadership will be greatly missed at the base and surrounding communities, but I am thankful for his leadership and contributions to ensuring that Fort McCoy remains a shining star in the nation's military training infrastructure. On behalf of my constituents in Wisconsin and a grateful nation, I would like to thank and commend Colonel David J. Pinter, Sr. for his years of dedicated service in the U.S. Army and in particular as Garrison Commander at Fort McCoy. I wish him, his wife, and children the very best as they turn the page on the next chapter of their lives.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Maryland for yielding to me at this time. Mr. Speaker, this is truly embarrassing. I don't even think ``Saturday Night Live'' could come up with a skit of this nature. Here we are today debating a constitutional amendment to balance the budget on the heels of one of the most fiscally reckless tax cuts in this Nation's history, which the Congressional Budget Office just estimated will increase our national debt by over $2 trillion over the next 10 years. Eighty-three percent of the benefit is going to the wealthiest 1 percent. What relief is being delivered to working families disappears in 5 years. This also came on the heels of a 2-year budget that exceeds the current spending caps by over $300 billion. Now, don't take my word for it. Consider what Republican Senator Bob Corker recently said, who was the deciding vote in the Senate on that tax cut: ``If it ends up costing what has been laid out here, it could well be one of the worst votes I've made.'' ``None of us have covered ourselves in glory. This Congress and this administration likely will go down as one of the most fiscally irresponsible administrations and Congresses that we've had.'' Republican Senator Bob Corker. Now, listen, I have supported a balanced budget amendment in the past, but I have done it primarily as a check against reckless Republican spending. As history has shown, it is typically during Republican administrations when budget deficits explode and during Democratic administrations when they come down. But why are we making this so difficult on ourselves? We don't need a constitutional amendment. We need to get back to budget rules that we know work. Pay-as-you-go budgeting worked. We had it in place in the 1990s during the Clinton administration, and it led us to 4 years of budget surpluses and we were paying down the national debt. We had pay-as-you- go budgeting in the early years of the Obama administration, when he inherited a $1.5 trillion budget deficit from the previous administration, and by the time President Obama left office, that was reduced by over two-thirds. We don't need a constitutional amendment. We need political courage. We need budget rules that have shown that they work in the past. That is what we should be discussing today.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and to give thanks to a very good friend of mine, our Deputy Chief Reporter of the House of Representatives, Ed Johnson, whose last day for us is this Friday before he returns to our home State of Wisconsin. Ed began his official court reporting career back in Wisconsin in 1980, hooking up with a judge. He eventually made his way here to the House of Representatives in 2007 and, ultimately, became Deputy Chief Reporter in 2015. Ed took his role as our guardian of the public record very seriously: with great integrity, with great professionalism, and with great respect from everyone who had a chance to work with him. And what do these Official Reporters do for us? Like today, this young lady here to my left brings her stenograph machine down to the well of the House or to a committee that they might be assigned, and they record everything that is said. With a single stroke of the key, they are able to record whole words, phrases, sometimes whole sentences if they know what is being said, sometimes when Members are speaking over each other. It is an incredibly difficult talent that they have to learn, and they all do it so very, very well for us. Now, some of Ed's highlights during his career here: He was able to report President Obama's State of the Union Address in 2015 by sitting here at the dais. And listen to this: He served as ``Mr. February'' in the ``2013 Men of Court Reporting'' calendar, which is probably appropriate, given Ed's legendary sense of humor. He has also been known to do some standup comedy. Having spent time with my good friend, Ed, here in Washington, I have a feeling that he is going to miss a lot of the aspects that he has been privy to Capitol Hill, given his appreciation for our history, politics, policy, the personalities of this place, and we will certainly be missing him. So I want to wish him and his wife, Liz, and their two dogs, Bucky and Angus--I mean, what could be more Wisconsin than that--as they return home to our home State of Wisconsin where they will be a little bit closer to their families. I want to thank Ed for his service to this institution, but also to our country and the distinguished career that he had here in Washington. I wish him and Liz all the best as they return home to Wisconsin where Tawni and I look forward to continuing our friendship.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of National Court Reporting and Captioning Week and in appreciation of court reporters across the country. Our court reporters play a critical role in our communities--they hold the vital responsibility to record history, assist those who are deaf or hard of hearing, and preserve judicial proceedings. I witnessed the dedication and professionalism of court reporters through my time as a special prosecutor, but more importantly I have seen the tremendous devotion of court reporters through my wife, Tawni, who has been a court reporter in western Wisconsin for over 25 years. Additionally, I want to recognize the outstanding work done by the Official House reporters, who transcribe proceedings verbatim in the Congressional Record and provide needed support for congressional committees. The National Court Reporters Association and its members have also been instrumental for the success of the Veterans History Project, which was created by legislation I authored. This project is the largest oral history collection in United States history, having collected over 100,000 stories from our nation's veterans that are permanently stored at the Library of Congress and available to the public. Shortly after the Veterans History Project was launched, court reporters across the country partnered with the Library of Congress to preserve the narratives of our nation's veterans by assisting in transcribing veterans' stories. To date, over 4,000 oral history transcripts have been submitted by court reporters to the Library of Congress. Not only have court reporters worked diligently with the Library of Congress to transcribe stories that had already been submitted, but many have personally interviewed veterans within their own communities. Without this admirable dedication from court reporters throughout the country, we would not be able to preserve many of these veterans' stories or record the sacrifices they made for our nation. The National Court Reporters Foundation also launched a program called ``The Hard of Hearing Heroes Project,'' where veterans with hearing loss can be interviewed for the Veterans History Project through the use of real time captioning. This is a vital service because hearing loss is among the most common service-connected injury and an estimated 60 percent of veterans from the post 9/11 era who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan suffer some form of hearing loss. The ``Hard of Hearing Heroes Project'' will help ensure every veteran has a chance to share his or her story. As we celebrate National Court Reporting and Captioning Week, I want to thank the National Court Reporters Association and its many members throughout the country for their contributions to preserving history and for supporting those who are deaf or hard of hearing. I also particularly want to thank court reporters for their commitment to the Veterans History Project and to preserving veterans' stories for generations to come.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to have my votes recorded on the House floor on Tuesday, January 16, 2018. Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of S. 117 and H.R. 4318.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to have my votes recorded on the House floor on Thursday, January 11, 2018. Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of S. 139. While this bill is not perfect, the FISA program is needed to keep the American public safe. I am hopeful that stronger judicial oversight elements will be added in the Senate, as a former special prosecutor, I acutely understand the need for people's privacy rights must be protected at all times.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to have my votes recorded on the House floor on Wednesday, January 10, 2018. Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of S. 140.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I was unable to have my votes recorded on the House floor on Tuesday January 9, 2018. Had I been present, I would have voted in favor of H.R. 4581, H.R. 4564 and H. Res. 676.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, if we are going to borrow $2 trillion from China over the next 10 years, it better be for a very good reason. And lavishing huge tax breaks to multinational corporations and to the most wealthy amongst us is not a good reason. I am very concerned about many of my fiscally conservative friends across the aisle. So I offered an amendment that would have expanded the endangered species list to include fiscally conservative Republicans because they are about to go extinct under this bill. And under this bill, they are creating a mess that is going to take years to clean up because of the potential for fraud and abuse. Consider this: They are pitting a hastily written bill, drafted without one hearing, considered without feedback from people back home, without proper vetting, all over the course of a few short weeks against some of the smartest accountants and tax attorneys that money can buy. Who do you think is going to win that battle? This is a bill that was drafted of, for, and by the powerful special interests in Washington, and it should be rejected.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, when I go to my church, South Beaver Creek Lutheran Church, Sunday mornings with my family in rural western Wisconsin by our family farm, I view that place as a sanctuary for my soul; a place for us to congregate, to commune, to spend time in fellowship with our fellow neighbors, and to check up on one another. Yes, preach values and preach moral lessons to our children, absolutely. But by repealing the Johnson amendment, you have the potential of creating conflict in the pews. You could be creating Republican and Democratic churches, mosques, and synagogues overnight. This is one of the last refuges, one of the last institutions that we still have as a country given how much we are self-segregating and deciding whom we like to hang out with, what clubs we join, what people we want to associate with, even our own family members, because of political affiliation. Our places of worship are one of the last places we can come regardless of political affiliation. This will create unnecessary strife and unnecessary conflict, and it has the potential of driving young people away from organized religion because they won't put up with this. It could be a backdoor attempt for a lot of political contributors now to get tax-exempt contributions to these organizations for direct, partisan political campaigns. That is why the Joint Committee on Taxation viewed this as a cost of over $2 billion. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to reconsider and reject this, and let's prevent that conflict in our communities.

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, of all the policy changes that are being recommended in this legislation before us today, the one that scares me the most is the repeal of the so-called Johnson amendment. The Johnson amendment basically says: If you are a religious organization or a nonprofit and if you engage in partisan political activity, you lose your tax-exempt status. Repealing that has the potential of politicizing the pulpit nationwide. In fact, 103 religious organizations, 4,200 faith-based leaders in this country, and 5,500 nonprofits have written a letter to every Member of Congress telling us: Don't do this. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record these letters. Updated November 1, 2017. Hon. Paul Ryan, Speaker, Washington, DC. Hon. Mitch McConnell, Senate Majority Leader, Washington, DC. Hon. Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic Leader, Washington, DC. Hon. Chuck Schumer, Senate Democratic Leader, Washington, DC. Hon. Kevin Brady, Chairman, House Ways and Means Committee, Washington, DC. Hon. Orrin Hatch, Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard Neal, Ranking Member, House Ways and Means Committee, Washington,

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Amen.

Mr. KIND. I appreciate the remarks of my friend from Chicago. He represents a large urban district. I represent a large rural district in Wisconsin. He may be a Bears fan, and I might be a Packers fan, but one thing we agree on is this a bill of goods for both of our constituencies. I am especially concerned about the economic impact in the large rural congressional district that I represent where production agriculture is still an important part of our economy. Some of the changes that they are making are going to be devastating to family farmers. They are taking away the 199 tax deduction, which is as important for our domestic manufacturers as it is for our family farmers. If you want to grow things and invent things and create things, make things in America, the 199 has a proven track record of making it easier for our farmers and manufacturers to do it. Under their bill, that goes away. That operating loss carryback, which is important for a lot of farmers in order to recoup some of the losses that they have experienced in their business, it goes away. Like-kind exchanges for property and heavy machinery in farm country goes away. A lot of my farmers are operating on a margin right now. I am concerned about the impact this is going to have on the rural economy and our family farmers with what they are proposing. You don't have to be from a city or from a rural district to understand that, again, the work wasn't put into this bill to understand the real consequences of what they are asking for. It is not too late. We can still regroup and work in the bipartisan fashion that tax reform was meant to occur and figure out a way to truly simplify, make us more competitive, but make it fair for working families, small businesses, and family farmers in all of our districts, rather than this rush to judgment just so they can score a political win before the end of the year. So I think the points that my friend from Chicago raised are very valid, and it is something that I would hope all of us would heed before we reach our final decision tomorrow morning.

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I think my good friend and colleague from California is raising a very important point, and it is a point that all of us here this evening on the Ways and Means Committee, with the leadership of Mr. Neal from Massachusetts, have been raising for some time. Doing tax reform right is tough. There are a lot of moving pieces to it, and there are a lot of traps and unintended consequences if you do it the wrong way. Not having one hearing, not having proper vetting, not taking the time to listen to people back home in our respective States and districts about the consequences of something that is going to affect every American life in this country is legislative malpractice, and that is what we are on the verge of committing leading up to tomorrow's vote. My friend from California mentioned the $2.3 trillion in additional debt over the next 10 years by the time you add in the interest payments and how devastating that will be, and it is happening at the wrong time. I mean, we might have gotten away with that with the 1981 tax cuts that weren't paid for back then because there was a little bit of time to recover from a big fiscal mistake, and from 2001, 2003. We have run out of time as a nation, with 70 million baby boomers beginning their massive retirement, 10,000 a day joining Social Security and Medicare. But their entire theory is premised on the fact that over two-thirds of the tax cut will be going to large corporations under their bill of this illusory growth that is going to come from it. Part of that is based on this tax holiday, they call it deemed repatriation, where these multinational companies are going to be able to bring dollars back into America at a much lower rate and supposedly reinvesting here that is going to promote growth. But there was a recent survey by Bank of America and Merrill Lynch of 300 executives of some of the largest U.S. multinational companies asking them what they would do with this deemed repatriated money coming back to the country. Their number one response was paying down debt. Reinvesting in their company, reinvesting in research and development, investing in more jobs and good-paying jobs barely registered in that survey. But this should not come as a surprise. It is not like we haven't been down this road before. We tried a repatriation bill back in the early 2000s, where these companies were able to bring back a ton of money, and what they used it for was dividend give-outs and stock buybacks. Yet they are refusing to learn the lessons of the past and going on this theory of an illusory growth that none of the major economists see under this tax bill, and it is a huge fiscal gamble that I think i going to leave us in the same place as the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, which was one of the worst decades when it came to job growth in our country.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, there are certain phrases that we have learned to grow to accept with great suspicion: The check is in the mail. It is not you; it is me. Don't worry, I will respect you in the morning. I have had just a few drinks; I am fine with driving. And now we have to add to that: Don't worry. Large tax cuts for the most wealthy will pay for themselves, and I am a fiscally conservative Republican who cares about debt and deficits. The Joint Committee on Taxation has determined that, with interest payments, this bill will add over $2.3 trillion, with a T, to our national debt over th next 10 years. That is why last week, in committee, I was offering an amendment that would expand the endangered species list to include fiscally conservative Republicans because your vote on this bill will make you extinct. And what is unfortunate is, unlike past tax cuts that weren't paid for, we have run out of time. We no longer have the luxury of time to recover from a huge fiscal mistake, not with 70 million baby boomers beginning their massive retirement--10,000 a day joining Social Security and Medicare. Those programs and the solvency of Social Security and Medicare will be in jeopardy with another $2.3 trillion of debt over the next 10 years. And what is unfortunate, it didn't have to be this way. There was bipartisan interest in simplifying the Code, making it more competitive, broadening the base, making it fair for working families and small businesses and family farmers, but doing it in a fiscally responsible way. Asking 34 million Americans to accept a tax increase to pay for a 43 percent marginal rate reduction to the largest companies is hardly responsible, and it is hardly fair. I encourage my colleagues to let us take a different approach and reject this bill.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. It was an initiative that the President was even interested in trying to address. Yet, again, nothing is being done. So this legislation is much ado about nothing because there is nothing pending. In fact, nothing would be pending, according to the CMS actuary, until, at the earliest, 2021. Instead, we are wasting time and opportunity to address the real problems and finding the real fixes that are needed in the healthcare system. There I am confident there is a lot of bipartisan overlap, having worked with many of my colleagues on the committee and across the aisle, on many of these measures that I just mentioned here today. So I encourage my colleagues to vote ``no'' and allow this to go forward, because it does keep an eye on rising costs and it keeps the pressure where it belongs--right here in Congress--to take future action if the rate of growth starts spinning out of control.

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in opposition of the repeal of the Independent Payment Advisory Board. This is another classic example of a solution in search of a problem. Of all the things that we should be working on in Congress in a bipartisan fashion to improve and to fix the problems that exist within our healthcare system, we have legislation on the floor before us today that calls for the repeal of a nonexisting commission, based on nonconsistent spending cuts being proposed for Medicare, based on a nonconsistent cost of rate of increase in spending under the Medicare program, all of which is going to add $17.5 billion to the deficit over the next 10 years because this bill isn't paid for. And the irony is they are coming forward with this legislation, which will add another $18 billion to the debt, on the same day they release a tax bill that calls for an additional $1.5 trillion worth of deficit spending because the tax bill hasn't been offset. At some point and at some time, we have got to take a bipartisan stand on fiscal responsibility in this place again because it is not happening today. Instead, we should be working on short-term, practical solutions to stabilize and bring more certainty to the health insurance marketplace, in light of what the administration is doing to completely undermine the marketplaces today. We ought to be working on delivery system reform proposals that will emphasize the establishment of accountable care organizations and medical homes and value-based purchasing and bundling arrangements and different alternative payment models to get us to a system of value, quality, and outcomes, and away from the fee- for-service payment for the volume of services, regardless of results. Let's be honest, the real cost driver in our Federal budget--and it is true at the State and local level--has been healthcare costs because we have an aging population. That is the work that we should be working on together, is the delivery system reform and the payment reform, so we are aligning the incentives in the right direction where we are telling our healthcare providers: You will be compensated based on good results, not on how much you do. There is a lot within the Affordable Care Act giving our providers the very tools in order to accomplish that, and we ought to be enhancing that here today. Instead, we are wasting time on a commission that, according to the CMS's own actuary, says, at the very earliest, it might be comprised in 2021. But, even then, it warrants us, with the mission that we have given it, that: Hey, you have got healthcare spending within the healthcare system that, Congress, you need to deal with. And then come back with recommendations. And then it is up to us to make corrective action at that time. So all this talk about unelected bureaucrats making these decisions belies what the legislation actually calls for in the establishment of the IPAB. This was, however, another important cost containment tool that was put into the Affordable Care Act to try to restrain the growth of healthcare spending. We need more of those type of ideas, rather than efforts today to remove those tools and then possibly see just unbridled healthcare spending in the future. What is really disturbing is I know there is a lot of common ground in this area, yet the American people wouldn't know it, with this political ping-pong ball on healthcare reform going back and forth and the chaos and the confusion that it is causing, and that is unfortunate. So, instead, today, we ought to first take steps to stabilize the insurance exchanges, rather than an administration that is doing everything they can to limit the enrollment during the signup period, which actually started yesterday and lasts until December 15. They have cut by 90 percent funding for marketing of the exchanges. They have cut by almost 50 percent the funding for our navigators back home who are trying to help people get affordable healthcare coverage in their lives. They ended the cost-share payments, which only increases the cost for healthcare for everyone else because of the risk that the insurance plans now face. The other segment of the population that we should be focused on in helping is that 5 or 6 percent of the population that are in the individual market who don't qualify for premium tax credits because they are getting hammered today. You would think that would be another area of bipartisan commonality that we can come together on to provide relief for those individuals who are in the individual market experiencing these higher premiums, part of it being done because of the elimination of the cost-sharing reduction payments, but, instead, nothing is being done on that front. My friend from Michigan also pointed out that we should be having hearings about the cost of prescription drugs in committee. That is one of the main cost drivers within the healthcare system, yet there is deafening silence in the Halls of Congress when it comes to taking measure on that front, even though President Trump promised during the course of his campaign and even earlier this year to try to take some action in a bipartisan way to address drug costs.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Massachusetts for yielding me the time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this rule because I rise in opposition to the underlying budget--a budget which is really a budget buster that could be before the full House for consideration tomorrow. It calls for an additional $1.5 trillion worth of debt accumulated over the next 10 years. They call for that, I fear, in order to clear the path for unpaid-for tax cuts. There is a bipartisan path to move forward on tax reform. It has been 31 years since we have taken a serious run at the Federal code. It is long overdue. It is one that would simplify the code, that would broaden the base and lower the rates and make us more competitive at home, but especially abroad, in light of what the rest of the world has done. That can also help promote economic growth, but I fear that that is not the direction that the opposing party is taking with their tax reform proposal. I say fear because we haven't seen the details yet. So we can't say with certainty just what exactly will be offered over the next couple of weeks. But if history is any guide, there is a proclivity to pass large tax cuts that are not paid for. If history is a guide, we have been down this road before, in the 1981 tax cuts, the 2001, the 2003, that promised to bring a boon of economic growth that would offset and pay for the lost revenue. It didn't materialize. Instead, we had huge budget deficits. Unfortunately, today, we don't have the luxury of time to help us recover from a huge fiscal mistake. Because today, 70 million baby boomers are beginning their massive retirement and joining Social Security and Medicare--10,000 a day. If we go down this route of going with massive tax breaks that aren't paid for, we are going to jeopardize the long-term solvency of Social Security and Medicare at exactly the wrong moment in our Nation's history. The folks back home tell me they would like to see tax reform along the lines that I just described, but they are not telling me that they are more interested in trickle-down economics where the predominant relief goes to the most wealthy, hoping that it somehow benefits everyone else. Now, they would like to see it a little fairer for working families, for small businesses, for family farmers so that they can share in the economic growth and the prosperity that could be offered if we do this the correct way in a bipartisan fashion. But instead, I fear that we are going to be witnessing history repeat itself. But unlike the time of the past, we don't have the luxury of time going forward without jeopardizing Social Security and Medicare, and without leaving a legacy of debt once again for our children and grandchildren to inherit. So let's regroup. Let's do a budget that makes sense for the long- term fiscal solvency of important programs, but especially our children's future. This budget doesn't get us there. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to reject the rule and reject the budget if it comes up tomorrow.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Dr. Chris Kirkpatrick Whistleblower Protection Act, which will enhance whistleblower protections for employees at the VA and lead to better care for our Nation's veterans. This bill is named in honor of Dr. Chris Kirkpatrick, a Wisconsinite, who tragically took his own life after being fired from the Tomah VA Medical Center in my congressional district in Tomah, Wisconsin. Dr. Kirkpatrick was a clinical psychologist who specialized in treating some of the toughest and most pressing issues our veterans face today: PTSD, substance abuse, and chronic pain. During his time at Tomah, Dr. Kirkpatrick noticed a disturbing trend of overprescribing of opioids to patients. Dr. Kirkpatrick had the courage to blow the whistle to his superiors about what he rightly saw as dangerous pain management practices at the time. Sadly, the overprescribing issues that Dr. Kirkpatrick tried to warn about continued to occur at Tomah VA. In 2015, a Wisconsin veteran named Jason Simcakoski tragically lost his life at the facility due to the dangerous pain management practices at the Tomah VA. Last year, I worked with the Simcakoski family to pass the bipartisan Jason Simcakoski PROMISE Act to improve pain management practices at the VA so that no other veterans and their families have to go through what the Simcakoski family had to. Although Dr. Kirkpatrick is no longer with us today, his dedication to serving veterans and his courage to stand up for what was right is why we are here today. This act will ensure that no one is retaliated against for coming forward with concerns about waste, fraud, abuse, and malpractice at the VA. The bill offers a number of new protections for whistleblowers and will help ensure that supervisors found guilty of retaliation are held responsible for their actions. Dr. Kirkpatrick was dedicated to improving lives and serving our Nation's veterans. The bill before us today will honor the memory of Dr. Kirkpatrick by helping to make sure no one has to go through what he did. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate Southwest Wisconsin Technical College for providing opportunities for success through education for 50 years. Before the first shovel of dirt was unearthed in a cornfield outside of Fennimore no one could have imagined what would someday stand there almost 50 years later; Wisconsin's No. 1 and the nation's No. 3 rated two-year college in 2017. Founded in 1967, Southwest Tech is located in Fennimore, Wisconsin. Reflecting the job demand of the time, degree programs started with Auto-Tractor Mechanics and Welding programs, as well as Account Clerk and Clerk-Typists classes. As the economy changed, the college added degrees in Criminal Justice, Nursing, Physical Therapy Assistant, Midwifery, Web and Graphic Design, and Network Specialist. The first graduation was in May 1969, with 104 graduates representing six programs. The May 2017 graduation had 366 graduates representing 41 programs. Southwest Tech has graduated 26,000 students in its history. Southwest Tech is also a major employer in Grant County employing 324 people and working with numerous businesses in a nine county area. It is one of 16 two-year public open access institutions within the Wisconsin Technical College System. The college serves 3,800 square miles including 30 school districts in a five-county district of Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Lafayette, Richland and portions of Dane, Green, Sauk and Vernon Counties. The college is currently under the leadership of President, Dr. Jason Wood. The first president of the college was Conrad Mayer, followed by Ronald Anderson, Dr. Richard Rogers, Dr. Karen Knox and Dr. Duane Ford. Now, in 2017, Southwest Tech is proud to celebrate the many ways the College's mission and its graduates positively impact southwest Wisconsin. Thousands of Southwest Tech employees, partners, and supporters deliver excellence to their students, businesses, and communities. Because of their tireless efforts, they have forever changed the lives of those the college serves. Southwest Tech's 50th Anniversary is an exciting opportunity to reflect on the past, celebrate the present and move forward with a renewed dedication to students and southwest Wisconsin. I extend my heartfelt congratulations to all the past and present faculty, staff, and students on 50 years of valuable and skillful higher education. Thanks to the efforts of current administration and those that have come before, Southwest Tech will continue to lead the way into the future.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I honor the 100th Anniversary of the 88th Regional Support Command (RSC) celebrated at Fort McCoy on Saturday August 19, 2017. The 88th RSC has a proud and storied history whose lineage and honors transferred from the 88th Infantry Division (ID). The streamers earned by the 88th ID in World War I and II are now flown with the 88th RSC flag. The 88th ID was organized on 25 August 1917, at Camp Dodge, IA. During World War I, the men of the ``Cloverleaf Division", as they were called, earned a streamer for the Alsace Campaign. The Division returned to Camp Dodge and was demobilized on 10 June 1919. On 24 June 1921, the 88th ID was reconstituted in the Organized Reserve with its headquarters in Minneapolis, MN, and with subordinate units in Minnesota, Iowa and North Dakota. After reorganization in February 1942, the 88th ID was ordered to active service on 15 July 1942, at Camp Gruber, OK. After training in several locations in the United States and overseas, the 88th ID entered the front line on 27 February 1944 in the Italian Campaign. For its service in Italy, the 88th ID was awarded campaign streamers for the Rome-Arno, North Apennines, and Po Valley Campaigns. The 88th ID earned a reputation as a well-trained and effective division, earning the nickname ``Blue Devils'' from the Germans. The 88th ID was inactivated at Leghorn, Italy on October 24, 1947. On 26 December 1967, the 88th Army Reserve Command (ARCOM) was activated in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and had Command of USAR units in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, and Iowa. The 88th ARCOM sent units to the Republic of Vietnam (1968-1969), Desert Shield/ Storm (1990-1991), and Bosnia-Herzegovina in the former country of Yugoslavia (1995). On 16 April 1996, the 88th ARCOM was redesignated and reorganized as the 8th RSC with Command of USAR units in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota. The 88th RSC mobilized units for Bosnia and Kosovo, Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Iraqi Freedom (OIF). On 16 July 2003, the 88th RSC was redesignated as the 88th Regional Readiness Command (RRC), and was inactivated 1 July 2009. The 88th RSC was activated 17 September 2008, and today supports USAR units in 19 states from Ohio to Washington. I am honored that the 88th RSC is headquartered in my congressional district. I commend and thank the command leadership and staff for the service and support they provide to ensure that the Army Reserve remains a shining star in the nation's military training infrastructure. On behalf of my constituents in Wisconsin and a grateful nation, I would like to wish a happy 100th anniversary to the command leadership and staff at the 88th RSC.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company. As every Wisconsinite knows, Leinenkugel's is a staple of our state's economy and has been for 150 years. In my district, Chippewa Falls, WI is home to one of the original Leinenkugel breweries and is still proudly producing union made Leinenkugel beer today. In fact, Leinenkugel's is not only one of the oldest continuously operating breweries in the United States; it is also the 4th largest craft brewer in our country. Leinenkugel Brewing Company has also been a dynamic driver of tourism in my district and across the state of Wisconsin. The brewery's visitor center, the Leinie Lodge, draws over 125,000 visitors annually making it one of the most prominent tourist destinations in our great state of Wisconsin. Leinenkugel's success, however, is not only because they manufacture great tasting beer, but it's also because they embody the Wisconsin notion of service to others. The Leinenkugel family has a long history of public service, dating back to World War II when Bill Leinenkugel served as a United States Marine in the South Pacific. It was this same passion for service that propelled Bill's 40-year career with the brewing company. Two of Bill's sons, the fifth generation of the family to work for the brewery, Jake and Dick also served as officers in the United States Marine Corps. In addition to their service as Marines, Dick Leinenkugel served as a County Board Supervisor in Waukesha County, WI and as Wisconsin's Secretary of Commerce from 2008 until 2010. Jake Leinenkugel is retired from the company but continues to honor the Leinenkugel tradition of service as a Senior White House Advisor to the Veterans Administration. The dedication for community involvement and support has been passed down through generations and continues to shape the way in which the Leinenkugel family does business in western Wisconsin today. Whether it's brewing Leinenkugel beer in Chippewa Falls, WI or serving our country in the Marines, the Leinenkugel family consistently represents the hardworking values of all Wisconsinites. With this in mind, I'd like to raise a Summer Shandy and congratulate the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company and Leinenkugel family on 150 years of dedicated service to western Wisconsin.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Chair, I will vote against H.R. 3219, the Make America Secure Appropriations Act, because it is not a responsible way to spend taxpayer money. The bill blows through the spending limits in the Budget Control Act. Responsible governing means making hard choices and spending taxpayer money wisely. This bill did not serve either of those goals. I am particularly concerned about the $1.57 billion included in this bill to pay for the border wall between the United States and Mexico. For that much money, we could pay for over 94,000 students to get their four-year degrees at a UW-System school. Instead, we are spending that money on a project that will only balloon in price and cost even more to maintain. We need to make smart decisions about how to spend our limited resources. We should be investing in ourselves. There are plenty of opportunities to pay for important defense priorities by eliminating waste in the Defense Department. In January of 2015, the non-partisan Defense Business Board released a report outlining opportunities for reform that would save $125 billion in defense spending. That report is now collecting dust. That is money we could be spending on important defense priorities like troop readiness, training, and equipment. This spending bill is another missed opportunity at reform. Despite voting against the bill, I was happy to see $55 million provided to the VA to implement the Jason Simcakoski PROMISE Act. The funding will assist in increasing programs to help medical professionals and patients understand the risks associated with pain medication and examine alternative treatments. This will help address the opioid epidemic and give veterans and their families the tools they need and the accountability they deserve. I understand how important it is to provide ample support for our military, which is why I recently voted in favor of the National Defense Authorization Act. Supporting the brave men and women who defend this nation is of paramount importance. We should not be inserting partisan riders into bills that should be bipartisan. I will continue to work with my colleagues to support our military and pursue fiscally responsible policies that invest in Americans.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise to bring to the attention of my colleagues the good work of Grace Jones, who is retiring on July 14th as the executive director for the past 31 years of Couleecap. The people, families, and communities of western Wisconsin are better off as a result of her work and leadership. As a community action agency, Couleecap serves low-income people and families in Vernon, La Crosse, Crawford, and Monroe counties, with programs that help people with housing, including home ownership and rehabilitation; weatherization and other energy efficiency measures; employment and training; transportation; food and clothing; and drug use prevention. However, under Grace's leadership, Couleecap continues to evolve with the needs of the community. Many people attribute Couleecap's success to Grace's ability to recognize and understand the needs and the challenges ofthe people that she and the agency serves. Trained as a teacher, Grace began her work with Couleecap as a specialist working with at-risk youngsters. ``As a teacher, I tried to instill in very student the hope and belief that they could achieve their dreams with hard work and persistence,'' Grace told the La Crosse Tribune. With her work at Couleecap, she has been able to help people grow, better themselves, and improve countless lives and families along the way. Over the years, Grace has received a number of awards for her work. While appreciative of the attention, she has never forgotten the reason for her work, telling the La Crosse Tribune, ``At Couleecap, we are so glad that we can help families with encouragement, hope and the tools that they need.'' She continues, ``we prefer to believe we live in a land of great opportunity equally available to everyone. This is not true. Discrimination and poverty still exist--and too many people have talents that are quickly buried under poverty's crushing weight. For these talents to flourish, there must be equal opportunity for all.'' I thank Grace Jones for her work at Couleecap. Her work has made a real and lasting impression to the people and communities she served.

Mr. KIND

Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I rise to bring to the attention of my colleagues the work of Lee Rasch, who is retiring at the end of this month as president of Western Technical College in Wisconsin. There is an old saying, ``Think Globally, Act Locally.'' No saying better reflects the work of Lee. For twenty-eight years, Lee has led Western, working in a collective manner with governmental and business leaders in the eleven (11) county, three campus region to expand workforce development opportunities and enhance job skills training to students who were comprised of recent high school graduates to those who were recently unemployed. With a mannerism of respect and understanding, Lee led the college with a style that emphasized listening, learning and collaboration. Under his leadership, Western continued to grow and evolve, working with employers to identify programs and courses that grow the economies of our region and state, while also ensuring that the students have the skills they need to meet the ever-changing demands of the workplace. Lee's leadership at Western emphasized community engagement. As such, he contributed a significant amount of his time and effort to improve the economic vitality of downtown La Crosse and the greater Coulee Region. La Crosse and western Wisconsin were not the only communities where Lee made an impact. As the La Crosse Tribune wrote in an article in December 2016 when they named him the 2016 Tribune Person of the Year: ``He has been instrumental in building the sister city relationship between La Crosse and Kumbo, Cameroon, after a chance encounter with a member of the Tertiary Sisters of St. Francis at Western.'' His efforts have led to greater educational training and the improvement of nearly a dozen rural schools near Kumbo. Lee's love of education has improved the lives of people at the local and global level. I congratulate Lee Rasch for his work. I wish him and his wife, Susan Fox, much joy and happiness in a well-deserved retirement. The people, businesses and communities in western Wisconsin, Kumbo, Cameroon, and countless others are better off as a result of your work.