Dennis Kucinich

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity, the first African-American national fraternal organization with roots in a historically African- American college. The Omega Psi Phi fraternity was founded at Howard University in Washington, D.C. on November 17, 1911. As illustrated by the prominent careers of its four founders, Bishop Edgar Amos Love, Dr. Oscar James Cooper, Professor Frank Coleman and Dr. Ernest Everett Just, members of Omega Psi Phi are known to go on to successful careers. Omega Psi Phi is dedicated to the principles of ``manhood, scholarship, perseverance and uplift.'' The fraternity has also shown a strong commitment to philanthropy and community. It began a National Social Program in 1945 to aid with health, housing, civil rights and educational issues of the African-American community. Furthermore, the fraternity has made annual donations of $50,000 to the United Negro College Fund since 1955. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in recognizing the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity, whose members have been strong community supporters and leaders since the fraternity's origin. I wish the alumni and current members of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity the best in all of their future endeavors.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor and remembrance of Mr. James T. Molloy, the former Doorkeeper for the U.S. House of Representatives. Mr. Molloy was born in South Buffalo on June 3, 1936, the son of Matthew Molloy (a Buffalo firefighter) and Catherine Hayden Molloy. He graduated from Bishop Timon High School and proceeded to work in waterfront grain elevators. He also joined the Buffalo Fire Department before continuing his education at Canisius College. Upon graduating, Mr. Molloy began teaching in Buffalo and Lackawanna, New York. Mr. Molloy was a member of the Erie County Democratic Party and later moved to Washington, DC, where he became the Chief Finance Officer of the House of Representatives. In 1974, he became the Doorkeeper of the House, a position that he would hold for the next 20 years. Throughout his tenure as doorkeeper, Mr. Molloy was able to make many friends in Washington, including Speaker Thomas O'Neill, Jr. and President Reagan. He was known around Washington as a ``Buffalo Guy.'' Tom Brokaw called him ``the pride of South Buffalo'' each year when he introduced Mr. Molloy as the President walked out for the State of the Union. Mr. Molloy has received many awards throughout his lifetime, including having a U.S. post office building on South Park Avenue named after him in 2006. He was also recognized by the New York AFL-CIO, the New York State Federation of Police and the United States Senate Youth Alumni Association. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Mr. James T. Malloy, a man whose presence in Washington will be sorely missed.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. The latest attack on elderly beneficiaries of Social Security is a scheme by which seniors' cost of living benefits would be cut through something called a ``chained'' consumer price index--the CPI--chained involves a formula which recalculates the cost of living. The theory behind the chained CPI is that as the cost of living goes up, consumers--in this case, seniors--buy cheaper products. For example, if poor seniors cannot afford to buy and eat steak but can only afford to buy and eat cheaper cat food, their cost of living benefit would be chained to the cost of the cat food because it's cheaper than steak; and as a result, seniors will see their cost of living benefit reduced to the cheaper product and get a smaller Social Security check. The chained CPI sets up seniors for a reduced standard of living. If you must afford less, you get less Social Security benefits. The chained CPI, chaining seniors to poverty. It's time to break those chains.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Paul Burik, who is being honored at this year's American Nationalities Movement's awards dinner. Mr. Burik, was born in Budvar, in what was then Czechoslovakia. In 1968, during the Soviet invasion, he and his father managed to escape and settled in Cleveland, Ohio. After graduating from Kent State University with a degree in architecture, Paul spent much of his professional career working as Chief Architect for the City of Cleveland. Mr. Burik is currently the President of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation, an organization consisting of more than two dozen gardens representing various nationalities. Among the gardens is a Czech Garden. Since he became President, the Cultural Gardens have expanded annually for the past four years and several more nationalities are waiting to build a garden. Mr. Burik is also the President of the Cleveland Chapter of the Czech and Slovak Society of Arts and Sciences, a nonprofit cultural organization. Mr. Burik currently resides in Avon, Ohio, with his wife, Fran, with whom he has two children and two grandchildren. In Avon, Paul is the co-Founder and Secretary of the French Creek Development Association, an organization dedicated to the improvement and promotion of downtown Avon. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Paul Burik, a man who has dedicated so much of his time and talents to his community and its betterment.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the American Volunteer Group (AVG) known in China as ``The Flying Tigers,'' on the occasion of its 70th anniversary. In 1941, Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek authorized retired U.S. Lieutenant General Claire Lee Chennault to create a group of American pilots and airmen to assist and train Chinese aerial forces. With President Franklin D. Roosevelt's permission, Armed Forces members were allowed to volunteer for this assignment. In total, 97 pilots and 185 ground personnel from the U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps volunteered. The group faced many initial challenges. To start, the group had 100 P-40 fighter planes (painted with the now-famous ``shark's face'' nose), many of which were in less than ideal condition. Additionally, the group had only four months to train and prepare before action started. However, the AVG was able to establish three separate squadrons: Adam and Eve, the Panda Bears, and Hell's Angels. The group first saw action on December 20, 1941, just 12 days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. While U.S. air forces and the Royal Air Force were generally unsuccessful against the Japanese at the war's onset, the AVG was notably successful, largely due to Chennault's innovative fighting tactics. For their efforts, at the group's 50th anniversary, the AVG was rewarded veteran status for service in World War II. The following year they were also rewarded with the Presidential Unit Citation. In 1992, each member of the AVG ground personnel was awarded the Bronze Star and pilots were awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring the American Volunteer Group ``Flying Tigers,'' whose bravery and courage in the face of incredible difficulties will inspire future pilots and military servicemen and women for years to come.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Mr. William Denihan, who is being honored as a Home Grown Hero for his work with Cudell Improvement, Inc. As founder and the first president of the organization, Bill has shown his commitment to ``neighbors helping neighbors'' and revitalizing the Cudell/Edgewater neighborhood of Cleveland. Bill has held various leadership roles at the state, county, and local levels for years, always displaying his passion for the public good. He has served as Director of Public Service for the City of Cleveland, Director of Human Resources for the State of Ohio and Cuyahoga County, Executive Director of Ohio's State Employee Relations Board, and Acting Chief of Police. Bill has also taught at Cleveland State University's College of Urban Affairs and at the Ohio Certified Public Managers Program. Bill founded Cudell Improvement, Inc. in 1974 and served as its first President. The organization is committed to providing assistance primarily to the Cudell/Edgewater neighborhood of Cleveland in a variety of areas, including real estate development, crime prevention, commercial revitalization, and youth services. Bill currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer for the Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health Services Board of Cuyahoga County. He is married with 11 children and 34 grandchildren. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, join me in honoring Mr. William Denihan who has spent his career serving the people of Ohio and the Cleveland area.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I wish to submit letters I have sent to the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, regarding the U.N.- sanctioned war in Libya. Congress of the United States, House of Representatives, April 12, 2011. Hon. Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General, United Nations, New York, New York. Dear Secretary General: On March 19, 2011 the United Nation (UN) Security Council adopted Resolution 1973 which authorized the international community to act to ``to protect civilians and civilian populated areas under threat of attack'' in Libya. That measure allowed member states to act ``nationally or through regional organizations or arrangements . . . in cooperation with the Secretary- General.'' However, members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which has acted under the authority of the UN mandate, have expressed a desire to remove Muammar Gaddafi from power, a demand that was not authorized by the United Nations Security Council. The Libyan Transitional National Council yesterday rejected a cease-fire proposal because it lacked a requirement for Gaddafi to leave power. The United States did not have a full accounting of the cease-fire proposal, but Secretary Clinton continued to call for regime change. Today, news reports indicate that France and Britain are urging NATO to expand their operations in Libya. The British Foreign Secretary, William Hague, was quoted by The New York Times as saying that ``[a]ny viable future for Libya involves the Departure of Colonel Qaddafi.'' It is imperative the UN remind France and Britain that regime change is not part of the UN mandate. An attempt at regime change would likely expand a civil war creating a large number of civilian casualties on both sides. NATO is not authorized to go beyond the UN mandate and France and Great Britain should not demand they do so. The UN Secretary General must intervene to stop an expansion of the war even though two member states, for whatever reason, appear intent on pursuing that expansion. Sincerely, Dennis J. Kucinich, Member of Congress.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the men and women who have served the Defense Industrial Security Clearance Office (DISCO) located in Columbus, Ohio, since 1965 when the office opened. As a result of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission decision, DISCO must relocate to Ft. Meade, Maryland, in September 2011. The majority of the 160 employees and contractors plan to remain in Ohio and not relocate to Maryland, seeking either retirement or employment elsewhere. On Wednesday July 20, 2011, at 11:00 a.m., there will be a ceremony in Columbus to recognize their, and their predecessors', achievements over the last 46 years. Located in Columbus, Ohio, DISCO processes requests for personnel and facility security clearances for industry contractors under the National Industrial Security Program (NISP). The NISP is a partnership between the federal government and private industry to safeguard classified information. It was established through an Executive Order signed by President George H.W. Bush in 1993 and affects all executive branch agencies. The major signatories to the program are the Department of Energy, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Defense, and the Central Intelligence Agency. There are over one million cleared personnel and approximately 13,000 cleared facilities under the NISP. DISCO is a Central Adjudication Facility responsible, on behalf of the Department of Defense and 23 other departments and agencies, for determining the facility and personnel clearance eligibility of contractors and their employees for access to classified information, foreign or domestic. It is responsible for maintenance of facility and personnel clearance records and processing security assurances, clearances and visits involving the United States and foreign countries. To demonstrate the volume of work processed by each employee at DISCO on a daily basis, the 160 employees and contractors at DISCO rendered nearly 250,000 clearance decisions in Fiscal Year 2010. The men and women who do this work have a major impact on individuals who seek clearances, the private companies who employ them, and the government agencies which contract for the work. All of this has a major and lasting impact on our national security. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in recognizing and appreciating the important work which has been done in Ohio since 1965 to help ensure national security through the issuance of security clearances for those working with some of the most sensitive information in the nation. We thank these individuals for their service and wish them much success as this important agency makes its transition.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Ignacy Jan Paderewski--the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland, a highly acclaimed musician and humanitarian. In 1919, after Poland had officially become an independent nation, Mr. Paderewski became its first Prime Minister. He was also the chief framer of the Polish Constitution. Mr. Paderewski also served as the Polish representative in the League Nations as well as Poland's Minister of Foreign Affairs. As a philanthropist, Mr. Paderewski used his personal home in Switzerland as a safe place for refugees from various countries during WWII. A popular pianist and composer, Mr. Paderewski was also known to be a strong supporter of the arts. He made substantial contributions to improving the lives of unemployed musicians and playwrights and he worked toward the construction of many concert halls and monuments. A bust of Ignacy Jan Paderewski will be honored on July 16, 2011 at the Cleveland Cultural Gardens with a dedication speech by Poland's current Ambassador to the U.S., Mr. Robert Kupiecki, as well as a concert. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me remembering the life and accomplishments of Ignacy Jan Paderewski. His dedication to his native country has been an integral part of Poland's history.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in celebration of the 80th birthday of Mrs. Annette Lantos, a praiseworthy individual and dear friend of mine, who has devoted her life to fighting for human and animal rights. Born in Hungary in 1931, Annette came to the U.S. at the age of 16 after surviving the Holocaust. She graduated from high school and went on to receive her bachelor's degree and teaching certificate from San Francisco State University. Annette was married to the late Congressman Tom Lantos for nearly 58 years. Congressman Lantos was also a survivor of the Holocaust, and shared his wife's commitment to human rights. Annette worked full-time in her husband's office for the nearly three decades that the late Congressman held office. She served as Executive Director of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, which was co-founded by Congressman Lantos, and helped her husband in co-founding the Congressional Friends of Animals Caucus. Outside of Congress, Annette has worked tirelessly to help human rights victims and to further human rights causes. In 1977, she founded the International Free Wallenberg Committee to raise awareness of Raoul Wallenberg's humanitarian efforts in Hungary during World War II. Today, Annette is Chairman of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice. She continues to uphold the Lantos legacy of furthering human rights throughout the world. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in recognizing this remarkable woman as she celebrates her 80th birthday surrounded by friends and her wonderful family.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Buna Vestire Romanian Orthodox Cathedral as it celebrates 75 years of service to the Cleveland orthodox community this September. The original Buna Vestire Orthodox Cathedral was founded on September 2, 1936 on Detroit Avenue in Cleveland. Since then, the church has relocated several times and today it is located on Wooster Road in Rocky River. Throughout the past 75 years the congregation has been deeply involved in the community. Parishioners have organized festivals, picnics, and bake sales to help promote and celebrate Romanian culture and traditions including traditional food and Romanian folk dance. Since its inception, the Church has celebrated both its Orthodox traditions and Romanian heritage. Additionally, the Church and its priests have actively promoted a ``good Faith relationship'' amongst pastors and communities of other denominations. On September 10 and 11, 2011, Buna Vestire Romanian Orthodox Cathedral will celebrate its 75th anniversary of service to the orthodox community of the greater Cleveland area. Recently, the church has experienced an increase in attendance and has plans to build a new church and Romanian Cultural Center in Olmsted Township. The Church intends to continue to promote and enhance their mission amongst the community. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Buna Vestire Romanian Orthodox Church as it celebrates 75 years of service. I extend my sincere congratulations to all members of the Buna Vestire congregation.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. The huffing and puffing over the debt crisis is reminiscent of Washington's tumult over the Wall Street bailout: Panic the public with claims the sky is falling and then start to drop things from the sky. In this case threats that Social Security checks will not be sent out. We must avoid default, but Social Security didn't cause the debt crisis. Social Security has nothing to do with the debt crisis. Withholding Social Security checks or cutting Social Security benefits would represent a default to the American people and an abandonment of the principles of the economic justice that created Social Security. The White House wants a big deal, a $4 trillion debt deal. But that deal must not come from cuts to Social Security--or Medicare, for that matter. Millions of senior citizens, who in their lifetime built this country, who fought for this country, who depend on their Social Security check as an economic lifeline want to see if their concerns are a big deal to us.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Frank Zolar on the occasion of his ninetieth birthday. Mr. Zolar was born on July 15, 1921 in Pickens, West Virginia. After spending his early life working in sawmills and coal mines, Frank enlisted in the U.S. Army only six days after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He fought with the 1st Infantry Division, also known as the ``Big Red One,'' as a rifleman in the invasion of Africa. Following the war, Frank moved to Cleveland, Ohio in 1946 and spent the next twenty-one years working at the Fairbanks-Morse Company. While living in Cleveland, Frank met and married Lois, who would be his wife of more than 50 years. The two moved to North Olmsted, Ohio in 1959 where they raised their three daughters, Theresa, Kathy and Karen. Frank has been an active member of his community and serves as a Sergeant-at-Arms for the North Olmsted Democratic Club. Recently, Mr. Zolar visited Washington, D.C., for the first time in his life with Honor Flight Cleveland, a nonprofit organization which flies veterans to see the memorials on the National Mall. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring the ninetieth birthday of Mr. Frank Zolar.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. The rancorous debate over the debt belies a fundamental truth of our economy: that it is run for the few at the expense of the many, that our entire government has been turned into a machine which takes the wealth of the mass of Americans and accelerates it into the hands of a few. Let me give you some examples. Take war. War takes the money from the American people and puts it into the hands of arms manufacturers, of war profiteers, of private armies. The war in Iraq, based on lies, $3 trillion will be the cost of that war, at least. The war in Afghanistan, based on a misreading of history, half a trillion dollars in expenses already. The war against Libya will be $1 billion by September. Fifty percent of our discretionary spending goes for the Pentagon. A massive transfer of wealth into the hands of a few while the American people lack sufficient jobs, health care, housing, retirement security. Our energy policies take the wealth from the American people and put it into the hands of the oil companies. We could be looking at $150 a barrel for oil in the near future. Our environmental policy takes the wealth of the people, clean air, clean water, and puts it in the hands of the polluters. It's a transfer of wealth not only from the present but from future generations, as our environment is ruined. Insurance companies, what do they do? They take the wealth from the American people, in terms of what they charge people for health insurance, and they put it into the hands of the few. We have to realize what this country's economy has become. Our monetary policy, through the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, privatized the money supply, gathers the wealth and puts it in the hands of the few while the Federal Reserve can keep creating money out of nothing, give it to banks to park at the Fed, and our small businesses are starved for capital. Mark my words: Wall Street cashes in whether we have a default or not. And the same type of thinking that created billions in bailouts for Wall Street and more than $1 trillion in giveaways by the Federal Reserve today leaves 26 million Americans either underemployed or unemployed. And 9 out of 10 Americans over the age of 65 are facing cuts in their Social Security in order to pay for a debt which grew from tax cuts for the rich and from endless wars. There is a massive transfer of wealth from the American people to the hands of the few, and it's going on right now as America's eyes are misdirected to the political theater of these histrionic debt negotiations: threats to shut down the government, a willingness to make the most vulnerable Americans pay dearly for debts they did not create. These are symptoms of a government which has lost its way, and they are a challenge to the legitimacy of the two-party system.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in remembrance of Mrs. Anna Alice Omilanowski who passed away on July 9, 2011. Mrs. Omilanowski was the daughter of Joseph and Bernice Lewanski, who emigrated from Poland and passed through Ellis Island. She was the oldest of nine children, and grew up on East 40th Street and Superior Avenue. Anna was a hard worker and took great pride in her work, especially when she worked in a factory that assembled torpedoes during World War II. Later, she applied her strong work ethic to a variety of other positions, including washing dishes at Pete's Wayside Inn, cleaning Parma Schools and working for Broadview Savings and Loan. She married, Chester, a concentration camp survivor, on June 14, 1958 at St. Casimir Church in Cleveland. Together they raised five children. Mrs. Omilanowski always felt that her most important achievement was having her children by her side. Anna was involved in her children's activities and was an avid bowler and card player. I had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Omilanowski during the 1970s on more than one occasion at card parties and was always moved by her kindness. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Mrs. Anna Alice Omilanowski, a woman whose fun-loving personality, fighting spirit, incredible work ethic, and undying compassion for those around her will be sorely missed.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Madam Speaker, 3 months ago, 276 experts on Social Security, the Federal budget or the economy wrote to President Obama ``to correct a commonly held misconception that Social Security somehow contributes to the Federal Government's deficit.'' Despite the fact that Social Security has a $2.6 trillion surplus and can pay 100 percent of its benefits through 2037 without any cuts or tax increases, President Obama declared yesterday that Social Security checks may not go out after August 2, presumably unless there is a deal on the Federal deficit, which has nothing to do with Social Security. According to today's Washington Post, 15 years ago, Congress passed laws which stated Social Security did not count against the debt limit and gave Treasury clear authority to use Social Security trust funds to pay benefits and administration expenses in the event a debt ceiling is reached. A fake Social Security crisis will do nothing to solve a real debt crisis, will undermine the public's faith in government, and will create unnecessary anxiety among our elderly. Stop playing political games with Social Security.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Chair, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 2018, which would be more appropriately titled the ``Giveaway to Developer and Coal Company CEOs Act.'' This bill removes protections for our nation's waters that were absolutely essential to the progress we have shown so far in cleaning up Lake Erie and the rest of the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes comprise 21 percent of the world's fresh water supply. Lake Erie is the shallowest and smallest, and therefore the most vulnerable of the Great Lakes and it is our primary water source in Northeast Ohio. 'We cannot afford to go back to days when the Cuyahoga River caught fire because it was so polluted. Already, 77 percent of all stream-miles in the Lake Erie basin are unprotected. Lake Erie is not only crucial to our health, but to our economy. It generates 10 billion dollars per year in revenue through travel, tourism, wildlife watching, boating, sport and commercial fishing and other activities. One out of every ten jobs in the state is connected to Lake Erie. This economic activity generates 676 million dollars in federal tax revenue, 410 million dollars in state tax revenue and 347 million dollars in local tax revenue annually. Lake Erie is our Golden Goose. We must protect it at all costs. This bill also removes the EPA's ability to clamp down on the worst mountaintop removal polluters. These coal mines, which remove entire mountains to get at the coal, are on their way out. There is no room in this country's energy portfolio for coal. Coal is a major contributor to the environmental, national security, and economic problem that is global warming. It would be difficult to underestimate the urgency of shutting down coal power plants immediately for that reason alone. But coal also devastates communities with open toxic waste holding ponds and with air emissions that create or exacerbate asthma and respiratory disorders. Coal mines kill its miners and leave them with Black Lung. Mountaintop removal fills streams and destroys entire ecosystems, contaminating drinking water supplies with carcinogens and other toxic chemicals in the process. Coal is the single biggest reason that so many of the fish species that were an important part of the diet for billions of people are contaminated with mercury levels that are so high, they can cause IQ loss and birth defects. This bill will take the woefully inadequate environmental protections in place and weaken them. Coal is not even defensible from an economic standpoint. More jobs are created by renewable energy creation, which is being explored in many mountaintop mining communities, than by coal-based energy. If communities, workers, the health of families, the ecosystems on which we rely, drinking water and atmospheric stability do not benefit from this bill, who does? Developers will be able to build in more areas that are critical for drinking water protection and protection from floods, even though we are now saddled with a surplus of housing and commercial unit availability because of the bursting of the housing bubble. And mountaintop removal mining companies will be able to spend even less on protecting the communities from which they siphon money, livelihoods, and health. Profits and shareholder returns, undoubtedly, will benefit handsomely. Bills like these take the wealth of this country and funnel it upward. I urge my colleagues to reject this bill.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Social Security didn't create the deficit, but America's seniors are being presented with a fake Social Security crisis to try to trick them into accepting reduced benefits. Social Security will be able to pay 100 percent of its benefits through 2037 without any changes whatsoever. So why the panic today? If seniors accept cuts in Social Security benefits today, a surplus cash flow will build in the Social Security Trust Fund. According to CRS, ``Social Security's cash surpluses are borrowed by the U.S. Treasury and can be used for tax cuts, spending, or repaying debt.'' So here's what's going on: Social Security benefit cuts or an increase in taxes paid to Social Security or extending the retirement age will give the government more money for tax cut spending or repaying the debt, except for one thing: Social Security money belongs to those who have paid into the fund. It's not the government's money to use, and it shouldn't be the government's money to play with. Senior citizens should not have to accept a reduced standard of living to finance tax cuts for the rich. We must take a stand for senior citizens and protect Social Security and protect future generations from this raid on Social Security funds.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor and recognition of Road Rage Awareness Week--a week created by Reaching Out Against Road Rage, Inc. to encourage safer driving practices and to prevent unnecessary violence on the roads. Reaching Out Against Road Rage, Inc., or R.O.A.R.R. is a nonprofit organization located in Muskegon County, Michigan. R.O.A.R.R., was established by Kay Foster-Shabazz, two years after the death of her twenty year-old daughter, Diyamond, in a road rage related incident in 2002. Since its establishment, the mission of R.O.A.R.R. has been to prevent road rage, protect and support victims of road rage and to promote the saving of lives. R.O.A.R.R. has been working to reduce the number of road rage related incidents by promoting awareness and providing educational tools. In addition, R.O.A.R.R. pledges to assist victims and their families throughout the recovery process by providing a multitude of resources. Mr. Speaker and Colleagues, please join me in recognizing Road Rage Awareness Week, July 10-16, 2011. The hard work of Reaching Out Against Road Rage, Inc. has made the roads safer for everyone.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Ms. Doris O'Donnell on the occasion of her 90th birthday. Ms. O'Donnell was born on July 10, 1921 and grew up in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood of Cleveland. Her family was heavily involved in the community; her father was a fireman, her mother was a Democratic ward leader, and her uncle was the county sheriff. Her career in print journalism began in 1944, starting at the Cleveland News. She would go on to work at numerous newspapers, including the Lake County News-Herald, the Tribune-Review based in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Ms. O'Donnell was a pioneer for female journalism. Her career spanned over five decades, and she covered such topics as police, the court system, organized crime, and local politics. She was the first female reporter to reach ``superstar'' status in the Cleveland area, and she won more state and local journalism awards than any female journalist in history. She was known as a big-story reporter, and was able to use her fearless and brass-knuckles reporting style to report on such items as the Kremlin, and the assassinations of John Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, and Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. Ms. O'Donnell's late husband, former Cleveland News city editor, passed away in 1976. Ms. O'Donnell currently lives in suburban Cleveland and serves on the board of a charitable foundation. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, please join me in honoring Ms. Doris O'Donnell, a woman whose relentless pursuit of the truth enabled her to rise to the top of Cleveland journalism, and whose brilliant career was a gift to the Cleveland community.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Congress is awakening to its constitutional obligations on matters of war and peace. In the past 2 months, we have sparked a great debate on war and on war powers, the implications of which will continue to be felt in this Nation and around the world. Soon, the war in Libya and the ongoing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq will go beyond foreign policy issues. They will become domestic issues, financial security issues. As we continue to wage these wars, more and more Americans will become aware that this administration has decided that bombing bridges in other countries is more important than building bridges in America with our present and new foreign adventures. America, under this administration, chooses war, not jobs and wealth building here in America; bombs, not books; financial instability, not Social Security; austerity, not prosperity. This isn't about partisan politics. This is about an administration that is demonstrating more of an interest in nation building abroad than a rebuilding of America here at home. It has time to change, but will it?

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, before the House completes work on this important bill, I think that it is imperative that the House is provided with one more opportunity to clarify its position with respect to the Constitution and our power under article I, section 8, clause 11 of the Constitution, which reads as follows, that Congress has the power to declare war. This amendment says none of the funds in this act may be used for military operations in or against Libya except under a declaration of war against Libya pursuant to clause 11 in section 8 of article I of the Constitution. So what this amendment does is it recognizes Congress' power to appropriate and links it, in this case, to Congress' ability to declare war and enables this House to definitively--definitively--make a statement that it is our prerogative, our Constitutional right, to determine whether or not this Nation goes to war, and we are not going to see any war funded absent a declaration of war by this Congress. It is imperative that we act, because by September, this administration will have spent $1 billion on the war without Congress having any say in that whatsoever. We will have gone to a war without any ability of Congress to have a voice. Now, to its credit, this House has taken up numerous proposals relative to the war in Libya that have sought to limit the sphere of conduct of hostilities against Libya--no ground troops and no money to rebels. This amendment, however, gives the House one last opportunity within this bill to speak very clearly about article I, section 8, clause 11 and to do it in the context of an appropriations bill which says that we will not permit any funds to be spent unless this Congress moves forward with a declaration of war. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. KUCINICH

Mr. KUCINICH. I move to strike the last word.