Ron Klein

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H. Res. 403, legislation I introduced calling for the establishment of a National Teacher Day. I believe it is important that we recognize the hard work of our Nation's teachers who prepare our students for a stronger America. The education of our children is critical to the future success of our country and our global competitiveness. And despite limited compensation and increasingly high expectations, our teachers rise to the challenge each and every day. As the son of an elementary school teacher--my mom taught second grade, I was proud to introduce this resolution. My mother, and so many other teachers across the country, spend their lives working to inspire children and open their minds to new ideas so they can grow up to be successful in whatever path they choose. I am sure that each and every one of my colleagues in Congress can identify at least one teacher from their past who made a difference in their lives. I know that I wouldn't be where I am today without the motivation and encouragement of teachers who challenged me to pursue my dreams of public service. This legislation also comes at an extremely critical time for our Nation's teachers. In this tough economy, State budgets are suffering, and it is important more than ever that we find solutions to budget challenges that threaten to cut academic programs and lay off good teachers to the detriment of our children and the future workforce of our country. Rather than slash school budgets, increase classroom sizes, and stretch our teachers even thinner than we already have, we must work to keep good teachers in the classroom and incentivize more people to enter the teacher workforce. We cannot improve our education system in the United States if we don't invest in quality teaching as it is. That is why I have consistently voted to prevent massive statewide layoffs of our education professionals. I would also like to thank my distinguished colleague, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Roskam) for joining me in introducing this important piece of legislation, and thank the overwhelming number of Members who have joined me in support of the establishment of a National Teacher Day. Mr. Speaker, when you get a chance, thank teachers for the great work that they do.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize one of the great leaders in my district in South Florida--Frank Herhold. Frank is the executive director of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, a position he has held since 1990. Even before taking on this leadership role, Frank operated a shipyard of his own, bringing his total career in the marine industry to over 30 years. After decades of hard work, Frank will be retiring this summer. I would personally like to thank him for his hard work and dedication to our community. The marine industry is critical to South Florida's economy, and, under Frank's leadership, the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show has become the world's largest, pumping millions of dollars into our local economy. Frank is the consummate professional and friend, and it was a pleasure to work with him as we reformed Longshore insurance together and tackled other issues essential to the marine industry. Frank, I wish you the best in your retirement, and thank you for your service to South Florida.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Colorado for his leadership on the America COMPETES Act. I rise in strong support of the rule and the America COMPETES Act itself. I believe it will play an integral role in creating jobs and turning our economy around. I also rise in support of an amendment which I introduced, which has been made in order under the rule, to instruct the director of the Hollings Manufacturing Extension Partnership to evaluate challenges that are unique to small manufacturers and facilitate improved communication between the MEP centers so they can readily share with one another which solutions best address particular problems faced by small firms, which really are the bulk of the types of manufacturing businesses in my district in Florida. In my meetings with many of the manufacturers in Palm Beach and Broward Counties in Florida, as well as the South Florida Manufacturing Association, I've been told that while MEP services are helpful for some businesses, they often have greater expertise in developing business solutions for medium- to large-sized businesses. Small manufacturers, such as Uniweld, which is in Fort Lauderdale, a family- owned business which has been run by a World War II veteran and his two sons for many years, make up a large sector of the manufacturing firms in Florida, and as a result, they are critical to our industrial and technological competitiveness. In these challenging times, small manufacturers in my home State have faced many obstacles, financing being one of them, but many of the support services by the MEPs can truly make a difference to our small manufacturers as well. While basic research investment is important to advancing our Nation's innovation infrastructure, we must build and sustain a strong manufacturing base in the United States which will bridge the gap between research and commercial development of new technologies. That's where these small manufacturing businesses and the MEPs together can accomplish that goal. Under my amendment, we will be able to provide increased assistance to reduce manufacturing costs and increase productivity, thereby allowing our small manufacturing base businesses to significantly improve their bottom line. I thank the gentleman for yielding the time, and urge a ``yes'' vote on this amendment and the underlying bill.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to state how I would have voted on Thursday, April 29, 2010 when I was unavoidably detained. Had I voted, I would have voted ``yes'' on rollcall No. 242.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support the motion to go to conference on the Iran sanctions legislation. I am grateful to Chairman Berman and Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen for working with me on a provision included in the House version of this legislation to require companies applying for contracts with the U.S. government to affirmatively certify that they do not conduct business with Iran. This legislation gives companies a simple choice: do business with the United States, or do business with Iran. We cannot allow the U.S. taxpayer to be last crutch of Iran's dangerous nuclear program. Not on our watch and not on our dime. The time to act is now, and we must move with fierce urgency.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support House Concurrent Resolution 260 and acknowledge both the sacrifices and the celebrations of the Israeli people on their Independence Day, Yom Ha'atzmaut. Sixty-two years ago, the founders of the Jewish state gathered together in Tel Aviv to declare: ``Exiled from the land of Israel, the Jewish people remain faithful to it in all the countries of their dispersion, never ceasing to pray and hope for their return and the restoration of their national freedom.'' In every turn of Jewish history, expulsion after expulsion, pogrom after pogrom, the vision and the dream of the return to Israel would keep the Jewish people going. It was this hope that fueled the establishment of the state of Israel, and through every battle and every war, the words of the Israeli Proclamation of Independence continued to hold true. The people of Israel's connection to the land keeps them faithful to the ideals of the state that was established 62 years ago. I feel this commitment every time I visit Israel and see the unshakeable dedication to improving the Jewish homeland. Since its founding 62 years ago, Israel has become a modern state, a beacon of democracy, and a hub of technological advancement. And the world has benefited from Israel's contributions. Israel is the world's largest per capita user of solar water heaters in their homes. Israel will be launching the world's first electric car network throughout the country, reducing their dependence on foreign oil, and serving as a model to the rest of the world. Israel's experience on the front lines of terrorism have allowed them to use their first responder skills when humanitarian crises occur around the world, not just in Israel. Just a few months ago, Israel dispatched a team to Haiti, setting up a field hospital, delivering medical care, and saving lives. They were the first ones on the ground. Finally, Israel has taken painful steps toward peace, making sacrifices, sometimes unilaterally, toward the goal of reaching an agreement with its Arab neighbors. Israelis live under constant threat from Hamas's barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza, from the dangerous and genocidal words of a dictator in Iran, from a buildup of weapons on its northern border, from a despicable campaign to delegitimize Israel on the international stage. While the threats against the United States and Israel grow and strengthen, so too must our joint resolve to confront them. I am proud to be a supporter of a strong U.S.-Israel relationship. We are stronger together through our friendship. We are safer together through our cooperation. And in this uncertain world, the United States and Israel need each other. On this Israeli Independence Day, I acknowledge the brave men and women and their families who have sacrificed so much for the Jewish homeland, and I look forward to the day when Israel can celebrate independence in peace and security.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the veterans of the Vietnam War in my congressional district in south Florida and around our country. These heroic soldiers answered the call of duty, and we're all grateful for their service and their sacrifice. Many of our Vietnam veterans didn't get the welcome home they deserve, and that is why this Saturday, one of our great local veterans, Commander David Knapp, is organizing a welcome home event in Ft. Lauderdale. It may be belated, but I say, better late than never. Every day I go to work fighting to make sure that every man and woman who has worn the uniform of our country has access to the full range of benefits they have earned. That means world-class health care, access to a college education and more. I look forward this weekend to honoring the service of our local Vietnam veterans and every day as we work together to stand with those who served our country.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to submit a record of how I would have voted on Sunday, March 21, 2010 when I was unavoidably detained. Had I voted, I would have voted ``yes'' on rollcall No. 159 and rollcall No. 168.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, pursuant to clause 1, rule I, I demand a vote on agreeing to the Speaker's approval of the Journal.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Madam Speaker, from the beginning of the debate of health care reform, my top priority has been clear: strengthen and protect Medicare for our seniors, like Bunny Steinman in my district. I believe that the doctor-patient relationship is absolutely essential, especially for our seniors. No one, not the government or private insurance, should stand between a patient and the doctor of their choice. When I talk to seniors in my district, many of them tell me that struggling to cover the costs of prescription drugs--especially if they have fallen into the part D drug doughnut hole--is a real problem for them, and that is why I took the lead in working with AARP to make sure health care reform, this bill, closes the doughnut hole for good. Seniors will see immediate relief on prescription drug prices--a $250 rebate next year and thousands more in savings in the years ahead. We have won this fight. This reform will close the doughnut hole and save seniors money. There will be other benefits for seniors such as preventative care, like cancer screenings will now be free--no copays, no deductible. We owe it to our seniors. They paid into the Medicare trust fund. Taking care of our seniors is one of our top priorities. Benefits like these are critical to our senior population in south Florida, my district, and around the country. I urge support of the bill.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. I thank the gentlewoman from California and the gentlewoman from Florida for bringing this forward. Mr. Speaker, I would just like to stand in recognition of these wonderful women who provided such an important role in this war. I would also like to specifically acknowledge Debbie Holthouse from Boynton Beach, Florida. She resides in my congressional district, and she is going to be honoring her mother. Her mother is Bette Nogard, who served as a pilot during World War II. Bette Nogard died without any veterans benefits even though she risked her life for our freedom. She was a true hero. I am proud that Congress will be honoring her as well as these other women. I look forward to seeing her here in Washington.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 236) permitting the use of the rotunda of the Capitol for a ceremony as part of the commemoration of the days of remembrance of victims of the Holocaust.

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

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support H. Con. Res. 236, a resolution to allow the Capitol Rotunda to be used on April 15 for the purpose of the annual congressional ceremony to commemorate the Holocaust. The congressional commemoration of the Holocaust is a poignant reminder of the atrocities committed by the Nazis and the harrowing experiences of the survivors. This year, we will be celebrating the heroism of those who liberated the Nazi death camps. The theme for this year's ceremony, Stories of Freedom: What You Do Matters, highlights the experience of Allied soldiers who risked their lives for the cause of freedom. The stories of these soldiers that many of us have heard are inspiring. These soldiers confronted evil and physically saw despair in the eyes of every survivor they encountered. And these soldiers gave the survivors hope. The actions of these liberators changed the lives of the survivors and the course of human history. Last year, on Veterans Day, I participated in a ceremony that honored American World War II veterans, including Dr. Bernard Metrick of Boca Raton, Florida, who helped liberate a subcamp of Buchenwald while serving in the 8th Armored Tank Division. Dr. Metrick will be joining me in Washington in April to participate in the Days of Remembrance. What Dr. Metrick did, what all of the Allied liberators did, mattered back then, and each and every one of us must learn from their lessons. What we do matters. And that is the message that this ceremony will inspire: What you do matters. This is both our individual and collective responsibility. Never again can we allow a Holocaust to occur on our watch. All my life, I personally have felt moved to spread the message of ``Never Again.'' In the Florida Legislature when I served, I passed legislation to mandate Holocaust education in our Florida public schools so that students from all walks of lives and backgrounds could learn the lessons of the Holocaust. Here in Congress in my capacity as cochair of the Congressional Task Force Against Anti-Semitism, I worked with my cochairman, Congressman Mike Pence of Indiana, to organize an annual visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum for Members of Congress and their families. This is a unique form of Holocaust education, where the museum serves as a teaching tool to educate U.S. Representatives who have not been to the museum before about how the Holocaust is relevant to their lives and the lives of their constituents. I am grateful to Speaker Pelosi for appointing me to serve on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Commission with other Members of the House and Senate and other citizens around the United States, and I hope to advance the cause of Holocaust education in this new role. I would also like to thank Chairman Brady and Ranking Member Lungren for moving this resolution to the floor today. As a sponsor of this legislation and a member of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, I would like to thank the other cosponsors of this legislation: Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona, Congressman Steve LaTourette of Ohio, Congressman Eric Cantor of Virginia, and, of course, Congressman Henry Waxman, who worked closely with me on this resolution. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and I encourage my colleagues to attend the ceremony on April 15 in the Capitol Rotunda so that we may mourn those who perished and recognize those who sacrificed so much for freedom in the world. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Mr. Harper of Mississippi for his very supportive words and his heartfelt support of this important bipartisan resolution. I look forward to being at the event with you in the Rotunda. Mr. Speaker, again, I just thank the Chamber for their support and look forward to the opportunity of again supporting this very important event in the Rotunda.

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

Mr. KLEIN of Florida

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Well, I thank the gentleman from Iowa. And as always, it's great to be here with our friends from the Midwest and from the South. We represent the whole country, and it's such a great thing to be here, as we all got elected a couple of years ago and we have learned and listened very closely to what people are saying back home. I know the gentleman from Wisconsin talked about jobs and sort of where we've come from, and I know the gentlelady from Ohio did the same thing. The ``where we've come from'' part didn't just start in the last 13, 14 months; unfortunately, it has been going on for a long time. A lot of that was decisions made in some cases by government, sort of incentivizing big decisions to send business overseas, encourage that through tax policy, and some of it has just been people making decisions that we've lost that American ingenuity. Well, we haven't lost it, we all know that. This is the greatest country in the history of the world and our economy is the strongest. And, yes, we are being challenged right now, but this is when we are at our best. And that's the exciting part. This is a moment for us all to come together, put our arms around each other and say, what's great about America? Our worth ethic, our ingenuity, our technology, our innovation, this is what makes it. But we have to recognize that some of these policies--certainly when this administration started, a mere 13 months ago, we were losing 720 jobs per month. That's incredible. Now we are in a place where fortunately it's moving in the right direction--I think it was 20,000 or 30,000 jobs per month. Now, that's not good, we want to gain, we want to be at 100,000-plus; but, boy, that is certainly moving in the right direction, and that is what I am glad to see. Now, I come from a State, Florida, which had 15 years of incredible prosperity, a lot of growth. For the people in my community, their property values went up, and their businesses were expanding. All good. The American Dream was happening over and over and over again. Yet, when the banks stopped lending, as we've been talking about, well, guess what? The merry-go-round stopped, and a lot of people are hurting right now. They are hurting psychologically; they are hurting emotionally; they are hurting physically. The worst thing, as I know the gentlelady from Ohio talks about, is not to have that job, not to have that ability as a provider, a man or woman of a household, to bring that paycheck home, to get up in the morning and know you're going to do something productive and to make that example for your children. We want to make sure that people have that opportunity, and that's what we are working toward right now. Well, as to this ``spur job creation'' part of the Blueprint for Recovery, there are two points I want to bring up: One is the ``buy American'' concept. It's real simple. Every opportunity, when it comes to sourcing goods, services, and things like that, needs to be done in the United States. If there is anything that we can certainly promote, it's our providing those goods and services-- our local businesses. Your neighbor down the street, one you go to a church, to a synagogue, or to a supermarket with or one you coach Little League with is someone who works in the community. We want to give that businessperson and his or her employees or the people he works with an opportunity to be that source for government contracts and everything else--not to go overseas. We all understand the issue of free trade and all that, but free trade is fair trade, and we want to make sure that, in this country, we are doing everything we can to promote our businesses first. It's real simple. I think most Americans get it. I think we've gotten a little off track over this thing, but that's a principle we need to pass and support and hold to. Second--

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Absolutely.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Absolutely. We all understand the real game here, and it's not just about what they call ``tariffs.'' You may have heard of a ``tariff.'' That's a tax. If you bring something into a country, there is a tax to make it less competitive. Well, there are a lot of other ways to stop our wonderful American goods from going to other countries. They have lots of obstacles. It goes on in the auto industry all the time with emissions and lots of things that just make it practically impossible for us to sell. Now, we can't force someone in Korea to buy one of our cars, but we should give him that choice. If we have the best products, consumers will buy our products, just like some products come into this country, and consumers make a choice. Right now, there are a lot of things going on to stop our products from going to other countries.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Sure.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. That's exactly what it will do. I thank the gentleman for that example. I have an example in my community, a company called Cross Match. It's a technology company. They make fingerprint equipment and things like that. They were bidding for a census contract, and a company that was sourcing it through a Korean company came in with all sorts of--not machinations--I would say, loopholes. This bill closes the loopholes, and I think that's exactly what we are all interested in. The second thing I want to touch on, if I can, which the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Braley) just talked about, is something which, I think, we all understand--the lifeblood of our economy. That is access to capital, to bank loans--to small business loans. One thing I can say about this Congress is that I am really proud of the efforts that have been brought about through this Congress to make SBA, Small Business Administration, loans much easier to get. At this point, they are 90 percent guaranteed by the government. If you are a qualified veteran, 95 percent is guaranteed. These are good quality loans, but these aren't loans that are made by the government. They are made by banks, and they are guaranteed by the government. We need to get our banks to start focusing on making these loans and other commercial loans. We are not asking banks to make ridiculous loans like some of those that took place before which were not properly collateralized. Yet, for good, creditworthy people, there are loads of small businesses that have long histories in our local communities. They know the loan officers at the banks, and they can work together and make loans happen. One of the ideas being suggested is to take some of the payback money from some of the big banks that paid some of this money back and start bringing it down to the local level--to Main Street, to small banks, to community banks. We're not just talking about giving them the money like it happened before. Instead, it's an incentive to make the loans. If they make the loans, then they get discounts on the interest rates. This is what we have to do.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. Absolutely.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. I'll just conclude. There is so much more that everyone wants to say here, and there is so much to add. That's what's getting exciting about this work we're doing here. Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy. I mean many parts of our country do not have a lot of Fortune 500 companies. Those are great companies, and they add a lot of value to our country, but small businesses are going to be the businesses that get us out of this downturn, and we are beginning to see some good things. Bank lending is better than it was, but we need to encourage and find ways to make sure that the banks are lending so our small businesses can buy up some inventory, can buy up that capital equipment they need--a little deferred maintenance--and hire more people. That's the bottom line. I just want to thank the gentleman for having this ``spur job creation'' because, I think, this is a huge part of how we are going to get our country back on track.

Mr. KLEIN of Florida. I want to thank the gentleman. Just sort of as an add-on to what we're talking about, we all know that homeownership in the United States is crucial. It's crucial for people knowing where to plant their investment. They're working hard over the years to make sure they have a place to live, and hopefully it will increase in appreciation. But that same description that Mr. Welch just gave us about banking practices, in some cases resulted in, unfortunately, a whole lot of people getting in way over their heads, a whole lot of lending that shouldn't have never been lent in the first place, and the foreclosure situation is really bad in many places. I witnessed something over the weekend in West Palm Beach. In the West Palm Beach Convention Center a group came into town and said, We are going to bring together the lenders who, in many cases, have not been answering the phone, the line is busy or people haven't been getting answers, along with people that are having these real big problems, they can't make their mortgage payments. It's not like they're totally out of it. They may have had a job that was earning $50,000 a year, and they lost it, and now they're earning $35,000. Or, maybe a two-income household that they want to stay there. And we, as Americans, want them to stay there, if they can. We don't want abandoned houses. It just puts more pressure on the local streets and the local community. At this event over the weekend--it was running for 5 days, 24 hours a day--and all the major lenders were there, except for one. It was really interesting; 5,500 people were in this building at one time. I'd never seen anything like this. And they had the lenders sitting across the table, here to here, and they were actually ironing out one after another. One guy had an 11 percent mortgage. It was reduced to 5\1/2\ percent. His payment went from $2,100 to $1,300. And I asked him, Can you make do? He said, Yes. I'm keeping my house. I'm sleeping tonight. My children know they have a place, a roof over their head tonight. Well, this has been frustrating, but help is on the way. Help is on the way. And I think that the model has now been created. It's working in different parts of the country. But I'm really gratified to see that some people in south Florida were given that opportunity. There's a lot more to work through in all of our communities, but I'm starting to see some success, and that's part of how our recovery is going to happen, by putting the necessary pressure for people to get together and make this work.