Steven LaTourette

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moore) for his reflections of his friend, urge passage of the bill; and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1524 designates this postal facility in Overland Park, Kansas, as the Ed Eilert Post Office Building. The four members of the Kansas State congressional delegation have all endorsed this legislation, and I join them in support of the bill. After more than a quarter of a century, Ed Eilert stepped down from being a leader in Overland Park government on Monday, April 11. Ed Eilert's public service career began when he was elected to the Overland Park City Council in 1977. In 1981, he was elected to the first of six terms as mayor of Overland Park that spanned 24 years. Overland Park has doubled in population and become Kansas' second largest city under Mayor Eilert's direction. Without question, Ed Eilert is a one-man institution in east central Kansas. This post office on Antioch Road is a natural and deserved commemoration of Mayor Eilert's legacy and distinguished leadership. Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Members of the House, I congratulate Mayor Ed Eilert on his tremendous tenure in local government and wish him the very best in retirement. I applaud the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moore) for working toward passage of H.R. 1524. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Gibbons) for his reflections of his friend, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Gibbons).

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this post office naming legislation honors a wonderful civic leader. Tony Armstrong had served as mayor of Sparks, Nevada, since being first elected in 1999. Sadly, Mayor Armstrong passed away on January 29 from complications due to a December surgery to remove his spleen. He was 59 years of age. H.R. 1256 will name a post office in his honor in his hometown of Sparks, and I support its passage. Mr. Speaker, with the exception of a 6-year stint in the Nevada Air National Guard during the 1960s, Tony Armstrong had lived in Sparks since the age of 4. In 1989, he was elected to the Sparks City Council, where he served until becoming mayor in 1999. He was a man whose passionate principles shaped his leadership. As his former colleague on the city council, Councilman Mike Carrigan said, ``Mayor Armstrong's priorities were God first, his family second, and the City of Sparks third. Mayor Armstrong is survived by his beloved wife, Debby, and his adult children Richard, Keith and Misti. Our hearts and prayers go out to the entire Armstrong family. Mr. Speaker, I know that my distinguished colleague, the gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Gibbons) was very close with Mayor Armstrong. They grew up together and they have served the people of Nevada together. I thank the gentleman for honoring his friend, Tony Armstrong, by dedicating this post office in his honor, and I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1236. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1236) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 750 4th Street in Sparks, Nevada, as the ``Mayor Tony Armstrong Memorial Post Office''.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 40.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. King).

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank the distinguished gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry) for composing this resolution, and I thank my colleagues for their comments.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I will not take that much time. I want to rise in support of House Resolution 40 that honors the life and career of Johnny Carson. Mr. Speaker, the former Tonight Show host passed away on Sunday after 13 years of retirement at the age of 79. His show delighted viewers every weeknight for three decades during an incomparable late-night run from October of 1962 until May of 1992. Much has been said in recent days about Johnny Carson, and rightfully so. Carson's career was extremely decorated. He was a six-time Emmy Award winner and a member of the Television Hall of Fame. Carson was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992, and he received the Kennedy Center Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993. But, undoubtedly, Johnny Carson's greatest accomplishment was in making millions of people laugh at the end of days that were not always that funny. The Tonight Show aired during a period that included some of the most sobering events in American history: the Civil Rights Movement; the Vietnam War; the Watergate saga; the assassinations of President Kennedy, Senator Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., to name a few. Johnny Carson's grace through his 30 years was as important to his longevity as was his sense of humor. Since his Tonight Show in 1992, Americans everywhere have longed for his return. His personal life was always intensely private; so we have seen or heard little of him over the last 13 years. With his passing on Sunday, we know we will never see Johnny Carson. And as David Letterman, whose own program followed the Tonight Show each night for 10 years, said this week, ``We will not see the like of him again,'' either. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Fortenberry), our new colleague.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Government Reform be discharged from further consideration of the resolution (H. Res. 40) honoring the career and philanthropic contributions of Johnny Carson, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

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

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Ohio for yielding me this time. Most of our colleagues may not know that we not only had an election in Ohio but we had a recount that was funded by two third-party candidates that got less than 1 percent of the vote, and knowing this was going to happen today, I called my boards of election back home to see how that recount went. In Ashtabula County after the recount, each candidate picked up one vote. In Geauga County there was a net gain of two votes for President Bush, and the 72 provisional ballots that were not allowed were not allowed because the people did not live and were not registered in the State of Ohio. In Lake County, not one ballot changed from November 2, and all of the 201 provisional ballots tossed were tossed because the people were not registered in the State of Ohio. In Summit County, there was a four-vote swing for Senator Kerry. In Cuyahoga County, the county that I am lucky enough, home of the City of Cleveland, to share with the objector and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Brown) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Kucinich), the net swing was 23 votes for John Kerry. On this day, we should be praising the dedication and hard work of our election officials and not castigating them.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Financial Services be discharged from further consideration of the bill (H.R. 4116) to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins celebrating the recovery and restoration of the American bald eagle, the national symbol of the United States, to America's lands, waterways, and skies and the great importance of the designation of the American bald eagle as an ``endangered'' species under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill just passed.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. I thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar) for yielding under his reservation. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5294 is virtually identical to H.R. 3198, the John F. Kennedy Center Reauthorization Act of 2003, which passed the House of Representatives on November 17, 2003. The legislation reauthorizes the programs of the Kennedy Center for 4 years. This is a bipartisan bill. I urge our colleagues to support the bill. I want to thank the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), the distinguished ranking member of the full Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for his work; also the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton), the ranking member of our subcommittee, for the outstanding work on this bill and so many others during the 108th Congress.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure be discharged from further consideration of the bill (H.R. 5294) to amend the John F. Kennedy Center Act to authorize appropriations for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 1533) to amend the securities laws to permit church pension plans to be invested in collective trusts, with a Senate amendment thereto, and concur in the Senate amendment.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Financial Services be discharged from further consideration of the Senate bill (S. 1368) to authorize the President to award a gold medal on behalf of the Congress to Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. (posthumously) and his widow Coretta Scott King in recognition of their contributions to the Nation on behalf of the civil rights movement, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1533 and S. 1368.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4794, to amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000. For years the United States Congress has been trying to address a public health and environmental problem that exists along the U.S.- Mexican border. Raw or partially treated sewage from the Tijuana, Mexico area flows spot United States and ends up on California beaches. In 2000, Congress addressed this problem by authorizing the United States to contract with a plant in Mexico for waste water treatment services that would meet the clean water standards. That law required the United States and Mexico to negotiate a new treaty. That negotiation was completed in February of this year. Now the United States must negotiate a contract. It is my understanding that those negotiations are finally underway, but before a contract can be signed, the Tijuana Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act authorization must be extended and updated. H.R. 4794 provides that authority. I want to congratulate and commend the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner), the gentleman from California (Mr. Cunningham), the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) and the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Davis) for their persistence. This is a good piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4794) to amend the Tijuana River Valley Estuary and Beach Sewage Cleanup Act of 2000 to extend the authorization of appropriations, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. LaTOURETTE

Mr. LaTOURETTE. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.