John Larson

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor United Technologies on a monumental achievement--spending more than $1 billion on education and training for their employees. Since its inception under the leadership of George David 15 years ago, the Employee Scholars Program has been a vital source of ongoing education for UTC employees to obtain a degree, advance their skill sets, or gain knowledge in any number of fields. It provides for the costs of tuition, books, and fees up-front and allows employees to pursue their education at any accredited institution of higher education. Through promoting a culture of lifelong learning, UTC has set an example for the entire corporate community of how to provide a benefit that will have lasting results for their employees, the company, and I daresay the economy. Over 30,000 employees have earned a degree through the Employee Scholars Program, and many others have been able to access coursework to improve their skills. The unique, and in my opinion exemplary aspect of this program is that the company does not require that the employee pursue education directly related to their current position. This allows UTC employees the freedom to choose what they want to study, whether they think it will help them in their current position, a future position, or an entirely different field altogether. It is my belief that ongoing learning leads to more productive workers and a more productive society. I applaud UTC again for their sustained commitment to lifelong learning and commend them on the milestone accomplishment.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, Bruce Sundlun was a remarkable man and an outstanding public servant. His daughter Kara and son-in-law Dennis and their children are constituents of mine. I was fortunate to be chatting with Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, who was recalling his life. Senator Whitehouse delivered the eulogy for Governor Sundlun, and on behalf of Congressman Jim Langevin and David Cicilline, it is my honor as Democratic Caucus Chair to submit these thoughtful and poignant remarks for the Congressional Record. Eulogy for Governor Bruce Sundlun as Delivered by U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse What a man. What a life. Bruce Sundlun's accomplishments--as a record-breaking athlete, as a resourceful war hero, as a superb lawyer, as a successful business entrepreneur, and as political leader of our state--would each on their own be significant. You could probably write a book about each. Together, packed all into one energetic life, it makes Bruce Sundlun one of the most accomplished and remarkable men in our state's history. And that's not even counting five marriages, four children, three unsuccessful runs for governor, two dead raccoons, and one long escape on the loose, behind enemy lines. There's really just no way to fit it all in. Let me step into my role as a Sundlun staffer, and ask you to think just of his brief four years as governor. Hit (on Day One of his administration) by an unprecedented bank failure affecting 300,000 Rhode Islanders, AND by the worst budget deficit in state history, AND by an implosion of the state's entire worker's compensation system, AND with the urgent need to restore ethics in government, Bruce was the man for that moment, and swung into his customary decisive action. The budget was promptly and fairly balanced and the whole budget process improved. Inventive solutions to repay the depositors and clean up the RISDIC mess were found and implemented, and those at fault were made to pay--over a hundred million dollars. His worker's compensation reform moved the state from an embarrassment to a model, moving what was then the business community's worst problem completely off the problem list for now going on 20 years. As a problem solver, he had no peer. And that alone would be pretty extraordinary. But there was that ethics gap. So Bruce wrote Executive Order 91-One, the ethics executive order that succeeding governors renewed virtually unchanged. He reformed our Ethics Commission. He changed the way we appoint judges, to reduce the politics. He changed the way we fund elections, with a public finance plan and donor limits. Through an intense storm of legal and political opposition, he opened up the pension records; putting an end forever to backroom special pension bills. He got our State Police nationally accredited. He even cleaned up the Capitol literally! All that was extraordinary--but still not enough. In the worst economic times the state had seen since the Depression, with a shrinking budget, he decided to extend universal health care to children--and started the program that became Rite Care. Against immense opposition, he built our new airport terminal. He embarked on the Westin Hotel, the Convention Center, and the Providence Place Mall. He finished the Jamestown Bridge and built the Expressway. And even that's not the end of it. It was an amazing burst of activity. I will bet that almost every Rhode Islander, almost every day, is somehow touched by something Governor Sundlun did. And through it all, he drove his staff crazy. He was irrepressible, impatient, imperial, unscriptable, combative, frustrating, willful, constantly threw caution to the winds, impossible to keep up with--he drove us nuts. And we loved him. We loved him because he was bold and brave, and was warm- hearted and trusting and generous, and because he was willing to throw caution to the winds to do what was right. We loved him because he never once had us make excuses or try to shift the blame. That was not his style. ``Never complain; never explain.'' We all remember his Bruce-isms: ``Always touch base with those concerned before taking action.'' ``How fast would you get it done if the Russians were in South Attleboro?'' ``When you've won, stop talking, close your briefcase and leave.'' ``Message to Garcia.'' ``Who, what, where, when; don't bother me with why.'' The phone calls, at all hours, that began with no ``hello'' and ended with dial tone. The road shows known to his staff as ``Dome on the Roam'', or more precisely, ``Bruce on the Loose.'' And sometimes just that big foxy grin. We saw that his qualities of friendship and loyalty had an almost physical force; that he had your back even if you made mistakes (no one ever was thrown under the bus); and that he was a better friend the more the chips were down. Politics is full of fair weather friends; Bruce Sundlun was your stormy weather friend. Politics is full of people who take tiny cautious steps with their finger up constantly testing the winds; Bruce stepped boldly down the path he thought was right, even if that meant stepping right in it. People wonder what lives on after they die. Well, Bruce, we do. And every one of us has been changed: made better, and stronger, harder-working and more resourceful, by your vibrant elemental force in our lives. We've gone on to be judges and lawyers, to run state and federal agencies, to become Senators and councilmen and Lieutenant Governors, banking leaders and senior partners in national accounting firms, but none of us ever will be more proud of anything than the simple title: ``I was a Sundlun staffer.'' Soozie and Marjorie, Tracey and Stuart and Peter and Kara: Thank you. Thank you for sharing your husband and father with our state. For those who loved and were changed by him, I thank you. For those who knew and were touched by him, I thank you. And for those who never knew him directly, but whose lives are better today because of what he did, I thank you. As I close, I want to take you back to a scene from that wonderful movie I saw as a kid, ``To Kill A Mockingbird.'' As you'll recall, Atticus Finch takes on the courageous but unpopular defense of a black man wrongfully accused of rape. At the end of the trial, Atticus's daughter Scout--proper name Jean Louise--is up in the gallery of the courtroom, with the black townspeople, who aren't allowed down on the regular courtroom floor. The courtroom floor empties, but they remain, and slowly stand. As Atticus packs his papers together, closes his bag, and walks out, an elderly man leans down to the little girl and says, ``Stand up, Miss Jean Louise. Your father's passing.'' At the end of this service, as Bruce is taken to his gravesite after 91 years of a life well and fully lived, we will all stand up. And rightly so. A governor will be passing.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. John Brennan was a venerated citizen of my hometown, East Hartford. He served his country, his state, and his community in several elected, appointed, and volunteer positions; most recently he presided as a Judge where he served until he was 93, and did so with vigor, and a sense of humor. Growing up in East Hartford when you're poor John Brennan, if you were type casting, you'd say he looked like Henry Fonda, and we along with his beautiful wife Mary, raised four children, Susan, Jack, Peter, and Tome, all of who I was fortunate to know, and know how devoted to their father they are. At his funeral service it was his youngest son Tom, who gave the eulogy on behalf of the family, there is so much I could say about John Brennan, he commanded blind respect and rightfully so. Nothing I could say however captures the feeling, the sentiment, the public servant, and the father as Tom Brennan's remarks on his father that follows. Eulogy Honoring the Life of Judge John D. Brennan (By Thomas S. Brennan) First of all I'd like to thank everyone for coming to join our family today. I know how absolutely thrilled my father would be to see all of you here, even though I know also that he was a little disappointed to have only made it to the age of 94, when he was still in his youthful prime with so much left to be done. But in many ways he almost was still in his prime, and I think that said a lot about how he lived his life--he never lost his youthful enthusiasm and he had a genuine appreciation for whatever the moment offered. He was someone who from the beginning was endowed with many gifts and he made use of those gifts in a variety of arenas throughout his life. My father often described his childhood growing up in East Hartford of the 1920s as an almost idyllic ``Huck Finn'' sort of existence--kids running free playing baseball down in the meadows, riding a rope swing into the Connecticut River or racing carrier pigeons that neighborhood kids would keep in backyard coops. Like many of the Irish back then, his father worked on the trains and would release the carrier pigeons when he was way down the lone toward New York. In that era, those pigeons making their way home might very well have sailed past Yankee Stadium when Babe Ruth was slugging a home run, or over houses where families were gathering around a radio waiting for FDR to speak, before circling down over the farms and tobacco fields that once surrounded this town. It was a simple working class world and he grew up during the Depression, so there wasn't any choice then but to make the most out of whatever you were lucky enough to have. The arrival of World War II took him far away from the innocent small town life and it became one of the defining experiences of his life. The world was suddenly opened wide and he was thrilled to be riding on the tide of history. And of course, to hear him tell it, it was one giant adventure-- we never knew war could be so much fun. He especially loved to tell us old stories of how he and his Army buddies played pranks on one another all the way across the Pacific but there was one story in particular I always liked: It was right after the war had ended and he was on an island off of South Korea where he had been assigned to accept the transfer of all Japanese back to Japan. It just so happened that there had been a tailor who had worked on the island for the previous 40 years who was originally Japanese and so his family was extremely upset that he was being forced to completely uproot everything. My father had ordered him to bring all his things in a suitcase and be on the dock ready to leave the next morning. When the appointed hour arrived, he saw that practically the whole town had come out to bid goodbye to the old tailor, nearly all of them in tears. So he looked around for a minute, gathered in the scene and then called the tailor forward before the crowd and announced to everyone (in his best gruff military voice): ``You are free to stay'' at which point the entire town erupted in chaotic celebration, they lifted my father up and carried him through the streets on their shoulders. To me, that moment expressed something essential about him--that he felt pretty instinctively that a certain humanity and practicality should determine a decisions, rather than blind adherence to some order from headquarters. And also that though he could have a tough exterior, it wasn't very hard to penetrate beyond it and ultimately he always was guided by a very innate sense of fairness. After the war, he returned home to East Hartford and remained there for the rest of his life. He practiced law, built a family, became involved in local politics, was elected Mayor and later appointed as a judge in the Connecticut Superior Court. Many of you here today knew him through the variety of activities that evolved out of his many years of public life in town. In East Hartford, he was in his element, he flourished and he never wanted to live anywhere else. Long before we had Google to research any topic or answer any question, there was John Brennan. And when you spoke to him, you were instantly transported back over a remarkable span of history by someone who could remember all the details and bring the back to life--in fact, you were actually talking to someone who remembered speaking to veterans of the Civil War. He was renowned for his ability to recall little known historical facts and had immediate access to a treasure trove of information that he would eagerly dispense on subjects as diverse as the dates of the major battles of the Boer Wars or the work of some obscure German poet. But despite his ability in this arena, it was always balanced with a pronounced disregard for anything that smacked of ``unnecessary pretense'' or ``excess'', which perhaps explained his lifetime loyalty to Maxwell House coffee, Prell shampoo, and $5 sunglasses. In fact, my sister reminded me yesterday that he was perfectly happy to drive his Buick into the ground, much to the dismay of the salesman down at Dworin Chevrolet, of course. And always, no matter how distinguished his career in the law may have been or how adept he was with the life of the mind, he took a certain pleasure in making fun of himself too, as if he were really just a regular guy. So if I were to say now that he had an ``indefatigable'' spirit, he would feign an innocent look, lean forward helpfully and add ``tireless too''. As if he didn't know what the word meant. It was one of his favorite jokes and in fact I have since stolen it for myself. He reached mandatory retirement as a Superior Court judge in 1986 and then continued to work for another 24 years-- almost a full career for some people. He loved being over at the courthouse in the middle of the action, surrounded by the friends and comforts of his profession and he showed little sign of stopping, right up to the age of 93. So we knew it was trouble when the day finally came that he said he didn't want to go to work anymore. Yet even near the end of his life, when he was going through radiation treatments, his face could light up at the sight of a simple cup of chowder that my sister might bring over to the hospital for him. Or he would shuffle outside to the hospital parking lot, take a sip out of a flask of bourbon that my brother had smuggled in, look around and say ``Isn't this the life!'' And he really meant it. That was his rare gift--to be able to genuinely appreciate and make the most of whatever the moment held and still find an upside to it. If you asked him how he was feeling, he'd say ``Raring to go!'' and it really wasn't much of an exaggeration. And his amazing work ethic refused to quit. Just a few weeks ago, he woke up from a nap and asked my sister Suzie where he was and what day it was. So she told him, it's Wednesday and you're at home''. He sounded absolutely aghast in his response: ``Home? What am I doing home in the middle of the week--I'm supposed to be at work!'' In a way, he was kind of like one of those characters from an old John Wayne movie that you just couldn't keep down, where even after being hit with 100 rounds from the enemy, he would still somehow stagger back to throw that one decisive final grenade. So today we lay to final rest an old soldier who embraced battle and celebration with equal relish, who demonstrated that he could not just endure, but do it with ``pizzazz'' and certainly for far longer than we had any right to ask for. It was once said, by the Civil War veteran and Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendall Holmes, that ``to act with enthusiasm and faith is the condition for acting greatly''. To our father and your friend, we can now rightfully say without hesitation: you met that test--mission accomplished. Of course we will miss you greatly, but you had one heck of a run and we're really very grateful and proud of that. And so we promise to pass along your sense of humor, to keep telling our favorite stories about you and to still be toasting you at some cocktail hour far into the future with warm memories to always keep you very much alive in our hearts.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, December 13, 2011, I missed rollcall 918. Had I present, I would have voted ``no.''

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I thank the gentleman from California. I thank him for his leadership on this issue, as he has repeatedly taken to this floor in talking about what I think is thematically something that America is in tune with, and that's the understanding and the commitment that we need to return to manufacturing, we need to return to our industrial base, we need to enhance our innovative skills, we need to make things here in America. So Make It in America has become our agenda. Over the last several weeks, there have been more than 1,000-plus town forums and hearings where people have discussed the concept of creating jobs and making things here in America. We all know that for every manufacturing job, that creates four other service- sector jobs. And this is vitally important. I visited a company with its president, Bing Murphy. The company is called Industrial Air Flow Dynamics. IAFD is a manufacturer in the State of Connecticut. They make everything right here in America. They compete with foreign companies. They're begging to make sure that they get more skilled workers lined up to do something that is extraordinarily unique in manufacturing. And a recent study and survey in the State of Connecticut indicated that in the State alone, 2,500 manufacturing jobs were going unfilled because of a lack of skills or the appropriate training, and the need, oftentimes, for the small entrepreneur and manufacturer, who doesn't have a huge human resources department, to sort through applicants and to make sure that there's this opportunity for them to do that. But we're hoping to pilot and lead the way in making sure that we're matching skills with manufacturers as we continue to focus on making things here in America. We all know, as the gentleman from California has pointed out, that when you make it in America, every American can make it. We have an opportunity that is quickly going to disappear, and that is the supercommittee. We have taken the position within the Democratic Caucus that there's a very simple equation: that job creation equals deficit reduction. Let me say that again: Job creation equals deficit reduction. We know from CBO scoring that just getting unemployment-- which is at an unacceptable level of more than 14 million-plus Americans and 25 million Americans that are underemployed--that if we get the figure of 9.1 percent unemployment to below 7 percent, we cut the deficit by a third. There is no other silver bullet. There is no other item before us that brings that extraordinary relief that I know people on both sides of the aisle desire. This supercommittee, by embracing jobs has an opportunity, unprecedented opportunity without a cloture vote that is used to block, and has been used in the Senate, for over 497 bills that we've passed, or without poison pill amendments in the House to allow an up-or-down vote on job creation, the President's proposals, the proposals that have been put forward by our colleagues on the other side of the aisle. And while we may disagree in terms of our approach and methods, we all agree about jobs and so why not embrace this opportunity to create jobs. If this should fail, it will fail because we didn't embrace job creation. We didn't embrace the concept of making things here in America. We didn't do what Bing Murphy has been doing back in Connecticut, and other manufacturers, focusing on and refusing to do anything other than the patriotic thing, which is to invest in your people, invest in a commitment to America, invest in our manufacturing base so that we can put this country back to work, grow the economy and lower the deficit at the same time. Americans simply want one thing. As they sit across their dinner tables this evening and have these discussions with their spouses, all they want is the simple dignity that comes from a job. We have an agenda. We have an opportunity. Let's not spoil this chance. Let's take advantage of this opportunity that we have before us to unite the country, put them back to work by making things here in America. I commend the gentleman for his ongoing work, and I commend our colleagues that have come to the floor this evening to express this deep and abiding concern about jobs, deficit reduction, putting this country back to work, embracing innovation, embracing education, and investing in Americans so that we can succeed. Thank you so much, and I commend the gentleman from California.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Chair, on October 5, 2011, I was not present for rollcall votes 747-759 due to the death of a close family friend. If I had been present for these votes, I would have voted: ``aye'' on rollcall vote 747; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 748; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 749; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 750; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 751; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 752; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 753; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 754; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 755; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 756; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 757; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 758; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 759. Amendment No. 23 Offered by Mr. Cohen

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I was unfortunately unable to cast a vote on rollcall 745 on the afternoon of Tuesday, October 4, 2011. Had I been able to vote on H.R. 2608, I would have voted ``yea'' on its passage.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to this legislation. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said about the National Labor Relations Act, which created the National Labor Relations Board, that ``by preventing practices which tend to destroy the independence of labor, it seeks, for every worker within its scope, that freedom of choice and action which is justly his.'' This legislation today would seek to undermine that freedom of choice and action by giving employers the ability to penalize workers who choose to exercise their right to organize and encouraging companies to move their jobs overseas. Make no mistake, the majority is using a disagreement with one decision made by the NLRB as an opportunity to make sweeping changes at the expense of the rights of workers across the country. This is not what the American people want and is not the direction we should be heading as a country. Instead the opportunity we must take advantage of is the mandate that the American public has given us which is to work together to ensure that we are doing everything we can to create jobs and get our economy going again. This divisive piece of legislation will only hinder that effort to work in a bipartisan manner to reach the goal of reducing the unemployment rate and thus reducing the deficit. I urge my colleagues to oppose this bill and to get to work on creating jobs and growing our economy.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Thank you again, Paul, for organizing this Special Order. And I think John Sarbanes said it well. The gentleman from Maryland spoke eloquently about the need for us to act and the need for us to act now. It has been a storm. It has been a hurricane for the 14 million people that are unemployed, and for their families; and all Americans are asking is the simple dignity that comes from being able to look across the table at your spouse and your family and let them know that they are safe and secure because you have a job and you are providing for them.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I am honored to join the gentleman from New York, the gentleman from California, and the gentleman from Maryland. Martin Luther King once described the need to act as the ``fierce urgency of now.'' Nothing is more important to the American people, nothing is more important to anyone listening to this broadcast than seeing this country go back to work. Representative Garamendi talked very eloquently about Make It in America. People want to see jobs created in this country and want to see Americans back to work because we all know that when we put America back to work by making things here in America, that it provides the opportunity for every American to succeed. The President has called upon Congress to act. He did so in a speech last week. We need to respond now. He did so in bipartisan fashion, citing bills that have come from both sides of the aisle. Congress as an institution should be about the vitality of ideas that you heard expressed here this evening but then turned into a plan of action that sees us lowering our unemployment rate. It is simply unacceptable that Congress would dawdle while 14 million Americans are unemployed and a sum total of 25 million Americans are underemployed. The time schedule that Congress has here should be expanded so that we're working every day to see that Americans are put back to work. Fourteen million Americans are crying out for the President's proposal to be enacted, to see this body take action. They are tired of the endless bickering between both sides and want to see action taking place in this body. My colleagues have outlined very specific proposals that will achieve those goals. We've just witnessed one of our colleagues who spoke so eloquently-- and I'm referring to Mr. Tonko from New York State--about what has happened to his community, his district, the very character of which was changed because of a calamity, more than a 500-year level storm that ravaged the States of Connecticut, New York, and Vermont and left people not only destitute in terms of their very homes and their livelihood, but again, seeking what is fundamental to this country, a certain sense of fairness and shared sacrifice and commitment to helping out fellow Americans. What better way than rebuilding our country and starting with those communities that have been ravaged. The youth that could be employed immediately in our urban and rural areas. The rebuilding, as Mr. Garamendi has said, of roads and bridges and sewage systems. And fire departments and public schools with broadband to light up the desktops of our children and the blackboards and white boards, if you will, of our teachers so that we can once again assume our rightful position as the preeminent economic leader in this global economy. We had Professor Dr. Joseph Stiglitz speak before the caucus today. And he said it very clearly--that job creation equals deficit reduction. We are not talking across the aisle here; we need to come together as Americans. We witnessed this past weekend what can happen when America decides to be unified in common cause, as we did and as we responded after the events of September the 11th. We need to respond to the crisis at hand, which is 14 million Americans that are unemployed, the devastation that it has wreaked on our economy, what it's meant to our housing, what it's meant to our education system, what it's meant to our manufacturing base that Mr. Garamendi has talked about time and again on this floor. That's what we have to do--reinvest in Americans. And in doing so, as Dr. Stiglitz, the preeminent economist in this country, has indicated, we can both reduce our deficit by more than 25 percent and put America to work. What we need is action from this Congress, from this House of Representatives. Bring the President's bill to the floor. If you won't bring the President's bill to the floor, then engage the select committee that has a very specific timeframe with deadlines and dates and no cloture votes in the Senate, no poison pill amendments in the House, an up-or- down vote on jobs. That's what the American people are demanding. That's what you gentleman have so eloquently put forward here.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by the direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in memory of my life-long friend, Mr. Thomas Sheridan. Tom Sheridan and I grew up together in our hometown of East Hartford, Connecticut. We attended Saint Rose's School where we were taught by the Sisters of Notre Dame and were teammates playing football for Pappy's Black Knights; I was the quarterback, he was the center. After graduation Tom went on to serve with distinction during the Vietnam War earning several medals including the Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal, Good Conduct Medal, and a Presidential Unit Citation. At the close of his military service Tom came home to Connecticut to be with his beautiful wife, Nancy, and raise their two sons who were the greatest joys of his life, Kevin and Brett, Tom became a successful attorney and later served the Connecticut General Assembly as the Clerk of the House. It was one of the greatest moments in my career when I had the honor to appoint him Senate Clerk, where he served until his final days with distinction, integrity, and fairness. Tom will be dearly missed and it is my honor to remember my friend today before this esteemed body.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heavy heart that I rise today to inform my colleagues of the recent passing of The Most Reverend Pietro Sambi, who was the Titular Archbishop of Bellicastrum and the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, on July 27 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. He was 73 years old. Archbishop Sambi was born in Sogliano at Rubicone (Forli-Cesena), Italy on the 27th day of June, 1938. He was a respected scholar who had doctorates in both theology and canon law and spoke Italian, English, French and Spanish. He was ordained to the priesthood for the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Marino-Montefeltro on March 14, 1964, and began his distinguished career in the diplomatic service of the Vatican's Secretariat of State in 1969. His overseas assignments included sensitive postings to Cameroon, Cuba, Algeria, Nicaragua, Belgium, India, Indonesia and Cyprus. In 2000, Archbishop Sambi led discussions with Israeli religious and political leaders orchestrating Pope John Paul II's historic visit to Jerusalem. As the Papal representative to Israel in 2002, Archbishop Sambi reportedly helped end a 39-day standoff between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants, who had holed up inside the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. Pope Benedict XVI named Archbishop Sambi as the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States on December 17, 2005, and he was installed in early 2006. Shortly after his appointment, he toured the damage left by Hurricane Katrina. He was deeply involved in efforts to introduce Pope Benedict to American Catholics and he accompanied the Pope during his April 2008 visit to the U.S. and hosted him at the Apostolic Nunciature, where the Pope held a historic private meeting with five victims of clergy sexual abuse. In September of 2010, he presided at a Mass to mark the 13th anniversary of the death of Blessed Mother Teresa, which coincided with the U.S. Postal Service's issuance of a commemorative stamp in her honor. Archbishop Sambi received numerous tributes and honors over the years, especially for his ecumenical activities and efforts to increase and secure access to religious sites in the Holy Land. Like many of my colleagues, I had the honor of knowing Archbishop Sambi through my friend Luca Ferrari, the former Minister Counselor for Public and Legislative Affairs at the Embassy of the Republic of Italy here in Washington. The Archbishop was always willing to gently inform us on theology as well the critical international issues of the day. He was an amiable conversationalist and a good friend, and will be greatly missed by so many of us here in Washington, DC, as well by family, friends and colleagues around the world. Mr. Speaker, I would like to conclude by urging all of our colleagues to join me in paying tribute to Archbishop Pietro Sambi's service to international relations and understanding, and to express our condolences to his family for their loss. Thank you.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Thank you, Mr. Levin. Mr. Speaker, at this very moment, the whole world is watching in on the United States Congress. It is a sad day for the United States Congress. We in America, the preeminent military, economic, and cultural leaders in the world, are governing like we're a Third World country. It is a sad time for this body that we cannot come together. Sad is the American public who looks in at this and recognizes that it's theater, except that it's become the theater of the absurd. In a frail recovery where Americans are already overburdened, what we have in front of us is a manufactured ideological crisis. Eighteen times the debt ceiling was raised for Ronald Reagan, eight times for George Bush, because they would never stand in this body to see a default on the full faith and credit of the United States. As the world looks in and we default on a global economy and we march towards defaulting on a national economy, the most ruinous thing is that we are defaulting on household economies. What this body should be focusing on is dealing with this deficit and focusing, as Mr. Becerra said, on the real default that's taking place in Congress: the lack of job creation, the need to put people back to work so that we can restore the dignity that only comes when people are able to sit across their dining table and look at one another and know that they have the dignity that comes from a job. We need not go through this ideological hostage situation. Why are we holding the American people hostage? Let's put America back to work. We're a better Nation. We're a better body than that.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to start first of all by talking about the tenor of debate in this Chamber. Historically, we've had great debates in this Chamber. I think that the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, is an honorable man who cares deeply about this institution, and I think on both sides of the aisle we have very intelligent people who care passionately about their beliefs. We have a Nation that's in the midst of the worst recession since the Great Depression. It prevails on us as Americans to come together and face the problems that our Nation is currently dealing with. You heard Representative Chu mention it earlier. Ronald Reagan did so at that time with a Democratic Speaker, Tip O'Neill. He did so by appealing to both Chambers about the need to come together, facing the daunting reality of defaulting for the first time on the country's full faith and credit and the impact that that would have on the global economy, on the Nation's economy, but I daresay, more importantly, on one's household economy. From my perspective as a Member here and going back home and listening to our constituents, I think that's the most important thing, is their household economies that are hanging in the balance here. Washington can oftentimes provide great theater and great back and forth, but we do not want this to become the theater of the absurd as our constituents look on in the pain and agony of being out of work and wondering whether or not their government is going to be there for them. So I hope that we're able to pass a clean debt ceiling, as Ronald Reagan did 17 times, the same kind of thing that was afforded Bill Clinton and George W. Bush seven times most recently, so that we can get on with the concerns that we care deeply about: whether it's dealing with the national debt and dealing with the issues of spending and making cuts that will strategically grow the economy, or whether it's dealing with investing in the American people and making sure that revenues that come in do so to put America back to work, like the creation of an infrastructure bank funded by the private and public sectors working together to create those much needed jobs, but essentially putting America back to work. I recently received a letter from one of my constituents, and I think this sums up the feeling of America. I want to read her words because they tell the story of all too many Americans: ``I'm worried, afraid for myself and all in my situation, and saddened. If I still have not been hired to work in the next few weeks, I will lose the financial ability to live in a room or an apartment and will lose the parts of my life that literally had to be placed in storage, most notably my family photos of my deceased parents, of my children, due to the lack of income or savings to pay the rental fees. I have no one who will take me in or who can afford to do this.'' She went on to say, ``How can you not agree that this is comparable to a natural disaster when individual lives are at stake and left as if to be swallowed by an abyss of dark uncertainty?'' These are the people of our country who we are sworn to serve. This debate is important on the floor. The debt ceiling could be lifted tomorrow, but the pain and agony of the American people are stated more eloquently by the people who are actually suffering, and when she says ``to be swallowed up by an abyss of dark uncertainty,'' that is a moral obligation for us. Rather than talking about staying here over the weekend to make sure we deal with the debt ceiling and all the machinations that are going on between the two Chambers, let's stay here till we put America back to work. That's what we should be doing: out-innovating, out-building and out-educating the rest of the world.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Madam Speaker, I rise to associate myself with the remarks of the distinguished gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen). Let me say that in his opening comments I think he has laid it out pretty well. Cut, cap and balance--one has to resist on our side the notion that this is cut, cap, and get rid of Medicare. The public has had it with this theater of the absurd that's going on. They want Congress to come together, as our President has suggested, and do the most important thing that we can--create jobs for the American people. At Augie & Ray's in my hometown, people ask me, what's going on? Seems like a light beer commercial where there is this endless quibbling back and forth, with people on both sides of the aisle who care deeply about their country but seem to do little about putting the Nation back to work. We face a crisis with a debt ceiling, a debt ceiling that 17 times under Ronald Reagan was lifted without any bill being held hostage, and clearly not programs like Medicare and Social Security. This is a time for us to come together and reason in a rational process. There are no immediate tax impositions placed by the President--all of you who have been in negotiations understand and know that. In fact, this Congress, when we were in the majority, passed the largest tax cut for the middle class. I continue to believe that the people in my home town have it right, that the issue is about jobs. We cannot take this Nation up to the precipice, up to the cliff again and risk endangerment of default. As Ronald Reagan said, this would be a catastrophe for this country to allow this to take place. We need to stay at the table and continue to negotiate around the idea of jobs, taking a look at those things strategically that can be cut that create jobs, and those revenues that can be enhanced to create jobs to put the American people back to work. That's what the American people want to see, the Congress that can come together. I stand by our President and by this great chairman in making sure that we don't go through this theater of the absurd. You know that this is not a true balanced budget amendment. You know that in your heart. You have talented and good people on your side, as do we. Let's be about putting America back to work and create jobs. Let's not talk about defaulting on the Nation. We're defaulting on the American people. Let's talk about putting them back to work. That's what we need to do in this Nation.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Democratic Caucus, I offer a privileged resolution and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, on June 16, 2011, I was not present for rollcall votes 437 through 459 due to an unavoidable family matter. If I had been present for these votes, I would have voted: ``aye'' on rollcall vote 437; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 438; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 439; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 440; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 441; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 442; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 443; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 444; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 445; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 446; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 447; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 448; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 449; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 450; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 451; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 452; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 453; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 454; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 455; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 456; ``nay'' on rollcall vote 457; ``aye'' on rollcall vote 458; and ``nay'' on rollcall vote 459.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of fully funding the CFTC. According to Gene Guilford, Executive Director of the Independent Connecticut Petroleum Association, and former Reagan Energy Department Presidential appointee, gas prices should be $2.50. He goes on to say that 15 to 20 percent of the price of a barrel of oil is due to pure speculation. Even big oil executives agree, Exxon Mobil CEO and President Rex Tillerson recently testified that the price of a barrel of oil without speculation should be between $60 and $70. According to an April 2011 analysis by Goldman Sachs, unregulated speculation adds over $20 per barrel to the price of oil. In my home state of Connecticut, 4 million gallons of gas are sold a day. That means every day my constituents are spending an extra $6 million for speculation. In this fragile economic time, I can think of many other important things Connecticut families can spend $6 million to buy instead of paying to support the greed of over speculations. With consistently some of the highest gas prices in the nation, Connecticut deserves better. One of the ways to reduce the price of gas is to end excessive speculation. The CFTC has a job to protect American consumers and through the Wall Street Reform legislation passed last Congress, they were tasked with implementing rules the market has to follow including ending excessive speculation and setting position limits. To carry these regulatory protections out, the CFTC needs funding. Republicans have not only written language to delay implementation of these protections, but now in the FY12 Appropriations bill they put forth legislation to cut the budget by 15 percent, 44 percent under the President's request. This is unconscionable, especially when CFTC is doing a good job. Less than a month ago, the CFTC charged 5 oil speculators with manipulating the price of crude during the record high gas prices in the summer of 2008. The Republican funding cut to the CFTC sends a strong message to the industry to continue the status quo. Not only will the cut prevent the agency from hiring the technical experts needed to implement new regulations, but will also reduce the overall size from 670 employees to under 600 employees. When President Bush left office, the CFTC oversaw a $40 trillion market. Today, the CFTC is tasked with overseeing a $300 trillion market. This is a 650 percent increase in the CFTC's responsibility, but at the same time their budget has only increased by 15 percent. It is irresponsible to take away funding leaving the agency stretched far too thin and inadequately prepared to deal with our ever more intricate market. Wall Street spent $34 million last quarter lobbying Congress in order to prevent implementation of new regulations, and it looks like their efforts have paid off. The health of our economy is no game. I am outraged by the actions of my colleagues. I support my amendment to fully fund the CFTC and reject this appropriations bill.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, it is with a heartfelt sense of patriotism that I rise to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Flag Day, as well as the 375th anniversary of Hartford, Connecticut. The concept of ``Flag Day'' actually originated in Hartford. Just before the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Hartford resident George Morris imagined Flag Day as an opportunity to promote the idea of a strong union in the face of a looming conflict. Later that year the Hartford Daily Courant newspaper endorsed Morris' idea, and in 1862 the General Assembly in Hartford made Connecticut the first State to recognize June 14th as Flag Day. The great city of Hartford was founded 375 years ago by Reverend Thomas Hooker and has played an instrumental role in our Nation's history throughout the years. Whether it was laying the foundation for the United States Constitution or being the home to distinguished citizens such as Mark Twain, Harriet Beecher Stowe, and Sam Colt, Hartford's history has forever been interwoven with that of our great country. Given that the City of Hartford has played such a historic role in shaping the United States, it is no surprise that the idea of Flag Day originated there.

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, June 14th of the year two- thousand and eleven will mark the two-hundredth birthday of author and impassioned abolitionist Harriet Beecher Stowe. Stowe, a teacher hailing from Litchfield, Connecticut, became a central figure during the fight to end slavery in America after writing her seminal work, Uncle Tom's Cabin, which was completed in 1852. The book's heart wrenching depiction of life for African-Americans held in bondage captivated a nation and inspired the public will to end the reprehensible institution of slavery. This treasure of American literature based on factual events helped change the course of our Nation's history by exposing the horror of slavery to the larger population and became a corner-stone of the abolitionist movement and a ``clarion call'' for freedom. Today, the legacy of Harriet Beecher Stowe is carried on by the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center in Hartford, Connecticut. There, the Stowe Center carries on her passion and uses her story to inspire future generations to pick up the torch of social justice and carry forth the movement towards equal opportunity and justice for all. I want to acknowledge and congratulate the wonderful staff from the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center for their tireless work to continue to inspire the public will to eliminate racial disparities in America and the world. Happy 200th Birthday Mrs. Stowe.