Jim Moran

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, today I, along with my colleague John Culberson, are introducing the ``Civil War Artifact Authenticity Act'' that will curb the proliferation of fraudulent Civil War artifacts and memorabilia entering the legitimate market place. Since the last shot fired in America's Civil War, countless numbers of people across the Nation have become fascinated with this monumental conflict. From the battlefields of Virginia and Louisiana's Red River to the hallowed ground of Antietam, Gettysburg, and thousands of other places that saw brother fighting brother, this war touched virtually every part of this country and every home and hearth. More than 600,000 combatants died from battle, disease, and imprisonment. With the war's end, soldiers who fought in that conflict returned frequently, often with families in tow, to the places of the most stirring moments of their lives. They revered the fields on which they fought and established numerous associations, North and South, commemorating those who served. These veterans created strong links to their service and sacrifice, through their memoirs and other writings and the personal items and artifacts they carried on the battlefield and brought home to rest in conspicuous places on the mantles of their homes in recognition of the soldiers' service and sacrifice. Over the ensuing decades, as the soldiers and families who owned and cared for these artifacts died away, many of these heirlooms began to scatter, particularly as later generations forgot the importance of these historic belongings, failed to care for them, or sold the items to augment their incomes. With the arrival of the 100th anniversary of the Civil War, and the deaths of the last Union and Confederate soldier, respectively, in 1956 and 1961, people began to consider the importance of these relics, personal items, letters, diaries, and other memorabilia that the soldiers took home. Scholars and researchers, collectors, museum curators, and others who knew the historic importance of these artifacts have renewed the connections to the conflict and have sought to protect and preserve the Civil War's tangible heritage that the soldiers cherished. From the day the guns fell silent up until this moment, these artifacts and other memorabilia have helped us define and understand our Civil War. The personal artifacts of the Civil War have spawned a large and growing interest in the Civil War. Probably more books and articles have been written about the war than any other era in our history. Researchers, writers, curators, and many average Americans have felt the need to own, study and preserve what that long-gone generation once owned. These artifacts which now populate the homes, shops, museums, schools and any number of other venues have great meaning for many of us today. As a result, entrepreneurs have opened commercial establishments to trade these relics in honest commercial enterprise. The fascination with the Civil War has grown a new generation of sellers and collectors. Original artifacts and memorabilia have skyrocketed in value among collectors and others. A ``belt plate,'' which most people know as a buckle, sold for $5 in 1960, and now cost as much as $200 to a $1000 depending on the particular item. Sadly, unscrupulous people have opened new markets in fraudulent items that never saw the Civil War. As a result, the entry of fake items into the market for relics and artifacts not only cheats people financially, but also disrupts historical scholarship and the legitimate display in museums and other venues. Internet trade makes it easier for people to sell fake items to unschooled and unwary buyers because the con artists are unknown, many working overseas to flood the market with costly junk. To protect the true artifacts of the Civil War era, I propose new legislation designed to interfere with the manufacture and sale of fraudulent items, and increasing the awareness among sellers and buyers of the large trade in these fake items. Our bill would add a second title to existing Federal law, the ``Hobby Protection Act,'' which requires that fake political items and memorabilia, and numismatic items must have the words ``copy'' or ``facsimile'' clearly stamped on them to ensure that they are recognized as replicas or non-authentic items. Because original Civil War artifacts and memorabilia are highly prized and can reach into the thousands of dollars depending on the particular item, those determined to make a dishonest dollar, can easily replicate an original item, or worse, produce an item that is a pure fantasy piece--an artifact that never existed during the Civil War. While this legislation will not end the trafficking in fake Civil War items, it will provide sanctions through the Federal Trade Commission for manufacturers who purport to offer authentic Civil War relics and artifacts, when they are in fact fake junk. This legislation is essential if we want to ensure these artifacts and memorabilia of the Civil War era retain their historic importance for generations to come. I urge my colleagues to support the ``Civil War Artifact Authenticity Act.''

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Chairman, the function of this Congress is to answer the question: Who are we? And one of the most defining characteristics of who we are is that we are a meritocracy. That is the reason why we are as strong and as wealthy and as influential as we are all over the globe. People come from all parts of the globe to America because they know that they will be judged here on the basis of their goodness as a member of society and their ability as a contributor to our economy. That's all this legislation does. The people that it is directed to have no more control over their sexual orientation than the color of their skin. All we are saying is that you will be judged on your ability to contribute, not on any other artificial distinction. As a sponsor of ENDA, I would have favored the further amendment by Congresswoman Baldwin, but the fact is that this is a civil rights struggle, and struggles take time. But this measure today is a powerful sign of enlightenment and progressive change in America. It is defining legislation. I urge all my colleagues to vote for it.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank you for the time and rise in support of H.R. 3688, the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement. Peru has been a longstanding ally in the region with the war against illegal narcotics and has committed to opening its markets and providing American businesses, farmers, ranchers and workers the opportunity to establish economical ties in that country. Because of globalization and the benefits of growing business, cultural, and technological connectivity, Peru has become one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America with an 8 percent GDP growth in 2006. Our two-way trade with Peru has doubled over the last three years reaching $8.8 billion in 2006, with U.S. exports reaching $2.9 billion. However, because of the most-favored nation tariff rates and the various preference programs, including the Andean Trade Preference Act and the Generalized System of Preferences, 98 percent of Peru's exports enter the U.S. duty free. While Peru's number one source of imports comes from the United States, U.S. products are subject to tariffs as high as 20 percent. With this agreement, the playing field will even out for U.S. businesses and move us from a one sided agreement to a full partnership. Once this agreement enters into force, 80 percent of U.S. consumer and industrial products will enter Peru duty free, while remaining tariffs phase out over ten years. Like our past free trade agreements, Peru will prove to be beneficial to the U.S. economy. In the last 3 years, we have entered into several Free Trade Agreements with Chile, Singapore, Australia, Morocco, Bahrain, Oman, and several Central American nations and the Dominican Republic under CAFTA. And the results of these agreements have proven to be beneficial to the U.S. economy, businesses, and workers alike. Three years after the U.S.-Chile FTA entered into force, our exports more than doubled reaching nearly $7 billion last year. Likewise, our exports to Singapore nearly quintupled over the first three years also reaching $7 billion. In 2006, one year after implementing the CAFTA-DR FTA, the United States exported $19.6 billion worth of goods, up 16% from the previous year. In 2005, almost 4,000 companies exported goods from Virginia of which 82 percent were small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with fewer than 500 employees. But free trade agreements are more then just buying or selling products. They are also about adhering to sets of rules such as respect for intellectual property rights and with this agreement enforcement of international labor and environmental protections. A free trade agreement with Peru will establish greater protection for Intellectual Property rights, a growing concern for U.S. businesses and a particular concern for the N. VA technology community. It is estimated that intellectual property piracy costs the U.S. economy between $200 and $250 billion per year in lost sales and is responsible for the loss of 750,000 jobs. This agreement will improve standards for defending intellectual property by including state-of-the-art protections for digital products such as U.S. software, music, text, and video. Peru is the first free trade agreement that includes fully enforceable commitments to adopt and maintain fundamental labor rights as stated in the International Labor Organization's Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at work. This agreement will also include critical provisions emphasizing our commitment to our environmental values by addressing the impacts of illegal logging and establishing specific and enforceable requirements to prevent the trade in illegally sourced timber. Finally, this agreement will emphasize U.S. support for a country that values democracy, economic freedom and growth. Trade with Peru will continue to significantly increase opportunities for economic growth and help Peru further develop and modernize its economy. Recently, Peru has experienced a decline in their poverty rate from 54.3 percent in 2001 to 49.5 percent in 2006. As a friend of trade and of Peru, it is essential we continue to cultivate this partnership so our two nations can continue to prosper and be competitive in this growing global economy. I ask my colleagues to vote ``yes'' for the U.S.-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Conference Report on the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education and Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Appropriations bills. This bill begins to correct key deficits in biomedical research, elementary and secondary education, job training, and health care for veterans and civilians alike, and sets out a clear, sustainable vision for the future. I want to thank and congratulate Chairman Obey, Ranking Member Walsh, the Conferees and their staff for putting together such an excellent bill, one which will bring needed relief to so many of our constituents. The President, of course, has vowed to veto this bill, because he believes it costs too much, that we can't afford to make these investments in cancer research, in Head Start, in economic development. Meanwhile, the President is asking us to spend an additional $200 billion this year alone in his misguided war in Iraq. The amount by which this bill exceeds the President's request, $9.8 billion, would pay for approximately 1 month of that war. Instead, this bill would use that money to help States provide health coverage to people with pre- existing conditions, help college-ready low-income students afford higher education, and help low-income individuals and their families keep their homes warm in the wintertime--a wintertime that could well feature oil at costs in excess of $100 a barrel. The President says we can't afford to make these investments; I believe we can't afford not to. These are investments which pay dividends over time, investments which will keep America strong, competitive, and healthy. While I strongly support this Conference Report, I would be remiss if I didn't express my concern that this bill includes a $27.8 million increase for abstinence education programs, which research has shown to be ineffective, and worse, often medically inaccurate. Since 2001, we have spent more than $1 billion on these programs, some of which tell our children that using condoms is ``like Russian Roulette,'' and that HIV/AIDS can be transmitted through skin- to-skin contact. Madam Speaker, teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections are serious problems that demand serious solutions. Of course we should want to delay the onset of sexual activity in our children--what parent of a teenager wouldn't want that? But we cannot let that desire blind us to the very real fact that teenagers, despite our best intentions, will and do have sex, and that our wanting them not to does not absolve us of our obligation to protect them and keep them safe. Pretending that sexual activity among teenagers does not exist will not reduce the number of new sexually transmitted infections; it will not reduce the number of teenage girls who become pregnant; and it will not reduce the number of abortions performed every year. I want to thank Chairman Obey for including language in this Conference Report to ensure that programs will not be funded that are medically inaccurate. I hope that in the future, we can continue to work together to ensure that our children receive high quality, science-based, age-appropriate sex education that is medically sound and free from ideological or religious bias. Despite my concerns about this program, Madam Speaker, I am proud to support this important bill and urge my colleagues to do the same, so that we can get needed funds to these critical programs as soon as possible.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the McCrery substitute and in support of the Rangel-Levin-McDermott underlying bill. As we continue to expand and open our markets to new competition, we have an economic and a moral responsibility to ensure that our domestic workers are equipped with the necessary skills and tools to compete in a global market. I support free trade, which is all the more reason to support the reforms and expansion of a program that will help our workers adversely affected by trade and the globalization of our economy. It is estimated that more than 3 million service workers' jobs will go overseas by 2015, so the expansion of coverage to the service workers section is especially important and appropriate. But the McCrery substitute will limit trade assistance adjustment by not offering any support to service or public sector workers. The substitute will also set a cap on available training funds, denying many workers the tools and resources to be more competitive in the global economy. And as I read the language of the substitute, for the first time of the 70-year history of the unemployment insurance system, the substitute would allow States to deny unemployment insurance benefits to dislocated workers. The underlying bill provides American workers with the support and tools needed to expand job training opportunities and transition workers into 21st century jobs. This bill, H.R. 2930, triples the current job training cap to $660 million by 2010 and increases the health care premium subsidy to 85 percent. This is an important investment in the American workforce to enable Americans to remain competitive in the global economy. So I ask my colleagues to vote against the Republican substitute and vote for H.R. 2930, the McDermott-Rangel-Levin bill.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, as President Bush allows the war in Iraq to drag on, with no change in policy and no end in sight, it is important that we hear what our combat soldiers are saying on the front lines of that war. Over the weekend, The Washington Post published a story on the First Infantry Division of the First Battalion, which has been patrolling the streets of Baghdad for the last 14 months. Those troops are tired, bitter and skeptical. One such soldier told the reporter, and I am quoting, ``I don't think this place is worth another soldiers' life.'' Our soldiers are also frustrated that decisionmakers here in Washington don't fully realize what is going on. Quoting another soldier: ``They just know back there what the higher-ups tell them. But the higher-ups don't go anywhere, and actually they only go to the safe places with a little bit of gunfire. They don't see what we see on the ground.'' Having been to Iraq a number of times, as many of my colleagues have, how true that is. Madam Speaker, none of us in this Chamber can imagine what our soldiers go through on a daily basis in Iraq, but the White House needs to start listening to them. It is well past time to bring our sons and daughters home from this fiasco we call the war in Iraq.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I am prepared to yield back the balance of my time. I do want to thank Heath Bumgardner of my staff for doing the work on this. And I've enjoyed working with the Small Business Committee and their staff on both sides of the aisle.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I first want to thank the chairwoman of the Small Business Committee for her leadership in bringing this bill to the floor today. I appreciate the membership on both sides of the committee for finding an agreement on so many issues that are important to small businesses. They know that small businesses must overcome long odds and difficult obstacles in navigating the waters of Federal contracting. Size thresholds, growth requirements, endless paperwork and late contracts payments are all part of the challenges that competing small businesses regularly face. Yet there is another challenge that has been brought to my attention. Some small businesses, after being awarded a competitively bid contract, must face frivolous protests by the incumbent contractors just for the purposes of delaying the award of a contract. For an incumbent contractor, there is an economic incentive to protest an award, even if there is no substance to the challenge. The award to the small business is thus delayed, and the current contract is retained until the protest is concluded. It can take months or even years before the dispute is resolved by the government. In the meantime, the incumbent contractor can reap millions more for the extended contract that they had been granted previously but lost out on. These protests have serious consequences for many small businesses. During protests, the small businesses must cover their legal costs. Moreover, they must cover payroll and administrative costs for the workforce that they hired for the awarding contract. That's before they ever get paid by the Federal Government. These costs can cripple some small businesses that run on tight budgets without built- in overhead for the costly protests. In other words, it's an uneven playing field. This amendment will require the Small Business Administration to study the degree to which incumbent contractors are submitting frivolous protests to extend the length of current contracts. It's a problem I know exists because many of my constituent companies have, in fact, experienced it firsthand. The Small Business Administration's study will determine the number and the merit of GAO and SBA protests that are filed by incumbent contractors and analyze the number of extended contracts. It'll analyze the extra costs of extending contracts, including the costs to small businesses that won the initial award of those contracts, and the costs incurred by Federal agencies as a result. Finally, it will develop recommendations to ease the financial burden on small businesses during protests and offer recommendations to discourage frivolous protests made to squeeze small businesses. It's clear that not all incumbent contractors submit frivolous bids. But it's also equally clear that there are some built-in incentives for incumbents to submit protests that they know have little merit but, nevertheless, will enable them to profit by the delay. Mr. Chairman, I ask for support of this amendment so that small businesses can cope with frivolous incumbents' protests, and I look forward to working with the Small Business Committee on this ongoing issue of fairness. I will retain whatever time is left.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I thank my friend and colleague from Tennessee (Mr. Tanner). Mr. Speaker, the intent of this resolution is to recognize the outstanding work of the school, community and faith-based advocacy groups who, through their moral commitment and tireless efforts and countless hours of volunteer service, have helped bring needed attention to the genocide occurring in Darfur. Their efforts reflect the true spirit of Americans and bring hope to those who are facing historic atrocities halfway around the world. I want to particularly commend the students who are fueling this nationwide movement, urging action to stop genocide by educating their peers and holding us, their elected officials, accountable. And hold us accountable they have. I recently met with students from an organization whose primary goal is to form a nationwide anti- genocide coalition. This organization has more than 700 chapters, provides students with creative and effective organizing materials and policy and advocacy training. Recently, in my home State of Virginia, several outstanding students from the New School of Virginia held a 3- day conference where they educated fellow students about the genocide in Darfur. I was so moved by their sincere and energetic commitment to ending that genocide, I invited the students to Congress, where they were led by Semhar Araia and Lia Parada of my staff. These high school students briefed Members of Congress on their efforts to put pressure on the Government of Sudan to stop the genocide. Having given their peers numerous briefings on the situation in Darfur, these students took it upon themselves to ask poignant, pressing questions of our colleagues. Their message was clear: help us save Darfur. Having learned that villages have been razed, women systematically raped and branded, men murdered, and food and water supplies destroyed, they are determined to make a difference, and to continue speaking up until their government does the right thing. Now, we hear slogans from our President like, ``not on our watch,'' and we believe that he is sincere when he says that. But our society continues to be witness to a crisis as devastating as Rwanda. Our youth can't understand why it continues today, after years of knowing what has been going on, tens of thousands have died, hundreds of thousands are displaced and living in refugee camps. More than 2 million people have been driven from their homes. And over the last few years, we've seen major changes in U.S. foreign policy with respect to the ongoing crisis in Darfur, but a far more aggressive response is still needed. On July 22 of 2004, Congress declared that the atrocities unfolding in Darfur constituted genocide. On September 9 of that year, former Secretary of State Colin Powell stated that ``genocide has been committed in Darfur and that the Government of Sudan and the janjaweed bear responsibility.'' On April 18 of this year, President George Bush asserted that the United States has a moral obligation to help end the genocide in Darfur. But it still goes on. Had it not been for the grass-roots effort to pressure the administration and other national governments on this humanitarian crisis, I doubt we would see the United Nations African Union peacekeepers in Darfur. But we have got to do so much more. The mission is not complete. Just last month, on September 29, an estimated 1,000 members of a heavily armed Darfur rebel group overran a base in Haskanita, which is occupied by the African Union Mission. This ambush resulted in intense fighting that killed 10 peacekeepers and wounded many others; 50 soldiers are still missing. According to U.N. estimates, in the aftermath of the brutal attack, 15,000 civilians had to flee the area to neighboring towns or the wilderness. The effort and resources put into resolving this conflict pale compared to what the President has requested for Iraq. Clearly, there's so much more that we as a Nation could be doing to end this crisis. The humanitarian situation is not improving. African Union peacekeeping forces are limited to only 7,000 troops. As evidenced by the attack on Haskanita, it is unlikely that their efforts alone will ensure any real meaningful progress. We've got to keep pressuring the Sudanese Government and build support for a larger peacekeeping force. More Americans need to speak out day in, day out, like these students are. We cannot continue to allow the raping, the massacreing, the displacement of people to continue. These students are asking us to hear them, to act, and to bring to bear the strength of the nations of the world to address this conflict. That's why I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this resolution that recognizes those who have selflessly devoted themselves to raising awareness of the crisis in Darfur.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I thank Mr. Royce for bringing up this issue. Mr. Speaker, it's terribly important, it's all about man's inhumanity to mankind. Here China envisions itself becoming a superpower in the 21st century, hosting the world's Olympics. We, in the United States, are buying tens of billions of dollars of goods from China. China has the opportunity to take its place among the nations of the world that matter, that do the right thing, that lead us into the future. What a terrific opportunity for China to show that it has a moral fiber, that it knows right from wrong, that it is not an amoral totalitarian state. It knows, beyond any shadow of a doubt, the horrific conditions within which the North Korean people exist today, barely surviving. Yet, out of total desperation, when they are able to escape North Korea, do the Chinese help? No. They make it worse. It's as though they have escaped from some purgatory into hell where they get beaten up by the Chinese and then sent back to North Korea, probably to be executed. This is a situation that just cries out for people around the world to speak up. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Royce has given us that opportunity in the House of Representatives today.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the Children's Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2007. Truly, we face a health care crisis in this country--in the richest country on Earth, 46 million Americans do not have health insurance, including 9 million children. Today's bipartisan, bicameral compromise is not a perfect solution to that problem but is a decisive, strong step towards covering uninsured kids and fulfilling our moral obligation to our children. In my home state of Virginia, the CHIP program currently provides coverage to 137,642 low-income children each year; 171,642 children in Virginia remain uninsured, and the CHIP Reauthorization Act will help us cover 74,200 of these children. The CHIP Reauthorization Act will ensure that these children have access to high quality health care, including the preventative services that children need to be healthy and successful in school and later in life. This bill will provide dental and mental health benefits on par with medical and surgical services--truly ensuring that the whole child's health is provided for. The CHIP Reauthorization Act does this without increasing the deficit, by increasing the Federal excise tax on cigarettes. In my view as chairman of the Congressional Prevention Caucus, an increase in the Federal tobacco tax is sound public health policy. It provides a reliable revenue source to offset the costs of expanding coverage to low-income children and it will reduce health care costs in this country by reducing the prevalence of chronic disease. This bill also addresses a serious problem arising from the implementation of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005. Opponents of this responsible, common-sense, humane adjustment claim that language in the 2005 Deficit Reduction Act, DRA, that imposed harsher citizenship verification requirements on state Medicaid programs, is the only barrier protecting taxpayer dollars from being spent on healthcare for illegal immigrants. Madam Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. First and foremost, existing Federal law and provisions in the CHIP Reauthorization Act prevent Federal funds from being spent to provide benefits for illegal immigrants. Section 605 specifically states that ``nothing in this act allows Federal payment for individuals who are not legal immigrants.'' Illegal immigrants have never been eligible for Medicaid, and nothing in the CHIP Reauthorization Act would change that fact. Secondly, the DRA requirements have overwhelmingly failed to save taxpayer dollars. Instead, they have imposed substantial additional costs on taxpayers while reducing health care benefits available to poor children. Wait times have skyrocketed, and measures to streamline the application process have been rendered impossible. Third, these draconian requirements, which are far stricter than those employed by other government programs, have caused tens of thousands of U.S. citizen children to lose health insurance coverage. In Virginia, there was a net decline of more than 11,000 children enrolled in Medicaid during the first 9 months of implementation. Kansas has seen a net decline of 14,000 children. The Virginia State Medicaid Office has identified a total of two undocumented immigrants during this period. The debate about reauthorizing SCHIP should be about the public health and improving the health of our children. In a recent survey, 90 percent of parents applying for Medicaid for their children indicated that they have no other health coverage available. Allowing State flexibility in citizenship verification is sound public health policy that would enable thousands of American children access to vital health services to help them live better, healthier, and more productive lives. Twenty-four Senators, twelve Governors, and fifty-one other House Members joined me in requesting that this important provision be included. I thank the Committees for including this provision, and for working with our Republican colleagues to improve the provision and ensure that SCHIP and Medicaid serve the low-income American children they were aimed at. Reauthorizing SCHIP is sound public health policy--research shows that children who have access to health insurance are substantially more likely to access key preventative services, miss fewer days of school due to illness, get better grades, and continue to have superior outcomes later in life. Moreover, the financial benefits of covering children vastly outweigh the costs--one need only compare the cost of a visit to a primary care provider to the cost of a night spent in the emergency room to see this. But above all, covering all our children is a moral imperative--it is the only possible humane, responsible course of action. I urge a yes vote on the underlying bill, and furthermore, would urge the President, in the strongest possible terms, not to veto this vitally needed, responsible legislation to cover the most vulnerable members of our society: our children.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today on behalf of myself and Representative Tom Davis, my distinguished colleague from Virginia, to recognize the accomplishments of Alvin W. Smuzynski Jr., upon his retirement as President and Chief Executive Officer of Wesley Housing Development Corporation of Northern Virginia. Dedicated to increasing affordable housing in Northern Virginia, Mr. Smuzynski served as Commissioner on the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority, and as a Board member, Board Chairman, and President and CEO of Wesley Housing. Having spent nearly three decades expanding affordable housing, making rental properties available to low and moderate-income families in the metropolitan area was always at the top of Mr. Smuzynski's agenda. Mr. Smuzynski led Wesley Housing admirably; he was a pioneer dedicated to ensuring that entire communities throughout Northern Virginia would have the opportunity to acquire decent, affordable housing. During his tenure as President and CEO, more than half of the organization's 1,267 units were built or acquired. Under his leadership, Wesley Housing achieved the Housing Association of Nonprofit Developers' (HAND) 2006 Developer of the Year Award and Leadership Fairfax's Regional Leadership Award. In 1999, under the direction of Mr. Smuzynski, the Wesley Agape House was completed. This 12-unit apartment house for individuals and children living with HIV/AIDS was the first project of this type in Northern Virginia. His advocacy efforts were essential to establishing a non-competitive tax credit pool for preservation projects in Northern Virginia. In 2005, his work with the Washington Metro Bankers' Northern Virginia Affordable Housing Alliance resulted in the establishment of Fairfax County's innovative ``Penny for Housing Fund.'' The trust fund supports preservation and development of affordable housing. Always looking to lead the way, Mr. Smuzynski forged ahead on innovative projects. He built Northern Virginia's only barrier-free apartment community for low-income, severely physically disabled individuals--the 22-unit Coppermine Place I in Herndon. This award winning apartment community was selected as HAND's 2007 Best Project in Northern Virginia and the Accessible Design Award by the Coalition for Housing Opportunities In the Community for Everyone, Inc. (CHOICE) award. Truly, Mr. Smuzynski's career has left behind a legacy of perseverance, innovation and numerous successes. He has earned the reputation over the years of being the leader in providing affordable housing, and will long be remembered for his dedication and commitment to Virginians. I wish all the best to him and his family in his retirement.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, the Congressional Budget Office just released an analysis that on top of the half a trillion dollars that we have already spent on the war in Iraq, it will cost us another $2 trillion over the next decade. That includes $564 million of interest, because every dime of this war in Iraq has been borrowed, from our children and from our grandchildren. It will come to a greater cost than the cost of the Korean, the Vietnam War and all three theaters of operation in World War II. It boils down to about $7,000 for every man, woman and child. And here we thought the only real sacrifice was being borne by our soldiers and their families. We are beginning to see the real implications for all of America. In fact, just last week, the President vetoed a bill that would have cost $35 billion but would have provided health care to 10 million children over the next 5 years and at the same time demanded that we instead spend that same amount of money for 3 weeks in Iraq. This is not what America expects from its President or its Congress, Madam Speaker.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague Mr. Cardoza from California for yielding. I also want to express solidarity with the concerns and expressions of sympathy expressed by the Speaker for the residents of California who are so afflicted by this terribly uncontrollable act of nature. I know the entire Congress, if they had the opportunity, would want to stand up and speak out on behalf of those very same sentiments. We hope they can get that fire under control and that the people that have been displaced are able to find other housing and some safety. It's certainly one of the worst natural disasters. None of us can imagine what it would be like to be in the line of fire. Mr. Speaker, my primary purpose for rising today is to express support for the legislation that has been introduced by my good friend and Virginia colleague Congressman Rick Boucher. It's an extraordinary proposal for what it accomplishes in the way of conservation and wilderness protection but also for the collaborative effort it represents to bring different public land uses together to the table and craft a proposal that almost everybody can and does support. In fact, Republican Senator John Warner, the dean of our delegation, has sponsored it over on the Senate side. The Virginia Ridge and Valley Act will protect nearly 43,000 acres of the Jefferson National Forest in southwestern Virginia as wilderness or wilderness study areas and another 12,000 acres as scenic areas. Today, wilderness designations are often very controversial. That's because our public lands are visited more frequently by a much more diverse and engaged public, a public that now holds very different views oftentimes and expectations on how the public land should be used. As a result, we have seen fewer and fewer wilderness designations work their way through Congress. That's unfortunate because saving some of our last pristine public lands from resource extraction is an obligation and should, in fact, be a legacy we can pass on to future generations. My colleague from Virginia, however, is a very persistent colleague. And the time that he and the conservation community have invested to find middle ground and build a consensus to support this legislation is a model that other conservation groups around the country should look to to enact wilderness legislation. It can be done, but it takes that kind of commitment, persistent dedication that Mr. Boucher has shown. This legislation will protect the scenic and undisturbed character of pristine areas of the Jefferson National Forest. Now, while all terrain and four-wheel-drive vehicles are prohibited in the wilderness areas, recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, camping, canoeing, kayaking, swimming, picnicking, backpacking, bird watching, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, spelunking, rock climbing, and so many other outdoor activities are allowed and, in fact, encouraged. So it is not that the public can't be fully and actively engaged in enjoying this land. But motorized traffic will be permitted only in certain circumstances in the 12,000 acres that have been designated as national scenic areas. This legislation, though, will protect the recreational, historic, and natural resources in the delineated areas in a manner that is generally similar to the protections wilderness status affords. By finding consensus, this bill has won the endorsement of all the local governments and the counties that it would affect. It is supported by a broad array of businesses and chambers of commerce and enjoys broad support from conservation organizations. So I encourage all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bill. It's a fine bill, and I congratulate Mr. Boucher for bringing it forward.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, from 1942 through the end of the Second World War, a top secret military intelligence service operated clandestinely on the shores of our own Potomac River. At Fort Hunt Park, along the GW Parkway, a secret installation operated silently in the shadows of our Nation's Capital. Known only by its mailing address, P.O. Box 1142, the men and women at this post provided the military intelligence that helped bring an end to World War II and gave the United States an early advantage in the Cold War. P.O. Box 1142 was an interrogation center. Throughout the war and its aftermath, the post processed and interrogated nearly 4,000 of the most important German prisoners of war. The men who performed the interrogations were drawn from across the country. The shared attribute is that they all spoke fluent German to be able to interact with their captives. Many were Jewish, to ensure their loyalty to America's mission. And most had friends and family battling on the front lines against Nazi Germany. To them, the war was personal and would impact their lives forever. Despite these circumstances, their interrogations never resorted to torture, used violence, or implemented cruel tactics to obtain the vital information required to support our Nation at war. Instead, their most effective interrogation technique was to start a dialogue to develop trust with their captives. They all talked with their captives, played card games, took walks, discussed their lives, and ultimately obtained the necessary information from their captives. Despite the apparent simplicity of these methods, these interrogations resulted in the discovery of most of Germany's secret weapons programs. P.O. Box 1142 learned about research to develop the atomic bomb, the jet engine and the V-2 rocket, all technologies that became essential informational components in waging the Cold War. The detainment and interrogation of high-ranking German officials, such as Reinhard Gehlen, who ran the German intelligence operations, advanced our military intelligence operations well beyond the Soviet Union's capabilities. In advancing the Nation's interests and uncovering vital secrets, the interrogators at P.O. Box 1142 never resorted to tactics such as sleep deprivation, electrical shock, or waterboarding. Their captives were never sexually abused, humiliated, or tortured. They never resorted to the methods that have recently branded our Nation so negatively. As a result of the war on terror, I'm afraid that America is now haunted by lasting images of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay. The current intelligence community can learn from the men of P.O. Box 1142. For all our sake, I hope it's not too late. Despite the vital work that the interrogators at P.O. Box 1142 performed, their activities remained closely held secrets by those who worked at the post. Many of these men never told family or loved ones. It wasn't until park rangers from the GW Memorial Parkway uncovered declassified documents and met former officers of P.O. Box 1142 that the operations that occurred at Fort Hunt Park during World War II became known. Under the encouragement of the National Park Service, these park rangers identified veterans of P.O. Box 1142. They conducted professional oral history interviews. The deeper the park rangers dug, the more obvious it became they had discovered a remarkable story that had remained unrecognized by the officers because of their oath of secrecy. After 2 years of work, the National Park Service decided it was time for the men of P.O. Box 1142 to finally be acknowledged. On October 5 and 6, the National Park Service held the first-ever reunion of the veterans of P.O. Box 1142 at Fort Hunt Park. The veterans raised the American flag in the post's original flag pole setting and memorialized the grounds. Today, I'm proud to play a small part in giving justified credit for the tremendous work performed at P.O. Box 1142. Along with my northern Virginia colleagues, Congressmen Tom Davis and Frank Wolf, I'm introducing a long, overdue resolution to honor the men of P.O. Box 1142. Mr. Speaker, I extend my appreciation to these veterans. The Nation owes a great debt to them for their sacrifice to our Nation during a time of war for their pursuit of critical intelligence, while maintaining the highest level of integrity and America's moral values, and for their intrepid actions that have, until very recently, gone unacknowledged.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Virtually every American has been impacted in one way or another by this deadly disease. More than 3 million women currently live with breast cancer. Each year tens of thousands of our wives, our mothers, our daughters will die from it. One of our colleagues, Congresswoman Jo Ann Davis, was just taken before her time from breast cancer. Unfortunately, despite medical advances, breast cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer death among American women. In the United States, one in seven will develop the disease during her lifetime. But still a cure remains elusive. Congress hasn't given up the fight. H.R. 1157, the Breast Cancer and Environmental Research Act, and H.R. 715, the Annie Fox Act, are two bills that would bring crucial Federal support to two key areas of breast cancer research: research into environmental causes of the disease, and research into the causes of the disease in young women who tend to develop more aggressive forms of it. Additionally, in this year's Defense appropriations bill, $127.5 million was approved by the House for breast cancer research. Women all over the country are organizing to raise national awareness. The Alexandria, Virginia Walk for Breast Cancer Awareness this Saturday is a prime example of the activism which is bound to make a difference in our daughters' lives.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the grand reopening of T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, VA. T.C. Williams, which serves Alexandria City Public Schools students in grades ten through twelve, recently completed a massive renovation and modernization project in time to open for the start of the 2007-2008 school year. The modernization of T.C. Williams High School has brought a state- of-the art, 21st-century learning experience to 1,997 Alexandria City high school students. The entirely new building includes computers in more classrooms, a fully-integrated fiber optic network, a new media center, and a completely automated library, making T.C. Williams among the best technologically equipped schools in the country. In addition to vastly improving the educational experience of Alexandria's high school students, the T.C. Williams school modernization project has won awards for architectural excellence and environmentally-friendly building features. The school was honored by an independent jury of architects, engineers and general contractors in the local building community as Educational Project of the Year in Mid- Atlantic Construction magazine's Best of 2007 awards program. This year, Mid-Atlantic Construction had a record number of entries for its Best of 2007 awards, and honored T.C. Williams along with 45 other projects in 16 categories. The T.C. Williams reconstruction was also honored with a Green Innovation Award from the Virginia Sustainable Building Network, which named it the Best Institutional Project of the year. The building, which adheres to the standards and principles of the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED 2.1 Green Building Rating System, includes a number of environmentally innovative features, such as an advanced storm water management and reuse system, water conservation measures and energy-saving air conditioning operations, and a permanent measurement and verification system to track water and energy usage at the facility. Madam Speaker, I commend the leadership of the Alexandria City Public Schools and T.C. Williams High School, along with the architects and builders involved, for all their work to make the modernization of T.C. Williams a reality, and for their dedication to renovating the school in a way that was both architecturally and environmentally innovative. I am proud to have such a state-of-the-art facility available to educate the students of Virginia's 8th Congressional District.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Chairman, the fact is that Americans are in a crisis in terms of affordable housing today. This is the most programmatically rational and fiscally responsible way to address that crisis. I strongly support Mr. Frank's bill, and I appreciate him offering this opportunity for the Congress as a whole to show that we really can make a positive difference in people's lives. I would appreciate some clarification on one aspect of the bill, however. Within the bill, at least 75 percent of the funds are set aside for families whose incomes are no more than 30 percent of the area median income, and at least 10 percent is for people whose income is more than 50 percent of the area median income. That only leaves about 15 percent of the trust fund available to be flexibly used by localities. I represent the Washington suburbs where housing is extraordinarily high, not dissimilar from the Boston suburbs that the chairman represents. Many of these families and governments are concerned that there will not be the opportunity to address the crisis that their middle-class families are facing in housing. In fact, there are more than 50,000 families in northern Virginia who are paying over 30 percent of their income for housing but who are at about 100 percent of the area median income. What I would like to ask the chairman to do is to clarify how we can address that affordable housing need within this bill's parameters.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. That is very helpful.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express deepest condolences on the passing of my fellow colleague from Virginia, the Honorable Jo Ann Davis. During her time in Congress, Jo Ann was a strong advocate for her constituents and an active voice on issues affecting the Commonwealth. As Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee, Jo Ann was well-positioned and a successful advocate for her district's economic bread and butter--the shipbuilding and national defense industry. Regarding our joint efforts to grant federal recognition to Virginia's six state-recognized tribes, Jo Ann was a passionate and helpful ally. Her familiarity with the tribes' issues and her testament as to their traditional values and practices helped pave the way for the recognition bill's passage in the House. I am grateful that, despite her failing health, she lived to see the bill receive the unanimous support of her colleagues. Jo Ann will be deeply missed both within Congress and the Virginia delegation. Our hearts and prayers go out to her husband Chuck Davis, her two sons, and their entire extended family as they cope with the loss of their beloved wife, mother and citizen legislator.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, there are as many private contractors in Iraq as U.S. soldiers on the ground. Outsourcing our military should be a cause for concern for all Americans, but the recent uncovering of indiscriminate hostility toward Iraqi civilians and unprovoked killings by security contractors in Iraq is a siren warning that demands immediate attention. Blackwater, a company that has reaped over $110 million from the taxpayers since 2006 in U.S. contracts, offers one of the most egregious examples of what is wrong with our occupation of Iraq. Last week, Blackwater security protecting State Department officials opened fire in a Baghdad neighborhood, and in what appears to be an unprovoked incident, Blackwater guards killed at least 11 innocent Iraqi civilians and wounded 12 others. But because of a decree delivered in 2004 by our Ambassador Paul Bremer on his last day on the job, these contractors are granted immunity from Iraqi law and will likely face no charges at home. This lack of accountability is anathema to our fundamental principle of equal justice under the law and exemplifies why the occupation of Iraq has been such a failure.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I thank the chairman of the Judiciary Committee and Mr. Price for bringing this legislation forward. It is fully consistent with what the vast majority of this House voted for in the report language in the Defense appropriations bill. It needs to be done. I have to tell you that after talking with so many soldiers in Iraq and those who have returned from Iraq, it is desperately urgent that we do it because things are out of control. The fact is that many of these contractors, not all of them, but too many of them are acting with impunity. They tell me that they will work all day trying to communicate and working with the people in a village, trying to understand their customs and the like and show them respect, and then it is undermined by the actions of these security contractors who don't understand the language, who don't show the kind of respect that our soldiers do, who get paid almost three times what our soldiers get paid. It is undermining our mission in Iraq. The fact is that this is not what America is about, conducting oneself with impunity. America is about equal justice under the law. It is about protecting the preciousness of human life, particularly innocent life. It is not about outsourcing our inherent military functions, giving a contractor $1 billion since 2004 and having 200 incidents of misconduct reported by that very contractor. This legislation is necessary. Let's pass it overwhelmingly. Let's send that message to our soldiers.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act of 2007. As an original cosponsor of this legislation, I commend the majority and minority managers and urge strong support for this measure to support human rights, democracy, independence of the judiciary, freedom of the press, peacekeeping capacity building, and economic development in the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia; to collaborate with Ethiopia in the Global War on Terror; to seek the release of all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Ethiopia; to foster stability, democracy, and economic development in the region; and, finally, to strengthen U.S.-Ethiopian relations. This is a message not just to the leadership in Ethiopia, but also to the Secretary of State to take specified actions to support human rights and democratization in Ethiopia. This important legislation expresses the sense of Congress that we should encourage the government of Ethiopia to enter into discussions with peaceful political groups to bring them into full participation in Ethiopia's political and economic affairs. We need to provide the necessary assistance to help achieve such a goal, so this legislation directs the President to provide Ethiopia with resource policy assistance and health care assistance. This legislation is crafted to seek a balance and return democracy to one of the African continent's oldest democracies. Northern Virginia is home to one of the largest African immigrant populations in America, with significant numbers of Nigerians, Ethiopians, Eritreans, Somalians, and Ghanaians. They both enrich our culture, and enrich our appreciation of what a return to democracy in Ethiopia could mean. Ethiopia's peoples--in my District, in our country, and in Africa are the proud representatives of a great and ancient civilization. I believe we have an opportunity and responsibility to them to help restore democracy, human rights, and the rule of law--goals they want desperately for their own country. It should be our country's policy as well to promote these objectives which correspond to our long-term interests. What it ought not to mean was last summer's sentencing of 35 opposition politicians and activists to life in prison--in a case where the prosecution had asked for the death penalty against the defendants, who included Ethiopia's top opposition leaders. Those sentenced to life imprisonment include the leader of the Coalition for Unity and Democracy, Hailu Shawel; Berhanu Nega, who was elected mayor of Addis Ababa; former Harvard scholar Mesfin Woldemariam; and former U.N. special envoy and former Norfolk State University professor, Yacob Hailemariam. Thus, this is an important step for the Congress to take to foster accountability for the actions the Ethiopian government has taken that undermine rule of law and fundamental political freedoms. It is an important act to restrict security assistance for Ethiopia until such time as the President certifies that, among other things, the government of Ethiopia has taken steps to release political prisoners, hold security forces accountable for human rights abuses related to the demonstrations of 2005, and the Meles regime is respecting freedom of speech and information and allowing human rights groups to operate without being harassed. For, as our colleague Chris Smith said, ``Terrorism is not just a military issue; it is also a human rights issue. Terrorists come from countries whose governments failed to respect their human rights. In promoting human rights in Ethiopia, we are attacking terrorism at its roots.'' It is for this reason that the bill also contains provisions for economic assistance and health care assistance for victims of torture, and it authorizes $20 million in 2008 and $20 million in 2009 to carry out these provisions. Equally important, this legislation is intended to promote accountability for the killing of innocent civilians by government security forces, to build the institutions of democracy, and to provide meaningful support for human rights and those who defend them in Ethiopia. It requires our Secretary of State to support human rights by establishing a mechanism to provide funds to local human rights organizations and victims' support networks to provide legal support for political prisoners and prisoners of conscience. In this legislation, we require the Secretary of State to put in place a means to identify and extradite members of the Mengistu regime currently residing in the United States. We are trying, through this effort today, to balance this demand for accountability by supporting democratization through directing the State Department to provide assistance to strengthen local, regional, and national democratic processes through training authorities, political parties, and civil society groups in negotiation skills, campaign management, and election monitoring. The legislation bars non-humanitarian assistance to Ethiopia if the ruling party obstructs U.S. efforts to provide human rights and democracy assistance and training within Ethiopia. It makes it illegal for members of the security forces who have committed human rights violations against civilians to receive U.S. security assistance training. This bill does provide flexibility for the administration by providing a waiver the President can exercise to continue security assistance to programs with Ethiopia that support U.S. efforts on the Global War on Terror and the Ethiopians' efforts in United Nations peacekeeping and whatever is deemed necessary for the U.S. national interests. Mr. Speaker, we cannot and must not remain silent, but rather we have an obligation to do much more in order to promote the rule of law and respect for fundamental freedoms in Ethiopia--a very proud country with a tremendous heritage and history. We want to see Ethiopia move back, as it has in the past, to being our good ally. We can no longer allow this situation to fester.

Mr. MORAN of Virginia

Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Madam Speaker, over the past four years, our troops in Iraq have been supplanted by another army of equal size--the contracting force. There are as many private contractors in Iraq as U.S. soldiers on the ground. Outsourcing our military is cause for concern in and of itself. But the recent uncovering of indiscriminate hostility toward Iraqi civilians and unprovoked killings by security contractors in Iraq is a sirens warning that demands immediate attention. Blackwater--a company that has reaped over $110 million since January 2006 in U.S. contracts--offers the most egregious example of what is wrong with our occupation of Iraq. Last week, Blackwater security protecting State Department officials, opened fire in a Baghdad neighborhood. In what appears to be an unprovoked incident, Blackwater guards killed at least 11 innocent Iraqi civilians and wounded 12 others. But because of a decree delivered in 2004 by former Ambassador Paul Bremer--on his last day on the job--these contractors are granted immunity from Iraqi law and will likely face no charges at home. The lack of accountability is anathema to our fundamental principle of justice and exemplifies why the occupation of Iraq is a failure. Congress must not be silent less we become complicit in these acts. The longer we stay in Iraq under the terms of the current occupation the more these incidents which undermine our international credibility will occur.