Gregory Meeks

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 567, as amended.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 567) to establish an interagency program to assist countries in North and West Africa to improve immediate and long-term capabilities to counter terrorist threats, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for closing. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the ranking member for his partnership in working together to bring this bipartisan legislation to the floor, because as we all have found, COVID-19, which has caused global disruption unlike any other in recent memory, is not a Democratic issue; it is not a Republican issue; it is all of our issue. It is an issue for all of us, not just here in the United States, but around the world. Coming together on the committee, as we generally do, is extremely important, working together to get this done. As we begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel of this pandemic, the United States must seize the opportunity and learn the lessons and best practices from the crisis so that we can be better prepared to respond to any future and similar threats to the U.S. national and global security. COVID-19 caught America off guard, but the Global Health and Security Act will ensure that this never happens again. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Connolly and Mr. Chabot for their work on this legislation and for recognizing the vital importance of global health security as part of America's national security. Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly), the president of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly and a valued member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 391, the Global Health Security Act of 2021. As the saying goes: ``An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,'' and that is undoubtedly true in global health. Pandemics don't respect borders and they don't care about nationalities, and we are seeing that play out on the front pages of the news these days as the coronavirus pandemic continues to cause severe disruptions around the world. Over the past few years, global health security has become increasingly tied to U.S. national security, as evidenced by not only our experience with COVID-19, but also previous pandemics, such as Ebola and Zika, both overseas and at home. Having a coordinated, whole-of-government approach to prepare for and respond to these threats is critical. We must build on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Global Health Security Agenda, which the United States has committed to, helps countries invest in preparedness and strengthens systems that prevent, detect, and respond to disease outbreaks. H.R. 391, a bipartisan bill by Representative Connolly and Representative Chabot, would institutionalize the best practices the United States has learned in global health security. This bill establishes an interagency review council to not only advance global health security, but also mandates a U.S. Global Health Security Coordinator to manage the U.S. response in these emergencies and allow the interagency review council to speak with one voice. I believe this person should be at the National Security Council as the natural nexus between diplomacy, development, and defense. This person would help build capacity, apply lessons learned, and prepare for the future. While I am heartened to see that the Biden administration has recently appointed such a person to tackle the pandemic that we are facing, this legislation would create a permanent position focused on U.S. global health security. Furthermore, this bill would require the U.S. Global Health Security Coordinator to develop a strategy and regularly report to Congress on the progress the United States is making toward making global health security a core national security interest. Finally, this bill outlines a framework to leverage assistance to increase contributions from other donors, along the lines of the Global Fund, to support global health security activities around the world. This bill passed the House multiple times in the past, and is more timely than ever as we continue to address COVID-19 and seek to prepare ourselves for the next outbreak. So I would like to thank Representative Connolly and Representative Chabot for their work on this legislation over the past several years and for recognizing the vital importance of global health security as part of America's national security. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 391) to authorize a comprehensive, strategic approach for United States foreign assistance to developing countries to strengthen global health security, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 391, as amended.

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3261) to repeal the Authorization for the Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution.

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, I rise today in tribute to the honorable life of Archie Spigner, whom I will remember as a distinguished constituent, friend, and mentor. Archie was and will always be my Jackie Robinson. The road for Black political leaders in my district, in Queens and in New York City is a much smoother one today because Archie paved that road for us. However, metaphorical roads were not the only ones he dedicated his life to. Archie knew the streets of Southeast Queens better than anyone I've ever met. As a public servant for over 20 years, Archie spent his career building better roads, as well as better schools, train lines, senior programs, housing programs, and sewers. It was often said that the roads to public office in our neighborhoods ran through Archie. His life was truly dedicated to our community, and his accomplishments are evidence. Born in South Carolina during the height of Jim Crow and segregation, Archie leaves this Earth as the godfather of politics in Queens and boasts several Black elected officials including myself that called him ``mentor''. While studying parliamentary procedure he became a steward at a shoe factory which led to his career advocating for the common worker. As a labor organizer, he met A. Philip Randolph, one of the principal architects of the March on Washington. He founded the Queens Branch of the Negro American Labor Council right out of his living room. His work as an organizer put him in close contact with his political mentors including Assembly Member Guy R. Brewer and State Supreme Court Justice Kenneth Browne. While attending Queens College of the City of University of New York where he would earn his bachelor's degree, he worked as the liaison to the African American community for Queens Borough President Sidney Leviss. Soon after the New York City Council was expanded, Archie was elected to represent the 27th District, where he would go on to serve for 27 years. During his tenure, he chaired three committees: The Legislative Office of Budget Review, Economic Development, and Housing and Buildings. His work with the budget review office led to the creation of the ever-important independent budget office. He also championed some of the borough's first Business Improvement Districts and Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise Programs while on the Economic Development Committee. Somehow he managed to have ``free'' time and spent it serving as Deputy Majority Leader and Co-Chair of the Queens Delegation. Archie spent every moment he could helping his community and his accomplishments are all over Queens. He established mandatory sensitivity trainings for every police precinct in the city. He helped create York College, along with many new middle and high schools. He codified protections against red lining and worked on a number of infrastructure projects, including the incorporation of the E train extension, new sewers, street rehabilitation, and the New Social Security building. The systemic problems being grappled by this House today were no strangers to Archie, and he dedicated a career in public office to alleviating those burdens that continuously plague underserved communities. Mostly, however, Archie just wanted to help his neighbors. Before I first ran for Congress, Archie told me, ``make sure you always help people, be honest with people, and stay on the ground.'' After his tenure as a City Council Member, Archie went back to his neighborhood and became a district leader in the Queens County Democratic Party and was head of the Guy R. Brewer United Democratic Club, named after his old mentor. Cementing his mark on the community, I introduced a bill in 2004 to rename a St. Albans post office after him, which at the time, was the only commemoration of its kind to be ever given to a living person. At the commemorating ceremony, schoolchildren sang, ``if Archie Spigner works for you, clap your hands,'' which was a line greeted with roaring applause. The Book of Matthew tells us that ``when the Son of Man comes in his glory,'' he will sit on his throne and judge both the living and the dead, saying the following to those who are to be saved: ``Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'' I do not find it difficult to imagine what kind of person from our time will be destined to join in God's glory. I have had the pleasure of knowing someone so vehemently dedicated to improving the lives of their fellow man. That person was Archie Spigner. He pursued criminal justice and equities in economic and housing opportunities that demonstrated a passion for loving his neighbor as he would himself. He worked for reform in his community so that more could prosper and share in the promise of this country. He was both an idol American and Christian, and it is an honor to have known him.

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of my late constituent, friend, and mentor, David Bluford. David lived a life dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge, and to the betterment of the people around him. He was a husband, father, writer, educator, scholar, and a leader to his community. While so many people might spend their lives and careers scrambling for wealth or power, David was the embodiment of a public servant. In his decades as an educator, he served as a college professor, high school principal, junior high school teacher and the director of the Upward Bound program at Queens College. David's colleagues remember how fervently he advocated for the students. His students remember him for the way he guided them towards wisdom, and towards greater versions of themselves. As a young man and throughout his life, David sought out opportunities to develop himself in all aspects. He was inducted into the Fayetteville State University Basketball Hall of Fame and served in the Korean War. He studied Education and Political Philosophy at five different colleges including Walden College and Columbia University, ultimately earning his PhD. David was also a talented writer. He wrote for papers including the New York Voice, New York Daily News, and the National Association of Secondary Principals, where he wrote a guide for new principals preparing to work in underserved communities, as he did during his career. Though he was an excellent leader, David didn't treat education like a strict hierarchy, rather an exchange. He never stopped learning, and he inspired other educators around him to continue to learn, too. He treated his students with dignity. One of David's favorite quotes, said by Confucius, was ``Choose the job you love, and you will never work a day in your life.'' What David loved was service. He didn't just have a community-oriented career, but a community-oriented lifestyle. He was Chairman of the Alpha Phi Alpha Senior Citizens Center in Queens, and a recipient of countless awards-- including New York City School District 29's Distinguished Service Award, the Outstanding Educator Award from the NAACP's board in Jamaica, New York, the Jackie Robinson Junior High School Man of the Year Award. He participated in several service-oriented organizations including the Urban League, the Lebanon Lodge of Jamaica, and 32 Degree Shriner. David's wife of 62 years, Renee, their children, and their grandchildren all remember his devotion to his family, his warm heart, and his graceful nature towards humanity. As a husband, a father, and a grandfather, he leaves an everlasting mark on those who were so blessed to know him. In all aspects of his life, David Bluford was authentic. When the opportunity presented itself to help someone else, to share knowledge, or to be a resource, he seized that opportunity. Few fields let us serve our communities as directly as education does. David taught more than just English or Philosophy--he taught character. In being such a brilliant example to his students and fellow community members, David inspired change in countess lives. When he as just 17 years old, David converted to Catholicism and so began a new relationship with his faith. Through his life and works, David shared his faith in God with his family and friends. We know that David's faith guided more than just his thoughts or words but his actions too. Few verses capture that like Isaiah 58:10--``If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.'' David's life work is the embodiment of this scripture. His life philosophy was one of cognitive, academic, emotional, and spiritual development. Not just for himself or for his students, but for every person in his life. All of us, as public servants ourselves, can learn from his example.

Mr. MEEKS

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), our illustrious leader and Speaker of the United States House of Representatives.

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his service, and I really respect him for what he put on the line for our country. We will always do that. But I will also say that those individuals who we did bring before the committee, though they might be professors now, they either served in the DOD or the White House, plus we had a classified briefing in the auditorium with representatives from the Joint Chiefs. So we were making sure that we had to get all of the information that we could in regards to this issue. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Minnesota (Ms. Omar), the vice chair of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Global Human Rights and the Subcommittee on International Development, International Organizations, and Global Corporate Social Impact.

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Velazquez), the chair of the Small Business Committee.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Garamendi).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Green), a distinguished Member.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, it is now my honor to recognize a gentleman who I want to thank for his service, for he is a Marine combat veteran who served in Iraq. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Gallego).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New York (Mr. Jones), my friend.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Kildee).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I would just say to my friend from Texas that maybe we should do--if you think Iran is a threat--an AUMF for Iran. This AUMF was for Iraq. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Washington (Ms. Jayapal).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky).

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from South Carolina (Ms. Mace), and I thank the gentlewoman for her bipartisan spirit in coming down to the floor today to speak on this AUMF.

Mr. MEEKS. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. I thank the gentleman from Texas for his hard work. As he has indicated, it is a pleasure working with him on this committee and working collectively and having open and honest dialog where we agree and where we disagree. The manner in which we do that, I think, serves this body in a very good way, and I look forward to continuing to work with him in that regard. Even though we see this a little differently, I will say right now that I am ready to work with the gentleman in repealing and replacing the 2001 AUMF. I think that is what we utilized as primary for the 2014 ISIS issue in dealing with all of the terrorists and terrorism that is going on. But the 2002 AUMF was specific to Iraq. Our duty and our responsibility in what took place is over. There comes a time when certain AUMFs simply become outdated and need to be repealed. We are going to do two others. We have an AUMF still on the books from 1957. We have another one that is on the books from 1991. There is no need to repeal and replace. They are outdated. Once they become outdated, let's just remove them from the books. So let me again reiterate this: the repealing of the 2002 AUMF would have no effect on any outgoing military operations in Iraq. In fact, the only thing leaving the AUMF on the books does is risk inviting future administrations to try to stretch its legal authority and bypass Congress' constitutional obligation to make decisions on matters of war and peace, thereby getting past and abdicating our responsibilities under Article I authority and allow the executive to interpret the AUMFs far beyond their intent. So the repeal of the 2002 AUMF is only one in a series of steps that Congress must take to reclaim its Article I authority, but it is, indeed, an important step. Today's historic vote is a turning point to quickly bring an end to this outdated AUMF. I understand from listening to the Senate that the Senate's intention also is to quickly bring the 2002 AUMF repeal for a vote. So I look forward to Congress no longer taking a backseat on some of the most consequential decisions our Nation can make. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.