Jim Marshall

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Dr. John H. Lounsbury, of Milledgeville, GA for his efforts on behalf of Georgia's children and for his long record of service in the field of education. After serving our country during World War II, Dr. Lounsbury went back to school. He earned both a Bachelor's and a Master's Degree and quickly started his long, distinguished career in education. In 1954, he received his Doctorate and shifted his career from teaching students to teaching teachers. In 1960, he accepted the position of chairman of the Department of Education at Georgia College, and in 1977 became dean of the School of Education. Since 1983, he has served as dean emeritus. Throughout his career, Dr. Lounsbury has been a leading force in middle grades education. He helped shape the future of middle grades education while working on the original development committee for Middle School/Junior High School Evaluative Criteria as well as the revision committee a decade later. The long-lasting impact he's had in this area is perhaps his most important legacy. In addition to his work at Georgia College, Dr. Lounsbury has been the chairman of many professional associations, and has also served as a member or chairman of more than 25 visiting committees for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the National Council of Accreditation of Teacher Education and the Georgia State Department of Education. Mr. Speaker, despite these many obligations, Dr. Lounsbury still found the time to author or co-author more than 130 articles, 2 college textbooks, and 5 national research reports. He has made scores of presentations to various professional conferences, professional institutes and conventions. Roundly respected as a man who has truly dedicated his life to bettering education, Dr. Lounsbury has received so many awards and honors from his peers that I cannot name them all for fear I will omit one. The most recent of those honors included a presentation here in Washington, DC. Dr. Lounsbury received the Joan Lipsitz Lifetime Achievement Award, presented by the National Forum to Accelerate Middle Grades Reform ``Schools to Watch'' Program, for his significant and continuous contributions to the development, implementation and sustained growth of middle level education. Mr. Speaker, there was a time when middle school students were treated no differently than their younger counterparts, with no attention to their unique needs, abilities and challenges. Today, we know that children learn differently at different ages. Dr. Lounsbury played a key role in teaching all of us this important lesson. He is an architect of middle grades education and to this day remains a champion for this special age group.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, as I thought about today's debate, Tom Paine's words in the crisis came to mind: these are the times that try men's souls. It is not that the Army is in tatters. Our Army in the Revolutionary War was in tatters at the time; it was just before the Battle of Princeton and Trenton, which were successful and pulled us back together. It is that we seem to be in tatters. I am extremely disappointed that this resolution, the process for the resolution, and some of the whereases in the resolution have invited Members of this House to become angry and to oppose the resolution. The resolution is something that we all should be supporting. I support the resolution. The ``resolved'' part of the resolution is quite reasonable. And it expresses the sense of this Congress and this country that we will be resolved with regard to this engagement. We cannot afford to do otherwise. Mr. Speaker, it is with disappointment that I participate in the debate today, a debate that is designed intentionally to divide us, when in fact we ought to be showing a great deal of unity as a country in support of our troops and in support of the effort in Iraq. We are making progress there. It is a slow go. These kinds of insurgencies typically take 9 to 14 years to deal with. If we hang in there, the Iraqi people ultimately will get control of the security situation in that country. If we fail, our security situation gets worse. Theirs is awful. It is a huge threat to Israel. It is a threat to Europe, and a threat to the world. I encourage all of my colleagues to support the resolution, even though they may be disappointed in the process that has been offered us today, in the ``whereas'' clauses in the resolution.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, today is the 62nd anniversary of D-Day-- the allied landings in Normandy which began the liberation of Europe from the control of Nazi Germany. Earlier today, I spoke at a commissioning ceremony for ROTC cadets. I am proud to have had the opportunity to welcome these young, enthusiastic students into the ranks of our military. In my speech, I reminded the newly commissioned officers of the sacrifices made by generations of American military officers on behalf of our Nation, the importance of living up to the legacy of our fathers and grandfathers, and the importance of honor, duty, God and country. I believe each of these new officers will make our country proud.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, due to a D-Day ceremony, I was unfortunately unable to catch a train that would have gotten me to Washington in time for this evening's votes. I would have voted in favor of H.R. 5441, the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, especially given the inclusion of the Marshall-Miller amendment which will fully fund the Employment Eligibility Verification Program.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, Chairman Rogers will be happy to know that the target of this amendment is also the Under Secretary of Management's budget, which still has money in it after our last series of votes. Mr. Chairman, in the 1980s, we gave amnesty and told the American people that the flow of illegal immigrants from Mexico was going to stop. It has not. And one of the main problems that employers have right now is their ability to quickly and reliably identify whether or not a proposed employee is a legal resident of the United States. In the President's budget, the President requested $110 million for the Employment Eligibility Verification Program. The committee has provided $90 million. Mrs. Miller of Michigan and I have joined together to submit this amendment which would add $20 million to the Employment Eligibility Verification Program, which would bring it up to the level that the President has requested. The moneys that are necessary to offset come from the Office of the Under Secretary For Management. Point of Order

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment. Mr. Chairman, I would like to make an inquiry if I could. Mr. Chairman, we have a CBO scoring. Apparently, Mr. Chairman, I apologize, the amendment which has been provided and which is at the desk and which was announced is not the amendment that we have submitted. What we would ask is permission to withdraw the amendment which has been submitted and actually submit the one that is supposed to have been submitted.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, we have an amendment that proposes to cut $20 million, pardon me, cut $24 million from the Office of the Under Secretary of Management and add $20 million to the employment verification program. CBO has scored it. We have been told that that is the appropriate amount to reduce the management budget by. I thought this amendment was at the desk. I am not somebody who delivered it for the purposes of this. But we should have an amendment at the desk that provides to reduce by $24 million the management budget, and increase by $20 million the budget for the Employment Eligibility Verification Program. CBO says that is the appropriate scoring.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I do not want to take a whole bunch of additional time repeating what I have previously said. Right now we have a very difficult time where illegal immigration is concerned, and employers tell all of us that the system we have in place right now for identifying whether or not a proposed employee is a legal resident is broken. It simply does not work. The President has asked for $110 million to work on this problem. We propose in this budget to give him $90 million. Mr. Chairman, I know the chairman supports the concept. The chairman and the committee chose not to give full funding. We simply recommend full funding, and we take the funds that are necessary from the Office of the Under Secretary of Management. Mrs. Miller of Michigan joins me in this request.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, this is really pretty simple, and I am kind of amazed to hear Mr. Bachus and my good friend from Alabama, Mr. Davis, say that Congress ought not to be intervening, that this is a judicial matter, because that is exactly what it is. And that is exactly what Congress is proposing to do right now, and it is very inappropriate. The question whether or not the corps should conduct this study was submitted to the court. The court ruled against Alabama. Alabama and Florida do not like that decision. All three parties had their day in court on whether or not the corps should proceed with the study. Now Alabama and Florida are running to Congress trying to get Congress to intervene in a way that, frankly, Mr. Bachus and Mr. Davis both say would be inappropriate. I agree with that. It is inappropriate for Congress to intervene in a court proceeding where the court has specifically approved something. And the court has approved the corps moving forward with its study. For the Congress not to approve the Deal amendment is for Congress to intervene inappropriately in an ongoing court proceeding. Congress should not do that. It has not done it in the past.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Madam Speaker, I plan to publish additional thoughts elsewhere about why I voted against H.R. 4681, The Palestinian Anti- Terrorism Act of 2006. I expect to be joined in these thoughts by Dr. Bruce Hoffman, a world renowned expert on the subject of terrorism. For now, however, let me simply offer the following brief observations for today's Record, particularly because my vote so angered a valued colleague of mine. In my view, H.R. 4681 passed the House by an overwhelming majority earlier today because my colleagues seek the end of violent jihadist terrorism and are committed to protecting Israel and its citizens. As my words, votes and actions consistently show, I strongly share these objectives. But at this juncture, I would try a different strategy to attain them. The storied Archibald Wavell, then a young British officer who had served on Allenby's staff in Palestine, offered this prescient bit of irony about the treaties ending World War I: ``After the `war to end war' they seem to have been pretty successful in Paris at making a `peace to end peace'.'' That his prediction has come true thus far is of grave concern to the United States and Israel, two fast allies facing violent jihadist enemies with access to ever more sophisticated killing technology. Somehow we must break the cycle of hatred and violence. Though facially counterintuitive given its history of hatred and violence, I believe Hamas' victory in the Palestinian elections offers a rare, if slim, opportunity to break this cycle, an opportunity well worth exploring given the enormous stakes and intractable nature of the problem. Unfortunately H.R. 4681 squanders that opportunity by rushing to judgment about the added danger of Hamas as a majority legislative party and by merely continuing strategies that have failed for decades to secure a lasting peace. It and the economic embargo already undertaken by Israel and the United States are apt to further radicalize the Palestinian population (and the Arab world generally), accelerating and extending the cycle of violence and broadening the opportunity for Al Qaeda in Palestine. Hamas, in the short run, cannot credibly agree to the three preconditions set in H.R. 4681. But it can agree to a cessation of violence while diplomacy progresses. With luck, time and diplomatic skill, that might lead to a peace agreement accepted by Hamas and, hence, worth something more than the paper evidencing it. Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyah has said that Hamas could redefine its position if doing so would further the interests of the Palestinian people. And polls consistently show a majority of Palestinians will accept a two state solution and recognition of Israel. Hamas now enjoys Ariel Sharon-like strength and credibility among Arabs and Palestinians. No question its election victory at least calls for extra vigilance and caution from Israel and the West. It has committed acts of terrorism which all decent people condemn in the strongest terms. But Hamas, given time to change and adjust, may have the strength and credibility to break the cycle of hatred and violence on behalf of those it now represents, the Palestinian people. After all, Sharon changed. And who but Sharon could have accomplished the withdrawal from Gaza? I understand a number of my colleagues voted against H.R. 4681 for humanitarian reasons. These are certainly compelling, but I agree with the vast majority of my colleagues that such issues must take a back seat to the fundamental, long term security issues presented by the Hamas electoral victory. My ``no'' vote is quite narrowly based. I think this situation calls for time and diplomacy. H.R. 4681 offers neither and evidences, yet again, why Congress should not be conducting our foreign policy.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, I want to thank Mr. Kingston for all he has done on behalf of peanuts and milk. In the authorizing committee, we failed to extend the peanut program storage and handling fees for the year it needed to be extended, at the end of this farm program. And we also failed to extend the milk program, that 1 month that is necessary, according to Mr. Obey and others, to establish an appropriate baseline where milk is concerned and an appropriate baseline where peanuts are concerned, peanut storage and handling. Anticipating that a point of order might be made, Mr. Chairman, and I am not sure that it would be made by the chairman of the authorizing committee or someone else, we have put together a letter to the chairman, Chairman Goodlatte, asking that he support the two bipartisan amendments made in the appropriations committee with regard to these two issues, the peanut storage and handling fees issue and the milk program issue that was spoken about by Mr. Obey. Mr. Chairman, 26 members of the 46 members of the committee have signed on. Mr. Chairman, it seems to me the real question will be whether or not somehow the Appropriations Committee is inappropriately treading on the authority of the authorizing committee. Here you have a majority of the members of the authorizing committee saying that they think that the Appropriations Committee is acting properly with regard to these two issues, and they would request that the point of order be denied.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Dr. R. Kirby Godsey, of Macon, Georgia, who is retiring after a long, successful tenure as President of Mercer University. I rise to thank Dr. Godsey for his extraordinary wisdom, leadership and grace that blessed not only Mercer University and Middle Georgia, but me as well. Mr. Speaker, on July 1, 1979, Kirby Godsey became the 17th president of Mercer University. For almost 27 years, Kirby guided Mercer as it grew in prestige and national recognition. U.S. News & World Report has ranked Mercer as one of the leading institutions in the South for 14 consecutive years. The Princeton Review named Mercer among ``The Best in North America,'' and USA Today ranked Mercer among the Top 10 in three categories for its National Academic Achievement Awards for student-athletes. Mr. Speaker, Kirby Godsey's strong, perceptive, caring, steady and engaging leadership has been critical to Mercer's success. Without him and his commitment to Mercer, I believe Mercer would not be the University it is today. But Mr. Speaker, Kirby Godsey's beneficial influence did not end at Mercer's borders. He has been a remarkable force for progress in Macon and Middle Georgia. The lives and projects he touched for the better would be too numerous to mention even if I were capable of cataloging them all. Let just a few examples suffice. Under Kirby's leadership, Mercer partnered with the City of Macon and others to successfully revitalize and transform the neighborhoods surrounding Mercer's campus. Indeed, Kirby Godsey's Mercer became a major force for rejuvenating Macon's central business district. And Mercer's School of Medicine and its School of Engineering were no more than dreams before Kirby Godsey's tenure. Now Mercer-trained physicians provide care in underserved rural areas while Mercer engineers serve our nation at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center. Mr. Speaker, it is fitting that the Congressional Record forever include this brief acknowledgement of the accomplishments of Kirby Godsey as President of Mercer University. He will continue to bless those around him with his uncanny wisdom and grace. Few leave such enduringly positive legacies.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. I rise today for the purpose of engaging the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter) in a colloquy.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, the portions of this bill governing the treatment of detainees can serve as a welcome clarification for the rest of the world that America condemns torture in the strongest terms. These changes should help the world to see that America respects freedom when it fights for freedom. I would appreciate the chairman's thoughts on this.

Mr. MARSHALL. I yield to the gentleman from California.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Chairman, is it your understanding that the bill's language referencing the Senate's 1994 reservation to the United Nations' Convention Against Torture is intended to prohibit conduct that shocks the conscience, the standard adopted by the United States Supreme Court in Rochin v. California?

Mr. MARSHALL. I yield to the gentleman from California.

Mr. MARSHALL. And, Mr. Chairman, is it also your understanding that the bill does not extend constitutional rights to noncitizens of the United States?

Mr. MARSHALL. I thank the gentleman for his clarification.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, I would simply add to what my friend from Mississippi has said and others have said that this bill is the culmination of months of work by the committee in a bipartisan way to give the men and women that we have in uniform, particularly those men and women in harm's way what we believe they need in order to carry on their duty on behalf of the United States. I think everybody on the committee agrees with me that everything that we can possibly do to support them we are going to do. I want to compliment the chairman, the ranking member, and other members of the committee for a job well done.

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate that very much. It was when Chairman Hunter provided the book to Ike about Vicksburg that I thought that perhaps it was appropriate here publicly to say that there is probably no person on the Armed Services Committee today, nor perhaps no person in the history of the Armed Services Committee, who has done so much for military education. Ike Skelton has constantly talked about the need to provide education and training for our men and women in uniform, and he is known throughout the armed services for that great contribution that he has made. A couple of years ago, he came up with the idea of commissioning a scholarship program for the graduates of 2-year military colleges to continue their education, with DOD paying for it if DOD thinks that it is appropriate to do so; scholarships for these graduates as newly commissioned officers to finish their college educations. This year, unbeknownst to Ike, that scholarship program was named the Ike Skelton Early Commissioning Program Scholarship. Mr. Speaker, I would like to present Senator Isakson's, a Member of the other body, his bill originally signed by him naming that program the Ike Skelton Early Commissioning Program Scholarship.

Mr. MARSHALL

Mr. MARSHALL. Mr. Speaker, CORRECTION: I intended to vote against the U.S.-Bahrain Free Trade Agreement and attempted to do so. Upon inquiring with the clerk why my vote was recorded as a ``yes'' instead of a ``no'', the clerk checked the electronic record and discovered that I had pressed the ``no'' button several times on the preceding vote. At no time did I intend to cast a ``yes'' vote on the agreement. To date, I have voted against every trade agreement that has come up while I have been in Congress, including the agreement with Bahrain.