Doug Ose

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New York (Mr. King), the sponsor of this resolution.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote as the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) did, unanimously in favor of this resolution.

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

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5039) to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at United States Route 1 in Ridgeway, North Carolina, as the ``Eva Holtzman Post Office''.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 5039.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5039, a bill to designate this postal facility in Ridgeway, North Carolina, as the Eva Holtzman Post Office. All Members of the North Carolina delegation have cosponsored the gentleman from North Carolina's (Mr. Butterfield) legislation. A community leader, a postal supervisor, a friend, a grandmother of seven, and a great-grandmother of four, Eva Holtzman was an exemplary role model for the small North Carolina community of Ridgeway. Eva Holtzman served as postmaster of Ridgeway for 38 years, ultimately retiring at age 80. She was a wonderfully devoted postal supervisor. During her tenure as postmaster, this is great, the Postal Service once announced plans to close the community post office at which she worked in order to widen the county roads. In response, she went out and purchased land with her own money and oversaw the construction of a brand new post office. Mr. Speaker, Eva Holtzman was perhaps best known for her community involvement. For more than 5 decades, she volunteered with the 4-H Club and taught Sunday school. Additionally, she volunteered with Warren County's health department and social services. I urge my colleagues to honor Eva Holtzman, a benevolent lifetime resident and an institution in Ridgeway, North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I ask our colleagues to vote in favor of this resolution, and I yield back the balance of our time.

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 480) to redesignate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 747 Broadway in Albany, New York, as the ``United States Postal Service Henry Johnson Annex.''

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 480, the bill under consideration.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 480, introduced by the gentleman from New York (Mr. McNulty), redesignates the Albany postal facility as the Henry Johnson Annex. This legislation honors Sergeant Henry Johnson, a hero of World War I and a native of Albany. Sergeant Johnson was a member of the Army's all-black 369th Infantry Regiment, but because black soldiers were unable to fight in American combat units overseas, Sergeant Johnson actually fought on the allied side under the French flag during World War I. For his incredible valor and skill in combat, Sergeant Johnson posthumously earned a Purple Heart, a Distinguished Service Cross and even the greatest French military honor, the Croix de Guerre. Mr. Speaker, one byproduct of the war on terror has been a renewed and sincere national appreciation for the sacrifices of the men and women in the Armed Forces. This bill, H.R. 480, gives this Congress a chance to publicly acknowledge and appreciate a great patriot of America's past. Sergeant Johnson was a terrific hero of World War I, about whom Americans should never forget. I am hopeful that this postal facility will soon wear the name of Sergeant Henry Johnson, and I urge the other body to swiftly consider H.R. 480. I urge our colleagues to vote in favor. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of our time.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I would just ask that our colleagues to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 761) congratulating Lance Armstrong on his record- setting victory in the 2004 Tour de France.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 761, the resolution under consideration.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, today the House celebrates flat out the greatest cyclist who ever lived. Lance Armstrong won his record sixth Tour de France title in July, and for that reason, we honor his successes on the House floor today. He broke the record of five straight tours held by himself and Spain's Miguel Indurain who won the race from 1991 through 1995. No one had ever even won six Tour de France races, let alone six straight. With his victory, Lance Armstrong further cemented his place as one of sports' greatest individual athletes. His incredible accomplishment of six straight grueling Tour de France wins can be ranked among any of sports' greatest feats; Joe Dimaggio's 56-game hitting streak and Cal Ripken's 2,632 consecutive games played; Edwin Moses' 107 straight hurdles finals wins in track; Wayne Gretzky's 51-game scoring streak in hockey; Bobby Bonds' soon-to-break Henry Aaron's record. These are all amazing accomplishments, and by virtue of his victory, Lance Armstrong quite simply joins those people as an athlete for the ages. Perhaps more amazing than being the world's greatest cyclist is the fact that Lance is living, period. Eight years ago, he overcame a deadly form of cancer. Lance has been a stellar athlete since his youth, playing soccer and cycling, but after high school, he focused solely on cycling. From 1991 through 1996, Lance won 13 bike races, including the U.S. National Amateur Championship in 1991 and the World Championships in 1993. By 1996, Armstrong was the top ranked cyclist in the world. But during 1996, after a victory at the Tour Dupont in North Carolina, he began to feel fatigued and more discomfort than usual, even after an exhausting race. Later that year, he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. Some of Lance's doctors at the time gave him only a 40 percent chance of surviving. And interestingly enough, he is quoted in his book as saying he thought they were being kind. Lance underwent three major operations. He endured chemotherapy to fight off the disease that had spread to his abdomen, his lungs and his brain. And remarkably, with the help of our scientists and medicine, the treatments were successful. Within a short year of being diagnosed with cancer, he was pronounced cancer free. As a survivor, Lance became one of the world's most influential cancer research advocates. You and I probably see him on TV every now and then. He founded the Lance Armstrong Foundation to promote cancer research and awareness. He also wrote the best selling book, It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life. It tells the full story of how his early successes were interrupted by cancer, how he survived cancer and how he eventually returned to racing and won his first Tour de France in 1999. Mr. Speaker, now that Lance has won his sixth straight race at the Tour de France, I strongly urge adoption of this measure. We all congratulate Lance for the most recent of his six incredible wins on the world's greatest cycling stage and for his fervent advocacy of cancer research. I urge my colleagues to adopt this resolution. Today, it is not Vive la France; today, it is Vive la Lance. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time, and I urge Members to support this legislation. Lance Armstrong is a true American hero, and he has proved it not only with his initial victory but five times over. I urge passage of this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment. It is interesting, the United States does a lot of things around the world. Some things we do very well, some things we do so-so, and some things we do not do very well. But it seems to me, curiously, that in a political body our history is that those things we do very well, we end up saying, ``Well, let's stop doing it.'' Those things we do so-so, we just kind of hold back. And those things we do very poorly, we end up saying, ``Let's throw more money at it.'' Well, I would share with the folks of this body that what we are doing in Colombia under Plan Colombia and have been doing under Plan Colombia for the last few years is working. We are helping a democracy in the Western Hemisphere get on its feet and protect its institutions with a minimum of investment. Yes, we have spent $3 billion or $4 billion. Yes, we are going up incrementally, a very little bit, to 800 military personnel or as many as 600 civilian contractors under what is being discussed in the conference committee. But the net result, I say to my colleagues, is very positive. Let me just share a little with my colleagues. Colombia, which has been a home for significant disruption in civil society over the past decade, let alone the 40 years that the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Stupak) reported, homicides this year are down 16 percent from last year in the first 4 months of the year. Massacre events have dropped from 34 in the first 4 months of last year to 20 this year. Kidnappings have dropped from 820 to 447. Highway robberies have dropped from 445 to 336. Vehicle thefts have dropped from 4,859 to 3,489. Mr. Chairman, the assistance we are giving our friends in Colombia is working. We are helping them protect their institutions and their civil society from encroachment by criminals and terrorists. It is absolutely important that we finish this job, that we help our friends protect their democratic institutions and come join us in the Western Hemisphere as a fully functioning democracy. Now, I would just add that our efforts are not limited to law enforcement or military. We are also down in the despeje, helping the folks who used to do coca production learn other crops and alternatives. We are in there with the justice training, helping their justice system set up courts that function so that people have due process, so that we have fair trials. We are in there with USAID helping folks rebuild their country. Now is not the time to pull the plug. Now is the time to pay attention to the effectiveness that we have clearly implemented in Colombia under Plan Colombia and move incrementally to improve their prospects.

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Connecticut for yielding. Mr. Speaker, sometimes we work here in the hallowed halls of Congress, and we come upon things that almost come out of a Tom Clancy novel. I do not know of anything in my few years here that even begins to rival the complexity or the obvious opportunities that existed in this so-called Oil-for-Food Program set up by the United Nations. I want to go back and just kind of visit as to the genesis of the Oil-for-Food Program. If my colleagues recall, after the Gulf War, we imposed sanctions on Iraq hoping that those sanctions, in fact, would bring the Hussein regime down. Over time, the caloric intake for the people of Iraq, men, women and children, still stuck there under the regime of Hussein was reduced to about 1,200 or 1,300 calories a day. The United Nations, in its wisdom, after significant input from any number of the member states, decided to undertake a program, the objective of which would be to raise the average daily caloric intake for the folks who lived in Iraq under the same regime. Interestingly enough, the first time the U.N. proposed this, Iraq declined the opportunity. It was only after the second time that the U.N. proposed this that Iraq undertook to participate in this; and it was, frankly, a pretty clever scheme. It took the oil that exists in surplus in Iraq relative to its domestic needs and put it on the market, directed the funds from that sale of the oil to an escrow account under the control of the United Nations from which food and medicine could be bought for delivery and/ or distribution to the people of Iraq. Lo and behold, a couple of years passed and all of a sudden the questions started rising as to whether or not there were surcharges, kickbacks, corruption and the like. Well, the U.N. had actually set up a committee to examine or to make sure that this program proceeded according to the rules and regulations that it laid out in its resolutions, and that committee was called the 661 Committee, and the membership of the 661 Committee was composed of the five permanent members of the Security Council, plus the additional 10 revolving members of the Security Council who move in and out of those seats as the elections or the pattern allows. Over the ensuing years from the Gulf War, the five permanent Security Council members sat on the 661 Committee and a revolving number of 10 additional States sat on that 661 Committee. Now, the contracts, the way it worked was you had to get a contract for the purchase of oil. That had to be approved by the members of the 661 Committee, and then the transaction would be allowed to go forward, and upon delivery of the oil, there would be a third-party inspector in Iraq to ascertain the exact compliance with the contract. That person was supposed to send notification to New York so that in New York the escrow account could collect the funds from the buyer of the oil and disburse the funds for the purchase of food and medicine. Well, keep in mind the name of this program, I just want to make this point, because the Oil-for-Food Program was about the most inaccurately named welfare effort of the United Nations as one can imagine. Let me tell you some of the things the Oil-for-Food Program managed to procure for the benefit of the Iraqi people. Keep in mind the purpose having been food and medicine. The government of Iraq was able to persuade the United Nations' 661 Committee that the people of Iraq needed 1,500 ping-pong tables. I guess apparently they needed fiber. So one of the contracts called for the delivery of 1,500 ping-pong tables. We heard earlier from the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) the testimony about the nine presidential palaces that were constructed by virtue of the money that was skimmed from the Oil-for-Food Program. But in addition to the nine presidential palaces that were financed through the Oil-for-Food Program, there were also roughly 300 Mercedes that were purchased, again for the benefit of the people of Iraq and their food and medicine requirements. Now, 300 Mercedes Benz, what do you suppose they did with those? I have not figured that part out. Here is a good one. This is actually close to using some dairy products. There were soft ice cream machines authorized for purchase under the Oil-for-Food Program. There were overpriced dental chairs from China purchased in the Oil- for-Food Program. This is like a Tom Clancy novel. I am not making this stuff up. There was a warehouse full of undelivered wheelchairs purchased under the Oil-for-Food Program, again for the benefit of the people of Iraq. The one that I find is perhaps best, we are worried about infant mortality, infant survivability in some of these Third World countries. So one of the things that the United Nations undertook to provide was equipment for the medical needs of newborns. So they went and bought defective ultrasound machines from Algeria. Algeria rounded up all these ultrasound machines that did not work and sold them to the U.N. for premium dollars. There was perfume. I guess the people, I do not know, they needed perfume in the Oil-for-Food Program. Now, there were additional things that were in the Oil-for-Food Program or at least on the contracts it allowed for the purchase of water pumps, piping and other supplies; and, unfortunately, what we find 9 years in when we have to go into Iraq, we find that none of the water pipe for drainage systems or other things that are so essential to civil life here in the United States have been installed. In fact, those water pumps and pipes have basically been hijacked for use in Saddam's various palaces for water improvement. Now, I want to go back to my friend from Connecticut because I know he has quite a bit to offer, but before I do I just want to remind the folks in this Chamber about the preamble for the United Nations, the purpose of the United Nations. In part it says, we the peoples of the United Nations determine to establish this is the first thing, to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained; and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom; and, finally, to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security. I would submit to my colleagues that the schemes that evolved from the original U.N. Oil-for-Food Program, that the scheme of corruption and apparent fraud basically served to undermine each of those three principles, and I hope to come back to that in the course of this evening's discussion.

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague. It is interesting that the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence) was frankly very thorough in his remarks. One of the things that I continually try to do is bring to focus why this is important for my constituents. Because, frankly, the Oil-for-Food program, paid for by oil revenues from the sale of Iraqi oil, okay, big deal. We needed it. But let me share why I think this is so important. First of all, in addition to the reasons elucidated by the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence), the money that was skimmed was supposed to go to the benefit of the Iraqi people for the purpose of purchasing food and medicine. In the absence of that money, somebody else must step in and fill that void. Somebody else must step in and buy the food or buy the medicine that the Iraqi people need. Now, is that the United States? Is that the United Nations? Is that Europe? Whoever it is, they are having to buy something that should have been funded by money that belonged to the people of Iraq by virtue of the sale of oil that had belonged to the people of Iraq. That is a very important point, because if the United States is going to have to fill the gap created by the loss of these funds, then my colleagues and I are going to have to take it out of the Treasury of the United States. And that is important to each and every one of our constituents. I want to return, Mr. Speaker, to what we are trying to accomplish here. If we look at current events around the world, we find that in addition to Iraq we have a burgeoning issue in Sudan, and we have them in various places at different times around the world. Today's event is Sudan, out by Darfur. If we cannot figure out how to run these programs under the auspices of the U.N., in a manner that is transparent and full of accountability, then at some point or another in the future we are going to lose our will or our interest to do it again, and that would be a problem. Because that would only compound the tragedy or tragedies of a future nature as they are now occurring in the Sudan. Now, Mr. Speaker, I have asked for a couple of things. I think these are central to getting to a resolution in this matter. First of all, we need to know the contracts, and there are somewhere between 30,000 and 60,000 individual contracts. We need to have a listing of the contracts that were involved in the Oil-for-Food program. How much oil was sold at the point of embarkation in the ports of Iraq? How much money was then wired from the buyer of that oil to the escrow account under the control of the United Nations? And then from that escrow account, what were those funds used for, item by item, dollar amount by dollar amount, in purchasing goods for the people of Iraq? Somebody earlier, I think the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), mentioned the 661 committee. We need to have a copy of the minutes of the various meetings of the 661 committee. As Members recall, the 661 committee was comprised of the five permanent members of the Security Council and the 10 rotating members of the Security Council. So day after day, week after week, month after month, the Security Council and the 661 committee were the same body. They had regular meetings to review these contracts. Undoubtedly there are minutes of those meetings. We have been told there are minutes of those meetings. We have also been told by the United Nations we may not have copies of the minutes of those meetings, either redacted or not. We are seeking copies of those minutes because in addition to the evidence we have available to us today that shows that the United States brought to the attention of the 661 committee in March of 2001 the potential allegation of fraud or corruption, we would like to know whether or not those allegations were brought to the attention of the 661 committee prior to that point in time and what was done about it. Interestingly enough, one of the previous speakers spoke about the office of internal oversight at the U.N. We have come to find out over the last week or 10 days that there were 55 separate audits of the performance of different contractors under the Oil-for-Food program, both the program as a whole and the individual components. We would like to get a copy of those audits. We have asked for a copy of those audits. We have been told that we may not have them. What we are looking for is a source for those audits. And, in fact, we have found one of those audits. In that audit's recommendations are a list of significant suggested improvements to the manner in which the program is run.

Mr. OSE. I thank the gentleman. I think his point about lessons learned, the implicit point that he makes, is an exceptional one, because we have learned here. We have learned that anything we do must be watched very carefully, because the purposes for which it was set up can be hijacked. We have learned that there are people in this world who wish to utilize our charitable efforts or our efforts at building the future prospects of different countries and the opportunity for people around this world to enjoy freedom, we have learned that people will take advantage of that. One of the things I want to do tonight with permission of the Speaker is to enter into the Record the list that was printed in the newspaper in Iraq which I think the gentleman from Connecticut's point was what a remarkable thing that one of the first occasions for a free press to exist in the country of Iraq since the early seventies dug out a potential scandal. What better check and balance can you argue for than the fact that we have reestablished a free press in Iraq to hold the government there accountable. I would like to enter into the Record the list of alleged participants in the scheme that was set up by Saddam Hussein and implemented under the auspices of the United Nations. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Data

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, a national hero, a loving son and brother, a dedicated student, athlete, and a proud father to-be. These are just a few of the phrases that can be used to describe Adam Kinser of Rio Vista, CA. Although no list of descriptions can ever fully do justice to understanding the bravery and compassion of a young man who gave his life for his country at the age of 21. Adam Gareth Kinser was born in 1983 in Valencia, CA and grew up in Rio Vista with his parents and four younger siblings from the time he was five. There was nothing typical about Adam, who from a young age was a standout, not only among his peers and teammates, but to his teachers and family as well. Adam was a hard-working student, even serving as a teaching assistant in some classes. Bill Fulk, a former teacher of Adam's, praised the young man as the ``best the United States had to offer'' He was a role model to other students, demonstrating a positive attitude, kind heart and willingness to help. He was an outstanding varsity athlete, running track, playing basketball, and was the starting quarterback for 3 years. His strong leadership and commitment didn't end at school or on the field though, he was also a mentor and protector to his younger siblings, one of whom recalls that Adam ``was always protecting me even when I didn't want it.'' Perhaps it was not a surprise that Adam also wanted to serve and protect his country, when he joined the Army Reserve during his senior year of high school. Adam was in boot camp at Fort Bragg, NC, when the terrorists attacked the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, and was sent to Afghanistan in July 2003. Adam returned home during Christmas, where his wife, Tiffany, surprised him with an ultrasound of their soon-to-be-born son. He was ecstatic and could not wait to be a father, counting down the days until he would be reunited with his wife and new baby. This did not stop Adam from taking pride in the job he was doing for his country and in the bonds that he treasured with his fellow soldiers. Adam returned to Afghanistan after Christmas, serving in the Army Reserve's 304th Psychological Operations Company. However, on January 29, 2004, Adam and eight other soldiers were working near a weapons cache near Ghanzi, 60 miles southwest of Kabul, when an explosion took place that claimed his life and those of his fellow soldiers. Adam's death has sent Rio Vista into a period of mourning and loss for the young man that many of them knew and loved so well, and had watched mature into a brave leader. The community of Rio Vista remembers him fondly, and will surely miss him, not least of all his family and newborn son. Adam was the first Rio Vistan to give his life in wartime since the Korean War. As Rio Vista Mayor Marcie Coglianese said, ``he is the embodiment of all our values.'' In order to ensure that the memory and name of this young man, father, and soldier, lives on, the least we can do is to re-name the post office in his home town, as an honor for the town, family and country that produced such a great man.

Mr. OSE

Mr. OSE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter into a very brief colloquy with the chairman of the subcommittee; that being, does this bill change existing law as it relates to area of origin?