Pete Olson

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Breanne Veeder from Cinco Ranch High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Breanne received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Breanne rightfully earned this award. Breanne is planning to continue her studies at the University of Texas San Antonio. We wish her the best of luck in her future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Breanne Veeder on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Caroline Canterbury from Seven Lakes High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Caroline received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Caroline rightfully earned this award. Caroline is planning to continue her studies at Texas Tech University. We wish her the best of luck in her future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Caroline Canterbury on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Jared Pollack from Seven Lakes High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Jared received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Jared rightfully earned this award. Jared is planning to continue his studies at Lone Star College. We wish him the best of luck in his future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Jared Pollack on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Loughlin Douglas from Tompkins High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Loughlin received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Loughlin rightfully earned this award. Loughlin is planning on continuing her studies at the University of North Texas. We wish her the best of luck in her future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Loughlin Douglas on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Noelle Walker from Morton Ranch High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Noelle received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Noelle rightfully earned this award. Noelle is planning on continuing her studies at Texas Southern University, and we wish her the best of luck in her future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Noelle Walker on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Sabrina Haagenson from Katy High School for receiving a Sports Medicine scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital. Sabrina received this scholarship through distinguished service students provide through KISD athletic programs. For 12 years, Memorial Hermann Katy has awarded these scholarships to KISD students who are worthy of this recognition, and Sabrina rightfully earned this award. Sabrina is planning on continuing her studies at Marietta College, and we wish her the best of luck in her future career. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Sabrina Haagenson on receiving the Sports Medicine Scholarship from Memorial Hermann Katy Hospital.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate John F. Mitton from Missouri City, Texas for being voted into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame. Mitton, president of a national advertising agency based in Sugar Land, is one of only twenty Texas broadcasters who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Inductions will be held on November 2, 2019, at the Texas Museum of Broadcasting and Communications. Mitton has always had a strong suit for ``listening to his clients . . . [and] helping develop and refine some of the best niche products ever featured in Texas radio.'' On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to John Mitton for being elected into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame. Texas has benefited from his contributions to radio. We are very proud of him and this incredible accomplishment.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Nabila Nazeer of Travis High School in Richmond, TX, who was selected for a scholarship from the U.S. Department of State's Youth Ambassadors study abroad exchange program. This highly competitive merit-based scholarship will give Nabila the opportunity to focus on civic education and leadership development projects during an exchange program to the Caribbean and South America. During this program, Nabila will develop her foreign language skills, increase her cross-cultural understanding, strengthening her leadership capacity and foster new academic insights and ambitions. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Nabila Nazeer on earning this prestigious scholarship.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Pearland High School marching band, also known as ``The Pride of Pearland,'' for being chosen to perform in the 131st annual Rose Parade. The band was chosen for a number of reasons, most notably its member's community service efforts, specifically towards hurricane, Harvey relief. The band was one of 16 chosen out of over 100 national and international applicants and the only Texas band selected this year. In addition to community work, the bands are judged based on musicality and marching skills. The band also garnered community support to help raise the money funds needed to pay for the trip to Pasadena, California, for the parade. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to the Pearland marching band for being chosen to represent Texas at the historical Rose Parade. We are very proud of them and this incredible accomplishment.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Emma Schlomann of Katy, Texas for earning the Girl Scout Gold Award. This is the highest award given to Girl Scouts and less than 5 percent achieve it. It is awarded to girls who develop and execute a project to make a lasting impact on an issue they are passionate about. Emma chose to do a Seizure Awareness campaign called ``Project Caesar.'' This project is deeply personal to her as she was diagnosed with seizures almost 10 years ago. As part of her project, Emma created a six-minute informative video, which was sent to several school campuses in Katy ISD for teachers to show to students in their classrooms. She also gave a presentation to a group of 40 people to help spread awareness for seizure disorder. Emma received this Girl Scout Gold Award for her hard work and dedication to this project and her community. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Emma Schlomann for earning the prestigious Girl Scout Gold Award.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Chuck Brawner for being named a recipient of the Stan C. Stanley ``Eagle'' Leadership and Economic Development Award. The Stan Stanley awards recognize a volunteer and elected official who have done their part to inspire leadership and economic growth in the Katy area. Mr. Brawner, mayor of the city of Katy, received the award in the elected official category for his dedication to our Katy community. Prior to being elected mayor in 2017, Mr. Brawner served as chief of police for the Spring Branch Independent School District Police Department. Our community is grateful for the forty years that he has dedicated to public service and law enforcement. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Mr. Brawner for this honor.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Dick Phillips for being named a recipient of the Stan C. Stanley ``Eagle'' Leadership and Economic Development Award. The Stan Stanley awards recognize a volunteer and elected official who have done their part to inspire leadership and economic growth in the Katy area. Mr. Phillips, University of Houston Vice President of Community Engagement, received the award in the volunteer category. He was crucial in recruiting the University of Houston Victoria and the University of Houston Katy campus to the Katy area. This accomplishment is creating jobs and opportunities for the hard-working individuals in our community. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations to Mr. Phillips. We wish him the best of luck on his future endeavors on behalf of Katy, TX.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Hanna Teerman of Cinco Ranch High School in Katy, TX, who was selected for a scholarship from the U.S. Department of State's National Security Language Initiative for Youth. This highly competitive merit-based scholarship will give Hanna the opportunity to live overseas in language immersion program to acquire skills that are critical to U.S. national security. During this program, Hanna will develop her foreign language skills, increase her cross-cultural understanding, strengthening her leadership capacity and foster new academic insights and ambitions. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Hanna Teerman on earning this prestigious scholarship.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I thank my dear friend from South Carolina for those kind words about being an honorary Texan. We Texans take no offense to the comments he gave to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Graves) about that being his home away from home, with all the ties between South Carolina and Texas. The Battle of the Alamo commander, William Barret Travis, who died for our freedom, came from South Carolina. Two football players who would take our Houston Texans to the Super Bowl, Jadeveon Clowney and Deshaun Watson, are products of South Carolina. I am happy to join my friend and the HEAT team tonight to talk about the American energy renaissance. Texans like to call this the era of America crushing OPEC's monopoly and finally tearing down Mr. Putin's wall of energy control over former Soviet Union states, nations like Estonia. My wife and I went there about 2 years ago on a Baltic cruise. We saw happy, happy people, like people in that picture. As my friend knows, that is a merchant vessel called Independence. It has been loaded with liquefied natural gas from Sabine Pass, Louisiana, by a company known as Cheniere, our first LNG port plant in American history. Two years ago, that ship pulled up in the capital of Estonia. As you can see, thousands and thousands of people waved flags and said welcome to Estonia, American liquefied natural gas, because they know that is not just a product. That is their freedom from Mr. Putin's autonomy and brutality. They know we exported liquid American freedom to Estonia. In contrast, our port in Houston is 52 miles long. If I got five people to walk out and see a tanker pull up, that would be huge. Our battleship, the USS Texas, is over 100 years old. She is about to be moved to be repaired, to be moored permanently, at Galveston Island. If I got 10 people, maybe 20, to watch our battleship be moved, that would be awesome. Those people came out in droves because they know their control by Mr. Putin is over. Let's talk about a great new ally called India. Their Prime Minister, Mr. Modi, is coming to Houston September 22. I have met the man four times. They are a growing economy of 1.4 billion people. They have our values. They have a problem with their energy. They have none that they can use in a clean, efficient manner. They have a lot of coal, but coal is dirty. They have no natural gas. They have no fossils, no oil. They can't have a pipeline deliver those products to their nation. Coming from the west, that pipeline has to go through Iran and Pakistan, enemies. To the north are the Himalaya mountains. If you could get a pipeline over an 18,000-foot elevation, God bless you. That is the eighth wonder of the world. To the east is a place in the world that is falling apart, Bangladesh. Their only solution to have cleaner air and energy independence is American LNG coming via the sea, a ship. One showed up last year loaded with LNG, again from Sabine Pass. We signed a contract, private sector to private sector, in India to deliver 14.4 megatons of LNG to India for over 20 years. That means there is no way we, the government, can get involved here in America or India. It is private sector to private sector freedom. Finally, Madam Speaker, to my friend, I have to brag about Texas. Liberal friends want to address climate change with carbon capture. We are okay with that, but it must be viable in our economy, and it must be viable in a free market. A company back home called NRG has a power plant 10 miles from my house called the Parish Power Plant. Parish generates energy from eight sources, four natural gas and four coal generators. Wanting to improve their business and make the air cleaner, make more money, and help out the world, on their own, they reached out to a Japanese company to build a carbon capture system that grabs over 92 percent of CO2 up one of the coal stacks. But that technology was very, very expensive, over $1 billion. Our friends want energy to swallow that product and bury that money in the ground, that captured carbon in the ground. That means you will bury $1 billion in the ground. How can clean energy do that? By passing those rates on to the ratepayer. Unacceptable. What did they do? They grabbed that CO2, and they have a pipeline that goes 85 miles southeast to an old, depleted oil field. It is like fracking fluid. That CO2 puts more pressure, so oil comes out, and we sell it in the market. It is viable. In short, LNG dominance by America makes my home State of Texas great; it makes America greater; and it makes the whole world the greatest it can be. Drill, baby, drill. Frack, baby, frack. Export, baby, export. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend for the time.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Glenda Gundermann for her 35 years of service to our community. Gundermann has been an important leader within our Sugar Land community over the past three and a half decades. Glenda has worked with five mayors and city managers, managing the annexations of Sugar Creek, First Colony and numerous other cities. Her work has encouraged more participation in local government and has led to Sugar Land being named one of our nation's top cities for transparency and engagement. During Tropical Storm Allison, she was instrumental in delivering emergency resources to those impacted. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Glenda Gundermann. Her service to this country will be remembered, and we wish her all the best in her future endeavors.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Walnut Bend Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind team for placing first in their division at the world finals. Nearly 800 teams ranging from elementary to college levels from across the United States and the world participated in the problem- solving competition at Michigan State University in May. The Walnut Bend team has made it to the finals several times, but this year they finally took first place, defeating a team from China to win. Their months of hard work certainly paid off. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to the Walnut Bend Elementary School Odyssey of the Mind team for placing first in the world finals. We look forward to seeing them win again next year.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Christina Vargas for receiving the Chancellor's Excellence Award from Texas State Technical College in Fort Bend County. A Rosenberg native, Christina has been at TSTC for two years and currently serves as the Assistant Director of Enrollment Management. The Chancellor's Excellence Award is given to employees who are recommended by their peers and exhibit TSTC's core values of Excellence, Accountability, Service and Integrity. Christina was one of only 35 recipients from across the state to earn this award. Through her time at TSTC, Christina has helped and inspired her coworkers and students alike. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Christina Vargas on receiving the Chancellor's Excellence Award. I thank her for her dedication to our students.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Captain Andy Feinberg on his distinguished retirement from the U.S. Navy. Captain Feinberg recently completed 30 years of honorable service to the U.S. Navy. Throughout his military career, he has earned many awards and held many titles, too many to list here, but here are a few that set him apart. Captain Feinberg was awarded a Defense Superior Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medals (4 awards), the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (4 awards), the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and various unit awards. His life-long service to our great nation has helped keep America safe and free, and we thank him. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, I again want to thank Captain Andy Feinberg for his dedicated service to our great country. This former Navy pilot and all of America wish him fair winds and following seas in his retirement. Not for self but country (Non Sibi Sed Patriae).

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Sugar Land Public Safety Dispatcher Erika Stroud for being named Texas's best trainer by the Texas Association of Public Safety Communications Officials and the Texas National Emergency Number Association. As a public safety dispatcher, Erika's quick decisions can make the difference between life and death in emergency situations. When training Sugar Land's public safety dispatchers and answering emergency calls, Erika holds herself and her team to the highest standards and ensures that recruits are ready to help folks in need no matter the time, day or night. She is also a member of the Critical Incident Stress Management Team, which ensures that our dedicated first responders have accesses to critical mental health resources. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Erika Stroud for this award. I thank her for her commitment to keeping our Sugar Land community safe.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Summer Jaime from Richmond, TX for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. The Gold Award is the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn. To earn this distinguished award, Summer had to spend at least 80 hours developing and executing a project to benefit the community, as well as have a long-term impact on girls. For her Gold award project, ``Swimming through the Summer,'' she gave free swim lessons to young children and created an instructional video for future swimmers and instructors. Over the course of her project, over 20 children were guided through lessons. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Summer Jaime for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. We are confident she will have continued success in her future endeavors. We are very proud.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Jettie Court from Dulles High School for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. The Gold Award is the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn. To earn this distinguished award, Jettie had to spend at least 80 hours developing and executing a project to benefit the community, as well as have a long-term impact on girls. For her Gold Award project, Jettie started an annual feminine hygiene product collection called ``Help the Girls. Period'' through the Dulles High School's student council. She led a team of 16 volunteers to help collect 213 packages of feminine products. Court donated the products to East Fort Bend Human Needs Ministry. She also ran a campaign to help women by educating the community and raise awareness of the need of feminine hygiene products. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Jettie Court for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. We are confident she will have continued success in her future endeavors. We are very proud of her accomplishment.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Sarah Stout from Seven Lakes High School in Katy, Texas for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. The Gold Award is the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn. To earn this distinguished award, Sarah had to spend at least 80 hours developing and executing a project to benefit the community, as well as have a long-term impact on girls. For her Gold Award project, Sarah chose to redecorate a youth room at her church, Epiphany of the Lord Catholic Church. She prepped the room for painting, designed window covers, painted a wall mural and created youth group signs. Sarah has been involved in her church for many years, serving as a Vacation Bible School lead, altar server and participating in summer mission trips. Sarah chose this as her project so she could give back to the church she loves and help provide a space for church and school related programs. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Sarah Stout for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. We are confident she will have continued success in her future endeavors. We are very proud of her accomplishment.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Ella Hummeldorf of Thompkins High School for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. The rank of the Gold Award is the highest achievement a Girl Scout can earn. To earn this distinguished award, Ella had to spend at least 80 hours developing and executing a project to benefit the community, as well as have a long-term impact on her troop. For her award project, Ella designed and created two garden boxes at the Goddard School in Katy. She led more than eight volunteers over six months to create the boxes. Ella wanted to help teach children about why eating healthy is important. She hopes to attend The University of Texas at Austin in the future and empower more girls and troops along the way. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to Ella Hummeldorf for earning her Girl Scout Gold Award. We are confident she will have continued success in her future endeavors. We are very proud.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Becky Adams, Damon Brownd, Ron Fawcett, Brenda Frye, Connie Guyton, Tony Manna, Gabriel Rodriguez, Carmen Suarez, Trudy Thompson and Michael Voegtline for being named Volunteers of the Year by the Sugar Land City Council. These ten dedicated volunteers are part of the Serve Sugar Land program that contributed 27,853 hours of volunteer service to the city in 2018. Each was nominated and selected by a different city department, from accounting to the municipal court to the animal shelter. Their commitment to our community exemplifies ``the Sugar Land way,'' and we are lucky to have so many amazing folks who strive to use their skills to give back to our community. On behalf of the Twenty-Second Congressional District of Texas, congratulations again to these stellar community leaders for being named Volunteers of the Year by the Sugar Land City Council. I thank them for their dedication to making Sugar Land the best place to live, work and raise a family.

Mr. OLSON

Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, this should come as no surprise, but the world's champion crybaby, the Islamic Republic of Iran, threw another hissy fit this week. Their navy tried to hijack a British tanker with a Royal Navy escort. They admitted they were breaking international law because they demanded the ship drive itself into their waters to be boarded. The Royal Navy frigate fired back with a salvo from a radio. They said: ``Back off.'' The Iranian babies put their boats at full speed, roaring back to Iran to cry on the Ayatollah's shoulder for their humiliation. This has happened over and over. And I am very familiar with this region. I deployed there in the Navy for 6 months, from May of 1994 to November of 1994. I was based on a small island called Masirah right off the shore of the United Arab Emirates. We would fly what is called a gulf transit 1,000 feet all around the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf to exercise our freedom of navigation. This is not the first time these things have happened. The last attack happened right there where the baby is crying. Two months before that, off the map down there, four American tankers, at idle, sitting in dead water waiting to unload their cargo, were attacked by Iranian boats, damaged. In the middle of the Persian Gulf, international airspace, right there near the Gulf of Oman, one of our airplanes was blown out of the sky by the Iranians. That was an act of war. Ours was an American military aircraft operating legally in international airspace over international waters. The question is: Why are the insane Iranians becoming more insane? And that is because the Mullahs who have run their country now for 50 years know they are dying. And, like a dying animal, they are going to fight for their last breath of power. They are dying because of America, the American energy revolution, started primarily and thriving in Texas and the Permian Basin. Oil is their only source of money in the entire country of Iran. They have nothing else. The Permian Basin, by itself, next year will produce more oil than every country in the world except for Saudi Arabia. We have many more shale plains across America: Barnett, Eagle Ford, Bakken, Marcellus--over and over and over. They know we are putting them in the dumpsters of history. Uncle Sam is forcing the mullahs and the leaders of the military to learn new languages, new words to explain their demise, words like ``good-bye,'' ``ta-ta,'' ``adieu,'' ``adios,'' and ``sayonara'' to go with ``khodahafez,'' which, in Farsi, means ``good-bye.'' I want to salute the people of Iran. The dark times are going to end quickly. You will be free from oppression from the leaders in your own country. I would like to give a salute to the mullahs and the Iranian Navy and the military. Good-bye. Adios. And that's just the way it is.