Ted Poe

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague and friend on the Judiciary Committee, Mr. Weiner, for introducing H.R. 1676, the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking or PACT Act. This bipartisan legislation will help Federal, State, and local law enforcement officials combat cigarette smuggling and trafficking in the United States. Tobacco smuggling has become one of the most prevalent forms of smuggling in recent years in our country. Its effects are not felt only in the United States but other parts of the world as well. The World Health Organization estimates that illegal cigarettes account for 10.7 percent, or approximately 600 billion cigarettes, of the more than 5.7 trillion cigarettes sold globally each year. According to a study by the World Bank, cigarettes are appealing to smugglers because taxes typically account for a large portion of the price, making it highly profitable to traffic them for resale at a reduced price. Tobacco smuggling traditionally involves the diversion of large quantities of cigarettes from wholesale distribution into the black market. This typically occurs during the transit of the cigarettes, thus allowing the traffickers to avoid most, if not all, taxes that will be imposed at retail on the cigarettes. The profits from tobacco trafficking can be and likely are used to finance other illegal activities such as organized crime and drug trafficking syndicates. In addition to the sale of smuggled tobacco on the black market, it deprives States of significant amounts of tax revenue every year. Over the last 15 years, cigarette taxes have increased more than 65 percent throughout the United States; yet, during this same time, States' tax revenues increased by only 35 percent. California officials estimate that taxes are unpaid on about 15 percent of all tobacco sold in its markets at a cost of $276 million every year. In a recently released study, the State of New York put its losses at more than $576 million per year. The State of Texas raised cigarette taxes recently, and this increase is supposed to generate an additional $800 million in revenue for the State. This bill would help to ensure that States like California, New York, and Texas receive or recover tax revenue that is due them by people who buy cigarettes. Two senior ranking members of the Judiciary Committee, Ranking Member Smith and Mr. Weiner, have teamed together to cosponsor the PACT Act for the second consecutive Congress. In the 110th Congress, this House passed similar legislation on a suspension calendar; however, our colleagues in the Senate did not ever take up the bill. H.R. 1676 varies slightly from the previous legislation passed by the 110th Congress. Provisions that were under the jurisdiction of the Oversight and Government Reform Committee have been removed. This bill also contains an authorization for additional funding for anticigarette trafficking efforts for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. This bipartisan legislation closes loopholes in current tobacco trafficking laws, provides law enforcement with new tools to combat innovative methods being used by the cigarette traffickers to distribute their products, and bolsters the States' ability to enforce State law. I urge all my colleagues to support this legislation. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the State of California boasts the highest tax rates, the highest number of unemployed residents, the lowest credit rating and largest deficit in the United States of America. Businesses are leaving the State in droves because the tax burden continues to hammer them. Spendacrats in California have been running their State for decades, just like the new left government in D.C. wants to run the entire country: tax and borrow and spend and spend. Some spendacrats in D.C. want the American taxpayer to bail out California by cosigning a guarantee for their municipal bonds, placing the full faith and credit of the United States taxpayer on the hook. Texas taxpayers and other States with responsible government shouldn't be forced to send their money to a State that mismanages its money, wastes its resources and spends money it doesn't have on programs that don't work. Why doesn't California cut its spending binge and addiction to government programs rather than expect the rest of us to bail them out? Next we'll hear that taxpayers will make money off the California bailout investment, just like we were promised would happen with all the money we gave Wall Street. Yeah, right. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the administration plans to close the state-of-the-art Guantanamo Bay detention facility by January. The problem is, they have no plan for what to do with the terrorist detainees. These are the people who have tried to kill Americans, and they want to keep up their sinful ways by trying to kill more Americans. These are people picked up off the battlefield, sometimes hiding between children and women's skirts in villages. They were not wearing uniforms. They were not state sponsored, but they were there for a reason, and that was to kill innocent people. For example, they use women and children for two purposes: one, to hide behind as cover, and the other reason is to murder in the name of religion. That's why they're called terrorists. They try to inflict terror and fear in all peoples. Some of these people have been waterboarded. They gave us vital information that saved American lives. Apparently, two plots were uncovered by waterboarding. One crime was to crash a plane into a Los Angeles skyscraper and another to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge. I wonder if the would-be victims appreciated the waterboarding? What are we supposed to do to get this information? But some are now to be more concerned about the treatment of Gitmo detainees than they are about potential American victims. Maybe we don't have our priorities straight. And by the way, Mr. Speaker, I have been to Gitmo, and its facilities are better than many American jails where we keep Americans. Let's look a little bit at history. General George Washington had a very different way of dealing with folks that were captured who weren't wearing uniforms. A British spy named Major John Andre, who was a buddy of Benedict Arnold, fell into these circumstances. After surveying West Point, Benedict Arnold met with Andre and gave him a sheaf of papers outlining the state of the garrison and the arrangements that had been made for its defense at West Point. Andre removed his uniform as a senior British officer, put on a plain coat, stuffed Arnold's secret instructions into his silk stockings, and set off for New York and his headquarters. Militiamen caught up with him on the road, however, found the papers from Arnold in his boots, and turned him over to George Washington, who had him hanged. Is that better than being waterboarded? So what do we do with these terrorists if we close Gitmo? If we take hundreds of hard-core terrorists from an isolated island like Gitmo and put them in American prisons, we expose the nearby communities, inmates, law enforcement, prison guards, officials and their families to the possibility of payback, attacks aimed at breaking them out or retaliation against the community for holding them. If they go to an American prison, they, in all likelihood, would eventually be released into the United States. That's not good news. We don't want them brought to Texas, by the way, Mr. Speaker. We have enough problems from the Federal Government neglecting our southern border. Last week, in the Judiciary Committee hearing, Attorney General Holder couldn't name one State that wants these outlaws sent to them. So what are we going to do? Are we going to reopen Alcatraz and put them there? Who knows? Do we bring them here and try them in our Federal courts? Mr. Speaker, if we stop and take a look at why we have separate legal systems for our citizens and for military purposes, maybe the reasons will be crystal clear even to administration lawyers: The American domestic legal system wasn't built to deal with enemies in a war. Military courts have always handled combatants captured on the battlefield. Nonuniformed enemies in a time of war do not have the same rights under the U.S. Constitution as American citizens, at least that's what we have always thought. So what's next? Are our soldiers going to have to warn terrorists of their Miranda Rights? Are the Army Rangers going to need a search warrant from a Federal judge to go into an al Qaeda hideout in Afghanistan? Will the troops need to consult a Federal lawyer and get permission to shoot back when being shot at? Now, wouldn't that be helpful. So what is the administration going to do with these terrorists? They have set the date of January 22, 2010, to close down Gitmo. Let's hope the administration reevaluates its decisions regarding letting these terrorists go and keep them locked up. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield the gentleman an additional 2 minutes.

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, S. 386, the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 improves current criminal and civil fraud statutes to help the Federal Government bring predatory lenders and unscrupulous financial institutions to justice. Judiciary Chairman Conyers and Ranking Member Smith sponsored the companion legislation in the House, H.R. 1748, the Fight Fraud Act of 2009. S. 386, as amended, merges these two important pieces of legislation together to provide comprehensive and effective solutions to combating mortgage fraud, securities fraud, and other financial crimes. The House passed this legislation in early May with overwhelming bipartisan support. The Senate has returned the bill to us with one important change. Section 5 of the bill creates a Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission within the legislative branch. This commission is charged with examining the causes, both domestic and global, of the current financial and economic crisis in the United States and reporting its findings to Congress. The bill grants the commission the authority to issue subpoenas, as necessary, to conduct its investigation and meet its obligation to Congress. A subpoena may be issued only by the agreement of the chairperson and vice chairperson or by approval from a majority of the commission's members. The Senate amendment clarifies that a majority vote must include the vote of at least one Member appointed by either the minority leader of the House or the minority leader of the Senate. This provides additional assurance that the examination undertaken by the commission, and in its exercise of subpoena authority, will not be politicized. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield the gentleman 1 additional minute.

Mr. POE of Texas. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess.)

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I thank the gentleman from Kentucky for yielding. Madam Speaker, Aristotle once wrote that ``teachers are to be given the highest honor because they teach us how to live well,'' and of course, that's a correct statement. Today, I am proud to rise in support of America's teachers and pleased to be a cosponsor of H. Res. 374. This measure recognizes the significant roles and contributions that America's teachers have made to building and enhancing our country. The United States Census Bureau reports that today there are more than 6 million schoolteachers throughout the United States, not counting all the other types of teachers in this country. I come from a long line of teachers. My mother was a schoolteacher. My wife's a schoolteacher. My three daughters are trained teachers. Two of them teach young kids at the elementary level, God bless them, and one of them is a professor at Baylor University. The most influential person that taught me in public school was my seventh grade Texas history teacher, Ms. Wilson. But teaching isn't just a tradition in my family. Teaching has been a tradition in this country since its very inception. At our Nation's founding, of course, most of the teaching happened at home under the instruction of parents. Today, parents have many options when it comes to the education of their children. Some are taught in private schools, others in public schools. Some are charter schools, and others continue to be educated at home. Regardless of where the education takes place, teachers play a primary role in equipping our youth to be good citizens, to take pride in the democratic heritage of our Nation, and to be competitive in the marketplace of ideas. An American author and historian Henry Adams once said, ``A teacher affects eternity. The teacher can never tell where that influence stops.'' Mr. Adams was right. Let's be sure to let the teachers who have touched our lives and the lives of our children know how thankful we, as a Nation, are.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, the administration closed 900 Chrysler dealerships overnight last week and put an estimated 100,000, mostly nonunion workers, on the street and out of work. Even though many of these dealerships were profitable, it didn't make any difference to the Auto Task Force, since these unelected and unaccountable bureaucrats have absolute power ever since the government nationalized Chrysler. And I thought the administration promised more jobs, not fewer ones. In Chicago-business style, the administration is strong-arming these businesses and workers with a process that leaves them without legal recourse and sticks the business owner with millions of dollars of unsold vehicles by forcing them to close. It should hardly escape anyone's notice that this is just what Dictator Hugo Chavez did earlier this month when he nationalized two U.S. oil company production facilities in Venezuela. Echoing a scheme that handed a U.S. company's assets over to Chavez's cronies, the administration nationalized these auto businesses and rewarded their own special interest groups, and once again, is picking the winners and losers in Chicago-style politics. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, I move that the House do now adjourn.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Thank you, Madam Speaker. It has been said that we sleep safe in our beds because bold men and women stand ready in the night to visit justice on those who would try to do us harm. Madam Speaker, those bold men and women are those people throughout America that wear the uniform of a peace officer, a law enforcement officer that wears the badge on their chest to represent that symbol, to protect the community from those evildoers. Each year, 50,000 police officers are assaulted in the United States. Let me repeat. Fifty thousand peace officers in the United States are assaulted by somebody. On May 17, 1792, New York City's Deputy Sheriff Isaac Smith became the first recorded police officer to be killed in the line of duty. Since then, Madam Speaker, 18,340 police officers have been killed while on duty protecting the rest of us. In 1961, Congress created Peace Officers Memorial Day and designated it to be commemorated each year on May 15, which is tomorrow. I am proud to be the sponsor of this year's resolution that passed this House unanimously in February. Every year the President issues a proclamation naming May 15 National Peace Officers Memorial Day. A quote by President George H.W. Bush is engraved on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial located in Washington, D.C., that summarized the mission of the 900,000 current sworn law enforcement officers in the United States. Here's what it says, Madam Speaker: ``It is an officer's continuing quest to preserve both democracy and decency and to protect a national treasure that we call the American dream.'' That is the mission statement of peace officers in this country, those who wear the American uniform. Tomorrow, Madam Speaker, on the other side of the Capitol, on the west side of the Capitol, 140 families will be assembled together. They will be surrounded by thousands of other people. Most of those people will be peace officers from somewhere in the United States, wearing their uniforms, standing at attention to honor those 140 families who lost a loved one last year in the line of duty because 140 peace officers of the United States law enforcement community were killed last year in the line of duty. Ten percent of those, 14, were from my home State of Texas. The names of those 14, Madam Speaker, are: Deputy Constable David Joubert. He worked for the Harris County Constable's Office, Precinct 7 in Houston, Texas. Police Officer Matthew B. Thebeau, Corpus Christi Police Department. Corporal Harry Thielepape, Harris County Constable's Office, Precinct 6, in Houston, Texas. Senior Corporal Victor A. Lozada Sr., Dallas Police Department. Trooper James Scott Burns of the Texas Department of Public Safety, working for the Highway Patrol in Texas. Police Officer Everett William Dennis, Carthage Police Department in Texas. Sergeant Barbara Jean Shumate who worked for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. A personal friend of mine, Police Officer Gary Gryder who worked for the Houston Police Department. Another personal friend of mine, Detective Tommy Keen of the Harris County Sheriff's Department. I knew him 25 years ago when I was a prosecutor and he was still arresting outlaws. Game Warden George Harold Whatley, Jr. who worked for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Sheriff Brent Lee of the Trinity County Sheriff's Department in Texas. Police Officer Robert Davis of the San Antonio Police Department. Just recently in December, Police Officer Timothy Abernathy of the Houston Police Department. And last on the roll call of the 14 dead, Police Officer Mark Simmons of the Amarillo Police Department. One hundred and forty individuals who wear the badge, who gave their lives last year, their families will be here tomorrow in solemn tribute and honor of those individuals. Already in 2009, Madam Speaker, there have been 46 law enforcement officers that have died in the line of duty. Once again, over 10 percent of those are from my home State of Texas. Madam Speaker, at this time of year throughout the United States, peace officers who wear the badge on their chest will have a black cloth draped across that badge. That black cloth is to honor those brothers and sisters in law enforcement that were killed in the line of duty. Many peace officers are here in Washington already. You can see them throughout the city, wearing their uniforms with that black cloth of sacrifice. Most peace officers wear a badge, or as they call it, a shield. It comes from hundreds of years ago when individuals who acted as police officers protected the communities with actual shields and swords. Now it has been symbolized, and that's what they wear on their chest. In Texas, many of the peace officers, especially the sheriff's department, all wear stars. It comes from our history of the old west. In fact, the Texas Rangers still wear a star on their chest. They don't wear uniforms. They dress with a Stetson hat, a white shirt, and then they wear a star. Whether it's a badge or a star or a shield, all of those symbols and emblems are placed over the heart and chest of our peace officers because they were protecting us from those who wish to do us harm. I've known a lot of police officers over the years. As I mentioned, I was a prosecutor in Houston. I spent 22 years on the bench as a judge trying criminal cases. So I met a lot of them. I tried cases where police officers were harmed and even killed. It's my opinion that those men and women that wear the uniform, the badge, they represent everything that's good and right about America. When I was a small kid, I had gone to a parade with my dad in a small town called Temple, Texas. I must have been about 5 or 6 years of age, and a parade was going by. Of course as all parades should be, Old Glory was going by first with a mounted horseman, and then the Texas flag. I noticed on the street that there was an individual who wasn't involved in the parade, but he was just standing there, watching the parade, observing the crowd. My dad noticed that I was observing this individual, and of course it turned out to be a Temple police officer. That was in the days when they didn't wear uniforms. They just wore a star or a badge and a white shirt and cowboy hat. He told me something that was really true then and is still true today in 2009. He said, If you are ever in trouble, if you ever need help, go to the person who wears the badge because they're a cut above the rest of us. That's true, Madam Speaker. They are a cut above the rest of us, and they still are there when we need help, when we're in trouble, we need the help of someone who wears the uniform. Looking at it another way, peace officers are the last strand of wire in the fence between the fox and the chickens, between the good guys and the bad guys. They're it. They are the only protection we have between the law and outlaws. It's great that they serve in that capacity. We have a lot of different agencies in this country. It's not just our local police officers. It's not just the sheriff's departments, but there are all the Federal agents that we have. The U.S. Air Marshals that fly and protect us in the air. The drug enforcement agents, the ATF, and we certainly cannot forget the Border Patrol. Our own Capitol Police who serve us even tonight in this building, near this building, watching, ever vigilant to make sure no harm comes to the Capitol or to the people that serve in government in Washington, D.C. It wasn't long ago, not too many years ago when right down this hall, the center aisle--as we go out the center aisle, there's the majority leader's office--when two Capitol Police officers gave their lives because somebody came in here with a gun, trying to do harm to Members of Congress. Their tribute is still in that hallway. Capitol Police officers are always vigilant and always on guard. There are others that wear the uniform that really protect us, other than law enforcement. Those emergency medical technicians and of course the firefighters who serve throughout the country and have died in the line of duty, two in Houston, Texas not long ago, several in California. Madam Speaker, if we go back a few years to September 11, 2001, all of us remember what we were doing that day. I was driving to the courthouse as a judge, listening to the radio, driving my Jeep. News came on the radio that an airplane had crashed into one of the Twin Towers in New York City. It startled me like every other American, I'm sure. Then a few minutes later on the radio it said a second plane had crashed into the other Twin Tower in New York City. It wasn't long after that on the radio, which was now giving constant broadcasts of that event in New York City, that a third plane had crashed somewhere in Pennsylvania because of some wonderful Americans on that plane who took matters into their own hands. Then lastly we heard about a fourth plane who flew over this area, Madam Speaker, and crashed into the Pentagon in sight of this very building. Later that night, I, like probably most Americans, was watching TV, seeing exactly what had happened, and I noticed that when those planes hit the World Trade Center, that thousands of people, good folks from all countries, thousands of people started running as hard as they could to get away from that terror in the sky. But there was another group of people, not very many, but they were there, that when those planes hit the World Trade Center, they were running as hard as they could to get to that terror. And who were they? They were emergency medical folks. They were firefighters. And they were cops, because that is what they do, Madam Speaker. And while it is important to remember the 3,000 that died that day, it is equally important to remember those that got to live because those emergency people were there to pull them out of the World Trade Center. Marvelous group of folks, those people who wear the badge and protect the rest of us. And here, Madam Speaker, when that fourth plane came flying near the Capitol and crashed across the Potomac River into the Pentagon where 300-plus were killed, as you know, right next to the Pentagon is Arlington National Cemetery. In Arlington National Cemetery, we have the Tomb of the Unknowns, or as some call it, the Unknown Soldier. It is protected 24 hours a day by an Army unit called the Old Guard. It is important that all Americans go to that tomb and see the changing of the Old Guard every hour or half hour. But when that fourth plane crashed into the Pentagon, Madam Speaker, those soldiers guarding the Tomb of the Unknown never left their post. In fact, they called for reinforcements. Marvelous group of people that put on the uniform, whether it is the uniform of a peace officer or the uniform of someone in the military. So tomorrow, May 15, we honor those who have been killed in the line of duty protecting us, those peace officers, the 140 families. Ten days after tomorrow, which will be May 25, we honor those who have served America in the military uniform and given their lives. On Memorial Day we honor the soldiers that went somewhere in the world and didn't come back. On Veterans Day, we honor those that left and were able to return. So on May 25, Madam Speaker, we will honor those soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen who went to war for this country and did not return. I believe it is important that we remember our history, that we know our history, all of it, regardless of what it is we should know as Americans about the people who lived before us, because they are people. And some of them were quite remarkable individuals. The first war really that the country fought, if you don't count the French and Indian War, was the Revolutionary War. About 5,000 Americans died, a relatively high number considering the percentage of the population that 5,000 represented. And it wasn't easy, Madam Speaker. That war lasted over 7 years. And there were those then, like there have always been in this country, the cynics, the critics and the doomsayers that kind of wanted to quit. But those resilient men and women that fought those 7 years never gave up. And they never quit because, you see, some things are absolutely worth fighting for. That is kind of what this country stands for. And liberty is one of those things worth fighting for. So after 7 years, the country became a Nation. Put it in perspective. The United States, just a bunch of colonial folks, farmers, merchants and lawyers, took on the mightiest empire that had ever existed in the history of the world, the British Empire, and defeated it. The British didn't get the point, Madam Speaker, because in 1812 they invaded the United States again to reconquer this country. The War of 1812 is something we don't talk too much about. We don't understand that we could have lost our country to the British invasion. They invaded this city. They burned this Capitol to the ground. They burned every building in Washington, D.C., except the Marine barracks right down the street. And then they headed up to Baltimore and were ready to take over Baltimore. But because of defiant Americans in 1814 that were there, the British finally went home, although 2,500 Americans died in the War of 1812. Then the United States went to war in the Mexican-American War in 1846, about 14,000 Americans, fighting to defend and protect the border of the United States, because that is what that war was all about, the dignity and sovereignty of the United States, especially the southwestern part of the United States. And then the war that most Americans at least remember, the Civil War, or the War Between the States, when the Nation was divided in half, brother against brother in some cases, family against family. In the War Between the States, between the North and the South, 600,000 Americans died. True, they were from the North and from the South. But let me say something, Madam Speaker. They were all Americans, every one of them. And if you put that percentage of 600,000 in 1860 to 1865 to today, that would be about 5 million Americans in today's numbers, all fighting for what they believed in. I have had the opportunity to travel and see many of our historic battlefields. Many are close by, in Virginia, where hundreds, thousands, of Americans died. Just one example, the Wilderness Battlefield, down the road about 75 miles, fought in 1864. There were 100,000 Union troops and 60,000 Southern troops on one battlefield. That is the amount of troops, 160,000, that is the number of troops that we have tonight in all of Iraq and Afghanistan put together. And if you take all those numbers and put them on one battlefield, that is how many people were on one battlefield in 3 days in May in 1864. In that battle, 30,000 casualties. It is called the ``Wilderness'' because of the massive amount of trees that are there. And I had the honor to go with my friend from Vermont, Peter Welch, from the other side of the aisle, from the North, to go together to the Wilderness Battlefield last week to pay tribute to those that died. We went for several reasons. One is because Vermont, from the North, sustained the highest casualties ever in the State of Vermont in any war. And in that battle also 60 percent of the Texans that were in that battle were casualties. So we went to pay honor to them because, like I said before, they were all Americans. And it is unfortunate now we are having to fight another battle with a corporation called Wal-Mart that wants to build one of their beautiful stores right there on the battlefield. Wal-Mart sees profit more important than patriotism. But be that as it may, that was the type of situation this country faced in the 1860s. Americans all gave their lives, 600,000 of them. Then it wasn't over. We went to the Spanish-American War right before the turn of the last century, 2,500. That was, as you recall, Teddy Roosevelt and the Rough Riders. And then we went to the war that was supposed to end all wars, that is World War I, the war where millions actually died throughout the world. The United States went into World War I late. But because we were there, in my opinion, it made a difference, and the war was successful. It successfully ended. 4.4 million Americans, they were called ``doughboys'' because their uniforms looked like dough, 4.4 million of them went over there. They went to places they had never heard of and they fought for people they did not know. But they went because America wanted them to go. Of those that went, 114,000 of them did not come back, Madam Speaker. Of course, World War I did not end all wars. World War II was soon behind where 405,000 Americans were killed. In World War II my dad proudly served as an 18-year-old and went over to France. He had never been more than 50 miles from home, and there he found himself, as many other American GIs in World War II, a long way from home fighting in Europe and in the South Pacific. But it wasn't over. World War II ended in 1946. Four years later we are at war again in Korea. It is called the Korean ``conflict.'' I don't know why it is called that. It was war. People died. Americans, 36,000 died in Korea trying to protect another nation called South Korea. And then when it was over, it was Vietnam, the longest war in American history, over 10 years, where 58,000 Americans died. And then the recent Middle East American wars, the Persian Gulf war and the war in Iraq and Afghanistan that are taking place now where over 4,000 Americans have died. I had the honor to travel to Iraq and Afghanistan, to see our troops, to see the NATO troops as well in Afghanistan. I have also talked to the families of people who have lost sons or daughters in Iraq and Afghanistan. Just in my congressional district of Texas, 26 men and women from all races have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. And we, like many other offices, honor them and give a tribute to them by having their photographs at the entrance to our offices. I mention the folks in Iraq and Afghanistan, Madam Speaker, because it is my opinion that they are the finest military that has ever existed in the history of the world that are representing us. And they are all volunteers, Madam Speaker. They all volunteered to join. And they are still joining. And they are joining knowing that they are probably going to go to Afghanistan. But that is what our military does. Madam Speaker, on the Mall, right across the street here, down at the end of the Mall, where there is the memorial to Abraham Lincoln, the United States decided to build monuments to the great wars of the last century. So the first monument that was built was the cold, black granite monument to the 58,000 that died in Vietnam. And it has their names on that. And every day, Americans go, veterans go and pay tribute to those men and women that died. They put all types of mementos in front of that glorious monument, whether it is flags or flowers. Other Vietnam veterans have put their medals there. It is very sober and very somber. And it is a wonderful tribute to those that served and were treated badly when they came back home. They went because they were told to go, and they did. That was the first monument that we built. Then we decided to build a monument to the Korean War, which is across the Mall from the Vietnam Memorial. The Korean War monument is a little different. It shows Americans going through a land mine in the snow going off to battle. Good tribute, marvelous tribute to those that served in the Korean War, the 38,000 that did not come home. And between those two monuments, closer to the Capitol, there is a World War II memorial. There are some bureaucrats in Washington that were opposed to building that. They thought it would be unsightly. I'm glad they didn't get their way. And Congress made sure that it got erected, citizens made sure it got erected and veterans made sure it got erected. Anyway, that memorial is a different type of tribute. It has all the pillars of all the States and all the territories, and it names all the battles that the United States fought in World War II. And if you stand in front of it, Madam Speaker, you will see in the back what appears to be a bronze plate, a massive bronze plate. But if you get closer to this massive bronze plate, you will realize it is not a bronze plate at all, but it is a wall of 4,000 stars. Each star, each bronze star represents 100 Americans killed in World War II, 400,000 young men and women that did not come back home in the great World War II. But, Madam Speaker, although we have three monuments to our military to show tribute and honor to them of the last century's wars, we don't have a monument to honor all of those that served in the great World War I. I have here, Madam Speaker, a photograph. This is a friend of mine. His name is Frank Buckles, Jr. Frank Buckles, Jr., as you see him, Madam Speaker, he looks pretty good. He looks great. He's 108 years old. In World War I, Frank Buckles wanted to get into the Army, but he was too young. So he went from recruiting station to recruiting station, and he lied about his age. Finally somebody took him, and he got into the United States Army. He says he was 16. He was probably 15 if you do the math right. Anyway, he served in World War I in Europe. He drove an ambulance in France. He rescued other doughboys that had been wounded on the battlefield and those who had been killed. After the Great War was over with, he back to the United States, and soon he found himself in the Philippines during World War II. He was captured by the Japanese and was held as a prisoner of war for 3 years in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. After the war was over, he was liberated, came back to the United States, and now lives in West Virginia. Frank Buckles Jr., 108. He's the last doughboy, Madam Speaker. Of the 4.4 million that went over there, he's the only one that is left over here. One hundred and fourteen thousand of them died. When our troops landed in France in World War I, it was a trench war stalemate. Neither side was making any progress until the Americans showed up. And our allies were shocked at the tenacious attitude of Americans going into battle, and our enemies were stunned because of the fact that America was making a difference. And these people, Frank Buckles' generation, the fathers of the Greatest Generation, made a difference and ended that war successfully and came home. Now, on the great mall we have a tribute to Vietnam, to Korea, to World War II, but we don't have a monument to all of those that served in World War I. There is a small monument to those that served in World War I from Washington, D.C. it's in a decrepit state. It's falling apart. Grass is growing up through it. It's a disgrace. Until recently next to it was the park rangers stable where they kept their horses. So we need a monument for these folks. We don't honor them. Frank Buckles, he's it. They don't have any high-dollar lobbyists. They don't have any more members of the World War I generation here. There's nobody left. The only people left are Americans, who want, I would hope, to show tribute to Frank Buckles and his generation. Once again, the bureaucrats are balking. They don't think we need another memorial on the Mall. That's unfortunate that they feel that way. It's interesting enough that the word has gotten out and school kids throughout the United States have gotten involved in this memorial for Frank Buckles and his generation. The first school was a school called Creekwood Middle School in Kingwood, Texas, where kids got together, studied World War I and all the survivors that are left throughout the world like Frank Buckles and the other seven throughout the world, and they've started a campaign to build that memorial. I hope they succeed where the bureaucrats have failed. We have an obligation, Madam Speaker, to honor those who have served in our military and honor those who have served and have died for the rest of us. Earlier I mentioned Arlington Cemetery. Arlington Cemetery across the Potomac River, you can see it from a lot of places in Washington before you get to Virginia. It's next to the Pentagon. Throughout Arlington Cemetery there are 300,000 markers to those that have died in America's wars. It says, Madam Speaker, on the Arlington Cemetery Memorial where the 300,000 are buried: ``On flame's eternal camping ground, their silent tents are spread, and glory guards with solemn round--the bivouac of the dead.'' Three hundred thousand Americans of all races, all ages, from all wars since the war between the States are buried at that location. The United States, Madam Speaker, goes to war, has gone to war, the wars that I mentioned, for a purpose every time. That is to preserve the American way of life and to promote liberty. And when we go overseas, unlike nations before in history that were powerful, when we go overseas, we never go to concur. We go to liberate, to spread the word of freedom, hope, democracy. That's what Americans do. Then they come back after those wars are over, except for those that are killed and are buried throughout the world in graves known only to the Good Lord. On a hill, a place called Normandy, there's a cemetery. Normandy, Madam Speaker, as you know, is a place in France. Here is a photograph of a portion of the Normandy Cemetery. It's hard to comprehend how massive a cemetery this is without being there. You notice in this cemetery there are crosses for those of the Christian faith, the Star of David for the Jewish faith. But in the cemetery in Normandy, Madam Speaker, there are 9,387 Americans, 9,387 Americans. Mostly young men. Almost all of them killed in their first battle. And Normandy occurred because the United States and the other allies wanted to liberate France from oppression, from a dictator, from the Nazi philosophy. And they are still buried over there, those 9,000. On D-day in June of 1944, almost 3,000 Americans lost their lives and, during the entire conflict, 9,000 of whom are buried here in Normandy. You know, Americans don't go to war to concur; they go to liberate. And that confuses other countries. That confuses our enemies sometimes. And sometimes it even confuses our allies. It's been said, Madam Speaker, unfortunately, that Americans are somewhat arrogant. Europeans, we have apologized for Americans being arrogant. I don't understand that statement, unless you call these people right here arrogant that died at Normandy, unless you call people like Frank Buckles, the other doughboys that died in France and in Europe. The United States liberated that nation, that continent, twice in the last century. And we didn't do it for any personal gain. We did it because people were being oppressed by a totalitarian state. I don't think Americans are arrogant; I think they're proud. They're proud of our way of life. And they should be. This is actually the greatest country that has ever existed in the history of the world, thanks to the Good Lord and His blessings on our country. And we should appreciate that, and I don't think there is anything wrong with being proud of that fact. So, Madam Speaker, tomorrow we honor peace officers that had been killed have been killed in America defending us, May 15. On May 25 we honor Americans like these still buried in Normandy who went to war to protect us from foreign enemies. And we should constantly remember all of those who had the courage to put on the uniform of an American and go and defend the rest of us. Madam Speaker, it's been said by one of my heroes, Patrick Henry, that the battle is not for the strong alone but it's to the vigilant, the active, and to the brave. I think that's true of our Americans even tonight that wear the uniform of a peace officer or someone in the military. We are fortunate, as American citizens, that there are those who will make that sacrifice and sign up to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. So, hopefully, Americans, especially the young, will appreciate their heritage, appreciate people who have lived before them that gave them the ability to pursue life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And maybe in the next 10 days when you see a peace officer, a firefighter, emergency medical technician, some soldier coming back from Iraq at the airport that we go up and shake their hand and tell them we appreciate what they do for the rest of us. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, somewhere in the prohibited, cold corridors of the darkened back rooms of this castle, the Capitol, in places unknown, unseen, and unheard of by the public, the new Federal taxcrats are carefully crafting the energy punishment tax. This $646 billion tax is aimed at punishing Americans and businesses for using any type of energy. The idea is we should not only feel guilty for using energy, we should pay for our energy sins by being taxed on consumption. So the taxcrats are going to double the cost of natural gas and home heating oil by taxing the use of it. Use natural gas or home heating oil in your home to keep warm in the winter, you're going to be hit with the keeping warm tax. Electricity costs are going to increase by 73 percent; so be careful about turning on the AC. It's going to cost you more with the keeping cool tax. Taxes on gasoline will go up 50 percent. Don't drive your car unless you want to pay the new driving tax. Americans are taxed enough already. The government should not tax us back to a Stone Age existence with the new absurd energy punishment tax. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, in an effort to give away taxpayer money, the Social Security Administration is even sending so-called ``stimulus'' checks to dead people. An 83-year-old man in Maryland said his mother, who has been dead for over 40 years, received one of the $250 stimulus checks. Even though the 83-year-old son didn't receive one of the checks, I guess because he's still alive, I'm sure he appreciated the government thinking about his mom by sending her a check so close to Mother's Day. It does seem a bit odd that it takes the government 40 years to figure out somebody died. Anyway, the Social Security bureaucrats admit at least 10,000 other dead people received checks too. That would be about $2.5 million in money. I wonder how many other free checks were sent to dead people that the Social Security folks don't even know about. Maybe since the bureaucrats are giving money to dead people, they should go ahead and register them to vote as well. Get the community group ACORN involved. Apparently, ACORN has a reputation for successfully registering dead folks to vote. Then the dead people can get free money and vote too. What a deal. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, the 34th President of the United States, Dwight Eisenhower, said that ``it is fitting and proper that we devote one day each year to pay special tribute to those whose constancy and courage constitute one of the bulwarks guarding the freedom of this nation and the peace of the free world.'' I agree, Madam Speaker, and I am proud to be a cosponsor of this resolution. Fifty-nine years ago we began the tradition of honoring the Armed Forces on the third Saturday of May as the national Armed Forces Day. Before 1950 there were individual holidays in honor of each of the five branches of the military--Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard. President Truman established this single holiday to honor the servicemembers of all branches as an act of unity after the Department of Defense was created. There are several purposes for celebrating Armed Forces Day-- educating the public on the jobs and role of the military, exhibiting the military's state of the art equipment, and most importantly for acknowledging the people who serve our country in the Armed Forces. Today 1.5 million people are on active duty in the U.S. military. In addition, 850,000 men and women serve in the seven reserve and guard divisions--Army National Guard, Army Reserve, Marine Forces Reserve, Navy Reserve, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve, and Coast Guard Reserve. These brave folks serve our country all over the world at 820 different military installations. About 140,000 servicemembers are stationed in Iraq and 56,000 are in Afghanistan. This special day is celebrated every year with parades, military reenactments, air shows, and open houses at military bases. The theme for this year's Armed Forces Day is ``United in Strength.'' United indeed, Madam Speaker. ``From this day to the ending of the world, we in it shall be remembered. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.'' Shakespeare penned this quote in Henry V. It represents the unfailing commitment and spirit of unity a military member has with his fellow warriors. I am a very proud cosponsor of this measure and urge all Americans to offer their thanks to our military members who boldly defend our democratic freedoms at home and abroad. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, according to the Los Angeles Times, the Mexican Attorney General's office has informed U.S. authorities that the Sinaloa drug cartel of Mexico has been ordered by its leader Joaquin ``El Chapo'' Guzman, also known as Shorty, to use guns and shoot it out, if necessary, with American law enforcement. This has been ordered by the drug kingpin to protect his drugs from seizure and capture by U.S. authorities. Law enforcement officials in Arizona have received two alerts that the Guzman smugglers have been told to, quote, use their weapons to defend their loads at all costs. The threat of escalated violence is for several reasons. One, El Chapo no longer can afford to lose drugs because of his connections and partnerships with Colombian drug cartels that are making greater demands on him for successful smuggling into the United States. Also, El Chapo is competing with rival drug cartels and attempting to take their business, their territory and their drugs. Thus, he wants to make sure his smugglers outgun the competition old west style. Another reason for more violence is the drug smugglers no longer will get paid unless they deliver the goods to a U.S. destination. Therefore, they are becoming more trigger happy. A few weeks ago a shoot-out between two drug smuggling groups took place on a road leading to Phoenix, Arizona. The criminals were trying to hijack each other's loads. United States Border Patrol in Tucson has stated that confrontation between law enforcement and suspected traffickers has grown more violent. The L.A. Times reports weapons-related assaults against U.S. border agents rose 24 percent last year as compared to 2007. Besides using weapons, the criminals throw rocks at our Border Patrol and ram their vehicles into agent vehicles. Recently, again, according to the Times, agents stopped a vehicle in Douglas, Arizona, and drug traffickers on the Mexican side of the border laid down suppressive gunfire to pin the U.S. border agents down, which allowed the smugglers to retreat to the Mexican side of the border with their drugs intact. The Tucson sector alone reports about 25 assaults a month on border patrol agents. Madam Speaker, there seems to be an all-out border war between the drug cartels and the Mexican-U.S. law enforcement personnel. But not much is being said about this border war. Madam Speaker, this border war is real. Our government should protect our Nation from these gun-toting drug smugglers. Our border protectors should be given enough personnel and equipment to fight these violent cartels, including being able to use the National Guard. Our border protectors should also know that our government will support them in their lawful protection of our border, and when a violent conflict occurs, be more concerned about our border protectors than the outlaw drug smugglers. In other words, we must not let more agents suffer an unjust fate like Border Agents Ramos and Compean, who were persecuted and prosecuted for political reasons for shooting a drug smuggler they believed to be armed. The violence on the border will continue to grow unless the likes of Joaquin ``El Chapa''--``Shorty''--Guzman and his border bandits know the United States will not go away into the darkness of the desert night and simply surrender our border to them by silently doing nothing to prevent their unlawful invasion into the United States. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health of the Helsinki Commission and co-Chair of the House Bosnia Caucus.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank Chairman Berman and Ranking Member Ros-Lehtinen for bringing House Resolution 171 to the floor. This resolution expresses support for the progress made by the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina toward stability and greater international cohesion. Bosnia has come a long way in the 14 years since the signing of the so-called ``Dayton Accords'' that ended the terrible ethnic-based conflict there. While this short resolution speaks to much that has been accomplished in Bosnia, much work needs to still be done. Some would suggest, for example, that greater constitutional reform within Bosnia is necessary for its future growth and its stability for the progress of democracy and tolerance in that country. Another important issue confronting the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the burden placed on its economic progress by its extensive bureaucracy that is now in place in that country. That bureaucracy reportedly consumes a great deal of that small country's revenues, confronting its economy with serious obstacles to growth. This measure, as considered on the floor today, does include a short statement that was added after agreement by the majority and the minority that I believe makes an important point. Among its resolved clauses, H. Res. 171 now specifically calls for continued assistance to Bosnia to help it investigate al Qaeda activities and those of related networks. That is an important point when we consider the reported increase of Islamic militant extremism in the broader Balkan region. Such reports should serve as a warning that Islamic extremists may be looking at the Balkan region as a potential launching platform for future attacks somewhere else. I am pleased that the Bosnian Government is working to address important issues such as the reports of the use of Bosnian passports by Islamic militants. I am also pleased by reports that some leaders within the Bosnian Muslim community are combating Islamic extremism and have been strong advocates for peace and reconciliation. The call for continued support for Bosnia and such important efforts enhances the other important statements this resolution makes with regard to our policy toward Bosnia. Mr. Speaker, many of us would like to ensure that Bosnia becomes a greater anchor for stability in the Balkans region. This resolution is an important message of encouragement and support for all the people of Bosnia as they seek to promote stability, peace, and prosperity. I support its adoption by the House. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate Chairman Berman bringing this before the House for consideration today. Time Magazine named Margaret Thatcher one of the 20 most influential leaders of the 20th century, and for good reason. She is the only woman to have ever held the post of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. She is a fearless leader, an advocate for democracy around the world, and a steadfast friend of the United States. This resolution recognizes the 30th anniversary of her election as the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Margaret Thatcher served as Prime Minister of Great Britain for 11 years, from 1979 to 1990. At the time of her resignation, she was the longest continuously serving Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 1827. This resolution pays tribute to her remarkable professional achievements. In addition to being the only woman to have ever held the post of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, she was also leader of the Conservative Party for 15 years, from 1975 to 1990, and was the only woman to ever hold that post. In the 20th century, she was the only Prime Minister to win three consecutive terms, a testament to her bold and tenacious leadership. This resolution also recognizes Prime Minister Thatcher's dedicated work in promoting individual rights and free markets throughout the world. During her time in office, Prime Minister Thatcher fostered the dawning of a new distinctive type of politics called ``Thatcherism,'' which emphasized individual responsibility and fiscal and social policies. When she came into office, the state of the United Kingdom's economy was in deep despair. There were pickets; there were strikes; there were food shortages; pregnant women were denied medical services and the country had double-digit inflation. Margaret Thatcher represented a literal end to socialized government and the reinstitution of the free market philosophy. Through plain speaking and sheer determination, she persuaded city after city to contract out public services to private companies, saving taxpayers $30 billion every year. Company by company, she denationalized the entire economy. Family by family, she taught the nation the importance of living within their means. What a novel concept. During her tenure, 3 million families moved from public housing and became homeowners under her Right-to-Buy program. Homeownership under her administration jumped from 53 percent to 71 percent. This resolution also recognizes Margaret Thatcher's robust and principled approach to foreign policy during the long Cold War. Prime Minister Thatcher and President Ronald Reagan were key forces in the collapse of communism under the former Soviet Union. As a matter of fact, in 1976, Prime Minister Thatcher delivered such a bold speech against communism in the Soviet Union that the Soviet Union Army's newspaper started calling her the ``Iron Lady,'' and it stuck. The Iron Lady helped bring down the Iron Curtain, Mr. Speaker. Finally, this resolution acknowledges the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom fostered by Prime Minister Thatcher. Under her direction, the United States and the United Kingdom worked to overcome communism, encourage free markets around the world, curb terrorism, and promote democratic and individualistic values. My grandmother used to tell me that ``there was nothing more powerful than a woman who had made up her mind,'' and my grandmother was right. Margaret Thatcher is one of those remarkable women who has led a remarkable life, characterized by courage, determination, intellectual integrity, and she had made up her mind. She has not only inspired women all over the world to aspire towards positions of leadership, she has inspired an entire generation to promote policies that value economic freedom and individual responsibility. I am proud to be the sponsor of this resolution today. And that's just the way it is. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. With the rash of crime by foreign nationals in the city of Houston, coupled with the recent shooting of two Houston police officers by illegals that were previously deported, the Houston Police Officers Union wants to end the archaic, absurd policy of not questioning people about their immigration status. President Gary Blankenship of the union bluntly says, ``My guys are tired of dealing with criminal aliens. The severity of the crime is escalating''. He advocates weeding out dangerous criminals from the illegal community. He clearly says he doesn't want to round up the 400,000 illegals in the Greater Houston sanctuary community--just capture criminal illegals. But whoa there! You can't do that, saith the mayor and the open border crowd. That's insulting. That's probably racial profiling. The nerve of the police to ask people their legal status. That might scare them. And that's the Federal Government's job. So Houston will continue the policy of ``Thou Shalt Not Ask'', and, for political expediency, prefer the desires of the illegal community over the safety of the police, the citizens, and the legal immigrants. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, as we approach Memorial Day, we remember our military who served our Nation. And here is one of those. This is Frank Buckles, Jr. This was recently taken. Frank Buckles just turned 108 years old. The reason I mention Frank Buckles is because he lied to get into the Army in World War I at 15. He served in Europe. In World War II, he spent 3 years in a prisoner- of-war camp in Japan. And, today, here he is, 108. I mention him because he is the last doughboy of World War I. Of the 4.4 million that served, Frank Buckles is it. We have monuments on our Mall for World War II, Korea and Vietnam. But, Madam Speaker, we have no monument for those that served in World War I. America never got around to it. It is time America gets around to building a memorial for Frank Buckles and the 4.4 million that served, and the 116,000 that never came home from World War I. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my friend from California bringing this to the House floor. The Border Patrol that patrols our borders on the north and the south are many times in isolated areas. The vastness of the land makes it lonely. And for much of the time, all they are able to do is seek and find out those who wish to sneak into the United States at the hands of a human smuggler. We call those people ``coyotes.'' I think that insults the coyote population of south Texas. The deadliest human smuggling attempt took place in my home State of Texas not far from Houston when a coyote bringing 70 immigrants into the United States abandoned the tractor-trailer that they were in at a truckstop, and 19 of the people in that vehicle died from dehydration and suffocation. And now we are learning that the drug cartels are working hand-in-hand with the human smugglers, and they are both making a profit off of these humans that wish to come into the United States. This is a multibillion-dollar-a-year industry. And that money goes to criminals, coyotes and the drug cartels. Last week in the Senate hearing, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard noted that in Arizona just last year, the cartels grossed $2 billion from human smuggling alone. This billion-dollar industry is being stopped by the Border Patrol. And we need to applaud their work and their efforts in trying to keep the dignity and sovereignty of the United States intact and keeping out the drug cartels, the human smugglers and the outlaws that make a profit off of people who come into the United States.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, recently three boats of the Somali pirates gave chase on the high seas toward a lone ship of prey, ready once again to capture an unarmed vessel and the crew, and hold them hostage until the ransom is paid. As the smiling armed outlaws sped toward the game and readied the attack, the target appeared to flee as it headed away into the horizon of the sun. But to the dismay of the bold bandits, they were trapped. The supposed merchant ship dispatched two boats that headed directly for the malcontents of robbery. Aboard were French commandos. The alleged merchant ship was a ship of the French Navy. Shots were fired over the criminals, and in minutes the 11 pirates of misfortune were captured and stowed away in the darkness of the French brig. Madam Speaker, it defies reason that merchant ships are not armed. The international maritime community should arm their ships against the pirates of prey. The French and American Navies cannot save them every day. Let the philosophy of the Second Amendment, ``right to bear arms'', apply on the high seas. And that's just the way it is.