Ted Poe

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the fine career and outstanding public service of my friend, Dr. Guy Sconzo. Dr. Sconzo has devoted four decades to the education of our nation's youth; beginning as a teacher and then working as an administrator. He is retiring after leading Humble Independent School District for the last 15 years as Superintendent. He has devoted his life to education and bettering our community, and it is with great pleasure that I express my admiration and gratitude for his lifelong service. I offer him my utmost congratulations for his long and successful career. Dr. Sconzo began his career as a teacher--in his home state of New York--after graduating from Wagner College in 1973. He then earned his Master's Degree at New York University, and his doctorate at Ohio State University. He served in many different teaching and administrative roles in New York, Ohio, New Jersey, and Oklahoma. He then made one of the best decisions of his life, he moved to the great State of Texas in 2001 as Superintendent for Humble ISD. During his career, he has achieved numerous awards and recognition at the local, state and federal level for his leadership and hands-on involvement in the success of the students at Humble ISD. In 2013, he earned Superintendent of the Year by Region 4 and last year he led Humble ISD to being named the Best Large District in Texas by H-E-B Excellence in Education Awards. His dedication has earned him the respect and admiration of the teachers, staff and students under his supervision as well as the community. His intellect, eagerness, and vision will be sincerely missed by not only Humble, but the many other communities that he has touched. Dr. Sconzo is a dedicated family man, having been married to his wife Diane for 41 years, and the proud father of two adult children; Michael and Jennifer. Dr. Sconzo and Diane are looking forward to traveling and spending time with their four grandchildren. On behalf of the Second Congressional District of Texas, I commend this remarkable leader for his exemplary service and dedication to the State of Texas. I thank him for a job well done and I wish him the best of luck in the future as he enters into this new phase of life.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, Texas has been hammered by historic torrential rain and flooding. As the Texas floodwaters rose, 12 soldiers from Fort Hood, Texas, were crossing Owl Creek in a 2\1/2\-ton Light Medium Tactical Vehicle when it became stuck in the Owl Creek low water crossing. Suddenly, the vehicle was swept over and sent downstream by fast-moving water. Nine American soldiers drowned in the massive flood waters. Today, we remember them, and here they are: Staff Sergeant Miguel Colon Vazquez, 38, from New York. He had just spent four tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan; Specialist Christine Armstrong, 27, of California; PFC Brandon Banner, 22, of Florida; PFC Zachery Fuller, 23, of Florida; Private Isaac Deleon, 19, of Texas. He was the youngest of all of them. He had only been in the Army for 17 months; Private Eddy Rae'Laurin Gates, 20, of North Carolina--a former homecoming queen; Private Tysheena James, 21, of New Jersey; West Point cadet Mitchell Winey, 21, of Indiana; Specialist Yingming Sun, 25, of California. These are the nine who drowned recently in the Texas floods. The soldiers were members of the 3rd Battalion, 16th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team of the 1st Cavalry Division. These American soldiers were volunteers who swore to protect the United States. They were a cut above the rest and were ready to defend freedom at home and abroad. Their lives were ripped from this world and their families all too soon. We are grateful for them and their families for their service and their sacrifices. These soldiers are the best of America. Our thoughts and prayers are with the soldiers and their families, who have been devastated by the floods of Texas this spring. And that is just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the year was 1840 when one of the most faithful Texans joined the Texas Rangers and began a decade's-long service to the great state of Texas. William A.A. Wallace, more often known as ``Big Foot'' Wallace, was born in Virginia in 1817. He moved to Texas in 1837 after hearing that a brother and a cousin were killed by the Mexican Army during the Texas Revolution. Not long after, he would join the Texas Rangers and spent the better part of his life defending Texas. Though there are many legends about the emergence of his nickname, Wallace contended that the nickname derived from an incident with a Comanche. During the time he lived in Austin before he joined the Texas Rangers, a Comanche with large feet stole property in the area and was tracked by Wallace. When the Comanche raided the kitchen of a man in town, the man followed the Comanche's tracks to Wallace's house and thus accused Wallace of the raid. But a quick thinking Wallace pointed out that the tracks were much larger than his. It was this case of mistaken identity that led Wallace to assume the name ``Big Foot.'' Wallace is a descendant of the Scottish legend William Wallace, immortalized in the film Braveheart, who led a rebellion against King Edward I of England during the Wars of Scottish Independence. Like his ancestor who fought courageously and for a cause he wholeheartedly believed in, ``Big Foot'' Wallace spent decades fighting faithfully for a cause he believed in, the defense of Texas. As a side note, Mr. Speaker, I too have a connection to William Wallace. My family are descendants of the Weems Clan (Wemyss) of Scotland. The Wemysses fought on the side of Robert Bruce and Wallace during the Scottish war of Independence. When the war was over and their side lost, the English crown confiscated much of their inherited land. The Weems Castle still sits on the coast of Scotland. In 1840, Wallace joined the Texas Rangers and subsequently fought various skirmishes with Texas Indians and Mexicans. Two years later when fighting an invading Mexican Army during the Somervell and Mier expeditions, Wallace was among 150 men captured by Mexican forces. During this time in a Mexican prison 1 in 10 men was to be executed. Their fate was determined by drawing either a white or black bean from a jar. Those who drew the black bean were executed. Luckily, Wallace drew a white bean and was spared, and eventually released. The executions would later become known to all those who study Texas history as the ``Black Bean Episode''. His time in the Mexican prison must have furthered his resolve because he once again volunteered to serve with the Texas Rangers and during the Mexican War he served in a company of Mounted Volunteers in the United States Army. Following the Mexican War and through the Civil War, this Loyal Texan once again served with the Texas Rangers fighting to protect the Texas frontier from bandits, Indians, deserters and Union soldiers. As a testament to his loyal service to Texas, Wallace was given a tract of land in Frio County, in South Texas, where he lived until his death in 1899. He was ultimately buried at the Texas State Cemetery at the feet of Stephen F. Austin. He has become a folk legend for those in Texas and beyond. The words at his final resting place say it all, ``Here lies he who spent his manhood defending the homes of Texas. Brave, honest, and faithful.'' And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as a former Harris County Judge and prosecutor and the cofounder and chairman of the Congressional Victims' Rights Caucus, protecting the most vulnerable in our society is a top priority for me. I first learned about human trafficking when I was overseas in the Ukraine and soon discovered that modern day slavery occurs in the United States as well, including all around Texas, which is unfortunately a hub given its proximity to the border and many large highways, ports, and airports. The United States views itself as a leader in the fight against human trafficking, even going as far as to grade other countries on their efforts to combat trafficking in persons. Yet, before the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA) became law, I heard about common issues from anti-trafficking organizations on the national, state, and local levels as well as law enforcement and local leaders: The federal government barely funds efforts to combat trafficking in the United States. Trafficking victims are often arrested and treated as criminals, but buyers are often not. Many Americans including those that interact with trafficking victims--law enforcement, educators, medical professionals, and others --do not know about human trafficking or understand how to identify victims. A bipartisan, bicameral group of Members of Congress, led in the House by myself, a Texas Republican, and Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, a New York Democrat, and in the Senate by a Texas Republican, Senator John Cornyn, an Oregon Democrat, Senator Ron Wyden, who came together, recognizing these issues, and wrote a bill to address them, relying a lot on what we learned from Texas, a trailblazer in addressing human trafficking. A core provision of JVTA is the Domestic Trafficking Victims' Fund. It is clear that more resources need to be put towards human trafficking, but the question is where to get the money. The answer is to supplement current funding, which should be a priority through general appropriations, with financing from the criminals. Let those who harm vulnerable people pay for the damage they have caused. A $5,000 special assessment is collected from those convicted of human trafficking and other related charges, which goes into the Domestic Trafficking Victims' Fund to finance grant programs that address trafficking including law enforcement operations, training, and victims' services. A fundamental goal of JVTA is for victims of human trafficking to be treated as victims and not criminals. This is addressed in a number of provisions in the law, including a newly created community-based block grant. The grant promotes the use of a collaborative model (government and non-profits working together) by cities and states to address child trafficking through the enhancement of anti-trafficking law enforcement units, the creation or continuation of problem solving courts like the GIRLS court in Houston, and shelters and services for victims. The bill also changes statutory language that references child prostitution to child trafficking and encourages a safe harbor model in the states. We also focus on the demand--buyers, those that exploit women and children. While many call these people ``johns,'' I call them child molesters. John is a name from the Bible, a good guy, not someone who pays money to abuse a fellow person. JVTA clarifies that those who buy sex from trafficking victims are human traffickers, can and should be punished under federal law, and are subject to the same penalties as sellers. Gone are the days of boys being boys. We can no longer turn a blind eye to this crime. These core provisions of the legislation guide JVTA as a whole as a victim-centered, tough on crime, fiscally responsible measure that makes certain that the United States is truly a leader in ending modem day slavery. I commend the Texas Legislature for making our state a leader in fighting against the scourge of human trafficking. I appreciate the weight given to this important bill and look forward to continuing to work together to protect our children, the vulnerable in our society, and making sure the bad guys pay. A society will be judged by how it treats the most vulnerable. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, Jane Maharam was, above all, a survivor. She always rose above adversity. She was a teacher, a music producer, a textile owner, a mother, a grandmother. She was happily married to her childhood sweetheart, but 31 years after her marriage, her husband took off in the darkness of the night with the property. After a 15-year court battle, her ex-husband was ordered to return her assets, but instead of following the court order, he snuck off again, hiding in another State. Jane was left with nothing. She was forced to rely on public assistance. There are many spouses like Jane who find themselves victims of this injustice. Jane's Law provides Federal enforcement to retrieve stolen marital property that is illegally taken across State lines. It targets stealing spouses who have deliberately evaded payment. Jane's motto, though, was: Don't give up. Her passion drove me and the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen) along with a number of other House Members to champion Jane's Law. Jane Maharam died recently on April 28, 2016, at the age of 85. She was a strong-spirited woman but, Madam Speaker, she died without justice. To honor her memory, we must pass Jane's Law to rectify this injustice that she had to live through. And that is just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on Monday, we celebrate Memorial Day and across the nation Americans will gather to pay tribute to our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who go overseas and do not return. They are from every state and territory. They are from farms, ranches and cities. They are of all races and both sexes. They are rich and poor, but generally they are young. They are patriots, defenders of freedom and volunteers to serve our great nation. We remember all of those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice so that we can live freely. It all started in 1868 when widows and girlfriends of soldiers killed in the War Between the States started putting flowers on the graves of Confederate and Union soldiers in Arlington Cemetery. And thus began what was initially called ``Dedication Day,'' and now Memorial Day. If we recall our history we must remember that during the War Between the States, there were 350,000 Confederates that were killed and 455,000 Union soldiers that were killed, and regardless of the politics, they were all Americans--America's youth. And thus began what we now call Memorial Day, the last Monday in May. Memorial Day is a special event for people in Texas because, around 125,000 Texans are serving our nation, today and every day. Texans have always been willing to volunteer to support our country, and that says a lot about our country. In another war, the war to end all wars, 5,000 Texans gave their lives. Boys who grew up on farms in Texas suddenly became men as they found themselves in the muddy, rainy, and bloody trenches an ocean away. Life in the trenches was hard. Men were constantly bombarded with artillery and machine gun fire. And they often faced the danger of going over the trenches and crossing no man's land, trying to repel the enemy forces attempting the same. In the midst of battle and in the face of the enemy, some men displayed tremendous gallantry and were awarded medals for their actions. However, the greatest casualty of war is to be forgotten. More soldiers died during World War I than in Korea, Vietnam, both Iraq Wars and Afghanistan combined. It is only fitting that they are honored in our nation's capital. After the long process of passing the creation of the WWI memorial and creating and funding the WWI commission through Congress, it was signed into law. Now, we have finally arrived at a design for the National WWI memorial at Pershing Park. The ``Weight of Sacrifice'' was chosen by the WWI commission. Soon, veterans of the war to end all wars will be properly honored in our nation's capital. This Memorial Day, we remember those who served and who did not make it back home. On Monday, I will be honoring our fallen heroes at the Houston National Cemetery, as Americans across the nation observe this day of remembrance. We remember their sacrifices and that of their families. To those who gave their all to serve our country, America is eternally grateful. We remember each and every one of them because the worst casualty of war is to be forgotten. And that is just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the VA is not the ``Happiest Place on Earth.'' It is not Disneyland, and our veterans are not living in a world of make-believe. Secretary McDonald should be ashamed of himself for belittling our veterans. Dying in line waiting for medical services is not the same as waiting for Mickey Mouse. Disneyland wait times are a matter of hours--not months. Reports find that nearly half of vets never see a doctor because of failure of VA staff to schedule an appointment. The VA owes our veterans an apology. Veterans should be allowed to get vouchers for private physicians. Next week we observe Memorial Day--honoring our warriors who died for America. We also will honor those who fought in faraway-distant lands just to come home and be a casualty of the VA's incompetence. Secretary McDonald should be replaced with someone who respects America's heroes and ensures that no one else dies in line waiting for care at the fault of the VA. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, born in the 1920s, he grew up in the Depression of the 1930s, poor, like more most rural American children. Fresh vegetables were grown in the family garden behind the small frame house. His mother made sandwiches for school out of homemade bread. Store-bought bread was for the rich. He grew up belonging to the Boy Scouts, playing the trumpet in the high school band, and he went to church on almost all Sundays. In 1944, this 18-year-old country boy, who had never been more than 50 miles from home, quickly found himself going through basic training at the United States Army at Camp Wolters in Camp Wolters, Texas. After that, he rode a train with hundreds of other young teenagers-- American males--to New York City for the ocean trip on a cramped Liberty ship to fight in the great World War II. While crossing the Atlantic, he witnessed another Liberty ship next to his that was sunk by a German U-boat. As a soldier in the Seventh Army, he went from France to survive the Battle of the Bulge and through the cities of Aachen, Stuttgart, Cologne, and Bonn. As a teenager, he saw the brutal concentration camps of the Nazis and saw the victims. He saw incredible numbers of other teenage Americans buried in graves throughout Europe. A solemn monument to those soldiers is at Normandy. After Germany surrendered, he was ordered back to Fort Hood, Texas. He was being reequipped for the invasion of Japan. Then Japan surrendered. It was there he met Mom at a Wednesday night prayer meeting service. My mom was a Red Cross volunteer in WWII. Until a few years ago, this GI--my dad--would never talk about World War II. He still won't say much, but he does say frequently that the heroes are the ones who are buried today in Europe. After the war was over, he opened a DX service station, where he pumped gas, sold tires, fixed cars, and began a family. Deciding he wanted to go to college, he moved to west Texas and enrolled in a small Christian college named Abilene Christian College. He and his wife and two small children lived in an old, converted Army barracks with other such families. He supported us by working nights at the KRBC radio station and by climbing telephone poles for Ma Bell, which was later called Southwestern Bell. He finished college, became an engineer, and worked 40-plus years for Southwestern Bell Telephone Company in Houston, Texas. He turned down a promotion and a transfer to New York City because it was not Texas and he didn't want to raise his family in New York. Dad instilled in my sister and me the values of being a neighbor to everybody, of loving the USA, of loving our heritage, and of always doing the right thing to all people. He still gets mad at the media. He flies Old Glory on holidays. He goes to church on Sunday, and he takes Mom out to eat on Friday nights. He stands in the front yard and talks to his neighbors, and he can still fix anything. He can still mow his own grass even though he is 90 years of age. He has a strong opinion on politics and world events. He gives plenty of advice to everybody, including a lot of advice to me. He has two computers in his home office. He sends emails to hundreds of his buddies all over the world. Dad and Mom still live in Houston, Texas, where I grew up. So today, Mr. Speaker, as we approach Memorial Day and honor the fallen warriors of all wars, we also honor all who fought in the great World War II and who got to come home. We honor my dad, but also other American warriors. My dad was one of those individuals of the Greatest Generation. He is the best man I ever met, and he certainly is a charter member of the Greatest Generation. So I hope I turn out like him, Tech Sergeant Virgil Poe, United States Army, good man, good father. That is enough for one life. And that is just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, it happened right under the entire community's nose. Eight year old Jen Spry was raped and tortured on a daily basis. She was not kidnapped by a stranger in a dark alley. She was trafficked just a few doors down from her mother's house. It was not just Jen who was trafficked. Her younger sister, a male cousin, and a whole group of kids from her hometown of Norristown Pennsylvania were victims as well. No one ever went looking for the children, simply because they never went missing. From 3-6 p.m. every day she was forced to have sex with strangers, because, as she describes it, it was her job. The children were coerced into participating and threatened into keeping it a secret. The trafficking finally ended when she was about 10 when the neighbor suddenly moved away. Jen went to great lengths to hide the abuse from her single mother, who never found out about the tragedies that Jen experienced. In fact, Jen did not speak out about what happened until after her mother passed away. Stories like Jen's drove us to write JVTA. As did stories like Tina Frundt's, who joins us today. She is a huge part of the solution with her organization Courtney's House and her membership on the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking created by JVTA as well as the persistence of many of the groups present today. The United States views itself as a leader in the fight against human trafficking. Even going as far as to grade other countries on their efforts to combat trafficking in persons. Yet, before the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA) became law, I heard about common issues from survivors and anti-trafficking organizations on the national, state, and local levels, as well as law enforcement and local leaders. Some of the common concerns included: The federal government barely funds efforts to combat trafficking in the United States. Trafficking victims are often arrested and treated as criminals, but buyers are often not. Many Americans including those that interact with trafficking victims--law enforcement, educators, medical professionals, and others --do not know about human trafficking or understand how to identify victims. Hearing this message loud and clear, a bipartisan, bicameral group of Members of Congress set out to write a bill using the survivor experience to guide us and learning from programs around the country that are working to fight trafficking and serve victims. Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat from New York and I lead the effort on JVTA in the House. Congresswoman Maloney and I hardly speak the same language. Being from New York she thinks I talk funny and as a Texan I can hardly understand her either the effort was led by another unusual pair in the Senate. A Texas Republican, Senator John Cornyn and an Oregon Democrat, Senator Ron Wyden. 11 anti-trafficking bills passed through the House, including those led by some of the wonderful women here today. The bills were combined in the Senate, came back to the House, passed overwhelmingly and were signed into law. The law addresses the common problems we heard from the field. We created a Domestic Trafficking Victims Fund that makes those who harm vulnerable people pay for the damage they have caused. A $5,000 special assessment is collected from those convicted of human trafficking and other related charges, and goes into a Fund to provide resources to victims and those fighting trafficking. A fundamental goal of JVTA is for victims of human trafficking to be treated as victims and not criminals. This is addressed in a number of provisions in the law, including a newly created community-based block grant. We also focus on the demand--buyers, those that exploit women and children. While many call these people ``johns,'' I call them child molesters. John is a name from the Bible, a good guy, not someone who pays money to abuse a fellow person. JVTA clarifies that those who buy sex from trafficking victims are human traffickers, can and should be punished under federal law, and are subject to the same penalties as sellers. JVTA has done a lot to change the mindset of people in this country. But we need the law to be fully implemented by all the agencies charged with executing the law including DOJ, HHS, and DHS. In order to truly be the leader in the fight against modern day slavery. We anxiously await the response to our letter. A society will be judged by how it treats the most vulnerable. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize the fine career and outstanding public service of Dr. Jim Cain, superintendent of Klein ISD. Dr. Cain has devoted over 47 years to the education of our youth, serving as a teacher, coach, assistant principal, principal, instructional officer for technology, director of school administration, assistant superintendent and superintendent. He has devoted his life to education and bettering our community, and it is with great pleasure that I express my admiration and gratitude. I offer him my utmost congratulations for his long and successful career. Dr. Cain began his career as a teacher, in his home state of Illinois, after graduating from the University of Illinois in 1969. He then made one the best decisions of his life, he moved to the great state of Texas and in 1978 he took his first job at Klein ISD at Benfer Elementary. He has served in many different roles during his 36 years with the district, 12 of those as superintendent. Dr. Cain has achieved recognition and numerous awards at the local, state and federal level for his leadership and hands on involvement in the success of the students at Klein ISD. Last Thursday, at the Klein ISD staff banquet, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award. His dedication has earned him the respect and admiration of the teachers, staff and students under his supervision as well as the community. His intellect, eagerness, and vision will be sincerely missed by not only Klein, but the many other communities that he has touched. Dr. Cain is a dedicated family man, having been married to his wife Susan for 39 years, and the proud father of two adult children; Ross and Ashley. Dr. Cain and Susan are looking forward to traveling and spending time with their four grandchildren. On behalf of the Second Congressional District of Texas, I commend this remarkable leader for his exemplary service and dedication to the State of Texas. I thank him for a job well done and I wish him the best of luck in the future as he enters into this new phase of life.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I thank the gentlewoman for her comments. As the gentlewoman knows and has been mentioned on the House floor, I think, by Mr. Weber, Houston, Texas, is a hub for child sex trafficking in the United States, and it is because of our location. We are using that, though, to change the dynamics of the city, working with our new mayor, Sylvester Turner, who was in the State legislature for a long time. Our new mayor has now come up with a protocol for the city of Houston to work to eliminate this scourge. I think it is a protocol that cities throughout the country will be able to use themselves to address the issue, admit the problem, and then deal with it on a multilayer basis, working with all the nonprofits and all the government agencies and different types of law enforcement. So I know that the gentlewoman is working with the mayor on this project. I want to congratulate you and the mayor for taking this issue and solving it so that Houston now will be an example of what to do in solving this scourge. I also thank you for being on the Victims' Rights Caucus. As you mentioned, it is bipartisan. Jim Costa and I started this in 2005. There are 80 members: 40 Republicans, 40 Democrats. Mr. Speaker, the Victims' Rights Caucus promotes victims of crime before Congress.

Mr. POE of Texas. The gentlewoman is exactly correct. That is really what we are supposed to be doing, is helping those that are the least fortunate, the most vulnerable in our community. And there is no more vulnerable people than our children. Mr. Speaker, I also want to recognize numerous Members of Congress who have worked on all this legislation. Before I do that, though, I want to recognize a person on my staff, Blair Bjellos, who is leaving the Hill and going to work for one of these groups that is trying to save the world, which is great. They are. Blair has worked for me for almost 6 years. She is my victim advocate. I think I am the only Member of Congress that has a victim advocate who works on victims' issues. She was, in large part, responsible for drafting this legislation, Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. I want to thank her publicly for the work she has done on the victims' movement, working on the Victims' Rights Caucus, this legislation, and for other victims' issues as well. I am fortunate to have a person who is so passionate working to help those who are most vulnerable in our community, and that is victims of crime. So I want to thank her for doing that. I want to mention some other Members of Congress and just put in the Record some of the things they have been doing. It is not all of them, but in limited time, I am going to mention the ones I can. Two Members, bipartisan--one Republican, one Democrat--Renee Ellmers and Debbie Wasserman Schultz--introduced the Trafficking Awareness Training for Health Care Act. Remember, Mr. Speaker, all these bills were combined, passed the House, go to the Senate, and Senator Cornyn and Senator Wyden combined them into one bill, it came back to House after it passed the Senate, and was signed by the President. Also, Erik Paulsen, a Republican, and Representative Gwen Moore, a Democrat, introduced the Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act. Joe Heck of Nevada, who was going to be here tonight to speak, introduced Enhancing Services for Runaway and Homeless Victims of Youth Trafficking Act. Ann Wagner, as has been mentioned already, introduced the SAVE Act; Mark Walker, Human Trafficking Detection Act; Kristi Noem, Human Trafficking Prevention, Intervention, and Recovery Act; Tom Marino and Karen Bass--one Republican, one Democrat--Strengthening Child Welfare Response for Human Trafficking; Joyce Beatty, who has spoken here tonight, also worked with Ann Wagner and also introduced Improve the Response to Victims of Child Sex Trafficking Act; and Sean Maloney introduced the Human Trafficking Prevention Act. There were lots of individuals, lots of folks who helped in the House. Then we had support from over 200 organizations throughout the country, trying to get this legislation passed. Some of those are Rights4Girls, Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, Shared Hope International, End Child Prostitution and Trafficking in the USA, National Children's Alliance, National Association to Protect Children, Equality Now, National Conference of State Legislatures, and the National Criminal Justice Association were all on the same page of the hymnal singing the same song, Mr. Speaker, and that song is that we are going to do everything we can to stop this scourge of human trafficking. We want those folks to know that trafficked young children have no place to hide and that those customers that buy those kids have no place to hide. There is no safe place for them. And we want victims to know there is a safe place and that we will help them to recover from what has happened to them and hold people accountable for what they do, especially when they commit crimes against the most vulnerable people in our culture. And if we are not to help kids, why are we here, Mr. Speaker? I want to thank Members of Congress for passing this legislation overwhelmingly. Many of these bills passed the House unanimously. That doesn't happen a lot over here. We are all working on this. We are not through. But we want people to know--victims of crime--that there is hope and there is rescue. And that is just the way it is. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be allowed 5 days to file remarks and revise and extend those remarks.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this Sunday, May 29, marks the 1-year anniversary for the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act being signed into law, or the JVTA, as we refer to it. This is a vital piece of legislation that the House and Senate passed and that was signed by the President a year ago that takes this scourge of human slavery that is taking place internationally, but also here in the United States, and Congress weighs in on this to deal with this issue, I think, in a very good way. It is impressive to me as a Member of the House how many Members of Congress on both sides were involved in drafting legislation over a year ago that came to the House and passed. In the House itself, there were 11 pieces of legislation that dealt with sex trafficking. All of those bills came up to the House floor in the same week, and all of them passed with overwhelming numbers. They went down the hallway to the U.S. Senate. The Senate combined those bills into one bill, and it passed that legislation. It came back to the House, we passed that, and it was signed by the President. I want to thank all of those Members of Congress--Republicans and Democrats--who worked on this. Just by way of background, I got involved in this issue in several ways. One way was when I was in Eastern Europe several years ago and found out about the human trafficking, sex trafficking, and labor trafficking that was taking place in Eastern Europe and how young women were lured into thinking they were going to get a better job--or have a job--in Africa and the next thing they knew they were in sex slavery in northern Africa. Most of those women just disappeared over the years. Then, back here in the United States, we have the problem of the crime and the scourge of trafficking, and it happens in two areas. There is international sex trafficking into the United States. About 20 percent of the trafficking here in America is international, primarily coming from the southern border. You see those drug traffickers, those drug dealers, who come across the southern border of Texas. They bring anybody into the United States, and they will do anything for money. They will bring young girls, young women, and traffic them into the United States and turn them over to the criminal gangs, like the MS-13 gang, and then they are trafficked throughout the United States. That is about 20 percent of the trafficking. The other 80 percent is trafficking by domestic or young girls, young women. They are trafficked throughout the United States in the same crime--sex slavery, sex trafficking. I had an opportunity to meet a lot of these trafficking victims in my work as chairman and co-chairman with Jim Costa of the Crime Victims Caucus. I will tell you about three of those, and those three women helped get the minds straight of Members of Congress on this issue that is taking place. ``T,'' as her nickname is, was in foster care. She spent 18 years of her life in foster care. In foster care, she was abused, treated like an animal, hardly fed by some of the individuals who were in the foster care system. All she wanted was a family, someone to love and care for her. She met an older boy, and that individual made her feel special. He promised to love her and take care of her. But as soon as she left with him, she became a sex slave, and her innocence was crushed. She was sold around the country in massage parlors, strip clubs, in hotels, and on the Internet. She was treated like property for 7 years, Mr. Speaker. I mentioned that she was in foster care. We now understand that about two-thirds of the sex trafficking victims in the United States, at some time in their lives, were in foster care. That is an issue we have to deal with. Congress has to deal with that. Finally, ``T'' was rescued, and now she tells her story wherever she can. Even Time magazine featured her and her life and her story and her recovery. Brooke Axtell I met in Texas. Her mother was extremely ill when she was about 7 years of age. So the mother turned Brooke over to a nanny, but the nanny did not protect her. In fact, the nanny did just the opposite. The nanny sexually abused Brooke and then trafficked her. It is common with child trafficking victims, as with Brooke, to also be victims of child pornography. After Mom got out of the hospital, Brooke was slow to tell Mom what happened, but she finally did. In working with her mother, she was able to be rescued and get out of this scourge of sex trafficking. Now she works with Allies Against Slavery in Texas. The third person I want to mention very briefly is Cheryl Briggs. She grew up in an abusive home. She was sexually abused by her father. Things were so bad in the home that Mama left when Cheryl was very young to escape the abuse. At the age of 12, Cheryl didn't know what else to do except get away from her father. So she ran away. She began hitchhiking with truck drivers or with anybody who would take her. It led her to get involved with a motorcycle group, and she started a career, unfortunately, in sex trafficking hell. This individual took her to a biker club that was filled with men who sexually assaulted her. They raped her. She became a trafficked victim and was forced to do all kinds of just awful, horrible things. She was trapped in this scourge of human trafficking and didn't know how to get help. She was finally able to get help when a patron of the strip club figured out on his own that she was too young and helped her get rescued. Now Cheryl works to help those who are in this sex trafficking in the United States. Those are just three stories, Mr. Speaker. Let me tell you about one bill, and then I want other Members of Congress who are here at this late hour to make comments as well. Carolyn Maloney and I worked on the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. Now, you know Carolyn Maloney. She is a New York liberal Democrat who talks a little funny. She teamed up with me, a Texas conservative who talks a little funny, according to her. The two of us got together and started working on this with lots of Members of Congress. The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, thanks to the hard work of Mrs. Maloney and others--and especially of the women in the U.S. House of Representatives--passed the House. It does three things. It does three things. It goes after the trafficker, the slave master, and makes sure that when prosecutors--Mr. Speaker, as you know about prosecutors--when they prosecute those cases, that person goes away to the penitentiary, the do right hotel, for as long as the judge can send them. It then goes to the other end and looks at the trafficking victim. For years, society looked at this victim as a criminal, a child prostitute. Children cannot be prostitutes. It is impossible, legally impossible. So rather than treat them like criminals and put them in the criminal justice system, it rescues those victims and treats them like victims of crime rather than criminals. This is a major change in society's thought and thought process about these children and young women. Also, Mr. Speaker, it goes after the money, the consumer, the buyer in the middle. Too long, these buyers of trafficking victims who pay money to do these awful things to children have kind of skated under the criminal justice system. Not anymore. Those days are over. The days of boys being boys are over, and these buyers can be prosecuted to the same extent of the law as the trafficker. So the bill does three things: it goes after the trafficker; it goes after the demand, the money; and it rescues the victims. How do we pay for this? It is kind of a novel approach. Federal judges now can impose fines and fees on the trafficker and the buyer because a lot of them have a lot of money. And that money goes into a fund, and that fund is used and given as grants to different organizations, nonprofits throughout the country in States to help trafficking victims and also to educate police and educate the public. So it is a good piece of legislation. That was just one of several pieces of legislation that came to the House floor. As I mentioned, this was a bipartisan effort. Mrs. Joyce Beatty of Ohio is here. She filed legislation called Improve the Response to Victims of Child Sex Trafficking. All of that legislation was included in the Senate bill and came back to the House and then passed. What it does is decriminalize child sex and makes it easier for people to report potential incidences of crimes against children. I yield to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Mrs. Beatty), a great advocate on behalf of crime victims and trafficking victims.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida. I appreciate his comments. He made several excellent points, the NIMBY attitude that some people have, not in my backyard. I met with a father last week. He came to my office and told me the story of how his daughter had been trafficked. He went to the local sheriff in another part of the State and told the sheriff what had happened. The sheriff said: It doesn't happen here. It does. It happens everywhere. It is in our backyard. It is everywhere. We need to recognize that. The gentleman worked on his own, then, to find his daughter and take her back home. The gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho) makes another good comment about how these young kids are prey. A trafficked child, like the one I just mentioned, they had been working on her for 18 months, seducing her, talking to her, using the Internet. She thought these people were her friends. They were not her friends. They were all involved in the trafficking process. We need to understand that traffickers are not old guys in trench coats wandering around and snatching kids. They are not. Many times they are young people, young, good-looking guys who will strike up a conversation with a middle schooler at the mall and then talk to them again later and then later and then, finally, that individual gets in the vehicle or meets the individual, the trafficker, someplace, and then she is gone. This father that I talked to knew the statistics, that, if you have a child that is trafficked, you have about 3 weeks to find her or she is gone because those traffickers move those kids all over the country, selling them every day. It is in our backyard, unfortunately. I yield to another Texan, the gentlewoman from Houston, Texas, Ms. Sheila Jackson Lee, who has worked on this issue of trafficking here and also back home in our hometown of Houston.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Ohio. I like your tag line. I might use it myself. You point out several good things, and I think everybody listening can understand why legislation like this got passed because of your passion and--I will say it again--because of the women in the U.S. House that pushed this last year and were relentless until all this legislation came up. You point out many good things. There are two things, though, that I want to point out myself that you mentioned. One is about the money. People may ask, Mr. Speaker, why is there so much money involved in this? Well, drug dealers, when they sell drugs, you sell drugs one time. The cost of apprehension, the consequences, are great, and the chances of getting caught are great. On the other end, you have sex trafficking. Unfortunately, these children are sold multiple times a day--sometimes 20, 25 times a day. The risk of getting caught is very low, and the punishment, up until now, has been very low. So that is why it is the second or third biggest monetary system of criminal enterprises anywhere. That, Mr. Speaker, in itself is a disgrace to us as a people to allow this to happen, where slavery is the second or third money maker for the criminal gangs who primarily run all of these enterprises. I yield to another gentleman from Texas (Mr. Weber). He has been in the antitrafficking movement a long time. He worked in the Texas Legislature and helped Texas get ahead of the curve on the movement before we actually did here in the House. I yield to the gentleman from southeast Texas (Mr. Weber).

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Texas for his several important comments that he made about facilities to take the victims once they are rescued by law enforcement or by nonprofit organizations. Mr. Speaker, there is no place to put them. Sometimes that is why the police arrest these young girls and put them in juvenile detention, is because there is no facility to take them. I am not blaming the police. They have no other place for them to go. There have been some studies done on how many beds are available for trafficking victims. The latest comes out of the State of Illinois. They did some research, and there are about 600 to 700 beds nationwide for trafficking victims--600 to 700 beds; that is it--in a country of 350 million people. Compare that to animal shelters. I love animal shelters. I have got three Dalmatians. I call them the weapons of mass destruction. I got one of them from a Dalmatian rescue in Dallas. But there are 5,000 animal shelters in the United States, and that is good. We need every one of them. Six hundred to seven hundred beds for trafficking victims is not near enough. That is one thing this legislation does. It provides resources so we can have places to take these crime victims, and that is what they are. They are victims of crime. They are not criminals. They are hard to deal with. They are not easy to help. They have had their whole lives destroyed in front of them. So it takes time, it takes facilities, and it takes resources. One other comment you made about the signs. Of course, I am a big fan of criminals carrying signs in front of businesses that they commit crimes in. I did that as a judge and some other things. You are exactly right. If we could add an amendment to this legislation--and I think we should--to give Federal judges the option to allow the posting in the county in which the crime was committed on a billboard or a sign of a photograph of the child molester who has been convicted of trafficking children, that would get the attention of some of those folks out there who are trying to hide their criminal conduct. And maybe those billboards ought to pop up right before some big sporting event that cities have as well. That is just a thought, Mr. Speaker. I think we ought to work on that. We also have with us another person who has worked on this whole issue of trafficking victims and justice for them. Mr. Yoho is one of our newer Members of Congress, Ted Yoho from the Third District of the State of Florida. I yield to the gentleman at this time.

Mr. POE of Texas

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

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, last week, ISIS terrorists came to the house of a Christian family in Iraq to collect the religious tax imposed on all non-Muslims. ISIS told the mother of the home: You have two choices. You are to leave now or you are to pay the tax. The mother pled: I will pay, but give me a few seconds because my daughter is in the shower. But the ISIS terrorists did not wait. Instead, they set fire to the house. The mother, clutching a small child, escaped. But the girl was trapped in the burning home. Later, she was found. She had such severe burns, she died in her mother's arms. The last thing she said to her mother was: Forgive them. The girl is a better person than most of us. From beheading to burning little Christian girls alive, ISIS' evil genocide knows no bounds. ISIS murders in the name of religious jihad. Will we allow this evil to continue? Or shall all religions unite and hold ISIS accountable? We must stop ISIS' malicious murder of the innocent. Justice demands it. And, Mr. Speaker, justice is what we are supposed to do. And that is just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of Amendment Number 70. I want to thank Representative Connolly for his good work on this amendment. DOD is one of the last agencies that implement most of our foreign aid to come up with an evaluation policy. USAID has one. The State Department has one. The Millennium Challenge Corporation has one. But not DOD. Evaluations do not just trace how money is spent. Evaluations help us figure out if the money is achieving its intended outcome. Is it working? Is it making a lasting difference? The good news is that the DOD is working on an evaluation policy now. But just because they are working on it doesn't mean it will get done. We all know what bureaucrats can do if given the time. Amendment Number 70 makes it clear that Congress supports a strong evaluation policy. We should be doing rigorous evaluation on all our foreign aid because Americans deserve to know how their money is being spent. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Chair, on Sept. 22, 2011, Adm. Mike Mullen, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Haqqani Network was behind the 2011 attack on our embassy and a truck bombing that wounded more than 70 U.S. and NATO troops. Adm. Mullen went on to say, ``The Haqqani Network acts as a veritable arm of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency.'' Last year, the Haqqani Network and the Taliban killed more Afghan civilians and troops than in any other year since the Taliban was toppled in 2001. My amendment adds a fourth condition on the aid to Pakistan. This new condition requires the Administration to certify that Pakistan has shown progress in arresting and prosecuting Haqqani Network senior leaders and mid-level operatives. This forces Pakistan to make a choice: either go after the Haqqani Network in a public way that it has never done before or lose hundreds of millions of dollars of US aid. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Chair, I want to thank my good friend Mr. Rogers from Alabama for his work with me on this amendment. The Intermediate Nuclear Forces or ``INF'' Treaty places limits on ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers. In 2008, the Russians tested a missile within this prohibited range and were caught red handed. But it took 3 years for the Administration to report any concern about Russian compliance to Congress. It took a full 6 years for the State Department to officially find the Russians in violation. After eight years, there have been no serious consequences for Russia's violation of the treaty. My amendment would prohibit government contracts with entities that have contributed to Russia's violation of the INF Treaty. Russia is not our ally, is not our friend, and we cannot take it at its word. Czar Putin is determined to restore Russia to its glory days. We must respond with strength. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, nearly two years after the President vowed to ``degrade and ultimately destroy'' ISIS, the terrorists are still holding their sanctuary in Iraq and Syria. Foreign fighters are still flocking to ISIS' so-called caliphate to fight alongside the terrorist group and tyrannize local populations. But ISIS has not stopped there. In 2015, ISIS significantly stepped up its attacks outside Iraq and Syria. From the Charlie Hebdo attack last January to the attack last May at the Muhammad cartoon contest in Texas, ISIS has illustrated its dangerous capability to strike outside of its territory. The bloody year was finally capped off with the tragic massacre in Paris that left 130 people dead. Then came the attacks in Brussels only two months ago. ISIS suicide bombers killed 32 people and wounded over 300 in the heart of the European Union. The attacks showed the world that despite a year of pulling off these coordinated attacks, ISIS' appetite for carnage and its ability to strike have not abated. Besides the looming threat of ISIS, terrorism has continued to plague countries the world over. Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Egypt, Israel, Bangladesh. These are just a few countries facing serious and destabilizing terrorist threats. In fact, more people were killed by terrorists in 2014 than ever before. There was an 80 percent increase in terrorist-related deaths in 2014 compared to 2013. Yet in the midst of this struggle against terrorism, the Administration wants to cut the main anti-terrorism account by 25 percent while increasing a general foreign aid account by 41 percent. The State Department's Counter-Terrorism Bureau is not saved from this cut. In fact, State Department wants 31 percent less dollars for 2017 than 2016 for the CT Bureau. That budget request does not match the Administration's rhetoric that countering terrorism is a top priority. Originally set up as an office back in 1972 in response to the terrorist attack at the Olympic Games in Munich, Germany, the primary mission of the Bureau for Counterterrorism is to forge partnerships with non-state actors, multilateral organizations, and foreign governments to advance the counterterrorism objectives and national security of the United States. Under that broad mission it has five principal responsibilities: 1) countering violent extremism; 2) capacity building; 3) counterterrorism diplomacy; 4) U.S. counterterrorism strategy and operations; and 5) homeland security coordination. As the Bureau has grown in size, it has struggled to keep up with evaluating its programs to see if they really work. Even though the Bureau accepts the idea that it should be spending 3 to 5 percent of program resources on monitoring and evaluation, it has no way of tracking how much was actually spent so it can know if it is meeting that goal. Over the last 5 years, the Bureau has completed 5 evaluations. It needs to be doing more. It also needs to be doing better evaluations. The Bureau should do an impact evaluation to see if its project really made any difference. The Bureau should go back a year or longer after a project is completed to see if that project made a lasting difference. This year, the Bureau is putting strong emphasis on Countering Violent Extremism (CVE). Even as it faces a 31 percent cut, the Bureau wants to set up a new office, hire more staff, and expand its CVE programs. But CVE, which the Administration hails as a ``pillar'' of its counterterrorism strategy, has never even been evaluated by the Bureau. A GAO study stated that while the Bureau has promised to evaluate CVE since 2012 it still has not evaluated it. I'm glad to hear the Bureau finally has plans in the works to evaluate CVE, but if this evaluation was done years ago, we could be a lot more confident the new dollars going to CVE would be well spent. In January, the State Department announced the establishment of another office, the Global Engagement Center (GEC). Outside of the CT Bureau, it is tasked with coordinating messaging that delegitimizes violent extremists. It is not yet clear how the Bureau will engage and coordinate with the GEC or how it will not duplicate efforts. A big part of countering violent extremism is winning the battle online, especially over social media. ISIS has been able to recruit over 20,000 foreign fighters, from more than 90 different countries, partly because of the organization's use of social media. In 2011, the White House acknowledged terrorists' use of social media to spread hate and promised a strategy to prevent online radicalization. Five years later, we are still waiting. In a time of limited resources and dangerous terrorist threats; we cannot afford to waste any dollars. Our national security depends on it. It is clear that terror attacks are on the rise. Despite the Administration's so-called progress at winning back territory in Iraq and Syria, terrorists successfully conduct deadly attacks worldwide. ISIS and Al Qaeda affiliates continue to grow deeper roots in local communities thanks in large part to their use of social media. Now more than ever is a time to be vigilant about our counterterrorism efforts. The Department of State's role in this fight is not to be taken lightly. We need to make sure these programs are effective at combatting radicalization and the threat of terrorist attacks. The State Department must prioritize the monitoring and evaluation of their programs and ensure that lessons from such evaluations are implemented in a timely manner. We must develop a better understanding of what is working and what is not. The safety of Americans and our allies depends on it. And that's just the way it is.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. I thank the chairman of the full committee. Mr. Chair, this amendment is very similar to amendments that have been on this House floor before, presented by me and others, and is similar to an amendment that passed unanimously in the FY 2015 NDAA. It is called the SEND Act. It addresses the process of sending excess military equipment, which is not being used, to our border security folks to help them secure the border. That is the purpose of previous amendments and legislation that started all the way back in 2011. One way that the Department of Defense helps the Border Patrol is through the transfer of equipment that it deems to be in excess to its needs. Under current law, the transfer of this excess equipment gives some preference to counterdrug, counterterrorism, and some border security activities. This amendment simply takes that preference a step further, giving border security preference for a few specific pieces of equipment which are particularly useful for border security applications: unmanned surveillance vehicles, including aerostat blimps that are now being used, night vision goggles, and Humvees. The Border Patrol, as we all know, is the first and last line of defense against criminal gangs that come into the United States. In my home State of Texas, I have been to the border numerous times, and we have the same issue that other border States have with the criminal drug cartels, which are involved in not only bringing drugs into the United States, but in trafficking humans for sex slavery, labor slavery, and other purposes. After talking with them about many, many issues, we found out the situation on the border regarding equipment. A Texas ranger once told me that the drug cartels outman, outgun, out-finance, and out-equip the Border Patrol and those who are on the border who are trying to protect us from those criminal gangs that are coming into the United States. One of the issues the last time I was down at the border 2 or 3 weeks ago was that the Border Patrol was actually excited about these aerostats that are being used. That is a blimp that they put up in the sky, and it helps in surveillance along the border. They need more of those on the border. Of course, this amendment does exactly that. It gives a preference to those specific items that are mentioned in the amendment for the Border Patrol to use for border security purposes. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. POE of Texas

Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, early in 2015, the Department of Homeland Security removed the TSA Director and Administrator after it was revealed that banned items made it through screening in different parts of our airports throughout the United States. This didn't happen once or twice, but it happened 67 times out of 70 tries. That is a 90 percent failure rate. Any business would be out of business if it failed 90 percent of the time to do what it is supposed to do. We are not talking about selling goods and services. We are talking about security--American security. But TSA is a government agency, so, to me, accountability doesn't seem to be a priority. After this fiasco in 2015, the Administrator was replaced with a new Administrator. I don't know that security is better or not--maybe it is--but we do know that the lines are longer and TSA efficiency is questionable. To find that out, just go to any of our airports and try to travel. Travelers are faced with wait times in excess of 3 hours just to get through security. Flights are missed and flights are delayed because of the security chokepoint. It is ironic that people wait in line longer than it takes them to fly from point A to point B. Security lines should not take longer than the flight itself, but that is happening in our airports. The TSA Director blames the passengers for the delays. So it is not TSA's fault; it is the flying public's fault for the long lines and delays? The cost to American taxpayers for TSA is $7 billion a year. Are we safer, better off, and more secure because of this massive government bureaucracy? Americans need to answer that question. TSA must also work on its treatment of passengers. I constantly hear in my congressional office from people who travel about the way they are treated by government employees at TSA when they try to go through security. Now, I know a lot of TSA employees. Some of those in Houston are wonderful people. Yet some TSA employees are rude, demeaning, and disrespectful to the travelers. That has got to stop. There is no excuse for it. Flying has become torturous for some travelers because of TSA. Homeland Security must figure out a better way to protect and serve the people, the flying public, without causing people to miss their flights. Maybe TSA should use trained dogs before and after the security points to help check for explosives--I am not sure the answer--but change the current model because it is not working. This issue must be fixed, and the issue is not to blame the fliers. The issue is TSA needs to respond to this issue. There are airports all over the world that screen passengers. Maybe TSA could learn something from some of these other airports about efficiency and security. This problem must be fixed, and the answer is not to blame the Americans who travel and blame them for waiting in line for 3 hours to catch a plane that flies only 1 hour. Airports should strongly consider moving to private screeners. The law allows this to happen, Mr. Speaker, but the law requires that, if an airport wants to use private screening companies, they must get the Department of Homeland Security's approval to use that screening company over TSA. That is an issue in itself. But the answer is not to continue having the same issues and problems that we now face. People who travel a lot and travel rarely, when they talk about their traveling experience, one thing they seem to always mention is the way they have to go through screening and the way they are treated by TSA. Remember, a 90 percent failure rate is not acceptable. The security must be better, and people must be treated better, because that is just the way it is.