Loretta Sanchez

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of our veterans who have served our country valiantly throughout our history. As we approach Memorial Day, we find ourselves in the middle of wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan--wars which continue to produce more veterans every day. Today's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are different from others in our history. In today's wars, insurgents launch unconventional, horrific attacks on our troops, using devices like IED's--leaving some of our troops requiring ongoing special medical attention. It is critical that we provide our veterans with the care they need and deserve in return for their bravery and sacrifice. When I host military mothers this week, in my district in Orange County, California, I will thank them for their sacrifices, but I will also assure them that Congress will do all we can to take care of their children. I thank all of our Nation's veterans for their bravery, their service, and their sacrifice.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, on Monday, May 21, 2007, I was unavoidably detained during official travel. Had I been present and voting, I would have voted as follows: Rollcall No. 384: ``yes.'' On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass H.R. 698. Rollcall No. 385: ``yes.'' On Motion to Suspend the Rules and Pass H.R. 1425.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1585, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008. I would like to thank my chairman, Mr. Skelton, for his really great work in producing a Defense bill with support from both sides of the aisle. It is commendable that Chairman Skelton was able to pass this bill on a vote of 58-0, given the heated and the very polarized debates that we were having in the House Armed Services Committee, especially with respect to the war in Iraq. And as Chairman Skelton has repeatedly said, the purpose of this bill is to provide our troops with the equipment and the support that they need to carry out their mission. I, for example, voted against granting the President the authority to use force in Iraq, and I have continued to question his repeated surges and his failing policies in Iraq. I have repeatedly asked the President to provide a plan to safely redeploy our troops to come home from Iraq. But, having said this, until we can get our brave men and women home from Iraq, we must provide them with what they need to perform their mission. And that is what this bill does. At the same time, it asks the tough questions of the Defense Department and of this President. One question, for example, that I have for the Department of Defense that I have been asking over and over for the last 4 years, what happened to the approximately 329,000 Iraqi security forces that had been trained? Specifically, where are they assigned? Are they reporting for duty? Or are they now working for the insurgency? And this bill asks that question. The Defense authorization bill as a whole asks for accountability and for oversight from the President and from the Department of Defense. And I ask my colleagues to stand together and to pass this bill.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of HR 1700, the COPS Reauthorization Act. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this important legislation that will reauthorize the Community Oriented Policing Services grant programs. Over the first 10 years of its existence, from 1994 to 2005, the COPS hiring grant programs have helped local law enforcement agencies hire 117,000 additional police officers. As a result there have been significant drops in the crime rates across our Nation. Unfortunately the previous Congress drastically reduced and then eliminated funding for the COPS hiring grants in the 2005 and 2006 funding cycles. H.R. 1700 will reinvigorate the COPS program by authorizing $600 million a year for hiring grants. This level of funding will help put an additional 50,000 police officers in our communities over the next 6 years. I am proud that this Congress is acting to restore funding for these hiring grants that are so critical to local law enforcement agencies across the country. In addition, this legislation will authorize $350 million for COPS technology grants. These grants will help local law enforcement agencies buy critical technology like computers for patrol cars and crime mapping software. I have seen this type of crime mapping software at work in the city of Santa Ana, California, in my district. This technology acts as a force multiplier, allowing each officer to be more effective in fighting crime and keeping our communities safe. H.R. 1700 also authorizes $200 million for programs that focus on hiring the community prosecutors that play a critical role in following up on police work and convicting criminals. All of these COPS grant programs will provide critical resources to local law enforcement agencies across the country that are facing a variety of challenges including emerging and ongoing gang activity. In previous years, a COPS grant provided funding to the Santa Ana Police Department for Firearms Identification technology that can read the unique fingerprints that connect bullets and guns. The Santa Ana Police Department has been able to solve many gang-related shootings and other violent crimes by using this ballistics technology. I hope that the passage of this legislation will help ensure that law enforcement agencies across the nation benefit from the valuable COPS grant programs. I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for H.R. 1700.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of H.R. 1684, the Department of Homeland Security Fiscal Year 2008 Authorization bill. As the Vice Chair of the Homeland Security Committee I am proud to be an original cosponsor of this important, bipartisan authorization bill that will provide much needed guidance to and oversight of the Department of Homeland Security, and will be the first DHS Authorization bill voted on by the House. H.R. 1684 contains many key provisions that will improve the Department's long range planning, accountability, personnel development. It will also provide long-neglected authorization for critical programs at the Department. This legislation authorizes an Undersecretary for Policy and a Comprehensive Homeland Security Review at the start of each new Presidential Administration. These provisions will help ensure that the Department is looking beyond the crisis at hand, planning for the future, and keeping its resources aligned with its mission and the National Strategy for Homeland Security. In addition, I am pleased that this legislation includes a sense of the Congress that the consolidation of the Department's headquarters on the West campus of St. Elizabeth's Hospital should move forward rapidly. I believe the establishment of this headquarters will have a positive effect on the efficiency, operations, and morale of the Department. In terms of accountability, H.R. 1684 requires enhanced oversight of large contracts under the Department's Secure Border Initiative. Personnel development is a major issue for the Department. This legislation authorizes expanded procurement training for acquisition employees; and enhanced incentives for the recruitment and retention of Border Patrol agents. The bill also addresses several key policy areas. These include requiring the Department to plan for the implementation of the biometric exit component of the US-VISIT program. This is an essential border security issue that will enable us to know who is in the country, and to better track people overstaying their visas. In addition this legislation provides five year authorization of the Metropolitan Medical Response System, a critical program to ensure response capabilities for all-hazards mass casualty events. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1684, and in working together to have a Homeland Security Authorization bill signed into law this year for the first time ever.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, last week President Bush vetoed a plan to fund our troops and to change the direction in Iraq. Following his veto, the House voted for the fourth time in 3 months for a new direction in Iraq and rejected the President's open- ended commitment. Unfortunately, House Republicans have refused to join us in our attempts to change the course of the war. Republican Leader Boehner said over the weekend that he wants a clean bill. What he is really saying is that he wants us to rubber-stamp the President's war proposal. That's what Republican Congresses have been doing for 4 years, and it hasn't helped our military and it hasn't made America safer. When are House Republicans going to realize that the American people overwhelmingly support benchmarks and a real plan to change direction in Iraq? One encouraging sign was when Leader Boehner said this weekend that he would be willing to look at a plan B in September. Does that mean that House Republicans will finally begin to join us in changing the course of the war in Iraq? We'll have to wait and see.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, this month is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. This is a national celebration which continues to highlight and bring awareness to the many contributions of the Asian Pacific Americans who have made this country their home. I want to thank Mr. Honda, who will be leading a special order in just a few minutes, with respect to all the accomplishments of the Asian Pacific Americans in the United States. I am fortunate to represent one of the largest Asian Pacific populations in Orange County, California. It's full of Japanese, Korean, Hmong, Cambodians, Laotians, Chinese, Hawaiian Pacific Islanders and, of course, the largest Vietnamese population outside the world resides in Orange County, California. Representing that community I see firsthand the rich culture and the contributions and all of these communities bring to my hometown of Anaheim and Orange County. More than 30 years ago, with when the Vietnamese arrived, my district was full of orange groves. They took these orange groves, some of the dilapidated commercial centers, and they made these block-long business districts that generate today, multibillion dollars for our local economy. While being an integrated part of the American social fabric is important, these communities also bring with them a rich awareness of what is going on around the world, in particular, what happens in their homeland. I enjoy an open dialogue, for example, with the Vietnamese American community, especially about the continuing situation in Vietnam, where human rights and religious freedoms, remain a distant dream for the peoples of that country. Now is the time to remember and to celebrate the successes and the contributions that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders bring to the diversity of America. Although it is important to recognize the achievements made by this community, Asian Pacific American Heritage Month must also provide a forum to focus on the problems that face these communities, such as affordable housing, racial profiling, and language barriers. In particular, the health care issues that are so important, so many health care issues that happened in this particular community like hepatitis C, diabetes, and some of the other larger issues which affect us all. One of the problems facing the APAC community is the perception that all the members of their communities are thriving. If you are Asian or Pacific Islander, you must be going to the Berkeleys of the world, you must be doctors, you must be thriving, you must be engineers, you must be great business people. But the reality is that there are large populations, API populations who still have low access to real quality education and they face tremendous language barriers. The API community has come a long way, sacrificing for our country and contributing to our growth and prosperity, and I look forward to continuing that relationship with the Asian Pacific Islander community to celebrate its contributions and to overcome the ongoing challenges that these communities face.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in strong support of the Head Start Program and I am encouraged by H.R. 1429, the Head Start Improvement Act of 2007. I am a Head Start kid. I have firsthand experience of the comprehensive education programs and opportunities that Head Start provides to low-income families. Head Start programs promote school readiness by assisting with the social and cognitive development of young children. Research consistently identifies the early years of a child's development as ever more crucial to the child's lifetime success. Many Head Start programs already try to incorporate new research into their strategies through education, health, nutrition, and social services. This bill ensures that local Head Start programs have the resources to undertake the best practices for furthering a child's development. Head Start is about the family. As I received education and health services, my mother learned valuable lessons on how to become a more active and involved parent in America's public school system. I am glad to see that this bill maintains the existing shared governance structure to help empower parents and allow programs to be responsive to local needs. What's more, this bill is good for Head Start teachers. This bill takes the necessary steps to ensure that Head Start teachers' salaries and professional development are in line with the responsibility that we assign to them. The Head Start Improvement Act of 2007 is a good bill that will keep Head Start strong so it can remain the great program that it was for me, and continues to be for so many Americans.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from California. Juanita Millender-McDonald was my friend. I used to love coming into the Chamber and sitting down next to her and asking, ``What's up, what's going on,'' because Juanita knew. She knew what was going on in the Congress. She was the mayor of Congress, if you will, being the chairwoman of the House Administration Committee. And Juanita knew what was going on back in California. When I first decided to run for Congress and nobody knew, Juanita called me up and said, ``I'm stuck on the freeway, but I'm coming down to walk precincts with you. So let's hope the sun stays up and we get to go and walk together.'' And we did, and that is how I met Juanita Millender-McDonald. When I first came to the Congress, and coming as a young woman which, quite frankly, 12 years ago there weren't a lot of us, it was always very difficult and hard to be accepted. It is always hard to find your way in the Congress. But Juanita was right there. She was like a touchstone. She was somebody that I could talk to and tell her my frustrations or the happy points here. She really is what I would call a friend, and to many of us here she was a friend. She is a friend back in her district. I wish the people of the United States really understood the work that Juanita did. The Alameda Corridor was her dream. It was her project. This was the project to move goods that come to this country from the port across and through L.A. and out into the rest of the United States. When you think of the fact that 50 percent of everything that comes into the United States comes through the ports that were right there at Juanita's side, you would understand how important it was to each and every American. You see, if that cargo didn't leave L.A., if you were an auto worker in Tennessee, building a car, and you were waiting for inventory just in time, it wouldn't get there in time if it hadn't been for Juanita. And last year on the very last day of the 109th Congress, we passed the Safe Port Act. That really was Juanita's legislation. She will be remembered for a long time in this country and in this Congress. Juanita, and to her family, I love her.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, over the past 3 months, the new Democratic Congress has reached across the aisle to work with Republicans on legislation that is going to produce positive results for the American people. We vowed to run this House differently than the Republicans, and since day one, we have lived up to that promise. During our first 100 hours, we passed legislation increasing the minimum wage, reducing the cost of prescription drugs, making college more affordable, securing our Nation by implementing the 9/11 recommendations and ending subsidies for big oil companies. Since that time, we passed legislation that changes the direction of the war in Iraq, but also fully funding our troops and supporting our veterans. At the end of last month, we also passed a budget resolution that balances our budget within 5 years, something that the Bush administration and his budgets have not been able to do. Not only is our budget fiscally responsible, it also increases the funding for children's health care, for education and for veterans health care, all without raising taxes. Yes, we are going in a new direction.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 273--Supporting the goals and ideals of Financial Literacy Month. Have you seen the headlines recently? Only yesterday, it was reported that mortgage defaults are at an all time high in California. According to one report, 46,760 borrowers defaulted between January and March. That's an increase of 23.1 percent relative to the previous quarter, and 148 percent compared with the same period a year ago. In another story, I read that foreclosures of homes in California were 11,033 in the first quarter. That's an 81.5 percent increase over last quarter. I'm concerned about the effect that this is having on families in my home state. I'm also concerned about the effect that this is having on the economy of the nation as a whole. While it is impossible to say that this crisis could have been avoided, we can certainly do more to shield consumers from its worst effects. One of those ways is to promote greater financial literacy. This bill, H. Res. 273, is an important tool for increasing awareness, and points the way forward toward creating greater financial literacy in our communities. The potential benefits of greater financial literacy are almost incalculable. We can be sure that greater awareness and understanding of finances will lead to higher savings rates. It will allow consumers to gain access to less expensive and less risky loans. And it will protect people from getting into a precarious financial situation without their understanding the consequences. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and for us to join together to not only promote the goals of financial literacy, but also, to make them a reality.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1538--the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act of 2007. At the beginning of this month, when I was in Iraq, I spoke with soldiers who had just learned that their tours had been extended. They said to me, ``Please, can you help us get us out of here.'' These troop extensions are really having an impact on the morale of our military men and women. To add to that, soldiers see what has been going on at Walter Reed and they wonder whether they will be able to get the care they need. The President has sent our troops into harm's way, extended their tours to support his surge, and has allowed these unforgivable lapses in the care of our wounded warriors under his watch. When our men and women sign up for military service, recruiters assure them that the military will take care of them. The failure at Walter Reed calls the commitment given by our military recruiters into question. The bill before us today will go a long way in making sure that the troops get the care they need and deserve. I would like to thank my chairman, Mr. Skelton, and all my colleagues for their work in developing this important legislation. I supported this legislation when it came before the Armed Services Committee on which I sit, and I am proud to support it today.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I come to the House floor today in honor of Andrew Saavedra, who was recently named Orange County Catholic Man of the Year. Andrew Saavedra has tirelessly devoted his life to helping the poor, the homeless, and disadvantaged in Santa Ana and throughout Orange County. The recent recognition is the culmination of a lifetime of service. Andrew Saavedra was a founding member of Santa Ana's Loaves and Fishes soup kitchen 21 years ago. The soup kitchen now serves meals to 500 homeless men and women each week. Currently, Andrew Saavedra is president of the Orange County Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, a spokesman for the Second Harvest food bank, an active member of the Peace and Justice Committee of St. Joseph's church, and a board member of the Orange County Congregation Community Organization. After retiring from his job last May as a salesman for a food-service company, Andrew Saavedra decided to dedicate more of his time to volunteer activities. I do not know many people who choose to pursue a 40-hour workweek upon retiring, but Andrew Saavedra has a calling to help people, and he does just that.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1401, The Rail and Public Transportation Security Act of 2007, of which I am an original cosponsor. This legislation will make long overdue security improvements to the rail, transit, and surface transportation systems in our nation. In the last 80 years there have been over 900 attacks on public transportation systems around the world. In recent history, the horrific attacks in Madrid, London, and Mumbai have been unfortunate reminders that we must do more to secure our Nation's transportation systems. For too long, our country has not done enough to improve the security of our transportation systems. In fact President Bush's fiscal year 2007 budget proposal included $41.4 million in the Transportation Security Administration budget for surface transportation security, less than 1 percent of the TSA budget. Clearly the past level of funding has been inadequate to address the security of the surface transportation system. I am very pleased that H.R. 1401 authorizes three grant programs that will make more funds available to enhance the security of rail, public transportation and over-the-road systems. The Rail and Public Transportation Security Act of 2007 requires rail and public transportation systems to submit vulnerability assessments and security plans to the Department of Homeland Security. Each system is then placed into a risk tier, those in medium and high risk tiers have to have Department of Homeland Security approval for their security plans. Each transportation system will then employ security measures to address the type and degree of risk they face. This approach will help increase the security of our transportation systems, while allowing them the flexibility to adopt measures that meet their needs. I am particularly pleased that the Rail and Public Transportation Security Act of 2007 requires that rail and public transportation systems provide their employees with adequate training. This training requirement will enable employees to respond efficiently to prevent potential terrorist attacks and to minimize the damage and loss of life if an attack does occur. I am also pleased that this legislation establishes a rail and public transportation security exercise program so that systems can practice and perfect their responses to potential attacks. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise to support H.R. 700, Healthy Communities Water Supply Act of 2007, a reauthorization of a Pilot Program for Increasing Usable Water Supply. As you well know, this Pilot Program for increasing usable water supply was authorized for 2002 through 2004, but the previous majority never appropriated any funds and let the authorization expire. I want to take this opportunity to remind my colleagues just how important it is to supplement existing water supplies by providing reliable high-quality sources of water, particularly in areas of the country that are under the threat of the desert. In California, especially in Orange County, the population is increasing; so is the need for water. For over 15 years, the Orange County Water District has maintained a Groundwater Replenishment System designed to reuse advanced treated wastewater to recharge the County's groundwater aquifers and basin. This will help them meet the annual water needs of over 144,000 families that keep growing. Also, the county is barely 3 miles from the coast and has an added need to protect the Basin from further degradation due to seawater intrusion. To this end, the OCWD under its Phase I project provides over 72 million gallons of water per day to replenish its aquifers as well as protect them from seawater intrusion by pumping water through injection wells. This phase will end in September, 2007. In Phase II of the project, they will be able to process over 250 million gallons of wastewater per day and have enough to support the recharge effort and combat seawater intrusion. There are currently 30 such injection wells that can pump water up to 60-100 feet depth. The beauty of this project is the collaboration the Water District has with the County's Sanitation District (OCSD) who provides the wastewater that would have been pumped out to the ocean thereby which would have deprived the Water District of the water that is now being reclaimed for the replenishment of groundwater aquifers. And the State Health Department provides the oversight, to make sure water quality is maintained. With projects like this, communities such as Orange County will benefit tremendously. This OCGW project has attracted experts in public water management systems from other States and countries (Japan, Korea, and Taiwan) who come to Orange County to look at this tertiary system and learn from it. So, this is of national and even internatIonal significance. Also, projects like the OCGWR provides for the necessary investments to ensure water security for the future. This bill will help improve water availability and quality by authorizing a total of $125 million to fund projects that increase usable water supply by encouraging innovation in water reclamation, reuse and conservation. The Orange County Water Reclamation Project is a perfect example of such a project and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 700.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today as a cosponsor of House Resolution 149, in support of International Women's Day. I thank my colleague, Congresswoman Schakowsky of Illinois, for introducing this important resolution. Women in every country around the world face an every-day battle for their safety, and for equal rights, civil rights, and human rights. Even here in this country, every day, women are victims of sexual assault, abuse, and domestic violence. Today, I stand with my colleagues in the House--with women in this country, and with women around the world--to make a commitment to work together to end discrimination and violence against women. Yesterday, I returned from a trip where I led a Congressional delegation of female members to visit Iraq. While. we were there, we met with Iraqi women who told us that they are treated like second class citizens. This is unacceptable. Women in Iraq deserve the same basic human rights and civil liberties as men. It is fitting that we should take this occasion, on the day before March 8th--International Women's Day-- to restate this basic and essential message. I urge my colleagues to unanimously support this resolution, a message to women everywhere--that this House is committed to fight for their civil rights, human rights, and their right to live each day without fear of sexual abuse, assault, and domestic violence.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Leo McCarthy, former Lieutenant Governor of California, who passed away last month after a long illness due to a kidney ailment. Born in New Zealand, Leo began his lifetime of public service for his adopted country as a member the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command in the Korean War. His political service began in 1963 when he was elected to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, and later to the California Assembly, where he had the honor and distinction of serving as speaker from 1974 to 1980. In 1982 he was elected Lieutenant Governor--a position he held until 1994. Leo's dedication to his community was clear from the diversity of issues on which he worked: from assisting welfare recipients, to increasing breast cancer awareness, to finding ways to stop toxic contamination. He also worked to promote tolerance by establishing the Lieutenant Governor's Commission on the Prevention of Hate Violence. After leaving the political field, Leo continued to serve the community by founding the Leo T. McCarthy Center for Public Service and the Common Good at the University of San Francisco. This Center, where young men and women can learn and be inspired to pursue a life and career of ethical public service, is a fitting legacy for a man whose life was devoted to serving the community. Leo McCarthy is survived by his wife, Jacqueline, their four children and eleven grandchildren. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Chairman, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 800, the Employee Free Choice Act. Madam Speaker, this legislation is long overdue. Under the previous majority, Congress was quick to provide tax cuts for large corporations, but legislation to improve the lives of working families was kept off the floor of this chamber. Labor unions are responsible for almost every benefit to wage earners in this country: Unions created the 40 hour work week, overtime pay, maternity leave, and worker's compensation. Unions represent the people that make our country work--The grape harvesters, the home builders, telecommunications workers, ice cream scoopers at the SavOn Drug store in Anaheim. When I had that job, I was represented by Local 324 of the United Food and Commercial Workers, and proud of it. In every sector of the economy, laborers have always looked to their unions to make sure that their interests were put ahead of the interest in the bottom line. And it's about time Congress do the same. Opponents of this legislation will claim that this bill is undemocratic. But how democratic is it for an employer to intimidate or fire workers before they even get a chance to vote? Let's look at the numbers: 75 percent of employers will hire union- busters to stop organizing drives. 92 percent will mandate employees to attend anti-union meetings, and one quarter of companies illegally fire pro-union employees during organizing drives. How can you have a ``free and fair vote'' with this kind of intimidation going on? All this bill does is level the playing field. It removes institutional barriers and gives workers a chance to organize if they want to. You know, government is actually behind the private sector on this issue. Many employers already allow for this type of organization. They recognize that it is good for workers, and it's good for management too. These leading companies have seen growing job satisfaction, better retention of qualified professionals and increased productivity. Madam Chairman, I urge Congress to do the right thing. Let's pass this legislation and give employees a real opportunity to organize.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I had not intended to speak this afternoon either. Actually, I am late going to a military personnel subcommittee hearing where we are going to take a look at the changes that are going to happen to the Reserve Montgomery GI bill. It is running a little late because we had votes, but we are working here. I don't know where the other side is. They are in the minority now, and maybe they are going home; but we have a lot of things to get done for the American people. When I finish with the military subcommittee, I will be going to the full Homeland Security Committee where we are going to receive a briefing on the SpyNet program. On this immigration issue that everybody in America thinks is so important, this is how we protect the borders and how we are using assets there, and we are going to get a briefing on that. That should include Republicans. I don't know if they will show up for that meeting, but they should. After that, Madam Speaker, I have a subcommittee on oversight and investigations with respect to the House Committee on Armed Services where I also serve. And then I will meet with constituents, credit unions, and people who are in town. So we on this side of the aisle are working very hard to keep the work going on here in Washington, D.C.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. So we find ourselves there longer than we are supposed to be, and we ask ourselves, how much longer, $3 billion a week on the credit card? Wait till America really figures out that they have not paid for this war. I think they are going to be very angry at that point. I see I have taken most of your time.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. I thank my colleague for putting together this hour to discuss what I think is something that is very important; that is, what the Blue Dogs are thinking about in this Congress and what we have been trying to do. Now, I will tell you that I have been in the Congress for 11 years. This is my 11th year. I have been a Blue Dog the entire time. And that really comes from the fact that before I came to the Congress, I was an investment banker. I am an MBA, I have been in the international finance arena for 14 years before coming to this Congress. So people ask me, what is the thing that you worry about the most when you go to sleep at night? And the answer is always the same for me: The structural financial debt and deficit that we have in Washington, D.C., because most people have not looked and seen and realized what has been going on here in Washington, D.C., but I have seen it in the last 11 years. That is why, as a Blue Dog, I also have that sign up that says what today's national debt is and how much of that $29,000, if every man, child, woman in America, would give us $29,000 today, we would be able to bring down the national debt. But the fact of the matter is, we don't. We don't, and the debt keeps climbing. So a few years ago, we were trying to think about, well, how is it that this has happened? Because when I came, it was in 1997. I had 4 years under President Clinton, and at that time, the debt of this Nation, the interest payments on that, was 18 cents of every dollar that we collected, 18 cents. That means if we collect a dollar from you in taxes, 18 cents of it we don't spend because we are paying the interest cost on that. Imagine if you did that in your home for every dollar. So what did we do? We worked hard. We instituted PAYGO. What does that mean? Well, it means you don't make any new spending unless you are going to tax, put in an amount of money for it, or you are going to take it away from some other area you are already spending on in order to spend in your new priority area, much the way people do it at home when we have to decide among the priorities. Okay, well, this month, September, I have to get the shoes for the kids for school, so that means that there are going to be no days out of that month that we get to go out and eat at a restaurant. I mean, you just make up for it in one way or another. But the Congress and the United States do not do this. They keep spending, even when they give tax cuts. So that means if your boss told you we are going to give you a 70 percent cut in the amount of money you take home, and you go home and you tell your husband that, but he still keeps spending the same amount of money every month, he doesn't bring his expenses down. So it is a problem. So we spend, I would say, honestly, about 700 to $800 billion more a year than the monies we take in. Now, we will throw numbers around, to $143 billion, deficit, $400 billion, deficit, $358 billion. No, no, no, no, no. The reality is that we are overspending by anywhere between 700 and $800 billion every year. That is why this number goes up, because we cannot get this under control.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Absolutely. So I started in this Congress 11 years ago, and we spent 18 cents of every dollar just on paying interest on interest payments. Then we tightened our belts; we did PAYGO. President Clinton and others, we worked together, we brought it down. In the year 2000 when President Bush took over, we were paying 11 cents of every dollar on interest. So we had brought it down. Then, of course, the President decided to give tax breaks to some of the wealthiest Americans. I know, because I got a tax break, but not everybody got a tax break. The real people who really needed the tax breaks, I think, did not receive them. That is why I didn't vote for it. I received it because the majority, the Republicans at that time voted it in, but I didn't vote for it because I know what fair is fair. If you get opportunity in this country and you work hard, and you get a few breaks and a little bit of luck along the way, that can happen in America for almost anybody. And some of it is luck, and you happen to make money. I think you should understand that to keep America full of opportunities, we need to pay our taxes. So I am willing to do that, but not this President, because he cut the taxes on the people who had lots of money and who were making lots of money. His own comptroller told us several years ago that 70 percent of the deficit every year in this country is due to the tax breaks that the President gave. In other words, we kept spending even though we didn't take in revenue. In fact, we returned back revenue. Then, of course, we have the $3 billion a week of money we spend in Iraq. I will not tell you the way I feel. This President went into Iraq on the cheap. He didn't think that Americans would really want to spend the kind of money it took to put in 200,000 or 300,000 troops to do the job the day we went in. So he told his Secretary of Defense, despite what the generals told him, Shinseki, who said we need at least 200,000 or more troops in there, they did it at the level of 110, and now we are paying for it. Now we have been in a war much longer than we ever anticipated, much longer than the President ever anticipated.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 990--The Pell Grant Equity Act of 2007. This legislation is a simple measure to reduce the real and perceived barriers to a higher education for many low-income families across the United States. Community colleges and other low-cost institutions offer life- changing educational opportunities for motivated students. Pell grant recipients are by definition motivated. The Pell grant program works as a contract between the Federal Government and the individual. The Government says, ``we will provide you with the means to get a higher education if you desire to invest in yourself.'' Removing the tuition sensitivity provision of the Higher Education Act will help students cover the full cost of attending college, which is significantly higher than tuition alone. For over 30 years, Congress has consistently increased funding available to the Pell grant program and increased the maximum grant that each student can receive. Why? Because the program works. Pell grant recipients regularly go on to succeed in jobs with career potential and upward mobility. Increased access to higher education is an important goal for the Congress because having an educated workforce is essential to our country's future. As former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan once said to me, ``if our people are educated there isn't a problem we can't solve. If they aren't, there isn't one that we can.'' Eliminating tuition sensitivity from the Pell grant program is a positive step towards making college education available to everyone who wants one, and there isn't a higher goal than that.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of this resolution and in opposition to the President's decision to send more of our troops to Iraq. I was against this war from the onset. On October 10, 2002, I was one of the few who voted against the resolution authorizing the President to use military force in Iraq. But the authorization passed, and we went to war. At that point we supported our troops and we wanted to win, and we want win. And I have voted for every appropriation bill to give our troops what they need to achieve their mission. So here we are, more than 4 years later, and what do we have to show for this war? Violence in Iraq continues to skyrocket. This past December was the deadliest month for Iraqi civilians since the war began. Over the course of this war, 45,000 to 65,000 Iraqi civilians have lost their lives, maybe more; we really don't know, because nobody is counting here in America. And over 3,000 brave American troops, men and women in our Armed Forces, have lost their lives. My home State of California sends the most to the services. We alone have lost 325 men and women in Iraq, and we have sustained about 2,500 injuries to our military personnel, more than any other State in the United States. And Iraqis have paid the price. Our military, their families; the families of our military are the ones sacrificing in this war. They have paid the price, and our country has paid the price for this President's war. Yet Iraq is less secure than ever, even before the President's ``mission accomplished'' declaration. There is no functioning infrastructure, no banking system, zero economic stability. Iraq is not secure, Baghdad is not secure. The Iraq Study Group reported that the President's strategy in Iraq is failing. It is failing. And how does our President respond? With more of the same. He wants to send 21,500 more of our men and women into Iraq to carry out the same failure. The President has failed to articulate what these new troops will do that is different from what has been done over the past few years. What is his plan? Four surges? Four surges that didn't work. He wants to do it again? And believe me, sitting on the Armed Services Committee, I have been here to see it. I was the one in the first few months who told General Franks, this is an insurgency, it is guerrilla warfare. He refused to call it that. I was the one that went to Iraq when General Odierno told me there were only 359 insurgents left, that we were almost there, while the day before, his boss, Abizaid, had said he thought there were about 5,000. That was 2 years ago. I was there when Secretary Rumsfeld was saying we have trained 89,000; 2 days later, 95,000; a week later, 160,000 Iraqi Army. This was 2 years ago. Just pulling numbers out of the air, that is what they were doing to America. And I was there in Iraq the day that General Petraeus, who was successful in Mosul, and then Mosul fell because he pulled his troops from there to Fallujah, and to try to take Fallujah. And he said to me with tears in his eyes, We couldn't hold Mosul because we had to take the troops to go to Fallujah. At that point he said, We didn't have enough troops. But the President didn't listen. The President fails to grasp that military action alone is not sufficient to stabilize Iraq. And without a legitimate diplomatic component, there will be no end to the civil war in Iraq. But the President has refused to engage the powers in the region. He has outright rejected the notion of dialogue with Iran and Syria, a key suggestion from the Iraq Study Group. It is not the role of Congress to command our forces. That is the constitutional responsibility given to the Commander in Chief. But he has to do it right. And we have to hold him accountable for our failures in Iraq. As Commander-in-Chief, that responsibility is up to President Bush. The President must be frank with Congress and with the American people, and admit that the strategy in Iraq to date has been a complete failure. The President must come up with a new strategy to stabilize the situation in Iraq, one that ends with the redeployment of our troops home. What is his plan? My message for the President is this: The voters have told you, Mr. President, that they have had enough of your failed strategy in Iraq. And today, Mr. President, this Congress is telling you that we too have had enough of your failed strategy in Iraq. Our troops deserve more from you. You have ignored the American people's wishes. You have ignored the Iraq Study Group's recommendations. Today, I hope you will not ignore this Congress. I hope you will not send any more of our Armed Forces into harm's way, until you have a plan to win. Our military is the strongest and most capable in the world, but they cannot continue to be overextended and asked to participate in your failing strategy. Mr. President, I ask you to listen to the American people, the Iraq Study Group, and this Congress. We are telling you clearly that we do not want you to send any more troops to participate in a failing strategy. It is your responsibility as the Commander-in-Chief, to come up with an actual plan to stabilize Iraq and begin bringing our troops home to their families.

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California

Ms. LORETTA SANCHEZ of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a man who has been dedicated to higher education and who is a model community servant to my district, Dr. Milton Gordon. As Chancellor of California State University, Fullerton, Dr. Milton Gordon has been a visionary for the students and faculty as he works to promote higher education for women and minorities. On February 27th, 2007, Dr. Gordon will be honored by KinderCaminata, a non-profit community organization in Orange County, California that sponsors educational outreach to kindergarten-age children and their families, focusing on promoting literacy, celebrating cultural heritage, and career education. Dr. Gordon will be receiving the ``Corazon'' Award from KinderCaminata. The tribute is a much deserved honor and should be celebrated by everyone in Orange County, California. Below are remarks that illustrate Dr. Gordon's outstanding commitment to all the students that Cal State Fullerton seeks to serve. These remarks are taken from Dr. Gordon's report to the University's Latino Faculty and Staff in October 2006: We are here to strengthen our ties as a community that is working to make learning truly accessible and preeminent to all students and especially to Latino Students. Cal State Fullerton feels that a large measure of our success is due to our campus outreach efforts and service to the community. While demographic growth has also contributed to the Latino increase, without college readiness programs offered by CSUF, such as Gear Up and ENLACE, the educational obstacles faced by large numbers of Latino students would not have been overcome. But there is much more we need to do. We need to expand our efforts to work with parents and students in the middle and high schools of the county to increase the number of college ready Latino graduates. We continue to work with colleagues from Fullerton and Santa Ana Colleges to develop a work plan to improve county-wide Latino college readiness programs modeled after the Santa Ana Partnership and its ENLACE Program. We are in the process of creating additional programs in the sciences in collaboration with Fullerton College to increase the transfer of well prepared Latino Students into our Math-based programs in the sciences and engineering. We hope to expand such collaboration with transfer programs to Cal State Fullerton from all Orange County community college campuses with high Latino enrollment. We believe that our adhesion to the Cal State Fullerton mission to make this campus a place where ``learning is preeminent'' and our enforcement of rigorous academic standards have been keys to our success. By serving the learning needs of all students, we serve Latino students; by maintaining high learning expectations, we serve Latino students; by caring for the well-being of our students, we serve Latino students. An activist community orientation defines the role the university will take in town grown partnerships. Such involvement better informs university personnel of the community's needs. These partnerships must engage students, faculty, staff, and campus administration in university-wide service commitments. The university must be a good neighbor and a good partner. In working in the Latino community, campus personnel must be culturally aware and mindful of the central role family plays within the culture. We must have a clear and simple outreach message. In providing information on what students need to know to be college ready, make sure you know your audience. Our information must be available in straight- forward language that does not speak down to our audience and written in language understood by parents. We will be developing a Spanish-language campus web-site and improved, accessible messages in Spanish to reach out to our Latino parents and potential students. All of the programs and services enumerated above define what it means to be a student-focused institution and are integral to making us a Hispanic Serving Institution in word and deed. I personally look forward to our continued collaboration to make this a place where all students can be successful and achieve their dreams regardless of race, gender or ethnicity. I look forward to Dr. Gordon's continued work for Cal State Fullerton and KinderCaminata and it is my pleasure to honor him today.