Bobby Scott

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise to speak today in support of the bill S. 1315, the Veterans Benefit Enhancement Act of 2007, which contains a provision that gives veterans' benefits to Filipinos who fought under the U.S. flag during World War II. As the only Member of Congress with any Filipino ancestry, I'm pleased to speak today in support of these benefits for Filipino veterans. Members of the Commonwealth of the Philippines' military were promised full veterans' benefits if they fought for the United States during World War II. Because of this promise, many Filipino soldiers fought tirelessly and courageously for the United States, and they helped us defeat the Japanese empire in the Pacific. We have failed to fulfill our promise, and these veterans deserve the benefits that they were promised over 60 years ago. S. 1315 provides surviving Filipino veterans, all of whom are now in their eighties, with full veterans' benefits. In honor of the service of the Filipino veterans, I urge the House of Representatives to act swiftly and to take up and pass S. 1315.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker. I rise in support of H.R. 6625, the Veterans Voting Support Act, which contains several provisions to help Veterans as they participate in the political process. First, it will require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to allow States to designate V.A. facilities as voter registration agencies. The bill will also require V.A. facilities to provide information and assist election officials to ensure proper delivery of voting material. Additional, the bill prohibits the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from restricting non- partisan organizations and state election organizations from providing information at V.A. facilities. This bill will help to prevent Department of Veterans Affairs policies from withholding information from Veterans on voter registration and voting. The Department of Veterans Affairs previously adopted a policy that prohibits voter registration drives on V.A. grounds. The Department of Veterans Affairs recently changed that policy and now allows state and local election officials as well as non-partisan organizations to provide veterans help. However, the language of the policy still allows individual V.A. facilities to restrict access to these groups. This legislation will guarantee that individuals and organizations with the appropriate knowledge are given the right to assist our veterans in the voting registration process. Our veterans have dedicated their lives to our country's safety and deserve the opportunity to be assisted in the political process. Given that many of our veterans are disabled or ill with special assistance needs as a result of their service to our country, we should make every possible accommodation to provide them with the assistance they need to take a part in the political process and have their voices heard. It would be ironic for those fighting for our freedom and ability to participate in our democracy to themselves be denied the ability to participate. I commend Rep. Brady, the gentleman from Pennsylvania, for his hard work on this bill and urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman an additional minute.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 7 minutes to one of the sponsors of the bill, the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Braley).

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the Justice and Victims of Torture and Terrorism Act, introduced by the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Braley) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Sestak), will enable American POWs and civilians to hold the Government of Iraq liable for the physical and emotional injuries they sustained while held captive by Iraqi officials during the Gulf War. During the Persian Gulf War, American pilots captured by Iraq were brutalized in horrendous ways. They were starved, exposed to extreme temperatures, severely beaten, and subjected to mock executions. Because Iraq believed that these pilots had more sensitive information, they were subjected to especially brutal treatment. They sustained long-lasting physical and emotional injuries. American civilians who had the misfortune of being held in Iraq at the time it invaded Kuwait were held hostage as ``human shields,'' used as leverage to interfere with the campaign to liberate Kuwait and defeat the Iraqi forces. These civilians were held in cruel and degrading conditions and forced to live in constant fear. While Congress has supported giving terrorism victims the right to obtain effective relief, the executive branch has allowed State Department sensitivities to overshadow the fundamental rights of these victims to fair redress. In amending the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act in 1996, Congress intended to create a Federal statutory cause of action for American victims of terrorism, so that they could hold foreign States that commit or provide material support for terrorist acts accountable in United States courts. Congress reaffirmed that intent last December in the National Defense Authorization Act. Unfortunately, the President vetoed the bill on that basis and insisted that the Congress give him waiver authority for Iraq, which he promptly exercised, once again placing relief out of reach for these victims. In its introduced form, the bill simply rescinded that waiver authority. It has now been amended, with the assistance of the sponsors, as well as the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), working with the victims and their families. The bill we are considering today would give the Iraqi Government 90 days after enactment to satisfactorily settle the claims of American victims to prevent the waiver authority from being rescinded. The waiver authority would also survive if the President certifies that Iraq has no settlement claims of non-Americans that are similar to the claims of the POWs and human shields and has not settled commercial debts to foreign corporations. The amended bill also specifies limits on the damage awards, to remove any argument about potentially open-ended liability. The specified amounts are a fraction of the outstanding judgment awards and pending claims. Under this proposal, the Iraqi Government would be required to pay approximately $415 million. The amount of recovery sought is de minimis relative to the 20 to $32 billion in commercial claims that Iraq has reportedly settled with the corporations in Japan and Korea. It also amounts to perhaps 1 percent of the Iraqi Government assets held in United States banks. I believe that holding Iraq accountable is an essential element in its full rehabilitation in the community of nations. This holds true to well-settled international law, as well as the Geneva Convention. I commend my colleagues, Mr. Braley and Mr. Sestak, for their leadership and unwavering dedication in bringing this important legislation forward. I also commend the Judiciary Committee ranking member, Mr. Smith, and the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) for their leadership in making this a bipartisan effort. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.

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

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for his cooperation in this bipartisan effort, and I hope that we pass the bill.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Sestak), an original sponsor of the legislation.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume just to thank our colleagues from Tennessee for working together on this legislation. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6855) to extend the authority for the United States Supreme Court Police to protect court officials off the Supreme Court grounds, and for other purposes.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I would be willing to work with the gentleman to make it permanent. But this is what we have at this point for 3 years. So I would hope we pass this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time and am prepared to close if the gentleman will yield.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6855 extends for 5 years existing authority for the Supreme Court Police to protect the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Court, as well as officers and employees of the Supreme Court who are performing official duties while they are away from the grounds of the Supreme Court building. When the Supreme Court first moved to its own building just over 70 years ago, we sent them a small contingent of Capitol Police officers commissioned as ``special policemen'' for the protection of the Court. It wasn't until 1982 that Congress provided the force with statutory recognition as the Supreme Court Police. That statute also gave them authority to patrol the Supreme Court buildings and grounds, make arrests, carry firearms, and protect the Chief Justice and any Associate Justices, official guests, and employees of the Court while performing official duties. In that statute, the Congress also expanded the Supreme Court Police force's authority in a way very similar to what we had granted the Capitol Police the previous year. In 1981, we authorized the Capitol Police to provide protection to individual Members and officers of Congress, as well as their families, on or off the Capitol grounds. Likewise, in 1982 we authorized the Supreme Court Police to protect the Justices and the employees of the court while they're away from the court building anywhere in the United States. When we first gave this authority to the Supreme Court Police in 1982, it was subject to a 3-year sunset provision. Since then, we have extended this authority 7 times, and this bill will continue that tradition. In the 26 years since this authority was first granted, threats to all three branches, from terrorists and others who want to disrupt our government, have only increased. That is why it is imperative that we should not allow the authority of the Supreme Court Police to sunset at the end of this year. I urge my colleagues to support the legislation so that the Supreme Court Police can continue to perform their critical mission effectively. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6064) to encourage, enhance, and integrate Silver Alert plans throughout the United States, as amended.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I will yield the balance of the time to the gentlelady from California (Ms. Waters), a member of the Judiciary Committee and the author of the bill.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6503, the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program Reauthorization of 2008, helps to address the serious problem of seniors who go missing each year as a result of dementia. The Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program was created in 1994. While Congress has continued to support and fund it, its formal authorization expired in 1998. This legislation, sponsored by the gentlelady from California (Ms. Waters), will reauthorize the program. It authorizes the Attorney General to award competitive grants to nonprofit organizations for the planning, establishing, and operating locally based programs to protect and locate missing persons with Alzheimer's disease, dementia, or other problems. This is an excellent measure that responds to a critical problem. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to support the legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6503) to amend the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 to reauthorize the Missing Alzheimer's Disease Patient Alert Program.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

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

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 410) recognizing the FBI on their 100th anniversary.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate everyone working together on this legislation. Schools will be safer if the bill passes. I would hope that it would be the pleasure of the House to pass the bill.