Lamar Smith

Mr. SMITH of Texas

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentlewoman from Texas, Eddie Bernice Johnson, who is the ranking member of the Science Committee of which Ralph Hall is the chairman.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas, John Culberson.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield to the gentlewoman from Texas, Kay Granger.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, would it be appropriate to ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from Texas have an additional 5 minutes, or more?

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from Texas, Ted Poe.

Mr. SMITH of Texas

Mr. SMITH of Texas. I thank the chairman for yielding. First of all, I do want to thank the chairman of the Space Subcommittee, Steve Palazzo of Mississippi, for bringing this must-pass legislation to the floor today. I also want to thank my friend and colleague from Texas, Ralph Hall, the chairman of the Science Committee, and the professional staff of the committee for shepherding this bill and getting us to the point where we are now. Last June, the Space and Aeronautics Subcommittee heard testimony on why government indemnification for commercial rocket launches must be extended. At that hearing, Frank Slazer from the Aerospace Industries Association said it best about why this indemnification is needed: Many foreign launch providers competing against U.S. companies already benefit from generous indemnification rules. For example, the European company Arianespace is required to purchase insurance up to just 60 million Euros, roughly $75 million. Any damages above this cap are the guaranteed responsibility of the French Government. We cannot afford to drive away highly skilled technical jobs to foreign countries where the regulatory frameworks provide better critical risk management tools. Lastly, a non-renewal could impede new U.S. entrants to the commercial launch market, discourage future space launch innovation and entrepreneurial investment. Without a level playing field for competition, new U.S. entrants could find it highly undesirable to begin their business ventures in the United States. The FAA's launch indemnification authority has been in place for over 20 years, benefiting the American commercial space industry. The bill before us would extend indemnification for 2 more years, and I hope that we can address a longer-term legislative solution when addressing NASA reauthorization and commercial space legislation next year. Mr. Speaker, I wanted to thank the chairman again for yielding me time.

Mr. SMITH of Texas

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Lungren), who is chairman of the House Administration Committee and a senior member of the Judiciary Committee.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, let's put our own unemployed Hispanics and black Americans first. They should come first. Mr. Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentleman from California (Mr. Bilbray), who is the chairman of the Immigration Reform Caucus.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. I yield myself 30 seconds. Mr. Speaker, no one is hurt more by the diversity visa program than unemployed Hispanics and black Americans. The unemployment rate for Hispanics with only a high school education is almost 14 percent. The unemployment rate for African Americans with only a high school education is almost 19 percent. The diversity visa program forces these unemployed Americans to compete for very scarce American jobs with those other individuals who don't have more than a high school education. Why do we want to do this to our own people? I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Idaho (Mr. Labrador), an original cosponsor of this legislation who is very active on this subject.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, the STEM Jobs Act spurs economic growth and spurs job creation by enabling American employers to hire some of the best and brightest foreign students who graduate from American universities. The American public, American employers, and the high-tech community all support this bipartisan piece of legislation. I urge my colleagues to vote for jobs, vote for innovation, and vote for economic growth. Let's put the interests of America first. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials on H.R. 6429 currently under consideration.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce), who is also chairman of the Foreign Affairs Terrorism Subcommittee.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Issa), who is the chairman of the Government Oversight Committee.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Goodlatte), a senior member of the Judiciary Committee and an original cosponsor of this legislation.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Altmire), who is a member of the Education and the Workforce Committee.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, on the way to yielding to the majority leader of the House, I'd like to respond very quickly to what the gentleman from Maryland just said. I want to make, again, the points that the Diversity Visa invites fraud, and absolutely means that we would have a security risk if we were to continue it. I want to quote the assistant Secretary of State. The assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services has testified that Diversity Visa fraud includes: Multiple entries, fraudulent claims to education or work experience, pop-up spouses or family members, relatives added after the application is submitted, and false claims for employment or financial support in the United States. The State Department's Inspector General has testified that the Diversity Visa program: Contains significant risk to national security from hostile intelligence officers, criminals and terrorists attempting to use the program for entry into the United States as permanent residents. We've already had one individual who was admitted on a Diversity Visa try to blow up the World Trade Center in 1993. He killed six people and injured hundreds of people. That's why this program is not good for this country. I'm more than happy to yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor), the majority leader for the House of Representatives.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. When it comes to STEM fields--science, technology, engineering, and math--American universities set the standard. Our STEM graduates create the innovations and new businesses that fuel our economic growth and create jobs. Many of the world's top students come to the U.S. to obtain advanced STEM degrees. But what happens to these foreign students after they graduate? Under the current system, we educate scientists and engineers only to send them back home where they often work for our competitors. We could boost economic growth and spur job creation by enabling American employers to hire some of the best and brightest graduates of U.S. universities. These students become entrepreneurs, patent holders, and job creators. The STEM Jobs Act makes available 55,000 immigrant visas a year for foreign graduates of American universities with advanced degrees in STEM fields. Three-quarters of likely voters strongly support such legislation, and a wide range of trade associations have endorsed this legislation as well. These include the Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Compete America, the Information Technology Industry Council, and the Society for Human Resource Management. To protect American workers, employers who hire STEM graduates must advertise the position; and if a qualified American worker is available, the STEM graduate will not be hired. This bill makes our immigration system smarter by admitting those who have the education and skills America needs. STEM visas are substituted for Diversity Visas which invite fraud and pose a security risk. The STEM Jobs Act generates jobs, increases economic growth, and benefits American businesses. What more do we want? Let's put the interest of our country first and support this legislation. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6429) to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to promote innovation, investment, and research in the United States, to eliminate the diversity immigrant program, and for other purposes.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, before yielding to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall), I'm going to yield myself 1 minute. Mr. Speaker, the gentlewoman from California said at least two things that are completely inaccurate. Let me correct those statements. First, she said this bill is going to reduce immigration and that that was somehow the intent behind the bill. The gentlewoman from California practiced immigration law, and she knows better than to say this. Under this bill, and she knows this to be the case, individuals in other employment categories who are waiting for other types of employment visas can switch over and apply for these STEM visas if they are master's or Ph.D. holders in the STEM fields. There's no limit on those. I expect every year that the number of visas that are not used directly will be used by these individuals in other employment-based categories. I want to make the point, too, that America is the most generous country in the world. We admit almost 1 million people legally every year. That's far more than any other nation, and it may well be as many as every other country combined. The purpose of this bill is not to increase or decrease immigration, and I want to make that point, and also the fact that most Americans agree with this. Gallop recently reported that four out of five Americans do not want to increase the levels of immigration. Only 4 percent believe that the number of immigrants now entering the U.S. is too low. This bill reflects what the American people want. Lastly, in regard to for-profit schools, the gentlewoman made light of that and seemed to think that this bill was going to be abused by those types of institutions. First of all, any institution, even if they are profit-making--and why do so many Democrats oppose profits and free enterprise? I don't know--but any profit-making institution, if they otherwise qualify, which is to say if they grant doctorates or master's in STEM fields and if they are a research university as deemed by the Carnegie Institute of Higher Education, yes, they'll qualify. But I want to say to the gentlewoman from California, today, none of those for-profit institutions would qualify. If they somehow meet the qualifications in the future, why wouldn't we want them to be eligible to have their graduates--master's and Ph.D. only--apply for these STEM visas? I am happy now to yield 2 minutes to the chairman of the Science Committee, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall).

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield 45 seconds to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Flake), who has long been active on the subject of immigration.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Under this bill, the employers have to pay the prevailing wage. I don't know from where the gentleman got his information. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Griffin), a distinguished and active member of the Judiciary Committee.

Mr. SMITH of Texas

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my good friend and Texas colleague, Science, Space and Technology Committee Chairman Ralph Hall, for taking the lead on this bill and bringing it to the floor today. My hope is that after the House passes this bill the Senate will act quickly and send it to the President for his signature. The problem this bill addresses is to confirm the ownership of mementoes the Apollo astronauts received from their journeys. I was first contacted one year ago about this problem by my constituent, Apollo 16 moonwalker Charlie Duke, who now lives in New Braunfels, Texas and also chairs the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation. The Scholarship Foundation is one of the beneficiaries from the sale of such artifacts, and they have provided over $3 million in scholarships to college students studying science and engineering so they too can aspire to be astronauts. At the end of the Apollo program, these mementoes were deemed to be of little value, and NASA was simply going to throw many of these items in the trash heap of history--checklists with scribbled equations and calculations in the margins, a camera and other personal effects the Apollo astronauts were offered to keep for themselves. However, in the intervening 40 years, these mementoes took on a greater historical context, just like mementoes from past wars or famous people take on greater significance. Unfortunately, over-zealous NASA and the Justice Department lawyers recently started filing law suits against Apollo astronauts--our American heroes--and started questioning their integrity. This is wrong. And this bill clarifies the ownership of these artifacts in the possession of our astronauts. Chairman Hall, thank you for doing the right thing--once again--for our astronauts.

Mr. SMITH of Texas

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. House of Representatives, Committee on Homeland Security, Washington, DC, September 12, 2012. Hon. Lamar Smith, Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Smith: I am writing in regards to the jurisdictional interest of the Committee on Homeland Security over provisions in H.R. 6368, which requires the Department of Justice, in consultation with the Department of Homeland Security, to provide a report to Congress on the ability to track, investigate, and quantify cross-border violence along the Southwest Border and provide recommendations to Congress. I understand the importance of advancing this legislation to the House floor in an expeditious manner. Therefore, the Committee on Homeland Security will discharge H.R. 6368 from further consideration. This action is conditional on our mutual understanding and agreement that doing so will in no way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of the Committee on Homeland Security over the subject matter included in this or similar legislation. I request that you urge the Speaker to appoint members of this Committee to any conference committee for consideration of any provisions that fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Homeland Security in the House-Senate conference on this or similar legislation. I also request that this response and your letter be included in the Committee on the Judiciary report to H.R. 6368 and in the Congressional Record during consideration of this measure on the House floor. Thank you for your consideration of this matter. Sincerely, Peter T. King, Chairman.

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I'd like to thank my colleague and good friend, Congressman Francisco Canseco, for his work on the issue of cross- border violence and its impact on the United States. Mr. Speaker, In recent years, drug trafficking-related violence has increased in Mexico. According to Mexican officials, over 40,000 people have been killed as the result of drug-related violence since 2006. As the gentleman from Texas has pointed out, we should be very concerned that there are insufficient methods to track this violence and that it spills over into the United States. When evaluating increased violence in Mexico and its effect on the United States, a central concern is the potential for what has been termed ``spillover violence''--an increase in drug trafficking-related violence in the United States. The violence being committed by Mexican drug cartels within Mexico's own borders presents a national security challenge for Mexico. When that violence spills over into the United States, it presents a national security concern for America as well. Cross-border violence is a challenge for both countries while criminals kill not only each other but government officials, law enforcement and military officers, innocent civilians and children. Administration officials maintain that there has not yet been a significant spillover of violence from Mexico into the United States. But we should not wait for it to happen. This bill requires the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security to provide a joint report to Congress on the Departments' ability to track, investigate and measure cross-border violence along the Southwest border. In addition, it directs the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security to make recommendations to Congress on how best to accurately track, investigate and measure cross-border violence. Cross-border violence is a complex problem which cannot be resolved overnight. This legislation is an important first step in developing an overall strategy to combat spillover violence. I again thank Mr. Canseco for his work on this issue, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I will now yield as much time as he might consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Canseco).

Mr. SMITH of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on H.R. 6368, as amended, currently under consideration.