Adam Schiff

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, as the designee of the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Keating), I offer amendment No. 1.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chair, it is now my pleasure to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Heck), someone who we have come to rely on in our committee in a great many areas, but, in particular, the threat posed by foreign actors investing in American technologies, with an eye toward either appropriating our intellectual property, or making use of those technologies for the purpose of spying on Americans.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Ruppersberger), who is the former ranking member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and a great stalwart for the men and women who work within the IC.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, might I inquire of the gentleman whether he has any further speakers?

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Alabama (Ms. Sewell). She is the ranking member on the Department of Defense Intelligence and Overhead Architecture Subcommittee and does a fabulous job for our committee.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chair, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Alabama.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, I join the chairman in urging support for the combined 2018 and 2019 Intelligence Authorization Act, which has been named in honor of Matthew Young Pollard, a Senate Intelligence Committee staffer who recently passed away, leaving behind a young son and bereaved colleagues both in the Senate and here in the House. For well over a year now, considerable attention has been focused on the House Intelligence Committee and the profound disagreements that we have had about the Russia investigation. Those differences remain, and the American people should know that my Democratic colleagues on the Intelligence Committee and I continue the important work of investigating Russia's interference in the 2016 Presidential election. Despite our disagreements over Russia with the majority, however, I have consistently and publicly maintained that the committee must seek to cordon off our disagreements over the Russia investigation and continue with our other work on as bipartisan a basis as possible. We owe the tens of thousands of men and women in the intelligence community nothing less, not only because they put themselves at personal risk every day, but also because their work is so important to the country that it demands the shared responsibility and oversight of the Congress. The Intelligence Committee has a history of producing bipartisan bills even under the most difficult political circumstances. I am pleased that our staffs have worked to reach a mutually acceptable final text, and have been able to weed out provisions that would have made it impossible to move forward jointly. Much of the committee's oversight work is reflected in the bill as classified, but we can discuss some of the 2018-2019 IAA's elements openly, including the fact that the bill helps to better ensure that our elections are free from interference or manipulation. This is essential to our democracy, and the bill includes important provisions that continue the work that we have been doing in the committee during the course of the work on the Russia investigation, and as a part of our normal oversight to maintain the integrity of our election system. The bill also provides funding to our intelligence community in order to meet all threats from terrorism to nation-state actors. The bill authorizes funding across a wide range of endeavors that will allow the intelligence community and the Department of Defense to not only respond to threats, but to preempt them. The bill takes steps to prevent a repeat of the Russian active measures campaign that targeted our 2016 election, by including a minority-authored provision requiring a briefing to key congressional leaders, including members of the intelligence community and committee, if the United States faces a significant foreign cyber intrusion or active measures campaign directed at a federal election. The bill also ensures that America's technological advantage remains a priority for our intelligence services. As such, the bill resources and directs efforts that will promote our advantages across a range of cutting-edge domains, from space to artificial intelligence. It enhances transparency and allows public access to certain work of the IC. The bill reauthorizes for 10 years the Public Interest Declassification Board which advises the President and executive branch agencies on the review and declassification of IC records of historical importance. The bill also includes minority provisions related to parental leave, student loan repayment, and diversity and inclusiveness that are intended to make an exceptional workforce even better. In the end, the men and women who serve in the intelligence community and the Defense Department are the most important factor in the success of our national security. There are many other provisions in the bill that will build on the work of past years and move us further along technical and other pathways to meet new challenges and those still on the horizon. This bill advances our national security, reinforces the principle of congressional oversight, and honors our values as a Nation. Mr. Chair, I urge the support of the House, and look forward to considering amendments that will make a good bill even better. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to offer this amendment on behalf of its author, Mr. Keating of Massachusetts, who is one of our fine members who has great experience in public safety prior to coming to the Congress. This amendment builds on an initiative from Chairman Nunes to extend tour lengths of deployed U.S. Government personnel, particularly those who are proficient in difficult languages such as Arabic, Farsi, Chinese, and Korean. Specifically, the amendment adds the Russian language to that list. In view of the continuing threat to our national security posed by the aggressive action of the Russian Government, the U.S. Government must fully engage its cadre of personnel proficient in the Russian language. I am a slow talker. I am talking even more slowly, and my colleague has arrived. I want to thank my colleague for his work. Mr. Chairman, I urge support of this amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, it was almost exactly 2 years ago, as Donald Trump closed in on the Republican nomination, that the Russians began weaponizing stolen emails it had acquired some time earlier. This disclosure of stolen emails was only one vector of the Russian active measures campaign. At the same time, the Russians were engaged in a surreptitious social media campaign and a very overt use of their paid media platforms, like Sputnik and Russia Today, to influence the American electorate. What was this about? Was this new and unprecedented intervention in our affairs merely about choosing one candidate over another in the American Presidential system? Or was there something broader within the Russian aims? It is certainly true that the Russians had a preferred candidate in Donald Trump. Candidate Trump had talked disparagingly about NATO. He had talked about doing away with sanctions on Russia over its invasion of its neighbor. He had talked about making common cause with Russia in Syria, where our interests are not at all aligned. And most significant, he had talked about doing away with the penalties we had imposed for Russia's invasion of its neighbor, something we never thought would take place in the last century, the remaking of the map of Europe by dint of military force. That is something we thought we would never see in this century. It is certainly true they had a preferred candidate in Donald Trump, for all those reasons. It is also true that they had a deep antipathy towards Hillary Clinton, someone who, when people gathered in massive numbers in Russia to protest fraudulent elections in 2011, spoke out on behalf of people's right to protest and assemble, something that the Kremlin felt was a direct threat to the regime. But far more fundamental was the Russian object of sowing discord in the United States, of pitting one American against another, of playing along the fault lines in our society, of weakening the very fabric of our democracy. It is very important to recognize that what the Russians did here, they did not do alone in the United States. Yes, it was new and unprecedented for us, but what the Russians did here, they have been doing for years elsewhere in Europe and around the world. It is an attack not only on our democracy, but on the very idea of liberal democracy. This attack takes place at a time in our lives where, when you look around the world, you must conclude objectively that the autocrats are on the rise in places like Poland and in Hungary and the rise of the far right parties in Germany, Austria, and France, with Erdogan in Turkey--Turkey is the now the leading jailer of journalists in the world--and in the Philippines with Duterte. It cannot be said that an iron curtain is descending, but there is a rising tide of authoritarianism that threatens to submerge some of the great capitals around the globe. For those of us who had lived in the post-World War II generation, I think we were always under the assumption that our freedoms around the world were ever-increasing, that it was some immutable law of nature, that our freedom to express ourselves, to practice our faith, to associate with whom we would, was ever-increasing. To paraphrase Martin Luther King, the moral arc of the universe may be long, but it bends toward justice, only to find that today, it does not bend towards justice. As much as the idea of America as the indispensable Nation has been given a bad name, we truly are indispensable. All around the world people look to us: people in prison who gathered in Tahrir Square wanting a better government; people in the Philippines, the victims of a campaign of mass extrajudicial killing; people in prison in Turkey for journalism. People all over the world look to us. They are not going to look to Russia; they are not going to look to China; they are not going to look to Europe, with all of its problems; and increasingly they do not recognize what they see. They look to our White House and they do not recognize what they see. They see a President more comfortable with autocrats and dictators than they do with Democrats and democracy. This is a terrible tragedy for us. It is a bigger tragedy for the rest of the world. In 1938, Winston Churchill published a series of speeches he gave on the rise of Nazism. In America, the book was titled, ``While England Slept.'' America is not sleeping, but one of its great parties is. As John Boehner said recently, the Republican Party is off taking a nap somewhere. Wake up. Freedom-loving people all around the world are looking to us. Wake up. Our democracy is at risk at home, and the very idea of liberal democracy is at risk around the world. Wake up.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise to include in the Record the following resolution authored by the Board of Directors of the Child Survivors of the Holocaust, Los Angeles. The Child Survivors of the Holocaust is an organization dedicated to supporting those who survived the Holocaust as children, and who today raise awareness of human rights violations, particularly those affecting children. I urge Congress to heed their words of concern for the treatment of immigrant children and families through the policy of child separation. We, the elected members of the Board of Directors of the Child Survivors of the Holocaust, Los Angeles (CSHLA), protest the inhumane mistreatment of innocent, immigrant children by our government officials. The missions of the CSHLA include to: (1) remember the Holocaust, (2) educate our community and the public by telling our personal life-stories, and (3) raise awareness and prevent such tragedies from happening to anyone today or in the future. We who personally experienced the insecurity, anguish, and stress from cruel separation as victims of the Third Reich, are dismayed and outraged by the ruthless separation of infants, toddlers, and adolescents from their parents. The irreparable damage resulting from such actions has been scientifically and clinically proven to impair human development. Keeping the mission of our organization in mind, we reject these abusively tragic tactics or the racist prejudices underlying them.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to this resolution. If this was oversight, I would be in strong support of any effort to seek production, but it is not. This is not oversight. It is collaboration with the Executive masquerading as oversight. Or if this is oversight, it is oversight of the most obsequious kind. It is oversight in the nature of: How may we serve you, dear President? It is oversight that asks: What is your will, dear President? It is oversight that says: We are not worthy, dear President. It is oversight that says: We shall seek, but you shall find, Mr. President, because what we obtained we shall provide to your legal defense team, or we shall selectively leak or misrepresent in your service. It is oversight in the nature of not desiring an outcome, not desiring the production of documents, but, rather, the production of a fight, the production of a pretext to give the dear President a pretext to fire Rod Rosenstein or Bob Mueller. I have served on the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence now for almost a decade, and while I cannot disclose the number of FISA applications during the course of those 10 years, I can tell you the number of times that my Republican colleagues have sought the underlying investigatory materials behind a specific FISA application, and that number is one. That case is this case, and that case just happens to implicate our dear President. It is not that there are no areas that call out for oversight right now. There are too many to count. Why is it that after sanctioning ZTE for violating Iran sanctions and violating North Korea sanctions, the President abruptly changed course out of an ostensible concern for Chinese jobs? Is it because the Chinese invested $500 million in a Trump-branded property? That is worthy of oversight. Is the First Family seeking to do business with Gulf or other allies while making U.S. policy? Is U.S. policy for sale? That is worthy of oversight. Is the President seeking to raise postal rates on Amazon to punish The Washington Post and suppress the freedom of press? That is worthy of oversight. But none of this is oversight. Speaker Boehner recently said that the Republican Party was off taking a nap somewhere. If that is so, then despite the best efforts of our capable ranking member, Elijah Cummings, the Oversight and Government Reform Committee that should be doing this oversight is in the midst of the deepest slumber. Wake up, my colleagues, and do your jobs. Wake up and end this duplicitous attack on the Department of Justice and the FBI and our special counsel because this is surely not oversight. It is not what oversight looks like. But it is what an attack on the rule of law looks like. It is what happens when we whittle away our democracy one piece by terrible piece. When this chapter of our history is written, it will condemn the actions of a President who little understands or respects the institutions of our democracy. But it will reserve some of the harshest criticism for this Congress that enabled him, this Congress that knew its responsibility but failed to live up to it. Wake up, Republican Party. Wake up, my colleagues. The country needs you.

Mr. SCHIFF. Wake up, my colleagues. True oversight, when the President occupies the same party as the majority in Congress, requires that majority to put country over party. It is incompatible with the corrupting principle of party over everything else. Wake up, my colleagues, and do your jobs.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Californian Ron McMaster on his retirement after 38 years of outstanding contributions to American music. In the heart of my Congressional district, near the famous intersection of Hollywood and Vine, stands the iconic Capitol Records Tower. It's fitting that many think the landmark building looks like a stack of records, as the building has produced some of our country's most notable and treasured recordings--from the Beach Boys to Pat Benatar and the Blue Note catalog. For 38 years, legendary vinyl mastering engineer Ron McMaster has called that Tower home and, thanks to his unique artistic talent, helped to make it the epicenter of the American Sound. From his Audio Mastering studio on the ground floor, Ron McMaster takes studio recordings and--using a distinctive blend of math, science, technology, art, a touch of magic and years of unparalleled expertise--delicately fashions the masters used to create vinyl records, CD's and commercial online music products. If you've listened to the Beach Boys, Don McLean, Frank Sinatra, the Rolling Stones, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Chet Baker, David Guetta, Radiohead, and countless others, you've witnessed his genius. T-Bone Burnett, who worked with McMaster on the 2007 Grammy winning collaboration between Allison Krauss and Robert Plant, called Ron ``the final aesthetic arbiter of the work. Ron, and the people who do what they do, are creative artists. They're closer to creative artists than technicians.'' Ron has been nominated for Grammy awards in recognition of his artistic excellence. He's a member of the Los Angeles Chapter of The Recording Academy and widely recognized as one of the world's preeminent jazz mastering engineers. McMaster's magical touch will be missed, but his legacy is cemented in the countless records he helped create. I ask my colleagues to join me in thanking Ron McMaster for his contribution to the American Soundtrack and wishing him all the best on his well-earned retirement.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Assistance League of Glendale upon its seventy-fifth anniversary. The Assistance League of Glendale began with a small group of women dedicated to performing selfless acts for the local community and has since developed into a multifaceted philanthropic organization targeted at providing aid to women, men and children in need of guidance, assistance and care. The members work to ensure that the needs of children and seniors in Glendale are met with care and respect, and dedicate thousands of hours to improve the city. Committed to promoting education and enriching the lives of students, the Assistance League of Glendale provides clothing to elementary school children in need, reading support and books, as well as thousands of dollars in scholarships for students graduating from high schools and college in Glendale. In addition to its exceptional work for young students, the Assistance League of Glendale provides social programs and meals for seniors, weekly training for developmentally challenged adults to learn vocational skills, and quality pre-owned merchandise as well as clothing at affordable prices. This volunteer-driven organization continues its mission to assist and uplift as it strives to address the increasing needs of the community with innovative, dynamic and creative philanthropic programs that promote emotional and physical well-being, and over the years has evolved to meet the shifting needs of the community. The Assistance League of Glendale serves as a brilliant example of the power of volunteerism and what people can do when inspired to connect with others in the spirit of humanitarianism. The time, effort, and care that the organization has given to the community is outstanding, and the residents of Glendale and the greater Los Angeles area have benefited greatly from their work. I ask all Members to join with me in commending the Assistance League of Glendale for seventy-five years of dedicated, outstanding and invaluable service to the community.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 169.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of my amendment, Schiff No. 29, which requires the FAA to create a program that utilizes remote detection and identification technologies to identify unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) that are not in compliance with applicable Federal aviation laws and regulations. I first came to this issue several years ago when fire fighters responding to a wildfire had to ground support aircraft due to civilians operating drones in the airspace. This problem seems likely to grow more pronounced, not just in response to wildfires but also in the airspace near airports. According to the FAA, the agency projects there are 1.1 million unmanned aircraft systems in the United States and they expect that number to grow rapidly in the corning years, putting airline passengers, firefighters, and others at risk. I want the owners of these vehicles to be able to enjoy them, but in a complicated and crowded airspace like the one we have in Los Angeles, we need to be sure we are putting public safety first. That is why it is so important for Congress to give the FAA and law enforcement the appropriate tools to address this increase in drones entering restricted airspace. Furthermore, we still do not know how many unmanned aircraft enter restricted airspace, whether at airports, above forest fires, or in other restricted areas. That is why my amendment also requires annual reporting by FAA to Congress to report the number of drones entering restricted airspace, the number of enforcement cases brought by FAA or other agencies, and recommendations by FAA for detection and mitigation systems. There are a variety of vendors developing technology to counter unauthorized UAS operation in restricted airspace, some of which show great promise and have already been tested in pilot projects by the FAA. My amendment would direct the FAA to continue this important work. With the adoption of UAS technology continuing at a rapid pace, I am worried it is more a matter of when and not if a drone will collide with a commercial airliner or first responder, with potentially devastating results. We must be proactive to ensure that the next time we read about this issue, we are not also reading about casualties that could have been prevented. I thank the Chairman and Ranking Members of the committee and appreciate the inclusion of my amendment in the FAA Reauthorization bill. It is my hope it will remain in any conference agreement finalized by the House and Senate.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, on Tuesday, the world marked the 103rd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the systematic murder of 1.5 million Armenians and the displacement of millions more in the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923. In my district in Los Angeles, I joined tens of thousands of descendants of genocide survivors and others to march through the streets, a living testament to the resilience of the Armenian people. Yet, in our Nation's Capital, the White House and Congress were once again sadly silent, failing to properly recognize the genocide. More than a century after the Armenian Genocide, it is our solemn responsibility to remember those who were lost, to seek justice and restitution, and to educate Americans and the world about the crime of genocide. A recent poll of Americans found that the details of the Holocaust are increasingly fading from memory, particularly among younger generations. Two-thirds of millennials do not know what Auschwitz is or what happened there, and many others of all ages couldn't answer basic questions about the Holocaust. As someone who lost family members in the Holocaust, I find these results horrifying. There is no doubt that public understanding of the Armenian Genocide is far lower, and that is due, in part, to the silence of those who should be leading the conversation about it and to Turkey's nefarious campaign of denial. How many Americans know of Red Sunday, the day in 1915 in which Armenian leaders and intellectuals in Constantinople were rounded up to be sent to camps from which many would never return? How many know of the concentration camps in Deir ez-Zor, where Armenians were tortured, raped, and starved? How many Americans know that, in the years after the genocide, through the Near East Relief effort, the generosity of the American people saved the lives of thousands of survivors and helped secure the future of the Armenian people? And finally, how many Americans know that the Congress and the President have refused to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide, intimidated into silence by Turkey? Turkey has invested heavily in the cause of denial, and to our shame, the U.S. Government has been intimidated into silence. Though Turkey remains a member of NATO, under the autocratic and repressive rule of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey has become the leading jailer of journalists in the world and discussion of the genocide can bring criminal punishment. U.S. citizens have also been the victims of Erdogan's crackdown on free expression. Last year, Erdogan's security detail brutally assaulted peaceful protesters in Washington, D.C. Charges against 11 of the 15 Turkish nationals charged have been dropped, and there is little indication that Turkey will pay any diplomatic price for this attack. In northern Syria, where the United States has worked closely with partners to devastate ISIS, Turkey has chosen to place its paramount focus on fighting the Kurds, even launching a military offensive into Syria that threatens our own soldiers and those of our allies. Erdogan has even gone so far as to threaten the United States with an ``Ottoman slap.'' These are not the actions of an ally. They are the actions of a nation that feels emboldened to act with indifference to the United States. And who can blame them? For over a quarter century, Presidents and Congresses of both parties have been bullied into genocide denial for fear Turkey will withdraw their already transactional and fleeting cooperation. It has never been in our national security interest to be complicit in another country's denial of human rights, let alone denial of genocide. It is time for America to speak plainly about the Armenian Genocide and the violation of human rights anywhere in the world.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 148 and YEA on Roll Call No. 149.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the YMCA of the Foothills in La Canada Flintridge, California upon its 60th anniversary. In 1952, a small group of community leaders and parents were concerned about the lack of positive activities for youth in the foothills, and reached out to the Glendale YMCA for assistance in offering programs and events. Six years later, in a home in La Canada, the Crescenta-Canada Family YMCA opened; later renamed YMCA of the Foothills. In 1962, led by civic leaders Jack and Bob Samuelson and Scott McDonald, the community built what is now the Crescenta-Canada YMCA facility in La Canada. Having grown from an organization based around camping, the YMCA of the Foothills has expanded its operation to include a variety of programs and community activities with hundreds of participants and volunteers. The YMCA of the Foothills' mission is to strengthen communities through social responsibility, healthy living and youth development, and to enrich the quality of life physically, mentally, spiritually and socially for all persons. For sixty years, they have done just that, by providing children and families with programs ranging from youth leadership, such as the Model United Nations program that teaches youth about global cooperation, healthy living and spiritual awareness to activities for senior citizens. Since the YMCA's inception, almost 4,000 children have been taught about health and fitness, nearly 5,000 girls and boys have learned to swim, and over 10,000 hours of emotional support have been given to help youth with issues such as childhood obesity and suicide prevention. A lifeline to the community, the YMCA of the Foothills provides resources needed to address critical social issues such as housing, substance abuse, child welfare, education and employment. By uniting people from all walks of life, the YMCA seeks to motivate a spirit of service to be active in and work for positive social change in these and other areas of life. Today, YMCA of the Foothills has three locations and serves more than 40,000 children, teens, families, and seniors in the Sunland, Tujunga, Sun Valley and northern Glendale areas, in addition to La Canada Flintridge and La Crescenta. Under the leadership of President Tyler Wright, programs like the 2018 Arts Initiative that support children in their creativity and the Balance and Thrive Initiative to teach senior balance fitness have been launched. Additionally, with events such as the bike-a-thon, fiesta days and pancake breakfasts, the YMCA of the Foothills has become a center for community engagement. I am proud to recognize the YMCA of the Foothills for sixty years of dedicated service to the La Canada Flintridge and La Crescenta communities. I ask all Members to join me in congratulating the YMCA of the Foothills for their remarkable achievements.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my Congressional District. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Patricia Anne Kinaga, of Pasadena, California. A third generation Japanese American, Patricia Anne Kinaga was born and raised in Los Angeles County. Her parents, Rose and Thomas Kinaga, met when they were interned during World War II. After the war, her parents moved the family to Palos Verdes Estates, where she experienced discrimination, and it was this negative childhood experience that set Patricia on a life-long path to advocate for the lives of Asian Pacific Islanders everywhere. Patricia received a B.A. cum laude in urban anthropology at University of California Los Angeles and obtained a Master in City Planning at the University of California Berkeley. Upon graduating from UC Berkeley she secured a position with the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development in Sacramento, where she was selected to participate in a White House sponsored program in the Sierra Nevadas to improve housing and economic conditions for the rural impoverished in that region. She graduated from Georgetown Law in 1984 and moved back to Los Angeles to begin her legal career at the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office and in this position, she served as a prosecutor specializing in domestic violence and child abuse cases and as a civil trial attorney in the Employee Relations Section. After working as a partner in serval prestigious law firms including her own, Ms. Kinaga joined LTL Attorneys LLP as a partner. A community leader for well over thirty years, Patricia served on the board of directors of Planned Parenthood, Los Angeles, is a founding member of the Los Angeles chapter of Asian Pacific Islanders for Choice, Co-Founder of The Center for Asian Pacific American Women, and the Chair and Co-Founder of Asian and Pacific Islanders with Disabilities of California. She is a former member of the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, an alumni of the Japanese Leadership Delegation, past president of the Japanese American Bar Association, and is an appointed member of the American Bar Association Commission on Disability Rights. Ms. Kinaga has received numerous awards, including from Asian Americans Advancing Justice, the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund, the State Assembly and Senate Women in Business Award, and the prestigious Peter E. Haas Public Service Award from UC Berkeley. In addition, Patricia is also an award winning writer/producer who received a Los Angeles Area Emmy Awards nomination for the film ``About Love'' on domestic violence. Other major works include a documentary on the 442 Regimental Combat Team, which has been distributed to schools by the History Channel. Patricia, her husband Peter Wong and their two children, Brandon and Emily live in Pasadena California. I ask all Members to join me in honoring an exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Patricia Anne Kinaga.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions and sacrifices made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my Congressional District. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Nina Sorkin of Silver Lake, a unique neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Nina's parents immigrated from Mexico, so Nina is a proud first generation Californian. She was raised in the San Fernando Valley, until she moved to the Los Angeles neighborhood of Silver Lake with her beloved husband Al Sorkin 51 years ago. A diehard Bruin, Ms. Sorkin received both her bachelor's degree in Sociology and her master's degree in Social Welfare from the University of California Los Angeles. With over 40 years of service in both the public and non-profit sectors, Nina has an impressive record of giving back to the community, supporting a diverse range of causes that demonstrate her passion for helping women, children, and the homeless. A steadfast women's advocate, Ms. Sorkin was appointed to the Los Angeles City Commission for the Status of Women by then-Mayor Bradley, where she served for a decade and was instrumental in developing a city campaign to bring awareness about women and AIDS. As a breast cancer survivor, Nina has been involved with the American Cancer Society Relay for Life for the past 15 years, chaired the Relay For Life of Pasadena, and has been volunteering for the Relay for Life of Griffith Park Communities and Hollywood since its inception over a decade ago; currently she serves as the Luminaria Chair. During her seventeen-year tenure on the Los Angeles County Commission for Children and Families, Ms. Sorkin established a Healthy Nutrition program for children in foster care and was a member of the Child Court Committee to improve child visitation. Reinforcing her commitment to enriching the lives of children, she has been reading to three and four year olds at the Bellevue Recreation Center for the last five years, serves on the Bellevue Park Advisory Board, and championed the importance of language development in small children by her involvement with the Children Planning Council and First 5 LA. Ms. Sorkin is a member of the Griffith Park Lions Club, which administers eye examinations and provides free eye glasses to Ribet Academy students and four elementary schools in the Atwater Village area. In addition, Nina volunteers with the Hollywood SDA Church Homeless Program, is a member of the Griffith Park Adult Community Center Spring Faire planning committee, and is a facilitator for a grief support group. Married to the late Al Sorkin for 47 years, she has one son, Stephen and four grandchildren. I ask all Members to join me in honoring this exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Nina Sorkin.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions and sacrifices made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my Congressional District. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Medea Kalognomos of Sunland, California. In 1962, Medea moved to the United States from Iran to pursue her education. After graduating from Belmont High School in Los Angeles, she attended North Carolina State University and Point Loma Nazarene University in California, receiving a Bachelor's Degree in French and a Master's Degree in Pupil Personnel Services. Medea fulfilled her lifelong dream of becoming a school teacher when she was hired by the Glendale Unified School District, where she worked for a quarter of a century. She taught French and English as a Second Language (ESL) at Eleanor J. Toll Middle School, and then became an ESL Program Specialist at Eleanor J. Toll Middle School and Woodrow Wilson Middle School, and was also a Counselor at Glendale High School, where she patiently and compassionately advised students. She also guided many immigrant students and made a lasting impact in their lives, by instilling in them the importance of civic involvement and education. An avid student advocate and civic leader, Ms. Kalognomos has dedicated countless hours to the community, and has served in over sixteen community and academic organizations in the past thirty-five years. Currently, she is a member of the Armenian Educational Foundation, the Armenian National Committee of America--Western Region Education Committee, and co-president of the Committee for Armenian Students in Public Schools, which is an organization that has been a positive influence and inspiration to students in public schools. Most recently, Medea served as chairperson of the Committee for Armenian Students in Public Schools Leadership Workshop, where Glendale Unified School District and Los Angeles Unified School District high school juniors with a 3.5 and higher grade point average gathered to learn valuable leadership skills and the importance of volunteering in the community. In addition to her tireless service in the local communities, Medea has volunteered at schools, orphanages and hospitals in Armenia for many years. Medea's extraordinary work has not gone unnoticed as she has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Ruby Award from the Soroptimist International of the Verdugos. Ms. Kalognomos has been married to Sergeant Major Alexander Kalognomos for 50 years, and they have two children, Alex and Helen. I ask all Members to join me in honoring this exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Medea Kalognomos.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions and sacrifices made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my Congressional District. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Vicky Marachelian of Burbank, California. Born in Beirut, Lebanon, Ms. Marachelian's dedication to community service and passion to volunteer for humanitarian efforts stems from her childhood. When she moved to the United States with her family at a very young age during the civil war in Lebanon, Vicky realized that she had the opportunity for a better life, and to this day, she strives to give back to the community and support the less fortunate. Since 1995, Vicky has been an active member of the Armenian Relief Society (ARS), a remarkable organization with thousands of members in dozens of chapters around the world, serving the educational, social, and humanitarian needs of Armenians and non-Armenians alike. Over the years, Vicky has served in many capacities with the organization. She was elected to the ARS Burbank ``Araz'' Chapter as an executive member for 4 consecutive terms, served on the Regional Executive Board of the Armenian Relief Society of Western USA from 2003-2005, and was reelected in 2008 to serve as Chairperson of the Regional Executive Board. Impressively, only four months later, Vicky was elected as Chairperson of the Armenian Relief Society, Inc. Central Executive Board, the highest international executive position of the global organization, where she served for two terms. During her leadership as Chairperson, a number of projects were undertaken, including the construction of a new building for the ARS ``Soseh'' Kindergarten in Stepanakert, Artsakh, which was completed in September 2017. In addition to her tireless advocacy with the Armenian Relief Society, Ms. Marachelian was active at Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School in Los Angeles, where her children attended, helping to raise funds for the construction of a new gym and library on the campus. Currently, Ms. Marachelian continues her service to the community through the ARS Burbank ``Araz'' Chapter, where she presently serves as an executive member, and is instrumental in fund-raising for the chapter and doing outreach to Armenian and non-Armenian organizations. Ms. Marachelian's impressive work has not gone unnoticed as she has been recognized with numerous awards, including the Armenian American Chamber of Commerce ``Woman in Service'' award in 2011 and the ``Vachagan Barepasht'' medal in 2015, awarded to her by Bako Sahakyan, President of the Artsakh Republic, for her service in the Artsakh Republic. Vicky has been married to Art Marachelian for 36 years, and they have two children, Chris and Raffi. I ask all Members to join me in honoring this exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Vicky Marachelian.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions and sacrifices made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my congressional district. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Isa-Kae Meksin of Echo Park, a unique neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Isa-Kae's family immigrated to New York from the Ukraine where her father was a concert pianist and her mother was a homemaker. Growing up, Isa-Kae's mother taught her to question authority and to think on her feet, guiding her towards her passion for local politics and historic preservation. While in New York, Ms. Meksin received a Bachelor's Degree from Hunter College and soon after worked as a secretary for C.L.R. James, the visionary Afro-Trinidadian historian and journalist. It was during this time that she observed how workers, women, African-Americans and youth, were agents of change, and it was this work that led her to Los Angeles to connect with and observe the activities of the local factory workers. Isa-Kae moved to California in 1953 where she attended California State University, Los Angeles and worked towards her teaching credential. As a teacher in the 1950's, she dedicated her time to working with students with disabilities, specifically the visually impaired, and she maintains life-long relationships with some of these past students. Ms. Meksin continued this incredible work for many years until she found a new passion: activism. In 1978, Isa-Kae worked on opposing the discriminatory Briggs Initiative which would have banned gays and lesbians, and anyone who supported Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) rights, from working in California public schools. As someone who fought for and supported the rights of LGBT individuals, Isa-Kae testified to the horrific outcomes of such a potentially divisive initiative and how the legislation perpetuated grossly inaccurate portrayals of homosexuals, and through her dedicated efforts and those of others, the Briggs Initiative was defeated. Isa-Kae continues her activist work by volunteering with various organizations like the Watts Gang Task Force, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Central City Action Committee, the Citizens Committee to Save Elysian Park, the Studio for Southern California History and many others. Among her many accomplishments, Ms. Meksin works with California State University, Los Angeles to create opportunities for homeless youth to attend college and in 2017, she was awarded the Distinguished Educator Award from the university for her efforts. I ask all Members to join me in honoring this exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Isa-Kae Meksin.

Mr. SCHIFF

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of Women's History Month. Each year, we pay special tribute to the contributions and sacrifices made by our nation's women. It is an honor to pay homage to outstanding women who are making a difference in my Congressional District. I would like to recognize a remarkable woman, Anastasia Mann of Hollywood Hills, a unique neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. Anastasia Mann founded Corniche Travel in 1987 and successfully launched a new division called Anastasia's Africa in 2004, which specializes in customized trips to southern and eastern Africa. She later established Corniche Entertainment, which provides music and entertainment for private events around the world. Alongside the development of her own company, Anastasia has taken on several leadership roles in the travel industry, locally, state-wide, nationally and internationally. She is the founding chairman of the West Hollywood Visitors and Convention Bureau, and a founding member of the California Travel and Tourism Commission, where she served two terms as the sole representative for all travel management agencies in California and served on the Executive Committee. In addition, she is a member of the California Chamber of Commerce and spent ten years on the international board of directors of the Travel & Tourism Research Association, serving as President and Chair. Ms. Mann served as a California representative to the White House Conference on Tourism during the Clinton Administration and was a keynote speaker at both the 2003 International Conference on Peace through Tourism in Geneva, Switzerland and the 2005 IIPT African Conference in Lusaka, Zambia. In addition to her impressive achievements in the travel industry, Ms. Mann is also actively involved in the community, serving as President of the Hollywood Hills West Neighborhood Council and as a Hearing Examiner for the Los Angeles Police Department's Board of Rights. She is a long-standing board member of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and was involved with the Hollywood Arts Council. Anastasia and her company support several organizations, including the Fred Jordan Mission in downtown Los Angeles, Program for Torture Victims, OneLegacy Foundation and Disabled American Veterans. Ms. Mann's noble deeds have not been overlooked as she has received numerous commendations by the Los Angeles City Council, Los Angeles Mayor, the Governor of California and the United States Senate for philanthropy and business achievements. She also received the Woman of Achievement Award from the Century City Chamber of Commerce in 2006, the prestigious Diamond Award from the Southern California chapter of the American Society of Travel Agents in 2017 and was the first recipient of the Anastasia K. Mann Leadership Award from the Travel and Tourism Marketing Association. I ask all Members to join me in honoring this exceptional, well- respected woman of California's 28th Congressional District, Anastasia Mann.