Eric Swalwell

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Yes, of course. And I was the only Giants fan in an all-A's household, the only 49ers fan in an all-Raiders household, and the only Democrat in an all-Republican household, so outnumbered in every way. But my mom and dad loved John Madden in the way you just described him because of what he taught all of us. I thank the gentleman for coming down with his helmet, and I think we are all rooting for a Raiders win this weekend. Madam Speaker, I yield to my colleague from the Central Valley of California, who I believe will tell us that Mr. Madden had almond orchards in his district. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa).

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. McNerney), who is my colleague from the bay area who represented Coach Madden for many years before redistricting changed the districts in 2012. Jerry McNerney is my neighbor and friend.

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, it is very evident from the tribute today across the aisle, and across California, that we grieve Coach Madden's loss, but we have all tremendously benefited as a country because he so humbly coached, and because when he interacted with everyday Americans, he treated everyone with respect, and he treated everyone the same. So to the Madden family, we grieve with you. And to Coach, rest in peace, to a great coach. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the work of Claire Nelson and Emily Stahl, two remarkable volunteers of Tri-Valley Haven, a domestic violence shelter that creates homes safe from abuse and contributes to a more peaceful community one family at a time. Claire Nelson, one of the founders of Tri-Valley Haven, led an amazing group of formidable women. Claire was invested in working to help women and children after her years of professional experience in the day care field. She even went as far as to take survivors into her own home until Tri-Valley Haven was able to purchase a six-bedroom shelter. Claire took pride in building Tri-Valley Haven up from behind the scenes and served on the organization's board of directors, as their treasurer, and as president. Emily Stahl was the shelter's children's counselor who approached each child as a unique young person with dreams and ideas of their own. She worked with parents, schools, civic groups and community partners to advocate for the kids at Shiloh Shelter. Her understanding of the work was incredibly broad and infused with kindness, genius, and good humor. Tri-Valley Haven, like many organizations in recent years, experienced ups and downs with funding and staffing; through it all, Claire and Emily continued to ensure a safe place for survivors and their families. They're part of the reason I'm honored to represent California's 15th Congressional District. I thank Claire and Emily for their vision and dedication to providing domestic survivors safe harbor when they need it most.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Kevin Fumito Nishita, a retired San Francisco Bay Area police officer who was murdered in a senseless act of gun violence while working as a security guard for a television crew in Oakland, CA. Kevin's death has devastated not only his family and friends, but also the Bay Area's law enforcement and journalism communities, which had come to know him as an energetic, professional protector and a supportive friend. He died protecting practitioners of one of our nation's most sacred rights: the freedom of the press. Kevin served as an officer with the Oakland Housing Authority Police Department and the Hayward Police Department before joining the San Jose Police Department in 2001. There, he worked as a Gang Investigations detective as well as working the Gaming/Vice Unit. In addition to his police assignments, Kevin also spent some time representing his peers as a director with the San Jose Police Officers Association. He then joined the Colma Police Department in 2012, serving as a Detective, Field Training Officer, and Officer in Charge before being promoted to Sergeant in 2015 and retiring in 2018. Since early 2020, Kevin worked with the Star Protection Agency, often accompanying personnel from various Bay Area television stations into unsafe areas. He was protecting a KRON4 news crew in downtown Oakland at midday on Nov. 24 when a group of men attempted to rob the crew of its camera. Kevin intervened and was shot; he succumbed to his injuries three days later. He is survived by his wife, Virginia Nishita; his mother, Mary Yukiko Nishita; his father, Dan Fumito Nishita; his stepson, Enrique Ramiro Serrano; his daughter-in-law, Elaine Hebron Edjan; his daughter, Maureen Campos; his son-in-law, Marlowe Campos; and his grandsons, Titus Mackoa Campos, Kahuna Cudi Campos, and Dash Wilfred Campos. Colleagues remember Kevin by nicknames including ``Turbo'' and ``Stitch,'' after the animated character, for his high-energy, always- moving persona. His family says he was an extremely hard worker who never asked for anything in return, who opened his home to so many people who needed help, a man of deep compassion. Kevin Nishita's death should be a wake-up call that gun violence is a scourge upon our communities that must be addressed and stopped, His life should be remembered as a celebration of public service and fellowship, a model for all who knew and loved him. I offer his family, friends, and colleagues my deepest condolences on this terrible loss.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize and celebrate the life and works of my dear friend Robert Lorenz ``Rob'' Warren of Castro Valley, CA, gone far too soon. Rob was born the youngest of five sons to Annette Garin Warren and Richard Stafford ``Dick'' Warren. Both sides of his family have called the East Bay home since the 19th Century; Garin Regional Park, established on his mother's family ranch, was the site of many a gathering as Rob grew up. Grandfather E. Guy Warren with his wife, Adair, had founded the family's ranch in Castro Valley's beautiful Cull Canyon, where Rob and his brothers maintained ranches and together ran a cattle company. Rob attended Hayward's All Saints Elementary School and Moreau High School, and then the University of California, Davis and the U.C. Hastings College of the Law. At age 16, he was selected into the House of Representatives Page Program--an experience that led Rob to what would be his two lifelong loves, his wife and his devotion to public service. It was via fellow pages in 1994 at the Pendleton Rodeo that he met the one and only love of his life, Colleen O'Brien. They were married four years later sharing a passion for San Francisco, hosting big parties, travel, a tremendously close circle of friends, and raising children in a country environment. Together they built a home in Cull Canyon and were blessed with Julia and Max--the lights of their lives. The four laughed, cooked, skied and went on wonderful adventures together. Rob was an Alameda County Assistant District Attorney, serving as advisor to the Civil Grand Jury for much of his career. His good- natured, easy-going, and hard-working personality was perfect for the job. His colleagues were central to his life. Rob lived his belief in civic engagement, selflessly serving on the Boards of the Rowell Ranch Rodeo, Alameda County 100 Club, Eden Hospital Medical Foundation and All Saints Masterplan. Rob was an Eagle Scout, served on the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee and was a Past President of the Hayward Area Historical Society. In 2017 he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award in the Law from Moreau High School. As we grieve Rob's loss, I've come to realize that one of his legacies will be all the people he connected. These seemingly countless ``Friends of Rob'' will be ever grateful that he brought together so many of us and brightened our lives. Rob Warren was the ultimate family man, loyal, smart, witty and a best friend to ever so many. Brittany and I are terribly sad that our new son, Hank Warren Swalwell, will never meet and learn from Rob, who left us the same day Hank arrived. But in time we will realize our lives will have more integrity, loyalty, and laughter because we knew Rob, for he changed us all for the better. Rest in peace, my dear friend.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the Afghan Coalition for its outstanding service to the Afghan-American population in the San Francisco Bay Area, particularly during the humanitarian and immigration crisis related to the end of the 20-year U.S. military mission in Afghanistan. The City of Fremont, partially within the 15th Congressional District, is the heart of the Afghan diaspora in America, the center of the largest Afghan American community in the United States. Many local families have struggled to help their loved ones escape Afghanistan this year as the Taliban resurged. Founded in 1996, the Afghan Coalition long has been the voice for various under-served groups in the Afghan American community, providing a range of programs including, youth counseling and education, food banking, mental health advocacy, and direct assistance to immigrants and refugees who settle here after fleeing violence and instability. In recent months, the coalition has hosted a series of town hall events with local elected officials, immigration and mental health experts, and other community leaders in order to keep the Afghan American community informed, comforted, and tied in with community resources during these difficult times. Through the tireless service of Executive Director Rona Popal, the coalition's board of directors, and its staff and volunteers, the Afghan Coalition has supported and championed countless families in their time of need while also providing important public information to keep the Afghan people's plight front and center in our civic discourse. Their advocacy comes from a place of strength and love, and inspires us all to do more to help those who helped our troops during America's longest war. I thank the Afghan Coalition for its continued work to improve lives in the Bay Area and around the world.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Afghan-American immigration attorney Spojmie Nasiri for her tireless and impactful work in assisting Afghans before and during the crisis of the Taliban's resurgence. Spojmie was born in Paktia, Afghanistan, in 1975 and emigrated with her family first to Germany in 1981 and then to the United States in 1982, refugees from the Soviet-Afghan war. After growing up in Concord, California, she received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California, Davis in 1998 and her Juris Doctorate from Golden Gate University, School of Law in 2003. Today, she is a member of the California State Bar admitted to practice before the California Supreme Court and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. She chose to practice immigration law because she is, as she puts it, ``acutely aware of the pain endured by immigrants separated from their families.'' She has used her personal experience to more fully understand the challenges her clients face, and to help them navigate the complex immigration process. She has done substantial pro bono work, and in 2019 she founded the nonprofit We Have Hope Foundation to support Pashto speaking youth in Afghanistan and around the world by creating accessibility to world-class learning materials in Pashto. Her life's work took on new dimensions in recent months as she has worked diligently from her Pleasanton, California office to help bring clients out of Afghanistan. Working by phone and email, she strove to coordinate efforts with the State Department to help people navigate the terrifying circumstances in Kabul to reach the airport and escape the country. At the same time, Spojmie has worked with groups including the Afghan Coalition and the Jewish Community Relations Council to inform the public about Afghan refugees' legal and practical needs for resettlement, and how best to help in the months and years to come. ``As an immigrant, you have a passion, a drive that's unlike any other,'' Spojmie once wrote. ``And you want to give back.'' I thank Spojmie for continuing to give back so much in a time of such great need. She is a credit to her heritage, family, profession, and the 15th Congressional District.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Adrian Kinsella and his family for their ongoing commitment to our Afghan allies. Adrian has been on the actual and proverbial front lines of this fight for over a decade, first as a Marine, then as a friend. While deployed with the Marine Corps in Afghanistan, Adrian met and worked with a man named Mohammad, who was serving as his platoon's translator. They quickly gained a mutual respect for each other, which evolved into a friendship. When Adrian came home from Afghanistan, he knew that Mohammad's service with United States forces made him a target for violence, and his family had already suffered disastrous consequences. To protect Mohammad, Adrian wanted Mohammad to immigrate to the United States. With Adrian's help, Mohammad arrived in 2014. Adrian then turned his attention to Mohammad's family and focused on them until they were safe as well. He did all of this while continuing his service in the Marine Corps, attending law school at University of California, Berkeley, and serving as a Judge Advocate General before returning to Berkeley for his LLM. Adrian worked from the halls of his law school, to the non-profit group International Refugee Assistance Project, and even the set of John Oliver's TV show to try to raise awareness about the plight of our Afghan allies and their families. He's been a reliable resource for my team and me, most recently participating in a roundtable I hosted to gather information about what the community was experiencing as the situation in Afghanistan unfolded. He also coordinated with other veterans, strategizing ways to get our allies out and to safety. Now, as he serves as an Assistant United States Attorney, he, his wife Kate, an Army veteran herself-and their daughter all continue working to serve our Afghan allies arriving in the United States. They're frequently waiting at their local airport with welcome signs for newly arriving families. They also collect and deliver household items that these families need to start their new lives comfortably in the United States. Adrian and Kate are truly the best of us. They stepped up to serve in our military when we needed them, and they continue to give back to our allies who assisted in those fights. They are constantly finding ways to serve our country and their community, and I am grateful.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted YEA on Roll Call No. 313.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, millions of Americans are in the quicksand of student loan debt, and we ought to do something about it. Student loan debt is the second highest form of consumer debt impacting one-fifth of U.S. households, to the tune of $1.6 trillion. At this rate, it would take a college graduate with a bachelor's degree nearly 20 years to pay off their loans. That is why I have introduced bills to attack this crisis and put more money in the pockets of young Americans. With bills like my No Student Loan Interest Act, all interest on new and existing Federal loans would be eliminated. Zero percent interest going forward. And for graduates who devote their careers to public service, we ensure they receive loan forgiveness in proportion to their years of public service. Making college affordable is not a Republican or Democratic issue, it is an American issue, so that young Americans can start families, start new jobs, and start to build a business, if that is what they desire to do. It is one that benefits every living generation from the students of yesterday to the students of tomorrow.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my bipartisan amendment to Division E of H.R. 4502, offered with Congressmen Guy Reschenthaler and Vincente Gonzalez, number 183 and part of en bloc package number five, which would increase funds for the United States Geological Survey (USGS) by $2,000,000 and decrease funding for the Secretary of the Interior, Departmental Operations, by the same amount. Since my first term in Congress I have worked diligently to decrease our reliance on foreign sources of elements and minerals critical for certain energy applications. These materials are especially important for our clean energy future, used in products like electric vehicles and wind turbines among many others. Legislation I introduced on this subject, the Securing Energy Critical Elements and American Jobs Act, was the basis for a robust domestic research and development program on energy critical materials signed into law as Sections 7001 and 7002 of the Energy Act of 2020 (Division Z of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Public Law 116-260)). Sections 7001 and 7002 authorize a total of $208 million for this program in fiscal year 2022. Of that, $158 million is for Department of Energy (DOE) work. I want to thank the Energy and Water and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee for providing the needed funds and for citing to Sections 7001 and 7002 of the Energy Act of 2020 in its committee report when describing what DOE is to do in this area. The remainder, $50 million, essentially is for activities to be undertaken by or with the Department of Interior or USGS, and those activities are the subject of my amendment. I appreciate that the report from the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee references and directs funds to some work on critical minerals. However, it does not refer to specifically to Section 7002 of the Energy Act of 2020 or mention all aspects of the program that section of law creates. My amendment thus serves two purposes. First, its passage is intended to reinforce congressional intent that the Department of Interior and USGS should use funds the bill gives to carry out all aspects Section 7002 of the Energy Act of 2020 that are applicable to each and as directed by that law. This includes developing and publishing a list of critical minerals, coordinating with the Department of Energy to establish and operate a Critical Materials Information Portal, and working with the Department of Labor on a relevant workforce challenges. Second, my amendment adds $2,000,000 to the money USGS is already provided for efforts on critical minerals to improve its ability to do this vitally important work. This is the most that its budget could be increased in this area above what is already provided in the underlying bill within the confines of this appropriations legislation. I urge all Members to support my amendment.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. ``Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' Madam Speaker, we are blessed today that joining us are some of the heroes from the Metropolitan Police Department and Capitol Police, who defended this Capitol on January 6. And the questions that they are asking are the questions that our constituents are asking about January 6. Will we investigate how our democracy was attacked, or will we send a green light to allow it to be attacked again? Will we stand with the cops, or roll with the cop killers? Do we want the truth, or will we allow history to be erased? Are we for the Constitution, or are we for chaos? Madam Speaker, January 6 was a crime against our democracy and the heroes of this Capitol. Now we must investigate it. Failing that, we are lawless and lost.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize the life of United States Army Specialist Jameson Lindskog on the occasion of the dedication of a new Army Reserve training facility in my district, to his life and heroism. Jameson was born on May 25, 1987 in San Mateo, California to parents Donna and Curtis. He graduated from the Orion Academy in 2006 and the National Holistic Institute before enlisting in the United States Army and became a Certified Emergency Medical Technician for the 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. While serving as a Platoon Medic on 29 March 2011, the lead section of his convoy was ambushed from multiple directions and pinned down. Specialist Lindskog was in the trail element and immediately acted to treat multiple casualties. The Army describes Specialist Lindskog's actions in those moments as follows: ``Specialist Lindskog at great personal risk to his life showed no hesitation and bounded to the wounded Soldiers through withering enemy fire while brush, trees, and debris were destroyed around him. Once the reinforcements reached the ambushed men, Specialist Lindskog immediately assessed the situation, evaluated casualties, and issued priorities for first aid.'' In the moments that Specialist Lindskog was providing life-saving care to his comrades, he himself was shot in the chest. Even while mortally wounded himself, for thirty minutes Specialist Lindskog gave instructions to those around him about how to provide emergency care for the wounded soldiers around him and himself. His heroism in the throes of personal sacrifice saved the lives of two people that day. Specialist Lindskog was posthumously awarded a Silver Star for his conduct, and in it's description the Army states: ``His courage, bravery and leadership in combat set the example for all to follow. Specialist Lindskog's distinctive accomplishments are in keeping with the finest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the 327th Infantry Regiment, the 1st Brigade Combat Team, the 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault) and the United States Army.'' Today we memorialize Specialist Lindskog's service by naming a new facility at Parks Reserve Forces Training Area in his honor. This new facility will house six simulation training rooms containing hospital beds, simulated patients, and a host of bio-medical equipment. The Lindskog Reserve Facility will help prepare the next generation of our heroes to serve and save lives in the future. It is a fitting tribute to Specialist Lindskog, his parents Donna and Matthew Walker and Curtis and Jo Lindskog, his siblings Ken and Candace, and all those who loved him and hold tight to his memory.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Mr. Speaker, today, our country has a choice: Our Constitution or chaos? Our democracy was attacked on January 6. We survived this once, but we will not survive another attack. This commission ensures that we are better prepared if one is to come to this House again. We don't just owe this to our democracy, we owe it to the men and women in uniform, who fought in hand-to-hand combat for hours to protect our lives. These are the cops that we see every day. These are the cops who take care of us. Three of them lost their life. One of them lost a number of fingers, and one of them had his eye gouged out. Don't walk away from these cops. We can't agree on much as a country anymore. We choose the news that agrees with us. But this commission cannot be spun. The testimony is the testimony. It is unimpeachable. It is going to be factual. And we owe those facts, the ground truth, not only to our democracy, but to the police officers who so bravely served us that day.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Thank you, Chief Demings. Law enforcement families know the prayer from Matthew, chapter 5, verse 9, ``Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' And blessed are the California police officers who lost their lives in 2020: Oscar Walter Rocha from my district in Alameda County, Daniel Lopez Mendoza, III; Andy Ornelas, Efren Coronel, Jose Cruz Mora, Jr., Angel De La Fuente, Larry D. Crom, Donald Keith Sumner, Virgil Lynn Thomas, Harry M. Cohen, Terrell Don Young, Daniel Gene Walters, Damon Christopher Gutzwiller, and MaryLou Hernandez Armer, as well as Pat Underwood of the Federal Protective Services. As a member of a law enforcement family, when we say good-bye to each other on the phone, we always say, ``I love you,'' but we also say, ``Be safe,'' because we know what our law enforcement officers encounter when they go into a domestic violence call or make a police stop in an area where there have been robberies, gang violence, drugs. In Oakland, California, four officers were killed in a matter of minutes after a police stop, when I was a prosecutor for the Alameda County District Attorney's office. We know the risk they face. I have a family member who has been shot at and was told that from such a point blank nature he is lucky to be alive. We are grateful for the sacrifices of law enforcement. We also recognize that the best way to protect the best cops is to make sure that we put in place reforms to take care of those who do not meet the standards that we expect from law enforcement. We are committed in this Chamber to work to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act to make sure that we protect our cops on the streets and we protect those in the community who they also promise and swear an oath to protect. This police week, let me also just urge my colleagues across the aisle, who I know are sincere when they want to stand up for police officers, to recognize that the police officers who walk the beat in these halls are hurting, and they are grieving, and what happened on January 6 has not just passed, and when they hear colleagues in this Chamber say, as one said today that January 6 looked like any other normal tourist visit to the Capitol, that really hurts them. That hurts their families. It is an insult to their service, and we must do better, because backing the blue doesn't just mean backing the blue who back you, it means backing the blue who protect this Chamber and protect our democracy.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I missed one vote on Friday, February 26, 2021 and one vote on March 10, 2021. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows: Roll Call Vote Number 46 (Ordering the Previous Question): YES; and Roll Call Vote Number 71 (Motion to Adjourn): NO.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Thompson for this legislation because it takes the most dangerous weapons out of the hands of the most dangerous people. I have heard from my colleagues on the other side of the aisle about rights. Let's talk about some other rights in this country, like the right to pray in church, the right to dance at a party, the right to come home from a concert, the right to come back home safely and alive. Those are rights that matter, too. And I am for this because I think about a mother who told me a couple years ago to keep fighting on this issue because every day when she puts her children in the car and sends them off to school, before they get out the car, she closes her eyes to remember what they were wearing because she was afraid that one day she may have to identify them. This bill says we don't have to live that way anymore. The right to come home alive is greater than any right that is being put forward by the other side.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea'' on rollcall No. 46. members recorded pursuant to house resolution 8, 117th congress Allred (Davids (KS)) Amodei (Balderson) Banks (Walorski) Boebert (McHenry) Bowman (Clark (MA)) Brown (Mfume) Buchanan (Donalds) Budd (McHenry) Calvert (Garcia (CA)) Cardenas (Gomez) Carter (TX) (Nehls) Cawthorn (McHenry) DeSaulnier (Matsui) DesJarlais (Fleischmann) Deutch (Rice (NY)) Fletcher (Kuster) Frankel, Lois (Clark (MA)) Gaetz (Franklin, C. Scott) Garcia (TX) (Escobar) Gibbs (Bucshon) Gonzalez, Vincente (Gomez) Gosar (Herrell) Green (TN) (Timmons) Green, Al (TX) (Perlmutter) Grijalva (Garcia (IL)) Hastings (Cleaver) Hern (Lucas) Himes (Courtney) Issa (Valadao) Jackson (Nehls) Jackson Lee (Butterfield) Kelly (IL) (Kuster) Kelly (PA) (Keller) Kirkpatrick (Stanton) Krishnamoorthi (Clark (MA)) LaHood (Smith (NE)) Langevin (Lynch) Lawson (FL) (Evans) Lieu (Beyer) Lofgren (Jeffries) Long (Wagner) Lowenthal (Beyer) McNerney (Eshoo) Meng (Clark (MA)) Moore (WI) (Beyer) Moulton (Trahan) Mullin (Lucas) Napolitano (Correa) Norman (Rice (SC)) Nunes (Garcia (CA)) Palazzo (Fleischmann) Payne (Pallone) Pingree (Kuster) Porter (Wexton) Reed (Arrington) Rodgers (WA) (Herrera Beutler) Roybal-Allard (Bass) Ruiz (Aguilar) Rush (Underwood) Steube (Franklin, C. Scott) Stewart (Curtis) Vargas (Correa) Vela (Gomez) Waltz (Donalds) Wasserman Schultz (Soto) Watson Coleman (Pallone) Wilson (FL) (Hayes) Young (Malliotakis)

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Dr. William ``Bill'' Goldstein on the occasion of his upcoming retirement as Director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and President of Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC on March 1, 2021. Before landing at LLNL, Bill received a bachelor's degree in physics from Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania, a doctorate in theoretical physics from Columbia University in New York, and was a postdoctoral research associate with the Theoretical Physics Group at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center. His first assignment at LLNL was in the Physics Directorate, where his portfolio included diverse national security and science programs. This positioned him well to take on supervisory and senior management roles, such as Associate Director of Physical and Life Sciences, then Deputy Director for Science and Technology, where he was tasked with leading the strategic deployment of LLNL's science and technology capabilities. He continued to impress and was named LLNL's 12th director and LLNS' 3rd president on March 31, 2014. Under Bill's leadership during the past seven years, LLNL's budget and workforce have grown by 50 percent and 25 percent respectively. In fact, in 2020, LLNL was listed in the top ten of GlassDoor's 100 best large places to work in the United States. All of this occurred despite ever-increasing competition for talent from nearby Silicon Valley. LLNL has experienced significant growth in all programs and operations with Bill at the helm. He has prepared it and its personnel to lead a new era of nuclear stockpile stewardship, ensuring that our nuclear weapons are responsibly maintained and keeping the United States at the forefront of innovation. Much of this is made possible by Sierra, a new class of supercomputer brought into the field in the last few years. Bill's holistic and multi-jurisdictional thinking continues to enable growth and flexibility throughout LLNL operations and our national security. Most recently, Bill not only helped his LLNL team navigate the new workforce realities brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, but he and his management team also did their part to make significant contributions to the fight against the disease, fabricating emergency ventilators, using 3D printing to fabricate nasal swabs, and providing predicted structures of a key COVID-19 viral protein to help accelerate the development of potential medical treatments for the disease. As if all that was not enough, Bill has authored or co-authored more than 70 papers on a variety of topics while a fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. I thank Bill for his nearly four decades of service. Enjoy a well- earned retirement, and we wish him all the best while he spends more time with his wife, Kathy, and twin daughters, Emma and Sarah.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, along with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Representatives Mark DeSaulnier, Anna G. Eshoo, Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna, Barbara Lee, Zoe Lofgren, Jerry McNerney, Jackie Speier, and Mike Thompson, I rise to recognize California journalist Phil Matier on the occasion of his retirement from the San Francisco Chronicle. Phil for decades has enlightened and entertained Bay Area readers with his well-sourced, trenchant columns. He has helped to clearly explain our region's ups and downs to generations of residents, often shining light on details that politicians and the well-connected would have preferred to keep hidden. Phil, a graduate of the University of Arizona, worked at the Tucson (AZ) Citizen before joining the San Francisco Examiner in the 1980s to report on city hall, where he met and soon partnered with Andy Ross. A Matier & Ross column became a fixture first at the Examiner and then at the Chronicle, even as Phil also expanded his media footprint into work with Bay Area television and radio stations. Through his columns as well as his broadcast presence, Phil has explained the fine details of pressing issues, probed policymakers' personalities and character, and pushed for accountability and transparency in government. His uncanny ability to elicit information from political figures, whether or not they wish to share it, is legendary. And his own personality--insightful, sometimes pugnacious, often expressed at high volume, but always fair--has shone through all of his work. We thank Phil for sharing his talents with generations of newspaper readers, and we are glad we will continue to see and hear his broadcasts.

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, along with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Representatives Mark DeSaulnier, Anna G. Eshoo, Jared Huffman, Ro Khanna, Barbara Lee, Zoe Lofgren, Jerry McNerney, Jackie Speier, and Mike Thompson, I rise to recognize California journalist John Diaz on the occasion of his retirement from the San Francisco Chronicle. John's superb stewardship of the Chronicle's editorial pages over the past 25 years has kept California readers talking and thinking about the most pressing issues facing the state. His own columns, exploring complex issues in ways that laypeople can easily understand and engage, have been a big part of that. John, a graduate of California's Humboldt State University, started his career at the Red Bluff (CA) Daily News, where after two years he was promoted to the parent company's Washington, D.C. bureau. He later reported for the Associated Press in Philadelphia and reported and edited for the Denver Post before starting at the Chronicle in 1990 as an assistant city editor and becoming its editorial page editor in 1996. Both in maintaining the Chronicle's editorial voice and in expressing his own opinions and analysis through his column, John unflinchingly has delved into tough issues without resorting either to oversimplification or to mean-spiritedness. His balanced presentation of facts is a credit to the Chronicle and to journalism at large, and a boon to his readers. The Bay Area political landscape has changed enormously on his watch, as has the region's media landscape. Through it all, John has kept our communities well-informed and a well-informed populace is a necessary part of our democratic republic. We thank John for his many years of service to our constituents, and we wish him the best in his next endeavors.

Mr. Manager SWALWELL

Mr. Manager SWALWELL. Mr. President, distinguished Senators, my name is Eric Swalwell, and I represent California's 15th Congressional District. Manager Castro just told you about Donald Trump's lies and acts before the election, but to paraphrase Winston Churchill, that wasn't the end of his efforts. That wasn't the beginning of the end, but perhaps it was the end of the beginning. Here is what I mean. You saw President Trump prime for months his supporters to believe that, if the election were lost, it only could have been so because it was rigged, but that took time just like, to build a fire, it doesn't just start with the flames. Donald Trump, for months and months, assembled the tinder, the kindling--threw on logs for fuel--to have his supporters believe that the only way their victory would be lost was if it were stolen. So, that way, President Trump was ready, if he lost the election, to light the match. And on November 7, after all the votes were counted, President Trump did lose by 7 million votes. But for Donald Trump, all was not lost. He had a backup plan. Instead of accepting the results or pursuing legitimate claims, he told his base more lies. He doused the flames with kerosene. And this wasn't just some random guy at the neighborhood bar blowing off steam. This was our Commander in Chief. Day after day, he told his supporters false, outlandish lies that the victory--that the election outcome was taken and it was rigged. And he had absolutely no support for his claims, but that wasn't the point. He wanted to make his base angrier and angrier. And to make them angry, he was willing to say anything. On November 15, he stated: I concede NOTHING! We have a long way to go. This was a

Mr. Manager SWALWELL. Shortly after 2 p.m., the Capitol Police and Metropolitan Police were overwhelmed by President Trump's mob. Perimeters were broken. The Capitol had been breached. Those officers kept fighting back for hours and hours to hold th line. They fought to defend the Capitol Building and all of us within it. But they weren't there just to protect us--and they did--and our staff and the custodial staff and all the people who work so hard in this building. They were there to protect the votes of the American people that were being counted that day. I will show you more later about what that day was like for those brave officers. But first, let's go back to what was happening where Manager Plaskett left off in the House Chamber. Rioters who had entered the building through the Senate quickly spread out through the Capitol. Many headed toward the House and Senate Chambers. After Speaker Pelosi was ushered out, Chairman McGovern was presiding in the House, attempting to keep the counting process going. On our phones, Members were receiving security updates and watching social media to see the horror that was going on outside. We never thought it would make its way in. By 2:25 p.m., rioters who were already in the building opened the east side doors of the Capitol Rotunda to let more of the mob in. They quickly flooded through the doors, overwhelming the officers. This is new security footage of those doors, and, as before, the mob is identified with the red dot on the model of the Capitol. If you look closely, you will see the first person through the door is holding the Trump flag. (Video presentation.) At the same time, just one floor below, the mob finally pushed through a line of Capitol Police officers and overtook the area. We all know that area in the Capitol as the Crypt. This is directly beneath the Rotunda at the very center of the Capitol. (Text of video presentation.) (People chanting: ``Open up.'') The Officer. No harm. No harm. Inside the House Chamber, a security officer suspended the floor debate to update Members. (Text of video presentation.) The Officer. We have a person with tear gas in the Rotunda. Please stand by. There are masks under your seats. Please grab a mask. Place it in your lap, and be prepared to don your mask in the event the room is breached. We were told there were tear gas masks underneath our seats and to be prepared to grab them. Determined to keep the count going, Chairman McGovern called the House back into session, but only 4 minutes later, at 2:30 p.m., the House abruptly recessed. A new security announcement was made. (Text of video presentation.) The Officer. Be prepared to get down under your chairs, if necessary. So we have folks entering the Rotunda and coming down this way. So we will update you as soon as we can, but just be prepared. Stay calm. As I heard that announcement on the floor, I saw the new House Chaplain, on just her fourth day on the job, walk to the front podium unannounced, and, amidst the chaos, she started to recite a prayer for peace. Uncertain what would happen next, I sent a text message to my wife: I love you and the babies, please hug them for me. I imagine many of you sent a similar message. What we could not see from inside the Chamber was that outside, the mob was growing larger and larger and approaching our doors. But we could hear them. This security footage, which does not have sound, shows a closeup of Trump's mob as they move toward the second floor of the House Chamber to stop the counting of votes. (Video presentation.) In the back of the group, you see one individual carrying a ``Stop the Steal'' sign. They get within footsteps of the House door. The next video is the viewpoint of the insurrectionists. It begins with the mob amassing and cuts ahead to show you their search to the House door. (Text of video presentation.) (People chanting: ``We want Trump.'') Unidentified Man. It's a mob. They're going. Just stop. Whoa, whoa. Dude, dude, dude, dude--you're not helping. You're not helping. You are going to get me hurt and other people. (People chanting: ``Stop the steal.'') Unidentified Man. All right, no violence. Unidentified Man. It's too late for that. They don't listen without that stuff. (People chanting: ``Stop the steal.'') Those doors, to orient you at home, are the doors that the President of the United States walks through when he or she gives the State of the Union Address. You may have heard one man yell ``no violence'' and another respond: It's too late for that. They don't listen without that. They were there to stop the certification of the election. At this point, inside the House Chamber, we can now hear the pounding on the doors. At 2:35 p.m., Members on the House floor were told that an evacuation route was secure, and it was time to leave. This video shows Members of Congress exiting to the side of the podium where we would go through the House Lobby and downstairs. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Because of coronavirus restrictions, congressional Members had been waiting in the Gallery for their time to speak, just one level above the House floor. Representatives, staff, journalists all took cover under their chairs, helped each other put on their gas masks, and held hands as rioters gathered outside. Here, on this slide, you see Representative Jason Crow comforting our colleague Representative Susan Wild. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) The rioters continued to surround the House Chamber, flooding the halls and kicking on the doors as they passed them. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) This security video shows Ashli Babbitt, followed by others in the mob, turning the corner to the House Lobby doors where the Members were leaving. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Chairman McGovern was one of the last Members to leave the floor. As he left through the House Lobby, just after 2:40 p.m., he was spotted by the mob. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Minutes later, at 2:44 p.m., Ashli Babbitt attempted to climb through a shattered window into the House Lobby. To protect the Members in the Lobby, an officer discharged his weapon, and she was killed. I want to warn everyone that the next video, which shows her death, is graphic. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) He has a gun! He has a gun! He's got a gun! Inside the Chamber, Representatives, staff, and journalists remained trapped in the Gallery, one floor above the House floor, and heard the gunshot. My colleague Representative Dan Kildee produced this recording. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) What the fuck? Take your pins off. Pins off! Out of fear that they would be seen or taken by the mob, my colleagues were telling each other to take off their congressional pins. That buzzing sound that you hear in the background of these videos was the sound of the gas masks. It was not until approximately 2:50 p.m., about 6 minutes after the shooting downstairs, that the remaining Members, staff, and journalists in the Gallery were finally able to flee. In this security footage video, you can see them exiting. Many Members are still wearing their gas masks. They walk just feet away from where the Capitol Police are holding an insurrectionist at gunpoint. Just minutes earlier, that insurrectionist had tried to open the Gallery door and, thankfully, was stopped by a tactical team. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Although Members were now being moved to another location, the mob continued to fight--to stop the count, to find the Members, to engage with the police. The building was not yet secure. This security video from 2:56 p.m. shows the mob in the House of Representatives' wing on the second floor of the Capitol. Insurrectionists who are still inside the building are fighting with the police, who are overwhelmed in trying to get them out. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Throughout this presentation, we have been very careful to not share where Members of Congress were taken or the paths they followed to get out and off the floor, but that very issue was under discussion by the insurrectionists themselves. One example comes from an FBI affidavit, which stated that a leader of a militia group known as the Oath Keepers received messages while he was at the Capitol. The leader was given directions to where Representatives were thought to be sheltering and instructions to ``turn on gas; seal them in.'' As you know, the threat to the Senate was no less than that of the Members of the House. The mob approached the Senate with the same purpose: fulfilling President Trump's goal of stopping the count; delaying the certification of the electoral college votes of the American people. As you heard from Manager Plaskett, Vice President Pence was moved away from the area near the Senate Chamber at around 2:25 p.m. By that time, rioters had breached several areas close to this Chamber, and they were flooding the hallways just outside an nearby. The Senate Chamber was not evacuated until 2:30 p.m. The mob had been in the building for more than 15 minutes. This new security footage of the Senators and staff leaving the Chamber will be displayed on the screens. It is silent. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) You cannot see it in this footage, but quick-thinking Senate floor staff grabbed and protected the electoral ballots that the mob was after. Those of you who were here that day will recall that, once you left the Senate floor, you moved through a hallway to get to safety. That hallway was near where Officer Goodman had encountered a mob and led them upstairs and away from the Senate Chamber. You know how close you came to the mob. Some of you, I understand, could hear them, but most of the public does not know how close these rioters came to you. As you were moving through that hallway--I paced it off--you were just 58 steps away from where the mob was amassing and where police were rushing to stop them. They were yelling. In this security video, you can see how the Capitol Police created a line and blocked the hallway with their bodies to prevent rioters at the end of the hall from reaching you and your staff. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Because this is security footage that you have not seen before, I want to play it again. The top of the screen is the other end of that hallway where the mob has amassed and the officers are rushing to protect you. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Additional security footage shows how Leader Schumer and the members of his protective detail had a near miss with the mob. They came within just yards of rioters and had to turn around. Here, in this new video, you see Leader Schumer walking up a ramp. In going up the ramp with his detail, he will soon go out of view. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Seconds later, they return and run back down the hallway, and officers immediately shut the door and use their bodies to keep them safe. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) At 2:45 p.m., shortly after Senators were ushered to safety from the Senate floor, insurrectionists reached the Senate Galleries. The following video was filmed by a New Yorker reporter. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Where the fuck are they? We're here. Minutes later, the insurrectionists invaded and desecrated the Senate floor. These vandals shouted and rifled through the desks of this room. They took pictures of documents and of themselves, celebrating that they had taken over the floor and stopped the counting of the electoral college votes. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Unidentified Speaker. Look at this. Take a picture. Unidentified Speaker. Here. Look. Ted Cruz's objections. He was going to sell us out all along. Unidentified Speaker. Really? Unidentified Speaker. Objection to counting the electoral votes of the State of Arizona. Unidentified Speaker. All right. All right. There's got to be something in here we can use against these scum bags. Unidentified Speaker. What happened to the phone, man? Larry Brock, who was arrested for his role in the insurrection, was photographed on the Senate floor, wearing a helmet, tactical gear, and carrying flex cuffs. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) This man, also in the Senate Galleries, is Eric Munchel. Like Brock, he was dressed in what appears to be tactical gear, also holding up flex cuffs. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) If the doors to this Chamber had been breached just minutes earlier, imagine what they could have done with those cuffs. After insurrectionists occupied the Capitol and stopped the joint session from counting the votes, the Capitol was in lockdown for 5 hours. As long as it took to get back to the Capitol, to get back to the certification of the election, it could have been so much longer, or we might not have been able to resume at all. As horrific as it was--140 officers injured, 3 officers who ultimately lost their lives--we all know that awful day could have been so much worse. The only reason it was not was because of the extraordinary bravery of the men and women of the Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Departments. For hours and hours, these insurrectionists were in hand-to-hand combat with these brave men and women. Like some of you, I come from a law enforcement family. My dad was a cop. My two brothers--my little brothers are cops who walk the beat today. I am proud of them. And like in every law enforcement family, when we hang up the phone, we don't only say ``I love you,'' we say ``Be safe.'' So let's focus now on the attack and what it was like for the officers defending the Capitol that day. And, again, I want to warn you that the following audio and videos are graphic and are unsettling, but it is important that we understand the extent of what occurred. Here is an audio recording from the radio traffic of the DC Metropolitan Police Department describing the violence. (Text of audio presentation of 1-6-2021.) Cruiser 50, I copy. We're still talking rocks, bottles, and pieces of flag and metal pole. Cruiser 50, the crowd is using munitions against us. They have bear spray in the crowd. Bear spray in the crowd. 1328. Multiple deployments U.S. Capitol with pepper spray. DSO, DSO, I need a re-up. I need a re-up up here. You hear the officer describe they are ``using munitions''--they, the rioters, are ``using munitions against us.'' This video shows how the sprays that were described were used against the officers. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) In a separate Metropolitan Police Department radio traffic recording, you can hear an officer when he realizes that the insurrectionists had overtaken the police line. (Text of audio presentation of 1-6-2021.) Cruiser 50. We lost the line. We've lost the line. All MPD, pull back. All MPD, pull back up to the upper deck. All MPD, pull back to the upper deck ASAP. All MPD, come back to the upper deck. Upper deck. Cruiser 50, we're flanked. 10-33. I repeat 10-33 west front of the Capitol. We have been flanked and we've lost the line. The MPD officer calls out ``10-33.'' That is the code for emergency, officer in need of assistance; his words, ``We've lost the line.'' Hours after Members of the House and Senate had left this area on the west front of the building, the mob continued to grow, continued to beat the officers, as they tried to get in. In this new security video, you can see the mob attacking officers with a crutch, a hockey stick, a bull horn, and a Trump flag. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) I want to show you that same attack from the officer's perspective, from his body camera footage. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) This body camera footage is from 4:27 p.m., over 2 hours from when the Capitol was first breached. The attack on police that afternoon was constant. Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone, a 20-year police veteran with four daughters, was part of a line of officers protecting the Capitol. He was one of three officers whom the mob dragged down the stairs. When they dragged him, they stole his badge, his radio, his ammunition magazine, and they tased him, triggered a heart attack. Here he describes his experience. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Officer Fanone. It looked like a medieval battle scene. It was some of the most brutal combat, you know, I have ever-- ever encountered. At one point I got tased. People were yelling at me, `We got one. We got one.' Officer Christina Laury, who regularly serves in MPD's Narcotics and Specialized Investigation Division, also protected the front Capitol entrance. Here is her experience. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Officer Laury. I mean, I can't say enough about the officers that were there, the officers that were on the frontline. And when I say `the frontline,' I mean, literally, officers that were in a line, stopping these people that were beating them with metal poles. They were spraying them with bear mace. I mean, they did everything in their power to not let those people in. And this was going on for hours. Around 4:30 p.m., hours into the Capitol riots, Officer Daniel Hodges was protecting a west side Capitol entrance, when rioters who were trying to stop the certification trapped him between two doors. When Officer Hodges was interviewed later, this is how he described what was happening. (Text of video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Officer Hodges. They threw down a huge metal object that hit me on the head. I was also knocked down. The medical mask I was wearing at the time got pulled up over my eyes, so I was on the ground and blinded, and they started attacking me from all sides. Rioters crushed Officer Hodges. He was wedged in the doorway, blood dripping from his mouth. He was struggling to breathe, all while the insurrectionists hit him. Officer Hodges' experience reminds you of what he and many other officers experienced that day, what they went through. We are also reminded of three officers who lost their lives: Capitol Hill Police Officers Sicknick, Liebengood, and Metropolitan Police Officer Smith. In many law enforcement families, we pray for our loved ones, and we know the scripture of Matthew 5:9, ``Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.'' I am sorry I have to show you the next video, but in it you will see how blessed we were that on that hellish day, we had a peacemaker like Officer Hodges protecting our lives, our staffs' lives, this Capitol, and the certification process. May we do all we can in this Chamber to make sure that never happens again. (Video presentation of 1-6-2021.) Recess

Mr. SWALWELL

Mr. SWALWELL. Madam Speaker, America has been attacked before, but not like this. On January 6, Donald Trump incited thousands of radicalized terrorists to attack the Capitol to stop a transition of power. Let that sink in. Our President incited our citizens to attack our Capitol. America was not attacked in the past tense. This President has inspired future plots. America is still under attack, and that is why Donald Trump must be impeached. I have read that many of my GOP colleagues know what the President did was wrong but are afraid for their lives if they cross the President. I am sorry that they are living in fear, but now is the time to summon their courage to guide them. Madam Speaker, we have all seen the images of the courageous officers who have risked their lives so that you could flee this floor and see your families. That was almost a week ago right now. Officers engaged in hand-to-hand combat for hours with these terrorists. Capitol Police were spit on, beaten, stampeded, and one of them lost his life. Madam Speaker, I am not asking you to summon the courage that they did; I am just asking you to do your job and hold this President accountable.