Heather Wilson

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall vote numbers 520, 531, 532, and 533, I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted `aye' on each of these votes.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I wish to bring to your attention an honor given to Jose and Kathy Villegas, residents of the great state of New Mexico. Jose and Kathy Villegas have received the 1998 Apple Parent Involvement in Education (PIE) Award. Jose and Kathy Villegas received this award because their children Candace Marie, age 13 and Joseph, Jr. age 11 took the initiative to write a letter of nomination to Apple PIE Awards. Our most important job as parents is providing our children with values, teaching the difference between right and wrong and setting examples of respect for ourselves, others and our community. Jose and Kathy Villegas obviously have done this with their children. The nomination letter included a description of how their parents were instrumental in getting a classroom addition at their elementary school and a stop light at a busy intersection used by school children. Jose and Kathy Villegas are involved in many task forces working on issues important to children's education. The Villagas' story provides an excellent example of how parent involvement can make a positive difference in their children's lives, the local school and their community. Jose and Kathy Villegas' story is part of a feature story in the November 1998 issue of Working Mother titled, ``Classroom Champions''. As the only individuals to receive this award in the United States, they stand as an example to all of us. Join me today in recognizing recipients of the 1998 Apple Parent Involvement in Education Award, Jose and Kathy Villegas.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the girl's track team of Sandia High School--The Matadors in Albuquerque, New Mexico. They have been selected to be featured on the back of the latest Team Cheerios cereal box for their overall academic achievement. The Matadors are one of four amateur squads featured in a special ``Team to Watch'' promotion. The ``Teams to Watch'' program, jointly co-sponsored by General Mills and Scholastic Publications, honors 16 teams in four categories: tradition, excellence, academic achievement and moving barriers. The team was among four teams noted for academic achievement. They well deserve this honor, having earned a 3.8 grade-point average last school year as well as a fourth-place finish in the Class AAAA state meet. I applaud this group of talent young women for not only achieving academic excellence but for their athletic success as well. When there is so much news about the problems young people face, it is a real pleasure to see good news about a great group of young women. Congratulations again to an outstanding group of students and I wish them continued success in their endeavors.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, it is a real pleasure to be here today to support this bill. In 1990, Senator Pete Domenici called for a study of Route 66, America's Main Street. It goes from Chicago all the way to L.A. The report was filed with Congress, and this year Senator Domenici and I introduced legislation, both in the House and in the Senate, to designate this road as America's Main Street, and to preserve it to provide a center and a focus for tourism. Route 66 is 2,448 miles long. It crosses eight States and three time zones. It was commissioned in 1926 when America began its move westward, and we all remember the great part it has played in American history. It was paved from end to end in 1936, and finally decommissioned in 1985. But it still remains an important part of our history, an important part of our culture. Even though I-55 and I-44 and I-40 and I-15 and I-10 will take us faster, Route 66 is firmly a part of our memories and a part of our history. It is rooted in Americana. John Steinbeck called Route 66 the Mother Road, and it has been called the Main Street of America and the Will Rogers Highway. Who can forget that Bobby Troup song, ``Get Your Kicks on Route 66,'' which was also recorded by the Acid Visions, Asleep at the Wheel, Charles Brown? And most of us here in this room here today could probably hum a few bars; even Frank Sinatra sang ``Get Your Kicks on Route 66.'' Senate bill, S. 2133, the Senate companion to the House bill, H.R. 4513, is going to help small businesses, including motels and gas stations and diners that have blue plate specials and neon signs outside of their doors; State historical preservation offices, and small towns all along that famous route; and even schools, including a little school called the Route 66 Elementary School in Moriarty, New Mexico. They just had their grand opening in September and they gave to me a hubcap. It says ``Route 66 Elementary Grand Opening, September 19, 1998.'' They have got 259 students there, and they have a Route 66 Diner as well. The Route 66 National Historic Highway Act authorizes the National Park Service to support State and local and private efforts to preserve Route 66 corridor by providing technical assistance, participating in cost-sharing programs, making grants and loans. It also acts as a clearinghouse for communication among Federal, State, local, private, and American Indian entities interested in the preservation of the Route 66 corridor and it authorizes the expenditure of up to $10 million over 10 years for this purpose. The U.S. National Park Service endorses this bill and it enjoys bipartisan support. So, whether we live in Chicago, Bloomington, or Springfield, Illinois; or St. Louis or Joplin, Missouri; or Tulsa or Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; or Amarillo; or Santa Fe or Albuquerque, New Mexico; or Santa Rosa, Tucumcari Grants, Winslow, Arizona; Flagstaff, Kingston, Barstow, San Bernardino or Los Angeles, we are part of the Route 66 corridor and part of a great piece of Americana. I thank Senator Domenici for working on this bill on the Senate side, and I appreciate the assistance of the gentleman from Utah (Chairman Hansen) in bringing it to the floor here as we are closing our business for this year. Mr. Speaker, I support this bill, and I think that it is something that preserves our unique character as Americans, and I am pleased and very proud to have helped bring it to the floor of the House.

Ms. WILSON

Ms. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I wish to bring your attention to a project I my district which has received Presidential recognition as a ``Promising Practice'' that will improve education and career opportunities in mathematics, science, and engineering for minority youth in New Mexico. Project Uplift produces a regular half-hour television program broadcast across New Mexico that teaches young people in every part of our state about careers in high technology. In addition, the project sponsors the annual High Technology Career Preparedness Youth Institute at Sandia National Laboratory. Through hands-on activities, this week- long institute introduces young people to professionals in a variety of fields relating to the environment, medicine and health, advanced computing and robotics, advanced manufacturing and astronomy. Another important initiative of the project is the annual Rio Grande High Technology Minority and Women Job Fair. Each fall, this job fair draws over 600 university students from all over New Mexico majoring in engineering, physical and life sciences. Room and board is provided for these students who then have the opportunity to meet potential employers from across the country. Project Uplift's success has even garnered international attention through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). UNESCO officials were impressed with the success of Project Uplift in reaching diverse and remotely situated people. Project Uplift has done an excellent job of addressing New Mexico's diverse population and rural character. I am proud to highlight their accomplishments and encourage their future success.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, during a time when the kids of this nation search for role models, Mary McAfee has become one to her students. Zuni Elementary School principal Mary McAfee was recently awarded $25,000 from the Milken Family Foundation. The Milken award is given to only 160 educators nationwide who display excellence in education. During her six years as Zuni Elementary's principal, Mary has improved curriculum, focusing on the enhancement of her school's technology, and for adapted learning to ``real world'' situations. Teachers at Zuni think she is an exceptional and caring principal, and one of New Mexico's best. Mary McAfee is a role model for us all. She has put in countless hours and effort to improve our future by improving the schools our children attend. Mary was nominated by her co-workers to recognize the hard work she has done to improve our children's education. And, she is just one of the great educators in New Mexico. Thanks to the Milken Foundation for recognizing one of New Mexico's best, and thanks to Ms. McAfee for her dedication to her students and teachers.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I am the junior member of this House. The one who, arguably, comes to this decision with the cleanest slate, the least experience, and a perspective formed largely outside of these halls. This morning, as we began our business, every member of this body gathered, faced the flag and repeated the same pledge that school children from Long Island to Los Angeles, from Seattle to Saratoga recited this morning. ``I pledge allegiance * * *'' With our hands over our hearts, we told the country and each other than we are one nation, under God, with liberty and justice for all. Liberty and justice for all. The meaning of justice in a free society governed by a constitution is what has been on my mind in the last weeks. I have read the Independent Counsel's report and much of the supporting information which he has transmitted to us. Like my colleagues from both parties on the Judiciary Committee, I have come to the conclusion that we have been presented with substantial and credible evidence concerning the President of the United States that may constitute grounds for impeachment. We must do our duty and fully and fairly investigate these matters. I have reached this conclusion with a profound sense of sadness. America is a great nation, and we are not less great because we are governed by fallible men and women. Indeed, our founding fathers knew well our failings, and led us to rely not upon the rule of men, but upon the rule of law. That is what is at stake here today--equal justice under the law. I am reminded of the symbol of justice in America. Justice holding the scales is not blind because she looks away or because she will not see. Justice is blind so that every citizen, regardless of race or creed or station in life, will be treated equally under the law. That includes the President of the United States. It is a powerful symbol. And today, it is one we must live up to. We are not called upon today to vote on articles of impeachment. We are only voting on whether to proceed, or to look away. We are a nation ruled by laws. It is up to us to keep it that way.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support this bill. It is something of an irony that I do, since at my house we do not have cable, we do not have a satellite dish, and we barely have a television. But I like this bill because it seems to delay things until folks can sort out exactly what is fair and what is equitable in order to enhance competition, which is the American way. I commend my colleague for bringing this forward and the chairman of the committee for bringing it forward to increase competition and to make sure that there is a level playing field for all of those who provide services to our homes.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, and I appreciate this bill for a number of reasons. In my view it is really the brown paper wrapper approach to the internet, where technology has really exceeded our ability as parents to protect our children from things that we would like to protect them from. By making commercial sale against the law in the internet without age verification, we are really doing no more than is required by most Circle K's or convenience stores, and I think that that is the right way to approach it. I also appreciate that this bill includes studies on filtering and other methods, like zoning, that may be able to help parents and help schools without prescribing an answer before we know what the technology is capable of. I think that that is also a rational approach to solving this problem. I appreciate the amendment that protects personal information of children on-line. As a parent, I understand the strengths and benefits of the Internet. But it also has the potential to exceed our ability as parents to control the access of our children to things that they may not even know they are accessing. Let us give ourselves another tool. Let us give ourselves that electronic brown paper wrapper.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 483, I was inadvertently detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.''

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Chairman, Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute is a school nestled on the banks of the Rio Grande River in my district. It is a small school, much like Haskell. It has 600 students and over 100 different tribes represented there each semester, which really gets to the problem with the criticisms of this bill. These are two small universities operated directly by the Federal Government by the BIA that are anomalies in a system overseen by the Office of Personnel Management, which is not designed for universities. There are already special rules within the BIA for how they operate elementary schools. But those rules do not apply to SIPI and to Haskell. As a result, they have to operate under a system which is rigid, which does not apply to them, where they have to try to make cumbersome rules fit a situation that they just do not find themselves in. I commend my colleague the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Snowbarger) for bringing this legislation forward to try to give these institutions the flexibility they need to better do their job and to educate our children. I have been to SIPI and talked to the faculty there. I have talked to the President of SIPI, President Elgin, and they are supportive of this legislation. It takes them too long to hire professors. They cannot set out the requirements as they want to do for teachers. They need the flexibility to do this. There is independent oversight of these two schools. It is called a board of regents. It is something that Federal Government agencies do not have, and OPM is probably not familiar with it. Uniformity is probably, to paraphrase, the hobgoblin of small minds. We have two small institutions here that need flexibility to do their job better in a pilot program. It is disappointing to me that the Executive Office of the President is paying more attention to its own bureaucracy and the Office of Personnel Management and not attention to the presidents, the faculty, and the students whom I represent. I stand in support of this legislation, and I commend my colleague from Kansas for bringing it to the House.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, Kristen Graczyc is a constituent of mine. Although she is not old enough to vote, the lesson she has learned and taught to students and adults make her wise beyond her years. A 15- year-old soccer star at La Cueva High School, Kristen has been called the Mia Hamm of New Mexico soccer. As a sophomore she has scored 20 goals in the first six games for one of the best high school soccer teams in the Nation. And then, before the Homecoming dance, she got drunk. At the dance she was pulled off the dance floor by principal Sam Soto, her parents were called and she was kicked off the soccer team. In these times, the story might have been that she found a lawyer and fought the suspension all the way to the Supreme Court. But Kristen did something different. She wrote a letter to her team and all of the media outlets in Albuquerque. In the letter she takes responsibility for her actions and warns other children about the effects of alcohol and encourages them not to drink. She further said that she has let down her parents and her team and lost what meant the world to her; being part of the La Cueva women's soccer team. Kristen feels that this will make her a stronger person and a stronger player next year. Kristen has made all of us stronger. She has taught all of us who have heard about her efforts about admitting your mistakes, taking responsibility for your actions, and apologizing when you are wrong. This year, Kristen is going to go to the soccer games and cheer for her teammates. Next year, she will be back on the team. A little older, a little wiser, and respected not only for her talent, but for her character.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Madam Chairman, I am amazed, amazed at my opponents on the other side of the aisle. The question in this debate and about this bill is who do we trust? Of course the Department of Education in Washington opposes this bill and wants accountability with its reams and reams of paperwork. I will tell my colleagues who I trust. I trust the teachers and the principals and the school administrators in my hometown to come up with an integrated plan of how we are going to educate our kids. We do not need stovepipes from Washington telling us how to spend those dollars and requiring us to hire administrators to fill out paperwork, to tell bureaucrats in Washington how they spent them. That is wrong. We can educate our children at the local level, increasing funds to the classroom, and we have seen it work in State government. Get rid of the bureaucrats, and hire the teachers. That is what this bill does, and that is why I am supporting it.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, last night the television news confirmed that two reporters told ABC News that a senior White House official has been peddling the story to sully the reputation of one of the great leaders in the history of this institution, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Hyde). The senior White House official just does not get it. Or, perhaps worse, maybe he gets it and he just does not care. We are not considering here some personal indiscretion. This body has a solemn constitutional responsibility to consider the charges before us. This system of justice will not be manipulated by polls or pundits or senior officials who seek to smear and intimidate. This is a Nation governed by law, and it is up to us to keep it that way.

Ms. WILSON

Ms. WILSON. Mr. Chairman, I think I can answer some of the questions put by my colleagues from California and Minnesota. The fact is that the reason that this applies to New Mexico is because the bulk, the vast bulk of these land grants are in New Mexico. That is where, for 150 years, there has been a simmering dispute and bad feeling among the citizens of the State of New Mexico about the taking of lands. We are now celebrating this year the 400th anniversary of the settlement of the Southwest by Spain. It was only 250 years later that that part of what is now the United States became part of the United States. I believe that this bill is about justice, it is about saying to the people of the State of New Mexico that America keeps its promises, that we provide ways to redress grievances, and that we will consider the facts and the claims on the merits, and do what is right and what is just. It requires congressional action for any land to be transferred. All this commission does is look at the facts, take the evidence, evidence which people from New Mexico, from my district and from my colleagues' districts, have been asking people to look at for over 100 years. That is fair and just, and I want to commend my colleague from northern New Mexico (Mr. Redmond) for his persistence and diligence and determination to bring this bill to the floor of the House of Representatives.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this bill and I do so representing the third most diverse city in the Nation, Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was a couple of years ago that there was an article in the newspaper that said, only New York and Los Angeles are more diverse than Albuquerque, New Mexico. It is our culture, our rich and diverse culture, which makes New Mexico unique. Our art, our architecture, our cuisine, our literature, our dance, makes us what we are and, yes, our language, whether that be Tewa or English or Navajo or Spanish. Something else I believe all of us can agree on is that all of our children must learn English in order to be given the tools to succeed in America and to achieve their dreams. That does not mean that we do not respect their culture, that they should not be proud of who they are and that they should not be multilingual, because let us face it, folks, being able to speak more than one language is a strength, not a weakness. So we should be talking about English plus and not English only. This bill does not affect funding levels. There is a hold-harmless clause for all States, and I am very pleased to say that I am working with the Committee on Appropriations to expand multilingual education funds for the elementary school level. What this bill is about is local control. It is about taking power from Washington and giving it back to local school boards to decide what is the best way to educate our children. It is about parental choice and parental consent, that no child should be in a program that their parents do not approve of just because somebody else says it is best for them. It is about making sure that there are no dead ends for our children who do not arrive at school able to speak English. There is no separate but equal, there are no side tracks, and there is no second class. That is what this bill is about, and that is why I am supporting it.

Mrs. WILSON

Mrs. WILSON. Mr. Chairman, I think that this amendment is an example of how bad cases can make bad law. I look forward to working with my colleague from Oklahoma on legislation that will comprehensively address the problems of child abuse and the child welfare system in this country, but I think this points out why we should not deal with these kinds of complex issues in an appropriations bill. I say that having some experience with this issue, having until recently been the Cabinet Secretary for Child Welfare in the State of New Mexico. We are not talking here about the children for whom there is a long line of parents waiting for a healthy baby but of the thousands of children who languish in foster care who with good grace often fall in love with their foster parents. It is those situations, and the opportunity to have a forever set of parents who may not be married to one another, that is something that we should not prohibit in statute. We must look on a case-by-case basis at the best interests of each and every child, even if in a perfect world we cannot achieve perfection in our view of it for all children. And so let us leave this to the case-by-case basis and not close off an alternative that is now available to judges in the District of Columbia. That is the current law, and I believe it should remain so until we very carefully look at our alternatives.

Ms. WILSON

Ms. WILSON. Mr. Chairman, for those of us who find ourselves supporting a gradual change, this is a difficult vote and a difficult amendment. I am rising today in opposition to this amendment for a variety of reasons but, in particular, I would have supported the efforts of the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Goodling) several years ago to gradually privatize the National Endowment for the Arts, and I believe as a politician who also loves the arts, that politics and art rarely mix. And if there is one thing that this debate has shown us today, it is that. I think that the National Endowment of the Arts should move towards being a private national endowment over time. Unfortunately, having talked to the National Endowment of the Arts this morning, I found that while they were given authorization to begin development programs to raise independent funds a year ago, in that year they have only raised $50,000. That is not a real effort, in my view, towards moving toward a truly independent national endowment, and my vote today should be seen by supporters of the arts and seen by the National Endowment of the Arts as a clear encouragement to them to move towards privatization.

Ms. WILSON

Ms. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, it is a real pleasure to rise in support of this bill to rename the auditorium at the Technology Transfer Center of the Sandia National Laboratories the Steve Schiff Auditorium. The first time I met Steve Schiff was about 3 weeks after I moved to New Mexico. We had a little reception at our home for our wedding, and my husband invited a friend of his from the Air National Guard named Steve Schiff. He was humble, he was focused on public service, he was a good and a great man, and it is often harder to be a good man than to be a great man. In 1994, when he was up for reelection, he asked me to chair, or co- chair, his finance committee, and I quickly understood that his asking me to chair his finance committee had less to do with his needing my help than my needing his and his belief in stewardship of young people in this country and in the Republican Party in New Mexico. At that time, I went into his campaign headquarters and was signing hundreds of letters to people who might donate to his campaign; and he walked in and he said, ``Well, Heather, you know, you don't need to sign all those letters yourself. If you hadn't noticed, there are a lot of Steves around here.'' Well, the truth is that we all know that there are not many Steves around here. He was a unique and valued individual, an honored Member, former Member, of this body, and I know all of us miss him dearly. He was known for his humility and also for his humor. He told many, many stories about service in the public interest; and he gave a good name to being a public servant. It is more difficult to be good than to be great, and Steve Schiff was an example to us all. I would urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Ms. WILSON

Ms. WILSON. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank all of you so much for your help, your support, your words of wisdom, and your words of kindness throughout the special election. Without your support, I would not be here today, and without the support of the people of the First District. It is now time to roll up my sleeves, to take up the work which Steve Schiff left off too soon, and to represent the people of the First District with honor, with integrity, and with every ounce of courage and energy that I can summon. I look forward to that challenge, and I look forward to serving with each of you. I wanted to thank my family, who is here with me, for their love and their support. I wanted to thank all of you again. I look forward to serving with you.