Mimi Walters

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Mr. Speaker, today I wish to recognize Tarbut V'Torah Community Day School (TVT) for recently having been ranked the number one private school for academics in Orange County, California from niche.com. TVT was also recognized as being the number one Jewish school for academics in the nation by Niche. As a result of their outstanding accomplishments, TVT was recently presented with a certificate of recognition from the County of Orange for achieving these excellent honors. Today, I applaud TVT for their tremendous academic accomplishments. TVT, a Jewish day school with over 500 students, is a nurturing, caring community that embraces pluralism, cultivates Jewish identity and inspires students to lead meaningful Jewish lives. The school is known for its individualized college preparatory environment, which challenges students to think critically, work collaboratively, and explore creatively in order to realize their fullest potential. TVT also strives to encourage students to be inquisitive learners, compassionate citizens and courageous leaders in their community and in the world. The success of TVT students is demonstrated through their exceptional standardized test scores and high acceptance rates into our nation's top universities. For example, the acceptance rate of TVT students to Stanford University is 12.1 percent, in comparison with the 5.1 percent national average. The acceptance ratios for other top universities are as follows: UC Berkeley, 41.7 percent vs. 17 percent; USC, 53 vs. 17.8 percent, and UCLA, 31 vs. 18.2 percent. Furthermore, TVT SAT scores surpassed the national average by more than 400 points, and TVT ACT scores outranked the national average 29 to 21. Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the students, faculty, and those who govern the school, for their accomplishments and academic success within the community. It is an honor to represent such an accomplished school in the United States Congress, and I wish them the best in their future endeavors.

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Madam Speaker, it was 2008 when TransCanada first submitted an application to construct the Keystone XL pipeline. Six years later, the Keystone pipeline is still awaiting approval. What does construction of the Keystone pipeline mean for our Nation? Over 40,000 jobs, energy security, and increased economic growth. Furthermore, the State Department found that construction of the Keystone pipeline would pose little environmental risk. In fact, there would be greater environmental and safety risks from not building the pipeline. Despite the obvious benefits and bipartisan support, the President has continued to block Keystone's approval. Now he threatens to veto the bill, effectively killing the entire Keystone program. After 6-plus years, the President has run out of excuses. It is clear that the construction of the Keystone pipeline is in our Nation's best interests, and we cannot afford to delay any longer.

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Mr. Speaker, over 4 years ago, ObamaCare was signed into law and sold to the American people on numerous false promises. Americans were promised that premiums for a typical family would go down. The President told Americans, if you like your health care plan, you can keep it, and, if you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor. However, that was not true, and now many Americans are grappling with a very different reality. As a result of ObamaCare, millions of Americans have seen their health care plans canceled, families are finding that they may not get to keep the doctor that they like, and premiums in the individual market are increasing by 41 percent in the average State. Mr. Speaker, the American people deserve better. Instead of putting the Federal Government in the driver's seat of our Nation's health care decisions, we need solutions that will protect the doctor-patient relationship, foster economic growth, and empower patients by giving them the choice and control. Today, I am pleased to stand in support of H.R. 596, legislation that would not only repeal ObamaCare, but would instruct the House to come forward with a patient-centered, free market alternative.

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Mr. Speaker, although slavery was abolished 150 years ago, today, modern slavery still exists in the form of human trafficking. Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to control other people for the purpose of forced labor or sexual exploitation. According to the FBI, sex trafficking is the fastest- growing business of organized crime in the world. Approximately 20.9 million victims of human trafficking exist in our world today, and hundreds of thousands of those victims are here in the United States. California is not excluded from this criminal activity. In fact, within my congressional district in Orange County, there have been over 350 cases of human trafficking since 2004. Victims are lured and manipulated by false promises of lucrative jobs, a loving relationship, or new opportunities and are usually between the ages of 12 to 14 when they first become victims of sex trafficking. Mr. Speaker, if there is one thing we can all agree on, it is this: we must put an end to human trafficking and bring those responsible to justice. Through bipartisan efforts, we can work to stop human trafficking both in our communities at home and abroad.

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Mr. Speaker, on roll call no. 39, I was unavoidably detained during the vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yes.''

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Madam Speaker, I rise today on the 42nd anniversary of the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade in support of H.R. 7, the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act. This vital bill establishes that no taxpayer funds be used for abortion, including plans that cover abortion under the President's health care law. These restrictions will save lives. According to the research by the Guttmacher Institute, policies that cut taxpayer funds towards abortion will actually prevent 25 percent or more of the abortions that would otherwise take place. Furthermore, recent polling has demonstrated that the American public is widely opposed to taxpayer funds for abortion. According to a Marist poll released in January of this year, 68 percent of the respondents opposed taxpayer funds for abortion. A CNN poll from last year shows that 56 percent of respondents oppose public funding for abortion. As a mother of four, I know personally how precious the gift of human life is and how important it is to honor that gift. As legislators, it is both our job and responsibility to protect the innocent lives of the unborn and to serve as a voice for those who do not yet have one. Today, the U.S. House has a historic opportunity to put an end to the use of taxpayer funding for abortion. In drafting the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, Thomas Jefferson so wisely penned: ``To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation of opinions in which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical.'' Madam Speaker, I emphatically agree.

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California

Mrs. MIMI WALTERS of California. Amendment XIX: ``The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. ``Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.''