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September 20, 2006, 4:51 am
By
N.J. GOP Rep. Chris Smith
This past Sunday, I spoke before tens of thousands who gathered in New York City’s Central Park, united in their compassion and concern, to call for an immediate end to the genocide in Darfur. One of the reoccurring themes of the rally, and one that was a focus of my speech, was that the need for a presidential special envoy to Sudan to help push the peace process forward in Darfur.
That request became a reality yesterday, when President Bush named former United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Andrew Natsios as Presidential Special Envoy to Sudan during his speech before the United Nations General Assembly. This welcome news brings additional focus, urgency, energy, and gravitas to U.S. efforts to help the people of Darfur and bring lasting peace to all of Sudan.
However, there are many challenges that lay ahead for the new envoy, including, and most imminent, the need to allow UN peacekeepers on the ground in Sudan to protect the people of Darfur. This afternoon I will convene a hearing to explore this and other challenges that the new envoy will face in this position.
Mr. Natsios has a full plate from the moment he starts this job. Not only is the crisis in Darfur is getting worse by the hour, but north-south tensions are rising, putting the peace agreement that ended the 22-year civil war in jeopardy. At today’s hearing, we will examine the ways that we can effectuate positive change and help settle the protracted disputes that have kept lasting peace from taking hold in the war-torn nation of Sudan.
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September 19, 2006, 1:18 pm
By
Senate GOP Leader Bill Frist
Our vulnerable borders have threatened our security for too long and the Republican Congress won’t kick the can down the road any longer. To address this pressing national security priority, I filed cloture on the motion to proceed to the Secure Fence Act of 2006.
The overwhelming majority of people who violate our borders do so in search of jobs, but not all. Some come across to deal drugs and commit crimes. Intelligence reports show that even al Qaeda considers our borders a key vulnerability. Without effective border surveillance, we can’t identify those looking for honest work from those bent on mayhem. This is not a Republican or Democrat issue, this bill is what is best for the American people.
Under the secure fence bill we will erect 700 miles of two-layered reinforced fencing along the southwest border with prioritized placement at critical, highly populated areas. Furthermore, the measure mandates that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) achieve and maintain operational control over the entire border through a “virtual fence
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September 19, 2006, 12:31 pm
By
Calif. Dem. Rep. Henry Waxman
Today, I wrote to Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez about some internal emails I have obtained. The emails are interesting because they show that a press officer working for Secretary Gutierrez appeared to be making decisions about what scientific views were appropriate to share with the public and what scientific views weren't.
The email exchange took place just after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita when there was great public interest in the connections between global warming and hurricanes. The emails suggest that Commerce press secretary Chuck Fuqua, who also happened to be the Director of Media Operations of the 2004 Republican National Convention, ensured that only those scientists that were skeptical of the connection would be provided to the media. Salon.com has obtained additional emails that suggest the Executive Office of the President was involved in approving and disapproving media requests for government scientists.
I can't help but connect this to testimony that the Government Reform Committee received in July that NOAA's official position on hurricanes and global warming is not consistent with the published, peer-reviewed science which suggests that as the planet warms hurricanes will become more dangerous. Dr. Judith Curry, of the Georgia Institute of Technology, testified as follows:
Read more...
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September 19, 2006, 9:01 am
By
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee
Democrats have the momentum heading into the final seven weeks of this campaign. With 49 days to go, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced that we are adding eight races to our Red to Blue program and 15 campaigns to our Emerging Candidates list. These 23 join the 34 Red to Blue candidates who are already solidifying their campaigns through the Red to Blue program. This is the third wave of the very successful Red to Blue program that has already raised nearly $8.2 million for Democratic candidates this year. In 2004, Red to Blue raised $7.5 million and averaged more than $250,000 in contributions per campaign. The Emerging Candidates list is made up of campaigns in traditionally non-competitive districts, and through the strength of their campaigns, have put themselves in a position to win in November.
Both Red to Blue and Emerging Candidates will steer much-needed resources to some of the best campaigns in the country. These campaigns made these lists by meeting several hard-to-achieve goals – including fundraising, organization, message and strategy – and being a part of these programs will give them the necessary edge they need to stay competitive as November draws ever closer.
Red to Blue and Emerging candidates all represent the new direction that American voters are searching for and all have pledged to put the priorities of middle class families first when they get to Washington.
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September 19, 2006, 8:24 am
By
AARP CEO Bill Novelli
Whether you have seen the full-page ads when you opened your newspaper, or a billboard truck winding through the streets of Washington, AARP speaks loud and clear when we say “DON’T VOTE
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September 18, 2006, 10:02 am
By
Mass. Dem. Sen. John Kerry
Tomorrow is the five year anniversary of our military intervention in Afghanistan. That was the right war in the right place at the right time.
It's the place where we should’ve captured or killed Osama bin Laden.
Now President Bush says it's an urban myth that his Administration has lost focus on Osama bin Laden, but the real myth is that Iraq, not Afghanistan, is the center of the War on Terror.
President Bush lost focus on Osama bin Laden at Tora Bora when he held back our military and outsourced the job of killing this barbarian to Afghan warlords.
Where are we today? At a place where America urgently needs a new security strategy to make our country more secure.
There are five principal priorities that demand immediate action: (1) redeploy from Iraq, (2) re-commit to Afghanistan, (3) reduce our dependence on foreign oil, (4) reinforce our homeland defense, and (5) restore America’s moral leadership in the world. These “5 R’s
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September 18, 2006, 8:56 am
By
Colo. Dem. Rep. Diana DeGette
The following is a joint entry from Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Janice Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Diana DeGette (D-Colo.), sponsors of H.R. 1507, the Safe Food Act:
Last week we were all shocked to learn of the multi-state E. Coli outbreak from bagged spinach that claimed the life of one person and put so many in the hospital. This horrible outbreak reinforces the need for a strong, consolidated food safety inspection system.
That is why we are calling on Chairman Joe Barton (R-Texas) to hold a hearing on our "Safe Food Act" legislation. This legislation would consolidate all food safety agencies and establish the Food Safety Administration, responsible for the creation, administration and enforcement of our food safety laws. Under current law, food safety monitoring, inspection and labeling functions are spread across 12 agencies in the federal government. The involvement of so many agencies can result in duplication of responsibilities, service gaps and inconsistencies and confusion about which agency oversees different types of food.
E. coli is most often associated with contaminated meat, but this outbreak demonstrates the need to be alert on all fronts. That is why the Energy and Commerce committee should act on the Safe Food Act immediately.
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September 18, 2006, 8:23 am
By
Fla. GOP Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart
The law and policy of the United States with regard to Cuba make clear that there will be no normalization of relations, or weakening of any sanctions on the Cuban regime, until all political prisoners are liberated, all political parties are legalized, and a democratic transition leading to free and fair elections is clearly underway in Cuba.
President Bush has reiterated our policy. Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Shannon recently restated our policy, as has Secretary Gutierrez in the past. The inclusion of a new suggestion such as the one for a "referendum" associated with the Organization of American States (OAS) made Friday by Secretary Gutierrez, was unfortunate and inappropriate. While we all celebrate the referendum that took place in Chile in 1988, it is well known, for example, that Hugo Chavez, who has embarked upon on a campaign to destroy all democratic institutions in Venezuela, carried out a fraudulent referendum in August 2004 that was "validated" by the OAS. The statement by Secretary Gutierrez last week served to diminish the necessary clarity with which U.S. policy toward Cuba needs to be conveyed.
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September 17, 2006, 1:52 pm
By
Texas GOP Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison
Congress has an opportunity to pass a comprehensive and viable immigration reform plan. I have strongly urged my colleagues to address this issue. Failure to do so will be an abrogation of our responsibility to our constituents and to our nation.
I commend my colleagues who, earlier this year, took the lead in this important debate. I believe every one of us tried in good faith to craft a bill to secure our borders and address the need for a future guest worker program that could meet our economic requirements, but we were never able to resolve significant differences.
In an effort to create a proposal that bridges those policy disagreements, I worked with Congressman Mike Pence of Indiana to incorporate the House priorities as well as elements of the diverse Senate views in a new approach. We have described our initiative as a starting point for determined deliberations that we believe would result in agreement between both Houses on comprehensive reform.
Our proposal first secures the borders of our nation by providing an immediate infusion of financing, technology, and personnel. When the president certifies to the Congress that we have regained control of the borders, our temporary, guest worker program will begin.
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September 16, 2006, 7:49 am
By
Calif. GOP Rep. Brian Bilbray
The House of Representatives passed border security legislation Thursday introduced by Homeland Security Committee Chairman Peter King (R-N.Y.). H.R. 6061, the Secure Fence Act, moves the nation closer towards achieving a secure border.
There is a growing consensus in America that we need to secure our borders and eliminate illegal immigration incentives. This legislation is a first step in that process but in order to effectively address illegal immigration, Congress needs to adopt much-needed interior enforcement measures, reject any amnesty proposals, and crack-down on employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants.
The Secure Fence Act strengthens operational control of our southern border and ports utilizing additional physical barriers, fencing and increased use of state-of-the-art technology. It authorizes the construction of a 700 mile, two-layered fence along the southwest border with prioritized placement at critical, highly populated areas. It also mandates the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to achieve and maintain operational control over the entire border by utilizing cameras, ground sensors, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and integrated surveillance technology. A key provision in the bill requires the DHS to provide all necessary authority to border personnel to disable fleeing vehicles, similar to the authority held by the United States Coast Guard for maritime vessels.
I co-sponsored the Secure Fence Act because our borders represent a major vulnerability and we need to immediately address it. This is just the first step in a series of policies Congress needs to adopt in order to achieve a secure border. Next week, the House of Representatives will take up legislation that would provide funding for 1,200 new border patrol agents, increase the number of federal prosecutors for alien smuggling cases, reaffirm authority for state and local law enforcement to enforce immigration laws and to criminalize construction and financing of border tunnels.
The fact remains that the people in my district expect us to deal with illegal immigration head on and I will continue to fight for interior enforcement, against amnesty and for eliminating illegal immigration incentives.
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