a lot of people want to get out of coup cuba. all people want to get out of their political prisons. mr. wolf and i are asking to let us in and i renew that request of the cuban government as well as again to ask that this administration help to make that happen. finally, my friends will know, because i work so closely with mr. diaz-balart, mario wasn't here yet, on the issue of linking a series of human rights with the lifting of a travel ban. most important of which was the full release of the political prisoners. that legislation passed here. it didn't pass in the senate, unfortunately. and i will offer that again if given the opportunity although the rules will probably for bid it. but that's what we need to do -- forbid it. but that's what we need to do. you need to say to a dictatorship, if you want a benefit, you have to cease prosecuting your own people and, you know, there's a great group, we all know it, brothers to the rescue. the diaz-balart brothers are the brothers to the rescue here. mr. diaz-balart: you're very ki

commander, received on behalf of the people of cuba and what,, our love and -- of cuba and guantanamo, our love and admiration, the youth that see you as a guide, that you are still never abandoning the ideas of our leader after celebrating the 100th anniversary. all of you, and your colleagues, continue to live in the hearts of the cuban people, the people remember and read their tribute to you, and we still maintain a live our expressions defending our principles, your words are manifest in our daily lives among our children and adults, in our urban centers among our people. all of these ideas came from the deepest sense of your heart, and they continue to be disseminated through your examples of dignity, brotherhood. we wish you utmost success and congratulations, working for our country. we know that your colleagues in the barracks, these ideals continue to remain current in your book on strategic victory, recalling the victories in the sierra maestra. it is a continuous trouble recognizing the commanders, the captains, the lieutenants, those who have articulated their ideals, pri

. >> relative to cuba, as i understand it, we have almost no military contact with cuba. the only ongoing contact is low- level monthly fence talks. there is also a case by case corp. in the anti-drug efforts, particularly at sea. there is notice if there are fast those going through cuban waters. i am wondering, assuming that there is no prohibition and we do not think there is a prohibition of that type of contact, is there any value and increased u.s. military contact with the to the military? >> there is a tactical level interaction. the coast guard has a liaison in havana. our of understanding, and i will go back and check this, is that relations are prohibited until the government of cuba elected democratically elected official and does not include either fidel castro or his brother as part of that government. that is our understanding from an engagement with military. we look to engage with every military organization within the region. we continually do that with all of our partners. if legislation is presented, we would welcome that opportunity. >> of and double

there are thousands of political prisoners in cuba. as amnesty international admit nd one of its published reports, the dictatorships uses sents for so-called crimes for contempt against authority and dangerousness, criminal charges to deny, hide the political status of prisoners of conscience. fact, various pro-democracy leaders and political prisoners are on hunger strikes as we speak in cuba. most well known is the hunger strike being carried by the peaceful pro-democracy leader, a psychologist and journalists who demands the release of the most grateful ill prisoners to their homes. but there are others engaged in hunger strikes and their efforts need to be know as well. a former political prisoner is on a hunger strike and the following prisoners are engaged in hunger strikes at this moment , morales, avila and soeno. . fact, there are many prisoners that are grateful ill that are not on a list. [speaking spanish] >> this is a great leadeand one of my heroes. before being released from prison, he spent 17 years as a political pris

envy of the gangsters of cuba. today my thoughts and prayers of limitless solidarity are with the ladies in white. >> mr. davis of illinois. the speaker pro tempore: mr. davis of illinois. mr. moran from kansas. ms. kaptur of ohio. mr. burton of indiana. mr. defazio of oregon. mr. forbes from virginia. ms. ros-lehtinen of florida. mr. bilbray of california. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, the gentleman from california, mr. royce is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, as we watch the senate move on legislation yet again toward a cloture vote on senator dodd's legislation, i think it's worth noting some of the concerns that many of us have, and that many economists have, with the dodd-frank approach on the legislation. i begin with focusing on a past occurrence, the rescue of investment bank bear stearns in the spring of 2008. the federal government has committed trillions of taxpayer dollars to institutions like fa

you have to talk about cuba. what do we do with cuba? are you in favor of easing restrictions to cuba? didn't you just take your yacht down to cuba recently? >> the yacht went to cuba. >> but you did not? >> the problem we have with cuba is, we cannot send money to cuba. the embargo has to be stopped. we cannot have the embargo with cuba going on. but i am in favor of people traveling to see their families. if for some reason i was told i cannot go visit my grandparents, i would be pretty upset. i support the president's program. it is ok to send to family members, but i am not in favor of doing business with cuba until there is freedom. >> so you want to continue the embargo? >> absolutely. >> let me say this. i do not know if i need to slide my chair over because a bolt of lightning may come over and hit jeff. you are saying that you were not on your yacht when you went to cuba when i witnesses said that they saw you -- >were you on your yacht? >> not the last time. i was not on my yacht at that time. >> you were not on the yacht, but

from cuba? guest: we came out of cuba in 1960 and went to miami for a little while, two years, where we stayed in a hotel. my father thought it was going to be a vacation because this man cannot stay. then we moved to new york and became u.s. citizens. then he got a job in mexico with heinz company, food company. that is how we ended up in mexico. i went to junior high school and high school in mexico. but the interesting thing is, because i was naturalized, when my son was born -- it just highlights the plight of an immigrant and refugee. when my son was born i needed to be in in the u.s. 10 years after the date of my 16th birthday. so i took his application to the desk at the embassy and said i want my son to be a u.s. citizen. i only had eight years. so i walked out without a pass support. it took me 14 years to eventually make my son a u.s. citizen. because of the little quirk in the law. my other daughter was born in the u.s., then my other daughter, we went back to mexico, she was born in

under the -- bela ruse and cuba. under the guidance of the ambassador, chief coordinator of lithuania's presidency of the community of democracies, the community created a parliamentary forum in march of this year. i've been impressed by the ambassador's exceptional leadership and commitment to strengthening the role of the community of democracies in fulfilling its mission of promoting democratic institutions and civil societies. in march of this year i was privileged to attend the convening meeting of the parliamentary forum of the community of democracies in lithuania. at the first meeting of the parliamentary forum, the chairman of the foreign affairs committee of the parliament of lithuania was elected as the first president of the parliamentary forum of the community of democracies. he is a charismatic and brilliant leader who will doubtless be an effective president of the parliamentary forum throughout his term. also at the parliamentary forum, i had the great honor of being elected one of the seven vice pres

very left or very rights in cuba. the organization of american states needs to be involved. host: what about other political parties in cuba that might fill the void? guest: there's a very active human rights movement in cuba. they have suffered abuse and while there are no parties, there are civilian groups that would step forward, intellectuals, not on like hungary and the 1950's. -- in the 1950's. host: the town of sugar growth in virginia is next. caller: i'm calling about the drug war. from what i understand, the united states is using about 80% of the drug enforcement agency's funding every year and putting it toward marijuana control. given that about 20% of everybody in prison is there because of a non-violent drug offense, do you think that the failure of the drug war is a direct result of these practices? guest: i did not know that 80% of our money was going to fight marijuana. if that is true, that is the wrong policy. that is complicated for any policy maker. it means we need a discussion of our present po

military commission at guantanamo bay, cuba. when i was at guantanamo bay, cuba, i visited the men and women who are serving in uniform for guarding the prisoners at that facility in a facility that has cost taxpayers' dollars in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. we have a state of the art courtroom there to accommodate. i urge my members to support this bill, which is commonsense resolution to a controversial issue this year. try the detainees in cuba in a military court martial. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. are there further one-minute requests? the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leaves of absence requested for ms. jackson lee of texas for today and wednesday, march 3, mr. rodriguez of texas for today, mr. jackson of illinois for today, mr. again green of texas for today and mr. reyes of texas for today. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. the requests are granted. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas ris

diaz-balart: the release of all political prisoners is free elections for cuba. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from hawaii rise? without objection. is recognized. ms. hirono: mr. speaker, by continuing to deny the extension of unemployment benefits, republicans have perpetuating their heartlessness on the backs of the working people of this country. last week in hilo i met a group of contractors who shared with me not only their struggles in today's difficult economy, but that of people they know who have lost their jobs. these hardworking people can't find jobs, not for lack of effort, but for lack of jobs. the fourth of july recess the house passed a bill that would extend unemployment benefits through the end of november. this extension would save 6,000 residents in hawaii from losing their benefits. every month that congress fails to act, another 2,150 people in hawaii will lose their beb fits -- benefits. this amounts to an average of $415 a week. which helps families buy food and keep a roof o

., have been ball works in the fight for cuba's freedom. madam speaker, just this last july, when i visited spain to meet with recently arrived former cuban political prisoners , leo, leo jr. and rafa helped me to lend a hand to our heroes. the just released from the gulag former political prisoners. and that's typical of their generosity and their patriotism. i send my deepest condolences to dagmar, leo jr., rafa and the entire wonderful family of leo cifuentes. i will never forget him. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields bag. mr. defazio of oregon. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from california rise? ms. woolsey: i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. ms. woolsey: thank you, madam speaker. madam speaker, the trip taken by the u.s. delegation to the nato summit in lisbon was an expensive one indeed. the decision made there to extend our military occupation of afghanistan into 2014 and possibly beyond will ect untold, unsustainable, unacceptable costs. a war

we will discuss these and other recent assaults by the dictatorship in cuba. i welcome and urge you to join us for this important briefing tomorrow at noon in room 2253 rayburn. see you there. thank you, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. conaway: permission to address the house for one minute and revise and stepped my remarks. i to a constituent from my district. just over three years in the air force, he has been integral to the success. he has flown 364 hours, resulting in 92 operators and they have joined overseas contingency operations and created a community of practice providing real-time and aircraft data. he has assisted in the creation of a new draft of air force techniques and procedures for the m que-9. he is active in charities. these accomplishments earned him the airmen of the year for 2009 and placed as one of the air force's 2010 team of the year members. i thank him for his service to his country and look forward to following his future success. i wish him all the happiness and suc

we've got -- gosh, we gave cuba $45 million. wasn't that special? they voted against us 90% of the time. republic of the congo, we gave them $104 million they voted against us most of the time. heck, egypt, we gave them this pocket of money, at one point $1.7 billion, as i understand more than that. they voted against us 81.8% of the time. ethiopia voted against us 83.3% of the time. we rewarded their opposition to the things that we hold dear by giving them $455 million. india, $100 million, they voted against us about 9% of the time. -- about 89% of the time. indonesia, the president just visited, seems like he got a pretty good reception but when it came to his positions, they voted against him about 80% of the time in the u.n. but we did reward them with about $190 million. now people are out of work, they're struggling, they're trying to make ends meet as best they can and yet we're just giving money away hand over fist like we were just the richest folks in the history of man kind, that we got money to burn. we're just throwing it away. as i s

the loss of mexico and cuba ll be resolved under -- the lawsuits of mexico and cuba will be resolved law is goingtional have some impact on bp, but r weahere t n oil is impacted in any way. exxon and bp have a special retionship with all t govements of the world they provide oil and oil runs the world. mentioned caller canada. "the globe and mail," which itself canada's nacional as a story on offshore drilling. drilling will continue off record thatt disaster grows, -- at record depths. as the disaster grows, canada's oil drilling faces scrutiny. independent line. good morning, caller are you there? caller: yes, i am. gentlemanen this fine roof of to figure out proof ofll knew -- we all knew would be the of the major oil spill. the damage caused by it will be redressed. live with it forever. two, there will be no justice this fascist ours.ment of salvation right now is spill. the this still could be stopped and it could be stopped by our military. is a nine-inch diameter hol in it solid rocket that hole included -- nine-inch- diameter hole in solid bed rock. that hole to bemploded an

the people of poland now offer their solidarity with those who seek freedom in my native homeland of cuba. having suffered in the not-too-distant past under the crushing yolk of the -- yoke of the soviet regume, many in poland know all too well the struggles the cuban people face each and every day under the cuban dictatorship. poland's support for human rights and democracy in cuba illustrates it has not forgotten its past sufferings more the strength that it received from the solidarity of others. and how proud we are today that poland has become an important member of both the north atlantic alliance and the european union and that it has become a strong voice for those countries in the eastern europe that are working to ensure that they never again fall victim to the domination by a more powerful neighboring states. president kaczynski was in fact an important leader in an effort to ensure that the hard-won liberty and democracy today enjoyed by poland and other nations of eastern europe is not bartered away. he recognized the temptation faced by other european states which eagerly ex

proud of having been born in cuba, and never losing his yearning for a free and democratic cuba, ace also proudly served our country in the military, serving in vietnam. in fact, he is the most highly decorated cuban american to have fought in vietnam. ace joined a postal service after his service in 1968 as a letter carrier. and i'm proud to say that he employed the same focus, the same determination, the same patriotism that marked his distinguished military career. as a result, he impressed his superiors and rose through the ranks. ace has held numerous man jeerial positions including -- managerial positions, including supervisor and hispanic program specialist. in this last position he has also been an invaluable liaison to the hispanic community. ace is regularly interviewed by news outlets and he helps promote postal service products and services to our diverse hispanic community nationwide. ace has appeared on national news programs that have aired in hispanic markets across the country. the united states postal service' executive committee has also -- service's executive comm

having fled cuba's communist regime, ricardo continued to fight for a free cuba in south florida. ricardo became a successful entrepreneur and started a chain of pharmacies in south florida. he generously gave of his time to serve his community and was a constant fix tour in the civic and cultural fabric of south florida. although he was deeply committed to the struggle for a free cuba, i know that the role he cherished the most was that of a devoted husband, along with a devoted father and grandfather. ricardo leaves behind his beloved wife and partner and his children, jorge, al nirvings a and ricky, as long with his grandchildren. ricardo, we will never forget you nor yourselfless legacy. rest in peace, my friend. madam speaker, i'm proud to praise the citizens crime watch of miami-dade county and its executive director, carmen caldwell, who has served our area in so many ways over the years. neighborhood volunteers are truly the backbone of our communities. volunteers have done so much to reduce crime and to help keep our south florida neighborhoods safe. citizens crime watch

of cuba potentially, along with brazil, is the world's largest sugar producer. cuban sugar is not coming into the united states. rather, the united states subsidizes high-priced louisiana sugar cane which is very costly compared to other places. there are just too many other locations where we need to have a viable crop. host: the millions of dollars that are pouring in, is there a concern that it is too much, too soon? . . guest: the obama administration, by making the decision to take such a leadership role on giving aid could be setting itself up for another katrina-type situation. and on the reputations have been lost on these relief programs. Ñithere is usually much less thn meets the eye. host: thank you for your time this morning, larry burns -- birns. >> we are expecting everything to get under way. we will bring alive to you here on c-span. meanwhile, an update from the military side of the recovery and relief efforts in haiti. the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff says he expects 9000 to 10,000 troops will be in haiti offshore monday to hope is to

cuba is the only communist country in our hemisphere without human rights. they are limited in jobs, education, what appliances they can buy and where they can live by the castro government. iran is a thee oklahomacy which continues -- to a t -- is a thoecracy. they threaten israel, europe, and the united states. the centers of government are routine -- dissenters of government are routinely killed, minorities jailed, and people are afraid to speak out. iran threatens any progress to make iran or iraq a stable society. sudan is a company that's been -- is a country that's been in a civil war between the south and north. the darfur region has had a humanitarian disaster killing millions, placing muslims against muslims as the world stood helpless. sue sedan a sponsor of terrorism against its own people. finally, syria, a country which continues to threaten our strongest and most reliable al-- ally in the middle east, israel. syria has fueled war in lebanon; direct implication in the assassination of the lebanese prime minister, and they continue to support ha

>> well, it is time for people of cuba to stop paying for the castro regime. i do not see, frankly, that raul castro is going to be the answer to liberalization in cuba. i would hope that when fidel castro dies, eventually, that there will be some international support for the beginning of a process with the cuban people to express themselves in a democratic fashion. it was always quite extraordinary to me, if you go to the organization of american states meetings and the only country that could not take its seat there was cuba because it did not have been elected president -- even hugo chavez was an elected president. it should not be that in the western hemisphere in the 21st century there is a place where people have no say in who is going to govern. and so i know it will take time, and i am not saying that the day after castro dies there has to be an election, but the international community ought to take an interest in advocating for democratic elections in cuba so that the cubans can choose their own leadership. it is high time that that happen. >> anoth

american consumption rate incomes are about seven times higher than in cuba. the cuban government, as a matter policy, has insured that infant mortality in cuba is lower than that of the united states, making clear that much of our american consumption does not contribute to any reasonable definition of standard of living, such as whether your child lives or dies. the other big -- the other thing new under the sun for americans is that we have to realize that insulation of the elite, political or economic from the consequences of their actions in the past has been the cause of the collapse of decided. it is the recipe of desire if the league do not suffer from the consequences of their decision. contrast hurricane katrina with the north sea plots. floods. americans in new orleans allowed the disaster of katrina to happen. we and the united states live in a gated communities within our country. we have gated communities and we are rich people will fall from the outside world. we americans are living as of the rest of the world was a gated community separated by

as a matter of policy has insured that infant mortality in cuba is lower than that in the united states, making clear that much of our american consumption does not contribute to any reasonable definition of standard of living, such as whether a child lives or dies. the other big new thing under the sun for us is that we have to realize that installation of the elite political from -- it is a recipe for disaster. contrast hurricane katrina with the netherlands in 1953. the dutch learned that if there is a flaw -- americans in new orleans allowed the disaster of katrina to happen. we live in a gated communities within our country. literally, rich people live a walled off from the outside world. we are living as if the rest of the world were a gated community, but the gates and no longer keep out immigrants are terrorists. we need a wall, but the wall we need is all within ourselves, are drawing up a fence to figure out what traditional american values are and which ones have to change. thank you. [applause] >> in addition to a provocative and i opening keynote, let me commend you for sti

keeping terrorists locked up in cuba rather than transferring them to the u.s. or other countries is the only way to protect americans. if they go to other countries, they can be released. if they go to the u.s., they can get constitutional rights which they certainly don't deserve. the administration should treat terrorists like terrorists and leave them in cuba. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from california rise? >> madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. dreier: madam speaker, as we all know, a great deal of excitement around the capitol tomorrow evening, the president of the united states will be delivering his first state of the union message. early indications are that he will be talking about the issue that democrats and republicans alike and people around this country are talking about and that is job creation. we got unemployment rate in excess of 10%, much higher in my s

states or two was or is held after january 20, 2009 at the united states naval station guantanamo bay, cuba, by the department of defense. in section 1037 a 1 c strike within the exclusive investigative jurisdiction of the inspector general of the department of defense and insert in the united states. section 1037, strike subsection b, strike paragraph two. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. members and staff will take their seats. the gentleman from virginia. mr. forbes: mr. speaker, sometimes things are not as complex as we try to make them here in washington. in fact, our best decisions come down to simple truths and one of those truths is that americans are safer when our government fights to keep terrorists off u.s. soil ran bringing them here. in january of 2009, 17 months ago, the worst terrorist who had ever attacked in the united states was being held in guantanamo. the most experienced and best prosecutor the u.s. had against terrorists and a full prosecution team had been prosecuting these terrorists for almost two years. they had handled 56 motions, countless h

and cuba that has doctors reinforced their doctor unit in haiti. israel, all the way, israel send first responders. iceland, argentina sends hospitals, field hospitals. i better not continue because i will -- i could not name them all. i think that's part of the silver lining i'm talking about. people haven't been talking about haiti. when they talk about haiti, it's only in negative terms. the most -- the poorest country in the western hemisphere or the most violent. well, the past four years, we have dealt with the violence and off the front pages with the violence. so there is no violence to report about haiti. we don't talk about the good things that are happening. and now, the worst happened and everybody is speaking about haiti. everybody's focused on haiti. everybody should have been focused on haiti a long time ago because haiti is the second independent country? the western hemisphere, second only to the united states. in 1784 there were two independent countries, united states first and haiti. haiti helped united states to be what it is.

sometimes we have not been able to find them, robert vesco in cuba, r example. as a general matter of american interest and as a diplomatic matter, if the conclusion of the department of justice is that in,n if he is apprehended an say, sweden or switzerland, that they would not extradite him because they would consider this "political" rather than pure law enrcement and european countries do not extradite people for political crimes. i do not have a view. i do not know what the answer to that is. but if i ran the department of justice and i thought there was a very good chance that even if he were apprehended abroad, what we would litigated over there and there is a very good chance that we would lose, i would way that very heavily. i do not think we want to be on the losing side of this case. host: boca raton, fla., john, democratic collar. welcome. caller: good morning, c-sp. i have listened to most of what you have been saying and i am pretty much in need -- in agreement, but i think you got off on the wrong tack initially when you started to describe the di

i wish him god speed and freedom and freedom for cuba. to the press i ask, how long do the heroes of cuba have to suffer before you acknowledge their existence? i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman has yielded back. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee rise? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, madam speaker. it's been interesting listening to the discussions this morning and this afternoon. mr. cohen: social security is 75 years old. it came about because of franklin roosevelt, a great democratic president and a democratic congress evolving out of a depression caused by republican herbert hoover and now 75 years later we look at a situation where another republican president, a hoover george bush caused another financial crisis and the republicans talk about privatizing social security. social security is money that needs to be there to preserve people's standards of living when republicans who left

most people think with the embargo sanctions against cuba, that's taken care of. not true. in 2008 alone, we gave $45 million in aid to cuba when they voted against us in the u.n. 87.8% of the time and in 2009, they got even higher up than 90% of the time. now, the republic of the congo in 2008 got $103 million or $104 million. for some reason that same year they only volted against us 7% of the time this year, i was under the impression they got more money but voted against us 71% of the time. 10 from 7% to 71.5%. you've got dominican republic, give them tens of millions of dollars, they voted against us 80.5% of the time in 2008, 60% of the time in 2009. egypt. they get a couple of billion dollars in essence but they voted against us in the u.n. 93.3% of the time in 2008 and in 2009, 81.8% of the time. got ethiopia. we gave $455 million in 2008, they voted against us to show their gratitude, 82.9% of the time in the u.n. in 2008. and 83.3% in 2009. again, you don't have to pay people to hate you, they'll do it for free. india, $99 million we gave away as federal assistanc

and in cuba and made their way to ecuador. i grew up in ecuador, always hearing about two lessons. never forget about what happened during the holocaust, and never again. it does not matter who you are. it never let it happen again. when i look at the world's worst problems, which is extermination of a group of people for who they are -- if you just called it 10 of your friends and asked them to call 1-800-genocide, our politicians could live up to these promises it. >> thank you. we appreciate you sharing your visions for change and why you do what you do. we are out of time unfortunately. please find your time to these innovators. tina will be joining us on stage for a quick announcement. please join me in thanking these young people. [applause] [captioning performed by national captioning institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2010] >> thank you. we are so glad to have had the opportunity. our founding sponsor, h-p, -- [applause] where are you? our guardian angels brings to the attention whenever we ask him to get involved in these conventions. he has been

instead, i ask that we honor the lives lost and redouble our efforts to turn their dream of a free cuba into a reality. thank you, mr. speaker. the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from the virgin islands rise? mrs. christensen: to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. christensen: thank you. we want to provide health care for every american. today i am extremely disappointed to show my consternation of the inexcusable treatment of the millions of americans living in the u.s. territories that we see in the president's proposal on health care reform. rather than working to provide quality, affordable care to all americans it would leave roughly 4.5 million, a disproportionate number who desperately want or need health care. leave us out in the cold without the same consumer benefits that other americans would receive without adequate medicaid funding and thus without the same comfort that comes with knowing that you and your family will have qu

but isn't -- some concerns -- [inaudible] >> cuba is a state sponsor of terrorism. >> you talked about human. no one -- about yemen and one reason you reopened it -- >> we have over 200 posts around the world were constant activity is available for people to travel to the united states of america. we welcome people to travel. it is in our interests. are there people in yemen we think still merit traveled to the united states? yes. >> given the situation there and the fact you had to close the embassy for two days, do you think it might be wise for well- considered to have little cause -- pause? >> your question suggests there is a fairly broad sweep. the short answer is for those who seek to travel to the united states from yemen or other countries, they may be subject to screening procedures of the airport. but does not suggest if you are idea many citizens -- of yemen citizenship you are denied. >> i understand. the sec if you are taking -- last week it was said the department are under notice should say whether the person has a visa. is that the only step taken thus far? as the crit

clinton administration undertake the extradition of cop killer jo an chesimar, a fugitive who fled to cuba after being convicted of murdering a state troop for the may 1973. he helped create the bipartisan northeast-midwest congressional coalition to maximize both regions' political clout in congress and played the leading role in promoting fair electrical power in new jersey. as my colleague, leonard lance, noted a moment ago he ran for the united states senate he lost. he ran for governor and lost that too. you would never know that from talking to bob. he was always upbeat and very positive. after leaving the hill, bob served as president of the health care initiative of new jersey a trade association for the research-based pharmaceutical and medical technology industry in the state of new jersey. mr. speaker, at the sacred heart in new jersey, governor chris isaak tee was joined in moving re-- chris isaak tee was joined -- chris christie was joined by other people, including the three godfathers to bob and fran's kids. govern chrisie spoke eloquently -- christie spoke eloquently and to

similarly, cuba provides safe haven to known extremists from around the world and continues to publicly defend violent organizations such as the farc national park colombia. the anti-democratic, anti-freedom agenda that these dictators have in common presents a threat to our u.s. national security interests. let us not be fooled. i thank you for the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman's time has expired. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, the gentleman from texas, mr. carter, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. mr. carter: thank you, madam speaker. as these young folks are setting this up, i want to talk about what we have been talking about close to a year, the united states is a nation of laws, not of men. it was designed by our founding fathers to be such. it is something we are proud to be a part of. something we are proud to step up to the plate and say we defend, because we believe that the rule of law is more fair in having individuals set their own rules than kings and dictators do. and so the rule of law is a say

the other thing is cuba. travel restrictions. like with burma caught even though everybody knows it is happening, you are pretending it is not. " no. i acknowledge that we have had internal meetings. we have reached some judgments but we are not prepared to talk about them publicly at this point. >> book tv continues and from time with a look a presidential cabinet members. one author recalls the life of the first female cabinet secretary. then, the core members of george bush lost work cabinet. next, henry kissinger and his views on foreign policy. finally, the life and career of the second defense secretary of the country. all this week on c-span2. >> throughout this week, washington journal has been taking a look at the impact of new financial regulations. you can see the interviews online on c-span's video library. tomorrow, provisions aimed at preventing a future financial crisis. that is it 9:15 a.m. eastern on c-span. tomorrow, admiral thad allen will give a review to the response on the gulf of mexico oil spill. they will

and evil empire that stamped out the face of freedom in half of europe, in europe, of colonies from cuba to vietnam to nicaraugua. this was no accidental dividing line. yet in place of the so-called chiefage, obama wants to bring a universal understanding and accommodation. and for that, the u.s. is to be the healer, the moral example, led by a man floating above it all, a fellow citizen of the world as obama called himself in berlin. it was in berlin in that remarkably bizarre setting that candidate obama offered the best insight as to how he sees the world when he asserted that the berlin wall had come down because, quote, there is no challenge too great for a world that stands as one. as one? if anything, the world stood as two. those for decade strove to bring the wall down and those for the same decades strove to maintain it, indeed the ones who put it up in the first place. the wall came down of a group of nations coming together, but because the united states, acting often alone but certainly with a few allies at a very high cost into two hot wars, korea and vietnam and one cold w

. -- from cuba, fidel castro, who contacted the press of the united states and said it was a giant step in the right direction and that ought to tell us something. the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house the following personal requests. the clerk: leaves of absence requested for mr. inslee of washington for today and mr. ruppersberger of maryland for today and the balance the week. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, the requests are granted. for what purpose does the gentlewoman from virginia rise? north carolina. sorry. ms. foxx: thank you, madam speaker. i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and any special orders heretofore entered into, the following members may be permitted to address the house, reth rhett their remarks and include therein extraneous material. mr. poe, today and april 14, 15, 16, and 1020 for five minutes each. mr. burton, today and april 14, 15, and 16 for five minutes each. mr. jones today and april 14, 15, 16, and 20 for five minutes each. mr. moran, today, april 14, and 15 and 20, five minutes each. mr. neug

it's what happens in the castro brother's cuba. and so it is no surprise that the cuban regime is a longstanding member of the rogue's gallery that is the human rights council, as are china, saudi arabia and nowshah daffy's libyan regime. -- and now qaddafi's libyan regime. none of these countries are condemned by the human rights council for their rampant human rights violations, nor is iran, nor is syria, but the council has devoted 80% of its resolutions and about half of its special sessions to bashing the democratic jewish state of israel. and it has passed numerous other anti-freedom measures. the administration's decision to join the council in the last year of the u.s. membership on that council have not changed these grim facts lamently. when the deck is stack against freedom and against democracy, the answer should be not to participate and instead vote no. the answer is for the u.s. and other responsible nations to walk out and demand better. today, however, in this legitimate and disting wished house, i will proud -- di

they have debates on whether the american health-care system should be like cuba or canada. they do talk about some things. let me give you a couple of examples of some of the panel's they have. the economy, kick them when they're down, how the right plans to come back and what we want to do about it, tackling the big money obstacles to a progressive agenda, and taking on the folks who stand in the leg. they are unfocused on monday. what is interesting is i went to one last year with some of our staff. in the exhibit hall most of them are young in spirit among the attendees, most of the students -- or not even students, most of the young people are wearing a coat and tie and sitting behind tables, which means there are there because they are paid to be there. it is their job. it is not the most organic conference you have seen. they adored using the word "-." "narrative." we have a great narrative and that is the tea party. people want to make a difference and they want something done in d.c. one of the speakers at the take back america conference said -- conservatism is "a

worst human rights abuser, a veto and it provides general assembly votes to the likes of burma, iran, cuba and north korea. oh, that's a good gang that we should depend upon. we should make sure we're part of an organization that gives them an equal vote in the general assembly to ours or gives china a veto over anything the u.n. can do. and speaking of china, here too is an explanation of why our country is on the verge of an economic calamity. we've permitted communist china a one-way free trade policy for the last 20 years and, yes, when it was democraticizing and opening a strategy must have been justified for a time. during the reagan years we saw a liberalizing china. reagan made it clear and i know this because i worked with him on his speeches when he went to china, he made it clear that as long as progress toward openness and freedom continued in china, our generous trade and commerce policies would continue to be in place. then came ten minute square. unfortunately reagan was not president when this historic atrocity was committed. tiananmen -- the tiananmen square massacre was n

as the astrossities he fought against remain the reality of cuba today, we must continue to fight for human rights and their release of all political prisoners. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from washington rise? >> unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. larsen: i rise to recognize the auto task force in combating vehicle theft in my district. recently the task force is recognized as the top auto theft recovery in my state. so while vehicle thefts across the state decreased by 20% in 2009 and they led the way with a 29% decline, the auto theft task force is an example of law enforcement agencies working together to make a real difference in our local community. the team is made up of detectives from monroe, mariesville and the sonoma sheriff's office and most recently the tribes. through this partnership, the task force disrupted the chop shops tracking down stolen vehicles, arresting those responsible and making sure that the

others that have -- ere are others that have a limited appeal cuba more liberal -- to the more beral spectrum. maybe, the speculation goes, the hypothesis goes, that increases the partisan divide that we are seeing in a lot of these issues in america today. host: one ofur folks on footer rights -- -- on twitter rightwrs -- guest: i like that. a poet. that, to some degree, fits in with what the average person across america would say. the is a role for vernon. the government has things it should do, but -- there is a role for government. the government has things it shou do, but be very careful. host: but go to the next caller, how low, stephanie. caller: how you know that 50% of the people you are pulling our democrat -- your polling r. democrat? how many people identify themselves as democrats versus republicans? and is it strictly [unintelligible] guest: what was her last point? host: i missed that. guest: we spend a lot of time making sure that what we do is scientifically representing the overall american population. our goal is, of course, when we do a survey to make sure that p

i do not want to get into great detail, but i noticed a cuba policy were even of the two or three days of to the summit of the americas, the former ambassador of new mexico was essentially delivering the new conservative line on latin america. there was no evidence at all. when he got the portfolio, a 180 degree shift, so this is interesting that you set up challenges, that you have got to be losing terribly to get his attention. when you do lose his attention, there is a need to fundamentally change the dynamics, and when you get those successes, to show that narrative. >> i judge that as adequate response to the narcissism question. >> i wanted to pick up on iran in a little bit. john bolton said a while ago we cannot stop iran at this point from getting the bomb if they want one. regardless of whether that is their intention or not, aren't we setting ourselves up for failure to say our goal is to stop this enrichment program in its tracks, when the rest of the world may think it is coming to terms with the idea that we are going to have to contain iran or something like that is goin

national information to the republic of cuba. i will defer to the department of justice for specific details on their sentences. we believe that, in this case, the severe punishment was warranted by the nature of his crime, which was a serious breach of national security. by committing acts of espionage, he egregiously violated the confidence placed in him by the department of state and the american people. also, this morning, the secretary had a conversation with the foreign secretary hague. primary purpose of the call was to compare notes prior to prime minister cameron's visit to washington next week. she also used the opportunity to thank the united kingdom for its support of the new u.s./eu agreement regarding the terrorist finance tracking program. they agreed on the importance of continuing our efforts to prevent terrorists from using our financial systems to launch attacks. they also talked about the situation with respect to mr. m ugrahi. in our mutual views of the release of him last year, that was a mistake. the secret

then as now, the group is financed by algeria and is propped up by castro's communist dictatorship in cuba. why is it important to understand this? because in morocco, our ally in north africa in the struggle against international terrorism, the issue of the sahara is the decisive issue. the reality of sovereignty over the sahara enjoys the support of the entire population of morocco, including the sahara itself. in other words, the issue of the sahara is the necessary ingredient for stability and peace in that country of strategic importance in north africa, our friend and ally, morocco. king muhammad vi and his negotiatingtime team have demonstrated great courage and patience in dealing with this critical issue so closely tied to the security of the entire region. let us never forget that a make believe and a fake microstate in northern africa would be led by a castro cuban-formed political class which would institute a minority of the population, even within the fake microstate, but would control it through castro-style repression. let us never forget that such a microstate would serve

took the position that the writ of habeas corpus was not available for detainees in guantanamo because cuba was sovereign in guantanamo. that was a ridiculous convention but they moved from that and said that it did not make any difference whether writ the of the u.s. runs because these people are prisoners of war and no court anywhere can add to indicate the status of prisoners of war. -- adjudicate the status of prisoners of war. prisoners of war may not be interrogated and the purpose of investing this category -- inventing this category was to permit forceful interrogation. the government is taking the position that they are prisoners of war and the courts cannot entertain and we can interrogate and we can disregard international law with respect to that interrogation. one thing that will be a step forward if the detainees are moved to illinois will be that that question will reach a federal court. i have a very little doubt about what the outcome will be. >> i think that may have to be the last word. i would like to thank you at the panelists. >> i just want to point out that john gibb

for instance, cuba, saddam -- sudan they are both party to the treaty. with the money be spent with transparency and accountability? many parties have a long history of corruption in this using development funds. this is all too common and you would only have to look at problems the program has had in north korea, thailand and burma four recent examples. the treaty counts among its members the most corrupt nations on the planet according to transparency international, including chad, somalia and other countries that are at the bottom of the annual index. i will repeat that article 82 poses a problem. you'll have to explain to average americans an average senators why the u.s. will have to make payments to an international body that may distribute the money to corrupt regimes. to wrap up, in some countries, you can keep the baby and throughout the bath water. with the law of the sea, i do not believe that the u.s. would be able to enter the reservations necessary to keep just a baby without violating the object and purpose of the treaty. just like any oth

this approach has been a failure in the past, notably with cuba, where our unyielding, aggressive sanctions policy, if anything, has propped up a regime that would have fallen into the dust bin of history years ago. they didn't stop north korea from nuclear weapons. the sanctions policy against iraq produced suffering for the people but made no difference to saddam hussein. most recently, years of harsh sanctions in gaza, much easier to enforce than against iran, did not topple hamas, but strengthened it. while it created a very difficult humanitarian situation. this legislation will, undoubtedly, pass. while it makes some people feel better to seem like they're doing something, i strongly suspect it will have little constructive result on iranian behavior, perhaps undercut support of the iranian people for the united states and our principles, and is setting a precedent for congress seeking to direct the conduct of american foreign policy. this goes beyond republicans and democrats, beyond the obama administration. it's a path think a think we should all be reluctant to take and it is why

. >> than cuba much. >> good morning, mr. chairman. thank you for inviting me and the customer to participate in the hearing. i am grateful for their attention to provide you with my opinion on the court's findings and potential impacts of repealing don't ask, don't tell, and that recommendations for implementation. i am very proud of our coast guard men and women. they are of extraordinary character and they readily into a ditch in the communities in which they live and search. the active duty response rate was 54%. the result of response to a 39%. i concur with the recommendations on how to implement the repeal of the panel law. alan k. and lesbian americans to set up and they would remove a significant barrier to those people who are already sending capably and have been forced to hide or even lie about their sexual orientation forcing them to compromise our values of honor, respect, and devotion and to continue to sieves is h. wilson should not have to make. i have done respectful of the unique challenges facing each service and i

if you look at the area between cuba and the straits of florida, there's it's a radius or perimeter. anything that could fall in that area should prompt action. we're concerned about the vessels, when you get above igget -- eight foot seas they aren't effective. >> we noticed something had changed, the containment camp had been removed. do these units bump into the assembly snauven >> we've had two issues with r.o.v.'s. there are an unbelievable amount of r.o.v.'s down there it's our only eyes and ears for the relief well the vertical riser packages being installed, other installations. we were putting the riser insertion tube in it became dislodged and had -- and had to be put back in. it was dislodged by an r.o.v. that was tending to another tsk task. we have simultaneous operations, simops, the fact that we've had two bumps with some consequence associated with them in a 60-plus day response is a pretty good record. it's never going to be risk free out there, we need to watch it very closely. >> you say you were notified immediately when it happened. >> i was. >> the operator of t