Gavel in for the morning session, we will of course bring gavel to live for gavel coverage. Thanks for watching. Day. The rest of your the speaker pro tempore the house will be in order. The chair lays before the house a communication from the speaker. The clerk the speakers room, washington, d. C. , july 27, 2017. I hereby appoint the honorable matt gaetz to act as speaker pro tempore on this day. Signed, paul d. Ryan, speaker of the house of representatives. The speaker pro tempore pursuant to the order of the house of january 3, 2017, the chair will now recognize members from lists submitted by the majority and minority leaders for morning hour debate. The chair will alternate recognition between the parties. All time shall be equally allocated between the parties and in no event shall debate continue beyond 11 50 a. M. Each member other than the majority and minority leaders and the minority whip shall be limited to five minutes. The chair recognizes the gentleman from illinois, mr. Shimkus, for five minutes. Mr. Shimkus i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Shimkus thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to ddress the plight of the people of eyopia. They have a population of more han 25 million or 35 of eyopias total population. I speak here on behalf of my dissent. Ho is of the coalition is dedicated to bringing the suffering of the aromo people and others to bring the attention of americans and the world. She impressed me with her passion for defending the rights of her people and thats why i bring the issue to the people. They have been subject to deteriorating conditions for over a decade with a sharp decline since 2014 making already difficult situation even worse. The government has adopted laws restricting freedom of expression, association and assembly, including rights enshrined in the universal declaration of human rights and in the ethiopian constitution. These violations have been wildly decried by numerous bodies. Our own state department has said the following about ethiopia, and i quote, it includes harassment and intimidation of opposition members and supporters and journalists, alleged torture, beating abuse, mistreatment of detainees by Security Forces and politically motivated trials. And i end quote. The Free Expression is curtailed by laws permitting the government to punish speech. It disagrees with up to five years in imprisonment. In just 2016 Security Forces killed at least 1,000 and held more than 28,000 newly arrested persons in detention centers. In the midst of the difficult situation for ethiopians, the situation for the aromo people is dire. The government released the master plan which sought to expand the capital into the region. The plan would displace millions of farmers, carve aromia into two regions, changing the lives of 36 towns and 17 districts by hurting the livelihoods of the aromo without consulting the aromo. Protest erupted into response. They admitted the use of excessive force. A Human Rights Watch report described interviews hundreds of people who survived gruesome and inhumane acts by Security Forces. Even so, no one has been brought to justice. According to the state department report, the government also recently won what appears to have been a rigged election. The deaths of thousands of aromos ando ethiopians cannot bring a lasting solution to the problem, yet the government continues to receive its role in the somalia peacekeeping missions. We should ask hounge should we keep financing a regime which received 34 billion in foreign assistance since it came to power in 1991 and reportedly stolen virtually all of it . In thousands of the people who have been sabodgely murdered, arrested and have been victims of forced disappearance, i join my colleagues in cosponsoring House Resolution 128 which calls for supporting respect for human rights and encouraging inclusive governments in ethiopia. This resolution sends a clear and strong message to the Ethiopian Government by letting them know we keep a vigilant eye on the suffering that some minorities have been going through in recent years and the offenses that causes these suffers. Many that dare to speak up are being treated badly across ethiopia. Consider the case of one man who spoke to several members of congress. Now he stands charged with terrorism although after a year and a half the government has been unable to produce a single document to back up their accusation. Even after they admitted to arresting 28,000 people, there is belief that it is closer to 40,000. We must condemn Inhumane Treatment and holding of key human rights. The government of ethiopia has an obligation to care for all its people, including the aromo. As the United States should stand with the people of ethiopia and help the government return to the path of peace and democracy. Thank you, mr. Speaker. And with that i yield back the alance of my time. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. Ruiz, for five minutes. Mr. Ruiz with all the political rhetoric, the fingerpointing and the many versions of trumpcare, hyper politicians fget what this day is about. Its about people. Its about releaving aersons pain and suffering, about giving a person a chance to live a healthy and happy life. Its about max. Maybe youll remember him. Max was the minidarth vader from a super bowl commercial in 2011 who captured our hearts. He was born with a rare and deadly congenital heart defect. Throughout his 12 years, max has had more than 10 heart surgeries under the loving care at Childrens Hospital in los angeles. He lives every day with a peacemaker and an artificial pulmonary valve. Open heart surgeries are very complex and difficult surgeries. Theyre tough on patients with often a long recovery and grueling for the family. You see, max stopped by my office a few days ago to talk aboutis experience and he told me, quote, im going to have my condition all my life. Im going to have surgery as a constant commotion on my life. I just want to be covered. I dont want to have to worry about insurance and how im going to pay these bills. I just want to focus on keeping myself healthy and not having to sacrifice everything for a surgery, unquote. You see, max wants to play baseball. He loves harry potter and he dreams of being an actor. Earlier this year, max was in the hospital for treatments for answer tire month. His for an entire month. His mom, jennifer, talked about the hospital stay and decided to take a walk and on a walk they met a boy maxs age named will. Will is still in the hospital today. Hes been there nine months waiting desperately for a heart transplant. Max told me how will has spent every holiday and even his birthday in the hospital this year. Max wanted to do something for ill, so they had these brace lets made. Power. Them will they have maxs favorite verse on them. Max and will connected. They devoped a bond bound by compassion, their hope for a normal life gave them strength and friendship. And max promised will he would bring the bracelets to congress hen they came. Flipians 4 13, i can do all things through christ who strengthens me. And max and will, thats my favorite verse too. Maxs fighting to protect other kids like him and will, people with a preexisting illness from losing coverage and having to pay more from facing a lifetime cap on coverage. He came to tell the stories of so many other children he knows from his many hospital visits. His message is simple. Quote, Childrens Health care needs a bipartisan solution, unquote. Max and will and all the friends they have made in the hospital arent rooting for democrats or republicans. Theyre fighting for their life and rooting for each other. Theyre children, children who want to get healthy, who want to stay healthy and care for one another. We can all learn from max and wills selfless courage to help others. Stop the hyper partisan fight to score political points and start fostering a bond through compassion. Lets find a way to protect health care for max and will. In the midst of this health care fight, we should take a moment to pause and remember that goal. Lets be like max and think of others as we come together to find a bipartisan solution to address what isnt working. And remember maxs message Childrens Health care, all Health Care Must and should be a bipartisan issue. Thanks and i yield back my time. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from kentucky, mr. Rogers, for five minutes. Mr. Speaker, i rise today to pay tribute to the memory of a dear friend and advocate for eastern kentuckians, pamela todd may. Although her life tragically ended too soon, she lived with endless compassion for those in need and devotion to our region, the Pikeville Medical Center, the university of kentucky, her husband walter may, her children and all her family and friends. M may lived with constance elegance, always joyous in service and loyal in deed. She faithfully dedicated more than three decades of service to the Pikeville Medical Center as a steadfast advocate for expanded access to Quality Health care in kentuckys rural appalachian region. As founder of one of the most respected law firms in kentucky, pam was a trustworthy defender for the people of Eastern Kentucky and a voice for those who otherwise may not be heard. One of the most recent examples of her endless and Selfless Service was her prompt action to help hundreds of individuals obtain medical records for Social Security hearings and honorable representation in the wake of emergency redetermineation hearings by the Social Security administration. She partnered with local attorneys and orchestrated hope for hundreds of families desperate for assistance while navigating through federal hearings. Pam was a thoughtful leader who you could rely on to stay steps ahead of everyone else. My wife, cynthia, and i mourn the loss of our treasured friend. Yet, we rejoice in the legacy of justice and compassion that she leaves behind. Those of us who were blessed to know pam must carry on her banner of hope and love for the people of our region. Mr. Speaker, Eastern Kentucky is a better place because pam may lived. If we could replicate her passion and drive, our future would undoubtedly be much brighter in the hills of appalachia. Cynthia and i extend our deepest heartfelt condolences to our friend and condent, walter may, as well as pams mother, children and extended family and friends who were honored to know and love her i yield ck. The speaker pro tempore the chair recognizes the gentleman from maryland, mr. Hoyer, for five minutes. Mr. Hoyer mr. Speaker, i ask unanimous consentto revise and extend. The speaker pro tempore without objection. Mr. Speaker, it is now seven months since the start of the 115th congress and sixonths sin republicans have controlled all the levers of power of our government. All weve seen are broken promises. Donald trump and our republican colleagues in congress ran on a platform that included health care for everyone. Massive investments in infrastructure and tax reform and a dramatic increase in jobs. On all four of these theres been zero progress. Zero legislation sent to the president and zero effort to work with democrats to achieve any of those objectives. Donald trump promised voters that he would be, and i quote, the greatest job president that god ever created. Yet, neither he nor the republican congressional leadership have put forward a comprehensive jobs bill. Instead, he and his republican allies in the congress have proposed budget that would slash investments in education, infrastructure and research, all areas that directly help our economy create jobs. In fact, jobs that the president claimed to have saved are in fact going overseas. Forecasters are now predicting slower Economic Growth and manufacturing average Weekly Earnings have only grown half as fast as earnings across the private sector as a whole over the past six months. When it comes to health care, it hasnt just been the broken promise of insurance for everyone, its been a nonstop roller coaster of legislative proposals, all of which would strip coverage away from tens of millions of americans, raise cost and deny coverage to those with preexisting conditions. Often tax reform on tax reform, all we have seen is a onepage outline and Budget Proposal with reconciliation instructions setting up a process for jamming a partisan tax reform bill through congress. Thats a nonstarter. To be successful any tax reform legislation must be bipartisan. As was the 1986 tax reform under president reagan and speaker oneill. To top it all off, we considered and are considering this week an appropriation minibus without even having had a budget on this floor. Some 88 days after it was due. The republicans promised regular order. In fact they are pursuing no order. Republicans have an even bothered to havent even bothered to pass a budget which is what were supposed to do in the house before moving to appropriations. So, mr. Speaker, at the sixmonth mark we have only seen gridlock, no progress, chaos, and broken promises. Even some republican members and perhaps Many Republican members, are growing as frustrated as the American People their party is failing. Representative see womack from arkansas said late last month that we, quote, we better get our act together. Were not governing now. Were stuck. Representative tom reed of new york said, quote, the fact that were not getting to these issues health care, budget, tax reform is frustrating. We came here to move the needle. So that what im saying has been said by my republican colleagues as well, perhaps representative thomasy put it most succinctly when he tweeted about his republican colleagues, they onfuse activity with progress. Republicans, mr. Speaker, have failed to address the challenges facing the American People. And they have done nothing to improve the lives of those working hard to make it in america. We should be considering legislation to create jobs and grow the economy. We should be working to improve and strengthen the Affordable Care act not replace it. That would be consistent with some 3 4 of americans to believe thats what we ought to be doing. We should be working in a bipartisan way to reform our tax code and promote competitiveness for our american businesses that are competing in world markets. Growth, job creation, as well as fiscal sustainability. That is what we should be seeking in a tax bill. We should be investing in infrastructure that lures jobs back home from overseas. And, mr. Speaker, we should be returning to regular order. An open process that republicans have abandoned to the detriment of legislation and to our country. More closed rules in this seven months than have occurred in my 36 years in the congress of the United States. Mr. Speaker, the American People need a better deal. A better deal than they have gotten over the last seven months. Seven months into this congress it is clear that House Republicans are not on the side of working people. In the words of New York Times columnist david brooks, one of the most conservative columnists in the New York Times, last week he said this, quote, republicans offer nothing but detachment, absence, and an ax. Democrats on the other hand are offering the American People, as i said, a better deal. One focused on helping all our people make it in america. Better jobs, better wages, yes, a better future. Its what democrats have always done when democrats have been entrusted to lead. There is a history, a track record to back it up. Mr. Speaker, i want to show my colleagues that rhetoric is cheap or talk is cheap as we say, but performance is really what we ought to look to. I want to bring some charts here to the attention of our colleagues. Indeed to the American People as well. What democrats have always done. This part number one, democrats perform better on Economic Growth. Now, thats easy to say, but this graph shows exactly under from truman to obama. The blue. You can see under eisenhower Economic Growth was about a third or maybe 40 . Kennedy, johnson johnson, much greater than nixon and nixon, ford. Carter great than either nixon or nixon, ford. And carter, to the surprise of many, had the same, just about g. D. P. Growth that reagan, of which my republican friends proudly talk. Then what happened . Under bush one and down, then what happened . Under clinton up g. D. P. Growth. Under bush two, down. Under obama, up. Thats not campaign rhetoric, those are the statistics that the economy has performed better under democrats. Democrats perform better on the stock market. The stock market who mr. Trump likes to point to today, its doing well. Why . Because the obama economy, as you just saw, was doing well and the expectations were good. If you look at this better on the stock market. Truman, greater growth in the stock market. Isenhower, less. Kennedy johnson, johnson, up. Nixon, down. Nixonford. Nixonford had negative growth in the stock market. And then carter growth. And yes, reagan and bush one had growth. Guess what, then clinton had better growth. Then clinton had better growth. Guess what . Sh two again like nixonford negative growth in the stock market. What did that mean . That mean 401ks were less for retired people an their security was less secure because the stock market went in the tank. What happened under obama . He stock market went up. Lastly, waint to show this statistic. This is a stark statistic. It shows under democratic every segment, every wage level in america saw ppreciation. Went up higher democrats than republicans. Guess what, the highest did better u