Congressional Record, House, December 3, 2020, Page H6052
Summary
A page of the Congressional Record, House, dated December 3, 2020, at page H6052, with one-minute speeches and tributes. A Member argues that lockdown orders reflect fear and predicts a turning point when the fever breaks. A Member from Arkansas asks why House leadership brought the House back, citing a discharge petition with over 180 signatures to extend the Paycheck Protection Program, and criticizes a bill to legalize marijuana. Under the heading Honoring the Life and Legacy of Mayor David Dinkins, Members recall his community policing program funded with $1.8 billion, his after-school programs and his welcome of Nelson Mandela to New York City. The page ends with a Member's remarks on serving a Congressional District and the East Shore Seawall.
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“Congressional Record, House, December 3, 2020, Page H6052.”
Original at www.govinfo.gov. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/crec-crec-2020-12-03-crec-2020-12-03-pt1-pgh6052-2-6d9107dab2/
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H6052 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE December 3, 2020
charlatans who see opportunity in that he did. But those of us in the be able to do telemedicine and tele-
them. And we have, sadly, learned that trenches, in the neighborhoods that education. More central Arkansans are
such fear can cause a free people to have been traditionally forgotten, taking their meals at food banks. Mr.
abandon their legacy of freedom and those of us that know that our commu- Speaker, frontline workers depend on
independence, their prosperity, and nities lacked the voices to be heard, help and our health industry to deliver
their common sense, but only for a the disenfranchised of the city of New the care that is essential.
while. York will forever remember him for his Yet, Mr. Speaker, for what has the
Every time in history that this has accomplishments. House leadership and Speaker PELOSI
happened, there is always a moment Community policing, he got $1.8 bil- brought us back to Washington, D.C.,
when the fear fever breaks, and the lion to establish the community polic- to consider? Is it to consider this
hysteria suddenly burns itself out. The ing program; foot officers, foot patrol much-needed delivered COVID–19 relief
French Revolution, the Salem witch officers, in neighborhoods across the for the American people?
trials, the Communist hysteria of the city of New York fighting crack and No.
1950s all had a moment when the ab- crime but, most importantly, knowing Is it to extend the deadline for the
surdity of it all became so apparent the community, the small business Paycheck Protection Program or bring
that it overcame the fear and the peo- owners, having a daily relationship, al- the discharge petition to the House
ple turned on their tormentors. most as family members, preventing floor that House Republicans have pro-
Now, I don’t know if the recent wave the kind of conflict that is plaguing posed, that has over 180 signatures of
of business and religious persecutions, America today. this body to help our small businesses
the unlimited home detention orders, The beacon schools that he opened who desperately need that assistance?
and the demonstrated hypocrisy of up, after-school programs that became No.
those who have ordered them signals the center of communities across the Mr. Speaker, while Arkansans and
that moment. But every shopkeeper city of New York; the Arthur Ashe Sta- Americans are suffering, and while Re-
who defies these petty tyrants, every dium for tennis, which houses the US publicans are working to extend crit-
parent who confronts their school offi- Open and yields more revenue than ical assistance like the Paycheck Pro-
cials, every person who refuses to sub- baseball, basketball, and football for tection Program, our House Demo-
mit to the dysfunctional dystopian the city of New York. cratic leadership is putting a bill to le-
world created by the lockdown left And, of course, that day when he wel- galize pot on the floor of the United
brings us one step closer to that turn- comed Nelson Mandela to New York States House for a vote.
ing point. It can’t come soon enough. City, it was such an important day. I Let that sink in. In the midst of this
f went to that celebration, and many of pandemic and in the midst of calls
us in New York felt that day that New across the country to help the Amer-
HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY ican people, our leadership in this
York was the center of the universe.
OF MAYOR DAVID DINKINS House has proposed a bill to legalize
Every neighborhood enjoyed and cele-
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The brated freedom for South Africa, and pot.
Chair recognizes the gentleman from Mayor Dinkins was our mayor. What a My friends on the other side of the
New York (Mr. ESPAILLAT) for 5 min- great day. What a great mayor. aisle are showing just how much they
utes. What a legacy, Mr. Speaker. are out of touch with conditions in our
Mr. ESPAILLAT. Mr. Speaker, I rise I stand here to honor that legacy so country today. People are working to
today to honor the life of a great New that it will never be forgotten that the make ends meet for their families.
Yorker, someone that has made us all great, late David N. Dinkins was an in- They are trying to educate their chil-
proud, someone that we all stand on tegral part of the gorgeous mosaic that dren while juggling work obligations.
his shoulders, the late Mayor David N. he always called New York. They are trying to protect themselves
Dinkins. and their loved ones from this virus.
f And that is why we are here this
Words cannot express how we feel in
New York with the passing of Mayor b 1030 week: To legalize pot?
Dinkins. Many of us stand on his shoul- Mr. Speaker, Republicans are lead-
DEMOCRATS PRIORITIZE ing. Our discharge petition could help
ders, as many of us here in this Cham-
MARIJUANA OVER COVID RELIEF small businesses right now, and every
ber stand on the shoulders of other gi-
ants that came before us. None of us The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Democrat should sign it. Yet, Mr.
really stand on our own. We stand on Chair recognizes the gentleman from Speaker, for 40 times, our Speaker of
the shoulders of those trailblazers, Arkansas (Mr. HILL) for 5 minutes. the House has blocked the consider-
those pioneers that opened the door to Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, ation of extending the Paycheck Pro-
men and women across the country. in March, our public health experts tection Program. House Democrats
Mayor Dinkins was such a leader. He said that we needed to stay home to need to follow the lead of House Repub-
was the first and, up to today, the only fight this virus and to bend the curve. licans and put Americans above their
African-American mayor in New York Those public health experts urged the special interest friends by moving
City, a city that prides itself on diver- administration and Congress to design COVID–19 relief today on this House
sity. In fact, New York City says that COVID–19 relief that included 8 weeks floor, by calling up our discharge peti-
its strength really comes from the of paycheck protection and enhanced tion and voting on paycheck protection
depths of its diversity. unemployment compensation through relief.
People from all over the world, immi- July, all with the thought that that RECOGNIZING CLAYTON BOOTHE
grants, as I was in 1964, coming from was the amount of support that we Mr. HILL of Arkansas. Mr. Speaker, I
the Dominican Republic, people from needed to provide, given the nature of rise today to recognize an exceptional
all over the world come to New York this virus. young man in my district, Clayton
City looking for that dream. Different Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to state Boothe, who was raised to value a
races, ethnicities, religions make New the obvious: Months later, America re- broad span of interests. At just 17 years
York City strong. And Mayor Dinkins mains in the throes of a brutal pan- old, he is excelling in many of these
often called the city a gorgeous mo- demic, Americans are hurting, and Ar- areas.
saic, and that was its strength. kansans are hurting. Every day I hear He is captain of his quiz bowl team,
So we honor his legacy and his many from restaurant owners and hotel oper- founder of Maumelle High School’s
years of service as a New York State ators who are concerned about whether chess team, and a member of Arkansas’
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Assembly member, as a Manhattan or not they will stay in business and Governor’s School and the National
borough president, and then, of course, whether or not they can survive. Honor Society. He is ranked top of his
as mayor of the city of New York. Central Arkansans tell me that they class, and he is one of 16,000
His detractors, and those that at- are spending more time worried about semifinalists in the 2021 National Merit
tempt to be revisionists of history, will their school kids, keeping their schools Scholarship Program out of 1.5 million
never acknowledge the great things open, and having reliable broadband to nationwide applicants.
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December 3, 2020 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H6053
He is a writer who is working on a ban and when we secured millions to May God bless my colleagues with
novel. He is a musician and a member combat the opioid epidemic. the strength to do what is right, and
of the Arkansas Sympathy Youth Or- In retrospect, those were the good may God bless this great country.
chestra. He hopes to attend North- days. f
western University in Chicago, and I Then there were days when it felt REMEMBERING CHAIRMAN BOB
expect him to succeed wherever life like our politics was absolutely irre- SMITH
takes him. I congratulate Clayton on deemable, when a peaceful march for
his hard work and keen interests. justice in my community was used as a The SPEAKER pro tempore. The
Keep it up, Clayton, and make weapon to tell my constituents that it Chair recognizes the gentleman from
Maumelle High School and your family is impossible to believe that Black Oregon (Mr. WALDEN) for 5 minutes.
proud. Lives Matter while also believing that Mr. WALDEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise
f the vast majority of police officers are today to commemorate and honor the
heroes. Those marchers were called life and legacy of former Congressman
FAREWELL ADDRESS TO Bob Smith. An Oregon native—born in
CONGRESS thugs and they were called rioters just
for believing that peaceful protests Portland and raised in Burns—he had a
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The could change this country. The public deep understanding of what it meant to
Chair recognizes the gentleman from was told that their movement was dan- be an Oregonian and he knew the needs
New York (Mr. ROSE) for 5 minutes. gerous and not something you should of the surrounding communities, espe-
Mr. ROSE of New York. Mr. Speaker, listen to but something you should be cially the rural part of our State.
this may be the last time I get to ad- afraid of. Yet for those who saw it with He went to Willamette University in
dress this hallowed Chamber, and for their own eyes, the truth cut through Salem and received a degree in agri-
that I am grateful for this opportunity. all those smears. culture. He would go on to put that de-
I want to start by thanking my staff. gree to work on his own ranch.
I remember being outside of a super-
It may come as a surprise to some of In 1960, Bob’s career as a public serv-
market. It was raining, and I was mis-
my colleagues, as well as the press, but ant began when he was elected to the
erable. An off-duty police officer came
I do have some flaws. My staff worked Oregon House of Representatives. He
up to talk to me. He assured me he was
with me for 2 years—some of them even served in the State house until 1972. He
no Democrat, but he had been working
longer—and together we—not me, we— was speaker of the Oregon House dur-
that day of the march. He had been
accomplished an extraordinary amount ing the 1969 and 1971 sessions.
skeptical, but those young men and
for the great people of southern Brook- I remember as a 13-year-old young-
women changed his mind, and he was
lyn and Staten Island. ster going with my father, whom they
As I leave to pursue new adventures, proud of them. That officer saw past
were recruiting to run for the legisla-
I want to depart, though, with a few the lies and past the differences others
ture, down to Salem to see Bob Smith
words of optimism for our great coun- have used to divide us. He witnessed
and the speaker of the house. I was
try, as well as a warning. his fellow Americans in pain, and for
about this tall. I looked up, and here
We live in a tough time for truth, and him it changed everything. In typical
was this giant of a man. He was a giant
it is causing faith in our government to Staten Island fashion, though, right
of a man in Oregon politics, but a very
corrode. There is not a person in this after, he told me he wasn’t going to
kind soul.
Chamber who thinks the American peo- vote for me and that I was going to He then served in the State senate
ple trust us. There is not a person sit- lose for a thousand other reasons. from 1973 to 1982. When Oregon got its
ting here right now who thinks the But conversations like that refreshed fifth congressional seat, he ran for that
American people believe in our govern- my memory and my faith that this and was elected. He actually ran 31 dif-
ment. country can one day live up to its ferent times for election and never lost
This didn’t happen overnight. It was promise. We can put the government a single one.
death by a thousand disappointments, back on the side of working people In the State house, Bob passed a
a thousand scandals, and a thousand from New York City to Washington, number of pieces of legislation. He al-
lives broken by politicians who mock a D.C., and everywhere in between. ways stood up for farmers and ranchers
virus until it kills their neighbor; who That is the America we know is pos- in eastern Oregon and for lower taxes.
carve us up into blue States and red sible: One where, in the face of un- He led the effort in the Congress to
States, yet have the nerve to question imaginable vitriol, we don’t hate back; pass a balanced budget amendment. In
someone else’s patriotism; who saw no in the face of unimaginable adversity, the State senate, he actually helped
problem whatsoever giving a trillion- we don’t give up fighting until it pass the kicker law, which said when
dollar tax cut to Big Pharma and com- doesn’t matter what you look like and Oregon collects more tax revenue than
panies that are killing our planet, but where you come from, but in this coun- anticipated, that goes back to the tax-
then they clutch their pearls when we try you can accomplish your dreams— payer. That went into the constitution
say we want to be there for poor people a safe America, a just America, our eventually.
and when we say we want to be there America. Bob went on to serve here, as I said,
for the most vulnerable. In light of recent electoral results, for 14 years, from 1983 to 1995, and then
During my few years in politics, I some have begun to wonder if Demo- came back to chair the Agriculture
have seen how we can beat back this crats should soft-pedal the fight for Committee when he returned from 1997
festering cynicism: when we fight like equal justice, if they should take a step to 1999.
hell for what is right, especially for back from fighting for economic secu- I am joined here on the floor today
those who need us most, when we bring rity or even just give up. I am here to by a colleague from Oklahoma (Mr.
converts to our side by promoting say absolutely not. This cannot wait. LUCAS), who served with Chairman
truth where there is injustice, and by Justice cannot wait. If you aren’t will- Smith on the Agriculture Committee.
appealing to common sense and—God ing to risk everything to build a better Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman
forbid—humanity. country, then you do not belong here in from Oklahoma (Mr. LUCAS).
I have seen constituents who thought the first place. Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the
their government was there only to Mr. Speaker, to close, representing gentleman for yielding. It is an honor
screw them over; begin to hope that Staten Island and south Brooklyn has to be here. Discussing my Agriculture
maybe that wasn’t the case when we been the honor of my life. On behalf of Committee chairman and my colleague
passed the Victim Compensation Fund; Leigh, Miles, and myself, I thank the for 21⁄2 years, Bob Smith, is truly an
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and when we cut through the red tape people of the 11th Congressional Dis- honor.
to finally begin the construction of the trict for this extraordinary privilege. I When I was sworn in, in a special
East Shore Seawall, the largest resil- am not sure what life has in store for election and I first surveyed this body,
iency project in New York City his- us, but I will be on the front lines mak- one of the faces I recognized was this
tory. I saw it when we reunited fami- ing sure our city and our country live huge figure of a man standing at the
lies torn apart by the racist Muslim up to its promise. back brass rail. I can still almost see
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