CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— Extensions of Remarks E910 HON
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E910 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks July 12, 2019 CELEBRATING THE 30TH ANNIVER- tary activities of the Department of Defense The direct economic cost of the war in Af- SARY OF THE AMERICAN ASSO- and for military construction, to prescribe ghanistan exceeds $1.07 trillion, including CIATION OF LAW LIBRARIES military personnel strengths for such fiscal $773 billion in Overseas Contingency Oper- year, and for other purposes: ations funds, an increase of $243 billion to the HON. MIKE QUIGLEY Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Chair, I rise to Department of Defense base budget, and an speak in support of Amendment No. 423 to increase of $54.2 billion to the Veterans Ad- OF ILLINOIS H.R. 2500, the National Defense Authorization IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ministration budget to address the human Act for FY2020, offered by the gentleman from costs of the military involvement in Afghani- Friday, July 12, 2019 California, Congressman RO KHANNA. stan. Mr. QUIGLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise today The Khanna Amendment is simple and We should not repeat the mistakes of the in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the straightforward in its prohibition against unau- past and my position on this issue is directly American Association of Law Libraries’ legisla- thorized military force in or against Iran. aligned with the will of the American people. Earlier this year, the Trump Administration tive advocacy program. The American Asso- I commend my colleague, Congressman sent an aircraft carrier and a nuclear-powered ciation of Law Libraries (AALL), representing KHANNA for offering this important amendment submarine to the region in a show of force. and urge all Members to join me in voting for more than 4,100 members, is the only national The Khanna Amendment would make clear the amendment and restoring Congress’s pre- association dedicated to the legal information and explicit that nothing in the FY2020 NDAA eminent constitutional role in the decision to profession and its professionals. Founded in can be construed as congressional authoriza- take the nation to war. 1906 on the belief that everyone—lawyers, tion or acquiescence regarding the use of mili- judges, students, and the public—needs timely tary force against Iran. f access to relevant legal information to make The Framers understood that while the mili- sound legal arguments and wise legal deci- IN RECOGNITION OF JOHN ‘‘DOC’’ tary does the fighting, the entire nation goes to BLANCHON sions, AALL members are problem solvers of war. the highest order. That is why the Framers lodged the power In 1989, the AALL Executive Board ap- to declare war in the Congress, the branch of HON. WILLIAM R. KEATING pointed AALL members Robert L. Oakley of government closest to the people. OF MASSACHUSETTS Georgetown University Law Library and Jo- They knew that the decision to go to war IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES anne Zich of American University Washington was too important to be left to the whim of a Friday, July 12, 2019 College of Law Library as the first Washington single person, no matter how wise or well-in- Mr. KEATING. Madam Speaker, I rise today representatives for the Association. Since that formed he or she might be. time, AALL’s advocacy efforts ranged from the The President must consult with Congress in recognition of the life of John ‘‘Doc’’ creation and dissemination of government in- and to obtain an AUMF before undertaking Blanchon of Yarmouth, Massachusetts, a dedi- formation to copyright to the privacy of library any military offensive against Iran. cated family man, soldier and teacher who lost users. Its successes include ensuring perma- Over the last 18 years, we have seen 3 his battle to Parkinson’s Disease. nent public access to official, authentic gov- Presidents use the 2001 Afghanistan AUMF A native of Quincy, Doc attended Bridge- ernment information by advocating for the es- as a blank check to engage in serious military water Teachers College where he excelled in sential work of the Library of Congress, the action. athletics, playing baseball, basketball and soc- Law Library of Congress, and the U.S. Gov- In 2016, the Congressional Research Serv- cer. Later, he was admitted as a member of ernment Publishing Office; contributing to the ice issued a report detailing 37 unclassified the initial class of Bridgewater Athletic Hall of enactment of transparency laws including the uses of this authorization in 14 countries, in- Fame. After graduating, Doc joined the U.S. E-Government Act of 2002 (P.L. 107–347) and cluding for operations at Guantanamo Bay, Army and served his country in Korea. When updates to the Freedom of Information Act; warrantless wiretapping, and recent military he returned home he continued his education and, most recently, supporting my own legisla- action in Libya, Syria, Somalia, and Yemen. and obtained his master’s degree in School tion to provide public access to Congressional The overly broad 2001 AUMF represents a Administration from Northeastern University. Research Service reports that resulted in lan- critical deterioration of Congressional over- He then taught Social Studies at Sharon High guage included in the Consolidated Appropria- sight, which should be repealed, rather than School and coached the school soccer team. tions Act of2018 (P.L. 115–141) directing the repeated with respect to Iran. Doc Blanchon was named Principal of Sharon Congressional Research Service to make its As our brave service members are deployed High School in 1982, serving as the school’s nonconfidential reports available to the public around the world in combat zones, Congress leader until his eventual retirement in 1994. on the internet. is missing in action. Doc and his wife, Lorraine, eventually relo- The AALL Executive Board and its members As provided under the War Powers Resolu- cated to Cape Cod in retirement, though they will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the As- tion of 1973, absent a Congressional declara- spent much of their time following their pas- sociation’s legislative advocacy program by tion of war or authorization for the use of mili- sion for travel in Europe once their children convening on Capitol Hill today, July 12, 2019, tary force, the President as Commander-in- finished college. Those who knew Doc knew for AALL Day on the Hill. AALL members will Chief has constitutional power to engage the him as a good man, full of kindness and the meet with their elected officials about the As- U.S. armed forces in hostilities only in the desire to help those others. He was a man of sociation’s legislative priorities that include case of a national emergency created by an deep faith and devoted his life to following the greater access to government information, ac- attack upon the United States, its territories or practices of Christianity. cess to justice, government transparency, bal- possessions, or its armed forces. Doc passed this Father’s Day; his loss was anced copyright laws, and privacy for library As a co-equal branch of government, it is felt deeply by his family and community. His users. Congress’s right and responsibility to be fully memory and spirit will live on through his lov- I congratulate AALL on three decades of ef- consulted regarding any potential plans to ing wife Lorraine, his two children Bonnie and fective advocacy and wish them many more conduct military operations in Iran, to assess Donald, and his five grandchildren as well as years of success. whether such action is in the national security his legacy and devotion to his community, mili- interest of the United States and its allies, and f tary and God. to withhold or grant authorization for the use f NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZA- of military force based on this assessment. TION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2020 As we have learned from the painful and bit- RECOGNIZING HER HOLINESS ter experience of the past 18 years, at the ini- MATA AMRITANANDAMAYI DEVI SPEECH OF tiation of hostilities, the costs in terms of blood HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE and treasure of U.S. military interventions HON. RAJA KRISHNAMOORTHI abroad are often underestimated and the ben- OF ILLINOIS OF TEXAS efits overstated. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES For example, more than 6,800 American Thursday, July 11, 2019 service members gave the last full measure of Friday, July 12, 2019 The House in Committee of the Whole devotion to their country on battlefields in Af- Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI. Madam Speaker, House on the state of the Union had under ghanistan and Iraq, with hundreds of thou- today I rise to recognize Her Holiness Mata consideration the bill (H.R. 2500) to authorize sands more returning with physical, emotional, Amritanandamayi Devi, known simply as appropriations for fiscal year 2020 for mili- or psychological wounds that may never heal. ‘‘Amma’’ to her many admirers over the world, VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:20 Jul 13, 2019 Jkt 089060 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0626 Sfmt 9920 E:\CR\FM\A12JY8.005 E12JYPT1 July 12, 2019 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E911 for her exemplary humanitarian and conserva- fense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year around world, and the extent to which it threat- tion efforts and her work to build bridges of passed the House of Representatives by voice ens the U.S. national security interests. love, peace and understanding not only to the vote on July 11, 2019. This important amend- people of India, but to all nations. ment requires the ‘‘Annual Report on Military f Amma was born in 1953 in a small, coastal and Security Developments Involving the Peo- village in the South Indian state of Kerala. ple’s Republic of China’’ to include an assess- HONORING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF MRS.