Congressional Record—House H3445
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April 17, 2007 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H3445 women are a class act, and I am proud HONORING BROWNIE SCOUT TROOP Cranfill, Caitlyn Minton and Hope to represent them and Rutgers Univer- 114 Brown. sity here in Congress. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a It is my hope that their example is After outrageous comments were previous order of the House, the gentle- reproduced by many others, and that made about the team by Don Imus on woman from North Carolina (Ms. FOXX) the soldiers who receive the fruit of his CBS radio and MSNBC show, the is recognized for 5 minutes. their labors feel honored and respected team showed great courage in choosing Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I rise today by this act of young-hearted kindness. to meet with him so he could see first- to honor the patriotic efforts of Brown- f hand how wrong his sexist and racist ie Scout Troop 114 of Liberty Grove The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a comments were. During this emotion- Baptist Church. This group of 18 young previous order of the House, the gentle- ally and mentally exhausting ordeal, women has demonstrated a tangible woman from the District of Columbia these remarkable young women were commitment to supporting our troops (Ms. NORTON) is recognized for 5 min- graceful and poised as they became stationed in Iraq. Last month they col- utes. media headlines for controversy. lected donations to send nearly 250 (Ms. NORTON addressed the House. And I strongly denounce Don Imus’ boxes of Girl Scout cookies to the Her remarks will appear hereafter in divisive comments. They were dis- brave men and women from their com- the Extensions of Remarks.) gusting, and they have no place in our munity who are serving in Iraq. everyday language, let alone on a na- They pounded the pavement to sell f tionally televised radio and television cookies and find like-minded people CHILDREN: UNCOUNTED IRAQ program. His comments not only af- who were willing to join them in send- CASUALTIES ing cookies to a local North Carolina fected these players, but resonated The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a with women and African Americans National Guard unit stationed near Tikrit, Iraq. I applaud the thoughtful previous order of the House, the gen- across the Nation. tleman from Washington (Mr. These were innocent student athletes and committed patriotism of these girls who invested their time to self- MCDERMOTT) is recognized for 5 min- living out their basketball dreams. utes. They did not deserve to be his target. lessly raise money and then send a token of appreciation to our Nation’s Mr. MCDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I And MSNBC’s decision to pull his tele- had intended to rise this evening to vision broadcast and CBS’ firing of him troops. The troops that are receiving the fa- focus my attention on the suicide displayed great moral character, and I bombing last week in Baghdad that support their choices. mous Girl Scout cookies are members of the headquarters 105th Engineer killed and wounded several members of His comments, Imus’ comments, de- Group from Winston-Salem. For these the Parliament, including Osama al- prived these women of fully enjoying men and women, there is no small act Nujafii. He was a member of the Iraq their accomplishments of being of kindness. No, this is much more Parliament who participated in a his- crowned Big East champions, going to than that. For our troops on the front toric live teleconference I hosted last the Final Four, and making history as line of the war on terror, to receive a month linking several of my House col- the first athletic team from Rutgers to package of cookies from a local Brown- leagues with several Iraq Parliamen- play for a national championship. All- ie Scout troop is like receiving a tarians. I wish him and the others Met Division I Player of the Year Kia breath of fresh air from home. Whether wounded in the attack a speedy recov- Vaughn said it best when she said, or not these young women knew it, ery. ‘‘Our moment was stolen from us.’’ they were communicating to our sol- That attack occurred inside the I want to talk about this team, Mr. diers that there are people who still Green Zone, and it confirms that no Speaker. Rutgers had a Cinderella sea- care for our troops’ welfare. They com- one is safe in Iraq, no matter how son that saw them come back from municated that the youngest genera- many checkpoints or blast walls or some devastating early season losses, tion still values sacrifice and service to press releases out of the White House. including a 40-point loss to Duke. country. It confirms that the President’s mili- Under head coach C. Vivian Stringer, I come to the floor today to celebrate tary escalation has only escalated the the Scarlet Knights finished their this concentrated act of patriotic kind- violence and the casualties. It confirms amazing season with a 27–9 record. The ness and to honor the young ladies who that the President has no control what- team fought improbable odds to reach have taken ownership of our Nation’s soever on the events on the ground. the pinnacle NCAA title game, and great tradition of offering support to And it confirms that the American peo- maintained enormous composure when our troops serving abroad. Their exam- ple are right to demand that the Presi- nasty comments overshadowed their ple highlights what our great Nation is dent work with the Democratic Con- record-breaking season. capable of producing in its youth. gress and establish a firm timetable for I am immensely proud of this ex- We cannot emphasize enough how the withdrawal of U.S. troops. traordinary team. Last week the Na- proud we are that these Scouts made For now, most Americans are grimly tion had an opportunity see a group of this effort to brighten the days of hun- aware of the weekend of bombings and outstanding student athletes who were dreds of soldiers in Iraq. What may killings across Iraq. But the situation striving to reach lifetime goals, both seem like a small token of gratitude is even worse. The Iraq war will live on and off the basketball court. By ex- will live on in the memory of the many long after the U.S. forces leave the celling in academics, music and com- troops who, in the coming weeks, will country. munity service, they are great role enjoy a box of Girl Scout cookies in the As a child psychiatrist, I was shocked models for student athletes across the deserts of Iraq. I have no doubt that to learn of a new study looking at the Nation. these men and women will look back effects this war is having on Iraqi chil- The Scarlet Knights women basket- with great fondness as they remember dren. I submit the story from USA ball players are excellent representa- the day when the mail call brought Today for the RECORD. It is the first tives of Rutgers University and the them an unexpected box of sweets and comprehensive look at the impact the State of New Jersey, and they should a reminder that their community and war is having on innocent Iraqi chil- be honored for their hard work, dedica- their country stands behind them in dren. The Ministry of Health surveyed tion, and heart. this difficult time. 2,500 primary school kids in Baghdad, Mr. Speaker, today I introduced a The members of the Brownie troop and 70 percent of those young kids dis- resolution commending the Scarlet who sent this gift of baked goods are played symptoms of trauma-related Knights women’s basketball team for Alexandra Dillard, Reva Combs, Laken stress. As the USA Today reported, their record-breaking season and their Harrold, Allison Livengood, Allie Bark- many Iraqi children have been phys- outstanding achievement off the bas- er, Lauren Johnson, Daniella Meeza, ically wounded, and many are psycho- ketball court. I am hopeful Congress Kristina Meeza, Acacia Key, Charlotte logically scarred. They are the un- will recognize these fine women by York, Cheyenne Byrd, Alexis Baldwin, counted casualties of the Iraq war. passing this resolution tomorrow. Erin McGee, Angela Nardini, Karlie Thousands of innocent Iraqi children VerDate Aug 31 2005 03:08 Apr 18, 2007 Jkt 059060 PO 00000 Frm 00043 Fmt 7634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\K17AP7.091 H17APPT1 ccoleman on PRODPC74 with HOUSE H3446 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE April 17, 2007 are uncounted casualties. But for all country. And for someone to come out by the World Health Organization as signs of these innocent Iraqi children, this war here and accuse her of a violation of trauma. Other symptoms included voluntary will rage on for them for years to the Logan Act. Now this is a 200-year- muteness, declining performance in school or an increase in aggressive behavior. come. They will face a life of anguish, old act that no one has ever been pros- The teachers received training from Iraqi and, in fact, will be the ones who, in ecuted under because there are real psychologists on how to identify and help the future, are the future violent ones questions as to whether it prevents students cope with trauma-related stress, al- we worry about. Members of the Congress from using Aboudi said. For all these innocent Iraqi children, this war their first amendment rights to talk The study ‘‘shows the impact of the vio- will rage on for years to come. In some cases, out on behalf of the people that they lence and insecurity on the children and on these children will face a lifetime of anguish represent.