CONGRESSIONAL RECORD— Extensions of Remarks E1031 HON. WALTER B. JONES HON. MIKE KELLY
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July 18, 2018 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E1031 Rwanda, and Sudan. Yet another genocide I therefore appreciate Chairman ROYCE’s Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina was committed after Sudan, this one against amended text, which adds, ‘‘Foreign currency to perform aircraft maintenance for the air sta- Christians, Yazidis, and other religious and denominated loans and guaranties should only tion and nearby airfields. ethnic minorities in Iraq and Syria by ISIS. The be provided if the Board determines there is a After distinguished and commendable serv- survival of these ancient communities depends substantive policy rationale for such loans and ice in the final years of World War II, the facili- on humanitarian, stabilization, and recovery guaranties.’’ ty’s name changed to the Overhaul and Re- assistance from the United States and other Beyond this, however, there should be a pair Department. With the advent of the jet countries. clear policy statement on the importance and age, the depot continued to expand to meet Last June this house unanimously passed overall strategic interest in retaining the dollar the needs of combat aviation during the Ko- H.R. 390, the Iraq and Syria Genocide Emer- as the world’s reserve currency. Indeed, ear- rean War. gency Relief and Accountability Act, so that lier this year, China met with central bankers In the mid-1960s, the Depot specialized in our aid reaches the genocide survivors and from 14 African nations to discuss the viability Navy and Marine Corps rework and had be- perpetrators are held accountable. The Senate of using China’s yuan as the reserve currency come a vital source in supporting fleet oper- has still not been given the opportunity to vote for the region. ations during the Vietnam War. In 1967, the on this urgently needed legislation. I again call This nonetheless underscores the urgency facility was organizationally detached from Ma- for the Senate to pass H.R. 390 now and send for creating an International Development Fi- rine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point and it to the President for his signature. This legis- nance Corporation, which the BUILD Act ac- placed under Navy management as a naval lation will significantly strengthen the ongoing complishes, while underscoring the need for air rework facility. In 1968, the facility ranked efforts of his Administration to directly help policy guidance that loans in foreign cur- as the second largest industrial plant in North Christian and Yazidi genocide survivors at risk rencies not be used to undermine reserve dol- Carolina. of extinction. lar dominance. The late 1970s saw significant changes and Another critical piece of legislation for which I further voiced support of H.R. 4819, the modernization for the facility. It was during this I voted in support was the Women’s Entrepre- DELTA Act, introduced by my friend and col- period that the facility attained the highest de- neurship and Economic Empowerment Act, league Mr. JEFF FORTENBERRY of Nebraska, of gree of productivity in its history. The Depot H.R. 5480. which I was a cosponsor. received numerous awards for excellence in Chairman ROYCE’s Women’s Entrepreneur- There is much in this bill to recommend it— productivity and cost reduction. ship and Economic Empowerment Act ex- from prioritizing anti-poaching and wildlife traf- During the 1980s and 1990s, the Depot re- pands, and improves upon, our previous mi- ficking efforts in the greater Okavango River ceived many upgrades to improve productivity, croenterprise legislation. By way of back- Basin, to helping preserve the majestic ele- support and expand the aviation capabilities to ground, the Committee on Foreign Affairs has phant and other endangered species, to pro- keep current with new technology and work- a long history in this field, dating back at least viding sustainable livelihoods for local commu- load. In November 1987, a team departed for to former chairman Ben Gilman’s Microenter- nities. the third time in history to Antarctica to repair prise for Self-Reliance and International Anti- One other aspect of this bill which I high- an aircraft that had crashed nearly 16 years Corruption Act of 2000. I myself introduced the lighted was that it enables us to partner with, earlier. The facility was then renamed the Microenterprise Results and Accountability Act and coordinate efforts with, the countries of Naval Aviation Depot. of 2004, and a bill that amended the 2000 leg- Botswana, Namibia and Angola. The Depot provided assistance to the fleet islation, both of which became law. Botswana and Namibia in particular are two in Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm in In keeping with a deeper understanding of countries which are often overlooked, but Iraq with field team deployments to various lo- how to combat poverty and maintaining a which have made great strides in recent years cations for engines, components, aircraft, needed focus on women, Chairman ROYCE’s towards becoming responsible partners. Both ground support equipment and squadron sup- bill broadens the scope from microenterprise are, in the context of Africa, good places in port. Since this time, FRC-East supported the to include small and medium enterprises. which to do business, and should be com- War in Iraq and Afghanistan and the Global While it is important to make sure that the mended for their efforts in improving govern- War on Terrorism. very poor are not being neglected, small and ance. Their partnership in the greater Today, FRC-East has grown to become the medium enterprises help power development Okavango initiative underscores this trend. largest industrial employer east of Interstate and thereby empower the poor. Thus I encour- Angola is a nation which, after decades of 95 with 119 buildings and 2.1 million square aged all to support H.R. 5480 and the House civil war followed by strongman rule, is begin- feet, spanning over 147 acres valued at $1.36 voted to pass the legislation. ning to tackle corruption under new President billion. The workforce includes more than Mr. Speaker, I also supported H.R. 5105, Joa˜o Lourenc¸o. While it remains to be seen 3,900 employees, which provide aircraft, en- the BUILD Act. how far and how quickly Angola can go to- gine and component maintenance, engineer- I thank my friend and colleague, Mr. TED ward becoming a reliable partner and a coun- ing and logistics support for U.S. forces and YOHO of Florida, for offering this critical and vi- try in which to do business, its inclusion as a 24 foreign nations. sionary legislation. This legislation will mod- DELTA Act partner country is a sign of con- On this 75th anniversary year, I would like ernize development finance to benefit the de- fidence in the future. to thank the outstanding employees of FRC- veloping world, consistent with U.S. policy ob- I urged my colleagues to support the East for their continued outstanding service jectives. DELTA Act, and it also passed the House yes- and support to our nation, our allies, and its To cite one critical component, the BUILD terday. Eastern North Carolina community. I wish Act serves to counteract China’s strategy in f FRC-East continued success for its next 75 Africa, which uses development finance as a years of support to our warfighters. CONGRESSIONAL TRIBUTE FOR means to serve China’s ends, even if that f means propping up brutal dictators. THE EMPLOYEES OF FLEET I thank Chairman ED ROYCE for his leader- READINESS CENTER-EAST IN HONORING THE RETIREMENT OF ship in guiding this legislation through the For- HONOR OF THEIR 75TH ANNIVER- ED KIRKWOOD eign Affairs Committee, and for his respon- SARY siveness to concerns I had relayed, relating to HON. MIKE KELLY China. HON. WALTER B. JONES OF PENNSYLVANIA In particular, I appreciate changes made to OF NORTH CAROLINA IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES the initial draft of this bill concerning the IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES denominating of future loans in foreign cur- Wednesday, July 18, 2018 rencies. Wednesday, July 18, 2018 Mr. KELLY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I While the International Development Fi- Mr. JONES. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to rise today to recognize one of my constituents nance Corporation that this legislation would recognize a vital strategic asset for Marine from Butler, Pennsylvania, Mr. Ed Kirkwood. create needs to have flexibility, including aviation. Fleet Readiness Center-East (FRC- This Friday, July 20th, Ed will be retiring fol- issuing loans in foreign currencies, we must East) has been generating combat air power lowing over 34 years of commendable public remember it is also the long-term geostrategic for America’s Marines and naval forces for 75 service. goal of China, Russia, and certain other coun- years. The organizational history begins De- Ed has proudly served as the Butler Town- tries to replace the dollar as the world’s re- cember 16, 1943, when it opened as the As- ship Manager for the last 10 years. In this serve currency. sembly and Repair Department at Marine role, Ed oversaw the day-to-day operations of VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:32 Jul 19, 2018 Jkt 079060 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 0626 Sfmt 9920 E:\CR\FM\A18JY8.009 E18JYPT1 E1032 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks July 18, 2018 Butler Township while spearheading various bravery and showed us that our freedoms colleagues in the United States House of Rep- projects and serving as the administrative offi- have not come without many sacrifices. resentatives join me in applauding their ongo- cer of the township. Prior to this position, Ed In May 1964, Mr. Donlon was sent to Viet- ing support of our military members. spent over 18 years managing the City of nam as Captain of the U.S.