December 19, 2007 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E2659 fraud on Government programs even when TRIBUTE TO AARON N. grew steadily over the years, blossoming into the Government uses agents and other third MENICHETTI the now $3-million-a-year industry with per- parties to administer Government programs formances across the country. and contracts; Clarifying that the Govern- HON. SAM GRAVES Despite these notable achievements, Bill will ment’s new or amended complaint in a qui OF MISSOURI probably be best remembered for founding the tam action relates back to the original qui tam IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Critics and Awards Program, otherwise known complaint to the same extent it would relate as the Cappies. Bill was inspired to institute back if the Government had filed the original Wednesday, December 19, 2007 this regional institution, which honors excep- complaint; Clarifying that plaintiffs do not need Mr. GRAVES. Madam Speaker, I proudly tional high school dramatic and musical per- to have access to individual claims data or pause to recognize Aaron N. Menichetti a very formances throughout the Washington, DC, documents to bring a False Claims Act case; special young man who has exemplified the metro area, after being diagnosed with an ag- Amending the Act so that a qui tam case may finest qualities of citizenship and leadership by gressive strain of pancreatic cancer. Every be dismissed in light of prior public disclosures taking an active part in the Boy Scouts of year, high school students gather at the Ken- only upon motion of the Government, and only America and earning the most prestigious nedy Center for a ceremony not unlike the if the case is truly parasitic; Amending and award of Eagle Scout. Tony Awards in New York. I look forward to clarifying the Act to specify how the Act’s chief Aaron has been very active with his troop, the Cappies every year, and hope this tradi- investigative tool—the civil investigative de- participating in many scout activities. Over the tion continues for years to come. mand—may be used to investigate violations many years Aaron has been involved with I was saddened to hear Bill succumbed to of the Act; and clarifying how the Act applies scouting, he has not only earned numerous cancer at his home in McLean, VA, on De- to Federal employees who discover fraud dur- merit badges, but also the respect of his fam- cember 18, 2007. His legacy of both the Cap- ing the course of their employment, by pro- ily, peers, and community. itol Steps and the Cappies will keep his mem- viding the Government authority to move to Madam Speaker, I proudly ask you to join ory alive within the Capitol Beltway for many dismiss the action of any Federal employee me in commending Aaron N. Menichetti for his years to come. May the elected officials in this who brings a qui tam action under the Act accomplishments with the Boy Scouts of body never cease to give Mr. Strauss’ com- without first having provided the Government America and for his efforts put forth in achiev- pany a plethora of material to keep the coun- fair notice and opportunity to pursue such ing the highest distinction of Eagle Scout. try laughing. wrongdoing through its own False Claims Act f Madam Speaker, in closing, I would like to action or other appropriate remedy. pay tribute to the life and accomplishments of Fighting fraud against U.S. taxpayers is not HONORING THE LIFE OF BILL Mr. William Arthur Strauss, and express my a partisan issue. When we passed the False STRAUSS deepest condolences to all who knew and Claims Act amendments in 1986, we did so loved him. with a strong bipartisan coalition in both HON. TOM DAVIS [From , Dec. 19, 2007] houses. I’m pleased to continue that tradition OF VIRGINIA BILL STRAUSS, 60; POLITICAL INSIDER WHO by introducing this bill today with Representa- IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES STEPPED OVER INTO COMEDY tive JIM SENSENBRENNER as my partner. I look Wednesday, December 19, 2007 (By Joe Holley) forward to working with him to make these Capitol Steps founder Bill Strauss was a amendments to the False Claims Act law this Mr. DAVIS of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I Harvard-trained lawyer and Senate sub- Congress. rise today to honor the life of the late Mr. Wil- committee staffer when he broke through liam Arthur Strauss. the chrysalis of Capitol Hill conventionality f I first met Bill Strauss in 1963 when we to become a musical satirist. EXPRESSING SORROW OF THE were both pages here in Washington. Bill Mr. Strauss, who died Dec. 18 of pancreatic HOUSE AT THE DEATH OF THE served at the Supreme Court; I served in the cancer at his home in McLean, recalled the HONORABLE JULIA CARSON, Senate. Our respective careers continued to breakthrough in a phone interview shortly before his death at age 60. MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM revolve around the Nation’s capital—mine in It was Memorial Day 1981, he said, and he THE STATE OF INDIANA Congress, Bill’s in the executive branch. was hosting a party that ended with a jam Bill boasted an education few can match: an session around the piano. Party-goers riffed SPEECH OF undergraduate degree from Harvard University on parodies of Reagan-era news makers. HON. BOB ETHERIDGE in 1969, a law degree from Harvard, and a Mr. Strauss discovered that night that he master’s degree from Harvard’s venerable had a facility for impromptu silliness and OF satire. He began to wonder whether, at age IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES John F. Kennedy School of Government. He returned to Washington with his young bride in 34, he might be able to make a living at it, Tuesday, December 18, 2007 even though his only musical training was a 1973, joining the Department of Health, Edu- stint in his elementary school orchestra. Mr. ETHERIDGE. Madam Speaker, I raise cation, and Welfare (now Health and Human During the next several months, when not to honor the legacy and accomplishments of Services) as a policy aide. He quickly moved worrying about nuclear proliferation and our recently passed colleague and dear friend up to the Presidential Clemency Board, direct- other weighty matters, he wrote musical JULIA CARSON. ing a report on the impact of the parodies. Enlisting other musically gifted In 1996 JULIA’s deep commitment to those on draft-eligible youth. Senate staffers, he scheduled the group’s she served led her to become the first African- Bill Strauss continued his work for the Fed- debut at the annual office Christmas party of American woman to be elected to the U.S. eral Government, moving to the Department of Sen. Charles Percy (R-Ill.), Mr. Strauss’s em- ployer. House from Indiana. I had the opportunity to Energy in 1977. Subsequently, in 1980 Mr. The group christened itself the Capitol get to know JULIA during our freshman terms Strauss became chief counsel and staff direc- Steps, an allusion to the location of a late- in the 105th Congress and build a relationship tor of the Subcommittee on Energy, Nuclear night amorous moment enjoyed by Rep. with her over the past 10 years that we have Proliferation, and Government Processes. John W. Jenrette (D-S.C.) and his wife, Rita. both served. Julia spent her time in Congress Despite his long service in the Federal Gov- Capitol Steps was a hit from the beginning. working for children’s issues, women’s rights ernment—or, possibly more aptly, as a result For the next few years, the group performed and efforts to reduce homelessness. One of of it—Mr. Strauss discovered at a Memorial regularly for free at parties and in church basements. ‘‘We were clinging to our day her biggest accomplishment in the House was Day party in 1981 that he was blessed with jobs,’’ co-founder Elaina Newport said. passing legislation granting the Congressional the gift of improvisational comedy. Having per- ‘‘Frankly, we were trying not to get in trou- Gold Medal to Rosa Parks, the Mother of the formed successfully to a receptive audience of ble.’’ Civil Rights Movement who was arrested for friends, Mr. Strauss realized he could make a Today, Capitol Steps is still performing, refusing to give up her seat on a segregated living satirizing the goings-on within the Belt- although not in church basements. It’s a $3 city bus in Montgomery, AL. She leaves be- way. million-a-year industry with more than 40 hind an unmated record of service to the peo- During his office’s Christmas party in 1981, employees who sing and satirize at venues Mr. Strauss, along with a group later chris- across the country. ple and an unequaled legacy of leadership. The group’s success was ‘‘totally out of the Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues tened the Capitol Steps, performed his first blue,’’ Mr. Strauss said. ‘‘Neither I nor any- to join me in paying respect to the family of musical parody. Senator Charles Percy (R–Ill), one else was expecting it.’’ JULIA CARSON and in honoring her career in his employer, and the rest of the staff knew in- Mr. Strauss’s more serious side found ex- service to our country. stantly that Bill Strauss had a gift. The group pression in six books he co-authored about

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He also wrote three musicals— known as Cappies. ‘‘I decided this would be good is finding new markets for agriculture ‘‘MaKiddo,’’ ‘‘Stopscandal.com.’’ and my calling, performing less and concen- ‘‘Anasazi’’—and co-wrote with Newport two trating on starting this program,’’ he said. commodities when the cost of production is books of satire, ‘‘Fools on the Hill’’ (1992) Cappies arranges for high school students too much for our farmers and ranchers? and ‘‘Sixteen Scandals’’ (2002). to attend and review each other’s shows, We should develop a policy that is tech- ‘‘He packed several lifetimes into his 60 with top reviews published in local news- nology neutral and allows the market to de- years,’’ Newport said. papers. Sixty Washington-area schools are velop new sources of renewable energy. The William Arthur Strauss was born in Chi- involved with the program, as well as 17 ad- RFS provisions create an unrealistic mandate cago and spent most of his childhood in Bur- ditional schools in the and for advanced biofuels technology that doesn’t lingame, Calif., in the San Francisco area. Canada. Top Cappies winners perform shows yet exist and creates hurdles for the develop- He was a Capitol page in 1963, during his jun- at the Kennedy Center, and student creative ment of second generation biofuels by placing ior year in high school, and graduated from teams, under Mr. Strauss’s oversight, have Harvard University in 1969. He received a law written two musicals. The most recent, restrictions on alternative fuels, renewable fuel degree from Harvard Law School and a mas- ‘‘Senioritis,’’ has been made into a movie plant production, and, most important, limits ter’s degree from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy that is to be released in March. the harvesting of our homegrown feedstocks. School of Government, both in 1973, but ‘‘He had so many different projects in the These restrictions will undoubtedly lead to a knew from his first semester in law school air,’’ said Judy Bowns, his Cappies colleague consumer tax to help bridge the gap in pro- that he did not want to practice law. The for nine years, ‘‘and the amazing thing is duction that will occur if this policy is put into summer his classmates took the bar exam, that they were completed with a standard of place. he and his wife were on a 40-day honeymoon excellence that was mind-boggling.’’ Even with the advancement of cellulosic trip across Africa. Survivors include his wife of 34 years, The couple moved to Washington in 1973, Janie Strauss of McLean; four children, ethanol, the expansion of the RFS would still and Mr. Strauss took a position as a policy Melanie Yee and Rebecca Strauss of McLean, require 15 billion gallons of renewable fuel to aide for the Department of Health, Edu- Victoria Hays of Fairfax County and Eric come from the only current commercially avail- cation and Welfare (now Health and Human Strauss of Reston; and one granddaughter. able option: grain ethanol. Services). He moved the next year to the f Last year, 20 percent of the U.S. corn crop Presidential Clemency Board, where he di- was used for ethanol production and that rected a research team writing a report on ENERGY INDEPENDENCE AND amount is expected to rise significantly over the impact of the Vietnam War on the draft- SECURITY ACT OF 2007 eligible generation. the next few years. With feed stocks meeting most of our renewable fuel initiatives, the live- A year later, he and Larry Baskir co-wrote SPEECH OF ‘‘Chance and Circumstance’’ (1978), a book stock sector is facing significantly higher feed about the Vietnam-era draft. Their second HON. BOB GOODLATTE costs. Corn and soybeans’ most valuable mar- book, ‘‘Reconciliation After Vietnam’’ (1987), OF VIRGINIA ket has always been, and will continue to be, was said to have influenced President Jimmy IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES the livestock producers. We must ensure that Carter to issue a blanket pardon to draft re- there are not unintended economic distortions Tuesday, December 18, 2007 sisters. to either grain or livestock producers as a re- Mr. Strauss worked at the Department of Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today Energy from 1977 to 1979 and then was offered sult of these sectors prospering from other the position of general counsel of the Selec- in opposition to this reckless energy policy, markets. tive Service System. Political objections de- which will do absolutely nothing to make us The benefits of reduced reliance on foreign railed the offer: Someone pointed out that in energy independent, or lower energy costs. energy sources, stable energy prices, and new the preface to ‘‘Chance and Circumstance,’’ This bill sets us on a dangerous path and ties markets for agricultural products should not be he had admitted helping a classmate eat our hands in a regulatory mess to ensure that replaced with a risk of adding even more in- enough to be too heavy for the draft. we cannot produce domestic energy. creased input costs for livestock producers The day Mr. Strauss heard about his rejec- Like my colleagues, I believe we should find and creating even higher food prices for con- tion, he learned of an opening as a com- solutions to address the growing demand for mittee staffer with Percy. When Republicans sumers. took control of the Senate a year later, in energy. The biggest concern facing the farm- In addition to the above mentioned con- 1980, Mr. Strauss became chief counsel and ers and ranchers of this country is increased cerns, I’m also deeply disappointed that the staff director of the Subcommittee on En- input costs from higher fuel prices and fer- Renewable Fuels Standard would essentially ergy, Nuclear Proliferation and Government tilizer. The U.S. fertilizer industry relies upon shut out one of the largest potential sources of Processes. natural gas as the fundamental feedstock for feedstock for renewable fuel, forest biomass. He had grown up listening to political sati- the production of nitrogen fertilizer. The rest of In total, forests have the potential to rists Tom Lehrer and Stan Freberg and had the U.S. farm sector also depends on signifi- written a few political poems in college, but sustainably produce 370 million tons of bio- making a living with Capitol Steps was, in cant amounts of natural gas for food proc- mass for energy every year. This is approxi- Mr. Strauss’s words, ‘‘a big entrepreneurial essing, irrigation, crop drying, heating farm mately two and one-half times the amount of leap.’’ buildings and homes, the production of crop forest biomass we currently consume in tradi- He would never lack for material, how- protection chemicals, and, let’s not forget, eth- tional forest products. This amount of forest ever—from Sen. Gary Hart and ‘‘Monkey anol biofuel production. In addition to the farm biomass could produce 24 billion gallons of Business’’ to Vice President Dick Cheney sector, the forest products industry relies more ethanol per year, according to very conserv- (‘‘The Angina Monologues’’). In the late on natural gas than any other fossil fuel, and ative estimates. This could supplement, not re- 1980s, he perfected his backwards talk rou- energy amounts to the third largest manufac- tine, ‘‘Lirty Dies,’’ just in time for President place, existing forest products markets. Bill Clinton (‘‘Clinton’s Libido Loco’’) and turing cost for the industry . Unfortunately, H.R. 6 would not allow forest Monica Lewinsky (‘‘My Mama Told Me: Unbelievably, this legislation contains no biomass grown on public lands to be used to You’d Better Sleep Around’’). new energy supplies in it and does nothing to meet the Renewable Fuel Standard, unless Made up mostly of Republicans, with a few relieve the burdens of increased costs on pro- the biomass was removed near buildings, pub- Democrats and independents—‘‘to spread the ducers who provide the food and fiber for lic infrastructure, or areas people inhabit regu- blame a bit,’’ Newport said—the troupe, at American consumers. It seems that the major- larly. This greatly reduces the opportunity for Mr. Strauss’s insistence, has always tried to ity’s plan to move toward energy independ- any substantial market in the energy sector for be equal-opportunity satirists. ‘‘Generally people wanted to be in the show,’’ he said, ence includes limiting domestic energy pro- the byproducts of hazardous fuels reduction. even when they were the ones being spoofed. duction and imposing new government man- These markets could help lower the costs of As Capitol Steps was taking up more of his dates that will prove to be costly and burden- reducing wildfire risks and improving forest time, Mr. Strauss was exploring American some to the American people. health on public lands. With the restrictions in history through the cycle of generations. This legislation would dramatically expand H.R. 6, very little of these byproducts could be With co-author Neil Howe, he wrote ‘‘Gen- the Renewable Fuels Standard RFS, by in- used to meet the Standard. Currently, we erations’’ (1991), ‘‘13th Gen’’ (1993), ‘‘The creasing it to 36 billion gallons by 2022. This have serious issues in our public forests, with Fourth Turning: An American Prophecy’’ initiative is extremely ambitious and could be (1998), ‘‘Millennials Rising’’ (1999), over 90 million acres at risk of wildfire, insects, ‘‘Millennials Go to College’’ (2003) and achieved by tapping all sectors of agriculture and diseases. H.R. 6 would do nothing to help ‘‘Millennials and the Pop Culture’’ (2005). including plant and wood waste, vegetable oil, address these concerns. In 1999, Mr. Strauss received a diagnosis of and animal fat and waste which would result Additionally, H.R. 6 stipulates that, with re- an aggressive strain of pancreatic cancer. in the production of 21 billion gallons of cel- spect to private forests, only forest biomass

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