[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 126 (Thursday, July 25, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H7384-H7385]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        THE PLAGUE OF ROBOCALLS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Babin) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BABIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with great uncertainty. I am 
uncertain that I can make it through this speech without being 
interrupted by a robocall, which has become a daily or, rather, 
sometimes an hourly nuisance.
  For far too long now robocalls and spoofing have become a hindering 
plague upon the phones of millions of Americans. I hear from 
constituents on a daily basis about how their lives are habitually 
interrupted by phony phone calls, and how their cell phones, once seen 
as necessities, are now sources of frustration.
  In many cases, these calls are dangerous and disguised, seeking to 
steal valuable information by tricking the unsuspecting. In other 
cases, these aggravating calls disrupt important business, intrude on 
leisure activities, disturb family dinners and, even worse, are not 
restricted by the time of day.

                              {time}  1030

  These calls have been distracting, irritating, and deceiving 
Americans for long enough, and that is why I have introduced a bill 
called the Double the Enforcement and Fines of Everyone Associated with 
Terrible Robocalls Act, or, in short, the DEFEAT Robocalls Act. This 
bill ensures the harshest penalties for the individuals who are caught 
making illegal robocalls and spoofing calls. Simply said, the bill 
takes all the fines and penalties that those making robocalls currently 
face and doubles them.
  It is time that we hold those who continue scamming Americans all 
across the country liable for their actions in a manner as serious as 
their crime.
  I am encouraged to see Congress' recent legislative actions to 
prevent robocalls from being a daily hindrance, and I call on my 
colleagues to continue moving swiftly to send a bill to the President's 
desk so that we can restore Americans' trust when they answer their 
phones.


          Honoring the Life of Dr. Christopher Columbus Kraft

  Mr. BABIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the life of Dr. 
Christopher Columbus Kraft, who served as NASA's first flight director 
and one of the agency's preeminent leaders.
  Kraft passed away on July 22, 2019, at the impressive age of 95 years 
old and only 2 days after the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon 
landing.
  It is impossible to overstate the vital role that Kraft played in the 
formative years of NASA.
  After graduating from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1944 with a 
bachelor's degree in aeronautical engineering, Dr. Kraft started work 
at NASA's precursor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics; 
and toward the onset of the space race in 1958, President Eisenhower 
established the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and 
tasked Project Mercury with getting America into space and putting a 
man into orbit.
  During this time, Kraft essentially created the entire concept of 
mission control and successfully directed all six crewed Mercury 
missions, including those that made Alan Shepard the first American in 
space and John Glenn the first American in orbit.
  In Project Gemini, Kraft was promoted to the head of mission 
operations. Now in charge of a team of flight directors, he served ``on 
console'' during many historic moments, including Ed White's first 
spacewalk in Gemini 4.
  Achieving all of this proved to the country and the rest of the world 
that America could succeed in space, and certainly set the stage for 
the Apollo missions to the Moon.

[[Page H7385]]

  During Apollo, Chris Kraft soon rose to the position of deputy 
director of the Manned Spacecraft Center, now known as Johnson Space 
Center, which I proudly represent, and in 1972 was promoted to serve as 
the Center director.
  Before Dr. Kraft's retirement in 1982, he contributed to a myriad of 
other projects, including Skylab and the first space shuttle missions.
  While our space program continues to grow by leaps and bounds and our 
hands and hearts reach outward for Mars, we should remember the man on 
whose shoulders we stand and the great debt owed not only by NASA and 
our Nation, but also by our entire planet, to this incredible 
individual. Mr. Speaker, I thank Dr. Kraft for his service to our 
country, ``flight.''

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