[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 144 (Tuesday, September 10, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5405-S5406]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and 
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-126. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the State of California urging the United States Congress to 
     award the Congressional Gold Medal to the World War II 
     Merrill's Marauders; to the Committee on Banking, Housing, 
     and Urban Affairs.

                     Senate Joint Resolution No. 7

       Whereas, In August 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt 
     and other allied leaders proposed the creation of an American 
     ground unit that would engage in a long range penetration 
     mission in Japanese-occupied Burma to cut off Japanese 
     communications and supply lines and capture the Japanese-held 
     airfield and town of Myitkyina; and
       Whereas, President Roosevelt issued a call for volunteers 
     for ``a dangerous and hazardous mission,'' that was answered 
     by approximately 3,000 American soldiers representing 15 
     ethnic groups from every state, among them Bataan Death March 
     survivors, Nisei interpreters, and Native American code 
     talkers, forming a unit officially designated as the 5307th 
     Composite Unit, code named ``Galahad,'' and later to become 
     known as Merrill's Marauders, after its leader, Brigadier 
     General Frank Merrill; and
       Whereas, Future members of Merrill's Marauders continued 
     their training at Camp Stoneman, a United States Army 
     military facility located in Pittsburg, California, that 
     served as a major staging area for the United States Army in 
     World War II for the Pacific Theater of Operations, and named 
     after George Stoneman, a cavalry commander during the Civil 
     War and a Governor of California; and
       Whereas, In February 1944 the Marauders began their 
     approximately 1,000 mile trek through the dense Burmese 
     jungle, with no artillery support and carrying their supplies 
     on their backs or on the pack saddles of mules, as the first 
     Americans to engage the Japanese on mainland Asia since the 
     1900 Boxer Rebellion; and
       Whereas, Over the course of their five-month trek to 
     Myitkyina, the Marauders fought victoriously against larger 
     and better equipped units of the Japanese 18th Division 
     through 5 major and 30 minor engagements, experiencing more 
     uninterrupted jungle fighting than any other World War II 
     United States combat force, with the exception of the 1st 
     Marine Division that took and held Guadalcanal for 4 months; 
     and
       Whereas, During their march to Myitkyina, the Marauders 
     faced hunger and disease that were exacerbated by inadequate 
     aerial supply drops, while malaria, typhus, and dysentery 
     inflicted more casualties on Merrill's Marauders than the 
     Japanese; and
       Whereas, By August 1944, Merrill's Marauders accomplished 
     their mission, successfully disrupting Japanese supply and 
     communication lines and taking the town of Myitkyina and the 
     Myitkyina airstrip, the only all-weather airstrip in northern 
     Burma; and
       Whereas, After taking Myitkyina, only 130 Merrill's 
     Marauders were fit for duty, and all remaining Merrill's 
     Marauders still in action were evacuated to hospitals due to 
     tropical diseases, exhaustion, and malnutrition; and
       Whereas, For their bravery and accomplishments, Merrill's 
     Marauders were awarded the Distinguished Unit Citation, later 
     designated as the Presidential Unit Citation, and each of 
     Merrill's Marauders also earned a Bronze Star with a V or 
     Valor device; and
       Whereas, Though Merrill's Marauders were operational for 
     only a few months, the legacy of their bravery is honored by 
     the United States Army through the modern day 75th Ranger 
     Regiment, which traces its lineage directly to the 5307 
     Composite Unit, and the Rangers wear the Merrill's Marauders 
     patch as their crest; and
       Whereas, On February 27, 2019, Gilbert Howland, one of the 
     last 13 living members of Merrill's Marauders and a triple 
     Combat Infantryman Badge recipient, who served in World War 
     II, Korea, and two tours in Vietnam, placed a wreath at the 
     Camp Stoneman Memorial at the Pittsburg Historical Museum to 
     commemorate 2019 as the 75th anniversary of the 1944 
     Merrill's Marauders mission in the China Burma India Theater, 
     called the ``forgotten theater of World War II,'' and
       Whereas, On January 30, 2019, United States Representative 
     Peter T. King, introduced House Resolution 906 in the 116th 
     Congress, the Merrill's Marauders Congressional Gold Medal 
     Act, with the Senate Companion bill from Senator Johnny 
     Isakson is expected shortly, in a third and perhaps final 
     attempt at this recognition with only 13 of the original 
     3,000 Merrill's Marauders still living: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of 
     California, jointly, That the Legislature urges the Congress 
     of the United States to act favorably in regard to 
     legislation to award the Congressional Gold Medal, the 
     highest honor Congress can bestow, to Merrill's Marauders; 
     and be it further
       Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies 
     of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the 
     United States, to the Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, and to 
     each Senator and Representative from California in the 
     Congress of the United States.
                                  ____

       POM-127. A resolution adopted by the House of 
     Representatives of the State of Texas urging the United 
     States Congress to support the ratification of the United 
     States-Mexico-Canada Agreement; to the Committee on Finance.

                       House Resolution No. 1160

       Whereas, Texas is the nation's leading trade state, and its 
     future prosperity depends on bolstering trade among our North 
     American partners; and
       Whereas, The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which 
     awaits ratification by the U.S. Congress, will create a more 
     level playing field for American workers, ensure 
     opportunities for trade in U.S. services, and benefit 
     farmers, ranchers, and agribusiness; moreover, it modernizes 
     protections for intellectual property, promotes collaboration 
     in tackling cybersecurity, and ensures that digital trade 
     data can be transferred cross-border with protections for the 
     global digital ecosystem; and
       Whereas, Texas exports totaled $315 billion in 2018; the 
     state accounts for almost 20 percent of the nation's trade 
     total, and 45 percent of Lone Star exports are destined for 
     Mexico and Canada; more than 90 percent of Texas exporters 
     are small businesses, and the USMCA cuts red tape, making it 
     easier for them to tap into foreign markets; approximately 44 
     percent of our state's agricultural products are exported, 
     and the agreement provides enhanced market access for eggs, 
     poultry, dairy, and certain food crops; and
       Whereas, In 2017, Texas energy exports to Canada and Mexico 
     totaled almost $17 billion; the USMCA will promote the 
     stability of this industry by preserving and expanding market 
     integration for greater certainty, efficiency, and 
     interregional investment; and
       Whereas, Texas has more U.S. ports of entry than any other 
     state, and Laredo and El Paso are the two busiest trade 
     stations doing business with Mexico; while offering new 
     commitments for market access, the USMCA also addresses 
     nontariff barriers related to trade in remanufactured goods 
     and import and export licensing; and
       Whereas, Nearly one million jobs in Texas are supported by 
     trade with Mexico and Canada; experts calculate that failure 
     to ratify

[[Page S5406]]

     the USMCA could result in the loss of as many as 300,000 of 
     those jobs; as North America has become more economically 
     integrated, a collaborative approach to trade is absolutely 
     necessary to protect American jobs and workers while 
     fostering innovation; and
       Whereas, The trade landscape has shifted dramatically over 
     the past two decades, and the USMCA is designed to adapt to 
     the new terrain by strengthening our nation's export 
     capabilities and setting the standard for global trade 
     agreements that will spur continued economic dynamism for 
     years to come: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives of the 86th 
     Texas Legislature hereby respectfully urge the U.S. Congress 
     to unite in bipartisan support for the ratification of the 
     United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement; and, be it further
       Resolved, That the chief clerk forward official copies of 
     this resolution to the president of the United States, to the 
     president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of 
     Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the 
     members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request 
     that this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record 
     as a memorial to the Congress of the United States of 
     America.
                                  ____

       POM-128. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the State of Tennessee urging the United States Congress, 
     pursuant to Article V of the United States Constitution, to 
     call a convention of states limited to proposing a balanced 
     budget amendment to the United States Constitution requiring 
     that in the absence of a national emergency the total of all 
     Federal appropriations made by the Congress for any fiscal 
     year may not exceed the total of all estimated Federal 
     revenues for that fiscal year, together with any related and 
     appropriate fiscal restraints; to the Committee on the 
     Judiciary.

                     House Joint Resolution No. 548

       Whereas, Article V of the United States Constitution 
     requires the United States Congress to call a convention of 
     states upon application of two-thirds of the legislatures of 
     the several states for the purpose of proposing amendments to 
     the United States Constitution: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives of the One Hundred 
     Eighth General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, the Senate 
     Concurring, That the Congress of the United States is 
     directed to call a convention of states limited to proposing 
     an amendment to the United States Constitution requiring that 
     in the absence of a national emergency the total of all 
     Federal appropriations made by the Congress for any fiscal 
     year may not exceed the total of all estimated Federal 
     revenues for that fiscal year, together with any related and 
     appropriate fiscal restraints; and be it further
       Resolved, That this application is to be considered as 
     covering the same subject matter as the presently-outstanding 
     balanced budget applications from other states, including, 
     but not limited to, previously-adopted applications from 
     Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, 
     Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, 
     Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, 
     Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas; and that this application 
     shall be aggregated with such applications for the purpose of 
     attaining the applications from two-thirds of the 
     legislatures from the several states necessary to require the 
     calling of a convention, but shall not be aggregated with any 
     applications on any other subject; and be it further
       Resolved, That this application constitutes a continuing 
     application in accordance with Article V of the Constitution 
     of the United States until at least two-thirds of the 
     legislatures of the several states have made applications for 
     similar relief pursuant to Article V; and be it further
       Resolved, That copies of this resolution be sent to the 
     Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Vice President of the United 
     States and President of the U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C.; 
     the Honorable John Boehner, Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives, Washington, D.C.; to each member of the 
     United States Senate and House of Representatives from 
     Tennessee, and to the Archivist of the United States; and be 
     it further
       Resolved, That copies of this resolution also be sent to 
     the presiding officers of the other state legislative bodies 
     in the United States, with the request that the other states 
     join Tennessee in applying to Congress to call a convention 
     of states for the limited purpose proposed in this 
     resolution.
                                  ____

       POM-129. A resolution adopted by the City Council of 
     Portsmouth, New Hampshire urging the United States Congress 
     to pass the Energy Innovation and Carbon Dividend Act of 
     2019; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
       POM-130. A resolution adopted by the City Commission of 
     Miami, Florida, urging the United States Citizenship and 
     Immigration Services to reevaluate an application for 
     permanent resident status; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
       POM-131. A petition from a citizen of the State of Texas 
     relative to the process of revoking naturalized American 
     citizenship; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

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