[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 16 (Monday, January 29, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H260-H261]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1615
    LANCE CORPORAL DAVID LEE ESPINOZA, LANCE CORPORAL JUAN RODRIGO 
     RODRIGUEZ & SERGEANT ROBERTO ARIZOLA JR. POST OFFICE BUILDING

  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2754) to designate the facility of the United States Postal 
Service located at 2395 East Del Mar Boulevard in Laredo, Texas, as the 
``Lance Corporal David Lee Espinoza, Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo 
Rodriguez & Sergeant Roberto Arizola Jr. Post Office Building''.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2754

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. LANCE CORPORAL DAVID LEE ESPINOZA, LANCE CORPORAL 
                   JUAN RODRIGO RODRIGUEZ & SERGEANT ROBERTO 
                   ARIZOLA JR. POST OFFICE BUILDING.

       (a) Designation.--The facility of the United States Postal 
     Service located at 2395 East Del Mar Boulevard in Laredo, 
     Texas, shall be known and designated as the ``Lance Corporal 
     David Lee Espinoza, Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez & 
     Sergeant Roberto Arizola Jr. Post Office Building''.
       (b) References.--Any reference in a law, map, regulation, 
     document, paper, or other record of the United States to the 
     facility referred to in subsection (a) shall be deemed to be 
     a reference to the ``Lance Corporal David Lee Espinoza, Lance 
     Corporal Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez & Sergeant Roberto Arizola 
     Jr. Post Office Building''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Donalds) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.


                             General Leave

  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Florida?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of this bill, which would name the 
post office in Laredo, Texas, after David Lee Espinoza, Lance Corporal 
Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez, and Sergeant Roberto Arizola, Jr.
  Lance Corporal Espinoza joined the Marine Corps after graduating high 
school in 2019. He was one of the 13 servicemembers killed in a suicide 
bombing during the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. 
He was just 20 years old.
  Lance Corporal Rodriguez served in the Marine Forces Reserve after 
graduating from high school in the year 2000. In 2005, at the age of 
23, he died conducting combat operations in Anbar Province, Iraq.
  Sergeant Roberto Arizola, Jr., served in the U.S. Army and was 
deployed to Iraq in May of 2004. In June of that year, one day before 
he was set to return home, he was killed in an explosion in Baghdad. 
Sergeant Arizola also served as a Border Patrol agent in Laredo, Texas, 
before being deployed to Iraq.
  Lance Corporal David Lee Espinoza, Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo 
Rodriguez, and Sergeant Roberto Arizola, Jr., all died while serving 
our great Nation.
  I support this legislation that names a post office in the memory of 
these American heroes, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2754, introduced by my 
distinguished colleague from Texas, Representative Cuellar, which would 
designate the facility of the U.S. Postal Service located at 2395 East 
Del Mar Boulevard in Laredo, Texas, as the Lance Corporal David Lee 
Espinoza, Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez & Sergeant Roberto 
Arizola Jr. Post Office Building.
  These three brave individuals made the ultimate sacrifice by giving 
their lives for our country.
  Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Texas (Mr. Cuellar).
  Mr. CUELLAR. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. 
Raskin) for yielding. In addition, I thank both Mr. Raskin and Mr. 
Donalds for speaking about these three heroes from Laredo.
  Madam Speaker, this bill honors the lives of Lance Corporal David Lee 
Espinoza, Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez, and Sergeant Roberto 
Arizola, Jr., who gave their lives for our Nation. This bill will 
rename the Del Mar Post Office in Laredo, Texas, which will honor these 
heroes' sacrifices.
  Although words and actions cannot replace these brave individuals, 
dedicating this post office honors their legacies.
  Lance Corporal David Lee Espinoza was born on July 10, 2001, in 
Laredo, Texas, but lived in nearby Rio Bravo, Texas, all his life. He 
graduated from Lyndon B. Johnson High School in 2019. Shortly after 
graduating, he joined the United States Marine Corps.
  On August 26, 2021, during the withdrawal from Afghanistan, Lance 
Corporal Espinoza was one of the 13 servicemembers killed in Kabul, 
Afghanistan. He was only 20 years old.
  Lance Corporal Juan Rodrigo Rodriguez lived in El Cenizo, a town near 
Laredo, where he attended United South High School and was involved in 
Junior ROTC. He led his group to a Junior ROTC national championship in 
1998.
  After graduating from high school in 2000, he joined the United 
States Marine Forces Reserve. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 
23rd Marine Regiment, 4th Division, Corpus Christi, Texas. On January 
13, 2005, Lance Corporal Rodriguez died in action while conducting 
combat operations in the Anbar Province in Iraq. He was only 23 years 
of age.
  Sergeant Roberto Arizola was born December 11, 1973, in Laredo, 
Texas. He graduated from high school in 1992 and enlisted in the United 
States Army in 1996. He was assigned to the 297th Military Intelligence 
Battalion, 513th Military Intelligence Brigade, Fort Gordon, Georgia.
  Sergeant Arizola had been a Border Patrol agent taking care of our 
borders in Laredo, Texas, before he was deployed to Iraq in May of 
2004. On June 8, 2005, a day before he was scheduled to return from 
Iraq, Sergeant Arizola was killed in an explosion near his vehicle in 
Baghdad, Iraq. He was only 31 years of age.
  Through this dedication, we ensure that their heroic legacy remains 
engraved in the hearts of our community, a lasting tribute to their 
selfless service and courage.
  Madam Speaker, I thank not only these brave soldiers but all the 
veterans who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for our Nation. We would 
not be here without them.
  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to 
close.
  I would just say that Lance Corporal Espinoza, Lance Corporal 
Rodriguez, and Sergeant Arizola admirably served our country, and we 
thank them and their families for their extraordinary service.
  Madam Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 2754, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this 
bipartisan bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Donalds) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2754.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this question will be postponed.

[[Page H261]]

  The point of no quorum is considered withdrawn.

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