House Proceeding 10-22-09 on Oct 22nd, 2009 :: 0:44:30 to 0:48:10
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0:44:27 to 0:44:47( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: mr. olobiondo: i'd like to thank chairman ober mmings. i want to reiterate how imrtant this is for the men and women in the coast guard putting their lives on the line. this is one of those rare situations where we find a double win. it is very good for the coast guard and very good for the united states of america. i thank you very much and yield

0:44:30 to 0:48:10( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: James L. Oberstar

0:44:48 to 0:45:08( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: back the balance of my time. . the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from minnesota. mr. oberstar: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. oberstar: i assure the gentleman from new jersey and michigan that the issue of balance list-ballist water will be dealt with. we have had discussions with

0:45:09 to 0:45:32( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: both the subcommittee staff and water resources staff on the committee on transportation and infrastructure, madam chair, and i believe we can reach an agreement on setting a strong national standard and language that will establish that

0:45:33 to 0:45:55( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: standard to override states' individual standards as we have discussed in our several meetings. and i -- i'm hopeful that we'll be able to do that month and brin that bill through on suspension if the product is acceptable on both sides of the aisle.

0:45:56 to 0:46:17( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: i'm confident we'll get there. i consume the balance of my time to emphasize just a couple of points. one which the gentleman from maryland has already addressed, the chair of the subcommittee on coast guard, and that is die vs. -- diversity in the coast guard. it was a shock me to see

0:46:18 to 0:46:39( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: appallingly low level of minority participation coast guard academy officer level within the coast guard. i visited the coast guard academy, i had lunch with the commandant and with the head of

0:46:40 to 0:47:00( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: the academic program and with very astute, learned woman, african-american, cadet, but she was also not only distinguished by her caliber of academic performance and coast guard career performance, but

0:47:01 to 0:47:22( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: she was practically the only one. and we have to change that. we have included language inspired by mr. cummings to give members of congress the same authority in nominating candidates for the coast guard as we do for the other three service academies.

0:47:23 to 0:47:44( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: i think they'll make a major step toward diversifying the coast guard and reflecting america i . we also reorganized the senior leadership and overall structure of the coast guard.

0:47:45 to 0:48:05( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: we spent a great deal of time in negotiations with the commandant . i admire commandant allen, he's done a superb job for the guard. he resurrected the fema during katrina and put that agency back on a stable footing.

0:48:06 to 0:48:11( Edit History Discussion )

James L. Oberstar: and he, too, wants to restructure the coast guard.