[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 112 (Tuesday, July 12, 2016)]
[House]
[Page H4668]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                GUN BILL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Curbelo) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the 
bipartisan legislation I have recently filed to keep guns out of the 
hands of terrorists.
  H.R. 5576, the Terrorist Firearms Prevention Act of 2016, is similar 
to the bipartisan agreement championed by Senator Susan Collins, and 
would deny the sale of firearms to individuals on the no fly and 
selectee lists, while ensuring due process is protected for law-abiding 
gun owners.
  It was recently announced the House is unlikely to consider any 
legislation this week pertaining to terrorist access to firearms, and 
for this, I am truly disappointed.
  Mr. Speaker, it is time to do something, and this commonsense, 
bipartisan legislation is a step in the right direction. I will 
continue to work with Members on both sides of the aisle to strike a 
bipartisan compromise that will protect law-abiding citizens' 
constitutional rights, while denying the sale of guns to terrorists.


                     Recognizing Norberto Orellana

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize Mr. Norberto 
Orellana, an incredible young man who, despite facing health challenges 
and long-term homelessness, recently graduated from the School for 
Advanced Studies at the Miami-Dade College Homestead campus with a near 
perfect GPA, a full ride to college, and a dream to go to medical 
school.
  Mr. Orellana has already confronted more hardships in his young life 
than many of us will encounter in our lifetimes, but he does so with a 
positive attitude that inspires all of us.
  Mr. Orellana was born with cerebral palsy, a permanent movement 
disorder caused by abnormal development in the part of the brain that 
controls balance and posture.

                              {time}  1045

  By the time he was 5, he had undergone three major surgeries to 
correct a club foot, lengthen his muscles, and reshape his bones.
  He and his family also battled homelessness, moving from shelter to 
shelter. However, he never allowed his circumstances to dictate his 
attitude or detract from his belief in his own potential. He used his 
time spent in hospitals to fuel his burning desire to become a 
pediatric orthopedic surgeon.
  It is an honor for me to recognize Mr. Norberto Orellana on the 
occasion of his graduation. I cannot wait to see what the future holds 
for such a bright young mind.


                 Comprehensive Strategy to Destroy ISIL

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, the attacks in Orlando, San 
Bernardino, and across Europe are a horrific reminder that the war on 
terror continues, and that radical extremism from groups like ISIL 
remains a danger to all freedom-loving people. It is critical that a 
plan is in place to destroy this enemy before the United States and our 
allies face more senseless violence from cowardly terrorists.
  For these reasons, I have cosponsored Representative Kinzinger's 
bill, H.R. 4869, the Comprehensive Strategy to Destroy ISIL Act of 
2016. This legislation directs the Secretaries of State and Defense to 
submit a joint report to Congress on the strategy to destroy ISIL and 
its affiliates.
  It is imperative the U.S. and our allies defeat these radical 
terrorists on their home turf, and this legislation will require a plan 
from the administration to do just that. I look forward to working with 
my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to pass this critical bill.


    Congratulating Two Florida Keys Community College Student-Teams

  Mr. CURBELO of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize two 
Florida Keys Community College student-teams who won five medals, two 
of them gold, at the annual NASA Engineering Challenges at the Kennedy 
Space Center in Florida.
  This yearly competition is geared towards encouraging students to 
pursue STEM-related fields. The TechKeys and RocketTrees worked 
together to take home the gold in the high-altitude balloon experiment.
  FKCC is one of only three colleges in Florida to receive a $134,000 
grant from the Florida Space Grant Consortium to support the program 
for 2 years. This grant also provides scholarships to each 
participating student. Each of these students is also now eligible for 
an internship at NASA as long as they remain enrolled in a Florida 
college.
  Congratulations to the students and their professor, Dawn Ellis, on 
this prestigious accomplishment. I am proud that they are bringing 
awareness to the importance of science, technology, engineering, and 
math.

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