Hank Johnson, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, lead the designation event for the Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office (Lithonia Post Office) on August 2, 2008.
The Congressman introduced and passed the bill renaming the Post Office to honor all Georgians killed in Iraq but named it for Specialist Addison because he was the first Georgian slain.
Specialist Addison died on March 23, 2003 when his convoy was ambushed. A former honor student at Lakeside High School in Tucker, he served with the 507th Army Ordnance Maintenance Company in Fort Bliss, Texas.
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Hank visited Haiti on Friday, May 16, for a single-day Congressional delegation to examine that country's dire poverty crisis and ensure that U.S. aid is effectively assisting the many destitute Haitians who are struggling to survive every day.
Haiti is one of the world's poorest countries. An estimated 80% of the population lives below the poverty line amid widespread unemployment; more than two-thirds of the workforce are jobless. As global food prices have risen dramatically over the past year, many Haitians' struggles to survive have become more dire.
The U.S. Government is Haiti's largest donor and has provided over a billion dollars over the last 15 years to reduce poverty, illiteracy, malnutrition, and crime. Hank and his colleagues flew to Haiti to ensure that American aid was reaching its targets and effectively easing the lives of the poorest Haitians. (Click here for more information regarding U.S. assistance to Haiti.)
Below is a photo of Hank (far left) and his Congressional colleagues with Haiti's President, René Preval (center, with white beard).
Accompanying Hank on the delegation were Congressman André Carson, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke, Congressman Keith Ellison, Congressman Al Green, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Congressman Gregory Meeks, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Congresswoman Diane Watson, and Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard.
Hank and several colleagues visited Colombia two weeks ago as part of an official Congressional delegation to prepare for the legislative debate surrounding the proposed U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA).
Hank opposes the deal due to President Bush's refusal to sign into law trade adjustment assistance for Americans threatened by international trade, the FTA's insufficient labor standards for Colombian workers, and the deal's potential effects on poor Afro-Colombians who may be driven off of their land as multinational companies seek to exploit Colombian natural resources.
Here are some photos from the trip.
ABOVE: Hank and his colleagues arrive in Colombia on a U.S. Air Force transport.
ABOVE: Hank and his colleagues meet Colombian children.
ABOVE: Hank meets Colombian flower farmers.
ABOVE: Hank discusses the FTA with his legislative director, Sean Foertsch.
Last April, Hank was a member of a congressional delegation that visited Iraq and Afghanistan.
Upon his return, Hank said, "Following the trip I have an even deeper appreciation for our citizenship and the awesome responsibility facing our troops and the families they leave behind. My position regarding Iraq is perhaps firmer and I am absolutely certain that we must set limits on funding and establish deadlines to extract our service personnel as soon as possible."
Posted by: Hank Johnson (March 23, 2007, 03:54 PM)
I am passionately opposed to the war in Iraq. I am committed to bringing our brave troops home and sickened by the prospect of prolonging this tragic and unnecessary conflict.
And today I have made a very difficult decision – by far the most difficult I have ever made in public service.
In our efforts to end this war, we in Congress are faced with imperfect options. The U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Health, and Iraq Accountability Act upon which we voted today is a strong bill and will do much to hasten our withdrawal from Iraq. But it is a flawed bill, an imperfect bill. I had hoped for a more aggressive measure and, in past weeks, considered voting against it.
I was an original supporter of the amendment offered by Congresswoman Barbara Lee, which called for a fully-funded, immediate withdrawal from Iraq. Regrettably, that amendment was rejected before it could even be considered on the floor. It is clear that more aggressive measures to curtail the president’s power would be destined for the same fate in this body.
The harsh reality is that we must deal in the world of the possible, not the ideal. I wish we could do more and do it quickly. But this bill, for all its faults, is the best we can hope to pass at this time. As such, and not without misgivings, I have decided that passing this law is the best first step we can take toward ending the war in Iraq.
Defeat of this bill, even on principled grounds, may ultimately prolong this war. That is something I cannot and will not stand for.
I carefully considered voting against this bill and holding out for something more aggressive and restrictive. But, having watched this debate unfold, I am convinced that such a proposal would not pass. If our true aim is bringing this war to a close as quickly as possible, we must support the most aggressive legislation that is passable, not simply the most aggressive legislation.
If we hold out for the ideal and fail to pass this bill today, we may congratulate ourselves tomorrow for standing up for our principles. But the hard truth is that our principled inaction risks sentencing our brave men and women in uniform to more tours of duty, more street patrols, more IED attacks – all because we failed to distinguish between what we want to do and what we are able to do. This bill will require withdrawal of U.S. armed forces from Iraq if its conditions are not met. It will hold the Iraqi government officials accountable for their action and inaction. It will greatly increase funding for the care of our veterans, who have been neglected upon their return from heroic and frequently traumatic service abroad. It will appropriate deeply needed funds to restore our proud military to a state of strength and readiness.
This is an imperfect bill. But, for all its flaws, it is the right first step -- the right step today.
Posted by: Hank Johnson (February 20, 2007, 06:31 PM)
FRIENDS: I DELIVERED THIS SPEECH on the floor of the House late last week. I strongly believe that President Bush's plan to escalate the war in Iraq is misguided, and I am committed to speaking out against it. I look forward to your feedback and input.
Posted by: Hank Johnson (February 13, 2007, 07:18 PM)
Perusing today's Washington Post opinion page, I stumbled upon this cartoon by Tom Toles:
Nobody wants a nuclear Iran.
But the similarities between what we're hearing from the Bush Administration about Iran today and what we heard about Iraq in the build up to that war are striking.
I have no problem with aggressive diplomacy or brinksmanship, conducted responsibly; I just wish I could be confident that President Bush will protect American interests prudently and carefully.
Recent history doesn't speak to his capacity for measured, well-conceived foreign policy.
Welcome to my blog. Here you’ll find informal commentary, updates, and announcements written by me and my staff.
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--Hank
