Sheila Jackson Lee: “Let me, first of all, say how grateful we are that, as the assessment has been made, none of our brave soldiers lost…”

“Let me, first of all, say how grateful we are that, as the assessment has been made, none of our brave soldiers lost their lives last night in the Iranian attack and that it is crucial this week that this Congress assert its authority, its constitutional authority as it relates to any declaration of war, which is our authority under Article I, in spite of the unfortunate determination made by this administration putting American soldiers in danger, diplomats making their families have great concern, and, certainly, jeopardizing the security of the American people. Our soldiers, most of all, we respect and honor, but we must do our job. As we do that, it is important, as well, to recognize that our work must go on. Over the years, I have worked on any number of responses to improving the quality of life of our young juveniles. On any given day, over 48,000 youth in the United States are confined in facilities away from home as a result of the juvenile justice or criminal justice involvement. In many instances, they are not assigned a particular sentence and can stay incarcerated or detained until they are 21. Most are held in restrictive correctional-style facilities, and thousands are held without even having had a trial--no sentence. Mr. Speaker, 92 percent of youth in juvenile facilities are in locked facilities.…”